more blocks

as mentioned, more civil war diary blocks got sewn this week....the finish on this project is nowhere in sight but nevertheless will continue....the paper piecing is giving my vacuum a serious workout. no sooner than one session is tidy, a few more blocks and the floor is covered again with bits of paper and snippets of fabric....i do suffer for my art!  i haven't vacuumed this much in....well, never!

even though april is gone, figured might as well continue on making these blocks, fitting in other tasks plus quilting a couple of things.  a wall quilt is nearly finished quilting and the bed size is about half done.  with hot weather already starting to arrive, there'll be more days to sew with a/c cranked up.  ***  it's been a week of challenges and some minor stresses but those got offset with a nice concert at the local college and some sewing time with peeps.  my next goal is to make pals with that jeopardy champion....my car needs more work....LOL!

a merry month!

blogging has taken a back seat to sewing this past week with the construction of several more civil war diary blocks, lots of hand quilting.....plenty of pix to follow on another day.  but yesterday in the mail came an adorable little doll quilt from susan in TN....

simple but very nicely done and pretty fabrics.....this will hang on my antique sled along with a couple of others that get changed around periodically....summer is arriving this week with temps in the 80s for a couple of days...soon it'll be that warm and more every day...meaning my vacation is getting closer....lobster rolls on the horizon!

reluctant windfall

package received yesterday contained these oh-so beautiful kaffe fassett light fabrics....wasn't exactly thrilled altho they are gorgeous and experienced serious drool....

they were bought by someone specifically for a class that could not be attended so they came to me...a thoughtful but bittersweet gift.....and in the hit and miss department, 2 more blocks done but whoa....one is not like the photo as i neglected to piece right side up...huh?  gotta keep that in mind as i move along in this project....can see now why the war was so long...LOL!

and while visiting a neighboring guild today, found yet another super book on the free table....after depositing all the ugly fabrics had pulled from my own stash last week....it's a beauty too....lots of hand quilting, beautiful medallions with scads of border ideas and a pretty solids quilt too!

and the ugly fabrics?  most got taken to be loved by someone else....so there's room on my shelves for the new kaffes.....a win/win day all around!  *** even after quilting 40 years, find that my style preferences are in constant change, attracted by new and old patterns.  life is so brief and each day is precious....but excited about where my muse will take me in the next 40!

monday design wall

spent Easter sunday afternoon playing with betty and making headway on the civil war blocks....got these 4 done plus another is almost....

and let me tell you, "death penalty" is aptly named!  happy with the result tho.... also on sunday went thru the remainder of the shelf stash and also the reds/greens/tans that were in shoeboxes and culled a few more weird 'will never use' prints....am quite happy with the result now that it is better suited for my likes.  once the stove is cleaned will be ready for long summer days of sewing.  again this year will be taking a maine vacation to fill my mom hugs tank, visit with my siblings and scarf down as much seafood as possible.  we are both counting the days already and with may almost here, vacation isn't far beyond.  now off to spend this day!

a blessed Easter!

once again, the Easter bunny has bypassed my new location...faulty GPS maybe?  made a pre-emptive choice and procured my own jelly beans....after all, it isn't Easter without them, right?  hmmmm not many left, either...and dug up this photo of an Easter gone by....me and brother #1 circa 1956-57...taken on the church lawn.  i know it was Easter because of the dress and the brown maine lawn...had to be shortly before we moved to Massachusetts...

and with all my household chores done (except the stove) it'll be a laid-back sewing day for me and a delicious dinner of the un-ham....chicken of course!  **** my swappee received her doll quilt yesterday...another UFO done and gone!

this is sajou, a sew along thru lori's blog that got finished and gifted....it was difficult to let go but i am sure it'll be enjoyed as much by someone else....and since betty bernina is patiently waiting, must go and play!

coincidence?

last week visited a nearby guild and on the free table was this little book of geometric quilts in lovely solids.....

back in my formative quilting days, was never a devotee of gwen marston's simply because i was too rigid and cautious, aka no confidence at all in being "liberated"....and now this week she has passed on...joining so many others who inspired novice quilters like me in the 1970s and 1980s, people like mary ellen hopkins, virginia avery, jeff gutcheon, yvonne porcella, jean ray laury, monica calvert, sally palmer field....thus this little but powerful book is now more important as a testament to gwen's liberating style.  flip thru old quilt mags and you'll find gwen giving advice and encouragement to many who yearned to earn the title of quilter....another empty seat at the frame.....

got strips?

as you can see, i've got plenty but this sizable tote had only ONE measly, piddly, itty, bitty aqua strip for this month's rainbow scrap challenge blocks!!!  how revolting is that!!!  i took on this challenge to empty this tote, or at least make a dent, but so far...nada.  so back to the stash for aqua FQs to cut up and now, of course, there are more aqua strips in the tote....groan....making it more jammed than before.  

but now they are done for april...once again, this pattern is bonnie hunter's 'crayon box' found on her website...and more civil war blocks are done as well...

the red/black/white block is so well named...plenty of anxiety over the 2 hours it took to make it but result is quite acceptable to me.  ***** and today's cup runs over with thankfulness for how good i am feeling, how far i've come in not-yet 1.5 years since open heart surgery...did i actually have that?  so hard to believe at this point.  the restrictions, the meds, the exercise are all routine now, which i never thought would happen...hoping you find blessings in your day as well...they are there!

a finish!

had a small UFO that served as my doll quilt swap piece that is now done!  a win/win situation!   just have to wash, dry and then mail!  once received, i'll show the front!

and today's dish?  a nearly no-salt quiche, more like a savory custard since reduced the amount of cheese by half and added more veggies--sauteed leeks, mushrooms, onions.  the salt culprit here is the store-bought crust but since it'll be eaten over 3-4 days, can manage.  used to buy croissants, pizza crust, biscuits in the tube but no more...too much salt for me.  ditto for rotisserie chicken...at my local store it has 850 mg of sodium per 4 oz serving... my ex, a sometimes sober alcoholic, used to say there was nothing worse than a reformed anything as they would be on the soapbox constantly but it isn't my intent to tell anyone what or how much to eat, smoke, drink or anything else.  making this change has been very hard for me--nobody likes cheetos better--but on a restricted budget and with food choice no-nos, i'm always tickled to find something delicious and allowed.  now doesn't this look yummy?  and it really is!

weekend update

two good days, one cloudy and rainy and one sunny, made up the weekend but since sewing was on the agenda both days, it was a good weekend indeed.  **** first up was a few household chores and some food prep....

these are my go-to, cardiology-approved stuffed peppers.  i participate in a couple of food programs that give me one box every month of meats and produce and a weekly program that is just produce.  much of it is rescued food that has been turned down by retailers but good nonetheless.  the selection varies every week and this week was peppers, 2 each of mangoes, oranges, apples, acorn squash, grape tomatoes and eggplant.  most has to be used fairly soon so the eggplant and grape tomatoes got roasted with onions, garlic, ital seasoning.  in the monthly box came ground turkey, a roasting chicken, fresh tomatoes/cukes/lettuce, potatoes and onions and oranges.  so made up these for the week ahead with no salt added, even canned stewed tomatoes had no salt added.  having such a severe restriction is a lot of extra work and rules out nearly anything canned/boxed/frozen, most restaurant meals and everything in the grocery store that isn't fresh.  this is my own recipe concocted out of desperation.  there is about a tablespoon of worcestershire sauce for zing.  the corn was in a previous week's order that i cut off the cob and sauteed with a bit of pepper then froze.  this will give me a few days' respite...lol!   ***  now for the sewing part...i quilted some on my big quilt, finished up the doll quilt that i'll show later....and made these 2 civil war diary blocks.

still more household tasks on the to-do list but i'll be spacing them out to fit in more fun sewing time...war rages on!

early morning skirmish

can't believe it has been 11 days since april started and i'm just now getting to this project....dang, time does fly by!  and notice how i left the star a bit wonky to give it that antique look?  i'm using this tactic now and then to give my stuff authenticity...LOL....the doll quilt for the swap is just about ready to fly outta here too!  will be focusing on the "war" blocks and quilting the cabana daydreams, plus sneak in a basting day someplace as well before may rolls around....for hand piecing busy with more bow ties and the new england sampler applique border.   better stop there!  have a quilty day all.....