Reap What You Sew

I spent the evening working on a palm tree and even attached it to the block.

I love it when M reinforces what I think even when I don't want to admit to something or say it out loud.  I showed him and I told him that I knew it didn't look great, but that he needed to like it.  He squirmed and told me it didn't look right, voicing what I already knew.  I wasn't annoyed with him.  I was mega annoyed with myself!

My addition was total crap and I am crazed trying to come up with a solution.  I will NOT make this block over.

****Edited

I tend to make things very difficult on myself by trying to be too smart.  I didn't want to do it this way, adding a strip of fabric and piecing more water, but I think it's the only thing that looks halfway decent.

I searched the 'Net today for Jacksonville travel info, etc.  I found a page with the logo I drew in the upper right.  I'm going to embroider that as soon as I get some perle cotton.  Oh, and I'm out of thread.  I don't believe it.  I ran out making this block and had to root around for thread to use in my bobbin to finish it.  I may have to wait until Friday for payday.  grrrrrr  M says we can't buy anything that's not edible until I get paid because he still needs to pay the mortgage.

Humbled

Quilting is the best medicine.

I am humbled every day by quilting.  I usually take something with me for next time every time I make something--usually it's:  if I ever do this again, I will not do it this way...

Quilting is about the only time I get to be creative or the only time I allow myself to be creative.

Quilting isn't easy for me.  I really have to put in the effort for things to come out the right way.  I am challenged every time I sew.

It's not enough for me to be good.  I want to be great even if THAT never happens.

I see quilts all the time and I am in AWE.

I worked on the latest Eclipse Charity Quilt block last night, Trip to Jacksonville.  I was up until after 2 a.m., because I refused to give up and I wanted to finish it.  I didn't finish it.....  It's almost done, but I have to add one more section, a palm tree, because I didn't plan very well and the block is .75" smaller in width than it needs to be.  (I also need to decide if I'm going to add any hand embroidered words, like "Welcome to Jacksonville" for my postcard effect.)  I'm actually surprised it turned out as well as it did considering I knew what I wanted to accomplish, but I didn't know how to do it.  I really should have drafted my own pattern even if it was to use the elements from the existing patterns I had instead of trying to force two blocks together.....after they were sewed.  As a result, my plane is coming in for a landing--maybe a crash landing--instead of taking off and I lost most the bottom of the block in order to get the planes wings in the block.

.....this is also one of those times when I would have benefited from group advice because I really DON'T know it all, but when advised I usually can sew it well!

More Eclipse Quilt Blocks Ideas

The new Twilight Quilters..... blog is almost done. We're hoping to launch it next week. We've even secured a YahooGroups account. The "first" Breaking Dawn isn't to be released until November 2011 so there is plenty of time left for Twilight quilting. We hope to be able to complete many of the ideas I had originally before everything exploded.

I hope to finish Eclipse Charity Quilt: Trip to Jacksonville tonight. I've gathered opinions on the airplane and now I just need to make it work in the quilt block.

Linda Causee, 24 Tropical Quilt Blocks

The pattern from Paper Panache arrived yesterday that I'm going to use for Rosalie. I hope she doesn't end up looking too much like a zombie bride. I'll need to alter the pattern before I sew and I knew I would, but it's better than starting out from scratch and coming up with something lame. I wanted to represent Rosalie's actual story as featured in Eclipse. Let's hope that I can pull it off!

One of the next blocks is the Hunter and Prey block. (Bella spends time with Jacob while Edward is away hunting on the sly.) I have a couple of paper piece patterns for eagles, but I wasn't up to the challenge of working with a pattern that I would have to reduce more than 50% and the resulting need I would feel to go on about how bad a*s I was in completing it because it had a 1000 pieces like someone I know.  The pattern I selected will only have to be reduced to 70% and it's applique.  I'll just need to be sure I do some other appliqued blocks so it doesn't stick out like a sore thumb among all the pp blocks.

Mckenna Ryan, On Upward Wing (At Home in the Woods)

So, basically, I have all the blocks planned out in my mind.  I just need the time to make them.  The only ones I'm still trying to work out are the block for Bella's college choices and the Volturi.  I've been scouring the 'Net for ideas in my free time....  I don't want to leave anything on the table!

Holding Down the Fort

I've started and discarded no less than five blog posts the past couple of days.  I guess I'm not in the mood to complain or maybe it's just that words fail me?  Anywho, I'm knee deep in quilt blocks and I've not been able to focus much on anything else.  In the back of my mind, I have the sneaking suspicion that it will all be a fool's folly but I'm having fun for now combining quilting and Twilight again.  I'm actually having fun working with a friend who is like minded in goals and purpose. 

I'm at work today holding down the fort.  Boss #1 is at a food show with our other employee.  Boss #2 is out of town making the rounds and attending another show.  I'm.....blogging.  I'm about to go stir crazy with inactivity.  I'm stretching an hour's worth of work into an all day job.  My next big event of the day will be when the mail gets here.  We've been taste testing a couple of new products.  I'm not in the know about much that goes on around here so it's always fun when suddenly I'm asked to try something.  I don't think I ever give the right answers, though.  I picked a competitor's product in a blind test yesterday as the one I liked better.  Oops!  LOL  (I actually didn't really like either one....it was a cream cheese/mexican cheese jalapeno concoction wrapped in a spring roll.  I don't like spicy things and my mouth was on fire after eating both samples.  I would have liked it just fine without the jalapenos.)  I was trying spinach cream cheese rangoons last week and they were yum-O.  I wanted more spinach, though.  What do I know?!  It's not always how good something tastes.  Sure, it's important that it tastes good but cost is always an important factor in addition to how something looks and will be eaten as an appetizer.

It's the same old same old at home.  By all rights soccer should be done, but I will be taking the kids to practices for a few weeks more.  A has got a couple of make up games that we're not sure if both will be played so he's still practicing with his team.  C and S are both doing a tournament on Memorial Day Weekend.  C's coach is pressuring her to play another position on offense.  C insists she prefers defense.  I keep telling her she should take it as a compliment since her coach must think she is skilled enough to learn and play a couple of positions.  I think her reluctance is just nerves.  Me, I'd probably prefer offense.  I think it would be easier on me to miss out on a scoring opportunity than it would to be on the field and scored against.  I never was athletic and never played team sports so I find it hard to give advice.  I'm not sure if Z is going to play baseball or not this season.  M and Z are at war over his grades.

M did a lot of yard work on Sunday.  He was SO mad at the kids.  Uh-hum.....  The boys raked leaves to play in last fall and left them.  They never got bagged.  The pile had turned into a nice goopy icky mess.  M is going to attempt again to grow grass on the other side of the side walk at the side of the house.  He's been trying for years, but the area has never amounted to more than dirt and some type of weedy coverage of some kind.  He's been wanting to put a watering system there for years, too, but something always comes up.  I stay out of his plans.  I've never been a gardener.  I've talked about having a small vegetable garden, but all it's been is Talk.

We've not completed any more work in the house.  We've not made the time.  I'm not fooling myself.  It's all about priorities.

How You Look at It: Airplane/Trip to Jacksonville

This pattern has always bugged me.  It doesn't look right no matter which way I turn it.....  The top photo bugs me less, but the bottom photo is how the plane finishes.  What do YOU think?

Eclipse Charity Quilt: Penguins. Lovely.

Eclipse Charity Quilt:  Penguins. Lovely.

We've been monitoring the situation for weeks.  All the signs are there--the unlikely disappearances, always in the night, the poorly disposed-of corpses, the lack of other evidence....  Yes, someone brand-new.... (Edward)

...It won't be the same for me, I whispered, half to myself.  You won't let me be like that.  We'll live in Antartica.  (Bella)

Edward snorted, breaking the tension.  Penguins.  Lovely.

(Eclipse, p. 26)

Block Details:

7" with .5" white frame and "photo corners" on all sides, 8" finished

Pattern:  Silver Linings Originals Ice Animals

I pulled all of the fabrics out of my Twilight stash of fabrics that I've accumulated with all my past projects.  M insisted on the orange sky and I almost always.....listen.

Eclipse Charity Quilt: Penguins

I worked on Penguins last night and finished the block today sans border.  I must be getting better at the Silver Linings Originals' patterns because I had little trouble piecing this one.  I wish that my darker ice fabrics had more contrast.  I don't know what I was thinking....  I wanted the sparkle of the one, but I should have used a darker fabric.  All in all, I think it turned out okay.  I'll work on Imprinting next...I think!  I guess I will work on whatever blocks strikes my mood best.

I'll write a more detailed entry later...   And, yes, since everyone always asks:  there are penguins in Eclipse!