Cotton Constellation

Cotton Constellation

My little quilt galaxy is complete!

This weekend I completed the final two "test blocks" of the Texas Star template and pinned them to my shades in the back room for a colorful constellation. A few things I learned:

Allowances

The seam allowance contraption was incredibly helpful at keeping the seams to 1/4". Training wheels, I suppose, but well worth it.

Get to the Point

Sewing on the bias is tricky. Much easier if the fabric is starched and precisely pinned. I also learned you can burn starch, and in turn, burn the fabric. Following the written instructions are important; someone took the time to write and illustrate them for a reason. On the last two blocks (the green and blue and blue and yellow two, on the left) my seams were much straighter and the blocks went together a lot easier when I followed the pressing, pinning and sewing directions.
 

Reality

I am a messcat. This isn't news, but I had barely finished trimming, pinning, sewing and installing before my work table was a complete mess. My next two projects are scattered about, waiting impatiently for me to get on with it.

Three Wishes

The experiment was a delight! Now I'm ready for the real thing, with some favorite fabric pieces. Stay tuned!

XO Terez

Walk to Work Wednesday

A Little Birdie Told Me

Golden Path

Between the Rails

Asphalt Applique

Renegade Bunch

The leaves have finally started to change but it feels more like the tail end of summer than the middle of fall--upper 60s today and plenty of sunshine. The steam radiators in my apartment don't know the difference: still clunking and spurting out heat despite the balmy air. Such a treat in November makes me wonder if we'll pay for it in February: a squirrel is already trying to build a den in my ceiling and it's not even freezing at night yet.

XO Terez

Golden Afternoon

Golden Afternoon Selvege

The Chez Terez studio's state of affairs has been in a sad state indeed.  My workroom, lucky enough to contain four Northwest facing windows, is flooded with full-sun from June to September and it's simply to hot to work in there. Instead it has become a repository for every craft supply I've bought or scavenged and after a terrible attempt to move large pieces of furniture by myself yesterday, it looked like this:

Buried Treasure

I was in the middle of moving that metal drawer of paper crafts and I was too lazy to move the Scrabble dice game to safety, and well, you can see how successful that was.

Solo Stretching

Mid-clean spree, I decided to put the extra leaf in my work table. Alone. I re-enacted it in the photo above to give you the full experience.

After four hours, the place was back in business. Tonight every craft item is sorted and with its proper neighbors. Stamps with stamp pads, fabric sorted and folded, beads and pliers stacked neatly, printmaking inks stored properly, rulers hung on the wall. It is a thing of beauty.

I started working on a star quilt:

Start of Star Quilt

I still don't have a proper design wall. I found a piece of white felt, some clothespins and a spare curtain rod and rigged this up:

Star Quilt Test

Which worked great until I knocked into it while rooting around in the closet:

Star Quilt Fail

That only strengthened my resolve. What good is one star quilt when I could be making three at the same time? But forget the design wall, I'm back to basics: a freshly made bed will do just as well to test the layout:

Star Quilt Redo

Stay tuned. I should have a spectacular constellation to show and tell next week.

XO TEREZ

Walk to Work Wednesday

John, Andrew, Paul and Matthew

Sneaky Sunlight

The Breakfast Club

Beacon Street Water Works

Mini Mums

How did it get to be November already? Autumn this year has been less than spectacular--the leaves are stubborn and refuse to change or fall from the trees. We've already had a snow storm--and still many people are without power. As for the temperature change, I don't mind...too much. I sometimes wish the summer away--the heat and humidity are worse in my mind than the bone chilling temperatures we're expecting in a few weeks. Fall and winter means Mamcat's-Not-So-Secret-Anymore-Hot-Cider Recipe, pot roast, Jane Austen, knitting, purling, quilting, Baileys & Cocoa, snowy Sunday dinners with friends, the Nutcracker, down comforters, holiday handmade gift making and purchasing (and sometimes keeping!). By February I'll be through but for now I'm settling in with a mug of tea and already enjoying the incumbent holiday season. And finally...finally...my fingers are itching to create some new baubles.
XO Terez 

Herbertpalooza 2011

The Menu

Sing A Song With Uncle John
(Baby Marching Band)

Get Some Candy With Uncle Andy

Have A Ball With Uncle Paul

Toss A Hat On Uncle Matt

Poppi "Dunk Tank"

Swedish Fish Toss

Gone Fishing

Gone Fishing Reel Big View

The Zoo

Sea-Faring With Mamacat and HH

HH On The Lookout

All Roads Lead To Mamacat

Extra High Low-Tide

Dino-Sized Driftwood

Shorter Days/Longer Shadows

Hard to believe that two weeks have already sped by since Mamacat, HH and I took a trip to the Oregon Coast. We stopped at our favorite agate-hounding spot, which I can't give away, only to find that the low-tide was a really high one. The waves were tremendous--low shelves, quick sputters and falls, and the usually exposed agate field was about 30 feet out. Aw well. We still found time to hit Dorey Cove for Sea-Farers (giant Crab Louis) and the Tilamook Cheese Factory (I'll have you know their cheddar was rated the best medium cheddar in the world in 2010, and you can buy it for $3.29 at Trader Joe's, nationally) for ice cream and squeaky cheese. I ate too much for dinner at Camp 18 on Highway 26, but I did leave room for Tilamook Beef Jerky. I ate the whole bag in the back seat, which explains my lack of appetite.

Next episode: Herbertpalooza!

XO Terez

Hoctober

Porch Pumpkin Planter

Summer Sneaks In

Saturate-Sun

From the Heart and Hands

If you stumbled upon this post you might think it was mid summer with the blooms and saturated color...but it's the second week in October. Somehow we got lucky and after a brief cool spell last week Columbus Day Weekend has been sunny, clear and in the 80s, all three days. Unbelievable. We're all enjoying it, but can't help but wonder if this is Mother Nature's way of saying she's going to wallop us this winter. 

XO Terez

Pre-Fall Foliage

Green Heart

Slippery Little Suckers

Divine Vine

Verdant Texture

Mamacat: Might You Want To Paint?

Bruised Heart

For some reason this year, more than ever before, I've been paying attention to the wonderful diversity and visual appeal green foliage has to offer. In New England the red, yellow, orange, and maroon leaves get all of the glory in Mid-October. And they are truly spectacular--but the next time you are taking a stroll, take a careful look at the green carpets, vines, hills, waves and seas of leafy bits. They deserve their own recognition and acclaim.

XO Terez

Kitty Roll

Oh! To be a kitty in a pool
of late summer sunshine.

Hrmph. I'm a bit hot so I'll start
to think about rolling over.

Oh bother, I think I might be stuck.

Er, ah, almost got it!

Ahhh. Sweet shade.