I feel almost on hold waiting for my basting appointment at the clubhouse on Tuesday. I am taking in two projects.
Its like gaining personal freedom and being able to choose whenever I take the next step. One of the prices of freedom is being able to name our slavery. I know I dig my heels in when I am faced with being honest about this. I have deep habits and compulsions for doing what I do and resisting change.
I finished this scrappy holiday table runner for one of the FB14 who signed up saying they would like something for the holidays. This friend is also a quilter, and I was surprised she wanted a quilted item from me. When I found this table runner pattern, it seemed perfect. Scrappy and a little different. I was able to use some of my metal buttons for the flower centers.
Where this project comes in regarding freedom of choice and recognizing where I am held captive is in resisting the finish, resisting making anything that goes to a quilter who would SEE mistakes or anything 'less than perfect'. I will need to find a shipping box that the 3D poinsettias will fit into and do have enough time.
Let freedom ring for sure. Let all the things that hold us captive be healed as we take our next steps in protest of change.
Change is inevitable.
Except for vending machines.
All the cutting is completed for class on Saturday. Tomorrow, the 4th of July is a New Moon in Cancer, which brings to us all this sense of calmness and compassion. I feel that in the moment.
I put the various cut pieces in baggies to keep them clean and contained. And then put the baggies and folder with the pattern (and a copy) in a basket to take with me. Like all quilting classes, we bring our sewing machines and any supplies like rippers, scissors, thread on bobbins and a clean machine. I had calculated how much fabric needed for the background and got to the very end of it. The color strips came from my stash, and I did save extra pieces of fabric in case I need more. That part was an estimate or eyeballed. Most likely, there will be leftovers.
I've been thinking about a back for this and may resort to using a plain muslin. It is going to be intricate, and using anything too complex on the back would diminish the effect of the top.
Today, however, I need to spend time finishing the PurpleShep pillow for my Grandson so that it can get shipped to him on Tuesday when the PO opens. He is excited for it and texts me several times each day, probably when he first wakes up. I am glad for the electronic connection.
Sunglasses were not wanted on the PinkSheep Pillow when I first made it last week. Its in his hands now and a request for sunglasses came up. Measurements are 'about 3-4" wide. Wait. What? How will they get attached even if I can figure out how to make them? This is a Lego-like stuffed pillow, and who is going to sew the glasses ON??? I looked at the graphics again, and the lense parts each have a Lego-like design in them that I do not know how to replicate. Jeeze.
While it is exciting to think of using more of my stash and shopping from my closet, the process is as exhausting as shopping in a store, if not more so. Scrap quilting is adaptive and thought-provoking.
The one bin of uncut scraps is thinning out as they get used. Cut scraps, designated by sizes, get pulled for specific reasons. What I needed today is the equivalent of 12 brighter FQs. These stacks in the picture are my choices toward cutting for the class project, and if more is needed, then I will go into the cut container. I will 'eyeball' what I have in color against what I cut for the background. They are supposed to have a balance in the quilt.
It actually took me about 45 minutes just to sort and press my selections, and if I had simply gone into the fabric store, I might have gathered those 12 FQs in less than 15 minutes.
Cutting needs to be spot on because pieces are so thin at 1.25" and 1.75" with 1.5" squares for the centers. The pattern says this is a 6-hour project. Hmm. Would it be different if everything was new from the store?
When I walked into the fabric store, my intention was to buy the black and white fabric for the binding on the Wild Cats quilt. I did.
All I have left of the pink were these two very small strips. Talk about using what is in the closet! I wait for the batting now that the top is finished. I will look at putting the back together with what pieces are left. (What was she thinking? is still the question at hand.) Whew, whatever it was, I lucked out. Still. A very good example of writing those notes-to-self so that anyone can pick up any project and take it to completion.
Meanwhile I have an appointment at the clubhouse on Tuesday to baste the Peppermint Kisses.
Progress is flying for those FB14 projects too, and I will soon be done. My Grandson requested the PurpleShep pillow and I got the pieces cut and will machine quilt them onto white and hand stitch the white to a purple pillow form that I laced with Lavender flowers as a dream pillow.
My younger Son suggested that I make a quilt for his school friend who was always at our home when they were growing up.
At first I thought I would make a traditional Log Cabin, but when I walked into the fabric store, I found this quilt advertising a class for Saturday, July 9. Looking closely, it IS a Log Cabin variation. I ordered the MN Wild Hockey Team fabric for the border, and have plenty of scraps. The pattern came with the template, and I bought the background fabric. It measures 58" square with the border, so I plan to add extra blocks to make it rectangular and useful as a lap quilt.
Once I figure out how the back will work on Wild Cats, I can start cutting the pieces to get ready for class. I am super excited about this and can see that it will be a scrap-buster type of project. The pattern says it takes 6 hours. The class is 10-2 on a week from Saturday.
What I thought about as I woke this morning is the saying that 'the race is not to the swift but to those who keep on running'.
Without enough to finish off the top and bottom border, I took a chance by making a 9-patch for each corner. I had more blue stripe but not enough pink to make it happen. I ripped some pieces and then had enough small squares of the pink for the 9-patches. I know that if I stop going on a project and put it away, that when I take it out again, it will frustrate me even more than when I left it.
This is going to be one wild quilt, living up to its name of Wild Cats. It took a bit of planning to get it to come out ok because I do not have a pattern to follow. I did decide to buy more of the black with white dot for binding just to carry it through. And I have no idea how the back will work and must wait until the top is done and has a final measurement.
Personally, I like the bright, bright colors and appreciate that I had two pieces of Kaffe Fasset to use in it. I bought some to use in that 12 Days of Christmas swap I was in last year and had to make a minimum purchase, so kept the extra fabric that didn't go in the swap. The other piece I have is a floral in those colors that is planned for the final border.
Tomorrow is First Friday and one of the fabric stores offers FQs at half price. I also have a $20 punch card that must be redeemed at one time, so I can shop away. Rolling my eyes, because I just spent $80-some dollars online this morning to get batting and some fabric for a holiday project. Quilting is not cheap.
According to popular opinion, an Intermediate Quilter is one who can take a pattern and make it work with what she has. It could be changing colors, fabrics and even design.
So here I am, going for the big prize with this Wild Cat quilt. I have extended the panel to measure 32.5" wide, then found a pattern that suggested the next border as scrappy, and then made a small coordinating (black with white dot) frame. I made the third border out of a 3-piece stripe. I am halted now. I used up all the pink. However it was my plan to make a corner block from that 3-piece strip, and if I cut into the top and bottom pieces, there may not be enough. There is no pink left. None. Nadda.
I have the aqua blues left, and a smidge of the black with white dots (not enough of it to make anything more). The aqua print will add a final border making the quilt about 74x84. I cannot even think about the back just now.
It is set aside for the night so I can think about it and do some measuring of the 3-piece strips against the top section. My intuition tells me it will work, and my logic tells me not to cut anything just yet.
My friend Rex injured her back and had a hard time working on her projects. Yet, I received one of them, a cape, just yesterday.
Her PS in the note said it is made from yarn she spun and is Estonian Lace. I am not a spinner nor a knitter, yet appreciate the work and love that went into this cape. It has a weight about it and fits perfectly over my shoulders without falling off. Stunning. The photo doesn't do it justice because it isn't showing the laciness in the pattern. It is so beautiful. I feel mighty lucky to be the recipient.
I continued working on the Wild Cats quilt. Just piecing, pressing, trimming and piecing again. This is the border and it is putzie but will look nice.
