This And That

I've been working on a little of this and a little of that for the last week or so.  My Quilter's ADD was running rampant for a while there, and I couldn't focus on anything.  So I did just a little clean-up in the studio (found the top of my desk!!) and it seemed to help tame that ADD beast.  There's still a lot of clean-up/straightening up to be done, but after that exhausting experience I just wanted to sew.  And now the cat doesn't have to surf across the desk to sit by me.  We're both happier!

My third Woven Treasure Bag/Cell Phone carrier has been finished and gifted, so I can show it to you now.  This is sized to fit the smaller flip phones, not a smart phone or i-phone. These are not my usual colors to work with, but I enjoyed working with some different colors.  I knew C. would like them.  So this bag is now hers.  I'm working on supposedly making bag #4 for me.  Haven't actually touched it in weeks.  But it is "in process".

I found out about the Country Threads On-Line Sampler Quilt quilt along from Cathy over at Big Lake Quilter blog and decided that I wanted to do it.  I've always loved all the C.T. patterns and books, but haven't really made many of their patterns.  So this is the year!  I'm off to a late start, but still have plenty of time to catch up.  Lots of piecing and no applique - right up my alley!

Here are my blocks for January.  The blocks are 12 inches and 6 inches. I've decided to go with a "circa 1900" vibe/color scheme for this sampler.  You can see some circa 1900 quilts here, here, here and here.  I'm thinking lots of blues (both indigo and medium blue), reds, claret, some black and olive green and the occasional cheddar and chrome yellow, with shirtings and lots of plaids and stripes.  A little brighter and more colorful than the Civil War look.  

And here are my February blocks.  This was the suggested look for this big block, and I'm not too sure I like it yet.  I'll wait and see before I make up my mind, but this may get changed to the more traditional configuration, like the small block.

I'm starting my March blocks now, and I hope to have them done before the month is over.

The local art gallery is going to be doing a yarn bombing in their neighborhood and is asking for help.  When I was looking for something in the studio the other day, I ran across some yarn and my crochet hooks.  So, I'm attempting to remember how to crochet!  I used to do it a lot, but then had to give it up because of arthritis in my hands.  

My brain is feeling rusty again!  You can see that this is not a perfect example of how to crochet! I can't quite remember what to do at the edges (and it shows!) and I think I was not really doing a double crochet stitch there for a few rows.  But whatever - it doesn't have to fit anyone and it's not for close scrutiny!  I don't think the tree, or whatever it gets put on, is going to care much about my technique!  And I'm also sure I won't be doing much crochet in the future.  It still doesn't feel very good and I can only do one row at a time before I start feeling it.  But it's fun to play with yarn again.

Have you tried something different lately?