Star Quilt made from men's plaid shirts

I found the pattern for this quilt on the blog, Quiltville, which offers wonderful tutorials. It is called Smokey Mountain Stars find her website here

Be Yourself

Book Review, West With the Night, by Beryl Markham

Beryl Markham became the first woman to fly from Britain to North America, This book, Markham's memoir written in 1942, contains stories from her life, most taking place in Africa . An Amazon reviewer wrote "it is the elegance and depth of the writing that sets this book apart".
I found it to be one of those rare books where I underlined passage after passage. The simple fluidity of its narrative is oft times more like poetry than prose. "Throughout the book, we are treated to some of the most vivid descriptions of an Africa that is long gone". In my used copy I found a yellowed newspaper clipping of Markham's Obituary. She died at the age of 83. I enjoy the surprise that sometimes comes with a used book...

I can't help but copy a few quotes from the book:

"There are all kinds of silences and each of them means a different thing. There is the silence that comes with morning in a forest, and this is different from the silence of a sleeping city. There is silence after a rainstorm, and before a rainstorm, and these are not the same. There is the silence of emptiness, the silence of fear, the silence of doubt. There is a certain silence that can emanate from a lifeless object as from a chair lately used, or from a piano with old dust upon its keys, or from anything that has answered to the need of a man, for pleasure or for work. This kind of silence can speak. Its voice may be melancholy, but it is not always so; for the chair may have been left by a laughing child or the last notes of the piano may have been raucous and gay. Whatever the mood or the circumstance, the essence of its quality may linger in the silence that follows. It is a soundless echo."

"there's an old adage' he said, 'translated from the ancient Coptic, that contains all the wisdom of the ages -- "Life is life and fun is fun, but it's all so quiet when the goldfish die."

"But, for a little while, this is the place for us -- a good place too--a place of good omen, a place of beginning things--and of ending things I never thought would end."

"God Makes fat birds and small birds, trees that are wide and trees that are thin, He makes big kernels and little kernels. I am a big kernel. one does not argue with God."

“If a man has any greatness in him, it comes to light, not in one flamboyant hour, but in the ledger of his daily work.”

"In Africa people learn to serve each other. They live on credit balance of little favors that they give and may, one day, ask to have returned"

"I never realized how quickly men deteriorate without razors and clean shirts. Thay are like potted plants that go to weed unless they are pruned and tended daily."

"Names are keys that open corridors no longer fresh in the mind, but nonetheless familiar in the heart."

My Quilt Studio Inspiration

The Desire to Create

The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.

Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty—

...remember that you are spirit daughters of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination.

You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.

Don’t let fear of failure discourage you. Don’t let the voice of critics paralyze you—whether that voice comes from the outside or the inside.

Nearly a century and a half ago, President Brigham Young spoke to the Saints of his day. “There is a great work for the Saints to do,” he said. “Progress, and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. Build cities, adorn your habitations, make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations. In the mean time continually seek to adorn your minds with all the graces of the Spirit of Christ.”

The more you trust and rely upon the Spirit, the greater your capacity to create. That is your opportunity in this life and your destiny in the life to come. Sisters, trust and rely on the Spirit. As you take the normal opportunities of your daily life and create something of beauty and helpfulness, you improve not only the world around you but also the world within you.

-Dieter F. Uchtdorf

Decorating With White

I love the clean look of a white collection. Most of these pictures have been taken from blog land or Pinterest. I wish I could give credit where credit is due, instead I will just say thank you I love your collections!

The beautiful hutch below belongs to my wonderful talented Aunt Linda. I just love it.

This is my Hutch, (a work in progress), I love finding white dishes, old and new. I count it a good day when I find a new white dish at a yard sale to add to my collection.