Thank Goodness for Sewing Therapy!

OK, my burning question of the week (politics aside), is - has anyone else been experiencing issues with Blogger? Every comment has all of a sudden been coming across as No-Reply. Every single one, even those of you who have been reading and commenting for years. And that means I can’t reply. Have you had that issue on your blog (if you have one)?  How do we get it fixed? I’ve searched everywhere on my Blogger dashboard, inquired of Blogger and Google, and have gotten no answer. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!!

Getting back to sewing. . . .  Again, thank goodness for sewing. It’s been one hell of a week in American politics, as you are all no doubt aware. Being of the blue persuasion myself, the results have been a gut punch, a kick in the butt, a head-scratcher and whatever other body part cliches you want to throw in. All I can say is that if Trump does what he’s threatened to do, the red voters will be suffering along with everyone else. No, that’s not a good thing, but at least we’ll be able to say “I told you so” smugly while we all shake our heads and wring our hands together (more body part cliches). 

Now let’s REALLY get back to sewing. This week I finished all the remaining blocks - I needed 78 - for this Quilts for Kids scrappy quilt top started last Saturday at the workshop. Here is the finished top.

You can see in the photo above that the white pieces form a pattern, a sort of stair step, when they come together in the correct way. That’s the pattern you get when you’ve sewn every block in the same orientation. But we didn’t do that, so it’s a free-for-all in this top. And by “we” I mean most of us who didn’t get that part of the instruction in our workshop. But in the end, who is really going to care? I’ll sew the next one the correct way.

And there will be next ones. I took a couple days and went through all my bins and bags of novelty or multi-colored scraps and chunks and cut them up. If the scraps were large enough to cut 2.5x8.5” strips from, I did that (top right in the picture below). The shorter lengths were cut into 2.5x 4.5” pieces (top left). If those shorter pieces contained four or more of the same print (which came from different scrap pieces), I separated out the fours to make windmill blocks (bottom left). Chunkier or odd-sized scraps were cut into 3.5” or 2.5” squares. All of those together take up less than one shoebox-ful of space and are ready to go for future use. 

As a reward for all that work, I ordered 2 yards of four different bright solid colors. I’ll be able to use the solids with these cuts and wherever needed as I work through the large box of quilt “kits” and scraps I’ve set as my 2025 goal. I’ve also narrowed down my selection of potential 2025 Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks to about 6, but I’d like to cut it down to 4-ish so I can concentrate more on finishes. Have you made any 2025 sewing plans? I’d love to hear about them. 

Oh, and I have finished trimming the quilted It’s Jungle Out There quilt and have made binding. But my friend Ruby, who is the tallest among us and is my quilt holder-upper, is gone for a couple weeks visiting family, so I won’t finish it or get glamour shots until later in the month. 

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We had the electrician in this week to prep the fireplace (install electrical) so that the insert can be installed on Tuesday. It will be the same manufacturer (Chaska) as our unit in the old house, which we loved. It can actually heat up a room (the remote control has lots of settings) instead of the heat going up the chimney. We never really noticed much of a bump in our gas bills, either. 

From manufacturer’s website

The kitties are anxiously awaiting its snuggly warmth! Have a good week!

A Quick Hello

First of all, I’d like to all you US moms out there a very Happy Mother’s Day tomorrow. Mine will be spent with family either in person or by phone calls for those out of our area. I hope you get all the flowers and chocolate and loving you want and deserve! 

Sewing remained a peripheral activity for me this week. I do have some sewing things to share, but most of my days were spent with friends, running errands, meeting with contractors and HOA “stuff”. Life seems to have sped up with the coming of Spring!

On Wednesday, four of us friends went to visit the public Open House of the new Taylorsville, Utah LDS (Mormon) Temple. Pictured below, left to right, are Ellie, me, Donna and Ruby. 

The Temple was stunningly beautiful in every respect. My favorite things were the beautiful stained glass windows that featured artistic interpretations of Utah wildflowers. But the marble inlay, paintings, African mahogany woodwork and crystal chandeliers were spectacular as well. It was sumptuous but at the same time very serene and reverent (large crowds notwithstanding). 

After our tour, we lunched at a sweet little cafe and art shop near my home. It was a bit too breezy to have our salads outside on their dining patio, so we ate indoors and then toured the boutique gift shop. It was a fun way to spend a few hours with friends!

In sewing news, I completed the two Star blocks in pink. We’re working through our pink scraps in May for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. In the week ahead I’ll be focusing on my pink strings. 

No progress was made on the Anne of Green Gables quilt this week. Instead, I focused on pressing new clothes, taking in seams in some old clothes, and shopping for new (smaller) underthings. 

We have selected a contractor to work with on our upcoming kitchen remodel. Most of the materials have been selected. They - the general contractor and the electrician - will visit on Monday to take final measurements and “fill in the blanks” in the numbers. We’re getting the financing in place and are beginning to check out potential new appliances. Hopefully we’ll sign a contract and get the ball rolling in the next 10 days. 

These are samples of most of the things we’ve selected. The top piece is the oak cabinet wood, which they still need to check availability and timing on. Below that are the tiles for the backsplash areas. They’re not white, but a creamy almond color with lots of variations, not visible in these two tiles. 

Below the tiles is a sample of the quartz countertop. We wanted minimal (not exaggerated) veining in it. And lastly, at the bottom, is the plank flooring that will extend from the kitchen to the family room and down our L-shaped hall. 

In the coming week I’ll be doing some more flower pot planting, and we have a community-wide luncheon here at the condo complex. The theme is Cinco do Mayo (belated). Hopefully some sewing and cards with friends will round out the week. Oh, and I need to get an RSV shot and my 10-year tetanus booster. We both have prescriptions to pick up at Costco today, so I guess we’ll be fighting the crowds to get that all done. 

Rain, Remodeling Bids, New Friends, and Even Some Sewing!

Life is so full, that I’m overflowing! And I’m not even talking about my weight! But since I did say the “W” word, I’ll admit did gain a few pounds during the early part of April. But I’ve lost all but 2 of those pounds since. I’m well below my goal weight, but still about 3-4 pounds over my personal goal of -75 pounds down. I’m hoping the weight gain had something to do with “shape-shifting” - exchanging fat for muscle, because last Sunday my pajama bottoms actually fell down while I was walking around the house! Never trust pajama bottoms when they become low-riders on your hips!

But let’s get on to the sewing part of our program, shall we? Since I had already finished up all my Yellow April Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks, I only have a yellow block recap to show you. 

What I worked on this week was the Anne of Green Gables Quilt for my friend. There are a total of 20 blocks in the pattern, and I had already made five previously. So, of the remaining 15 to sew, I got 12 made. 

Here’s a picture of most of them,. Two of the blocks are barely visible in the upper left corner, draped over a sewing machine.

It will be quick work today to finish up the remaining three blocks before moving on to assembly with sashing and cornerstones. 

As the blog post title today indicates, we’ve been getting remodeling bids for the kitchen. Mostly we’ve just met with the designers at the cabinet companies and had them out to measure and draw up plans. We’re still waiting for the final bid to arrive next week. These bids will include the cabinets and countertops, with tear down and haul-away of the old stuff and the floorplans and elevations and technical specs for the other trades.

We will have to arrange and pay for the electrical, plumbing, tiling (backsplashes), painting and flooring separately, although they will all work together seamlessly (in theory). And the designers from the cabinet companies provide timelines and work with us to help shepherd the other trades (be the General Contactor, so to speak) on the project. But all I see now is the costs go up and up (think of money growing wings and flying away). We’re actually starting with some plumbing things this week - too long and involved and boring to go into here. But I’m sure getting an education! And right now we’re looking at a finish date of August or September. It’s going to be one eventful summer!

I did snap a couple photos in our courtyard before the April Showers appeared this week.

Above, Ringo - named by my granddaughter Lauren when she and I painted it together a few years ago -  made his appearance in the courtyard as the official mascot. His base needs some touch-ups. 

The bleeding heart we “inherited” is blooming profusely now, although this picture showing the early bloom stages is still lovely. You can see some of my clean-out debris (branches) behind it. I’m working that into our trash bins weekly. 

And the new friends? Besides helping out with some of the garden projects involving the common areas of our condo complex, I’ve been attending the weekly card games at the clubhouse. So much fun to make. new friends. Three ladies even came by yesterday to ask me to join an impromptu gathering at one friends’s house yesterday afternoon. And I learned in the process that one of the ladies knew Bruce’s late sister Fay (Cousin Kim’s mom) and some of our friends up in Bountiful, Utah, where Bruce grew up. Small world! 

I think that wraps it up for this week. I hope to have some fresh pictures, stories and sewing for you next week. We are having a “picture-hanging party” with the family here tonight. Maybe then we’ll finally be ready for some photos. 

Have a great week, and be sure to check out Scrappy Saturday at Angela’s blog for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. 

A Week in the Life of a Crazy (by Design) Woman

I admit to being crazy. It’s a benign crazy, harmless and I’m sure it’s even sweet to some sympathetic onlookers (who would be much younger, I imagine). But I truly believe I’m losing my - well, YOUTH for one thing (and there go the marbles!) and my “edge” for another. My mind? I think it’s in the danger zone… 

After the move, which was full of list-making, planning, cleaning, phone calls, worrying, sleepless nights and packing (ad nauseum), I decided to take a vacation from that hectic life and ease into the new life of retirement. Except that in my efforts to just glide along and not overplan or overthink, I keep hitting bumps in the form of chores, errands, must-do’s, appointments and new “adventures”. I can’t resist me a new challenge it seems. But first, let’s dive into the Rainbow Scrap sewing I did this week. I’ll be linking this post to Scrappy Saturday in the morning to join in with our international friends who are also working on yellow blocks for RSC’s Yellow April.

I actually managed to finish the rest of my planned yellow blocks for April, as well as a single 6” block of crumbs I never sewed for Red February (no picture of that). But below are my three yellow crumb blocks and two 12” scrappy Star blocks in yellow. 

And then I tackled the strings and got twelve 6” (finished size) blocks - and even got the papers removed! I have no plans for the string blocks yet, but I do want to keep the strings in check, so I faithfully sew some every month. 

I also used a lot of crumbs and bits and strings to make one 4” x 60” yellow column. Eventually I’ll have enough colorful columns (of varying widths) to sew into a decent-width quilt. 

With my April RSC blocks done and the backlogged blocks caught up, I plan to turn my attention to the Anne of Green Gables gift quilt (story and picture of first blocks here) I want to work on. Also, I’m going to try to baste at least one of the quilts in the closet that’s waiting its turn. I have a backlog of three tops with backs, five community quilt tops with backings donated by others for me to quilt, plus three new tops received this month, plus a set of Zipper blocks to sew into a top, PLUS at least a half dozen RSC block sets to make into tops. 

And you may remember that last fall I numbered all my quilt “kits” (self-made bagged sets of matching chunks, scraps and yardage in coordinating themes/colors). Thirty-six of those, and my goal was to make up three of those kits each month into quilts. That happened in January, but then all hell broke loose with the packing and selling of the house, the moving and unpacking, etc. I’m still traumatized and trying to get my groove back. So, that quilt kit plan is totally off the rails. And I’m feeling overwhelmed….

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Last Saturday we shopped for bathroom light fixtures and a patio umbrella and stand. And I picked up paint chips to begin selecting bathroom colors. On Sunday, my friend Ruby came over to sew (Cousin Kimmie was sick). It was a beautiful day, so we first sat inside and talked, then sat outside on the patio and had lunch and gabbed, then went for a walk, and only then - in the early afternoon - did we sew! 

On Monday, Bruce had a doctor appointment with his head doctor and was finally able to get his ADD/ADHD meds refilled. It’s been a loooong 8 months, but the manufacturing shortage is apparently over. He feels so much better and can focus on things again. His 12-year-old attention span has reverted to an adult attention span. I attended the monthly meeting of our HOA’s Board. I was asked to make some remarks about our New Owner experience, and made some observations that apparently led them to like me (or see a sucker?) I was visited by three different Board members during the week and have been asked to join the Board. I believe I agreed to it - hence the doubts about my sanity. But more on that as the situation develops.

Here are some pictures I took of the wild area around the HOA Clubhouse on Monday. The green area and creek are a short block from our condo along the west side of our 72-unit condo complex. The creek is Little Cottonwood Creek - the same creek that runs through Wheeler Farm that was a block away from our old house. 

Here’s the view looking left, with the clubhouse and pool deck visible on the middle left. 

Tuesday was Weight Watchers for me, a good meeting but I didn’t weigh in. Now that I’m a Lifetime member at goal, I only choose to weigh in once per month, although I attend the workshops weekly. In  the afternoon, Bruce and I both treated ourselves to pedicures because - we deserved it. It was a first for Bruce, and he enjoyed talking with the salon owners and workers about Viet Nam, their home country and where Bruce served in the US Army for 8 months before returning to the States to serve out his remaining tour at the NSA (National Security Agency). 

On Wednesday we both worked around the house hanging pictures (me) and organizing his shop (Bruce). We were also on the phone and the computer - making address changes to various places (all the un-fun, big hassle stuff like insurances, voter registration, drivers licenses, health plans, etc). 

On Thursday we had an electrician in to install new lighting fixtures in the bathrooms (yay!) and consult with us about ideas and needs for the kitchen/dining area remodel. We’ll be working with him as we move forward. I spent that afternoon up at the Clubhouse playing cards (Hand and Foot) with the ladies. There are about a dozen regulars. 

Friday - today as I write this - was grocery shopping, laundry and sewing. It was a good, “homey” day. The Billy Joel musical special was re-broadcast on CBS, so we watched it again tonight as we had done on Sunday night. That first time they aired it, the network cut off the last two minutes, and apparently they were flooded with complaints from all over the country. You don’t mess with the legions of fans of  a musical icon! (A lesson that a certain orange person could stand to learn). 

One more picture - the sitting area just beyond the kitchen/dining area of our condo. I had a picture of the living room as well, but it was too blurry.

I took this picture - with nothing on the wall above the couch - to show my son Shane where I want to hang a painted cityscape that we’re commissioning him to do. He used to paint portraits and cityscapes before he got into computers, but his heart is still in art. 

Starting next week, we will meet here with three cabinet company designers to begin getting ideas and design plans roughed out and get bids for the kitchen remodel. 

But other than that, there’s nothing going on…. Haha. See you next week!