What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Sunshine! How I wish for the sun! Thankfully, I don't suffer from SAD, but it sure would be nice to see the sun once in a while! It tries really hard on most mornings, but quickly gets buried in the clouds. The winter has been weird so far. We've had lots of snow, but not all at once. Lots of small snowfalls, which leads to the question - should I shovel or wait? 

That, plus the lack of sunshine, means that everything is snow-covered, and not bare like our sidewalks usually are! We had a discussion last night at ...

 Happy New Year!!!!!

If the year is going to be anything like my first 30 minutes of being awake this morning, it's going to be a heck of a ride!

But first - did I stay up last night? I did NOT, however, I needed to use the washroom, and I checked my watch just for curiosity, and it was 11:58. So technically, I was up! But I wasn't celebrating, and thankfully, I went right back to sleep after the clock turned over!

We had great fun at the Virtual Retreat, and well, that's where my morning ...

I know!!! Wasn't that video about the Ro-Ro carriers fascinating? And now we understand why things cost more, and it's cool to think some of our cars crossed the ocean on a boat! Basically a giant floating parking garage! 

I am home. And I'm unpacked! I'm on a tight turnaround, and I didn't want to keep my samples in the suitcase longer than necessary. Plus, I have to do laundry today. So that's all good! The bonus is that I already have almost 1000 steps - something I didn't get many of while I ...

Yesterday was a glorious day here. The temperature was pretty decent, and the sky was blue. I started the day off by taking a walk along the waterfront, which is just a few short blocks from here.

The seaplanes had no issues with fog and were frequently buzzing across Stanley Park. Oh well - I'll just have to come back to do that trip. I've flown over Vancouver Harbour once, and the view is spectacular. 

The seaplane and clear blue sky

It was earlyish in the morning when I went out. I think the temperature was 4 degrees Celsius ...

OOH -- I forgot to mention that my second toenail fell off at the gym on Monday. Why am I telling you that? My foot feels a whole lot better now that the toenail is gone and the new one is growing nicely. I also don't have to be so careful that the nail would get caught and ripped off. Let nature do its thing, and all is good! It appears that it takes about a month for the new nail to push out the old one. 

I overheard the ladies discussing ticks in this area the other day. When ...

Significant progress is being made at the quilt retreat!! Thankfully, the temperature is dropping, so it's much more comfortable. I don't think any building was comfortable the previous day. Yesterday, we were nice and comfy, and with lower temperatures today, we may not even need the AC. OK, so that's me, but the others may feel differently. I actually felt slightly chilly in the room this morning!

Shoot, I meant to take a picture of the sewing room, but I'll save that for tomorrow. 

I started the day (after several hours of sewing) with a walk ...

Murphy's thoughts are rubbing off on me! No, I didn't want to throw my sewing machine into the pond so someone could rescue it. But as she and I were walking yesterday, a thought popped into my head, and oh my goodness. I realized that if I added the embellishments in their two separate components, I could stitch them to the wall hanging. No glue required. It means sewing part of it with a sewing machine, which I like, as that's sturdier than glue. The second part of each embellishment can be hand-stitched. 

Thank you, Murphy, for ...

Oh yes - my gluts! I don't think they are strong at all. They should be, but I don't think they are. The biggest issue is the imbalance - hamstrings are too tight, glutes are not strong enough, and other fun things. You would think for all the spin classes I do, this shouldn't be a problem, but it is. The truth is in doing some exercises and seeing how much weight I can lift. Together, my legs work as a great team, but individually? They are wobbly and unsure of themselves. This just goes to show how a ...

It's an interesting retreat. Heck, all retreats are interesting, but they are always different. It's never the exact same group of people who attend. It's funny, as when I first started going to retreats almost 20 years ago, we were a set group of nine people, and we went together for years. Then things happened, and that group fell apart. Now, we have a larger group of people; it's never the same mix each time. That makes it interesting! 

How am I feeling? I'm pretty good. I'm realizing that I can't sit well ...

It's a great day today! It's my birthday, and while we don't want to be reminded of how old we are getting, it's a huge reason to celebrate because we're here to talk about the birthday and look forward to many more! I am one of the lucky ones!!

I have a quiet day planned by myself, and I can't wait! DH is sick in bed, so I told him to stay away from me -- I don't have time for that! Since my previous list of things to do was almost complete, I ...

Poor Murphy had a good news/bad news kind of day. I'll tell you the quilting stuff first and then what happened. 

We had Monday Sewing, and I love our conversations. Between the group, we know EVERYTHING! Plus, we get to learn about tools (both old and new), and everyone has a different view of them. It's all good. OK—I confess that I'm VERY opinionated about many things. I'm also the first one to compliment someone on their skills, but sometimes, they also have some very bizarre ideas, and what is that all about? 

I ...

Thanks for the comments! Yes --- other crazy people like me love scraps. Most people love scraps to some degree, but the definition of scraps to some people kills me. It still blows my mind, and let's face it, people have no patience, so they toss what they don't want. NO - give it to us scrap users! There's a good story coming about some scraps. I got a note yesterday, and I'm unsure how to respond. I must look at that later today. And then I can tell you the story!

It makes me laugh, but as ...

Let's start off with the progress report on the green scraps. 

I watched an entire episode of The Quilt Show, and all the while, I was pressing scraps.

Pressing scraps

The basket last night

And for reference, here's the basket from the previous day. 

The basket the previous day

This basket of scraps will be a good example of how slow and steady will always win. The amount of usable scraps in the basket for the 365-day quilt ...

My throat is parched! Not only is it terribly dry in the convention center, but I've almost talked myself out! Is that even possible? 

So many people have stopped by to say hi, and then we're chatting to others about sewing machines, which is really why I'm here! My aunt and cousin drove here, and I had a quick visit with my aunt. My cousin isn't into sewing, so she went shopping for other things! 

I was on my own for the morning walk, and I walked across the pedestrian bridge again but turned in a ...

I'm happy that I'm not alone in the missing items department. But what is interesting is how we become focused on the missing things to the detriment of what is happening around us. We are distracted, discombobulated, and just totally non-functioning to some extent. 

Why is that? And why do we get to that point? It's not every time I lose something, but the times when I get in that state are not pretty, and I hate it because I "waste" so much time, either trying to find the item or just being discombobulated. 

I confess that ...

Over the years, I've shipped many quilts to the US to be photographed for a magazine, and they've been shipped back to me. Other than paying shipping costs, I've incurred no other cost. No duty, no brokerage fees, no HST. 

Three of us in this area were fortunate enough to have quilts accepted to the CherryWood challenge, and those quilts are winging their way back to us. One person was notified that her quilt was coming home, but she would have to pay $150 in brokerage fees and duties to get it. Seriously?? The quilt belongs to ...

While I accomplished a lot yesterday, I have nothing to show for it! I was in the car most of the afternoon and on a call in the morning! However, I managed to cross several things off my list! Yeah! I hate those kind of days, but every once in a while, they need to be done. 

I have to say that I LOVE the navigation system in the car. Actually, LOVE is not strong enough. It is so easy to use compared to the other vehicle! Well, there is NO comparison. 

I have Android Car Play, which I love ...

Anne has a good eye! She not only knew what the quilt was that I was working on, but she sent me a picture. I'm not sure if that was her quilt. Great job, Anne -- you know your quilts!!!

Another productive day! It's amazing what you can get done when you can focus on the quilting and have good conversations and good working conditions! So, what does the quilt I worked on look like? I finished the quilt top last night. 

My bicycle quilt

I have no recollection of cutting this quilt, which is called Mod Geo Cruiser ...

And the progress continues! I get a chuckle at how much we think we can do in a day and how much we actually get done! Now that the miters on the 365-day quilt are done, at least for the moment, I had visions of using the remaining blocks as enders and leaders as I plowed through a quilt top that was totally cut out. 

Yes -- the pieces are cut out but NOT labeled, which is typical of ME! 

The background is cut but not labeled

This is not a quilt with the same block repeated over and over. It ...

WAIT -- there's a Virtual Retreat tonight and tomorrow, and I kept forgetting to put it in the blog this past week. DUH!!!! So much for the warning. I'll be working away, so if no one shows up, I'm OK with that. The link will be at the end of the post. 

 The decluttering stopped DEAD! Was that because DH was home? Was that because I had a deadline to meet and struggled with passive writing versus active writing? Or was it just time to take a break? I think it was a bit of everything. HOWEVER, I ...