Finding my Sewjo again!

It has been a while since I have added anything here. The last six weeks have brought some sadness to our house as we said goodbye to our beloved greyhound, Bugsy. If you follow me on Instagram or Facebook, you have seen countless pictures of her and some videos too. She was as bright as a button still but suffering in pain from arthritis. My dad used to say that the "ritis" brothers were bad but Art was the worst! LOL It certainly was for her. She was almost 13 years old which is a long greyhound life and we had her for almost 11 1/2 years of that time. We were blessed. Miss her so much and I wanted to do something to remember as I had our grey, Fonzi. It has taken this long to get there. 

I don't know about you but I like to draw and sketch some of my own designs. I am not a trained artist but I play. Hope you do too! :) So I had an idea for Bugsy's World. I was a passenger in a car and I always have a pad of paper with me. I started to draw a whimsical Bugsy which I had done before. And I added all of her favorite things!

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I like to keep a pad with me whenever I travel in a car so that I can keep ideas from escaping. This was pretty sketchy but it captured her love of food, car trips, walks, bones, etc. 

​When I found the perfect paw print background fabric, I started to bring her favs to life. 

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​I believe all dogs love to walk so  a leash was easy. I used some folded grosgrain pink ribbon to mimic her pink leash. My husband contributed the hook for her leash from his tackle box. It is some kind of swivel for a fishing rod. Tennis balls that squeaked were her all time favorite toy. A bit of thick pearl cotton created the lines on the tennis balls. The dog bone got a bit of extra batting to give it some texture. Now on to the Chick Fil A bubble.

Some dogs learn to give paw, sit, beg, speak, etc. but our greyhound learned to eat her favorite snack, grilled Chick Fil A nuggets, from a fork! She could smell that restaurant as we pulled into the drive thru and she knew what treat was on its way. She gladly ate more chicken! This sign came from a mini stuffed Chick Fil A toy cow that I have had for years. You never know what you have in your closet!

From sketch to fabric! Her name and dates will be added. I am going to use big stitch quilting when I am done appliqueing the pieces. For my applique I like to use silk thread as it simply melts into the fabric. I use light or medium to dark grey if I do not have a particular color and it never shows (if I am careful, of course). I also like to use thread in a Super Bob donut from Superior Thread. The bobbin holds a rainbow of colors in brights or pastels, whichever you wish. Click here for the website link. You will almost always have the right color at your fingertips. They also make Microquilter polyester that works like the silk thread. It is your preference that is most important.

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A final note about Bugsy is her collar. I had made a pink collar to represent her own  and my husband brought me her real collar. He wanted me to add it to the tribute to her. I took the ribbon off the heavy webbing on the piece that I cut but left the piece underneath in front so that it would have some dimension. He was right. It is hers forever. 

This project has helped me to focus on the happier moments spent with her. It has been very therapeutic. I think that any creative activity that allows you to immerse yourself in those creative flows will ease whatever needs to be eased. My piano teacher says that music will heal you if you allow it. Perhaps quilting and crafting and gardening and cooking and whatever you love will do the same. 


Would you share any tribute quilts with me? I love to see what ideas others use to remember someone or some event, etc. I am @mollerpatricia at Instagram or Patricia Moller at Facebook. 

Until next time, 
Trisha

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