Getting back in gear…

My sewing machine being out of order took me out of commission and then my allergies went thru the roof. I don’t know about you but when I’m sniffly, I just don’t want to do anything. Plus, it seems even non-drowsy meds make me drowsy, so it was a couple of nights on the couch instead of blogging. But I have my mojo back, and I have some cool projects for you! Stay tuned, and thanks for sticking with me during my short hiatus.

Read More

This N That #22 – Sick edition

I hate being sick.  You never get anything done. And because most of us are something other than a quilter, such as a “mom”, “wife”, “worker” or any combination thereof, being sick means all of those jobs get behind on.
I have a terrible cold, and because I work out of my house and I am not regularly exposed to germs I am taking a beating on this one. It’s been 2 weeks and I’m officially sick of being sick. 
****************************
Because I have been sick, I’ve watched a lot of TV, and this allowed me to finally watch “Amelie“. It’s a wonderful movie with a light hearted and wistful story that was such a joy to watch, and I know why it is a favorite of so many people I know. 
****************************
I have been keeping up to date with my weeklies and even did a pretty neat Technique of the Week, so I hope to have that posted soon.  For now, back to bed! 

Read More

"Tired always came after Sick"

How do I begin? Well, the stress of the last week trying to prepare for Grammie’s open house took it’s toll in the form of “airplane/travel head cold”. Monday morning I felt like total you-know-what. But I had to get the things I needed to get done out of the way, like mowing, and laundry, and a doctor’s appt. Doctor’s appt leads to further test being needed. Yay. More to think about.

On Tuesday, still feeling bad, I learned of the death of a good friend, Amrita Sunita Board Dowd. Oh, how can I even explain this? Rita had her lovely son Daschel on April 3rd, and something was still not right. After tests, Rita had a very rare and aggressive cancer. She passed with family and friends Monday May 11th. Rita always made me laugh and I will really miss her.

Today, it’s all hitting me at once. I’m tired and sick, and really down in the dumps. I miss Grammie and Rita, the cats are not getting along, and my “big” quilt is slipping away into UFO project status, and it needs to be hung May 22nd, but I don’t know if I will have time to finish it… Too much for me to think about now. I have to focus on getting well and then the quilt.

Read More

Back to back injury- time to crochet!

Ha ha….sorry for the pun, though I’m not really laughing. Yesterday proved to be a stressful morning, and my back seized up after being OK for a couple of weeks. My allergies seem to be in overdrive today, and I am very stuffed up. I’m exhausted from stress, injury, and antihistamines.

In times like these, I crochet. I think this is one of the first kind of fiber arts I did. I was taught to crochet by a nun named Laverne who lived on my block. I grew up in Calumet Park, IL. This nun brought all of us kids on Ada St into her home almost daily and let us do crafts, color, and otherwise keep us off the streets. She taught me how to crochet, just one stitch, the single crochet. Laverne passed away not too long after teaching me, and my grandmother would not let us go to her funeral. I eventually taught myself the rest of the stitches, years later. I have never made a large crochet project, but plenty of small things.

When I am laid up like this, I usually crochet because it’s easy and I can do it and watch TV at the same time. The past couple of weeks before getting back into the sewing room I made lots of washcloths from cotton yarn I got on sale at Michaels. Now I’m thinking of making some socks…

Read More

Walking in Memphis

By the time you read this, I’ll be in Memphis TN for the comic book industry job I have. Be there through Sunday. Missing my brother’s birthday and my sister’s candle party…

My back is not fully recovered so no sewing has happened in the studio. Lots of reading and crocheting, but little sewing. The ideas are building up, and the big IQA show in Chicago is looming with all kinds of ideas and classes to take and money to spend there…

I am teaching my Fiber Art Divas group how to make the Yo Yo Flowers (sorry for those of you still waiting on the pattern). I’ll let you know how it goes. This is just coming off of teaching it as a half hour demo at the Riverwalk Quilt Guild’s Gathering show.

I have a project to take with me on the plane, but we’ll see how much gets done. I may just nap instead.

In the meantime, I submitted one of my sad February quilts for a “ghost for a ghost” project over on Astulabee’s Blog and Flickr page. Go check it out!

Read More