I have been doing a big push the last couple of days trying to get the top to Hunter's quilt finished. And here's the proof:
Those piles are actually about to become squares, I promise.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
I Swear I'm Doing it
Today might be my last post for a bit, I am starting a new job on Monday and my days of leisurely blogging are ending. I think I will become more of a weekend blogger until I get the hang of this whole 9 to 5 thing.
I have been doing a big push the last couple of days trying to get the top to Hunter's quilt finished. And here's the proof:
Those piles are actually about to become squares, I promise.
I have been doing a big push the last couple of days trying to get the top to Hunter's quilt finished. And here's the proof:
Those piles are actually about to become squares, I promise.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Love Isn't Suppose to Hurt
As some of you may know I got engaged this summer to my fabulous guy. This makes me very happy but dreams of fluffy white dresses and giant weddings make me hyperventilate.
We spent a lot of time talking about it and decided that we did want some sort of engagement ring. We wanted something a bit non traditional and preferably handmade. Our first try looked really pretty but after wearing it for a couple of weeks my hands were bruised and I was in pain, I finally confessed that it wasn't working and stuck it on a chain around my neck. A few weeks into this I ran into my friend Scott B who was very excited about the engagement but concerned about the fact that the ring was clearly not rocking my world. As he hugged me good bye the ring dug into both of our necks and he uttered the immortal words "love's not suppose to hurt my dear"
And so the great ring quest began and I am happy to share with all my friends, loved ones and fans our success:
The ring is from Norris and Ryan design and you can find her great work here.
She answered a million questions for me and re-sized it to fit my small fingers (for a girl of 5'10" I have very small fingers) And she even took extra care to smooth down the sides to make it more comfortable. We love it and it feels just right, just like my guy.
We spent a lot of time talking about it and decided that we did want some sort of engagement ring. We wanted something a bit non traditional and preferably handmade. Our first try looked really pretty but after wearing it for a couple of weeks my hands were bruised and I was in pain, I finally confessed that it wasn't working and stuck it on a chain around my neck. A few weeks into this I ran into my friend Scott B who was very excited about the engagement but concerned about the fact that the ring was clearly not rocking my world. As he hugged me good bye the ring dug into both of our necks and he uttered the immortal words "love's not suppose to hurt my dear"
And so the great ring quest began and I am happy to share with all my friends, loved ones and fans our success:
The ring is from Norris and Ryan design and you can find her great work here.
She answered a million questions for me and re-sized it to fit my small fingers (for a girl of 5'10" I have very small fingers) And she even took extra care to smooth down the sides to make it more comfortable. We love it and it feels just right, just like my guy.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Placemats
I have been submerged in many worlds this last few weeks but I have been working on the resolution list. I have been really into making placemats. The blue ones are for us and have an easy rolled binding (I rolled the the edge of the backing fabric around the front and sewed it down). The red ones I am actually attempting to do a quilt binding, adding a totally new stripe around the edge. Mostly it makes me confused and a bit angry, hence I now have three completed blue placemats and one one red one. Oh well I am trying right?
opps I didn't take a picture of the red one completed so you will all have to imagine the edge all turned over and pretty.
opps I didn't take a picture of the red one completed so you will all have to imagine the edge all turned over and pretty.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Obama Fever
I have Obama fever, and thankfully there seems to be no cure. Last night we threw a Bye Bye Bush, Hello Obama party with good friends and good food.
The world is changing, I can feel it in my bones. For the first time in my life I am actively proud to be a part of this country. Pete Seeger, a long time hero of mine played as part of the inauguration festivities. This is a man whose career was previously left in shambles because of blacklisting AND he played for out new president. I feel change on the horizon and it feels good.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Crafting Resolutions II
As I suspected I have many more unfinished projects hidden around the apartment then I first guessed. Perhaps it is because I am preparing to go back to work full time or maybe it is just the new year but I feel a real need to take stock in what I have begun. It feels a little like airing my dirty laundry but heck what are blogs for other than airing dirty laundry?
Before I tell you about all the goodies I found under my craft table and hidden in the dark recesses of the couch let us first remember what I have already confessed too:
1) Hunter's Quilt
2) Fingerless Gloves
3) Green Mittens
4) Modular Crochet Sweater
5) Costume Fused Bags
6) Brown Quilt (for me)
And now for all those new(ish) dirty secrets:
7) Gauze Shirt: I bought this wonderful light fabric to duplicate one of my all time favorite summer shirts that has been loved into almost three separate pieces.
8) Bunny Toy: I got one of those supper fun Japanese toy kits to make a bunny toy for one of my favorite buns, alas the all Japanese instructions were a little scary.
9) Yet Another Baby Sweater: I will be honest I can't even remember who this was going to be for, but fear not everyone seems to be pregnant or about to be...you know who you are!
10) Placemats: my plan was a simple one, practice quilt binding in a smaller, less scary form by making placemats for a good friend who just got a new house. It turns out bindings really are scary.
11 & 12) Pillows: a: made from old silk ties, half finished; b: made from a stenciling mishap that could be saved.
13) Colonial Print Baby Quilt: this was started so long ago the kid is probably about to graduate from middle school but it is half finished and like I said earlier there are a lot of babies being born.
14) Loop-d-loop Sweater: I got on the ban wagon when the book came out and started one of the sweaters. It was the asymmetrical one, in brown- and truth be told I can't even remember where I left this one off, although I think I was pretty far along, of course I have since taken the needles out and I have no idea what size I originally used.
15) Green Bag Lady Project: Oy! I got all excited and had a whole bunch of fabric donated to help out the Green Bag Lady. I got other people excited and they helped too. But now I have a lot of half finished bags under my craft table, frankly it is just sad.
Dear God how is this list still going on!
16) Refinish Coffee Tables: this one might not be an unfinished project yet because I haven't gotten that far. We have these beat up little tables from Ikea that I have been planning on rehabbing for awhile now and gosh darn it I am going to do it this year!
Yup there is still more...
17) Baby Granny Square Project: I have no real idea what this is even going to be! It started off with me making a lot of baby granny squares with left over yarn from the Beast, and now, well it is kinda a beast in it's own right.
18) Knitting with Plastic Bags Tutorial: no you are not crazy there is only a part one of the knitting with plastic bags tutorial, what can I say there are clearly many other projects taking up my time here.
Alright that's it! I may have some more stashed away but this is really all I can admit to right now. I think it is clear that I may be a craft-o-holic but maybe not a finish-o-holic. But I am really going to try to finish these up before getting any other crazy ideas, I swear! Really, even if that yarn is really pretty and I am really loving machine quilting and...
Before I tell you about all the goodies I found under my craft table and hidden in the dark recesses of the couch let us first remember what I have already confessed too:
1) Hunter's Quilt
2) Fingerless Gloves
3) Green Mittens
4) Modular Crochet Sweater
5) Costume Fused Bags
6) Brown Quilt (for me)
And now for all those new(ish) dirty secrets:
7) Gauze Shirt: I bought this wonderful light fabric to duplicate one of my all time favorite summer shirts that has been loved into almost three separate pieces.
8) Bunny Toy: I got one of those supper fun Japanese toy kits to make a bunny toy for one of my favorite buns, alas the all Japanese instructions were a little scary.
9) Yet Another Baby Sweater: I will be honest I can't even remember who this was going to be for, but fear not everyone seems to be pregnant or about to be...you know who you are!
10) Placemats: my plan was a simple one, practice quilt binding in a smaller, less scary form by making placemats for a good friend who just got a new house. It turns out bindings really are scary.
11 & 12) Pillows: a: made from old silk ties, half finished; b: made from a stenciling mishap that could be saved.
13) Colonial Print Baby Quilt: this was started so long ago the kid is probably about to graduate from middle school but it is half finished and like I said earlier there are a lot of babies being born.
14) Loop-d-loop Sweater: I got on the ban wagon when the book came out and started one of the sweaters. It was the asymmetrical one, in brown- and truth be told I can't even remember where I left this one off, although I think I was pretty far along, of course I have since taken the needles out and I have no idea what size I originally used.
15) Green Bag Lady Project: Oy! I got all excited and had a whole bunch of fabric donated to help out the Green Bag Lady. I got other people excited and they helped too. But now I have a lot of half finished bags under my craft table, frankly it is just sad.
Dear God how is this list still going on!
16) Refinish Coffee Tables: this one might not be an unfinished project yet because I haven't gotten that far. We have these beat up little tables from Ikea that I have been planning on rehabbing for awhile now and gosh darn it I am going to do it this year!
Yup there is still more...
17) Baby Granny Square Project: I have no real idea what this is even going to be! It started off with me making a lot of baby granny squares with left over yarn from the Beast, and now, well it is kinda a beast in it's own right.
18) Knitting with Plastic Bags Tutorial: no you are not crazy there is only a part one of the knitting with plastic bags tutorial, what can I say there are clearly many other projects taking up my time here.
Alright that's it! I may have some more stashed away but this is really all I can admit to right now. I think it is clear that I may be a craft-o-holic but maybe not a finish-o-holic. But I am really going to try to finish these up before getting any other crazy ideas, I swear! Really, even if that yarn is really pretty and I am really loving machine quilting and...
Friday, January 9, 2009
Hunter's Quilt
This week has kinda slipped away from me. I can't believe this is the first time I am posting about Hunter's quilt in the making. I am actually working on one crafting resolution number 1: Hunter's quilt. I actually got a good head start on this one when my sister was in town at the end of the summer. She has an amazing eye for color so any time I can get her to help me pick fabrics I do. It was perhaps our fastest fabric selection ever. In fact we picked the fabric so quickly that we felt like we needed to wander around the store for an extra half an hour just in case we were being hasty.
I am in love this this pattern even though it is one of the most persnickety quilt patterns in the universe. It requires very straight seam sewing and very precise cutting. No sleepy or distracted cutting allowed or these darn seams won't line up. This will be my third quilt in this pattern and I think I have finally got a good system down, sew several blocks then cut them one after another. I use double sided tape on the back of my plexi square to help keep it from skidding. I managed to sew 8 squares this week, actually ten but there were two casualties to sleepy cutting. I think another 10 or so and the top will be done.
I am thrilled with how well it is coming out. I increased the size of the center square (the yellow box in the middle) which is making the whole thing a lot easier.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
The Great Gift Exchange
This year my guy and I decided make each other gifts. We have both been toiling away in secrete for the last several weeks. Here are the fruits of our labor.
I made him a series of stenciled t-shirts, with masculine stencils.
And he made me the best thing ever for a yarn obsessed girl like me: a yarn holder.
It attaches to the couch or can stand on the floor. It has a place for spools and balls of yarn. I love it! I don’t think I have ever gotten such a thoughtful and useful gift.
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