Mo 'bout Me Monday a.k.a SWATCH.com

I am often asked little things about what makes up Leah.  And after thinking about it, I realized that we have thrown ourselves into this little virtual world and wrapped ourselves into this web of friends without really knowing anything about each other- well except that we all like fabric!

So I thought I would take Mondays and make it a Mo 'bout ME day.  I tell you something about ME and then you tell me something about YOU!  It's like our own little Match.com for Fabric Friends!  Would that be SWATCH.COM? Hey- what a Great Name!!  SWATCH.COM it is!

I like the sound of birds in the morning,
cold wet puppy noses,
fabric with paisley..

All joking aside- who is Leah Marie?

Hmm. let's see.  I just had my 40th birthday- OUCH!  I don't feel forty, and it's best to just go ahead and say that I don't LOOK forty whether it's true or not!  I have never been married- no weird story to tell outside of the fact that I just never met Mr. Right.  I have a GREAT boyfriend now who expresses much enthusiasm for Burgundy Buttons and gloats often about my successes.

My children are both four legged furry ones, Cinnamon and Woozle- I'll let you guess who is who!

I have been quilting to some degree or another for about 12 years, but never took a formal class until about 2 years ago.  My mother, Janet a.k.a "Momma Albertsen", owned a quilt shop for years in Burlington, North Carolina and helped me get started.  (The Threaded Needle for anyone who may have known her).

I opened the virtual doors of BB on November 1rst, 2008- and my dear sweet Mom died unexpectedly 1 month later on December 1 at the age of 61.  I didn't quilt for over an entire year!  (that was something we had done together).  I kept BB going and continued to grow my business but never touched my sewing machine until about this past November...and when I finally did it was a bitter sweet feeling.

She still sews with me though!  I found her little "ribbit"/"rip-it" frog that graced the top of a quilter's machine any time he/she had to rip out their seams during one of my Mom's classes.  That little froggy has a permanent home on my own machine and it watches over me on her behalf.

On to a lighter note!

Outside of quilting, my favorite hobby is SCUBA DIVING! My favorite place to dive thus far has been Bonaire. (A little island off the coast of Venezuela) My dream dive would be in Belize or Fiji. I have dove with Sharks, albeit nurse sharks- who are really nothing but overgrown catfish.

I am an Advanced Open Water Diver with certifications in Peak Performance and Nitrox.  I would like to also be certified in Cave Diving, Wreck Diving and Underwater Photography.  Ambitious Goals!

Next to diving and quilting, I love photography and am especially fond of architectural photography. Give me a building and I will use an entire 4GB card! My camera of choice is my Nikon D90.

I use a mix of Photoshop Lightroom and Photoshop to edit my photography.

I have never done any professional photography, but did get the opportunity  to snap some photos of a friend's children recently.  Of all the interesting photos, I have to say that this was my favorite...

This little gal would NOT smile until she had a face full of Cheetoes!  So you gotta work with what you have, right?

My name is Leah, it's nice to meet you!