The State of the Bottoms Up! Studio Address
The sad state of affairs in my studio can be attributed to one four-letter word...WORK.
2017 was a rough year all the way around for many reasons, but there have been some beautiful highlights. Our oldest got married, and our youngest is now engaged and will have an autumn wedding. Our middle son returned home after a few years in Atlanta. The Hubster and I took a working vacation to D.C. where neither of us had been and had a great time. And I had a lovely time at the quilting retreat last month (Best Ever).
Most of the bad stuff took place in the last half of the year. A dear friend from high school, the husband of one of the Besties, and two aunts passed away (one just a week ago). And for the first time in my life, the Hubster and I had to walk away from the idea of taking in family members because (1) there was no room at the inn and (2) our sanity and checkbook could not afford the extra load.
And work...let's just say that it's been rough. I'm seriously thinking of retiring earlier than I had anticipated, but my bank account laughs at me for even bringing up the idea.
When I think about how I had planned for 2017 to be a selfish sewing year I laugh. Out loud. While any sewing can be seen these days as selfish, the only things I made for myself (out of necessity) were a wallet and toiletry bag. No clothes for me, but 8 shirts for the Hubster. Shopping bags for all of my kids, aprons for my sister and her partner, a couple of baby quilts. I had grand ideas for so much more, including a complete Santa costume for the Hubs.
All of that said...I am a glass half-full type of gal, and I believe 2018 has to be loads better than 2017.
With all the crap from 2017, I found myself wanting to be in my studio more often. I'm putting a plan in place to make that happen. We'll see how that works out. One of the great harbingers of hope for me is a quilt on the longarm frame--and that's where the Girl Gang DIY quilt happens to be right now. I have a spreadsheet for all of the UFOs (two completed in 2017) that's constantly updated and prioritized...
One of the Besties texted me yesterday to let me know that we have a cabin booked for a long weekend in February for a mini retreat--yay! Things are looking up!
The next few posts will be a mish-mash of the completed projects of 2017. I failed to blog about them along the way because of Life. It's not much, but I'm glad I got these projects done. This year has been the worst in 7 years as far as completed quilts go, because I was distracted by bags!
So before I go, here's a photo from my favorite 2017 project--the memory pillow of Tyler, my sister's beloved dog that passed away in April. I'm making another one soon in memory of Katrina's sweet Junebug, who passed away on my birthday.
Oh, and yesterday was my 5-year blogiversary. I honestly didn't think I would make it last that long, but here's hoping you'll see another anniversary post next year!
In the meantime, go sew and quilt--it will make you feel good!
2017 was a rough year all the way around for many reasons, but there have been some beautiful highlights. Our oldest got married, and our youngest is now engaged and will have an autumn wedding. Our middle son returned home after a few years in Atlanta. The Hubster and I took a working vacation to D.C. where neither of us had been and had a great time. And I had a lovely time at the quilting retreat last month (Best Ever).
Most of the bad stuff took place in the last half of the year. A dear friend from high school, the husband of one of the Besties, and two aunts passed away (one just a week ago). And for the first time in my life, the Hubster and I had to walk away from the idea of taking in family members because (1) there was no room at the inn and (2) our sanity and checkbook could not afford the extra load.
And work...let's just say that it's been rough. I'm seriously thinking of retiring earlier than I had anticipated, but my bank account laughs at me for even bringing up the idea.
When I think about how I had planned for 2017 to be a selfish sewing year I laugh. Out loud. While any sewing can be seen these days as selfish, the only things I made for myself (out of necessity) were a wallet and toiletry bag. No clothes for me, but 8 shirts for the Hubster. Shopping bags for all of my kids, aprons for my sister and her partner, a couple of baby quilts. I had grand ideas for so much more, including a complete Santa costume for the Hubs.
All of that said...I am a glass half-full type of gal, and I believe 2018 has to be loads better than 2017.
With all the crap from 2017, I found myself wanting to be in my studio more often. I'm putting a plan in place to make that happen. We'll see how that works out. One of the great harbingers of hope for me is a quilt on the longarm frame--and that's where the Girl Gang DIY quilt happens to be right now. I have a spreadsheet for all of the UFOs (two completed in 2017) that's constantly updated and prioritized...
One of the Besties texted me yesterday to let me know that we have a cabin booked for a long weekend in February for a mini retreat--yay! Things are looking up!
The next few posts will be a mish-mash of the completed projects of 2017. I failed to blog about them along the way because of Life. It's not much, but I'm glad I got these projects done. This year has been the worst in 7 years as far as completed quilts go, because I was distracted by bags!
So before I go, here's a photo from my favorite 2017 project--the memory pillow of Tyler, my sister's beloved dog that passed away in April. I'm making another one soon in memory of Katrina's sweet Junebug, who passed away on my birthday.
Oh, and yesterday was my 5-year blogiversary. I honestly didn't think I would make it last that long, but here's hoping you'll see another anniversary post next year!
In the meantime, go sew and quilt--it will make you feel good!
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