Saturday, May 7, 2022

I still have 37 items in my outstanding list of tasks but today I feel like I’m catching up. Many of the things on my list are ongoing and non-urgent – more of a reminder so I don’t forget about them.

I started the day by doing a couple of decluttering tasks – monthly ones so they won’t pop up again for awhile. Then I started cutting fabric for a Guild class I’m taking at the end of the month. You would think that cutting ³/₈” squares would be impossible but I have a special ruler. Even though I put a new blade in my cutter some of the squares didn’t separate as well as I’d have liked. They are easily pulled apart if I need to fix them. There is still quite a bit of cutting to do so maybe I’ll get better at it.

For my trip in June I plan to send a box through the mail to save on packing space (and weight). I’ve had a pile on my counter for awhile so today I found a box to put in what I’ve collected. So far I have lots of room in the box which makes me think I might need to add in a project or two. So far I have a 3-Yard quilt (and extra fabric), my Sashiko embroidery project and extra fabric for my Circle of 9 quilt. I still have one project that I need to source some fabric for; I know we have plans for some extra projects that Deloise is looking after so maybe I have enough.

I had time before lunch to design another scrap quilt using the Guild’s donated fabric. If I decide to kit this one up I’ll need 468-2¹/₂” squares. I know there are a couple of bags of squares in the box I brought home but I don’t think there will be that many of them. Good thing I put in that new blade.

Although I didn’t do all the cleaning tasks I was behind on I managed to do a load of laundry, some vacuuming, some spot scrubbing on the floors and I cleaned the bathrooms.

I finished a couple of cards and I’ll stitch down the binding later tonight. I’m doing some prep work for Tuesday’s bee so that, weather permitting, I can spend most of the day in the yard on Monday.

Tomorrow I’m taking a day off and working only on my cross stitch projects.

Friday, May 6, 2022

My day yesterday was very busy but I enjoyed it all. I was surprised that I was able to keep up in the yoga class. The names for some of the poses were familiar but without the demonstrations I wouldn’t have had a clue how to do them. And I’m unlikely to remember them for next time so I hope the instructor continues to describe them.

I barely had time to do some errands after yoga before I had to be heading off to sewing. I worked on a UFO and made good progress. I’m about half-done the blocks so I’m hopeful I can get this scrappy challenge done and crossed off my list.

The ideas that I presented to the Guild last night were well received so I’ll continue to “play” in the Guild’s fabric bins. I found another scrappy pattern than I think will work with the children’s fabric I’ve located so far. I have some of my own that I could also donate as my grandkids have outgrown the designs.

I was tired today but there was work to be done and I carried on. My sewing room has been cleaned up and vacuumed and the room across the hall has also been set to rights. My computer work is done (Hall newsletter and an update to the Guild blog) and I have a couple of things ready for the mail on Monday.

I feel a lot like having a nap but I think I’ll do some stitching on my Peppermint Purple project; it is relaxing and feels a bit like a break from work.

Wednesday, May 4, 2022

When I was getting organized for yesterday’s bee I didn’t think my two card tops would take all my time so I threw in a bag of 2.5″ strips from the fabric I brought home from the Guild’s scrappy weekend. I’m glad I did because my card tops were done long before lunch.

I spent the rest of the time cutting down those strips into bits for a scrap quilt. I cut almost enough for the 80 blocks I’ll need; I ran out of neutrals to go along with the darker strips. I didn’t think there would be enough time to come home before my next appointment but I was home long enough to throw everything into my sewing room, play a couple of games of Candy Crush and head back out the door.

I finished my Hall orientation with a new renter and then headed to the beach (Mowat Bay). It was a rainy and dreary day but I was warm enough and dry in my car to get a few chapters read in my book. And then I was off again for a Hall Board meeting. I was so tired by the end of the day that I watched a little TV (no knitting) and was in bed by nine.

Today was a day at home and I’ve taken advantage of it to get some things done, all of which I’ve done in my PJs. I have the Hall newsletter ready to go out, I made a post to the Guild blog and I finished cutting those 80 blocks that I need for the Community Quilt. I’ll be presenting some ideas for using the donated fabric to the Guild tomorrow night and I have my samples ready to go. I’m currently in the process of cutting another 80 blocks for the same pattern but most of these ones are coming from my own stash; I’m borrowing a bit from the Guild box but I’m not feeling too guilty about it. These blocks will be my Thursday project and the quilt is my Scrappy Challenge for May.

Tomorrow is looking like as hectic a day as yesterday. I’m starting a yoga class in the morning, stopping at Staples to print off patterns for the Guild meeting and then heading straight to Gail’s for sewing. I have a Guild meeting tomorrow night. Pat suggested today that I should come out of retirement and take a part-time job; he thinks I’d probably have just as much, if not more, free time.

I’ll finish the cutting for my Thursday project and then I have one more large cutting project that needs to be done before a class at the end of the month. And I keep thinking about the cutting that I need to do before my June trip – maybe on the weekend I can get that started.

Monday, May 2, 2022

My goal today was to get some cards finished and ready for the mail. It took all morning but I was able to get them to the post office in time to go out today.

I also managed to get a bit of Hall work done. We have a meeting tomorrow afternoon so I had to get my notes together for that. Our year end was April 30 so there was some last minute “stuff” I needed to get done.

I cut out a couple of card tops to work on at the Guild tomorrow. I don’t think I have enough for the entire time but it would be nice if I could go directly from sewing to the meeting. At this point unless I quit dithering about what else to take I think I’ll be putting my book in my bag and spending some time at the beach. I have all those boxes of fabric I brought home yesterday but so far I haven’t been motivated to dig too deep into them.

We are out for supper and a concert tonight – part of Pat’s birthday gift. We’ll be seeing Martyn Joseph who was one of the shows we had to cancel due to Covid back in March of 2019. He’s at a different venue and we’ll be able to enjoy dinner before the show.