Continuing Saga of the Tome Girls

The inside of the front and back covers...I just love the sunflower tiedye pattern.



The back finished with the tyvek leaves. I really like working with painting and heating the tyvek until it curls and bubbles. You do have to be very careful that you don't overheat the tyvek or you will wind up with nothing...like *poof* nada, zip, zero, all gone.


I stitched it down after heating the tyvek leaves. Angelina fibers and bits and pieces that were fused together and not used on the girls dresses were torn and placed on the back cover before I attached the tyvek leaves...afterwards halo sulky was used to freemotion the leaves around the tyvek.






















The other day it looked as if the Tome Girls had lost their heads....not really, I just hadn't turned them completely. However, that job was quite the nightmare and instead of the pretty little round heads, they came out with something looking like an alien...



















all fat around the top and emaciated around the cheeks and mouth....kind of like the little guy 'Thor' on Stargate SG-1...NOT ATTRACTIVE IN A STARGAZY TOME GIRL!! So the threads in their heads were cut and then the dilemma of how to finish them off...well after a week I finally just turned them under and sewed around the eges with invisible thread.











Their hair should cover it up but that's another days project as is fixing girl #1's make up...her poor eye was smudged in the head turning episode.






The heavy sulky thread I had originally used was giving me fits in the sewing machine and generally acting ugly, so I replaced it with a purple rayon instead and it sewed just fine...gives a bit of a different appearance but I'm happy with it. I sewed down the center of the machine lace to hold it down onto the dress...a whole lot easier than trying to hand sew it down!

Margaret's

Pictures of the river at Margaret's....














wouldn't you just love living in a house with this view every day!!














The water was calm with no ripples just gentle movement of the water as the current pulled it along....















There are no houses across from Margaret, just the small uninhabitable island....didn't see any wildlife (if you don't count Jazz & Charlie & the cats...lol).














It is so quiet there...reminds me of the 'Little Beach' where I grew up in Cape St. Claire.

Depressing?!?!?

Your true color is Brown!

You're brown, a credible, stable color that's reminiscent of fine wood, rich leather, and wistful melancholy. Most likely, you're a logical, practical person ruled more by your head than your heart. With your inquisitive mind and insatiable curiosity, you're probably a great problem solver. And you always gather all of the facts before coming to a timely, informed decision. Easily intrigued, you're constantly finding new ways to challenge your mind, whether it's by reading the newspaper, playing a trivia game, or composing a piece of music. Brown is an impartial, neutral color, which means you tend to see the difference between fact and opinion easily and are open to many points of view. Trustworthy and steady, you really are a brown at heart.

What's Your True Color?

Brought to you by Tickle

I love color so at first this seemed REALLY depressing...but after reading it and sorting through the disillusionment of the lack of color to the meaning of the words behind it, I kinda like being brown...earthy, the color of mountains, tree trunks, dirt which allows trees and plants to grow....the color of deer, foxes, birds, dogs....brown isn't so bad after all.....

Way to go Jolene!!

My friend, Jolene, made me this cool gotta have it bag.


I had given her some fabric and told her to use whichever she wanted...the flower fabric was one of the first end of bolts I bought from the Sewing Gallery in Augusta and has been one of my favorites too!! She did a great job on it don't ya think?




It even has pockets all around on the inside which is way cool!!




She beaded the outer front pocket...i love the flowers centers and they are all glittery....way cool!!!















Jolene even hand embroidered around the larger outside pocket and beaded it too....WAY TO GO JOLENE!!!















Thank you so much for such a wonderful bag...I have gotten all kinds of compliments on it and will enjoy carrying my things to bee and class in it!

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!!

Worked on Stargazy girls this weekend....



















sewed them down and was soooo excited to be done that I sewed the entire way around, right sides together....had to reverse sew so I could turn it inside out....lol...


OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!!!!

Calvin and Hobbes

A Bit Of BothYou are 60% Calvin and 40% Hobbes

Calvin & Hobbes, like a scruffy yin and yang, are in perfect balance within you. Like Calvin, you're weird, a bit insecure, and can be a trouble-maker. But like Hobbes, you're down to earth and sensitive. It's a risk to say it here, after just a ten question test, but I'll bet you're smarter than most. Both Calvin and Hobbes are crafty, clever characters, and any one made from equal parts of each is a force to be reckoned with.

My test tracked 2 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 71% on calvin You scored higher than 11% on hobbes

Link: The Calvin Or Hobbes Test written by gwendolynbooks on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

The Things You Find In Trees

When you think of the things you see in trees you would naturally think of leaves, stickerballs, flowers, birds, squirrels, bird nests,














squirrel nests, moss, mistletoe....















but I'll just bet you would never expect this.....







can you guess what it is yet......







how about now.......


















well here it is in all it's glory.....















I had to look twice and then had to get a picture of it because I didn't think anyone would believe me especially if a big wind came along and knocked it out of the tree.....placement is courtesy of Michael....

This beautiful little cardinal looks as if he was posing for me, taking the time to look up from getting a drink of water out of the backyard pond....ain't he a cutie?!?!?

















Some tiny phlox which grow sparsely in the backyard and the new shoots of bee balm. May need to look into some extra manure for them this year.



Creeping Jennie has done well since it's placed over the french drain. It and the violets have flourished in this environment and I no longer have the muddy wetlands that were once there. I have loved the creeping jennie and their bright green leaves ever since seeing them climbing the walls of the Visitors Center when it was in the old Cotton Exchange downtown Augusta on the Riverwalk. The Cotton Exchange has since been turned into a bank but they have kept the ephemera from the times when it was used and in its full glory.


The sweet autumn clematis and jasmine vines are sprouting and filling the railings of the porch nicely. This is the 3rd year for the jasmine and I am soooo tickled at all the buds and new growth on it!! I just love the wonderful fragrance they put off and am looking forward to it this summer.


















I have several crape myrtle trees which were all volunteers from the neighbors yard. I love their dark pinky color when they are in bloom and had wished we had some in our yard instead of the river birches out in the front yard. Color is very necessary to me and I was soooo delighted when the first volunteer showed up 3 years ago....2 more volunteers showed up last summer and this year I have this little guy who sprouted in the window box....sadly he is going to have to find a new place before too long....maybe in place of one of those big ugly bushes in front of the house if I can convince Doug to yank one out.....hhhhhmmmmmmm.....

Backyard Visitors

Once again I was taking pictures in the backyard...this time mostly of the little visitors that come foraging for food....

Unlike some of my friends who have had problems with them, I love squirrels....

when we lived in Maryland we had one that would get into the rafters, run across the skylights and recline on the railing on the front porch.....

they are bold little fellas, curious by nature and just plain cute as far as I'm concerned.....

we even have ones that will come up to the window in the family room and terrorize the kitty who is not allowed outside....makes Spunky nuts but it's really quite humorous....

For the first time in the 7 years we have lived here, I saw my first bunny rabbit in the back yard....no I did not get a picture of him although I did try....

mostly I was having flashbacks of when I was little and the cat had a bunny and dropped it....I was too afraid to pick it up (my grandmother made me a little neurotic after scrubbing out my mouth when i ate an ant...there was no telling what they would do to me after holding a bunny)...unfortunately the cat was quicker than Dad and grabbed the poor little thing...I will NEVER forget that...horrifying and I was only 6 at the time....

anyway....I wanted to see where the bunny was going and hoping that it was NOT trying to live in the backyard....I do not want puppies finding bunnies....NO NO NO....never did get a picture of the little critter and now I'll be paranoid and neurotic when I let the pups in the backyard...the up side to having dogs is that the neighbor cats tend to stay out of your yard so the wildlife has been a little safer since Wilbur and Charlotte moved in.

Whose Feet Are These?!?!?!

Can you guess whose feet are whose? We have the following choices: Kim, Rachael, BettyAnn, Ille, Carolyn, Margaret......

Playday at Rachael's

This morning was spent having my Moms In Touch group for Greenbrier High School. There are are a group of 3-4 of us who get together each week and pray for our children, teachers, administrators and everything dealing with our school.

Afterwards I headed to Rachael T's to meet with the girls who are working on Patti Culea's Stargazer Tomes at Fiber on a Whim in Atlanta.














We had lots of fun together, got to see Rachael's home for the first time....we spent lots of time ooohing and aaaahhing over her treasures and finds and the wonderful way she had decorated her abode....

















the lime green in her kitchen is way awesome isn't it????? Rachael is such a sweet person and is always smiling....















BettyAnn is not a fan of being on the receiving end of the camera but realized, just as my children have, that I am very tenacious and will not disappear until after I get the picture I want.








BA is also a hidden talent as we all saw when our watercolor faces were pulled out.....























(Top) mine, BettyAnn, Ille's (Bottom) Margaret, Rachael's......


Ille is another dear sweet soul who is also our resident 'girly girl'.....















these pictures of Margaret are a result of the picture in Charleston she took of me with my tongue stuck out...















looks much cuter on her than it did on me....















Rachael and her mom, Carolyn.....












one of Rachael's treasures, a portable paintbox.....


Margaret's sketches.....









and FOOD...we girls CANNOT get together without food.....



between checking out Rachael's treasures and eating and checking out our latest works we didn't get anything done on our tomes but, we did watch most of Lesley Riley's new video......