Snow Day.....2011

Remember as a child when you woke up in the morning

to find out school had been cancelled...

because of a SNOW DAY !

Welcome to My World:

7 am I stepped out the back door

and this is what I saw...

Little Snow Cakes on top of the fence posts!

Click Images to Enlarge !

Across the river the Cow Barns are covered in Snow

Gunnr was more than happy to join me outdoors:

He is staring over at the barn...

Gunnr is letting me know that he sees...

a yearling calf taking shelter in one of the horse stalls

This little yellow building is...

The happiest place on earth...

The Thread Shed

All of my quilted textiles are born in this building

Yes, I am a Jersey Girl Originally...

I have lived in Oregon for 30 years

Just outside the Thread Shed

Growing on the Arbor

These tiny little buds are braving the snow...

This is the corral fence just behind the Thread Shed.

The livestock are good company while I sew.

The corral fence makes a good perch for the birds.

Grape Arbor

CLICK HERE to view the Grape Arbor last fall

Luckily these little apple trees

haven't bloomed yet...

This is pretty much the tour around the yard...

I am heading back in to make some breakfast...

Gunnr and Suzy are ready to go back inside too !

After breakfast we are moving cattle...

I will post more images of the cattle drive when we get back!

CLICK HERE:  to see My Quilts

CLICK HERE to view:  Cattle Drive in the Snow

CLICK HERE to view the Thread Shed

CLICK HERE to view Birds

CLICK HERE to view more Snow Images

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full of Snow,

LuAnn

Quilting is not my only Passion...

If you have followed this blog for any length of time

you know that

Quilting is not my only passion...

Cattle, Horses and Dogs are a big part of our lives here on the farm.

These animals inspire my quilts,

and usually end up in my quilts.

I enjoy watching this video from time to time,

and thought it was time to share it with you.

This is the story of Skidboot...

CLICK HERE:  to see My Quilts

CLICK HERE to view our Dogs

CLICK HERE to view our Cattle

CLICK HERE to view our Horses

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full of Animals,

LuAnn

Gunnr is......... a Calendar Boy !

Announcing the 2012

Quilting Arts Calendar Artists!

Gunnr

12 x 12

Gunnr is ......... a Calendar Boy !

Gunnr 8 weeks

This is the first day our eyes met....

Nicholas & Gunnr 2006

Our son brought Gunnr, his puppy, home to meet us.

Gunnr quickly became part of the family...

Gunnr just adores our Jack Russell, Suzy

They spend lots of lazy days in the Thread Shed

asleep under the sewing machine:

So......you can see how I was inspired to create a Gunnr quilt.

Actually, I have made several quilts with Gunnr on them over the last few years.

My most recent quilt was picked as a finalist in the

2012 Quilting Arts Calendar

This year’s theme, Getting Pet-ty inspired hundreds of you to depict your beloved furry or feathered friend with fabric, thread, and heaps of love. From the countless entries received, the decision to winnow the lot down to 13 was very difficult. We saw lizards, llamas, parrots, horses, mice, dogs, cats, iguanas, you name it.

Congratulations to the following artists whose art quilts will appear in our 2012 calendar:

LuAnn Kessi “Gunner”

Faith Cleary (Untitled, cow)

Nancy Brown “Opie and Mittens Go Birdwatching”

Sue Clayton “My Pet Llama”

Susan Brubaker-Knapp “Trouble in the Pumpkin Patch”

Susan E. Connor (Untitled, cat with fish bowl)

Lisa Encabo ‘Cutie says, “FEED ME! Throw my ball.”’

Nancy Hayes “Jazz Fetch!”

Loreen Leedy “Cautious”

Amber McIntosh (Untitled, frogs)

Joan Sowada “Agnus Ready”

Nanette Zeller “A Perfect Storm”

Jill Packer “The Iconic Miss Isabella (Iguana)”

CLICK HERE:  to see My Quilts

CLICK HERE to view the Thread Shed

CLICK HERE to view more about Suzy

CLICK HERE to view my Adventures in Mixed Media Class

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn Kessi

Wedding Ring Quilts...

I spent the day with my friend Linda.

We have decided to meet once a month to piece our

Double Wedding Ring Quilts

Today I went over to Linda's and we cut and pieced on her kitchen table.

She made us yummy grilled tuna sandwiches for lunch.

(Home Canned Tuna......the BEST)

Here is how our day went:

We are using Sharlene Jorgenson's Book & Templates

Double Wedding Ring Quilts

Linda and I started these quilts more than a dozen years ago,

so we had to re-acquaint ourselves with what we have done so far.

We are rotary cutting the individual pieces, using acrylic templates.

This is Linda...

She is looking at the back side of her unit to determine just exactly how she pieced it all those years ago.

These Double Wedding Rings are not difficult, but require an accurate 1/4 inch seam.

Linda has all of her units sorted out...

She will spend the afternoon piecing those " football " shaped units.

This pattern also requires some curved piecing, which is only a gentle curve, and easily accomplished.

This quilt is a perfect opportunity for Linda & I to use these depression era fabrics we have been collecting for so many years.

This is my part of the kitchen table...

I have one Ring pieced.

My templates are pink acrylic, on the right side of the ring.

I am cutting those tiny pieces and organizing them into arc units.

I still have lots of cutting to do before I can even think about piecing any units.

Linda will come over to the Thread Shed next month.

We will continue making progress on our Double Wedding Rings.

I will keep you posted...

CLICK HERE to watch a Tutorial

Another Tutorial CLICK HERE

CLICK HERE:  to see My Quilts

CLICK HERE to view my Traditional Quilts

CLICK HERE to view my Art Quilts

CLICK HERE to view my Tutorials

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn

Western Cowman Photo Contest.......Winners

When I am not creating Textile Art...

I am helping my family here on the farm.

I never leave home without my camera!

Farm life has afforded me opportunities to take FUN photographs.

Last fall I entered a couple in a photo contest:

The Western Cowman Magazine

Photo Contest 2010

Click Images to Enlarge:

" Oregon Wheat Field "

By: LuAnn Kessi

Won First Prize

Summer Scenic Category

The next image won Third Place in

The Dogs Category

This Third Place photo has a true place in my heart

Here is why...

This is Brad baling hay a few miles from our home.

He spent a good part of July cutting, raking & baling hay.

Which translates to a lot of hours away from home...

Our dog, Gunnr, missed Brad terribly!

So, I drove Gunnr down to the hay field for a visit...

When we pulled into the hay field,

Brad baled off the tractor to greet us...

This is when the fun began...

Once Gunnr spotted Brad getting off the tractor...

He raced through the hay field like he had wings

Jumping and leaping over the hay rows!

He couldn't get to Brad fast enough...

This is the photo that won:

" The Embrace "

By: LuAnn Kessi

A dog isn't your whole life,

but, a dog makes your life whole.

CLICK HERE:  to see My Quilts

CLICK HERE to view Gunnr's Portrait Quilt

CLICK HERE to view a slideshow of HOME

CLICK HERE to view Baling Hay

May Your Bobbin Always Be Full,

LuAnn