Wow, that quilt is 90" square so used up 2 colors of thread I had to get it tied.
The pic is a bit blurry, however, as I worked on it, it sure stepped up as a beauty in my eyes. This is a comfort quilt for a friend in TX who says she is always cold. Her Brother died a bit ago and it is my hope this brings her some comfort in her grief.
Grief is a strange beast that goes and comes when you least expect it and is like peeling an onion with its many layers. I have seen it seemed to wear on her photos. I know my own Brother is dear to me and I might not be easily consoled if he passes before I do. Grief.
So as I worked on this one, I took special care to quilt in good vibrations. People tell me they can feel the energy and I hope it is so. Each quilt is very much one of a kind.
This one is called Solstice to Solstice as that is the time frame it was constructed at last year. After getting the fabric requirements, I was able to pull out coordinating pieces from my stash to make it. AND yes, it is so much larger than I am comfortable with on my small machine. This is why I chose to tie it rather than machine quilt. Tying is an older acceptable form of quilting. My personal favorite is tied and I use it all the time. I know she will like it and think it will get shipped by the weekend.
This block is called 'Waiting For Santa'. Because my scraps for setting blocks let me make all 18 in 2 shades of blue with a red/white candy stripe, I need to include blues in the regular blocks. The only Santa fabric I had in the scraps was this surfing Santa in the Mighty Blue Pacific. That print had to be fussy cut. Now to use more reds and greens.
I put this block on the other edge of the row to have him looking into the center of the quilt. Originally, I didn't want to make a holiday-themed quilt, but when I saw fabric requirements, I realized the only stretch would be for the 18 setting blocks.
Once I had them constructed, the rest of the blocks would be easy. It is tempting to buy fabric, so this was a huge step in conservation for me. The other draw for me is how many people said the blocks were so easy to make. Easy is good for me these days. The biggest challenge is finding fabrics that work. Most of the blocks are squares or rectangles rather than HST and points.
What surprises me is how much fabric I have! I could have made 2 quilts from it all. However, doing more than one of any quilt is a challenge even with enough fabric!
With all my holiday gifts made, I am under less pressure to quilt and want to spend more time outdoors in my gardens. Some days I have boundless energy.
I did get another BOM finished. Wow, the photo shows it quite bright with that last border in red. It was a challenge for me, reading the pattern, and yet, its a nice addition to the Floral BOM quilt. Today, I am working on a Dresden Plate block. The pattern gave a template but I have a plastic one and just made it from there. Its a great way to use up some of those scrappy 2.5" strips. Its under my machine to get some decorative quilting on the blades. Then it needs to be trimmed to a 12.5" for the block.
I'd like to say I am caught up but am not. I have a couple of basting projects, and the yellow graduation quilt waiting. Unfortunately, I have a dental appointment this week that is taking priority.
I got two done, however, my camera lens stuck and I have one pic.
Both blocks were a bit tedious. I forget that it is called Block of the MONTH, and while they do get done in a day, it is wise to remember that we have a full month to complete them.
This one is for the Floral BOM. And my floral fabric is more abstract but will fit with the others in the grouping. If not, I will switch it for the other quilt and whatever block pattern gets issued for them, I will make in more florals. I admit to not having a lot of those kinds of prints so it is becoming challenging. I used a very dark navy blue for the background and then three shades of gray.
The other block I finished was a scrappy holiday print that goes along with the Merry & Bright quilt. It was a huge stretch to use a bright gold, which now, I need to repeat elsewhere.
I got a few more things done around the house to help weatherize for colder months. One was a brush-less motor for the furnace. The ducts were all checked for leakage and some aerators put on faucets. I wanted a new thermostat but the old furnace/AC wiring here didn't work. I've started locking the door at night so that it doesn't blow open with winds, which it did last year. And I am making my first pot of onion soup. My favorite. I'll bake cornbread to go with it. Yum.
Two size Arrow blocks were posted for the next blocks. I got both done and the longer of the two added to the first block.
The designer also released Flying Geese blocks but I didn't make them. Maybe tomorrow. I think they might be for borders. She wants us to do 4. I am holding off because of the scrap factor. It is likely that there will be scraps from the blocks and I would like to wait before cutting more of them. She suggested adding background white to either top and/or bottom some fabric to make it fit to the first block. I did that and am calling it done for today.
I always am challenged by the pointing things, and although I get how to do them, sometimes the points get lost. I know that most non-quilters won't even see the difference, so I've stopped stressing about getting them perfect. I try, but hey.
This block is a blue star. It is joined on either side by the setting blocks and waits for the next one to complete the row.
I've gone onto the Secret Solids quilt. This month's block is an Arrow, and done in 2 sizes. There is also a bonus block of Flying Geese, and because there are 4 sets, I guess they will be used as part of a border. All this is busy, behind the scenes work. It takes time and yet, there is nothing to show as they go along.
The numbers to the blocks in this quilt pattern are already confusing. I've finished 6 of them, plus 18 setting blocks. I've joined some of those into the first two rows.
Its going to be a busy quilt with a secondary pattern created by the setting blocks. I decided to join the rows so that when a new block is issued, I can be more mindful of colors that work. The peppermint red & white stripe fabric almost looks pink. I was afraid it would look patriotic and now it looks pink, for crying out loud.
The designer admits to not having a plan in mind, so its as much a mystery to her as for those of us working it. Mine is a scrap quilt so I can use what I have. The biggest part WAS in getting enough fabric to do the 18 setting blocks, so now the rest of it should be relatively easy.
At first I thought I might redo earlier blocks and now think they are fine. There will be a total of 17 of them. How they come out as patterns is going to work, and how they come out as colors will work. Sometimes working the mystery is like living life. There are choices. There are natural consequences to the choices. And one hopes they learn from both the choice and the consequence. Its not done til its over.
What a surprise to get 18 setting squares. I have used setting triangles when the blocks were set on point or at a diagonal. This is different.
The quilt designer has no real plan. Originally, she said their would be 17 blocks. She gave fabric requirements and then just before this part, she suggested people go out and buy more of certain fabrics. Well, I am pulling from scraps. So, it meant trying to figure out how much it would take to make 18 blocks the same. I couldn't do it.
Instead of using the light blue in the 9-patch centers, I had to select another fabric. Gahhh. It seemed to me that it was more patriotic than holiday. Stripes and stars with the angels. And this was not an easy task because the designer did not say how many of the squares were to be cut. I have a lot of the darker blue so went for those squares first, then the longer light blue parts and finally the 4 striped blocks in the center.
Cut, piece press, pin again and piece, press.
Well, they are done and I decided to piece the BOMs as they get released and not try to vary how it goes together. I am using holiday fabric scraps and yet, so much is left. I will try to work blues in as I can so it seems to make sense and the first blocks are done, so I call them done and will not remake them.
I got to last month's BOM before the new one is issued later this week. I would have liked more contrast between the light and dark, but it was such a challenging block that I am declaring it done.
It has so much to do with color selections, but then not knowing how they will be placed is another part of the mystery. And I am using stash. That is huge. It moves what I have in very creative ways. The background fabrics are all the white tone on tone I could gather. They don't show up as strong in real time or real life, and yet you see it in the pic. So very interesting.
I don't know how this one will finish or what will be left of the various fabrics. I think about borders, and don't want to buy another fabric but am thinking about using the leftovers in scrappy borders to give it a pop and keep the concept. I don't want to make large quilts any more so need to be mindful of how that all works.
Well, here I am getting nervous about how the mystery quilt will look. Today's step uses a template that gets cut out of more of the light fabric. It seems like there is a lot of use of that light fabric and yet, there is a lot of the medium and dark too. I will keep going with it and bet it will be simply stunning.
I worked hard at selecting yellows for this that were true to yellow. Now I have to trust those choices and just get it done. This pic shows the dark and the light so there is enough contrast in my opinion for what I don't know about how it will turn out.
We never know how something will look, whether it is a quilt or our lives. I've been trying to embrace the grief work... grieving my aging and its not easy. Its like accepting any loss. A lost love, a lost job. And you cannot run away from either losses. When I hear people talk about their losses, I get it. I've gone through most of it. Divorce. Empty nest. Deaths. This is different. Its personal. It effects health, stamina, energy, passion. So much. No one told me about getting older. Or if they did, I wasn't listening. Its not funny. Someone said I should write about it and be funny. I am not funny. This is not funny.
I found a notebook that I started some time ago with the attempt to deal with the grief. No date on it so who knows how long this has been going on? Grief comes & goes. Simple triggers bring it on. I don't like working with my quilts unless I feel really positive. However, this is where I am at. With all this yellow, I am working with bright colors & for a bright grrrlie-grrl's graduation gift. Interesting, too, is that the notebook cover is yellow. Ah well, I move forward.
While I like chain piecing because it saves thread and time, doing these blocks has been tedious work. It is efficient, so I just tuck it up and do it.
Again, the pattern wasn't all that clear on the piecing part. It gave how many squares to be cut, and only showed one side of the piecing for this larger triangle, and left few words or instructions for completing the triangle. I'm not whining. I just find following this pattern hard and am grateful that others in the group were ahead of me so I could see what needed to be done.
When the blocks are made, the final steps will simply assemble them. That part will be easy. I need to keep doing this because setting it aside as a UFO would be deadly to the work. It is a hard quilt so far. Well. Tedious.
There are other BOMs to do, but until this top is made, I don't want to put any of them under my needle. Its sort of interesting to me so see how I work now; preferring to finish a project before starting others. That wasn't how I worked in the past. In the past, I would have several going at once for the variety. I can see how I want to shift to other projects, but stay with one of them til it is finished.
The pattern doesn't say how many geese were needed, but eventually, I got it that the number was 40.
I am not thrilled with pointy things. That being said, the real challenge was the machine. Tension was mucked. I changed it number by number and it still was loose on the bottom. So I took the machine apart, cleaned it, and re-threaded both top and bottom. The first 8 I made needed reinforcing, which I did.
And now there are 4 of the 40 I want to re-do the points on.
Other Sorceresses that came to mind today were Milesandra & Cerce from Game of Thrones. Both characters screw up, few people really like them and both do beyond-crazy things on the show. I thought about the archetype and how story lines need a powerful crazy woman. For them, it is about power, and so they are driven to their actions by this need. Both are loosing power and being replaced.
Then I wondered about that part; being replaced. Is this key? Again not for me. Not the need for power, not being replaced. I am still thinking over my bones.
I feel almost overwhelmed right now. I finished holiday and birthday gifts and even got a couple of comfort quilts out. Last night I made bone broth (which needs to cook 24 hours and is done). I brought out another BOM which is no longer a mystery because I am behind. Then I realized I have a lot of BOMs that are behind.
Is it the changing seasons? I've been looking at the archetypes of being female, woman. I wanted to skip the SORCERESS and find myself with her right now. She is portrayed as crazy, unpredictable and wild. I wonder what is wrong with those attributes?
I looked online for images of the Sorceress and selected this one from a group on Pinterest. (https://www.pinterest.com/margelle/wise-women-healers/?lp=true). First of all, if I am to embody the energy personally and in my quilting, it has to resonate with me. This archetype isn't doing magick for others, she isn't in front of a group of people, and she's not DOING the energy the way she did when she was younger, when she served her community.
I decided to grow out my gray hair. For awhile, I had one side cut close and spiked it, and now it is playing catch up to the longer side. It may never hang down my back as in the pic, but it can be a goal for my elder years to look elderly.
The Sorceress, according to a number of books I've been reading*, looks at the bones of her life, not so much to review what she said or did, but to find the deeper self. So symbolically, I have been pulling out the Hallows decor bones as a reminder of the work I need to do now. It is about healing one's self.
* WOMEN WHO RUN WITH THE WOLVES, by Estes, THE CIRCLE OF LIFE by Davis & Leonard. Both refer to other books and other stories, legends and myths.
When I looked for examples in movies or as the protagonist in books, it surprised me that mainstream wants to make a joke about all elderly women in those stages beyond being a mother. Even the movie, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA, Meryl's character breaks down as her personal power breaks down. She is replaced by younger execs in her field and we end up feeling sorry for her. FIRST WIVES joined 3 of them (those in the Sorceress Archetype) but lordy how they battled for their rights! I was quite disheartened.
So when I say I am overwhelmed, its that I know so much about me has changed. I am fueled by a different sort of energy that I am working hard to understand. Gathering bones, looking at them symbolically is my way of seeing that the flesh of who I was has fallen away and if I am going to restore any sense of life and rebuild it for however many days are left to me, I better find my deeper self. Maybe this was a lot for a quilting review of the day, obtuse, confusing. Now you see why I am overwhelmed!!! Its hard to make sense of something where there is no guidebook, no mentor.
It was a pleasure to finish this quilt and get it packaged for mailing. I am putting the ties on the apron. It is almost time to ship my older Son's bday quilt as well.
The Hallows quilt is double sided.My camera wouldn't load more photos, so I ended up not posting on the blog.
I like the idea of double siding a quilt because it means I can use more scraps.
This side with the purple and stars is the one that doesn't show the star points because the fabric blends into the background. Then I ran out of background. As time went on, I was able to work on this BOM UFO and can get it out.
The other quilt was the Medallion quilt. Again, I took fabrics from my closet that coordinated and made the quilt that way. I struggled with the bits but think it turned out beautifully. Actually, it is very appealing to the eye. So I will continue to join these groups.
The back is scrapped too. I made a one-block log cabin for this side and let whatever darks I had work for creating the dark/light look of it. Again. using scraps, making something work for both sides and allowing fate take its head and heart.
I worked on the quilt all day, machine quilting a simple line stitch inside and on the border, then machine sewing the binding on. I am more than half way through the hand sewing and set it aside.
Also under my needle is a simple apron for the Great-Granddaughter coming in October. We plan to make cutout cookies as a family and this is a very cute apron. All it needs is the bottom hem and ties. It’s adjustable so will fit her a long time. It was a scrap so wasn’t really fussy cut. I am using scraps!!
Throughout the day, I did laundry, dishes, and a bit of housework. Ordinary day.
I am not sure why I feel anxious about holiday gifts. However, today I finished those I planned to make. It’s hard to make things for the Grandkids and do something different. I’ve written about it as I worked on them. Now all they get is this one gift and money. In the past, I did something creative but the way mail goes missing, e-cards are safest.
These can go in envelopes after wrapping. They are pleasing. I need to ease them into the cases first and just do a simple check. Also, I need to write a letter as an enclosure. I am really happy with how they turned out. And it makes me pleased to have them completed.
Then I headed to the club-house to baste. This first one had turned into a UFO for some time because I ran out of fabric. Well, time taught me how to compensate. The back is nice too. What surprised me is how small a lap quilt is.
The second one I basted is the Medallion quilt. This one is square and has the scrappy one-square log cabin block on the back. Both quilts will either be centered or not. I did my best to get them centered and then released it to the fates. Working on.
I finished another soft book today. When I bought it, I thought it was Old McDonald's Farm. Close but not. Must have been a copy-rite issue. Once I discovered this change, interest that I had in it waned a bit. Oh, it is finished but I am disappointed.
All the threads are clipped at it is ready for the nanny in town who has toddlers. They won't know the difference and it will be fine. Kids at this age love the sounds and repetition of the story. This project let me use up some batting scraps and for that I am glad.
I also finished the appliqué on the La Befana pillows. I need to sew on the button eyes, embroider the noses and mouths, then sew up one end, and the sides. They really are cute and when all 6 are finished, I will take a photo.
