Tangents

Some of you may know of my interest in genealogy and won't be surprised that, despite my being anxious to attempt working on the church I showed you last time, I have gone off in a whole 'nother direction and I've been playing about with my Vessey/Vesey line of the family (my maternal grandmother side of the family).  I had one of 'those' moments in family tree research where something totally unexpected fell into my lap and now I'm a bit obsessed.  A very distant cousin who lives in the area where that particular branch of the family originated is an avid researcher (made much easier because he actually lives where most of it happened) and has so kindly shared all his information with me.  Would you believe I now have a 2 1/2" stack of paper, printed double side, that's waiting for me to input into my family tree?  Like I said - a moment - one that doesn't happen often!  I have hours (& hours!!) of happy inputting into Ancestry ahead of me.  So....as I said.....a tangent.

Hard to show pictures of inputting though!

So....in the spirit of having some pictures to show you, I thought I'd share what's appearing to be becoming a collection (albeit not through any fault of my own!).  Altho' magpies don't look quite like ravens or crows, it seems that some people think they do!

Created by Lynda Noe

This one is a wonderful piece of fabric

art measuring about 9 x 11"

This guy is quite large - wrought iron -

measuring about 20 x 10"

And this one is about 9" tall

and is made from resin

This anonymous quote made me laugh..."Of course I talk to myself when crafting...I need expert advice"

A little peek

Today I'm showing you a peek of the next landscape quilt inspiration and I have to say I'm SOOO excited about this one!  

Image courtesy of Euvah Bryant,

(cajunsis.blogspot.com)

Used with her kind permission

Thank you Euvah....I hope I can do this justice!

The church was in Chackbay, Louisiana and, according to Euvah, has been torn down since this photo was taken.  So many of these marvelous structures are being destroyed, whether by design or by vandalism, and I think that's why I want to recreate them as best I can.  

Another anonymous quote for you..."If you want to make positive changes in your life, don't sit on the couch and wait for it.  Go out.  Make a change.  Smile more.  Be excited.  Do new things.  Throw away what you've been cluttering.  Do not follow negative people or social media.  Go to bed early.  Wake up early.  Be fierce.  Don't gossip.  Show more gratitude.  Do things that challenge you.  Be brave."

Heigh ho, Heigh Ho....

....it's potlucking I will go!!  In my ongoing quest to attempt to use up some of my stash/stuff I am trying to find uses for orphan crazy quilted blocks I received in round robins over the years and this is a little project I did to use up a block.  Our local quilt guild has a couple of catered lunches each year and we are required to tote along our plate and utensils so I thought it would be nice to have something for the purpose rather than relying on an ugly plastic bag.  Here it is...

Above shows the carrier closed,

and below you can see the compartments.

To the left of the fork there's another little pocket that 

will hold either a folded napkin or a plastic

bag should you need to take your dishes home

dirty.

The eagle-eyed among you might recognize part of it and will remember the table runner I made using a hunk of an old quilt and some doilies I had in my stash (if you don't remember, have a look at my post HERE).  I wasn't overly thrilled with the runner and didn't have a use for it, so....I cut it up and part of it got re-purposed into the potluck carrier.  This project used up - an orphan block; all but a little piece of the lining fabric I used; a piece of bias tape I had in my stash AND (of course) part of the table runner.  Win/win I would say!

Now I can start my next project and I have to say I am SOOOO excited about what's coming!  Hopefully there will be a little peek for you on Monday.  

Another of the anonymous quotes..."Once you've made the decision to move on, don't look back.  You will never find your future in the rear view mirror"

Peeping Toms?

I heard a tap tapping noise at my sewing room window and looked up to see this....

How could you not love the sight of those faces peeking in at you!  (sorry about the picture quality - taken through the window screen).  

I've been working on this crocheted baby afghan for a few weeks now - an evening, in front of the tv, project.  My friend is expecting a new grandbaby in March so this is going to wrap the new wee one....

close-up of pattern....

I may have shared this quote from St. Francis of Assisi with you before (forgive me if I re-tread one from time to time - it's hard to remember them all!)...."He who works with his hands is a laborer.  He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman.  He who works with his hands, his head, and his heart, is an an artist"

Almost finished!

Don't forget that I now respond

to your comments directly here on the

blog, so you will need to check the

previous post(s) for those!

I just finished the latest landscape - except for the framing.  This one will be finished with a frame, rather than as a wall hanging, so now the quest is on to find a frame that will suit.  Silly me - should have bought the frame first!  Oh well....

SOLD!

...and, to refresh your memory, this is the photo I was working from...

Another great anonymous quote..."My housekeeping style is best described as "There appears to have been a struggle"

A little bit of stitching

It feels so good to get back to stitching and here is a photo of a little bit of the progress I've made (can't show you the whole thing because the other side is where I'm working)....

I came across this and thought it might serve well as a quote for today..."We all get heavier as we get older because there's a lot more information in our heads.  So I'm not fat, I'm just really intelligent and my head couldn't hold any more so it started filling up the rest of me.  That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it!!"

I'm back, and thank you

Thank you so much for all your messages of concern over the past few days.  They are all very much appreciated and I hope you didn't miss my presence both here and  commenting on your blogs too much.  I did read all your posts but simply didn't have time to leave comments for you.

A little note of explanation - a very dear friend became very ill and passed away quite suddenly.  He was the principal caregiver for his wife who is suffering from Alzheimer's so it was necessary to find a safe place for her until appropriate arrangements can be made for her long term care.  They have no family here in Canada and there are no children so we have stepped up to help out as we can.  

Needless to say there has been precious little stitching happening here but I'm slowly returning to it now.  It's certainly nice to get back to what resembles normal here at Chez Magpie!

Altho'....mentioning 'normal'.....just to add interest to our lives....in the middle of all the running about I walked into our storage/pantry room last week and was met with a face full of moths.  Apparently *someone* (not mentioning any names...but it wasn't moi) left the lid ajar on the container of bird seed and we 'had a hatching'.  Oh my word - there's been a LOT of them!!  Interesting fact for you....did you know one single moth can lay up to 400 eggs?  And just to show that we don't do things by half measures, we had to remove every.single.thing. from the room....spray with bug killer.....throw out all kinds of food....spray again...wash every.single.thing....swat, squash, mash and otherwise decimate the little critters all over the house.  Wash walls, ceiling, floor and ultimately return everything to the storeroom (EXCEPT for the bird seed which is now outside!!!!!!!!).  As *someone* (see above) was returning the very last thing to the shelf, a bottle of beer took its life in its hands and did a swan dive off the shelf.  Cleaned up glass.....re-washed walls....and floor...

We purchased some traps and between those and the fly swatter we're gaining on them.  Now, fingers crossed that one of the little bug-grrrs doesn't manage to lay 400 more eggs....

The quote of the day is from Reeva Steenkamp...."I've realized that although Valentine's Day can be a cheesy money-making stint to most people, it's a day of expressing love across the world.  It doesn't have to only be between lovers, but by telling a friend that you care, or even an old person that they are still appreciated"