quilter's block

I know writers can experience 'writer's block'...

Writer's block is a phenomenon involving temporary loss of ability to begin or continue writing. ....but can quilters experience the same thing? Only it would be aptly called--'quilter's block'?

Regardless if there is such a phenomena---->I. know. I. have. it.
This is the next block of my Family Quilt and I am stuck. Stuck in not being able to move forward at all with this thing.

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And I love cardinals and we have 'mom & dad' cardinals that live in our pine trees and they just seem to bless the very air with their melodic song. And it was because of that that I wanted this block to depict this feathered beauty. So maybe it's because he almost came out looking like a tough mascot for some thick-shouldered collegiate football team....I'm not sure. And maybe I need to just set it aside for now and come back to it later.

But whatever the case, this quilt is at a complete standstill. Ugh! Please tell me that you all experience this brief (please. let this be brief!) lapse in being able to readily complete some sort of quilting project that you have started. And that you do come back to it.

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So as to not totally be sitting here with nothing to do (and to soothe that worrisome, little sing-song voice inside my head 'oh, no, why this total block in initiative?') I am bidding my time with making some crocheted hairpin lace.

And hoping that I get enlightened once again and can sit with needle & thread in hand to do more hand-applique on my quilt.

ooooh. red is my favorite color!

Actually red is not my favorite color. But it is my sister's---and she has been dropping some pretty broad hints since.....oh...'bout November when it was our other sister's birthday and then again at Christmas about getting a bag from me.

And yay!....she finally had her birthday and guess what she got?

Tada! A bag! And when picking out the fabric I did not intend to incorporate her favorite color but I loved, loved this flowery fabric and then had to walk through the fabric store for about 16 hours searching for that perfect complementary border/detachable flower fabric.

I then sneakily drove to her house. Deposited the wrapped parcel on her front doorstep. And sped away. When the phone rang later it was her calling to gush that she loooooooves that bag.

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Happy birthday, sissie. Finally, huh?

going round 'n round

The summer days and nights go round 'n round in a predictable time of heat, play & rest.

And the going round 'n round of the crochet hook during those summer evening baseball games and the weekly violin lessons has finally produced this doily that didn't quite measure 33 1/2 inches but came awfully close.

The repetition of this stitching filled those tiny gaps during those just-sitting-there-moments. You know those moments that can only be filled with something that can be easily done. Easily grab-able. Something that travels so compactly in the bottom of my bag. And who cares if it gets a tiny bit smooshed midst the wallet, cell phone, iPod?

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And it hit me (after about the 400th row....) that this is filet crochet. Because I always look for filet crochet in a square-ish project I didn't even see the filet pattern when first beginning this.

Light & airy. I have a huge smile when seeing these pics on this post. It is good to be back.

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And now I have some catching up to do with visiting all of you and seeing what wonderful things you have been up to!

summertime is calling

Summertime is calling.

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We will be poolside or lounging in the backyard midst the sounds of the evening bugs. Enjoying bike rides and roasting marshmallows around bonfires. I am embracing this break and will be back soon.

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broomstick lace

While the kids are busy using the pool, I am poolside and attempting broomstick lace. A very old technique only now instead of using the handle of a broom, a large, plastic knitting needle is used to crochet 'onto'.

I purchased this book which has step-by-step photos and wonderful directions. And such cute, cute projects. I would looooooove to try and crochet that beautiful shawl in the upper left hand corner........

This was my practice swatch and I loved the rippled effect that mimicked the waves in the pool. And this was so easy to do and the results are so amazing!A bulkier type of 'lace' but the feel of this in your hands is wonderful. I will have to say that trying to 'hold' the large knitting needle is quite awkward and I'm still trying to find a more comfortable way to balance that and the stitches that get slipped onto the plastic needle.

And honestly, these coasters took about 5 minutes to do. They were so much fun and easy to do!

plates of sherbet quilt

I must first of all, say thank you, THANK YOU to all of you wonderful blogirls who gave me your tried-&-true methods in properly adhering circles! You are all soooooo helpful and I extend to you xoxo for being incredible & inspiring......as usual. And thanks to the beautiful blogirl at knotgarden for (unknowingly*grin*) giving me the idea to name this quilt --> Plates of Sherbet.

The colors are so sherbet-y, aren't they?

Vivid, smooth & vibrant. Just the way our daughter likes things.


And as much as I freeze (okay, feel faint) when thinking about adding the backing, batting and getting this thing quilted, I actually feel a huge surge of I-can't-wait-to-get-this-done!
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Phew.
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....it is a good thing I didn't have the 12 children that I first wanted when we got married. Imagine all of those birthday quilts needing to get done.

teen patchwork & plates

Our soon-to-be-15-year-old's birthday comes only 14 days after our son's birthday. And since I just finished his BuSy & BoLd airplane/baseball quilt, I have to hurry and get her quilt finished.

But I had help. She is so excited about receiving a quilt that she wanted a tiny bit of input into the design and fabric selection. She drew out her design and color scheme and went fabric shopping with me. After loading up our cart with her vast array of choices, I got busy following her colored diagram.

After I laid out the blocks we both realized that the quilt needed to be revamped and enlarged because she wants it to be huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge and fluffy.

We'll trace the dinner plates on corresponding fabric and and sew those down. Anyone have any savvy (read=simple, simple directions for my lack of mathematical ability) ideas on how to 'do' the circles??? I guess I am scratching my head about getting a perfect, precise circle and then how do I attach it? I don't want raw edges, but still desire something very uniform looking without it being too time-consuming.