Not Always About the Clock

It's been a couple weeks since the 2017 Pittsburgh Marathon.  I did participate in the Half Marathon.  I had every reason to have just stayed home.  I don't think I put in even 100 miles of training.  The miles I did put in were rarely fun; they were painful and slow.  Don't get me wrong...fast or slow or somewhere in between--all miles.  For me and the pace I was running, it was (and is) slow.  It's been tough to accept, yet, expected.  I put on a lot of weight, I am about as active as a sloth (actually, that's probably insulting to sloths; they are more active), and I just have not managed to get myself together.

Before this becomes some sort of "woe is me" kind of post, back to the race.  It was supposed to be cool (like 40s) with a possibility of some early rain.  The weather has been more than a little schizophrenic as late, so it's good I opted to wear a tank under a long sleeve shirt.  I opted to do run-walk intervals.  It helped the last few weeks of training to not be as sore and I was better able to slog through the miles.  As always in a crowd of people, I started out too fast.  Throughout, I panicked over being picked up by a sweep crew.  The minimum average pace was to be 13:00 meaning, only two hours to finish the half.  Given my training pace (14:30 / 15:00), you can certainly appreciate why.  Anyway, I made it the first few miles.  Heading to the North Side of town is a big hill and it (expectedly) SUCKED.  I made it through those miles, remembering those same streets with my training partner.

At one point, a woman tripped and fell into me.  I sort of caught her and she seemed really embarrassed and kept apologizing.  I wish I'd thought to look at her bib # or name.  I really hope she finished and did well.  I told her not to apologize since I much rather her fall into me than the ground and I just wanted to be sure she was OK.  That very well was my "feel good" moment of the race.  I kept someone from getting hurt and we all kept moving forward.  Not much after, the sun (yeah...so much for overcast skies) was too much.  It took me two walk intervals to transfer the pins from my outer shirt to my tank.  But I did it and managed to get my shirt over my head without losing my hat.  You know what is awesome about being part of a great running community?  Not caring one lick about being overweight in an unflattering orange tank!

Around mile 9, I was over the whole dam thing.  Even being mostly downhill, I didn't give a crap. I was still moving, but started to swap my longer run interval with the shorter walk interval.  Still moving, still ahead of the sweep.  On the South Side, people were handing out beer samples.  I have a hard time drinking water when I run; beer was not gonna happen.  (Besides, I had flashbacks to the 10-miler where I really thought I was going to be sick on my way home.)  There was a wonderfully, saint of a woman who had a box of orange wedges.  Oh how I loved that dear, sweet lady.  I have no idea what she looked like or who she was, but it was the most delicious piece of fruit.  And it had to be magical because oranges do not always agree with me.

I finally made it to the Birmingham Bridge (where the half and full participants split).  At that point, there were about  three miles to go and I seriously contemplated walking to the finish.  Sweep be damned!  Along the trek across that God-forsaken bridge there was a runner's wedding taking place.  I like to think there is something special about that bridge and running that spurred the couple to choose the time and place for their nuptials.  Just past the end of the bridge, my training partner caught me.  Oh was I happy to see a familiar and friendly face.

Mile 12 saw a police officer not half a block away from a group handing out beer.  Someone must have been questioning if it was OK because I heard the Officer say something to the effect of "You just ran 12 miles, Ladies, you deserve a beer."  That gave me chuckle.  From there on, my friend pretty much dragged me to the finish.  I was (and am) so happy I got to be there as he crossed for a PR. He trained and so deserved it.  I do feel bad, though, because I think he could have made it a little faster if he'd just kept going.

I think I walked another two miles just to get to my car.  Every step hurt and I had to consciously step off of every curb.  Finally made it home and, soreness aside, felt good.  I came home to my girls holding up a toilet paper "finish line" for me to cross and signs.  I think my favorite is the one my husband drew.  He may never figure out why I rum and may get cranky at some of the early mornings, but he cares and shows his support when I need it most.

Thankfully, no soccer games that day, so I only had to make it through a hockey practice.  Oh my gosh, sitting in the bleachers with flip-flops at a cold rink was like heaven.  Who needs ice baths and such, when you have an hour at a cold rink?!  I should have taken the following day off or at least opted to work from home, but, I didn't.  It hurt for my feet to touch the ground, let alone real shoes, but I survived and was walking normally after a couple days.

Will I do it again?  I'm sure I will, but not sure if it will be 2018.  Right now, I'm sort of in a state of chaos and having the awareness that I need to do something to tame it.  Until then....I have really got to get some projects done! 

Nothin; but Sunny Days for Biddy's Flowers

This is long overdue. I'd like to say (honestly) that I've been busy and I just didn't have time for such frivolity as this.  Truth is, I'm just kinda lazy.  And...well....there are a zillion other things I should otherwise do.  

Anyway, almost two months ago (yes, TWO), I finished the "Lake" quilt for my youngest.  Basically, when visiting grandparents, this is the quilt that will be on her bed.  She's been excited about this since I first started it May 2016.  "Is that my quilty, Mama?"  "Mama, I hope we don't forget to take it to the lake."  

Here is how it went.  I followed the "Lattice" quilt pattern from Missouri Star (click here for a tutorial).  I had to modify it a little bit so it would be long enough to make a twin-sized quilt.  Meaning, I left off one square from each row and used the extra squares to add extra rows.  I used "Sunny Days" charm packs from Benartex and a French Vanilla Cotton Supreme honey bun to make the blocks.  They really worked up quickly.  Of course, t would help if I were more accurate with piecing, especially trying to get the points and intersections to line up.  Just the blocks in rows makes the top almost big enough for a quilt.  

The border, back and binding of the quilt use Windham Basics Pastels Daisy Light Yellow.  There is a slight gradient to the yellow.  It's really subtle, but makes it kinda nice.  I didn't do much actual quilting for this.  I did some ditching along the borders and lattice.  It took a bit since the blocks really aren't that big.  The print has a lot of flowers in it, but I thought I'd add a bit more by adding some free-motion flowers to the border.  It took a little bit, but I actually think they turned out pretty well--they look like flowers!  

To add to the quilt, I also made a matching pillow case (French seam pillowcases) using leftovers from the backing and coordinating yardage.  I haven't decided, but I may make another pillow case or a throw pillow to go along with it.  That's for another day.  In the meantime, I have one very happy girl who loves her new blanket and can't wait to sleep under it this summer.  

Attempting to fall in love again...with running

Some time back, I was sucked in by the P3R Megaticket.  Oh, this isn't something like going out to see some series of concerts.  That would be entertaining.  No, no, no.  This would be one sign-up for THREE local races.  More specifically, entry to run in three races.  The P3R Megaticket was one fee (~$130 or so) to do the 2016 Liberty Mile, 2016 EQT 10-miler and the 2017 Pittsburgh Half Marathon.  

I realize I posted nothing for a very long stretch. (Ok, reality here....I'm guessing there are about three people that read this and that is generous).  I have NOT been running much at all. In fact, signing up to train for the 10-miler was the first I really did any real running in the last couple years.  I just have not been able to find the passion for it.  Fleeting moments tell me it's still there, I just need to find a way to hang on and not let go.

Today was the EQT 10-miler.  I run two of the previous three instances of this race and trained (and carried less weight) both times.  I admit, 2014 was not exactly stellar training, but I could still hang.  Not so much today.  My first week of training was fine. I almost felt good and felt it would all be find.  And then I caught some sort of cold and then I just wanted to focus on crafts and then there is the inconvenience of work.  Add in the fact that my longest run was just over eight miles and I rarely managed to run the whole distance on the planned long distances.

All that, I really did not feel good going into today. At .5 mi, I was ready to turn around and go back down the hill (yeah...it started out UP HILL) and go home.  I manged to continue on.  A few other rises, but OK and then another turn uphill.  Not exactly good to start walking under two miles in.  That hill messed me up b/c it caused my shin and calf to hurt.  Once it worked out, my ankle really hurt and I did worry a bit.  Partway across the first bridge, I started to pick up the run and kept going.  I pushed through to run where I could and then would take time to walk (especially on the hills and the bridges). 

About mile five, I felt good. One of the bridges was an out-and-back kind of thing, so I was able to see some friends as we passed by each other.  It lifted my spirits a bit and kept me going.  Around mile seven, I started to hate the course.  It's flat, I knew there was a turn to head into town and instead of being a logical turn to loop around, it was this weird go left to go right kind of thing.  Seriously, I despised the course and whomever designed it at that point.  

From there, I did a lot of run / walk to the finish.  My legs, chest, hips, feet, toes, fingers-practically everything--hurt.  I did wish I could trade shoes with somebody.  I ran in my Brooks Ghosts from four years ago.  I know they are done and I know they have no cushioning and yet, I ran them.  I have a new pair of Ghosts in my closet and in my clearly-not-functioning-well mind, it is worse to run in new shoes than broken down ones.  Pure. Genius.  

I did manage to finish in under 2:30 (2:23:37).  To put that in perspective, I ran a half marathon in 2:18:43.  That is 3.1 miles further in 0:04:54 less.  My big lessons from this:

• TRAIN.  No really, lace up the shoes, get out and RUN.  And cross-train, too!
• Wear good shoes.  
• Fuel properly.  My current method of just eating whatever I choose is not exactly good since I rarely choose well.
• Have fun

I foresee a rematch of this course next year.  First, I need to to conquer the half-marathon in May 2017.  Better get to it. Well, after I take a nap and maybe raid the Halloween candy and a few other things.

Jelly Cake Quilt

About two years ago, I started on a quilt with blocks pieced from a jelly roll and a layer cake pre-cut (Flashback). Let me just say,  pre-cuts are awesome.  Blocks really work up quick!  I finished piecing the top in August 2014.  There are ten rows of eight blocks with a solid brown border and then a wider coordinating border.  This helped widen the quilt to be a queen size.  And...that's about where things stayed for the next two years.  Until this past June. 

First up was piecing in the backing.  For the record, I suck at sewing in a straight line and even more so to iron.  I used the technique of ripping the fabric to get a straight line and then sewed the resulting two pieces together.  Due to the amount of fabric I had available to me, I had a very slight amount of extra width.  Once that was done and pressed as best I could, I had to do a bit of furniture re-arranging in order to lay it all out for basting.  I had just enough room for the length of this, though it did mean I was a bit pinched between a floor lamp, easel and the french doors.  I used blue painters tape to secure the back to the floor.  I found it to work well b/c it sticks to the flooring (in this case, parquet, but works on carpet, too), but doesn't leave a residue.  It's also easy to re-position.  I would recommend to use the wider roll rather than this narrow one.  

The pictures below show this whole thing happening.  As you can see, there were wrinkles to start, but I managed to work most of them out.  

 

I pin-basted rather than using thread.  It was June and this room is not air conditioned and opening the window would not have provided ventilation, so no chance to experiment with spray-basting.  This really took all day to do.  My strategy was to pin in quadrants to make it easier to avoid inadvertent puckers. My poor knees and back--really could have used a few more stretch breaks.  Next time (because, let's be honest, I have plenty of other projects planned), I'll keep more space between the project and the wall.  Nothing like being stuck in a corner.   

After doing all the basting, I removed the tape and (carefully) picked this up off the floor.  It took me a bit to finally get everything arranged back to normal.  The added bonus, though, was, nicely dusted floors and end table.  I also purged some old periodicals and such.  

It took me a little bit to be ready to tackle the next part--quilting!  Long back (and I'm sure I'm repeating myself), I enrolled in Anne Petersen's Craftsy class, Quilting Big Projects on a Small Machine.  It proved helpful, once again.  I used smoke invisible thread for my top thread and Aurifil white for the bottom as I did the stabilizing stitches for all rows and columns.  This wasn't too bad, but then I was stuck (again).  I really had no idea how I was actually going to quilt this thing.  

 I eventually decided I would do a really large scale meander through the top blocks.  I used the same bobbin thread for the bottom and clear invisible thread for the top.  I threw in an occasional in-and-out spiral just because.  The brown solid border was filled with a continuous spiral chain with smoke as my top thread.  I really wasn't sure if I wanted to use invisible thread to do the quilting, but it turned out well and I have soooo much of it.  Seriously, I have no idea why bought so much of it.  By the time I hit the outside border, I was so eager to have this done that it was just a random line around the bunches of flowers--nothing fancy.  

The last bit of work was to attach the binding.  I had lengths of fabric of the large and small scale mosaics.  Sadly, my memory is bad--doesn't everyone remember the intent of orders from two years prior???  I could not remember which was for the binding and which for pillows.  In order to decide, I put off the binding and made two pillowcases instead.  

For the pillows, I searched for ideas.  I was sort of looking for an easy sham and when I asked my husband for his opinion, he indicated he's more for a case, so...that's what I did.  I found this pattern for French seam pillowcases and it was soooo easy.  I had enough of the solid brown leftover for the accent strip.  I decided the large scale would be better for the main body of the case and the smaller scale for the outer edge.  As you can see, no pesky threads or unsightly seems.  These really are so incredibly easy.  My girls decided they need pillowcases, too.  (I'm catching on to their little game.  They ask for something, I spend the time to make it and then....not interested.)

 As a result of my pillowcase decision, the quilt binding became that of the smaller scale print.  I estimated what I thought were the quilt dimensions. I really should not do that since it resulted in me cutting and piecing together two extra strips.  I attached them on the diagonal and it's such a pain.  Before attaching the binding to the quilt, I squared up the edges and cut off the extra binding and back.  I have enough of the mosaic fabric for more pillows, so maybe I'll do the strip with the polka-dots to match the back of the quilt--goodness knows some of the scrap strips are wide enough.  But I digress.  The strips were machine attached to the front of the quilt.  I prefer to hand-sew the other side of the binding so it's invisible and I get the bonus of sitting under a warm quilt while watching TV.  The first night, of doing this, I almost felt defected.  The photo below shows where I was after the first couple hours of hand-sewing.  I pretty much only made it across two blocks and the border.  It was pretty discouraging and I wondered if maybe it wouldn't have been better to just sew it all on.  

It did get better and I did finally get around the whole thing.  My corners turned out pretty well. OK, there is the one corner that I think I had more than 1/4" allowance and it screwed it up a little, but who is going to actually look at the corners.  

I forgot to mention, with the exception of the solid border, this was made with "Sun-Kissed Spa" by Michele D'Amore for Benartex.  The blocks were from one layer cake and one jelly roll of the same collection.  The yardage for the border, back and pillows are also from the same collection.  

Here it is, though.  The finished quilt and matching pillowcases.  It only took just over two years, but it's DONE.  Whew!

Time Travelling - BOM 2012

Way back in 2012, I started the Craftsy 2012 Block of the Month.  It's all a bit fuzzy, but if memory serves, I had a really hard time picking the fabric I wanted for this.  I swear it took months of searching before I decided on Tula Pink's "Birds and Bees."  Then it took me forever to finally start it.  I ended up making the first couple blocks the end of 2012.  I posted about some of my progress way back (Plodding Along).  Since then, I did finish all of the blocks and put them all together.  The block "themes" (in order) are:

1. Slashed blocks
2. HSTs
3. Foundation piecing
4. English paper piecing (hexies)
5. Wonky log cabin
6. Modern 9-patch
7. Dresden plates
8. Stars
9. Curved piecing
10. Paper piecing

I enrolled in Free Motion Quilting a Sampler taught by Leah Day.  It used this sampler as the basis to learn FMQ techniques like stippling, feathers, fans, pebbles, spirals, echo, shell, etc.  It was definitely a good learning resource and I really need to do some more practice.

**Warning:  Detour**
Speaking of practice, I decided to finally finish these two snap bags that sat among the other UFOs for, well, a long time.  Anyway, the top I tried to follow along and there is a bird in there that I tried to outline.  The bottom was from some batik fabric and had a tie-dye spiral type of look I tried to replicate.  They aren't overly fancy, but I know the recipients appreciated them.

 

**End Detour**

After doing all the FMQ, here is how the top turned out.  This was after I did the final trimming and before the binding attached.  

 I used another Tula Pink fabric (Oh. My. Goodness, have I fallen in love with Tula Pink) for the binding.  Funny story:  I could not find where the fabric went.  It was a 1/2 yard and still in it's little plastic bag from MSQ and I searched everywhere in the room of disaster.  I emptied drawers, looked under furniture, looked on shelves.  Desperate times call for desperate measures.  I broke down and took things out of the "crap" closet.  I eventually found it near the floor between the wall and mini ironing board. R-E-L-I-E-F.  Anyway, I machine stitched on the binding and then settled myself in front of the to hand stitch it to the back.  I know some people prefer to machine stitch the whole thing or to do a faux binding.  I don't sew in a straight line well (I think we've established this already), so doing the whole thing by machine wouldn't look as nice.  (And, yes, am aware the irony of that.)  Faux binding meant having more left around the edge of the back that I didn't have.  And, well, I like the calm and comfort of that bit of hand stitching.  Bonus for being under the quilt when it's chilly.

Here it is, though, all finished and in it's new living room home.  It's already become a fought-over blanket for television watching.

Stay tuned...more to come.  

Oh my! (Otherwise, entitled, yes, I'm still alive)

Not so hard to believe it's already been six months since a post.  It's definitely a good thing (for a lot of reasons) I'm not a professional blogger. 

Here is a quick run-down (more details to follow):

Running:  I registered for three races within the next year.  A 1-miler in August; a 10-miler in November and a half marathon in May 2017.  I can barely do three miles at present so definitely have my work cut out for me.  It doesn't help that we are now in hot-and-humid season.  I did manage two Sunday group runs and oh, I really missed my run family.  I'm going to keep pushing myself to get up and get out there so I can fall in love with it again.

Pilates:  I am so out-of-practice.  When running, I realize how much Pilates contributed to my ability to run and recover.  I need that strength and I need the peace and confidence that came along with it.  The thought of Pilates and movement are becoming more common thoughts and I need to just let them come at me until I'm ready. 

A big thing I am making an effort to accept and work on is I can't force myself to do anything big or drastic and expect it to stick.  Case in point, I joined a challenge group to lose weight and be healthy.  I had a meal plan, did my weekly meal prep (breakfast, lunch, snacks, etc.) and it was great.  I felt great and it was all making such a positive difference.  That was, until the normal chaos of life reminded me of it's existence.  Family events, unexpected changes in schedules, holidays and the all-to-common feeling of dread felt when I need grocery shop.   Even though I was making progress and being successful, I just couldn't stick with it.  It was just more than I could sustain.  

Crafts:  I didn't do near what I wanted.  I had an idea I'd help with the school craft fair, but I just couldn't get my act together to actually have something to sell.  I did work up a few book covers.  I even managed to finish up a sweater for me eldest.  I am not overly fond of how the button band turned out, but considering it has yet to be worn, it isn't a big deal. 

I have a few other things in progress, so will definitely be sharing a bit on those (and pictures!).  

Good-bye and Good Riddance

If the fact that I started this post last night and only just now posting is any indication....I'm happy to say "Adios!" to 2015 and "Hellooooo 2016." 

 

It isn't that it was an all-around bad year; it was just a year with a lot of change and challenge thrown at me.  Don't get me wrong; Change is good and sometimes a good challenge helps to break monotony.  There is a fine balance between having too much, though, especially for those (like me) who struggle to maintain some sense of identity aside from "wife," "mom" and "employee." 

 

I didn't achieve most of the goals I set for the year, but there really isn't a reason to go into detail or dwell upon it.  Rather, best to focus on the positive.  I did manage to accomplish quite a bit with sewing and crafting.  The quilt I started forever ago is done and nicely upon our bed.  The 2012 BOM just needs to be quilted.  A few other little things complete, too. 

 

So for 2016--the goal is to find contentment and appreciate a least one small thing everyday. 

Beauty in Inperfection

For many years, I wanted to make a quilt.  My husband and I both are very fond of the Double Wedding Ring--I even have a pattern and the requisite templates.  About six years ago, my neighbor (I mentioned her in a past post--she makes handbags) invited me to go with her to one of our LQS since they had some sort of open house or special.  I really can't recall exactly what.  At the time I had an infant whom I'd only really been apart from to go to work or grocery shopping--not many opportunities made and/or taken for an adventure that didn't involve an infant or shopping for necessities.  As much as I wanted to make a wedding ring quilt, I knew (and still know), my skills at curved piecing and color selection are just not at a level that I would do such a classic pattern justice. 

 

I settled chose another classic:  The Irish Chain.  I spent a few hundred dollars on fabric and batting for a quilt for our bed.  "Oh how nice it will be to have a nice warm quilt upon our bed," I thought.  I mean, isn't it logical to jump in to make a queen-sized quilt? 

 

I came home and, after checking on the baby and making sure all was well, showed my husband my purchase (sans receipt).  Oh, the weight of  yards and new smell of fabric.  I set about cutting 2-1/2" in strips.  Trying to cut strips from backing fabric (essentially, double the normal fabric width of 42-44") was an adventure.  They certainly weren't exactly straight.  Yes, I did use a ruler and rotary cover.  It's a bit tedious to cut ~60 strips, so, I would cut a bunch of strips and then sew them together.  Light-dark-light.  Dark-light-dark.  Then to break of that monotony, cut them into 2-1/2" pieces and sew them together.  Not the most square 6-1/2" block, but I didn't care.   

 

Then life caught up and space for holiday decorations was needed and sewing forgotten.  Then came walking and everything else.  I had quite a few of those 102 blocks complete; but it wasn't all of them.  It also wasn't all of the 97 plain blocks needed, either.  Two years later, I took some vacation time and spent hours sewing over that time.  I'd sew the blocks to make rows and then sew the row rows together I managed to get all the strips together (notice, they are far from square).  I even managed to get the border and corner squares attached--all before Christmas!



It took me another chunk of time before I finally tried to lay out the back, batting and baste it all together.  My in-laws were remodeling, so I packed it all up and laid it out on the un-done flooring.  All those pins!  There was another large gap.  Being queen-size, I figured I would need to do this on a long-arm machine, so I folded up my three layers and hung them up in the crap closet.  There is a LQS near my home (closer than where I purchased my supplies) that does allow people to rent their long-arm (at least they used to).  I just needed to figure out when I could schedule a session. 

In the meantime, I made a "get well" quilt for my FIL and pieced together a quilt for my oldest.  We welcomed our second child and went back to the hectic life of a newborn and a preschooler.  While I was off, I decided to start Amy Gibson's BOM.  My husband convinced me to sign up for the long-arm class (a requirement to rent time with it).  I spent the afternoon getting comfortable with the machine and felt kind of excited about maybe finally finishing the thing.  Of course, using the long-arm meant no need to baste.  Out came all the pins...except for the ones I used to mark where I had a seam that didn't quit hold.  I had to figure out 1) when I was going to press the whole thing (at the time, I didn't have a full-size ironing board) and 2) when I could find four or so consecutive evenings to quilt and 3) how I planned to quilt it. 

 

I signed up for Ann Petersen's "Quilting Big Projects on a Small Machine."    I finally started to watch the videos a couple months ago.  I pressed the top and back pieces and mended a few places that needed it.  My husband helped me to baste with it laid upon our dining table.  We had a pretty good process where he'd open the pins and lay them down and I would then place them.  It took just over an hour.  I noticed a few other "holes" and also that I'd stitched a few of the plain blocks wrong-side-up.  Oh well....I wasn't about to lug this through three rooms, dig out the seam ripper, figure out how to re-stitch while the rest was basted and then press it.  Not worth it. 

 

My workspace was set so the weight of this monstrosity would be supported and not pull. 

 

 

This was the first time using invisible (clear mono-poly) thread and my machine's walking foot.  I "ditched" the outside borders.  They aren't straight.  Then for the traditional diagonal lines.   For the most part, this was pretty easy to get through the harp of my trusty Kenmore.  It was only a bit awkward and tight when I started a line from the opposite end I should have.  These lines are not straight--really, have we not yet established I cannot sew a straight line to save my life?  There are actually a few spots where I wondered if I was drinking and / or fell asleep at the needle.  There are a few puckers on the back, but nothing I'm worked up over.   

 

This was my first pieced quilt top.  In the time between this and my next endeavor, I've learned quite a bit to improve the accuracy of my piecing.  Strips can be considered straight.  I can even manage to nest seams to align the blocks in rows. 

 

I could choose to be disappointed with the outcome:

• The blocks aren't square
• Some blocks are wrong-side up
• There are a few puckers on the back that are too severe to hide with pressing
• The lines on the chains aren't straight
• The seams aren't necessarily the most stable

I look at this quilt, though, and am pleased.  When I see the imperfections, it makes me think about the fact this was made by me.  It was not made in a factory.  It was not made by a professional. The Irish Chain pattern is a classic, but, even so, this particular quilt is unique.  It is light, yet warm and it brightens our room up dramatically.  No, not perfect, but still beautiful.



Plodding along

I am so in need finding motivation and purpose.  I don't even care what I'm motivated to do or what my purpose is.  Just something!  We're now into the school year by a good month.  The short:  meals are still sketchy, exercise hahahahaha, and the rest, well, at least I've been somewhat productive.

 

I did work out for a whole week solid the first week of school.  And then the weekend hit and I just wasn't feeling the workout on schedule.  Pilates...I feel such disappointment and disgust when I think of it.  I love it; it is so incredibly one of the best movement practices I have ever experienced and I am so fortunate to have been a part of such amazing teacher training.  One day, I hope to show how much I appreciate the opportunity to my teacher & mentor.  I like to think she understands. 

 

All of that aside, I did *finally* get my sewing machine out.  I was mostly alone for Labor Day weekend, so I figured I had a few days to get some bit of a mess under control and maybe get something done. 

 

I mocked up / tried out a pattern for a composition book cover.  I did not cut very accurately nor did I have the flannel for the lining (I used some extra quilt batting).  As a result, it's a bit thick, but it was ok.  I ran out and bought appropriate materials the next morning and these turned out really nice.  I may try to make a bunch for the spring craft show my oldest's school does in March--we'll see how that goes. 

Then I managed to use up a couple extra quilt blocks from the quilt I made for my father-in-law a few years ago.  These matching pillows have French seams.  Had it not been so late at night (technically early morning), these would probably be even nicer.  I'm completely not complaining.  I had to do math, so am pretty pleased. 

 

Next morning meant revisiting the 2012 Craftsy BOM w/Amy Gibson.  I had January - March complete.  The last few weeks, I managed to make a lot of progress:







 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. April - English piecing - hexagons

2. May - Modern Log Cabin

3. June - Modern 9-patch

4. July - Dresden

5. August - Stars

September is curved piecing (I have one block done--just cutting the rest of the pieces--it's own adventure).  October--the last blocks--is foundation paper piecing.  I'm really running out of steam on these.  The last few blocks really took a lot of time and I am really not good at piecing.  Consistent seam allowances and straight lines are not a strong point for me.  I'm kind of excited to see what it will look like when it's done.  I haven't decided how I want to do the back, yet.  Part of me wants to be really creative with the leftover backing fabric and FQ scraps, but I know there is a lot of bulk in some of the blocks and I just don't want to think about that, too.  Really, it just needs to be done.  I do wonder if this will be an actual finished quilt or just one more finished quilt top.  (The score is 2 finished lap quilts; 2 finished queen quilt tops). 

 

Until I get around to a next time....

 

 

 

Good Intentions

Yeah, we all know the saying "the road to Hell is paved with good intentions."  Seriously, I've probably put in an expressway just with my summer plans.  So here are my contributions to highway to Hell.

 

1.  We will have grown-up and healthy meals.  Yeah, ok, why cook when we can go out to dinner and have a peaceful grown-ups only meal?  I think there was even a meal that consisted of ice cream and nothing else.  And if you think I'm exaggerating, just ask my husband how much food we've had in the house.

 

2.  I will get some de-cluttering done.  Let's just leave this as, it didn't happen.

 

3.  I will exercise including run.  This didn't happen, either.  In my defense, we had a ton of rain the start of summer and then it turned hot and humid.  Fine, yes I could have gotten on the treadmill (but I did see a creepy crawly thing go underneath, so...) 

 

4.  Practice and observe Pilates.  I had a week of vacation, took my Pilates mat notes and...they never made it out of my backpack.   Oddly, I found my evenings pretty busy, too.  I am such a slacker.

 

5.  I will sew.   No little people around should have meant I could get tons done because I could leave it out for days on end without risk of a little person interacting with sharp objects.  The first step would be actually getting the sewing machine out of the closet.  Hint:  It's still in the closet. 

All that said, I do have to say, there are a few moments of redemptions.

I didn't sew or do much crafting, but I did make a few Minion hats.  The ones with strings are for my Minions.  The one on the baby doll was a request for a baby hat. 

 

My vacation time also let me take some nice walks with said Minions.  And...it was also a week away from work that was very much needed.  A whole week without logging into a computer for a anything. 

 

Summer is almost over, but we'll be back into the school routine soon and hopefully, that will help get me back into a little bit more structure, too.  So, for now, let's consider the current road construction problem to be on hold.  Kind of like those other highway projects that go on for seemingly ever. 

 

"D" Days

"D" is for destash and declutter.  The last few weeks, I've been really trying to bust through my yarn stash.  There are a few Craftsy mystery yarn packs that left me with yarns I have no idea what to do with.  So....this meant scouring Ravelry for patterns and ideas.   I have a number of projects queued up and yarn assigned.  Still a few out there, but at least making progress.  Here are a few things I managed to finish up:

This "Airy Scarf" is a pattern in a "Last Minute Knitted Gifts" book I have.  It is supposed to be shorter (more like a neckerchief kind of thing), but I opted to use the whole hank of yarn.  This is a chocolate brown mohair.  It was scratchy, but after a soak, it is so much softer.  I like how it turned out.

This was from a pattern "Shazam."  It's has a chevron look to it (when blocked properly) and is from a Rowan chunky yarn (now discontinued) that self stripes.  I really like the colors in this.

These two are from a  yarn in a mystery pack.  I can't recall it's name (and don't feel like looking it up), but I do NOT like it.  These two projects ("Squiddly" and "Snood") were just quickly done up to get rid of it.  I doubt I'll wear the first (though, I have a little princess that will love to dress up with it) and the second I do wear since it dresses up a t-shirt a tad when I feel lazy dressing for work (which is most days).  

I whipped up this "Wrap it up" cowl, too.  It was much tighter when I finished stitching it.  It loosened up a ton after I soaked it (per photo).  At first, I was sort of bummed that it was ruined, but then I realized I kind of liked it.  My mother-in-law liked it, too, so I gave it to her.  Seriously, how many scarves, cowls and what-not can I really keep for myself.

And, just for fun, I whipped up these little cars for the girls.  They aren't well done, but make me think of something from Dr. Seuss.  Let's be honest, they don't really care.  They ask for something and then it's more like "haha..it's fun to watch Mama make things for us that we don't really care about."

I have a few other projects I'm working on, so stay tuned.  Oh, yeah...I'll eventually run and exercise and work on being physically healthy again, too.  Just....mental health is more important...yeah, that's it.  I'm not lazy (much).

Burnside Tunic - Part 3

I finished my Burnside Tunic a few weeks ago and I've just been too lazy, I mean *busy* to post.  (yeah, it's a good thing I'm not trying to make a living as a blogger.)

Anyway, last time I posted about this, I had the torso and front complete, but still needed to work the rest of it.

I did manage to work the back up.  I did make a mistake on one of the cables, but I don't think it would be noticed by most people.  It's on the back, so I won't see it. Here is what the finished back looks like.

The front and back were put together with a three-needle bind off.  I think it may have been slightly tight, but still turned out well.  And considering it is hidden by a shawl collar...

And that was the last bit...picking up stitches (evenly) and doing the ribbing for the collar.  I have to say, it turned out far better than I expected.  

It's a bulky fabric, so on me, it isn't the most flattering (my current shape is "round.")  I am not sure how I made this as a small size, knit it loose enough to fit me and still had more than a hank of yarn left over.  Oh well...

Oh one note...this took about a week to dry after I soaked it.  Wool definitely holds water!

Burnside Tunic - Part 2

I finally picked this up, again, a couple weeks ago.  I think that I was going to the Pittsburgh Knit & Crochet Festival made me feel inspired.  I mean, I was going with my friend, Lisa, who does NOT have a yarn problem (it's really a time problem....as in no time to use said yarn).  Anyway, I knew there would be soft and pretty and just beautiful fibers.  Lots of things that make me ache for days that I can sit and create without anything closely resembling "can you," "will you," "I need you to."    

As an aside, I have to share a funny from this past weekend.  It was Saturday afternoon and we were all sitting down watching a movie (most likely Mary Poppins, as it's been the current favorite).  I had my knitting in my lap trying to make a bit of progress.  My oldest was sitting with Dada and said to him, "Why does Mama always have to do that?"  I honestly can't recall the answer, but it did make me chuckle.

So, anyway, I did buy one pattern and a yarn cake to use for it.  I'm sure I'll get to it eventually.  It might not show well in the picture but it's from Twisted Fiber Art and starts (or ends) in a rose color--depending which end you start with.  Really, it's something to see.  It was a small (and crowded!) booth, but I couldn't not buy something there.  That's not to say other booths didn't have pretty things (oooh, the sparkles), but this one I couldn't pass up.

I did finally finish the main body of Burnside.  The cables didn't really get easier, but they did become sort of routine.  I didn't have to keep flipping through the pattern to remember what the symbols meant.  I am far from good at M1 (make one) stitches, but they are what they are.  There is some natural shaping to the body, so there were decreases on the gussets and then increases to the bust.  

Starting the front

Front is done!

Then came another anxiety-inducing first:  two working yarns.  To do the front neck, there are stitches in the middle of the row that are bound off and then a new yarn continues the rest of the row.  Both sides of the neck are then worked at the same time.  Those rows worked up really quickly.  

Then come the next challenges:

• The back since I can't attach the new yarn in the same way, though, it's worked in one single piece.  I hope it works up quickly
• Attaching the front and the back with a three-needle bind-off.  I did this type of bind once before and it was ok, but not great.  
• picking up stitches for the collar.  I haven't done this before.  I only hope I pick up the stitches evenly enough that the collar doesn't end up funky.  Once started, it will be really easy since it's just ribbing in the round.  

Once that's done, I can weave in my ends, soak and block.  I have three hanks of yarn right now and am wondering how much I'll have left.  I know I didn't order extra.  I also know this yarn will relax (I used it for the Demetra sweater, so have experience with it).  Fingers crossed.  Wish me luck--I might be able to finish it in time for it to be way too warm of a garment to wear.  

Pilates Passion

I recently completed my very last Teacher Training weekend.  As always, I was filled with anxiety and worry.  There are tons of things to remember.  Those things range from remember the exercise name, to how to perform them and what order to things like contraindications and risks.  Some serious and daunting stuff when you really think about it.  Add in that my schedule (and level of initiative) haven't made it easy for me to practice teaching or do much observation.  (We won't even mention personal practice time.)  

A couple weeks before training weekend, though, I remembered to check out Pilatesology and PilatesAnytime.  Both are such amazing resources for Pilates.  I watched a video of Lolita San Miguel instructing teachers on sessions for seniors.  Ms. San Miguel is just amazing.  She's an older woman considered one of the elders for Pilates and she can still perform these movements as beautifully as people much younger.  Every video I watched with her was just so inspiring.  The more I watched from these sites, the more I felt excited to be a part of this.  It's like the spark I needed...just to keep it going and build it to a full-fledged fire.  

So anyway, the weekend came and went.  It was truly exhausting, but also fun.  To add to that, I finally was able to do some in-studio observation.  This was just added fuel to the spark.  Four hours of watching my friend and mentor teach.  It was the last person in the studio that just made me light up.  The person didn't have the most spinal mobility and was fairly new to practice.  What was just so awe-inspiring (for me) was being able to see when things "clicked."  It isn't always intuitive or easy to "get" an upper abdominal curl or lengthen / broaden the spine / chest.  Sometimes it's even more basic than that--it's having someone able to pick up one hand and an opposite foot.  There were just beautiful moments in this session where the first repetition was awkward, but the third was practically perfect.  The person left with a smile--never a bad way to end a long day. 

The hardest part about observing was just itching to actually get on the reformer or the Cadillac and get in a workout.  It kind of made me miss the days when I could do so much more.  One day...maybe...I can get back the strength and flexibility I had.  If not the same level, at least closer.  I'm seriously considering buying a Wunda chair for home.  It's small enough that I'm sure I can find a place for it and versatile enough that I can do a lot with it.  I'm sure I could find a volunteer to come over and be given free sessions as I practice teaching on the apparatus.

There is just so much to think about.  Not only is it trying to amass the requisite hours for certification and the eventual testing out; it's also thinking what comes next.  Where do I teach (obviously, at least some time at my certifying studio--that's kind of a given if she'll have me)?  When do I teach?  It leads to bigger questions like:  Do I even care / want my "traditional" corporate job?  What if I want more by having less?  

Like I said...lots to think about and thoughts best addressed little by little another day.  

Burnside Tunic - Part 1

I completely forgot I meant to post about my progress on this.  I started into a project for myself.  Yes, this one is entirely meant for me from the start.  It isn't one of the many other projects that (IMHO) turned out too horribly to gift, but I hold no shame and happily wear the monstrosities.  

But anyway....I purchased the pattern and yarn over the summer.  I have no idea why I thought this would at all be easy or quick.  I am not a fan of knitting cables.  It must be the success I had with my oldest's sweater that gave me an over-inflated confidence.  I mean, that sweater had a cable on each side of the cardigan front.  How much more difficult could this be with it's 82 zillion cables.  OK, so it isn't quite that many, but I think it's close.

It's worked in the round until about sleeve level when the front and back are worked flat (separately).  Once the front and back are done, it's bound together and then the cowl-inspired collar is worked in the round once the stitches are picked up.  I'm a bit intimidated by it, but trying to take it one section at a time.  The bottom ribbing was pretty easy...not much to k2p2 once you've even made an attempt to knit.  The body section I'm working know is where all the cables come into play.    I think I'm about halfway through this section (right before it goes to working flat).

Here are a couple pics of progress.  It's a charcoal grey (almost black), even though it looks lighter.  this one is of the front (or back).  It's tough to see the cables very well, but you get the idea.  

This one is view of the how the sides look.  Again, cables, but not as intricate as the front / back.  

I'll try to post more next time I pick it up and make some progress.  Of course, it probably won't fit or it won't look right, but I'll worry about that if / when it's finally finished.