Button Blankets

I realized that I haven't posted here for 2 weeks! While my quilting time has been limited this month, I have been sewing up a storm on my daughter's 3rd grade class auction project. They are studying the Native Americans in our area, so they made these little button blankets.


They each designed their own applique based on animals in Native American folklore. Each piece is about 12" x 18".

With the help of a couple other parents, I added borders and hanging corners on the back so they can be displayed hanging on a dowel.


I like these 3 different takes on a whale:

Still Life Night

I had the best non-sewing creative jaunt tonight with my daughters and the watercolor crayons and watercolor paper postcards I gave them in their stockings. I love trying out art supplies, and these were a real blast. You can dip them in water and draw, or draw on paper and wash a wet brush over them for different effects.

Our still life subject was a work of art in itself: my daughter's bouquet from her preschool Moms' Night. There are a zillion things I love about her school, and doing flower arranging is definitely one of them!

Here's R's version of her bouquet and hand-painted vase. She's 5, learning to write and really interested in text right now.

A, who is 8 1/2, used really saturated colors. I love her precision and definition in this piece. She really enjoyed discussing the different details that made each of our paintings unique, which took me right back to art class critiques.

We all chatted about impressionists and how each of us gave a different impression of this little scene. I love our little family of pictures and think this will become a regular event in our household!

Matisse Inspired

I think it was Lee Anne at Nifty Quilts who got me all excited about Matisse again with her incredible Matisse inspired quilt. That led to me getting a Matisse book from the library and making a Matisse inspired collage in my youngest's Sunday school class today ....

And all of us getting scissor happy with construction paper before bed tonight.

by R, age 4

by A, age 8

by Alexis, age 29 again ;-)

Fun, fun, fun. Thanks Lee Anne! I might make a Matisse inspired quilt one day too!