I LOVE LOVE LOVE the way the bird of paradise block (top) turned out….the bird of paradise is a spectacular flower, and I love the way this design works.

The taro leaf is ripply on the edges; the root of the plant is used for food. I plan to quilt the leaf veins (below) in the same magenta thread used in the satin stitching.

These blocks will become part of a quilt that I plan to call Nourish the Body, Nourish the Soul, with Hawaiian plants that provide food and/or beauty. Each of the nine blocks will finish at 18-19 inches, and be set like a huge 9-patch, with the dark-background blocks in the center and corners, and the light background blocks in the other spots. The finished quilt will probably be about 72 inches square…perfect for snuggling on the sofa. For more pictures of the other blocks, check out my posts on Aug. 22 and 28 (hit the link in the sidebar on the right for the August archives and scroll down…). Hope you like!

Say…I’m thinking about starting a newsletter…just an e-mail with updates from me maybe once every 2-3 months. If you’d like to be included on an e-newsletter mailing list, please leave a comment here or via my “contact me” page on my website, and I’ll start a list. I promise I’ll never, ever share the info with anyone!
All images copyright Sarah Ann Smith

Wow…what a week, both here and on Rockstar:INXS. JD is back, but in a good way….after faltering for a couple weeks, he wowed everyone. I was surprised that he won the voting for the encore performance, but he sure did it up good. Although I’m not a big Marty fan, his “Trees” song was way cool…..I’m not much of a music buyer (so why I love this show so much is beyond me, but what the heck….I’m going with the flow), but I’d buy that one! Suzie and MiG were dependable as always, but neither blew me away this week. That’s OK, Suzie has had a major run and is now looking like a leading contender for new lead singer of INXS. Jordis recovered some of her style in the elimination round last night, and I’m so glad the band was SO encouraging to her…..frankly, I’m hoping one of them or Dave Navarro has already called their agent and said “sign this girl!”. Her style isn’t really that of INXS, but boy is she something….she deserves to be on a record.

I had to laugh when I read Deb Richardson and Deborah B’s blogs…..we all had identical reactions, including to Brooke Burke’s fashion accident on Tuesday…looked like she took a shower and forgot to change out of her slinky short robe….blech. Triplets separated at birth and by years?

Next week…I’m guessing Marty will be the one to go, unless JD really messes up. Reading the blogs (yep…I’m toast….) has been interesting…all of them talking about the pressure, the fun they had (why is a food fight that trashes a mansion fun?????) at JD’s party (though I definitely see they really needed to cut loose, de-stress and just have fun). JD was gracious…..with Ty gone (and may he ALSO get a recording contract, soon) and his thank-filled posts, it was nice to see. Toodles!

This past weekend was the annual Schooner Days here in Camden, Maine. Yesterday, several of the schooners held open houses for folks to come aboard, including the Bowdoin, part of the Maine Maritime Academy, and the Nathaniel Bowditch, which takes folks on cruises out of the port of Rockland, just 15 minutes south of us. I took this photo of several of the schooners I didn’t visit from the dock next to the Bowdoin (pronounced bo’-dun) with part of Camden Harbor in the background.

I had a lot of fun taking photos for possible future quilting ideas, with lots of the ropes and rigging. But this one, of a thick leather patch nailed to the deck and the heavy chain, appeals to me most.

Hi everyone…as promised, here is my teaching schedule for Fall (ps…this is a re-run of my Aug. 1 posting…am repeating to make it easy for folks to find the info); when there’s something new added, I’ll highlight that for you.

Most of the classes listed are at Cote Brothers in Bangor, Maine. I will also be teaching at the Quilters’ Cottage here in beautiful Camden, Maine. The classroom at Quilters’ Cottage is tiny—only four students! So we have been scheduling as demand requires…basically, if you are interested in a class, call them at 236-2933 to sign up–just say which class. When we have 3-4 students, we schedule a mutually agreeable date, and then we have a class.

September 15, Thursday 10-4: Intro to Machine Quilting, Cote Brothers
September 17, Saturday 10-4: Quilting Design (for hand or machine)
October 10, Monday: speaking to the Clamshell Quilters in Damariscotta, ME (a guild chapter) October 13, Thursday 10-4: Quilting Design (for hand or machine)
October 15, Saturday 10-4: Hawaiian Applique by Machine
November 10, Thursday 10-4: Hawaiian Applique by Machine
November 19, Saturday 10-4: More Machine Quilting and Quilting with Decorative Threads December 10, Saturday 10-4: Balinese Garden, a machine applique project class (you can see the pattern at my website at https://www.sarahannsmith.com/patterns.asp

Sometimes we just need to bubble along and partake of a little escapism. With the mounting horrors on the Gulf Coast, I’m feeling guilty that I want to escape from the news for a while and just enjoy the Rockstar:INXS show (www.rockstar.msn.com ). I’m adding everyone on the Gulf Coast and in the communities that receive our refugees to the white flag in the center of my March journal quilt. I’m not allowed to post a jpeg until Festival (the big quilt show in Houston, where it will be displayed along with zillions of others), but it is of a Tibetan prayer wheel, with prayer flags strung across it. I’ve added names as folks in my life…here in Maine, on my e-lists, wherever, as they may need extra prayers. It helps me to remember them, even when I seek solace and escape……

I was really surprised that Ty was in the bottom 3, again. JD belonged there this week, and like my friend Deborah (www.deborahsjournal.blogspot.com ) think it is time to let go. He’s amazingly talented, but every time there is a brouhaha, he’s at the center of it. Too much drama. I guess the band just didn’t want to boot him out on his first time in the bottom 3?

Suzie’s performance of Bohemian Rapsody was totally amazing……I taped the Weds. elimination show to share with my son (whose bedtime is 9), and I could play it again and again. She has shot to the top of my “final two” list with MiG. Marty did really well, and if he could stop the scream-singing and do that, I’d like his work a lot more. But I’m still plugging for Suzie and MiG, and wish there were some way (and of course there isn’t) for BOTH of them to make it. May they both end up with awesome recording deals, one way or the other.

Promise the next post will be quilty…..think I’m gonna write about fusibles…..or maybe tomorrow. And my prayers to all those in need……