For years I kept journals -- in composition, spiral bound, and French graph paper books. This blog is an attempt to get back to writing and documenting the world around me using photos, newspaper headlines, and other articles.

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Two favorites: the beach and quilting

Today has been a great day as I got to combine two of my favorite things: a beach walk and quilting.  When it is 52 degrees in February, I have to take advantage and get to the ocean.

Ships waiting to go up the river.


In the morning I spent time in the garage trying to find my embroidery floss so that I could finish up Block #4 in the Splendid Sampler project.  I appreciate the designers and that these patterns are free.  And I'm learning that applique is really not the kind of sewing that gives me much pleasure.  This block had 9 tiny circle applique flowers. I found myself talking my way through it, as in, one down only eight more to go.  Woot!  I'm too stubborn to alter the pattern to make it easier.  I want the challenge, but I don't always enjoy it.  While I didn't find my floss, I found some of the pink and gray 2 1/2 inch squares from my 1990ish place mats.

Fabric squares have held up over 25 years.


Turns out those squares were just right for today's new pattern.  Block # 5 was called Simple Simon by Celine Perkins, and it was based on a nine-patch that used 2 1/2 inch squares.  All I had to do was cut the sashing.  But why make only one block when you have at least two other color combinations that are calling your name?   And this was my kind of block -- bigger pieces, no applique, and cutting the block and adding sashing to get more interest.  I really enjoyed it.  Two out of the three blocks came out a bit wonky, but I think they are cute none the less.

Pink version of Simple Simon.


While the twice a week six-inch blocks are fun, sometimes I feel the urge to work with bigger pieces of fabric.  So I turned to another on-line sampler series, The Sugar Block Club that is a monthly block project, using 12 inch squares.  I'm using the same fabric as the 6-inch and will probably mix and match to make two quilts.  The blocks that I really like making, I am not stopping at one.  I loved the February SBC block, her take on the Log Cabin and made it twice.  And I made three Simple Simon blocks this morning.


January & February SBC blocks


I still have to go back and embroider the stems on the flowers for Block #4.  Sigh.

Six and twelve inch blocks. Need to trim top right flowers and add stems.


After I finished sewing this morning, I pried Selim away from his electronic devices and took him to the beach.  We were due for some outdoor time and picture taking.  We decided on Wallis Sands.  It doesn't have the really long walk that you can get at Jenness, but that was OK.  This was the first time that I have ever seen horses on the beach.

Horses, really?


The sign says no dogs, but doesn't say anything about horses, so I guess they are allowed?



We moved over to the other side of the rock jetty and took a walk.  Selim found great skipping stones and had success with a few.  Some were too heavy and just sank.  Others didn't catch the waves just right and got swallowed up.  We watched the ships waiting for their turn to go up the river into Portsmouth.  It was warm; we felt the sand; we laughed and enjoyed each other's company.

The one shot I got as the waves were coming in.


And I made him take pictures.



And some more.





When we got home, Nedim had returned and I insisted on a family photo as well.  Tomorrow Selim heads back to school and my week of vacation hours come to an end as well.


Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Intersections at the PEM

I coerced/enticed Selim into going to the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) by telling him that they had a great gift shop.  I've never been there myself, but what museum doesn't?  With reluctance, he agreed.  He is such a good sport.

First off, can I just say that diving Route 114 from Peabody to Salem is not easy.  At some points there were signs to the PEM and at other places, not.  That drive tested my navigation skills, for sure. I'm glad that I didn't get lost and that we made it there without incident.

The Museum is a great size for a kid.  It isn't so big that it is completely overwhelming.  These is a great mix of paintings, furniture, ceramics, silver, special exhibits and their focus on maritime pieces.  We went there to experience the installation called "Intersections."  It was so fun.  We moved all around the room, taking pictures of each other and selfies.  We laughed and had the space all to ourselves.  Perfect.

My favorite photo of the day


Shadows/reflections?

Selfie


While enjoying the installation, I thought about the mosaics of the Alhambra, the mosque metal work from the East End in London, my experiences in Turkey, and quilt patterns.  My mind was a jumble and happy.  We circled the room a few times, looking at the walls, ceiling, floor -- getting close up and moving farther away and loving it.

Reflections from a single bulb in the box on the right.

Floor pattern



Floor and shoe


After that, we explored the rest of the Museum.  In the Maritime room, we saw the Figureheads and played a matching game with a kids brochure that we printed out the night before.




Standing among the figureheads.


Another exhibit we really enjoyed was the Chinese silver.  In part, the floor paint was so dynamic that we kept looking down and seeing what design came next.  At the end were two large urns that Selim got up and personal with.  He sat on the floor and took several pictures with his personal electronic device.  I found it really interesting seeing what captured his attention and sparked his imagination.


Can't have too many shoe pictures.

Silver ship


Next up, the Native American Fashion exhibit, Native Fashion Now.  Wow!  Last April, while in NYC with Heather, we went to the Met's large exhibit of Native American History/Culture/Artifacts.  This was different -- all things fashion.  Selim found the porcupine quill hat/head gear/ headdress before I did.



I loved the flower parasols hanging from the ceiling.




And the beaded boots.



And these dresses.



Kimono with Native American motifs


Selim was losing a bit of steam, otherwise I would have lingered.  We took quick tours around the Japanese room and the Chinese ceramics.  The nature room smelled strongly of paint and we scooted out of that room in a hurry.  Coming out of that room, we made a quick stop at the snack bar and shared vegetarian chili, a fruit cup, and some chips.

Fortified, we descended upon the gift shop.  It did not disappoint.  He looked at everything very carefully before deciding on a multi-purpose tool that included a hammer, 2 screwdrivers, saw, wire cutter, knife, bottle opener, wrench,  and pliers.  I found a pair of earrings and two travel mugs with Native American motifs.

In just under three hours, we were done.

We looked for lions for our cousin/nephew and this was as close as we got.


And the best photo bomb of the day was the figurehead over the Queen Elizabeth

Model of the Queen Elizabeth

And I might change my laptop screen to architectural detail:



Finally, the award for the most amazing use of shells goes to:



I wanted to see the ocean and breathe in some fresh air before getting back in the car, so we took a brisk walk to the wharf.  I had hoped to see pretty boats, but they were all encased in shrink wrap/weather proofing.  Disappointing!  But, on the way back to the parking garage, we came across Stickworks, and outdoor installation.  Of course, I treated it as another photo opportunity until my phone ran out of juice and Selim was spared further posing in the cold.





The parking garage had printed out directions on how to get back to Route 114.  Yay!  We made it back to the highway without any wrong turns.  Double yay!  I love it that Selim will humor me with trips to a museum and just being with me in general.  We are a great duo and he is the best hang out companion.  I am so lucky.

Sunday, February 21, 2016

Butterfly Block

I spent a couple of hours in my sewing room yesterday, working on the second block in the on-line sampler series.  It didn't involve applique, yay!  But, the design was made up of 1 1/2 inch squares.  Yikes!  The finished block feels so thick because of the 1/4" seam allowance, leaving only a 1/2" of a single layer of fabric per individual piece. I can see why others are posting pictures of both the front and backs of their blocks.  Having such a tidy back reminds me of the sense of accomplishment I have felt when my needlepoint looked almost as good from the back as the front.

Anyway, Friday I gathered the fabric that I thought I would use and decided to let my choice mull around in my mind before cutting and sewing.  As I went to bed, I thought back to the color theory portion of the workshop that I had attended in Burlington and wondered if had made the best decision.  I had picked out pink background fabrics and teal for the butterflies.  If warm colors pop and cool colors recede, would the butterflies stand out enough?  When I got up, I changed the fabrics and went with gray for the background and pink for the butterflies, thinking that the pink butterflies would stand out better amid the cool gray background.

Gray and Pink Butterfly block


I really liked the block.  But then again, I have a thing for pink and gray.  My first ever patchwork project was a set of place mats that were the same color combination.  I sewed those in 1990 when I lived in New Hampton.  I still use them.  They match my china.  And I'm using the fabric scraps for this block.  Hard to imagine that I have carted around those fabric scraps through the 12 moves over the 26 years.

I love pink and gray!


Block amid the place mats


Even though the 1 1/2" pieces were challenging, I liked the block enough to go back to my original colorway.  I'm not sure if one set of butterflies (minus the antennae) stand out more than the other.   The pink butterfly fabric may have too much gray in it to make a real contrast.  That's OK, I like both blocks.

Pink and Teal Butterfly block


In the afternoon, it was so warm (56 degrees, woot!) that I went out in my flip flops and took pictures of the blocks on the driveway.  Natural light is so much better than the icky florescent lights that I have in my sewing room.

2 Butterfly blocks

While I was doing that, Mom and Heather were at QuiltCon.  For so many reasons, I would loved to have been with them.  But getting out to California this winter break was too much to figure out.  Next year QuiltCon is in Savannah, and that might be doable.  And if it coincides with Selim's school break, may be we could hit up a beach or two in Florida to make the trip appealing to my guys.

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

Quilting on Different Fronts

Historically, I've made myself finish a quilt project before I allow myself to start another.  I might collect fabric and look at it, but that is as far as it goes.  I'm trying something different for 2016 and letting myself go where the inspiration takes me.  I'm a great starter and middle project person -- so this will be a test to see if I can finish up a project or two as well.

On Sunday and Monday, I worked on my improv squares that I began at the workshop in Burlington at the beginning of the month.  I finished two more 16" squares.

Blocks #3 and #4


So now I have four.

Blocks #1-#4


I'm thinking of having this one be a non-traditional size.  I'm going to test 4 or 5 blocks wide by 2 blocks high and see if I like it.  The title is Sunset over Great Bay and I envision it to be like a panorama of the bay as I drive over the Sullivan Bridge.  That might end up being too weird and I go more traditional.  That alternate layout is ruminating for now.  I still have more blocks to go before I have a better feel for the finished piece.

On Friday, one of my favorite quilt bloggers, Cheryl Arkison posted that she was designing blocks for a sampler quilt found at The Splendid Sampler.  I've never done a sampler before and that piqued my interest.  The first block released on Sunday, Hearts Aflutter, has a big ole heart appliqued in the center of a 6 1/2 inch square.  Dang.  I've done some hand sewing before, but not traditional applique. Before I made my decision to quit before I started, I went to my sewing room and began pulling fabric that I might use in this year-long sampler project.  I took the map print from Kaffe Fassett as the inspiration and went all through my stash and bins of scraps.  In the end, I found too many pretty fabrics to be deterred by a little applique.

The colorful print gives me options for down the road

Fabric from my stash and scrap bins

Some of the scraps are so old, I was using pinking sheers to cut instead of the rotary cutter.  That means I used them between 1990 and 1992 or so when I lived in New Hampton and used a ruler and tailor chalk to draw squares on the fabric before cutting.  And I sewed with Mom's sewing machine on the floor because I didn't have a table big enough for it to fit on. Yikes!

Fabric from my first ever quilt project


I made the block in stages.  I constructed the background and basted on the heart yesterday.  After work I removed the basting stitches and made my way around the heart in little stitches.  It is a bit wonky in its placement, but overall, I'm happy.  I hope with block #2 we move away from applique.

Stage #1

Finished Block #! Hearts Aflutter


Fortified with that success, I went back to the bonus features on the web site and found a pincushion tutorial.  While Selim working on his math homework, I tackled that project.  I used scraps and fabric from the heart block and came up with this.

Cathedral pin cushion

Block and pin cushion

Coordinating fabrics


It may need a bigger button in the center...I'm not sure.  I'm pleased and it will make me smile as I go down this road of trying new sewing and quilting things.

I'm liking this freedom to work on projects as I'm inspired.  This is going to be fun!