Good Grief!

Good grief: how can it be 2.5 weeks since my last post? I've been sewing and reading as per usual, maybe a bit more reading than sewing to be honest. Let me fill you in on what's been happening around here. If you follow me on Instagram you'll have a bit of an idea. I've joined in with Leanne at Devoted Quilter on Instagram for her WIPS challenge once again this year. This year it's just two months, 61 days, so during this second quarter, I set my sights a bit lower, looking to complete two goals. One I met Sunday morning.

This is my knitted selvages rug, the second one I've made over the years. It's bigger than the first one.

UFO Busting #33.5

Welcome to Tish's UFO Busting party! While she is busting up UFOs and stompin' all over them, eating pie, and doing some shopping with blogger friends in Ohio, I am hosting the party for her this week.

Welcome!  Tish and I go a ways back... to a certain New Quilt Bloggers Blog Hop 2015, during which we further bonded over books and pibbles. We've gotten up to all kinds of quilty fun over the past 3.5 years, some of it finished, some not. One of our sew-together projects that we both have not finished is the Sewcial Bee Sampler Quilt Along, though she is further along now than I am. Anja joined us, and since she has been in India, I haven't bothered to even try to catch up with Tish...Anja's my excuse ha! Let's take a look at what has been occupying 99% of my quilting time this week...

Knitted Selvages Rug - A Finish!

Yay for another item to cross off my Q3FAL List which is here. I started this exactly a year ago (knitters extraordinaire like Helen in Ireland and Sue in England may roll their eyes at my tortoise pace) and I've just picked away at it here and there, as my selvages stock grew, (that was my first excuse) and then as I accumulated lots and lots of them, my excuse was, well, nothing.

Getting a Grip

In more ways than one.

It has been a c-c-c-cold April here in Canada's southernmost town.  The Detroit weather dude said we are 10-20F degrees colder than average, and the Windsor weather dude, Arms Bumanlag (don't you just love his name?!) concurred, about 5-10C.  The wind out of the north is freezing; when it's out of the south, because it comes off the lake, freezing as well.  I could count on one hand the number of times I have walked Rocco without earmuffs and gloves.  Yesterday and today I was grouchy the entire walk, barely looking around to admire the burgeoning Spring glory of magnolias, Japanese Cherry, azaleas, Forsythia, other white floral trees that I do not know...

Today I got home, hit the shower, my cheeks (both sets, ha) ice cold to the touch, and started to have a meltdown of frustration and depression and anger all rolled into one.  And then....wait a second.... I grabbed myself by the scruff of the neck (metaphorically, although I did scrub my neck, lol) and said, "Sandra! Get a GRIP!  You are crying about the weather?!  Meanwhile you have made two beautiful quilts that you hope to give to two children...said children who have suffered unspeakable horrors of sexual abuse and YOU THINK YOU HAVE IT BAD???"  Insert steam-out-of-nostrils emoji.

Yeah.  So.  I got out of the shower and told MacGyver the positive aspects of my walk with Rocco:  1.  Just two steps from where he did his first poop (he saved up today) was a perfectly good, nicely folded, just a bit wet from the drizzle, pretty lettuce-green doggie poop bag! (had you wondering, didn't I?) I didn't have to use one of my own, and at about 1.5c each, a girl's gotta save money where she can, snort.  2.  The drizzle stopped not even half way into my walk.  3.  The lawns are the most incredible, lush, Irish green.

Speaking of incredible green (love it when I get a good segue like this), a few days ago, I used a piece of Quilters' Candy Basics from Connecting Threads (no affiliation) from a fat quarter bundle I got from them in early December to make this:

Blue Skies - OMG Finish

I have been pretty productive over the past few days IMHO, now that I'm feeling almost 100%.

You may recall I made this top during the Craftsy Sweetens Up My Quilting Life hop that Julie of Pink Doxies and I hosted earlier this year.  This was a 10-yard bundle of blues, from which I whacked off a 2.5" strip of each print, added in the Pearl Bracelets, another aqua print and some Kona Snow yardage, and made these blocks.

This quilt was inspired by this one made by Preeti, who in turn was inspired by a Cluck Cluck Sew pattern.  Looking at mine, there is not a lot of resemblance to the Cluck Cluck Sew one, but I always give credit where credit is due.

Here is the back:

I absolutely LOVE the turquoise Treasures of the Gypsies print by Northcott, bought some time ago with a backing in mind, and some has been used as such.  I knew I had a blue skies-type print somewhere in my stash and had just enough to add in a strip. Rather à propos, n'est-ce pas?

What a gorgeous day, finally, here. Temperature not where I need it to be, but still, a helluva lot warmer than it has been, and with the sunshine, birdsong (saw my first cardinals this week!) and blue skies, I'm a happy girl.

I think it was Cindy of Stitchin' At Home who said she could see some of my beloved feathers flowing along the white areas, and she was right!  I wasn't sure about fitting them in there, but it worked out great.  I drew the spine freehand with a blue marker (thanks Tish! Love those babies) and then just went for it with drawing in the feathers.  Soooo good to be back on Avril.  I also decided to echo the spine and then fill it with pebbles, as you see.

I picked up some polyester batting at JoAnn's this winter to try, since I love-love-loved the Legacy polyester I got to use last year in the wheelchair quilts for our guild.  It's not quite as soft as the Legacy but it quilts up just as beautifully and has a light airy feel in the quilt, and it shows off such texture!  I just meandered (ahh, love meandering, SO relaxing) in the blue sections.

Okay.  Let's be frank.  Open.  Honest.  Full disclosure.  At several points during this first quilt on Avril in 3 months, I was sweating, doubting, thinking, "Crap, missed touching the spine there; oops, those pebbles are not round; nooo, that feather is not curved properly; yikes, that feather looks like a cat's broken tail..." and so on.  However, I did not rip.  Did not stop.  Well, that's not true; I did stop to fiddle with the tension, which went off slightly as the bobbin emptied, and then was refilled (I went through 2 bobbins of So Fine that I wound and part of one The Bottom Line pre-wound one).

So my point is that it looks great, no?  I'm really pleased with the entire quilt from colours to quilting.  When your nose is up against a quilt, and you're seeing every. single. stitch. it's easy to beat yourself up huge-time.  Try to step back and get the overall effect.  You probably will go "Yuss!" to quote Judy of Quilt Paradigm.

This is my OMG for April, and this is my #bravequilter (for which I missed the deadline for sign-up):  first item for sale in my Etsy store....

...which I went to set up before publishing this post.  And found out....

There is already a MMMquilts on Etsy!!  Noooo....  So now what?  I got nuthin'; somehow "Menopausal Quilts" doesn't sound like a business I'd like a quilt from, LOL.  Any suggestions welcome.  I thought 3Mquilts...m3quilts...  I also thought $65CA.  It's a baby quilt, or a small lap quilt, not that big.  Thoughts on that appreciated. I've seen them a lot more expensive, but, as with my first quilt pattern that is free on Craftsy, I thought I'd start humble.

Quilt Stats:
Pattern: original design
Size: 40" square
Fabric: assorted Michael Miller prints, Lizzy House Pearl Bracelets, Kate Spain Paradiso scrap, Kona Snow
Batting: 100% polyester
Quilted: on my Avanté
Threads: pieced with Gütermann, quilted with white Isacord

Linking up with
Confessions of a Fabric Addict
Crazy Mom Quilts
TGIFF at Faith and Fabric
A Quilted Passion
Red Letter Quilts for OMG

I have a couple other posts forthcoming, Q2 FAL List, WIP like my Hands2Help two, yep, two quilts, my Stepping Stones progress, a knitted neckwarmer, well here's a photo of that enjoyable little project:

This is Fisherman's Wife Cowl, a kit that is only $12.88CA on Craftsy, and that will knit up in no time with this lovely chunky acrylic/wool blend yarn and fat needles.  Perfect for spring with the ever-present wind here in flat Essex County!
Happy Friday!

Two Finishes for Friday!

Picture heavy.  Words light, I promise.  Tutorial tomorrow.

First of the two Friday finishes:

Yep, this is another Itty Bitty Knitting bag (or makeup, sewing supplies, what-have-you).  This one is a little different.  Already used.  Already love it.

She Sells Seashells...

Slow going on the runner, but my machine is getting a workout with all the satin-stitching! She hasn't had to do that in some time.  We've also been to two Spring Training baseball games in the last week, which were good, yesterday's especially.

Shells, and a starfish, completed as of Saturday

I'm pretty happy with the selection of batiks I picked out for the shells.  It also helps a lot that I have quite a large selection of actual shells here to look at for added inspiration and detail. The starfish was a bear make that a crab (haha) to turn right side out.

Shells as of yesterday; two of the clamshells have yet to have their detail stitching

So I have two conch (I learned from the most excellent book, An Embarrassment of Mangoes, by Ann Vanderhoof, that it is pronounced "conk") shells to make and two shark's teeth.  I need to buy some black batik for those as I did not bring any with me.  A few days ago, I finished Ann's second book, The Spice Necklace, which tells of their second sail to the Caribbean 9 years after the first. Both were such good reads, and both of them sent me to the Internet to Google information, look up various images of trees and plants she describes. I love it when books educate me!

I do have a finish for this Work in Progress Wednesday:

Finally. I had to rip out the first glove a third time, the second glove twice in order to have enough yarn from the ball to finish them. Good thing Brianne's hands are small, like mine, as I omitted 3 rows from the hand part of the gloves, and one row from the knuckles part.  I had about 60" of yarn left!  This pattern cuts it that fine. 

One of the few times Naala wants to be in a picture and Rocco has to get in on the act like the annoying little brother he can be; can you see how she's just smacked him?!

Now, I just have to finish Brady's DVD movie of their trip to see us last Fall, and then I can send these off.  And I can start on Dayna's, but think I'll unwind the ball of yarn and divide it exactly in half before I start! 

Linking up with WIP Wednesday and Let's Bee Social.

WIPs

I've been steadily stitching in my corner of this beautiful planet...a planet that we are destroying.  Destroying with our greed, our disregard for Nature, our thirst for power, our desire that ALL MUST BE THE SAME.  As quilters, we celebrate creativity. Yes, we like to copy; who amongst us has not seen a quilt and bought the fabric to make one just like it?

I am feeling so sad this week, a week where countries are increasing their involvement in wars, plural, a week where a young aid worker was killed, and a week that today has seen three young people, kids, really, all members of one family, gunned down for, as yet, no reason, other than the obvious.  My uncle has a blog where he shares his poetry.  He is a very talented writer and musician; for those of you Coronation Street fans, he has written the script for a couple of episodes.  Here is a link to his latest poem, a very powerful one, à propos for events of late.

But off my soapbox, and on to the topic of this post.  I've got three things on the go at the moment.  First is the quilt that needs to be done by early next week!  Quilting is progressing albeit slowly, with a couple of ripping out incidents.  Let's just say my serpentine flow, à la Angela Walters' Shape By Shape book looked more like drunken worms, and the first ribbon candy attempt was much too big of a space.  Here it is from yesterday:

Mostly straight line quilting, so I'm using my walking foot a lot.  With all the cornerstones, it's a bit of a pain as I'm having to do a lot of travel stitching as I go from one sashing to the next. I like the ribbon candy scaled down and framed.

I did another motif from Shape By Shape in the coloured 9-patch squares

There are 60 ivory sashing pieces, 20 of which I treated like an inner frame.  These have the 4 lines of quilting that you see in the above picture.  The horizontal 20 now have the framed ribbon candy, and so I just have the 20 vertical pieces which I'm working on, and then the final dark green border where I plan to do a Celtic design.  Aiming to have a finish for Friday!

I ordered some yarn, Karabella Aurora Merino, from Got Yarn! in late December to make fingerless gloves for my daughters.  Although I have knit on 4 needles before, I have never made gloves.  I haven't done cable stitch, nor have I done a picot cast off.  So two new techniques for me.  Here is one done.

There's been some ripping in getting to this point and there very might well be some more, which is why I'm not doing the thumb gusset yet.  See the black yarn holding those stitches together?  This will be yet another new technique for me, making a thumb hole.  I'm starting the second glove from the other end of the ball and will rip back the first glove a couple of rows if need be.  The pattern says you will use every bit of the one ball.

The third WIP is one of my projects from my first quarter list for the 2015 Finish Along.  So far I have just played with layout on the design wall, settling on this one:

And then started to "blow it apart", a highly technical quilt term, to get to my final design.

And just to end on a happy note, since I do have a pretty good sense of humour, aided, as usual, by my fur kids.  This is partly why the quilt is taking a bit longer, (well, that's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it):

Funny, the only evidence that this is MY sewing room is the ironing board!

Took a break to do some much-needed yoga, spread out my mat, turned back to my desk to get the iPad set up for music, turned back to see this! btw, great quilting filler design on that mat! Did not buy it for that reason, as the purchase was pre-Leah Day and pre-Angela Walters!

As those of you who have been reading this blog for a bit know, Bella HAS to get some fur on every new quilt, every new piece of fabric that comes into my/her (our?) sewing room.  She's been quite insistent with her involvement with this latest quilt, to the point where even when I'm trying to quilt it, she badly wants to be ON it.  Maybe she loves the wool batting? I photographed the stages she went through to find the perfect spot the other night: 

Hmm, not quite comfy...

Ah yes, under is better...

How about a bit of under and a bit of on?

I did not touch her or the quilt once during this process.  Much to her chagrin, her success was short-lived; I moved her right after I took this!

And then how can I not take a break and have a love-sesh with him when I look over and this is what I see?!!

Like come on!  What 5 1/2 year old dog lies like this?!  Cuteness personified.

And if you've stayed with me thus far, I have a little announcement.  Thanks to Lara at Buzzin' Bumble, (you need to check out her elephant parade flimsy here) who noted the auspicious number of posts I am approaching, I realized I am headed for a "milestone" of sorts.  This is post #199.  Do the math on the sidebar if you want to know how I figured that out!  My planned finish on Friday post will be my 200th, egad, that's in not quite 1 1/2 years of this blog's existence.  Therefore, I will be doing a giveaway.  Or maybe two.  Hope the Fat Quarter Shop delivers in time.  From my previous experience that will not be a problem.  So remember to come back!

Linking up with WIP Wednesday and Let's Bee Social.

It's Been A While...

I was out West visiting my darling grandson, my daughter and my family and friends all last week.  While I was gone, I took the opportunity to take my Bernina in for her checkup and service.  Finally sat down last night and checked her out; she purred along much like Bella, who was so happy to have me back sewing in the her basement!  I had started Snowflake 6 of Joanne's Snowalong before I left.  I finished it last night.

Version 1 of Snowflake 6

This is yet another background colour, a Christmas-themed batik.  Love it.  Sorry about the dark area at the bottom...didn't see that when I took the picture. 

Brianne and Brady loved their snowflake cushions.  Brianne thought they looked great together on her black leather couch, but Brady said, nope, it was going in his room, with his Christmas quilt.

He LOVES quilts.  He slowly went through the first quarter of my American Patchwork & Quilting magazine that I'd taken with me, studying the pictures and making comments.  He really liked a particular Halloween quilt in that issue (I'm behind in my reading) and has asked me to make it for him!  All right then.  What Brady wants, Nana will do!

Brianne got a little bit of Christmas in her room as well:

This is All People Quilt's Roll It Up! pillowcase pattern, free on their website.  I've made it many times.  This fabric is from O'Susannah's Quilts and Gifts in Watkins Glen.  Hey!  I see they are having a viewing of the first episode of Season 5's Downton Abbey a month early!!  Can.  Not.  Wait.  for it to start, but I will have to wait until January 4.  Don't you just love this modern Christmas fabric?

I also made Brady a new pair of warm flannel pajama bottoms:

And I made my mum a warm short scarf to be worn under her winter coat, so her neck and chest will be extra-warm this winter.

I've made two using this pattern where you knit 2 together and then put your wool forward and knit 1.  It gives it the diagonal look and drape.  The yarn is from Joann's, a 70% acrylic, 30% wool (I thought it had some wool in it, Mum!) which is made in Turkey.  It is lovely and warm!  I know I will be wearing my scarf I made last year when I walk Rocco today.  We have had 4 days of gale-force winds, about 2" of snow and temperatures down in the 20s, brrr.  We are all Florida dreaming... 

This was Monday, Nov. 17. Some melted, more fell, so it looks about the same today

Rocco will be in his hoodie, that's for sure.

It says "Don't Bully My Breed" on his back.  Keeps his bare belly warm!

Naala is the only one who isn't bothered by the cold.  Thank goodness that we are on the west end of Lake Erie, so the Lake Effect Snow means that we got 2" whereas Buffalo got...well, a TON.  Yowzers.

Not too happy about wearing my hoodie, but I'll put up with it if it means I get a WALK!

Thankful Thursday #7 Living Your Dream

It does happen.  And I know perhaps I go on about it, but I need to express my joy.  Isn't that so much better than expressing negativity, showing irritation, or ranting about things?  However, I do admit I do all three. . . hopefully just not very often!

Those who know me know how deeply I love yoga.  I gave a Yin yoga class last Saturday for the 'hood once again on our beach in celebration of the Summer Solstice.  Once again this year, it was pure serenity, magical, in that the lake was gently lapping, the birds were calling and flitting around, and two butterflies even came down to flutter amongst the yogis, who were unaware, as their eyes were closed.  The sun came out halfway through the hour-long practice.  Prior to the gathering, one of the neighbours asked me if I would be open to having the Tibetan prayer flags she and her husband had bought from monks when they were on a retreat near Algonquin.  These prayer flags had been blessed by the monks, and so it was with reverence that I said most certainly, yes.  We used a shepherd hook from our garden and a piece of rebar from my husband's garage from which to suspend them.  Sorry it's not the best quality, as I took it with my phone.

The flags encircled us with love and healing and good chi.

I realized today on my walk with Rocco, which is a moving meditation of itself, much like the Ashtanga yoga practice

View of Lake Erie this morning from the path in Lakeside Park where I walk each day

that about 10 years ago, although I did not know it at the time, there was one particular catalyst for a huge change in my life.  One of my dear friends found out that the cancer she had been fighting had spread; it was basically everywhere, and she'd been given just 2 months to live.  It was heartbreaking.  I made her a quilt, with some help from another friend, as well as donations from several staff members to help cover the cost of the materials.

That was the first quilt I had made with such incredible vibrations as I sewed; it was almost tangible.  I don't have a picture of it, but I do know that it is well-loved.  IS.  Ten years later, she lives on, vibrant, full of humour and wisdom, she has an incredible depth of empathy, love; in short she is a testament to the power and positivity of the human spirit.

The all-too-real possibility of losing someone close to me made me really stop.  And think.  Think about the fragility of this life, acknowledge the importance of living each day in the best way one can, revel in the beauty in every single place on this planet, appreciate loved ones.  Would that I succeed in these areas every day.  However, I do keep trying.  
 

A Catalpa tree in full bloom - that is a 2-storey house it towers over!

She it was who got my serious journey in yoga started in 2001, by introducing me to Yoga For Today, with its wonderful teachers under whom I had the honour of first learning about yoga.  She it is with whom I love to discuss books we’ve read.  Because she is originally from Toronto, and lived there for the first 20-odd years of her life, she is the one person who really understands the pull I feel to this part of Canada.

A few steps past the view of Lake Erie, towards the 100-year-old "magic" bridge

She has been the most supportive, the most positive, given the most kudos, from the moment I first told her of our plans to quit our jobs pre-retirement age and move away.  She recently started knitting, and inspired me to pick up my needles and get back into it myself, although I do admit, I don’t knit as much as I’d like to!

She made me the blue and purple infinity scarf and I made the orange one with a pattern she gave me

And so I just wanted to express my love, gratitude, and appreciation for her, my happiness that even though physically, we are far apart, she has enriched my life in so many ways, yoga not the least of them.

And that brings me full circle to that hour of serenity sharing yoga on the beach last Saturday for which I am so thankful.  I am living my dream.  On so many levels.  And I am eternally, forever and ever, so very grateful.

Catalpa blossoms

 Note: I have NO idea what gremlins caused the font to change!  And even though I highlight and click "default font" it won't go to my regular font. . .