Thursday, January 24, 2019

Grieving with Gratitude

As I've been decluttering my studio, I've been coming across some UFOs (unfinished objects for you non-quilters).  In the past I would have just let them languish - too guilty to throw out, but not interesting enough to finish.  But now I view them as mindless sewing. I started opening the drawers in my plastic storage towers.  One was filled with red, white and blue fabric.  This was perfect to make a veteran's quilt for our quilt guild's charitable projects.
Some of the pieces were pieced.  Some of the fabric was cut.  
There were lots of setting triangles - large ones.
I had no recollection of my initial plan.  I can't even remember when I started this.  I don't own any of this type of fabric any more. So, I knew I had to use what was in that drawer.  The paper pieced flying geese strips were the start of my playing and I added the setting triangles.

It really became one big puzzle.  I really enjoyed the process.  The large setting triangles were used to lengthen the quilt to make it more of a lap size quilt. But if you notice, there is a hole in the center of the quilt.  I am probably the only person that decided to create a quilt from the outside in.
A pinwheel block filled the space pretty well.  
Finished the top measures  42"x63" and now I will pass it off to another quilt guild member to quilt. (Thank you Cindy.)  It might be another bunch of years if I was to quilt it.

My first outing without Bailey and without Henry was to check out a new quilt shop with my dear friend, Joyce Hughes.  Joyce lives quite far away.  She wanted to visit me and I didn't have the heart to make her drive all the way to my house.  A meet up at  Stitch Central was a great compromise.

 I did have to put on my big girl panties to walk out the door and leave Bailey behind. 
It's a very quaint shop in an historic building.  The woodwork and beams are so beautiful.  The fabric is located upstairs in the loft.
On the main floor is yarn and embroidery supplies and the two nicest owners ever.


I did buy some very cute fabric that I'm planning on using for a book blog tour.  Look for it in March.

Speaking of friends, I have been over whelmed with cards and emails and phone calls.  They all mean so much to me with their love and support.  In the beginning, I just couldn't leave the house.  Staying at home, or cocooning was my security zone.  I was so grateful for visits from friends.  Being home alone all day makes for a very long day.

The vacation hold has been lifted from my Etsy shop.  Every day I accomplish more and more.  I am now ready to start packaging and shipping.  I will be offering a special discount in my next newsletter, so sit tight for a day or two. If you're not a subscriber, make sure you sign up now, by clicking HERE



Friday, January 18, 2019

Grieving with Gratitude


I have changed the focus of my blog to encompass my journey of learning how to be a widow.  Honestly I will be treating this like the journal of my life moving forward.  It may be hard for you to read.  I know it will be hard for me to write, but I am doing this to help myself and anyone else who finds themselves in the position of loss.  You know that quilting will be instrumental to this journey.

It has been 1 month since I lost my partner.  It's still hard to be creative.  The ideas get jumbled up in my head.  I spent a good deal of time decluttering my house, including my studio.  So many things were put off, thinking one of us would get to it.  The explosion of Mini Mosaics consumed the productive part of our day.  We spent so much time in and out of doctor's offices, in and out of hospitals, in and out of Philadelphia.  I am so grateful that we explored every avenue and never gave up trying to extend his life.  There are no regrets, no what ifs.

I have been working on mindless sewing projects.  I made drawstring bags for a Jewish charity in Rochester.  As I cleaned my studio, I came across some partly finished projects that were perfect to work on.  The first was this wedge quilt wallhanging made with fabric that I hand dyed. I think I made it about 3 years ago.  I had 3 other blocks.  If memory serves me correctly, I was going to make a 4 block quilt, but decided it would be too large.  I did a circular quilting pattern with my walking foot.  It was perfect for my lack of creativity.  The walking foot kind of became a metaphor for moving ahead, putting one foot in front of the other.

Through all of this, so far, my sparks of joy have been Bailey and Henry. Henry got me to leave the house to go to Disney on Ice or the movies or to see the lighted trees in Rose Tree Park or  just to pick him up.
 
Bailey became my security blanket.  I took her with me wherever I could.  I thought she would be just as lonely as I was if I left her home alone. What a wonderful companion.








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