Dryer Balls!!

What do you do when you have all this

 

aged fiber?  Yes, aged fiber, that has been sitting around for years!  We are talking ten years or more and you know, just know, there is no way this is ever going to be spun...of course, the colors are nice and the fiber is nice, but REALLY?  And then the idea hits you..............

you remember you have all these old panty hoses!  yes, do you remember panty hose? and when is the last time you wore panty hose?  Like forever ago!!  Perfect..............

you take that aged fiber (keep reminding myself, it has been aged!) and you roll it into a nice firm ball

and place it in those aged (yes, they are perfectly aged and of no use now!) panty hose; tie a knot between each ball and then you throw them into the washer with hot water--yes, very hot water!  Then you throw them into the dryer--with some towels and they bang around and around until....

you pull them out! and they are dry, firm little balls of solid aged fiber!  Oh my!  What fun that was!  and they actually work with drying clothes--no use for dryer sheets anymore!  If I want scent, it will be the scent I buy to put on them............................oh, so

adictive!  I have to make more!  Isn't there some more aged fiber just waiting to be used!  Of course, there is.................more balls of aged fiber into aged panty hose into the washer and dryer.  What the heck is that fiber doing--coming out the pores?  It's okay

because the hose pulls off nicely and we have more of those

wonderful dryer balls!  Guess what everyone is getting for Christmas???

Time to Quilt-- Do You Have Any Orphans--Blocks, That Is????

What do you do with all those blocks you make that aren't used in a quilt? How about all those extra flying geese, 4patches, 9patches, sundry little blocks you make? You just can't throw them away! How about all those projects begun and not finished? I have one box of UFOs! So, I was very excited and elated when our Bonnie Hunter Club meeting was discussing "orphan" blocks! and how to use them in a quilt. We were talking about backs for quilts; but once, you see how these are laid out--I'm thinking QUILTS!! Here we go:

First off, I bought a flannel backed tablecloth--purchased at discount price!  I've taken some of my 'orphan' blocks and laid them out.  Some of these have been saved for years! And now, we are ready to stitch!  How about this??  All I need to do is add borders and we are set--I'm thinking this will make a nice quilt for gift giving!

Our fearless leader, Jessica, laid this one--have clever!  Begin in one corner and go diagonally!  and alas, Jessica has no qualms about cutting her big blocks in halves or thirds or fourths!  I'm saying "horrors!"   But, it works! and you are using up those 'orphans'!

But, look at this one!  And she has such a nice collection of 'orphan' blocks, she also has a color collection--this one is pink and browns.  So, sort all your colors and go from there!

Can you believe?  It looks great!

 

Here is another one she has laid out--in batiks.  and she cut some of these into halves and quarters to get a good layout

She began with the large block in the middle, set on diagonal.  And added cut log cabins as corners to square up the block

This one is all green, black and red with some gray thrown in for good measure

This is Judy's 'orphan' block collection--what to do with this assortment?

Okay, we are off and having fun with the layout!  one large block in the middle--other blocks cut in half for the added border--looking good!

We can't believe how many 'orphans' Jessica has!  Here we are working with her purple/gold collection

Then we found another block for the center that would work just as well

keep on building!

Doesn't matter if the block is not all there; just hang it off the side or top.

Here is another one that we worked on from Cheryl's stash--

and I had one more started--it was nice to get some advice from the "master" Jessica and fellow quilter gals.  This is certainly a fun thing to do--it is definitely Play Time when you bring out the 'orphans' and make them a family! 

 

Love

We have made it!  Thirty-one (31) days of August Break!  Writing each day has been therapeutic--an exercise for the brain, needless to say.....................................scheduled routine for the person who likes to 'do it on her own time'!  This has definitely been a "labor of love"!

I "Love" knitting--anywhere, anytime!

I "Love" Quilting--using my mind and hands for the benefit of others!

 I "Love" spinning!  Plying the colors through my fingers, knowing these fibers will yield a thread for someone else to "love"!

 

There is a long list of LOVES

 

friends

good food

animals

warm days

cool nights

travel to far off places

staying at home

reading a good book

watching a movie

and

on

and

on

So many THINGS in life to "Love" but most important

is

true LOVE for my FAMILY and GOD!

Soft

SOFT.................

is

 

 

nose of a donkey

touch of newborn

friendship

smooth lapping waves onshore

slow approaching night.

SOFT!

Nature

From sunrises to

sunsets--

Nature surrounds us

Something New--Recipe!

We are trying something new to us.................. baking with protein powder.  Brown headed daughter is on a protein kick--recipes loaded with protein--meats, etc. loaded with protein.............
Thank goodness for the internet--you can find anything there, just with a few strokes of the finger tips. 

Latest recipe from Spark Recipes

Rich Chocolate Protein Cupcake

Submitted by: PHILLYGIRL2012
 Introduction

This is a healthier version of a chocolaty cupcake made with protein powder for additional protein hit. 

Minutes to Prepare: 30

Minutes to Cook: 14

Number of Servings: 12

Ingredients

1 cup whole-grain oat flour
(I ground oatmeal in a blender to make this)
(use 1.5 cups if not using protein powder)
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (1 cup if not using chocolate protein powder)
1/2 cup chocolate protein powder
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
(I used 1cup 2%milk + 1tbs lemon juice. Let stand 5 minutes)
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 large egg whites
1.5 cups unpacked brown sugar (either light or dark. I used a mix of both.)
1 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt, sweetened
(I used Greek 2% plain which adds to the fat count

Guess you could say the cupcakes baked up nicely!  And for another new--peanut butter frosting--delish! 

I used this product ,to add more protein, to the frosting mixture.  It works really well.  BH daughter likes to add this to plain yogurt--2 Tbsp. to 1 Tbsp. water, stir and you have it!  Brown headed girl enjoyed her birthday treat!

Lines ///////\\\\\\\\\

The notion of line or straight line was introduced by ancient mathematicians to represent straight objects with negligible width and depth. Lines are an idealization of such objects. Until the seventeenth century, lines were defined like this: "The line is the first species of quantity, which has only one dimension, namely length, without any width nor depth, and is nothing else than the flow or run of the point which […] will leave from its imaginary moving some vestige in length, exempt of any width. […] The straight line is that which is equally extended between its points....................................This according to Wikipedia..........................................did you get that!?


And      

there are lines drawn in the sand....................................................pick up lines................................
sport lines,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,line games.....................................................geometry lines /////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// cruise lines..................................line from a play...........................................................that 'blurred lines'......................................................
airlines...............................................green line in the subway.................................................and we could go on and on...............................................

Morning

GOOD MORNING!

Morning is such a wonderful time of the day--that is IF you are a morning person!

So from me, who is a morning person, let's begin our day....................

 

 

From our kitchen window, I see the sun breaking through the screen and shades as I prepare my coffee...........ahh, a good start to the day!

And our day begins with our coffee and the computer--time to check the world events and make contacts with those in far off places

As I sip my coffee and work on the PC, I can look out the back slider and across the deck to listen and watch the kiddos as they line up, waiting for that school bell to ring...........................

and then

All

is

Quiet again!

Little..........................Pieces...........................Whole

And now we begin

with these

 

little pieces

to make this segment

to continue

with this whole 100"x104"

See what happens when you begin with just one Little piece.................

Memory!

Memory.................... of the those little ones as they grew through the ages!
Memory.....................of past lives and things that we have accomplished or not accomplished!
Memory......................fun times with family and friends
Memory.......................sad happenings
Memory.......................phone numbers, birthdates, special occasions
Memory.......................can be selective
Memory.......................is stored on my computer
Memory.......................can be improved
Memory.......................sometimes is short termed
Memory.......................can be long term
Memory........................is the sum total of what we remember
Memory......................is our experiences
Memory.......................is our skills, habits, impressions

Adornment!

Let's think about adornment.............Adornment is the only magazine published in the United States dedicated to the discussion of ancient, antique, and period jewelry, costume jewelry and contemporary studio jewelry. It also reports on objects of precious materials and historic costume--oh, how I LOVE browsing through this magazine.  The photos are colorful and the ideas bountiful! 

How do you Adorn yourself?

 

Let's pick out a color palette and go from there................ 

The stores carry quite a collection of ways to "adorn" yourself but I'm partial to being just

looking at the way the world adorns itself!

Shadow!

 

This morning I took a walk.....................................

with my shadow!

Just me, myself and my shadow.................................took a walk!