Weekly Update

At the beginning of the summer I set a goal for myself--to quilt, crochet, or otherwise craft for the duration of one CD of an audiobook every day until school started. This being a little more ambitious than I could handle, I have since modified that goal--to quilt, crochet, or otherwise craft every day--even if it's only a couple minutes. And this past week was a success!

Sunday: 3 hours crochet
Monday: 2 blocks of Black and White and Red All Over and 2 hours crochet
Tuesday: 2 hours of Pink Jungle Quilt and 4 blocks of BWRAO
Wednesday: 4 hours crochet, 1/2 hour of layout/planning
Thursday: 1 block of BWRAO, 4 hours folding fabric
Friday: 1 hour crochet, 1 hour organizing the sewing room
Saturday: 1 block of BWRAO, 20 minutes crochet

A few days (noticably today) I slacked off a bit, but all in all, not too shabby!

Saturday... already?

Finally, a couple projects I can talk about!

I've been working on a baby blanket using a purple/green/tan varigated yarn for the past month or so. Recently, I've begun using darker/brighter/non-pastel colors for baby blankets and loving the results. It occured to me that new moms probably get sick of pastels after a while--so I ventured off into other color territories. This is not to say that I don't love traditional baby yarn--I do! (And have several very large buckets filled with pastel pinks, yellows, greens, and blues...) But it's fun to branch out and experiment a bit with color.

I wasn't too sure about the pattern I'd chosen, but by the time I'd completed square 30 or so, I figured I might as well finish it... and it turned out beautifully!

I absolutely love the scalloped edging--it's more elegant and a lot more involved than my usual crochet borders, but I think I'm going to have to use it (or a version of it) on other projects.

My crochet comes with me just about everywhere I go--church, Bible studies, doctor's appointments--anywhere I might be sitting still for an extended period of time with enough light to see my hands. And this project has garnered more compliments than any other I've worked on. I think it's the gorgeous colors in the yarn... Even though I've gone on a yarn diet and forbidden myself to buy any more before we move next summer (or until I've gotten through most of my stash, whichever comes first) I'm seriously tempted to head back to Hobby Lobby and buy up the rest.

Another project I've been working on is this: a pink jungle quilt! (Please pardon the bad quality of the picture.)

I'm discipling a young woman this summer (we're going through Elizabeth George's book A Young Woman's Guide to Making Right Choices) and she decided that since she was already hanging out in my house, she wanted to learn how to quilt as well. (It might, perhaps, be more accurate to say that she wanted a pink jungle quilt for her room and knew that "learning how to quilt" (ie: picking out fabric and having me make it for her) was the fastest way to that goal.) =)

We got most of the fabric for the blocks cut this week--we'll finish cutting next week and, if all goes well, start sewing the week after that.

The colors and fabrics are not what I would have chosen (I'm not an animal-print person in general) but that's the joy of personal taste! I get to work on a project I would have never made for myself! I'm looking forward to seeing how this one turns out.

Getting Organized

Does anyone else measure their creative endeavors in terms of movies and TV episodes? As in, "I quilted three NCIS episodes yesterday, and crocheted the extended edition of Return of the King the day before that." No one else? Just me then... well, okay. We moved my old TV into my quilting room, so I generally turn something on while I'm working.

Yesterday, I folded fabric for two entire BBC Miss Marple miniseries. Why??

The state of my quilting room has been giving me fits. It's a relatively small room, and has been pulling double-duty as both a library and a quilting room. Inside it are stuffed five bookcases, a desk, three folding tables, an ironing board, several rolling carts of drawers, and a makeshift design wall. (There is, thankfully, a closet, which is filled with two more carts of drawers, four gigantic plastic buckets of yarn, two buckets of finished projects waiting to be given away, piles of fleece, and... fabric. Stacks and stacks of quilting cottons which have gotten totally out of control.)

(Please note how the bookcases become a secondary design wall when necessary.)

I decided to read Caroyln Wood's Organizing Solutions for Every Quilter and actually do something about the mess that was my quilting room rather than just complain about it. I woudln't say that many of her ideas are new--I've seen them implemented while reading other quilters' blogs, but it was a great place for me to start. And I began by folding fabric. Hours and hours of folding fabric. (The good part--I had forgotten about some of my fabric, so it was almost like going shopping all over again!) That folded fabric is now in nice, organized stacks--some of which fit nicely into my newly-aquired hanging canvass shelves (yay! more space!). The rest will have to fit (somehow) back into the (very limited) closet shelving. Neatly, this time.

The next step will be acquiring pegboard and hanging my most-used quilting implements within easy reach. (And, of course, training myself to actually put them back when I'm finished with them.) And then will begin the slow and agonizing process of clearing out the non-sewing nonsense that hangs out in the corners of this room, which was the catch-all when we first moved in, and never quite recovered.

It's going to be a process, and I'm sure I'm going to want to tear my hair out more than once... but I'm looking forward to the finished result. Whenever I happen to get there.

Today

Today, I am not going to allow myself to be claimed by inertia.

Today, I am going to complete two blocks of my "Black and White and Red All Over" quilt.

Today, I am going to allow myself to attempt an experimental quilting project.

Today, I am going to take the time to cook a healthy dinner for the mister and myself.

Today, I am going to finally get around to going to the knitting club at B&N.

Today, I am going to accomplish things. Small things, perhaps. But that's all right. I'm only talking about today.

WIP Wednesday... on Thursday

When I first started this blog, I was excited and wondered why on earth I hadn't started a blog before.


It's several weeks later, and I remember why. I can't seem to manage to update on any sort of regular schedule... oops. I've resolved to be better about that. We'll see if it makes any difference... =)

As I was photographing all my recent projects to share, I realized that almost all of them are gifts for people who *might* be reading this blog, so I can't do a proper WIP update--teasers only!


Owl Patch--front and back finally completed and sent off to the lovely Miss Nancy for quilting. (First time piecing a back--I really hope it turns out!)

WIP - Dr. Seuss!

WIP - Black and White and Red All Over

WIP - Giraffes

WIP - Fruit (yes, working on this one makes me hungry...)

WIP - Snoopy! (It's meant to be a gift, but I might have to get more fabric and make one for me...)

Yes, these are all works in progress. I should probably get better at finishing one project before starting another... I'm looking forward to finishing and gifting these so I can show real pictures! (Which won't be until Christmas, actually...)

The Benefits of Being Married to an Officer...

I didn't get much sewing done yesterday, because I was out all day.

Where, you might ask?

Well, you see this picture?

I was hanging out on the very top deck, watching the Blue Angels fly over (and during some passes UNDER) my head.

The mister's ship is being used as the centerpoint for the Blue Angels Air Show this weekend. So we spent a day out on the water (best seat in the house!) being impressed by the pilots and their planes.

He's back out there, doing it again today... and I'm catching up on my quilting!

Wordless Wednesday

The Things They Made

It's date day with the mister (Our two-year engagement anniversary! yay!), so I've only got time for a quick update before we're off used-bookstore-ing, eating Thai food, and getting massages. (Best date, ever, yes? Especially if you've been bent over a sewing machine every day for the past couple weeks.)

So, in the interest of timeliness--pictures! Today's category is crochet.

Fall colors afghan made for our new home shortly after moving in.

Things for a baby girl. (No, this is not an announcement. I just love making baby things.) =)

Made for baby Gabriel - the son of a friend from church.

This is Lee, my Scarecockroach, named after a childhood crush, the dashing Lee Stetson from Scarecrow and Mrs. King.

Spring afghan made using varigated yarn.

Butterflies!

And, I will leave you with one last photo that is most definitely not in the crochet category.

(This is Byron. Byron is not impressed. But he's cute.)

Did I mention...?

That I am totally and completely in love with owls right now?

I just ordered six yards of Alice Kennedy's Bright Owl fabrics. So much for cutting down on my fabric consumption... Adorable Owls!

The question remains, of course--what to do with it?? I ordered twelve half-yards--one of almost every print in the collection... I'm thinking a crib quilt, but have no idea of a pattern yet.