tula tuesday::week #24

 block #37

 block #54

 block #36

 block #31

block #77

all from tula pink's city sampler

100 modern quilt blocks,

here.

inspired by lizi boyd's

children's book,

i wrote you a note, 

here.

#persist
#stitchlove
#chooselove
#notmypresident
#copingwiththreadandfabric
#thisquiltstaysatgrandmas

xo

giveaway redraw and an anniversary gift

A year ago today our daughter Lindsey was married to her beau Scott.

Her bouquet was made with flowers from Stitchdown Farm.

Soon after the wedding, I put some of the blooms in a flower press

and tightened the clamps during the odd moments 

when I remembered about it.

This morning I took the press apart and played with the flowers

until I found an arrangement that I found pleasing.

I glued the flowers down on acid free paper

and framed them as an anniversary gift for

Lindsey and Scott.

Now they can have some sentimental Vermont flowers 

hanging in their apartment in Detroit.

AND

HEY!

The giveaway winner Vicki lives in Australia

where there are quarantine restrictions on raw wood.

Alas, she cannot accept the Druid's cross.

(I will think up some clever substitution for you, Vicki)

The new giveaway winner is 

GAIL N.

Please email me your snail mail address Gail!

giveaway winner and a recipe

Hello friends! I was delighted to hear from seven of you...six in comments here on the blog, and via email from another. Who knew folks still read blogs???  I'm delighted to announce the winner of the Druid cross...it's Vicki via cricket and frog. I wrote everyone's name on a scrap of paper, crumpled them up, threw them in the air and let Wilma pick her fave. Vicki, please email me your snail mail address and I'll get the Druid cross into the post early this week. 

And thank you all, for your very thoughtful and kind comments. I am so glad to "know" you here at sewandsowlife. I appreciate that you check in here and find some small bit of hope and/or inspiration in these posts. 

Well, it's been one heck of a week here in the USofA. I feel like we are living in the midst of a political circus, but, alas, it is a painful reality. While the madness plays out, so many of us are struggling to maintain some balance and some hope. It's rough. 

So.

I walk on the road. I listen to the birds, I weed in the garden, I read books (re-reading Under the Tuscan Sun, which allows me to leave said USofA for a few hours at a time). I cook with local ingredients. I reach out to friends. I take news fasts where I just don't tune in. I send outraged postcards. I sew, I do committee work, I do yoga. I hang out with my furry therapist Wilma.

I persist.

Sometimes I find sanctuary in the kitchen. On Tuesday morning I stepped out into the dewy yard and harvested a bunch of rhubarb. I found this recipe for rhubarb almond cake online and pulled out my Great Aunt Margretta's spring form pan. (She was one of the dearest people I have ever known and I love having some of her things with me here in Vermont). I shared the cake with an old friend, and then later, with Batman. It's mighty delicious and I think it will be on the solstice menu for years to come.

I'll be posting more often in the next week. Things to catch up on and things to look forward to...

Again, thank you for following along here and persisting with me. xo

tula tuesday::week 22 and a bit about rowans and a giveaway

block number 11

from tula pink's

City Sampler, 100 Modern Quilt Blocks.

This week's block was inspired by a "Druid cross".

We have loved and nurtured a mountain ash tree out by our front door since we bought this beautiful place. Alas, over the years the tree has aged, and not so gracefully. It had succumbed to insects, woodpeckers and finally, rot. We made the difficult decision to cut it down a few weekends ago. I got teary eyed as I pitched sections of the trunk and many branches into the back of the pickup truck and headed down to the brush pile. 

Mountain ash trees are also known as rowan trees, much revered by several cultures. I did some online research and ended up atdruidry.org and found some really fascinating information here (check it out, it's really interesting!) After reading the article I realized that my attachment to that beautiful tree may have been (forgive me, skeptics) just a tad spiritual. 

I took a bunch of clippings of smaller branches and have them tucked away for future projects. 

But today, in honor of the lovely rowan tree, and all the folklore attached to her, I am offering this "Druid cross" as a giveaway. There don't seem to be too many blog readers left in the world, so we'll see what happens...

Please leave a comment below or send me an email if you would like a chance to find this Druid cross in your mailbox.  I'll post the winner's name on Saturday evening.

xo

tula tuesday::week 21

 block number 9

from tula pink's

city sampler,

100 modern quilt blocks.

stitched with a precious scrap of vintage blue floral, 

purchased (I believe) in 1975,

and found in the deepest, darkest

corner of my fabric stash. 

inspired by the forget-me-nots blooming a few weeks ago

here at our "bit of earth".

for your consideration

 Sometimes we drop everything and show up for one another, right?

On Wednesday morning I packed a bag and drove south 

to lend a hand to a very dear friend in need.

I was reminded again that patience, faith, and hope
can help us navigate difficult times. 

I was reminded again that gratitude can be
profoundly deep and humbling.

The surgeons at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary at Mt Sinai, 

in partnership with someone whose selflessness motivated them

 to check "donor" on their driver's license,

have given my friend a chance at restored vision in her one "good" eye. 

What a life changing gift!

I am back in Vermont now, 

soaking in these gorgeous June days,

with a renewed appreciation for 

the selfless generosity of strangers.

Have you checked the "donor" box on your driver's license?

Have you shared your wishes with your family?

Have you filed an Advance Medical Directive with your doctor?

I am happy to talk with you, dear readers,

if you have any questions about organ donation.

xo

p.s. Silver lining...I had a short and sweet visit with my grand baby, 

Maggie B and her mama.

hello!

sometimes life gets a grip on a girl and there’s not much room to breathe...i’ll be back next week...i promise. xo