Elizabeth Barton quilt in TCQC 02-05-23

Here is another of Elizabeth Barton's quilts, one that hangs frequently in my viewing spot so I can enjoy it every day.  It resurrects memories of lovely trips through England and Wales.

"Chimney Pots"  Elizabeth Barton - Georgia  2005  50"W X 39.5"L

Hand dyed, painted, stamped, screened, discharged fabrics. Cotton, silk, rayon, wool, furnishing fabrics. Machine raw edge and turned applique, machine piecing, machine quilting.

She utilized fabrics she had created herself, using many different techniques.  The fabrics are as interesting as the chimney pots, poised like a choir at the top of the quilt.

Elizabeth with some of her quilts in 2006.

You can watch an interview at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgB1J6VpEk0

I don't know when this was recorded, but recently.

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Saturday Food! 02-04-23

 It was a lovely winter day in Placentia, CA.  High temp about 70F, very slight wind, and....

.........................................a full moon coming up about 5pm.  It looked so huge , but this picture makes it took tiny.  Lovely, anyway. 

It must have been cold at high altitude because the contrails were bright and there were many. We have lots of airplanes going into and out of John Wayne/Orange County, Long Beach, and Los Angeles airports.  There is also the general aviation Fullerton airport just about eight miles due west, just small planes and helicopters..  

After craving a burger for the last few days I gave in and we drove over to Yorba Linda for an In 'N Out burger and fries.  It was dark and cold, but KoKo had to have his head hanging out to check out the grounds and all the cars in line.  This is the first time we were offered a Puppy Patty and I was curious, so I bought him one for $1.10 - it is just a small hamburger patty, no salt.  I gave him half as a treat and saved the other half for tomorrow.  Since he normally does not eat people food it was a VERY special treat.  Hope it doesn't give him the runs.  

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Friday Food 02-03-23

 

I really wanted an IN 'N OUT Burger for dinner, but it is Friday and I was not in the mood to wait in line, and there would be a line on Friday, Saturday, Sunday 

One reason I like to go to IN 'N OUT is for the French fries .  They actually peel and slice the potatoes rather than use precuts that come in a big plastic bag with SULFITES  to keep them fresh.  Sulfites do terrible things to my digestive system, so I can only eat foods that are not treated with them.  

So, instead of a juicy burger, I resurrected some frozen soup and toasted my last two slices of sour dough bread.  It was adequate, but not great..

And I followed it up with some Girl Scout  cookies and a glass of milk. 

I'll do better tomorrow, maybe. 

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Cost of living 02-02-23

We all feel it!  Some more than others.  I am being a bit more of a penny-pincher -  this from a lady who has splurged at Whole Foods twice in the last month!  But some things are a little hard to take.  

Twice when I went to the market lately there were no eggs for sale.  But when I went to Ralph's the other day they had lots of eggs, however they are mostly "designer" eggs.  I actually looked up some of these terms when I got home.  The price was about $9/dozen!  Fortunately they did have some plain ole brown eggs for $5.29/dozen.  Still a bit high and I bet they taste just as good as the designer eggs.  

Today I had lunch with a friend at Fitness Grill in Yorba Linda, one of my favorite lunch spots.  It has never been a low cost meal, but it is getting more expensive.  Today we both had two salmon tacos, which are on tortillas about 4", and I had ice tea.  Our bill and added tip was $44.   I brought home our uneaten bread and chips so maybe it was 2 1/2 meals.  It was much more satisfying than a Mexican Pizza at Taco Bell but is not something I feel I could afford very often.  

On another note: my latest gas bill was $244.  About four times what it was for the same period last year.  I use gas for heat, hot water, and clothes dryer.  It is not just that it has been colder this winter, it seems the cost of gas has gone through the roof.  I'm thinking about putting up a clothesline and hanging most things out to dry in the free air.  Just like old times. 

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Wordless Wednesday 02-01-23

 

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Monday Walking 01-30-23

It is said that only boring people talk about the weather - guess I am boring, but I don't have much to talk about these days.  

Walking north on Brian St (the next street over) I can just get a glimpse of the snow covered mountains.   And you can see by the wet asphalt that we had just a bit of rain early this morning.

Here is a cropped imageshowing the mountains and high clouds that didn't rain again. 

Tree allergy season has started with the Bradford Pears bursting out all over.  They are always the first to bloom, forcing me to carry wads of tissues.  Because they are the first I think I react more to them than the other trees that bother me.   After this onslaught my nose and lungs get "calloused" I guess.  

Hard to photograph the blossoms in between the leaves that turn color at the same time the blossoms open.  

Meanwhile, KoKo is really bored with all the picture taking!

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Quilt by in TCQC 01-29-23

This is such a subtle little quilt.  I look at it with amazement every time.  It is just so WINTER!  When first seeing it I didn't recognize that it was a snow covered fallow field with some tire tracks and in the distance a stand of leafless winter trees.  

"Winter" E. Vereycken - Belgium  2010  12" X 12"

White cotton fabric, black thread, white thread, may have flannel for batting.. 

 Monoprint (I think), machine quilting with loose tension on top, edges turned to back for binding.

I have posted this quilt a couple times in the past.  Look under the "E"s on the side bar to see what I previously said and also to see another of Els (Elizabeth) quilts in the Collection.  I still do not find a website or blog for her.