Progress!

This has been a very good week for finishing things up and sewing! I think taking my little brother to his internship in the morning is probably the best thing that could have happened this summer ... all that extra time to sew is doing me a world of good!



First thing is that I FINISHED my Innocent Crush String Quilt Top! I haven't taken a picture yet ... I finished it at two in the morning on Monday (after two days of working on it nonstop), and haven't had a good time to take a look at it since. I'll upload a picture later. But it's done! Success!

I started on a quilt for my niece, a simple QAYG with fairy tales. But the fairy tales looked all mismatched and not right when mixed, so I switched those out with vintage sheets; I'm still not in love. So those blocks I did start are sitting in a closet, and I'm back to the drawing board on that one.

I've also started on my Nuno's Poseidon quilt, and I'm about three blocks in. It hasn't been getting much attention this weekend, but I'm hoping to get on a better pattern soon.


The reason it hasn't been getting nearly any attention? Because a certain stack of voiles ... those lovely Little Folks voiles have been calling to me! I admit that I cut into them. And that I've been sewing them into strips and working them into little patchwork squares ever since. And I plan on doing it later, too. How could I not? Seeing all of the quilts that have been made with it (and hearing the testimonies of how much those quilts were loved afterward), I knew I had to try my hand at it at last!

The voiles sew like butter. I've shortened my stitch length, changed my needle to a smaller size, and I'm using a 3/8" seam allowance instead of a 1/4" seam (to assuage my fears of fraying later). I also cut my strips at an odd size, 4 1/4", so that they'll finish around 3.5" when all is said and done. The voiles press wonderfully, too, which has left me wondering exactly how I'll go back to quilting with regular quilting cottons. (Although somehow I think I'll manage).

Movies I've Watched Lately:

-Candyman (good and creepy)
-Eskalofrio (excellent)
-Season of the Witch (great plot, but can we not mix a medieval setting with American accents?),
-Blood Night (not so great but at least there was a Greek guy going "ghamoto!" at one point),
-Deadtime Stories (kind of dorky, but I'll never look at mermaids the same again)

Other Non-Quilty Stuff:

- Got Netflix (obviously) and I plan on using it ALL THE TIME.
- After two years of living in my apartment building, I finally went to the pool.
It. Was. GLORIOUS.
- Last Week of taking my brother to his internship. Which means that it's the last week of me getting up at 7:00. I am okay with that.

rainy days and progress

It's been a really nice week so far. What started out to be an inconvenience - getting up at 7:00 AM to pick up my little brother and take him to his internship at the hospital - is beginning to be a blessing.

For one, I'm starting to get in the habit of getting up earlier, which is something I've been trying to achieve for a long time, but had difficulty doing unless I was forced.

Two, I've had much more time to sew!

- My Innocent Crush String Quilt is coming along nicely! I've got 36 out of 48 blocks completed, and I feel like that's a pretty big achievement. Only 12 more! I -did- have to order some more fat quarters of the line because the strings of fabric I'd cut out were nearly all "cool" colors and I wanted to have some more "warm" tones added. But I should have extra, which is good!

- I took some of my scraps and make a little ticker-tape quilt for myself to play around with the zig-zag function on my machine. It's so bright; I love it! Just needs binding.

- Also ordered a little bit of the AMH Innocent Crush Home Dec weight to play around with. Maybe for a cushion or something - who knows?

-Finished another block for my "Prince Charming" Log Cabin. I'm loving the way the colors are playing together and how quick the blocks are. Three down, 22 to go!

- Basted some more hexagons and pieced some more together. At last count, I had 2431 free-floating hexagons - not bad at all, I'd say, considering that I have approximately 700 pieced together. Definitely a "long-term" project!

I've got some goals for the holidays. One is to save money so that I'm not completely broke by the time Christmas DOES roll around.

The second is to piece and complete for quilts for gifts. A lofty goal, right? But only two are a "large" size, the third and fourth are medium-sized, and the quilting on these will be more on the "minimal" side, and done by hand so that I don't have to phenagle things with my machine. Also, most of the blocks on these are large, easy blocks I can complete quickly, but will still look nice.

Quilt 1 - A "Greek Cross" quilt for my boss, in the "Poseidon" Kona colorway, with white cotton background and back and seafoam binding. With this one, I want to mimic the feel of the Minoan art that my boss has in his home - if you haven't seen it, look it up. It's beautiful and light and very different from other Greek art I've seen.

Quilt 2 - Another "Greek Cross" for my other boss, in the "My Blue Heaven" colorway. My goal is to mimic the color and feel of Santorini with this quilt, with rich blues and stark white to emit the feel of the ocean and the beautiful buildings.

Quilt 3 - A fairytale quilt for my youngest niece, who is very much at the age where such things are appreciated. I've got some prints already picked out and I can't wait for Anna Maria Horner's needleworks to come out, because I may very well be using them on this project.

Quilt 4 - A patchwork quilt for a dear friend who's always been there for me. This one is going to be a little bigger than a lap size, maybe 60x60, and I'm looking for some fabric - namely Disney's Goofy - to make an cameo appearance somewhere in there, since he's her favorite. I'm still trying to figure out what kind of pattern to use on this one, but I'm thinking simple squares might do the trick.

So there's my goals. I'm starting on the first quilt - the poseidon quilt - tonight, cutting out fabrics to start it with and organizing them while watching "It". Tomorrow it's off to Hobby Lobby or Joann's to search for Goofy, and pick up some white cotton Kona - I think I'm going to need it!

Quilt 5 - A "Swiss Cross" quilt,

Wednesday

I have to say that, as proud as I am to be an American citizen and grateful for my freedom ... I am SO SO GLAD that fourth of July is over. I think nearly all of the folks who work in my neck of the woods in the tourism industry are glad. Summer itself is busy enough ... but fourth of July weekend is INSANE.

When thirty people are waiting outside, with the temperatures in the nineties and the humidity extremely high, and this isn't just for one restaurant but for nearly every restaurant along the Seawall, you know it's insane.

Although it's not like things slow down just because it's not a holiday. We've had a lot of things to do - work, of course, I'm working until Sunday.

There's also deliveries, and driving my little brother to and from his internship at eight in the morning, and driving my older brother home from work at 11 at night.

And baking cakes at 10:00 at night, too! (It was big brother's birthday yesterday. We baked him a chocolate cake and gave it chocolate icing and graffitied all over it with more icing, this time cookies and cream. We gave him said cake at 12:30 at night at a friend's house - secretly I think he loves it, however publicly he has said "You guys are evil" and to his friend "I told you they were gonna do this!")

But it DOES mean that the 13/14 hour days can stop, so I can move on to other pursuits now, such as ...


- the imminent completion of one Innocent Crush String Quilt! I've got twenty-eight more blocks to finish, which is just over half! I plan on doing at least three a night until I'm off on Sunday and then completing the rest then. Can't wait to finish it up and take lots and lotsa pictures :)

- Working on the boyfriend's long set aside quilt. I have a few ideas that I think will make its completion much easier. :)

- Cleaning my fridge (yuck) and washing the car (shiiizzz) cleaning my apartment (boo!) and putting up my laundry (whyyyy) and paying my bills (by selling a kidney) and generally being a Productive Member of Society.

- Possibly seeing Transformers. I was super excited about it until I realized my brothers had already seen it, and that my best friend had probably already seen it, which has taken my enthusiasm to watch it myself and shoved it down the drain. Oh, well. At least there's Harry Potter 7.

I'm back to my real job nao. Later days!

Summer, So Far

Summer in Galveston has been, well, less than pleasant so far! We've only had rain on three days the last two months, which has led us into a drought, which has brought on a ban - usually we're used to these guidelines, but this time it's worse! At the moment, it's 92 degrees, but when you add in the humidity here it feels SO much worse. The only way it's bearable is to be in your swimsuit at the beach!

Which is exactly how we plan to spend our spare moments this summer ;)

The last few weeks after getting back from Wichita have been busy! Sliding back into the work groove, getting everything in place at work for summer, etc ... it's gonna be a busy one, folks.


- We have, as previously mentioned, gone to the beach many a time! The last time we went, there was way too much seaweed, so we just sat on the shore where the waves lap at you and watched the gulls. And picked up some seashell pieces for my RenFest costume this year!



- I think I've seen more movies this year than ever before: Thor, Green Lantern, X-Men: First Class, and Super 8 to name a few ... that last one is definitely a MUST see! It had me ENGROSSED. Of course we're going to see Transformers 3 and Harry Potter, too ... as well as Captain America ... I'm saving all the tickets to put in a journal!


- Started a log cabin quilt from "Modern Log Cabin Quilting" with Tula Pink's Prince Charming! I have to say that I'm officially in love with these blocks ... they're quick, easy, and impressive! Two (and a half) down, twenty two (and a half) to go!

- Picked up two out of print charm packs for my hexagon quilt - Arcadia and Pampered Pooches! These two were SUCH steals. And I love them so much! Consider them already cut into 2.5" squares!

- Snagged myself a bundle of 1001 Peeps. I'm debating between making a separate quilt for each Castle Peeps and 1001 Peeps ... or waiting to see what lovely quilt pattern Lizzy House has in store for us in August ... I just don't know!

- One of my other summer loves, Far Far Away 3, is headed to yours truly this week :) I can't wait! I already ordrered a 1/2 yard of two of the prints, and if you're getting the Snow White/Wildflowers/Laundry line, the drape is much more lovely than Far Far Away II (although I love them all). I haven't felt any of the girls with horses prints yet, but I imagine they'll be more similar to FFA2 than the others. I'm also not planning to use the "girls with horses" in my far far away quilt, simply because I think they don't mesh well with the rest of the lines, and I feel like they'd be better used in another, different quilt.

- Visited the Rainforest Pyramid in Galveston! This place is truly special. If you ever visit Galveston, you should make it a point to check out both the Rainforest and it's sister pyramid, the Aquarium. In the same area, there's also an I-Max theater, a few other exhibits, as well as Palm Beach, which is a three-tiered pool area with concessions and lovely white sand. Moody Gardens is a huge tourist destination on Galveston. It's also a non-profit organization and does a lot of great things in addition to providing fun, informative entertainment. Definitely a must-see!


I'm headed off to work now (it's a half-day, which means I work about as much as folks who work a 9-5 do normally...), and then off to complete yet another list of things-to-do! Have a great-day!











-

d is for delivery, that's good enough for me!

I GOT MY FABRIC!

An fat quarter bundle of the entire line of "Loulouthi" and "Prince Charming". YUM! I'm so excited. I am really, truly in love with both of them - I love how bright and cheery LouLouthi is! It's gorgeous. And I love the colors in Prince Charming as well as the details in the prints!

Other things lately ...

- Still waiting on 1001 Peeps to be in stores! (Plz to have peeps? Kthnx!)
- Also waiting on Wrenly, Far Far Away 3 (in June - UGH) and Peacock Lane!
- Ordered "Modern Log Cabin Quilting"! I'm excited to see what patterns lie within its lovely, lovely pages. I'm very grateful for the influx in contemporary quilting books on the market lately. Planning on buying myself a copy of "Block Party Quilting" as well!
- Bought myself a copy of "Witches of Eastwick"! I couldn't find it in stores, not even at Fry's or Barnes and Noble! I've only seen this once, not even in its entirety, but I definitely want to watch it again :)
- Been doing a lot of of spring cleaning lately! I have two full boxes for Goodwill ready to go, much less craft miscellania, and my fabric stash is much more organized at this point. I got rid of a lot of pieces I was never going to use, and I cut some larger, more cumbersome pieces into fat quarters so I could save some of the print without having a yard or more of a print I was never (realistically) going to use.


And some plans ...

- Going to purchase some of the solid line fat quarters from "Just Wing It". Seriously some of my favorite accompanying prints ever.
- Download some more books on my Kindle! So far: "The Great God Pan" and "Beauty and the Beast". To come: "Who Goes There?" and perhaps some Jane Austen.
- Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" comes out tomorrow! Guess who's totally all over that? I'll give you a hint: it starts with "me" and rhymes with "me".
- More stash organizing and some ironing and folding of my new lovelies!
- Getting stuff ready for my trip in June! I'll need - hexies, Kindle, clothes, everything but the kitchen sink...
- Pirates of the Caribbean 4 with my little brother! (And Thor again if I can help it...)

I'm off to clean and tidy and be a productive member of society! Later days!

- Kait

but hey, I got my new shoes on

So far, it's been an awesome week. And today is even MORE awesome - because (drumroll) it's my birthday!

I'm officially 24! :)

So far, this week's highlights have been ....

- Watching Priest with my best friends and my brother ...

- FINALLY ordering Prince Charming and LouLouthi as presents to myself! :) I'm hoping they're here monday! As well as some sweet vintage sheets, lovely japanese prints, and a charm pack of Sherbet Pips!

- I GOT A KINDLE! My boss - who became my godfather, too - bought it for me, knowing that I am constantly complaining that there's no available bookshop on the island. Definitely the best!

- A sweet customer came in and gave me some lovely lotion, body spray, and body wash from Bath & Body works! And the scent was perfect, just right!

- Discovered words with friends and it is awesome :)

- Four more blocks for my "Innocent Crush" string quilt! Now up to twelve!


I've had a wonderful birthday so far (despite working) and I'm very excited about this coming week, too. Hopefully 1001 Peeps will be in stores soon - fingers crossed, it's been driving me nuts that it's not here yet! - and Far Far Away 3 won't be too far away in June. Much love to everyone who wished me a happy birthday - you definitely made it sweeter :)

Saturday Catch-up!

It's been a busy week, as usual, punctuated by a messed up sleep schedule and rage at the centipedes that are currently usurping my house.

-Went and saw Thor. This is when I get my nerd on, but seriously, that movie is AWESOME! :) I'm buying it when it comes out for sure. And did you know that, in mythology, the eight-legged horse Sleipnir - which was considered the horse to end all horses, he was that good - was the son of a stallion and Loki? (As in, Loki turned into a mare and got knocked up?) Damn Norse Mythology, you scary!

- Finished my donation quilt! There'll be a later post about that :)

- Bought some more charm packs for my hexagon quilt! I haven't counted my hexies in a while, but I know their numbers are well over 2000. It'll end up being a queen size when I'm done with it, but at the moment I'm just trying to finished getting them all basted ... I ordered Jovial and Watercolor Garden by Benartex, and I'm in the market for some Sherbet Pips and some new charm packs coming out soon.

- Two more blocks for my Innocent Crush quilt! This one really makes me happy. And now that I've got one obligation out the way, I can work on it more! The picture above is six of the blocks I'd already finished :)

- Cleaned my apartment. Somewhat. I still have a LOT to do, but it's getting there!

I'm off to actually do some work I'm paid for. Later days!

tuesday and happenings

I wish I could come up with some very catchy words for my blog post titles. I'm just not very inspired by titles. Maybe I'll be a smart kid and stick with phrases or song lyrics, if I can remember any.

In any case, this has been a very busy weekend...


- Mother's Day came and went. I worked many hours, all weekend, and am now very glad that it's over and that there's no holiday this Sunday.

- I busted my butt and tried to finish the hand-quilting on my donation quilt, but I'm still working on it as we speak. I didn't realize the deadline had changed from Thursday to Tuesday PM, so I'm really in a bind today! (No pun intended, but that's kind of ironic consider I need to bind the damn thing, also). I'll be glad to cross this one off the list!

- Pulled out all my fabrics for my friend's Wedding Quilt, and with any luck I'll be started tomorrow.

- Cleaned my dad's house! Kind of. I washed the laundry! Sometimes I don't know how my mom managed it all - then again, she wasn't trying to do the major overhaul of the house we were, but I bet she would have been able to complete that better, too.

- Got five more "Far Far Away" Fat Quarters in! I -love- this line. The double gauze is precious. I'm only missing one print ... the snails in orange and pink, which I intend to buy in a week or so. I'm also loving the West Hill Frogs print that I bought (and plan to hoard)!

- I have more vintage sheet fat quarters on the way! I was so glad to see that there were more available in ironsea's shop - Jeni seriously has some of the best, prettiest fat quarters around! She even had some purple ones, which I HAD to snatch up! Other great sources for vintage sheet fat quarters are sosovintage and whimsiedots, both of which I love to buy from! I've got a bundle coming in from whimsiedots later this week :)

- The Lonely Island's new album, Turtleneck and Chain, comes out today!!! Can you guess where I'll be this afternoon? At Target. Buying it. And then, for the next forever, listening to it because if you could marry a band and not just a person I would marry the Lonely Island and live in their studio.

I think I'm going to put that picture of them on the album cover in my kitchen. <3<3<3


What are my goals for my off day?

- Clean my weird apartment. There are these millipede-things that are invading my lovely abode and I'm going to go Rambo on ALL OF THEM. Also need several air filters/light bulbs changed.
- Hit up the Super Duper Goodwill in Webster with my best bud and her fiance. I'm in the market for more vintage sheets!
- Finally take some of those non-useful, space absorbing things to Goodwill like I was supposed to. That includes several organizers/etc, books, and movies, because they are cluttering my small space UP!
- Complete five or six blocks on my friend's wedding quilt.
- Sew a couple blocks on my Innocent Crush quilt (six down; only 42 left to go! Sounds simple, right? Right?)
- Watch the Korean drama "You're Beautiful" in its entirety. Maybe that's a "this week" kind of thing, but seriously, if you love sappy, funny love stories, that's the one for you. Go Mi Nyeo is a nun-to-be in an orphanage, getting ready to leave for Rome. But she's contacted by the manager for the super-hot and super-popular group AnJell, whose new member - Go Mi Nam - happens to be her twin brother. Turns out that big brother got some minor plastic surgery with not-so-minor issues, so he's out for the month - and the manager wants HER to fill in. (Of course she falls in love with the band's surly, demanding leader, Hwang TaeKyung). Check it out on mysoju or dramafever!

Later days;)

Mother's Day

mama,

mama, you know I love you

mama,

mama you're the queen of my heart

your love is like tears from the stars

mama i just want you to know

that loving you's like food to my soul

to my mom

who is miss very much

and who was really
(truly)

the very best mom in the world.

love, katie

busy, like a bee

I love getting things accomplished. Cleaning the house - throwing away unnecessary things - making the house look neat, tidy, and much less cluttered. All of these things make me feel incredibly happy and fulfilled!

I left work around 9:30 p.m. last night and even though I'd been tired all day (and my allergies are really kicking my butt!), I decided to go to my dad's house and do some much-needed cleaning for my guys! I did a load of laundry (as much as I could), folded another load, cleaned up a plastic organizer for my little brother, washed and put away their dishes, and threw away another slew of things that I'll never use and -they'll- never use either. I'd been dreading going back over there - just because it seems like so MUCH, but once I did, and really started cleaning, I felt much betetr! And less tired, actually; my dad always says that "dreaded anticipation is worse than present actuality," and I have truth in that statement time and time again.

After my dad's house, I went home to my own - and started pulling out things I KNEW I wouldn't use, wasn't ever going to use. I kept a bunch of felt I'd bought - mainly because I do make needlebooks from time to time, and sometimes softies, and it's always useful to have on hand.

But I threw away some old fabrics that were cut up for a quilt I have no intention to make, and took all my paints out of my pretty Liberty of London boxes and put my vintage sheets there, instead. I really love the contrast of those two! I have another Liberty box I'm planning of taking the paint of, but that's a job for later.

I also ironed and neatly set up all of my strips for my Innocent Crush Strip Quilt, and cut out another twenty or so white strips for the centers of my blocks. It's a lot more inspiring than having them in a trash bag, that's for sure!

I even quilted on my donation quilt, which I should have been doing the whole time, but hey! I finished one block of quilting and started on another, and I hope to be done in the next few days and get this puppy bound.

My goals for today?
- Finish the rest of my laundry.
- Quilt at least two more blocks for my donation quilt.
- Pull fabrics for a needlebook, ala Sew She Sews tutorial here!
- Put up all that pesky laundry I haven't touched.
- Actually make the bed? I kind of have a "thing" about making beds - as in, I don't really ever do it, because it's a waste of time when I UNmake it - but I'm going to try so that my bedroom looks nice and pretty.
- For that matter, remember what's in those bags on the floor by the bed and either throw them away or put them away
- Go through my movies. Never gonna watch it again? Put it in the donation box!
- Actually GET a donation box.
- Indulge myself and sew a few more Innocent Crush string quilt blocks before I start on my bestie's wedding quilt!

Is that a list or what? Considering that I've got about ... three hours to do it, once I get off work, I'd say so :)

excitement

I've been really busy lately! Lots and lots of sewing.


- Finished Emma's baby quilt! It's so much cuter than I thought it would be. It has really made me love Erin McMorris' "Weekends" line. When I initially saw the colors, I thought they were pretty but I was wary of how to put them together. After changing the pattern, I really think the string quilt was the pattern to use - it looks so lovely and bright, and the recipient's mother loved it :)


- Got started on my quilt for the silent auction! Two days after I started, the top is finished and I've already begun quilting it! It's a string quilt based on Elizabeth Hartman's "Valentine" pattern from her new book. I haven't been into grouping colors lately, but for this quilt, it really works! (And I managed to clear out a few fabrics I KNOW I only bought for a "rainbow" quilt and wouldn't use otherwise). The quilting is done by hand in green, blue, yellow, and orange (the colors of the quilt). I'm binding it black! I really love the look of pictures with black borders - all of my frames in my house are black.



- Getting excited about a few new fabric lines coming out! May is definitely my month for fabric buying :) I'm particularly excited about the following lines:




a.) Loulouthi. I love that she named them after her daughters and the graphics are to die for. Anna Maria Horner is quickly becoming one of my favorite designers. I don't have anything in mind for this one, but I'm thinking that I'll do something with larger pieces so you can really see all the lovely fabric :)

b.) Far Far Away III. I've been waiting for this one for-e-ever! I have to say that I'm not a fan of the horsey girl prints in this particular line - I'm a sucker for princesses, sue me already - but I think they'll be cute to add to my stash for future baby girl quilts. All of the fairy tale prints are destined for my ultimate "Far Far Away" quilt, which I've been patiently hoarding for :)

c.) 1001 Peeps. I loved Castle Peeps and I'm definitely loving 1001 peeps. Can. not. wait! I've even got plans to order extra of the peeps print so that I can use them for my hexagon quilt! :)
Other than that, I've got a quilt slated for these - using the same pattern as my Castle Peeps quilt, so they match. I'm weird that way.

d.) Prince Charming! Can you tell that I adore fairytales? I've got wonky stars in mind for this one - I love, love love that frog print! :)




- Bought a whole set of Rit Dye. I plan on using it for my vintage sheet/Alice in Wonderland quilt - I'm going to be dying fabrics (linen bits, tea towels, white fabrics) and some extra accents (lace, trimmings). My goal is to use a mod mosaic pattern and add in some little accents, and quilt it like a crazy quilt with quilting thread and embroidery. I even plan on embroidering the characters! It's going to be a lot of work, but I'm always up for a challenge!




- Got some Denyse Schmidt Quilts. Well, only one print, actually - the only one I really, truly cared for was the one with the little red flowers on dark blue. I admire that she recreated some prints from previous lines, but it's not suiting my palette right now. Love those dark blue flowers, though!



- Managed to find the vintage sheet section at my local GoodWill! Not that it's large or anything, I just figured we didn't have one because Galveston is usually bereft of cool, crafty things. But it has one! I managed to snag four pillowcases and one vintage sheet (and a copy of Dorian Gray). All for $7.51! I was pretty darn proud of myself. I'm totally going to check the Goodwills on the Gulf Freeway next, they might have something cool, too!

That's all for now. I'm hoping to finish a lot more - be back soon! :)

Knocking the list out!

It's a beautiful Thursday here in sunny Galveston! It's been a really busy week here, but I've definitely gotten a lot done!

- My car broke down on Monday! The battery died. After an hour and a half of waiting and getting it towed to a body shop, I could go back to work - and luckily for me, I got the car back the next day! I'm happy I was in a parking lot and not on the freeway, but I'm still going to grumble about the combined cost of new tires (465) and a new battery (145). And all of that right AFTER I paid off the car!

- I finished Emma's quilt! Well, the parts I was going to complete, anyway. The top is finished, the quilting done - I originally tried to complete it by machine, but hated the thread I chose (a light plum/pink shade) because it was too dark. And the quilting I did - diagonally, across the quilt - wasn't complimenting at all to the design. So I carefully ripped out those stitches, chose a lighter, more complimentary rose pink, and got started quilting by hand. I started that Thursday, and yesterday I was finished! :)

Now I'm just waiting on my talented mother to bind it for me and I can give it to its recipient (but not after taking a few pictures to show here!)

- I got in some fabric love. Mind you, this fabric love was bought BEFORE my car broke down or the tires were needed. It's essentially my last purchase until three lines I want to purchase come out - Far Far Away 3, 1001 Peeps, and Loulouthi. Those are then my last purchases while I work on some other quilts!

But this week, I received some vintage sheet goodies - about seven or eight more fat quarters, which were added to my quickly-growing stash. I'm definitely in love! Already planning a quilt with these, although it'll be awhile before I get to it! I also bought some solids - two yards of plain white cotton for a quilt I'm starting today, and some Kona Snow for my best friend's wedding quilt.

- Started on a new quilt last night. This one is for a silent auction for breast cancer; the only stipulation on color was that it be BRIGHT. Somehow I don't think that's a problem! I cut out all the strips last night - yes, another string quilt, but it's the quickest block for me - and I'm looking to make at least four blocks tonight (hopefully). My goal is to get it finished in the next week and then start on the quilting, also by hand (with variated colors). Then to bind it in black and hand it off!

- Finally bought a copy of 101 Patchwork Projects. I rarely buy quilting magazines - the patterns are usually too fussy and conservative for me. But this one had one project in particular I really want to try - filminthefridge's Rubik's Crush pattern! So glad I found a copy, too, I've been looking since the beginning of April :)

All in all, it's been a good week! If I can get this second quilt finished in the next week or so (which is definitely doable, even if it means less sleep and more quilting), then I can finally begin on my best friend's wedding gift, and then I can finish the boyfriend's quilt. So much work, so little time! I'm off to it now!

recap

It's been a good week! I had a great off day! And the rest of this week has been pretty productive, too! - Three of my packages came in. The last three ... I got in my charm packs, my Castle peeps, and three 1/2 yards of Mrs. Aster voiles! I love voile; it's so soft! - Picked up some horror movies at Fry's. The Pulse trilogy, The Lady in White (1988), and Deep Star Six. I've watched two of the five, and I can't wait to watch the other three :) - Got Keane's "Night Train"! Been looking for it everywhere! While it's not my favorite of the four albums of theirs I've got, it's still pretty good! - Finished five and a half blocks for Emma's baby quilt. I'm going to try to finish the other six and a half tonight! Then I just have to add the border and piece the (really simple) backing, and I can quilt this sucker! - Decided to take out all of the blah hexagons out of my quilt - I've bought a lot of charm packs, and some of the ones with a duskier palette tend to have these cream-colored prints or solids that just don't work for me in the bulk of the quilt. However, I think I'll still add them to the border I intend to make around it with white hexagons - there, I think, the creme might fit in! - I have about a hundred and forty hexies left to baste! Mind you, there are still some charm packs I want to purchase (Strawberry Fields, Jovial, Sherbet Pips, and a couple others)...and I intend to include some of the 1001 Peeps line and Heather Ross' new line ... but I've had this stack of hexies to baste for-e-ver, so I'm pretty psyched that I'm close! :) But even with all that done, there's still a LOT to do ... - Finish Emma's Baby Quilt. I'm shooting for at LEAST the top tonight! (And maybe the backing!) - Get ready and raring to go on the quilt I'm doing for a silent auction! The only stipulation? That it be bright! Somehow, I think that's doable :) - Do a few more blocks for the boyfriend's quilt. NO, I haven't finished yet... and he's beginning to feel a little neglected! Maybe, once I do all the fun stuff, I'll put away the three bags of laundry at my house!

Wednesday. Eek!

I'm supposed to be off today. But we're having a "Greek Night" here; it's a pretty fun event we do every couple months or so. I like them, they're just a LOT of planning. The good thing is, the event is tonight so I can rest tomorrow :) In the midst of everything else, though, I've been: - Basting Hexagons - I'm down to about 150 to baste, although I'm waiting for four more charm packs today: Hullabaloo, Oh My!, Regent Street, and Lilac Hill. I already cut 2.5" squares from "Grace" and "Fa la la la". I love me some French General! - Getting some fabric love in the mail! The entirety of Anna Maria Horner's voile "Little Folks" joined my fabric stash this week. I'm completely in love! I can't wait to get some other quilts out of the way so I can start the string quilt I plan on making with that. - Adding a little more to my stash. Joining me this week were some cute Japanese prints, as well as some dobby dots from Little Folks, some more voiles, and the Mrs. Aster voile prints from Greenfield Hill (which I found on etsy! yum!) - Watching movies! I saw Jackass 3 (hilarious - yes, my sense of humor must be awful, but I think those guys are a riot), Insidious (seriously the scariest movie I've EVER seen - and without any need for gore), and Prowl (a straight-to-DVD movie that was actually kind of terrifying. Even my boyfriend said so, and he is not so easily impressed.) - Finally FOUND my DVD for "Earth Girls are Easy". If you have never seen this movie, you really must - how can you go wrong with a cast that includes Jeff Goldblum, Jim Carrey, Damon Wayans, Geena Davis, and Michael McKean? Sure, it's completely cheesy and weird, but any movie that has gratuitous shirtless shots of Jeff Goldblum is a WIN for me. Just sayin'. - Started on my best friend's wedding gift (blue-and-green string quilt) and my amiga Karla's baby quilt. I revamped the second one, mostly because the pattern I had chosen (Film in the Fridge's 'Rectangle Squared' pattern) was choosing to be a little to intensive for the time I've got left. If I was more proactive, I think it would be the pattern for me. Also, I've fallen in LOVE with string quilts, so why not? I've got cute plans for the back of this one, too :) So that's been my week. I plan to finish the top of the baby quilt this week, and hopefully get it quilted and bound by the day of the baby shower (Sunday). Wish me luck!

quilt without guilt

So I did it. After all the cutting and measuring and then setting aside because of other arrangements, I finally dug into my Innocent Crush strips and started on my String Quilt! So far, I'm l0ving it. So much simpler than I thought they'd be. First block went together so fast! I can't wait to work on another one or two tonight. (I've got to work on all the others, too...le sigh). But I'm super psyched! Anna Maria Horner is quickly becoming one of my favorites. Other things about today: - I got in my first little bits of Castle Peeps! I'm totally psyched. They are YUM-O. I bought extra so I could make a hexagon of each little peep! - Also got in some Innocent Crush/Maybe/Indigo for my "Nightcrawler" quilt and of the Modern Meadow grass prints I used for my boyfriend's quilt! - Finally bought labels for dressing bottles at work! - Wore heels for at least 8 hours before diving into a pair of comfy sneaks. - Tidied up my apartment so now I can quilt without guilt :) I'm even buying takeout so I don't have to use plates. I'm very efficient that way ... I also just love Taco Bell...

String Quilt As I Go

I had a brilliant idea. I'm not sure if it will brilliantly work yet, but I still think of it as "brilliant".

I was looking at String Quilts - the pattern fascinates me, I love them. I think they're awesome.

And I want to do something equally awesome for my friend's wedding quilt. Sapphires and Emeralds; the perfect melding of colors, just like this perfect melding of these two people, who are so alike and so well put together.

I was initially going to do a log cabin. QAYG. But I've already got two of those kinds of blocks put together, and honestly, they're boring me to death. Or at least to tears. And the constant sewing sewing sewing before you get to turn to another piece of fabric might drive me mad. I love the way the blocks look when they're done, but it's a process that requires patience.

So I'm going to try it String Quilt style. We'll see how it goes. It's virtually the same process, and I've already got all the fabric cut into strips. Maybe I'll alternate the blues and emeralds; we'll see how it looks. But I'm already excited, and I may just spend the night cutting out more strips of white fabric, you never know :)

the friday recap.

Had a pretty good week so far!

- Finally broke down and bought a fat quarter bundle of Castle Peeps (after being inspired by 1001 Peeps, which I am SO BUYING). I'm excited for them to come in! I even bought extra of the "peeps" fabrics so that I could make a hexie of each one!

- Also bought the entire line of Little Folks Voile in Fat Quarters. Just like my innocent crush quilt, I intend to use them in a string quilt. I'm not sure what I want to back it with yet ... most likely a voile or soft flannel...but we'll see. It's definitely a "must" be is also on the backburner until some of the other projects (at least four) are finished!

- Made some progress on the baby quilt for little Emma. I cut out some 1.5" strips, and started sewing them to the other strips. I just need to cut out ... what seems like a billion more! I need to have it finished by the 10th of April, so I need to concentrate on this first!

- Found some beautiful, gorgeous, dark, royal blues and deep emeralds for my best friend's wedding quilt. I started cutting them out last night, and I'm not done yet, but my next goal is to have at least 10 to 15 of the Batting Squares set up for sewing. I even bought "Ocean" blue and "Kelly" green thread to quilt with - I'll alternate blocks with the thread.

- Picked up some more perle 8 cotton at Joann's. I seriously love this stuff. The ones I got this time were variegated - pink, red, blue, green, yellow, and brown :)

- Continued to sew some more on my hexagon quilt, but my hands are achey! Plus, it's not one of the four major projects, so into the box it goes for now.

- Did a little more work on my boyfriend's quilt, although his has kind of taken a backseat too. I feel bad - didn't I mean to have it done by now? Oops!


I'm off to plan a party for tonight! Wish me luck - this one's a doozy!

IDEA; "Nightcrawler" Postage Stamp Quilt.

As I mentioned in my last blog post, I've been reading comics since I was a kid. I love them. And while I haven't read nearly as many as I should in recent days, I love looking up my favorites on Wikipedia and keeping up with the news.

Just as much as some girls might have a favorite band or idol or movie, I have a favorite comic character - Nightcrawler! ( I'm a dork, right? I know. It's a terrible burden, to be a geek...)

He's been my favorite for years. He was introuced as one of the new X-Men in the seventies - a religious man who looks like a demon, his powers include teleporting and blending in with the shadows. I've always loved his coloring - it varies from artist to artist, and in the below picture it's a rather dark grey-ish blue, but it's usually a very bright, royal blue. His uniforms are the same - blue, black, white, and, of course, red.

I saw several postage stamp quilts online, and I thought that this pattern -easy to do and quick - would be a wonderful way to showcase this color scheme, one of my favorites. And a quote from Nightcrawler on the back - still undecided - won't hurt either. :)This is my color scheme. Lots of varying blues, with a couple reds, some yellows, black and ivory thrown in - I'm also including some prints, including Anna Maria Horner's "Maybe" in Indigo (one of my favorite prints EVER, hands down!) All of the above are Kona solids (including one Quilter's linen, in Teal).

I have a little ways to go before I can start on this officially - but I'm incredibly excited, and I know it's going to be an awesome finish that's totally worth it :)

so make like a bee and get busy

Or go find flowers, or some such.

This has been such a ridiculously busy week I'm still reeling. Spring break + workin in the restaurant business = exhaustion. And we're not done yet; we've still got at least tonight to get through and possibly tomorrow, although if it truly IS only Spring Break for this week, then we'll most likely be slower then.

In between such things, I've been working on quilts as well:

- Patched together more rows for my hexagon quilt.
- Basted at least 100 more hexies and cleaned up the box of hexies yet-to-baste.
- Bought a queen-size, warm + natural batting at Hobby Lobby and cut it into 12" squares.
- Planned at least 10 more blocks for my boyfriend's QAYG log cabin!
- Set aside the next ten blocks I want to work on for MY Heather Ross QAYG log cabin!

Looking at postage stamp quilts online, especially quilts inspired by pictures, I got an idea for a quilt in my head. When I was a kid, I read comics religiously - and Kurt Wagner aka Nightcrawler from the X-Men was always my favorite! I want to make a postage stamp quilt with the color scheme of his uniform and some pictures of him - I even found the perfect backing!!!

But I can't - and won't! - work on it until I'm done with my friend's baby quilt and my boyfriend's quilt.

So my goals this week are:

- Cut out 1.5" x 22" strips of white solid for Emma's baby quilt.
- Start piecing the quilt together.
- Quilt at LEAST one block a night of the boyfriend's quilt so that it gets done faster :)
- Get my craft stuff organized!

I've got my work cut out for me for sure :)

wednesday's child is full of woe

for her poor knees, which are, as my mother likes to put it, "just about wore out". The result of constant sewing, literally running about (a no-no for me), and too much driving. If I were a smart girl, I'd go to the doctor and them looked at (they should not hurt this much at this age, but a car accident and a nasty fall later, and there you go). But I'm not a smart girl, so I'm gonna go to lunch instead.

I didn't finish the boyfriend's quilt. I realized, somewhere around friday night, that me actually "finishing" the top (even though it's QAYG), backing it, binding it, and adding those few quilted touches, was impossible to do by Tuesday. Even if I sewed my machine into oblivion. So I finished ten blocks, lined them up all nice, and showed him my work so far. He liked it! I'm glad. And I hope he had a happy birthday even though I'm a weird, weird girlfriend :)

And now I'm off to eat lunch, change clothes, pick up my brother, watch a movie, and do all those lots of things I do when I'm off and supposed to be not doing anything.

keeping it real

The reason I started this blog was due to my need to express my creativity and my recent foray back into quilting. Where I live, there aren't a lot of "modern" quilters and I am, unfortunately, one of the only "crafty" people I know! I'm also an immense fan of many internet blogs and read them every morning!



That being said, I don't think I've ever made an "about me" post, so here's a bunch of random facts:



1. I live in sunny, humid Galveston, Texas, and I am definitely a proud BOI (born on island) and Texan! (Although I lack the accent, because no one in Galveston really has one).



2. I'm the fourth of six children, and the only girl. My youngest brother and I are very close and when we go out, everyone seems to think he's my son! (We're only six years apart, so that's some major BUNK...)



3. I watched my mom sew things, as well as my grandmother, and my childhood was full of colorful, well-loved quilts that I cherish to this day. I got into quilting in high school, kind of let it go, and then got into it again. I'm officially hooked now.



4. I love to read advice columns like Dear Prudence and Miss Manners.



5. I have three dogs: a Pit mix named Little Man, a terrier mix named Manny, and a little furball named Mage. (None of the "M" names were intentional. Even though my last name starts with an "M", I really don't names that start with it all that much! Two of three of the dogs were named by someone else; we adopted them).



6. My favorite genre in books, in movies, in television, in etc is HORROR. I seriously love it! I don't know why, considering that I am, at times, the most paranoid person around. Japanese Horror is kind of my favorite, but I love zombie and ghost movies, too. It should be, because "The Thing" is seriously my favorite movie of all time EVER, and the short story it's based on, "Who Goes There?" is my favorite novella. :)

7. My favorite fabric designers are Heather Ross, Anna Maria Horner, and Joel Dewberry. I tend toward modern, simple designs now, where when I started quilting I just grabbed anything. You can definitely tell when it comes to the things that I destashed!

8. I am a COOKIE MONSTER. All your sweets are belong to me.

9. I have never made a bag, or a dress, but I definitely intend to learn!

10. I'm fluent in Spanish, the result of many years of working in restaurants and living in Southeat Texas, where I feel it's a necessity to know the language. I feel like being bilingual is an extremely important asset, and Spanish is such a prolific language in this country I feel that it does nothing but good for anyone to learn it, and they should. It doesn't hurt that it's an incredibly beautiful language, either :)

Words of Wisdom from a Skull

"It's really not so good to have time. Rush, scramble, desperation, this missed, that left behind, those others too big to fit into such a small space - that's the way life was meant to be. You're supposed to be too late for some things. Don't worry about it."

The Last Unicorn was my favorite movie as a child. And, honestly, it's my favorite book as an adult; beautiful written, a true fairy tale if there ever was one. And the quote above - spoken by the Skull - is one that's been in my head since I first perused it. Because isn't it true? We spend our lives rushing, running, and yet we're still late for so many things - but it's okay. It's okay to be late; sometimes, we all are.

I, for one, am late for several occasions! My boyfriend's birthday is in a week - literally a week - and I haven't finished or even begun a present for him. My gift is a quilt - but I think that, to accomplish this, I'm going to have to work every day and night on it! (I do not, I repeat, do not, have that kind of time). But I'm going to try anyway. Maybe he'll like it half finished :) The fact that it'll be quilt as I go makes it easier, but I'm still behind. His favorite color is green, so I'll be doing it in green - mostly solids, some plaids and some prints. Trying to keep it manly here :)

Tomorrow we're off to Joann's to gather solids for it - not too dark, nor too bright - and some more cotton batting so that the process can begin!

Here's to hoping I'm done in time!

Fabric-y Goodness

It seems like everyone else in the world is going on a fabric diet, but I've definitely been doing the opposite ... and yesterday (also today), I've got in some real goodies!

I've been in love with Kei dots forever, but I haven't been able to get ahold of any (partially due to budget, and partially due to not knowing -where- to find them), but I finally bit the bullet and bought a few last week. I got honeycomb dots in blue, yellow, pink, orange, green-on-white, white-on-green, and cocoa. I also picked up Martiza's Queen Street dots in periwinkle, aqua, and pink - these look deceptively like Kei dots, and it's enough to make me happy!

I also got some purple linen dots, and a half yard of Kokka trefle's new "Snow White" in blue - this one is seriously cute, and I'm so glad I found it! Not to mention...and this one has me seriously excited ... a fat quarter of brown underwater sisters from Mendocino!

Oh yeah!

I was looking for all the underwater sisters, and for the life of me couldn't find this one by itself...but I snagged it the other day, and I am SO glad I did! Off to the hexie quilt and Heather Ross quilt it goes :)

the best laid plans

So I had this great, grand plan for my new bed quilt. I was going to use Modern Meadow by Joel Dewberry (which is one of my favorite lines) and I was going to do a pattern similar to Ashley's Rubik's Crush quilt. Because there was no pattern, I decided to embark on a pattern on my own; I'm not the best at math, so I was in the process of testing it out. I got the last print I needed in Monday (Napsack in Berry), and I was ready to go.

Until I saw that she'd made a pattern for it, and it's coming out in 101 Patchwork Projects in April.

So, being the lazybones (and perfectionist, what an odd combo), I decided it would be a much better idea to see how an experienced quilter would do those blocks. And while I wait...I would dig into my "Innocent Crush" stash.

Which has got the be my best idea ever. Every time I look at these prints, I fall in love! I even went so far as to order the voile (which is gorgeous), because my favorite print is "Maybe", and I decided that I needed it in every color. I'm not going to order the velveteen - partly because I feel like I already have enough for this quilt, and partly because I feel that it would be difficult for me to piece and quilt with. Not impossible, mind you, but difficult, and I'm all about ease and fun.

Having recently bought Elizabeth Hartman's new book, I decided to try out the "Valentine" pattern. I don't intend to have my separated by color - I do that enough, and I'm kind of tired of rainbows. So it'll be a mishmash of every print and so far I love it. It's my first string quilt - but I'm really, really excited! Strips of fabric? Check! Paper piercing? Check! I'm in.

So I ironed all my fat quarters (voile excepted) and have since been cutting. I cut my hand right off with the rotary cutter - paying too much attention to Glee, most likely, which I watched all day Wednesday - and had to resort to scissors. But I'll tell you - even though I like the rotary cutter, scissors will always be my choice method of destruction. I'm still getting the hang of rotary cutters, but me and scissors are like THIS, son!

So I'm off to finish cutting. And probably work some. And then I'm going to watch a movie and cut some more and hopefully begin piecing these soon :)

i've got my heart set on anywhere but here

Today is one of those days.
A day where you wake up thinking you've got a half day, but end up working all day.
Because your team member, who is always sick,
happens to be sick again.
When your older brother needs a ride, and "five minutes to get a shower",
that, obviously, takes thirty minutes plus the twenty there and back.
And you hit every red light from Here to There.
Where taking deliveries annoys you -
but you do it anyway -
and then sit outside for twenty minutes -
and they never show up.
(you have to go back later).
And you hit every red light from Here to There.
Where the prospect of picking up your brother to bring him to work annoys you,
and the prospect of taking him home even more so,
and you wonder why, at 23, you have to act the parent.
To a 17 year old whose infectious laugh and sweet personality means you can't say no.
(Even though you're sure you'll hit EVERY red light, from Here to There to Home).
And your boyfriend, whom you invited to watch a movie, will have to wait until Nine,
when you're sure to be Home,
to watch that movie.
(Even though -you- had to ask -him-, and for some reason that agitates you.)
And there's all this delicious fabric sitting in your backpack you can't Touch,
and hexagons you can't Baste,
and The Thing to be watched but you're Working and that's Bad.
Where the assistant who helps you isn't happy about the prospect of coming back a five,
and gave you a look that Told You So,
and is undoubtably going to be late, because she always is.

It's one of those days where you go "ugh"!

Hexagon Update

I took stock of my hexagon quilt a few days ago, after I recieved some more charm packs to add to it (Just Wing It, Le Petit Poulet, Modern Workshop, Buttercup, La Petite Ecole, and Whimsy), not to mention a jelly roll of Momo's Wonderland.

I sat myself down, watched some "Dawn of the Dead" (the 2004 remake, seriously an awesome movie) and counted basted hexagons. I separated them into bags of 100, and counted 1100 basted hexagons, with some left over (approximately 30, soon joined by twenty more that I basted).

So my current count is this:

504 Hexies basted
1150 (approx) basted but not attached
600 (approx) 2.5" squares ready to be basted

That's 2254 hexagons (at least). For the time being, I've decided to cool down my ordering of more charm packs (and fabric in general). I need more time to baste together the ones I've got on my "plate" already - in the beginning, the piecing of hexies into larger parts was easy, because I had them all finished. Now, I'm spending all of my time basting...which means the piecing has to take a backseat.

My goal? To finish all the hexies within a month, and then piece together another 504 part hexie piece, and attach it to my current one. Then do the same for two more, and piece those together to create a basis for the quilt with 1016 pieces. After that, I'll sew on to those edges.

Off to baste hexagons now! Later days!

ow. ow. ow. ow. ow.

That is the sound you make when both your legs are ridiculously sore.



At least it was for a good cause: the restaurant I work at has a "Greek Night" every two months or so, and for me, as its planner, that entails a lot of rushing and running and landing on an already bad knee. The Greek Night went well, but my knee hates me at the moment, and I supremely dislike it, for being such a curmudgeon.



I've been going strong on my hexies, and separating them into 30 piece bags (which, ironically, is about the same as a charm pack - haha, universe, haha) has actually helped me to baste more of them. It's easier to work on a small goal than a huge stack (although the stack is, admittedly, pretty to look at). And I bought a new, larger box for keeping my hexies-in-progress in - I've got a compartment for papers, a place for fabric squares, my pincushion (which arrived and is so amazingly cute), a place for thread and then places for miscellania. The only issue with it is that there's no latch to close it (and the compartments are really just paper dividers) but these are things that can be fixed!

My Wonderland has shipped! I'm ridiculously excited. I can't wait to get a hold of it! ... and promptly cut out a 2.5" piece of fabric as I do with every piece of fabric love I acquire. Of which I've acquired much more. But this is the last of it for awhile, I swear! :)

I'm off to take a delivery and then, luckily, join my boyfriend for Italian Food night! Who ever heard of eating pizza, spaghetti, hot wings (admittedly not Italian), and garlic bread all in one sitting? We did, apparently.

and sometimes it's tuesday

And you are at work, and there are lovely hexagons to be basted, and you are very, very cross.

...

Well, not extremely cross. How can one be cross, when they just ordrered a jelly roll of Momo's Wonderland? The perfect addition to a hexagon quilt and fabric stash in general? As you may know (or you may not), Alice in Wonderland is quite possibly my favorite childhood tale (seconded by The Last Unicorn, which was fantastic). How could I resist?...

But that one won't be here for another week, in my estimation. In the meanwhile, I've put myself on a strict schedule of basting thirty hexies a day! I've got a bunch of new fabric in - so I have plenty of 2.5" squares to cut - and there's more to come, so I'm forcing myself to perform this most tedious task. (Actually, the most tedious is cutting out hexie shapes, which I leave to my wonderful friend who enjoys it very much. One day, when it's finished, I'll embroider all our names on it - and she shall live in infamy!) That way, I figure in a month or so I ought to have them all done - sooner, if I can get my butt in gear.

That's all for this short post. I have hexies to baste!

plans and ideas

My fabric for the baby quilt - a bundle of Erin McMorris' weekends - arrived. So did the Innocent Crush. I couldn't be more pleased with both! Lovely fabrics. Innocent Crush I think I love more, but you have to laugh at the little bikes and lollipop flowers in the Weekends line. So cute!

I'm starting on the baby quilt tonight. Since my off day is cut in half tomorrow (I have to work in the morning...and then on my half day on Wednesday...), I'm starting after work.

I'm doing the "rectangle squared" pattern from Film in the Fridge (can you tell I love her blog?), because it seems easy to quilt (this one by hand, too) and I love working with easy, square shapes. Of course, wonkiness is fun, too...but for the time constraints, I think this is best. As soon as I get the top quilted somewhat (I'm thinking a quilt around 45"x45"), I'm headed up to Joann's to purchase some goodies.

With my income tax this year, I've decided to do two things: buy new tires, and finally get some of those sewing notions I've never had (and probably needed). Such as rotary cutter, cutting mat, and acrylic ruler! My mom always cut things with scissors and templates of card stock, so I always did that, too. So my list, at the moment, is : some handquilting thread (for the baby quilt, for the Innocent Crush quilt), a rotary cutter, a mat, an acrylic ruler, several yards of Kona in White (because that's the main color I use), and several variations of blue (for a quilt for my boss, using QAYG technique).

I ALSO took the liberty of ordering myself a cute little pincushion, made with Moda Wonderland's Snip Snip in glass. I felt like it was time for a new one :)

Off to work, and to plan! Then for some quilty goodness! Have a good weekend :)

I am now swimming in it

Fabric, that is. My packages came in the same day I wrote my last post! Even though I had to wait to run home, when my backup came in at five ...

and then run a delivery ...

and then take care of some other stuff when I got back ...

I finally managed to OPEN my packages at seven-thirty (it is TORTURE to wait that long), and I couldn't be happier! I'm officially in love with Modern Meadow. So much in love that I've decided the only thing to do with it, rightfully, is to make a big, queen-size quilt with it.

I've already decided on a pattern and worked out the blocks. Have you seen Film in the Fridge's "Rubik's Crush"? It's going to be like that - not exactly, since there was no pattern, but I think I worked out the measurements somewhat. Of course, I've decided to try it several times with scrap fabrics and see how that goes first!

I ordrered some more of the line (15 more pieces), since I intend to have it in its entirety. After they arrive, I'm only missing 5 of the Handpicked Daisies (excluding Grass), Acorn Chain in Maple, and Napsack in Berry and Lake.

But that project, as much as I am excited for it, is on the backburner until I finish a friend's baby quilt! The fabric is on the way (along with some delicious INNOCENT CRUSH) and I'm psyched to get started on it :)

In the manner of quilts already started ... I began quilting my couch quilt, and after doing a few lines, I ... HATED IT. It didn't look the way I wanted it to at all, and I must have basted it incorrectly, because it kept bunching. Not the machine's fault, but mine, so I decided to start over ... I got out a little quilting hoop, and began hand-quilting each square. So far, I love the look. I know I'm not nearly as fast or efficient a hand-quilter as my mom, but I think I did okay. Pictures when I'm not lazy anymore!

It's that time again - work! - but I'll return later!

Four thirty here I come

It's silly how excited I am. But at home ... rather, at my mother's home ... there are eight! yes, eight! packages of fabric waiting for lil' old ME.

I broke down the other day and bought some fabric I'd been wanting for awhile. I'd been sticking to only charm packs ... but I desperately wanted some of the following, and so I bought it:

1. Fat Quarter bundle of Innocent Crush in Charmed Pallete - I love, love, LOVE all the blues and subdued purples. I really do. So this one was a must :)

2. Fat Quarter bundle of Erin McMorris' Weekends - This one, actually, is for a baby quilt I'm making for a friend at work. I figured the pinks and greens and purples and cute details were perfect for her little girl - and now that I know the name, I'm going to embroider it on there!

3. Custom Fat Quarter Bundle from Fabricworm - Little Miss Alice. You may not know this, but I'm a HUGE fan of Alice in Wonderland, and I am also a huge fan of red, grey, and black together. So this was a perfect set of colors for me, and I snatched it up quicker than you can say "How Curious!"

4. Some Joel Dewberry, Modern Meadow - I wanted some of the herringbone fabrics, and then I realized, as I looked at the whole line, how awesome a quilt it could be. I'm still deciding on how I want to piece it - no small squares, for instance, I want the "picture" prints to be very visible - but I'm sure it'll be lovely.

5. Some Hope Valley - I only bought three or four prints, but I felt like they would be excellent additions to my stash.

6. Vintage Sheets! - I've always admired the vintage sheets that are trending the blogs now-a-days. I love the muted colors, the soft, watercolor feel of the visual. And aside from the "Little miss alice" fabrics above, I've wanted to make an "Alice in Wonderland" quilt with a little embroidery - and I feel like these muted colors will do the trick. So I bought them :)

7. Some Vintage Sheet Charm Packs - I got these to add to my Alice quilt, of course! Twenty pieces to a package, all different, was too great to pass up :)

I definitely made some purchases, didn't I? Now let's see how I'm going to explain to my poor boyfriend, who's already dubious about the closet full of craft stuff I have, how I needed these new fabrics? Wish me luck...

And so it begins

But not without having an awesome off day pass by, wherein I accomplish many things:


- Sewed three new blocks for my QAYG log cabin (yellow, brown, aqua)

- Basted forty or sew hexies

- Watched Sleepy Hollow (again) and put up the Christmas decorations

- Cleaned up the apartment a little (and managed to put back all fabric pulled out)...

- Took the boyfriend for dinner and enjoyed a nice, quiet evening :)


And this week, luckily, I have a half day! I think that I'll be taking a trip to Joann's up in Webster for some more batting and some coordinate fabrics, preferably dots and stripes in basic colors ... though I'll most likely take along my Heather Ross fabrics and see what matches up where, and take a small amount of those.

I also plan to FINALLY finish my "couch" quilt ... I need to piece the backing and quilt it, but I have so much 80/20 batting that I don't need to buy any! It's all in the house! I've just been too lazy to actually do it ... and lucky for me I have a wonderful mother who has mad handquilting and binding skills, which I do not yet possess. And when you want a quilt bound fast (faster than a speeding bullet! quilt in a single bound! or at least a couple hours), who better than her?

I also plan to put some pictures on this darn blog...I've got them saved, but I'm a "procrastinator" and I tend to put things off. But there will be pictures! I swears it.
Off to work now! Later days!

Crafty Goals of 2011

I normally don't make "resolutions" every new year. I think that the pressure to succeed in a year's time occasionally prevents me from doing so.

But I do make goals. Sometimes I reach them, and sometimes not. If I can scratch five items from a ten item list, I'm a happy camper! It means I'm making progress. So I decided to write myself a list of "crafty" goals for the year 2011!

1. Finish Hexagon Quilt Top. While this is certainly the most time-consuming project I've got on hand, it's also been something I can go back to regularly due to it's portability. It's been great fun, and I can't wait to see it quilted and finished! Although I'm only 1/4 of the way through...

2. Quilt & Bind my "Bird/Couch" quilt. I finished the top some time ago, but have been too lazy (and interested in other projects) to finish the quilting. It's meant to go on the couch...hence the name!

3. Finish Q-A-Y-G Log Cabin! I've only just started, but this project has gone by so quickly that I don't think it's going to be too long before it's finished. It's so easy to sit for an hour or two and whip up a couple blocks!

4. Get started on my Far Far Away quilt. I'm still debating on whether or not to order those last few prints from the original Far Far Away - pretty, pretty snails - and I'd like some more "foundation" pieces (i.e. dots/stripes in monochromatic schemes) before I really start making blocks. But even if it's not finished this year, it'll be nice to see some progress.

5. Buy a fat quarter bundle of Heather Ross' new line! I saw one of the prints from it yesterday - "Girl Playing with Horses" - and I think it's cute. I was kind of hoping for more princesses (I know, I'm boring), but I love horses all the same :). I have to admit my curiosity is peaked to see what else is going to be in the collection!

5. Try my hand at one bag or clutch, at least. For that matter, try my hand at any kind of project that includes or requires fusible interfacing!!!

So there you have it; my quilty, crafty aspirations. I'm super excited for this year, how about you?

two day break? o-kay!

So I had two days off this week. It's really a rare occurrence - some strange luck that another manager had to take my half day, two weeks in a row, leading up to it.

Let me tell you, it was nice.

I started it off with a trip to nearby Webster - it's the closest place with decent bookstores and craft stores (Barnes and Noble, Joann's, and Fry's all within a mile of one another). I didn't get much - a book of recorded ghost sightings, the animated version of Lord of the Rings (I was really hoping for "The Hobbit", but they didn't have it), and some 100% cotton quilt batting. This last thing I was REALLY excited about - because it was all I needed to start my quilt-as-you-go log cabin blocks!

Initially, I wanted to do the quilt from the Q-A-Y-G along - with blocks alternating white and color throughout - but I decided to go with monochromatic blocks instead. At the center of each block is a scrap of some of my most treasured fabrics, my Heather Ross! I finally cut into both lines of Far Far Away, and picked a little of each from all of the scraps I had gathered (Lightning Bugs, Munki Munki, Mendocino).

So while watching countless movies (an eclectic mashup of all the Resident Evil films and Jane Austen films), I managed to arrange several blocks and quilt four. I was working on one last night when I ran out of thread on my bobbin, and since I HATE threading the bobbin, I decided it was time to give it a rest.

But I'm rather pleased with my progress! I knew this would be fun, but I didn't know how much - I really love this method!! Fun, easy, and quick. I'm certain that I have more blocks than the original quilt along (56), I minimized the size to 12" per block to account for it.

I kind of can't wait to get home to finish the blue one I was working on ... and rent a few good movies to watch at the same time :)