Monday, January 31, 2022

For the first time in a long time (maybe forever) all of the tasks on my reminder list are finished. I’ll start with a clean slate going into February but I don’t expect this phenomenon to last long; I’ll have three more challenges hitting the list tomorrow as well as another batch of cards. It is a nice feeling while it lasts though.

The timing today was almost perfect. I was cleaning the laundry room which is mostly a collection of our recycling. The thrift store was finally open so I was able to take a couple of bags to them; I didn’t want to overwhelm them with all my collections. I had cleared out some cabinets and drawers at some point over the past couple of weeks and I had a bag full of out-dated medications; I dropped them off at the pharmacy for disposal. I was able to take my bag full of Pat’s shredding to the recycle depot and I sorted the various recycling bags from the laundry room into the right bins on the back step.

The only thing I wasn’t able to clear out were our cans and bottles. As of tomorrow we will be able to return our milk containers for a refund; when I sorted our recycling bags I took out all the milk containers and added them to the bag of cans and bottles; I’ll drop that bag off on my next trip out. I had quite a few things to take to the post office and I took care of that while I was out.

I’ve been working my way through Mum’s fabrics again today. I am still dozen’s short of the pieces I need for the quilt I’m making but the bin is still more than half full.

Pat has an online event tonight and I hope to get a bit more of my Peppermint Purple border done.

Sunday, January 30, 2022

I was very determined to get to the bottom of the pile of paper on my desktop today. I had a file folder full it things I wanted to get into the mail to various family members and once that was done my pile was less inclined to topple over. I always have one or two items on the desktop for the Hall, a few items for myself and, occasionally, something for the Guild.

I cleared my way through seven stackable filing trays and narrowed them down to just five. Three of them are for use for the Hall, the Guild and myself. I have another tray that is going to require further sorting – I’ll do it in half-hour bits as the task comes up each week. I have another tray that keeps my outgoing mail. Once a card is finished I wrap it up and get it ready for the mail but sometimes, not often, I’m finished early so I don’t want the package to go out yet. If I’m diligent there should never again be a stack of paper on my desk.

The rest of the day I’ve been going through the bin of Mum’s fabrics. When Stacia, Deloise and I get together to sew we are all going to work on projects using Mum’s stash. I have a pattern picked out for my project but it involves a lot of cutting. Just from this afternoon’s work my elbow, wrist and fingers are sore and I’ve hardly made a dent in the bin.

I started cutting fabric specifically for the blocks I need for my project but then decided I’d be left with more and smaller scraps. So I’m taking each piece of fabric (and believe me they are scraps after using the fabric for my Farmer’s Wife quilt) and cutting it into whatever shape I can use in the project and getting rid of the rest of the piece. There are five shapes – three of them require fairly large pieces – and two of them are relatively small shapes.

It will take me a month of Sundays to get through that fabric no matter how I slice it.

Saturday, January 29, 2022

I spent all my sewing time yesterday working on a card – one card – and I didn’t get it finished until this morning. I now have two cards finished and waiting for the binding – I’ll stitch that on this afternoon before supper. I realized the third January card that I had on my list was for someone in the Guild and since I’m not joining them at the moment she will get an e-card this time around. Had I been going to Tuesday quilting I’d have taken both a card and a cake. In December I volunteered to take a cake for the January birthdays but it looks like it will be February before that happens.

I’ve finished all my shredding, at least this batch. No doubt (and I’m hopeful) Pat will clear out a few more boxes. I cleared out a couple more drawers this morning – mostly office-related items. I donated a few things, rearranged some others and cleared off half of a cabinet top. I have ideas now on some more rearranging I can do; I almost look forward to these decluttering tasks.

My cleaning task for the day was to work in the kitchen/living room. I’ve kept at that task every week this month so I gave myself a bit of a break and did some baking. I made Mum’s Wonder Bar recipe. I didn’t have enough icing sugar for the icing but with the sweetness of the cake and the coconut topping I don’t think we’ll miss it. I cleaned up my mess, did the dishes and swept up the floor when I finished so I think that counts.

Now, back to those cards.

Thursday, January 27, 2022

I’m down to just four tasks on my list – I’m not sure that has ever happened before. Three of the tasks are for February cards (one top is already done) and the other is my scrappy challenge for January.

I cleared out more scraps today and spent half an hour working on my fabric cabinet. When my friend Lainey closed her shop I purchased some yardage in a number of fabric lines that I really liked. I’ve never used them but I will someday; for now I just love looking at them. I found if I folded them a bit differently I had more space for yardage in the cabinet. I still have a mess on the floor with things I pulled out and haven’t put back yet but that will be a task for next week.

And speaking of scraps I’m thrilled that my method is working so well. Today I needed a number of 1.5″ squares in neutral colours – just happened to have those sorted in my bin. I also needed some yellow – my yellow scrap bin was sitting right on top of the pile. When I put my scraps away I noticed that my green bin is looking pretty full. It will soon be time to start work on Carol’s Mystery in green; the blue one is almost ready for stitching.

The afternoon was spent making that card top. I’ll get all the tops done before I start quilting them.