Texture

I’m enjoying looking at the texture of She Let Go while it rests on our dining room table.  The shadows play with it all day.

I like to cuddle with a quilt that has been hand quilted – but I like the look of a quilt that has been free motion quilted.  Even if the snot has been quilted out of it.

I’m working on a top right now using my indigo fabrics that I intend to doodle quilt.  It will have to wait awhile though as it is too hot in the little house to have a larger quilt on my lap.  I can’t show it to you though ‘cuz it has swear words in it and my mama don’t like it when I swear.  (No….I’m serous….it DOES have swear words in it!!!)

On a sad note…Pfaffy died.  She was a lovely machine.  I bought her in 1994 when I graduated from pharmacy school.  Twenty-four years old.  She blew out her mother board.  Luckily, Jani Janome has stepped up to the plate to fill the gap until I obtain a new machine.  I want to test drive the Quilt Expression 4.2 one of these days.  However, I have a lead on an older Pfaff that is looking for a good home as the owner is potentially moving to a care facility.

Time for lunch.

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Fabric Swap haul

During a weak moment, I signed up for a fabric swap with the Ravelry quilting group.  Although I love the idea of fabric swaps, my frugalness (the small amount of it that I possess) usually keeps me from participating.  The cost of international mailing takes the fun out of it.

The focus for this swap was to eventually use the pieces in some kind of Gees Bend inspired improv piece so we exchanged larger pieces.  When my swap partner asked if I had any requests I told her to send me her uglies.  The uglier the better.

Well, I did NOT get ugly fabric.  I received the most delightful envelope of retro fabrics.  At least one of them is 20 years old as the selvage is still attached.  I cannot wait to use these.  We’re still working out the details for our challenge but I’ll keep you posted.

To say I’m excited about this challenge is an understatement.  ‘Who’d a thunk’ I’d be so excited about retro fabric.  Like I said in the forum, it almost ALMOST makes me want to start haunting op shops in search of retro fabrics (and I’m not a shopper).

Perhaps I should end this with…send me your tired, your old, your ugly fabrics.  I’ll give them a happy home.  Well, I’ll have you send them to my mom or sister so you can keep the mailing costs down.  I’ll pick them up in 2019.

I’m linking to Kaja and Ann for the AHIQ link up tomorrow (if I remember – I forgot last month).   They have a new invitational/challenge going on which you can read about HERE.   I am so far behind on blogs that I haven’t even read it yet – but I’m sure it will be great.  I loved the last challenge issued to use words in our quilts.  I started a new one called “My favourite word is”.  And, I have my double wedding ring quilt, with lots of words, but it isn’t back from the quilter yet.

Anyway – enough from me.  Enjoy your moments – I sure enjoy mine!  xo

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Epiphany and Honesty

WARNING:  This post contains EXPLICIT language.  Yes…..I use the “F” word frequently.  Mom (and Annabelle and anyone else who doesn’t like my colourful language)…..I’d suggest you refrain from reading as I know you don’t like it when I swear.

This is what I wrote to a friend yesterday:

It’s rainy today.  I’m over in the little house holed up.  Having a bit of an epiphany……always like it when that happens.  

I’ve decided that I no longer care how many WIP/UFOs I have.  Life is so frickin’ short that I’m only going to work on what I want to work on.  I don’t care (anymore) if I have a hundred UFOs when I can no longer quilt or when I exit this earth.  Really……who cares?  It’s not like I’m making quilts for anyone specific (except that retirement quilt for K3 and I’m waiting on him at this point to mail me more shirts).  

If I never finish another project – does it matter?  What?  One less quilt for a homeless person to curl up in?  What-the-fuck-ever.  They can go to Goodwill and get a Walmart blanket.  

From now on – I’m only going to work on what I want to work on – what I have a PASSION to work on.  Maybe it will be a UFO – but maybe it will be something new and exciting.  Or maybe it will be just sewing random strips of fabric together while I ponder the fuzz in my navel.  Or, maybe I’ll finally pull out the paints again and get moving in another direction.  

Who knows…..and really……who cares but me?  No one really gives a fuck about anyone else (creatively speaking).  Certainly no one gives a fuck about my creative ideas.  And, perhaps they really shouldn’t.  Perhaps  (creatively) it IS all about me, me, me.  And perhaps it should be that way.  I don’t know.  (And quite honestly…..today I don’t care.)

Anyway……after having these thoughts – I packed up a UFO that I had brewing on my design wall.  They were left over blocks from a mystery quilt.  I made double the blocks (no clue why) and so I felt like I needed to put them together into a quilt.  It was an unfinished project.  You MUST finish your projects, right?  Who’s voice is this anyway?  It’s time to shut the voice up and just do whatever the hell I want to do.

And so I did.  Yesterday, I did whatever-the-hell I wanted to do creatively.  And I’m going to do the same thing today.  This morning, at 3:30AM, I woke up thinking about the improv string scores I worked on yesterday.  Yesterday I was confused about how to proceed.  In the quiet early hours of morning – I had an idea and can’t wait to give it a try.

Now though, it time for yoga.  I have a new online workshop by J Brown.  So far I’m liking it.  His focus is breath centered yoga.  Slow, but certainly not easy.  Currently, I prefer online to live yoga classes.  I came to the realisation that although there are good (and great) yoga teachers out there – the local ones don’t offer me what I need and want.  I want hands-on teaching and guidance.

The only two teachers I ever REALLY have gotten that from was a Iyengar teacher by the name of Margee and a student teacher by the name of Kate.  Margee and I didn’t really hit it off well, but she was a great hands-on teacher.  Life got in the way of Kate and she no longer teaches.

Granted – I don’t get hands-on teaching from my online teachers either – but it is no different than teachers TELLING the class to do something but not specifying to which student they are directing that message to.  With body dysmorphia, how do I know if they are telling ME to adjust my pose or talking to the person next to me?  I’m not a mind reader.

Bottom line?  Right now, I prefer my own little yoga studio and my online options (YIN yoga with Ekhart Yoga being my current favourite).  I’m headed there now.

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Selfish? I don’t think so.

Liberated Hexagon – my absolute favourite of 2015.  I LOVE the juxtaposition of the traditional centre with the contemporary border, and in the world according to me, you can’t go wrong using Japanese taupe fabrics.

Now, on to the gist of this post:

Earlier this year, on a quilting FB page, I was called a selfish bitch.  The context of the discussion was ‘what to do with your quilts when you have more quilts than you need; you had given a quilt (or two or FIVE!) to everyone you know BUT you still love quilting and have a stash of fabric and supplies just calling your name’.

Donating quilts to charity came up as an option – which is a fabulous idea and one that most quilters embrace and already do at some level or another.  I brought up the idea that not all quilts were suitable for charity.  That if a quilter has spent hundreds of hours piecing together hexagons or hand piecing, hand appliqué or hand quilting – these quilts would most likely/potentially not be valued/treasured as they should be.   We also talked about art quilts in a similar vein.

It was at this point that I (and a few others) were called selfish bitches when we indicated that there were certain quilts that we had made that would not – under any situation – be given to a charity.  Although the discussion quickly was squashed by the moderator, the name caller did get in the dig that she couldn’t wait until we all died and then she’d pick up our quilts at the garage sale our families would have and then SHE would give them to charities.  She totally did not get the point we were trying to make. Her comment of us being selfish bitches really stuck with me – which is not a good thing in my book.  As the saying goes….’haters are going to hate”.  I don’t want her taking up space in my head.

(Bottom line – my quilts MAY be sold at a rummage sale after I’m dead.  Or the homeless may be wrapped in my most favourite quilts and I’m ok with that.  Because at that point – who cares?  I won’t be around to know or care.  As the Buddhist say – impermanence of life and all that goes along with that.)

Another of my favourites:  My New York Beauty.  I read somewhere (maybe it was Victoria Finley Wolfe?) about a death quilt.  A quilt to be buried or cremated with.  This one would be mine.  Except Mr. W might want it and he thinks the idea of a death quilt is rather strange.

This brings me to my 2015 recap.  If you check the tab up on top, you’ll see that I was fairly proficient this year in my completed items.  I think I counted 16 quilts plus a boatload of other stuff that I completed in 2015.  Most of it from my stash as I continue with my Austerity challenge.

Below are the things I gave away (11 quilts if you’re counting).  I’m not posting this here for kudos.  Then again – maybe I am – I don’t know.  One thing I know is that I enjoy giving things I’ve made to people.  I also know that I am NOT a selfish bitch and anyone who knows me – knows this.

Old Rugged Cross (to mom)

Hippy Hippy Shake (to Billye)

Batik Baby (for future Rollag baby)

Dancing Nine-Patch baby quilt (for Huck)

Bordered Nine Patch (to Scottie)

Bonnie Hunter left-overs baby quilt (for Henry)

Wonky Basket 2 (to Karen)

Retro log Cabin (to Brooke)

100 patch block quilt (to Megan)

Batik Half-square triangle (to Nicko)

Green Mystery (for Norma)

In addition I gave away the following (you can check out the pictures on the tab up top if you’d like):

Attic Cozy crochet blanket (to Kate)

Blarf wrap (to Norma)

Hats (to Finn)

Socks (to Neil)

Bionic Bag (to Annette)

Cap, fingerless gloves & scarf (to Auntie Karen)

Two wide mouth pouches (to Jan & Carolyn)

3 sets of fingerless gloves (presents to quilt peeps)

7 quilted pouches (to the great nephews)

3 crocheted leg warmers (to the great nieces)

4 tulip pouches (to the great nieces)

13 little dresses (to the great nieces)

2 finished quilt tops (for K2)

4 ‘binding’ jobs for L1 (which I had pieced but someone else quilted)

scarf (for Kris F)

AND A PARTRIGE IN A PEAR TREE!

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Allietare & WIP update

I’m 100% caught up on the clues for the Bonnie Hunter 2015 Mystery quilt.  The proof is in the pictures.  HERE  is the link to Bonnie Hunter’s linkydinky post #3 so you can keep track of what all the other quilters are doing.  There are some gorgeous quilts developing!

Now for some general quilt talk…..

I’m pretty sure I’ve done all the finishing that I’ll be doing for 2015 so it’s time to reflect on what I’ve made and also to look forward to 2016.  I suppose it’s just semantics but sometimes semantics are important.  Perspective matters.  Words matter.  So, what am I talking about?  Well, I’m thinking about the difference between a UFO (unfinished object) and a WIP (work in progress).

I seriously don’t think I have any UFOs any longer.  (I KNOW, seriously????)  I no longer have any projects half finished and waiting to be finished.  For several years now I’ve been plugging along to finish them up – and I think I’m there.

Now, WIPs are a different kettle of fish.  I have 11 WIPs that I can account for right now.

My list:

Brother’s and Sister’s – needs batting, basting and big stitch quilting

LogOLight2 – finish piecing, maybe do some embroidery? FMQ

Gypsy Wife 2 – I made a 2nd set of blocks – now to decide what to do with them

Tumbler baby quilt – finish piecing, pin baste, FMQ

K3’s quilt – design and piece

K2’s quilt – FMQ

Fabric Vomit Crumbs – design and piece

1990’s Retro Crumbs – design and piece

The Circle Games – keep plugging along with hand piecing

Magnolia Wool – whip stitch, embroidery embellishment?

BH Mystery/Allietare – piece, baste, FMQ

I think 10-12 WIPs is about the right number.  It gives me something to do in most every stage of quilting so I can bounce back and forth.  I have 2-3 TV projects, a couple piecing projects, a couple designing projects, a couple leader/enders and 1-2 FMQ projects.  Keeps my crafty ADHD at bay to be able to bounce back and forth.

I’m also kicking around the idea of a quilting focus for 2016.  I’m thinking to once and for all tackle and CONQUER FMQ doodling.  I’m sick of WANTING to do it but not doing it.  Time to get over my fear – get over your damn self Princess – and just do it.  Figure if I give myself an assignment – 15 minutes a day or 2 days a week or something – I’ll be more apt to dive in and learn.

Do you have any quilt related goals for 2016 or is it too early to be thinking about it just yet?

 

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