That was a wee bit of excitement for a couple of days. All for fun and that's my motto in life - if you're not having fun, then you're not living. I've been reading several non-fiction books lately about people getting stuck in dead-end jobs and how they turned their lives around to do something they were passionate about. I guess I could say that happened to me 20 years ago. I don't regret what I gave up and I was lucky that I didn't need a full income. For that, I'm grateful. In one of the books, they were chatting about work and one passionate person said - "I don't work. I do what I love."
Imagine if everyone could be doing something they are passionate about? What would the world be like? People wouldn't be bored, or unhappy or go crazy. If you're retired - think about it - are you spending the rest of your life doing something that you love? Or are you just existing? Make sure that you spend some part of each day doing something you love. And if you work and can't change your job, make sure you spend some part of your day doing something you love. Otherwise, what's the point of existing?
Here's the other thing that I discovered yesterday. Last week I was reviewing some upcoming quilt shows. I decided to schedule them on my calendar. Not just leave the card on my desk, but actually, book time to go to the shows. Yesterday when I popped open the calendar, there was a show. OH - I didn't really have time to go, but then I said - why not? So I went. I'll tell you about that another day. I've got to catch up on what has happened during the last couple of days.
There are a number of shows coming up. There's a HUGE craft fair this weekend. It's the Simcoe County Quilt, Rug, and Craft Fair. The dates are Sept 14 - 16. Here's a link. There are six quilt guilds, the weavers, the spinners, the hookers, embroidery, lacemakers and the arts and craft association involved. I've got a pretty busy weekend so I won't be going, but if you're close to Barrie, it would be interesting to pop in and see what they're all up to. It's a craft fair so there might be stuff for sale if you're looking to buy gifts for Christmas.
Now let's see what pictures have been sitting in a folder waiting to be published. Sometimes I think that without taking pictures, I would have NO idea what I accomplished in the last couple of days.
Before I get to what I've done, I read something yesterday about a blogger that I thought was very interesting. You may wonder why I have so much to blog about or why certain things happen to me. I thought it was funny that the person I was reading about said that she does certain things just because they will become a "bloggable" moment. Yep - I've done that. Or I do something or sew something just because it'll make a good blog post. And here's a quote I love, "and the adventure doesn't stop there, the more I blog with the intention of turning life into art (her blog), the more artful experiences I being to have." It's like seeing things in a totally different way and then making up a good story about it! I love that!!
OK - I've philosophized enough this morning.
With all the running around this week (I've had silly errands that had to be done or I was playing hooky), I've managed to get ONE quilt quilted. It was mine. It's a big one - almost 90 inches square. The backing is Fireside fleece and the top is flannel. Let's just say that quilt is HEAVY! It'll be a perfect quilt for the bed for winter.
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| My quilt - DONE |
Here's a better shot of it. It's hard to get a full frontal picture of these big ones just because of my space at the moment. Too many sewing machine boxes in the way!
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| Another view of my quilt |
I decided to try one of the other quilting patterns that I bought. It's very florally and while not overly dense, it's a bit denser than some of the quilts I've done lately. This took FOREVER to stitch out because of the pattern and because of the size. I felt I had to babysit this one (for whatever reason) so I wasn't able to get much else done.
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| Quilting pattern from the front |
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| The quilting pattern from the back |
I'm happy to say that that one is trimmed and ready to have the binding sewn on. It was heavy while I was trimming and that fleece makes a mess on the cutting table. The binding is flannel. I'm going to do it by machine and that is going to be a huge challenge because of the size and weight of the quilt and the thickness of the binding. Oh well - nothing like a challenge to get the creative juices flowing!
Oh my - have a look at that corner. What is missing?
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| An empty corner - can it be? |
Yes - it would appear that the Halloween blocks have been moved. I managed to get a few more trimmed and here's what the quilt looks like at the moment. Oh - I should say that the few people that commented on the sashing, the consensus as to NOT put sashing between the blocks. And I listened.
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| Trimmed blocks for the Halloween quilt |
The blocks are in two separate sections because my magazine quilt is also on the wall and I can't share that with you.
In the photo below, the fourth row is also trimmed except for one block. When I was trimming, I noticed that the last color (the gold metallic) didn't completely stitch out. I'm missing half a spider web and some stars. Of course!! I think it would be easy to stitch that in free hand with the sewing machine. I'm sure no one would notice, but I think it can be done. I'm going to give it a whirl. There's NO way that I can rehoop that block and have it turn out right. Too bad I didn't notice when I was stitching it. Nothing like a challenge. Why is everything a challenge? Because I'm an idiot!
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| Last two rows of the Halloween quilt |
I'll have to rejig the blocks a bit more as I noticed that I have THREE blocks in the center row with the big yellow moon. I'll try to move them around once they're all trimmed to balance the motifs and the colors.
I think I'm going to put that green sashing between the rows and around the outside. I still have to make cornerstones. Then, I'll find a nice Halloween print (in my stash) that I can put around the outside and it'll be ready for quilting. Hm - Halloween is fast approaching and I have a jam-packed schedule. Well - I don't really, but let's just say that I have things to do. I'll always have things to do - that's just part of my existence.
Oh here's the thing - the other day I was doing paperwork. But none of it was urgent and it was most relaxing to actually enjoy doing the paperwork when there was NO flipping deadline. The goal now will be to keep on top of that paperwork so that it doesn't become an issue. Don't worry - I'm behind on some of the paperwork, but it's not urgent. There's a difference. There's still a TON to do so I'm not off the hook.
I should mention that for those of you who live in the city, that there are TWO used book sales this weekend. And I've got a list! There's the Mississauga Symphony Used Book Sale. Oops - only one book sale. I'll tell you the story tomorrow.
Please don't hate me for saying this, but I've managed to keep my weight under check and it's been easy. I haven't been tracking my food for a couple of months simply because I didn't feel that I needed to. I'm maintaining 5 pounds UNDER my target weight. I still eat chocolate from time to time and I did have ice cream the other day. But here's the thing - my brain allows me to eat my four small pieces of chocolate and I'm happy with that. Before, I'd eat the entire chocolate bar. I'd have ice cream and want more. My brain doesn't crave the sugar. How did that happen? Two things - the detox program which was a pain for four weeks, but the after results have been so worth it and in reality, the detox wasn't a huge deal. Secondly, my mind was made up to GET OVER the sugar cravings. I'm thrilled beyond words, to say the least. It's all about mindset and what YOU really really want. If you want it bad enough, you'll find a way to make it happen.
On that note, I'm out of here. I'm madly sewing and pulling fabric for upcoming blog posts and I've got three classes to prep for the weekend. Two book sales to hit - I think no quilting is going to happen today.
Have a super day!!!!!
Ciao!!!!
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