Journey to my destination....

I have heard this in so many places about "it is not about the destination it is about the journey". My journey through this so called life has been a direction of one which mine looks like a winding path of someone who has gotten so lost in the corn field. All the twists and turns and changing dirctions. This sort of confusion can cause a person to end up sitting on the sidelines and watching life go by and not really participate in all the wonders this world has to offer. I decided I did not want to be 80 years old sitting on my porch saying things like, "I wish I had done this, or that", "I should have done this or that".... I want to be an old lady who could say, "been there, done that!" So, the next opportunity that arose I jumped at it. I mean literally jumped.

 

In all things you must learn to trust some people, and be willing to take a risk. Be part of life! People come and go in your life. You should try to learn at least one new thing from each person you meet. They can be in your life for one brief meeting or much longer. We all have something to share.









I have talked a great deal about how short life is and we are here on this planet for a limited time. Why not meet as many new people every day that you can. Go as many places in the world that you can. Try as many new foods as you can, you see where I am going with this..

 “People say that what we’re all seeking is meaning for life…. I think that what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive.” Joseph Campbell

Altering a jacket

     I am currently altering a jacket to make it larger to fit a client. My solution was to put additional fabric on the side seams that goes up the side to the armpit and then down the sleeve to a point about halfway down the sleeve.

I had to rip out the side seams from the hem up the sides and half way down the sleeve seam.

I placed an inserted extra piece of fabric starting under the arms. It is a partial godet. (Pointed only under the arms and then straight down the sides).

Heart Scarves Project

     Here is another project for all of us to get involved with. This one is called the Heart Scarves Project. The business was founded by survivors of heart disease. These red scarves are hand made and given to women undergoing a cardiac procedure. Heart Scarves Project

Kits are available at Heart Scarves Project and Coats & Clark will donate $3.00 for every kit sold.

Healing Hands, sewing for others

Here is a company that is founded by a woman named Nina Wexler and is a breast cancer survivor. She creates fingerless gloves. They are all unique and can be custom ordered. Healing Hands

Sewing for others..

I am always on the lookout for organizations that do some sort of needlearts and then give them away. I love sharing these stories with others and hope that maybe one of these ideas will grab your interest and you will join in. Here is just such a site to check out. Stitching Kisses This is the blog site of DMCthreads called Creative World of DMCthreads. The project is called Stitching Kisses. They make small pillows and send them to the troups outside the United States.
 

Gift Wrapping/ Recycling

Here is a way to get rid of some of your scrap fabric or purchased just for wrapping. This video shows how to wrap books, bottles and more just using fabric. It is something that has been done in Japan for centuries. It is called Furoshiki.  furoshiki video. And then I found a site where you can buy fabrics just for this type of gift wrapping. furoshiki fabric. You can also check out the many different techniques furoshiki techniques.

Albuquerque, NM

I decided to stop in Old Towne in Downtown area of Albuquerque, NM. I stayed here just long enough to take a few pictures. It was getting to the point I was losing the light for pictures and I wanted to get to Santa Fe next.

 

      Well, by the time I got to Santa Fe I was starting to zone out and missed two of the turns that I wanted to take. I had to call Steve to talk me through it and decided to drive on to Taos in the hopes I could get there before dark, that turned out not to be the case. So, I stopped in Taos and had dinner, got drinks for the road and gas and will regenerate myself and the batteries in my phone. Then I will hit the road again and head back to Fort Collins.


      I had 5 deer try to stop me on the route home and 1 bunny rabbit. It was a challenge to keep from hitting them. I made it home. Not sure how because I was so tired and still not feeling really well. But, I am home and it is now taking several days to recover from spending all that time on the road. Stay tuned for my next adventure ............

From Modesto to Winslow, AZ, and New Mexico.

     I decided to take the very long way home. So, I left Modesto around 1:00 in the afternoon because I was not able to connect with my cousin in San Francisco. Best laid plans… I decided that if I was going to take the most scenic route home that I needed to go back and stay the night with my daughter again in Paso Robles. I actually picked a route and then missed my turn. I did not fret because I know my way around enough in California that I found a way to get where I wanted to go. So in my roundabout way I ended up on Hwy 5 and going south, which is kind of where I wanted to be any way. I drove down towards hwy 158 and crossed over to 101 through Pacheco Pass. This was what I thought a good idea until traffic came to a screeching stop and I found out there was a fire right by San Luis Reservoir. The firemen had it under control thank goodness, because the hills all around California are bone draw and look like straw. It looks like it is going to be a huge season for fires.

      While driving south on 101 I decided on a whim to go see the mission San Juan Bautista. It was built in June of 1797 June to be exact. Like most of the missions in California it was built with the help of the Native American Indians while the priests tried to convert them to religion, of their own faith of course. It was very quaint and I took a lot of pictures. I love how the missions have beautiful gardens in the middle of the enclosure. The mission is about 2mi. east of 101 on hwy 156. The whole town is really quaint.

     I managed to find the Masonic Temple in San Juan Bautista. Funny, it was right there across the street. I was taking pictures of it and discovered it was a Masonic Lodge when I was looking in the camera view finder. I only had about 15 minutes at the mission because they were closing. So, after getting back in my car I headed for hwy 101.

     I decided to take hwy 156 to the coast, Monterey actually. I arrived and was so excited to see Cannery Row and Steinbeck country. I have been here often in the past and loved it. In high school we toured Steinbeck’s house and Cannery Row and then the state capitol. I did not stay and take pictures. I will do that another trip. I could not find parking close to the place I wanted to take pictures.

On to Carmel, this city has more BMW’s, Mercedes, and Jaguars etc. The homes in this area are huge, beautiful, expensive and well hidden from the streets. I stumbled across yet another mission and decided to go see it because it was only 1 mile up the road from Hwy 1. It is called the Carmel Mission by the sea. It is a very beautiful mission. Bells are hanging from the towers and in the garden. Statues are everywhere, along with fountains. Beautiful red Bougainvillea is hanging around on the buildings, and on the walls. Inside the church is so well kept up. As with most of the missions in California it is currently being used by the Catholic Church. There was a Catholic Mass in progress when I arrived and had to wait to go in to take my pictures. It was well worth the wait. I could have spent a lot more time checking out every nook and cranny of this mission but I was on a time schedule.

     I decided to drive down Hwy 1 to get back to my daughter’s house. I guess it turned out to be a bad idea. Once I got close enough to see the ocean the fog started to roll in. It reminded me of how time passes. It just kind of rolls in slowly and silently and suddenly you are totally engulfed like a blanket. What a rude awakening.

     As I proceeded around the perilous turns, and I do mean very perilous, with the fog and sharp turns I began to get motion sickness. The fog was playing with my eyes and my mind. I looked for a place to try to get some pictures of the sun setting on the ocean. Best laid plans…yahdah yahdah yahdah  Every single turnout was not in a place to take exciting sun setting pictures. Darn it. Of course the fog made the sun speedily disappear completely and I gave up the idea of a sunset picture. I did manage to get a few of the ocean from Hwy 1 complete with fog rolling in.

      I had forgotten how beautiful and majestic the redwood trees are. You knew you were in Big Sur before you had a chance to read any signs. The trees, campfire smells and the mix of the salty ocean air and fog brought back memories of camping trips in the Big Sur campgrounds.

     The redwood trees are so interesting with the highly textured trunks. You can’t forget the bright yellow colored banana slugs crawling up the sides of the trees. The slugs definitely are not trying to hide out

     I stayed the night at my daughter’s house and then had breakfast at the “Touch of Paso” restaurant. It just seemed like the right thing to do as I was leaving town. I ate my favorite breakfast there, Country eggs and hash browns with coffee. I sat there again looking around and reminiscing about the past and the life I once had in this town of Paso Robles. There was some really good times and some not so good. Both emotions surfaced in this particular restaurant. I looked around the place one last time as I was leaving to come home to Fort Collins. I loved looking at the wineries that line the road out of town. I marveled at how much Paso has changed since I left. On the surface I would say all for the better. I do not know about the politics any longer nor did I ask. I felt like I was leaving the only real hometown I had ever known in my whole life.

      I drove out on hwy 46 to Bakersfield and then switched to hwy 40 that lead to Needles, CA and on to Kingman, AZ. I stopped at a gas station in California; I think the name of the town was Needle Springs. Oh my God was it hot! I think it must have been at least 110 degrees F.

    The Mohave Desert area so you know it is hot. The drive from Bakersfield to Kingman is boring. Nothing to look at, pretty flat and very hot with dust swirls every now and again. I decided this trip I was not going to stop in Kingman. I drove on to Flagstaff, AZ and stayed the night in a small hotel for the night. The next morning I drove to Winslow, AZ and had to stop and take pictures of the statue of the guy leaning on the lamp post with his guitar.

 Behind him is a wall with windows and painting on it. The center of the intersection next to this statue has a huge white road sign painted in the street. It says Arizona Route 66 in the shape of the road sign. Many of the stores in town are out of business and what few are open has people painting them and making them look like a tourist town. I hope it works for them.

     I left Winslow not being able to find a coffee shop open anywhere and drove on to my next destination. I stopped at several places on the Navajo reservation. I bought gifts for my grandkids, and found coffee. I stopped at two more place on the reservation and bought gas and drinks. I talked a great deal with the Navajo women in one of the shops. Mostly because I choose to buy a white hand carved buffalo, but we also talked a great deal about grandkids.

    The Navajo woman was a grandmother also. Turns out she was impressed that I wanted the white buffalo. She said the Navajo people believe the white buffalo is special. That is brings in the change in peoples thinking. I told her I agreed that there is a shift in the way people are thinking with this newest generation.

Family & Friends

While in California I did manage to meet up with some family and friends. These are my cousins who live in San Luis Obispo area. We had lunch at a place called "The Kilt".

Norwegian Bunads

Bunads are the National costume of Norway. There is a huge variety of styles of bunads. Each district has a particular style, sometimes a couple styles. There is a dress bunad and then there are the summer work bunads. The national bunads are never worn with just any jewelry. The women and men wear the jewelry that is native to their area and purses are never worn with the bunad unless it was made specifically to go with the bunad. More information can be found here (you will need to have it translated) Norwegian Bunad

Norwegian Folk Art

I took some pictures of the members who contributed their handcrafted folk art for competition. Here are some examples.

This is an example of Norwegian Rosemaling. This form of painting has been around since the 1700's. There is a revival of the art going on now due to the Norwegain-Americans wanting to get in touch with their roots. Many of the Sons of Norway lodges have teachers who love to share their art. The plate is wood.

Now I am going to show you some embroidery from Norway. The name Hardanger is an area in Norway where this style of embroidery is found. How this is done is by counting threads and doing a satin stitch along with some threads that are drawn and some are pulled. In Norway this type of embroidery was traditionally done on aprons, which we still see today. Traditionally the Hardanger embroidery was done with white treads on white fabric such as it is found on the aprons. Some of the fabrics are as fine as 50 threads per inch. Today many women will use a heavier fabric and have added colored threads in some of the designs.

     This is an example of a table runner done in Hardanger. This person used a colored thread to do her piece.

     This is a close up for you to see the stitches used in this table runner. Blue is also a tradional color for Norway.

     This is another example of Hardanger on a table runner. This person choose red threads which is another traditional color of Norway.

     Here is the tradional white on white Hardanger embroidery done on a table cloth.

     This is white on white Hardanger embroidery done on shelf liners for bookcase shelf or a pantry shelf.

White on white treads done on a pillow.













This is actually a small pillow. Done in the 20th century version with color. Still this took a great deal of time to make for such a small piece.

 

There is also a category for knitting. There are three levels of learning and earning your badge of expertise. The third level and the final test is hand knitting a Norwegian sweater.

Here is an example.

Here are some purses that were hand knit first and then felted.

     This is an example of Huck embroidery. Sometimes called Swedish weaving. This was also traditionally done with white threads on white fabric. Norwegian women tended to embroider most household items. The weaving is done on even weave fabric such as Monk's cloth. This form of emboidery is done by picking up vertical threads on the fabric and you weave your pattern. It is a very easy form of embroidery to learn.

      Here is an example of Norwegian weaving. This is accomplished bycreating a textile by passing the yarn or thread over and under the warp. The weft threads are the treads that are connected to the frame of the loom

Here is an example of Norwegian wood carving.