Iron Smith

My Florentine Fancy went on the long arm quilter today.  I've never used one and haven't a lot of faith in my capabilities so we'll see how that works out, Send me luck, talent and a steady hand.  Heck, while you're at it, send someone to do the quilting for me...PLEASE!!  Anyway, in the meanwhile, you get another County Fair entry.  

There were a lot of shops at the county fair but not a lot of demonstrations.  My favorite by far was the iron smith right outside the door. 

 The gentleman in blue is Paul DiFrancesco (awesome name) of Lightning Forge

 Here he is building up his fire to the perfect temperature, the round item you see part of on his left is the "bellows which provides the oxygen to the flame.

 You get a demonstration full of information and humor while you wait for the iron to reach the proper temperature to work with.

 Here he had one of the viewers assist him by holding the iron rod while he split a section of it down the center.

 More waiting.

  it's actually quite amazing how quickly the iron heats up and cools down. Can you tell what it is yet? 

Between the heat and the muscle the iron bends in a seemingly easy fashion.

 Now can you tell what it is?  I'll give you a hint, Think hot dogs.  :) 

 You guessed it, it's a fork!  A few more touches and it was done.  All from a single rod of iron.  He tells you exactly what you need to do to care for it.  

 On another day that I had been there, only without my camera, he demonstrated how he used a dye to make one of these, isn't it lovely. 

Then he gifted it to me. 

I'll admit it made me cry a little for a craftsman to just give me such a lovely example of his trade.  I'll cherish it always.

More From the County Fair

So, as mentioned in my last post, our County Fair was last week/weekend.  Although I went three out of the four nights, I only remembered to take my camera on one of those days.  Brilliant I know. 
Small livestock is in my top three places to visit.  I have a weakness for chickens and bunnies.  Some of the pictures turned out a bit blurry but I beg you humor me.

I can't recall the breed of this duck (did I even look?) but my daughter wants one so we can name him Einstein. 

My favorite breed of chicken, a Silkie.  This one in particular was my favorite, it looked like a big fluffy chick, and those dark eyes... soooo cute!

Look at this handsome fellow with his pale colored cheeks.  He's a Bantam which means he's about half the size of standard chickens.  I can't recall the specifics on his breed though,

Another Silkie... Careful, he can smell fear.  Just kidding, it would make a rather good muppet don't you think?

This beautiful Bantam hen would not keep still for pictures, hence the blur, she was just so curious and cute.   I love love this color though, isn't it lovely?

Another Bantam hen but not sure of the breed.  I love her cute  round tummy. 

This Bantam cock could fit in the palms of my hands he was so small, and he was so very white.

Another Bantam Cock, I wanted to get a full shot of him but he'd have nothing of it, he wanted to see what my camera was all about and came right up to investigate.  Another case of curiosity making the picture blur.

A Rex bunny I believe, I'm worse at bunny breeds than I am chickens. 

Did you know that bunnies could give you baleful stares?  The sign on this guys cage said "I'm grumpy and I bite!"  I believe it. 

Another Rex.  We got to pet one just like this and it was sooooo soft!

Bunny love, how cute are these little Netherland Dwarves?

A shy little floppy eared bunny.

And finally this little guy, soft, spotted and ears that didn't know which way to go.  :)

County Fair Textiles (pic heavy)

In the distance I can hear the rumble of the fireworks that signal the end of our county fair.  This year we went all but one night to see the sights and had lots of fun.  I don't have a lot to say, but thought I'd let you see some of the textile arts that were on display.  Some of the pictures came out a bit blurry, but you get the idea.

For your viewing pleasure.

This quilt was HUGE!

I loved this dress, it had a very medieval feel to it.

This quilt was made by one of the customers of my store for a contest we had, she won that, then entered it in the fair.  Look at those ribbons!

Love this quilt block!

Sad this turned out so blurry, but I love the colors in this quilt.

A cute puzzle quilt. 

Love this quilt, and the colors.

Another blurry picture

A close up (and clearer) view of the quilt above.

A beautiful embroidered suit with matching satchel. 

Closeup.

This beautiful shawl was knit by an acquaintance of mine.  She does amazing work. 

Two very different quilts, my favorite is the one on the wall.

Wow!

Close up view of a big scrap quilt.

A beautiful cross stitch design.

Close up.

Hope you enjoyed.  . 

Almost done

Sorry for the bad picture quality I took it while rushing to get ready for work.

My title has a double meaning, I'm finally almost finished with my Florentine Fancy, just two more boarders to go, and my daughter and I are almost done with summer vacation.  I'm back to school on the 16th and she's back later this month.  Ug, time has just flown by!  To be perfectly honest, I'd much rather not go back to school, it's been so nice not having a deadline looming over my head every week.  Oh well.

I've also started a new quilt, It's called a Carpenters Star.  I'm making it for an old supervisor.  We've not been in the same unit for years but we are still very close and she told me that she's retiring in September.  Sad as it is, she's the only supervisor in my 11 year career that has taken a personal interest in me and been a true mentor.  So this is the least I can do. 

Four more rows to go

 I'm really liking this pattern and may end up making one to keep.  We'll see how much I get done in the next while, I'm supposed to work 9 days straight between my regular job and AF Reserves.  Less than thrilled about that I can tell you.  And to top it off, my Jeep died yesterday and at this point I'm not sure if it can be fixed.  I guess the extra money from the work will either be helping to pay for repairs or a new car.  :(
As my dad always used to say, "Such is the life in the far, far West and the further the West, the sucher."  

Meet My LQS

So do you get curious about where other people spend their time?  I do, so I thought I'd share where I spend a lot of my time.  I would love to introduce you to my favorite quilt shop (the fact that I work there may have something to do with it) Floyd & Lizzie’s, a local, family owned business that has been in the area for as long as I remember.   They carry Husqvarna Viking, Baby Lock and PFAFF sewing machines as well as Tin Lizzie long arm quilting machines.  As much as I love playing on all the different machines, I personally am more interested in the fabric.  
They cater to quilters, with 98% of their fabrics being quality cottons.  Some are lovely, feel soft as silk, and have a lovely drape that makes them suitable for apparel as well as quilting.
They recently moved into their brand new building at 2263 W 7800 South, West Jordan, UT,  where the fabric shop is located on the main floor and TinLizzie (yes THE TinLizzie) Headquarters are located on the upper level.
Parking is easy to get on an average day but can get sticky when there are classes or sales.

 
In the photo above, you can see the color wall.  Every Monday I get to go in and organize it, and all the other fabric.  Any guesses on how many bolt of fabric are up there?  I haven't counted so your guess is as good as mine, I just know there’s lots and they certainly don’t skimp on the quality to get the quantity either.  They have an "exclusive" line that they sell for $5.99/yard, can't beat that with a stick, and they have an amazing Batik collection.  Here’s just one of the two sections. Yummy huh.
  
The prices are average for quality cotton fabric, but all their new fabric lines go up front for 20% off until it rotates back and they are constantly having sales and sending out coupons via email and mailers.   Plus they have  a 60% up to 75% off area.  I heart the discount shelf!

 
Here you can see the book wall located up at the front  of the store as well as the notions wall on the right side of the photo.  Patterns can be found displayed throughout the store.

 
They always have the most beautiful quilts on display, and are always happy to showcase their customers quilts.  (Pay no attention to the strange man, that would be Adam the General Manager.)
They offer classes for making most of the quilts they have on display as well as some basic sewing, long arm and embroidery as well as owner classes where you can learn more about your own machine.   And if your machine needs a tune up bring it in, because they have a service center and work on most machines.
 


All of the staff at Floyd & Lizzie’s are great (Toot my own horn, but mostly speaking of my awesome co-workers because I only work a few days a week).  The moment you walk in the door you’re greeted.  If you need help, they’re there to help, if you just want to wander about and pet the fabric that’s ok too, and they never complain about having to cut just a quarter yard from a stack of 20 different fabrics, (We're actually rather good at bulk cuts) They’re knowledgeable, friendly and helpful.  And can I just say how much I love that even though they are machine dealers they aren’t trying to constantly shove a sale down your throat.  There’s no pressure and no hype,.
If you’re in the area, stop by, they’d love to see you.  Tell them Anita sent you
You can find out more at their website, www.floydandlizzies.com