Organize and play

The other day I was at the dollar store and saw jigsaw puzzles - 500 piece jigsaw puzzles.  I was very pleasantly surprised that the puzzle I purchased for $1.00 was well made and enjoyable to put together.  All the pieces interlocked and although the pieces were small, they were just the right size to have them all within reach.

But, I was feeling guilty that I was not working on any of my many, many projects.  So I made labels and sewed them on some recently completed quilts.

A burst of energy hit me yesterday and today so I started a much needed project - re-organizing and folding all my fabric neatly.  Here are the reds, greens, blues and purples.

Today I worked on the beiges, golds, browns, patriotic, flowers, black & white, novelty, whites, flannels, and stripes.

When I took breaks, I worked on an expensive puzzle that I purchased at a book store.

This puzzle was hard to do and I did not like it anywhere near as much as the little puzzle from the dollar store.  These pieces interlocked, but if I breathed wrong they would come apart.  There is a lot of detail and therefore looked like it would be easy, but the details were so small that the pieces were hard to locate on the picture.  Guess who is going back to the Dollar store! ! ! 

This morning I had an "aha" moment while I was doing some journaling.  I worry about all the projects I have to do and about all the fabric, counted cross-stitch, yarn, and crafting supplies I purchased during my working years.  I have felt like I need to use it all up and had set a goal for myself (a few years back) of being done in five years.  Well, I realized this morning that my goal is impossible. There is no way I could possibly finish all the cross-stitch projects, use all the fabric, knit all the yarn, or make use of all the craft supplies.  Nor can I read all the books I have at home.  Nor can I get the house as clean as I think it should be or as organized as I envision in my day-dreams.  My "aha" moment came when it hit me that this is a very good thing!  If I weren't working on my projects and crafts, and if I weren't doing jigsaw puzzles or reading, it would mean that I was too old, too infirm, or disabled. 

 So today I am extremely grateful for the long, long list of things To Do.

Nine-Patch finished.....

All done - this nine-patch with flowers quilt - made for a cousin on the occasion of her milestone birthday.  I will be sewing on the label tonight so that I can ship it out tomorrow.

Detail.

The back.

Pillow case to match.

Another quilt finished in 2011.  This makes my 5th finish for 2011.  If I can keep up this average for the rest of the year I will be one very happy quilter.

Quilt Smart

Our guild, Northwest Suburban Quilter's Guild, had Mattie Rhoades from Quilt Smart as our speaker last Thursday and I took the Friday workshop (applique) with Mattie.  It was a great class and I really enjoyed learning from Mattie.

I made 100 Bow tie blocks, and here they are haphazardly placed on my design wall.

All in one direction.

Boxed.

Wavy.

Now I am beginning the long process of sewing all the 100 bocks together.  I started tonight after I decided to do the top layout - all one direction.  After sewing several blocks together, I had to unsew them because they did not lock as neatly as I wanted.  I changed the foot on the machine to a walking foot and it made all the difference.  Only one row done, but at least it is a start.

Yet another -

Yes, another quilt bound today.  This one presented a problem as the quilt came with the binding already machine sewn to the BACK of the quilt.  The quilt owner intended to then pull the binding to the front and machine sew it down.  The problem then was for me to do as she intended, or decide to hand stitch it to the front.  Also, everyone does things differently, and the corners were not as I would have sewn them.  I tried the machine sewing method, but it looked sloppy and so I did some unsewing.  Instead I opted to hand sew it to the front of the quilt and struggled with the corners.  It is OK, but I'm not as proud of the end result as I would like to be.

No more quilts to bind.  Guess I will have to create some of my own quilts!

Moving right along.....

Two more quilts all bound.

Bonnie's Bindings is moving right along.............

New Business

Recently I was discussing the possibility of starting a little business of my own, Bonnie's Bindings, where I would offer binding services.  A friend overheard my conversation and asked to be my first customer.  She had four quilts waiting for binding, a chore she dislikes intensely.


The first quilt she wanted done is a quilt she is donating to an auction to raise funds for an organization.  It is a king-size quilt.  Wouldn't you know that my first job would be the biggest possible!  It was hard to maneuver the bulk and weight through my small domestic machine when I sewed the binding to the front of the quilt, however it was wonderful to do the hand sewing with the quilt draped over my legs, keeping them warm in my chilly house.

I love doing binding, even when it is miles of the same leopard print.  The quilt is not mine to show, but here is a peek.  Trust me, it is stunning!

Blizzard of 2011

This is the view out of my front door.  Yes, that drift is as high as the bush.

I don't think I will be leaving my house any time soon.

This is looking down my driveway and out into the street.  Hmmm.  The plow went through just a little while ago, but you cannot tell.  

My back porch is snowed in.  You cannot see, but there is a drift completely surrounding my porch.

Can you see how high the drift is around my porch?  It is almost a foot above the chair-height rail.

What a great day to stay home and start a new quilt! ! !