What I have Been Up To

Please scroll down for this weeks challenge entries.

 SO as yesterdays post mentioned I am now 7 weeks out from rotator cuff surgery on my right shoulder.  I was released from my sling on Monday! A glorious day. Today is Thursday and what a difference 3 days make. First of all I am typing this with two hands-wow who knew how much quicker it is to type with two hands! I have increased my Physical Therapy regime and the pay back has been almost startling. On Monday I had to engage the parking brake on my car with my left hand (yes I have been ok'd to drive), yesterday I had enough strength to use my right arm and hand. SO while I still have PT three times a week and am doing a gajillion exercises at home, I hope to be back to blogging once or twice a week. BUT please note if I am ever not posting here I usually am posting to my Facebook page... 

Teri H Hoover Photography

I would LOVE to see you there!

Below you will find what I have been up to over the last 3 weeks. Lots of photos, lots of gardening and a bit of sewing. Oh and I have my 18 year old nephew, Sebastian (I LOVE that name!) living with us until he starts college at Virginia Tech on August 27th. It has been so good to have a teenager back in the house. He is a great kid.

 Three sisters and Sebastian

***

SO here are some photos of my little sewing project. What we have here is cotton clothesline wrapped in 3/4 strips of scrap fabric.I have lots of scrap fabric, (I love to quilt) but the clothes line and fabric were generously given to me by one of my quilting buddies. I was visiting my Tuesday quilting group and they were making these baskets. As I watched I thought I can wind fabric around clothesline... it will be good physical therapy. And it was, after 4 days of winding fabric I had enough to start sewing. All doubts that I could not sew one handed were erased once I started.  You have to love my finger nails- I don't even use nail polish very often- these were WILD. (Blame it on post surgery boredom)

  

 Fabric Strips over Clothesline Basket, Backyard Garden, Blacksburg, Va-August 11,2012 

Onto the photo Challenges!

The above photo of my fabric basket is contributed to
 Photo Art Friday-"containers" over on Pixel Dust Art.



Here a slice of lemon in my water... I see a heart for 
Guest Heart Thursday  thank you Clytie for hosting!

Teacup on the counter, Blacksburg, VA-Aug 14, 2012 

 This image is pulling double duty-

 "Straight out of the camera" (*sooc) challenge From Tina's Pic Stories-

"Little piece of heaven" challenge from Tina's Pic Stories

Blacksburg, VA-August 9, 2012

 Yup I know it is hard to believe... straight of my Droid cell phone no less! 

(I added the border with my watermark) Can you say I love my cell phone!?

These rose images were taken this week as a part of a personal series I am doing called "bloom whenever possible" 

and contributed to: 

 Leanne's Flower Art Friday #17 
I Heart Macro at Studio Waterstone

 Backyard Garden, Blacksburg, VA August 11 and 14th, 2012

Sending out blessings from Blacksburg, Virginia. xo teri  


`

liberated stitches

January 17, 2012- Small Stones  
liberated stitches by  Teri H Hoover

A nest of sewing machines

set into motion.

Their song stitched together 

with threads of conversation.

 

Blacksburg Presbyterian Church, Blacksburg, VA- Jan 17, 2012

Hello my name is Teri and I am a fabric-aholic.  Seriously, I do have a bit of fabric. I am blessed to be part of  two quilting groups. Today I was working a group of quilters who meet at the Blacksburg Presbyterian church, 2 Tuesdays a month. We trundle in with sewing  machines and project bags; working for 3-4 hours. I am usually late and only work about 2 hours. The above small stone (written observation) came about while sewing on my nearly completed quilt (started the week of December 5th).  Just call me the fabric liberator.   

Attention To Details

Title borrowed from Jules Page -(her blog is here) writing on WOWH writing community.

Sun Room Room, Blacksburg, VA- Jan 13, 2012

While ironing the quilt top I "finished" last night (finished except for the border) I was once again reminded that ironing is much more effective the longer you leave the iron in place. Just allowing the irons heavy, hot, heat, hover, haughtily... (it is small stones month - so my words got colorful) The wrinkles will come out and the seam will lie flat. When I

pause...

I find focus- the photographers friend.

Illuminating.

Time to curl up on the couch for a bit.
Just me, some hot tea, a dog and a book.
Not so sure I will drink much tea or read many pages.

`
Oh and for the curious at heart- the MRI showed I have a tear in the supraspinatus posterior- extending to intfraspinatusuin ... rotator cuff  tear. No idea how I did it, and not sure what the next steps are- surgery maybe...find out on the 18th. Sounds like I will have lots of opportunity to pause.

One Year and One Day

Seams

All

Sewn

Upstairs sewing area, Blacksburg, VA- Jan 5, 2011

Seems

Bedroom, Blacksburg VA- Jan 5, 2010

All
Sown 

A River of Stones- a 30 day challenge in observing

One year and one day ago I started this quilt top.

I had a pattern but of course I did not stick to that.

I had a timetable.

A very realistic time table
with plenty of time to wander and return.

The next step will be to hand the quilt over
(to a friend)
to be machine quilted-

Another realistic move-
it is 
too BIG
to hand quilt.

Over on Joanne's blog Whole Latte Life

she posed the question -
"Do you come into the new year as a lion or a lamb?"

The responses in the comment section 
make this post really fun.

My answer:
  I am a lion in sheep's clothing-
kind of scary huh? 

My work style tends to be rather 
 me
                 and
ering

and
indirect -

but my courage bubbles up 
and keeps me moving in a general direction.

With that my quilt top is completed!

Delayed by a day- 

Delayed by a dog- 

Done in a year and a day.

Here is a link to the day I began my quilt top- 

Just over a year ago --January 4, 2010

Sneak Peek

 Blacksburg VA- Nov 16, 2010

-click to enlarge-

I have been working on this quilt for our bed- since January. I have completed the 16 blocks for the top and sewn them together.

This photo is showing the border that I was auditioning, it is not attached yet. I hope to do that tomorrow before my quilting meeting. It is going to be tricky because we have yoga in the morning and car tire place in the afternoon. 

Aren't these colors something else?

Sew Normal

My Sewing Spot, Blacksburg Va- Nov. 9, 2009

But I am not-

Tenuous moments of calm,

   -pinned together- 

-Maybe I will sew myself together-
-Only in time -

 -So back to seaming and sewing-

-normal-