Love and Piece

Whew!  Three more blocks are finished and ready to go.  They were definitely the most time-consuming blocks I've made this month.  Every minute of my spare time the past few days has been spent on them.  But there's no rest for the weary... I've still got two potholders for Bee a {modern} Swapper and two charity blocks to make before month's end.

For this month's Love Circle block, Rachel chose Polaroid blocks based on this tutorial.  My kids saw them in progress and asked what Polaroids are (aren't they cute).  So we hopped on Google, and through the power of the interwebs they learned all about Polaroid cameras, and now "Hey Ya" makes a little more sense to them.  Of course now we're in the market for a Polaroid camera (one of the older models, which I've seen at estate and yard sales).

The tutorial recommended paper-piecing the individual polaroids, but I opted to chain-piece them based on the measurements given for the fussy cut centers and white strips.  I attempted to make some of them jauntily askew, but it sort of looks like I wasn't precise with the squaring up.  The thought came into my head to un-sew the blocks and skew them a bit more, but then out it went.  I might have done so if these were the last of my sewing commitments (maybe).

Kelly asked for blocks pertaining to being sick with cold and flu for Piece Bee.  My first couple of ideas were claimed right away.  Then I though back to my childhood, and every single time I or one of my siblings had an inkling of a cough, out came the Vicks Vaporub and the humidifier.  Vicks, along with Mercurochrome, were my parents' weapons of choice against childhood ailments and injuries.  (I had forgotten all about Mercurochrome until this month's theme came up.  Here's why it isn't sold anymore.)

On the docket this afternoon are two charity blocks that a fellow guild member is collecting for a Quilts of Valor project, and then some much-needed housekeeping. 

Of birthdays, bags and blocks

Another birthday has come and gone.  I've reached an age where birthdays are quietly celebrated, and I value a relaxing day off from domestic duties more than anything else.  To that end, my husband, who knows me so well, arranged for a friend to watch the little guy all day, as well as shuttle the older kids home from school and to their various sports activities.

With no responsibilities to see to, my husband and I drove down to Monterey and whiled away the morning at an antique mall.  From there we went to Carmel for lunch and an afternoon wandering the quaint downtown area and footpath along the beach.  It's very rare that my husband and I have time to ourselves, so this was the perfect way to spend the day. 

Before we left on the birthday jaunt, I received a package from my FTLOS Swap partner.  As soon as I saw the point of origin on the envelope, I knew the contents held this gorgeous bag and mini wall-hanging I was hoping against hope were for me as soon as I saw them in the swap photo pool.

The bag is ideal for library books (with three kids we usually check out loads of books) or sewing projects, and the wall-hanging is the first handmade to grace my (tiny) sewing area.  Louise at lululollylegs got it just right.  She even (unknowingly) timed the package to arrive on my birthday!

The last week of the month brings the usual flurry of work on bee blocks and guild projects.  For this month's Piece Bee With You block, Jacqueline requested cat blocks.  I wanted to do something a little different, so I settled on the Cheshire cat from Alice in Wonderland.  He's meant to look like he's disappearing, leaving his grin and facial features.  My children think it's a little spooky- Martina described it as haunting.  Hope Jacqueline doesn't find it too creepy.

The rest of the week's tasks are settling on a project for the BAMQG Echo challenge, choosing a block for the 3x6 Mini Sampler bee, and some prep work for the guild's Q2 charity quilts.  I've fallen hopelessly behind on the A-Z Quilt-along, so I'll just do the letters for April and catch up later.

Yes ma'am

Goodness it feels like ages since I've written a blog post.  And, though I did finish hand-stitching the binding on a quilt a friend of mine made,  I haven't picked up any of my own projects since finishing up the Quilt for a Smile charity quilt over a week ago.  I should change my blog name to "Sew Lazy" or something similar.

Tonight should be a little more productive as it will be spent at Open Sew at the LQS.  I feel compelled to clean my machine before I head out, though.  I got schooled at the last Open Sew by a fellow quilter who was admiring my Singer 301a.  Noticing the dust bunnies as she removed the throat plate, she fussed about the need to keep my machine cleaned and oiled.  I must have had an empty look on my face, because she proceeded to clean the feed dogs and bobbin case and oil the machine!  The machine was a bit linty and dusty, but I honestly did clean it during the Thanksgiving holiday.  Either I need to find a less linty thread, or my house is dustier than I thought!

Apparently she felt the need to keep an eye on me.  As I was pressing the "Galaxy Star" paper pieced block I made (yes, after 3 hours at Open Sew all I had to show for it was one block), she tapped me on the shoulder and said "Excuse me... can I show you something?"  I got a lesson on how to "press" rather than "iron" my block.  Little did she know I was ironing the HE double L out of the block because, after sewing the four units together, it was an 1/8" short all around!  I'm sure she left that night shaking her head at the follies of the modern quilter.

Still 1/16" short- needs more "pressing"!