Camp Sugar Meadow!

     Last week was like being a kid again at a summer camp in the wilds of Maine! Up at dawn, big breakfast, outside to play, afternoon visits to the craft cabin, and nightly kayaking on the lake... if you are jealous, to cure you, I will admit I also look like a ten year old, too-- scraped knee, bug bites, sunburn and all!

    Oh, if I had only started a temperature quilt this year! One day reached the 90s, the evenings were in the 60s, and then we plunged back into the 40s at the end of the week. I am extremely tired of hearing people complain there is too much of a certain color in their temperature quilt or cross stitch, too much yellow, too much blue-- just move to New England, why don'tcha! You will have a mashup from ice blue to fire engine red, all in the same row.

     

Most of the week was spent sporting this manicure-- we are putting in a massive vegetable garden! By the time we had the rainy day, I was so happy not to have to be in it. This old body is feeling it, but, boy, did I sleep at night, like a true camper! On the rainy day, I desperately tried to move along my sewing for the week-- it hasn't been quite enough to catch up (what even is that?) but the weather report is now rain for the next two weeks, so progress is inevitable.

    

 I worked on Christmas sets-- I'll sneak peek you-- but none of this goes on the website until the fall. A little Tree Farm Mug Rug!

     I am in the early stages of infatuation with my Sew Sampler BOM project, "Pressed Flowers," so I did get the block just about done. It is amazing how things come along, when you work on them instead of looking at them and thinking about them. If you have limited time each day, I kind of broke this block down into 15-minute installments over four days: Cut the pieces. Sew corner triangles on. Sew rows together. Complete the block. This four part method works for most of what I do and I'm going to try to stick with it each month on this project-- it's extremely do-able.

     On the other hand, the table runner of the month did not see much progress. I am trying to recreate my favorite ever table runner with a summer vibe, using Fig Tree's Fruit Cocktail fabric received in this month's Sew Sampler box. I can't find the book with this table runner in it, so I started measuring-- if you have the finished piece, you have the pattern right? 

     

     The interior squares seemed like an easier place to start than the fruit border. I got out my ruler and the squares are 3-1/2"-- no, 2-7/8". Nope, 3-3/16. Ha, ha!

     

     As I tried to figure out how big they were supposed to be, I was filled with love for my former self. She wasn't worried at all about 1/4" seams or how all these parts were going to fit together. She believed that it would and completed what was to become her all time favorite table runner! I hope we all give ourselves the same love, forgiveness, and hope that she had twenty years ago. I do remember being somewhat dissatisfied with the decorative stitch here, but it didn't cause me to put it in a drawer!

   

      I went with 3" squares and my friend, graph paper, will help me unite the fruit blocks with this center portion when the time comes. I quickly put it together using the blues in the collection. I felt so daunted with this a week ago-- the Sew Sampler projects have piled up and I compounded the problem by signing up fot the Liberty Box. But great start here and I bet I can whip up some fruit blocks this week. 

     As a tribute to my former self, I am going to quilt it exactly like the original, with just a bit of stitching in the ditch and X's across the squares. Well, maybe not exactly like the original--I am red faced as I say this, but I used to think "stitch in the ditch" meant stitch to one side of the ditch.

    Longarmers are extremely backed up right now--  did you notice? Is it that everyone really needs a creative outlet in this crazy world? So doing it myself is really the only option to quickly get the Christmas one packed away and the summer one on the coffee table.

     For hand work, I almost have three Star Spangled Ornaments complete. They are super quick! This I am really hitting out of the park, as I had hoped for four for the entire month. I am following along with Fat Quarter Shop's Red, White, and June stitch along. I am going to give it the entire month and then finish with their tart tins and sticky circles-- there's even a QR code on the booklet that connects you with a video on how to do it. Anything Kimberly Jolly mentions on her weekly YouTube vlogs sells out really quick, so thank goodness I ordered all my finishing supplies in May. 

     I also bought this cute "Stitching with the Housewives" truck pattern-- they are super popular, but I've never made anything of theirs yet. It is also a small piece and I hope to have it quickly. Anything truck related is so appropriate for my son with the auto repair shop.

    So that was my week at Camp Sugar Meadow! The weather is souring a bit now, but it's always dry and bright in the sewing room. Have a great week!

xox

Carol