iPhone Hiatus

So my husband and I got iPhones last week. They are flippin' awesome! That's all I have to say about that. Except for this: I was quite preoccupied with my new purchase, and was unable to tear myself away from the app store to blog (apparently, there's not an app for that).

So I'm back and I've completed a project - yay! It was a table runner and coaster set for my cousin's wedding shower, which was Sunday. It was very very very hot and sticky, but a lot of fun. Here's a photo of the coasters (taken, of course, with my iPhone).

Things I'm Loving Today

1. The smell of books that hits you when you walk into the library.
2. Relaxing in the a/c in 90-degree heat.
3. Having a few great sewing projects in the pipeline.
4. Post-exercise pride in having done something good for myself. To paraphrase Dorothy Parker, I hate exercising. I love having exercised.

And here's a real quote from the venerable Ms. Parker: (When asked to use the word "horticulture" in a sentence) "You can lead a horticulture, but you can't make her think."

Just Wondering ...

Do you have a mystery switch in your house? I'm pretty sure everyone has at least one. You know what I mean - the one switch that should NEVER be touched, not by ANYONE! I suspect that no one knows what might happen if that switch were to be switched, but even as a child, I could see that the mystery switch must be left alone at all costs. Of course, theories abound. That switch might permanently shut off all electricity and running water. Or, it might set off an alarm that you can't hear, but that signals criminal activity to the police. Or maybe, it might even shut off the Internet!

In some households, the mystery switch is actually secured with duct tape for that extra degree of protection.

There has been a mystery switch in every place I have ever lived, and the temptation is maddening. I just re-noticed the mystery switch in my basement, and I am really wanting to switch it. But I know better.

Project in Progress

Here's my latest project - a table runner using 30's -inspired fabrics by Moda. It's based on this pattern from All People Quilt. This pattern is also the one I used for this runner. My plan is to applique some butterflies to the table runner, maybe in the corners. I'm going to make some coasters to go along with it. I'm also still finishing up my holiday cardinal wall hanging. I'm kind of alternating between the two. I'm just finishing up the binding on the wall hanging, so I'm pretty much finished. Oh, and this time, I'm actually going to attach loops so it can be hung from a dowel, as opposed to draped over the stair rail, as was the case here. It's on the floor in this picture, but since I have yet to attach loops or a hanging sleeve, there it sits on the rail. I kind of like it there, actually, which is probably why I haven't done anything further with it.

I did it! (Or, Sewing and Anthropology)

After looking at the rolling cart for two days, I decided that this would be the night for organization. I took all of my fabrics, organized them into fat quarters (by color), yardage (not by color) and specialty cuts (e.g. layer cakes) and projects in progress (NOT UFOs!).

And here's a look at my sewing space. In some cultures, they call this a "kitchen table." Crazy huh?

I think I can!

... organize my sewing stuff, that is. Tonight, I took a long hard look at my sewing supplies, and they're out of control. It's not really the amount of stuff, because I really don't have that much compared to most quilters I know. It's the fact that the stuff in question is living in many places throughout my house. Some in the basement, some in the kitchen, some in the living room, and some in the bedroom upstairs. It makes it really hard to keep track of what I have, what I'm working on and what I need. I'm sure I'm not the first quilter to face such a dilemma, but I've got to do something about it. I bought a rolling plastic cart with drawers earlier today, so I'm going to put as much as I can fit in there (at least the essentials and current projects). Since it's mobile, I can store it in the mud room and roll it into the kitchen when I'm ready to craft! Wish me luck!

Marc and I spotted this painting in "The Wine Bar" in Portland on Saturday night. That cat looks exactly like our cat Max! The waitress referred to him as "Party Cat." This cat clearly has some big things on his mind, despite his irreverent choice of headwear.

Portland, Maine

I learned something really interesting about human nature on our trip to Portland, Maine yesterday. And that is: people will take a picture of anything if a tour guide points it out. Seriously! We took a 90-minute harbor cruise, and the weather was beautiful. Any time the guide pointed out a landmark, animal or even a large rock, the amateur photogs were snapping away. For example, there was a small island with a large pole and sign bearing the number 9. Apparently, there are two ospreys living there. Great, but they weren't there at the time, yet everyone felt compelled to capture the "exciting" pole and sign.

I think the guides probably have contests among themselves to see who can come out with the most outlandish thing to get people to photograph ... "And here we have a port-o-potty used by workers who are repaving the sidewalk about 1/2 mile from a historic lighthouse ..."

Anyway, Portland is a very cool city, and we had a blast.

New Projects Ahead

I'm working on this project by Sandy Gervais. Some of her patterns are a little too folky-primitive for me, but I like quite a lot of her work. It's called "On a High Note." I'm making it in honor of my Grammy, who died last week. She loved birds, and cardinals were particular favorites of hers. I think she would have really loved this wall-hanging.
Here's my latest table runner, which I completed a couple of nights ago. Here, you can see my Lead Quality Control Technician Max checking out my workmanship.

I think he's pleased with the end result, but I caught him looking concerned at several points during the production process. He's a valued member of the Sealy Girl team.

Hair Affair

I cut 10 inches off my hair today! I'm going to be donating the hair to Locks of Love. I've done this once before - it's a great organization. My head feels about 10 pounds lighter, which is especially nice now that we're finally having some warm weather here in New England.

I was super excited to see a package from http://www.fabric.com/ on my doorstep this afternoon. Let the Christmas projects begin! I bought this mini honey bun kit, which comes with a pattern to make those cute little Christmas stockings. How sweet are those? Those Moda people are brilliant - naming pre-cut fabrics after food (e.g., turnover, jelly roll, layer cake).

Applique Adventures

I've decided it's time to try applique. I've been frightened of it for long enough. I don't even think it's that hard to do, but I haven't yet taken the plunge. My applique of choice will be freezer-paper applique. I bought the freezer paper the other day, so I'm theoretically ready for action. I'm thinking of making something like this.

Or this. I know, I know - this looks surprisingly like the chicken-inspired projects the "krafters" like to make. But no! Not so! Besides, I will not be wearing a holiday-themed sweatshirt while I make it, and I certainly won't be encouraging people to "ask me about my grandchildren," so you see, it's totally different than a "chicken kraft"!

Mini Quilt Madness

I finished the mini quilt, then lost it in the parking lot at work on Tuesday. This is a huge parking lot, or lots, actually. It was pouring rain and I dropped it somewhere along the way. I was ecstatic to see the little quilt at my desk today - a colleague I had shown it to found it and returned it. How nice! It didn't even appear to have been run over. It was pouring rain, though, so it did get soggy and a little dirty but not bad.

Piano-playing Spouse

My wonderful and talented husband has been teaching himself to play the piano (with just a little help from me). He's doing such a great job! And look how cute he is with his headphones! He's so diligent with his practicing, which I never was during my (14!) years of lessons.

I finished my mini quilt last night, but alas, the camera batteries are still dead so I am unable to take a photo. I would describe it as "lopsided, but loveable."

Mini Project

My latest project is a mini quilt (about 9x12 inches) and I'm loving it, because I can play around with fabric without having to commit to a large project. How fun!

This is, unfortunately, a horrible picture, but I could only snap one before the camera battery died.

On a different note, here's an author I've really been enjoying lately: Diane Mott Davidson. Her mystery series about a crime-solving caterer in Colorado is lots of fun, and will make you verrry hungry (don't say I didn't warn you). Goldy, the protagonist, is one of those plucky detective-types who keeps finding herself at the center of the action (finding dead bodies in closets, stumbling over them in office buildings, you get the picture). Add a colorful cast of her (real) detective husband, teenage son and best friend (who just happens to be Goldy's ex-husband's second ex) and you've got yourself a tasty read!

Gimme a Break

I've been thinking a lot about 80s TV lately (maybe related to Michael Jackson's death, mabye not). This has nothing to do with the quilt pictured here, other than the fact that the pattern is called "Holiday Break" and I was inspired to title this post "Gimme a Break" like the 80s sitcom.

The original pattern called for Christmas fabric (hence the title Holiday Break) but I chose these jungle-ish fabrics from my stash. The frog fabric is left over from the quilt I made for my nephew Colin when he was born. Here's a close up of one of the blocks.

Patronize Your Local Quilt Shop!

I know, I know ... ordering fabric online is so fast and easy, and in the case of FatQuarterShop.com, it comes so neatly packaged with little ribbons around it. I like the little ribbons, and I don't necessarily want to give them up, but we need to keep our local shops in business! Otherwise, the joy of seeing a fabric in person and feeling the texture and weight will be a thing of the past. I'm very much an instant gratification person, so ordering online is actually torture for me, but there are so few quilt shops in the area (Jo-Ann Fabrics notwithstanding) and most of them aren't open in the evenings, which is when I have time to go.

It's a fine balance I suppose. There is a quilt shop/trim factory outlet about 15 minutes from my workplace, so I sometimes stop in on my lunch break (which is usually spent at my desk, surfing - guess what? - online fabric shops, which is, again, faster and easier than going to the store in person). Their prices are actually fantastic, so why don't I go there more often? There's something about the "thump, thump, thump" as the bolt is unrolled on the cutting table and the unmistakeable "schhhhhhrrrriiiiitttt!" the scissors make as they slice through the fabric that's GOING HOME WITH YOU!

Finally, a Craft!

Have you been wondering when I was going to start talking about crafts? I certainly was, and I write this blog! Anyway, I've finished up a few projects in the last couple of months, but here are two I'm really happy with. The first is a wall hanging (wall not pictured) from a Moda Turnover, the line is called "Swanky." My friend and I challenged each other to make a project from a turnover and a charm pack, so here it is. I actually used the turnovers for the pinwheels, and the charm pack to make the border and binding. I like the "coordinated jumble sale" look I think I've achieved. By the way, did you spot my error? One of my pinwheel blocks is spinning in the wrong direction. Oops.

The second is from the "Sizzlin' Sixties" pattern collection by Heather Mulder Peterson of Anka's Treasures. Check out her blog here. This one uses a 60-degree triangle ruler to make all sorts of cool blocks. I decided to make a table topper. I used 30s reproduction fabrics, which I'm kind of obsessed with.

Flash Mob!

What's with all of the flash mob dances that have been popping up all over the world lately? I love them! How do you get to participate in one? I would totally do it, in fact, I'm trying to get my boss to let me put one together to promote our company intranet. We have a nice big cafeteria after all. Here's one with the Sound of Music. Pretty cool. One thing many of them have in common is that they often take place in train/subway stations. We don't really have those here. Here's another one, this one ON a train (moving, no less).

Craft Night

My crafting friends and I had our monthly meeting this evening, and we had a blast, as always. The setting was particularly picturesque (the hostess' home is right on Narragansett Bay), and we actually saw some sun for a couple of hours. The fact that we could eat outside was a huge bonus as well!

My craft this evening was a birthday banner for my mom's party - about 36 hours left to go until the big event. I still have to get a cake, but I have an idea of where to go for that. My goal for this party was to make it a great time for my mom, without stressing anyone (especially me) out. I think I've achieved at least half of that equation; hopefully mom will enjoy herself.

I don't have any pictures of the banner handy, so instead, I'm posting a random photo of my cat Max beside a craft I worked on about 10 months ago - my wedding flowers!

My next craft is a mystery, even to me. It will definitely be a quilt, I just haven't decided which fabrics, pattern, etc. Here's a quilt I finished in May for my brother-in-law and his wife (a wedding gift). I need to get better about taking photos of my quilts before giving them away - this is a horrible angle but I was in a hurry, as I was about to wrap it up for the wedding and realized I hadn't photographed it yet. I can tell you that I designed it myself, and used fabrics from the Moda bistro line. It's about 55x70 inches.

Beautiful Blithewold

Hubby and I spent a blissful evening wandering the gardens at Blithewold Mansion and Arboretum in Bristol, R.I. tonight. If my sister is reading this, I'm sorry I didn't stop by! Anyway, it was absolutely beautiful and inspired me to take my gardening a step further. Just look at that astilbe (top left) - like fluffy cotton candy. There's a wonderful rose garden too, and the Web site has some great advice about growing your own roses (I personally am scared to try roses, but maybe next year!).

We were actually there for a reception given by the March of Dimes R.I. chapter, which is a great organization. Good food, good company ... but oh, those flowers! We couldn't resist a lengthy stroll.

Mad Libs

So when was the last time you thought about Mad Libs? Those things are great! Marc and I picked up the "original" Mad Libs the other day and we're having lots of fun with them. They actually have quite a few variations - Star Wars, Ghost Stories, Scooby Doo, etc.

I highly recommend that you pick up a copy - possibly the most fun you can legally have for $3.99!

Hope you have a/an [adjective] [noun]!

Countdown to Party Time!

The surprise party I've been planning for my mom (or "mum" in England) is nearly here, and I'm tres excited about it.

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Ok, so our cat Sealy just typed that by sitting on my keyboard. Clearly I am not paying enough attention to her. Isn't it enough that this blog was named for her? Guess not. Now, she's actually sitting on my left hand as I type. I don't mind this too much, because it's very cold in my house and her tummy is keeping my hand warm. There she is in all her glory just after we moved into our house last year. She quickly declared the property hers, but she has been kind enough to let us continue living here.

It was a cold and rainy night ...

... except it was almost JULY! Summer in New England is never predictable, but this is ridiculous. We've had so few sunny days since the beginning of May (technically not summer, I realize) that you could count them on one hand.

Anyway, what better way to celebrate the dreary weather than with some delicious detective stories by Agagtha Christie? I just listened to a couple of her books on CD - fantastic! If you really want a bone-chiller, go for "And Then There Were None." Creepy. "... seven strangers, picked to live in a house ..." Wait, no that's The Real World. It's actually 10 strangers invited to an island by a mysterious host. Once there, people start dying, and it ain't pretty. There's a reason this is thought to be the greatest mystery novel ever written.