hahahahaha...he is a treasure!

I’m hoping to make it this year, I am trying to meet with somebody this week to show her how to take care of the ducks and see if that something she would want to do when I’m away. In February Stack is too busy skiing to be tied to the house in the city.

well I mentioned the retreat to DH just as a possibility and good grief, he is off and running.  What day do we want to leave, how long will we be gone, can we make reservations, etc etc.  So I guess I'm a strong probably!  Since we are driving, I can definitely bring charity quilts back for Jonna's groups.

I’ve been ridiculously busy so haven’t been checking in. Was planning on retreat. 

Hi Everyone!  

I'm back to the forum finally after a month of craziness and stress.  The smaller house here and 40' shipping container we have here are filled with so many cardboard moving boxes it smells like a warehouse in here.  DH and I have been going through the boxes in the house to look for stuff we need and make sure they are labeled correctly.  Turns out the packers didn't write clearly and most every box has a word or two from where the contents came from but then nearly every one was boldly marked "Misc" or "Mics".  Doesn't much help.  So we've been opening every one to see how accurate the cryptic descriptions were.  Then we are getting rid of stuff that we don't need here and didn't have time to go through in CA.  We have one more bedroom of boxes to go through and then see what we can get to in the container.  

We did get to take 10 days away to go see DJ in Huntsville.  We had some precious time as a family of 3 again and just hanging out.  We met his 57lb 8 month old puppy.  Oh my!?!  Merlin didn't stop playing fetch with every sort of toy available.  And when he did rest he chewed on something usually pressed against one of our laps.  But he is a sweet dog and after the puppy stage is passed will be a great dog.  We went to the US Space and Rocket Center and I'm so thankful I had my electric scooter to keep up going around to see all the exhibits both outside and inside.  As a family we've always enjoyed the history behind the science and minds that took us to the moon and beyond.  It's always great to be reminded and relive that.

The weather was sunny and lovely for us and not really humid at all.  DJ worked during the day and we hung out with the puppy at their place.  Merlin was very glad to see us and be let out his crate late morning to be free to play with us.  DJ usually tried to get home from work a bit early and then we'd try another local eatery he like and wanted to share with us.  One night we went to have dinner at a local community area and turns out they were hosting a car show for locals (or semi locals) to bring their vehicles to just gather and show folks walking around.  It was very fun to watch all the people and see all the neat cars and how they had "added bling etc" to customize or restore them.  By dark everyone and the cars faded away and the area was back to a local park with eateries and shops nearby.  It was just nice to be with our son again and to see he's doing well and settled in quite well to his new surrounding.  We even got to go to church with him on Sunday and go to a favorite local pizza/brewery place he enjoys.

We've been doing some necessary chores around here to prepare things for winter and deal with a couple of plumbing issues inside of the house.  But somehow DH is grouching less and enjoying been a FT fix it guy a bit more if he can get back out to his riding mower/tractor and cut more weeds down.  But I should get going to bed so we can begin again tomorrow. 

I will continue to read to catch up here.  
Judy

So much for the "quick" update.

Some time earlier this year, at a quilt show I attended, I bought a pattern, "Deco" by Lo & Behold Stitchery (designed by owner, Brittany Lloyd). 


It's an Art Deco-ish designed that appealed to me.  The envelope says that there are directions inside for 3 sizes: baby, throw, and "bed". 

(Note: this quilt only looks complicated.  It's an on-point layout and that is what makes it look more difficult that it is.  Just look at the rows diagonally and you'll see what the different blocks look like.)
 

When I looked at the directions, I got the biggest giggle ... the baby size is 45"x50".  No surprise there, although I think that might be considered on the "big" size for a baby quilt.  The throw is 56"x68" and that is a decent sized personal throw.

BUT THEN ... here's where I literally laughed out loud ... the "bed" size.  OK .. there are 4 main bed sizes:  twin, double/full, queen, and king.  I will say that when I see a quilt pattern talk about a "bed" sized quilt, I'm thinking in terms of double/full or queen.  However, this quilt went whole hog.   From the baby and throw sizes (all more or less standard sizes), it's "bed" size is ...... a "super queen"!       It's bigger than a queen but smaller than a king (at 120"x120")

Holy moley .. it goes from a 56"x68" to a 102"x102"!   I had to laugh because that just quite a jump!

**IF** I was tempted to start on a brand new, machine pieced project, I think this would be it.  It really calls to me.  :-)

 

Oh wow! I absolutely love it!  Thanks fr sharing.  I haven't bought a pattern in years and just may have to break down and get this one.

latterberry said:

I haven't bought a pattern in years

Me, too.   I took a certain amount of pride and pleasure from deconstructing easy patterns into their components.  Sometimes I'd get around to making the quilt, sometimes not.  My rationale was ... why should I pay for such an easy pattern?

But lately, I've had a slight change in my POV.  For some patterns, such as this one, I opted to buy the pattern simply to **support the designer**.  After all, she's earning a living or supplemental income from these patterns.  I can afford to buy the pattern.  Other patterns I'll buy are the complicted ones .. or ones that I don't want to bother with figuring out the composition.  :-)

Now, will I do that for every pattern I like? Probably not .. especially if the layout is dead simple.  Or if I can find the same idea online for free.  I've been quilting for long enough that for these kinds of patterns, where it's easily discernable what blocks are needed, I just don't need the directions ... or sometimes, even the yardage.  Goodness knows I have enough fabric in my stash already!  

 I understand.  I'm married to one of those also.  He has some issues now that took me a long time to finally get him to see a doctor.

MEN!!!!!

It would be great to see you!