patchwork quilting patterns
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In August, here in the mountains of southwest Virginia, the trees acquire a dull sheen that signals the end of summer. Heralded by the Dog Days of summer, it's a melancholy, bittersweet season. Daytime temperatures may soar, the humidity is sweltering, but nights are cool. In the morning, a fog rises from the mountains, reminiscent of a Japanese painting. And each day is shorter.
Stars on a late summer night are like diamonds in a velvet sky.
Slice open a bell pepper from the garden, and you're likely to find tiny pale-green peppers growing within. It's as if Nature hurries to replicate herself while there's still time.
Like squirrels that store up their winter food supply, we may busy ourselves cleaning up, clearing out, readying our homes for colder weather. Or we may spend long moments weeding a flower bed, allowing our thoughts to drift to unknown places. We wonder where summer went -- how could it pass by so quickly?
It's almost as if we didn't notice.
Nature gives us little choice but to let go of one season and get on with another. As I soak up the last rays of summer sun, I recognize all over again that the seasons are a metaphor for Life. We, too, must "let go" before we can move ahead.
Letting go is an interesting concept. It's a technique used not only in skillful fly-fishing, but in life. We let go of fear, of the past, of possessions, of a lost love. We let go of anger or a problem relationship. We let go of our children as they mature into their own lives, and when someone we love dies, eventually we let go of grief. In Alcoholics Anonymous and Al-Anon, there's an expression: "Let go, and let God." And in the end, we must let go of life itself.
More people in their 50's, 60's, and older are on meds known as anti-depressants than you might imagine. I attribute a lot of middle-age depression to the feeling that so many seem to have,and have expressed to me, that they look back on their lives and ask, "Is that all there is?" This seems to ride in tandem with, "But there was so much more I wanted to do!"
Begin today. Rekindle a few old, perhaps ancient dreams. You always wanted to play the piano? Sign up for lessons. If you lost ten pounds, you think you'd feel more in shape? Buy a brightly colored sweat suit and take low-impact aerobics. Attend a Weight Watchers group and count your food "points." Enroll in a tole painting class. Find a continuing education class at the local high school or community college about Using the Internet, or making pottery, or learning to quilt. Check with your public library and learn how to join a group of local writers who meet regularly to discuss creative writing.
It doesn't matter what you do -- just that you Do Something! Not doing anything at all is also a choice. There's an old saying: "Do what you've always done, and you'll get what you've
always gotten." The important thing is, you're never too old to learn new things, or to do something interesting just for you.
Getting older doesn't mean you have to stop living. If anything,with time on their hands thanks to retirement, many seniors say they've really started living, at last, and are having the "time of their life." Being active, involved, and interested in life keeps you young, no matter what your chronological age. Let go of your youth, and enjoy celebrating your next birthday as a major Life Milestone. You've earned it!
For a timeless lesson in life that has survived for over 3 centuries, supposedly found in Old Saint Paul's Church in Baltimore and dated 1692, remember "Desiderata" by an anonymous writer. This should be read with the heart:
"Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. As far as possible without surrender, be on good terms with all persons. Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
"Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexations to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself. Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
"Keep interested in your career, however humble; it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time. Exercise caution in your business affairs; for the world is full of trickery. But let this not blind you to what virtue there is; many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism.
"Be yourself. Especially, do not feign affection. Neither be cynical about love; for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment it is perennial as the grass.
"Take kindly the counsel of the years, gracefully surrendering the things of youth. Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune. But do not distress yourself with imaginings. Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness. Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gen ...
Author: Stephania Munson-Bishop
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Timely help for patchwork quilting patterns
About Quilting I like this scrappy miniature quilt. It's made from sixteen 3" foundation (paper) pieced whirlwind blocks and finishes at 21" square. The blocks are quick and easy to make, but you might have to experiment a bit with patch placement (for the neutral background) because triangles can be a little challenging at first if the technique is new to you. I get lots of emails from quilters who've never tried foundation piecing, and always encourage them to experiment with it -- most people love the technique once they've tried a few quilts. And after you've made a couple of foundation pieced projects, you'll know instinctively how to make them all. Newcomers to foundation piecing should read my Foundation Piecings Basics and Paper Piecing Tips before sewing the quilt. Photo © Janet Wickell Scrappy Miniature Whirlwind Quilt originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Wednesday, September 8th, 2010 at 09:00:16. Permalink | Comment | Email this Pictures of String Quilts Do you have bunches of leftover fabric from other projects? Do you like scrap quilts? If you answered yes, a string quilt might be a perfect next project for you. To make a string quilt, strips are sewn freehand-style onto foundations. You don't have to fuss over strip width, seam allowances or worry that strips don't "match." You can configure the strips in any way -- make square blocks or cut pieces into other patchwork shapes. If you don't have leftover fabric, no problem, lots of quilters cut new yardage into strings just so they can make one of these lovely quilts. String Quilts Gallery String Quilt by Momof11 Pictures of String Quilts originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Sunday, September 5th, 2010 at 11:39:18. Permalink | Comment | Email this Milky Way Quilt Pattern I'm not inserting an image of the Milky Way quilt for a couple of reasons. It's difficult to see the design as a small thumbnail, plus I've included two very different color and color value arrangements within the pattern, and don't have room to display both. Milky Way is one of many quilt blocks based on the traditional Friendship Star design, but Milky Way's unique alternating stars won't emerge when blocks are simply sewn side-by-side. The method used to make them appear is easy though, and it's simple to create all sorts of layouts, from subtle to dramatic. Related Quilt Patterns Milky Way Quilt Pattern originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Wednesday, September 1st, 2010 at 13:48:57. Permalink | Comment | Email this Thirties Pinwheel-in-a-Square Block This thirties-era Pinwheel-in-a-Square quilt block finishes at 12" x 12", large enough for the wonderful reproduction fabrics to make a bold statement. Of course, if you aren't into fabrics from this area, simply choose another theme for your quilt blocks. The design works well with any fabrics. Janet Wickell Thirties Pinwheel-in-a-Square Block originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Monday, August 30th, 2010 at 07:00:57. Permalink | Comment | Email this Woven Baskets Quilt & Quilt Block Pattern I've had several emails from readers looking for basket quilt and quilt block patterns. So here's something new, a Woven Basket pattern. Use the pattern to make Woven Baskets quilt blocks. Page 4 of the pattern includes yardages and cutting to help you make a 61" square wallhanging, but you can customize the size and layout to suit your needs. Like other basket blocks, Woven Baskets works perfectly with either scrappy or organized fabrics. Janet Wickell Woven Baskets Quilt & Quilt Block Pattern originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Wednesday, August 25th, 2010 at 09:23:02. Permalink | Comment | Email this Improved Four Patch Quilt Block & Quilt Pattern The Improved Four Patch quilt block is made up of a four patch central unit set on point, and then surrounded by triangles. It's an easy patchwork quilt block that's suitable for quilters of every skill level, even beginners. The block finishes at 11-1/4-inches square, and you'll find instructions and fabric requirements for single blocks and for an entire quilt. Improved Four Patch Quilt Block & Quilt Pattern originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Saturday, August 21st, 2010 at 05:57:31. Permalink | Comment | Email this Navajo Quilt Block Pattern The traditional Navajo patchwork quilt block makes a wonderful scrap quilt. Mix-up its colors, adding anything that reminds you of the western United States (or throw out tradition and choose an entirely different palette). Navajo is a block with a ready-made on-point appearance -- created by sewing corner squares to each patchwork center. Sew the blocks side by side, or put them into columns and separate the columns with colorful strips of fabric. Janet Wickell Navajo Quilt Block Pattern originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Wednesday, August 18th, 2010 at 10:07:32. Permalink | Comment | Email this Write About Machine Quilting for Us I'm excited to finally announce that we're looking for a contributing writer (CW for short) for the Quilting site. CWs are part of a new program at About.com, one that's helping Guides fill-in areas of specialized content, in this case someone to write about Machine Quilting (it's a fantastic method, but I love hand quilting, and have loads of work to do in order to develop that content). So if you love to machine quilt, and have technical writing experience, just follow the link to learn how to apply to be a Contributing Writer for the Quilting site. Write About Machine Quilting for Us originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Monday, August 16th, 2010 at 10:46:26. Permalink | Comment | Email this Aurora Borealis Quilt Block and Quilt Pattern I've only seen the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis) once, from an open field in Iowa. They were beautiful, but had I not known what I was looking at, the constant bends and flashes of color that crossed the night sky would likely have been a frightening experience. I hope to witness the lights again sometime, but it won't happen in my southern state. I wanted the Aurora Borealis quilt to resemble those flashes of light against a night sky. The quilt is created by surrounding color-intense stars (a Friendship Star variation) with a mottled, multicolored fabric backed in black. A plain black background is added next, to make the colorful components stand out. There's not enough space here to show you an image of the Aurora Borealis quilt -- see page 3 of the pattern (and click on the image if you would like a closer look). Janet Wickell Aurora Borealis Quilt Block and Quilt Pattern originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Friday, August 13th, 2010 at 12:00:13. Permalink | Comment | Email this Ocean Waves Quilt Pattern Ocean Waves is a design that's packed with half square triangle units. The quilt isn't difficult to make, but it does have lots and lots of pieces. I'm only showing the block here, because scaling the quilt down to a size that fits the space makes it pretty much unrecognizable. The pattern is a natural for scrap piecing, but looks great sewn in an orderly fashion, too. If the number of patches the quilt requires seems like more than you want to take on, just assemble a small batch of the units each time you sit down to sew. Accumulate them in a box, keeping track of how many you add each time, and for a true scrap quilt sew the units with fabrics from the day's sewing tasks. The end result is definitely worth the effort. Ocean Waves Quilt Pattern originally appeared on About.com Quilting on Sunday, August 8th, 2010 at 15:47:01. Permalink | Comment | Email this Newsfeed display by CaRP |
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