Just stuff

I think I’m in my Chatty Cathy phase. But to spare you, I have whittled this down from what I originally wrote to save you from eye rolls and thinking, “What is wrong with this girl?”

The last couple of weeks have been busy. A good part of that time was spent with friends, and two of those times were spent at quilt shops and fabric stores. At one of those quilt shops, I ran into a favorite customer of the quilt shop I used to co-own, and had a wonderful time catching up with her. But I have to mention that when I walked into the shop, the front room took my breath away—it reminded me of my shop. And it made me smile. It felt warm and inviting, which is exactly what we wanted to convey to everyone that entered it. We were there for quite some time and as we were leaving, the owner came out and said that she heard one of us owned a quilt shop, and I told her that was me. She told me about her mother and how she loved shopping there, and that she bought her first fat quarter there. I smiled and said, “I bought my second one there!” We laughed and she told me that she patterned her shop after ours. That made me warm from my head to my toes in a very good way. The next day, a friend I haven’t seen in ages texted me a photo and said, “Pulled these out today and thought of you!” Here’s the photo:

Talk about great vibes. I’m often asked if I miss the shop. We closed the brick and mortar in 2009 and moved everything to our home, and closed the online shop in late 2010. I tell everyone that while I miss it, I am so grateful that I now have the time to quilt and cherish the many friendships I gained from the experience. 

And all those visits to quilt shops and fabric stores yielded a bunch of fabric, but they’re all to supplement this year’s projects—backings, a baby quilt for the new granddaughter my friend Rhonda has hoped and prayed for (and her daughter has decorated the nursery in pink which I have very little of), and some more for the Mod Owls Revival quilt class in September. 

Backings for secret project and Mod Owls Revival quilt

More fabrics for Mod Owls Revival quilt

Fabrics for the baby girl quilt--and yes, I know that small check does not blend well with the
fabric behind it--so changes are coming!

But onto progress—Katrina finished quilting the Girl Gang DIY Sampler quilt and shipped it along with the Antelope Canyon quilt to me and they arrived Friday. I attached the binding to Antelope Canyon using my new favorite technique—using the serger with fusible thread in the lower looper—on Sunday, and hope I’ll have the binding serged onto the Girl Gang quilt today. And before the quilts arrived, I was testing the appliqué for the latest secret project, and it helped me decide which direction to take with the fabric and stitching. 

Antelope Canyon quilt with binding ready to sew down

Girl Gang DIY Sampler with binding clipped on and ready for serging

I want to finish Antelope Canyon quickly because it’s for a friend and I have already missed his birthday, the secret project needs to be done by October 1, and the baby girl arrives around Thanksgiving. I swear, after these I’m starting something new that will stay here (and from the original plan!). And I have not forgotten about Posh Santa, Haystack Cookies, and the Pumpkin Pie quilt waiting to be quilted. 

And with this new baby quilt I’m feeling guilty because while I made a quilt for Rhonda’s first grand, Hudson, it was tiny. It’s not as big as I like to make and I honestly cannot remember why I did so—here it is—size 30” x 34”:

Rhonda’s daughter redecorated Hudson’s room last year and she recently posted photos of it. She has dubbed it Camp Hudson. I have seen some cute camping quilts, but I kind of want to design my own and I do not want to overthink it. And yes, it’s clear I am stepping off the train platform to chase after another idea—but that’s what happens when inspiration strikes, and I am here for it. We’ll see what happens. 

I hope you’re having a good time doing what you love—go make!