THREE YEARS

Well, I can’t believe that I am saying this, but…..

I have presented a blog post EVERY SINGLE DAY for the last THREE years!!!

I started posting daily in 2020 when I had LOTS of extra time on my hands and I have been able to continue it for all of this time.

Back in April, I wrote a post saying that I was feeling stressed and was going to give myself permission to miss days but so far I haven’t missed.

I believe that the simple act of telling myself that it was OKAY if I missed really relaxed me with the whole process.

Is there something that you need to give yourself permission for??

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In this blog, I post stories about creativity, techniques, tools of the trade, and lots more about the wonderful art of quilting. If you are enjoying these posts, please subscribe to be notified of each new blog as it becomes available.

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125 Hours?

Two weeks back, I issued a challenge to myself……spend 125 hours in a creative pursuit during the month of August….

As I write this, it is the 13th of August, which means that I should have 52 hours of creative time.

HOW HAVE I DONE??

First of all, I have really had to push myself to accomplish an average of 4 hours per day. One day I did 10 hours and the next two I didn’t do any!!!

The first day of August was a trip to Atlanta with my friend Linda. We both had gift certificates that were burning a hole in our pockets so we needed to SHOP!!! I came away with a nice haul of bits and pieces for my machine and my fabric and thread stash…..

And yes, this counted as “creative time”.

I spent 16.5 hours working on Sadie, and another 11.5 hours writing blog posts, editing videos, and getting all of the information about Sadie onto my blog.

I spent 1.5 hours at my guild meeting, talking with other quilters and enjoying an amazing show and tell!!

I spent 3 hours doing administrative work for “Frances Quilts”.

I have spent 11 hours working on a baby quilt.

There have been various other bits and pieces along the way…..a small amount of hand applique, a few minutes doing one of the exercises in this book…..

I had thought that I would do one of these every day in August but THAT did NOT happen!!

SO……

One last thing…..

This challenge is definitely helping me to avoid a lot of procrastination. I am even cutting my lunchtime relaxation a bit short so that I can get into my studio. And honestly, for me, studio time is more relaxing than a nap!!

AND it is so much fun to think about what I can work on in the NEXT 72 hours!!!

Ya’ll keep me honest…..OKAY?

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First Quilt!!

As we all remember, finishing your VERY first quilt is a BIG DEAL…..

a REALLY big deal….

So today we get to celebrate my friend Marnie and her REALLY BIG DEAL…..

She and I had worked on a quilt together previously…..

Guitar quilting

….but I had done most of the sewing.

For this quilt, she did 99% of the work all by herself. My only addition was sewing the first of the binding corners to show her how to do them.

And look how great it is…..

She is making it as a gift for her neighbor…..

……lucky neighbor!!!

Marnie just sent me a photo of her next quilt with the top already finished…..

YEP….she is DEFINITELY hooked!!

So, let’s give a big “WELL DONE” to Marnie…..

I look forward to seeing where your quilting adventure takes you!!!

If you enjoy this blog, please share it with your friends!!!

Thank you…….

Remembering WHY I quilt

Yesterday I posted about receiving two “NO THANK YOU’s” from quilt shows and I confessed that it was a bit depressing……

BUT TODAY, let’s remember why I make quilts!!!

My daughter sent this photo of she and Archer……

…..enjoying the quilt that I (Nana) made!!

AND really, THAT is what quilting is all about!!!!

Don’t you agree??

Happier….

HAPPIER…..isn’t that something that we aspire to be?

One of the podcasts that I enjoy listening to is dedicated to just that.

Gretch Rubin and her sister, Elizabeth Craft, spend each episode talking about ways to be happier. They are fun to listen to and I always come away with a smile on my face!!

One of the things that Gretchen talked about recently was how excited she was about the Pantone Color of the year……

As an interesting exercise, she saved the photo on her phone and she expressly looked for THAT color as she visited the NY Metropolitan Museum.

She said that by looking for the ONE color, it broadened her view of all of the colors.

Isn’t that interesting!!!

I definitely want to try this!!!

I encourage you to check out their podcast and enjoy being a LITTLE HAPPIER!!!

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