Quilt Stuff

It's been ages since I took any kind of quilt class. After awhile you already know how to do everything, I think! That being said, I signed up for a year of Jo Morton's Little Women Club #12. First class was this afternoon. The instructor is Kay Steinmetz and the class is at Quilter's General Store in Rockford. I signed up because I love taking these type of classes from Kay. The last one I took from her was Tulip Farm I think -- from Blackbird Designs. I do tend to finish my projects like this -- sometimes not during the year but usually soon afterward. The class was from 12:30 - 3:00 but we didn't go that long and I was home by 3. So after lunch/dinner at 3:15, I decided to at least cut the fabrics for the blocks. Well, one thing led to another, you know how that goes, I ended up making the four patches and even squared them up. This is what one block will look like after it's sewn together:

Totally felt wonderful sewing this afternoon at home and going to the class earlier.  Can't wait to actually get this top put together.  I didn't get border fabric today, so I'll put the top together and take it in for border fabric.  This will not be a big quilt, so I may even hand quilt it -- that's how good it felt to play today!

It's a Sock!

Far from perfect -- but it fits and I learned a lot.  Already started the second one, but taking a break now.  I think I worked through most of the hard parts so the second one should be a little easier.

It's certainly been enjoyable just sitting and knitting.  Definitely have a new obsession, but will still go back and quilt; sock knitting can be done in the evenings now when JR is in my lap and the tv is on!

Answered My Own Question

I took a nap! I do not sleep well at night, so am always tired and out of energy. So, I took a nap, then loaded a small table runner of Kris' on the longarm and quilted it, and then checked my to-do list and the last thing on it for today: Cut Pussy Willows branches. So I trekked out in knee high drifts of snow and cut some pussy willow branches and put them in water. I hope they take root and then I'll plant another pussy willow tree in the spring. (That's where the first one came from -- Bill gave me a flower arrangement once with pussy willows in it and they took root in the water and now it's a 15-20 foot tall tree.

Think I need to solve my sleeping problem!

Chaos

I can only live with chaos for so long before it drives me crazy. I call messy surfaces chaos because they stress me out and fill me with anxiety until I finally clean them off. Thing is - I'm the one that makes these messes -- the dog certainly doesn't pile things on the table or the counter in the basement!

After picture of the kitchen table -- the items on the table now are what are on there every morning --still rather cluttered, but at least its a controlled chaos!The lamp is usually against the wall -- I like lots of light when I knit or applique.

I didn't take a before picture of my kitchen island, but it was as messy as the table was. I had to clean it off in order to make cut out sugar cookies today, and then clean up the mess, and put the quilt back on.  More controlled chaos and fresh cookies to be frozen for Easter!

The mess on the counter in the basement -- it's still there! That'll have to be a project for next week. I do have a terrible habit of dumping the paper down there because that's where my filing cabinet is, and my main computer.
 Basically, I need to come up with a plan to actually get something accomplished without making a mess and still have lots of time to knit and quilt and read, etc! Anybody have any suggestions? What works for you?

Snow Day!

This is the fireplace in the kitchen and it got a workout Sunday afternoon as I sat at the table and knitted!  So absolutely enjoyable!
Today we're in the midst of a winter storm.  Along with 8 or 9 inches of snow expected, we have 30 mph wind gusts.  The roads will be impassable with the drifting.  I had a hair appointment this morning, but wisely rescheduled that.  Plan for the rest of the day:  Knit!

I am so looking forward to spring!

Second sock?

Nope!  First sock redux!  I was about an inch from starting the heel flap last night and discovered I dropped a stitch about 4 rows ago!  So, I said I wasn't going to rip it out again, but I did and I started over and did 3 rows.  Today, I ripped that out and started over and now have about a half inch of ribbing left to do.  It was looking pretty bad and I'm glad I started over.  This time I don't have any gaps from one needle to the next and I haven't added or dropped any stitches.  I discovered:  I can't learn to knit in the evenings in front of the tv -- the dog is up and down from my lap constantly, the phone rings, I lose my concentration and I'm not good enough yet to figure out how I kept increasing or decreasing my stitches. 
I spent most of yesterday on the computer, so today I decided to stay off the computer and actually accomplish something (I did accomplish a few things that needed to be done yesterday, but it still feels like I wasted a whole day.) 
First of March - oh yay -- February is behind us.  I think starting a new month is like starting a new year - another 30/31 days to make or break a habit, a fresh start so to speak.  I cleaned my coffee pot!  I used to clean the coffee pot on the first of every month, but got out of the habit, so starting a new habit there.  This month I'm going to eat out of the freezer -- every time I open it something falls out, so I need to clean it out.  March is a No-Spend month for me -- which mostly just means I plan to pay attention to where my money goes this month.  It's a good time to do this since my Visa credit card was compromised and they're sending me a new one.  It was obvious to the company that I don't usually spend $289.56 on groceries at Target in Palatine, IL!  I have my card, so somehow they got my card number online I suppose.
I don't use my credit cards a lot, so it's fairly easy to see when they've been compromised.
I think staying off the computer til late in the afternoon, early evening is going to work for me -- I enjoyed knitting this afternoon and quilting this morning.