A New Bag for Spring?

(Image courtesy of www.jcarolinecreative.com)

Spring has sprung, sort of, around these parts. How about whipping yourself up a new hobo bag from this pattern? My favorite part? The pattern prints on six 8.5" x 11" sheets that are then taped together. So, no trips to the copy shop!

Quilt Pictures

These aren't the best pictures; I snapped them rather hurriedly this afternoon, while one of the apartment maintenance guys was walking by, likely thinking "Why is that crazy chick snapping pictures of some old fabric?" I think the color combinations on this are quite zany. I'm searching for a pic of my great-grandmother, Polly, to upload here so we can have sort of a portrait of the artist.

The block above is my favorite.

Legacy

While visiting my parents for Easter this past weekend, my mom gave me two quilt tops pieced by my great grandmother. If I had to venture a guess, these quilts are at least 30 years old. My great-grandmother passed away in the early '90s. I have no recollection of her ever sewing when I knew her, but she did. She gave my mom the quilt tops, knowing that she sewed and hoping she could finish them. My mother, who doesn't sew much anymore, passed them onto me. When we arrived home, I sort of laid the quilts out and stared at them in awe. There is so much history there.

Sometimes, in between work and school and house stuff, I begin to wonder why I even try to squeeze out a moment here and a moment there to attempt my creative projects. But, when I see these quilts, I am reminded that I am a part of a larger craft legacy. One that includes talented women and men who take out time from their schedules to sand wood or sew purses or string beads. On a smaller scale, I am a part of a lineage of talented ladies in my own family. Women who raised children and cooked meals and hoarded scraps of fabrics and sewed quilts. Some out of necessity, I'm sure, and some because it was just a small, simple way of keeping their creative minds sharp.

And tomorrow I will photograph those amazing quilt tops and post pictures here. I've never tried making bias binding before, but I am going to make my own binding, and finish off the little works of art that my great-grandmother began so many years ago.

Getting Things Done

I thought this might be a good fit for all of the workers/etsy-ians/parents/other things out there who have a lot on their plates. I have just started working from home in the past few months, and I am having a hard time organizing my time. (Not to mention trying to start that Etsy shop that has remained empty since it was created!) Hope these principals help others out. I will certainly be implementing them myself in the coming weeks!

Penelope

I put a lot of faith in movie reviews, perhaps too much. This is why Penelope was such a charming surprise, because the reviews were just ho hum. However, I had the pleasure of seeing this today and I loved it. In fact, I loved it so much I just might go see it again. I think one of the reasons I loved it so much was the delightful sets and costuming. Visually, the movie was charming and reminded me quite a bit of another fave, Amelie. (Did anyone else get that impression?) All of this to say, go see the movie, and I think you'll fall under its spell as well.

Fierce.

Okay, so I totally wanted Jillian to win, and I thought Rami's collection was the best. BUT, Christian totally endeared himself to me on the finale. He was human and cute and totally dear. And, I totally doubt that he was as excited about that Saturn as he pretended to be. And did you see that Elizabeth "Showgirls" Berkley is hosting a new show on Bravo? I don't think television needs yet another dance competition, but maybe I'm wrong.

Unfortunate.

I have gotten very flustered lately, and it seems the creating time is the first thing to go. I remember in college, my professors repeatedly drilled into our heads to SET A SCHEDULE! The muse, they argued, would show up regularly. My poetry professor in particular (check out that alliteration!) really emphasized taking a moment to read a poem and record my thoughts on life at the same time each day. If only for ten minutes. I am trying to get into the schedule of writing again, but also time to create. My background on the laptop is the above image and every time I turn it on, I feel guilty. My paintbrushes are dry, the sewing machine is in its case and my crafty supplies haven't been used since I started school. Any advice on scraping out the time to create?