I'm back.

I'm ok, honest. 
I guess I have been pretty quiet here lately.   I haven't had much to say.   Amazing, right???
Sometimes it's just that way.  

What's that phrase............"you act like you've lost your best friend?"
Sometimes life  leaves  you feeling  that way.

I've been keeping busy.  Weaving on the towels on my AVL......loving the pattern, and especially loving it with this variegated blue 8/2 I found in my stash.

I've been taking Roy for frosty, early morning walks.

At home, I've been sewing socks together, for rugs.

I have had some awful headache days, when there are storms.  But on clear days, my headache has been pretty doable.  And you know I will always take that.
I have books from the library, lined up, and I'm sitting in front of the fire reading them whenever I can, escaping to other worlds.

I recently read........We Are Water, by Wally Lamb......very good.  And one that surprised me........The Enchanted Life of Adam Hope, by Rhonda Riley.  I highly recommend both of them.

The cats are all fine.  Next still resists coming in.  He has his solar house, and a heated bed in the barn, and another bed on the porch.  Every time I bring him in, he cries and cries, and is not happy until he's outside again.

Miss Puss says:  he's stupid.

I think that's a bit harsh, don't you???

This little girl brings smiles no matter what the weather.

Love for my family puts it all in perspective.

Thanks for worrying about me!!!

Read More

Amy Butler Weekender Bag!

On this day before Thanksgiving - there are many things that I'm thankful for. One of them is that I finished my Weekender Bag, the popular pattern by Amy Butler.

I've had the pattern for over a year and the fabric for many, many months. I'm not normally a procrastinator, except when it comes to bags. They're not my favorite things to make - but I've loved this bag for so long. And it almost seems a rite of passage in the modern sewing world to make a Weekender Bag. So armed with tons of advice from those who have gone before me, I made a plan several weeks ago to tackle a few steps per week. Breaking it down into chunks seems less overwhelming and time consuming.

And here you go!

And you know what? It wasn't so bad after all. Between my friend, Bonnie {with lots of experience I kept her on speed dial} and some cheerleaders on Instagram I muddled through one step at a time.

Per Bonnie's suggestion, I used Soft and Stable which seems to be much easier to sew than Peltex. And I'm 100% happy with how nicely it feels and stands up. There is one piece of Peltex in the bottom along with the Soft and Stable. I also used several of the suggestions from Mary Claire, who was nice enough to compile many of the recommendations found on the internet.

Now I just need a weekend trip, so I can go in style!

I also wanted to share with you the Snowball Games quilt from my book Simply Modern Christmas that my sister-in-law made. It's her first quilt! She used Scrumptious to make a nice feminine quilt for her niece who is having some health challenges. As another of 5 young boys, I'm sure she appreciates this pretty feminine quilt. It's filled with love and healing wishes!

Read More

On Point Pieces

See the square in the center of this block? It's sitting on it's point. In the past, to rotary cut this square I would have taken the diagonal measurement {which is 3"}, divided it by 1.414 to find the length of the square's side and added 1/2" for seam allowance. My answer would be 2.6216407. Try to find that number on your ruler!

But now I have a brand new ruler -{ingenious it is} - to cut on point shapes.

Don't mix this up with your regular rulers, because the 1" mark is not 1", but will cut a square that is 1" on the diagonal {seam allowance included}. Super easy! The ruler comes with a sheet of instructions for many uses and you can even catch a Youtube video here, where it's designer walks you through the process. Here's a little example:

With a sketch on paper, I can see that I need a center square that measures 3" finished across the diagonal.

Using the 3" line on the On Point ruler, I cut my square. The seam allowance is built in - see the clear area around the edge of the ruler? - that's the seam allowance.

You'll notice in my block drawing that the rectangles are on point also. I knew that the diagonal measurement of the short side was 1 1/2", so I cut a strip using the 1 1/2" mark on the On Point ruler. The instructions suggest laying the ruler on top of a drafted rectangle to determine your markings. Then use the indicated marks for cutting.

I did a bit of thinking and realized my long edge of the smaller rectangle had to be the same size as the square. I trimmed it using the 3" marking.

The long side of my larger rectangle was the same as the side of a square with a 6" diagonal measurement {my finished block size}. I used the 6" marking and voila!

They fit perfectly! 

The instructions also explain how to cut half square triangles that sit diagonally in a block. Haven't tried that one yet!

Here's my finished block...

Part of a series of 6" blocks. More to come on that project!

For more information about the ruler visit Donna Lynn Thompson's website!

All in all, I'm super excited about this ruler. I think it will improve accuracy tremendously for on point shapes. I just hope I don't forget how to cut 2.6216407" squares!

Read More

I want to be Stella

You know Stella right????   

I listened to myself telling you how I was not on top of my game.  When I woke up this morning, I decided I needed to work on this.
I need to get my groove back.  No matter what.


After taking Roy for his morning constitutional, I headed to the studio.


 When the cats were all fed, and the stove was roaring, I started to take the studio back.
Not that it has been taken away from me, but the last two years have been a struggle.   I haven't been
pulling my weight, and the only reason the business has stayed open has been because of LOIS, pure and simple.
I couldn't have a better helper or friend.

But she can only do so much, and the place is looking rough.

So first, I cleaned the kitchen counter, it is always the FIRST sign of pandemonium.

Then I cleaned the stove and  the toast and tea center.

 

Then I moved into the living room and cleaned up my "winding station", and put away the 50 cones of thread I had stacked about.

 

 

Then I cleaned all around the AVL which has been pretty much the only loom that I can comfortably work on.

 

THEN..........I cleaned my desk, and had lunch on it.

 

And  a lovely lunch it was.

Finally, feeling that I had actually made a DENT, I did a little weaving.
I find this pattern mesmerizing, and I love trying it out in different colors.

 

I know that I haven't been "perfect" at anything these last two years.

YOU who have FOLLOWED my journey here, know that it has been somewhat difficult.  I am in no way looking for sympathy.  I have had a good life, and if it ended tomorrow, I would still not need sympathy.  But I do need family and friends to understand where I've been and where I am today.

Mostly, they do.

Two years ago, in June, my dog died.  Poor Eddie, I found him in the pool.   Yes, he was 14, blind and deaf to boot.  But the trauma of it was gut wrenching.  That seemed to be the start of a whole lot of bad luck.

So 6 weeks later, I fell and hit my head.  The infamous "head meets rock" story.  After 5 hours in the ER, I went home thinking that I had actually gotten away with it.

Two weeks later, DH had a stroke, which came with its own recovery issues.

Soon after, the damage done to my head became evident, when the headaches came and took over my life.

This was followed by a year of doctors and tests, medicines and injections, pain and more pain, no end in sight.

Finally, August 2012, first surgery, followed by months of recovery, March 2013, second surgery, more recovery, October 2013, third surgery.

All this while my mother, who lived with me, declined in health, became more difficult to care for, couldn't be left alone, and eventually died.

And not to forget the ray of pure sunshine that came with Baby Dale, a few days before my mother passed away on September  22nd.

So yes, you could say that the last two years have been stressful, and just plain hard at times.

There have been many days when I ended up on the couch with Roy and my slamming head, wondering if this was what the rest of my life would look like.  I have been depressed, discouraged, disheartened.  Overwhelmed.  Both sad and angry.

Then I would kick myself in the a**, get myself up and out the door.  I would dig down deep and find hopefulness, and I would become determined to take my life back.  I forced myself to work when I could, walk the dog, act "as if" my life were normal, even though it was far from normal.

 I have been distracted, and not my usual self, for a long time now.   Too long.

It is SO TIME to get my groove back.

Read More

From the top

       I am always saying that I should do this, or I should do that.  I am guilty of putting off things that I want to do, for one reason or another.

I have several friends who live varying distances away from me.  I am intent on visiting them in the near future. In fact, I am making a promise to myself that it will happen.

 This week I took a day and drove 3 hours to see one of them. 

Even though I haven't seen her in probably 20 years, it felt like I had just seen her last week.
We picked up right where we left off.


This is the view from her front door.  That is the Connecticut River.

With my zoom lens. 
Not much sun, but it was still beautiful.

As I get older, I think more about old friends.  Is that true for everyone?  

I know I haven't been very good about blogging lately.
I apologize.
I have been doing a lot of thinking, re-evaluating, questioning my direction.  I'm at some new crossroads, one I don't entirely feel comfortable with quite yet. 
Consequently, I don't have much to say.
I'm speechless.  
Hard to believe I know.

I'm taking naps, long walks, keeping my life as simple as possible.
Trying not to get upset about things that I cannot change.

I still feel off balance, not on top of my game.
It's a strange feeling, one I am not used to.


So pleasing  myself with a visit to an old friend is just what the doctor ordered.

This is the view from behind her house........where we went for a walk.
It was stunning.

A new perspective is always a good thing.

Read More

My Tumbler Quilt

My Tumbler quilt is quilted, bound and ready for snuggling. I couldn't be happier with this fun quilt!

You may remember I used Carrie's "Crumbler" ruler to cut out the shape. The cutting and the piecing were super easy.

I also did easy quilting... straight line stitching on either side of each seam.

The colors came from this large funky floral print, which also ended up on the back. It's from Lori Holt's newest line Gracie Girl.

I added lots of fabrics from the stash and I love just looking at the mix. 

I think the granddaughters will want to snuggle under this one when they're here... that is if they can get it away from me!

Read More

Into the weekend.

I had another cat at the studio yesterday.    This one didn't shed.

It was a good day at the studio.
Time for reflection. 
Settling in.
Being grateful for all of it.
Knowing that acceptance is still the answer to all my problems today, as it has always been.

 Then we took Roy for a walk.  The weather has been just beautiful the last couple of days

 Roy will drink from the river, but notice that he won't get his feet wet.
That is out of the question.

 The sunlight was lovely.  I needed it.  I am still somewhat in shock after last Sunday.

 

 I have continued to feel better all week.
It has been such a gift, that I have refused to let anything get me down.  Hopefulness sustains me, after two years of tough going.

I just put a bunch more dish towels on my web site, and found a new pattern that I LOVE.
What do you think?  Is it a keeper???

 

 I will weave it in several colors, and eventually I will anticipate every shed.
In a totally zen kind of way.

 For the first time in a long time, I am looking ahead.
Staying in today, but with a lovely anticipation for the future.

 It doesn't have to be complicated. 
It really doesn't.

Read More