Secret sewing

Hello! I didn't realize it had been so long since I posted. Congrats on all your progress, Margie!

Since July, I have:

- Finished two squares of the flower cross-stitch and made a bit of progress on others (photo below; compare the last time I posted a photo of the whole thing, in June)

- Cut up MANY (though not all) of the hexagons I'll need to make the flowers in a Grandmother's Garden quilt for my brother-in-law & his family (see initial sewing below). I realized these would be perfect for all the travel I've got planned, so prioritized them ahead of other things. And I just bought a little book light so that I don't have to turn on the overhead light (very bright and annoying to others) on planes. 

- Not made any progress on the heart quilt. HOWEVER, it was my New Year's Resolution to finish this quilt, and I have three days to knock it out. Hopefully before the end of Sunday, I'll have another post about that. :D

- Catherine

Swatching

 Well...

Where do the previous projects stand?

The hat was tried on and approved.  It looks great.

The socks for Smallest are complete.

I decided to go with the bigger needles for the armhole, but I haven't finished that, even though it would take less than an hour, I bet.

If you look at the post from earlier in October, there are two sashiko coasters.  There's a line omitted in one, and I've fixed that.

New stuff - I started some socks to give away.  They are toe up socks.  I followed the directions and they are too short in the foot.  I got frustrated (and I broke a needle while trying them on) so I have put them in time out.  Instead, I started a Savage Heart cardigan while in Colorado for our visit and the funeral.  I am mostly finished.  I sewed one of the seams last night, which allowed me to properly try on a sleeve and it seems too small.  There is some acrylic in this yarn, so I'm not sure how it will do with blocking, but I've decided to _try_ blocking it before I unravel it and start again with bigger needles.  The gauge was definitely different than my original swatch, which is frustrating and would also explain why one of the other sweaters I've made for myself turned out too small.  Swatches lie!

I noticed that when we were in Colorado, Sarah's hat (that I knit last year) was leaving marks on her head, so it's probably too small.  Perhaps I will make her a bigger one.

Other than that, I was looking at a prayer shawl that Jeff's mom had started probably early in her dementia and it's looking more like a parallelogram than a rectangle, so I need to undo it and redo it.  I really don't like working with this yarn, so maybe I'll pass it along to someone who would want it?  

I'm not sure what the next project will be.  I need to make another Darjeeling top for Smallest, so perhaps that will come after the Savage Heart re-do (if needed)?  I should finish the Lantana sweater for sure.  It wouldn't take any time at all!

Other random things - I made the neopolitan checkerboard cookies for a cookie exchange party.  They were easier than I expected and very tasty!  I tried making peanut brittle to send to my parents because Gaga used to send it to my dad every year.  Attempt #1 was a failure.  It didn't get that nice brown color and it was not brittle.  I'll try again later.  We're putting insulation up in a space above our balcony ceiling, which is part of the floor in Middle's room.  It always gets cold in their room in the winter and I suspected the problem was no insulation.  Sure enough, that space is totally empty.  Middle comes home on Wednesday, and I'm hoping we can have it fixed before they leave in January.

Look!  No insulation!

I think that's what I know!

Margie

Hats away!

 I did indeed finish the Musselburgh hat from the previous post.  Alas, I do not have a picture of it.  I'll take one soon.  It needs a bath to relax.  I'm concerned about how much it will relax and if it will still fit nicely afterwards.  If it doesn't, I'll just undo it and make it again smaller...

Speaking of baths... I have a black mostly merino wool cardigan that I have had for years and years.  I would say around 10 years?  I've always dry cleaned it, because I was worried about the wool (which, when you think about it, is a little dumb).  Anyhow, the last time I wore it, it didn't feel very nice.  It dawned on me that I wash wool all the time!  I can give the sweater a bath and it will be just fine!  I washed it last weekend and it was really disgusting.  Here's a picture of the water after the soak.  

I had to rinse it four times before the water came out clean.  That was one filthy sweater.  On the plus side, I wore it to dinner on Sunday night to celebrate our 7th Anniversary and it felt so much nicer!  The sleeves seemed longer, it was fluffier, just a happier sweater.  Note to self - wash the sweater more often.

Other than that, I've turned the heel on the sock for Smallest.  There is dread looming because her foot has been hurting for months and there is a possibility that it is a stress fracture, which would ruin her upcoming performance opportunities.  Boooo!  She was supposed to have an MRI today, but there was confusion with the doctor's orders and what is actually needed, so nothing today.  She was really hoping to know, and is frustrated and disappointed.  

Since my children don't read this blog, I can tell you that we are all heading up to Chicago for Middle's BFA Show and Smallest is coming also!  Middle doesn't know yet, a fun surprise!  Her dad and I think his wife and their little one will also be there.  The wife has issues with me, which I feel are unjustified, but also I understand, so we'll see how things go.

I also finished the neck and one armhole of my purple sweater.  I don't know if I like the way the arm is finished.  I may un-do it and use bigger needles to finish it instead.  Maybe I'll finish the other side with the bigger needles and then I can decide between them.  I like that plan.

We're supposed to get some cold weather next week, down into the 40s at night!  I'm excited about sweater weather!  Chicago will probably be chilly also.

Oh!  One more fun thing - Gaga used to grow blue morning glories on her fence when they moved to New Braunfels.  We thought these plants on our trellis out back were weeds, but no, they are a hello from Gaga!

That's all.  See you in two weeks!

Margie

It's been a lot.

Many things have happened since the last post.  First, Jeff and I went to California to visit his younger daughter, who is working as an intern for Cakebread Cellars during the harvest.  We ate some fantastically delicous food and drank some tasty wine also.  It was a great trip.

Second, we celebrated Jeff's birthday in a very low-key way.  He'll hit a big birthday in two years, so perhaps we'll have a larger celebration then. 

Third, we found out that my sister-in-law, who lives in CO, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer and had her first chemo session the previous week.  No bueno.  After three rounds of chemo, it will be surgery to stage things and then more chemo. 

Fourth, Jeff's older daughter came for a visit during a break from law school.  We had a really lovely weekend with her. 

Fifth, Jeff and I got covid.  Bleah.  The Boy seems to have avoided it.  The benefits of being anti-social! 

Sixth, my sister-in-law passed away from her cancer.  It was Stage IV, and all over her abdominal cavity. My father-in-law died two weeks after his cancer diagnosis, and we were all thankful that he didn't have to go through a lingering, painful death.  As sad as we are about my SIL, we are also glad she was spared, because there's nothing much you can do with Stage IV ovarian cancer. 

Oof.

Last night we had a vestry meeting for my church.  I am in my second year of a three year term.  I was participating by Zoom, because I'm between 5-10 days post-covid-symptom-onset and I don't want to get anyone sick.  Before the meeting, I was looking for something to do while I sat.  I thought about working on the second sock for Smallest, but happened to see the fabric for some sashiko coasters I bought a kit for (a while ago!) sitting on my desk.  I got the rest of the kit and an hour and a half later, voila!  C'est finis!  

Below are also some sock progress pictures.

Other projects... I'm working on a Musselburgh hat for Middle.  They finally responded to a question I had about colors.  I am making it with Gauge Dye Works Colorwheel colorway.  It's super fun, and I should be able to finish in a day or two.  I'm not entirely sure I like it?  I think I should have knit it with size 3 needles instead of 4, but we'll see what Middle thinks of it.  We'll see them at Thanksgiving. 

I also made good progress on my Lantana top and just need to put the neck and sleeve bands on to finish it.  Amazing how things get finished when you work on them! 

I think that's all I know.  We're heading to Chicago at the beginning of November for Middle's BFA show, and then to CO, and then back to CO for SIL's service. 

Margie

Finito!

 I have finished the cute top and have mailed it off to Florida.  Huzzah!

What Marjorie doesn't know is that I put a new green skirt like the one she made in the package also.  I am looking forward to her reaction! (hopefully she's excited about it...)

Now that the top is done, I can move on to completing the socks for Smallest that I started a while ago.  I should probably also work on some other things that are waiting, but the socks are great for carrying around.

Other things I know... Smallest has an African Violet army at her apartment and when she went back to Florida at the end of she summer, she left a bunch of baby plants that she had grown from cuttings.  I have now repotted them and they are living in my office at work because we don't have good window space at our house.  Hopefully I won't kill them.  I tend to have a brown or black thumb when it comes to plants.

We are heading to see Lauren in California this weekend.  She has an internship at Cake Bread Cellars learning about the wine business this fall.  Jeff's birthday is coming up, and I know he likes to see his girls, so this seemed like a great opportunity!  I've never been to the Napa area, so it will be fun.

I'm still doing PT for my ankle.  It is getting better, but this week's session was not enjoyable.  I'm hoping that next week will be an improvement.  There was needling this week, it was not what I was expecting.

That's about what I know.  I'll post a sock progress shot after the trip.  Lots of knitting on planes and in cars!

Margie

Moisture from the sky!

We had the most exciting thing happen yesterday, it was brief, but so satisfying.  It rained!  It's been a while.  Houston has started regulating when you can water, so we can water our crispy grass on Thursday evenings and Sunday evenings.  

Several years ago, we had the hose running in the back yard to do something and we asked The Boy to turn it off on his way to his room, which is by the door to the yard.  He did so, but then we discovered the next day that he had actually turned it all the way on instead of off and it flooded our neighbor's yard.  Oops.  It was a sad yard, so no harm was done (except to our water bill).  Well, on Sunday night, we had watered the yard and Jeff went to turn off the sprinkler before going to bed.  On Monday morning, I went to put some sourdough outside to proof and noticed the sprinkler was still running!  This time Jeff is the one who turned it all the way on instead of off.  Alas.  The grass looks happy though.

I had a good weekend of project-ing.  I have almost finished a two skirts for Smallest.  I mentioned these in the previous post.  I finished the one she bought the fabric for - and I made it reversible!  I need to get elastic for the waist, but it's otherwise done.  I am very pleased with it.  I made a video to show her, I'll see if I can post it. (and I did fix that pinch on the waist)

I've almost finished the remake of the first skirt as well.  That fabric is a pain to work with, so I'm please it's gone as well as it has.  I just need to finish the hem and put in the elastic.  So close!  I'm hoping to get the elastic today, but it might be tomorrow.

The top is coming together also.  I need to do an I-cord around the edges, but it's otherwise good.  I found a mistake in a bad place (messed up buttonhole 3 of 4) and while I fixed it, it's not perfect.  I would have to undo all the straps to really fix it perfectly.  Alas.

Other than that, I don't know much else.  We're going to see Lauren in a couple of weeks.  We went to a place called Puttshack with The Boy on Labor Day and had a good time.  

I'm trying to keep up with the Vuelta bike race, I'll have to see how much we can see on Peacock.  Exciting to have someone from CO in the lead!

Here is Ginny as a Purrito, just for fun.

Margie

Packages in the mail!

 I have accomplished moments things this week - I have sent FOUR packages in the mail!  Who am I?  One was to Jeff's older daughter, who left some things when she and her lovely husband stopped by for a visit.  

The second was to Middle, who had lost a ring when they were here a couple of weeks ago.  I feel confident saying the culprit was Ginny the cat.  The ring turned up, much to everyone's delight, so back to Middle it went.  I included some cute small earrings that I saw when I was getting my watch battery replaced last week, since they have many holes in their ears and small earrings can compliment larger ones.

The Guilty Party

The third was a table that Smallest had ordered, but not updated the address for, so it came to Houston instead of Florida.  It was going to cost me $85 to ship it to Florida (the price of the table!), so I suggested that we return the table and order a new one to be delivered to the correct address.  Smallest got me a return label and I dropped it off at a near-by FedEx office.

The fourth was the cute sweater and blanket for the postdoc in Atlanta who had a baby this spring.  I sewed the buttons on and shipped it off!  Hooray!  

Now I am working on a cute cropped summer top for Smallest, since she is also in a hot place.  It's the Darjeeling Top.  I saw it a couple of months ago and got the pattern, but it was in French.  I finally got the English version just before we drove to Florida to return Smallest to their program.  I knit like the wind on the drive, since Smallest wanted to drive a lot (she is learning to road trip like a McIntosh) but I only got about halfway.  I took a little time off, as thing have been busy, but I'm working on it again and I think I might be able to finish this weekend.  We are heading to Austin for a woodworking festival, so that's six hours in the car plus some other time as well.  I'll definitely be able to make a good dent in it if I don't finish.

I think I'll take the Lantana top along with me too.  I still haven't finished and really would like to.  I think I'm pretty close on that one too?  I've finished the back and the right front, I think I'm on the left front now?  Hmmm.... definitely worth bringing that along!

I have a skirt to make for Smallest also.  Maybe two.  She made a skirt this summer after seeing some fabric I had bought, but as it was her first clothing adventure, the construction leaves a little to be desired.  I still have the fabric and might use it to make her a new skirt instead of the dress I intended it for.  It would be a fun surprise, and she wears the current skirt all the time.  She had bought fabric to make a second skirt but didn't have time, so that's the first skirt to make.

You can see how it's fraying at
the hem, but she LOVES it.

Work has been busy lately, and I had many trips this summer.  I still have the trip this weekend, then a trip with Jeff (yay!) in September for his birthday, and then a trip later this fall back home.  I think I will be traveled out!

I like your purple border, Catherine!  Colors in quilts are tricky.

Margie

Boundary conditions

This past week I made a bit of progress on the heart quilt, though not as much as I hoped. I decided what the border was going to look like and picked the fabric (some strong contenders lost out because there wasn't enough fabric). It's a fade from the strong purple I've picked for the back; it will work better on one half of the front than the other but I think I'll like it. Pictures below.

I also:

Ironed the front

Ironed the back fabric, measured it up, and cut/sewed it so it's no longer a ~40" x 80" rectangle but a ~60" x 60" square

Measured and cut up the batting

Washed the purple border fabrics

---

Whenever I next get a good block of time, I will hope to get the two border fabrics prepped and sewn on (one on each side), so I can finally make my quilt sandwich and be done! The only problem is that the next good block of time will be in about three weeks. Someday...

Here's also a picture of my cat, because he is sooooo cute.

- Catherine

(better half)

(worse half)

(cutie)

Catching up

You have posted so much!

What do I know... if I were closed, I'd stitch your green stuff!  After the heat in Texas this summer, moving closer to you sounds better and better.

I've been working on the blanket (this one) and sweater for another baby.  I finished the blanket last week.  It was fun to do.  I would make one in a chunky yarn and make it a little bigger to give to big people.  Could be fun!

I had to do some CITI training for responsible conduct of research (so timely with the resignation of Stanford Univ's president for being naughty) and I discovered it was easier to pay attention if I knit while listening and reading the slides.  It was not a pattern requiring a ton of thought.  I got the body done and need to do the collar and sleeves now.  I want to block it before doing the collar, so maybe I'll do the sleeves first.  The pattern is Elwood.  I'm making the 6 month size, and I got gauge on my swatch, but it seems larger than expected.  No worries, as babies grow fast.  It will all be fine.

I took the blanket with me on our recent trip to camp in the Canadian Rockies and that helped get it over the finish line.  We only had a fire one night so nothing smells like smoke.  

What's coming up... I'm heading to see Smallest dance in her summer intensive at the end of the month (and return the roommate's cat).  If I haven't finished the little sweater by then, I should definitely finish on that trip.  After that there are some sweaters to be made, I bought some fabric and a pattern for a dress that I need to do.  Smallest and I might make her another skirt.  I should post the skirt she made back in June.  If you don't look closely at things, it looks really good.  It was definitely a first project skirt.  She loves it though, and that's the most important part!

The Boy is in Japan with his dad and it looks like they're having a good time.  A relief!

Here is a random carrot for your entertainment!

I forgot to mention my accident while hiking.  I twisted my ankle the first day we were hiking in Banff.  I could walk on it afterwards, and got a brace to wear for our further adventures, but I did follow up with my doctor and I tore a ligament.  Hopefully there will be some healing this week, otherwise there may need to be some surgical intervention, which I'm not super excited about.

Happy Penultimate day of the Tour de France!

Margie

The demolition continues

It's been a busy two weeks, so not much to report. I did find a few spots to take the scissors to my quilt, and am making some progress on tearing seams apart. It's just so many seams! I will try not to be discouraged. Tomorrow I will take a closer look at what I can just cut apart, or I will be at this forever.

I am also not forgetting the other quilts on the docket. I do have a brief pocket before our next guests arrive where I could try to make the heart quilt into a full sandwich. Hmm... 

I did make a bit of progress on the cross-stitch during arts and crafts time with Mom. There are two dark green leaves in the middle (the first one is started, see?) and then all four dark green leaves have a lighter green leaf partner, and then I'm done with that one! Yay. I still feel uncertain about what to do with it when I'm done. It is fun to work on, but would be even more fun if I knew its destiny. More things to ponder!

And, my new team member starts in less than two weeks, meaning the double duty I've been doing since ~March will soon come to an end (and there will be more time for crafts!). I CAN'T WAIT.

- Catherine

Unmaking

A whole week at home! As much as I like working on my flowers, I'm prioritizing projects that I can't do on a plane. We have guests coming in a few days, so it's not good timing to get out the heart quilt; instead, I am working on disassembling my T-shirt quilt so I can reclaim the shirts and build a new quilt (see? Sorry the photo is weird). You can see that some of the intermediate fabrics are just completely torn up, so this is long overdue.

Given the state of things, I do need to be a bit more thoughtful about which seams I'm taking out and which I could just cut up - I don't think I'm going to try to keep the batting, so scissors will help me move things along!! I've fully reclaimed two of the small squares (see bottom right), one of which is a piece of T-shirt. 

As I'm writing this, I'm realizing that I also have more shirts waiting to be put in a quilt, and some of these shirts probably have lost enough emotional attachment that I could let them go. So, I really need to think carefully about which pieces I'm salvaging! Looks like I will need to do some better planning this week.

- Catherine

 

Seeking green thumb

As I get further and further on this piece, I am realizing there's so much green! Seven of the squares (see grid below; Y = yes, non-green color is finished and N = no, not finished) are either completely done or all the non-green is done. The top left is nearly done, too. And yet there's so much blank space! Crazy.

Y    Y    Y    N

Y    N    Y    Y

N    N    N    Y

I was looking through my photos from the place with sheep, and it was fun to see that my brain likes to take pictures of the same things that I like to build using cross-stitch - here are some of my favorite plants and flowers from the trip!

I've also been picking out a few smaller designs that I could incorporate into presents for people, and there is definitely an overabundance of plants there. A+ for consistency, I guess? 

If only I had someone with a green (cross-stitch) thumb to swoop in and do all the green for me (like Evil Twin is so good at in our actual garden), then I would be practically done with this. :P

- Catherine

  

A stitch in every square

After my last photo, I decided to tackle the blue flowers in the top right square (they're blue, I promise); after I finished those, I used the last of the blue thread on the bottom left corner. I used my last green thread to make progress on the middle bottom squares, and then the remaining three felt so lonely that I needed to put something there. And now I have something in every square! It makes me happy to see them all coming along.

Even better, I got to the store today to buy more green thread. They only had 2 skeins available, so I hope that's enough to finish (rather than have 4 separate dye lots - I have been talking a lot to Middle in the last week about the importance of planning your projects carefully in advance, so I am feeling silly that I didn't buy more green thread earlier). 

I still don't know the destiny of this project - there isn't anyone that seems like an obvious recipient, and the size/shape of it don't immediately suggest a use other than "hang on the wall". I have time to think about it, though - I fortunately get to take a break from plane flights after one more short trip this week, and I will focus my time at home on the quilts.

- Catherine

 

Crafting in the land of the midnight sun

It is fun to see what people in other places do for crafts. I am in a place where there are lots of sheep, so unsurprisingly there are lots of sweaters and little sheep friends made out of the extra wool. However, yesterday we stumbled across a most delightful conglomeration of extra wool and extra fabric - see? Each of these little fellows was different - hair or not, horns or not, smiles or frowns, and all made out of different scraps. It makes me want to play when I get home!

- Catherine 

Travel time

[Note from CG: I wrote this post last Saturday. There has already been more cross-stitching! Will post more tomorrow.]

I have had three plane flights this week, and all of the corresponding airport time too, so lots of cross-stitching! I finished the second block (bottom right) and have made good starts on the two sets of yellow flowers. I am nearly out of the dark green thread again, and still have tons of leaves to do, so I will get 2-3 skeins when I go to the store next.

Fun to see it taking shape! 

- Catherine

Edit: Rotated the image.

A clean start

Yay for babies and blankets and cats!! So much fun stuff going on down there. 

Yes, I was referencing Star Wars. :D

This week's update is cross-stitching from the plane. These irises are in the bottom right corner, opposite from where the other purple flowers are. I should be able to finish this block on my next trip!

We have some visitors coming tomorrow, so I also had to clean my room. In picking up, I was reminded that there are a few projects that I have finished but don't know what to do with and/or that I haven't worked up the courage to finish (like, I want to try making a pencil case, incorporating a little llama that I made, but have not done that before and can't seem to find a set of instructions that I like). And, of course, I am trying not to get distracted from the quilt! Too much fun stuff to do.

In related news, my work paid for us to get a particular personality assessment done, and I have officially learned that I am good at ideating but not so good at executing. That would explain why I have a million projects in various states rather than just a couple in progress and the others either done or not started. Sigh. A tip that I received is that I can strengthen my ability to do things I'm not normally good at by tying them to things I am better at, so I will have to ponder that a bit.

I am also so excited to be in the same place as you - just a week away! <3

- Catherine

I Met the Baby!

I was out moving trash cans this morning and our neighbors happened to be heading out on a walk with their two little girls.  The new baby is just a week or two old, and was underweight at birth (even though she was on time) so she had to spend some time in the NICU before coming home.

Rather than retrieving the blanket (because I finished it!) and making them go for their walk, I decided to wait and I'll take it over later on.

So, I did finish!  Here's the beginning, middle and end of working the i-cord edging.  I like it a lot.  If I do a similar blanket, I need to go down a needle size when I use DPNs, because my gauge is off and it makes the center poofy.  Or I need to use bigger needles for the rest of the blanket.  Things to remember!

The picture insertion software has changed, and I do not approve.

Also, Smallest is home!  Hooray!  She has her roommate's cat with her and it's fun to have another cat for a bit.  The two cats are both terrified of each other, so there has been no interaction.  We picked up some Feliway diffusers today to see if that will help them be more chill.  Here's a Cannoli picture for your viewing pleasure.

Tomorrow we (me and The Boy) leave early to head to Chicago to help Middle move apartments.  As I suspected, there is still packing to be done.  Sigh.  We'll take some boxes and paper along with us also.  I was planning to take the sock for Smallest in the car, but after our conversation, I think I'll take the yarn for the blanket and test out the Ziggy one.  I'm curious to see how hard it is.

The Boy went to the doctor this week about some pain he gets in his hip when he walks around a lot.  He's going to Japan with his dad at the end of July, so lots of walking will be involved.  I am very excited that he has been referred to PT.  Hopefully they can help him with his posture, which is what causes his pain.  He's got a wicked slouch.  He'll have 6-7 weeks to work on it, which I think is enough time to help.

That's all I know!  I'll report back from Chicago.  Hopefully we'll get some tasty food while we're there.  I might see Gwen Reagor (who now goes by Sissy) while we're there!

Margie

Yeah, baby!

Catherine, did you intend to reference Star Wars in your last post?  A new hope indeed!  

I have been working on a baby blanket for our neighbors who had their second daughter this month.  I've wanted to used this kind of yarn for a while, so I did it!  It's all acrylic, which isn't my favorite, but I'm hoping that the ease of care will outweigh any negatives.  I was going to do simple knit/purl patterns changing with the colors, but then decided it needed some lace, so I used one of my Modern Daily knitting field guides that had ways to adorn sock patterns and that's worked out well.

I've since started an i-cord bind off and I'm hoping to finish in the next day or two.  It takes a while, and I think there's over 580 stitches to bind off, so it will take a while.  Mostly I'm hoping I have enough yarn.  I think I do?  We shall see.  I have a second big thing of the same yarn (different colors) to make something for the first child.  I'm curious to see how big a continuous Granny Square would get?

Since I didn't think it was appropriate to take my big, messy blanket to a church meeting yesterday, I cast on the next sock for Smallest.  It is Planifolia in Gauge Dye Works' Pumpkin Spice colorway.  I bought the yarn many years ago to make socks for Smallest, and so finally they will appear!

Fun fact - While Smallest was cleaning up, preparing for some time at home this summer, she found Cannoli's first sock!  It was in the nest Cannoli had made under her bed.  Very fun.  Cannoli is going to be spending about six weeks with us this summer.  I think it will be a lot of fun.  Hopefully Ginny and Cannoli will get along.

Next projects... while working on the socks for Smallest, I will also be working on an Elwood sweater and a blanket for a postdoc at Georgia Tech who I've know online for many years.  She just had a baby in March and he is SO CUTE that I must knit for him.  I'll make the sweater in the six month size so that he can wear it when it gets cool in the fall.  I'm debating between two patterns for the blanket.  The first (Square within a square) looks relatively quick and easy.  The second (Ziggy Mandala) looks so cool, and would be fun to knit, but I worry about the attention it would require.  I'll have to think about this.  Maybe we can consult while you are here soon!  Yay for visits!

I have made some new cropped pants to replace the ones I made that are wearing out.  I even found the same fabric as before.  I am boring.  I finished one pair, now I need to finish the second.  Something else to do while I am working from home.  I am home to supervise The Boy, as he's in a bit of a depressive funk.  I am hoping to get the school to let him take more classes than he is currently.  He is bored, and a bored Boy is a sad Boy.  We're also looking at finding a job, which is hard when one is not motivated to do so.  Ah well.  We see the psychiatrist on June 1, so hopefully she'll have some thoughts.  He's also (hopefully) going to start PT for his hip, and I think that small bit of exercise will also help.  I'll be doing his exercises with him at home to make sure they get done.

I think that's about all I know.  We've bought tickets and booked campsites for a trip to the Canadian National Parks in the Rockies.  It should be a fun trip.

Margie

A new hope for the quilt

I’m so pleased with my efforts this week - I have designed and executed a new quilt top that is not as horrible as that crazy thing I made before. 

Here again is the original awful thing that my evil twin must have created:

I decided that I liked the outer two rings, but that the purple and bright red had to go. In looking for other brick red kinds of fabrics, I also discovered that I had a few scraps left of the material from the second ring, enough to replace the two pieces in that round where I had initially put in more fabric from the second round (in the top notch of the heart and the bottom corner). 

Here are a few photos of me testing out different combinations, as there were many nice fabrics to choose from:

Here is my supervisor helping me. He only messed up the pieces a few times, and fortunately I had taken a photo of all the pieces laid out nicely, so easy to fix.

And here are a few other "in construction" photos taken throughout last weekend/last week:

And here is the new quilt top, finished yesterday! I'm so happy.

Now I need to decide whether to do a larger border (the same width as the squares) or just cap it off, and come back to the question of how exactly to quilt it. I had an idea before, but might have changed my mind while I was working on it this week. However, the new idea is both vague and much harder than what I was originally thinking, so... we'll see. I am excited to have regained momentum, and will do more next weekend!

- Catherine