Life @ RuffHaven: October 2010

Practice Practice Practice

I've been working on my free motion skills. It takes forever because I quilt so slowly and because I don't have a long arm machine. I need to learn to relax because my shoulders get so tense. This piece is small so it was easier to move through my machine.   You should see me pushing full sized quilt through my machine. It can become quite funny to watch .
   You can see where I messed up in several places?
                         But the idea is to not be too perfect right?                Right.
It's going to be a part of my stitched postcard. Did you join the swap?
There's a button in my sidebar that looks like this.........

go check it out.

See you later.

Thanks for stopping by.

Marianne

Monday

Just poppin' in to say

Hello Friends !

I am catching up on odds and ends here. Lifeguard is away on vacation and I have the house to myself.
Well almost to myself , the dogs are here too.

I love my Lifeguard but it is nice when he goes off by himself. It gives me a chance to catch up on "me time".
I'll be able to work on projects that have been pushed aside, read magazines that are waiting to be read, and of course I'll be visiting my favorite blogs.

The Flying Lessons Group Quilt Project -" Bond and Respond " has been completed and shipped out last week. I will wait for the go ahead before I post more photos.

I have a few swaps to work on and I need to make a trip to the post office and grocery store. Just general day to day stuff...nothing too exciting going on here....

And I feel the urge to do some deep house cleaning...

....but I am going to wait for that urge to pass.

Hope you enjoy your Monday and the rest of your week too !

Marianne

Wanna Trade?

I joined two more swaps. Can you tell I have time on my hands?

First Creative Lenna is hosting a Mail Art swap on her Creative Swaps blog. I have participated in several of Lenna's swaps and can tell you she is top notch. She is always on time and very very organized.
You can find out more about her latest swap here. It's an easy one....only 3 items need to be sent. If you've never sent or received mail art you might want to give this one a try. Tell her RuffHaven sent you....I don't get anything for that....I just like the way it sounds.

Then I joined The Great Big Stitched Postcard Swap.

No the postcard doesn't have to be big.....but the list of players is big.....click here for details about this one. This is an easy one....only one postcard and you only have to stitch a little bit....for you non-stitchers out there.......go on over and join in the fun. Oh and did I mention....she has added a giveaway to this swap.....even more fun !

Beth is someone I met through fb and she has a great blog
Do What You Love...Love What You Do
when you have time check it out. She recently posted an interview with Claudine Hellmuth. We all know her right? It's a great interview....go read it.    Oh and don't forget to tell 'er..........you know........
RuffHaven sent you !

Life can be Ruff.....join a swap....have some fun !

want to have some fun?

I joined another swap ------------------------------------------------------------ >

Love is in the Air

Around this time every year our property becomes home for a large herd of deer. Two things bring them to our forest.

1. The local corn fields are harvested, leaving the deer exposed to hunters.

2. My hubby, Lifeguard, starts to bring in bags and bags of molasses corn so the deer have plenty to eat through the winter.

Here we have the perfect setting for a SafeHaven for deer all winter. Right now they are in rut....mating season.....which means stay away from the bucks. They become very territorial and will chase you if you are not careful.
I was driving up my lane the other day and ....interrupted... i think .... this buck

making eyes at one of his harem

and if you look closely you will see another one peeking out from behind a tree on the right.

I didn't want to scare them off so after 3 quick photos, I hurried up the lane and left them alone to continue their courtship. I have a habit of keeping my point and shoot camera on the front seat ... you never know when you have a great photo op.

In other news this fall.....

Usually this time of year I am preparing to go to FL to spend a few months there but this year with the official start of RuffHaven Sanctuary my plans have changed.
Also, I have several quilting projects to complete and they are not easy to transport. So I will be here throughout the fall to enjoy Mother Nature's colors and the preparations for the holidays.

edited on 10/21/10

The Last Acorn

I think the last acorn fell today.....

..... and of course it hit me on the head

Hope your weekend is colorful and warm.

Marianne

Sneak Peek

Just a little something I am working on. It is a group quilt project and I was chosen to finish it.
I'll post more about this project as soon as the quilt meets the new owner.

It is my hope that everyone involved will be happy with the final piece.

Finishing this quilt has proven to be quite challenging because of the various materials used and the ever so slight difference in block sizes, which made it a tad difficult for Sonya to piece them together. I had to make a few adjustments in order to make it all lay flat for quilting.

More about this quilt later...........

Life is Ruff...sometimes quilts are ruff....but we won't let that stop us.

Marianne

TenTenTen

This is one of my favorite posts. I am linking to Good LifeWednesdays because knowing yourself and sharing what you know....

.....is the sign of a very good life

RANDOM
Marianne...
1. is happy
2. enjoys spending time alone
3. does NOT like to wear shoes
4. has a hard time choosing a parking space
5. loves to bake pies
6. married a Lifeguard
7. loves to learn new things
8. has traveled to 49 states
9. secretly loves cats too ( don't tell the dogs )
10. did not marry her soul mate

FAVORITES
Marianne had a hard time choosing these:
1. Color - Green
2. Animal - Dog
3. Food - Grilled Salmon
4. Drink - Earl Grey Tea
5. Movie - Wizard of Oz
6. Song - Your Own Special Way - Genesis
7. State - Colorado
8. Hobby - Shopping
9. Flower - Rose
10. Bird - Owl

BUCKET LIST
Marianne would like to:
1. live to be 99
2. go to Alaska ( see #8 in random list )
3. learn to play the piano well
4. pave her driveway with yellow bricks
5. lose 50 pounds
6. write a book about Niki
7. meet Sean Connery
8. finish all the projects she started
9. live to see the day when there are no zoos
10. grow RuffHaven to house 25 dogs , with a full time staff of 4 on site employees

I hope this October 10, 2010 finds you well and happy.
10/10/10 only comes around every 100 years.

Hope your day is a 10 !

a colorful mix

Would you use all these fabrics in one quilt?

Yes another project on the horizon.....

Have a Great Day !

Marianne

Inspired by Autumn

Another project for Creative Swaps is in the mail to our hostess Lenna. This time we had 30 participants and the project was to share a background technique on a tag and envelope. Lenna will send ten different tags in envelopes back.
I chose a simple but fun technique using Adirondack ColorWash Spray inks ( yes ....Tim Holtz/Ranger ) The technique really doesn't require much of a tutorial. Just point and spray. The colors all play well together and they dry quickly. The only problem I have with the spray inks is that they tend to leak a bit around the top of the bottle. I keep a paper towel nearby to catch wayward drips.

after they dried I used a background script rubber stamp to add more texture.

I used chipboard letters as a mask on the envelopes before spraying with the darker colors.

Then , because I felt that the technique wasn't challenging enough ..... or good enough for the swap.
( why do I always second guess myself? )
I chose to do a crackle background using a 2 step crackle process as a bonus on the flip-side of the tag

I used Alene's Fragile Crackle. I chose to crackle printed pattern paper. I like how the crackle adds an antique look. The mediums are applied with a brush and using strokes in one direction only. The thicker the medium the larger the crackles. This technique involves two steps in which you need to allow step one dry before applying step two. Then you need to allow step two to dry before applying mica powders or ink to define the cracks. So this side took a whole day to do. Fortunately for me I finished in time and wooshed them off to our hostess. Lenna is a wonderful swap hostess. Hopefully she has another swap idea up her sleeve. I feel like I could fit one more in before the holidays.

Have a Great Day !
Marianne

I have a thing for moss

Mother Nature has gotten out her paint box and has begun to work her magic here at RuffHaven.

There's a hint of golden orange in the trees. Very soon the forest will be ablaze with glorious colors.

I love all seasons here in MD but Autumn is so gorgeous it is hard to not choose it as a favorite. The smell of distant wood stoves and fireplaces have already filled the cool crisp air. Gone are the scorching temperatures of Summer and I can actually go outside and get the final weeding done. Time to plant Spring bulbs and protect them from the squirrels. Also time to make sure the leaf blower still works and is ready for its weekly task. Yes we blow the leaves away from the house and into the woods. ..... too many leaves will smother my carpet of moss.

I have a thing for moss. I love it on the ground, on trees, stumps and rocks.

I love it in the cracks of my walkway and on terra cotta pots too.

This is the perfect time to add a coat of moss to your terra cotta or clay pots. All you need is some buttermilk and some clean moss ( no dirt ) and a large clear, plastic trash bag.
I used to go through the hassle of making a buttermilk and moss smoothie in my old blender. But that really isn't necessary. All you need to do is break up the moss into small chunks and rub it vigorously between your palms. Do this inside the plastic bag to keep everything in place. Then pour your buttermilk into the bag and smoosh it all together. You want it to be damp with buttermilk....not runny. Now put your pots in the bag and rub the mixture all over them. Leave the pots in the bag and place it in a dark place like under your deck. The next day take the pots out of the first bag ( this will be stinky ) and place them under another clear trash bag and out them back under the deck. ( or other dark place )
Allow your pots to weather over the winter. Next spring make sure the pots stay damp so the baby moss grows.

Now I need to go back out there and plant more bulbs.

It seems odd that I am thinking about Spring when Autumn only just arrived.
So tell me....do you think two seasons ahead? Are you getting ready for Spring too?

Summer Camp

Last week was full of unexpected surprises.
I woke up last Wednesday sick as a dog....no pun intended...and wound up at the vet...eh...um, I mean emergency room. Usually I am the one rushing a dog to the vet. But on Wednesday it was Lifeguard's turn to rush me to the ER. After 6 hours, 22 minutes and 7 tests....They don't have any idea why I was not able to stop puking and well...you know....yeah too much information right....Right. Not to worry. I'm well now.

Two days after the ER event I drove to the mountains of western PA as in Pennsylvania, to attend Art on a Limb. An Artist retreat. Remember in my very first post I told you I was slightly agoraphobic. Lifeguard thinks the stress of attending a retreat with 17 women....women I do not know....sent me over the edge and into the ER. Who knows, he could be right.
Anyway
Putting all fear and illness aside I drove to PA.
And I'm so glad I did. The ladies were the most friendly I have met in a long time and we all had so much fun.
The retreat was hosted by Lisa Patterson and the guest instructor
was Cheryl Darrow of TenSecond Studio.