Something New…
Hey Hey Hey!
Long time no see. I’ve been meaning to check in for a while but just haven’t been able to make the time. I decided that today was the day however.
Rather than spending 3 hours updating you on everything that’s happened since we last chatted I thought I would take a cue from one of my favorite podcasts The Simple Show and hit 4 bullet points. Something to learn. Something to enjoy. Something good for me. Something to finish.
So something to learn…Well you all know that I’m a quilter and I love to machine quilt my own projects. I’ve been quilting for a really long time and love walking foot style quilting. A while back I discovered a new book by Jacquie Gering on that very topic.
The book Walk is a fabulous tool for your quilting arsenal. Whether you are a new quilter or a seasoned veteran you will find something new I promise!! Jacquie walks (ha ha get it) you through some complex looking machine quilting that results in absolutely stunning results. She breaks the process down and makes it feel almost like you’re doing a dot to dot puzzle from childhood. So how does this relate to something to learn? The actual art of walking foot style machine quilting is nothing new to me but I was so inspired by many of the designs that I wanted to try them out right away. I had a pattern testing project due (which I can’t share in full detail yet) so it was the perfect chance to give it a shot.
I can’t show you the entire finished project yet but this close up of the quilting gives you an idea. The design was in the “Multiple Focal Points” section of the book. This particular pattern was called “Switch Corner”. It’s a little bit hard to see since I can’t show the full photo but basically the design is split into 4 quadrants. The top left and bottom right lines meet in the middle radiating out to the edges. The lines in the top right start in the corner and fan out along the edges of the block. Opposite of the top left, bottom right lines. The lines in the bottom left do the same thing. Start in the corner and fan out to the edges of the blocks. The effect is amazing and looks almost like shooting stars. I’ll show you the full thing soon. I highly recommend this book!! You can check out this particular design on page 54.
Something to enjoy…well flowers of course!! Peonies are my VERY favorite flower and these plants in particular are incredibly special to me.
The plants originally came from my Grandparent’s home where they grew the majority of my Dad’s life and all of mine. A couple of years before my beloved Grandfather passed away and told me he wanted me to dig some up to take home and plant in my garden. Well fast forward several years and they’ve moved since then and are now in their forever spot. While these are just iPhone snaps I think you can still see just how beautiful they are! They are truly my very favorite part of spring!
Next is something good for me…We can interpret that in a million different ways but I’m going with the obvious choice. As in good for my body. As in exercise. I know, I know…you’ve already heard this. I won’t go into specific details other than exercise is a huge part of my life. Only comes behind my family and my work. I have planned specific exercise classes/programs/routines that I do 5 days a week and we always do something active at least 1 day during the weekend. I won’t get into the nitty gritty of it but I only workout from home 1 day per week. The rest is at the gym or yoga studio. On that one day per week at home I do “boring” steady state cardio with some strength training thrown there. I vary the area of focus each week. This week after my treadmill workout I planned for a quick upper body strength routine. Enter Fitness Blender. My go to for free online workouts that motivate and challenge me every.single.time. Check out the link below for a peak at my upper body workout out this week.
If you’re into fitness and exercise check out what they offer online. I’m getting nothing for mentioning them. Just the joy of sharing something I love 🙂
Last item. Something to finish…Well this one’s been done for a while. Just haven’t shared until now. You guys all know by now that I run an Etsy shop making custom memory quilts https://www.etsy.com/shop/ALCcreates
That’s a lot of pink right?! All kidding aside these 2 memory quilts are amazing. The mom sent me baby blankets and bedding to use to make 2 matching twin sized quilts for her little girls. They were both pretty labor intensive but the final outcome was SO worth it. In fact the mom loved them so much she sent me photos of the girls with their quilts and had me make 2 more, which I’ll share another day. If you’re ever interested in having me make something special like these quilts please head to my Etsy shop for more information.
So now that I’ve pulled off a miracle and managed to actually post something on the ‘ol blog I’d love to hear what are some things you guys are learning, enjoying, that are good for us, or that you’ve finished. As always, you’re the best!
xoxo!
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