Scrap bag bits and pieces..

Picture pieces from my scrap bag on this cold November Sunday....my newest friend who is becoming my faithful feline. We've finished our
sixth week together and are beginning to understand what each of us expects and is all about. I'm adjusting my life to fit hers and she has begun to see me as primary human. It feels like she has stopped waiting for rescue by her former owner. She still jumps when I sneeze, but has gotten past my coughing and movements. I talk to her in a soft voice that I use for "sweet talking" to animals
and babies. It's low pitched and sound similar to her "talking" sounds. It's neat that when she's not around and I say "Ebby?" and she answers me from where ever she is and comes running.
Right after yesterday's pic of the old quilt, I plopped a couple of more quilts on my bed. Look who found a nice 4 quilts pile to kitty test..LOL I'm quite sure she hasn't been raised with quilts to sleep on, but she's
getting the hang of it quite ...*VBS*
This picture is my 2nd rug. For this one I've used a smaller I hook and the very narrow odds and ends of fabric, including selvedges. Some strips are only 1/4" wide. It's a slow go as I mostly hand sew the stripes together as I crochet. It's up to 27", and coming along.
This last pictures is a "gift of time" from my dear friend Jean. She's a friend of many years and I taught her to quilt back about 2000. Both she and the friend who is staying in Betsy's guest house were students of mine the same summer. And they went in completely opposite directions. Which has this quilt teacher scratching her head...LOL I told each the same things, gave them my five cents worth of reasoning and history. And off they went. Jean became a very traditional quilter, who hand quilts and uses scraps and fabric marvelously. G. went into the "accquisition" mode, and zeroed in on batiks and never looked back. She had quilted one quilt with regular tread and a small needle, one with perle cotton and then bought a Juki and quilts everything by machine. She joined a fairly "elite" group of the quilt police and has developed a bit of sneer at the scrappy, wild stuff Betsy and I do...*VBG* If it's not batik, it's not ok......ya right!
I don't consider either students leanings a failure,but I am perplexed at how differently it turned out. I had given each of them a stash start...several grocery bags each of some of most every color, both FQ's, yardage and scraps. Jean is still using hers and it has multiplied beyond belief, as has G's. (The stashes that is)I love seeing my scraps in Jean's quilts. G returned the bags to me last fall. A few pieces taken out, but for the most part, just as I gave them. I don't think I've ever gotten a gift back before....it's an interesting experience.
Anyway..long story. But the basket of rag(fabric) balls were a gift from Jean last evening when we had supper together. She had taken several bags of my torn strips, sewn them together, trimmed them and rolled them up for me to use...*VBS* The basket is one I got from a guild member friend years ago. She made it for my birthday. Jean works full time in activities at our local nursing home, and the rag balls really are a gift of time...and love. And such gifts bless both the giver and the receiver.*VBS* The background behind the basket is Ebby's sheepskin in one of my chairs.