Headbands and Heartthrobs

I am officially done with all projects except my quilt. Yay for finishing projects! Since I am home for Thanksgiving, my Mom and I headed out yarn shopping today but had no luck. We found two balls of a pretty and soft Merino wool, one in dark emerald and one in a ruby tone, that will make beautiful headbands. Unfortunately, not the carmel color I was seeking or yarn for Taylor or Mom's inifinity scarves. Ah well. After a day out and about, we settled down to eat Mancino's and watch The Avengers, which was surprisingly hilarious and full of attractive guys. When I mentioned this, Taylor, Mom, and I each said different characters simultaneously and then all laughed. I guess that's what happens when the heroes from all the movies end up on the same set.

This headband is made from soft and warm Berocco Ultra Alpaca wool from my first trip to the yarn store downtown Wheaton. The pattern is an XOXO cable pattern that I found on Ravelry.com. The two metal buttons to close it were sent by Mom from the vintage button box back home. It's perfect for when I have my hair up in a bun, which is almost always. 

Knitting Dates

This past weekend was full of lovely knitting dates. Susie and I hung out Friday night--me knitting i-cord around my afghan, her a thick and quick scarf. It was a cozy evening with the lights low, peering through the blinds at people with more exciting lifestyles. Fast forward through writing a paper, a treasure trove estate sale, a dance rehearsal, a baking adventure, and a pancake dinner party to the next lovely knitting date. Susie and I watched What to Expect When You're Expecting. The plot was alright, not as funny as the preview led me to believe but made completely worth it by the swoon-worthy Chace Crawford. And to top off the evening, I finished my afghan! All screaming and applause was held off until every last loose end was woven in, but then excitement broke loose! I began this afghan in January, intending for it to be twin-size and finished by May. The project, however, gained a mind of its own, becoming king-sized and extending itself into my summer and fall. I have been snuggling under since it was large enough to cover my lap, but now with the knitting needles finally unattached, I can burrow without fear of losing a stitch or an eye. The saga of my first afghan has finished, just in time for me to begin another :)

knit cable

fisherman's knot

lattice

The afghan was crocheted, except for the cables and the i-cord edge. The body of the blanket is a basket stitch. The green panels are crocheted in a lattice stitch. And the outer aqua panels are a fisherman's knot stitch that I borrowed from a child's sweater pattern. Between the panels, I crocheted and reverse crocheted several raised ribs to add definition. I welcome any questions.

Afghan Joy

photo credit Susie Eichling

Remember, Remember

Remember, remember the fifth of November...and the fact that you're still a student. Three papers to write this weekend. Two science tests to study for. And Hartree-Fock approximations to tackle. Unfortunately, this leaves so little time for quilting and knitting and all things fiber. I did, however, read a wonderful book by Mark Labberton titled The Dangerous Act of Loving Your Neighbor while enjoying a chai latte at Honey downtown Glen Ellyn. I highly suggest that you read this book. It's honest, insightful, and kindly convicting.

Here is an excerpt (slightly paraphrased):

"Lord, open and soften my heart today. You have been so generous toward me. May I give out of all I have and even out of what I think I don't have. Help me to see and respond to my neighbor as you do. Use and meet me as I walk down the street, stand in line, engage with students at the college post office window, study physical chemistry, take pictures of refugees, knit hats. Use my gifts and life as I am working, playing, relaxing. Take my time. Take my money. Take my power. Take my powerlessness. Take my weariness. Take my fears. Take my tongue. Take my questions. All that I have and all that I don't have are in your hands. Amen."

Love and Enough

I didn't actually finish any squares this week, but I did finish three other fiber projects and cut the fabric for two new blocks. I also didn't take pictures before the newly saved daylight ran out. (Yay for getting an extra hour of sleep; boo for it getting dark at 4:30.) That said, I fell in love with my fabric again and I fell in love with John Krasinski in the movie Away We Go. Simultaneously. So I would say it was a lovely afternoon and enough to have accomplished.

Home for a Weekend

This is the first weekend I've been home in a month, so I finished four squares and started two more! Hooray! I realize that I have been terrible at blogging consistently, and perhaps it is because I don't have deadlines. Therefore, I am choosing Sunday as my "must-post" day. I must post every Sunday. Period. I'm enjoying the grey, green, blue, and white color scheme so far. I'm also loving the design boards that I wrote about in the last post. Everyone should make design boards for blocking squares

This Week's Squares:

Gentleman's Fancy

Ribbons

Century of Progress

&

Bowtie

Gentleman's Fancy

Ribbons

Century of Progress

Bowtie

Design Boards

With a busy college life, I'm constantly picking up and putting down my quilt project, which means packing my little fabric pieces inside my Farmer's Wife quilt book and back into the stash box. It makes for a lot of touching of the pieces, which warps them. Plus, it's quite sad to be constantly dismantling my unfinished blocks. So...solution! I made design boards from a tutorial on Bee in my Bonnet. And they work splendidly for transferring my blocks back and forth from iron to machine as I lazily spend my Fall Break stitching squares together and catching up on Bones.

Out With the Salmon, In With the Citron

I was laying out the squares on my dining room table one sunny afternoon and enjoying the color-coded stacks of fabric. Then I plunked down the salmon-orange stack...and didn't like the collection as much anymore. I pulled all the squares with salmon in them to the side and immediately liked the feel better. Without the salmon, the blocks have a lighter, airier feeling. So, I've decided to try to make squares without the salmon for a month or so. That's when I realized that I only have two or three citron fabrics, so I perused Hawthorne Fabrics and my sister's quilt stash (thanks, sis) for more. Here are the ones that came in a happy care package on Friday!

fiber care package = best care packages

(thanks, mom)

Been Awhile

I haven't taken pictures in awhile or been as productive as I suggested at the end of the last post, but I do have four squares. Two squares in the last two weeks have been minor failures. (Well, maybe three.) First, I was piecing Homemaker, and I don't understand how to sew the diagonal dotted lines... Second, I cut out the pieces for Ribbons, but some of the pieces seem to be missing the seam allowance in one direction... And third, I'm not sure I love the colors I chose for Square Dance; they lack contrast and interest. So, of six attempted squares, I have three that I am happy with, which is okay.

I'm not disheartened. The sun is shining. The book-on-CD is playing. I danced this afternoon with my beautiful friends. And fabric is calling my name louder than homework deadlines. Sounds like a glorious afternoon to me :)

This Week's Blocks:

Churn Dash

Evening Star

Friendship

Square Dance

Churn Dash

Evening Star

Friendship

Square Dance

Quilt Envy

Camille Roskelley over at Simplify posted today about her Farmer's Wife Quilt, and I am very envious of her gorgeous blocks! Hers was the quilt that inspired me to do this quilt in the first place. I love the lively brightness of her color choices without making the quilt overly bold or in your face. Really I wouldn't mind if my quilt looked exactly like hers. However, I am not a professional quilter, like she, and I do not have my own moda line to furnish my creative interests. Nevertheless, I am more inspired than ever to continue piecing my squares, and I may just attempt to complete four (or six!...) this weekend. I've decided to add a widget on the blog that counts down the squares I have remaining, similar to Amy Adams' countdown on her cooking blog in Julie & Julie. Camille may only have 17 squares left while I have left 103 to go, but I am more motivated than ever to work on my quilt!

Periwinkle and Downtown Abbey

This week I was a little slow on posting, my apologies. I spent Thursday morning cutting and Friday afternoon sewing. With Downtown Abbey for company (and my roommate laughing at the ridiculousness of attempting such a large and finicky quilt), I cranked out the squares. They seem to be going quicker but I may just be picking the easier squares... My rule of thumb #2 that I've devised is: if there are three or more colors, one must be pure white. I broke that rule last week but held to it this week. It complements rule #1, there must be a light color in every square.

I have decided to hang up my finished squares on the wall to add some color and a sense of accomplishment to our living room. I'm still in love with the colors I've picked, and I 've realized that they kind of ended up being the colors I decorated in coincidentally. How perfect!

This weeks blocks:

Periwinkle & Big Dipper

Big Dipper

Periwinkle

Four More

This week's blocks:

Attic Windows, End of Day, Mother's Dream, & Seasons

"It is because I have known the happiness that comes of service, that I want my daughter to know it, too. Is there any greater joy, I wonder, than that of a hard task well done?"

Mrs. S.O.

 Mille Lacs County, MN

Attic Windows

End of the Day

Seasons

Mother's Dream

Behind but Back

My friend asked me what would happen if I fell behind in my schedule of two per week. Full of hubris, I told her I would not fall behind, so I didn't even have to consider that possibility. Of course that meant that I didn't finish my squares that week, and it was still only week two! I resolved to cut out my next two squares and sew them all at the same time to catch up.

This afternoon with a little extra time and not too much homework yet,  I blitzed the four squares. After laying them all out, I realized that one of the green fabrics I had didn't feel quite right, so I nixed it and went for a coral. The evening was peaceful but fun, watching two incredibly attractive men fight over Reese Witherspoon in the movie This Means War and trying out my new pint-sized iron. 

First Squares

The Farmer's Wife Quilt is inspired by a 1922 magazine's call for an answer to the question: would you want your daughter to marry a farmer? Each letter is accompanied by two squares. The letters are so lovely with mothers describing the beautiful lives they dream for their daughters. In testament to their love and the history behind this quilt, I'm going to post a quote from each letter as I piece the blocks that correspond to them.

Today's blocks are

Peace & Plenty and Jackknife.

"I want my daughter to bear hardships more bravely, not to be relieved of them; to meet difficulties more sturdily; to face motherhood as the 'heritage of the Lord.'"

Mrs. G.B.S.

Saline County, MO

Jackknife

Peace & Plenty

It's much more difficult to line up the corners of the triangles than I thought it would be. My "Handmade Mantra" might be more applicable than ever in this situation:

Imperfection adds character;

if you wanted it perfect, you could've bought it in the store.

That said, I pulled out about five seams and tried to at least make the corners line up slightly better. I'm mostly happy with my first two squares, and I can't wait till I start collecting a pile. One week down, fifty-four to go!

Piecing

I started my first block today! Picking out fabrics was fun but a little nerve-wracking because I don't have any rules of thumb to follow. Well, that's not completely true. Rule of Thumb #1: Each square must have a light-colored fabric or white in it.

Still, the studio was feeling kind of quiet as I ironed yards of fabric and tried out combinations without anyone there to give me feedback, so I turned on Leap Year and rotary cut to my heart's content as Amy Adams fell in love with the dashing Matthew Goode. The pieces are much smaller than I anticipated, but following Camille Roskelley's instructions on her blog, Simplify, I felt confident chain-piecing the two blocks that I had chosen. I have officially started my quilt!

The Beginning of an Adventure

"Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your hands, just as we told you so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody."
I Thessalonians 4:11-12

This year I want to seek an attitude of contentment and happiness. One way that I am going to avoid the drudgery of school is to quilt. I have decided to tackle a Farmer's Wife quilt and am committed to making two squares every week. Today I ventured out with my mom to four local fabric stores and picked up a beautiful selection of fabrics. Tomorrow will begin my quilting adventure as I quilt through physical chemistry tests, documentary photography classes, friend drama, (and perhaps romantic interests, maybe?).

I will seek to live a life where I work with my hands and mind my own business. My life is so full of blessings: a loving family, a great group of friends, a burgeoning church, and my knitting and quilting. I want to live happily and contentedly and remember that my life is lovely and enough.