I got a little distracted at work today .....

....  and starting planning a new quilt with my highlighter.  That ever happen to you? 

Camper Quilt

My niece Lisa and her family just love, love, love to camp.  In fact, you can never find them at their house on the weekends spring through fall.  Last year when I first forayed into online fabric shops I found the Michael Miller vintage camper line.  I was so excited I threw a half yard of each fabric into my cart and purchased them that day even though I didn't have a plan.  I just .had.to.have.them. to make something ... anything .. for Lisa. 

I decided to make a quilt for their camper to use for all the sorts of things you'd use a quilt for on a camping trip.  Picnic blanket, chair pad, leg warmer on a chilly morning while drinking coffee by the creek, camp fire seating, table cover, pillow, etc, etc.  Well, my quilting is apparently not going to coincide with the yearly cycles very well (hence my autumnal brown and orange quilt that I finished this June while everyone else was breaking out the summer brights) because it would have been much nicer to give this to Lisa at the beginning of the season.  But I have no doubt they will be camping again this year and all of the next years coming up.  Lisa's birthday was last week so I kinda missed that target too but decided that quilt making/giving just can't be on a timetable. It's impossible.  Life is too unpredictable!

There's Lisa in her stylish sunglasses and capris!  All she is missing is her vodka tonic. 

I went with a snowball block (process post here) so I could showcase the larger scenes on some of the fabrics and Kona tomato for the accents and binding.  I wanted to give it a vintagy red theme since Lisa is a cool girl that loves stuff a little funky.   

Fall Cleaning

I love this time of year.  Something about the beginning of September just feels full of possibilities.  I have this incredible urge to finally clean the house, throw out all the piles that have collected around the edges, and start everything fresh.  Doesn't fall cleaning make so much more sense than spring cleaning?  I mean really, you are going to be snuggled in the house for six months ... don't you want it clean and comfortable? 

The combination of the hottest summer in recent history, two vacations, my son collecting items for his college apartment and all of us working full-time led to an almost explosive situation of dust, clutter, dog hair, unexplainable sticky spots and smells. 

Friday night we got Carson all moved into his apartment and I was  up bright and early on Saturday to start my fall cleaning.  I purged, purged, purged!  And  it felt GOOD!  I sorted out piles of old mail and papers, threw out a heap of mending I was never going to get to, chucked a couple unfinished projects I felt guilty about every time I moved them.  My recycle bin was overflowing with magazines and catalogs and my donate pile was delivered to various places immediately. 

Sunday night it felt so good to sit on the couch and plan some new projects while every surface was clear and pledge-wiped.  I'm working on a new quilt and hopefully I'll be able to get some sewing time in now that the nights will be getting longer.

top secret project waiting patiently to be sewn together

Labor Day weekend heralds the beginning of my favorite three months.  Fresh apples, fresh haircuts, sharpened pencils, casseroles in the oven, pumpkins, mums.  What could be better?  Now excuse me while I run the the store for a sparkling fresh notebook and a set of really cool pens.

Happy Mail

I was the winner of a supercool collage handmade by Kristin at Woollypetals and was so excited to see a pretty package on my porch when I got home last night!  Not only did I get this fun and flirty collage Kristin also put a cool owl stamp and some other little goodies.  That was a nice end to a busy day.  This has also given me a great incentive to clean up my house this weekend and rearrange!  Sometimes getting something new is all it takes to re-energize  me in that department. 

We've been busy getting my son Carson ready to move into his college apartment.   I made curtains this weekend we've been collecting pans and dishes and all sorts of sundries.  I'm so excited for him getting to live with his friends and feel out the adulthood waters while still kind of cocooned in the college world.  Hmmmm....  four math/science majors sharing an apartment .... great fodder for a sitcom! 

The day before I left for vacation I received another happy mail package from my bloggy friend Tiffany.  She makes her own soap and she sent me a bar of lavender rose geranium and rose geranium and lemongrass.  Oh!  Do they smell wonderful and I've been dreaming about lathering up with them.  I've been waiting to clean up my bathroom good before I get these out so even more incentive to get moving.  The weather is cooler and Carson's boxes and piles will be gone from all the corners and halls (sniff, sniff) so I'm really getting a mood taking over me.  Watch out house!!

Zucchini Sunday

I've declared today "Zucchini Sunday" and I'm determined to use up every zucchini in this house and then call it quits for the year.  If you know who I am and where I live  **PLEASE** do not bring me another zucchini!   

Zucchini Bread ....

I use applesauce in place of the vegetable oil in the recipe

Zucchini Chips .....

and a zucchini casserole is going in the oven now. 

It's been a great season and I've loved every one of these green wonders.  But, as they say, all good things must eventually come to an end. 

Good-bye zucchini. I'll be delighted to see you next summer :)

The Block That Almost Defeated Me ... or ... Why I Quit Sewing After Ten O'Clock

Whew!  Finally finished my blocks for the Sampler Quilt a Long with Amy.  I almost called it quits this week because I was busy with my summer life (see previous post with rant on why I don't like summer) and trying to fit in enough sewing to just complete these blocks.  I hate to get behind on sew a long projects because part of the reason I like to get involved is the comradery I feel with the other quilters who are working on the exact same thing.  I love that at first but then I end up feeling this self-imposed pressure when I get behind.  Crazy me.  I had all my pieces cut and sewed together this block one night while all bleary-eyed before bed.  When I got up the next morning and looked at it one piece was upside down.  That night at ten I picked the whole strip apart, flipped the upside down piece and sewed it back together.  The next morning I get up and ALL pieces are wrong.   It's like evil magic possesses me when I sew before bed. 

Actually none of these match at this point but I think you got the point without me drawing two more circles

I put it all aside for a few days but felt I couldn't be defeated with only two more blocks to go.  I picked the whole entire block apart and steamed ironed each square and then set it aside until this morning after I had three cups of coffee.  Voila!!   Here are my week six and week eight blocks and then all of them together.  What a satisfying sight :)

Notice the perfectly placed hourglasses!  

I had made two blocks of a few at the beginning so I could make mine a little longer as I'm a rectangular quilt kinda girl.  I've got a deadline project to start on quick and will get to the sashing and assembling the quilt top right after that.  I just felt that if I didn't get these squares completed I wouldn't go back and finish the final two.  Onward ....

Why can't we always be on vacation?

Back from my vacation and getting slowly back into the groove. 

My only sewing project is keeping up with the sampler quilt-a-long and here are my block from week seven.  Week six was when I was gone so I still have to work on those.  I've really learned a lot from this quilt.  I have finally mastered trimming the half square triangle and have neatened up my 1/4" seam.  But the biggest thing I've gleaned is how to chain sew my quilt blocks in a more efficient manner.  I love the way Amy gets all her pieces pinned and then sews them all at once.  Yes ... I'm sure everyone else already knew this ... but it was a revelation for me!  If only you could only have witnessed the way in which I pinned and sewed and stopped and started and clipped and clipped and clipped.  It was ridiculous and a tremendous time waster.  I'm amazed sometimes when I realize something so simple that I just.didn't.know.it before. 

Tried to mix up the background a little

This is going to be my last quilt a long for a while.  I'm anxious to see what I can do on my own now.  I've got some great ideas of what kind of quilts I'm drawn to and I'd like to really start designing and seeing what I come up with. Can I come up with anything??  I guess we'll see .....

I'll be visiting my honey in Boston this weekend and then getting my son settled in his apartment for college (gasp!).  Sewing him some curtains and doing some school shopping will be my activities for the next two weeks.  But September is coming .....