Sunday, January 24, 2021

Weekly Update: making history (with mittens), pink and more pink, Grassy Creek!, and reading


It was beautiful at the beach when I snapped the photo but at 19 degrees I didn't linger!  The clouds have returned and there's snow in the forecast. 

Years ago I read a time management book that likened the results of procrastination to an obstacle that gets bigger around as the procrastination continues - so big that it takes more effort to go around it than it would be to just go over it.  That's how I've been with a non-quilting project this week that involved report-writing and statistics-compiling. I have to check to see that all the numbers add up and proofread the narrative before I send it off to the appropriate committee chairs. I have spent more time agonizing over it than it's taken to do it.  Will I never learn?     

We watched the inauguration on Wednesday with joy.   Wasn't poet Amanda Gorman wonderful?      This article describes the women's stylish coats -- and note the added commentary about the men's coats. <g> 

We saw Bernie Sanders and his mittens -- and so did the rest of the world.   Bernie memes have flooded Facebook.  I've paid most attention to those about libraries and quilting.   We are hopeful with the direction of the new administration. 

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On Wednesday evening the North Suburban Quilters Guild hosted  Australian quilt maker Jen Kingwell for their monthly program.  The guild boosted their Zoom license to accommodate all the guests, of  whom I was one. (One of 141 attendees.)  Just $10 for a grand quilt show and tell!   












 In the studio:  I made six 8-inch heart blocks for the RFQFA -- the Rotarian Fellowship of Quilters and Fiber Artists. 






Joy, aka the Joyful Quilter, has a Table Scraps sub-challenge for the 2021 Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  I wasn't up to making a table runner (especially in pink, this month's RSC color), so I made two 8" potholders.  




I made a few more pink framed four-patches.  They're 5.5" unfinished.







I saved the biggest accomplishment for last.  Grassy Creek is a flimsy!  

And big it is -- 96". Every year I say I'll make just a few blocks. Every year I get caught up in mystery quilt fever and make the whole quilt.  











The border has 28 uphill and 28 downhill blocks.  I miscounted and ended up with 44 going one way and just 12 going the other, so I had to make 16 more of "the other."  

  

I'll have fun fiddling around with ways to use the leftovers.

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One page in and I was hooked on Monica Wood's splendid memoir about 1963, the year that changed her life forever. No, JFK's assassination was the second event. The first, and more important, happened in April of that year: her father suffered a fatal heart attack on his way to work at the Oxford paper mill in Rumford, Maine. The unexpected, sudden death shattered the universe for Wood, for her mother, and her four siblings. Wood writes from the clearly-remembered perspective of her 9-year-old self: the neighbors who rallied around the family, her uncle (mother's brother)--the priest whose own center was rocked by the death, and details of life in a mill town when things were prosperous and ever  hopeful.

(How did I miss this when it was published in 2012? A friend recommended it after I reviewed Mill Town, Kerri Arsenault's 2020 memoir about the same town.)

Linking up with  Oh Scrap!   Scrap Happy Saturday      Design Wall Monday  Monday Making


12 comments:

  1. I am optimistic about the new administration also. I'm hoping Congress will support the plans already released. It would be sad if there isn't more $$ given to assist with Covid vaccinations. Your Grassy Creek looks good. I'm always impressed how fast you get these mysteries done. I'm a pretty slow sewer so I try not to go wild with the mystery quilts or QALs. I did sign up for the Table Scraps challenge. I hope to get my first table runner quilted and bound this week.

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  2. people in new england understand bernie and his mittens...LOL....lots of good sewing in this post...yes amanda gorman was terrific, such talent at such a young age...

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  3. Wow, a Jen Kingwell class! What fun. Love your Grassy Creek. Good job using up those table scraps with Joy.

    The Kennedy family definitely went through a lot. Looks like an interesting read for sure.

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  4. Found your blog through the link up at Oh My Scrap. Your Grassy Creek is lovely. Last one of Bonnie's I did was Allietare, and I just finished it last summer. I enjoy a more leisurely pace with mystery quilts. Thanks for the book review. I used book recommendations from bloggers I follow when looking for things to read. I tend to be an audiobook enthusiast while I sew.
    Mary - https://stitchinggrandma.wordpress.com//

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  5. Lots of Wow in your post today. Glad you're spending plenty of time with needle and thread.

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  6. I loved Amanda and her beautiful poem! I just watched her being interviewed by James Corden and she is delightful. Your Grassy Creek flimsy is beautiful, too - definitely an accomplishment with all those pieces and parts to sew and put together!

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  7. Oh your pink projects are great!!! and that grassy creek - so pretty!! I agree at 19deg - I don't think I would want to stay long either!!! and thanks for the book recommendation!!

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  8. Wow, your Grassy Creek flimsy is awesome! And I love those framed 4-patches. The women’s attire was stunning (my personal favorite being Michelle Obama’s outfit). Wowza! And the men - classy but unremarkable, LOL. It’s so wonderful to have someone mature and competent in the White House again!!

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  9. Grassy Creek is awesome, not least because the top is done. Good for you. And how fortunate to have Jen speak to your guild. I would love to hear her sometime.
    I watched the inauguration, too, and enjoyed all the beautiful coats as a side benefit. What peace to have real civil servants in every meaning of the word.
    And another book I need to read. Thanks.

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  10. Wow!! SEW much going on in your sewing room, Nann!! I'm always impressed by how much you get done. I hope you will join the TABLE SCRAPS Link Party coming up this weekend!

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  11. You did save the best for last. Your version of Grassy Creek turned out beautifully. I finally discovered the success of at least staying up with Bonnie, just make half the blocks. I'll end up with a nice throw sized quilt. Lots of pretty in pink sewing too. Hopefully we'll all start to see a bit of a warm up soon.

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  12. What a great blog post! So happy and full of quilty goodness. :) Love Grassy Creek and your half square triangles.

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