MAGPIE'S MUMBLINGS
Friday, May 30, 2008
Fun putzing
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Blind-numbing & book page
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
I'm SO lucky to have friends!

Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Maybe....maybe?....maybe????....WHEW!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Awwww....

Friday, May 23, 2008
Yard sale find
I was an Avon rep for a little over eight years and managed to earn one of these figurines for each year. They are made to honour the very first Avon rep (Mrs Albee) and are given out to those reps who 'make' President's Club (meaning you reach a certain target of sales). They are very much like the Royal Doultons, but the glaze on these is more matte. I think they are more valuable because we needed to work so hard in order to earn one.
I really wish I knew how this one came to be here from South America.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Oh Oh..wet noodle time!

and I really need a 12-Step program for bookaholics.
I did it again. I'm putting the entire blame on my friend Florence who found a new-to-me J. Marsha Michler crazy quiltng book (called Crazy Quilt Decor) and I absolutely have to have a copy in my collection. So...I HAD to go to the bookstore, right? While I was there I checked out the used book section (you never know, the book I wanted might have been there, right???). It wasn't, but Altered Curiosities was. It followed me to the checkout and insisted on coming home with me.
As if that weren't bad enough, I ended up ordering the brand-new J.M.Michler book that's just out. They couldn't find the Decor one I was originally after so...I checked out the used books on Amazon when I got home.
There's no hope...I'm a lost cause.
Book Specs: 'Altered Curiosities' by Jane Ann Wynn c2007 published by North Light Books ISBN 13:978-1-58180-972-5
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Mumbling (again)
So....
Guess What?.....
I Shall Mumble!!!
1. There's no picture today because the only thing I managed to actually do today was put a few rows of knitting on my Einstein sweater. Right now it just looks like a reddish-coloured blob of knitting.
2. The other thing I did was to clean out my china cabinet and the buffet in the dining room. I managed to put a few things aside for the yard sale though, so it wasn't a complete waste of time.
3. It's cold. We still have the furnace on and it's simply just too cool to contemplate putting any plants in the garden. The 'orchard' (all of 4 little trees) is in blossom but we're so afraid the frost will kill them off. I suppose that once we do get some warmth it will hit with a vengeance.
4. Some sites for your reading pleasure:
- http://www.junkcreation.com there are some interesting things being done with what a lot of us would call 'junk'
- http://www.needlenthread.com Mary Corbet writes an interesting blog about needlework and today she has an entry showing (and describing) a beautiful piece of goldwork. Well worth seeing!
- http://blog.craftzine.com another site that talks about a myriad of crafty things...a lot made with recycled items
- http://recycledcrafts.craftgossip.com another fun site about recycling objects into art
- http://alliesinstitches.blogspot.com I know I've pointed you here before, but do go and check out Allison's latest crazy quilt creation. She does very beautiful work!!
5. Finally - for those who read Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's blog ( www.yarnharlot.ca) and/or Franklin at http://the-panopticon.blogspot.com note the birthday celebration that will be taking place to celebrate one of 'those' birthdays for the Harlot. Franklin will be coming to Toronto and doing a photoshoot for his 1000 Knitters project and has left a slot for 120 local knitters to be photographed...all in honour of her birthday. There's lots of fun planned, so if you want to read more about it check out Stephanie's blog for more info.
Tuesday, May 20, 2008
May TIF done and Orchid Cactus
I finished the TIF May challenge piece! I have to admit that pale pink is not one of my favourite colours so this one was a bit harder to work on than the others have been. I must make mention that in the bottom left corner I've used a treatment from 'Treasury of Crazy Quilt Stitches' by Carole Samples (in the ivory area right on the corner). Another of her patterns is to the right of the deep pink at the bottom (looks somewhat like stars). The seam treatment between the ivory and deep pink on the lower right is from the 'Elegant Crazy Quilt Seam Treatments' e-book by Pam Kellogg. The little motif directly above the seam treatment (between it and the ciggie silk) is also from Pam. http://kittyandmedesigns.blogspot.com/ for more information on the ebook. Picture is clickable to enlarge.
Friday, May 16, 2008
Mumble and TIF
- Sharon B has created a new site which is open to anyone interested in textiles. It very much puts me in mind of the format that they are using on Ravelry and I wonder if this will be as wildly successful. Anyway, more info can be found at http://stitchinfingers.ning.com So far it's looking pretty good.
- Susan Lenz has a bunch more atc's and postcards up for trade for the CyberFyber Exhibition. These are available only to those who didn't trade in the first round. From my experience it's well worth trading with her because her work is wonderful! Check out the following sites for more info: http://cyberfyberexhibition.blogspot.com and http://cyberfyberexhibitioninvitationalart.blogspot.com and http://artbysusanlenz.blogspot.com (her personal blog)
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Incoming!!

Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Lookit this!!
Monday, May 12, 2008
Waaaahhhhhh
I want a housekeeper!!! However, on the good side, I have reduced my stash to fit into just 6 drawers as opposed to all these shown in the picture. On the bad side, see that pile on the floor and the worktable? What you can't see is that there are three garbage bags full of 'stuff' in behind the pile you CAN see!! It's just plain disgusting.
Friday, May 09, 2008
I'm SUCH an enabler!!
Marie has a blog at http://sredeluxe.blogspot.com and Cathy will soon have a whole lot of one-of-a-kind pieces for sale on E-bay. Once she gets everything set up, hopefully she will send me the info and I can pass it on to you. I can guarantee her work is awesome because it's pretty obvious the creative gene runs in the family.
Marie has been busy creating the most wonderful seam treatments using beads and word has it that she will be selling her designs over the internet. I'll keep you posted on that one too.
Tuesday, May 06, 2008
Heaps and Piles!!
Now the huge decision has to be made as to what I'm going to DO with the leftovers. Donna at http://quiltpixie.blogspot.com is using her stash to create a wonderful cq-ish quilt, which is a great idea. However...I have too MUCH and I simply don't have the time to sew it all up into anything. Fortunately we have a fabric recyling pickup in our area, so I suspect that's where the majority of this will go.
HOW can one woman manage to accumulate so much??!!
Monday, May 05, 2008
Hi-Ho...a shovelling we will go!
Friday, May 02, 2008
Vignette?
Further on the mumbling part of this post....
1. I covet the knitting needles available on this site: (www.signatureneedlearts.com) I will continue to covet them from afar because they are way expensive!!
2. Here's another interesting possibility for you: www.supercook.com You can put in a list of ingredients and it will give you recipie ideas.
3. If you're into mixed media check out: http://timholtz.typepad.com
4. Here's another: http://www.antiquepatternlibrary.org
Have fun!!
Thursday, May 01, 2008
I impressed myself today!
I have the TIF challenge already pieced for May and today is just the 1st!! Of course that's not to say that I will have it embellished anytime soon. Unfortunately the colours seem to be showing up dark in this picture. Some of these colours were difficult to find in my stash, particularly the light blue-ish colour, however I think I have come relatively close. Luckily I have a pretty cigarette silk that 'goes' perfectly.