Changing my mind

-

 

Bright but...a mess. Tilda and Anna Maria fabrics feature prominently.

My husband was away for a few days, visiting our son. I took the opportunity to do a fair amount of reading on The Hawk Book 1, going to two sessions of PT for my right hip and knee, raking leaves, designing a quilt, then redesigning a quilt. Because sometimes fast isn't best.

Fast is what I wanted this quilt to be; eight-inch squares would sew up VERY SPEEDILY, yet they looked a mess, but this is for me, for winter, and for much of that season it wouldn't even be wholly visible on the bed, covered by a slender but necessary blanket I crocheted eons ago. So basically this quilt doesn't need to be spectacular, merely WARM. I'll double the batting, back it with flannel, and be super happy on cold nights, lol.

Yet.... When I went to bed after the initial design, I wasn't happy. I wasn't mad either, not at myself for the haphazard manner of putting together a new quilt top, but I sighed as I grew sleepy, considering options for how to nice up this rather pedantic effort. The fabrics are my faves, but they're also BUSY. Too active to be smushed right against one another. Too pretty to be thrown together without buffers to ease their distractive beauty. Too nice to covered by a crocheted throw? No, but.... But I wanted to make this quickly, or as fast as possible for a large blanket. It's going to be around 72" by 88", whoa momma! And I don't plan to machine quilt any of it, hah! (Future Me just rolled her eyes, fyi.) I'll hand quilt it and by the time it's done, winter will be in full swing and I'll be oh-so-ready to drape it on my side of our bed!

Wholly improved! And I didn't have to cut all the small squares, finding them in my stash. Now that's a WIN!

So okay, that's, uh, GREAT! Especially now, since I cut more fabric, then aligned the pieces as you see above. I searched my stash for enough low volume prints, using up some oldies that I guess were saved just for this moment. Past Me nods, wondering when I was going to use these fabrics purchased ages ago, or ages to me, not to her. Timeline conundrums erupt, but whatever. The main thing is I have a design for which all facets of myself are pleased, and now it's just a matter of sewing together this first half, then designing the second half, then....

Then I breathe deeply, wondering if there is time enough to do that before guests arrive in early November. I hope so. I hope I can get the quilt top stitched, by machine lol, then perhaps basted. Then it can be draped over the sofa until the evenings, when we lounge in the living room, watching TV or chatting. Again, the hand-quilting is going to be a languid affair, I'm in no hurry for that aspect. Yet I am wishing to reach that part as soon as possible amid the usual hoo-haa of life.

So, that's the latest on a sunny, warm-ish Sunday afternoon. I'm torn between wanting to start sewing and desiring a treat of ice cream eaten outside in the sun. I think I'll start with the latter, then return inside. Because in the latter part of October, warm-ish days are to be savoured. That quilt will be sewn together eventually, so off I go for a little taste of chocolate and blackberry bliss!

Popular posts from this blog

Good to be home

-
Image
This Mandolin block was waiting for me last night; I added four perimeter diamonds and it was finished! Subsequent pics are all EPP made during our holiday. Despite a head cold that emerged late Monday/early Tuesday, our holiday was marvelous! I add this disclaimer because right now I feel pretty crappy, so if this post rambles, it's due to my current state of health. Ice Cream Soda block My goodness, there is a lot I want to say, perhaps the best way to get back into the blogging swing is to eke out bits here and there. The Gee's Bend Quilts Collection was AMAZING! Thirteen quilts were on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art , beautiful comforters I never thought I might see in person. All were hand-quilted, most were completely hand-stitched. Designs, colors, and purpose made me grateful for my minor contributions to the quilting world, as well as causing me to wonder at future projects and ponder my fabric stash. Much food for thought at that deeply touching exhibit, wh...
Read more

Always good to be home

-
Image
  Heading west on I-580, just having crossed over a lengthy bridge. My goodness, where has the time gone? I've been back for two days, but no moment has been free to post here. I enjoyed a lovely getaway with an old friend, some warm temps, and an environment wholly altered to where I live. All in all, a terrific holiday, and now guests are arriving, which will probably preclude my usual flow of entries, although I truly am hoping to release my next book VERY SOON, lol. Getting out of one's routine is full of positives, the sense of adventure, especially when going somewhere new. Spending time with a pal from the the past enhanced the sojourn, much over which to chat. She knew our locale well, for which I was grateful. And I didn't miss my hexie box at all, instead spending my downtime reading one of my old novels, again falling in love with the sense of writing merely for my own pleasure. Our impending visitors will preclude me from diving into the prose, but I'm certa...
Read more

Earthquake recovery

-
Image
Records and box sets spilled out, blocking the door to a closet. An unexpected beginning to our day yesterday; at 2.34 am a 6.4 quake roughly stirred us from bed. In all my years dwelling in California, I have never experienced such turbulence, and boy howdy, this one packed a punch. Several striking memories remain, reaching for my bedside phone, but finding it had been tossed to the floor along with a small bookcase. Putting on shoes as a 4.6 aftershock rumbled through. Locating my computer tower on the floor next to my desk (spoiler alert; once power was restored at 8 pm, both my machine and my husband's were just fine!). A large bookshelf was toppled, vinyl albums flung from shelves in the living room, a few dishes scattered on the floor. Several framed photos had fallen, but only two sported cracked glass, one from which I was able to extricate the picture. No structural damage to our knowledge, and we had hot running water and a generator going all day. For all that could hav...
Read more