Enough is Enough is Enough

A Yahoo quilting group I subscribe to is chatting about pincushions -- I want one of Winter to stick pins into like a New Orleans voodoo doll.  Would the responsible Entity listen to our screams of  "ENOUGH ALREADY"? 

The snow is up to the top of my chain link fence and more is predicted for the coming week.   This week it's snow on roofs; in the spring, it's ponds in cellar,  unless we have a very very gradual melt.   Vermont's Mud Season will look like a mild aggravation compared to ours.

Meanwhile, I'm reading a series of cozy mysteries that take place here in CT -- the Kate Lawrence series written by Judith Ivie.  Fun to read about downtown Hartford, the Stilts Building & the Gold Building, worked in both and she captures the scene perfectly.  

illustration from Amazon.com

Escaping mentally

Continuing to play ostrich, although I do have someone coming to clean off the roof, covering one's eyes with quilts is far better than putting head in the sand.   Only 50 more days to the "official" end of winter on March 20th, sigh. 

The American Folk Museum has declared this the Year of the Quilt, "the museum’s celebration of a glorious American art form and the creative contributions of three centuries of talented women."  Currently on view are quilts from their collection.  For 6 days in March they are displaying red and white quilts at the Park Avenue Armory.  http://www.folkartmuseum.org/infinitevariety  What a great way to celebrate the coming of spring -- we hope. 

Bear's Paw (this block has many names, but that's the one I use for it.)



This just doesn't taste the same as your
African Violet. 
It doesn't have soft, furry leaves.

Kitty Grass is to African Violet 
As Blanket is to Quilt.

They say a picture

is



worth a 1,000


words.   Do these say it all?

Praying for a slow, slow melt so that the ground can asorb some of this.

Following this advice

at least for today: "Grab the small joys - especially when circumstances around us are pulling us down."  quote from recently read book, but I didn't make of note of which one.   
Ignoring the unending cold with the insult of more snow falling, I am google-surfing for quilting fabric with blueberry motif, playing freecell solitare, and reading. 

Going to the birds.

Sun streaming through windows feels warm but temps aren't even hovering close to 32degrees.  I'm going to play  about its melting and refreezing.  My front door 's frozen shut.   Even the cardinal is reading FL beach brochures.  Kitties are choosing naps in warm sunny spots.

Began a new cozy mystery yesterday evening.  The Plague Maiden by Kate Ellis has all the perfect ingredients -- set in England, an archeology dig, dual story lines -- should be a fun read.  Really, especially love my Kindle -- it's great to have a library/bookstore at my fingertips in this winter from H.... (and that's NOT where the angels play!)

Status, not Sputter

Some days simply do not go as planned.  After my morning cereal and toast, I decided to pay a few bills and then so some quilting, letting the daily house chores wait.  My agenda was to make a sample Mug Rug using some kitty fabric from my scrap basket.  Then the cozy nest (it's still ice and snow outside) became Grand Central and here it is noon already and other than paying those bills, nothing has been done -- no iron turned on; sewing machine sits forsaken; kitties wonder when they will have their People Lunch snack and our couch nap.  The old tale of "Best Laid Plans". 

Postnote:  I do like having the kids stop by -- this is just a "status" report, not a sputter.

I am a faithful reader of Corey Amaro's blog "Tongue in Cheek".  Yesterday she blogged about Rennes' weekly street market.  Reminded me of the local Saturday maket although it's far from equal to the one in Rennes.   

Longing for an end to snow and the coming of spring (a dry spring, I hope) and Saturday morning trips to the local farmer's market. 

There was even a woman selling her quilts -- I doubt that Rennes offers that.   But then again there could be antique French linens at the Rennes market.  I haven't incorporated any such in a quilt yet, but I have seen it done and done well. 

Which makes me think of the bits of old lace I have -- really should use some of it in a wall quilt, especially some of the crochet work Gram did. 

dreaming of

Spring.  

Block from Good Neighbors quilt. Don't remember the original source.  I believe it's a paper-pieced block, which I rarely do.



Can't you sleep on the couch?

We're all comfy & cozy.  We came to bed hours ago.  You were the one who wanted to stay up and watch Jay Leno. 

PS: yes, that's a purchased quilt, very warm.  My lap size quilts are "summer quilts" with a thin batting.  Come cold weather they are tucked away. 

Company for Morning Coffee Break

The cardinal did come for a late lunch yesterday. 

And this morning, the seed left from the house sparrow 's breakfast  (I think that's what has a nest tucked against the wall under the patio roof) provided a welcome brunch for Mr. Mole.  He's not as adventurous as his Wind in the Willows namesake, but he does scoot under even the thinnest cover of snow that drifted onto the patio and pop up to fill his tummy with sunflower seed. Tri kept a very close eye on him, but I suspect she would consider him a new playmate, not a prime rib substitute. 

Unfortunately my camera wasn't handy.   I know there's Alice in Wonderland fabric (until I checked I thought Mr. Mole was a member of Alice's Wonderland), but I wonder if there's a Wind in the Willows fabric.  Wouldn't either make a delightful quilt for a young Alice?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hectichousehold/5066745852/

Before the day's quilting ...

Opening the patio door and tossing out some sunflower seed for the family huddled in its nest between patio rafter and house, as well as the occasional visiting cardinal, is the extent of my going out in this frigid nightmare of ice and snow.  Tri and Goldie are very, very concerned about the welfare of their feathered pals and watch diligently to assure themselves that meals are eaten.   

Cozy reading

Has a murder mystery villain ever murdered using an icicle?  There are several hanging from the sunroom roof that certainly look capable of being weapons.  At least the sun was out & warm enough that they were dripping -- not really melting, but at least a slow steady drip, drip, drip.  And the street is now showing black pavement, so I guess we can call it a small step toward spring. 

Meantime, I'll stay curled up with my Kindle.  Currently reading Murder by Yew -- a very enjoyable cozy, with a Cape Cod setting and a mature heroine who is also a gardener. 

(illustration from Amazon.com)

Think Warm



Cruise 2010 - Line Dancing



OK, so in July the Cats and I will be dreaming about snow.  But right now I could line dance if it were a tad warmer.  It's has certainly been two-cat-nights, plus winter quilt.

Oh well, nothing like another new project to chase away the Winter Whites -- a friend introduced me to Mug Rugs.  A fickr search will bring up lots of examples.

Small, quick project, easily turned and finished during basketball time-outs.

Or maybe an all White Mug Rug as a "reminder" of the Blizzard of 2011?





White, White and More White

Have you ever made a white quilt?  The entire yard looks as though Mother Nature has tossed down a white quilt.  I think she used a very high loft batting, don't you?

That's snow accumated on the railing of my kitchen steps.  Just managed to open the door enough to take this photo. 

This is one reason why we quilters (at least in the snow belt) have stashes.  Especially those blender shades.

Also Selected

A favorite block  -- the Sawtooth Star.  



Planning ahead

It's still a Winter Wonderland outside and, although I'm dug out, we're not venturing out.  It's just too snug and cozy inside.  Have a second block chosen for the purple sampler.  It's the Bear Paw, or that's what I call it as it has a variety of names, like many classic patchwork blocks.  Here's a link to one:
http://www.quilterscache.com/B/BearTracksBlock.html

Just a few more pages to finish on the scrapbook project and I'll be sewing again.

Not much progress yet

One more day to this hectic / crazy week and hopefully the new one will be both calmer and more productive. 
My blephartis (eye infection) returned & yesterday was consumed with a trip to my eye doc. so he could check it out.  Lots & lots of warm compresses = very little time to focus on quilting and even less energy to pull out my purples.    

However, I know (as of now, reserve right to change mind) this will be the center block.  But thinking of doing it with 4 hearts: Mom, Dad, Granddaughter & Grammy. 

  

TARGET GOAL FOR 2011

Rather than making New Year's Resolutions, I like to look back at the ending year and take stock of what I did accomplish and what was left "pending".  There always seems to be one or two of those pending items that really don't need doing or whose need has expired.  Then I like to select a few Focus items for the New Year.  2010's Quilting Focus was overwhelmed by the Elks Auction Table Runner. 

A dear Granddaughter's favorite color is purple.  So the very FIRST, the VIP quilt item for my 2011 Focus is a purple lap quilt for her.  It will be a sampler quilt so I can use many shades of purple, lots of purple FQs and the variety of block patterns avoids having to make the same block over and over, which I find quite boring.
And doing a variety also means some blocks can be very simple / easy and some can be more complex.