Rememeber the Red Flags!

This about the size of the worm that invaded my computer yesterday. Not very big but VERY invasive. I received an email from someone that I had "red flags" about, but since I wanted to have good relations with, I went ahead and opened the email.

Guess what? When you get "red flags", they usually are correct. This little worm took over my computer. I completely lost control. I couldn't open the Internet, I couldn't open my word processor, and I couldn't even play a solitaire game.

Fortunately, I have Norton Symantec. I called and for a "certain" amount of money, they remotely cleaned cleaned off all the porn sites that were placed on my computer, took out all the "cookies" and supposedly made it run faster.

I am now up and running and maybe a little wiser!

Don't You Feel Like Dancing?

I do enjoy the creativity of the posters from this era. They seem so vivacious and fun.

I received this postcard from a customer that had bought a sound system from me. She is a singing teacher that had over used her voice and needed relief. We were able to help her and she sent this card to me as thanks.

I kept the card because of the sentiment that she expressed but also because of the drawing on this side.

Am I Crazy?

I had admired this Marble topped Walnut dresser many years ago. The friend that owned the dresser was getting rid of it. Naturally I said " Oh, why don't I take it?"

With the fine memory of it confirmed in my mind, I drove my little truck over and picked it up. I didn't realize that it was as heavy as it was, with the marble on top but we were able to secure a neighbor to assist me in the moving. But in moving of it the marble came off the top and slide into the truck onto the packing blanket. That made things possible for me to handle it easily.

I did not have the time to examine it for a few days but when I did, I thought "What, are you crazy?" there a many things wrong with it and I will have to find new moulding or make it. I will have to replace two different mouldings, create another piece and stain it. Yikes. But it is old and the marble still looks good and every drawer has a lock on it. Not that that is important but it does tell the approximate age. So, I will keep going on it and try to think of it as a lovely holiday.

Work(s) in Progress

I have two works in progress. What was I thinking? I truly don't know. I just got so excited by the "Ribbon" purse that I started it and then came across a problem with the loose weave of the ribbon that I have to make a few changes. And while I was doing the changes, I decided that I needed a distraction. So I began something that I have wanted to do since I read my first Jane Austen novel at fourteen. I wanted to make a "Reticule". The dictionary definition is a lady's draw string bag. Somehow Jane Austen drew a picture of it for me with words. But I have never made one. This one is three different weaves of lace and the body is going to be taffeta. I dyed the lace and the "drawstring" so that they would all harmonize with each other. I wanted three different shades of orange. There is a lot of hand work to this but that seems natural, considering the era that I am trying to emulate.
The "Reticule" is giving me a lot of pleasure and the "Ribbon" bag is still giving me minor upsets.

Halloween Recap

Here is Pippi Longstocking*

Here is Astro Boy!*

*Wigs courtesy of Papa Crane

Light Hearted Tuesday

Years ago, when I was taking care of my father, working in the shop and shouldering life's problems, I felt overburdened. I probably was a burden to my sister, being so downhearted. Then one Saturday morning, I had gone to the local farmer's market to by strawberries. Strawberries were a favorite of my father's. I was in the kitchen rinsing and coring the strawberries. And out of the blue a very small Butterfly flew out of the basket. It was a blue Butterfly. It flew around the kitchen. As it flew, it gave me great hope that life would once again become free and happy. it showed me that I needed only to change how I looked at life to have life look better. The story of the Butterfly was so important to me that I could not delay in telling my sister about it. My sister commemorated this event in my life with this wonderful book mark.

Every time I see this bookmark, it reminds me that life is how we perceive it. It can be bad or it can be good. It is only a matter of perception.

The writing on the side of the book mark says "Strawberries give birth to Butterflies" Mother's Day 1994.

Inspiration!

I was reading mendofleur and I was getting very inspired to get in and organize, clean and (if necessary) discard in my studio. Then I received that huge, heavy box from my darling niece. Needless to say, I got off track and sat on the floor and played with the fabric. I do have a problem when I see wonderful fabric. I fall into imagining what I can do with this piece and that piece would be wonderful for this purpose. And I got very distracted. My studio is still in a mess because I have to finish my next project. And did I mention that I have a few more on the line?
What is wonderful about these samples is that they are heavy duty fabrics and will take a lot of abuse. So, for making purses they are ideal. What fun!!!