Be One in a Million - IF You Can Sew a Straight Line!

Have you heard about the One Million Pillowcase Challenge? It's a wonderful nationwide initiative to sew and donate one million pillowcases to charities. As the sad story about the devastation in Haiti unfolds, it's overwhelming to reflect on how one little person here can help. While the pillowcase project isn't designed to assist in that type of emergency, it offers a small way for us to reach out to someone locally. Here's how the sponsor, American Patchwork & Quilting, describes the project:


Calling all quilters, sewers and crafters! American Patchwork & Quilting is challenging you to join our efforts to Make a Pillowcase, Make a Difference. Every pillowcase can make a difference in your community. A pillowcase can provide comfort for a cancer patient, hope for a foster child, encouragement for a battered woman, or beauty for a nursing home resident.

From the project website, you can locate a participating sewing shop in your area. Then you simply make your pillowcase, take it to the closest donation center and it will be delivered to local participating charities. The website also lists charities that need pillows and a link to request that your charity be added to the list - so if you work with a group that could benefit from some beautiful, handmade pillowcases, check it out!

And to spark your creativity, there are great patterns to download - remember, you don't have to be an experienced seamstress to make a basic pillowcase! However, you may be inspired to make several pillowcases during the year, increasing the difficulty as you become more comfortable. New patterns will be added each quarter - so it's a great way to expand your repertoire. And, you can add some great new pillowcases to your own linen closet while you're at it - it won't take much more effort to make two while you're sewing! One local quilt shop is offering pillowcase workshops one day per month - fabric kits, instructions, and the use of their machines - all for $11 for two pillowcases. Look for similar workshops in your area!

I'll keep you posted on my pillowcases and would love to hear if you're involved in the One Million Pillowcase Challenge!

All photos courtesy American Patchwork and Quilting.

Who Was I Kidding?

Am I the only one who thought I'd find time for a last-minute blog post on Christmas Eve? Obviously, that didn't happen . . . so we'll save the carol quiz for next year. Wow - now I'm prepared quite early for next December 24!

I hope you and your loved ones had a fabulous Christmas - and that you find creative ways to re-purpose those gifts that missed the mark. If you need a bit of inspiration, look to Edward Gorey's work above.

I'll be back in a regular blogging routine in a few days. In the interim, wishing you some happy downtime!

Snow Birds

This isn't about Minnesotans wintering in Florida - it's a quick look at a few birds who visited our feeders during our little snow storm yesterday. The photos aren't especially good - the light was bad and the windows were splattered with snow (honestly, they're actually pretty clean . . .). But, you might enjoy seeing these Droll Yankee window feeders - we have two on the same window and get lots of birds year-round.

If you don't have bright lights in the room, the birds don't notice you at all.

And it's amazing to get such up-close views.

Even though they can't see us, sometimes it seems like they're staring us down . . . this cardinal is a great example. He is the state bird, though, so perhaps he's within his rights to have a bit of attitude!

Keep these feeders in mind for a last-minute gift!

The Politics of Tea

Here's an etiquette topic that's rarely discussed (by me, anyway): Gift Giving Etiquette for Heads of State. Pretend you're the King or Queen of somewhere and you're visiting the President or Premier of somewhere else - what do you take as a gift? You can't just pop over to the mall and select something. No, you have to choose a gift that represents the best of your country and yet isn't in any way offensive to the recipient's country. Months of preparation go into these presents and over the past few centuries, many Heads of State have chosen tea related items. Many of these ceremonial gifts are displayed in museums around the world. What do you think of these two?

In 1939, the Crown Prince and Princess of Norway gave this sterling and enamel tea set to President and Mrs. Roosevelt. It was made by famed silversmith David Andersen; more details can be found in the National Archives. I love the modern, art deco style of this set - I wonder if it was ever used?

In 1973, General Secretary Brezhnev presented President Nixon with this 19th century Russian silver samovar (an urn used to heat and serve tea). Find out more at the Nixon Library. I'm guessing this samovar was used; if not by the Nixons, then by someone in pre-revolution Russia when it was new. Think of Dr. Zhivago - just imagine a Julie Christie-type bundled up on a cold night and sipping hot tea from this . . . perhaps it's one of the things she'll take when she escapes . . . well, it is a bit bulky, but how sad to leave something this lovely behind.

Thanks for joining me on this quick look at some famous tea items. Of course, another very popular 19th century gift from heads of state was animals native to the presenter's country, but somehow it's harder to translate that to a modern wedding or housewarming present . . .

Tomorrow we'll be in the kitchen so stop by for a tasty treat!

Have a Boo-Boo? Fix It With Toast

Okay, I'm really not obsessed with Toast even though this is my second post about it this week. But, a friendly reader (who prefers to remain anonymous) told me about this product and I knew you'd want to know straight away:

I can't vouch for these myself, but they're from a company called Archie McPhee and are just one of the many intriguing items offered. It's never too early to think about stocking stuffers so check out them out. I'm considering the Pickle Bandages, Bacon Lip Balm, and perhaps the Shakespeare Action Figure . . .