Happy Halloween!

Last year I participated in the 21 Secrets online journaling class.  One of the workshops was Doodlicious Daybook, with Tracie Hanson.  We made funky journals out of painted brown paper, old calendar pages, duct tape, zig zag stitching, and other fun stuff.  On one of my painted pages, I took the paint blobs and made them into ghosties and goblins.

Then I got this card from my dad a couple of days ago.  He likes to make color photocopies of his artwork and make note cards.  This painting from Sunset Beach came with his version of ghosties and ghoulies!

Great minds think alike.

We have not had a trick-or-treater at our house in about six years, probably because of our long driveway.  But I hope that you have a safe and happy Halloween!  It is a very cold one here in central North Carolina.  My grandkids live in South Carolina, where you can usually count on it being in the 80's on Halloween.  Avery and Lily did not look too pleased to be wearing their fur monkey suits on this Halloween a few years ago, but they would be perfect for tonight!

Doodlicious Daybook- 21 Secrets Journaling Class

When you create a journal out of brown bags, leftover wrapping paper, old calendars, and manila cardstock, it immediately removes the "preciousness" and fear of the blank page. 

If you have a four-year-old who can contribute shapeless globs of paint, you are good to go!  I immediately saw ghosts and a pumpkin .

When I posted the above picture on the 21 Secrets workshop page, Tracie Hanson of Doodlicious Daybook pointed out the pink snaggle-toothed monster lurking on the page.  Then I was off and running!

The page on the right is from an old Quilting Arts catalog.  Perfect to set the mood!  I added this cute little comic of a wiener dog wearing his hot dog costume for Halloween.

I hope you and yours have a fun, safe, and happy Halloween!

Rainy Halloween

Happy Halloween! It is rainy and warm here today. I am heading out to some local church bazaars and craft fairs, and may head in to Jerry's Art-a-rama in Raleigh to see a local artist demonstrate how she uses Lumiere paints on fabric and paper.

I just got an interesting e-mail newsletter about a new free mystery quilt from

Sandra Earle-Russo at Patterns by Sandra. She will change the pattern at the middle of each month, so be sure to download before then. She calls it "Exploring Purple." It has a central medallion, and she is using Kaffe Fassett fabrics. I might actually make this one!

The photos on this page are my grandchildren in various costumes and disguises. This year they are Batman and Batwoman. I think they look a lot happier than when they were dressed in furry monkey outfits. It is usually in the eighties on Halloween where they live. They look like they either had too much candy or were suffering from heat sickness!

Whatever you do, have a great weekend!

Cold Mountain Weekend

We got a little taste of winter this weekend in the North Carolina mountains, with temps down to the thirties and an occasional snow flake. Our son brought our two grandkids up for the weekend and we had lots of outdoor fun despite the cold weather.
I let Lily pick all the flowers that she wanted, since they probably won't last much longer. We tried to light that big pile of wood behind her from our recent land-clearing, but it was too wet.

Here she is coloring outside with some of the flower tops she picked off.We followed the Halloween trail to Ricky and Mary's housewhere they got light-up Halloween masks

and party favors.

In fact, Avery was in disguise most of the weekend as "Batman."
On Sunday the sun finally came out, and we had a pretty but cold ride across the mountain.

A very nice weekend!

Great New Pattern

Isn't this an awesome pattern for an art quilt? It is by Nina Stevens and is available from Hancock's of Paducah. I have ordered it. I e-mailed the designer and found out she uses templates for the top, and weaves the trunk fabrics together. My first instinct was to use this pattern for Roman shades for my renovated bedroom. Not sure if that is what I will do or not, since the three windows in there are extremely tall and skinny. Anyway, I look forward to trying this beauty.
I hope you all had a safe and happy Halloween if you celebrate that holiday where you live. I have my front porch all decorated with lights and flashing pumpkins- and only got one set of trick-or-treaters. We have a long driveway, and the houses are quite far apart in our neighborhood. Most of the children seem to spend their Halloween at church activities, malls, or in nearby neighborhoods with much denser housing.

But here are pics of my two favorite trick-or-treaters: grandson Avery the spider, and lovely Lily the Ladybug.

Have a little fun this Halloween!