Slow Work May

At the beginning of May as I got ready to layer up quilt number nine in my #quilt21in2021 quest, I didn't feel very enthusiastic.  I thought about taking the month off but knowing myself as I do, I was afraid I'd lose my momentum altogether so I chose a small quilt.  

After all,  the garden was constantly calling to "come out and play"!

I've (perhaps foolishly) agreed to open my garden for the local perennial garden group in late June so there is a deadline for weeding and mulching which I've never had before this.  Their impressions should be interesting since I'm currently moving away from the "standard" perennials and rewilding the gardens with more native plants.  

And of course, there is a long list of ideas for garden upgrades and improvements.  The new veggie raised bed is up and running in the sunniest part of the front yard 

and I've just finished redoing the brick edging along one of the back beds.

I have perhaps watched more gardening videos during the winter than an old lady who lives alone should???  So much inspiration!!  

No comments yet from the neighbors about the veggie bed -- do they not get it or is it just the "crazy old lady" again??

So with all the garden playtime, doing just one quilt in May was the perfect strategy!  

Number nine is finished.

The blocks were pieced with Marti Michell's templates as a teaching sample for my Bride's Bouquet (or Nosegay block) workshops.  They are 6" blocks rather than the traditional 12" blocks and there were suppose to be nine blocks.  As is often the case with quilters who have "too many oars out of the boat" one of the blocks disappeared?!?  Rather than make another block, I organized this setting.

I thought I wrote a post about this but so far, I haven't found it.  If/when I do, I'll add a link.

Basically, it's a 9 block setting -- the center block is the hexie flower applique set on point with four floral triangles.  

The four corner blocks are a bride's bouquet block with "sashing" rectangles and a pink cornerstone.  The four remaining bouquet blocks are set on point with two floral triangles and two background triangles.  

When all the blocks are set together, the large floral star emerges.  Feel free to knock off this idea!  It will work with any group of 8 quilt blocks!

Since the quilt top was only 31" square, I decided to work on my domestic machine and give George the month off.  I used a combination of free motion and walking foot quilting.  I have better control on small pieces on my domestic machine so I took the opportunity to fill the corners with feathers.

Here's how I customized the feather to the space available by making my own arc template starting  with a paper triangle. . . . .  

. . . . . which I folded and drew arcs until I got one I liked.

 I cut the arc with the triangle still folded in half to keep it symmetrical.

The fold line helped me center it on the quilt top and I matched the straight edge of the paper template to the same spot on each of the pieced blocks.

You can barely see my arc line here.

I decided it was important to make the end tear drop shapes uniform and so did a deep dive into the "miscellany" drawer -- i.e., stuff I rarely use but am loath to let go.

Bingo!!

It's really an applique tool, but a teardrop is a teardrop.

Final step -- work up the courage to do freehand feathers (which took longer than necessary in the end).

I already had binding fabric chosen so the binding went quickly and "ta-da", it's finished!!

In other news, the peas are blooming

and the stawberries are ripening

and the triplets turned two yesterday!!

I also got to see my two older grandchildren on Monday for the first time in 17 months!!!  It was a wonderful visit, to be able to just sit and talk with them -- the 15 year old didn't roll her eyes at me once!!  I invited them for a summer visit on their own and so the hangout plans begin!!

I'm so grateful to have my closest friends and family vaccinated so we can move forward together.  If you are hesitant to vaccinate, I encourage you to reconsider.  It's been interesting over the past couple months as I listen to the vaccinate/not vaccinate conversations.  It has brought up memories of polio which struck hard in this area when I was 5.  I'm startled that I can remember the stringent warnings from my parents to "not go down the street near that house" because their son at age 6 had contracted polio.  I was 5?!?  I'm sure some of you remember too the elation of our families when the vaccines arrived -- 3rd grade in a line, the whole class getting the sugar cubes with the oral vaccine.  By the 1970's when my children were born, thank goodness the vaccine was the norm and that's where we need to get to with Covid.  

It needs to be just like small pox and tetanus and polio and rubella -- very rare!

The health and safety of our populations need to not be about politics, it needs to be about compassion.

And with that little rant, I'll sign off and go chose quilt number 10 from my shrinking stack.

Have a good weekend!

Mary

A Third of the Way!!!

 Spring is progressing here and so is my drive to #quilt21in2021!!   I just finished binding the 7th quilt and that puts me one third of the way to achieving my ambitious goal!  Its in the washing machine now for a final tidy-up as the top has been sitting on a shelf for at least fifteen years.

I think it's the best job I've done so far using the Baptist fan quilting -- it's very consistent -- not like a computer version, but good for a human guidance system!  I used one of my plexiglass tools to make the first arc on every fan.  Usually I just do the first arc in a row and then wing it the rest of the way across.

With the first arc marked and stitched, I used the 3/4" Ruler Foot Echo Guide to trace each previous arc and stitch the next one.  I shared more detail about stitching out this pattern in a blogpost a couple years ago and you can revisit it HERE.  

The last row is never a full row but I treat it like one, marking the first arc and maintaining the same spacing as you can see below.

There was some serious thread-chicken happening with this quilting!?!

I lost with the top thread (on the right) and had to hunt down something to blend in, but I won with the bobbin thread (on the left).  

I incorporated a bit of the selvage into the backing and this quilt is destined for my oldest grandson.  I hope the fact that I set up the colors for the print and got my name on the selvage will overshadow the floral aspect of the print!!

I'm always delighted to find a good binding fabric without leaving the studio!  How about you?  Another half yard used reduces my guilt about having so much more than I need!!

No, I don't press my binding in half before applying it to the quilt and yes, I drop the pile of it on the floor to the right side of my chair since it has absolutely no impact on the finished quality.

I also finished knitting the cool hat designed by Hunter Hammersen -- can't decide if I'll gift it or keep it.  The diagonal color bands are such a happy coincidence!  This skein has been sitting in my yarn stash for a couple years and I'll be happy to have it on someone's head next winter.

Now I need to turn my attention to finishing a pair of socks I tried to knit in one week early in March - made a good start but still need to knit the foot of the second sock!

We've had a unusually warm spell for Northeast Ohio last week.  The local toads gathered for an orgy in my little pond and a frenzied 48 hours later, everyone left and now all I have to do is keep the pond full for next two months so some of the thousand or more eggs they left make it to tiny little toads.

The yard is gorgeous with ALL the spring flowers in bloom at the same time but it's going to look dull for the month of May while I wait for the next wave of bloom.  It will be cooler this week and I hope this pot of tulips will last longer!

My birding gang is finally all vaccinated so we walked a local park together on Sunday for the first time in six months.  Feels so good to have my bubble expand a bit and to talk with my nerdy friends face-to-face.  As we enjoyed the beginning of  bird migration, I am reminded of how important it is for me and those around me to keep doing the stuff I do.

It would be easier for that little 3-ounce bird to stay in the tropics with all that food instead of flying 1500 miles.  But if she didn't leave for the breeding grounds when it was time, her species would suffer.  She needs to go north, find a mate, build a nest, and have a brood.

Right now as long as I can be with my family, make the quilts and the bread, work in my garden,  and learn the history -- it's enough.

If I'm never able to do more, I am grateful for the experiences I've had and for the skills that I have shared.  This new season of life wasn't in my "plan" but it is important to move through it with as much grace as I can muster.

Wishing you a week of blessings!

Mary

Less + Contentment = Better

Number six of twenty-one is finished!!

Doesn't a finish always make you eager to shout out -- "look what I did"!!

The breeze (okay, wind) was just as excited as I was -- couldn't stop flappin' it around for all the neighbors to see.  

The quilting isn't even close to my original idea of how to do it - just simple vertical straight lines.  In the end, I was inspired by the quilting on two previous quilts that come out every spring.

The upper three fourths of the quilt is covered with horizontal breezy quilting -- free motion curves billowing from edge to edge with the occasional little swirl.  I used my favorite yellow Aurifil  thread on the top and white FineLine in the bobbin.

The little hexie flowers were each jazzed up by extending their flower petals . . . . 

and then vines and leaves climbing up the fence posts reaching for the breeze!

A green binding finishes the quilt off perfectly and it will be hanging in my living room for the month of June, my birthday month.  The center of the quilt is a temperature quilt for the first year of  my life.

It was too small to be useful so in a happy series of coincidences, I added blocks which turned out to represent some of the passions of my long life -- big beautiful tree, birds, picket fences, and flowers with lots of insects buzzing around the background fabrics.

Continuing with the spontaneity of this quilt, I chose this cheerful piece of hoarded fabric that is too wonderful to cut apart for the backing -- not quite enough for the backing but borders fixed that.

Now I'm ready to tackle number seven!!  It's another top made 20 years ago using one of the colorways from my brief foray into the fabric designing business.  This will go to one of my grandchildren and the quilting plan is Baptist fan.  I made the backing over the weekend and layering could happen today!!

I've been knitting this new hat pattern, Semblance by Hunter Hammerson.  I was captivated by the stitch pattern when she released it a couple weeks ago so bought it right away.  My determination to use stash yarn forced me to step out a bit -- it's not the same weight as she used or a monochromatic colorway. If you've worked with her knitting patterns, you know she forces one to figure out the needle size yourself which means one has to check gauge before starting -- something I don't enjoy.  

I want to get right into a project -- are you like that?  

But after reading the introductory instructions and wrangling with the helpful sizing chart, I determined the correct needle size for my yarn and the correct number of stitches to cast on given my personal private gauge (PPG).  I did rip it back to the ribbing twice because I failed to read a couple details -- just skipped right over them -- but now I'm on track and loving the results.  Yesterday as I put it down, I realized my yarn has serendipitously knit out in diagonal bands of color!!

HERE IS A LINK to her pattern. 

I have a big garden project -- removing English ivy and myrtle out of a 200 square foot bed -- 30 minutes at a time.  The other day while working out there for the 15th day in a row and determining there is about 3 more weeks of work to get to the end, I thought "this is atypical for me"  I usually lose interest midway in any project and I realized that one of the aspects of the pandemic isolation that I'm okay with is being able to do less.  

Why, you ask?

Well, I'm noticing that I'm more engaged with projects because of the "less".  Big tasks that take time are okay because the results will be good.  

It will likely take me through the end of the year to finish this big hand quilting project (it's one of the twenty-one).  

It will be so exciting to be able to replant this bed with native shrubs and plants and watch the biodiversity of my backyard wildlife expand.  

It will be so good to have an empty shelf where all those quilt tops have been stashed.

Having less to do means doing fewer things better and learning to enjoy the simplicity of less.

I have time to bake sourdough bread and I have time to start garden plants this year.

My genealogy work is more focused and accurate and less frenetic. 

I have time to binge watch gardening and pollinator webinars and learn more about a native environment.

It doesn't hurt that I'm completely vaccinated at this point, either!!

What a relief!!

I am eager to carry this contented state of mind forward and be happy doing less.

How about you?  

What have you learned about yourself and what will you carry forward? 

Mary

 

So They say . . . .

. . . . if one does something for 21 days, it becomes a habit (usually to encourage folks to keep trying to exercise or study something) but really?!?  My daughter, Alison who is working from home tells me it's day 34 of our isolation marathon.  Today, it took some effort to get my engine firing on all cylinders -- whew, this can be such hard work!

When I finally left the house for a walk (alone), I was rewarded by finding this little clump of wildflowers -- azure bluets I believe -- and some spring bird song.

I swung past my local garden center and picked up some broccoli and lettuce seedlings for my planting trough and discovered the peas are sprouting when I opened the polycover to plant them!

Well, that's good!  

Then it was time to survey all my seed trays and see if anything else has sprouted?  

See those little green sprouts?  I've been waiting for that to happen for a month!!

What a lovely little sight.

I'm having to find ways to spark myself up every day -- probably that isn't as new as it feels but having to use different resources and strategies to maintain a positive mindset makes it feel new.

Last week, I listened to this PODCAST from Marie Green of Olive Knits -- check it out -- good advice!!

Then a friend shared the following "explanation" from Jennifer Yaeger LPC, a trauma specialist of what many of us are experiencing -

1. Parts of our brain have shut down in order for us to survive.

2. As a result, we are not able to fully process a lot of what is going on around us.

3. Feeling somewhat numb and out of touch with our emotions is normal, especially if you have lived through trauma before.

4. Some people are also more apt to feel hypervigilant or anxious while others become hypoactive or depressed.  Neither means anything other than indicating your predisposition to dealing with extreme stress.

5. In depth processing of trauma happens years later, when we feel emotionally safe to deal with it.

6. When in the midst of trauma, just getting by emotionally and functionally is okay.  Lowering expectations and being kind to yourself and others is vital.

So there you go!!  We are case studies in trauma.  Since this might last all spring or longer, I'm just going to keep sewing and going out into the backyard - pretend it's 1905 and get contented with what I have.

So in the spirit of being content with what I have, earlier this week I stumbled across a "sew-along" for Jen Kingwell's pattern, Halo.  Since that pattern has been on my "want to do" list for a while, I decided to give it a go.  My first stop (looking for my pattern) uncovered this book of Jen's with two UFO's lurking inside?!?

Yikes, will the UFO discover journey never end? 

These were two "supersized" Glitter blocks (inspired by an Aussie quilter in an overeager moment).  They are very pretty but . . . the challenge is eliminate -- finish or pitch?

Happily, I was inspired to set them together for a small mat (instead of making more)!

A cheery assortment of quilting threads,

an afternoon of simple walking foot matchstick quilting,

and a pre-folded binding experiment. 

resulted in a delightful little tray mat for my favorite tea tray!!

Now I just need a warm sunny afternoon on the front porch with a friend to enjoy using it! 

The black and red project is out on the sewing table to be my current "sew-off" project.  One block is completed and when the other three are ready, it will make a great large pillow cover!

UFO's no more!!

I did find the Halo pattern and have started cutting bits and pieces for it while putting away fabric piles from previous projects in my continuing effort to tidy up the studio!

If you'd like to get sucked into this sew-along, too -- click HERE for the details! 

It's only two blocks a week and you can make any size piece!

Easy, right?!?

 I finished the charity quilt over the weekend and then it took a couple days to get this twin size quilt layered and ready for the next phase of my #aprilquiltingmarathon.

It's my Kinship Sampler from #100day100blocks2019

(It's going to run again starting July 1, 2020 -- check it out HERE!)

Willie kept up his end of a very intellectual conversation about all this weirdness while I pin basted on Tuesday.

The quilting began yesterday morning.  By working in several short (20 to 30 minute) sessions, I had  three rows done by the end of the day.  I'm learning that stopping when I start to feel tired/get sloppy is definitely the best strategy!

I'm using a modified Baptist fan, primarily because there is less retracing the quilting to get to a new start point and my retracing ability is not great.  (HERE'S a link to a post I wrote about how to machine quilt Baptist fan -- same concept, just simpler changes of direction).

  I expect it will take the rest of this week and next week to finish the quilting.

The highlight of the past week was visiting with the triplets!  We spent an hour out on the patio with them Easter afternoon.  

I made teething biscuits for their Easter goodies and everyone got right into them.

We hadn't been together for a month and there were so many little changes -- fun, fun, fun!!

Well, I just finished off the chocolate chips and ordered a skein of hand-dyed yarn "I can't live without" -- time to head to another part of the house, far away from the computer and the kitchen and do some sweeping or sewing or knitting or something!

Let's all promise to be gentle on ourselves.  

Call a friend, write a note, make a mask, smile at everyone!

Do what you can and don't fret about the rest of it.

Mary

Linking up this week with TGIFF Here!