Success!

I've been out of town, sequestered in a windowless conference room for 11 hours a day, 2 days in a row, with 10 of my colleagues interviewing candidates for an open position at my university.  It was an exhausting, yet intellectually stimulating exercise, and I left with even greater respect and affection for my colleagues.  And I left energized and excited by the finalists we selected to bring to campus.  But I was also ITCHING to sew!

I brought a quilt to work on, but never made a stitch.  Instead, it just adorned my hotel room bed and kept me cozy warm the two nights I had to spend away from home.  I also brought my GFG hexies out of retirement.  I did end up taking a few stitches during breaks on day two, and managed to get one flower done and attached to another.

I made the one on the left yesterday, and attached it to the one on the right that was probably made 4 or 5 years ago. 

But when I got home, I realized the way I put them together won't work with what I have together already.  Note to self - add just one flower at a time to the whole.

Looks washed out in the sun, but lots of scrappy color in this quilt top. 

I got home very late last night, and enjoyed sleeping in this morning as my kids were spending the weekend at a friend's house in my absence.  But my Cub Scout meeting was this afternoon, and I had to prepare.  I spent my entire morning and early afternoon measuring, cutting and drilling to prepare for our woodworking project.  I didn't have time to make a prototype - I just had to hope that I had thought of everything and that it would come together.

Spoon basketball.  I adapted a plan I found online to make these. 

And it did!  The boys were thrilled with their projects, and spent a bit of time trying them out.

Now, the kids are in bed, I have a cup of tea and my new copy of Jennifer Chiaverini's The Giving Quilt, and I'm going to enjoy a bit of down time.  The weekend was busy and full of interactions with other people, but everything about it was a resounding success!

Has anyone seen my motivation?

It's one of those days - I'm up, I'm at work, but I fear I am pretty useless right now.  I have no energy, no motivation, no enthusiasm.  Perhaps I'm overtired?  Or overwhelmed, thinking of the upcoming two weekends that I have to work?  Or maybe I'm just in partial hibernation mode, waiting out my least favorite season?

Whatever the problem, I thought maybe a blog post would help me focus and get me moving in a positive direction.

It's been an exhilarating week for me.  People have called and emailed and stopped me in public places - "Hey, didn't I just see you on the front of the newspaper?"  I never imagined that happening to me!

And the sweet things people have since done!  One woman brought me a dozen eggs fresh from her farm - wanted to do something for me since I was doing so much for others.  Another man called me at work and told me he had a bunch of fabric he's collected from auctions over the years, and wanted to donate it to the cause.  He made his first delivery last Friday:

The Star Quilters Guild in Roanoke asked to help - I sent them 3 sets of blocks to assemble and quilt.

I've gotten two inquiries about commission quilts - one that I'll definitely do, the other, I'm not so sure.

Above all, it's been a feel-good week.

I haven't had a ton of time to sew, though.  I've gotten most of another Sandy quilt top assembled while making a quick little hand project to take to basketball games.  I made this color wheel Dresden thinking I'd make it into a clock, but I accidentally broke the clock trying to take it apart - oops!

This was a hard exercise for me.  I used just scraps, and had a hard time deciding which fabrics worked and went where. I finally just sewed together what I had, but it still doesn't quite match the color wheel I looked up online.

Maybe I'll get another clock, but maybe it will end up being a pillow or a wall hanging.  Who knows?  I just know that January means sitting on the bleachers through 3 basketball games every Saturday, so I need something small and portable to keep my hands busy.

Mostly, I've been doing prep work:

Prepping for an up-cycling workshop I'm going to do with my guild in February - we are going to make "green" shopping bags from pillowcases and drawstring backpacks from t-shirts -

I love using these bags - they are fully lined, super sturdy and machine washable. 

I can't go shopping with these without someone asking where I got my bags. 

The cashiers are always so amazed at how much these can carry! 

This is my absolute favorite - that yellow check is so cheery it almost makes me want to go shopping! 

Very lightweight, and the perfect size for a day hike 

Again, fully lined for durability - although both Jason and I have used ours so much over the last two years that they are starting to come undone! 

Prepping for our last week of the Ready to Quilt program - the kids are mostly finished with their composition book covers now, and are ragging the edges of the denim quilt.

And prepping for our next Cub Scout meeting this weekend - we'll be doing a woodworking project, but I am doing all of the cutting and drilling in advance.

I'll leave you with images from fun times with my friend, Michelle, on New Year's Day.  We went over for lunch, and ended up having a bit of a jam session.  One of these days, I might actually even learn how to play a song on one of the FOUR guitars we have at our house!

For some reason, Donald hates having his photo taken these days, but he was on keyboard. 

Jason is in the background getting some guitar instruction, while Michelle's little cutie was rocking out on his new 4-year-old sized guitar.

And Michelle and I fumbled our way through some John Denver (strum strum - wait while I reposition my fingers! - strum strum - giggle!)

Oh, and how funny, but someone who found my blog through the newspaper article, Lisa U, won my giveaway.  She chose the yellow paisley flowers and the bird print, and should have already received her winnings by now.  Hmmm, what can I give away next?  Stay tuned!

We made the FRONT PAGE!!!!

Without all of you, there is no story.  THANK YOU for all you have done and continue to do to bring warmth and comfort to those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

OK, so I guess you can't really read the article from the photos. But you can read it at http://www.roanoke.com/news/roanoke/wb/318510. There are even thank you notes from people who received our quilts - I hadn't seen those yet!

And, right on cue, more blocks came on Saturday from a mother/daughter team in PA - 59 blocks (42 already put together into a top!) and yardage for backings.

yards and yards of backing fabric - I particularly love the clocks! 

a completed top - thanks Shirl and Jana!

plus 17 more blocks - their sewing machines must have gotten quite a workout! 

What a blessed way to start the new year!  I hope this is an omen of good things to come this year. (not a case of "it can only go downhill from here")  :p

Happy 2013, everyone!

Giveaway - Ring in the new year with new "old" fabric!

I hate to clean.  Perhaps you recall me sharing that once or twice here on the old blog.  But I've got to tidy up my sewing room or the photographer from the newspaper will just be taking photos of my mess and sending it on to some reality TV show about hoarders.  (Aren't ALL quilters hoarders?  Isn't that what our stash is?)

Anyway, I've been taking it slow down there, straightening up, sewing a few seams, folding fabric then pressing seams - you know, the old "mixing business with pleasure."

One pleasurable thing has been putting away my "new" fabric that I just washed.  You see, a few days before Christmas, I visited a friend whose mom had died and who had tubs of fabric she was trying to get rid of.  She warned me in advance that the fabric was old and that her mom had a lot of polyester.  She did, but that isn't all she had.  I came away with 13 different pieces of yardage, 2 pieces of corduroy (I've been wanting to make something with corduroy), and 11 pieces of either cotton or a cotton/poly blend.  And while I can't precisely date the fabric, I'll say it is probably all from either the 80s or the early 90s, based on some of the receipts that were included in the bins.

I can't wait to use some of this new-to-me old fabric (I'm not calling it vintage since I don't have actual dates), and just because I love giving things away, I'm going to give 2 half yards of some of my favorite new-to-me old fabric to one of you.  Just leave a message and let me know which two of the following 4 fabrics you would like to add to your stash.  I'll choose a winner, with the help of Random.org, of course, on Wednesday morning at 6 AM - you know, something to look forward to on my first day back to work.  Here are your choices - comment away!

Pretty multicolored flowers tossed on white - I've already got a quilt design using this fabric percolating in my little ole brain! 

Paisley flowers on yellow - for some reason the background color isn't true in the photo, it is more yellow than it appears here.   I love paisley, so I was tickled to see that the flowers were arranged in a paisley form.

The colors in this bird print scream 70s to me - which is fine because I love the orange/yellow/brown/green combos of the 70s.  The background looks almost tea dyed in person.

Winnie The Pooh and Piglet, too!  I literally squealed  when I saw this adorable little print! 

Act quickly - support a quilting DREAM!

I'm a dreamer.  I can make long drives much shorter by spending my time fantasizing - about the house I'm going to design and build, about the business I'm going to start, about the novel I'm going to write, about the quilt I'm going to make. And sometimes, I even actually act on those dreams.

I stumbled across another dreamer today while finally getting back to reading blogs.  I've never met or even heard of this dreamer, Kerry Wilkinson, but she is actually acting upon her dream to bring a modern quilting magazine, Fabricate, to the UK.

Now, I don't live in the UK, but I think we dreamers need to stick together and support each other, just as we quilters stick together and support each other.  I hope you will take a peek at her dream and and scrounge up a dollar or more to support her.

Here's the catch, though - you've got to act quickly.  As of this writing, she only has 65 hours left to fund her dream, one dollar at a time, from people like you and me.  It is quick and easy (I LOVE PAYPAL), and as a fixed funding campaign, if she doesn't reach her funding goal, all our donations are refunded to us.  But I don't want my money back; let's show her the power of the internet and the overwhelming support of quilters and help her reach her goal!

Here's the link to help her out:  http://www.indiegogo.com/fabricate

Oh, and if you blog about her project, even if you can't afford to donate to her project, you are entered into a drawing for $25 gift voucher for Pink Chalk Fabrics.  Even if I weren't excited about this opportunity to help out a fellow quilter, this possibility would get me blogging right away!  Let's DO THIS!

Reveling!

There is so much to revel in this season!

Family - my twin sister and her husband and two kids came to spend Christmas with us.  My brother and his partner and her two kids also came over on Christmas day and spent the night.  There were presents and food, of course, but also lots of games, some exercise (ugh!  My sister drags me running with her every time we are together.  I HATE to run!  The only good part is the sense of accomplishment afterwards), and lots of laughter.  Plus, my gorgeous little niece wanted to do some sewing.  I was more than happy to oblige.  She made two denim bookmarks, one for her and one for her dad, plus two little 4-patch sachets filled with sweet pea scented rice.

She can barely see over my ironing board!

But she was meticulous about sewing, going a nice even slow speed and sewing a remarkably straight seam. 

Sewing - I was sad to say goodbye to family, but after they left, I realized I could get back down to my sewing room.  My kids were exhausted, and were happy to entertain themselves for a while while I worked on a Hurricane Sandy quilt today, plus made my December Let's Bee Together blocks

Quick and easy sewing - little 4.5" foundation pieced string blocks 

and 5 Block Lotto blocks for January.

Tall Shoo-fly blocks measuring 6" x 9" finished, with white, spring or lime green, true red and black - I like the look of these, and they were super easy to make

When I went to post them today, I realized it is still December - maybe I should make some more of December's blocks while I still have the time.

I also mailed out my ugly, lame-o house block for Beth's Neighborhood House Party over at Love, Laugh, Quilt.

I kept meaning to embellish it, but never found the time.  Sheesh!  I even forgot a window and a door!  Oh well. It probably won't get there in time anyway.

Generosity - people continue to give to the Hurricane Sandy quilt relief project.  An anonymous box of orphan/sampler blocks came

12 B&W sampler blocks

12 fall colored/themed sampler blocks

and a whole passel of HST blocks

plus a quilt that is already sandwiched and ready for quilting.

Some of the shamrocks are already appliqued on, others are just pinned in place. See that round roll of matching binding?  This will be an easy one to finish.  Thanks, Marcia!

Our project is getting some recognition, too.  There was an article in the Republican-Herald newspaper out of Pottsville, PA on the Monday before Christmas and a reporter from the Roanoke Times out of Roanoke, VA called me yesterday and is sending a photographer to my house on Monday to get photos of the blocks and quilts.

Can you guess what I'll be doing this weekend?  Yup!  Cleaning up the sewing room!

Day one of winter vacation

When I left work yesterday, starting a 12 day vacation, I was nearly giddy with excitement.  What to do first?  My twin sister and her family are arriving tomorrow, so the house needed cleaning, but that could wait until today.  Instead, I sewed!  And while I did work on Hurricane Sandy quilts a bit, for the most part, I sewed for ME!

First of all, I've been wanting a patchwork stocking for years now.  I just never took the time to make one.  Yesterday, was the day.  Voila!  And it is the biggest stocking in the house, too!  I hope Santa fills it up for me!

Only the front is quilted.  The back and the lining are that solid green, which I upcycled from an old sheet. 

I also  bought some flannel pig fabric about 6 weeks ago with a co-worker in mind (she LOVES everything PIG!).  I had meant to make her something ages ago, but never seemed to find the time.  I decided to make a pillow, but gosh, the pillow forms are so expensive.  My solution - I bought a jumbo 20"x28" bed pillow at WalMart ($4 or $5), cut it in half, and sewed the two halves closed to make two 14" x 20" pillows.

Then, I made an envelope style pillow, but with big 1" seams on the outside, and then snipped the seams like a rag quilt.  When it came out of the washer and dryer, it had ragged up nicely and the pillow is SO SOFT!

I just may have to make the other half into a pillow for ME!

Today, I helped the kids clean their rooms (ugh!), cleaned out the refrigerator (double ugh!), and did some laundry and some floors.  I also took the kids to see a local ballet company's production of The Nutcracker.  I've never seen it before, and enjoyed it immensely.  My boys were tolerant and well-behaved, but not impressed.  For being such good sports, I took them out to eat afterwards with a friend and her 3 boys, who had met us at the ballet.  Then, it was grocery shopping in preparation for having a full house of 8 people for the next few days.

As I sit here in the dining room, blogging by the light of the Christmas tree, I can't help but think of how blessed I am.  It is cold outside, but I am cozy here in my house.  I bought groceries without having to wonder if I had enough money to pay for it.  My children are healthy and happy and here with me.  I wish that everyone could be as secure and as content as I am right now.  It makes me want to get back down to the sewing room and work on some projects for others.  I'll definitely be making at least one pillowcase to send up to Sandy Hook.  And I have many more Hurricane Sandy quilts to work on.  The mail counter guy at the post office (where I am always shipping either quilts and/or fabric or books) shared with me yesterday how he was filling Toys for Tots orders and a kid had asked for a blanket, and he just started to cry because he didn't have one to give, and felt helpless for not being able to fulfill such a basic need for someone.  It just about broke my heart.

Many more disappearing 4-patch blocks have come in over the past week.

Plus two quilt tops:

a crib sized quilt

And this wonderfully scrappy HST quilt

But look!  There are about 5 of these blocks interspersed with all the HSTs! What fun to find them in there!

A woman from my guild donated lots of backing yardage:

Also, I was contacted by a reporter from the Republican-Herald newspaper in Pottsville, PA, I am believe our project is going to be featured in an article in Monday's issue.  I'll keep you posted on here, hopefully with a link, if it goes to print.  Thanks, Becki W, for making that connection.

Another Hurricane Sandy quilt was mailed out from here this week, and I have another one to mail tomorrow.  I also have 5 completed tops in my house waiting for quilting, and, of course, many blocks waiting for assembly.  The Blankie Depot will stop accepting Hurricane Sandy donations on February 15, so now there's a deadline.  Gotta get cracking!

Not sure how much blogging I'll be doing with company in town.  Happy Holidays to all of you, whatever it is you may celebrate at this time of year!