Vacation Books (Weekend Reads)

Time for a bit of a vacation. In my perfect world I would stay at home - a clean home - and sew for weeks on end with only myself to feed. This would indeed be a break. But my Hubby wants us, and rightly so, to take a real vacation from our lives. That means no sewing and writing for me and no Blackberry for him.

(Yeah, we'll see how long either of us last.)

So I've collected a few books for some uninterrupted afternoons. Maybe I'll actually finish a novel or two, instead of it taking me 6 months of reading five minutes a day before I fall asleep, book in hand and drool on the corner of my mouth.

If you've got any favourite vacation read suggestions, I'll take them.

In other news, today we tackled the first project in my new basement studio. It isn't quite done yet, but it is clean and is now home to a cutting table and sofa bed. The girls and I made a Christmas present and everything about it was perfect, right down to their erratic hand stitches. Just perfect.

And ready for a vacation.

Happy Holidays to all of you, we'll see you in January!

Pressing Issues

I need a new iron.

This one is, literally, out of steam. And I like my steam.

Any irons you LOVE out there? I've frankly always gone to Canadian Tire and just grabbed something that looked decent enough. I pay attention to where the cord emerges and whether it will stand easily. It must also have an automatic shut off. But the last two irons haven't lasted long so it might be time to look a little more closely.

Any suggestions?

Custom Pillowcases

The first slip of paper out of our Summer Fun Jars under To Make was Pillowcases. I gave the girls 3 choices:

... Pick fabric and we'd sew pillowcases.
... Write then embroider their names on pillowcases.
... Go to town with fabric markers on plain pillowcases.

Shockingly, they picked the colouring option.

(That's a drawing of a tiger quilt on your right.)

Over the course of a week they drew, they coloured, the signed, they went crazy on two cheap pillowcases I picked up at a big box store. The fabric markers I already had, leftover from the days when I would colour all my quilt labels. Like most of our crafting I let them be, with little direction. This was their project, not mine. I believe in setting them up and letting them do what they want.

 Now, at night, they curl up with their personal artwork. It's pretty darn cute.

Slow Down

Stop it! Stop growing so fast!

I say that in my head very frequently, whether I'm looking at my chunky monkey baby, Death Wish Arkison trying yet something new and scary, or the depth of my conversations with The Monster. I wish they would stay teeny and innocent and full of natural curiosity. And not talk back to me.

The Monster turned six this week and Death Wish was four last month. I would be lying if I didn't admit I was thankful that Nikolai keeps me grounded in babyness.

Case in point. The Monster lost her first tooth last week. It was wiggly, oh so wiggly. We were chilling out watching Swamp People when she became very insistent that Daddy pull her tooth. Oddly, she frowned upon a solid punch to knock it out. Instead, we got some embroidery floss. Wrapping it and a quick tug and we had a tooth in hand.

That, of course, meant we need a safe spot for the tooth to rest until the Tooth Fairy showed up. A couple of carefully chosen (Tiger inspired) fabrics, cut into 3'' squares, sewn back to back with a little Red Light Green Light. She was clear that there be no closure of any kind - to make it easier for The Tooth Fairy.

What about making it easy for Mama as she grows up too fast?

In Theory...

Any guess on what this is?

...

... Giving you a chance to guess here...

...

...

Here's a hint...

Got it now?

Yup, it's a small pillow made to mimic a bladder. Those aren't arteries and a vein coming from the bladder pillow. Those are the ureters (red) and urethra (blue). We had no pink ribbon in the house.

The girls have been listening to me whine about this baby kicking me like the dickens in my bladder. It's a pressure I've not experienced before. So The Monster, the wise one she is, suggested we make a pillow that looks like the bladder for the baby to kick instead of me.

So, she pulled out her anatomy textbook and human body books for reference. Consulted with my brother, a surgeon, on the correct colour of the bladder. She raided my fabric stash for what she thought was the appropriate fabric. She even drew the pattern herself. And did most of the stitching by hand on her own. She and her sister stuffed it to what they thought was the appropriate puffiness.

And now the baby has its own pillow to kick instead of me. I only wish it actually worked.

And dammit, I love this kid. She is pure awesome.

Bunnies

Easy sewing, right? A great project for beginners, right? Apparently Lotta Jansdotter doesn't know my kids.

At Market, Lotta Jansdotter gave out these cute little charm packs, pre-printed with a pattern for a little bunny stuffy. Even she commented that they would be a great first-time sewing project, or at least a fast one for the experienced sewer.

So I thought I would bring my little packets out one cold afternoon. The Monster has been begging me to teach her to sew after all. We reviewed our lessons from playing with sewing cards and embroidery hoops. We redrew the pattern, marking dots for where the needle would go in and out. We picked a giant needle to make it easier for little fingers.

I'm happy to report that there were no tears. This, in an of itself, should make it a successful venture. When The Monster is learning something new and can't do it perfectly from the very first effort there are almost always tears. No tears and only minor frustration, but frankly, they were bored. They kept asking if I could just do it or could they try on the machine. At that point I should have put the project aside, to be picked up later. Did I do that? No, of course not. I made them finish, by helping a lot. We had the distractions of pins, scissors, and the red pen we used for marking. Oh, and tiger costumes. When it got to stuffing their interest was renewed. And after I closed them up they went to town with a pen to draw on a face.

And they haven't asked me to sew again.

Quilt Snob?

Am I a snob?

Okay, don't answer that right away.

There has been a lot of talk and entertaining posts lately about a lot of quilt arena issues - modern versus traditional, rants about designers, plain old rants, beginners feeling shamed, quilters being snobby, and more. I'm not going to repeat them all here, and I doubt I've even seen them all. But if you want some really interesting posts read them here, and make sure you read all the comments too. Note: I've included different opinions here, only this post is my own.

It is actually the comments I'm reading that are pushing me to write this post. Many folks are upset with "quilt snobs". Unfortunately, it isn't always clear to me what defines a snob.

The way I define a snob is someone who intentionally works to make someone else feel bad for the way they act, dress, define themselves, propping themself up higher on their already high horse in doing so. When it comes to quilting snobs, what does this mean?

... Disdain for one style of quilting over another?

... Talking smack about a fabric line you aren't a fan of, and by extension, the designers?

... Shooting down bloggers who maybe don't have a fancy camera or can only take their pictures late at night when they have a spare moment to work?

... Judging people who are trying to make a living at quilting?

... Being openly critical of bee participants?

... Just another name for the quilt police marking down missed points and skipped stitches?

... Big Name Bloggers refusing to comment on other blogs?

... Groups of friends that are collaborating/chatting and defined as cliques?

I've been critical of charm packs/pre-cuts and the reliance on them. I struggle with group projects where the simple quality of the workmanship is lacking (ie. no 1/4 seams, lack of pressing, and no squaring up of blocks). I'll admit that I'm tired of plain patchwork quilts. And stippling. (I've done more than my fair share of both)

All this, however, doesn't make me a snob. Anytime I think these things I keep my mouth shut (until today, obviously). If I visit a blog I like and see a quilt I don't then I move on to the next one in my Reader. I like to challenge myself so that's why you don't see me do many things twice, but that's me. I have no interest whatsoever in making someone feel bad or trying to make myself feel better with an off-putting or off-colour comment.

I will never condemn you for your pattern choice. I will never judge your fabric choice, but I will share my considered opinion if you ask. I will never shoot someone down in a public forum for their own creativity, work, family, or anything quilty related.

Rather, I want more people quilting. I want blogs to inspire. I want new or hopeful quilters to come to blogs and think "I can do that!" Or, if they are intimidated by the work (and not the quilter) think, "I can't wait until I can do that!" I don't think I'm alone with this goal. I want people to feel motivated to finish their quilts however they like, with the emphasis on finishing.

In pursuit of this goal I will continue to share my own inspiration, my work - both easy and difficult - tips and tutorials and yes, challenge the conventions. I will always encourage people to break free from patterns, charm packs, and single line quilts. I will always, always stress care in construction. I will always answer questions you send my way. I will push for people to be open with their process

This doesn't make me a snob.

Or does it? Be honest, I've got skin as thick as an elephant. But remember, my Dad just died.

(That was a joke.)

What makes a quilt snob? Have you had any run-ins? What's your strategy for dealing with the quilt snobs you encounter?

A Pillow

There is no clever way to say this. My Dad died.

On April 12 the cancer finally took him. It was very rough there at the end, with struggles to breathe and maintain dignity, with exhaustion and pain.

We buried him a week ago.

My girls, ever the concrete and literal thinkers, obsess over exactly how one exactly gets buried or why those men are singing songs they can't understand in fancy, embroidered capes or what the spear thing is their cousin is carrying or why the bells have smoke or why they can't pull down Dido's baseball cap collection if he is dead now and doesn't need it.

My family struggles with the conflicting emotions of grief and relief.

There are photos I took of the process of dying and moments in the hospitalization that struck me, but they aren't mine to share yet. It's funny, but I think I've crossed the line into some kind of photographer (albeit very amateur) because there were photos I wanted to make, even at the funeral. Making photos is now an outlet for me.

These two photos are of my Baba's embroidery and what we did with it. While we picked the most simple coffin we could, at my father's request, it still had a bit of a ruffly pillow. So we crafted our own. We took some of my Baba's embroidery and appliqued it to a case we made for the coffin pillow. It might seem morbid to share it here, but I know you will all understand. I needed to share the beauty of my Baba's work, and our desire to bury Dad with the work of two generations.

I stood at the prayer and funeral services and delivered the eulogy. It was a challenge, as my relationship with my father was certainly not perfect and actually far from good at times. But he asked me and I couldn't say no. So I stood and told the story of my father and how his story is also mine, is also the story of everyone who knew him. And now it is yours.

I spoke of the need to get down on the floor and play with the little ones even when the dishes need doing or one more seam needs to be sewn. I spoke of never leaving things let unsaid. I spoke of the need to live your life, to make it through the day taking the time to share your story, to create your story with the people around you.

(Read his obituary here)

Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Sewing

Pulled this one out of the vault, didn't I?

My Dad handed this book to me a few months ago. I'm sure it came with the decades long Reader's Digest subscription our family had. For the last few decades it's been hiding in a table at my parent's place. Seeing as I sew, Dad gave it to me. I was taken in by the cover immediately. Isn't it fantastic?

It's gloriously retro and fantastically detailed. If I ever decide to actually sew clothes I guarantee I will pull this out as a resource. For now I can be entertained and even slightly inspired by the 70s styling. Just check out this bed cover! There is definitely a quilt in that.

Some of the sewing projects included remind me of many that I've seen on blogs and in books in the last few years. Napkins, placemats, playmats, wall organizers, bags, pillows, and even soft animals and toys. Goes to show that not everything is new.

The book also came with a little pamphlet about sewing with scraps. My favourite project, by far, is the Curler bag. Now does that ever bring back memories! My stick straight hair tied up in hard plastic curlers after the Saturday night bath. Just for the hope of curls for church in the morning. Curls that were long gone by the time church was over. I wonder if the people sitting behind me ever watched my hair fall instead of the service? I'm sure that's what I would have done with my head in front of me. Shhh, don't tell my Dad.

Always Learning

It was our Christmas party at guild the other day. We had instructions to make a stocking, according to this tutorial, then fill it with treats. Um, okay.

Except when you have to eyeball the pattern because your computer/printer connection is spazzing. Then you eyeball that pattern quite oddly and make a little elf toe that refuses to get turned right side out. At least the string piecing went well. And you just know that your mostly traditional guild will balk at the bright colours.

Well, maybe they didn't balk at it. I would say, however, that mine was certainly the brightest on the table! The rest were all gorgeous though. So much thought put into the details and some very fine work.

These stockings are a perfect example of the guild for me. There are a handful of us under 40 there. The rest of the ladies are full of more life and I love sitting and listening to their stories and advice. I've got a lot to learn and to live. It's the same when it comes to quilting. There are some incredible skills in the room - from painting to embroidery to machine quilting to handwork to design. So much to learn.

Don't knock the elf toe and don't knock the traditional guild.

Stand Back

These are the pumpkins we carved on the weekend. And the costumes. The inherent laziness of my efforts at costumes for the kids aside, I'm here today to talk about something important. So begins my rant against helicopter parenting and nearly as bad, helicopter crafting.

I want to start my clarifying I am not a helicopter parent. My kids run wild at the park, too wild for many, many parents who either feel free to admonish me with looks or not so gentle reminders that my tiny 2 year old is hanging from the monkey bars or standing 20 feet up at the playground. My kids are allowed to scream, run, and explore without me following behind. My kids are encouraged and even pushed to try new things, ask questions, and challenge (even when that creates a challenge for us). My kids are learning that if they want something they have to work for it, or if they ask that they answer is quite possibly no and that is okay. My kids do get punished when they break rules, and yes, there are a number of basic rules to follow. Most importantly, my kids are allowed to be kids.

We all have our parenting styles/philosophies. I have friends who are close to being helicopter parents and they are still very good parents. I have friends even more lax than us, or more strict. I'm not judging anyone.

But this weekend I had to stand back and judge myself. We were carving pumpkins and making the girls' costumes. The Monster decided that she was going as a traffic light and her sister would be the car she would make stop. (Oh, that is definite fodder for therapy later in life.) Up first was the pumpkins.

First, there was the insistence on 5 pumpkins and no less. They were cheap and really they are the only decorations I do for Halloween, so I let her get that one. Next we had to decide what kid of face each one would have. The first one was for a surprised face. No problem. I carved an O for a mouth, eyebrows, and rather bad eyes. After that I surveyed the girls for their direction on the second one.

(See what I'm doing there? Giving them choices on things I don't give a damn about but will matter to them. All part of my parenting philosophy so I can hold that against them when it comes to a choice I actually care about.)

So there I am carving a mean face on pumpkin number 2 when The Monster discovers the Sharpie. She quickly proceeds to draw all over the pumpkin. Hair, another set of eyebrows, freckles, words, and random shapes. My instinct was to snap and give her hell for wrecking the pumpkin. In only a few seconds though, I realized that I was about to lose it over a pumpkin. A pumpkin with a life span of a few days on my front steps.

Why shouldn't she colour it with a Sharpie? Why shouldn't it take on its own life in her hands? She isn't allowed to use the knife, so what else is there for her in pumpkin carving other than facial directions?

Another Sharpie later, a very serious discussion about what can and cannot be coloured with said Sharpie, and I let them go to town on the pumpkins. And we were all happier when I stood back.

By the time we came to costumes I was feeling strong. No problem, I can stand back and let them decorate things. Yeah, not so easy. I fought every instinct to step in and help them paint Smilosaurus' car. Doesn't it need windows? Or complete coverage in one colour? So many times my hands reached out to take a brush. In the end I resorted to sitting on them when not adding paint to the palette. Was I happy with the car? It certainly wasn't what I wanted or expected, but they were happy in the process of creating and the little one was ecstatic to wear it. That makes me happy.

One final challenge came with the traffic light costume. Just felt glued, then sewn, to a yellow t-shirt. Nothing fancy, until the addition of LED lights. And, according to the Monster, not quite finished until she added some completely random marks with a black pen. I'll admit, there was a very sharp name-calling and a lot of internal frustration. Then she said she loved it and thought it was perfect now. Who am I to argue with that?

As parents we need to stand back some time to let our kids be kids, let the mess or the tantrum happen, or let them dress themselves even when they look like a hot mess. As crafters and artists we need to stand back some times to let the piece be or speak. As teachers we need to stand back and let the students' voices ring through. And some times we need to stand back and shut the hell up.

A Pretty Thing

Just a scarf.

You've heard me say it before, but I really don't like to sew clothes. There are so many delicious patterns out there and loads of fabric that I do think would make better clothes than quilts, but I can't quite get motivated to break out pattern pieces.

When Jacquie sent me a piece of Anna Maria Horner Good Folks voile I wasn't confident that it would work in a quilt. Yes, all together with a whole bunch of voiles would be fantastic, but I also don't generally do single fabric line quilts. Geez, I really am a picky quilter!

The voile is just too pretty to leave languishing in a stash bin. Unbelievably soft too. Yes, it would make a gorgeous blouse or summer dress. With my clothing sewing skills, however, I also thought it would make a lovely scarf.

Selvage to selvage it is a bit shorter than the conventional 42-44 inches. This makes it too short to be good scarf. When I went searching for a coordinating print I couldn't help but take out an older AMH fabric in that pink. So one side is AMH, the other is grey. A quilter's linen and a Lecien print I picked up in Ontario.

This is ridiculously easy to make. Sew your front pieces together, sew your back pieces together. Then, wrong sides together sew around almost all four sides. Leave a spot to turn it right side out, after clipping the excess fabric from the corners. Top stitch all the way around.

This scarf now goes with me everywhere. I'm not generally a pretty kind of gal when I dress, but I do adore this scarf and even though it is plain jane construction, it makes me feel very pretty to wear it.

Pink

I'm not really sure how to explain it, but I'm kind of digging pink lately.  I find myself drawn to pink images, and especially pink fabric. Maybe because it feels indulgently girly? Or simply because it makes me smile.

Strawberry Sour Cream Ice Cream, courtesy of David Lebovitz. It tastes exactly like my summer berries and cream.

Binding one of the last doll quilts. Thrilled with that Amy Butler as a binding.

Hanging on to late summer evenings and celebrating Smilosaurus' new obsession with a pony tail (this is as good as that gets).

Baking pies with my girls, still in their PJs on a lazy weekend morning.

Experimenting with some new low volume ideas.

In love with my new, custom necklace from SuLu Designs. In love more that the girls notice it when I wear it and tell me how much they love it too.

And where do you see pink today?

Big News For Me

It may not be all that exciting to the rest of you, but it is damn exciting for me. In a little over 2 weeks, I'm retiring. No, I'm not suddenly getting a pension and nor did I call in rich. 

Hubby and I have done a lot of thinking and talking and planning and more talking over the summer. We've decided that life as we've living it isn't sustainable for us, as individuals and as a family. So I am leaving the desk job to be a full-time mom, part time writer. I've been writing professionally on the side for just under a year now (see me here!) and it's time to take it one or two or three steps further. And Hubby's business is booming, but that means he is spending less time at home. We realized that the girls saw the nanny more than us!

This is a huge step for me, personally and professionally. I'm terrified that we will devolve into a very traditional wife/husband thing. The only thing I want from the Mad Men era is the furniture, thank-you very much. There is great comfort in knowing Hubby wants it about as much as I do.

I've also never seen myself as a stay at home mom full-time. I admire the folks who can do it, but I know it isn't in me to do. That's why I will still write part-time. I'll be truly taking advantage of all sleepytimes, but I'm sure I can make it work for me.

Professionally, this is pretty big. I'm putting myself out there. I'm stepping out as an entrepreneur essentially. That is also something I never saw myself doing with life. But to be successful you can't just write well. You need to sell yourself, you need to run a business. I won't be doing this half-assed, that's for sure. I've already made great strides and I can see a lot of work and success in my future.

I want, I need to do it. I'm making the change for me, I'm making my life what I want it to be. No one is doing it for me. And I'm damn proud of myself.

Freedom 35, baby!

Stitch

This week marks the return to reality. Hubby and I ventured East for a wedding and a bit of a holiday. A much needed holiday. I took no laptop, no sketch book, no crackberry, no little hand project. We didn't even take the girls!

This Mama needed a break from it all. 

Imagine my surprise when in the tiny, tiny village we were staying in I come across a fabric store just a few doors down from the cottage we were in. And get this, I managed to stay away from it for 2 whole days!

I am so glad I finally broke free from all that napping, reading, and cuddling to visit. I ogled the yarn (I still can't manage to knit), browsed the small but varied selection of Lecien, reproductions, 30s, French General, and visited with Jocelyn, the owner. And yes, I bought a few things.

Isn't this the sweetest looking quilt/yarn store ever? This is Stitch.

PS Don't forget to be here on Monday. I'm the first stop in a blog tour for Cherri House's City Quilts. I will share with you a special interview with Cherri, and there will be an opportunity to win both a copy of City Quilts and a special fabric treat from Robert Kauffman. And after me comes a great line-up of hosts. Stay tuned!

Calgary Meet-up?

The internet is an interesting place. It allows us to be more open and honest with, perhaps ourselves, and others. We make friendships we might never have started or maintained in the 'real world'. And it allows us a chance to create a community without ever needing to borrow a cup of sugar.

One of the reasons I volunteered for the Local Organizing Committee of Quilt Canada was to meet more local quilters and become engaged in the real world community here in Calgary. And for that it has been fantastic.

As time moves on, however, I find that there are more and more quilters in Calgary that aren't a part of the real world community, rather they are engaged in the on-line world. And that is awesome too.

So, I've decided to host a little get together/meet-up for my readers that are local. I'm also inviting the newly formed Calgary Modern Quilt Guild.

These are my two suggested times.  Sorry, but I do have to work around my Quilt Canada obligations.

Thursday April 29 6:30 pm Drinks

Friday April 30 1:00 Desserts

Once I have an idea of who is interested I will confirm location, but it will be somewhere really close to the Telus Convention Centre, site of the Merchant Mall and shows.

So, grab your horse and come down to meet up. Who's in?

Belated Easter Treats

How very Martha of me. Not that I dyed Easter eggs using cabbage, beets, onions, and turmeric. Not that I also decided to dye some fabric. But the colours are all Martha. And if you look around this site for about five minutes you'll see that I don't generally work in softer colours. Like I always say, it's good to change things up a little.

We dyed eggs with friends on Friday. I was totally enamoured with the colours, and very surprised from that orange from just a few onion skins. So I left all the eggs with our friends, but took home the rest of the dye juices. We dyed a few more eggs but that liquid colour looked too good to throw away. I already had all my scraps out so I grabbed some pieces of white on white and threw them in the bowls. The orange is from onion skins, the yellow from turmeric, and the purple measuring cup contains the liquid from boiled red cabbage.

This is the fabric as it came out of that red cabbage juice. Such a lovely purple. It clearly turned the eggs blue, so this was a bit of a shock. But a good rinse in cold water and some air time to dry and the fabric all turned the same soft blue/grey as the eggs. Perhaps a little less blue.

These are the turmeric stained fabrics right out of the dye water. So yellow! And even though I rinsed and rinsed they stained quite bright. And point of fact: turmeric dyed fabric will smell like turmeric long after it is rinsed and dried.

Look at my strips drying so nicely together!

And here are the eggs and their associated fabrics. In truth, they may be Martha colours, but they really are softer versions of the colours already in our house, namely turquoise and orange.

So I took all the scraps, trimmed them into strips, and started sewing. I went for the silly a little, in making an egg shaped placemat. This was easy to do. I simply created an egg shape out of paper so I had something to compare to as I sewed. You could also use it as a paper pieced project. Then I sewed the strips together. Once I knew I had my desired size I trimmed the top, cut out backing and batting and sewed it all together with right sides together.

Full disclosure, I screwed up twice when sewing it together. That's what I get for rushing to get it done during naptime. But I got myself sorted out and finished it off after turning it all right sides out and sewing that last seam around the edge.

There is a peak of the backing fabric. I put on something bright and fun so that if/when the top gets wrecked/runs I can use the other side for springtime. And there is my Smilosaurus checking it all out.

An Overdue Thanks

Back in August I won a copy of Bend the Rules with Fabric from the author and designer herself, Amy Karol. It was quite a treat really.  I continually pull it out and plan some ideas in my head.  I even went so far as to buy some fabric paint for a specific home decor project, but Hubby vetoed the addition of stamps on the curtains. But Hubby's been away a lot lately.

No, I didn't go ahead and stamp the curtains, but I did make what is known as a Daddy Doll in this house.  You see, the Monster fully recognizes that Daddy is away and come bedtime she gets upset. Personally, I think it is more her knack for melodrama than actually being upset, but who am I to argue with a crying three year old? Then I remembered a specific project from the book.

With a little help from a good friend at work and her Photoshop skills (I have none) and a drawing of Daddy that The Monster herself made I turned this:

into this:

To be honest, it isn't the best example of what the concept is. We had a major printing error where the head, inexplicably, printed itself about 3 inches from the body.  But the printable fabric is expensive so I had to figure out a way to make it work.  How very Tim Gunn of me. So I cut out the shape, without making Hubby look a little too male, and hand appliqued it on. Hubby picked the fabrics, it was his doll after all. And I rescued the filling from an old, unused pillow. It isn't quite the same effect as the original concept, but the end result is the same - less crying at bedtime when Daddy was away.

Workshop in Progress - March 10

Isn't this lovely? It was a surprise gift from a surprising person. More on that story another time.

But what I want to do is handstitch it to some grey linen. I've never done that before so I'm looking for advice. How much tacking down do you need to do? Do you match the thread to the yarn? What sort of prep work needs to be done? Is it better done in a hoop? Anything you can share would be appreciated.

Elsewhere in the workshop today, Elle, as always, is at it with another exciting project. Having known her since before her daughter's wedding and the birth of her grandchildren, I know the challenge she has in getting a quilt done for her. But yay, it's time for binding. With so many colours in the quilt, what do you think she should go for?

Beth over at Love Laugh Quilt has the prettiest pink and brown quilt on deck. The only challenge is that she's set in on point, so she needs some help with picking the right fabric for her setting triangles. What do you think?

Do you avoid certain colours? What happens when you are faced with a challenge to use something that maybe isn't your taste? Andrea at Millions of Thoughts Trapped in My Head is struggling with an exciting use for forest green. My gut tells her to match it with peach, but that may be because my childhood bedroom was that combo. How very 80s of me!

What about the rest of you? If I missed your post, let me know.

A Pillow

My latest little hand project is complete. A week in my chair and this sweet pillow is now propping up my knees and their ice packs.

Made with a little fusible applique, outlined with a simple black running stitch. The background was actually a sarong that someone gave me a long time ago. I hand quilted the whole thing, and backed it with some Amy Butler Full Moon Dots in Tangerine.

The inspiration for the project came directly from Marisa at Creative Thursday. Really, the inspiration was two fold.  One, she is such a positive spirit, even in the face of struggles and challenges. When I took her e-course she commented that she is generally a happy person and that she refuses to apologize for that. Good for her. And eye-opening for me. I've been accused of being negative (cynical?) by some pretty important people to me. But one can easily choose to be happy and live happy. It is still a challenge for me, but it is working.

Besides, if I let all the crap that happens to us get me down I would never get out of bed in the morning!

The second point of inspiration was the composition of the piece.  Marisa makes the sweetest paintings, sculpture, and books. Make sure you take a look through her Etsy site. It is guaranteed to make you happy. While I would never want to copy her work, I'd like to think that this pillow is truly an 'inspired by' piece. It doesn't hurt that it simply makes me happy to look at it.

(And immediately after filling it and putting it on the couch the Monster curled up next to it for an impromptu nap. Now that makes me happy.)