Happy May Day!

If April showers bring May flowers,

What do May flowers bring?







Inspiration for quilts!

Folk Art Flowers

24" x 30"

© DJB, 1995

Thank you jmbmommy for allowing me to use your amazing flower photos. Please visit Jessica's blog HERE.

Spring Has Sprung ~ Sort Of

"Possibly God knows that if spring came all at once, we should die of it."

Gladys Taber
Stillmeadow Sampler


Yesterday was my first outing in four months. The day was cold and damp, so I dressed in a turtleneck sweater plus a jacket to keep out the chill. As we made the awkward transfer from wheelchair to car, I wished I had grabbed a pair of gloves as well. It's funny, our weather seems to have changed little since the day I came home from the hospital in December.

We've had some shorts and tee shirts weather, but it's been interspersed with overnight frosts, blustery winds and plenty of rain. Guess that's the nature of spring ~ fickle.

Our trees, bushes and grass are just starting to green up. I love spring's first green! It's such an in your face color. It's bold and loud and tart and assertive. It will not be ignored! But it lasts such a short time. I'm glad I chose this week to venture out.

This is the springiest quilt I have in my collection. In spite of its pastel colors, it seems loud and tart and assertive too. Quilts made using Gwen Marston's Liberated Quiltmaking techniques all end up with a bit of attitude.

The fabrics in this quilt are scraps of 1940's prints that my friend, Betty, gave me. I was able to eke out a few Shoo Fly blocks but near the end, I found myself rummaging through the trash for enough scraps to make a sawtooth border, or as Gwen would describe it, minimal sawtooth.

Shoo Fly

29" square

© DJB, 1997

All Shook Up!

Early yesterday morning, we woke to the sound of doors and windows rattling. Strange, I thought. Was it thunder? A tornado? The rumbling only lasted a few seconds but was disconcerting nonetheless. As it turned out, an earthquake in southern Illinois sent tremors as far north as Wisconsin! 

In tribute to this rare event, here's a little quilt I call "All Shook Up."

It's a variation of the classic Streak of Lightning design made from half square triangle units offset to create the lively zig-zag pattern.

Enlarge photo for more detail.

I don't recall which came first, the bright colored solids or my choice of backing fabric. Either way, Milly Churbuck's hand-dyed cottons and Michael Miller’s “Dysfunctional Family” comic strip fabric were a perfect pairing!

"All Shook Up"

18" x 24"

2005

In other news, an exciting package is on its way! I'm the lucky winner of “Little Faithy,” the prairie doll made by Lucy van der Sluis of Quilting with the Past II. I'll be sure to introduce you, once she settles in.