March Wrap-Up

When we travel to/from Kansas City, which is about 18 hours each way, I always take along handwork. In between helping navigate around traffic slowdowns in Atlanta, Chattanooga, and Nashville, handwork is what occupies my hands and makes me feel productive.

It turns out that for our March trip to KC I didn't plan very well. I thought I'd grabbed plenty of English paper-pieced medallions (for my LindaNova/TulaNova quilt) for many happy hours of hand stitching. But in fact, I'd picked up enough fabric and papers for only three medallions - stitched during the first day of riding in the car. The rest of the clipped-together bundles of fabrics were missing papers... I had left at home.

😤😩 I was so upset with myself, and horrified at the thought of having nothing to do all the way home!

So while in KC, I bought a pattern, crochet hook, and yarn to make a teddy bear. But still, it didn't go as planned. I should have read the instructions in advance, as the bear needed to be stuffed as I went along. I didn't have stuffing. So, I crocheted the head until stuffing was called for. Then I crocheted an arm, until stuffing was called for. The I crocheted the foot... you get the picture. Since returning home I've bought stuffing, but the bear hasn't made much progress. 

The first thing I worked on last weekend was a mini quilt - my entry in Curated Quilts Triangle Mini Challenge. The quilt must be square; no larger than 16" X 16"; and use some of these colors in solids or prints. I emailed to ask if a neutral could be added, and received a "yes."

Though I'm not a "pink person," pink/rose was the only color with three values that I could work with given my continued interest in the effect of transparency. I tried to make two large triangles look like they overlap.

Triangle Mini Challenge, 15" X 15"

I quilted on my Bernina Aurora 440QE, as I prefer the walking foot on it to the walking foot on my Janome 1600P. 

The picture of my mini has been uploaded to the Curated Quilts website to meet their April 1 deadline. By April 30 I should learn if the quilt has been accepted into the magazine. 

Having now made four quilts this year, I was behind on label-making. My favorite way to make a label is to design it on my computer (on a Macbook, I use Pages software) - in this case I designed four labels for one 8-1/2" X 11" page of paper - print on paper to proofread and the check for errors, and then print on Printed Treasures. I've found that the texture of Printed Treasures is difficult to hand-sew through, so I border each label with fabric. 

Yes, I like to put a lot of information on my labels, and add a picture where it's appropriate. These were hand-sewn to the back of each quilt during the monthly business meeting of Big Cypress Quilters.

If you voted for my "Tiffany Lights" fabric bundle in PBStudios' Mad for Solids challenge, thank you! Though my bundle won in the first round - and I appreciate everyones' votes -  I'm pretty sure it didn't win in the second round which ended Monday evening. Mine competed against a lovely color combination of blues and greens called "Heirloom Opal" put together by ShelleyBrooksQuilts.

In any case, every quilter who competed has been invited to use her bundle of Painter's Palette Solids to make a quilt. Since I'm still swooning over all the many ways that wedges can be used to make a quilt - according to Christina Camelli's (AFewScraps) book "Wedge Quilt Workshop" - I wanted to play more. 

I used a Mini Quick Curve ruler to insert unexpected arcs of color into some of the wedges. Those flower-head pins have A, B, C, D, E, written in Sharpie on the heads, so I can keep track of the sizes of each wedge. It's still a work in progress and I'm not exactly sure where it's going, but I know I love the riot of color. 

Updating you on our boy Hogan... he continues to do well at 14 years and 5 months old. He's still crazy for green beans and eats about four pounds-worth a week!

I had to take this picture of him while we were in Kansas City... sleeping in the bed belonging to Milson, a nine-pound teacup poodle. Hogan thought he fit!

Here at home, we've had absolutely glorious weather, so it's been nice for him to feel like he's outdoors, laying in front of the front screen door.

It's Holy Week, and I'm singing! I joined the choir at the church we've been attending, Amazing Grace Lutheran. Though I've always been an alto, because all eight women in the choir (13 singers in total) are altos, several of us have been assigned soprano. That's quite a stretch - literally - for me. In one song, the highest note is F# in the octave above middle C! Eek. However, it's all about praising the Lord, right? We'll sing at services on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter.

Have a blessed Easter. Hosanna! He is Risen! Linda