Flickr Mosaic Game

The Rules:

• Type your answer to the questions into flickr search
• Using only the first page, pick an image
• Copy and paste each of the urls in the Mosaic Maker
• (You can start at Mosaic Maker and choose the Flickr photos from there)
  

The Questions:

1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food?
3. What high school did you go to?
4. What is your favorite color?
5. Who is your celebrity crush?
6. What is your favorite drink?
7. What is your dream vacation?
8. What is your favorite dessert?
9. What do you want to do when you grow up?
10. Who/ what do you love most in life?
11. Choose one word that describes you?
12. What is your Flickr name?

Found at http://croquecamille.wordpress.com/

My answers: 1. Kimberly, 2. Chocolate, 3. Saddle Brook High School, 4. Purple, 5. Aaron Eckhart, 6. Champagne, 7. Month in France, 8. Chocolate Brownie Sundae, 9. Textile Designer, 10. My Boys, 11. Smart, 12. kjmendoza (only kj for foto)

To Dream....

the impossible dream! We all had dreams when we were young. When I was in first grade, I wanted to be a writer. Only I didn't call it that; I said I wanted to be an "author." I even wrote two little illustrated books that are in my mom's custody.

At some point in high school, I considered becoming a psychologist/psychiatrist until I found out medical school and clinical work was involved, so the heck with that. Then in the 70s I discovered the wonderful textile designs of Vera Neumann and Marimekko and Peter Max. I decided I wanted to be a textile designer when I "grew up."

Well, life happens, I dropped out of Fine Arts college and didn't become a textile designer. Buying other's fabric designs, cutting them up and piecing them back together has been my creative outlet. I know I can print small pieces of my own designs, but I've always found printing on 8 1/2 x 11 sheets of computer-printable fabric somewhat disappointing.

But now there's the possibility for me - or you or anyone - to create and print 100% cotton fabric yardage of my very own design. A small company called Spoonflower now does just that - in beautiful color on Kona cotton. If you check out their YouTube videos here, you can see all the different designs that they've printed for their customers. Yeah, some of them will have you thinking that the designers had a little too much time and money on their hands, but to each his own.

So, the question is, do I or don't I.

Pink and Black on a Gray Day

Although the local news media and weather reporters are just aching for a nice, juicy hurricane to report, all they've gotten for the past four years are tropical storms and depressions. Lovely Tropical Storm Fay has decided to park herself right over our county and just sit here and drip rain on us for a few days.

So, what's better on a rainy, dreary day than some bright, new fabric. Yesterday the Fedex guy brought me my order from Hancock's of Paducah. The new fabrics for my Diamond challege quilt are spread out above in all their pink and black glory. Normally, I hate cutting into new fabric, but I can't wait with these babies.

Back To School

Even though they pushed the start of the school year back about 10 days, it still seems crazy to be sending Cheo back to school in August. School starts on Monday. Yesterday we went to registration, and tonight we have to go to a meeting about Cambridge AICE diploma qualification. The only good thing about that is I'll miss weigh-in at TOPS this week.

Why is that a good thing? I weighed this morning, and am at the same weight as last week. Add the days food and water consumption, and I will have gained weight by weigh-in at 6:30 p.m. Although I wouldn't have deliberately skipped a meeting, this gives me a chance to get back in the groove. Last nights Kraft Deluxe Macaroni and Cheese did not help me a bit. All-in-all, I'm eating better and less, so that's a plus.

I posted a few more auctions on e-bay today. All the other auctions had completed, although not all are paid and shipped. I shipped out three auctions today. I'm still cutting up fabric yardage into fat quarters and it's finally beginning to look like there's an end in sight. I plan on having a big garage sale in September, inviting quilt guild members for a preview sale, and opening to the public for Saturday.

A Real Challenge

I've returned to our local quilting guild after an absence of over a year. In anticipation of the guild's 5 year anniversary luncheon in October, a quilt challenge was issued. In this type of challenge, you purchase a kit that gives your specific parameters that the finished quilt must meet. As you can see above, I received an 8" square of fabric with the instructions to make a quilt no larger than 30" on a side, with a visible amount of the challenge fabric and at least two 'diamonds'.

I took the square with me to the local quilt shop, thinking to find black and white stripes, but instead found a lovely pink, black and white stripe. That's my inspiration. And since I love making 6 pointed stars out of 60 degree 'diamonds', my quilt idea is hatching. Here's my first completed diamond - it's about 8" across.

Eating Healthy

Apart from the fact that the phrase 'eating healthy' is bad grammar, it's what I'm trying to do. After seeing great results on a friend, I joined the local chapter of TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) just before we left for Mexico. I had originally planned to wait until after we got back from vacation, and then I realized that I always lose weight while we're in Mexico (mostly because we walk a lot). So, my first week back at TOPS, I posted a 7 pound loss. Two weeks later, I was down a little over 10 pounds.

Sooooo, this week has been harder. We were out to dinner Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, and I chose to eat junk some of those times. And then more junk yesterday (Coca-cola and pork rinds, yeah, I know). Today, I'm determined to get back on track. Which is why I just love this stuff - Great Grains Crunchy Pecans. It keeps me feeling full for a long time and has a wonderful nutty crunchy taste. And it was on sale at Publix, buy one get one free.

I'm really not trying to advertise for Post or KraftFoods, just wanted to share a great product, and keep myself honest about what I'm eating.

OMG, I just found the most amazing designer - her collection for Moda fabrics is fabulous. I am in love (in a very non-sexual way, of course)! Check out her blog at http://tulapink.com and see what I mean.

Flowers in Mexico

When we arrived at our new house in Mexico and while I was settling in on the inside of the house, Pedro went out and bought a bunch of blooming beauties for the outside. We don't have a large area to plant. Most of the patio area is concrete and rock, with just a few planting 'boxes' in the ground. I had Cheo snap these shots so I would remember what we have growing and have something to look forward to a year from now.

Now What?!?

Well, the e-bay auction has been moving along smoothly. I've shipped out 4 twenty-packs of fat quarters, which were lovely to look at and fun to put together.

Now, I have a repeat customer and she wants to combine shipping, and I don't know how! My buddy, Angela, from next door is an e-bay whiz and could surely help me out, but is on a two-week vacation. It would be rude to interrupt her trip because I'm too technologically challenged (read lazy) to go on e-bay and figure out how to do this. So I will give it my best try. Here are some of the pretty combinations I'm selling.