Inquiring Minds Want to Know

Well....WAS it a successful, productive three days???

Mostly "YES."  I did cross off quite a few items from my ToDo list...but I also took a bunch of naps and
spent some time with my baby sister....so, it was a very pleasant, relaxing three days.

However....

Mother Nature had her own ideas of what this weekend would bring, too:

 

Lot's of tornadoes touching down all around Paducah, from the Texas panhandle up through the plains states and traveled all the way across to the edges of the Eastern Seaboard.  It WAS Mr. Toad's Wild Ride...thanking the Lord that He controls the weather.
(Psalm 147:8, 148:8)

Anyway, nasty weather did mess up one a whole day and evening...glued to Ryan Hall Y'all weather guy on YouTube. 
(I like him because he's a Kentucky guy.) I do feel bad for Eastern Kentucky, Eddyville and Dawson Springs.  They were hit pretty bad.  *
People will be talking about "The Memorial Day Storms" for years to come.

 

But, I didn't do a thing in the studio...not a stinkin' thing.  
I did sew the binding on Hat-on-a-Cat for June.  Other than that, no real sewing happened this weekend. **

 

I hope to change that TODAY!!

Finally work is at a slower pace for the next couple of weeks so I can relax more during the day and recharge.  I need to start with a good "tidy up" in the studio and get  encouraged to actually sit down and sew!!

Karen Brown calls this a "Reboot." ***

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

*Video of the Tornado in Eddyville, KY.  HERE 

**Something I learned from the FMQ class I took earlier this month....how to release the pressure from the Presser Foot shaft....I'm hoping to NOT have quilting puckers in the next "Hat" door hanger.

***One of my favorite Sewing Ladies, Karen Brown, on "The Reboot" HERE

Memorial Day

Let Us Not Forget....

 

The Price that was paid for our Freedom...

Three Lovely Days

Memorial Day Weekend is on the horizon .... the unofficial start of summer!!  

Three days off and I'm trying to decide what to do...  I'd hate to get to the end of a three-day weekend
and have nothing to show for it...

Making a list....checking it Twice.

 

I L-O-V-E to check of items from a list!!! 
(Sometimes I will put items ON the list right after
the item is completed just so I can check it off !) 

 

 

 

 Let's just see what actually gets done.

A Fun Day in the Neighborhood

...AND, learning a new skill.

I took a class at the National Quilt Museum...taught by Miss Cheryl Sleboda Whited....learning to "Free Motion Quilt." (FMQ)

Not as easy as I thought it would be, but I did learn a lot...

 

The main thing I learned...it takes practice!!

Where have I heard that before?   Learning to play the Ukulele!! It gets easier the more you practice...actually I should say
"the more consistently you practice."  Every Day...Every Day...Every Day vs a long practice once a week.  AND, almost any playing helps...does not have to be the piece you're struggling with right this moment! 
You know, that riff that goes from G to Bb.  Just playing and singing any 'ol song is good.

Well... surprise...surprise...FMQ also takes practice, consistent practice, and it's the little things that make the difference. 
For instance, Cheryl had us doodle with pencil and paper the pattern before we tried recreating with sewing machine and fabric.   "...the more you doodle, the better your FMQ will be..."

Has something to do with "muscle memory."   

Muscle memory is a form of procedural memory that involves consolidating a specific motor task into memory through repetition.  And, not to mention, for those of us who are no longer Spring chickens, it's very good for keeping our brains youthful.

There is many-a-night, when the work day is done at 7:00 pm (Central Time) that I just do not feel like going to the studio. 
Now, I can  doodle knowing I'm still doing something productive.  (The first thing I did after class was go to Office Depot and buy a sketch pad.)

 

 

 

I think the FMQ gloves are a big plus.  

It's more difficult to get that fabric to MOVE than I would have thought!!!

And, can I just say, Miss Cherly Sleboda Whited is really knowledgeable!  And, a wonderful instructor.  

What a pleasure to sit under her tutelage!

This was a great day!

May -- A Promising Month

 "The world's favorite season is the Spring. All things seem possible in May." - Edwin Way Teale"

While it doesn't look like I've accomplished much...on paper...it FEELS like I have.  March and April were busy months: 
Traveling....Total Eclipse.....AQS Quilt Show....(work was busy, too, but I'm trying not to think of that too
much as May promises to be, also. )

April Finishes:

 

 

 

 

Hat on a Cat:  May.  In the package, this was not one of my favorites. 
But I rather like the result.

 

 

 

 

 

From the UFO list....well, there's a story here..... 

I had every intention of using Pauline Rogers' QAYG method and finishing up Pat Sloan's Summer Soriee.  HERE  But THEN I met Pauline, AGAIN, at the Paducah Quilt Show and had a chat with her.  Everything changed after that chat.  

Pauline has an interesting method for QAYG*...

Now it is back to the drawing board.  Pauline has given me a little homework assignment....

*QAYG = Quilt As You Go