Still here...

Yesterday, we happily closed out 12 weeks of our World Tour of Embroidery Stitch-a-long! When we started, I imagined after that length of time, we would all be “home” by the time current events were all on the upswing…

Sorry, not sew much!

Thanks to all who sent me words of encouragement after my last post—some of you brought tears to my eyes with your own trying experiences, making my trials seem easy to bear. And I realized again, no one has to be alone thanks to this wonderful Worldwide Web we share. So, to make a long story short, I'm going to stop whining, put my (fully machine embroidered) cape back on, and provide the world with mental relief in the form of sewing chat. It is my calling-- and the day after the world ends, I promise I will be here blathering on about my endless projects. 

Thanks for being here!

As I said I was putting away my skeleton quilt for now-- too reminiscent of COVID… as I was folding it up, my daughter said simply, “This is going to be a really fun Halloween.” She is feeling better after having been in the hospital with mono and that was the most optimistic thing I have heard in a LONG TIME. I wanted to quiz her—“Why? Why? Why is this Halloween going to be so great?” Not in a skeptical way, but just because she had given me a sip of water in the desert and I wanted more. But I didn’t want to kill the moment and just left it alone. As a result, the skeleton quilt is staying out and I am going to finish it. 

It’s really almost there... I had over a dozen extra eyeballs left over after making it—thankfully, it was not because I can’t count anymore, but there’s one more border around the outside. Easily finished in time for a super fun Halloween!

This is really the project that is currently saving my life. It is Editya Sitar’s Sew in Love BOM. I had these blocks being delivered to me each month about a year ago. They went straight into a closet. I’m not a pink fan, but my sister is, and I had a feeling she’d love it! I’m finding instead of thinking of show quilts right now, I have a dream of making bed quilts for everyone I love—it’s sew much more comforting to me right now. xox

I started this on May 1^st—I find this out from my phone which has mostly pictures of sewing and it makes a great diary. I studied the whole book before beginning—there is an applique and a pieced version of the quilt—they are mostly the same except for about twelve blocks. I am making the applique one—I do enjoy a bit of handwork.  There are ten blocks: one a month and you either make 4 or 8 of them. Forty nine blocks in all.

First up were these tiny 3” star blocks—I’m fairly sure this is why I didn’t make this immediately when my first package arrived! Twenty tiny stars... at least there were only four of these! I muffed it up a bit-- can you see how? But I'm going easy on myself with this quilt-- finished will be better than perfect.

That circle background fabric is not my favorite-- apparently, Editya LOVES it because it is everywhere in this quilt. I will give her credit though-- the amount of fabric provided is almost enough to make two of these quilts!

The second month was much easier—again only four of them. The fabrics in this month were super pretty.

Then came an applique block—eight lollipop flowers blocks. Editya encourages fused applique—but to me, that’s cheating. I love the Apliquick method which is turned edge, and works really well with geometric shapes like these. You cut out paper shapes, then turn and glue the edge to them—you don’t have to remove the paper, because it dissolves and softens inside the fabric. It took me about three weeks to work through them—I think I mentioned before I like to get up in the morning and do a little hand sewing with my tea—a very enjoyable part of this quilt for me.

Month four—this is the “Crazy In Love” block—I really do love it! I got these done in 3-4 days.

The next block requires making 8. And each is made with nine snowball blocks. Not my favorite, so it will slow me down a bit. The colors values make it look like an X though and they combine to make a bigger shape in the final layout.

So that’s what’s cooking in my spare time these days. So nice to have something to keep my mind occupied. I will update you as soon as I make more progress! Currently, I have four months done in two months.

My sister's birthday is October 1st. Doable?

Maybe!

Have yourself a wonderful day.

xox
Carol

Not keeping calm and not stitching on...

When I designed this before Christmas,

 I very little imagined how inappropriate a beautiful, flowery setting would be for this year.

Now 2020 is sure to be featured prominently in the history books along with "1914" and "1941."

On political matters, silence can still be golden right now, 

of that I am convinced.

It was distressing to me last week to see good people tearing each other apart on Instagram, as they forget how much we all agree on. 

So I am currently avoiding social media for the most part, but I feel I at least owe an explanation of my absence and why the monthly programs are a struggle right now. 

In addition to the present crisis, May was a month of personal horrors-- my daughter ended up on the COVID floor of the hospital, with what thankfully turned out to be mono.

Did you notice in my last post all the new projects started? 

LOL--in hindsight, it was a symptom of anxiety. I realized this when I then started wanting to throw them all out-- 

stress is killing creativity right now.

This is a cute Halloween quilt I was working on, almost finished--

I started it last year. My daughter and I have a "thing" with skulls--

that is-- we HATE them!!

So every time we see one on an article of clothing or whatnot adorned with skulls, we say-- "Oh! Isn't that so cute!"

When I saw this pattern, I knew I had to make it for her. (The fabrics ARE really cute--not scary at all.)

Thinking of this hanging in her apartment in NYC this year on Halloween was giving me so much pleasure as I stitched along-- then along comes COVID, my dear daughter's life has been totally disrupted as she now lives at home. Worst of all, the whole project has a acquired a sinister feel...

So that now resides unfinished in a closet-- 

not to be taken out again anytime soon.

Then, you may have seen in my last post, I was starting this new table runner for Fourth of July-- the fabrics are just gorgeous and I was so excited to make it-- envisioning the first family gathering in ages, outdoors on the deck, all my loved ones spilling BBQ sauce on a gorgeous table runner...

Then last week happened, and I'm not really feeling it.

Finally, I decided to start my "Dessert Sampler Quilt."

I've had this beautiful kit in my closet for two years--

Can Dessert ever lose its appeal with me?

Apparently it can, because I can't even finish the first block. This photo is a metaphor for my mental health right now. I think there is too much time, when sewing, for brooding to occur.

My husband bought me wonderful new headphones-- but loud music hasn't drowned out negative thoughts, either!

I am struggling right now--

thinking of how to become a better person, a better wife, a better mom, a better friend, a better citizen...

“Be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle”.

Please know that my silence isn't violence-- 

You are welcome here with opens arms.

Your struggles are mine.

Just need a little time for processing. 

xox

Carol