My Sister's Birthday

It was my sister's birthday this week. It was a big birthday with a zero so I decided to make her a special card. I had a peculiar feeling that she would like this quilt block in these colors. And she did.



The mini block is foundation pieced and mounted in a tri-fold card with a square opening.

A Tribute To The Women Who Didn't Believe In Deference

She Who Shall Not Be Named sent me this link:
http://soomopublishing.com/suffrage/

I thought those of you who commented on my February BJP might be interested.

She explained to me that the man in the video with the letter from his mother is Harry Burn, who cast the deciding vote for ratification in Tennessee, which was the 36th state to ratify the 19th amendment, at which point it became law of the land. The red rose he's wearing is for the anti-suffrage movement, but in the end he decided to do what his mother told him to.

Let's hear it for the moms!

Postcard From The Little Girls

The little girls sent a picture from their road trip. They're having a good time in the curio cabinet at the Second Reformed Church in Zeeland. I don't think there's much wild partying going on, but a mom does worry.

Entirely Inoffensive--February BJP

Every once in a while, I wonder what's up with the West Michigan Character Council. The designated quality for February was Deference: Limiting my freedom so I do not offend the tastes of those around me. What exactly, I wondered, did that mean?

Now, I'm an older person who grew up when one job of the Safety Patrol was to remind boys to take off their hats when they entered the elementary school building. We wore dresses to school. Years later, we still wore dresses to teach. I don't use "rude" language, shout out during public meetings, push to be first on the airplane, or wear clothing that exposes my midriff. I don't play loud music at night, eat while I'm on the phone, talk on a cell phone in stores and restaurants, or text during meetings. I try to be polite, respectful and considerate in public and private interactions. I do not intentionally offend the tastes of others.

But "limiting my freedom?" That phrase bothered me. It brought me back to the Women's Movement of the 1960s and 1970s. I would not want to go back to the days when women's freedom and equality in employment, pay, education, health care and other areas were limited because they offended the tastes and traditions of others. Maybe it's the current political climate that made me feel this way.

Is this what the West Michigan Character Council meant by deference and limiting my freedom? Maybe not, but that was my first reaction.

So for February, I decided that my Bead Journal Page would be Entirely Inoffensive.


Technical Details:

The Foundation is Lacy's Stiff Stuff painted with brown Dye-na-Flow.

There are some larger round beads, 6/0s, 8/0s, 11/0s, 15/0s, hexes, peanut beads, triangles, bugles, and Delicas.

The size is 2.25 inches by 3 inches.

The stitches used were the backstitch and the lazy stitch.

I used C-lon size A thread in brown.


What I Was Thinking:

Absolutely nothing offensive, I assure you.


Issues That Came Up:

I had a lot of other deadlines in February so this month's BJP got pushed aside more than once. You can see the two other beading projects I did in February in the posts below.

Sometimes I pull my thread too tight, shrinking up the foundation. That makes the beads squish together and jump off the flat surface. That happened this month. Maybe I was secretly thinking some offensive thoughts and that made me tense. Or maybe I was pushing to hurry and get done.

I still like Nymo thread better than C-lon. When I put the page aside for a few days to do something else, the loose thread hanging from the piece seemed to unwind. Then it caught on the rough places on my hands. Maybe next time I'll try Thread Heaven on the C-lon.

I'm really glad I chose a slightly smaller size this year.


And now, it's on to March. Nearly two weeks left in the month so there's hope for finishing!

Hope Stone for a Friend of a Friend

It's a question of priorities.

Hope is a priority. Sharing hope with someone who needs it is a priority. As a cancer survivor who can still remember days with not quite enough hope, I find that sharing hope with others facing cancer is a priority with me.

This Hope Stone is for a friend of a friend. I don't know my friend's friend, and I don't need to. All I need to know is that she is facing cancer and that she may have times when she may not be able to summon up enough hope within herself. So I will send her this Hope Stone to let her know that there are many of us standing with her and supporting her spirit as she undergoes treatment.

Glass stones with the word "Hope" etched on the top are given to survivors at the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. When they are ready, survivors are encouraged to share their Hope Stone with someone else facing cancer. I mounted this Hope Stone and embellished it with extra wishes, hopes, dreams, and prayers in the form of beads and stitches.

You can see some of the other Hope Stones I've embellished here.

And the priority--Embellishing this Hope Stone was more important to me than completing my February BJP on time. If you have a problem with that, DO NOT let me know!

Today I'm celebrating 11 years as a cancer survivor. I need to find some chocolate.