Antelope Canyon is finished

Yesterday was a lovely day - temperatures in the 70s with low humidity, the way summer in Vermont should be!  Paul was taking some photos so I got into the act also.

This quilt, Antelope Canyon, designed by Laurie Shifrin, has been finished for a while but it was just too hot and muggy out to take a good photo.  I still want to take a picture of the whole quilt, but that will require two people to hold it up.  Next time Chris comes over and the sun shines, we'll get a full photo.  Meanwhile, here it is, hanging over my neighbor's deck railing.

This quilt used two jelly rolls (I took a few pieces out because I didn't like the colors) and several yards each of two different blacks that I cut into 2.5" and 1.5" strips - a very tedious process!  I don't usually follow patterns, but I'm glad I did on this one because I really like the result.  The photo shows the pattern much better than holding the quilt in person.  On a bed it should really look good.  Marie quilted it with her longarm in a modern, flying triangles overall design.  

Summer picnics

This was our weekend of picnics, both at the Barre Town Rec Fields shelter.  It's lovely up there with a wide view of the mountains.  Friday night was the annual Greater Barre Democrats fundraiser, which is usually a calm but fun affair.  This year, we had several new members, and many of the "top of the ticket" candidates came, too.

That made about 50 people, including Gubernatorial candidate Hallquist, State Treasurer Pearce (who lives in Barre), and Lieutenant Governor Zuckerman.  Each spoke briefly (thank goodness), as did our local candidates for state House and Senate.   Chip grilled burgers and hotdogs, everyone else brought good food, Jeanne organized a small auction, and there was plenty of socializing and rallying.  Hope we can keep up the momentum into the fall.

Sunday at noon our neighborhood picnic was catered, much to everyone's delight - no cooking!  Jockey Hollow made delicious chicken and mostaccioli - Barre's favorite meal - along with salads and chocolate cake.  The weather couldn't have been more perfect - mid-70s, sunny, breezy.  It was a nice time to get together with folks we don't see all the time and meet some of our newer residents.

Teal mini swap

Last year, at the recommendation of a friend who used to organize the Parkinsons Quilt Project, I participated  in the Teal Mini Swap for the first time.  This is a fun program in support of ovarian cancer research.  A quilter in Massachusetts pairs each person with another quilter, sends us each a small piece of teal fabric to use in a mug rug or mini quilt, and sends some of our $15 contribution to a very worthy cause.

It's fun to get to know another quilter and also quite a challenge to incorporate a snippet of teal into a small project.  Here is last year's mini with some of the other little gifts I enclosed for Valorie in WA.  I managed to get the teal all the way around the star which was quite a feat.

Valorie used her snippet as one of the "geese" in a small hanging for me, which I now am using as a tabletopper in my guest room.  I love it!  What's funny is that I was going to make the same pattern but chose to do the star at the last minute.  Great minds think alike!

This year, I'm also making a star but a little differently, for my partner, Shelly in SC.  I spent yesterday finishing it but will wait to mail it until September because she's going on vacation.  I'll take a photo before mailing (if the sun ever comes out) and will show it after she receives it.

Aside from that, it's been rather humid lately so everyone is moving slowly.  I pieced one block yesterday for the Low Volume sampler and have another prepared for applique today.  I delivered my Ohio Star block swap quilt to Marie for long arming Thursday and hope that doesn't come back too soon although the binding is all ready to go.  This week, I hope to start on a scrappy appliqued border for the red, white, and blue medallion quilt that's been hanging in the closet for several months.

Blueberry pie

I haven't been all that productive lately, but today I did make a blueberry pie.  Half of the berries
came from our own bushes, and the other from a local farm.  The latter were nice and big; ours are small and sweet.  I think the lack of rain is the cause for the size and maybe even the sweetness.  I have a few bags of berries and one large one of peaches in the freezer.  They are so good in the depths of winter!

Our humid spell seems to have broken, and this morning it was in the 40s.  We are sure to have more hot days, but cooler mornings are a harbinger of fall, everybody's favorite season around here.

I finished sewing the binding down on the Antelope Canyon quilt and aired it out on the porch yesterday.  The backing fabric had a strong odor, but now it smells like clean laundry.  I need to take a photo;  I'm waiting for Chris to visit so Paul and he can hold it out straight.  My order of backing fabric arrived, and when my order of batting comes, I'll be able to take the Ohio Star block swap quilt to Marie for long arming.  Oh, joy - another binding in the near future!

This week I made a few more Splendid Sampler blocks for my Low Volume quilt.  One is paper pieced, and, while I hate taking those little bits of paper out, I love the way it looks so much that I have another paper pieced block ready to go.  If I like it, I'll make one for my partner in the Teal Mini Swap.  This will be my second year participating in this fund raiser for ovarian cancer research.  I met a very nice quilter from Washington state last year and am curious who this year's partner will be.  We have six weeks or so to make and send either a mug rug or a small quilted piece.

It's humid

We seem to be stuck under a cloud of humidity lately.  I haven't had the energy I normally do.  Yesterday I wondered if I ought to have my thyroid checked out.  I have a "getting to know you" appointment with my new doctor later this month (they keep retiring!) and maybe I should ask about this?  But then everyone I've talked to lately is complaining about feeling a bit sluggish.

Last night it rained quite a bit, and today it seems a little more bearable.  I actually did a few things around the house - laundry, making a dry rub for some country-style ribs, and making potato salad.

Then I sat down to work on my Low Volume at 70 Sampler.  I have made four August blocks so far, put together the 12 July blocks, and now it's time to quilt the July section.  I am using a 1" beige print sashing between the blocks and will separate the months with slightly wider strips of the same print.  The back of each section will be one of the many Indonesian fabrics I have accumulated.   A pieced back will be nice for this project which is to reflect my last 70 years, which started in Indonesia, after all.  I may mix in some tea-dyed muslin here and there.  I'm quilting this one in sections which should make it easier with my Elna.

I found a batik just the right size for the July section, so I started quilting that this morning.  I am running out of the cream Aurifil thread I use most of the time, so I got out a spool of Craftsy 50 wt. beige thread that came free with fabric I ordered.  That's on the top, and the Aurifil is in the bobbin.  I like the Craftsy thread so far.  It runs through the machine smoothly, is soft, and looks good.  I had been a bit skeptical because someone gave me a spool of Connecting Threads thread that seemed too thick and stiff.

My Antelope Canyon quilt came back from the long arm quilter over a week ago, and I have gotten one side of the binding down sewn to the back by hand.   Lately, I have sewn almost all of my bindings by machine.  I sew it to the back and then topstitch on the front, mitering as I go around.  This quilt's edges were a bit uneven - perhaps because the jelly rolls I used weren't exactly true - so I had to sew the binding to the front first.  There's a project I haven't touched since the humidity started.  Maybe tomorrow?

Turning 70

Yesterday was my birthday and, like Paul and so many friends from high school and beyond, I turned 70.  It seems like just yesterday I was turning 21.  How did the time fly so fast?  I've had plenty of ups and downs, done plenty of interesting and dumb things, and seen a lot of places.  I started yesterday opening up some cards and lovely gifts from Paul, my mom, my sister Jenny, and various family members.

One gift I look forward to every year is a package of fat quarters - quilting fabric - from the online friendship swap group I belong to.  The ladies live in Australia, Canada, England, and all over the US.  We state our preferences and gather others' fat quarters late in December, and then mail them to one willing person who sends them out all year as our birthdays arrive.  This year I must have asked for reds, purples, and black/white prints - it's been so long that I'd forgotten - and I love what came!

Interestingly enough, around mid-day, after our Tuesday morning walk in the town forest, a lovely bouquet arrived from Mom and Jenny.  It contained deep purple gladiolas and carnations, red roses and alstroemeria, and white baby's breath.   Beautiful!

The evening was capped with dinner at the Royal Orchid Thai Restaurant with Paul and son Chris. The crab Rangoon (which really contains crab meat), chicken and basil stir fry, and fried banana with coconut ice cream were just delicious.   Chris gave me a gift certificate to Joann Fabrics which, as Paul says, I visit every Sunday.  I just happen to need some muslin...

And the fun continues this morning when I meet Cindy for breakfast at the Wayside, a Central Vermont landmark and featured in the book Road Food.  I can almost smell the French toast and bacon now.