Happy New Year and LET IT GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy New Year everyone!!!


Just starting to feel like a human again. I went out with M yesterday and when I put my running shoes on, it felt strange. That is bad when it feels strange to put on running shoes - when you haven't worn shoes for five days!!!

I do not regret getting sick - I did a LOT of reading which was nice, but I did miss out on a few VERY QUIET, NO DEADLINE days where I could have worked on my own stuff, but that was NOT to be. I guess there was a reason, I got my 2013 shelf all organized a couple of weeks ago. Not that the studio looks very organized at this point. M was doing a photo shoot for a school project and we shoved everything up to  one side and well, I just don't have the energy to deal with it yet.

The studio in TOTAL disarray

But I did manage to get a bit of work done yesterday. And I choose to work on Easy Street since the final clue was posted this AM. I haven't peeked yet, but I will - who cares. It is JUST a quilt.

Here is Clue THREE done. Wait a minute - why is there ONE green triangle left?????   At first I thought maybe I had cut one too many, but after stacking them in piles of ten - I realized that I have lost...............

ONE OF THESE. Now it is possible that I miscounted on the cutting of these parts, but I doubt that. So far, I am holding off on making a new one. I just know that as soon as I make it, the lost one will appear!!!!!!!!

And the third colour, I am going to add is a deep rich purple

Last night (OK - I told you I was sick), but the parents of M agreed to ANOTHER party. Now my child is SNEAKY. Let's start low - just eight people. OK - we are fine with that. Oh mom - those eight can't come, so I need to ask a few more so that everyone knows someone. Well you know how that goes. There was a VERY STRICT order to make a list and keep to that list. Well - that didn't happen, but at least it wasn't as huge and unruly as last time. I JUST HATE HATE HATE when kids can't follow directions.

So I was confined to the basement along with the girls. Well -  I wasn't confined, but I choose to stay down there. Sparky was OK and slept the night away as if nothing was happening.

Sparky partying it up on New Year's Eve!!!!

Sammy, on the other hand is a nervous nelly!!!!    If we let her upstairs, she would get nervous and bite or try to bite people. But she didn't want to stay downstairs and certainly NOT with me. So I resorted to this (OK - I don't have a baby gate!!!!!!!!)

Barricaded stairs!!!!!!!!!!

I finally had to put several layers of defense since she was desperate and paced the ENTIRE night. I don't know what was driving me crazy - her pacing or the idiot who was tossing the bottle cap onto the floor every 5 seconds.

But I figured that I am fired up, I am awake and I might as well do something constructive. I have also determined that I should make a VALIANT attempt at getting the reading material under control.

I grabbed a stack of magazines - The Quilter - they had already been sorted or weeded out with this very purpose.

MY stack of The Quilter magazines. 

The earliest I had of this magazine was 1999, but I didn't see that one in this pile, so technically I started at May 2000. Until recently, I bought EVERY issue of the magazine and while at the beginning, I did read the magazine, I haven't actually read most of these magazines. Since they are mine and I paid for them - I WANT to read them before they go. I know - I know - I've said that before!!!!

Anyway - I did manage to get through eight issues last night. Anything is a start.

And I did NOT even rip out a single page. I did photocopy a couple of pages (leaving them intact means I can donate them to our guild so they can sell them at the upcoming quilt shows). Hey - there ARE some interesting stuff in the magazines - just not what I need or want anymore.

Why did I not rip out any pages????   Well - I asked myself a couple of questions regarding the patterns

1.  Do I want to make this pattern enough to put it on the 2013 shelf?  (No sense ripping it out if I have NO intention of ever making it.)  Trust me ladies - you may laugh at that shelf, but that 2013 shelf is a GODSEND. Nothing smacks one in the face of the excess than to weed out a small part (supposedly doable  in one year) and have it on display (and knowing what is still behind the scenes). That act alone had a very sobering effect on me!!!
2. Will I learn something from making this pattern?
3. Am I inspired by the colours???

I think I copied TWO patterns. One I am sure that I have already made, but I really like it and it is simple and cute. The other would be perfect for a bundle of fabrics that I have. One pattern went with the bundle of fabrics so that at some point when I get to that bundle, I know what to do with it and the other one - I will double check if I have made it. I would make it again - but not right away!!!


When it came to articles - I asked myself
1. Is this something I don't already know?
2. Can I get the information from the internet or the book written by the author?
3. Is there something inspirational in the article???

I think I copied one article. On Thimbles and I will put that with my antique thimble book.

I also copied pictures of TWO quilts that I am putting in my inspiration book.


Now like all of you - I am sure that your magazines were covered with sticky notes????

Sticky notes with LISTS of interesting projects

Well - after I looked at the projects and asked myself the above questions, NONE of the marked projects made the cut. I mean really - how does a sticky note help to sort through this mess. OK - we all did it - we all had the best of intentions. But back when you had a handful of magazines - who knew it was going to blow up into something HUGE!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I had a GREAT visit through memory lane. I remember browsing these magazines and came across this quilt - Hey Carol - remember this one???????

I am certain that Carol made this quilt!!!!!!!!!!!!    

Then I came across this little gem!!!!!!!

Cute little quilt!!!!!

Oh dear - I have a confession to make. You see - I made a small mini for a give away at our guild - many years ago. It was a sail boat just like this except there was NOTHING in the last box. Hey - if they are going to capsize - make it look good!!!!!!

Anyway - I was certain that I had gotten the idea from a lecture from Fons and Porter when I was in Houston in 1999. But maybe not?????   Oh well - I had a good laugh when I came across this picture. It brought back memories of my little quilt. Mine was in a different setting and I don't think my sail was the same. Ah - yes - the benefits of DOCUMENTING and listing inspirations. Well - I am learning!!!!!   And I may have it in my book which is buried at the moment.


Anyway - then I came across this quilt. Somewhere recently I saw a picture of this quilt or this pattern. And I can't think where that was???????    A block of the month???? - maybe that was it. But funny what goes around comes around!!!!!!!!!!!

Where did I see this quilt recently?????

As I read through the magazines (and they didn't take long to go through each one) and don't forget that I was trying to comfort little Sammy, and grin and bear it through the noise so in a typical evening, I could go through more.


Anyway - it was funny to see ads for cheques with quilts on them, book clubs (do those still exist???) and mail order addresses - no internet addresses!!!!!!!!!!!


But I did learn something - I often wonder why I became a stickler for detail and good technical skills. Because at the time I learned, people like Jinny Beyer and Harriett Hargrave (among countless others) were QUEENS. They were focused on quality of quilts - not just cranking out another pattern to see how many could be made in one day. I thank all of them for providing me with a good base of technical skills. I was fortunate enough to meet with both of them soon after I started quilting. And let's not forget Eleanor Burns - who taught me all there is to know about using a stiletto!!!!


There you have it. An interesting evening and I can see by the stack of magazines, that I have a few more evenings ahead of me. Oh - I know why the 1999 issue isn't there. I think I started this stack a while back and said at that time - I will do a year in an evening. Well that lasted ONE night!!!!!   Got to do better this time.



Have a great day!!!!!!!!!!!!


Ciao!!!!!!!!!!!!!