Quilt Show Inspiration

When I go to a quilt show, if I come home with one good idea, I consider my outing a great success.

Last week, I attended what used to be affectionately known in these parts as the "Ft. Washington Quilt Show." The venue was moved to Harrisburg a year or two ago, making attendance more problematic.

But this year my friend Connie said there was space on the minibus at the retirement community where she lives, so I happily accepted her invitation. There were only 8 of us, which made the trip especially pleasant.

The picture above shows the essence of a quilt that knocked me out with its simplicity and its three-dimensional illusion. I made the sample with some solid pastels cut into 3-1/2" squares and bordered on the right and bottom with 1-1/4" wide tan, with a little square of white in the upper right and lower left corner. Each little block is connected by the same white fabric cut into a 2-1/4" sashing.

The quilt has endless possibilities. What grabs me is the "shadow" effect created by the tan standing out from the white background.

Try it. I think you'll like it!

In 1925, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, called Princess Marie Louise, said of Ghana, “What is its spell? I cannot tell you, nor wherein lies its unfathomable charm. It lays its hand upon you, and, having felt its compelling strength, you never can forget it or be wholly free of it…”

As this story comes to a close, I'd like to say a few words about "Miss Rosie," my granddaughter-by-affection.For the past few years, Rosemary and I have spent many happy hours together in my sewing room as she began to develop her creative talents as a quilter. We've listened to Harry Potter tapes together and we've shared many a congenial lunch at the table in my sunroom.

I was at once thrilled and flattered when this 16-year-old asked me to be her traveling companion in Ghana, and I scarcely blinked before I said yes to her invitation. Yet, as the day of our departure neared, I began to wonder whether we would be able to sustain our easy relationship with one another for 24 days and nights, halfway around the world from home.

I needn't have worried. Rosie rose to every occasion of unappetizing food and unpleasant cold showers, lumpy beds and ugly black spiders with an absence of complaint and a display of circumspect grace.

Last week, Rosie turned 17, and I gave her a scrapbook for her pictures and memories from Ghana. In two days' time, a thank-you letter arrived in my mailbox, addressed to Madam Bonnie Dalzell. The letter said, in part: "I'm glad to be home. I'm glad to have what I have. I'm glad to be 17. And I'm glad to have you."

There's simply no doubt: Rosemary Limburg is a young woman of unfathomable charm.

Checking Out: Creative Caskets

Funerals are immensely important in Ghana, and they are held on Saturdays. It’s not unusual to see groups of people dressed in black or red walking down the rural dirt roads to a funeral.

In the city, a funeral of a wealthy person is another phenomenon altogether. The more important the deceased, the more elaborate the funeral.

In Teshie, just east of Accra, a family of coffin makers has developed its business to a high art form, in which special-order coffins match the occupation of the deceased. It seems a shame that they are seen only during the funeral procession; then they are buried. Pictured here are special-order caskets for an airline pilot, a Coca-Cola afficianado, a pineapple lover, a dairyman and, it seems, the ultimate poultry man. Frank Perdue, eat your heart out!