Ramblings |
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| 27 Feb: Whew this has been a busy month! I don't know where the time goes. I have spent time painting some of the rooms in the house and have finally gotten the quilt studio set up. I'm looking forward to getting back to quilting in earnest. It seems like we are getting snow every few days, so snow shoveling has become a large part of my exercise plan. For those interested in my newest book, I now have copies and can ship them to US addresses for $28.95 including shipping. You can email me, or pay via Paypal using the susan@susantaylorpropst.com email address. |  |
| 30 Jan: I apologize for not updating this page recently, but I have a good excuse. In November we found out that we were going to relocate back to the states. And we only had three weeks to move! That's not a lot of time for a domestic move, but it's very short for an overseas move. Still, we flew back to Colorado on Dec 5 and Charlie (the dog) arrived the same day. We were able to enjoy Christmas with our son (who had a much shorter trip from Wyoming) and my mother-in-law. After giving ourselves a few days to adjust to the altitude, we began looking for a home. One of the criteria was to have an area for a quilting studio. We found a house in a nice location in north Colorado Springs. Then began the process of moving in our things. Some of our things had been in storage while we were in England, and some we shipped through the post, some were shipped by air, and most were shipped by sea. We finally have everything in the house, and the quilts have all arrived intact, which is a huge relief. We still have boxes to unpack, but the house is finally starting to feel like our home. I haven't had time for quilting since we've been here, although I have been able to get to a few quilt shops. My husband said I was trying to replace my stash, but I really didn't buy that much. I miss the friends I had in England, but it is nice to be back home. | |
| Nov: This photo was taken at the last class I taught at the Yorkshire Yanks quilt group. Shown are some of the Yorkshire Yanks quilters and me. I am the one with the red shirt (and no Christmas headband - I didn't get the memo). Unfortunately a photo does not allow you to see the flashing lights on the headbands. |  |
| 31 Oct: It's been beautiful here on the hill this autumn. The trees have changed more noticeably this last week and there are few green leaves left. I was up early today, and there was a light fog which softened the colors - the photo almost captures the mood. |  |
| 28 Sep: We just returned from a trip to Paris, and I've come down with a nasty cold. We stayed in a little hotel on the Left Bank and walked everywhere. We took the train this time, and it was very pleasant - much more relaxed than flying. It is definitely an expensive place to go, but we really enjoyed visiting the museums. My husband took this photo of the Louvre at night (difficult to see but in front are my daughters and I). |  |
| 11 Sep: Now that some of the quilts are out and hanging around, it's really starting to feel like home. The house has three floors - so two sets of staircases which means a lot more space for draping quilts. |  |
| 10 Sep: Most of our neighbors are sheep - we are surrounded by sheep pastures. Sometimes they get closer to the house and I can get a picture or two. The weather the first few weeks in the house was wild, windy and rainy, and we thought that it was just because we were up on the hill here. But it has been gorgeous and sunny the last few days, and we heard it was the remnants of a hurricane coming through. The dog's outdoor dish filled up from the rain water in two days, so I know we got a lot. |  |
| 9 Sep: Our house sale went to completion and we started moving at the end of August. I finally have time to catch my breath a little. It really makes you realize how much stuff you have when you have to unpack it all! We found a very old house to rent (over 200 years old). It was originally built to house apprentices in the flax industry. It has a lot of character, and is in a beautiful location near several reservoirs. You can see here a picture of the dining room - I love the oak beams and floor! The stone walls are about 2 feet thick. And of course Charlie had to get into the picture. |  |
| 18 Aug: I taught a workshop at Quiltworks near Penrith this last weekend. It was a wonderful place and the owner, Maureen, prepared fantastic meals and was warm and welcoming. And of course the students were hard working, fun, and did a beautiful job with their projects. It was an ambitious weekend, with both Mariner's compass and embroidered landscape classes, but everyone rose to the challenge. |  |
| 25 Jul: As some of you know, we've had our house on the market for a while, and had an offer on it in May. Things are done a bit differently here than in the US, and you don't get a true commitment from the buyer until exchange of contract, which happens a while after the initial offer. We had exchange last Wednesday, so we are now in the process of finding a rental property to live in until it is time to return to the US. One of the bigger considerations is finding a house with enough room for my fabric and quilting supplies. Many houses here don't have any closets, let alone big closets. And I have a lot of fabric... | |
2 Jul: We had been talking about going to the Farne Islands (off the Northumberland coast) to see the puffins for several years, and we finally went today. It was an absolutely beautiful warm day, the sea was not too rough, and there were thousands of birds at the bird sanctuary on Inner Farne Island. We had been told that some of the birds (the terns) would peck at our heads, but it still startled me when they did it. Fortunately, since we were warned we wore hats and it did not hurt, but some of the birds could get very aggressive. The puffins were smaller than I expected, and absolutely adorable. A great opportunity for taking lots of photographs. |
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27 June: Today was the exhibition for the City & Guilds Patchworkers and Embroiderers at Craven College in Skipton. There was a lot of really beautiful work displayed by this talented group of students. To see a page of photos from the exhibition, click on the photo. |
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29 May: I've gotten the sample for the Autumn table runner class done. The group decided they had done enough applique, so I came up with a design using folded patchwork techniques. Since it is not pictorial, it could be used for any season. |
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26 May: A friend and I walked through the Harlow Carr Gardens today and of course I took pictures. The gardens used to be a research garden to study the plants that could grow in northern climates, but a few years ago the Royal Horticultural Society took it over and they are working to improve it as a place to visit. |
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13 May: I am fortunate to have a companion who likes nothing more than to sit with me while I quilt (actually he sleeps most of the time). His name is Charlie and he is our 8 year old Bichon Frise. Actually, he probably likes walking a bit more, which is great because it encourages me to walk. |
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22 April: I have just completed paper foundation piecing the top for this quilt. It's been beautiful here lately and I've been able to open the windows to let the fresh air in. |
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12 April: It's been an early spring this year (and a late Easter), and the daffodils are already past their prime. But I still caught them on the Stray in Harrogate looking quite lovely! |
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5 April: We've been having beautiful weather here in northern England, and I had to get out and take more photographs. Here is a photo of one of the hyacinths outside my kitchen window. I'm not sure if this is the same plant that was the inspiration for the project in Beautiful Blooms, but today it looks like it could have been. |
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| 3 April: This is the table runner that I designed for classes at Yorkshire Yanks. We are making a table runner for each season, and this is the spring/Easter table runner. |  |
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All quilt images on this web site are © Susan Taylor Propst 2007-2009. Contact: propstsusan@yahoo.com Last update: 30 Jan 2009 |
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