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BeeHive? Chickadee Nest?

Such a dilemma. I am unpacking (FINALLY) the quilt studio at the Cape house, our full time residence since the moving truck dumped the last of our stuff on June 1. It’s been like walking down memory lane opening these boxes, many of which have been packed since April. A lot of projects are coming out of hibernation as a result and I’m working on yet-another pile of stuff to donate to the quilt guild. In my current “to be quilted pile” are the two quilts below –Halloween and Christmas. So these are ready for the sit-down quilting machine, the Bernina770. The Halloween quilt has been basted for about a year and the Christmas Sampler a little longer. The Christmas top is the second oldest quilt top that I have. It was finished in a 2000 quilting class at Homestead Quilts in Bethel. It’s about time it was done and on display. While I’ve gone on to complete many others, this one has never made it to the finish line. So now, 23 years later, its time has come.

So now — the question posted in the blog post title? What to call this quilting space at the Cape. My Connecticut studio was called the BeeHive and I am tempted to keep that name. However, this studio is on the second floor with a “bird’s eye” view of Heron Cove, the ocean to the east and Snow’s Point across the cove in Orleans. So, I’m tempted to call it the Chickadee nest and since the Chickadee is the Massachusetts state bird, it seems appropriate. Guess I’m going to think about it for a while.

In the mean time, there are some boxes in the bathroom (about 7 of them) that need to be unpacked and lots of stuff that needs to find a permanent storage place.

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Remembering Judy

This quilt was constructed from a kit purchased at an Omaha quilt shop when I was last in Nebraska (2016) for the court guardianship hearing for Judy. I had moved her to Connecticut and was back in our home state finalizing the legal details. The pattern, named Remember Me, came with supplied batik materials which were all very pretty. I brought it back to CT, got busy and didn’t work on it until a quilt retreat a couple of years later and I believe Judy had actually passed away at that point. So, its name is Remembering Judy. It’s been an easy quilt to piece, but a though one to work on because of the association. But in the past few months, as I’ve been sewing, I’ve been remembering Judy and telling Judy stories. And I have dozens of them. And Facebook has been very recently bringing up some touching memories of my last visit to our middle sister in Des Moines. So, this truly has been a “remembering” quilt.

I quilted it on my longarm and have submitted it to the Bayberry Quilt Guild show here on Cape Cod. Tomorrow when I see it hanging for the first time, I will learn whether or not it’s really square and if it hangs well. Here it is on the deck railing outside my Cape Cod studio,

And out in the yard with Hubby holding it up

Remembering Judy – with Tom’s feet
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Yellow is one of my favorite colors

And this is the reason why. Yellow is such a happy color. The sun is shining more now that the days are longer — yellow. The warmth of the sunshine has made the daffodils spring forth from the ground — yellow. I’ve been doing a lot of quilting in my studio on the Cape — Totally Tulips, with yellow tops! Yes, yellow — a happy color.

Daffodils on the kitchen island at Heron Cove.
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Quilting — Inspiration

Quilting has been my therapy for the past year. Actually, fondling fabric has been a pastime for quite a few years. But in 2018, after my youngest sister passed away, it became a necessity. When in my quilting studio — whether picking and cleaning up, or organizing, or planning, or actually creating — time just seems to fly by. And my worries and cares recede a bit and things get back into perspective.

Colors and the peace that comes from cutting up fabric and putting it back together again into a quilt top are a necessity.

And I hope to be busy in this studio for quite some time — and have named it “The Beehive” — in much positive contrast to the bomb shelter, or bat cave, as I was referring to it in my mind.

So — some photos for inspiration of works in process in The Beehive.

Drinking Bird – CPQG February guild challenge, will hang in the 2020 show
Marlene’s Block Party
words to live by — prayer flag from March work shop with Judy Coates-Perez
Yankee Quilter BOM – block 1 in test fabrics — LOVE IT!
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Cabin Fever Retreat

So, I spent a long weekend with several quilters at Michelle Hiatt’s Cabin Fever Retreat 2019. Retreat included lodging, all meals served in hotel dining rooms, and 3 days of uninterrupted quilting with instruction on one of Michelle’s patterns. What a wonderful experience. Deposit put down for same place, same time, next year!

Ice is on the trees
I’ve worn slippers for three days
Cabin Fever quilts

Bloom in progress

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Dear Blog — It’s 2019? How have you been?

The last I said “hello” was March of 2018 and I think I vowed to start blogging again. What happened? Well, not much blogging, that’s for sure.

So, I’m going to try again. I loved (at one time) looking back at old posts and photos and also loved the challenge of writing something intelligent, witty, insightful, or just at least grammatically correct. Finding that Facebook is causing my writing and sentence structure to deteriorate, I’m going to see if I can improve on things. Of course, this is going to require me to hook my phone up to ye’olde laptop to transfer photos more often.

Just home from a 3 day quilting retreat, I’m thinking about all the fun times we had, all the sewing I got done, and how interesting it was to spend time with 20 women that I had never (or barely) met before. Should be able to write some interesting thoughts here soon.

In the mean time – to insert a photo has become cumbersome on wordpress, but I’m going to try. — and once again, promise to start writing again.

An old photo of some blocks from Cape Cod Log Cabin, which has actually been finished and sits on my coffee table/trunk in the sitting room during spring months. More to come 🙂

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Dear blog, how have you been?

It’s been a long time since I’ve been writing here, and in terms of life events, an even longer time. Way past time to be acting on new year’s resolutions, I am going to add a few reflections on the past months here, once I do a little catching up.

So, today being snow day sew day, I’m just putting up a post of the blocks I’m creating in my quilting studio. Hoping to have more blocks done soon and a quilt top soon after. I took a class, held by Christie’s Quilting Boutique in Norwalk Connecticut, where I met Rob Appell of Man Sewing fame from California. His enthusiasm was so contagious. So, here are a few of my blocks ……

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Cape Cod 2017

Just reviewing my blog, and finding my last post (June 2016) was a resolution to get back to blogging. Woah — took me almost a year to start back into it. I might do a review of the past year + 2 months a bit in the next few, but here goes into the next year.

I find the Cape Cod vacation each year to be a time of renewal. And the return from that vacation almost like the start of a “new year” with resolutions and new beginnings right along with it.

So — just a few photos from the whale watch yesterday —-

And a few photos of the crafting from the past year —-

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Inspiration

Fabric, in thousands of colors.
Quilts, made of thousands of pieces.
Inspiration, found in thousands of ideas.

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Spring! Spring! Spring!

Windows were open today and some spring cleaning has begun.  Things are really waking up around here and today’s (or this week’s discoveries) include:

– at least 21 of my BFFs are alive and well and swimming around (Best Fish Friends)

– at least 5 frogs have survived the winter including the original pair who have created the family we have — Yes Phinneas and Phillis are back!

– several daffodils opened today

– lots of day-lilies are showing thru the ground

– and hubby has found the first deer tick on his body!  oh boy, here we go again

And I did some “airing of the quilts”.  These are destined for the Hospital Avenue Housatonic Habitat homeowners.  A friend of mine has a friend who wants to do charity quilting for Habitat so she gave me 5 of her quilts.  They have been in this friend’s house since completion and the house has a big hairy dog.  So, I’m tumbling them in the dryer to remove dog hair and airing them out.  They now look and smell great!

Four Habitat Quilts getting their spring airing out
Four Habitat Quilts getting their spring airing out