The hat, the quilt

I finished knitting my Melt the Ice hat and wore it yesterday.  Paul was asked to talk about Montpelier's past clothespin industry by the Channel 5 News, and I went along for moral support.  The reporter and camera man were very sweet and it all went well.  Except it was mighty cold mostly due to the strong wind.  I normally don't wear a hat, making my hair do the work, but I think I should start to wear this one in order to "make a statement." 

You can't see the tassel on top in the photo, but it's there.  I started knitting a bright red one on slightly bigger needles for someone, maybe my sister who has a birthday coming up.

Yesterday I started sewing all the Kaffe and Tula fabrics that I cut out Wednesday, and today I have 16 12" blocks to put together.  I like the way it looks but plan to enlarge it with some borders.  The first will be a think black one, and then there will be a colorful one using scraps of block fabric.

Right now, I'm calling this Out of My Comfort Zone, but I do like it quite a bit.  And it was embarrassingly easy.

Quilt repair

I realized that I need to insert the magnetic clasp into the lining of the tote bag before putting it together, so I set it aside until I go to the quilt shop Saturday for a state guild board meeting and local guild sew-in.  I really miss Joann Fabrics!  Walmart just doesn't have what I need, and, when I looked on Amazon.com, I could buy clasps in bulk but not just one or two.  I sure hope the quilt shop has a couple or I will order some via Etsy.

I noticed some of the fabric in the quilt on our bed was deteriorating - probably because someone (not me!) sits there to watch TV.  Just two blocks, side by side, thank goodness.   The quilt was finished in 2015, so I guess that isn't too bad.  Today I made two new blocks and appliqued them over the old ones.  Then I quilted them from the back.  It looks pretty good.  This quilt is never going in a show but I do like it.  Luckily, it was a Rainbow Scrap Challenge sampler so I just pulled fabric from my stash.

Next I spent some time looking for a pattern that I had yesterday but can't find today.  I have a bunch of Kaffe Fassett scraps and I thought would look good against a black background.  The pattern came from last year's Modern Quilts calendar, and I have been shuffling it around since the beginning of the year.  I will probably find it when I am in the middle of making the one I sketched out.  But that's for another day - I'm going to sit down and knit right now.  I don't have far to go on that hat.

Tote bags

Sometimes it feels good to work on something and actually finish it on the day you started.  Sunday I made a tote bag and, while I didn't finish it that day, I did finish it yesterday.  And it's very handy for holding my current knitting project, the burgundy/red Melt the ICE hat.

I really like the fabric I used on the outside - a big retro print - and the sweet pink gingham on the inside.  Both are polyester, and the big print is so old that the width was smaller than today's quilt fabric is.  I enjoyed making it, and I have a lot of both fabrics left.  

Today I cut out another tote bag out of the same big print but using a pattern from a new book, Make 100 Bags.  I hope to work on it today and tomorrow if I get a chance.   I am about halfway through knitting my hat, too.  Someone in my yoga class asked me to knit her one, but I declined because I'm really a slow knitter.  I referred her to Etsy where there are a lot for sale at a surprisingly large range of prices from $7.50 to $50.  I bought a skein of acrylic yarn at Walmart for $4.99 and can.probably make two hats out of it.

I knit a little in between working on organizing the archives of the state quilt guild yesterday.   The guild was founded in 1979 so there are a lot of papers to work my way through.  I'm hoping to turn it all over to the state historical society for safekeeping.  When I volunteered there, I helped organize a number of statewide organizations' archives, so I know that notebooks are too bulky for them and sheet protectors are a no-no.  They stick to the papers and remove the ink.  There's a lot of trash generated by this project, but it's a nice project to work on when it's cold and snowy.

Winter at its "fullest"

Our yoga teacher often prompts us to do our "fullest expression" of a pose, be it it forward fold, downward-facing dog, etc.  Well, this winter has been at its fullest expression, too.  We don't seem to get a break from the cold and snow, so that a day in the teens feels like a heat wave.  I have even gone out to dispose of trash or compost in just a sweater on those "warmer" days.  

While this picture is from 11 years ago, our snowbanks are getting similarly high around here.  There are places around town where you have to inch your car out slowly in order to see if anyone's coming.

Yesterday was no exception as I drove downtown in the latest storm, sliding some of the way.  I had arranged for a speaker at the library who was coming from the Burlington area an hour away, and he had bravely said he'd give it a try.  Who was I to wimp out on my 5 minute drive down a major hill?  Only 8 people came to hear his talk on using DNA for genealogy, but it was an excellent program.  The road was "greasy" but I made it down and, later, uphill.  

The temperature started to drop into the single digits all day, so I was glad to be indoors, knitting and  baking a chocolate cake.  Here's my recipe for the very easy Wacky Cake:

  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a square baking pan.

  Mix together 1 1/2 c. flour, 1 c. sugar, 1 t. baking soda, and 4 T. chocolate in a bowl. 

  You can add this to the pan and then make 3 indentations in the mixture.  Or you can add the following to what's in the bowl:  1 t. vanilla, 1 T. vinegar, 6 T. oil, and 1 c. water.  Mix well and bake 30-40 minutes.  (I find mixing it in the pan makes it stick, so I generally mix it all in the bowl and pour into the pan.)  Cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve with whipped cream or ice cream.  

You end up with a moist and delicious cake.  I have doubled the recipe and put it into a 9" x 13" pan for potluck suppers.  People love it and don't know how easy it really is.  

Today I'll head back to the sewing room to work on a tote bag.  I've never worked with "soft and stable" before, so it will be an adventure.  Have a great Sunday!

February's color = green

I've spent mornings this week making blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.   First, I made 10 log cabin blocks mostly out of strings in my stash.  While pawing through my greens, I found a few more strings that I added to the bag.  These blocks measure 8" finished.

Next, I made three Traffic Jam blocks, which are really nine patches with the center strips made of 2" squares.  

Yesterday I started working on a table runner made of blocks left over from Double Date.  I am now able to close the green box of fabric now that I have set aside a bunch of fabric to put on the "free" table at guild.  Today I sewed it all together, quilted and bound it.  Next week I'll go down to the florist's to sell this table runner and pick up the Christmas ones that she is probably sick of seeing by now.

I noticed that the quilt on our bed, made back in 2015, has some blocks that are beginning to deteriorate.  Before I put my green box away, I'm going to dig deep to see if there's any matching fabric I can use to repair the damage before it gets worse.

What's next?  Today I cut some very wild fabric from the 1980s into pieces for a tote bag.  The lining will be a pretty pink gingham poly-cotton blend.  I have quite a bit of that poly-cotton stuff that is pretty but I don't like it for quilts.  Tote bag linings seem like a good use.  

Tomorrow IF the weather cooperates (and it threatens not to), I'll be hosting a program on DNA and genealogy at the library.  We have a speaker coming from the Burlington area 45 minutes away, so my fingers are crossed.   We have an alternate date already planned just in case he can't make it.  Winter!

Pixilated

Yesterday I made a push to finish my Pixilated Holland piece.  I'm not sure what I'll do with it, so I have put it in time out in the closet.

I put extra strips on the sides but only squared up the top and bottom.  I am thinking of quilting this piece and then again putting it into time out as I make borders to go around it.  I was considering tulips and windmills, but I also have some Dutch prints that might be fun to add.  And do I want to branch out into some other colors?  And do I want a throw or a bed-sized quilt?  Too many questions!

I doubt if I will ever make another piece like this although I bought the "Vermont" pattern before I got this one.  This version of Holland (by Karen Abrahamovich) used strips that are 1.5" wide.   I feel it looks somewhat out of proportion, but that may just be my faulty memory.  I think the Vermont pattern I have uses wider strips, maybe 2" or 2.5".   I had a lot of difficulty with the angled pieces, particularly the islands in the northwest corner.  But they look OK in the picture taken at a distance, which is a relief.

After finishing Holland I started making green log cabin blocks as part of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge and ended up making 10 8" blocks.  Today I cut out some scraps for some Traffic Jam blocks.  Then it was time for yoga, so I probably won't get those made until tomorrow.  I am happy that the color of the month is green, though, because I have almost as many green scraps as I do blue. 

Ready to dip into the greens

February's Rainbow Scrap Challenge color is green, and I can't wait.  I'm sick of working in blues although I have a blue and white quilt that will be coming back from Marie soon and will need a blue binding (all cut!).  I have plenty of green strings for the log cabin blocks and there are lots of green squares for "traffic stop," too.  I'll get to those in between continuing working on the map of Holland.  I'm more than half-way done with that, but it is tedious and difficult to fit together.  Still, I am determined not to create another longtime UFO.

Friday I finished binding the blue and white snowflake quilt which I will get a picture of next time I'm at guild.   The quilt currently being long arm quilted by Marie is the Triple Barn Star and measures 72" x 72".  She says she's having a problem with the long arm so it will be a couple of weeks before it's finished.  That's OK with me since I have plenty to keep me busy.

I finished reading the latest #1 Ladies Detective Agency book yesterday (it was good, not spectacular) and started on one for my mystery book group.  I'll take it with me today as I wait for Paul at the Retina Center.  Before we leave for Burlington, I'll need to get ready for the cleaning people by gathering trash, starting some laundry, etc.  I always change the towels in the bathroom when they come so it all looks fresh.

Yesterday I mapped out our March trip south, and now I'm getting excited about going.  We leave around March 10 and return two weeks later, more or less.  It all depends on the number of stops we make going home.  One will definitely be in Columbia, SC, to visit my friend Libby.  And we're contemplating a stop near Hershey, PA, to join cousins in the area.