Summer is here

I can officially state that summer has arrived.  How do I know?  Let me count the ways…

1.     It’s Mother’s Day weekend, which is in Illinois the official time to plan the garden.

2.     I have tomato plants from a co-worker already and my plant starts from the farmer are due to be picked up early next week.

3.     There is a tractor in my subdivision planting crops.

4.     The weather is crazy and I have already had 2 migraines this week.

Number 4 is the reason I hate summer with a blinding passion.  I am thankful for migraine meds that work within 2 hours, but still, summer is torture for me.  I keep practicing better living through chemistry.  And I eat a lot of Jimmy John’s!

Meanwhile on the quilty front, my guild had its year end Salad Supper Thursday night.  The word salad can be interpreted very loosely, with anything from garden salad to chicken salad to taco salad.  The food was, as expected, fantastic!  Our guild runs formally during the school year, which has its benefits.  The summer time holds sew-in days once each month which I will partake in this summer.  I’m trying to meet more people.  I’m also trying really hard not to volunteer.  I need to take a volunteering break.

The other update on the quilty front relates to Dear Jane.  My bee (small group / whatever) met last week and if we turned in D-13 to one member, she would get our D-13 blocks signed by Brenda herself at a retreat coming up!  So you bet I have done one square!  Additionally, another member provided a worksheet that divided all 169 blocks into techniques and ease of construction.  I chatted with a girlfriend of mine in the bee and we’ve decided that maybe it’s best to just work the list in logical progression.  Start with the very easiest block and work our way through it.  The only glitch I have is that I don’t have all the fabrics that I need.  So I guess there’s a little stash enhancement. 

I need to clean up my lower level / basement this weekend for 2 other reasons so I guess I’ll inventory my DJ fabrics and make a list.  Shopping, what a hardship!

The Ugly List

For me, lists are empowering.  I didn't know this but my husband pointed it out to me, so I guess I will take him at his word.

So I have started the Ugly List.  This started in March when DD was on spring break.  I made a list of nasty or timely items I wanted to get done because they were bugging me.  I didn't take any time off while she was off, but spring break gave me a timebox to try and get things done.

I didn't get everything done - I got about 2/3 done.  That's far more than when I started the month!  Fast forward through April and I only got about 25% done in the whole month.  That's OK - stuff still got done.

Now it is the beginning of May.  Yes, a few things have carried over on the list since March.  I procrastinate; it is called the Ugly List for a reason!

Anyway, yesterday was May 1 and I got one of those old items done.  I hope to get another done today.

I like to keep the list around 20 items to feel like there's hope.  Right now May has 19 items.

Watch for Ugly List updates....

The One Where I Get Diverticulitis...

Yep, I’ve been hit.  And it’s horrible. 

On April 10, I did a 5k at night.  It was a glorious night for a walk and although I was the absolute last to finish, I did have a great time.  That was a Friday.  Saturday was a day of icing and recovery.  But Sunday I woke up and oh my, did I ache.  So off to urgent care I went.  He was very kind, gave me my meds and off I went to rest.  But it’s taken all 10 days of the antibiotics before I have finally felt better.  I’ve lost 10 pounds in the process.  Not my idea on how to lose 10 pounds but whatever.

Very little creatively has been happening.  I haven’t had the energy. But little bits did get done, especially over Easter weekend. 

Done

All green blocks for Grand Illusion done

All the vertical joining seams for CS

7 more DJ blocks

Finish spring flowers wall hanging

Shawl – sections 2 – 5

Sweater – body done

So maybe not so bad.  I got all of that done and it’s only the 22^nd of the month.  I am busy straight through from tonightto the 26^th, so maybe I can get a bit done next week before the month flips over…

Let’s see what I could do

Back for spring flowers quilt

Sandwiching spring flowers

Machine sew the 2 horizontal seams for CS

That seems about right.

Monthly Report

(As I type that post title, I realize I need to do my monthly report for work…)

Not too many posts here in March, but I can say that on the health front, I have survived the withdrawal from soda and now can walk without thinking.  I know that sounds really odd, but walking without thinking is a huge achievement!  I am moving slowly but I am moving. 

On the Dear Jane front, I misplaced the 3 blocks I had completed and that took the wind out of my sails.  Then I tried printing from the software and that hasn’t gone well either; now my laptop doesn’t recognize the printer.  This all was very discouraging. 

So I decided to work on some other sewing.  I did get the last 2 sections of Celtic Solstice made, sandwiched, quilted and trimmed.  Then I did go ahead and do all the vertical joins.  I am now sewing the strips down on the backside, as those strips cover the seams.  That handwork takes time and it’s awkward to do, but the effect is worth it.  This one will be a finish sooner rather than later.  Then next up was a spring quilt that came into my mind. 

Someone on Stashbusters indicated that a tumbler shape upside down is really a flower pot if you’d like.  That was all the inspiration that I needed.  I belong to Keepsake Quilting’s Bits & Pieces club and one month they sent over 300 die cut shapes and in different months I received lots of tumblers.  The flowers in the die cut pack were all batik, so I used my batik tumblers.  I also had another pack from the club that were 20 bright batik 10 inch squares.  I found some white in my stash and of course I had green strings….

The 10 inch squares became 20 double slice squares.  I have 6 panels that are 1 double slice square wide and 2 long and each of those has a flower pot with 3 flowers in it.  The center is 2 double slice blocks by 2 double slice blocks and it has a flower box with 5 flowers in it.  All the block work is done; all I have to do is assemble the blocks and move it forward.  And of course I’m making a mini one block version for my cube.  I hope to finish both of these within the month of April because well, it’s April!

And of course I have been knitting.

So slowly but surely it’s coming back together.  My goals for April are as follows:

2 sections of Grand Illusion quilted

All green blocks for Grand Illusion done

All handwork for joining seams done on Celtic Solstice

Blue snow blocks into a top

2 or 3 sets of split 9 patch blocks

4 mug rugs

1 DJ block per day

Finish spring flowers quilt

Finish spring flowers wall hanging

Shawl – sections 2 – 5

Slippers – done

Sweater – body done

And blog more.  Life is finally coming back to normal.  Amen.

It Really is All About Your Health

I have been trying to sew.  Really I have.  But I have been plagued by aches and pains.  Emphasis on pain.

I don't do pain well.  Now, before you say who does?, I will let you know that my mother had an insanely high pain tolerance.  This meant she never understood normal pain tolerance, let alone low pain thresholds like mine.  She made fun of you for not being able to hack it.  I have since learned that her high pain tolerance was due to her 3 pack a day cigarette habit.  She had fried every nerve ending she had and thus the synapses didn't exactly fire right.

Anyway, I don't do pain.  Aches I can tolerate but pain, no.  And the pains were in my feet.

I have spent a lot of time (and a lot of money) on therapies to figure out how to fix this problem.  Things were massively out of alignment and then muscles were tensed up and needed serious relief.  When it all got done, it was AMAZING.  I could walk without pain.  I could walk without thinking (trust me, you hurt enough, every movement becomes a conscious thought process).  Additionally a lot of other muscle groups were helped as well.

I felt great!  So I had a Coke to celebrate.

And kept having one a day for many days.

And all the pain came back.

So we figured out that's what it was.  I removed soda from my diet.  I love soda.  I mean, I really love soda, but it has to go.  It was a very rough week.  I am through the worst of it, but man it was horrible.  Additionally, I requested a few blood tests to check for various arthritis things (all are negative).

And then on Thursday, the pain became less worse.  On Friday, even less worse.  On Saturday, she worked on all the pained areas and then I could walk again.  Everything is still inflamed, but slowly I can cope.  Very slowly.

And this is why I couldn't really sew.  Many days after work I would come home and just crash.  The withdrawal from soda had me home sick for a half day.  Sadly, the pain won too many times.

And now, finally, I feel like I can sew / craft / whatever.  I was able to get my paperwork in order.  I was able to make sense of my living room.  I could say yes to a sleepover for my child.  I was able to cook for my family.  I could knit.  I could sew.

And now I am figuring out what to do this week.  I have my knitting goal sorted out for the week and then the handwork after that.  For sewing, I think I have a plan and I hope I get it done.  I am behind schedule for DJ and some other things, but I can make it up now that I feel like I have some energy.

Truly, it is your health.

March 1 - 10

OK, here goes the first 10 days of Dear Jane. 

For March 1-10, a lovely teal color with cranberry dots was chosen.  The blocks are as follows:

A-1

B-8

G-6

I-4

I-11

RT-7

LT-7

2 solid triangles

However, I have other goals each of the 10 days, which I call homework.  I need to complete Just One Thing (JOT) for either of the 2 Bonnie quilts I am trying to finish and for either of the 2 Blue Snow quilts I am trying to finish.  I need to make 2 Xmas gifts.  I need to make 3 Just Takes Two blocks.  I need to clean the sewing area for 15 minutes.

So far, I have done the JOT for Blue Snow, made the 2 Xmas gifts and made 3 DJ blocks.  I am not sure how much more I will get done between now and when I go to bed – LOL!

Homework will roll over until all items are completed.  The 31sts of the appropriate months are just bonus days.

I think this whole week is pretty good to get stuff done, but it will overlap the first March session and the second March session. That’s fine too; I think by the end of March I will be where I want to be.

A Pair of Dice

And musings on the number 13.

I’ve gone ahead and started a Dear Jane. And I don’t want to do the whole Trip Around the World thing. And I

want to reuse fabrics. And I don’t randomize well on my own.

So I decided I would do 5 blocks and 2 triangles every 10 days. (And also cut 2 solid triangles to go between.)

That is what I hoped to get out of each cut of fabric. However, how does one pick the blocks? I decided that a

roll of the dice will do. But there are 37 blocks that the dice will never hit: All the A blocks, all the M blocks and all of the remaining 13 blocks down the right side. So every 10 days, I will do the next block in the A row, roll for 4 random blocks and 2 random triangles and off I go. (Now that I think about it, the 4 13 triangles won’t get rolled either, but whatever.) (Wait, when I get to the 13th triangle I’m making, I will just do one. Problem solved.)

My 30’s fabric selection is eclectic. I have some charm packs, some 6 inch squares from a swap and some

half yards as I like them. And a whole bunch of pink yardage because I love it. So of course how do I use it all

and randomize it all? 

I of course overthink this. Here we go:

I will alternate between yardage and coordinated charms every 10 days. Right now I am using a lovely teal

blue. The lovely color wheel tells me that orange would be the compliment, so that is what I will use from the

charms. I can’t cut solid triangles from the charms so that does concern me, but I will think of something. 

And so I will proceed this way. I will also allow myself 2 half yard cuts of fabric each month from Boline’s, which is extremely affordable. Like $10 will buy those 2 cuts. And they are in town. And the owner belongs to the guild.

Quilting with Tile

It has been a comedy of errors.  If we don't laugh, we'll cry.

On Saturday Feb 7, as Renee and I were being handed our breakfast in the McD's drive-thru, ice came off the roof and hit my back window.

And then window popped.

What was that?

Seriously the whole window crackled and popped.

Then the very next day our range shorted out (yes, we have an electric range) and it died.

The car is fixed and I need to call back their insurance company.  A new range was ordered online (Really, you don't need to see it to buy it - it's a range.  Either it cooks or it doesn't.  When I bought the house I didn't get a say in the range it came with.) and we scheduled out the delivery date to tomorrow, February 16.  Somehow Renee is not excited that a range is arriving for her 14th birthday on her day off.

But you all know where this is going.  I have no backsplash and the walls are trashed from cooking.  So I said that if the range is out, then we should just put in the backsplash.  And paint.  And paint the powder room.  So the proverbial $400 repair turns into a $5000 upgrade.  It's really not that bad - about $1500 when all is said and done.

As I write this, I am clearing the living room floor for a path so the range can be installed and we are almost done grouting.  It will need to cure for a week before I can seal but it looks amazing.  The bathroom is primed.

But there has been no quilting.  The Loopy Ewe did contact me about my bolt of Kona Snow and it's winging its way to me.  I have been knitting my Loopy Academy stripes assignment so that has been something....

Off to clean.

Dear Jane

Oh yeah, did I mention that I am starting a Dear Jane?  Well, I am.  A group of quilters from my guild has started a group and since I am relatively new to the guild, I think it's a good way to meet some people.

My Jane is fighting a different war - the war of the Great Depression.  I am using my small 30's stash for this effort.  I have slowly started collecting 30's fabrics recently.  The story...

My sister's former next door neighbor had an old family quilt that was clamshells.  The shells were beginning to shred and the neighbor wished to piece in some replacement shells.  The fabrics were clearly 30's.  So my sister and I got on the website for the Fat Quarter Shop and Kim picked out a nickel charm pack of 20's and another of 30's.  

A few years pass and the 2 charm packs make their way back to me.  I am not sure if the neighbor gave up or what, but they were basically intact.  I made a lovely 60" square baby quilt for the GS camp director who has lovingly taken care of my girl at camp for years.  And while I was making that quilt, I realized I was falling in love with 30's fabrics.

So when I shop hop or see a swap on my Yahoo groups that is 30's fabrics, I go ahead and participate.  It's a great way to build a variety of stash in small quantities.  With the exception of one fabric that I bought the rest of the bolt of (yes, it's pink - move along), my 30's stash fits in a shoebox.  My most recent Bits 'n Pieces shipment from Keepsake Quilting had 6 2.5" 30's strips in there.  And a newer quilt shop here in town has quite the 30's selection, so I am set.

The background will be Kona Snow.  We were debating at our first DJ meeting how much background one needs and our 'expert' (she's been to the DJ retreat and met Brenda and all of that) said that she's heard varying amounts based on piecing methods.  Buy the bolt was the most common recommendation.

Thankfully TLE sells Kona as well.  When they get their next bolts in, they are saving me one and will ship it to me.  So I can't start my DJ yet, but soon.  

I have the book and the rulers.  I ordered the stand alone EQ software and it arrived yesterday.  I need some more grey aurifil.  I am nearly ready.

My numbers = 0, 0, 0, 0.

At Last a Plan

When last we left our heroine...

Anyway, I ended up cleaning the yarn nook in my room.  I reorganized all of my needles that I could get my hands on.  I have lots of needles but now it takes no time to figure out what I do or do not have.  Last step is to post inventory on this computer so I can order online without having to move (yes I am that lazy).

When I did that I also inventoried all my yarn.  I have only 10 UFOs and 1 bag of repairs.  I have lots of yarn though, at least in my opinion (I have 100 times more fabric).  I put all the sock yarn in one bag.  I then just sort of put all the other yarn into another bag and all the acrylic crap in the laundry basket.  I really have a handle on what I have.

Then yesterday The Loopy Ewe (TLE), they released the class requirements for the second semester of freshman year.  This semester is all about techniques.  I am going with stripes for my first assignment and I am doing a sweater called Nothing but Stripes!  However, since I am the size I am that is a lot of yarn.  Never fear, I am just using TLE's house brand for fingering weight.  I am making mine in eggplant and oyster, a deep purple and a light grey.

(I cannot confirm or deny that there may have been some last call shopping, including some lovely light blue laceweight...)

So that is the assignment.  From the UFO list, I will work on my Irish sweater.  From the sock bag, I will break into my Mrs. Crosby that I got for Camp Loopy and make a test pair of the Simple Skyp socks.  Once these 3 items are done, I can then order yarn and cast on for the next TLE assignment.  This way I reduce UFOs, keep current with purchases and start to reduce stash.  Although this purchase may have added to stash just a wee bit...at least all purchases have projects attached to them in my queue, not just random 'that is pretty' purchases.

On the fabric side of things, I am ordering a bolf of Kona Snow from TLE for my Dear Jane.  Plus I made a list for this anticipated snowy weekend of quilty things to do.  I broke it down into pretty small steps so I can see progress.  If i get as far as I want, I will have 2 things at the hand stitching stage, which would be wonderful!

It's good to plan the work.  Time to work the plan!

The Power of Handwork

I have been off for a while and I have tried to figure out why.  I started off the year well enough; I took a ton of time around the holidays to actively and extensively craft.  I knit, I crocheted, I sewed, I quilted.  I got a lot done.  2 lap quilts, a pair of sox and a pair of mittens.  I then had a retreat a week later and I did a ton more sewing.  I mean I was in a groove.

And then I stopped.  There was a few weeks (OK the year has only had like 4 weeks) where the busy snuck on me.  One week was supposed to be super busy in one respect and it ended up being weird in another way.  The first set of crayz was postponed by a week and so there was no downtime.

And then I had to sew for a charity event.  That meant I had to go to the sewing room and do stuff.  What a big help.

So I was able to jump start things on the sewing front, but I didn't really have any sort of long term plan or anything.  It was a lot of Just One Thing, which is progress.

But I have stalled out everywhere else.  I can't get a handle on my house.  Or my paperwork (and it tax season).  Or my clothing.  Or anything.  Like seriously anything.  I was functioning in my critical mode:  clean clothes and food on the table are mandatory; everything else is optional.

I can't handle it.  I want more done.  I want more from my house.  It can be done.  I want to start having friends over and in the past year I have expanded / rotated my group of friends and I'd like to invite them over.  One friend now has a baby and I'd like her to have him over (he is a cutie).  I need to make a list.  I need to plan the work and work the plan and make the other 2 accountable.  They will do stuff if they know what stuff.  (I've given up the whole isn't it obvious argument - not worth my blood pressure.)

Anyway, back to handwork.  I haven't had anything to hand stitch at all for like 3 weeks.  I am stumbling around lost.  Seriously.  I'm at a loss.

This week I figured out this is why I am stalling out.  I am desperately waiting for the Loopy Ewe's second semester at Loopy Academy to begin.  The assignments haven't even been handed out.  However, I can wait no longer.  I have taken drastic measures.

I am cleaning my room in order to inventory my yarn so that I may find some handwork to do.

Yep, that is what I am doing.  I have taken a break to eat dinner and write this post.  Now I need to go back to going through the yarn and watching TIVO'd episodes of Project Runway.

Who knew handwork was the key?  Well the yarn harlot of course...

2015 begins

Yes, I've been offline for a month.  Yes, I need to get back to it.

And this weekend.

No doubt, this will be in the last post in the weekend series.

Thanksgiving went fantastically.  It all came together, leftovers are nearly gone, we made people take the desserts back with them, etc.

Friday was a slow day of everyone doing what they enjoy, around dishes, kitchen duty and laundry.  It was also the day the first clue of the Bonnie Hunter Quiltville Grand Illusion mystery.  I dutifully completed clue 1 on Friday.  My schedule for the upcoming week had me out nearly every night.

Saturday I awoke to news on Facebook that Grandma Mary's older sister Flora had suffered a massive stroke.  Turns out Gma Mary had been calling Flora all day on Friday and wasn't getting an answer.  So Gma calls Flora's son who lives close by, and they find her.  (This does beg the question why that son's family was not in touch with Flora daily like my MIL is in touch with her mother daily.  Don't get us started.)

Last night, again via Facebook, we received word that Aunt Flora, aged 95.5, had passed.  2 of her kids live in the west, so we await arrangements.  So an already crammed week for me, and Renee, and Ted, is completely up in the air.  Travel is about 3 hours each way, as they are farther north in the Chicago suburbs than my family or my MIL.

In other good news, I ordered my last project's yarn at The Loopy Ewe.  In annoying news, the sock I started was one size too small, so as ye knit, so shall ye rip.

And the next weekend...

Last weekend went fine.  Lessons were learned and life moved along.  It was a small implementation and it revealed many things, which was the point.  Now, I have more things to do, but that's OK.  I can only do what I can do.

Occasionally my employer rents out a movie theater for a new release movie.  Usually it's a family movie (Mr. Peabody) but this time it was the third Hunger Games movie: Mockingjay Part 1.  I let my girl have a sleepover with 2 friends.  We watched the first movie last night, the second movie this morning and the third movie was at 1 at the theater.  A co-worker of mine sat next to my girls and said they were wonderful.

I myself have to sit in the exactly middle of the theater because currently I have benign positional vertigo.  Those little crystals in my ears have decided not to stay put.  Ugh.  Annoying, really.

We have achieved some house cleaning this week as we prepare for Thanksgiving.  While we are not done by any means, I will be good enough by the day.  I need to go to bed on Wednesday night all done.  Thursday is meant for cooking and cooking only.

On the knitting front, I have started some mitts for Renee as a gift to match the hat I made her from Loopy Academy.  I have also cast on a pair of socks to work on in the living room.  As for crocheting, all parts for gifts are done and now need to be assembled.  I continue to bind the very large YBR.  I finished an Advent calendar.

Yes it's sideways.  All the little pockets are fully lined.  The numbers are all appliqued on.  I need Ted to hang it this week.

The new Bonnie mystery Grand Illusion starts this week on Friday.  I'm not even sure what my goals are, but I do know that by year end, I want all of Celtic Solstice done and I want to be current on clues.  I also would love to bust 100 yards.  That is distinctly possible....

This Weekend

I don’t know what it is about this weekend, the second one in November, that causes my life so much drama / stuff / whatever.  Here’s the rundown:

2010 – Overnight implementation of a project.  This was the type of thing where the team really bonded as a group; the best type of team one can ever hope for.  This was loads of fun, even if it went on until 4 in the morning.  We had a food night, pizza, treats, cookies, etc.  Programmers even came in because it was the place to be.  Good times, people, good times.

2011 – Nothing that I remember.

2012 – I was to do a Girl Scout training and I fell ill.  Whoops.

2013 – I was to do the SAME Girl Scout training and this time Ted was ill.  He actually fell ill the Tuesday of that week, into the ER he went, surgery that same day and home that Friday night.  Diabetes came home with us, along with staph.  (Once staph gets in your house, it is evil. Trust me.)   On that Sunday were the Washington, IL tornadoes.  We went to the basement and Ted was clutching his insulin pen.  That was quite the wild week.

2014 – Another overnight implementation of a project.  This one is being done a few states at a time, so a year from now, it is very possible I will be doing another one of these.  Seriously it’s already scheduled that way.  Again it will all be good.  Many of the same folks from the 2010 effort; I joke it’s like getting the band back together.  They know me, I know them, it’s effortless.  Now, if only everything will balance tomorrow, life will be good. (It's now tomorrow as I post this and they are running 4 hours behind.)

2015 – Already scheduled as an implementation.

I find it very interesting that it’s a weekend with a lot going on every year.  I also realized this year that October is way more busy than I thought.  I do know that for next year’s October, there will be a Girl Scout overnight that I will no longer be doing, and that will help.  That just really leaves the shop hop and frankly, quilting is where it’s at.

44

Yesterday I turned 44.  At a conference.  Away from my family.  The whole conference sang me Happy Birthday, which was a lovely touch.  I can safely say everyone will remember me, which is good, because in 2 years I have to actually plan the conference.

I did some crochet during the sessions.  I made some Christmas presents.  I sat in the back and made an effort to not disturb people.  No negative comments and actually some great conversations.   I wore the 2 sweaters that I made, and a  few folks figured out that I made them.  It was a good day for crafting.

Quilting is moving along slowly.  I am working on a YBR that is huge.  I have to make the back for section 10, sandwich it, quilt it and then work on assembling the quilt.  I hope to have it done by the end of this weekend so that I can sleep under it ASAP.  Tonight was seriously the last night I could wear shorts to go get Henry.

Time to unpack...

Enlarging the Font

Oh my, my eyes have aged.  Everything needs to go to a larger font.  Such is life.

Last week, Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville fame was at our guild.  I had hesitated at joining the guild, and I'm glad I did.  One of my Girl Scout friends is a former president of the guild, plus there are a few more interconnections in my life that led me to the guild.

Bonnie was wonderful.  Take the time to see her if you can.  While I have been following Bonnie for a while, there was still so much to learn and observe.  I got a lot from it.  Plus I went to Biaggi's with her for dinner, and I got to meet a few more guild people.  Totally worth the PTO.

Of course I now have 2 more UFOs!  Actually I will make lap sizes for both and donate to Relay for Life.  But first I need to finish my swap blocks for the Lady of the Lake swap.  Almost there.

Camp Loopy!!!

Yep, I am a proud camper this year!  Last year I tried and it didn't work out, but this year I was committed. 

All 3 projects are for me.  So there!

The first one is the Skoosh Shawl.  The criteria was to be inspired by a favorite book, movie, etc.  Using the line ‘never before have we clothed strangers in the garb of our people’ from Lord of the Rings, I made this shawl.  And in orange not green, because I could.  It lives at work in my cube for days when the A/C is going too strong in one building or room or another.

The second one is the Lincoln Cardi.  This one was to be about a vacation.  I was going to start it on vacation, so I was thinking something to do with either Laura Ingalls Wilder or Mount Rushmore, but oh no.  My family stepped in and said Washington DC, pandas and cherry blossoms.  OK, then.  So I hunted and found this pattern in a book called Capitol Knits and thankfully you can buy just the one pattern.  I made it in pink from a yarn by Lorna’s Laces that is named Galena, which is where General Grant is from.  Did I tell you I’m from Illinois?

The third one is Leaf Top.  This one was to be in your favorite colors, but I already did that with the Lincoln Cardi.  So this time, I took a cue from the Preppy Handbook, and went with useful (‘Useful” is used as often as “cute” in a girl’s wardrobe.).  A cream colored short sleeve sweater.   The first 30 rows were the design, so I took that one row at a time.  The rest was plain TV or car knitting and that went fast enough.

So it was a successful Camp Loopy.

And I finish just to find out about Loopy Academy.  ZOMG!

Far Too Long

Oh my it has been far too long.  Here’s where I stand:

The Lost Year, as I have called it, is over.  The grief year is not; but the Lost Year is.  When the beginning of August rolled around, things just felt better.  Things that had been frustrating me have now started to provide enjoyment again.  Decisions I had made during the Lost Year about my time commitments to other things and such now came to light and under the scrutiny of the light, still make sense as wise decisions.  I am pleased. 

I have decided to step down my activities for some of the volunteering I do.  I lead a lot when I volunteer and I am just tired.  I need to either be a worker bee or not even be a bee.  Someone asked me to volunteer for something in a few weeks and they seriously want is 2 hours of my time (3 with commute).  I can do that.  But meetings and planning and wrangling events and people?  I’m done.  I am succession planning many of those things so I don’t leave people high and dry.  For one effort, I am the past president, so I rotate off.  For another, I am in my third year of a three year term that ends basically in October.  For the other 2 volunteering things I do, they are both through work and for both I do some sort of committee / leadership work, but it’s not so bad. 

I am glad to be stepping down; my girl is in 8^th grade and next year will bring all sorts of things.  Heck, 8^th grade is bringing all sorts of things.

Knitting continues.  Look for a post all about knitting and what I did this summer.  I am through all my Camp Loopy projects.  Yay!  I am on my 9^th project for this year, which puts me about 2 weeks ahead of the pace.  I have projects 10, 11, 12 and even 13 bagged up and ready to go.  I feel so accomplished!

Quilting remains stalled.  It took a full 2+ months to get my machine back.  It’s hard when your dealer is far away.  However she is a fantastic dealer.  I have done some finishes this summer, mostly on new projects.  So the UFO number remains stalled as well.  I am OK with that.  Look for a post on all the finishes. 

The bigger question I am asking myself as we are in this lovely 3 day weekend (and 4 days for my kid – isn’t she lucky?) is how to enjoy and quilt away the last third of the year.  I have redone my 4 Fab 4’s, as I was done with 7 of the projects in the last 4 Fab 4’s.  I have decided that to start, this is how I will proceed.  Remember I break time into 2 weeks per calendar week, Monday through Thursday for 1 week and Friday through Sunday as the other week.  Trust me, it makes sense.  I also do stuff my pay period – that’s a longer list that gets allocated into the little weeks I set up for myself.

Week of August 29 – September 1 (Labor Day falls into this week):

Cut and sew at least 3 sets of 12 blocks for LOTL swap.

Prepare  / cut fabric for Bonnie Hunter Workshops next weekend.

By the 09/11 paycheck.  This gets me moving on at least one quilt in each of the Fab 4’s.

Finish one section of the YBR.

Join 2 sections of the YBR.

Finish LOTL swap blocks.

Make sense of Christmas fabs and cut for both Christmas quilts.

Dig out Advent Calendar and finish making date pockets.

Stay tuned for more…

Plugging Along

It's summer.  Finally.  I judge it not by the weather but by when I no longer need to wake Renee up for school.  For us, that first day was last Tuesday.  Amen.

I am nearing the end of my year of being on hold.  It all started with Erick's wedding party last July and it will end August 1, when a chapter in a different part of my life will close.  Literally it will be one year and about 4 days or so.  As a disclaimer, Dad died in January and I have all of 2014 to handle grief, so I don't declare it all done and over with but I feel like I can move forward.  Kim is feeling the same way too.

So for this week I made a list of things to get done.  Not all of them will be and that is OK but I am now ready and garnering the energy to tend to my house.  It's bad.  Clutter and paperwork everywhere.  I need to deep clean and purge and we seriously need to paint and decorate.  This is the longest we've stayed in a house and we have no desire to move.  So we need to get on this.

I have also committed to my health and I am starting with a chiropractor.  I know some people are suspicious of their work, but I just view them as another type of specialist.  As I figured, I ache all the time because things are out of whack.  So now that's taking up 3 days per week after work.

OK back to crafty things.  I am working on my Camp Loopy project.  I am halfway through by row count and I just joined the second ball.  I'm supposed to use 4.  However, each RS row has increases by 4 stitches so the rows I'm doing now are using a ton more yarn.  I may also make it a bit bigger because I am a larger person.  I finished the red socks.  I made the mandala.  Yarn projects are going well.  (Finishing and blocks, not so well.)                  

Quilting is at a standstill.  I took the machine to the doctor today and it will be at least a week and the doctor is 2 hours each way.  I am not sure how quickly get it picked up.  That's OK.  Nothing is urgent.  I am thinking of cleaning up the area thoroughly.  I am cutting up the scraps that are out (why put them away?) into 1.75" thimbles (the tiniest little ruler thing OMG), 1.5" x 2.5" mini bricks and 2.5" squares.  I want to cut with abandon with my Baby Go cutter!

I need to rethink my 4 Fab 4's.  (Yes, I have 4 going.  Do not judge.)  7 or 8 are done, leaving half of them to go.  I want to see what I am eager to sew and I will let myself go in that direction.  I am looking forward to that time, whenever it happens.  It might not be until August.  I have only 1 deadline item between now and then.

Meanwhile, I have a few really old machines, including a Singer 99, to get into working order.  I'm scared to plug them into my electrical despite everything looking fine.  I have decided to use a power strip until I can have the plugs redone to 3 prong ones.  If I can get these old machines working that would be wonderful.  All 3 old machines are in cabinets.

So that's how it's going.  Plugging along.  And life is good.

Still. Cannot. Stop. Knitting.

Yes it's true, I cannot stop knitting.  I am enjoying it so!

Today is the start of the first challenge for Camp Loopy.  I am making a shawl that is very simple and very bright.  I want it to stay at work for those times that the building folks cannot regulate the building temp correctly.  This happens more than you know.  And if I got back to the ITS building, that place is a meat locker year-round.

I have also set a yarn challenge for myself for this year.  I want to finish 12 items this year, so about 1 per month.  I have a manageable stash right now and I'd actually like it to reduce by half, if not more.

So here are the first 3 finishes.  I'm very excited!

These are handmitts for a girlfriend on her birthday.  Renee is modeling them.  Yarn is The Loopy Ewe's solid series in barn red.  Pattern is Kujeillen.

These are my handmitts, which are larger in diameter because I'm a larger person.  Yarn is The Loopy Ewe's Loopy Legends series in Tamra's Day Brightener.  How can you go wrong with a yarn called Tamra's Day Brightener?!?!?!  Same pattern, but I put a braided cable in my pattern section.

And here are some socks. Same yarn.  Pattern is Basic Ribbed Socks.

In the queue for June:

More socks in that red yarn up there.  I finished them today but the sock blockers are in use.
A mandala for Attic24.
Camp Loopy June project.

That would get me to 6 projects completed in the first 6 months of the year, which makes me right on track.  So yay!

(And yes, there has been some quilting going on too...)

Cannot. Stop. Knitting.

I just can't stop.  It's like there's 20+ years of pent up knitting going on.  I'm not going to argue with it; I am making things that come in pairs, so if this makes sure both items get made, I'm good with that.

Anyway I've made one pair of fingerless mitts from the Tamra's Day Brightener yarn and now I am on the second sock.  Something that small and portable is so easy to knit on during lost / found time.  For example while waiting for pasta water to boil, I can get 5 needles knit - not quite 2 rounds.  Today we are heading north to celebrate a birthday and Mother's Day, so I will refrain from knitting until I am in the car.  And since the pattern, which is free on Ravelry, is a PDF, I was able to download it to my phone and open it with my Kindle app, which means it's with me all the time and I didn't have to print it.  Technology is amazing.

I've decided to buy another set of size 1 dpns, so I can cast on both socks (or mitts) at once and work the same section on both.  I like that idea better.  With a Hobby Lobby coupon, it's a cheap investment.

I also did a lot (whoo boy a lot) of online shopping this weekend.  I went ahead and ordered yarn and a needle for Camp Loopy's first project, which is June.  The second project is July and I hope I can make that while on the vacation I have yet to plan.  The third is August and that month is hard but I am determined to find a way.  My goal was to make 12 yarn projects this year.  I have 2 done.  #3 is in progress and #4 is queued up. the Camp Loopy order had yarn for 3 projects in it, so that will get me to 7.  I have a worsted weight acrylic afghan started (actually 2 of them - different patterns) and I hope to knock at least one out this year.

My yarn stash is about 2 laundry baskets and I'd like it down to one, so that is the goal.

Other online shopping included Market Day (last order that has to last me through the summer), Essential Bodywear (they had a sale), (stupid Oxford comma) and Penzey's Spices.  And an order and Amazon for coffee.  It was a lot of money spent in a really short period of time but I'm good for a while.

No sewing.  Haven't had the strong urge to go back, but hopefully this week.  Gotta get 2 girl quilts done in as many weeks.  Plus I have to finish up my YBR, which I have stalled out on.  Not big deal; it will all get done.

Just Like Cycle 3...

...I'm stalling out.  It's not a problem; just a bit of of a break on the YBR.  The machine started to skip stitches so I stopped one night.  Then I started knitting a sock and became obsessed with that.  So I haven't gone back to sewing.

Tonight I had to pick up my plant starts from the local farming family.  So we planted some of them tonight and will plant more tomorrow and the rest of this week.  Sewing can keep for a bit.

I decided on the sisters quilts I need to make for friends who have just welcomed their second daughter.  Someone on Stashbusters mentioned Irish Chains and a double Irish Chain will be the right size for the baby and a triple will be fine for the big sister.  The big sister's will have purple running through the chain and the baby will have pink.  Purple will work for the older girl, as it is the same color I made her baby quilt.  That her parents absconded with and hang in their bedroom.

It was good to plant.  It is the week of Mother's Day so the exposure is lower for loss.  I don't have any tomatoes that overwintered, so I guess I will have to buy some.  Damn.

Blitzing, Still Blitzing

I got a little wrapped ion making the goal that I forgot to have fun.  So I took a step back and decided that if I still didn't get it done by May 3, it will be OK.  So I started having fun.

So I came home today after working choicetime and started quilting section 1.  I am kind of all over the map with what is done, but as of this morning, 4 sections were quilted, 3 more were at the flimsy stage and 3 more needed to be sewn together.

I watched Episode III of Star Wars and quilted the 5th piece, which was #1, the upper left hand corner.  I then started to piece #3, the upper right hand corner.  And the movie was done.

Tonight I hope to finish #3 during Episode IV, all the way to the quilting.

The plan is to finish up the sections this weekend and starting on Tuesday I will start trimming the sections and getting the quilt together.  Hopefully by this time next week, I will be hand sewing binding.  I've decided that the Reign eps in my tivo will be my hand binding entertainment.

I also started a pair of socks.  And Ted comes home soon.  Amen.

Blitzing Days 3, 4 and 5

So yeah, on Wednesday, which was Day 3 of the Blitz, I had an industry dinner.  I did take about 30 minutes before going and quilted on section 6.  I was so proud of myself.  I made progress, even on a busy day.

Pride goeth before a fall.

I left the dinner feeling horrible.  I tried to throw up when I got home, not once but twice and couldn't because a horrible cough was choking off my windpipe.  I had a fever.  It was bad.

And it was bad on Thursday.  I worked a total of 1 hour from home from my bed.  ("Kathleen has joined the call.  No, I am not sharing my PC, as I am not near one."  Dude, I'm lying in bed on my cell phone.)

On Friday, it was worse.  My temp kept rising and the congestion was progressing.  Each day, I had emailed work very early in the morning with my meeting schedule, my thoughts and how I thought things could play out.  I have 2 primary backups and in a pinch my boss can fill in.  On Thursday, one backup got it done.  She ROCKED.  On Friday, due to serious problems on the project, I was asked to join various meetings via conference call.

Forget it.  I got dressed and went in for 4 hours.  It took every ounce of energy I had, but it was a judicious use of time.  One of the meetings was with my VP.  How can you say no?  Anyway, the project remains stalled and so we made plans to work the weekend.

Yeah, we need a file to review and the file hasn't been generated.  Yup, still at home.

So the point is, no sewing has happened the last 3 days.  If I can sew, I should be at work.  I couldn't do either.

Today is Day 6.  The fever has broken and I am off to the Walgreens for the Rxs that the doctor assures me will make me human again.

Blitz Day 2

Here we are - Day 2.  I might as well make some progress here, since the work project is STUCK.  Like we can't do a darned thing.  It's rather comical at this point.  I can say that because I am not under the gun.  The ones that are do fantastic work.  I just wish they wouldn't hit every bump in the road.  I digress.

Anyway, sections 5 and 6.  Yesterday I spent an hour.  Today I gave 2 hours to the cause.  The first hour, I finished piecing section 5 and all of section 6.  The second hour, I worked on the backing.  My red piece is woefully too small to use for the back at all, so I am winging it.

Anyway, I got the backing prepared and started to sandwich.  I got section 6 sandwiched and realized the that backing that I had prepared for section 5 was a bit short on one side.  So I chose to start quilting section 6 with the remainder of the hour.  I couldn't help myself.

Tomorrow's goals (I have an industry dinner at 6):

Sandwich section 5

Bonus:  Quilt anything

I am happy to report that Thursday and Friday have no after-work commitments, but if the project picks up, then I'm working.  It happens.

Blitz Blitz Blitz - Day 1

My life right now is all about the word blitz.  If one project has a blitz, then 2 more must also have them.  At some point we numbered the blitzes, but then they overlapped and it got all messy.

Anyway, I have blitz on the brain.  And a desperate need for a new quilt on my bed for the spring.  So I have decided to blitz one of my king-sized WIPs.

Here are my stashbuster winnings from earlier this year.

So I decided that I would use all of these FQs in one project.  I am making a YBR for my bed.  A king YBR requires 48 FQs and I got about 30 in the winnings.  So I went through my stash and pulled from every milk crate and added.

If possible, I cut one yard.  Half a yard was placed aside to help piece a back.  The remaining half yard was cut into 2 FWs.  One FQ was added to the pile.  The other FQ was cut into 2 9.5 strips and one remaining 2.5 strip.

The YBR will be an oversized king.  A king has 12 blocks per row and 12 rows, so 144 blocks.  However, you make 160 blocks and have leftovers.  So I decided to make the rows 13 blocks long.  OK, that leaves me with 4 blocks left and I'll use those in the corners.

I then found a red fabric for the inner border, binding and backing.  I'll make the rows and columns to piece the top, add a 3.5 border all the way around, and then make the outer border the 9.5 strips from above.  The 4 leftover blocks will be the 4 corners.

The quilt is going to be huge - 141 by 132.  Yes it's wider than it is long; that's what I need.

So I had 48 FQs.  I sorted them on the color spectrum.  And then grouped them into groups of 4.  Each group made 40 blocks (lap sized on the pattern).

I then copied the pattern, spliced in an additional column and made a copy.

And that leads us to today.  Today I broke the quilt into 10 pieces.

Then I cut it apart.

Next up is starting the sections.  The first goal is the center: sections 5 and 6.  These 2 sections have no borders.  I can use leftover backing fabric to start cutting borders for other sections.

I went through the blocks and made a pile for section 5 and another pile for section 6.  I was able to start sewing section 5 together.

Tomorrow's goals:

Finish sewing sections 5 and 6
Prep backings for 5 and 6
Sandwich backings for 5 and 6

Bonus:  Start quilting

A Finish...and how MQIS works for me

OK, the last post was my fail.  A rather epic fail, I think.  It was the idea that I could hopefully post this finish, except it decided to break my washing machine.

Well folks, here is the finish.

It's 58 inches square.  And it's done.  I donated it to my Relay for Life team for a relaxation basket.  Hopefully it will fetch our team some serious cash.  Yes, I do my own quilting.

Now on to the MQIS part.  Machine Quilting in Sections is a book by Marti Michell and it illustrates the technique of quilting quilts in sections so that more of us home sewists can use the machines we have.  I have decided that I just need to get on board with this and learn this technique.  I have dedicated this year for this purpose.

I decided on this goal this year after thinking long and hard about my life.  Although I am 25 years plus from retirement, my husband and I know that we want to have an RV.  We also have stuff.  So we need to start paring down now ever so slowly.  And since an RV is not a cheap thing, decisions and choices need to be made.  The decision that I have made (at least for now) is that I'd rather have money to retire and have an RV and not own a longarm.  (I also want a condo, but that is another post!)  So clearly I need to learn to quilt my stuff.  Plus I have college to pay for my DD in 5 years or so.  While Ted can get her half tuition, it still costs some serious cash.

Anyway, this was the first quilt I tried this on.  I sandwiched the first row and basically did SITD around most of the parts in each block.  This is FAR MORE quilting than I have ever done on a quilt.  Then I trimmed up the joining edge, and did a 6 layer seam, which from top to bottom, is wrong side up row 2, row 1 quilt sandwich, right side up backing and then the batting.  sew the whole thing together and then bring the row 2 pieces together and quilt that row.  I did that for rows 2 through 4.  By row 4, some of the quilt was being drug through the tiny harp of the machine (I sew on a Jem.  Yes, really.  It's all I could afford with daycare at the time.)

When all 4 rows were on, I quilted through the sashings in the rows and columns - just a quick stitch down the center.  Then I trimmed and attached the binding.  I used white thread on the top and brown thread on the back.

It worked flawlessly.  No puckers.  No tucks.  No requilting.  Some frustration, but beginner frustration.  I was worried about a bump where the rows were attached because it's two layers of batting sewn together.  You have to step on it to feel it and you have to really look to find the bump.

HEre are some random photos of the back.  See if you can find the bump.

You can see it here in this last picture if you find the horizontal center of the quilt and look for it.  Again, you and I would know to look for it, but I don't think others would care.

What I have learned from this quilt:

It might have been smarter to do two halves and then do a center join that has the strip down the back that needs to be hand sewn down.

I can now try more complex quilting per block because I can manage the quilt in the machine.

I was also able to not worry about time on this one.  I didn't care how long it took.  I normally do not look forward to quilting and want it done as quickly as possible.  For this one, I said each strip had to be done within a disc of the Lord of the Rings movie (each disc is between 1.5 and 2 hours).  This is a manageable way to quilt over several days.  I was done withe attaching the binding by the end of the first half of the Return of the King.

For my next MQIS quilt, it will be an oversized king in the Yellow Brick Road (YBR) pattern.  Stay tuned.