Mostly Quilting

It's been 11 days since I posted. Not sure why I haven't felt motivated to write a post. Maybe it's because it's summer. Real life has recommenced with more people vaccinated. I've been keeping up with activities - daily devotions, ukulele, line dancing, housework here and there, and sewing.

Actually, as I was searching for an old piece of embroidery that I thought to finish, I came across too many jumbled messes of sewing-related stuff. Started projects set aside for more favorable projects. Though I've never thought of myself as a UFO collector, I have a fair share of items that have me wondering, "What will my kids do, and think, when they find this stuff after I'm gone?!" My excesses are a bit embarrassing. You know. Materials and supplies bought to make items... that never got made. The "stuff" has me feeling disappointed in myself, and a new resolve to rectify that, even a little bit at a time. 

For example, I found this box full of hexagon English paper piecing papers, and cut hexagon fabrics, along with charm packs, pieced triangles, and other random fabric pieces. I've vowed to get it sorted, and figure out a way to use it.

Some of the pieces will go into this which has reappeared on my design wall. Blocks have hand-appliquéd circles for our Central Florida MQG Chip and Charm Challenge. None of the blocks have been squared-up. I'm mulling over how many more I need to make, and how to arrange them. I have a long way to go on this one.

Since making the Mini QCR Runner (last blog post), I've been making another "Urban Abacus" quilt, a pattern by Sew Kind of Wonderful. Did you notice I said "another" Urban Abacus quilt? I gave away the first Urban Abacus quilt I made in 2014. It couldn't be with a sweeter Iowa family. 

But, I'm teaching the Urban Ababus project twice in August! So, here I go again. 

Last Saturday I completed the top; Sunday afternoon I pieced a backing with leftover fabrics from the front, and pin-basted the sandwich with Quilter's Dream Cotton Request.

This week has been about quilting, starting with ruler work. I'm quilting on my Bernina 770QE.

Each abacus was curved ruler quilted first, followed by straight line quilting using a 6" Fine Line Ruler by Accents in Design.

This video is five times the normal speed.

Lastly, I added free motion quilted circles.

This video is at four times the normal speed.

Last Friday I received my complimentary copy of Curated Quilts - "Stripes" issue #16 - that includes my 14" X 14" Dance Around quilt in the Mini Challenge section on page 78. This is the fourth time I've been fortunate enough to have a quilt selected for challenge publication, and the good feeling about it never gets old. I'm honored to be included with so many super-talented quilt designers. 

As I've been quilting, lots more book-listening happens, so I'm having a catch-up today on my last three reads that brings my year-long total to 40 books.

Book Recommendations

Though the title The Sewing Machine, by Natalie Fergie is certainly attractive to a sewist, the story didn't measure up to my expectations. It's about a young woman who helps build Singer sewing machines in a factory where wages and conditions were less than ideal. Attempts to unionize the company failed, and women made sacrifices, working had to earn a living by sewing for others.

Have you thought about being able to sew only while near a window? When the sun is still up? The story spans several generations that caused me to feel a bit of confusion about who I was learning about, what year it was, and what circumstances the characters were in. Though the story concludes with the present generation - a male descendant (though not really a descendant by blood) learning to sew on an old Singer used by an ancestor - I found the genealogy and relationships a little difficult to follow.

Also during listening, I was reminded that sewists layer different thread colors on their bobbins, a common practice on old sewing machines. Do you do that? I sure don't. But is there a reason not to? Because we can afford to buy more bobbins, perhaps? Linda's score: 3.6/5.0

 By reading Eight Hundred Grapes, by Laura Dave, I learned that it takes approximately 800 grapes to make a bottle of wine.

You might guess that this story takes place in wine country: Sonoma. The main character is 30-something Georgia, who is on the cusp of marrying a British man. When she sees him with another woman who's a famous actress, with a young girl in tow, she runs back home. There she learns about more secrets - her parents  are divided, her brothers are at odds over a woman, and the most startling news, that the family vineyard, "The Last Straw" is being sold. 

This is another book that looks into family situations and attempts to offer insight, understanding, and resolution for each character. Linda's score: 3.8/5.0

The It Girls by Karen Harper is about sisters Elinor and Lucile Sutherland, brought up on Jersey (a British island off the northwest coast of France - I looked it up), who dream about what their futures could be. Each of them wants to have "it." The "something" that makes a person special. Nellie wants to write; Lucy wants to design clothing. The girls are different, yet each experiences an unhappy marriage, liaisons, and tragic circumstances (the Great War; and a trip on the Titanic) that help them grow into the "it" girls they become. But at what cost? Famous people such as Winston Churchill, Zeigfield, Mary Pickford, and Charlie Chaplin pop up in the story.

In the end, each aging sister is led back to what's most important - family and love. Linda's score: 3.6/5.0

So are you reading FlourishingPalms blog posts via Follow It? (142 of you are.) Is Google's Feedburner gone now? Linda

The Fourth and Beyond

Independence Day is usually low-key since our community doesn't put on a fireworks display. Still, we got out. This was the scene at one (of three) of our town squares. It was hoppin'! Twirlers, a drill team performance, stilt-walkers, a live band, street vendors, a car show, and people! And it was hot! The temp was 88F with 70 percent humidity, so the feels-like temp was 97F (36C). Guess that's not a whole lot different than what other parts of the US have been experiencing. 

With Hurricane Elsa heading toward the Florida Keys, and expected to become Tropical Storm Elsa by the time it hits the Florida Gulf coast, we're anticipating strong winds and rain to be in our area by late Tuesday/early Wednesday. In anticipation, I've been doing project prep work. I went to Sew Together (quilt shop) to get background fabric and binding to make an Urban Ababus quilt. I paid $12.99 and $13.99 a yard for fabric - higher prices I predicted would come about in 2021. Many things are increasing in price, so this isn't unexpected. 

Urban Abacus pieces cut

As well, fabric has arrived that I bought from Sewtopia for the QuiltCon Fabric Challenge with Windham Fabrics Artisan fabric. When I first looked at Sewtopia's Artisan colors online, each was $9 a yard. Several days later, when I placed my order, four of the six fabrics I needed had gone up to $11 a yard. Could it be because they're challenge colors? Or because quilting cotton prices are rising? 

This will be the first time I've sewn with two-tone woven fabrics. I always pre-wash, so I enjoyed pressing each one, studying color shifts between two different warp and weft colors. From top to bottom the colors are: charcoal/white; coral/aqua; aqua/blue; tan/beige; wine/pink; and blue/orchid. 

I've worked-up a rough design in EQ8 for a large quilt, and am excited to get started. 

Currently though, my Curve Around Challenge quilt is on the design wall. This is the latest block I've pieced. I don't think it has a name (couldn't find it in The Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Blocks), but I saw it in a mid-century modern art painting and wanted to to try to duplicate it. I did so using the Classic Curve Ruler to cut half-circles, followed by a whole inset circle, and Applipop circles as embellishment. I plan to make more of these. 

I've been focused on quilting and finishing the Mini Runner (free pattern), made with the Mini Quick Curve Ruler by Sew Kind of Wonderful. I used the ruler to mark curves that I quilted with a walking foot. 

Then, I quilted straight lines with a ruler, and finished-up with free motion quilting. 

It felt so good to quilt again! The runner is 14½ X 35".

It looks good on the dining room table, and will coordinate nicely with our colorful Fiestaware. 

From the back.

Binding is single-fold, cut 1¼"-wide, and sewn with my favorite machine-mitered corners. 

To finish my latest spiral-braided rag rug, I picked up these pieces at Goodwill for only $17: two household textiles (sheet and tablecloth) and two t-shirts. I'm excited to get back to braiding!

Actually, I'm excited about all my projects! That's why I've been project-hopping - doing prep so fabrics are ready to sew and braid.

Now bring on Elsa! I'm ready to hunker down. 

Book Recommendation

Skylarking by Kate Mildenhall begins as a charming story about best friends, Kate and Harriet, growing up together along a desolate coast of Australia. It's the 1880s, and Kate's father is the lighthouse keeper. The girls spend their days helping their mothers, and escaping on adventures from the cliffs to tide pools, and the brush to the rocky shoreline. When a single man moves into a nearby cabin, the girl's thoughts and dreams turn to the women they must become: wives and mothers. However, Kate wants more adventure, but it's Harriet who gets to leave for three months to experience life in the big city of Melbourne. When Harriet returns, nothing is as it was once was. Womanhood forces them to leave childhood behind, and look at the future in new ways.

I wasn't familiar with the term "skylarking" before listening to this book, and felt sad at the negative use of it in this story.

The narrator, Kate Gilbert, did a great job of conveying Kate and Harriet's innocent, and I adored how she spoke the Australian accent with the up-rising vocal notes typical of Australian speech patterns. 

Linda's score: 4.2/5.0

Just in case you haven't yet registered to receive my blog posts via email, I'm reminding you (one last time) that you can do so by submitting your email address on the Follow It form at the top right of this home page.

Google is discontinuing its email delivery of blog posts (called Feedburner) sometime this month... if it hasn't happened already. I know; these are changes none of us want, but there's not a bloomin' thing that can be done about it. 

More than 1,500 email addresses followed my blog with Feedburner. Now, with Follow It, 128 of you are following me by email. That's great! I'd rather have 128 followers willing to engage, than hundreds who do not. Thank you very much! Linda

Away and Back, Again

We're back home from another four day trip, and are settling back into a routine of "just us." 

Having seen an episode of Aerial America featuring Georgia  we decided to return Tay to a Montgomery, Alabama meet-up with his mother by way of Georgia's Providence Canyon State Park, also called the "little Grand Canyon." The site is a geological formation that started in the 1800s when farmers cleared and planted in this area without regard to soil management. Now, aided by rainfall, the area continues to erode at the rate of up to five feet a year. 

Different minerals in the canyon walls create a range of interesting colors. It was a nice change-of-pace to hike the trail to the bottom, squelch through the water trickling through the area, and check out several of the numerous canyons. 

While in Montgomery, we visited the Montgomery Museum of Fine Art. It's a beautiful facility on 175 acres of the Blount Cultural Park. I appreciated being able to see this portrait by John Singer Sergeant, one of 41 pieces (only this one was on display) in the museum's collection. 

After spending ten days as a threesome, saying good-bye to Tay wasn't easy. We enjoyed his visit very much! We miss him, and hope he made some good, long-lasting memories. 

Traveling by car is really challenging these days. Traffic is more congested than ever, with the Interstate being the last place we wanted be. Roadways are full of post-pandemic vacationers, and I'd estimate that 30 percent (or more) of vehicles are semi's. The odds of encountering an accident are higher than ever.

When driving to Kansas City earlier this month, we'd made reservations at a Paducah, Kentucky motel, and anticipated arriving in Paducah a half hour before Hancock's of Paducah closed. Yep, I thought I'd do a quick, 30-minute run-through of the quilt store! Twenty minutes from our exit, we came to a standstill on I-24. For more than an hour. Needless to say, shopping at Hancock's didn't happen. Motels are also full. Every one we stayed in was at capacity. I highly recommend booking ahead if you intend to travel. 

Getting away for a change of scenery and focus has proved restorative. My previously stalled sewing room activities have been reinvigorated. My enthusiasm for creating and making has been restored - a happy surprise!

Since being at home, I have:

1) gone as far as I can on my braided rag rug which is now 34" X 40". A thrift store visit is needed for more orange clothing or home dec items; 

2) begun to machine appliqué Applipop circles onto my Curve Around Challenge quilt. I'm using 100-weight Invisifil thread and my Bernina 20C appliqué foot to zig-zag stitch around circles; and,

3) cut, pieced, and basted a Quick Curve Ruler Mini Runner. In August, I'll be teaching a Quick Curve Ruler workshop to Kingsland (Georgia) Quilt Guild, and Jacksonville MQG. Students have the option of making this runner using the mini QCR, or Urban Abacus using the full-sized QCR. I've made my runner with Painter's Palette solids, and a Grunge background. Batting is Quilter's Dream Green (recycled), which gives the background a greenish hue.

I'm excited to quilt because... well, it's been ages since I've done any FMQ. I've missed it! 

Book Recommendation

The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner is about Sophie, a young Irish immigrant living in New York City who answers an advertisement to become and wife to Martin, and mother to five year-old Kat, who live in San Francisco. Sophie is settling into her new life in a nice home, feeling well-fed and wearing new clothes, and warming to Kat, when an unknown woman, Belinda, comes to her door to make inquiries about Sophie's husband. Sophie's realizes that her uneasy concerns about Martin have been justified, so she prepares to leave. Just then, San Francisco is rocked by earthquakes and the city is on fire. When Belinda goes into premature labor, they're forced to flee for help, and everyone's intentions change. 

In the face of the unknown, fear, and possible exposure to law enforcement, Sophie, Kat, and Belinda find strength in one another - a family united by love. 

Linda's score: 4.4/5.0

Having a manicure and/or pedicure are treats I normally don't indulge in, unless I have a special friend visiting, (Patty P., you know it's you!) and we go together. But before my high school reunion, I indulged in both. What I realize is that I feel more confident with groomed toes and fingers. I had both redone yesterday.

These are "dipped" nails, a type of nail creation I was unfamiliar with. I've found they're very strong and durable! In fact, except for my left index fingernail which is fake because it completely tore off, these are my nails! I'm definitely sold on this luxury.

How do you indulge yourself?

FOLLOWING MY BLOG BY EMAIL

As of July 1, Google Blogger is discontinuing its Feedburner email auto-delivery of blog posts. This will affect all of the blogs you follow by email - mine, or anyone else's!

If you previously registered to receive email notifications of my posts, and would like to register to receive email notification of my blog posts, you'll need to re-register. Complete the Follow It form I have installed on my home page - upper right-hand menu. 

Thank you - every one of you! - who have registered to receive my posts by email! Linda

June Travels

On Wednesday, June 9, we drove to Kansas City, and returned home Wednesday, June 16. 

In Kansas City I got to see my dad for the first time since visiting last October. This time I actually hugged him - more than once! -  and on two different occasions, sat in his living room for a good chat. It was so great to see him!

From Kansas City, we went to Iowa for four days, our first extended visit since moving to Florida nine years ago today! While in the West Des Moines area, I had the opportunity to meet with Hope Quilters and see how that group has grown - and what a huge stash they have! - to become an extremely giving organization.

Hope Quilters began in about 2010, when I first taught a series of beginner quiltmaking lessons to a group of women at Lutheran Church of Hope. This is also when I wrote my book, First Time Quiltmaking, based on the many beginner quiltmaking lessons I taught in area churches. The first blog post for Hope Quilters was written by me back on February 24, 2012.  As they say, "The rest is history." So, it was a real treat to be with them again.

I also got to worship in person at my beloved church, attending the traditional service at 8 am Sunday morning. What a joy to be in that spirit-filled place again!

On June 11-12, hubs accompanied me to my high school reunion in Newton, Iowa. Our class has held a reunion every five years, so this was the tenth time we've gotten together. I attended eight of those ten times.

Hubs took a blurry picture of classmates being photographed for a formal group shot. But, you get the idea that of my class of about 380 students, 73 of whom have passed away, the turnout of 151 classmates was great!

When we drove back home, we brought our 11 year-old grandson, Tay, with us. Though the car ride was long and tedious, he was a good trooper.

playing putt-putt

At the moment, his preferring method of travel is by golf cart! Daily swims at the pool are a must...

... unless it's to go to the ocean, which we did for two days. He was absolutely thrilled to play in the Atlantic Ocean at New Smyrna Beach, and had a grin on his face the entire time we spent being knocked around by the rough waves. I can attest to the grin and the rough waves, because I was with him 100 percent of the time. I have the bashing and spotty sunburn to show for it!

Tay also proved his love for oysters by eating an appetizer's worth of them. 

We're spoiling him rotten while we can! Trix, Grape Crush, pudding parfaits, and key lemon pie are favs.

Needless to say, I haven't accomplished much. Stitched just a few of these English paper-pieced Prudence blocks while in the car.

While the fellas watch soccer or wrestling on TV, I did some more braiding on my rug. In Kansas City I raided our daughter's clothing donation pile, and found the perfect, orange-colored long-sleeved knit top to strip-cut. My rug is about 34" X 37", near to being finished.

Happy News!

In May I chose two of my quilts to submit for the MQG's Modern Quilt Exhibit at the International Quilt Festival (IQF) in Houston this coming October 28-31. Each year the MQG allows its members to submit two quilts (at no charge) for exhibit consideration. If a quilt is accepted, it's automatically entered also into QuiltCon the following February. 

I didn't anticipate the email that arrived last Thursday, letting me know that a quilt of mine was accepted! "Illusions of Victor," the quilt I made in April 2020, for the Central Florida MQG Mid-Century Modern Artist Challenge, will be displayed at IQF in October, and at QuiltCon 2022 in Phoenix! 

"Illusions of Victor," 48" X 65½"

I've been beside myself with excitement! This means SO much to me, having attempted two previous times to have a quilt juried into the MQG's special exhibit in Houston. 

My only regret about making this quilt is the backing I chose. Because we were in the midst of pandemic quarantine, I made do with whatever large chunks of fabric I could pull from my stash. The back does nothing to enhance the quilt.

If I could figure out how to cover it up, or do it over again, I would! But at this point, it's part of the quilt's story. "Illusions of Victor" won't be winning any prizes, but I'm honored that it will be displayed among the quilts of other, much more renown modern quilt makers: Michelle Wilke; Steph Skardal; Katherine Upitis; Karen K. Ray; Sarah Lefebvre; and Patty Dudek... to name a few. Our new Central Florida MQG media coordinator, Rosemary, wrote a nice blog post about it. 

I'm also excited to begin teaching again, in person, and have begun scheduling guild workshops. I have three solid bookings, so far, through 2021. See my Programs and Workshops tab at the top of this blog homepage. 

Book Recommendation 

The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah is the author's latest release. (Remember her other great titles? The Nighingale and The Great Alone.) Interestingly, she finished writing the book during the pandemic.

The story, ironically, is all about hardship due to the Dust Bowl, in the early 1930s. The story follows Elsa a well-to-do young woman who ends up in a shotgun wedding, and learning the life of a hard-working Texas farm family. When drought and dust storms threaten her life and those of her children, she makes the difficult decision to go west to find something better way. Yet even in California, she suffers ill-treatment as just another of thousands of migrant workers who have fled the Great Plains. Elsa's story is sad - a long-suffering woman who endures her husband's desertion, and her teenage daughter's aloofness and rebellion. Though this story is depressing because Elsa's life is so full of hardship, there's always hope for the next generation.

At the conclusion of the book, it was helpful to listen to an interview with the author and narrator, Julia Whelan. Ms. Hannah's process for researching and writing a novel, giving voice to her characters, and then bidding them farewell is enlightening. And it was fascinating to learn how Ms. Whelan researches and prepares to give voice to and act each character. I have a huge respect for what a skilled narrator can do for a book!

Linda's score: 4.6/5.0

Today marks the ninth anniversary of our move-in to this house in Central Florida. On June 21, 2012 we moved in just as Tropical Storm Debby started. I can't believe how quickly the years have flown by, even with a tediously long year of Coronavirus. We're very content in this house with no itch to change anything, or relocate. The weather suits both of us, and though the distance from family has not always been easy, the wonderful visits we've had - back and forth - help ease that gap. God is good! Linda

Dabbling at Many Things

Summer quiltmaking means a season of touch and go projects. There's at-home sewing time at a sewing machine, and on-the-go handwork. 

At home, I'm going through scraps - pieces too small for a Scrap Snap Quilt - to sew pairs and quads. 

They will eventually become another Scrap Vortex Quilt, a free design by Amanda Jean Nyberg that's still available on her CrazyMomQuilts blog. This is how far I've gotten... and have a long way to go.

In 2015 I made a 88" X 92" Scrap Vortex quilt that's now on our guest room bed. Making another Scrap Vortex is a good way to empty scrap bins again. 

When on the go, I'm hand-appliquéing. For the first time, I'm using 80-weight Aurifil thread, and it's wonderful! 

It's so fine, yet strong, and color 5021 is proving its "hide-ability" with each of the solid colors I'm appliquéing. These are blocks for the Central Florida MQG Chip and Charm Challenge. 

So far, I've appliquéd 63 five-inch squares.

When I bought the spool of 80-weight Aurifil from The Craft Table, a shop owned by my friend René, I also bought a variety pack of Applipops. They're steel rings that can be nested together and pressed to make turned-under edged circles for appliqué. 

I've used a couple sizes of Applipops to make little circles for this project that's on my design wall. I don't know yet where it's going, but I'm having fun using the 100 fat quarters of Superior Solids I won from Benartex in March!

The project is for the South Florida MQG Curve Around Challenge due in November. I'm the chapter's challenge chair.

I've also been using my serger and my new favorite Morrison Top and Dress pattern by Blue Dot Patterns to make several tops. I like the style because of the cap sleeves and front pleats that help hide my "fluff." This orange print is a Kaufman knit from Fabric.com. Bring on summer!

Lastly, after looking closely at the quilt from Grandma's house that my cousin kept (see it in this post), I replicated the block after finding it in the third edition of Encyclopedia of Pieced Quilt Blocks. It's a version of the "Radio Windmill" block and is called "Arabic Lattice." Grandma's old quilt is pieced with half of the blocks like this, and half of the blocks in a mirror image. 

Did you notice how I wrote the block name in the picture? I found an old Scrabble game at our grandparent's farmhouse and snagged the alphabet tiles for photo play.  

Book Recommendation

Be Frank With Me is Julia Claiborne Johnson's first novel. It was a delightful listen centered on a young boy - Frank - who's "unusual," to say the least. He's extremely intelligent, can spew facts like an encyclopedia, and his interactive skills are nearly non-existent. (Think Dr. Shaun Murphy in the TV series "The Good Doctor.)

When Frank's mom, a one-hit wonder novelist who desperately needs money, must knuckle down to write another book, her publisher sends his assistant, Alice, to Bel Air, California, to attend to Frank, chauffeur, cook and clean. What Alice's quickly learns is that she must learn to deal with difficult people, and that secrets are being kept that she wants to know.

Linda's score: 4.4/5.0

I hope your summer is starting with lots of good things, especially being able to spend long-awaited time with loved ones. Linda