Rainbow Ahoy!

There really hasn't been too much sewing going on for me lately. Work is really getting in the way of my hobbies! I have been out of town for the past 2 weekends, thanks to job number 2 (scuba dive leader). I will also be out of town stuck in training for 8 hours a day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Definitely not looking forward to that. I will be drinking so much coffee.

Anyways, I finally assembled the Dresden plates into something useful. They are potholders! I kind of made them for Potholder Pass, but they definitely did not come out how I wanted them to, so I can share them without fear of my partner putting the pieces together. I believe the perfect home for these bad boys will be with my friends Heathur and Jake in Colorado.

Oh! Oh! When I was out scuba diving last weekend, we had 46 divers out with us. Since I was in charge of this diving event, I decided to make snacks. Apparently these are my typical diving snacks to bake. They are bacon cheddar scones and pecan sandies.

I am still trying to narrow down my 500+ GoPro photos into one manageable post of photos. Two of our divers even got engaged underwater and I filmed it!! How exciting!

I also finished the final block for 3x6 Quarter 1. I even managed to sneak away to the post office and get them mailed today! Score! This one is for Nicole.

Today I was naughty. I stopped by the Singer store to play with their long-arm quilter. I practiced my pebbles and stippling. Then I realized their Hemingworth thread was on clearance. They had it for $3.99 a spool! I have never used this particular type of thread, but all the samples looked nice. Does anyone have experience with it? I hope to try it out soon so that I can go buy all of it should I like it. Today I only bought a few colors that spoke to me. I have no idea why I bought neon colors. I never use neon colors! Oh well!

33.333333

As of today, I am more than 1/3 of my way through my first semester of full-time professoring (I'm making it a word, okay?). This is very exciting because it tells me that I might actually survive. If I do survive and if I get all the same classes next semester, I might even be able to leave my part time job during the semester and save it for breaks between classes.

But that is crazy talk. Thinking in whatifs always frustrates me. As a wee-lass, that was always one of my favorite poems:

"Everything seems swell, and then the nighttime Whatifs strike again!" -Shel Silverstein

Anyways, moving on! This might not be too verbose of a post, but it will be picture heavy as I have been squeezing in time for quilting since I cut back hours at part time job and am now only working about 50 hours a week at both jobs collectively. That is easy peasy.

I was able to finish the September buck a block from my local quilt shop. These are all basket blocks which I probably would have never tried on my own.

As it turns out, I actually really like the way most of them look.

I also completed my block for the newBEES block swap. The leader of this month was time2sew and she sent all the fabric and pattern, so I can take no credit except for the piecing.

Very cute block to get us started for a year of swapping.

Then we switch from newBEES to NuBees...

In my hive for September, I decided to make a spidery looking block out of HSTs. This first one is in my colors, teal, green, gold, & coral.

Next we have the block for Elizabeth. She requested oranges and pinks with a grey background. I love this pebbly grey fabric. I used it instead of the swirly one since this block had some solid in it so the background needed to stand out more (in my mind). Turns out pansies are her favorite flower, so the pink fabric was perfect!

Then we have the block for Christina. She wanted bright colors on a white background. I wanted to try and make it bright but not rainbowy, and I think I accomplished that. Unfortunately, after mailing this block to her, it was returned to me by the post office and she seems to be MIA in our hive. Hopefully, I can get it to her.

Then we have the block for Sara. She requested teals and reds. I asked if she wanted individual teal and red fabrics, or fabrics that included both colors and she had no preference. I also love the way these two colors look together, so I had a good deal of options to pull from in my stash. Yay! I love the way the little apples and the poppy flowers look together.

Then we have the block for our fearless leader, Kelli. Her colors were basically the same as mine without coral/orange. This was the only block I used a different fabric for each arm instead of doing two fabrics. No idea which way I prefer. But I do know this block is pretty!

I also made an angel block for someone who never received one way back in the summer. Made the block for Kira, who is so incredibly nice! She was always so appreciative and friendly every time I bothered her for more info. I used some of my absolute favorite chicken fabric on her block which was very fun!

In news unrelated to quilting, my boyfriend and I made butter from scratch to practice for a lab I was planning for my students! It came out so delicious! Then I turned around and made 18 batches of it with my students over 2 days. I was mildly sick of butter at that point, but now, I am back to proud!

Back to quilting!

I completed 32 + 1 scrappy string blocks for the Scrap Basket String Block Swap. They look so neat together!

Well, I made 36 + 1, but could not allow myself to surrender these four beauties. Something epic will be done with them, I just know it!

I also finished everything for Potholder Pass Swap. I ended up making 4 extra coasters for a total of 8 plus the 2 potholders. I also included a jar of homemade peach ginger jam! Yummy! Here are all the goodies except for the jam which was added on my way out the door to the post office.

Then I tried my hand at paper piecing!

Gimme an 'L'

Gimme an 'O'

Gimme a 'V'

Gimme an 'E'

What does that spell?!?!

LOVE!

I had no idea what to do with this, but knew it was my favorite thing I had ever made so whatever it turned into, I was keeping.

Then I decided to use it as the center focal point of a quilt and surround it with blocks of coordinating colors. So here it is with a few borders.

The darker grey inside border was added in the hopes that it will make this stand out more when it eventually becomes the focal point of a quilt. I would hate for something so pretty to just blend in!

I also completely finished (except for binding) the quilt for my friends' wedding that is in November not October. I was still shooting for finishing as if it were in October, and that looks like it will happen. Unfortunately, I can't show you any photos past the fabric/block selection (found Here and Here) in this post because the bride-to-be and/or groom-to-be could possibly see this and then the surprise would be gone.

They know they are getting a quilt. They know which fabrics I used. That is all they know. Spwee!

I will show you the fabric I picked for the back of their quilt.

Since they really wanted earth tones and modern, I think this is about as perfect of a fabric as I could have possibly dreamed of finding for the backing of their quilt! Yay!

For pictures of the front of the quilt and pretty shots once it is bound and beautiful, stay tuned until their wedding in November or until I remember that I really dislike keeping a surprise a surprise.

Now I go back to my busy world where I work 50+ hours a week. I even get to go out of town for work for the next two weekends! YAY! *eyeroll*

Yay, Progress!

There has been a significant amount of progress made over the past week. Yay for syllabus days and pre-planning actually paying off! 

I finished what might or might not end up being the fronts of the Halloween coasters I'm making for Potholder Pass. They had to match, but not necessarily in an identical way. I think this counts, but just in case, I made two of each so that I could make a more matching set and keep the leftovers. 

I do really like them all, and will probably just convince myself to send the whole set possibly plus a few extras in case my secret partner doesn't like these 4 together.

There was also progress made on the wedding quilt for my friends' wedding that is in November, not October. I am trying to trick myself into thinking it is actually taking place in October so that my enthusiasm doesn't have the chance to fade. I do have other quilts to make, brain!

This is the giant stack of finished blocks for the quilt with sashing already sewn on one side. Now I just have to put them into rows and spend at least 2 hours trying to make said rows look effortlessly random, stitch the rows up, make it to the quilt store for another 1/2 yard of sashing fabric, add more sashing, and put it all together. Excuse the really horrible picture. It was taken on my cell in a dimly lit room. The fabrics are actually quite vibrant and not nearly as dreary as they appear in this photo.

If I wasn't going out of town to scuba dive in an old Cold War missile silo this weekend, I might have a chance of actually making that all happen. 

But I am, so I don't. Darn. 

On to another project.... I. Actually. Finished. Something!

Pretty shocking, huh?

I finished the voile (voy-el? vwa-le?) bag that is needed for my boyfriend to brew a new type of beer. In case you are a home-brewer, the logistics of what I did are pretty simple. I bought 2 yards of plain white voile. Cut a 25" wide strip off of the fabric, and double hem with a scant 1/4" seam what will be the top of the bag to prevent fraying. I used a zig-zag for added strength. Then I stitched up the sides along the selvages using a zig-zag stitch. Since it was on the selvages, I wasn't too worried about fraying. 

Then came the difficult part... The dreaded French seams for attaching the bottom of the bag. Next time, I might just make the initial strip about 10" longer in order to just stitch the two bottom sides together with a French seam. 

But I didn't do that. So I had to try and guesstimate how big of a circle I needed to make. Did I mention in my initial post that voile is difficult to measure? Well, it is. So I ended up overshooting it with the intention of doing some extra trimming. 

This meant that I was now sewing a French seam for the first time ever doing all of the wrong things like sewing on a curve (every tutorial I studied hinted that only experienced seamstresses should use French seams on a curve and I definitely am not an experienced seamstress!) and adding in pleats to make it fit.

You have no idea how much my boyfriend was laughing at me for stressing out about the process. He kindly reminded me that the soon-to-be beer would not care how it looked. 

So, here is a picture of part of the French seam of which I am actually proud!

And this is the finished result in the brew pot, where it should be.

What this means is that we actually got to brew on Sunday! Yess!! Well, first we went out for German food, and then we got to brew. Yumm, delicious, delicious German food.

Oh, yeah, back to brewing! My favorite part of the brewing process has to be the delicious smells. I can't get enough of the smells. That is why I used to hang around when my friends were brewing (those friends now operate a small micro-brewery!!!) and I even learned a thing or two about the process. 

Another neat aspect of the process is that when you stir, it makes patterns that I thought looked like Starry Night by Van Gogh. 

Thus far, that is all of my WIP work for the week. How about you? 

Last Bit of Freedom/WIP

Sadly, this is my last day/night of freedom before this semester from hell begins. I'm expecting the worst, but hoping for the best. I will officially be teaching 15 hours of classes, and working 28 hours per week at my local Scuba shop. Once you add in prep and grading, this is going to be one beast of a semester.

I can do anything for 4 months.

...Anything but not quilting, that is.

I keep reminding myself that it will never be as bad as my last semester of grad school. That semester, I was teaching high school biology full time, teaching my 4 normal Astronomy labs as a TA, taking 4 classes, writing my thesis, AND co-directing the Vagina Monologues. If I can finish that with any semblance of a grasp on sanity, I can teach 15 hours and keep my other job.

Just in case I do start losing my mind, I have already come to terms with the fact that I might have to cut back my hours at the scuba shop. I do not want to do that, but winter is the slow season there anyways, so it wouldn't be too horrible for any party involved.

Now that I have gotten my "dear diary" mess out of the way, I can begin talking about my actual WIPs for the week. All of the old ones are still there. It seems like I am horrible at finishing projects. My goal of using these WIP posts as an accountability device does not seem to be attainable.

Sigh.

First things first: Potholder Pass! I am a little proud of myself for this one because we only received our secret partner info today and I have already finished my potholders! Procrastination is my best motivator. Well, technically, they still need to be bound, but they are pieced, quilted, and cute!

My partner requested Halloween themed potholders and coasters. No sign of coasters yet, though. Here is a horrible picture so you can see the fabrics and Japanese X Block pattern I used for the potholders.

My next WIP is something I am working on for my boyfriend who brews beer. Tasty, tasty beer. I love everything about home-brewing, but the amazing smell has to be my favorite part. This weekend, he is trying something new called all-grain brewing. In order to do this, he needs some kind of boiling liquid resistant but still permeable bag.

He did some research and found material that others have used to make such a bag to avoid buying an expensive, mass-produced version.

The fabric is 100% polyester voile. Apparently, people use this stuff for curtains and fancy dresses. I have no idea how to pronounce it. What I do know about voile is that it frays like crazy, it is nearly impossible to cut straight because it is so fluid, it bunches when you sew it, it should be sewn with a French seam, and it is difficult to iron.

Wow! I sure do know a lot about voile!

The bag that I am making has to fit inside a giant pot. So far, I have double hemmed the edge that will be exposed, and have sewn the cylindrical portion up along the selvages to avoid French seams. I forgot to trace the diameter of the pot to cut out the bottom that will be sewn on with French seams, and the material is too movey (sure, that's a word) to measure accurately. So I will get the diameter another day and finish it up in time for brewing on Sunday! Yippe! Here is a picture of one of the cylinders. (I'm making two in case something horrible happens.)

I have also made a teensy bit more progress on the wedding quilt for my friends. I strip pieced these initial bits that will eventually become half of the block. The other half of the block will be opposite the sashing and will be two squares of different fabric split by sashing to form another rectangle. This cute little "rainbow" shows the first halves pretty well.

Here is a mildly more close-up shot of the fabrics. I am loving these fabrics together.

Well, that actually feels like more progress than I was expecting to make this week. Now I am going back to my hole for more semester prepping!