Doggone almost long gone...

No stitchin' tonight.. this post is entirely of the other variety...  This post is for any parent who has ever had to rush to the pet store while their child is at school to find a suitable hampster doppelganger or has stood in the bathroom with the family surrounding the toilet playing taps on the kazoo while a goldfish swirls down to his final resting place or have had to post fluffy's face on the telephone poles under the word L-O-S-T.

There has been no sewing this week.. and I really don't watch much TV, so on these nights when I do sit on the sofa and try to pay attention to the programming that Glenn watches I often find myself sound asleep within minutes.  Tonight was one of those nights, my eyes opened on the sofa at around 12:45 AM.  I hate that for a few reasons; one is that I just can't stand the thought that all that time I sat there was completely wasted.  I didn't work, I didn't clean the house and I hadn't sewn a stitch.  Another reason is that there are chores and things I need to do each night before bed and waking up slumped over on the sofa puts me in such a fog that I stomp around the house like an extra in the living dead movie series getting things ready for the next day and letting the dogs out one last time so they don't nudge me with their wet noses at 5:30 AM the next morning.  That's the very thing that went wrong this evening...

Those who know us know that our dogs are like real people to us, they're our family.  We have laughed many times when we look at each other and realize that we're all sitting on the living room floor while the dogs are nice and comfortable stretched out all over the sofas.  When I work from home Cinder (our female lab) lays under my desk, when I sew she lays under my table.. with either her paw or her snout resting on my foot.  My son has never slept a day in this house without at least one dog on the foot of his bed, when he was an infant Wiley (our male lab) used to sleep beside the crib, sometimes half way under it.  He and Cinder have had a love affair since the day we brought him home from the hospital.

Both dogs watch over him and he loves them so much, the three of them are one unit...

 ..... which is why it's 3:35 am and I am wide awake taking deep breaths and finally able to relax.   I'll explain...

I woke up, on the sofa tonight.. like I said, around 12:45 am.. not very happy to have fallen asleep.  I go into my son's room and wake Wiley up to tell him that he needs to get off the bed to go out to go pee before I go into my bed... he groans a bit, stretches, gives us a shake and starts his 11 year old lab lumber out towards the door.  I didn't need to wake Cinder up because she, at 7 years old, is still the most playful, friendly and lovable lab ever.. she of course is right behind me the whole time.  If I move.. she moves.. she will spring up from a sound sleep to follow me to the bathroom only to sit out side the door and wait for me... then wag her whole self when I open the door...she is ready and we all go to the back door.  And that is where it all goes wrong....

We have a fenced in yard.   The front facing the street is 6 foot high cedar board fence and the sides and back are 4 foot high split picket.  It is convenient because we can simply open the door, they both go down the deck steps and and kill the grass in their favorite spots.  Now, I should have known something was wrong immediately because Wiley happens to be the one lab in all of lab-dom who hates getting wet.  He loves to swim, but will walk like a cat that has paper bags tied to his feet in wet grass and will choose to stay in if it is raining out.. but not tonight... they both went out happily.. I figured they really need to go since I was late and usually let them out at around 10:30 pm.

Turns out I had failed to stick my head out in the rain to check the front gate which because of the wind and rain was wide open.  I closed the door, not knowing and went to get a drink of water and then went to wait by the door for them.. it was odd that they were not running back in for their last snack of the night... they are dogs with very strict routines.  But still... I waited.. Not seeing them for about 5 minutes or so I looked out the back window into the yard, I could see the whole yard with the flood lights on.. no dogs.... hmmm maybe they're around the side of the house... I go out in my bare feet, in the rain.. walk around to the side, still inside the gate.. uhhhh no dogs.  I then, on my way back to the door, looked at the gate and I instantly felt my heart drop... it was wide open and they were both gone.

I yelled Wiley's name.. and like someone caught in the act he pokes his head over to the open doorway where I can see him as if to say... "Huh? What?".  I scolded him for being out in the front yard and he happily trotted over to me with the promise of a piece of doggy chicken jerky, his favorite snack.  Cinder, however, was no where to be found.  I couldn't see her.. she is all black and it's 1 AM on a dark, rainy night... I can't hear her collar jingling... she's just gone.  I freaked just a little...  We joke around all the time that as playful and lovable as she is, she is equally daffy.. If she were a human she would be one of those super models who can't spell 'super model'... she's just a beautiful, wonderful dog.. but beyond 'Catch the Frisbee, love the humans' she's not got much more to offer.  She passed her obedience classes, she got her canine good citizen badge... she's just a poster child for not knowing enough to come in out of the rain... go figure.

So I run in the house, put some shoes on, grab a flashlight and an umbrella and figure I'd grab her up in the neighbors yard eating some gladiolus or something.... I walk one house away... no Cinder... I walk two houses away, no Cinder, I cover about 3 houses on either side of ours... no Cinder.. now I panick!  The very first thing I can think of is 'How am I ever going to tell Jason that I lost his Cinder!?!  His girl!!'  This boy loves that dog like crazy....

 
I was completely beside myself...  Glenn got in the truck.. drove all around the neighborhood, on the busy roads and couldn't find her.  I then took my turn on foot and walked around desperately yelling "Cinder Frisbee!!" something she just can't resist... and there she was... 3:20 AM.. jumping around in someone's yard like it's play time at doggy day care.... she bounded over to me.. I hooked her up and took her home.  Glenn and I sat there for an hour.. not able to sleep.. not knowing if we should be relieved, frustrated or frazzled.  In the meantime, there's Cinder.. right where she belongs, fast asleep on the sofa.

Hopefully worth the wait...

Just like someone with an addiction that goes to a group meeting and stands up to announce the issue that brought them to that end... I too need to stand up and say.. "Hello, I'm Kim and I am scared of the double wedding ring quilt that I'm working on!"

I figure if I write it here.. I can no longer ignore it.  I have been working on a lot of different projects at a time lately.  Some out of necessity, with so many new babies in our family I have been gifting some quilts for them, but also have been doing some fun projects too.  Like many quilters even when there are no projects actively on my radar, there is that one project.. the one that keeps being put aside and picked back up whenever time permits.  In my case, that's a queen size double wedding ring that I began several months ago and I have to say has been one of the most frustrating and difficult projects I have ever decided to attempt.  I refuse to say that it has beat me.... but if it were a person, me and that quilt would NOT be on speaking terms!

This is how this project began...

I have a niece, well.. I have 7 of them, but one in particular that around late summer or fall of 2010 had visited my house for a scrap book night.  She had been discussing plans (casually) of she and her boyfriend at the time getting married.  Now, mind you, at that time they were not engaged 'officially' and no plans (that I knew of) had been made.  Or if they were she wasn't fessing up about them.  However.. knowing her as I do, the next day I started to search for fabric.  I figured that I'd have my gift all ready when the special day arrives.. or when she calls me and tells me that she just got back from whatever tropical island where she secretly got married... I'd then magically appear with a wonderful quilt to wish them well.  So that was the plan..

Choosing the fabric...

I had some strict guidelines for myself when choosing the fabric for this project.  I wanted bright but not obnoxious colors and I wanted a chance to bring into this project a concept of random placement of colors / fabrics, something that I have been terrible at so far.  I also had to feel that the fabrics 'fit' the project.  What I mean by that is traditionally this design is done with fairly muted fabrics or fabrics that somewhat seem to meld together .. so I tried to fit all three criteria into my choice.  I also wanted the fabrics to fit my niece and her soon to be husband's personality too.. be 'hip' but cozy... ya know.. all the above.  I'd also need a lot of different fabrics that all matched together as the "arc" component, which is the key component to this quilt, hosts 11 different pieced strips of fabric.

I hit the jackpot I think with a fabric family called "Fandango" created by Kate Spain for Moda fabrics.

Now, non-quilters may look at those fabrics and say.. ".. kinda funky fabric maybe for a 1970s leisure suit ... but not to much for a big quilt"  However, keep in mind when you use small strips pieced together it is the overall effect that you see...

Foundation pieced arc before the extra was trimmed off.  Paper piecing allows you to work with strips that are not cut to fussy sizes / shapes which saves time.  I saved a bit more time by buying this fabric in jelly rolls which is a roll of strips cut two and a half inches wide.  All I had to do is cut the pieces to the proper length... saved a ton of cutting time.

Choosing the pattern...

As for choosing the pattern of a double wedding ring.  Simply put, I like the history of this quilt.  I am always interested in the beginnings of quilt designs.. that is, the history of them.  A lot of the older designs have a documented meaning or a sort legend behind them.   The double wedding ring, although seemingly obvious in its meaning has some mystery within its history.  The oldest known examples go as far back as the early 1800s and then a surge of this style appear again around the time of the great depression in the late 1920s and 1930s.  The logical assumption for that resurgence, I assume, is the fact that large bolts of fabric may have been expensive and cost prohibitive.  Therefore, quilters again had to rely on scraps of fabric to complete their quilt projects.  This quilt pattern contains over 1000 small strips of fabric pieced together to form the arcs, the main component of the design.

Not fully assembled, but you can see here why I like the fabrics.. fits the bill; some bright, some muted, randomly fits together and looks like fabric that would have been used in a traditional double wedding ring.

This design also lends itself to one thing I am trying to work on in my quilts, which is random placement of fabrics.  I tend to gravitate to those designs where colors and shapes are symmetrical.  My brain simply works best that way.. although that does not make a very interesting quilt and makes the work I'm doing faily common place and boring.  This is one way I thought of to get some "random" into my work.  Of course the symbolism isn't entirely lost either, a double wedding ring which I intend to quilt in a diamond pattern.... seems like a fairly clear well wishing for a wedding.

Now the challenges..

This quilt has a lot of firsts for me.. other than this being my first DWR pattern it is also the first time I have used the process of paper/foundation piecing for the arcs.  Which leads me to the 2nd and biggest challenge.. arcs.. arcs.. arcs... this quilt has so many difficult points to match up.. the arcs have an inside, and outside.. and to machine piece those has been so difficult.  Because of that I have resigned myself to the fact that this project may have to also be the first full size queen quilt that I have to completely go over by hand.. that's right... needle.. thread.. hoop.. by hand!  Something that I have never done before and am honestly not very skilled at.... now I know the reason we see all those old photos of frontier women sitting around a quilt all quilting it by hand together .. if it were up to one lady everyone would have frozen to death!  Especially if it were up to this woman...

While doing some reading and research about this I found a quote that clearly outlines my issues with this project..

"Double Wedding Ring. The very name inspires thoughts of romance and wedlock. And certainly many of these scalloped-arc quilts have been started to celebrate impending marriages.  Although they may not have finished until the first child's appearance!"  

Exactly!!  My niece was married on January 01, 2011 and yet finishing this quilt has been so challenging.  And yes.. as the quote hints.. their first baby is due in less than 1 month!! Luckily for me his quilt has been finished already.  So, for this project I am going to use every moment of the 1 year allowed by Dear. Prudence when delivering a wedding gift... hopefully I can finish it by New Years Eve!!

If you can read this thank a teacher!

Just stop for a few minutes and think of all the ways teachers and your experiences in school have shaped your life, how it has impacted you.  I have certainly been influenced and molded by my memories, experiences, struggles and successes that I've had in school over the years.  The road to the person I am today has, in some way, been paved by the influence of teachers, coaches, friends and fellow classmates.  Some teachers deserve more of my reverence than others.. and you can certainly tell the ones that give their whole self to their work..

With this school year coming to an end I had been left with the thoughts of how well Jason has done in Kindergarten.  We're not ready to mail in his application to Mensa just yet, but I've observed a very socially immature little boy grow in so many ways over the last year. 

Those of you who know me know that I'm not a parent who touts my boy's strong suits only to ignore those aspects where he has room for improvement... I like to think I'm honest as to the truth about his abilities, and where he's still learning. 

Just a year or two ago he had a great deal of trouble being social, it was difficult as a parent to watch sometimes.  Even within our family he struggled to feel confident speaking with his aunts, uncles and cousins and would often cry and fuss at family events.  This year it has been nothing sort of awesome to see his personality come alive, for that special spark that he has to come through.  I am thrilled for others to finally see what I have been able to see all along.  He really is such a caring, smart, funny and creative little boy.  Of course we, as his parents, have an influence and have been trying to guide and encourage him.. but, I strongly believe that the exceptional teachers he has at his school to guide him has made all the difference.

One of the projects I have completed this week has been a gift for Jason's Kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Vorce.  One of the other mothers and I had been discussing possible gifts to present to the teacher at the end of the year / graduation celebration.  I had brought up the fact that I was thinking of a small quilt project for her and she suggested hand prints.  Sounded like a great idea and since she volunteers at the school she was kind enough to assist by sneaking the children out of the class room a few at a time in order to have each of them make a hand print and write their name for us.

She then passed the prints along to me and I scanned them into the computer and printed them with an ink jet printer onto printable cotton... Sounds familiar??? Yes.. yet another way to use printable cotton other than photographs..

The children will be presenting this to Mrs. Vorce on Thursday of this week... See more in-process photos in 'Quilt Gallery 2'

**** UPDATE **** Photos of the kids at their end of the year pizza party presenting this gift to their teacher added to 'Quilt Gallery 2'...

'Cruising the Galaxy' for good deals on quilt fabrics...

Well, this week I've got 2 projects going, this one and a project that I am collaborating on with Jason's kindergarten class... I'll post that in a few days.  I have just finished up a new baby quilt to welcome my niece Lisa's baby Cole, due July 12th.  Turned out that this has been a very fun and creative project.  The search for Cole's fabric took me a long time as I started with the idea that I wanted a color that I had not used before, the bright orange fit the bill there.  I also had thought that I'd like to find a cartoon-y print of space ships... I was happy to find this fabric online as it was just what I wanted...

Just what I had in mind!  It's called 'Cruising the Galaxy' from a company called Wilmington Prints. Only trouble was... it was ridiculously expensive, $9.95 per yard.  Might not sound expensive, but then to think of several yards per individual fabric ordered, plus shipping.. the cost adds up.  So my next quest began, finding it at a bargain price.

Usually, when I need a bargain on something I shop around a bit, but don't really go out of my way.. if it's too expensive I don't buy it .. but driving around to find quilt shops that have this fabric would have been hard to do and there are plenty of places online.  So, it took me a few weeks, but I found a few on-line fabric shops that offered much better prices for the same fabric.  I've added these on-line places to my main blog list of on-line fabric shops.  I've also discovered that there are a few tricks to making sure you get the best deal;

> Know how much yardage you need and if you can get away with fat quarters for your project that can be a lot cheaper.  Some places have fat quarters cut in advance and yardage requires new cutting and might either require you buy more than you need or might charge a fee for cutting specific lengths.

> One place I found offered an additional discount percentage if you ordered 15 yards or more of fabric from them.  If you have several projects planned and can order that much yardage, the price for this fabric for example was $2.50 per yard.  That's close to 80% off the original price at the designer fabric online outlet.

> You may need to have your fabric shipped from more than one vendor.  I ordered 4 different fabrics that are part of this design and received them from 4 different discount fabric outlets.  This is because some of them offer a discounted price because they only have 1 or 2 of the lot.  

> Some stores, like Joanne Fabrics for example have a few different ways you can save money on nice fabric.  For my office window treatments, for example, I had waited for a sale on home decor fabrics.  These fabrics are usually $30 per yard.  When you make a large project, say several windows, that can be quite expensive.  However, I waited until they had a 50% off sale, which they do often.  I ended up choosing a fabric that had been previously marked own and got the 50% off that!! Super bargain!! Ended up getting $30 per yard fabric for $7.50 per yard!!

All in all I saved a lot on this fabric... it was a very fun project and hopefully baby Cole will love it!

More In-Progress Photos in Quilt Gallery 2