Simple Living

It's all about balance. To be successfull with a caber, you have to cleanly pick it up and find the right place to hold it where it is perfectly balanced

Then you gently take off, slowly at first

Then you run

And when the timing is right you throw it.

 We have pressing  responsibilities that must be in balance with our family, relationships, spiritual growth, work and a bit of fun. I like the running part!

Here is a customer quilt that I finished tonight. It is quilted with a free motion swirl pattern.
I love the fabrics, they are so rich!

Design Wall Monday

I finished this quilt this past weekend. I did a feemotion improv stitch.

I really liked how it turned out. I like doing this type of quilting.

It may be some of my best to date!

More fun !

And the last zone.

This jelly roll and yardage in this kit are making so many Granny Squares. Look at that pile of blocks and look at the strips left!!! I am gonna have a great quilt that will be bigger than expected!

Have a great week all!

Inspiration

Yesterday was a day of looking around for inspiration. I finished long arming a quilt of mine, pics of that tomorrow. I was able to go to a few graduation parties and take in nature. I was able to see colors shapes and other designs. I also went to Hobby Lobby to send pics to my daughter to get curtain ideas.

Pictured are some cool fabrics that I found to be inspiring. I think that just looking around and observing is helpful for inspiration when looking at a new project or when you are stalling in a current one.

Another Friday!

Here's a brief one word at a time summary of the week!

Camp, car, Rain, work, sewing, long arm quilting, working out, heat, humidity, sun, more work, driving, laundry, dishes, picking up, blogging,  pinterest and calls.

A pretty typical week except for camp-dropping son off,  and car- con't problems even with a recall and a second trip to the service center.

Now for relaxation! I think I deserve some
:)

Happiness project

A happiness tip inspired by Scottish Hammer throwing:

To start: hang on to get the hammer while you exert a large amount of energy set it into motion ( so true about many things in life) .

While the hammer is spinning around you, your body has to stay loose yet in the proper form (stress management under pressure!),

and the mind has to stay focused on the task at hand.

Eventually, you have to let that big hammer go when the timing is right.

Happiness tip: there is a time for everything,  and in a proper order,  and especially a time to let go.

More random thoughts

Who sits in a sauna on a 80 degree day? Jay does!

I really dislike driving to other cities to work.

I really don't like driving. Riding is OK, driving not so much.

The gym is boring. I need more stuff for my iPod. But finding stuff takes up time....and patience .....

Audio books are fun but it makes some activities dangerous!

I don't like being told how i am supposed to do things. Especially by people who don't do or know the topic in which they are enlightening others about.

Patience is over rated.

I want to go to shipshewna even though people say i will be disappointed. 

I want to go to a big judged quilt show. Never have been to one. Or to paducah or to a market.

I am not sure i can tolerate a long flight. 

I know a cruise is out of the question. I get motion sickness watching. Tv!

I think too much about stupid things!

Design Wall Monday

I am jumping in the pool on the Granny squares. I had this lovely gifted fabric with a jelly roll last Christmas just waiting for the perfect pattern. Thanks Mom because I am really liking this!

I am trying to decide what to do with patterns that I have written  and developed. Should I start out with writing patterns to sell (most likely self published) or should I go for the big prize and try to submit a book? I am not sure what to do from here. I have a few people interested in a pattern......not sure about a book. I was set on a book but there is a part of me that says I need to start small. You know walk before you run....

Wanna hear about my weekend complete with Highland games pictures? Click here or a video

Video post

a personal best!

Highlights from Spring lake and a few random thoughts

Weight for distance

Weight over Bar

Weight over Bar, personal best today!

Caber

digging in for that distance!

Athletes warming up




It was a full day yesterday. I had time to think about random stuff at the games and the 6 hours in the car.

Tero Ant bait really works. For Ants, not spiders.
I really like eating out. Loved the Logans' Roadhouse, yum.
What is all natural anyway? There isn't one product I use that isn't tweaked by humans and hasn't been since the dawn of time.....fabric, food, housing, gardening, yard work , cleaning, etc.
writing to publish stuff is hard.
Keeping my hair straight is even harder.
I don't have anything that isn't wearing out right now. Ha! that's every day isn't it?
Routines are great yet confining
Work is challenging but boring
Hobbies are fun but can be maddening
Things that were all consuming a few years ago aren't today
When it is hot and you are outside all day, it takes two showers to feel refreshed
An airfreshener makes me feel better about the state of my house
reading an article about bed bugs creeped me out
Sisu is a Finnish term loosely translated into English as strength of will, determination, perseverance, and acting rationally in the face of adversity.




The days are long but the years are short.....

Something new

I was gifted this lovely fabric collection at Christmas. I had no idea what to do with it as the pattern was a Lemoyne star. NOT a rotary cut project. It is a jelly roll with yardage for the background and then the lovely print the blocks are on for a border.

I am joining everyone in the Granny Square craze. I LOVE IT!

Tutorial used is here.

I can't help my self, I gotta be working on something!

Should be a pretty good sized quilt.

Why did I start something new? Well the pattern I am working on is coming along. The test quilt made from it came to a grinding halt because I didn't have enough fabric in my stash. No problem right? Wrong, the store I bought the said fabric from is an hour away. Good news? Yep, I need to go to work in that town next week to fill in. Ahhh, it will all work out in the end!

Design Wall Monday

There is a whole design table full of my birthday gifts from a few weeks ago. Plus a few scraps. There is a really cool green quilt with greys just waiting to happen. Tons of inspiration and now for the design to take shape.....

Sunday updates

I have been quilting, shopping, cleaning, and going to parties. It is open house season. I felt great about getting so much done. I have been working very hard, and running a million miles an hour for days.

Then my van stopped running.

It is a recalled item. May take a while to fix. Hubby's vehicle is acting weird.  Sigh, really?

So , since ds needed the car to go to work,  I am home this evening.  I will rest,  do laundry, import books into iTunes and sew. It's way too hot to garden today.

Hope that the van won't be out of commission too long, I have places to go, Highland games to see, work to attend and all the rest of daily life. Hmmm, it is amazing how much I NEED a car.

Simple Living

Simple summer time indulgences:

watching movies with a more relaxed scheduled
reading a book
graduation parties and gifts are a simple card
junk TV for relaxation-I am currently hooked on Cajun Pawn Stars and Swamp people
sitting on patio
less laundry
salads for lunch/dinner
sandals
less hair and makeup prep
more sunscreen
more relaxed weekend travel and hanging out
vacation, most likely a stay cation this summer to indulge on the above!

Tiny Tuesday and happiness project

here are little 5 inch squares from my BOM-Constellation of stars through a local quilt shop. I think the piecing is improved on these little guys compared to previous posts.

One idea from the happiness project is spend a bit o' money on yourself for a special item once in a while. This is something I rarely do. Money doesn't buy us happiness but it can contribute to our joy, inspiration and vision , on occasion. I don't want to call myself cheap but I am frugal... that's why all my beginning quilts are scrappy!

The BOM and this little magazine are a big splurge for me. I have spent very little money on them but they have given me Tons of happiness/joy/inspiration in return. I want to say that this is a great magazine and I read all the articles, looked and all the pictures and learned new things. Check it out, it is the first one that they have put out there. I am a big fan of Quilty and the Internet based tutorials and weekly you tube shows. LOVE IT!

Here is a great book Mom gave me for my birthday and I love it. I am feeling a retro mod theme going in my quilts of the future. I love and appreciate traditional things but I am ready to try some new things now.

Design Wall Monday

Default title upload by motoblur, a photo by vhollowayus on Flickr.

Here are the BOM's for May. I need to get June's blocks soon. I love the batiks, photos do NOT give the depth of the fabrics at all!

The large blocks are 12 inch and the little blocks are 5 inch before sashing. I am enjoying the fact that this is a kit and no heavy thinking involved!

Read a great new Magazine called Quilty. I have read Mary Fon's blog and followed the videos for months now and this magazine was great. I am loving this fresh look and fresh ideas.This magazine is my "style" to a T.  Just what I needed for inspiration!

Simple Living

I have been thinking about keeping it simple. Pictures are from last weekends festival.

 I have a mental list of things that I have been working on to keep it simple:
-hostas aren't a bad choice for my garden space
-I love simple blocks of the month that I can just put together as a break from a complicated quilt design

        -working less is OK and hanging out doing nothing from time to time is a good balance to life

-the best accessory to any look is a great smile, rest and a positive attitude

                                  -not everything is rocket science in my life and getting back to basics is ok

 -it is OK that I don't like to cook, camp, clothing shop
- it is OK to blend ideas together to make something workable for me

My favorite pic of my husband from last weekend. Savoring the moments is essential to a simple life.