Harrowing Evenings

The first week of school has been amazing! On top of friends, new exciting classes, and enthusiasm for research, I've had oodles of time to quilt! What a blast.

Mostly I've been binding. Oh, and I forgot: quilting all day Tuesday! Dr. Reid and I spent a harrowing Tuesday evening together in the company of Derek and Penelope, he chasing down serial killers and I strong-arming my largest quilt yet through my machine. Have no fear; we both came out on top. Bummer of all bummers, though, I finished the last episode in the last season of Criminal Minds at the same time as my quilting. (I suppose I can be thankful it was not before.)

Needless to say, with twenty feet of binding ahead of me, I need some new comrades to keep me company. The British hilarity of Top Gear has me chuckling up a storm, but it's not the same as a show with a long-term storyline. Any suggestions? It may be time to dive into Gilmore Girls. I feel, as a child of the early 90s, it's almost a requirement. However, I'm not completely sold on it as of yet.

What do you like to watch as you sew?

sneak peak of the quilt I'm working on that has yet to be revealed

Savor Each Stitch: Arches

With Christmas celebrations over, I snuggled into the couch with a steaming mug of tea and a present that I had been looking forward to for months: Savor Each Stitch by Carolyn Friedlander. Carolyn is so inspiring. Originally an architect, Carolyn made the decision several years ago to switch to quilting and fabric design, and it seems she hasn't glanced back. From pattern writing to fabric design, she excels. Authorship was no different. Each page of Savor Each Stitch is full of bright and beautiful photos with thoughtful prose and design lessons alongside.

My goal this spring is to exercise each of the design elements she explores as I sketch projects and patterns. Pictured here is her project Arches, which considers Line. An adventure in needle turn appliqué, I reveled in the methodical and relaxing pace of the hand sewing. This year of 2015 is already brimming with new ideas and thrilling prospects, and I can't think of a better book to kick it off.

What exciting books are you exploring this new year?

Linking up to Work-in-Progress Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced.

Shetland Studio Tour

I love meeting people and hearing about their ventures and passions. It makes grad school extra fascinating because every single person has a project they would love to share with you. Be it park design, flame retardancy, or anything in between I am all ears. I may not always fully understand, but I am a firm believer in SSLANT, and I will sit up, smile, look at you, nod, and track with your wild arm flailings. (If you haven't heard of SSLANT before, I hadn't either before reading Malcolm Gladwell's book Outliers. It's an intriguing book on successful people and the unexpected underlying causes behind such success, and it's definitely worth a read! I digress.)

When Emma from WeWork reached out to me with her exploration of creative spaces, naturally, I was hooked. WeWork provides the platform creators need to springboard into new ideas with services from networking events and work spaces to micro-brewed coffee. It sounds amazing! With a focus on building creative environments in which fresh entrepreneurial spirit can thrive, Emma wants to open a dialogue about our personal spaces. So, without further ado, I invite you to enter my summer space as well as the conversation.

Welcome to the Shetland Studio.

Storage 

You can't really replace good storage (unless you live near the Container Store, then you could replace it and rereplace it weekly. I positively drool an ocean when I enter that establishment.) I like mine organized and color-coordinated. Sometimes doors are better. Sometimes they aren't.

Display Options

I think it's important to bounce back and forth between ideas and use old ones as stepping stones to new creative heights. For this reason, I like to have easy places to hang and change out previous projects. A five dollar tension rod from Target and a set of ring clips are perfect, especially for quilts.

Trusty Sewing Machine

This is the crux of a sewing studio, so naturally, it's in the middle of the space. I love my Bernina (although this one is my mother's, to be fair.) Berninas are precision workhorses, and hers is even transportable! What I wouldn't give for the new Bernina 830 with stitch regulation and a vast deep throat. Heck, how amazing would it be to have my own long-arm machine!

Stations

Stations are important to me: design station, ironing station, sewing station, cutting station. That way the transitions between pieces of a project don't slow or hinder me.

Big Work Tables

Aside from large amounts of storage, I also appreciate copious flat work spaces. An uncluttered wide open table is the same as a blank page in my opinion. It is a springboard for the creative mind to leap into the unknown (or simply the next project).

Design Wall

All you need is an old flannel sheet, another tension rod, and some command hooks. It's a game changer for me when it comes to designing and squinting and rearranging. And speaking of squinting, it's handy to have an old pair of binoculars within reach. Looking through them backwards gives a great impression of movement and overall composition. Don't have a pair? Take a photo on your phone. It gets about as small and works just the same!

Comfy Seating

At the end of our garage studio space, we have a futon and rocking glider. Although this is technically because our studio doubles as guest bedroom, I find it a nice place to retire to for hand sewing, knitting, and the other unplugged untabled diversions.

Natural Light

There you have it: my studio space. To be honest, above all of these, I value natural light. It makes me happy. It shows me true colors. And it makes photographing for the blog a breeze. Now, if only I could figure out how to add natural-like light to my little workspace in Raleigh without knocking down walls for windows.

What are your favorite things in your studio space?

* I am not being sponsored by WeWork and cannot vouch for their integrity, but to me they seem pretty standup, and I like helping to spread burgeoning ideas.

Patterns on Cases

Christmas is such a lovely time of year, full of joy and fellowship, cozy evenings and family. This year, I almost had more fun watching everyone open their gifts than actually opening mine! I was just so pumped for the little things I'd collected and crafted all fall long. One such gift was the iPhone case for my mom.

Last Christmas I designed cases with my hydrangea pattern for my sister and I (pictured above). I was so excited, but I couldn't post about it until I'd given the gift. Then I just never got around to it! This Christmas the same thing happened, except that, with Mom as my blog cheerleader, she went outside with me to take photos. (Moms are great, aren't they?) So here it is, the new uniola case! It looks great with her white iPhone, and it will be a fun change of scenery from her leather Fossil case when she feels the need for a shift.

PS It's ridiculously simple to do on Shutterfly. You should definitely give it a whirl with your favorite fabric design!

Scattered Wheat

Tis the season of projects we can't share on our blogs. The afghan is out of the bag, but there are two more endeavors in the making. I'm really excited about them and how they are coming together, but enough of hints! I still remember my best friend Haley looking me in the eye my senior year during jewelry class and saying, "There's something I can't tell you." Gah! Well then don't. Because now I REALLY REALLY want to know!!

This project is not a secret, though! It began a couple summers ago as I forayed into modern twists on traditional blocks. I even quilted it back then. The binding just took another year and a half coming. Ha! Can anyone relate?

Now that it's done, it's hanging right in front of my desk at school. It is the first piece of artwork up, and the zen feel helps me keep going when my literature searches feel fruitless. That and calls to my PhD mom. (Thanks, Mom.)

I've been drooling over a couple new quilters lately. Tara's gorgeous style, hipster beanies, and classic quilts over at Rad and Happy have got me dreaming up new projects. And Lindsay Stead's impeccable taste and reserve in modern and heirloom quilt design make me want to throw out all my prints and work purely with solid duos. With them in mind, I've returned to some of my more minimalist projects, and that's where I'm heading next.

Do you have any secret holiday projects? I promise if you tell me, I can keep a secret. The lucky person receiving your gift isn't likely to read the comments on my blog either! This is a safe place. Get it off your chest.

If you're looking for finished project inspiration to keep you sewing as Christmas rapidly approaches, you can find more with Finish it up Friday over at Crazy Mom Quilts.

An Afghan for a Graduation

Climbing into leggings and my favorite sweatshirt, I brewed hot chocolate in my red mug and tucked toes into cozy slippers. It's been a go go go kind of week, (and it's not going to slow down any time soon) but I had such a meditative Sabbath weekend that I feel as if I can tackle any mountain of papers, presentations, and take home finals.

The temperature dropped this weekend, and out of no where I felt like knitting. Now, I knew that I didn't knit in the summer and that I was more productive on the hat-and-blanket scale when days turned cold, but I didn't realize it was such a gut feeling. All of the sudden, I longed to snuggle into a chair and while away hours with Netlfix and bamboo needles. Good news for me: there was a project awaiting the return of my intrepid fingers that had been stranded the other side of summer. My sister's long-awaited afghan. I say long-awaited because I began working on it five months before her high school graduation, and she is now a sophomore in college. Better late than never, it arrived in her open arms over Thanksgiving.

I worked from Brooklyn Tweed's Hourglass Throw pattern, and I am thrilled with the results. In soft dark grey heathered yarn, it is a timeless pattern and style that will be an heirloom for future generations. Now if only I had the patience and time to make another for myself!

Have you pulled out any knitting projects as holidays loom?

Experiment One: Paper-piecing

This is the first of my mini quilt experiments. With the shop open, I feel some freedom to try out new styles and techniques, to branch out and play around, so I'm embarking on a set of little trials.

Number one: Paper piecing.

Now, paper-piecing is partly for the perfectionist and partly not at all. Crisp lines: yes. Efficient use of fabric: no. Cutting wonky oversized scraps is not for the Dutch or the stingy at heart, but the results are glorious! Straight lines, matching corners, lovely shapes and geometries. My heart is happy with the quilty results. And Sarah Rose's pattern was such a fun one to begin my adventure with.

Have you tried paper piecing before? What are your favorite modern paper-pieced blocks? 

Linking up to WIP Wednesday with Lee over at Freshly Pieced.

Community and a Coral Quilt

I know it's only November, but I think I know my New Year's Resolution for 2015:

go to Modern Quilt Guild meetings

This past week I was invited to sew with some ladies from church. Now, I've never sewn with people before, so I didn't know what to expect. Usually it's just me and the characters of my favorite TV show with Mom and boyfriend on call for design advice. But with phone dead and a warm house on the north side of Raleigh beckoning me, I decided to try it, community sewing.

Guys, it was amazing. I had so much fun chatting as we worked, seeing their projects, and stitching side by side. We had Hallmark Christmas movies on the telly and chips and guac on the counter. In wool socks, leggings, and a comfy sweater, I felt so welcomed and at home. I knocked out cutting, design decisions, and piecing in one night, and I'm really looking forward to going back!

This leads me to my New Year's resolution. I've been meaning to go to a MQG meeting for so long. My hometown MQG even meets at my favorite local quilt shop, Pink Castle. I guess it just took an extra little push from God and my church family. Well, hooray, push received! I even looked up the Triangle Modern Quilt Guild and got excited to meet some of the ladies, such as Daisy at Ants to Sugar and Nicole at Mama Love Quilts. Eek! So excited!! TMQG here I come!

Settling and Sitting | rice pack time

As I've settle into life as a graduate student, I've done just that: settled. No more dancing for a couple hours in the evening or walking to and from classes, hiking to the dining hall for meals or going on evening strolls with my friends. I just sit. I sit and read papers. I sit and summarize them. I sit and listen in class. I sit and review the lecture after class. I sit and prepare for group presentations. I sit and hear other people give them. Don't get me wrong; I'm loving grad school. It's just my back that isn't so much. Apparently it doesn't like sitting as much as me.

Well, it came to a head a couple weeks ago when I could barely sit still through our women's Bible study with the twingeing pain, so I arrived home and set to work. It was rice pack time. I followed SewBon's Hot and Cold Pack Tutorial and simply switched out the handles for ties. Now in just one minute and forty-five seconds standing by the microwave, I can have a cozy heating pad to tie around my lower back. And I get to enjoy my fabric every time I pull it out!

Tutorial Review:

The tutorial has lovely photos to follow, all the perfect measurements, and is quite simple to complete! I struggled a little filling each compartment with rice as I went. The rice kept slipping into the line of sewing and making my lines jagged and ugly. I pulled it out once or twice and decided to sew the lines and fill later (since there are little gaps at either end). This worked, but I spent quite a bit of time shaking rice through little cracks and mostly ended up with it weighted at either end of the pack. As I use it, this becomes more emphasized. I would suggest filling each section a little less full as you go and sewing almost all the way, leaving perhaps a centimeter at both ends. Even with these little difficulties, I've been seriously considering whipping up another one that I can leave in my office at school. The rice pack really does work like a charm!

Welcome to the Lovely and Enough Etsy Shop

It began with a fresh apple cinnamon donut and a latte downtown Chicago. Working at a big wooden table with light flooding across my notes and the cute terrarium beside me, I started to build what I'd been laying the foundation for all summer long. And then, all of the sudden, it was there, published, online. It was almost anti-climactic.

That's when I realized the shop didn't begin on a Saturday morning in November. It was sunny fall afternoons working on farmer's wife quilt blocks. My 20th birthday road-tripping to all the best fabric stores with my Mom. Chilly winter mornings with the front door thrown wide for better-lit blog photos. Hot long days painting hydrangea patterns at the Fuji Studio in Florence. Sunny football Saturdays test printing in Adams Hall. Late night after late night quilting like a maniac and listening to my sister’s “Jams” playlist to prepare for my senior show. Bright summer days reading business books and sipping inspirational Arnold Palmers. Then finally a Saturday at the Coffee Studio in northern Chicago. And now, a cozy moment in my research office before class.

This isn’t a one-and-done project, a checkmark on a list. It’s my biggest work-in-progress of the past two years, an endeavor I didn’t even realize was beginning when it did. As Etsy reminded me in their handbook for beginners, a business is all about trial and error, just like life. I am thrilled to embrace this next giant step in a series of so many. I still don’t know exactly what I’ve gotten myself into or where it will take me, but messy adventures are the best kind, and you can’t map them out (like I often attempt). You just have to live them.

Welcome to the newest unfolding organic undertaking of my creative exploits:

the

Lovely & Enough

Etsy shop

Check out some other more tangible works-in-progress at WIP Wednesday hosted by Freshly Pieced.

Variations on a Bouquet of Hydrangeas

Do you ever fall back in love with a project? It can be a work-in-progress that you pull out again or a finished project that resurfaces several months later. It happens to me a lot. Nostalgia and sentimentality come easily to me, the little rising feeling in your chest when you see a picture of a lovely vacation moment or a finished quilt in its new home or a small adorable grey kitten. (Yeah, I've been kind of wanting one of those lately. It could tiptoe across my keyboard while I blogged and curl up its soft little body in my lap. I'm getting that feeling now just thinking about it. I digress.)

I realized, as I finish up quilts and prep to open my shop, that I never shared a finished quilt from this summer. And then when I was looking at the photos, I got all nostalgic over it. It is the third incarnation of my Variations on a Bouquet of Tulips quilt. Seeing the progression of colors and quilting from one to the next is so fun, so I am going to share it with you!

First came the six-inch buckwheat block for my Farmer's Wife Quilt. Next my senior show quilt, Variations on a Bouquet of Tulips. Third, the duplicate senior show sale but with light grey on the side triangles instead of low volume white, Variations on Variations on a Bouquet of Tulips. (Yeah, if you read my post about naming quilts last weekend, that one's a bit of a mouthful.) And lastly, all new colors and some new quilting, Variations on a Bouquet of Hydrangeas.

I have received many bouquets of hydrangeas in the past year, each one with its own special giver and expression of love. Hydrangeas encompass the network of people spread across the country that come together to love and support me; my sister and Mom, my friend Susie, my boyfriend Brent. From designing fabrics to my farmer's wife quilt and blog beginnings to opening my shop in the coming weeks, I couldn't do it without you. Thank you all dearly. This post and quilt go out to you!

Linking up to Finish it up Friday over at Crazy Mom Quilts.

Fresh Starts II

How does one name a quilt? I was brainstorming (the collective I that includes Brent [boyfriend], Taylor [sister], and other text-support [Mom]) and came up with some I really loved, but suddenly, out of nowhere, the name game became a thought-provoking dilemma.

I love "the Tate" and "the James" as if I am naming the pattern. Then anything after it could be "the Tate II" and "the Tate IV" or "the James VI." But those means nothing to anyone but me. Tate is my new roommate's last name. James is the name of the library on campus I inhabit. See?

I also like "Summer Sails" or "Fresh Starts." These have more immediate narrative when you hear them. They are names you might post in a gallery. Also a tad more whimsical, these names shift the focus from pure design to story.

Gahh I'm so indecisive; I should just give it a number: minutes worked on it plus date finished, 125610152014.

I realized mid-dilemma that this one is easy. It is called Fresh Starts II. Its first incarnation was already christened, making my decision simple. And the quilt is drenched in fresh starts, moving to Raleigh, beginning grad school, a new relationship, and an exciting business venture. Fresh Starts II it is.

But how do you name your quilts? Your projects? Your products? Your art?

What's in a name? I'm all ears.

Yep, it's sideways. But what's really the top anyways?

My photo-snatching partner-in-crime and I peering through the Contemporary Art Museum window around front.

And I'm linking up to next week's Finish it up Friday because I couldn't be my lazy bum to post before last week's. Better late than never! Check out the flimsy finish and quilted progress too!

Post in Progress

If you know anything about me, you know that I'm indecisive, so when Brent suggested the most perfect place to take my next set of blog photos, I was faced with a new dilemma: too much of a good thing. I loaded up the pictures and saw the import number rise to a whopping 239! And now I have to sort them down to around 20!! This could take me a day or two, what with being a student and having to go to class and all, so this work-in-progress Wednesday isn't about a quilt but about a post. The finished quilt post is in progress. I'm slowly cutting ties to one photo at a time to be deleted forever from my hard drive (dramatic but that is how it feels sometimes, anyone agree?). Sorting through good photos for spectacular ones is a tricky beast, and in the meantime you can enjoy these OneHourPhotos that Brent took of me during the shoot. Happy Wednesday.

Linked to my Work-in-Progress Wednesday support group at Freshly Pieced.

Chuck Bass and the Matchstick Quilting

Can I just say how beautiful today is? It's a crisp 66 with clear skies and autumn sun. The air practically smells like spiced apple cider, and my toes can snuggle into slippers while I sit and quilt. So lovely. I settled myself by my Bernina for some matchstick quilting and propped an old friend next to me on the iPad: GossipGirl. Together Blair, Chuck, Nate, and I cruised the wonderful afternoon away, and oh my word, I have two things to say.

One, somewhere along the way I became a fan of Chuck Bass. I can actually pin point it back to a fateful week in January working on my senior show. What has become of me? He's just so romantic under it all...

And two, matchstick quilting takes a heck of a long time, but oh, does it look so pretty when it's done! The quilt has a newfound texture. I might not love snuggling under it, but it sure looks spiffy up on the wall. Printed way back in May and quilted some in July, this quilt has been a long time coming. Ah well, experimenting runs on its own schedule, I guess. Good to remember as I embark upon a PhD!

Linking up to WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced. Check out the other projects!

Life happened, and it was good.

While Brent was visiting he asked me about my Etsy shop...my ever-exciting and just-out-of-reach Etsy endeavor... Well, let's see. I had planned for it to open by the beginning of August. I intended to have my full line of fabric printed before I left my big printing board behind. I wanted to have ten quilts to list in two color schemes. Guess, what? Life happens.

And life is a good thing to have happen, even when it disrupts your plans. Gorgeous city. Wonderful roommate. Lively farmer's market. Exciting cooking adventures. Breezy sailing on Lake Wheeler. Breathtaking ballet. Scrumptious local restaurants. These are the snapshots that build a life that is lovely and a life that I can be more than content with, a life that is enough.

The shop will open near the end of October, and I couldn't be more thrilled. Five quilts for the first opening of the shop will be absolutely peachy. With quilts three and four underway, I am plugging along full steam. The grand beginning is in sight! If you could choose one quilt from my senior show for me to reimagine in the new fabric collection and colors, which would it be?

I'm linking up to WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced for some fresh inspiration and lively camaraderie.

Head on over if that sounds good to you too.

Plus for a Finish

Mission three into the James Hunt Library was a success. Laden down with newly finished quilt and iron, I confidently climbed to the fifth floor. Brent was such a gentleman to let me disrupt our weekend for a library photo shoot. He even engineered an invisible tape method to hang the heavy quilt. What a guy.

We snapped over seventy photos that gorgeous Sunday morning, and I had to FaceTime my mom just now to decide between them all. Here are our four favorites. The quilt was designed for my living room wall and hangs comfortably above the couch. It fills the room with a balance of softness and presence, and if it wasn't for the complete lack of natural light in here, I would show you just how classy and homey it feels.

The quilt is also brimming with imperfections. Wobbly seams, batting peeking out at the edges, binding stitches that went through, and plusses that don't align. That's what shows it's handmade. Some of my favorite vintage quilts have worn-through holes and faded patches, missed corners and uneven quilting. The imperfections bring it above factory-grade quilts; they make it perfect. I've been thinking of starting a linkup for Perfect Imperfections, the happy accidents, the frustrating mistakes. What do you think? Would enjoy linking up to that?

Mission one and the early stages of this quilt can be found here, pre-binding. And I'm so excited to link up to Finish-it-up-Friday over at CrazyMomQuilts and Show Off Saturday at SewCanShe. (Links forthcoming when those days arrive.)

Crisp Slices and Fresh Starts

Rolling the rotary cutter across new hand-printed fabric gives me such a rush. Seeing the crisp slices through white pistachios and citron fences is akin to smelling the first breath of spring. New projects, new combinations, new quilts. It's all so fun!

Brainstorming for the new collection, I sketched during my afternoon grad seminar. Lone stars. Ohio stars. Swoon blocks. Corn and beans. Then once home, I pulled stack after stack of fabric and left them piled on every flat surface in my room to simmer. Thursday morning I woke up and saw the stack at the foot of my bed and thought: Fresh Starts. It was the last quilt I pieced for my senior show, a large cut glass block, printed in one corner and stitched in straight and diagonal lines. After this, I promise I will branch out to new patterns, but what pattern is better to start my PhD program with than "Fresh Starts"? And what better place to photograph the flimsy finish than my new library?

Check out other breaths of spring air at WIP Wednesday on FreshlyPieced.

Skipping Around the World

Tag is such a fun game. Any stretch of space can become game territory, and the only thing required are legs and lungs. A normal afternoon becomes an adventure of pursuit and capture. My mind is taking me back to those sweaty thrilling childhood afternoons as I type this.

So, when Christina of Wips and Tuts asked if she could tag me in the Around the World Blog Hop, my answer was a resounding, "Yes!" Cristina is a lovely "wholesome midwestern girl," as she likes to describe herself. Down to earth and brimming with sweet encouragement, she is a friend anyone would love to have. Her perseverance in quilting and willingness to try new things are evident across the many welcoming pages of her blog, and coupled with big process pictures, it's definitely a spot you'll want to check out.

Christina of Wips and Tuts

Running barefoot across the blogosphere in this game of tag, I hope you will pause on my patch of lawn before jetting off to the next stops.

What am I working on?
I am in the process of opening up shop! It is exciting and scary and sometimes feels like I'm jumping off a cliff. More often than not, though, the cliff is above an azure sea somewhere in the sunny Caribbean, and I'm just running straight toward the edge anticipating the fun. My newest collection of hand-printed fabrics and hand-printed quilts will be available there, and I can't wait to see where they will travel!

Why do I create?
It makes my heart happy. Pure and simple. The soft slip of fabric through my fingers, the crisp edge of a pressed seam, the bubbling smile of a quilt recipient. If I didn't need to pay rent, I would do it all day long.

How does my creative process work?
I love to sit with pencil and sketchbook, peruse my favorite blogs, and dream up the next quilt. This is my ritual: brew tea, light a candle, clear my work space, pull out something inspiring, turn phone to "do not disturb, and relax.

As the game of tag goes, it's my turn to chase down and love on some women I really admire.

First, Erica at CB Handmade. She is awe-inspiring. Elegant, understated, and modern, her classic designs are heirlooms for future generations. Her monthly posts never fail to blow me away, and I've spent many a Saturday afternoon seeking inspiration in the annals of her blog.

Erica of CB Handmade

Second, my mom, Jennifer, at Fibermusing. She is an inspiration to me: computer engineer PhD by day and amazing quilter and fabric printer by night. Her most recent series of quilts, drawn from a collection of sermons on wisdom, are beautiful with breath-taking attention to detail from tiny scribbles of bright stitching to water-color penciled gradations. I wish I could devote an entire post to her because this only scratches the surface of her fount of creativity and originality.

Jennifer of Fibermusing

So, there you go: "Tag! You're it!" Thanks for stopping by. Now it's your turn to tumble down the hill after these ladies in this fun winding game and explore their gorgeous arbors and meadows of the blogosphere. Enjoy!

A Bench with Potential

It all started with an estate sale. (This is pretty much the best way to start any story, if you ask me.) It was my first weekend in Raleigh, and I was feeling rather furniture-less. No bed, no desk, no chairs, just one comfy sofa and two old wooden ironing boards. Now, to be fair, that is a pretty great starting point, but in the spirit of nesting I was interested in finding a couple more pieces. And lo and behold, my mom found the bench.

Tucked in a little girl's room and covered in pink and white stripes, I may not have given it a second glance, but that's where my mom is awesome; she saw potential. She pulled me over to it and painted visions of reupholstery and furniture wax, and then I, too, was hooked.

We proudly carried it out of the house for just $30, and the true planning began. Evenings were filled with schemes to print and wash screens in my little apartment. Afternoons were spent dashing between Lowes and Home Depot, frantically requesting backup from Brent on furniture wax purchases. Until it all came to fruition Labor Day weekend.

I printed up some light grey hydrangeas, waxed the bench to smooth goodness to the tune of Thanks for Sharing (if you haven't seen this movie yet, it's a worthwhile watch, albeit a serious and adult one), and stapled till the cows came home.

Now, the lovely bench graces our entryway and reminds me of Northern climes where I might actually need a bench on which to don boots. I truly wish I had the guts to march into the Hunt Library and carry my bench to the fifth floor for photographs, but alas, my apartment shall have to do.

Quilts and Clandestine Missions

It was so quiet, large, empty. With a bulging bag over my arm, I padded to the elevators in my Carolina blue dress and pressed the brushed steel button for the fifth floor. Silent doors slid open to reveal the gorgeous Skyline Reading Room of the Hunt Library. Big white walls to my right and floor-to-ceiling windows on my left, I slipped off my shoes and pulled out masking tape and quilt. My clandestine mission: to use this dream photo studio for my almost-finished quilt.

The moment I walked into my new apartment, I was taken aback by how large it is, a huge cavern from dining room wall all the way to living room edge. If the couch feels a tad small, the frames on the walls look like postage stamps. No matter, I can quilt. (Imagine me with hands on my hips, chin held high, wonder woman.) Because this quilt isn't for the shop or a show, I was allowed to delve into my non-handprinted fabrics. (Now imagine me as a kid in a candy shop.) It was a fun way to jump back into quilting after so long working on fabric designs, and tonight is the night to bind it!

What do you like to do as you bind a quilt?

So excited to have a quilt to link up to WIP Wednesday over at Freshly Pieced. Head on over to check out what a talented group of sewers are whipping up!