Two Weeks of Nothing

Well, not exactly nothing.  I've been sorting, purging, tubbing ... and generally making a huge mess in the place.  Did I already say I hate this moving thing?  I did obtain estimates from moving companies.  They were about where I had estimated they would be - really really really expensive.  Of course, my brother said I should just hire a truck and do it myself.  "A truck"?  That one had me gasping for air after ROFLOL'g.  He hasn't a clue.  The sad part is that what seems like so much here (minus the quilting stuff) is going to be totally lost in the new house.  It seems furniture shopping will be on the agenda after I get there.  That's another thing that I hate doing - right behind car shopping and getting a root canal.

Of course, to add insult to injury during the past two weeks, I turned another year older.  That day was spent in an almost all-day meeting, an early dinner with my late boss' wife, and then home to return phone calls.  I was teased that dinner at 5:30 was for old people.  Hello.  I qualify.  'Nuf said on that!

I received a birthday package in the mail from Sally, my dear friend over in the middle of the country.  She had been posting about this project and I was following her progress for a couple of months.  Imagine my surprise when I opened that package and saw that she had sent it to me! 

It's a gorgeous table topper made from batiks.  I have studied this thing and I can't figure out how she did all of those edges.  There is no binding.  Sally is a true artist - not only with her beautiful piecing and creativity, but for the extra touches she adds to her quilts.

 

In each of the neutral blocks, she "painted" the leaves using Derwent Inktense Pencils.  I don't know exactly how they work, but you draw your design with the colored pencils and then wet them using some gel agent (not water) and feather out the color.  The result is gorgeous!  Then she beautifully quilted it to highlight the painted area.  True artistry!  I had an insane urge to get some of those pencils (check them out on Amazon) but cooler heads prevailed since I can't even draw stick figures that actually look like stick figures!  Sally, thank you so much!  You inspire me!

 

I said a couple of weeks ago that I had finished the binding on two quilts.  The binding color for this one threw me for a loop.  I tried every color in the rainbow but ended up going with red.

 





The red is too -- well, it's too "red."  I had three or four different reds and they were all too red, but no other color worked.  So red it was.  This was truly an instance of repeating over and over "not building a piano here."  It's done.  It'll be cute on the breakfast table or somewhere.  Maybe in the doll bed I rescued from Mom's attic thirty odd years ago.

Isn't it sad that I have nothing to report on the quilting/sewing front?  I have blocks that need to be assembled but no "design floor" that's not filled with boxes and tubs.  All of the blocks will be packaged up for assembly in the other LA.  I did keep out some of Carrie Nelson's Little Bites patterns.  The one that is on my cutting table is Sample.  A few weeks back Carrie offered kits and I snatched one up.  It'll be interesting making the sample blocks from mini charm squares.  I'm up to the challenge!  And speaking of Carrie, I know I can speak for everyone when I say how sad we are at the loss of her beloved Miss Rosie.  I am thinking of Carrie every day.

Maybe the next post will be more interesting.  I don't know.  I've kind of given up on "interesting" for the next three to four months .... but am still looking (perhaps hopelessly) for a glimmer of humor in every day.