Valerean

Since I did such a depressing post yesterday I thought I'd try something more cheerful today. Because my arthritis is advancing more rapidly than I thought it would I have to really start being selective about the quilts I make -- including the larger ones that I've had on my bucket list for a while. So I've whittled down the list to three quilts, and only add more when I finish those three. Okay, that probably doesn't sound cheerful to you, but it is to me. :) #1 is this Secret Garden quilt pattern I bought a few years back. It's fairly simple and I understand the directions. I just need to gather the fabrics and make it. I've always wanted to do this Desert Sun quilt pattern, but I need to practice the piecing technique before I try. That's why this will be #2 on the list. Finally I added the #3 quilt, one that is fairly advanced but still seems like something I may be able to manage: Anne Marie Saudo's Kintsugi quilt from Simpl...

I finally found the perfect backing fabric (green print at the top) for my double wedding ring quilt top at JoAnn, and also got it 50% off. I'll probably make the binding out of the backing fabric, too. All I need to do is decide on the quilting thread -- probably dark green for the print patchwork, and white for the rest -- and I'll be ready to put this project together and start stitching.

There are a couple of quilts that every diehard traditional quilter wants to make, but for me the top three have always been a silk crazy (crashed and burned on that last year), a bed-size wholecloth (no patchwork; just two large pieces of cloth + batting that are stitched together), and a completely hand-stitched double wedding ring (I collect them, and I've restored several, but I've never made one on my own.) Since my ability to hand stitch anything is fading fast I've had to adjust my expectations. But I still have enough dexterity to quilt, so I bid on this lap size hand-stitched double wedding ring on eBay, and I won it. I love the colors, and it's small enough for me to handle the work, so this will be my summer art quilting project.

Happy first day of Fall, y'all. :) It's been a long, hot, rainy Summer, so for once I'm looking forward to the cooler temps. I bought these blocks to make them into a lap quilt, and they're so pretty I have to add them to the hand quilting bucket list. The seller sent along a photo of the original pattern, which is a log cabin set on point: I also have these Asian print fans that I bought that refuse to stay in their storage bin: It's going to be a fun year. :)

I finished up the first runner from my fab four projects, and I think it turned out to be one of the prettiest I've ever made: I changed my mind on the color of the variegated perle I used for the feather stitching, opting for a hand-dyed blue/violet ombre instead: I also ran out of the perle thread about six inches from finishing. Since it's no longer available to buy more from the one lady who makes it, I thought I'd have to unpick all the stitching and do it over. Aka total disaster. Only I dug through my thread stash to see if I had something close, and discovered I'd actually bought two skeins of it. So I was able to finish without a problem. Even the backing turned out neat: Since my guy liked this one so much I'm keeping it. I thought it looked nice on the counter between the kitchen and dining room: Stop by tomorrow and I'll show you which project will be next.

These are the first four projects I'll be working on from my bucket listed to-do bin: I felt like the My Secret Garden scrap quilt, the shibori fabrics art piece, and two table runners had the most appeal for me, and whenever you take a new direction you should be excited about it. I'll start with this table runner: The aqua broadcloth I had intended as the backing wasn't quite wide enough to work, so I switched it with a white/blue starburst print: I'm going to stagger these projects with the holiday gifts I'll going to start making next month, too. I have Mom's birthday quilt to do before November, and then a quilt for Oliver that I didn't get done last year, and something special for Katherine (who reads this blog occasionally, so that's all I'm saying on that subject.) For those reasons most of the to-do projects will likely roll over into 2021.

I got this warning in my fortune cookie from our Chinese takeout: It sounds ominous, right? It certainly could be, but I don't think it is. What it immediately called to mind for me was all the projects I've stuck in my to-do bin: As I mentioned last month I'm losing function in my only working hand due to the progression of my arthritis, and I think by this time next year I won't be able to hand stitch anymore. Now I can whine and cry about that (and I have), or I can get on with what I want to do right now while I can still do hand work. I can do a lot in a year, trust me. :) Along with my silk crazy quilt I've added my to-do bin to my hand quilting bucket list. So I unpacked the bin to look at everything and decide in what order I should do them: These are shibori fabrics dyed by a textile artist; I have some vague notions on making them into an art piece. I've always wanted to make a queen or king size version of the Yellow Brick Road pa...