Fresh Squeezed Stash Enhancement

Maybe I shouldn't have gone in search of a quilt shop... my bank account would be healthier, although my spirit more dull, I'm sure.

Anyway, I went to Kindred Quilts today, and brought home more than I intended to... What a cute shop, with a nice mix of fun contemporary fabrics, batiks, reproductions, wool and stitchery. Perfect for feeding my eclectic tastes. I brought home some truly needed items, like a spool of white 50-wt Aurifil thread for piecing (I use this in white, tan and gray), 2 yards of a decent WOW, and a yard of a new-to-me black solid from Kauffman. Since my first birthday block for Kate was a bust, I needed more black for another try, and this has a nice dark color on the bolt but isn't as heavy as Kona. It's in the wash now... one of the holiday-weekend blessings in my apartment building is an available washer on Sunday afternoon.

Anyway: on to more important things... a few random FQs that caught my eye, a little stitchery project for Christmas, and most importantly: a layer cake of Sandy Gervais' Fresh Squeezed. That's 40 precision-cut dimes (or 10" squares) in lemon, lime, orange, watermelon and blueberry. The bolts were the first thing I saw when I stepped in the door, and they just called my name the entire time. The saleslady said the line is just flying out the door, and it's easy to see why. Yummy, yummy, yummy, and just right for summer. Now I just have to decide what to make with it (well, and make it, of course!)... Maybe a fresh-squeezed cocktail would help me think! [Right about now, my sister is either rolling her eyes or has fallen on the floor laughing -- I rarely drink fruit juice or alcohol ;) ]

This must be the result of shopping withdrawal! Until today, I've only been in the LQS once since the end of February, and I (gasp!) didn't buy anything that day.

Image from the Fat Quarter Shop, and if you follow the Fresh Squeezed link, you'll see the entire line on their site

Two things...

1) My ALQS has the binding machined on... I decided to suck it up and hand stitch the binding to the back. As I'm writing this, I realize this was the PERFECT opportunity to try the all-machine finished piped binding that I really want to learn (and master!). Sure with I'd had that thought at 3p today instead... At least it's less than 80" of stitching. You know how I feel about hand work!

2) When I moved here from Rochester, I left an area with lots of great quilt shops with beautiful stock, fun people and classes, and even good thread. (I miss Ivy Thimble!) I also lived about 5 minutes from JoAnn Fabrics, handy for those days when (ahem) I might need pink thread in a hurry! These resources are few and far between here in Jersey... at least so far. While procrastinating tonight, I found a quilt shop about a half hour away -- they have a decent online store, so I'm guessing their bricks and mortar will be at least somewhat more satisfying than my thread expedition from the other day! Fingers crossed... (Not that I really *need* anything -- I just don't like not knowing it's there.)

Wait -- three things! Food Network is running some ancient episodes of Iron Chef America tonight -- it's fun to see the early days where the production was a little less slick. I almost never see anything I want to eat on this show, but I love the action -- like Bobby Flay fishing live trout out of the tank on what looks like the first episode.

Building a House

No, not that kind of house! I *finally* finished my 9" house block for Miss April in our birthday block swap at quilting.about.com. I was cranky as heck Friday night when I couldn't find any pink thread -- not that pink is my color, mind you; I was just sure I had some. That meant an expedition was in order for Saturday... so far, I've yet to locate an LQS (or even a chain store like JoAnn) within a reasonable distance from my apartment. I let my fingers do the walking through the online yellow pages, though, and found a place with a cute name... and only (hah) 12 miles away. I've Got a Notion is a great name for a fabric and sewing machine store, but the place is a weird mish-mosh of lower-grade quilting fabrics, home dec fabrics and trims, and the world's smallest selection of yarn I've ever seen advertised! All told, it was an 80-minute round trip and I spent $1.75 on a spool of pink thread.

Oh -- here's the block, prior to stitching:

The sky fabric is wrong side up -- it was too intense the other way, and is printed well enough to show through perfectly. I actually cut and sewed a nice curve between the sky and grass, forgetting the house would cover it. I'm so happy this is done!

Updates...

Hmmm... At the continued urging of my co-workers (who are tired of hearing me cough), I went to an after-hours clinic on Friday. Diagnosis? Allergies. Duh ;) I knew going in there wasn't really anything anyone could do for me, unless there was an underlying issue that I was assuming was allergy-related but wasn't. Luckily -- and unluckily, I guess! -- I was right. I did get enough samples of my everyday allergy medicine to get me back to Rochester next weekend when I can get my Rx refilled. (My so-called "national network" insurance is, well, not.)

I did some work today on my little quilt for Kate's swap. It's slow going -- paper piecing 3" blocks is not for the faint of heart (or those in a hurry!). There's plenty of time to make this little darling; I was just surprised that it took 75 minutes to chain piece four blocks! I'd give you a sneak peek, but that would require me to know where the cord is for the camera! I've got half the blocks made now, and everything cut for the remaining ones, so maybe I'll be able to move a little more quickly. (I prefer to paper piece the Carol Doak way, where you trim firm, then stitch; it makes pre-cutting very easy and accurate, and wastes less fabric as a result.)

I also fused this month's block in our year-long Birthday Block Swap on quilting.about.com. It's not exactly as I imagined it, but it'll do. Miss April requested 9" blocks to make a village; mine's just a house, but it's kind of cute. (Doesn't your house have a brown and pink homespun plaid roof?!) Again with the camera cord... Now I have to figure out what kind of stitching it needs to keep it together. Not quite sure this one's going to make it in the mail by April 30, but I'll do my level best tomorrow!

Where do the days go?!

I can't believe it's been a week since I last talked to you... well, actually, if I think back over the week, it's easy to see why... :)

Some of us at the office took a long lunch Friday to go see the cherry blossoms... too bad the best looking ones were behind razor wire, best seen from the train! It was great to get outside on a beautiful day, but the pollen was out in full force (my black shoes had a distinct yellow cast to them by the time we made it back to the office)... by the time I left the office, I was coughing. Spent the day lolling around yesterday, coughing, blowing my nose and generally feeling like something the cat dragged in. I was feeling somewhat better today (enough to start my little quilt for Kate's swap), then spiked a fever after supper. This seems like the same kind of garbage I had 6 weeks ago when I moved here (and 6 weeks before that...) I do NOT care for the theme of 2008 so far!

Odds and Ends...

1) My friend Cindy just started blogging... go forth and visit her... she has a real gift for writing that makes even the everyday seem special. A lovely remembrance of her grandmother, in her debut post, includes some nice Michigan history, for those that are interested.

2) If you prefer your Coca-Cola without high-fructose corn syrup, now is the time to stock up. Look for the yellow capped two-liters -- those bottles are kosher for Passover, and thus made with sugar (sucrose) instead of the ubiquitous substitute. I think it's "fizzier" than the everyday version -- a lot more foam in the glass -- and rather yummy.

3) If you work for the NJDOT, please know that there is NOT adequate signage for the Garden State Parkway going north on the Turnpike. Thanks to this oversight, I contributed way more than my fair share in tolls to the state coffers as I wandered around heaven-only-knows-where Saturday night in the dark. (Another note -- having two exits numbered 14, as well as 14A, 14B and 14C, is not really helpful.)

4) Two of my favorite fast food restaurants have locations in NJ -- Sonic Drive-In and Chick-fil-A. Neither is terribly close to me, but they're closer than they have been in many years, so I'm happy!

This week's adventure

Tuesday, George-the-cat was desperate for cat food. I had already determined that the grocery store doesn't carry his food. I know, there's no rule that he has to eat IAMS weight control, but I was reluctant to choose something else given his recent hunger strike. A little web searching revealed a PetSmart about 10 miles from my apartment. No big deal, right? Wrong. 45 minutes and a splitting headache later, I was home with a 20-pound bag of cat food. Where I'm going to store all this food, I have no idea, but I'm definitely in no hurry to go back out for a fresh supply!

Think of your typical street on which the usual assortment of retailers, restaurants and "big box" stores are located. It's probably 4 lanes, plus a center turn lane... I was prepared for that. I was not prepared for 6 lanes, divided not by a traditional median, but by a wide median upon which more restaurants and retail stores were located.

Traveling east, I could only see things on the south side of the road, and in the middle. Coming back west, I could only see things on the north side, and in the middle. How is anyone supposed to FIND anything that way?! I hope this particular street is an anomaly... I can't imagine the shipping cost to order cat food online ;) Wait, I went to check... a 20-lb bag is $28.49 online; ground shipping is estimated at $15.19. Hah. Wonder who orders that?

Downsizing

I spent the day Saturday looking for a place to live in Jersey. I knew I'd be living in far less space than I have now, but reality didn't really hit until I saw just what those smaller places looked like. I have a three-bedroom house now, for just me and George-the-cat... I'm moving in to a one-bedroom apartment with just over 800 square feet. I know, it could be worse! But do you have any idea how much stuff I have?! Holy cow...

It's completely overwhelming to think I have to sort through it all and decide whether to move it, store it, give it away or throw it away. Good times, good times.

For now, I'm taking down the unused window hardware from curtains of days gone by. One more bracket in the living room, then I can move on to the dining room or kitchen... I'm hoping to get away with just touch-up painting on all the trim, in order to save time, since I've got to paint the walls before the house goes on the market. Fingers crossed :)

Extra, extra... read all about it!

I've been keeping secrets, but that is finally over, so I can share at least some of the details! I was recruited for a new job at the beginning of January, and after a visit to the potential employer and a lot of thinking and soul searching, I decided to take the leap and accept the new job.

I'm very excited about this new opportunity -- the staff is very energized and excited about their work, and the VP that I'll report to is one of the good guys in my line of work. It's a chance for me to focus on the things I like and do well, with the support of a great team and some of my favorite vendors.

So, I've got a little less than three weeks to work at my current job, then I'm moving to the greater Newark, NJ area. (No, I'm not going to live in Newark, but I am going to work there.) I start my new job on St. Patrick's Day.

There's a WHOLE lotta cleaning and packing and painting and organizing to do between now and then...