Sewing for Sanity

Hey, isn’t one’s sanity a top “charity” goal we sewists have? It sure has been for me lately! 

This week I finished up my aqua and turquoise and teal color blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. Once all my primary blocks for the month are done, I turn my focus to working on coin columns and crumb blocks. I only needed four more aqua blocks to fill out the 11-block column of crumbs I’ll make into a column quilt at the end of the year. I also sewed strips and chunks together to make an approximately 4” wide column that will join the other colored columns later. Two separate column quilts. 

Not exactly exciting stuff, but they’ll be fun and colorful when they join their friends. 

My big accomplishment for the week was quilting the Anne of Green Gables quilt. Here are a couple sneak peeks. Obviously, it still needs binding. 

I’ll get it bound this weekend with that dark purple fabric in the outer border. And then hopefully Ruby and I can get some glamour shots of it before I gift it on Tuesday. I’ll show finished pictures next week.

But for this week, I have been working on HOA stuff way too much while simultaneously trying to get the kitchen packed up for Monday’s tear out / demolition. We’re also trying to pack a couple boxes of stuff we can use during the six weeks of no kitchen. The refrigerator will move to the living room and the pantry will remain untouched (except for painting when the time comes). We will keep our microwave, coffee pot and toaster and some paper plates and plastic utensils out and set up the table to function as a counter and dining space once the dust clears. The demo will include removing the carpet, so we’ll be living on just the subfloor until the new flooring is installed a couple weeks after that. 

Today I’m pre-cooking some pork loins and taco meat for quick meal prep that we’ll be able to do in the coming weeks. We’re going to try yo limit eating out to 2 nights per week, and we know just where the healthy and relatively affordable meals can be found. Once per week it will be fast food and once per week it will be a restaurant. Yes, there is healthy fast food - have you ever had Chick-Fil-A’s chicken wrap? Or Noodles & Company’s Chicken Caesar salad or … 

Are you ready for some scary photos? I haven’t shown these before. They are the “before” pictures of our kitchen and family room. They’re from when we first moved in 4 months ago, but much of the stuff was never unpacked. It looks just as horrible and forlorn today. But with the demolition and construction in the coming weeks, it’s going to look even worse before it gets better. But it will get better - I have to keep reminding myself. 

First of the BEFORE pictures. Everything from the beam back to the wall will be ripped out, except the windows, of course.  The cabinets were of excellent quality when they were installed in the 1980 (I almost typed “1890”) original build. But they’re very dated and very worn up close. Oh, and yes - we have a fourth matching chair for the dinette set - it was just in another room for some reason. The set opens up (with a leaf that rises up from beneath) and will be used as a table/counter during the construction process. Then the set will go to Cousin Kim. 

The picture below shows the odd configuration of the upper cabinets. I will NOT miss those! The new refrigerator will go there eventually. 

And these recessed fluorescent lights? Gone, baby, gone! This will be sheetrocked, painted and replaced with 6-7 can lights. The new cabinets will go all the way up to the ceiling with no dust-catching gaps.

The stove is fairly new and will be kept, but the hood fan will be replaced. 

The pic below is just another angle. But the peninsula will be ripped out and replaced with a large island that will jut out into the dining area. Oh, and that dishwasher is prehistoric and will be replaced by a stainless steel Bosch. 

The view below is looking from the kitchen out into the dining/family room area. That beige carpeting - again, original to the 1980 build - will be replaced with vinyl plank flooring that looks and feels like hardwood. It will extend throughout the kitchen and family room and down the L-shaped hallway. Cat owners (inevitable hairballs) will understand and appreciate that!

Last view: looking from inside the kitchen work area, out. That’s an old, unworking trash compactor in the kitchen peninsula. What a colossal waste of space! The upper cabinets there will be repurposed to the garage. That new area will see the “desk” area raised to counter height and flipped. We’ll have floating maple shelves on the wall to house my cookie jar and Pyrex collection. 

That potted poinsettia is now living out in the courtyard during the spring, summer and fall. It’s currently very lush and green. It will come back indoors as the fall weather cools. Here’s hoping the cats will leave it alone! 

I suffered my first-ever migraine this week, complete with aura, flashing lights, light sensitivity, yadda yadda. Thought I was dying of a brain tumor or something (haha) until the doctor’s diagnosis put all the puzzle pieces together. It seems to be mostly passed now, with just some residual eye twitching. Likely stress-induced. Stress? I can’t imagine what is causing that (she said sarcastically).  But life goes on….. 

Have a good week, my friends!

Linking to Rainbow Scrap Challenge.