geometry was not my best subject

I did not enjoy geometry very much in high school, especially the theorems. So my husband is often bemused at my quilting because in many ways, it is simple geometry.

 Last week's square (from the link on the left of my blog) which I just finished today.

 The corners didn't match up on part of this making it a little wonky.

 And both squares together...not too bad from a distance!

And this one is from Bernina's (a quilt store in Raleigh) Saturday Sampler. They provided all the fabric (except the green). Curious to see what next month's pattern will be.

And my goal of finishing the twin size quilt...I do hope to work on it today and some tomorrow, and maybe next Tuesday, but I seriously doubt I'll finish it before January 31...although you just never know.

and back to the grind

Saturday morning we left early for Huntersville (a small suburb of Charlotte). We had a two purpose mini-vacation: for Bobby, visit the church his niece/nephew are starting, for me...shop!  Ever since IKEA had its grand opening in Charlotte I've wanted to go. I think the Charlotte area is just a cool place to shop anyway, but other than a trip to Concord Mills with some friends a few years ago I've never had that privilege.

On the way, we started seeing signs for THE Depot...largest antique collection in the south! We joked about how most antique places advertise in a somewhat similar manner, and I made the comment, "Wouldn't it be cool if we could stop?"  Then it hit me: we COULD stop. Normally when we travel, the drive is long and time is short and we only stop for absolute necessities.  This day, our drive was short and time was ours. So stop we did. And I am SO glad we did! We probably spent about 3 hours in this cotton mill converted into an antique consignment shop. At one point Bobby hesitantly said, "If you really want to go to IKEA, we probably ought to head on."  I told him it was okay if we didn't fit IKEA in on that trip. When all was said and done, we did manage to go to IKEA, spent about an hour there, and that was more than enough.

IKEA...is not my kind of store. I liked the concept on the showroom floor...displaying how their products can be used in a tiny apartment or space for maximum usage of space (although such spaces are not conducive to wheelchairs, strollers, nor crowds). I think a store like that would do great in a place like China where the apartments are less than 700 sq ft.  If you like avant garde or modern-style furnishings, then this is definitely the place to shop. If you like sturdy, traditional furniture that might one day survive to be in an antique shop, avoid this place like the plague. I will say their kitchenware stuff (utensils, cutting boards) were very decent prices, though there's not multiple choices in types or brands (except in the dishes) and for things like toddler beds and such they seemed sturdy.  The place was crowded; the parking lot reminded me of Christmas. On top of that, they have a MAP with arrows pointed on the floor showing which way the crowd is to walk. That bugged me. Bobby liked it, as with the huge crowd it made it a little easier to all be going the same direction. Except this is America, where people almost never follow directions. All the international customers were following the map; the Americans were going wherever, causing some chaos in the narrow aisles with their strollers and Bobby's wheelchair. So between the crowd, the inability to just browse, and the design of the ceiling and things being stacked up way over your head, I started feeling a little claustrophobic, which has only happened once before in my life. It wasn't a pleasant feeling.  I finally told Bobby we needed to leave the showroom and go downstairs to the market place. That was much better, much less constricting, but still crazy. The craziest part was trying to find a way out. The ONLY way to escape that store is by getting in a LONG line to go through a check-out lane. I guess they expect everyone to buy something. I don't think either one of us have any desire to head back to this store, which is funny, considering that is the one store I really wanted to visit.

But come April, when things hopefully slow down a little bit, if anyone wants to make a day trip to an antique store, I'll gladly go. :)

project 2

I had three goals for this month: conquer the ironing mound, crack ALL the pecans, and finish the quilt I started last August. Numbers one & 2 are done! :)  Number three, well if I finish it by February 1 I will consider myself very, very successful. (And yes, this is the quilt I was going to finish in September, October and December of 2011). 

Pecans... About 15 years ago my father-in-law noticed that there were small trees sprouting throughout the fields, courtesy of Hurricane Fran. He wasn't certain, but he thought they might be pecan trees. So he started mowing around them. At least 7 of those are on our property. The first year we were married, I came home on day and walked straight into a stick! I looked, startled, and we had 6 sticks sticking up in a semi-circle across our back yard. I went aside and called Bobby. He laughed and said his Mom had called him at work, saying his Dad and Uncle were planting pecan trees at our house. I was a little startled. The next time I saw him, he asked me if they had planted them in the right place. I smiled and nodded, thinking "And what would you do if they weren't? Dig them up, which would kill them?"  For the record, they were artistically placed. Not too close to the house for when they are full grown, and also nicely spaced for shade and still giving us a decent yard in the back.

Since then, I've learned several things. There are many types of pecan trees.  Like most fruit or nut trees, there has to be more than one type planted for cross-pollination. Pecan trees take 10-15 years to reach nut-bearing maturity.

Three years ago we had our first "crop" and it was pleasingly a decent sized one. The next year, about 1/3 of that. BUT, we learned that is common with nut trees. Every other year is supposed to be a decent crop year. I had 3/4 a peck bucket, and them Bobby was able to get a grocery bag full from someone at work. I never got around to shelling them. This year, we had 3/4 a peck bucket again. I was determined that ALL of them were going to be shelled before the month was out (and get them out of my laundry room and hallway!)

 I had forgotten when we had to replant some of the trees that died we went with 2 additional variaties. I know that one is supposed to be small, but I hope they do grow to be bigger than the smallest one here! It's only twice the size of my smallest fingernail!  We had some that were wider than the others, the normal size, and then skinny, unusually long one. And no, other than Cape something and one started with a B, I don't remember the names.

And while I shouldn't be thankful for this, the 2011 bucket (the bag on the left) was 70% bad. That made shelling go much faster. Between extra weights at the gym this week and 2-4 hours of shelling a day, my arms are tired!

Sanford quilt show

Last Friday my mother-in-law and Bobby's Aunt Doan went to the quilt show in Sanford, NC.  There weren't as many vendors as last year, but we still had a good time. Here is one of the quilts they had on display. The closer I looked, the more impressed I became. Mary Booth is always telling me that cutting is not only the first step, but is also the most important step. Boy does this quilt illustrate that! While Mary means that if you don't cut your pieces out correctly the blocks won't sew up correctly, the way these pieces were cut out and placed totally changes the look of the quilt. Yes, planning HOW to cut is just as important as the actually cutting.

The Quilt. Circular patterns have always intrigued me. Notice every circle is the same pattern.

A close up of a circle. Notice how the flower on the leaf is cut in almost exactly the same spot, creating a design?

Same pattern, same fabric, but by using the tail of the leaf, it creates a totally different look. Love the starburst in the center.

Again...same pattern, same material...totally different look! Not sure if I like this one or the first one the best, but it certainly got me thinking about placement of fabric within a pattern!

Maybe perhaps possibly?

IF I work really hard, I think I can conceivably finish at least one of my current projects by January 18th. That means I can start another one. :)

Starting Wednesday, January 18th, Fresh Lemons Quilts is having a five week quilt along.  Every week she'll introduce a new quilt block, along with instructions and links that help teach you the technique for that block. It's like taking a quilting class, except it's in cyberspace. Even if I only make 5 blocks (which is 1/5 of what you need for a full size quilt), it'll still be five blocks I've made while learning a new technique.  AND, I'm not buying new fabric, but am using what I already have in my stash.

I'm doing something similar with a quilt shop in Raleigh.  They have this program called "Saturday Sampler" (It's the fourth item listed under the NEWS section on their homepage.)  Basically you buy one kit for $5. You choose a class time (from 4-5 time slots) where you sit through an instructional session on how to make the block. You have one month to go home and sew the pieces in your kit into that block, and the next month you take the completed block back and receive the next block kit free. IF you don't finish the block you have, you can pay $5 to get the next one. I'm a little excited by it.

And hopefully my next post will be showing at least one of 2 finished household projects that I'm working on.

it's not helping!

I will not start a new project until I've finished the two I'm currently doing..
I WILL not start a new project until I've finished the two I'm currently doing.
I will NOT start a new project until I've finished the two I'm currently doing.
I will not START (does this mean I can just think about one) a new project until I've finished the two I'm doing.
I will not start a NEW project (but can I work on another unfinished one?) until I've finished the 2 I'm doing.
I will not start a new PROJECT (may I should just say it's an activity) until I've finished the 2 I'm doing.
I will not start a new project until I've FINISHED (define finish) the 2 I'm doing.
I will not start a new project until I've finished the TWO (I've completed one, shouldn't I always have 3 going?)
I will not start a new project until I've finished the two I'm doing....

Sometimes resolutions just stink.

the runaway bunny

Once there were two rabbits who lived in a cage.
Once a week they got to visit the great outdoors for exercise.
But one Saturday they decided not to return to their place of living. Every time the big bad human moved to catch them, they hopped. Fast. The big bad human would sit very still, tempting them closer. They would come, put their front paws on her jeans, then before she could blink, they would flip 180 and hop away. They spent the night in the big outside world. And the next morning, there was only one rabbit.
The big bad humans surmised that poor little Sally must have been eaten by an owl. There were no holes that she could have crawled out of, and there were no signs of a struggle. It had to have been a bird that swooped down in the night and took her away.
Sunday went by, then Monday.
On Tuesday morning, this what the big bad human saw:

Sally has hopped in the garage. She's hopped up and down the front ramp to the porch. She's hopping all over the front yard. But she will not hop back into her cage.
She is a runaway bunny. :(
Meanwhile, poor little Thumper sits all alone.