Is it vintage or is it retro?  To me, vintage means it’s truly old, retro means something new made to look old.

At retreat last month, I was helping Susan C. load her car after four fun days of quilting.  On her sewing table were her iron and a can of spray starch.  It had been a long time since I’d seen an aerosol can with small lid.  I remember cans being switched over from small lids like this to lids that are as big around as the can, but I have no idea when it was.

And there was that word “New” on the can.  Suddenly I thought somebody is going back to the old style!  Cool.  But then I wondered, is this really new, or is it really old?  Very old!  As Susan came back to her table, I just had to know.

She laughed.  Definitely old!  She said it had belonged to her mother-in-law originally and that she, Susan, had had it for years herself.  She said, “I really should toss it out, it doesn’t spray that well!”  Then she asked if I wanted it.  Of course!  I don’t plan to spray it, I just think it’s fun to look at!  Then I turned it around and saw the price printed on the can.

How long has it been since, 1.) Prices were printed on cans and 2.) spray starch was 42 cents!?!  Definitely vintage.

Thanks, Susan!

Even though I live right next to the woods, I don’t venture very far into them most of the time.  However, when I get to retreat, there’s a great opportunity to hike to the falls and enjoy the woodlands along the way.  Here in Pacific County, we are part of the Temperate Rain Forest that runs along the northwest shores of the United States and Canada.  It really is a special place.  Because we get so much rain, we have lots and lots of moss and ferns and mushrooms and even wildflowers.  I thought I’d share some with you.  Won’t you follow me down this path?

Moss is evident as soon as we start our walk.  It covers everything, even the trees.

It seems to especially like dead branches.

I think some of these trees may have auditioned for the Wizard of Oz!

In the right setting, they could be pretty scary!

Since we get about 80″ of rain a year, there’s plenty of moisture.

In the photo below, note the light strand of stuff hanging between the branches.  That’s lichen.  It only grows where the air is pure.

It almost looks like you could take a nice cushy nap on this branch.

Here’s a close-up of some of the moss.

It makes everything look like it has whiskers.

Ah, padded hand rails!

Another close-up.  It’s really quite delicate.

This is the top of an old, abandoned fence post.  Speaking of the Wizard of Oz, it looks like the hats the soldiers wore!  If you look carefully, you can see more posts marching up the hillside.

The moss has even found a home on this log chair–a built in cushion!

I had a hard time categorizing my photos between moss and ferns, so many had both.

I just love these ferns that grow on the sides of the trees.

They seem magical to me.

This one was really covered.

There were plenty of ferns of the ground, too.

The hills were covered with them.

It was the end of March, but these small mushrooms were already popping out.

Sally volunteered her hand to show you how small they really are.

The edges get all raggedy as they mature, but they’re almost more beautiful.

These are oyster mushrooms growing on the side of this stump.

I was so excited on my first walk to the falls to spot these trillium about to bloom.

The very next day, one of them had opened up!

This trillium grows in our yard–we dug it up two years ago from the ditch across the road.  Thank you, Melinda!

I don’t know what these delicate pink flowers are.

Here’s a type of daisy.

From the time I was a kid, they’ve been one of my favorite.

I don’t know if these oxalis haven’t opened up yet, or if they close like this when it’s raining.

Here are some open ones.

I’ve not seen a flower like this before.

Or this, although it looks a bit like cow parsnip, but I think it’s too early.

What adorable Johnny Jump-Ups!

I wish they were growing in “my” woods.

I’ve saved my favorite for last–the cowslips!

These are blooming everywhere around us right now, and the area around the retreat center was no exception.

You might know them as skunk cabbage, but I prefer the English name–cowslips.  It just conjures up the most hilarious images of cows wearing yellow slips!

How many of you know what Nurse Logs are?  At our recent Quilt Retreat at Falls Creek, some of us hiked up to the falls, and I couldn’t help but do a little narration along the way.  One of my favorite things to point out are Nurse Logs and Old Growth Stumps.

At one time, Pacific County was covered with old growth cedar.  Most (but not all!) of it has been logged–many years ago, like 100 or more.  Because cedar is slow to rot, a lot of the stumps are still visible in the woods here–and you can see them as you drive along the highways.

Here’s an old growth cedar stump.  Look closely and you’ll see some notches in it.

These notches are where the early day loggers would set their springboards.  Springboards are what they stood on to saw down the tree.

Here’s an old photo to give you an idea of what I’m talking about.  They didn’t stand on the ground and saw down the tree because the trees were so thick at the base.  They went up a ways, to where the tree tapered in, so they wouldn’t have so much trunk to cut through.  I think every logger must have had his picture taken in the first cut of a tree!

So, my point is, all through the woods here, we have lots and lots of old cedar stump.  These stumps, as well as fallen logs, often serve as a nursery for seedlings.  As the stumps start to rot, the little seeds find a welcome home there–often above the reach of hungry deer!

The new tree grows up and the roots grow down.

The new tree gets lots of nutrients from the decaying stump.

Eventually, time and the new tree nearly obliterate the original nurse log.

On our short walk to the falls, we passed dozens of these.

They’re all different…

…and interesting in their own way.

We thought this one looked like a giraffe!

As you can see, many of these “new” trees are decades old.

Here’s a perfect example.

This tree must have been at least 60 feet tall.

This nurse log has two very old trees growing out of it, as well as a new seedling!

I hope you enjoyed this walk in the woods and your forestry lesson!

By the way, my grandpa called logs like the one above “keel” logs.  They got more money for them because they already had a natural bend in them and were used for the keels of boats–but that’s another story!

More quilts from the recent Peninsula Quilt Guild show.  I don’t know who made all the quilts, so if you can help, post a comment and I’ll make a correction.

Barn Raising by Gloria Park.

Windy City Stars by Linda Lester.

Dizzy Geese by Bev Wakeman.

Here’s a closeup.  Even though it looks curved, that’s just an illusion!

This lovely table runner was made by Carol Osterholm.

Jacobean Feathers by Lynda Newell won first prize!

Stars by Jan Lambert.

This was the raffle quilt the guild made this year!

Red Feather Medallion by ??

Spirit by Randi O’Phalen

Eureka! by Earlene Nichols.

Batik Sampler by Becky Olson Evans.

Peninsula BOM by Jan Lambert.

Stars by Merrie Johnson.

Down the country Paths by Wendy West.

??? by Nellie Beasley.

Christmas Porch by Lynda Newell.

American Beauty by Lynda Newell.

Day Dreams by Glyns Hess.

Tribute to the Seibert Brothers in World War II by Mary Anna Carr.

Signal Flags by Joan Wekell.

Yesterday I had the pleasure of speaking at the Comforter’s Quilt Guild in Puyallup, WA.  My talk was on making quilts from fat quarters.  It included lots of show-and-tell quilts that I brought.

These are all the quilts from my first two books.  In Bundles of Fun, each quilt uses 12 fat quarters.  In Fat Quarter Fun, the quilts use from 3 to 30 fat quarters.

I also gave them each a pattern for my Ditty Bag.

It was a lot of fun, and I loved the feedback about my quilts, but I had just as much fun seeing what they were doing!

This was part of their monthly block exchange.  Oh, how I wished I could enter my name in that drawing!

They had lots of “good neighbor” quilts that they would be donating in their local area.  This one is made with Debbie Mumm fabrics from quite a few years back.  I think I still have some blocks made from these fabrics in my WIP’s basket!

This is an interesting variation on a four-patch.

Aren’t these colors sweet.  This quilt will surely make some little girl happy.

A sweet cottage quilt.

Isn’t this a pretty strippy quilt?  It’s almost like a variation of Court House Steps!

This quilt is really visually interesting with the diagonal blocks!

I thought this quilt was just gorgeous.

Nice animal prints here.

Here’s another quilts that’s great graphically.

These bold colors will surely cheer someone up.

What a great way to feature a novelty print!

This reminds me of a stylized Bow Tie quilt.

Great interlocking Pinwheels.

I loved this modern quilt!

This was the quilt back.

Here’s a great patchwork.

A cool Rail Fence variation.

Same blocks as the quilt above, but set on point.  It sure changes the look, doesn’t it?

This bright Sampler reminds me of a Mexican Fiesta!

Imagine, all of the above quilts were to be given away.  What wonderful work.

Then it was time for a little member show-and-tell, like this stunning star quilt.

This is a really pretty color combination.

A beautiful bed quilt.

This T-Shirt quilt is for the maker’s granddaughter–a volleyball player.

A very pretty table topper…

…and a pretty table runner.

Thank you, Comforters, for inviting me!

The Peninsula Quilt Guild is my local guild.  I’m proud to say I’m a charter member of this guild.  Over the last 15 years, our membership has grown to 55 women.  Maybe that doesn’t sound like a lot by city standards, but I live in a very small community.  One of the guild projects is making baby quilts for at risk new moms in our county.  This is Bev.  She’s the driving force behind this project–and many others!

Yesterday was another “bring your baby quilts” day.  Twenty-two quilts were donated, and I’d like to share them with you.  I don’t know who made them all, but I’ll give credit where I do know.  Please email me or leave a comment if you know who made any of the others, and I’ll add that information.

Bev made this one.  I think it’s particularly nice because it’s all made with fabrics I’ve designed!  Of course, Bev could make a great looking quilt out of anything!

Glennys made these three quilts.  She found this pattern in a magazine.  You buy three yards of fabric, do some quick rotary cutting and some stitching and, voila!, you have three baby quilts!

Andi made this great monster quilt and machine quilted it on her new long arm.  The quilting outlining the monster looks great on the back!

This is a pre-quilted panel that just needed a binding and it’s ready to comfort a new baby.

I think Andi also made this quilt with a packed bears print.

This quilt has cute monkey fabric in it and a print that says, “I love Mommy” and “I love Daddy.”  How perfect is that?

These two panels are flannel and oh-so-cuddly.

Quilts From The Heart is another local group that makes charity quilts, and they donated several yesterday, including this one.

This sweet quilt with its pink and plaid is just the right size for a receiving blanket.

Ann S. has been in her log cabin period and made these two quilts.  One has a polka dot binding and the other an orange stripe binding.

Here’s another comfy Quilts From The Heart quilt.

This is a great, graphic design.  This one is quilted with a variegated thread, which looks so nice on this quilt.

Nellie turned this Suzi’s Zoo panel into a baby quilt.  She said she’d had it in her stash since the Anna Lena store days!

Quilts From The Heart made this sweet quilt with a packed teddy bear fabric.

This strippy quilt made by Ann J. will keep some baby nice and warm.  It’s made with flannel.

Lynda made this nice bright quilt with an even brighter back and binding!

Isn’t this a great looking quilt with a very modern feel?  Renee made this one.  I love the colors!

And the same with this rail fence.  Orange and aqua–what a great combination!  This quilt was made by Mary H.

I think there will be some happy new moms and comfy babies, thanks to the work of the wonderful ladies of the Peninsula Quilt Guild.

Our show-and-tell theme at Redwork this month was anything with hearts.

Carol O. said this was one of the first classes she took at Anna Lena’s–many years ago!

And for Cortne` this WAS her first class at Anna Lena’s.

She made this quilt to live in her husband’s sports car.

Mary made this gorgeous heart quilt.  She’s still working on hand quilting each of the hearts, but she’s well over half way finished.

Mary was our goodie godmother today, and she brought these pillows to decorate the goodie table. Also note the little heart box with yo-yo’s on top and the yo-yo mat underneath.

We used this for our table cloth today–a quilt Mary made from a Moda panel a few years back.

It’s really cute!

Mary also brought the vintage Valentine hanging here, and another heart wall hanging that she made.

Loretta hand appliqued all of these cute little hearts.

Eleanor went through her WIPs (Works in Progress) to find these heart blocks she won at quilt guild at least 7 years ago.  Now that they’re out, maybe she’ll put them together!

Linda didn’t have anything for heart show-and-tell so a few nights ago she whipped this up!  And hand quilted it, of course!

My mom really is the Queen of Hearts.  Since she no longer embroiders, she brought a lot of heart jewelry for show-and-tell–and a box of candies for each of us!  Thanks, Mom.

Of course we never limit ourselves to one topic when it comes to show-and-tell.  Mary brought this purse that she recently made and felted!

And she just started working on these adorable log cabin blocks with 1/2″ strips.

Amazingly, Loretta just started the same blocks!  Great minds….

Mary had this sweet, appliqued crib cover.  I’d never seen one on a striped background before.

Loretta brought her basket quilt back. She’s working on hand quilting the blocks.

Mary has the Halloween quilt top all put together.

Didn’t she do a great job on the embroidery?

And I LOVE the giant rick rack!

In her digging, Eleanor found these blocks that we did in Redwork club in 2001!  I love that we did red on white and white on red that year.  Most of the designs came from a vintage Redwork quilt that I bought in New York.   We did 24 blocks that year.

This one is especially cute.

Ann had finished this charming boys quilt.

She does such nice work.

Cortne` brought her house blocks and wanted advice on how to finish them.  We all loved the yellow and black frames.  I think she’s going to frame every other one with the white-on-black print and the black-on-white print.

I love how the yellow makes them pop.

Robin had been practicing her machine stitching on some doll quilts that she gives away.  She’d done a really nice job.

Nan brought me a two presents!  This vintage Grandmother’s Flower Garden quiltlette.

Don’t you love the layout.

And this embroidered days-of-the-week towel with a stitchin’ chicken!

Thanks, Nan, and everybody who shared.

It’s taken me a whole year to get this post posted. I know some of you are very familiar with camo, but if you’re not, here’s your introduction!

The whole Hamilton family visited Cabella’s in Olympia.

Cabella’s is an outdoorsman’s paradise.

And home of everything camo.  Do you see our grandson, Carson, in the photo below?  No, not the boy in purple, that’s Cole.  If you can’t find Carson, that’s the camo, aka camouflage, doing its job!

If Justin didn’t have that great smile, you might not see him in the photo below.  He already has quite the camo wardrobe.

Bill’s looking stylin’ in his camo pants and backpack.

He probably should have these boots, too.

You didn’t think they only came in one style, did you?

Oh, you don’t need rubber boots?  How about work boots?

If you don’t want anyone to see your hands–and you want to keep them warm at the same tie–you’ll need these gloves!

Justin had some money to spend, but it was a hard decision what to spend it on.  Hmmm, maybe  this camo wallet???

Perhaps we’re spending too much time shopping. Time for a wresting break.

Wow! Not only can you be entirely clad in camo, you can get a camo ATV, too!

JJ found one that’s just the right size.

But, seriously, how about home decor?  Surely if we can outfit our bodies in camo, we can do our homes, too.

Clock, anyone?

Or a camo game table for just $99.00?

Of course, you’ll need somewhere to relax.

Pink and blue bean bags?  Is that pink for girls and blue for boys?

Ooh, here’s a comfy TV chair.

And McKenna modeling the latest in camo coffee mugs.

Now that we’ve furnished the living room in camo, how about the bedrooms?

Not only can you get the perfect comforter, you can get camo valances.

Don’t think this is just for the boys.  There’s pink camo bedding for the girly girls in the family.

Oh! Oh!  Bathroom accessories, too!

Aw, even dolls dressed in camo.

There were even kid sized chairs, as McKenna discovered.

Justin and JJ found them a good fit, too.

Carson had to give them a try.  Note the mini loves seat, too!

The top half of Justin just about disappears in this chair.

Is it Justin or a bear???

Justin or a deer???

I’m speechless!  All in all, it was a great camo day.

There’s got to be a rhyme in here somewhere.  That family that wears camo together…….  Well, you’l have to finish it.

Nancy Goldworthy is a long arm quilter and author.

One of her books is Quilter’s Guide to UFO’s – UnFinished Objects.

She was the speaker last week at the Peninsula Quilt Guild.

She brought lots of quilts for inspiration…

…which I LOVE!

I never get tired of looking at quilts.

Nancy swears that all of these quilts used to be UFO’s.

They languished in her sewing room.

But eventually lived to see the light of day…

…and become finished quilts.

Some were piles of blocks.

Some were from block exchanges.

Some were set on point.

Some were tops that needed quilting.

Nancy even has a chart of what she needs to finish.

It was a real inspiration to all of us.  Thanks, Nancy.

This is a quilt I designed called Summer Fun.

The name came more from the fabric than the design.  I had this cute baseball fabric that I used in it.

The quilt uses nine fat quarters and a background.

This pattern is in my second book, Fat Quarter Fun.

In the book I also sho it in a little sample with just two colors and not much contrast.  Very sweet!  I just love to see how different the same pattern can look in different fabrics.  Sometimes it’s hard to believe they even are the same pattern.

At our last Quilt Retreat, Sue made one with purple and lavender.  Isn’t is stunning!?!  And don’t you love the blatant advertising, with her holding up the book!  She is a former Anna Lena’s employee, after all.

She stopped by today to use my long arm to quilt it.

I think the Daisy Pano is looking great on it.

If you’ve made quilts from my books or patterns, I’d love it if you’d send me photos.