2009 Quilt Walk and Classic Car Show

Hope this link works. I put up a few pictures I took today:

Quilt Walk and Car Show

http://s278.photobucket.com/albums/kk105/shirleymac2008/Quilt%20Walk%202009/

Our weather has turned nice again so it was a great day to hold this. Five blocks were closed off in the center of the village. That's basically all of our commercial core. There weren't as many quilts as usual cause the fee this year to enter them was $10, which is expensive. In past years it's been $5 for 3 quilts. This year all money was going to our local Hospital and that's why we wanted to raise the fee. Other years it went to smaller pubic services like batting for quilts for Victim's Services.

Kid Cadillac performs every year, mostly 50's rock. There was another guy this year down by the Legion singing more contemporary songs and then there was other music blasting so everywhere you went it felt like a carnival.. which is a good thing. It's neat to have all the streets closed off to cars and be able to just mingle. A LOT of guys enter their cars. I've taken only a few of the ones that I liked. There's a lot of muscle cars too... guys trying to show their stuff. It's funny to hear them peeling off at the end of the show. It's absolutely not anything we normally would hear around here.

Tired now. Hope you enjoy the photos. I LOVED the ones they were showing in our Museum.

Night before the Quilt Walk and Car Show

We went down tonight to get a preview of tomorrow's show. I wanted to take some photos of the cars cruising but dh fell asleep so we missed it. They did come into town later but most were going by so fast I didn't have time to click. A bunch of them get together and do a cruise around the extended care part of our hospital and one of our senior's residences. We also hung quilts in both places cause the older folks can't get out tomorrow and walk... although I saw quite a few walkers tonight, it's a popular show. We had a night market tonight too. We sat at the Boot and Sombrero and had chicken wings as the cars went by and then got brownies at the market for dessert.

I found this funny Maxine style Smile Box, so bear with me. I only have a few photos on so when her screen is blank that's the end of them.. only about 6 I think.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

I'll post more tomorrow after the show.

Another Story Posted

I decided to keep publishing stories to my story blog til I run out. Then, heaven forbid, I'll have to start coming up with new ones. After two years I'm a bit rusty.

Today's story is one that was published in Canadian Story magazine. I love looking at a picture and inventing a story around it. Click on "My Writing Blog" in the right hand menu or go to http://shirleymacsshortstories.blogspot.com/

Enjoy.

I Am A Quilter Challenge

At our Quilt Walk this weekend they are having a challenge. We have to make a 9" x12" quilt that tells our quilting story. I wasn't sure if I was going to enter but this is what I've come up with. Darn thing isn't straight but that's part of my story too LOL

Well it does look straighter than that in person. It's hard to take photos of something so small. Anyway. The center represents the fact that quilters can be young or old or somewhere in between. The squares around the edge of the center represents the different tastes in fabric that each quilter can have. The lighthouses represent the instructors and quilting friends who have guided me on my journey.

The buttons are for the fact that quilters come in all different sizes, shapes and colours (and genders - but I don't know how to tell a boy button from a girl button). Buttons and quilters have one purpose. Buttons keep things closed. Quilters quilt.

Here's the back:

Hibiscus

Well, that hot weather killed a lot of stuff but my Hibiscus loved it. It still has blooms to come.




I noticed a bee while I was taking the picture and so I got close and snapped a pic of it. It's amazing! I've never looked at one really closely before. I thought they just got pollen on their little feet but look at this guy!



I'm really tired these days. I'm still not over that full day I worked I guess. I've been into the shop 2 other days for a few hours cause we're getting ready for the Annual Quilt Walk and Classic Car show on Sunday. We have about 100 quilts this year. We hang them in shop windows on our two main streets here. We'll also be having a night market this year too which is neat and lots more vendors bringing stuff to sell.

Very primitive peek

These are the first four blocks for my daughter's double wedding ring quilt. I just wanted to get an idea of what they'd look like. I always find it easier to see if I take a photo and look at it that way. These blocks haven't even been squared up yet.

I haven't been working on it for two reasons. First because it's been to hot here, but really honestly because I'm using tone on tone white for the background which is a very fine fabric. I'm using those interfacing templates for the arcs. That meant that when I sewed them onto the backing fabric they'd go all wrinkly and puckery. I was at the shop last weekend and my friend told me I should be using stabilizer. I've heard of stabilizer but never knew what it was for. Imagine.. quilting for 6 years and I had no idea what it was for *shaking my head*. So today I tried it with the stabilizer and it's so much easier to sew! So this will get me back working on it. I've told myself no more projects (aside from my stitchery I do in the evenings) until this quilt is finished. I have a looonnnng way to go. I still have enough arcs to make about 5 more blocks but then I need to start making more.

I worked in the shop for the whole day yesterday for the first time in about a year. I was so totally exhausted by the end of the day. I definately can't do that any more. I'm fine for a few hours but full days are out of the question. I hate that. I want more energy like all the rest of the kids my age *LOL*

Going in again tomorrow for a couple of hours to learn to use the computer program to type up the forms for the quilts that will be in our quilt walk on the 16th. Once I learn how to do it I can do it from home. I don't get quite so tired at home cause I can take a break and lie down or relax on the deck.

New Story Posted

Jay's great story yesterday reminded me that I haven't posted anything on my short story site for awhile... actually I only had one on there. So I've just posted another one if anyone wants to read it.

The weather here now is glorious! The heat wave with the horrible humidity broke and now it's just nice and warm with a gentle cool breeze from the ocean... ahhhhhhhh. Of course that means it's cool enough now for me to resume my normal household duties. Ugh. So I'm off to water all the dry stuff in the garden and pull some weeds - again.

Have a great weekend everyone.