Time on My Hands

Ah, the gift of a few days off from work. I spent yesterday cutting fabric for a quilt that will actually fit our queen-size bed. I discovered I don't have enough fabric, so I've ordered some bleached muslin to fill in. It's a simple pattern -- thirty different homespun patterns in cheerful colors. I cut 180 6-1/2" squares. I'm going to outline those with 2" strips of muslin then outline the whole base of the quilt with a solid yellow strip and bind it with a yellow and gold plaid cut on the bias -- I love plaid binding cut on the bias!

Today I'm going to make some glass beads for my niece Abbey. She and I are fellow jewelry makers. I'm thinking white with various colors of swirls. I may make some stringer out of the wonderful frit I have -- just to see what happens.

First, I need to do something productive. For one, I'm going to put the charms I received from the Cloth, Paper, Scissors Charm Swap on the charm bracelet I bought in Hot Springs. It already had silver crosses on it and I'm also going to add some of my beaded charms. I finally e-mailed the people who made the charms I received to thank them. I've already heard back from one of the ladies! Overall, this has been a most "charming" experience. I've been humbled and delighted by the charms I've received, the responses to my work, and the conversations that have begun as a result of this swap. I can't wait to read the magazine article this fall.

My other choices for the moment are work in the yard or clean up the craft room. I'm leaning toward the craft room, knowing full well I'll get distracted into craft -- not a bad thing, right?

Return to the Blog Spot!

My spinning is better now. I'm almost finished with the first project I've knitted with yarn I have spun myself. The pattern is Carol's Clever Little Shawl from the KAL at the Sheep Shed Studio forum on Ravelry. I have pictures of my fiber and yarn on the Sheep Shed Studio forum. Watch for pictures of the finished shawl soon!

I'm currently reading The Black Swam: The Impact of the Highly Improbable by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. The next books I'm ordering will be The Peasant Prince and the first book in the Warriors series.

I'm journaling about my parents' 60th anniversary celebration. The working title is "What You Can Do in Sixty Years" and it will probably wind up being a mixed media piece.