End of January

Did January fly by for you too? 

Ever since moving to Florida, and experiencing "snowbird season," it's been remarkable to observe how busy January and February are. It's because many of the part-time and year-'round clubs and activities save some of their best annual programs and events until everyone is here. That means, all the clubs are meeting, and programs are full steam ahead. For me, most often with two activities every day, I find myself coming and going a lot!

Not much time has been spent in the sewing room, with no sewing at all this week. Still, I'm satisfied with my out-going fabric total for January: 8.13 yards. No fabric came in.

The out fabric total is based on two items: 1) backing and binding Sunny Lanes; and 2) donating 7.2 pounds of tiny scraps for pet beds. 

Here's the finished 52" X 68" Sunny Lanes.

Backing and binding used about 3 yards of January's out yardage total. 

Though I wouldn't have minded making Sunny Lanes larger, it's plenty heavy. Between the seams sewn in 1,968 1½" (unfinished) squares, and Quilter's Dream Blend, a 70/30 (cotton/polyester) batt that's heavier than Quilter's Dream Request Cotton, this quilt is weighty. 

My Sunny Lanes block tutorial is available HERE, in case you'd like to make this. 

This week's creative focus has been on braiding. My rug is now 43" X 51". I'm delighted with it and even more thrilled that I've been able to braid it flat!

After first making a round rug, followed by making two oval rugs, I have learned that the oval shape is more difficult to achieve flatness. Tighter curves on the ends require weaving two strands in a loop to create extra fabric for the perimeter. Anyway... I've learned that lesson!

Do you see what I added? A slash of orange from a knit fabric flat bed sheet; and a bit of light blue from a print flat bed sheet gives it more interest.

I'm repeating both the orange slash, and bit of blue on each opposite side. Those extra bits mean having two braids going at the same time.

As I go, I'm cutting strips and keeping them somewhat organized. I will definitely keep braiding to make the rug as large as possible. 

If you're interested in learning to make Braided Rag Rugs, I highly recommend learning from Ilka White, an Australian who is offering two April dates (evenings, in the US) for a virtual workshop. I learned from Ilka myself, and can't recommend a better instructor. Find more information here.

Book Recommendations

January time spent braiding meant time spent listening to 14 audiobooks. 

In score order (with 5.0 being highest), audiobooks I listened to are: 

The River is Waiting is a somewhat dark story. I suggested it to a friend, only to learn she'd begun it and couldn't finish it because of the difficult subject. Indeed, it's sad. I was also a little frustrated with a couple of the characters. But I appreciate the emotions of a father living with the guilt of a tragic accident, and the insight it gave to life in prision. It is beautifully written.

Count the Night by Stars by Michelle Shocklee is a ficticious story that takes place in Nashbille. It's factually based on the 1897 Tennessee Centennial Exposition, and life at the Maxwell House Hotel (yes, that's where Maxwell House coffee originated). It involves charm and propriety, romance, and disreputable men. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and learned something in the process. Now I want to revisit Nashville (since QuiltCon 2019) to find the sites described!

The Last Witness is a psychological thriller that's intriguing, and whose end I didn't see coming. This story begins with Ellie driving toward home and witnessing the death of a motorist directly in front of her. While the reader sympathizes with her throughout the story, an underlying untold secret explains why Ellie is suffering so much. It's one of those books I occasionally like to listen to. But one phychological thriller after another can become too much. 

Sisters in the Wind is about a young girl, Lucy, and her dad living alone. Knowing he's dying, he marries a woman who he believes will take care of Lucy. That's when Lucy's life takes a drastic turn. Living in foster homes, she tries to find a peaceful life, but corruption in the foster care system makes her life difficult. Then Lucy uncovers the proof needed to change her life forever.

I must give a mention to The Wedding by Nicholas Sparks because his writing style is thoroughly dependable. He always tells a story that's much like a Hallmark movie, with pretty speech and thoughtful insight. This one was especially charming and beautiful, told from the perspective of a husband who, now that their three children are grown and gone, sees his marriage drifting. His efforts to restore romance are sweet. In the end, he caught me unaware.

I really want to keep going with the "Andy Carpenter series" by David Rosenfelt, but... both my library apps - Hoopla, and Cloud Library - let me down. Book #13, Who Let the Dog Out? is available only as an e-book, so I'll have to make time to read it. And neither library app has book #14, Outfoxed. Argh! Since David Rosenfelt has written 33 "Andy Carpenter" books, I likely won't finish the series. 

I hope I've shared a couple titles that pique your interest. Linda

17th Blog-iversary!

Happy Australia Day to my friends in Australia! And happy blogiversary to me. 

It's difficult to wrap my mind around the fact that 17 years ago today, I wrote my first FlourishingPalms blog post. 

17 years! 

My first post was about January 26 being Australia Day. In honor of the occasion I made pavlova, a traditional Australian baked meringue dessert reputed to have been named for the ballerina, Anna Pavlova. Back then, in 2009, I was into all things Australia because our daughter lived in Sydney, and I visited there multiple times when we lived in Iowa. 

For the first seven years of blogging - writing 716 blog posts during that seven years - I had each year of posts printed into a book. As I recall, the first few years of books were $40 to $50 each. By the time I'd had the seventh year printed for $80, I decided it wasn't worth it to continue that practice. I just check a site to see what it would cost to print 70 posts from 2025 and the price was about $148 - still not worth it. 

While some quilt makers have told me my blog posts are my legacy, and I should document everything I've written about by printing a book, I have strong doubts that my descendants will care one way or another about what I had to say about my quilts or my process for making them. 

Only for me is it satisfying to recognize that I've continued to regularly write blog posts while many other creative bloggers I avidly followed in the early days have long ago let their blogs lapse. For me, each post is a journal - a means to document all my makes, whether they're quilts or other creative efforts to which I've applied my "flourishing palms." 

I remain very happy with the blog name flourishingpalms, and use @flourishingpalms on Instagram too. In case you didn't know, I chose the name because it signifies three things for me: 

1. It's a favorite Bible verse: "The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, planted in the house of the Lord." Psalm 92:12
2. I've always admired and been fascinated by palm trees, even making a palm tree quilt while living in Iowa. (See below.)
3. I appreciate the play on words, with "palm" not only referring to the tree, but referring to the creative efforts of my hands - my palms.

Here's the palm quilt hanging in our Florida house.

There's one special block... a sun chair sitting in a field of Iowa corn, where a palm is also growing!

The quilt name is I Can Dream, Can't I?

Little did I know, back in 2005 when I made the quilt, that I would one day be living in Florida where palms are a regular sight. We've been here 13½ years now.

What I've Been Doing Lately

I finished a skein of donated variegated pastel yarn. I previously posted about the baby afghan I made. Using the same knitted pattern, the remaining yarn made a piece that's only 13" X 26". I've dubbed it a lovey, or perhaps it could be a doll blanket.  

13" X 26"

"Beautiful Texture Baby Blanket" knitting pattern info

Braiding continues on my rag rug that's now 40" X 50", making it completely importable. It's heavy!

Trying to be a little more creative with the rug design, you can see where I added a second braid that's entirely orange.

Along the end I'm inserting another short, light blue braid. I plan to repeat the orange design on the next long side, and add another light blue braid at the end. My thrift store investments (several years ago) in two flat bed sheets - orange, and blue print - were good choices.

I've also begun another take-along sewing machine project. My five-pound Janome Derby sewing machine is perfect for this.

I'm piecing to "do something" with dozens and dozens of triangles I found in scrap bins. I know some triangles are offcuts from making Posh Penelope, but I can't remember where others came from. Some HSTs are finishing at 2½", and others at 2¼". No matter. I plan to work out a way to make them all into one quilt. 

Another Fun Thing

For blog-readers who are not Floridians, you won't recognize the structure below, but it's a Twistee Treat ice cream stand. 

I discovered Twisted Treat in 2020, stopping at one after getting our first COVID vaccinations - my reward for being a good girl. 😀 

I adore their soft-serve ice cream, but seldom have opportunities to eat it because the nearest location is 15 miles away. All Twistee Treat structures are distinctive like this, with a cone base and an ice-cream-and-toppings roof. Some also have sprinkles!

The picture above is of the stand that's going up near me. Oh boy! I'll be able to get there by golf cart! This is supposed to open in February. I'm closely watching @twisteetreat on Instagram.

I can't end this post without saying 💕 thank you 💕 to everyone who's been a blog-reader. 

While I miss quilters who once-upon-a-time read my posts (and I considered friends) I remain ever-so-grateful to you who take a moment to read and comment. I love hearing from you! Even those of you who have been commenting as "Anonymous," I hope you know I am responding to all comments. Whether you receive an email reply, or a response in the comments of that blog post, I appreciate you!

Maybe I'll keep hearing from you... for another 17 years? Linda

Presenting, and Projects Progress

Saturday found me in Sarasota, Florida, visiting members of the Sarasota Modern Quilt Guild to present a program I call Scarping Your Scraps. For those of you not familiar with term "scarp," it's a funny misspelling of the word scraps. All blame credit for the term goes to my friend Char at Cloth Stitched. I'm sure she regrets the day she posted that typo. That's when, reading her blog post, I was thinking, "Oh, I'm going to learn about something new that Char's doing!" Scarps. Ha, ha. 😂

So, my scarp presentation involved sharing scrappy makes - everything from quilts to blocks, bags to coasters, and peg loom and braided rugs to confetti pouches and twining - 22 items in all.

I developed the program after Lois, a blog-reader in Sarasota, noted all my scrappy makes, and asked if I could come to share them with her chapter. Pulling together the presentation involved quite a bit of organization on my part, but the outcome was good. I have a better handle on my unfinished scarp projects (just a few), including what they are, and where I'm keeping them! Thanks so much for inviting me, Lois!

My latest knitting finish is a 24" X 36" baby afghan that I'll donate to Children's Home Society of Florida.

My friend Sandy gave me the donated yarn along with a simple pattern using two strands of yarn with a four-row repeat - something easy for me to hone my rusty knitting skills. Edited to add: This "Beautiful Texture Baby Blanket" pattern is found in a book. Here's the link to information on Ravelry. 

Using what remains of the pastel variegated yarn, and another skein of blue yarn, I've begun knitting another baby afghan. 

This past week I also spent some time on the Scrap Play project, begun January 3 in Sherri Lynn Wood's free virtual workshop. Feeling stumped about how to move forward with the improv-y nine patch and HSTs I'd made, I pulled out her book The Improv Handbook for Modern Quilters, and found inspiration. 

I'll be moving forward, using chartreuse-y green prints and solids to make this into something somewhat visually appealing. 

Some of my time has returned to trying to salvage the "Ocean" diamond painting kit, purchased last June from Diamond Painting Pro. While the canvas and square resin drills are both excellent quality, the colors selected and keyed for the chart are less than accurate or attractive. The company tried to resolve my problem, but did NOT come up with appropriate color assignments and drill colors. 

In the top picture, you can see what the sunrise looked like, after I'd painted it according to the Diamond Painting Pro chart. In the bottom picture, you can see how I've begun to slowly correct their mistake, removing pink drills and replacing them with colors 5200 AB (aurora borealis) for the sun, and attempting to paint a gradual color shift of yellows. 

I think it's looking better, but what a tedious job. Removing drills is bad enough (they retain the stickiness of the glue on the canvas surface), but it's been trial and error to choose and place four shades of yellow drills. Argh. 

But I still like the original picture. so I'll keep going. 

We've had a couple nights of freezing temps here in Central Florida, though I don't mind a bit. I still travel to activities in my golf cart (with the canvas sides down, zipped and snapped in place). I've found I mostly have the roads and multi-modal paths to myself!

Also, for the first time in more than a year, I dressed in long long pants! Linda

Class: Braided Rag Rugs

Since many of you have asked questions about, and/or expressed interest in the rug I've been braiding, I contacted Ilka White in Australia to ask when she might again be offering a virtual workshop - Braided Rag Rugs.

After exchanging a couple emails, she let me know that she has scheduled one! I'm letting you know here, and you will find more information on Ilka's website. 

Braided Rag Rugs

Saturday 18 April and Sunday 19 April

Class time on both days: 5-8pm (EDT) That's Florida time 

    If you're in another time zone, check yours HERE.  

Cost for early-birds is $120 AUD (currently $80 USD) or $130 AUD ($87 USD) after Jan 24

Register by Saturday, January 24 to receive the early-bird discount.

I'm thinking to take Ilka's class again, as a refresher, since learning in November 2021. Though, I'm still quite pleased with what I'm seeing in my rug - color!

At 33" X 42" now, progress is slow. The larger it gets, the longer it takes to see growth. But I'm committed to continuing, making it large enough to suit the seating area of our recently-enclosed and tiled lanai floor., as well as use-up all the clothing and home dec items I've collected. 

The first rug I made in Ilka's class was round, and included quilting cottons. 

I won't do that again! I quickly learned that $12 a yard quilting cotton (especially colors I love) is too precious to put into a rug. These days I'm inclined to use cast-off clothing like a $6 XXL t-shirt, or large tablecloth, or flat sheet from Goodwill. Even better is using my own stained and hole-y t-tops. 

The other rugs I made were oval-shaped, though this one is more egg-shaped. I made it for a friend using the home dec fabrics she sent me. I learned through experience that braiding an oval shape can be a little more challenging to get to lay flat, but I've conquered that difficulty. 

I hope I've enticed you to consider registering for Ilka's class. I can attest that she's a fabulous instructor - one of the best I've ever learned from. 

It would be fun to see you there! Linda

Print Stash, and Projects Status

One of my friendly blog-readers asked me if I would share pictures of my fabric stash. (Thanks, Becky P.!) I said I would and then looked at the condition of my closeted piles. Ugh! They were messy. So after about an hour's worth of tidying, I am glad to share these pictures. 

These prints are in a cabinet, stored behind closed doors. Each shelf is 11" high, and 26" across the front. 

These two shelves in the sewing room closet are 23" across the front, and from the bottom shelf to the top shelf measure 26." 

Mind you, these are only prints. My solids stash is separate.

Does this seem like a lot of prints to you? Do you have a bigger print stash than me? Quilters want to know!

I'm finding it extremely difficult to work with these print pieces because 80% (85%?) of them are less than a fat quarter in size. Every single piece has been cut into. No pieces are "new" and uncut.

Still, my 2026 (and beyond) goal is to not buy fabric. Keep sewing with what I have. IF I should succumb to a fabric purchase, it will likely be a solid, or a print that's needed to complete a project. 

I'm not sharing a picture of the three shelves of solids, directly above the print shelves in the first picture. They are still in their messy state.

Last Saturday I attended Sherri Lynn Woods' free Scrap Play workshop on Zoom. It gently tugged me from my sewing funk. It also got me to dump out two bins of solid scraps that I determined to work with. Some of the scraps had been previously sewn and cut away from something else, so I tried to use as many of those pieces as I could. I spent considerable time ironing!

Sherri had us piece improv nine-patch blocks, and gave us a couple prompts. The first was to make a nine patch using only dark values.

It was okay to make a block that was nine-patch-ish, and include a HST, if we happened to have one. Then we were to make a nine-patch using all light values with one dark (bottom).

After the workshop I continued to sew. In my orphan block bin I found some already-pieced HSTs, and from my scraps I sewed more HSTs too. Now, how do I make those nine-patch blocks work with the HSTs?

When I look at that hot mess on my design wall, I wonder how to jigsaw pieces together! I've pulled out Sherri Lynn's book Improv Handbook for Modern Quilters to see what I can come up with. My first inclination is to grab a black and white stripe print and start working it into the design. Or maybe I should piece black and white fabrics to make my own improv strips and checkerboards.

In the past few days I quilted my Sunny Lanes quilt with free-motion swirl hooks. It's my go-to FMQ design when I know I'm going to donate the quilt, and want to get it done on the quick.

Still, my happiest time each day is sitting down to work on my braided rag rug. Thus far, it's about 33" X 43" and will definitely get bigger. 

I'm braiding with 14 fabric strands now. 

The rug has a nubby texture with its combination of t-shirt knits; poly-cotton, and knit bed sheets; poly men's dress shirts; canvas fabric (leftover from bag-making); a damask tablecloth; and four-way stretch knit (leftover from making leggings). I love it! 

  

Linda