Quilts and scrapbooking

So we just got back from a week long vacation in Colorado. Amazing time. Took 212 pictures and printed all of them. Bought way too much scrapbooking stuff. I find piecing scrapbook pages similiar to piecing quilts.

City Dump

Iwent on a pilgrimage through my city with some friends. The first stop was the city dump. It was a large awful smelling place. We could not get close enough to take pictures. It was like an ancient tel, with smoldering methane seeping from the ruins. What will archeologists of the future think of us as they dig through it? Everyone in every city should see where their trash lands. I have never been more motivated to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Yes, it takes a few more steps to separate the trash for recycling, but the smell of the dump motivates me.

Piles of fabric

So I have piles of fabric and a few ongoing projects...what to do next? Ideas?

Oklahoma Food Coop

Hey friends
If you are interested in organic meat and other home grown items, and you live in Oklahoma, check out www.oklahomafood.coop. There is a one time joining fee of $50. You make your orders online, once a month, can pick up at several local sites...and you can pay with paypal. I am ordering almost all my meat from the coop now...prices are comparable to stores, and no growth hormones...and you support local farmers. Everyone wins.

Ecoearthfriendlygreeninthehomeandparties

Yes I ran all the words together on purpose. Yesterday was Earth Day. I saw more advertising for GREEN than I ever have. So I thought I would spout some of my own green practices.

1. No more paper towels. I buy a pile of white washclothes once or twice a year and use them til they shred. I especially like the larger ribbed terry cloth "barmop" clothes. They are between the size of a wash cloth and hand towel.

2. No more paper napkins. I put my foot down even for birthday parties this year. I keep a pile of cloth napkins in a drawer. No, they don't all match, and some of them are not even hemmed. But they work to wipe chocolate off your face and they don't kill trees.

3. No more "disposable" plastic tablecloths. I keep a pile of tablecloths in various colors. Some of them are "vintage" thanks to my great grandmother's linen collection. I love the wrinkled look. It's "shabby chic" but really I just hate to iron. Besides, ironing wastes electricity.

4. Yes, I still buy toilet paper. There were times in my childhood when we were too poor to buy toilet paper. A pile of soft rags, a bucket, and hot water and bleach work. However, as long as I can afford toilet paper I am buying it.

5. I am currently hunting some clothesline posts. Occasionally I hang clothes over the fence in the backyard, but am hoping DH will put up some lines for me soon.

6. Did you know old underwear make good dusting rags? Whatever happen to a rag bag anyway? My mom always kept one. Old t-shirts make for good dusting and window washing. They don't have lint. Moms used to save cloth diapers for such things.

Reduce Reuse Recycle

Checkerboard baby quilt

These squares are 1.5 in. Sewn by strip piecing method. The blocks are 12 inch square and the borders/sashing are 6 inches wide. .

Dick and Jane Quilt Top Finished

It is a twin size. 9 x 8 blocks with 3 inch borders. No, I'm not old enough to have used the books as readers in first grade, but I still love the art and the nostalgia.

Dick and Jane Quilt

I have been collecting Michael Miller's Dick & Jane fabric for about 2 years and finally got enough to make a quilt. This is it so far...still haven't decided if I'm going to add enough to it to make it a twin size or leave it as a wall-hanging size.

Remy caught hiding under the new quilt on the bed. He thinks it is for him.