We have been enjoying our visit with my husband's mother. Yesterday I took her to Old Town Lansing where we got to look at cute little shops and walk along the river. and for dinner we roasted a turkey and had biscuits and mashed potatoes along with some other goodies-- It's been great to have Lois with us-- we really like her! (I have some nice pictures of her, and I'm glad to have them but I think she would be happier if I didn't post them on the internet even though the pictures are nice and she looks very nice in them)
So far we've gotten out of house every day and I hope that will get to continue as this afternoon we sticking to rainy day activities-- because today it turned into a rainy day.
Rainy day activities have consisted of sewing and reading... but mostly sewing. Between the two of us over two days we've finished 5 quilt blocks which is pretty sweet as I have many more to do and it feels good to whittle down the number of unfinished blocks.
"But Kristen, where did these quilt blocks come from in the first place?"
I'm so glad you asked! These are all from 'quilt block of the month' programs-- which are very fun and get you to try new things. It basically works like this: your local quilt shop sells you a pattern and fabric to make one quilt block (about five bucks) with the idea that you come back the next month with that block completed to receive another pattern w/fabric which you finish and bring back the following month so in theory you can make 12 coordinated quilt blocks for $5. This is great and fun... and just the beginning. Once they get you in the store there are all sorts of things they sell at you (it's a store, I don't hold it against them, I just don't have the cash). The most common, aside from all the little things you can buy that do one thing really well, is the "finishing kit" which gives you instructions and fabric to turn your block into a quilt top-- these typically cost at least $60 (so I never buy them) which sometimes does not contain the batting backing or binding that you will also need to truly finish. They also get you with 'bonus blocks' which cost a little extra and often look so nice and if you don't complete your previous month's block then it will cost another $5 to start up again.
And then sometimes you can get behind (like me right now) because inevitably life gets in the way. This problem is compounded by the fact that I still have blocks to do from last year's block-of-the-month program in Sacramento that I didn't get to because we got married and moved out of state (but I still had very nice people pick up my blocks for me). It's fun to see how different shops run their block-of-the-month programs. All in all I'm having a good time of it and learning new things but will probably take next year off with the hopes of finishing some of these quilts.
Since this afternoon I've felt considerably tired... a little more than I think is normal. We'll see if this is the beginning of the downhill slope or just a lazy rainy day.
So far we've gotten out of house every day and I hope that will get to continue as this afternoon we sticking to rainy day activities-- because today it turned into a rainy day.
Rainy day activities have consisted of sewing and reading... but mostly sewing. Between the two of us over two days we've finished 5 quilt blocks which is pretty sweet as I have many more to do and it feels good to whittle down the number of unfinished blocks.
"But Kristen, where did these quilt blocks come from in the first place?"
I'm so glad you asked! These are all from 'quilt block of the month' programs-- which are very fun and get you to try new things. It basically works like this: your local quilt shop sells you a pattern and fabric to make one quilt block (about five bucks) with the idea that you come back the next month with that block completed to receive another pattern w/fabric which you finish and bring back the following month so in theory you can make 12 coordinated quilt blocks for $5. This is great and fun... and just the beginning. Once they get you in the store there are all sorts of things they sell at you (it's a store, I don't hold it against them, I just don't have the cash). The most common, aside from all the little things you can buy that do one thing really well, is the "finishing kit" which gives you instructions and fabric to turn your block into a quilt top-- these typically cost at least $60 (so I never buy them) which sometimes does not contain the batting backing or binding that you will also need to truly finish. They also get you with 'bonus blocks' which cost a little extra and often look so nice and if you don't complete your previous month's block then it will cost another $5 to start up again.
And then sometimes you can get behind (like me right now) because inevitably life gets in the way. This problem is compounded by the fact that I still have blocks to do from last year's block-of-the-month program in Sacramento that I didn't get to because we got married and moved out of state (but I still had very nice people pick up my blocks for me). It's fun to see how different shops run their block-of-the-month programs. All in all I'm having a good time of it and learning new things but will probably take next year off with the hopes of finishing some of these quilts.
Since this afternoon I've felt considerably tired... a little more than I think is normal. We'll see if this is the beginning of the downhill slope or just a lazy rainy day.
2 comments:
So glad I found your blog! I am sorry I haven't gotten back with you. I hope you are feeling well, and looking forward to Thanksgiving!!
Wishing you the best!
Post a Comment