Sunday Sundry 7-4-2021

This episode of Sunday Sundry runs the gamut, from half-square triangles to hand surgery on the horizon.  Let's have at it!

Little Farmer Baby Quilt

I'm calling this small quilt "Little Farmer."  It's made from bonus half-square triangles left over from the County Fair quilt—and there were a LOT of them—starting with the largest, which went into the center pinwheels, to the smallest, which made the mini plaid pinwheels in the outer border.

It'll be around 36 inches square when it's finished.  It could be a wall hanging or a large table topper, I suppose, but I think I'll donate it as a baby quilt.  

Garage Sale Haul

We stopped at a rummage sale a week or so ago as we were out walking.  I saw a box full of patterns that looked interesting, but because it was too hot to poke through them all, I offered five bucks for the whole lot.  The woman running the sale accepted and helped me pack them all into an oversized shopping bag.  My hubby raised an eyebrow and muttered under his breath (imagining he'd be the one to lug the bag home), but it was totally worth it (and I carried it myself!).

I still haven't looked at them all in detail to see what's all there, but I'll have some down time to do that soon, because...

A Handy Solution

I will be having surgery this week to remove some kind of cysts or growths on my left pinky.  I've had them for a year and a half or so, but in the past few months they've started to distort my finger to the point that I can't fully extend it anymore.  They don't hurt; they're just hard lumps that have grown to the point they're putting stress on the tendons.

I may be approaching crone status, but I feel like I'm still too young for witchy-looking fingers if it can be helped.  Hopefully, the growths can be removed without further injury to the finger and I'll be able to regain full range of motion in it with some therapy.

The doctor didn't say what the lumps might be, except that it could be "many things," but they'll be sent to pathology and we'll be enlightened from there.

Cutting While the Cutting's Good

In the meantime, anticipating that I may be out of commission for a bit after surgery, I started cutting into 3.5-inch bricks the fabric I had left from making masks during 2020.  It's a wild and crazy bunch, which may not play well together...or maybe they will?  

The plan is to just sew a light and a dark brick together and arrange them in a scrappy zigzag or rail fence way.  I hope to be able to sew something simple as that while the finger heals.

Gardening and Grandma

My flower garden is nothing to write home about at the moment, but the coral bells plant next to the foundation is going gonzo this year!  

That thing never did much when I had it in the flower garden, so a few years ago I dug it out and plopped it in the gravel next to the house.  I had seen someone's coral bells doing well in what seemed like a hot and dry area like that, so I gave it a shot and then pretty much ignored it except to squirt it with the hose now and then.  It took awhile, but this year it's never looked better!  

Grandma Gatewood's Walk is a book I started reading today and so far I really like it.  I can't remember if I saw it on somebody's blog or if it was mentioned in a podcast, but it sounded like something I'd enjoy.  Our local library happened to have a copy, so now I've got a good read for this week.

I've also started Nothing Daunted by Dorothy Wickenden, which was another book mentioned by a fellow blogger recently that sounded interesting, and I like that too. 

I've been into pioneer stories this summer.  I listened to the audiobook version of The Pioneers by David McCullough, about the settling of the wilderness north of the Ohio River, as well as Wau-Bun: The Early Day in the Northwest by Juliette Kinzie, first published in 1856, about the early days of my home state.  Nonfiction and historical books are my jam.  Both of these were excellent.

I'm also making my way through the environmentalist classic, A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold.  What's on your summer reading list?

Positivity Blocks

Have you heard The Joyful Quilter is having a Positivity Quilt Along Block Drive?  I was going to send her one or two, but just like that I had six...then seven.  I'll be mailing these off to her soon.

They go together fast.  Check out the link for the details and see if you'd like to make a couple.  Block mailing deadline is July 30.

Well, that's it for now, friends.  Hopefully, all goes well this week and I'll see you on the flip side of finger surgery after "taking my lumps."  ;) 

Sunday Sundry 1-17-21

Yesterday was tech day here at our house.  Nothing high end, but tech solutions nonetheless.

Unlike many people, I have not had to do a lot of video conferencing this past year.  I didn't have a job that required it (or a job, period), so there was no need from a workplace perspective.  But as the weather got colder and the pandemic dragged on, I finally hopped on the Zoom train (and Google Duo and Meet).  I am a happy introvert most of the time, but even that has its limits and I miss face time with friends and family.

I used my tablet to video chat a few times, because my main desktop PC is older and didn't come with a camera or microphone.  The tablet works so-so, but doesn't have the best sound and some of the Android apps seem to lack full functionality.

So yesterday I installed a webcam with built-in microphone (and by installed I mean plugged it into a USB port, ta-da!).  I also bought a ring light, since my PC sits in a pretty dim corner of the dining room.  I also intend to use the ring light when I'm photographing whatever's on the design wall in the basement, another not-well-lit space.  

I tested out the webcam setup today with my sister, and it seemed to work well.  It was so nice seeing her face for the first time in many months!

The rest of the afternoon yesterday was spent hooking up an indoor digital TV antenna.  Again, installing it was simple, but figuring out how to make our TV scan for channels involved a call to Samsung tech support, and then trying the antenna in different positions for the best reception.  Much to the chagrin of my husband, it ended up having to go up on the wall above the sliding door.  That then meant figuring out how to hide as much of the thing and its wires as possible, until he was more or less satisfied with the aesthetics.

Looks don't matter as much to me as will the monthly savings on our Spectrum bill when we officially cut the cord on cable TV in the next week or so.  As far as channels, I was happily surprised to pull in 27 stations with the antenna, even though we're at least 45 miles away from the nearest major market.  And with multiple streaming apps besides, we certainly won't lack for content.

* * * * *

Today was all about putting away the rest of the Christmas decorations.  Funny how it always turns out to be more of an ordeal than simply reboxing and reshelving the trinkets.  Furniture has to get moved around, floors vacuumed, surfaces dusted, etc.  Plus I reorganized "the hole," i.e. the area behind a half wall in the basement where the seasonal decor gets stored, for the second time in a year.  But that's job done for another holiday season.

* * * * *

I finished assembling another quilt top, the second one from sampler blocks made by one of Jo's Country Junction's readers (whose name I don't know, unfortunately).  This is another foster quilt that will be sent to The Joyful Quilter for quilting and donation to Lutheran World Relief.

It's similar to the other sampler quilt top (blogged HERE), but this time I used a dark espresso brown for the sashing and border, and I cut the border a little wider, as much as I could eek out of the fabric I had available.  It ended up about 63 x 77 inches.

The rich colors and varied geometric blocks make it an appealing quilt for a man or woman.

 * * * * *

This week I started (and finished) a table runner from leftover batik strips from the wedding quilt I made in October. 

The Joyful Quilter is hosting a Table Scraps Challenge, and this is my first project for that.  She'll have a link-up the last Saturday of the month, so I'll go into more detail in a separate post, but here's a peek!

* * * * *

File this one under cheap thrills:  We swung by the local Dollar Tree store recently for some essentials, and I grabbed this BB Cream (Sassy+Chic brand in Light) as I was standing in the checkout line (which extended halfway down the cosmetics aisle due to six feet apart rules).  Oh my gosh, I love it!  For a buck, and a total impulse buy, it exceeded my expectations.  Has anyone else tried this (or another BB or CC cream)?  To be honest, I wasn't even sure what a BB cream was, but I'd heard about it somewhere.  It's like a tinted moisturizer, not as heavy as foundation, but decent coverage, smooths on easily, and feels like it's hydrating your skin.  I just set it with a little Mineral Veil translucent powder by Bare Minerals and I'm good to go.  "Go where?" you ask.  Good question!  LOL

Sunday Sundry 1-3-21

Here we are in a new year.  I like to imagine it stretching out before us like a winding path.  

What will we encounter along the way?  Will it be smooth or tricky to navigate?  Likely some of each.  

We can only see so far ahead, but it isn't always clear.

I don't make New Year's resolutions, but I do spend some time thinking about the past year, what I've learned and what I'm grateful for, and noting where I can do better.  

I am optimistic about 2021, and I know that it will bring more opportunities to practice presence, patience, creativity, kindness, resilience, and gratitude.

We were able to get together on Christmas with my daughter and her partner, Chris.  It was a very 2020 Christmas, and we took precautions, wearing masks and social distancing to the extent possible.  I put all three leaves in the dining room table, and the four of us sat at opposite ends during dinner.  

It was great to celebrate the holiday with them.  Even though they live less than an hour away, we hadn't seen each other in several months, when we'd been able to meet for outdoor dining in warmer weather.

Among other things, my husband surprised me on Christmas with a vintage paint-by-number for my collection.  It's really well done, and I love it!

I treated myself to some raspberry goodness.  I added these to my grocery pickup order a couple weeks ago. 

I love raspberry flavored tea and coffee, but since I drink a special low acid decaf coffee, I thought I'd give this flavoring a try.  It's perfect!  About four or five drops in a cup of coffee (or glass of iced tea) is all it takes. 

Yesterday we ventured out to a thrift store.  We've really been limiting trips to stores, and for me this was only the second time I'd been in a store since Thanksgiving.  But I wanted to find a couple t-shirts with at least 5% spandex that I could cut into strips for making the ear loops for masks.  I'd used up the versatile gray t-shirt I was cannibalizing for ear loops, and although I don't need to make any masks right now, I still get requests from friends or family from time to time, so wanted to have supplies on hand.

I found a gray and a black t-shirt, so that was mission accomplished.  I also found some nice fabric!  I was thrilled to discover this little cache of greens.  Less than $4 for over two yards' worth.  Not bad!

My husband directed my attention to a vintage Pfaff 130 sewing machine at the thrift store.  Oh, it was tempting!  I have more than enough machines in my stable already, but she was sure pretty.

(Hutch in kitchen decorated for the season)

Today feels like the holidays are well and truly over, although I've still got all the decorations up yet.  

(Orange almond cake with cranberry curd)

The rich foods have been eaten, what was left in the fridge and pantry.  

(Pecan snowballs)

I've got some organizing type projects on my mind, as well as sewing ideas.  I've joined The Joyful Quilter's Table Scraps Challenge. 

(Frosty trees outside my window today)

Before I go, I wanted to mention a documentary on Gordon Lightfoot that I watched on Amazon Prime a couple weeks ago.  I didn't know much about him personally until I saw it, but I remember his popular songs back in the 1970s.  I had the album Gord's Gold (greatest hits) that I played the heck out of back in my college days.  The music in this documentary took me right back to that time, and I really enjoyed learning more about the interesting career of a talented artist.  You might, too.

Sunday Sundry 8-2-20

Perfect is the Enemy of Good

Oh, the posts I write in my head that never make it to Blogger!  I'll see something interesting, think about exploring this or that idea, and on and on...but it's all subject to a not-so-magical disappearing act all the same.  What was I going to write about?  Poof, it's gone.  Does that happen to you?  I bet I'm in good company.

Well, this week I started jotting down some of those ideas.  I probably won't cover a lot of them, but for today I'm resurrecting my old Sunday Sundry theme and we'll see if we can tick a few off the list.  Random things, in no particular order.

For the Birds

I love watching birds, ever since I was a little girl.  Listening to their songs, seeing and touching their feathers (dad was a hunter, and we had parakeets), marveling as our neighbor painted them on canvas or crafted decoys.

Two birdie highlights this week:

1) We have a pair of hawks hanging around in the yard.  They appear to be juveniles, maybe hatched from the same nest.  At first I thought they were Cooper's hawks or maybe sharp-shinned hawks, but their call is what sets them apart.  They sound like a kitten mewing!

It's different sounding than the catbird that we regularly hear in the mulberry tree.  We've seen the hawks flying from tree to tree and followed their calls as they perched in the branches.  They're skittish and wary, so getting a good photo isn't easy.  I tried.

From what I can gather doing a little research, I think they're red-shouldered hawks.  You can hear how they sound HERE.  I don't know how long they'll hang around, but I think it's very cool that they're visiting!

2) We took a walk on a nature trail around a local marsh early one morning this  week.  While there wasn't much doing on the water, at a certain point along the trail my gaze was drawn upwards where a group of about 50 pelicans were circling in the sky directly overhead.  Happily gliding on thermals, glimmering white bodies in the morning sun, black-tipped wings outstretched, around and around like slow-motion figure eights.  Absolutely mesmerizing!  Of course, that's the day I didn't have a camera, but it made my heart happy!

Strange Materials

We visited the Museum of Wisconsin Art recently.  We have an annual membership and usually get there a couple times a year, but like most places they'd been closed during the early months of the pandemic.  It was a nice little getaway from home, and it wasn't at all crowded (and we wore masks, of course).  This exhibit looked like a neat pattern on the wall around a large painting, but on closer examination, it was something else!

All the pattern work is done with cicadas!  The bell jars have other insects posed in interesting vignettes.  Quite creepy-cool!

Here's the blurb that went with the exhibit, if you're wondering how or why.

In case you need a palate cleanser after that, there was some interesting fiber art and mixed media as well. 

I especially enjoyed Chrystal Denise Gillon's whimsical collage series on sardine cans called "Mama Says."  I could relate to a lot these!

From "Mama Said" series by Chrystal Dillon

Okay, I think that's going to be it for today.  Not perfect, but good enough.  I'll leave you with a little mini I made after sorting through the scrap drawers. 

I've started a string quilt, which I'll talk about another time soon.  Found some tiny yellow squares among the strings, just itching to be something, so I made this little mug rug. 

Here's the back.

How about you?  Tell me something from the past week or two that hasn't made it to a blog or social media post.

Sunday Sundry 6-23-19

It's been awhile since I've done a post in the "Sunday Sundry" category, where I gather various odds and ends into a smorgasbord of sundry themes.  So let's do this thing.

Old Business

First, in the interest of closure, I did get the last Hands2Help flimsy quilted and sent off to Quilty Hugs earlier this month.  Norm took a couple minutes out of his yard work to hold the quilt up on the porch for a couple pictures of the front and back.  

Some close-ups. 

This was a great way to utilize 2.5-inch strips and went together fast.  Go back one post for the link to the tutorial, if you're interested in more details.  I'd definitely make one of these again.

Who Likes Leftovers?

I do, when it comes to both food and fabric.  Food-wise, it usually means I don't have to cook, which is a welcome change of pace.  Fabric-wise, it's a fun and creative challenge to make something on a smaller scale within the confines of the scraps from a bigger project.  I like the low pressure, who-cares-if-it-doesn't-work, but-it-might-be-awesome-if-it-does feeling of working with leftovers.

I had a couple orphan blocks left over from the Blooming String Baskets quilt, as well as some leftover triangle units in solid colors.  So I played around with positioning those this way and that, and came up with this table runner.

When it came to quilting it, I had no clear idea, so I started with just ditch quilting, and that led to a bunch of other straight lines.

Here's a fun, good to know tidbit:  Anybody who thinks straight-line quilting is taking the easy way out when it comes to finishing a project, has probably never buried three thousand thread ends!  Of course, I'm exaggerating the number (somewhat), but man oh man, the thread burying on this little ole thing! 

I'm happy with the end result, after all is said and done.  Yeah, so maybe it looks like the carnival has come to town, but it sure brightens up a room!  If it's too bright, I can always flip it over for a (kinda?) more subtle effect.

The next leftover project was with more solid scraps and remaining 2.5-inch strips from the quilt shown above.  I put together a few 16-patch blocks and came up with this little doll-size quilt.

My grand-niece has a birthday in a couple weeks, and I think she and her dollies might like this.

The back is from a vintage fitted crib sheet I found at a thrift store years ago.  It's so soft and sweet, and the perfect size to finish this little quilt.

Non-Sewing Related Gigs

I've been working on a different kind of project lately, and that is transcribing the many hours of conversations I recorded with my dad a year or so before he passed away.  

He's been gone a year and a half now, but I still think of him just about every day.  Sometimes it's just a passing thought.  Other times it's like a step back into a more painful kind of missing him all over again.  

(View from Dad's memorial bench overlooking the marsh near sunset.)

I think grief is like that.  It comes and goes, sometimes dull, sometimes sharp.  I'm no expert, but I think you just have to ride those waves, up and over, as many times as they roll in.  

When I've been out for my daily walks this summer, I've been relistening to those conversations.  Dad wanted to talk about his life, his stories from a young kid on.  When we covered most of that ground, we went through his photo albums and he talked about the people in the pictures.  I'd go over there once a week or so during 2016, with my digital recorder in hand, and hit the record button.

You might think relistening to those conversations would be painful, but I find they are anything but.  To hear his voice again, his stories, his laughter and mine co-mingling, is relaxing and comforting.

(Dad in 2014 - Quote by Scribbles & Crumbs/Lexi Behrndt)

My mom wrote down her stories about growing up and compiled them into a book that she then supplemented with pictures.  She gave each of us children a copy.  When she passed away unexpectedly, 10 years ago, we were all so glad she had done that.  

I think Dad wanted to do the same, but he didn't have the skills mom had when it came to typing it all into the computer and organizing it into a narrative.  I'd helped him edit the book he wrote in 2012 from his handwritten notes, so I think he wanted me to do something similar with his life story. He never asked me explicitly, but I got the drift that that's what he was wanting to do once we got started.  When I was working with him on his book writing project, it became obvious that "the rest of the story" was often in the details I teased out when seeking clarification of his written notes.  He was a great storyteller, and it seemed he recognized that his own story was going to have to come straight from the horse's mouth, as it were, with me asking questions along the way.

(Wild columbine along the bike trail, with "sparkles" of dandelion fluff.)

So now I'm starting to transcribe those long conversations.  I'm a transcriptionist by day, so it's not difficult work for me, just time-consuming.  And after hours of transcribing for my day job, I am usually pretty much over with sitting in front of a screen and typing any more than I have to.  However, last week I had a light workload for some reason, so I got started.

I tell you what, even though you may have heard your parents' or grandparents' stories being told time and time again, there's no way you're going to remember all the details.  And you may hear a snippet of a story here and there but never the whole thing.  In relistening and transcribing Dad's own words, I'm learning many "new" things, even though, technically, I've heard them before.  The overall scope of it is coming into better focus.

It is going to be wonderful to get this down in black and white for posterity, and to share it with the rest of the family.

Thrift Finds

So far this summer, there's been more going out of the house than coming in, which feels like a very good thing.  I've sold an old road bike, a camera, and an amplifier, among other things.  I've driven a couple trunk loads to Goodwill.  The circle of stuff, and all that.

But on Saturday, we happened by a nice thrift store where I sometimes find fabric, and once again, the trip did not disappoint.

That roll of pink fabric?  Five yards!  That'll make a nice backing some day.

Love the paisley print!  And that striped fabric may make a nice binding.

This gray (and black/white/red) fabric was definitely a vintage head-scratcher.  What is with those shapes, for one thing?  And feathers?  It was just too weird to pass up.  I tried Googling the name on the selvage but nothing came up.  Hmm...gotta love a good mystery!