Sunday, November 4, 2018

We set our clocks back an hour last night. I can’t say that I feel like I’ve gained an extra hour; I went to bed at my usual “old” time and read until my usual “new” time. I was awake about the same time based on the clock; I’m not liking the dark outside my window at five.

I’ve spent the entire day cutting fabric. I cut three clues for my Secret Santa sew-along; all of it was scraps from my Christmas bin. I found a few pictures on Facebook for the other sew-along I was considering. I swapped out a few of the original fabrics I picked and now have all three clues for that one cut.

I thought I was done but at the end of the day I realized we had fabric requirements for the Retreat Project so I guess I’ll be back at it tomorrow.

Saturday, November 3, 2018

My backup took five hours last night but I have a full backup and it appears the software I use will do an incremental backup every hour. That is really more than I need but I don’t, at the moment, feel like installing and working out the kinks in another program.

I’ve been cutting all day even though I really wanted to get started on some quilting. I finished sewing two of my Splendid Sampler blocks and cut and packaged two more to take to the retreat with me. One of the blocks involved some half-square triangles; the Guild recently had a demo on a new technique for HSTs but I was away and missed it. I thought today would be as good a day as any to try out the tutorial; it is interesting but I’m not sure it is any quicker than either the Magic 8 or just chaining them one at a time the “old” way.

Later this month we have a Community Quilt weekend planned where people will be putting together quilts using the HSTs they made at the demo. Since I didn’t do the demo I was already behind so I cut several of my scraps and packaged them up to work on at the retreat and then to finish (or continue) at the workshop.

I spent a lot of time yesterday afternoon going through fabric for a mystery quilt I think I’ll make. The clues are released online once a week. Without knowing for sure what I’m making, picking the fabric is more challenging than usual. I haven’t cut anything yet because the other project I can’t seem to get out of my head is another mystery sew-along – this one is a Christmas-themed quilt. I’ll take another look at the clues that have been listed and see if I’d rather do that one; Christmas fabrics (in my mind) seem easier to coordinate than other colours from my stash.

It’s a stormy night outside and I’ll probably hunker down in the basement and binge-watch some TV. I have another Farmer’s Daughter block almost finished so I’ll work on that.

Friday, November 2, 2018

I was at my computer yesterday morning by seven but I’d already done an hour of hand stitching by then. I was busy getting reports ready for my Guild meeting Thursday night and then off to sewing in the afternoon. It had been three weeks since I’d stitched with my Thursday group and there was a lot of catching up to do. Everyone, including me, was working on new projects – I’m doing the sashing between the blocks on my Farmer’s Wife Sampler. I received another fun package from my Guild Secret Pal – some flower-head pins and a spool of thread. After the Guild meeting I picked Pat up at the ferry – he had an appointment this morning but did a walk-on last night and went back after his eye was checked this morning.

Our Guild retreat is next weekend. I have a friend staying at the studio with me; our arrangement was that she would drive and I would give her a bed. I planned to go to Texada this weekend, do the necessary tidying-up and then drive over with her next Friday morning. Last night she told me that she wouldn’t have room for me to go across on the ferry with her. Now I’m not sure what I’ll do but it seems clear that at some point I’ll be driving across. I wanted to wait at home today until my new hard drive was delivered but I hadn’t expected to stay home all weekend. I have another package due to arrive on Wednesday and I hate to miss my sewing on Thursday so it will probably be a late afternoon ferry on next Thursday.

I spent all morning getting the Cranberry Hall minutes out. There is a concert at the Hall tonight but, since I told everyone I was going to be on Texada, no one will be expecting me to show up (and I won’t). I’ve done a bit of prep work for the Retreat – only a couple of blocks but it is a start. I’m still not sure of everything I’ll take to work on; I have two new projects that I can’t seem to get my mind off so they may be it!

For what’s left of the afternoon and this evening I’m going to see if I can get a backup working. I have a couple of Splendid Sampler 2 blocks that just need a bit of appliqué work so I may try to finish them off as well.

Wednesday, October 31, 2018

For the last few years we have completely ignored Hallowe’en. The first couple of years in Powell River we had, maybe, five teenagers come to the door; I think the second year they only came back for the drinks I was handing out. We had a renter next door with a small child but I always prepared a little bag of goodies for her and dropped it in her mailbox. They moved away this past summer and the new renter is a single adult.

I managed to get in a bit of sewing-related things today. I dug out some backing and batting for a couple of quilt tops. I cut all the sashing pieces I need for my Farmer’s Wife blocks – I’ll take them to sewing tomorrow afternoon and work my way through the rows. I had a few blocks that were left to be sewn together for the centre of a community quilt I’m making so I got that done.

Tonight, while I hide myself away from the windows and doors, I’ll try to get my Splendid Sampler blocks prepped. I’ll probably take them to the retreat to work on but I like to have the cutting done ahead of time. And there are always more Farmer’s Daughter blocks to hand stitch.