A garden, January 31

Just a garden of three.

Coming and going and another quilty finish

This was a wonderful weekend with all three daughters and spouses.

A floor picnic, a birthday party, shopping monopoly, boot socks and a new quilt, monsters with hockey pucks for cake, a little left-over Christmas, college hockey, nearly front row seats, ice fight, our team lost, good rest, morning workout with country music, crossword puzzle, two breakfasts, Sweet Old Uncle Grey, bad dancing, jumping on beds, new sweatshirt, great weather, a new think tank and saying goodbye again.

Hence the BoD.

Life is all about ups and downs, hellos and goodbyes.

I like the hellos. Just saying.

January 29 Block a Day

Can a quilt square change the weather? Come on sun! Shine through those clouds!

Block a Day, January 28

This block is the result of leftover ladder pieces and lovely new colors. The picture doesn't do them justice... they are beautiful. Just like the end of a long Friday!

 

January 27 Block a Day

A parade of days with just a little bit of trouble. It's all good!

Wednesday Window

More yellow, not sure why? A window this time.

 

Back in the swing of things

It is an interesting thing to watch how people's lives weave together.

Pretty darned tire...

How about a block about limits or hitting the wall?

 

Visitors and Block of the Day, January 23

Three of my favorite visitors stopped by today...

One of them was quite busy! We tried distracting with a stack of colored nesting boxes, but he was VERY interested in monsters and flashlights and scissors (eek!) and measuring tapes... a funny and fabulous practice grandbaby!

I finished my block for this day, thinking about the need to live a balanced life, but really just wanting to create all day long, every day (and trying to appreciate that I have the luxury to create at all). Sigh.

Another quilty finish!

This poor quilt has waited for its binding for a long time, but now it is happily bound and ready for use. It is the direct result of walking with Geoffrey every morning before school in the dark. The back has little patches that remind me of our encounters with Lucy, our neighbor's cute little basset hound who is often out walking at  the same time.

And the back...

 

A very productive day!

I finished a necklace. This will be useful and I like it!

 I finished a tote bag for a certain daughter-in-law. I left the dirt in place... it seemed more legitimate. But it has a nice lining with a cell phone pocket. 

And then...

My block for the day... happiness... really!

Then I washed the living room slipcovers, tweaked the design of this blog, (did you notice a difference?), started the quilting on the baby quilt, hemed and washed the living room drapes after only four years... go me... and now... well... I'm pooped!

Beneath all of the snow...

spring is growing. It helps to remember that.

 

I am enjoying the idea of creating my own stripe-y fabric. 

 It allows me to fine-tune the color schemes and spacing.

And I have some freedom to select areas that can appear quite different from other areas. 

 

But sewing is not all that I have been doing. I return to work on Monday and figured I needed a new string of beads to wear. I keep starting over, can't quite decide what I want. But the doing is the fun.

 Happy snow day to all!

January 20, Block a Day

Snow!

I wonder...

why the titles of my posts are different colors.

Cabin Fever Block, January 19

Well, winter. What are you going to do?

 I finished a baby quilt top today. Now I have to find Anita, my quilter, so it can get soft and good.

Bee Blocks and BaD, January 18

First, this block for Shayla of Bee Scrappy. 

The tutorial for this block is from Sarah Vee, found here.

  The tutorial is wonderful and the block goes together beautifully, so I made one for me:

 And finally my Block of the Day, which is an observation of the process of healing.

January 17 BaD

There is something to be said for the comfort in our well worn grooves.

Yipes! January 16 BaD

While it is a shame that I could not put last night's dream into a 4" quilt block, (it was CRAZY...) I am quite satisfied with my stripes. This came from a blog posting about making your own striped fabric, a book about Sweden, and a quilt book that I looked at today.

 And there was a trip to Ikea in there as well. A good day!

Circle of Squares Block Information

This block was inspired by this wonderful block, but simplified and changed. Here are the cutting measurements I used to make a 12" (12 1/2" unfinished) block.

Block a Day, January 15

Morning.  

 

I'm late but...

Here are my blocks for 3 x 6 Bee, 1st Quarter, Hive 23. Yay!

 Gotta go pick up Geoff!

Block a Day, january 14

I'm still chuckling over yesterday's ugly block. But really it tells a story. Hee hee hee.

Anywho, here is today's block, all about (as so much of my work is) inside and outside, conceal and reveal. I kind of like this one.

Block a Day, January 13

This one got away from me, but it has yellow in it. No do-overs.

I"ll have to look at this one again in a few weeks. 

January 12 BaD

My brain had a thousand images today. This won. Man, I envisioned the center being all lined up . I guess I missed. It is a different image this way. Learning as I go.

Maybe tomorrow I will use yellow. I keep feeling yellow, one of my least favorite colors, but cannot see any image in my head that works for it. Interesting!

January 11 Block

I've been thinking about ladders.

Block a Day, January 9 and 10

On Sunday Geoff and I walked at the arboretum. Winter has it's beauty for sure. But it is so nice to come home to a warm house. Warm inside, cold outside.

Today's block was easy. My first thought when I woke up this morning was joy and this was the image.

 

Quilty Finishes... oh yay!

Two quilts finished this week! They have been waiting for their binding and I discovered all over again how much I love hand stitching. Goodness!

484 squares. Lots of stitching. Not the best color combination, but years of fabric collecting, from little baby dresses, big girl twirly dresses, wedding clothes, and all kinds of curtains and such. 

My finished wonky star quilt from Bee Scrappy. So beautiful! This is my very favorite quilt so far!

 

January 8, Block a Day

Yesterday morning we walked along the river bottom at a place called "The Narrows". It is so beautiful. There were deer across the river that just sat and looked at us. And it was absolutely silent, not a car or a voice. Just us walking. Sun came through occasionally but mostly it was this quiet warm grey.

I am not in love with this block because it feels maybe too literal. But it forced some important questions for this process. Literal or not?, Are do-overs legal or do I have to keep the first block I produce for the day? Can I make a block ahead of time? And if so then each block is not really a reflection of the day, but just a block that I am having a whim to make. And then is this purely visual or is it at all conceptual? Of course I could argue that the visual IS conceptual in any case, but do I want more intent in this process?

My answers are this:

THE RULES

1.Literal is fine but more conceptual and symbolic is better.

2. No do-overs. None. I have to use the block I make.

3. No blocks ahead of time. The block must reflect some aspect of the day. If I don't have time to make one in a day I will make a sketch and color notes and do it when I can, which, once I go back to school, may be often.

4. This is conceptual with the intent to be a diary of my year and therefore a picture of myself.

5. No planning colors based on what would look nice. That would keep things more visual than symbolic, and my belief is that if I stay true to myself, then it will be a lovely blend when there are 365 blocks all together. And that is the surprise that I am looking for at the end of the year. That picture of myself. Therefore, 

6. Each block will be put away after the photo is taken and I will not look at them until the end.

O.k. Cool.

January 7 Block

I had an idea for this block but wasn't ready to sew, and then by the time I was ready to sew the idea was gone. I think what I ended up with is really just about the color. But it did make me hum "This Little Light of Mine..." Ha.

As usual, the colors are cooler in person.

Block a Day, January 6

Someone said to me recently that a mom is only as happy as her saddest child. This block is Maddie's blues.

 It was a bit of a devil to piece 1/2 inch squares...

but in the end it is just what I had pictured.

 

Here is my block for the 3x6 Bee this month. I have the fabric all cut and  ready to sew, just as soon as I finish this post!

The picture looks a bit wonky, but it really is straight.

I  just have to get better at my new camera so these pictures aren't so dark.