Oh, the value of value ~

I've been humbled in the past few weeks as the HuMaN and I  continue to downsize our stuff to become more and more the minimalist that our hearts crave.   Together we sorted through all those plastic records and album covers until we finally decided that we had finished with the sentiments and that the look of the barren closet shelf was most becoming.   It took a few hours as we shared where we were and what we were doing when that Jackson Browne or Sting or Beatles tune was a hit.   Oh, the value of sentiments?

Deliberation done, it was time to do some online research as to the "real" value.  This got me nowhere!    Surely Carole King's Tapestry was worth more than a buck or two.  It is a classic. Of course my album is worth more than that!!    Plugging along, I made a list to sum up what might  be expected from that very eager buyer I was destined to find.   

On that fateful day, with list and albums in hand off we went to the market place where reality smacked us in the forehead.  The man laughed when he saw the list and inflated values.   He did look  at our stuff and made an offer.  I scoffed.  I scorned.  I bickered.  He held steadfast.  We took his offer.  Looking back, we are thankful to have those records off the shelf. 

You see, the lesson learned was that sentimental value has nothing to do with material worth.    My sentiments naturally inflate the value because of my personal and emotional association but those sentiments cannot be brought into the picture when establishing a street value.

Hand painted by Marty Mason....a ceramic bookend pictured with a vintage book suitable for children.
Neither have  a significant street value but bring me beautiful memories of a day gone by. 

A fun day with family and dogs where everyone was important
enough to get in the picture.  

So that's your opinion...now, hear mine!  

How much is that birdie in the mirror?  

Cackle Cackle, Cluck Cluck 

So, having said all that.....I've been pricing donated stuff for the annual Council on Aging Christmas Bazaar coming up this weekend.  I first put like things in piles and considered the overall quality of material and construction  to come up with a  middle-of-the-road price, knowing that an average price  might be over-pricing or under-pricing.     My thoughts were that on sale day, there will be no time to explain that the construction or material of one tote bag over another is why one is priced substantially higher or lower.  Made sense to me!











Perhaps those who don't go along with my logic will gather and price all that stuff  next time.

Two heads together are often better than one.

I'm Fried 

Just Because ~

You've heard it and I've said it....."Just because you can doesn't mean you should!"  Not taking this to heart,  and having a roll of Tyvek on hand, I decided I could.   After a bit of painting and sewing,

the fruit of my labor - a painted on Tyvek  zippered pouch.  Loving the way it distressed when the pouch was turned inside out after completion.   Now filed under the tab of I-must-do-this-again.

Enjoy my ride and smile with me.

It's The Little-est Things ~

Simply the little-est things are so fun.  In my quest to downsize the city dump, I've made these little 10" square kitchen wipes with fabric scraps that you might also see in one of my quilts - backed with terry cloth - to use rather than paper towels.

They are the perfect size to wipe the counter and scrub the kitchen sink ~

or use to drain the just-washed bunch of grapes, celery stalks or juicy red tomato ~

or just use to wipe my fingers dry ~

Oh, I'm still using paper towels but not to the extent that I once did!  One little kitchen wipe at a time .....whittling down the size of the city dump.

Going In and Out of Circles ~

Being in a funk for the past several weeks has been no fun.....no fun at all!  Reality check time!
Are you alive?  Yes
Do you hurt?  No
Are you sad?  Yes.....Well, now, missy, miss....if that's all that is wrong with you, we can take care of  that! You know the remedy without being preached to.  Just get sewing to get out of that funk mood.  Sew, she did and conquered the blues  while sewing in and out of circles. 

The first circles quilt picture taken a couple of years ago....for the Improv to the Nine Patch Demonstration.   Circles were cut out, then a circle inset in plaid was sewn in (by machine).    Hand applique stitches took care of adding each flower petal while free motion quilting finished it off. 

Life is now going in circles while prepping for an upcoming demo on set-in circles.  I'm a strong believer that while folks enjoy learning  how to do it, they enjoy as much or more seeing how a project ultimately comes together. 

This improv inset circles patchwork sampler isn't yet quilted, but my heart beats faster with each glance toward the design wall.  What's not to love about an inset circles work in progress. 


And another work in progress on the design wall....incorporating inset circles with the quilt-as-you-go quilt finishing technique. 

Nothing like multi-tasking.  When prepping for a demo, I like to incorporate several quilting techniques into one performance.   One never knows what might be the thing to bring a new quilter into our fold. 

Alive, and well, quilting and happy.