Loose Ends

I am an ISTJ - the duty fulfiller. Described as loyal, dependable, honest, and quiet. However, under stress, ISTJ's fall into "catastrophe mode". If any of you know me well, you will have been party to one of my dramatic scenes. Anyway, by nature, I am an organizer and a planner. If I have started a task or project I am highly motivated to work on it to completion.

When I start planning a new quilt in my mind, I mull over it for some time. I think about the fabrics that I have and how they would compliment and highlight the pattern that I have chosen. I also ponder over who each quilt will be going to and take great delight designing and creating it. Generally speaking, if you give me a week to work on a quilt, I will have it done. I become the mad quilter, obsessed!

However, this was not the case for this quilt. I started it in May, as seen in my first blog posting, but summer came and went and the quilt sat in my fabric box waiting to be finished. It nagged at me until one weekend in September, I became inspired again and I finished quilting it. Tying up loose ends is always so satisfying.

In quilting and in life, I strive to do my best and work diligently until the desired outcome is achieved. When that desired outcome falls short or changes in some way, I agonize and struggle until a new normal and order are established. I have learned that it is in the struggle that many beautiful things emerge.

What's next? I need to finish a baby quilt for a friend before I head off to Montreal!

Popsicle Toes

What do you give a friend who has everything? I suppose I need to explain a little here. This friend does not live excessively, but she has been able to streamline what comes into her house and what is taking up precious space. Organizing and purging are as innate to her as breathing. After 7 babies you become somewhat of an expert. Shall I rephrase the question? What do you give a friend that is well equipped with toys, crayons, clothes, books. . .? Why not another quilt? Although this friend is also a quilter, admittedly, she does not have the time, energy, or space to create right now. I thought these cheery colors would brighten up her day.

I found this pattern on Moda Fabrics called "Mind the Gap". I love the illusion of the strips overlapping each other. Cutting the strips was a bit tedious, but putting it all together went quite smoothly. I debated over several days how I was going to quilt this one. I like the crisp lines in the pattern, but I thought that if I quilted vertical or horizontal lines, they would somehow get lost or look off. I decided to quilt horizontal stripes with free form quilting in between. In the end, I am very happy with how it turned out.

I'm not sure if using a white background fabric was wise in a houseful of sticky fingers. Oh well, the colors pop and that's what I like.

Popsicle Toes quilt

Popsicle Toes backing

Rubber gloves

Why haven't any other quilters told me about the wonders of rubber gloves?

When I quilt, typically my forearms and shoulders get all tense and sore from directing the fabric. One evening I got thinking, if rubber gloves are useful for putting on my compression stockings, would they not also be useful for quilting. Voila! Rubber gloves have opened up my world of quilting. Who knew? They provide great traction and are oh so stylish. I casually mentioned the idea to a colleague and she told me that some company actually makes gloves for quilting. Crazy, right? Anyway, I feel like an enlightened quilter now. In fact, I was so inspired that I finished 2 quilts in one week.

This quilt is my first attempt at a "modern quilt" design. I'm not quite sure what that means exactly, but it seems to be a move away from the traditional block quilting and patterns. I have noticed the increased use of negative space, solids instead of prints, asymmetry, and random piecing of fabrics. What I love about modern quilting is having the freedom to piece together fabric for the backing. I think it creates a new dimension for a quilt. Quilting all the "straight" lines as opposed to my typical free motion quilting was challenging, however the rubber gloves made the job a whole lot easier. Next task is to find a suitable recipient for this quilt.

Posted from Paris

Posted from Paris quilt backing

Camo

October brings beautiful fall colors, the unmistakable colors and patterns of camouflage. It's hunting season.

It is interesting to me how a pattern becomes en vogue. How Burberry is now synonymous with plaid. How camo went from military dress to everyday wear. My 5 minute google search revealed  that camouflage was "created by artists at the military’s request, dating from the early 20th century. It was first used for concealment of equipment, and then for uniforms" (The Warhol, Camouflage, retrieved from http://edu.warhol.org/aract_camo.html, October 7, 2012). In 1986, Andy Warhol painted Camouflage. Unlike military motifs, Warhol’s camouflage paintings reflect bright synthetic and inorganic colors, which would not provide a veil or disguise in any landscape." Camo entered pop culture fashion in a similar way to the fashionable pea coat from the Navy.  

October is also my eldest nephew's birthday month (now 16 years old!), which brings me back to camo pattern. What type of quilt do you make for a 10 yr old who loves playing with plastic army men play sets? An army inspired quilt! I had some left over fabric from making my mom some camo patterned aprons for the goose hunting camp she was a cook for and voila, a quilt fit for a boy. The fascination with the military has not yet left him. Halo is played with such fervor that every now and again the boys convince Auntie to play.

If you're interested Fashion Beans goes into full detail on how to wear camo. 

en route

My friend and I are on our way to Montreal. We should have arrived by now, however the travel gods had a different plan for today. Anna has the theme song from the amazing race playing through her head. We may not be at a "road block" but it sure seems like we have hit one.

Started the day at 4am. Arrived at XYE one hour ahead of flight thinking we would have lots of time. Nope. The lines were ridiculously long. We had 5 minutes to spare. Upon arrival in YYZ we thought our connection would be tight to YUL, but there was a 2 hour delay. Not awesome but not too inconvenient. Then an Announcement over the PA. YUL flight canceled. Plan B. Take the Westjet voucher and catch the train to Montreal. As providence would have it  we were able to purchase 2 of the last 3 remaining seats.

Next stop, hotel, hot tub, sleep.

Vintage

Inspirational closet in Gas Town

Since we moved into our loft, nearly 4 years ago, I have hated the back space of our loft. It is dark and uninspiring. Daryl has created an editing suite with IKEA book shelves, which defined the space somewhat, but still left me with a "ho hum" feeling. I have always wanted to create some sort of storage back there, but I wanted something that was visually interesting.

Back in April I was flipping through a magazine at Indigo and was inspired by pictures of a featured loft in Gas Town. The owners had converted some vintage luggage to create their closet, using the suitcases as the drawers. Brilliant!

I sent out a plea to friends and family to search their basements and garages for suitcases circa 1930's - 40's. We were able to acquire several pieces that way as well as purchasing some. The next step was coming up with a design. Daryl & I have not tackled too many building projects, so we consulted both of our fathers and a few friends. We thought about building a dresser where the suitcases pull out but ultimately cast that design aside because we needed a simpler design if we wanted to do this ourselves. Daryl tackled the design project on SketchUp whereas I pulled out my graph paper, pencil, and ruler. As the months passed I did not think that we would ever actually get the project built. We finalized our plans in August and then in September went to Rona to purchase the supplies and  to have our wood cut. Within a week our shelves where built, stained, varathaned and set up. Totally happy with the end result. Since the project did not put a kink in our marriage, I think we may be tempted to try another building project together.

West Coast Trail

Back from hiking the WCT. A truly spectacular hike. My husband described it as an epic journey. I would say that it is a once in a lifetime hike.

For a prairie girl, my one wish that would complete my WCT experience was to see a whale. Day 3 we were hiking along a shelf around Dare Point and one of the guys in our group saw an Orca, pointed it out and kept hiking. Daryl and I were a few meters behind and did not see the sight. I was so disappointed. The tide was rising and we knew we could not linger long on the shelf, but I needed to stand and look out into the ocean and just wait and see. A few minutes later, the Orca came up for air and we saw the dorsal fin. We watched the whales for several more minutes and then were forced to move on before we got stranded and wet. What a thrill. The whale watching was not over for us though. Day 5, Daryl convinced me to hike along the beach. I found the beach hiking the most strenuous on my hips. Anyway, we were taking a break, laying back on the sand with our feet propped up on some driftwood. Daryl chants, "Here whale, whale, whale", then states, "You never know if you are watching a whale or a rock." Then all of a sudden he sees the whale exhale from the blowhole. Both of us were amazed as we giggled and watched with glee. We hiked the next 2 kms not paying attention to our footing and the path, but instead on the ocean hoping for another glance of the gray whales. They did not disappoint.

Things I saw that were impressive : a lookout from the top of a cliff that plummeted 30-40 m, tidal pools, the constant motion of the ocean.

Things I saw that were shocking: people hiking in sneakers, a young man carrying an 80 lbs pack (it looked like he was carrying a refrigerator), watching the crab legs (for my lunch at Nitnat Narrows) being torn off the body of the crab while still alive.

The one thing I saw that was depressing: watching our jambalaya supper topple off a log into the sand.

At the mandatory orientation session before the hike, we were told that there were 82 evacuations to date from the beginning of the hiking season in May. My prayer throughout our 6 days on the trail was to be sure footed. I was excited to start the backpacking journey, yet a little nervous. During our time out on the trail 11 more people were evacuated. I was somewhat surprised and I wondered who the individuals were. What circumstances brought them to end their journey. I was thankful for God's protection over us when we finished the hike The trail did not brutalize my feet and body too badly. No significant amount of rain to soak through boots and cause foot rot and blisters. Sore muscles, at least until I took my ibuprofen and extra strength Tylenol, sore feet, and numb big toes. That is  the strangest "injury" that persists 2 weeks after finishing. A quick Google search seems to suggest that we are experiencing a common tree planters injury called "Christmas toe", meaning I will gain feeling back by Christmas.

tasty crab

Alive crab

I guess I will have until Christmas to fondly remember my journey on the WCT. Epic, breathtaking, challenging, adrenaline pumping, exhausting, rejuvenating, awe-inspiring.