Stitches in Play

easy-peasy log cabin variation

In 2009 I posted a simple method for piecing log cabin  quilt blocks using strips of fabric cut salvage to salvage.  Fabric is cut AFTER it is sewn, eliminating the measuring and precise cutting of dozens of fabric peices.  This week I'm applying my same easy-peasy log cabin method to another variation of the log cabin block.  

1.  Cut strips of fabic salvage to salvage.  These strips are between 4 inches and 6 inches wide (depending of how much I had of each fabric).  

2. Cut a center square (this red one is 9 inches x 9 inches)

3.  Sew any strip of fabric to one side of the square.  

4. Press seam flat.

5. Cut strip fabric even with center square on the top and bottom.   

 

6. Rotate center square 90 degrees.  Sew another strip of fabric.  Press seam flat. Cut fabric strip.  Repeat.  (For this quilt top I used the same fabric for all 4 sides to form a square pattern but you can use different fabrics to create a more traditional log cabin design.)

Still working on this quilt top, just adding one strip at a time when I have a minute.  While Zoe the dog seems to like this piecing method she would rather I stop sewing altogether and scratch her belly - go figure!

Note that if your strips are not long enough you can simply sew two shorter strips together to form one longer strip. 

Let me know if you have have any questions.  I'll show my progress and the finished quilt in future posts.

seeking flow

“Most of us spend many hours each week watching celebrated athletes playing in enormous stadiums. Instead of making music, we listen to platinum records cut by millionaire musicians. Instead of making art, we go to admire paintings that brought in the highest bids at the latest auction. We do not run risks acting on our beliefs, but occupy hours each day watching actors who pretend to have adventures, engaged in mock-meaningful action.

This vicarious participation is able to mask, at least temporarily, the underlying emptiness of wasted time. But it is a very pale substitute for attention invested in real challenges. The flow experience that results from the use of skills leads to growth; passive entertainment leads nowhere. Collectively we are wasting each year the equivalent of millions of years of human consciousness. The energy that could be used to focus on complex goals, to provide enjoyable growth, is squandered on patterns of stimulation that only mimic reality.”

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi  Excerpt from Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

Spent time this week clearing out the things that get in the way of play, imagination, creativity and peace of mind.  Now we have the room find flow through engaging in activities that bring us joy and challenge us.

a time for every event - virginia beach vaca

Enjoying the final week of summer vacation.

I dream about visiting Venice and Paris and Barcelona and Athens and Copenhagen....

But these days the best place for our family to bond and make memories is right here.  Close to home with the warm sand, the ocean waves, and the salty air. 

"And there is a time for every event under heaven."  -Ecclesiastes

la trip - part 2

Second half of la trip features us at lacma, universal studios, and getty museum.

 

We love la.  I grew up in los angeles but coming back as a tourist - and seeing these sites through my kiddos eyes - was so much fun. 

la trip - part 1

Tourists in the town in which I grew up.

I will always love los angeles.

Good bye Disneyland Hotel.  We'll miss you.

day at maymont

There is nothing quite like roaming around a 100 acre park for a day.

We had so much fun.

We were exhausted.

One of us still had the energy to climb a tree.

ready for the big show

This dancing girl of mine.  

 

 

She takes her dancing responsibilies so very seriously.

But she never forgets to have fun.

One of the many, many reasons I love her so.

outer banks spring break 2014

Making memories with my peeps.

 

Dearest Outer Banks, NC,

Oh how I love thee,

For helping us create so many wonderful memories,

And for providing such a beautiful place for us to bond.

We shall be back.

Please don't ever change,

Please remain forever Simple and Pure and oh so very Welcoming.

Thank you.

 

liking in january

Today is our third snow day in a row.  I'm liking that our little family is spending a whole lot of time together.

We are playing + making + cooking + eating.

We are also trying to keep warm + drinking tons of tea and hot chocolate + making the house look very "lived in"

I'm (once again) thinking about how we need to get rid of more stuff we're not using.  To make room for dancing + playing + creating + daydreaming.

I like that I have been spending a lot more time outside - running + walking + playing with zoe.

Liking that clearing out + organizing always equals sewing inspiration.

Liking that my girlie loves science + creating + dancing while doing the science and making.

Enjoying the music + dancing entertainment that fills our evenings.  Garnering inspiration from my kiddos.

Cooking after school snacks... 

That taste even yummier for breakfast the next day. (recipe on my flickr)

Other things that I am liking in january are:

- reading in bed each night on my new kindle paperwhite.

- drinking my favorite tea combo (1 bag tazo awake + 1 bag tazo passion) each morning.

- listening to NPR while I drive my kiddos to all their activities and events.

- roasting a seventeen pound turkey because I found an extra can of whole cranberry sauce in my pantry.

- catching up with old friends through blogs and flickr.

- taking weekly five mile walks with a good friend.

- going on daily runs with my pups each morning.

- laughing with my smart + silly kiddos - who are a lot of fun when they're not arguing!

Hope you too are finding many things to like this january.

still here

I'm going to try to be present in this space once more. 

Once again weighing my lack of time versus my need for a creative outlet.

Not much has changed since I was last here.  We sold our country house and moved to the city (just 45 minutes away) full time.  In October we added Zoe (a rescue pup) to our family.  We celebrated birthdays and holidays - I'm now 43. Everything else is pretty much the same.  We still like to make and play and have fun. 

Looking forward to seeing what 2014 brings.  Hoping for lots of peace, love, and good health.

Wishing the same to your family.