The Newest Quilt

Okay - So I have been to the wedding and shown the almost completed quilt to the Bride and Groom. Michelle Petro Gerster is Bob's niece and her husband Ben Gerster loved it! It wasn't completed when I showed it to them as I still had to finish the handwork on the binding, I thought that I would be able to do so over the weekend and leave it with them but ..... Well... I was having too much fun ;) Besides this gives me a chance to finish and clean the quilt (get the Marlin and Spike cat hair off) and find a way to express all the thoughts that I had about marriage while I was sewing it. What was cool is that I got to see thier reactions and explain the inspiration for the design. In thier home they have a large wooden wall hanging and Michelle has always been a conservative clean lines kind of girl so I made her a rail fence quilt that reflected the colors on thier walls and the clean fresh lines that she loves.

As I was sewing the rows together I noticed some flaws in the blocks, some didn't quite line up,
some had come unstitched towards the edges and some of the seams were wonky (both in the way the strips lay or which way I sewed the seam). Some were small flaws, some were critical in the construction of the quilt, there were areas that were quick and easy to fix and others that took some doing.

Wonky seams

As I surveyed these flaws I got to seeing that a marriage is very much like a quilt. In it's frabric it has it's good side and it's "not as attractive side" some fabrics more than others.  Some of the flaws were both minor in appearance and importance and could be left alone. I even found some that were large and would have taken a lot of work to fix, but quite frankly they just weren't worth fixing because ultimately they didn't matter to the strength and beauty of the quilt and maybe even showed that this was handmade and while not perfect was a labor of love. some of these flaws would actually disapear as the quilt grew and it would take a very discerning eye to spot, because it all sort of flowwed together and was still a thing of beauty.

wonky seams on the back side - I didn't always sew them the same direction

But there were some places where big or small the flaw was critical to the strength and look of the quilt. There were some spots were the seam had come unraveled and while I could have sewn the block to the next block there would have been a gap that over time would have allowed the quilt to slowy come apart.

So regardless of whether it was an easy fix where just an extra stitch or two would do, or if I had to rip out and rebuild some areas just to get to the flaww to repair it, I took the time to do it.

And bit by bit a beautiful quilt/marriage is born. The trick is to see the flaws for what they are, to know how they fit into your marriage, what needs to be removed, repaired or embraced. The ones with the most loved quilts/marriages are the ones that know how to have a discerning eye and a loving hand in the care of their precious quilt/marriage.

Have a Great Marriage  Michelle and Ben!

The Mobility Scooter

Sorry it has been awhile since I posted - Creativity goes in spurts and projects take awhile to complete. I did complete my very first quilt and was so pleased with the result that I have embarked on a new quilt however since it is a gift i will refrain from sharing to much about it at this time. What I have recently completed was not something I was contemplating when I started this Blog and has taken me by surprise.

A mobility scooter. A very generous tenant at the Mini-storage knew a relative that had one in a barn. He called up his brother and proceeded to get him to donate the scooter to us. All it really needed to function was a new switch and batteries. However Bob being Bob stripped it down and rebuilt or refreshed it, Then we painted it. I did the body painting and - it still needs work, filling chips and cracks ect..., but we wanted it to look nice for our trip to Port Townsend and the Wooden boat festival.

I learned a lot and I will probably go back this winter and address some of the issues and then repaint. Having learned a lot about the process I think I can improve it quite a bit.

This project was a little out of my comfort zone but it was a colaborative effert between Bob and I and the results were quite satisfying. Also the scooter made the whole trip to PT absolutely possible and enjoyable. After having to escort Bob everywhere I had to adjust to the fact that once he got used to the thing - He took Off!. He was going to booths and attending seminars, having a wonderful time, and leaving me in the dust.

So I got to work with my husband on a project, learned new skills and ultimately got a break from caring for him as he was able to excercise some independance - this project has been deemed  - SUCESSFUL!

The Quilting Learning Curve

Recently I began working on my Grandma's quilt and quickly realized that I needed more skills. It wasn't quite as simple as I thought it would be to create straight and square blocks. I imagined that other things would be more difficult. But I also realized that I was making it up as I went along with less than ideal fabric ect..ect..

And Then....

A few weeks ago I found out that a quilting shop had moved in within walking disatance of our place. I wandered over and while meadnering around dreaming of quilts to be made I discovered that they were going to be holding a 6 week begining quilters class. YAY!  So I showed up the day of the class and found I had 15 mins to pick out 6 fabrics and start the class. I picked some lovely Batik fabrics but was unsure how it would all turn out. I'll post pics later but suffice to say they all go great and I named the quilt "An Evening in an Island Paradise" that's because it makes me feel like I'm enjoying an evening on a tropical island next to a lagoon.

I have learned so many new skills, tricks and helpful facts about fabric, cutting and sewing that I'm thinking  I may have to do the unthinkable and redo the work on Gram's quilt. Even though that would be a huge chore, I believe it would be worth it.

I also was messing around with the molas (side note - I'm finding that I am juggling several quilts at once, is that normal?) and I know what I want but I still have to learn how to do it. Now that I have my quilt shop (Is that like having a bar or pub?- I'll think of it as my Yacht Club ) I have people I can ask. I think that it will have to wait a bit down the line because what I want to do seems to exceed my current skills.

And That brings me to....

Skills. I am finding that I have a very artistic and creative soul and I keep coming up with quilts I want to make that far exceed my current skill level. At last count  the current # on the back burner is 9.  And this doesn't count the quilts that I have seen that I think I would like to be able to make someday, Just for fun or art's sake.

So I am going to class and dreaming about quilt designs and working hard on my technique so I can make these quilts that are in my head. This is soooo much fun!

One Last thing...

There is one quilt. It's a special quilt. I read about this type of quilt in a book series (the ladies in the stories had a quilting club - not the main thrust of the books) and then in class the other day another woman mentioned she had a friend having one made. It's a wedding dress quilt. The idea is that you make a quilt out of your wedding dress. This touched my heart. While my dress is not tainted by Fashion Fads It does not seem to be a style that would work for any of the girls in my family. And the thought of having a quilt made up of special memories that I can wrap myself up in after my sweetheart has gone to eternity gives me comfort. So stay tuned for that quilt

Upholstry Project

After 10 years or more it has become apparent that it was time to recover my kitchen chairs.

I was sad to realize that I could not replace with the same fabric especially since I had a matching valance on one of my windows.So I had to find something simular. Now that my roaming days are reduced doing a crawl through all the fabric stores was not possible. So I tried looking for websites for my favorite fabric stores up on the computer. To my amazement I actually found a fabric that might do and the next day when I got off from work I went to the store to see if they had it. Of course I had to look at ALL the fabrics just in case I found something else but - yes they had it and no there wasn't anything better.

So I brought the fabric home and started on my project. I had origanlly covered the original fabric with some fabric I had made curtains with so they would match. So all I had to do was remove my previous work, revealing the commercial fabric they were originally covered with. Eventually I will have to remove even this and replace both the foam and the fabric - but when I do that I will probably have to strip and refinish the wood to and I'm not quite ready to do that- maybe in another 10 years :)

                                                                     

It didn't take long to remove and replace the fabric and I am so very glad I did it. I feel like I have brand new chairs, I started and completed a project, and I have experienced some of the comfort I'm seeking, expressed the beginings of the creativity I am reviving and pretty sure I have kept my sanity while accomplishing this very first completed project.

                                                                               

Before - old fabric and stripped chair

                                                                            

The new and improved chair ♥

Honoring those who went before us

Welcome to Comfort, Creativity and Sanity
Why do I call it that? Because I am a caregiver for my husband who was originally diagnosised with Parkinson's but it has now been changed to MSA (more about that later)., and I have been given a challenge to find ways to create respite situations. One of the ways is to indulge my love for artistic expresssion such as quilting and creating other forms of art (usually involving sewing)

So when I began to stay at home and care for my Husband and manage the Ministorage business where we live I found that I had large blocks of time where I couldn't go anywhere and didn't have much to do. So I used quilting and other sewing type crafts to fill the time and use the creative outlet as a respite from the burden of caregiving. I find it is infusing me with an enthusiasim I haven't had in a long while .

  So this Blog is my way of both sharing my attempts at respite and to document my journey as I care for my husband. Come join me and share your crafts and the joy that they bring you.

It all started because....
In February my husband was diagnosed with a rare disease called MSA - Multiple Systems Atrophy. This was not an improvement from his previous diagnosis of Parkinson's Disease that we have been laboring with for the last 2 1/2 years.

As a result I have had to face the fact that I will be relinquishing my position with my current job and taking over his job as the manager of the ministorage business where we are resident managers. At this point niether my husband nor the business require lots of work but they do require that I be on site for most of the day, 6 days a week, so I find myself being "On Call" with large chunks of time to myself. I have also been challenged by those who love me to "take care of myself and make sure that I get respite". I am searching for ways to accomplish that within the specifics of my circumstances.

Quilting!
My mom gave me some embroidered and cross stiched blocks that my grandmother made shortly before she passed away when she was in her 90's. I have created a design and am now working on putting it together. The plan is to complete the quilt and gift it back to my mom who has made everyone else in the family a quilt.I am finding that this is a very rewarding, exciting and more emotional task than I had anticipated. In this way i can honor my grandmother and make use of the beautuiful work that she did. Her stitches are near perfect!. And also honor my mom for all the qwuilts she has made and given away to her loved ones. I know she will cherish a quilt made of her mother's work.

Several of my friends - who quilt- have gotten very excited that I have joined thier ranks and offered any help that they can send my way. I feel like I just joined a club. I have not been able to express my creativity in a very long time so i am excited by this outlet. I also have some native Panamanian art called Molas. They are reverse quliting appliques with traditional designs. I have ahd them for about 16 years , always with the intention of making them into a lap quilt. I hope to do that one next and already have the design in the infant stages of creation.

When I am finished with these two quilts I have some ideas for a couple more. It will be interesting though because they will be my first  "from scratch" quilts as the first two were created with blocks someone else created. I look forward to the challenge.

SO HERE GOES!