Stitching In The Dark

Tonight we sit in the dark, desperately waiting for the cool breezes to come from off the Pacific and save us from this hot murky day.

Since light gives off heat, we have opted to be in darkness this evening. The only light I have to work with is from my laptop. So I am stitching in the glow of that light.

I am working on the direction which I plan to take with my blog. For some time now I have wanted to give back what I have learned through using hand stitching as meditation. It is a skill that can not only benefit those with PTSD and/or chronic illnesses. It can also help those who find it difficult to meditate in the traditional way or for those who seek a way to grow closer to God through the work of their hands.

I believe that the greatest gift is to give back what you have learned in order to help others. This is my gift back to the world and my 'Thank you' to God for the many blessings he has given me.

So, I sit in darkness, stitching and contemplating how I will bring my message to the light.

September Is National Sewing Month

That's right, it's National Sewing Month. As if we really needed an excuse to sew.

Well, for those of you who haven't picked up a needle in awhile or forgot where the on switch is on your sewing machine, now is the time to dust off your threads and do some sewing.

Since I am a hand sewing advocate, allow me to share just a couple of patterns from around the web that might spark your interest to start stitching:

Learn a few simple stitches while making your own stitch book.

Sew an easy lavender sachet.

2015 Global Meditation for Compassion

On July 11th, Deepak Chopra will be hosting the 2015 Global Meditation for Compassion. This live event is meant to bring people from all over the world together in meditation for a more compassionate world.

In light of recent events in the news, this meditation event comes at just the right time.

For those of you who may not feel comfortable sitting still in meditation, why not consider active meditation instead. During the event you can hand stitch a quilt block. Focus your thoughts on compassion with each stitch. You may keep the piece as a reminder to bring fourth more compassion in your life, or better yet, in an act of compassion,  add the piece into a full quilt and give it away to someone in need.

Might I suggest making a heart quilt like the one made by Svetlana over at S.O.T.A.K. Handmade

To learn more about the 2015 Global Meditation for Compassion and  to sign up for the event you can click HERE. 

Giving Up and Giving In

The blocks for my current improvisational quilt is done. Sewing the blocks was easy, but it has been the attempt in putting the blocks together that has caused great distress in my life.

For the past three days I have been working on different configurations for this quilt. I had what I thought was a logical layout for the quilt, but it just didn't feel right once laid out that way.

I tried other possible patterns and configurations. Some resulted in me having leftover blocks, while others resulted in big gaps in the quilt that would require me to make even more blocks.

The frustration finally got to me. I picked up all the blocks into a pile and sat them in a corner of the house like some child being punished.

Every time I tried to come up with a solution, the blocks would not a agree. Finally, I gave up. I stopped trying to make the blocks bend to my will. I gave in to letting the blocks do what they wanted to do.

I took the pile of blocks and started laying them together without and thought or plan. All I focused on was putting the next piece down. Before I knew it, I had put the last piece down. The blocks fit perfectly in a beautiful random order that surprised me.

Now I am sewing my blocks together, thinking how I didn't realize the amount of control I tried to have over this quilt until I learned to let it go. It was in the simple acts of giving up and giving in that opened up a new creative possibility that I did not see before.

I once heard someone in reference to Navajo weaving say, 'let the fibers speak and they will tell you what they want to be.' I think the same thing can apply to quilting as well. Allowing the fabric to speak and direct us in our creative process.

Hand Piecing Tutorial

If you haven't noticed, I just added a hand piecing tutorial page to my site. You can click on the link at the top of the page under the blog title or you can click Here.

Please let me know what you think and also if you are interested in seeing more hand piecing tutorials.

Newbie Tuesdays: The Flower Quilt

Hello Everyone! Today is Newbie Tuesday and you know what that means? It's time to feature the work of a new (or fairly new) quilter.

Today we are taking a look at one of my own quilt tops that I recently finished.

This is Elektra's Flower Quilt. You have seen me discuss this quilt before. Well, now the quilt top is completely finished. This quilt was stitched together by hand. The quilt is made up of 96 squares in a 'plus sign' pattern.

I finished to quilt this past weekend and am excited to now be going into the final stages of making this quilt top into a fully functioning quilt. 

Feeling Giddy Today

Lately, when I go to pick up my daughter from school, I've been taking my quilting with me. I use those minutes before the school bell rings to do some stitching in the car. Today, I decided to take my quilting out of the car and stitch while I walked across the playground to the school.

Right as I was picking up my little girl I heard someone trying to get my attention. I turned around to see another female parent who had just picked up her child.

"Excuse me miss. I'm sorry, but is that quilting you're doing?"

"Yes, it is. This part of a quilt I'm working on for my daughter." I unraveled some of my work to show her.

"I thought that's what you were doing. And you're sewing it by hand? Girl, I remember watching my grandma do that all the time. I wish I could do that but I just don't know how to sew."

"I didn't know how to sew either, but I learned. It's not that hard. There are videos on Youtube and different websites that can teach you."

"You know, I may just do that. Let me see how your quilt looks when it's finished. I want to really see that."

"I'll be glad to."

"Well you have a good day and thank you."

"You too."

That something so simple and small like sewing two pieces of fabric together could bring back such nice memories for someone. I was giddy for the rest of the day.

Black woman quilting- Google search

Blue Hot Pad Finished!!!

Remember the hot pad I talked about a shot while back? If not, you can read about it here. Well, I was determined to get it finished before the new year.

So this morning found me locked in my bedroom sewing down the binding to this hot pad. This was another new skill for me since I have never done binding on any of my other quilts.

I got out some vintage- yet, very strong- black thread, my favorite thread conditioner and a thimble.

Here is a peek at the insulation layer inside the quilt-

I saw how Jacquie Gering on her Tallgrass Prairie Studio blog clipped her quilt together when binding. The clips she used looked very professional, but since I don't have the money for such a luxury at this time, I decided to go with some cute paperclips that were given to me back when I graduated from college.

My daughter thought the paperclips made my work look 'fancy'. Well, I guess it's not everyday that you get to have butterflies and blue birds hanging around your quilting.

 I had forgotten how much fun it is to do a blind stitch. I remember doing them all the time in theater. I was always taking up or taking down the hem on a skirt or slacks. To be productive with my time, I would do all the hemming by hand during my bus rides to and from work. (I know, I'm a weirdo. I claim that title with honor).

Here is the finished piece, all nice and pretty. I'm proud of myself for having finally finished this little quilt. I think this is a great way to end the old year and start with the new.

Lady In Blue

So about four years ago I was at the Phoenix Quilt Craft and Sewing Festival. I was there with the Lacey Ladies of Arizona doing a lace making demonstration.

Throughout the festival there was door prize drawings for all visitors at the show. I was surprised to have my number called. My prize? A quilted hot pad kit.

The kit stayed in its packaging for about a year. Then out of the blue I got the itch to pull it out and cut the pieces. It would be another year before I actually sewed the pieces together. Fast forward to yet another year and here I am finally getting around to hand quilting the thing.

I've been using the time I spend waiting for my daughter at her after-school dance class to stitch. To keep from getting distracted, I've been stitching in the car.

I decided to quilt in the ditch on this. Mainly because it sounded simple and also it would be easy to hind my mistakes. (or so I thought).

At the start I was way off the mark in my hand quilting. But I just kept on stitching. . .

But, by the time I got around to the other side of the piece, my stitches had already shown signs of improvement.

Hopefully, now that I'm on a roll here, it won't take another year to complete this piece.