Friday, December 19, 2008

Winter Spiral,
part of a very long swirly-snow path all over our property, made by Jonas and a friend.

Ice patterns on the window of the car as we rode in to school at 7:30.
I wasn't driving.
Quilt Story Begins...
This is the quilt we received for our wedding, almost ten years ago. It was commercially made, but lovely. Now, you can see, the batting is visible and the fabric on the quilt top is mostly so soft you can barely feel it.

Here are the goodies from Alewives Fabrics, picked up by Jake, in a snowstorm on their men's sale night. I had made a previous visit to pick out the essentials... It's a quilt called Turning Twenty, and the twenty refers to the twenty fat quarters it is comprised of. I decided to go with the bundle of fat quarters that made me most excited, not the one that would have matched my Wales Green (Ben Moore) bedroom.
One time out at dinner with Kate, she said that a lot of times you're at a restaurant and order what you think you "should" order. I took her advice that night and totally revised my selection at the last moment and got a plate of the most mind-altering brussels sprouts ever. I don't even like brussels sprouts. So I picked the color palette that felt like WOW, instead of SHOULD. Because not only will I be spending considerable time on the project, I plan to spend lots of years sleeping under it.
Close up on the future quilt edging, above.
The quilt backing material, above. This is so APA's favorite type of fabric! I felt her in the store with me as I was selecting it. I will be wrapping these goodies up and placing them beneath our tree! So exciting. I am hoping Santa will provide a new rotary cutter and plastic ruler grid thing (quilters, is there a neater way to say that?) to go with. Woo Hoo!

Tea and Cookies
The making of a Snicker Doodle. Not my most favorite cookie, although I did eat two, but boy do they smell unbelievable while they bake. These are from our Kindergarten holiday party this morning.

I am working like mad to finish two more reusable shopping bags. All of the 50 Eichenlaub Annuals are out or spoken for and we need about 10 more to really do it right.

5 comments:

  1. I'm so glad you went with the "WOW" instead of the "Should." Excellent advice. And I loved the fat quarter bundle, having recognized the Joel Dewberry Ginseng right away, as soon as I saw it, but then when I got to the quilt backing, before I even read what followed the picture, I was like, "That rocks!" And I know you see this HUGE smile on my face. The quilt is going to be GORGEOUS. The colors are so rich and warm. And I think you're going to really enjoy working on it. You're meticulous about your ATCs. This will be so much fun! I'm excited and hope you'll share your quilting journey.

    And I must not forget...I love the winter spirals. Wish I were there. I'd bundle up and if Jonas & his friend would have me, I'd so want to join in!

    Stay warm, safe & be joy-filled!

    XO,
    Ana

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love those spirals, too!

    Very Andrew Goldsworthy (or whatever that guy's name is)

    And... oh yeah, I love the pix of the T20 kit! I love those things so...

    See you again soon!

    ReplyDelete
  3. The spirals, at the cusp of the Winter Solstice, are so beautiful. I'm going to be a copycat and put some in my backyard right now! Thanks for sharing....

    ReplyDelete
  4. You know you are quite right about your quilt choices. Go with what you love because it will take a while, and you will use it even longer.

    I made my first quilt in my teens - I can hardly believe it now but I hand pieced 1200+ pieces into a Grandmother's flower garden. 20 years later it is still on our spare bed, apart from anything else, I cannot throw away 2 years' worth of hand-sewing.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I love this post Iris...beginning to end! The spirals, the window, the amazing fabric colors! I want to clip the images to save them forever! Love you...lets talk soon!

    ReplyDelete