Brights, Camera, Action!

Do you have a good friend who will give you honest feedback? (If you ask her if your derriere looks big in something, will she tell you the truth?) My mother-in-law is not a good liar, and she is very nice--so she tries hard to pad the truth. Sometimes she'll fudge it a little, but with enough coffee and chocolate I usually get a pretty good read--even with my wild stuff. She'll hem and haw, but I'll keep rearranging until she says it's better than the last one, and I take that as good.

Meet Up at Jo-Ann's. New Towne Mall, Nov. 4th from 6-8:30 p.m.

Currently serving as a storage room, but ready in a flash.

Several local people have expressed to me their desire to have a meet-up. They want to meet other quilters, knitters, etc., and desire something without 'strings attached'--pun intended. In other words, they don't want the commitment of formally joining a guild just now, or taking a class. They just want to do their thing in the company of others, trade ideas, and share some time. Friends, let me announce, we have a Meet Up location and date planned. Woo-hoo!

Deconstructivism

 Yesterday's deconstruction project started on the barn.

What's It All About, Julie?

Happy Wednesday, a.k.a. Hump Day!

What a great week so far! I woke to freshly baked gluten-free pumpkin muffins thanks to a nocturnal teenager. The rain should be taking a break, and we might get a chance to be outside today. The barn is coming down piece by piece this week. The concrete panels are being poured every day, and showing up on site. And yesterday, I spent the day with a good friend. It doesn't get much better than this.

Weekend Recap and Wonky Blocks

I woke up this morning, and took a look at the house. Whoa.
What happened here, and where did the weekend go?

The Autumn Blues-- and Greys, Pinks, Limes, and Citrus

8:40 a.m. and the outside lights haven't turned off yet.

Fall brings grey skies with little sun. We have lots of rainy days here. The plants look tired, and darkness creeps in from both edges of our day. Some of us embrace the change, and some of us are prone to seasonal melancholy. It sneaks up on us. I had a moment the other day when I was thinking of my brother whom we lost a couple years ago. It blind-sided me from out of the blue while I was driving, and I remembered what someone told me along these lines:

If you find yourself caught by the current, breathe slowly, and don't fight it. Swim with it. You will float, and come to shore on your own.

My 'Katie Jump Rope'

This is my interpretation of the Katie Jump Rope pattern. When I first starting back into quilting a year ago, I saw this pattern on the FreeSpirit website, and loved the pattern done with the depression era prints. Most of the fabrics were unavailable then, and I wasn't fully vested in quilting yet. I searched through what stash I had on hand, and filled it out with inexpensive fat quarters from the local fabric and craft store. I bought an acrylic tumbler template from Missouri Quilt Co., and this top came together in just an afternoon. It was close enough to make me very excited.

It's a Couch Day and Finish Up

                                                        Today feels like a couch day. 

There are days when I find motivating myself a tough thing, too. Not today, though. The Doxie Girls may be snoozing away the morning, but I've been finishing up a UFO from last winter. I started yesterday late in the afternoon, and kept at it through dinnertime. Back at the sewing machine by 6 a.m., and I'm down to 2 more rows. I'll have something fun to show you in the morning.

This Is the Barn that Jack Built

From left: Misha the llama, Fitz the alpaca, Evie the horse, and Armand an alpaca

Fall is well upon us here in Ohio. The trees are showing color, brilliant to travel under in the sunlight. That wistful feeling of it all being so temporary is in the air, and I find myself thinking of "The Ants and the Grasshopper". Last year was fierce with deep snow and negative temperatures, and this year's forecast is supposed to be much worse. Can that even be possible?

Improvements and Refinements: Daydream

One of the most valuable tools I've been introduced to so far has been a design wall. It's a novel perspective, (and just really exciting!), to see a work progress from across the room, or to have the luxury of leaving it up, and then popping into the room later to see if I 'm still happy with things. The Daydream quilt has been up since Monday, and I was sure enough of the arrangement that I sewed together the border blocks one morning. Then I worked on something else, and even slept on it. When I'd pop in to peek at it, something just didn't feel right. I dreaded ripping out those 1.5 mm seams.