Valerean

Last Thursday I saw my diabetes doc, and while I have a couple of minor issues to work on (getting my A1C down to 6.5; losing the last 20 lbs.) I am in very good shape. Even my habitually low blood pressure was lower, which means the exercise is still paying off. He was quite pleased, and it's always a relief to have a good checkup. As I've been rather anxious over all this, and also deeply upset over recent events in the world, I gave myself the next day and the weekend off to take it easy, especially as the following week was my deadline week for my first day job project of the year. At present I'm working up the last of a skein of variegated yarn into a no pattern moss-stitched clutch for my art supplies, mainly so I can see the color changes in this yarn (Bitty Stripes by Red Heart Super Saver in Moonbeam) and use up the rest of the skein. After that I'm going to make a quilt for my nephew's dog. Maybe. I'm trying not to put any more pressure on myse...

Despite my best intentions the only quilting I did last month was my March tote for my calendar project, and there was barely any of that involved (basically some applique of the two fabric panels.) I want to say that I simply ran out of time and month, but honestly whenever I wanted to work on something I opted for crochet, as I'm better at that now. To get myself motivated I've made myself a mini-challenge: make something quilted every week in April. As a warmup for the challenge I decided to use was this flamingo novelty fabric I bought at the county quilt show last year to make a bowl mat for my nephew's dog. I sewed and quilted this mat almost entirely by machine, and it only took a couple hours. It's not perfect, but it turned out much better than I expected. I have to admit, part of my problem with quilting is that I resent having to do so much by machine now. I'm just not a machine quilter at heart. That said, it was a lot less painful th...

My gears are definitely whirling this week. If I don't make an effort to quilt something (other than my calendar project) I'll probably stop altogether and get completely caught up in crochet, so it's time to plan some quilting projects. At the quilt show last year I bought some fabrics that I haven't yet used, like this bundle of dragon/castle/treasure themed novelty prints that I'd like to turn into a tote (maybe for the calendar project.) I planned to start quilting by machine this year, but I haven't yet worked up the nerve to try a fully machine-quilted project. Same with this arty motivational novelty print bundle. Actually this one I might save for the calendar project, too. Then there is this panel yardage scrap with flamingos. I have to do something fun with this. I'm still struggling with the necessary step of giving up hand-quilting. My arthritis is flaring up so constantly it's always uncomfortable for me to hand stitch, an...

I like to regularly look back at what I was doing last year by going through my photo archive. In March 2025 I was pretty busy trying to keep my balance and calm through some tough times. This quilt made from thrifted fabric really helped. I was also working on the first granny square project I'd done in decades. I thrifted and refinished this table to serve as a stand for my sewing machines. I also thrifted the curtain that I'm currently making into a quilted tote for my calendar project this year. Seeing these photos is mildly distressing, actually. I was constantly bombarded by family drama in 2025, and tolerated a lot of inconsiderate behavior from others, which I am not doing this year. It's not that the situation has changed, it's that I finally put my foot down and started saying no to requests and activities that will result in my unhappiness. Just last night I was asked again to do something that in the past I've done out of polite...

I like to think that I don't fall in love easily, but when it comes to crochet and quilting actually I do. Sometimes despite my best intentions it happens at first sight. That's why I'm careful not to get on Pinterest or Instagram and start envy-scrolling through all the crochet and quilt pics. I do love seeing what others make, but I also can and will fall in love with something and then become obsessed with making my own version. It's the same way I can get distracted by story ideas, and why I have to jot down the bones and file them away. If I didn't I'd never get anything done. For some reason pattern books are safe for me. I can see a gorgeous project like this crochet moorish mosaic throw and love it without having to go and pull yarn and start working on one right away. Maybe it's because I own the pattern and I know I can get to it any time. There are still some quilts I would like to make that I fell in love with at first sight, like ...

I often find patterns for quilting projects online at quilter's web sites and blogs, but only recently have I started looking at fabric sites. I was kind of blown away by how many free patterns are out there to be downloaded and printed out for free from these sites. Art Gallery Fabrics has a very nice collection of free patterns , including this one for a Sunshine Kisses quilt by Katie Skoog. I've always wanted to make one of these diagonal rectangle quilts, the Cobblestone pattern for which I found over at Robert Kaufman Fabrics among the almost two thousand pages of free patterns. I fell in love at first sight with this Office Cats pattern by Wendy Sheppard over at Windham Fabrics free quilt pattern collection , which also offers many filters to help refine the results for what you're searching for. When companies are selling lines of fabric prints they often offer free patterns as an enticement for quilters to buy the fabric. So if you're looking f...

My editor just approved the project I'll be working on this year for my day job, which is a great thing. Every day this week I'll be working on outlining the five phases of the project, which also need to be approved, and once I get the green light on them I'll be ready to start on the first. Meanwhile, I have other things at home that I'll also be working on, like cleaning out and tidying up my very messy pantry. It got like this due to a combination of the holidays and deadline week last month, and I can't stand it, so that's the first housework project of the year. My first crochet project for 2026 is coming along nicely; one more skein and I'll be half done with it. The first tote of my calendar project is working up a little slowly, but considering my limitations I think I've made decent progress. Once I finish sewing down the patchwork I'll begin embellishing it with embroidery and beading, and (hopefully) some hand-quilting. Jan...

Last year I picked up this pretty furoshiki in case I needed to wrap any holiday gifts. As it turned out I only gave physical gifts to my guy, and none of them quite fit the furoshiki. So now I need to use it, and I think I'll make it the center of an improv quilt. Here's one of the quilts I made for a friend. The design is my own, and the first time I tried building a quilt around a furoshiki. I think it's one of the prettiest quilts I've ever made. Here's another furoshiki-inspired quilt I made a few years ago. With two completed quilts I feel confident that I can make this latest acquisition into something fun -- maybe in dark blue, black, gold and white colors. Stay tuned to see my design and the fabrics I choose for the project.

I've created an album with pics of my 2025 mini-quilt calendar project for anyone who wants to see more, and read my thoughts about the project and how it helped me get through what has been a horrendous year.

The afghan I made out of yarn scraps was meant to last another month, but my hands seized up with a bad arthritis flare so I kept working on it until it was large enough to use on cold nights. Very happy with how it turned out -- certainly colorful. I'm still hand quilting the pink only quilt, which has been fun but also a bit of a bear to manage. Crochet is good for me, too. It helps me work out a lot of frustration and aggression, like what I imagine punching a heavy bag is for a boxer. I just don't have wear the clunky gloves. :) Seriously, being able do something that I love (crochet) as physical therapy in order to keep doing I desperately don't want to give up doing (quilting) has also helped me deal with the depression over the limitations and fading abilities of old age, too. Going to the quilt show this year also helped my spirits tremendously. No matter what condition I'm in, being around quilts and the people who make them makes me happy. N...

By the time this post publishes I will have attended the county quilt show (all the things in the pic were what I bought there in 2024.) Last year I had a lovely time at it with my guy and my favorite person, and invested in a few things for myself, but this year I will probably just go to take pics of the quilts and only buy a little fabric for a friend and finished quilted projects made by the guild members (my way of showing support.) I need to stop buying fabric for myself, as my ability to quilt things by hand is almost over, and I already have enough to last me ten lifetimes. It's a little sad, but it's also part of life. I've been hand-quilting for over thirty years with hands that have been partially crippled, and I knew the day would come when my fingers would no longer cooperate. I'm happy I was able to quilt as long as I have. It's tempting to wail over losing my dexterity, too, because honestly it does seem so unfair. Then I think of what my lif...

I've been tucking a little money away all year so I could shop at the county quilt show, and this was my haul. I really didn't buy a lot of fabric by comparison to past years, and I spent about half my money in the guild's boutique buying things they made like the placemats and chili pepper hot pad; this helps support their work. I also got some fabric carrots and a pin kit. I visited many of the vendors, who offered some very cool bargains. One was this mystery bag from The Quilted Peacock. Lots of scrap and yardage fabric inside, plus a book quilt pattern and a walking foot for a Janome. I'm going to pass along the latter but I might make a book quilt out of all the fabrics. :) One vendor complimented me on my OOAK shirt, which a dear friend made for me. So I bought these embroidery threads from her booth. You say nice things to me, I buy something from you. :) I met the guild member who made this adorable note pad holder as I was checking ou...

Once I had the foundation of the pink-only quilt put together, I needed to create my own template for the destroyer, and work out where I would put my poem. An hour and a lot of erasing later, I cut out a very rough template for the destroyer element. I also thought the bottom right would be the best spot for the poem. Th top, sides and bottom of the quilt will have flamingo appliques everywhere, and I want the poem to be easy to read by the beholders. During my breaks (and mostly out of idle curiosity) I started making the scarf pattern I found on the back of the label for the self-striping yarn, using a thrifted jumbo skein of Red Heart Super Saver Wildflower yarn. It's fairly mindless and pretty enough that I want to finish it, so that will be my next side project.

Last night I had a bit of a quandry as I discovered the fabric I thrifted for the backing of the pink-only quilt had stains from being soaked in dirty water, probably from a garage being flooded. It's so light I couldn't see it until I had it under the sewing room light. Since I don't know if I can get the stains out, I decided to use the dark pink fabric I thrifted for the backing. I then put it together with thrifted batting and the top made out of thrifted pillow cases and pinned it. I'm ready to start adding the fabric elements. On my breaks I made a winter hat out of a skein of thrifted variegated yarn using this pattern plus four extra rows to add a brim, which I flip down to keep my ears warm on cold mornings. The leftover yarn is about 1/3 of a 5 oz. skein of Red Heart Super Saver Macaw, so it took 2/3 of a skein.

Back at the beginning of Octber I won a lot of fabric for $19.90 on a buy it now option, paid for it and waited for it to arrive. Two weeks later I hadn't gotten even a shipping notice, so I sent a query via customer service to the seller (who I've dealt with before and usually ships within 5 business days) on the thrift auction site about when they were planning to ship it to me. Here's the response I got: Hi Valerean I’m really sorry for the delay. I have not been able to locate this order as it is not in its assigned location due to a system error. Our managers are currently aware of the situation and are actively searching for your order. If you would like to allow more time, then there is no need to respond to this closed ticket. If you have any further concerns, please respond as we will then be notified of your response. Apologies again, and kind Regards. Customers can cancel an order and request a refund, something I've never done. I've only h...

Last night I started on my pink-only quilt challenge by deciding on the arrangement of the foundation fabric for the quilt top. My original plan was to use three pillow cases and some thrifted yardage for that, but once I put them all together the dark pink yardage seemed like too much in that quantity, so I set it aside. This is the final color arrangement for the foundation, which I'll iron and piece today. This will not be a huge art quilt, but there will be enough room for my planned imagery and the poem I wrote. I'm keeping all the scraps and unwanted pieces from the project to one side so I can use them again for other elements. Because I'm anxious about how this piece will turn out I'm taking my time and just doing it very calmly and slowly. I'll work on it everyday in November until I finish it, or December arrives.

For me self-care is turning out to be more than just doing nice things for myself. It's making changes in what I do and how I do it to avoid problems and be realistic as well as kinder to myself. I was looking through my photo archives and found this pic from last year around this time. I was within eight weeks or so of finishing my calendar mood blanket, and it already covered our king size bed. That was when I realized I'd made it a lot bigger than the original pattern, probably due to my choice to use thrifted worsted weight yarn, the bigger hook I employed, and my hand problems creating bigger rather than smaller stitches. As I recall I wasn't really upset about it -- stuff happens when you make stuff -- but now I think I need to start actually checking the gauge before I began a crochet project. I've always eyeballed it since, well, forever, and it's time to stop doing that to avoid disappointment. For a while now I've been forbidding myself ...