Winter Stillness

Lisa Call had a lovely post on her blog yesterday. It was all about stillness and things that winter is good for (resting, regrouping, being quiet). Nice to remember.

As an aside, Lisa and I have Internet-known each other since about 1992 or 1993. We were on the original quilt listserv, QuiltNet and I was in a block swap that Lisa organized.

clipped from blog.lisacall.com

Winter

Stillness

Today was gray and cloudy and bitter cold. It was the first day it really felt like winter this year. Driving to work in the snow, not seeing the sun all day. Too cold to be outside.

It was fabulous! I loved it. Winter is a time to take stock in where we are and rest. To sit for a while and just let things be with needing to go muck with them. It’s such a great time to get quiet and enjoy a bit of stillness. Nothing ever seems as silent as watching the snow fall.

The short days, the cold cold nights, the sunless colorless sky – to me these are all signs of really amazing things to come. Without this quietness the brightness of spring wouldn’t feel so wonderful.

I found great joy in being in the stillness today and am reminded of the growth that will come as a result of this rest.

Happy Winter everyone!

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Quiltmakers, I’d like to Introduce you to the Librarians

Kathy over at Pink Chalk Studio made a small comment on her blog that made my day. Go visit your public library!

I check a LOT of books out at the library. Bless the librarians that pull the
good stuff and put it on display. Here’s some photos from the book href=”http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000YG0EVK/?tag=wwwpinkchalks-20″>The American
Quilt
by Roderick Kiracofe. Everything old is truly new again.

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Mind Sorbet

The Chocolate Box quilt, which I talked about in the post about the retreat is what is discussed in Judy Martin‘s February 2008 newsletter. Kristin, one of her readers writes:

“I agree that there is nothing wrong with fast quilts. In fact, in the past after completing a challenging project, I would often use a fast and easy quilt as a “mind sorbet” to cleanse the mind before beginning the next project. They are nice for showcasing big or odd prints, or for picnic quilts or for kid quilts for gifts. I do think though, if we are not challenging ourselves and not enjoying the process, we are missing something.”

The Chocolate Box is mind sorbet. I felt thick and full after working for so long on the Pineapple. I needed something to cleanse the palette and the Chocolate Box did it.That is such a great description and I hope I will be able to add it to my lexicon.

Birthday Wishes!

How lucky am I ? I got a blog post all about me, except for the little bit about Jake. Kristen is the best. Thanks, dear!

Happy Birthday, Jake and Jaye

 
Today is also Jaye’s birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JAYE!!!! i met jaye on a fabulous quilting yahoogroup about 7 years ago – maybe w little more than that now – i met her when lydia told me i had to join the group – all the cool people were doing it *heh heh* it turned out that jaye actually lived within 100 miles of where *I* lived, so we’ve gotten to meet a handful of times. of course, i have since moved, so i’m now closer to 300 miles away from her, but we managed to meet up last year. i wish we could get together more often. she has an amazing son – irene and i got to visit with him as well last year when we met up. anyway, you should check out her website b/c it’s got lovely bright colors and she always has creatively inspiring tidibits. check out her flowering snowballs and her pineapples and her thoughts on dots! maybe even leave a comment and wish her a happy birthday!
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High Fiber Content in Her Pajamaz

There is some kind of pajama meme going around. Read my previous entry and you’ll know why I am out of the loop. I did forget to mention there that I did a massive work project last weekend on short notice. I worked like a dog, even staying up all night, but I charged the client a boatload of money. Hopefully, they will pay soon.

Still, I was pleased to read Julie’s post and find out that I would get polka dot pajamas with pockets. YAY! Just what I wanted, especially if they were in flannel!

Hello? Anybody Home?

Christmas is here! My Christmas decorations and gift bags are still in storage. The cabinets for storing all the stuff are still sitting in the middle of the laundry room floor, though some progress has been made. As a result, I need gift bags. A few weekends ago, I sat down and made about 8.
I think I bought this funky red and green fabric last year and it is what I used for this bag making foray. I love how cheerful it is! I have some more fabric in the same line that has a white background. We’ll see what I get made with it! Of course, you’ll hear it here first. 😉 In the background are bags I made last year, which you can read about in this post.Last night we went to a party where there was a gift exchange – the kind where people can steal from each other. I saw the bag above and didn’t care much for what was in it, but really liked the bag and wanted to get my hands on it, so I could see how it was made and decorated. I am thrilled that I got to keep it, because it can really add to my repertoire of bag tricks. It is felt! DUH! Why didn’t I think of that??? Also, the hem is folded over about 1.5″ and then holes have been made in the hem and the string has been run through them. I love this idea, because it gives more substance to the closure. Also, it is so easy to decorate with felt – just glue the decorations on. I think this would be a great project to work on with kids. Sadly, I gave away all of my extra felt recently, so if I want to make some of these, I’ll have to buy more. Happily, felt is cheap.

Laume, over at Beach Treasure, writes “There are a lot of gorgeous blogs out there this time of year, filled with images of smiling children, beautifully handcrafted gifts, and gorgeously decorated homes. I ooh and ahhh at the pretty snow scenes and sigh at the glittery soft edged vignettes of holiday trees. These posts inspire me. They make me want to jump up and make my own home look just as beautiful. I want to have the perfect holiday too!”

This is soooo not me this year. While I have been preparing for Christmas pretty consistently and have most of the cards and gift buying complete, I don’t feel the joy of the season in my heart. I don’t have snow or smiling children wearing plaid vests and skirts in front of a perfectly outfitted Christmas tree. I look forward to Christmas, but I can never seem to enjoy the preparations that much and this year is harder than the past. More time is what I need.

More time, also, for sewing. I have made none. Note that I don’t say “I have had none,” because I have had some, but have chosen to ignore the messy sewing table, the incorrectly sized Pineapples and everything related to needle and thread. The reality is that the momentum for the Pineapples is gone. I am dejected about them and don’t want to continue to work on them anymore. This makes me feel even worse, because I really, REALLY wanted to work on one project from beginning to end. I just don’t feel that I need to work on a project that isn’t bringing me some kind of joy. There is so much in my life that does not bring me joy right now that I don’t need anything else.

The worse part is that when I haven’t been sewing, I don’t write to you. I can’t promise that I will turn over a new leaf on that front, but I am going to try do some sewing, at least some more Christmas bags.

So, I am going to put up the Pineapple and do something else. I am thinking the chocolate box, but we will see.

and, BTW, Laume is a very smart woman with a good head on her shoulders. As well, she can tell you what you need to know without harping or lecturing. Go read her entire post!

Quilt Storage – Good Idea

I saw this in Judy Martin’s newsletter and thought it was a great idea for quilt storage. Quilt storage can be such a problem when you start getting lots of quilts. I have seen quilts rolled on poles, which I also think it a great idea, but this quilt storage would be good for larger quilts.

Quilt Storage – A Quilt Closet

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Oh Joyous Day!!

I had a lot to do today, as is par for the course, I guess. I needed to be out of the house early, because I had an appointment and wanted to stop by my designer as well as take my machine in for a service before the appointment. (Just to cut the drama, I accomplished it all!).

I was feeling quite sad as I packed up my machine, knowing that it would be at least a week before I would be able to work on the Pineapples again AND that now I had to spend valuable time going in search of a thimble. The thought of no fiberwork was too upsetting to even contemplate, but the machine really needed the service. My dealer went out of business and the subsequent dealer who serviced my machine was subpar IMO, so I hadn’t taken it in for service in a long time.

I sucked he drame, uncertainty and all of my worries up and took the poor machine in. Then I went about my business of the day. Eventually I made it home and went up to the workroom. The first thing I saw, sitting smugly in the middle of the floor looking like it had just returned from an illicit rendezvous, was the thimble. I was elated! And puzzled. The floor of the workroom was somewhere that I searched and, unless I am going selectively blind, the thimble wasn’t there.

Regardless, I am thrilled. I can make progress while the machine is gone and I don’t have to go and try to replace the thimble. I will definitely buy a second thimble the next time I am at a quilt shop or show that has them.