Stitching Hands Studio

Leaky Con 2011

My first big trip of the summer was just after Quilt Week.  Chloe and I headed down to Orlando, FL for her birthday/graduation gift- a trip to Leaky Con 2011.  This conference dedicated to all things Harry Potter took place just outside of the Universal Studios theme park (home of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter).

The conference went for 4 days, with an additional Lit Day at the start.  Lit Day programming involved talks by authors who were influenced by the Harry Potter series.  Let me say first thing that I don't pretend to understand the whole Harry Potter fandom.  There were many activities that didn't appeal to me, but Chloe loved it all.  I enjoyed seeing her delight in meeting authors, musicians and actors.  I attended the more academic lectures and otherwise went around with my camera capturing moments from the conference.

The opening festivities were full of Harry Potter fandom music (Wizard Rock), entertainment and a tribute to JK Rowling.  Then we all headed off to Wizarding World for a private party- all rides and food included.

The following day there were all sorts of activities from those of a more academic nature, to the purely fun.  We ended the day with an early evening showing of the final Harry Potter movie.

The next day we were delighted to have a chance to hear from some of the actors from the series.  The most famous of these were Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood), Chris Rankin (Percy Weasley), and Scarlett Byrne (Pansy Parkinson).

Some of the younger actors from the last movie were also there and they were quite delightful, being younger and a little more open to questions.  All of these actors except for Chris Rankin were available to meet at a signing, so we did that as well.  

The Esther Earl Rocking Charity Ball was a great way to spend the final evening.  The crowd got to dance the night away.  The young actors and Evanna and Scarlett joined the ball by dancing on the stage.  At the Goodbye Brunch it was announced that $120,000 was raised and donated to several charities.  

While all this was going on, Mark was hard at work at home starting the move to our new house.  We arrived home with two days to finish moving before leaving for Europe.  It was a very hectic time, as you might imagine.  More to come as the summer saga continues!

On Holiday

I know it's been awfully quiet here and the silence will continue for a bit.  I just wanted to check in today and say the move is happening and the travel plans are in place.  I'll be way to busy to blog, but will definitely be taking photos and will come back with stories to share once we're settled in.  

Today is our 25th wedding anniversary!  Part of the celebration will be a nice dinner out, but we leave for Europe in about 3 weeks.  I'm very excited!  

PS- above is a photo taken on the California coast last week.  We really are going to be all over the map this summer!

True Colors

It was an interesting college visit this week.  Photos are from Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA and Lewis & Clark College in Portland, OR.  I thought we'd come back all ready to make a decision, but we've actually got more questions now.  More college visits coming up on top of an already very busy schedule.  I may have to disappear for periods of time as we get it all worked out.  Fall has finally arrived here in the high desert.  Have you found your true colors this season?

Stitching to go

One thing I love about slow cloth is the opportunity to take it on the go.  I've narrowed down my supplies to just what fits into this small tin (except for the piece to be worked on).  The folded block and the tin fit just right in my purse, so I have been carrying this one around for several weeks and working on it for even just 5 minutes at a time.  It's way more compact than knitting (even socks) and keeps my fingers and mind very happy.

 

Inside you'll find a hank of embroidery floss.  The floss is such a brilliant idea that came straight from Jude.  At first it felt too thick, even with one strand, but now I just love it's colors, brilliance and flexibility.  I can choose 1 or 2 strands depending on the situation.  I keep it all cut to the length I like (about 18"- perhaps longer than recommended, but it works for me).  I just pick out lots of colors that seem useful- brights and neutrals both.  I find that there's always a color that will work even if it's not the one I would have picked if I had the full spectrum.  Sometimes my limited choice leads to choosing a color I wouldn't normally have that turns out to be perfect.

   

I absolutely adore the needles in the yellow tube (Jeana Kimball's Foxglove Cottage, embroidery/redwork size 8).  Jude likes the DMC embroidery needles so I have some of them too.  I have my little Gingher embroidery scissors which just fit in the tin and a little pin holder.  

It's a good thing too, we are on the go A LOT right now!  This weekend we'll be camping for Ryan's 16th birthday, then Chloe and I head to her next college visit.  This time, Reed College, in Portland.  Fun times, I can tell you and it's supposed to be a beautiful weekend.  For a trip of several days I will certainly have my little stitching kit, but also a bigger container with fabric and my large scissors.  You can't stop at just one when it comes to Jude's ideas.  Stay tuned for more cloth weaving!

All around Central Oregon

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Mt. Bachelor

Today's adventure was the chair lift up to the restaurant on Mt. Bachelor.  We've only done this off season trip once before.  It was a good day to go back for the grandparents to see the amazing beauty of the Cascades.

  

The Three Sisters and Broken Top.

Mark's parents are here from Massachusetts and this is only their second visit so there's lots to see.

It's definitely feeling like fall here!

The male gets his due

 

The Sunriver Nature Center had another release yesterday.  This time a male kestrel.  He came in with a shoulder injury.  This gorgeous bird made quite a racket while his jesses were removed.

 

 

This one didn't have as nice a get-away as the other one.  He flew into a nearby tree and dropped right down into the foliage.  The news was that he was doing fine though.  It was another spectacular day.  Today they were due to release a red tailed hawk, but we didn't make it out for that. 

A kestrel gets her freedom

 

Yesterday, a friend and I took our boys to the Sunriver Nature Center to see the release of a kestrel that had been injured and brought back to health.  This bird had fallen out of her nest at 1 month old, had several broken bones and damaged tail feathers.  The bones were mended, but the tail needed special care.  Tail feathers from a deceased bird were grafted into the shafts of her own damaged tail feathers.  They are as good as new.  It was great to see this bird take flight!

 

She took off so fast, my camera didn't have time to recover from the above frame to the next one.  She was long gone by that time.

 

After that we had a picnic and took a bike ride around Sunriver.  It was a gorgeous day.  We just happened upon the horse crossing at the stables so stopped to watch.  They were herding the horses across the street to pasture.

Spectacular Lava Lands

 

I know I promised some in progress stitching, but yesterday was so spectacularly beautiful I couldn't resist showing some photos from our homeschooling group's trip to Lava Lands.  It was an early taste of fall with crisp temps and gorgeous blue skies.  We had a talk with the ranger about the geology of the area.

 

 

Then we took a walk on the Trail of Molten Land.  After that, a trip to the top of Lava Butte.  Below you can see the road to Bend.

Last stop was the Lava River Cave, but there weren't good photo opportunities, so I can't show it here.  It was a 2 mile round trip under the ground in a lava tube.  And now, I'm off to take some stitching photos.  Soon, I promise!

PS~ I've been adding some new blogs to my blogroll in the side bar.  There are so many wonderful blogs, but lately I'm concentrating on the new folks I've been meeting in my classes with Jude Hill.  Check it out!