A Day Without Technology...

is a day in agony. At least, when you are used to being on the Internet several times a day. Last Sunday our power went out. When it came back on, we discovered that our WiFi had gone out. No matter what we did, we could not get it to work. Then we discovered problems with the cable modum. Then the computer virus(s). We are finally back in working order (Thursday) but the main PC is still not 100 percent healthy. Hmmm... I work for a specialty pharmacy... maybe there is a pill I can give it?

A few days ago, it snowed. Nothing unusual for Michigan. As I type this, we are in the middle of a thunderstorm. Very strange!

Yesterday was my birthday, and I received two fantastic presents. First, tickets to see Jesus Christ Superstar at Whiting Auditorium. I am SO excited! Second, I learned that my paternal grandmother was a quilter.

Now, you might be wondering why I am just learning this. You see, I was adopted at four months of age. Yesterday I received an email from a first cousin in Texas, who told me about OUR grandmother's love for quilting. You have no idea how that touched me. None at all. Sadly, she passed away last year and I will not have the opportunity to see her stitch or learn from her. I hope to see a quilt she has made.

As an adoptee, bits of your family history are pieced together with little parts and tiny stitches. If you are lucky, you will have a potholder-sized picture of your biological history. I am up to a wallhanging. I know my biological mother, my siblings on her side, and a few of her relatives. I have exchanged emails with a first cousin on my paternal side and, years ago, spoke briefly with my father. I know I am part Norwegian and part Cherokee.

Some quilts take six months. Others take a lifetime. They are all precious.

Michigan Quilts Webring

Announcing the NEW Michigan Quilts Webring!

If you are a quilter, shop owner, quilt guild, longarm quilter, quilt wannabe, or anything quilt related in the State of Michigan, this is for you!

To join, go to http://www.ringsurf.com/ring/nr3080/ and add your website or blog! It's as easy as that!

***Sponsored by Brookside Creations

An Old Estate in Overbrook, Philadelphia

I am fascinated by older homes.  When I see one in person from the outside, I wonder who lived there.  What were they like?  How many were in the family?  What went on there? 

This estate is/was in Overbrook, Philadelphia.  I don’t know if Overbrook was the name of the street or a section of town, but my mom’s Great Aunt and her husband (Estelle Klicker Scott and Carl Scott) owned this home for a long time.  Carl was related to the Heinz family… you know, Heinz catsup?  They were fairly well-to-do, and made a lot of their wealth during the Great Depression by buying up homes that were being foreclosed upon (yes, it happened back then, too!).  They rented them out and eventually sold them for a much higher price. 

I don’t know when these pictures were taken, and I don’t know much about old cars, but probably someone can give me a rough estimate of the year based on the cars. 

While I never visited this home or met Carl, I know that Grandma Estelle liked nice things.  In the photo of their living room you can see the beautiful furniture they had.  Carl’s photo is on the low table in front of the large picture window.  Over the fireplace is a porcelain figure that I have circled for you to see.  When Estelle died, it was given to my mom.

It is now in my house.  It’s not something I would have ever gone out and bought for myself, as I’m not really into things like this.  But I’d never part with it.  It reminds me of an earlier time in American history.  It makes me think about family history and the way life used to be. 

I wonder what people will think of us 75 years from now?

If you have knowledge of the Philadelphia area, I’d love to know more about this house and what exactly “Overbrook” refers to.  Please contact me by commenting on this post or by emailing me at caronmosey at gmail dot com.

Colors of Spring

I am SO looking forward to spring!

These colors make me want to start a Baltimore Album quilt...

but I refuse to do so until I have a few more of my UFO's completed.

I WILL NOT GIVE IN TO THE TEMPTATION!!!

I WILL NOT GIVE IN TO THE TEMPTATION!!!

I WILL NOT GIVE IN TO THE TEMPTATION!!!

I WILL NOT GIVE IN TO THE TEMPTATION!!!

Guest Blogger on Subversive Stitchers

I have been asked to be a guest blogger on the Subversive Stitchers Blog, and I jumped at the invitation.

After asking Dawn what she might like me to write about, she gave me some thoughts...

"I have no specific direction although you have great experience with publishing books, winning awards, being part of the quilt community, I would imagine you have much to share. I always enjoy being surprised at what my guests bring to the blog. So whatever you want to write as long as it relates to fabric art."

So I thought I'd ask my readers... What would YOU like to have me write about? Please drop me a comment under this post before Feb. 25th and I will take your ideas into consideration. AND, because Feb. 25th is my birthday, I will randomly select one person's name from those who respond and send them a "It's my birthday" surprise. Make sure I know how to contact you if you are selected!

Now, please leave my blog and go visit Subversive Stitchers Blog, It's one of my favorites!

Appliqué and Embroidery

I love the look of applique and embroidery together, don’t you?  These are a few close-ups that were requested by one of my Facebook friends in the group Amazing Appliqué.  They are from my quilt “Floral Star of Bethlehem.”  

These aren’t the greatest photos, but they show four different parts of the quilt.  I wish I had a wall large enough to hold this quilt.  Alas, I don’t, and it sits on a shelf in the closet collecting dust.  Maybe someday!

A Beautiful Thing

A hungry baby doesn't care where his nourishment comes from. All that matters is that his needs are met. Bless you, Salma, for opening the window and showing a natural way for mothers to help starving children.

A Touch of Blue

In the 1970’s and early 80’s, I had a lot of blue in my house.  Country blue!  We had a lot of antiques, and everything was decorated Country Style.  Funny how times and tastes change, isn’t it?   Now, whenever I look at something in those shades of blue, I instantly remember the rooms, the baskets, the country knick knacks… and my little boys running all over the house.

It took awhile to paper piece this little block last night, but it was fun, as it brought back all those memories.  It’s G9, Mary’s Journey.

Semi-Productive Saturday - but that's okay

Usually Saturday mornings find me getting up and getting going. I do some writing, get breakfast done, shower, and hit the sewing machine. Not so today! I had a rough work week with a major RFP to get out the door late yesterday. I was tuckered out, and slept in until almost 7 AM. That hardly ever happens!
So instead of sewing, I putzed around cleaning this, wiping that, covering the grey hairs on my head with chemicals, getting groceries... It was that kind of a day. Now it's almost 7 PM, and rather than sew, I think I'm going to dive back into this book.

I picked this up a week or two ago. A Walk Across America was written by Peter Jenkins, and it's hard to put down. From Peter's website:

A WALK ACROSS AMERICA by Peter Jenkins is the story of the first half of Peter's walk across America. Just out of college and disillusioned he sets out to discover his country and himself with his beloved dog, Cooper, the half Alaskan malamute. The strength of this book are the people and the places Peter finds and writes about vividly as he explores America. Published in 1979 it went onto the NY Times Best Sellers list where it stayed for three months.

If you like this kind of story, visit his website and read more about this book... and the others he has written.

Sometimes you just need a non-quilty day.

Cottages and Porches

I'm a sucker for a quaint cottage and a nice porch. I love looking at photos (inside and out) of cottage-style homes and relaxing porches. I even save some on my computer when I spot them... you never know when your eyes need something friendly to look at! Even though I don't have it myself, I love the "shabby chic" look. White, off-white everything appeals to me. Something about the absence of color gets me every time. White beadboard has a quaint look to it. I'd fill my home with beadboard if I could get away with it. Those regular, parallel lines, the white paint, the grooves between the board take me back to a time when I was young and would visit with my grandparents in their home. I have a small amount of it in my bedroom furniture.

I'd love a whole kitchen of this kind of look! I love the texture of old houses. When surfing quilt blogs, I'm drawn to any that have the word "cottage" or "porch" in the title.

Here are four I read regularly:

• Brown Dirt Cottage
• Covered Porches and Wooden Screen Doors
• Quilting At The Cottage
• Vintage Cottage Home

Have a seat on the porch swing, sip some coffee and surf through some great cottage blogs. I'm going surfing for some photos of charming, old homes...

Just because.

And Yet, There's More

More snow. Yes friends, Mid-Michigan is getting more snow today. This has been the snowiest winter I can remember having in years! And so freaking cold! I keep trying to think of warm days, sitting on the deck enjoying the sunshine, listening to the birds, playing with my flowers. Ahhh, that's better already!

Here's another block for my Dear Sammy Jane quilt. This was an easy block to do... around and around, paper piecing with itty bitty pieces. I love the crisp orange with the beige! The block is G4- Shutter Bug, with 29 pieces.

An Award? For me?

I've been awarded the Premio Dardos Award from Dawn at Subversivestitch.

This award is for bloggers who distinguish themselves for showing cultural values, ethics, great and fun writing skills, as well individual values, through their creative writing.

The rules are:

1) To accept and show the distinct image of the Premio Dardos Award.

2) Accept the award by posting it on your blog along with the name of the person that has granted the award and a link to his/her blog.
3) Pass the award to another 15 blogs that are worthy of this acknowledgment, remembering to contact each of them to let them know they have been selected for this award.

Thank you, Dawn for being a reader of Michigan Quilts! And thanks to the following individuals and their blogs for giving me some awesome, regular reading through their writing. You make my day/s!

1. Pat at Bird Nest on the Ground



2. Wendy at Ivory Spring



3. Mimi at JuJuBaby



4. Ronda at Ronda's Creative Quilting



5. Tanya at Taniwa



6. Jenny at Postcards from Cairo



7. Deb at More Whiffs, Glimmers & Left Oeuvres



8. Libby at A Simple Girl



9. Craig at Jasper Jack's Pressure



10. Tracey at Decaf, Please



11. Carla at Feathered Fibers



12. Vickie at Field Trips in Fiber



13. May at Abyquilt



14. Lucy at Quilting With the Past



15. Nanci at Quilting at the Cottage



16. Jeff at Notes From the Journey

If you haven't yet visited these blogs, please make it a point to do so. These are on my regular blog-read list. They are great blogs for either visual and artistic inspiration, thought and reflections, or connecting with people in other cultures.

Yes, my list has 16 blogs mentioned, and the rules said to tag 15. Jeff is busy shepherding a large flock at Flushing United Methodist Church... but I wanted to share his inspirational and thought-provoking blog with you. It's worth reading!

When to Copyright Your Quilt

Should you copyright your quilts?

When do you know the time is right?

I have one quilt that is copyrighted. It is "Jack's Beanstalk," shown here on exhibit somewhere. I knew to copyright this quilt when I finished it and decided to enter it in shows all over God's green earth. I knew to copyright it when I wanted it for the cover of my first book. It was destined to be seen by a lot of people, and even though I was pretty sure the folksy look of the quilt would be hard to replicate by others, I wanted to make sure that my original remained an original. To try and put a copyright on a Snail's Trail quilt... or an Irish Chain... or Winding Ways... or Log Cabin would be futile. You can't do it. They are traditional designs that are in the public domain.

If you're thinking about copyrighting a quilt, here's a GREAT post for further information. Please, while you are on the Lost Quilts website, take a good look around. The website is a lost and found for quilts.

Jack's Beanstalk, copyright 1984 Caron Mosey

A Year... Already?

How did we get from this...











to this already?




Happy First Birthday, Samantha!