The SQP, and More

March 31, 2008

Here it is, the Stealth Quilting Project - The Quilted Quadriad:


(click to really big-ify)
Finished in the car on the way to the official installation (aka, "hanging it up straight"), the lower panels are 2x7 FEET, 6x7' and 2x7'. The upper Rose Window is approximately 4x6'. There is approximately 90 square feet of quilt here. Which is a convenient number, since that's how many hours it took me to machine quilt the 3 panels.

The quilt was designed and pieced by my friend Jean (including all of those 8-triangle kaleidoscope blocks), and she did the whole rose window, from design to binding. As I said, I machine quilted the 3 lower panels (25 bobbins of thread, by the way - thanks, Mom, for the Sidewinder bobbin winder at Christmas) and I designed, painted and appliqued the center medallion. Oh, that's St. Stephen, the patron saint of our parish.

The three-month nitty-gritty with a zillion(ish) more pictures is here.

In other news, it has been weird cold (snow, hail, rain, sun) here. We're running 10 or more degrees below 'normal', and when someone says, "If you don't like the weather, wait a minute", it's not a joke.

(Look! a segue!) Because it's been sooooooo cold at night, I have actually worn my newest hat and nosewarmer. Mr. W. is NOT amused. The first night (I do only wear it late at night - it's not like I'm popping down to the market, mid-afternoon, all suited up), he said I'd have to walk 5 feet behind or in front of him. I told him that if he was going to haul my arse to ND, the nosewarmer was just the beginning. Then on the next night he made mention of burning it. I think my response was something along the lines of, "TFB".

I have another hat in the works, and I'm driving myself crazy over-MATHing (yeah, new word) on a cardigan/jacket I want to make.

Oh! And I'm off to visit and tend my mom at the end of the week. She's having a surgery and will need help during her recovery over the next few weeks. Remember, she's got the slowest dial-up on the face of the earth, so additional blog posts are iffy.

Not that I think that there will be much blog fodder. I certainly wouldn't write a "moms say the darnedest things on heavy pain meds" blog post. Not me. Heh.

Labels: knitting, quilting

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We'll Follow the Old Man...

March 24, 2008

(Yeah, the title is a bit of an inside joke. Possibly just inside MY brain - sorry.)

Okay, the SQP is finished. There will be pictures. I just need to recover a bit first.

In some of the downtime (itty bits at a time), I picked up yarn and needles. Mr. W. is making noise again/still about going back to North Dakota. I know it's officially spring now, but in dread anticipation of moving eventually to a place that is cold beyond my comprehension, I decided to knit wool things.



Do you think I can make myself look so silly that he will re-think the whole moving thing?

(Yeah, click it. It gets BIGGER.)

Details: Nosewarmer, 2nd Generation from "Knit Wit" by Amy Singer. Hat is my own thang, a double-rolled brim stocking cap (eventually I'll write down the "pattern"). Stitch/color patt is from Barbara Walker's Treasury Book 1. 'Royal Quilting', pg. 72. Yarns, Passport "London" in oatmeal (aka color # 507.731) and Paton Classic Wool Merino in denim (the old standby).

I also did some serious math and measuring, then cast on for the back of the Cable Vee sweater that is (for now) so far just a pair of sleeves. News at 11... (or something like that)

Labels: knitting

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1st Apron Swap a Success!

March 08, 2008

Here is the apron that I received from my swap partner. It could not have been any more perfect. I am stunned, thrilled, and generally tickled pink with my newest apron.

I asked and found that my partner is a self-professed (confessed?) blog-stalker. She took heed of my new-found love of a waist tie that comes all the way around to the front so I can save my dishtowel from the soup. (She is SO clever!)

(And, no, my left arm is not nearly as skinny as it looks in this picture. I mean, yes, I have wimpy arms - no excuses of being "big boned" for me - but the picture looks just plain scary!)

Taking a lucky guess (or subconsciously noting the preponderence of things denim while blog-stalking), my partner scored big-time with the choice of dark denim. The perfect fabric. Of course, the denim apron kinda gets hidden(ish) when worn over the denim jeans, so here I've gotten fancy with one of Mr. W.'s dishtowels (yes, his are different than mine) so's you can see how dad-burned CUTE the apron is.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The swap partner for whom I made an apron has received hers, too. As I expected, she said that she'll have to adjust the neck strap. Something about boobage...

By the way, checking in on her blog, I have come to the conclusion that she may be certifiable. She seems to be starting a Baby Jane - with young kids? And while moving? Lord, to be young again....

And seriously, is it a trend that I missed, or was I just extremely lucky that both my swappER and swapEE are quilters*? How cool is that?

I will keep the Sassy Apron Swap blog in my bloglines feed, anxiously awaiting the next opportunity to play (and without a massive SQP deadline looming- it will be heaven!). Thank you, Lucy, for hosting!

*In quilting news, I'm still in the land of the SQP. Less than 2 weeks before the unveiling. If I had the time to panic, I would, but it's quilt, quilt, sleep, quilt, quilt, sleep these days. Blogging/email-reading time is justified by allowing me to change chairs, positions, visual-focus. So there.

Labels: aprons

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Dear Apron Swap Partner,

March 01, 2008

At 12:01 a.m. today (March 1), I was choosing buttons for the apron I've made for you.




I sure hope you like the apron - it's fully lined (you might even call it reversible). Don't panic about the fit - you are way skinnier than I am.

I'm not all that excited about the pocket. I won't be offended in the least if you decide to remove the pocket. Like I'd ever know, but you know what I mean.

I've sewn the neck strap on with buttons, so if it's too short or too long, it will be easy for you to alter. The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that you'll need to shorten the neck strap - I think that in addition to being way skinnier than I am, you're probably shorter than I am. All straps are cut on the length-of-grain so that they don't stretch out so much. (The picture's more yellow-y than it should be)

I guess I "made up" the pattern. Actually, I know I made up the pattern, since a pre-written pattern would NOT have had me doing things the hard way. Seriously. The waist tie/waist band? I don't think I could have picked a more difficult way to apply it. Fortunately, that was all my pain (and I deserved it for not thinking ahead) and you hopefully won't be able to tell that I had to hold my mouth just right and raise my left foot 4 inches off the floor while whistling through my nose to get the waistband on correctly.


The 4-inch wide white band of fabric at the bottom of the skirt is machine embroidered - uh, the new-old-fashioned way, with a regular old sewing machine. The butterflies are embroidered with a variegated rayon thread in the "Citrus" color way.

Oh! I am reminded of the flickr group, showing other swappers' finished aprons. Go here to see what's posted - they're all wonderful!!

Okay, so here's the deal, though - I know I waited until the last minute (truly, I have been pretty fully focused on another, massive, project - thank goodness for the leap day!), but except for the buttons, I actually did get the apron finished by the deadline.

The deadline, though, is for mailing, not for sewing (she says, wearing her pedant hat) and right there is where I messed up. You see, I live just north of the middle of nowhere and our itty post office is not open on Saturdays. Another example of (me) not planning ahead.

Let's look on the bright side: This just gives me an extra day or two to find some extra goodies to toss into the package before I mail it on Monday!

Labels: aprons

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