Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Pincushions!


After cleaning my sewing room last month I discovered many pincushions here and there, all hidden away since the arrival of Oliver on the scene, with his penchant for eating pins, threads, sticky tape (don't ask.....).  I keep two in the drawer of my sewing machine cabinet and am careful to keep those drawers firmly closed, and I tried displaying the other ones with no pins in them, but alas they became fabulous cat toys.

Beads were especially attractive and could be eaten.  The antique metal rabbit clunked to the floor but survived, so these had to be put away for now.  I love looking at them and miss seeing them, but when Oliver matures and can appreciate Mom's things, they will be brought out and enjoyed again.  Oh there are many more, this little group is just the tip of the collection.  I still have my old tomato from years gone by when I did garment sewing.

Many of these were gifts, including the new black one with the delicious pearl/bead trim at the top, from the recent Lake Geneva WQI retreat.  I attended Show and Tell there last Saturday night and had a wonderful time, saw some amazing quilts, and laughed a lot too.  Check out this event for next year if you want to get away for a quiet, peaceful weekend of sewing/quilting, delicious food, friendly people, and a beautiful location.

Oliver immediately was black-eyed excited over the new pincushion, realized it was from an exciting foreign (not our house) locale, and full of mystery and possibilities.  I had to put it away immediately. 

It is Memorial Day weekend coming up, and I hope to do some quilting, even if it is only "playing at my machine."  I am busy setting up some classes for October, and will post those as soon as they are finalized. 

My grandma used to call this holiday "Decoration Day" and the graves of not only fallen soldiers but family members too were decorated with wreaths, freshly planted flowers, flags.  Take a moment to remember on this special day those who have given their lives for their country, and those we no longer have with us but miss so much.

And try some quilting!  Warm weather is a great time to quilt,
Diane

14 comments:

Missy Shay said...

My kittens (well, they are over a year now) love pulling pins out of my pin cushions too. Yesterday I was matching buttons for a new purse and found 6 that perfectly matched and left them on top of the material. I looked over and Pippi had jumped up on the table and ate one! I'm just praying that it does not hurt her.

Diane Gaudynski said...

Missy, your kitten should be fine, but keep an eye out for digestive upsets! Sometimes some hairball gel, malt flavored, helps things pass through nicely.

Oliver ate about 4" of blue painter's tape last week and seems fine. I was horrified! I did call the vet and got good calming advice. My first cat, as naughty as Oliver is, a black/white tuxedo male named Oreo, ate pins, rubber bands, buttons, and once a wood toothpick passed through ok, still intact. He was one of my two cats with 100 lives I think. Oliver is well on his way too.

Good luck with Pippi! I'm sure she will be fine.
Diane

Doreen said...

Diane, In the last couple of weeks I have purchased "Quilt Savvy" and "Guide to Machine Quilting". Really like them both....so much great, helpful info! The first one ("Quilt Savvy") is my fave and the way it is 'bound' is absolutely the best!!! I wish that others who put out 'go to' instructional books would take heed of this type of presentation. Thank you so much for writing them.....hugs, Doreen

Heather said...

I love that chicken-shaped pincushion! All of them are lovely.

YankeeQuilter said...

I have three cats so all of my pincushions are built into tea-cups...now if I can just find a way to keep my little brown cat from stealing fabric....

Julie Deuvall said...

Hi Diane! Just stumbled upon your blog and am thrilled to find it. I am a huge fan of your amazing work and also have both of your books. LOVE them!!! Thanks for the inspiration!

I recently bought my first Bernina (820) and am finding so many tips here on your blog. Thank for all the helpful info!

Diane Gaudynski said...

Doreen, glad you like the book - the spiral binding is something the publisher did only for this "Savvy" series of books, and doesn't normally do. However, you can take any softcover book to an office store and have them add the spiral binding for less than $5, a great treat for a favorite book.

Teacups! Ah, Yankeequilter, the cups would hit the floor as well at my house. A young cat knows no limits to what he can do. But I bet teacup pincushions are lovely.

Julie, glad you like the blog and hope you enjoy that new machine, it's amazing.

Heather, I'll try and get a closeup of that wonderful chicken pincushion, it is definitely a great design. And it's fairly safe for Oliver too.

Louise said...

Hi Diane - can you tell me where the best place is to look for a list of your workshops - will you be posting details of the October classes on your blog?
Best Wishes
Louise

Diane Gaudynski said...

Louise, I will be posting these new workshops very soon here on my blog. I just have to finalize the contract and make sure everything is in place. Then it is up to the organization to post these and open registration.

antique quilter said...

isn't it funny I think we all have collections of pin cushions I rotate mine...
I had to smile when I was little I remember the adults always called it Decoration Day too, for me it was always Memorial day.
Hope you found time to play on your machine!
Kathie

Jacquelin said...

Apreciada Diana, desde el tutorial en FMQ Challenge de las plumas estoy disfrutando con ellas, de formas y medidas diversas, ahora, ya, siempre quedan bien. Gracias por tan estupendp tutorial. Quisiera pedirte si es posible que uno de estos días pongas, en tu blog, un gadget para traducir (como google translate, por ejemplo). A todas las que deseamos seguirte y no hablamos inglés, nos resulta una herramienta extremadamente útil y nos facilita mucho poderte leer. Gracias. En los próximos días publicaré en mi blog la última pluma. Si quieres pasarte, serás bienvenida. Un abrazo.

Diane Gaudynski said...

Jacquelin, Gracias! There is now a google translator on the top right column in my blog. Click on the language, and the blog will translate. HTH!

Jacquelin said...

Muchísimas gracias.

sulrossgrad (Emma) said...

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