Let's not get sidetracked

I find it so hard to stay on track with what I am doing. Whenever I am doing something I want to have it completed now and become impatient and start to lose interest. One project can often inspire you for something else that you just have to start straight away and before you know it you are drowning in many many works in progress and no inspiration to finish them.

I am trying to work on getting some of my recycled clothing down - I want to make a large quilt with some of the shirts (cut intou four inch squares). And of course while doing this I hit on an idea to use the pockets (large squares containing the pockets cut about 6 inches) on a wall hanging and use the pockets to put small treasures into etc.

I am trying not to get too side tracked onto new projects and stick to what I am trying to achieve and that is to get the list of unfinished projects down by actually finishing a few things. Some of course require more work than others and if I didn't procrastinate and got down to it then a few more would be finished or closer to being finished. At the end of the day all I want to do is start a new prject - it is the sewing that I enjoy - it is soothing and relaxing. And of course I keep getting new ideas.

At Christmas I have started to try and work on a small project (8 x 8) easy to start and easy to finish - sort of. It is a bit of a play with what we did in the Dottie Moore class. The project is not so much important in itself but the creativity that it brings to me. To come up with a small sketch or drawing and then to execute that in fabric. I started my first one as a sketch of a woman in a flowing garment - Because of the small jumble of fabrics for her garment I didn't want to use any fusible web and used my glue stick instead. I am pleased with what I accomplished - there were one or two compromises made but I am happy with them. I now have to decide what to do about quilting it or attaching it to the backing rather than just the glue. Could I peel it off the backing and perhaps put it onto some fusible web and then iron it back - it would put off having to decide about stitching.

My second effort was a palm free. I had seen the idea a couple of years ago and was very taken with it. So pencil in hand I drew a sectioned palm tree on a scrap of paper. It was a bit untidy but a good start so I fished out some webbing and my scrap dyed fabrics and set to work. The background is very dark so I needed bright colours for the tree, an orange/red trunk and light bright green fronds. The fiddly part is cutting all the shapes out and laying it out. At the end of it I was very impressed with what I had done.

This is something I should try to do more often - I will try to do the drawings myself even if I have a picture in front of me that I want to try to emulate - I rather like a folk art theme. Something creative every so often like this would keep me going and sooner or later will lead to something bigger. I don't think I will keep them for a larger project but let each one stand by itself. I might find one that I particularly like and want to do a series on a theme or use them as a gift for someone.

The ultimate goal is to keep the creative energy going and challenge myself to get other larger projects nearer completion so that I can get onto my next small picture.

The small inspirational project needs a name - you know - "I must do XYZ before I can get onto my next ??? (small inspirational project). Something fun and catchy. Something for me to think about while I procrastinate. As usual the name will come to me at an odd moment.

Possum Dancing

Darn that jolly possum. He hops up on the roof and clambers about making a racket - running this way and that - like little possum races around the roof. And then down he comes and into the garden, he particularly loves the Rheus tree but it is too brittle for his weight at the tips and they keep breaking under his weight. I keep hoping that one day he will break his neck. I can't think of any ways of getting rid of him that is safe and doesn't endanger the cats. They are particularly thoughtful of me when we hear the possum on the roof, they all snuggle closely to me to reassure me that they are there keeping me safe. And they are very brave and come outside with me sometimes when we hear the possum and stay very close around my legs to the point where they almost have a peace pact, all to ensure my safety.

The rain over the last fortnight has kept the possum away a lot of nights but I am sure he makes up for lost time racing around the roof on the nights when it is not raining or is a little drier. I don't know what it is about the roof that he does this or is he after the birds and their chicks that nest under the roof that he is trying to get to. Whatever it is I wish it would stop and leave me in peace.

Company at Christmas

What is it about people that they cannot conceive that there are some people who want to be by themselves, even at Christmas. I got to the stage I had to tell lies about what I would be doing on Christmas Day just to have peace. I was happy to be by myself afterall it is just another day. Admittedly I did decide to clean off the kitchen table and put all my quilting things away - Christine was coming on Boxing Day - and I wanted things to be tidy for the two days. And of course my Christmas treat was a box of Cherry liquor chocolates - yum, although I didn't actually eat many. And utter decadence, I made a chocolate cate - nothing fancy just a plain microwave cake that wasn't quite as good as an oven cooked one but it was good. '

Christmas Eve was a wonderful hot day and so what did Christmas Day do - it was wet and cold and then of course come Boxing Day it was wonderful and not again - grrrr.

The water is still not right - still that smell of sulphur. Oh, that is right I forgot to mention that the neighbour forgot to shut an irrigation gate one night and flooded our property - really flooded the place well - the poor cats were trapped in the house as it was totally surrounded by water. Thankfully it wasn't too too high but darn well high enough. And I think that some of the water may have seeped into the tank. Although I don't like to think of that because it has never happened before - I mean why doesn't it seep in when it rains or is there not enough to cause a problem them but with the flooding and all the shit and much that is carried in the water there was. I keep trying to think that it is the Council that is at fault but then surely someone else would have complained about it surely? I keep hoping that eventually I will get ahead of whatever is infecting the water and eventually dilute it out - dreams are free.

Christine's quilt just needs the binding now to finish off and of course a label. She has decided that she would like to hang it on the wall at first so I will put a hanging sleeve on it for her. So to give her a bed quilt I have given her my dyed fabric quilt - the one that I hand quilted all my old microwave dyed fabrics - it is a wonderful and colourful quilt with a very simple four patch and half square triangle blocks.

It was wonderful to catch up with Christine and to spend a couple of hours with her. Ritchie is wonderful too - he is so easy to talk to and comfortable to be with.

And now back to life as we know it . Must set up the sewing machine and start to do some more work on my WIPs and UFOs. The garden needs some work (clearing weeds) and I must do some more housework - dusting would be a start.

And thankfully people left me alone at Christmas - I was worried that I would have lots of people checking up on me but in the end they left me alone which is what I had wanted all along. Phew!

Approaching Christmas at speed

It is that time of the year once again when we are bombarded with advertising for all the sorts of expensive gifts we should be buying and all the cheap knick knacks in the shops that only come out for Christmas. All the food and the decorations, all the wine, and even more food. And then there are all the Christmas parties that everyone seems to feel are necessary.

Why do we need all this - why can't it be simple and relaxing shared with friends and family without all the stress that we put upon ourselves. It becomes so expensive buying not so wonderful presents for people you don't really like and don't see all that often anyhow.

Why do we do it? Is it because that somehow we are not seen as fitting in with everyone else, that we dare not step off the line and a touch of oneupmanship creeps in - we have an image to maintain. What happened to the simple handmade gifts and homemade food?

I would rather a nice picnic with friends somewhere relaxing and enjoy their company without the stress of buying presents and far too much food. Yes, I would like it simple and easy.

Managing by myself

Well it is a month now that I have been by myself and I have been fine - I think the only time that I really needed someone else around was when establishing a broadband connection was being difficult, now it is just expensive.

I haven't done as much as I would have liked but I have tried to be steady with my quilting and keep doing something each week. I have a lot of Christine's quilt quilted, Tony's quilt just needs binding which I don't think will be an easy job, I have nearly finished sewing the binding down on the second wall hanging and now that I have found the Japanese Black fabric I can do the binding on the third.

I have started on the Club Quilt Challenge and have most of the top made - very imaginative with four inch square sewing together 10 x 8 squares. I am not sure about a border or not and I will tie it with buttons I think and add a couple of shirt labels.

I was questioning myself recently, do I really need to keep all the furnishing fabrics. I mean what am I really going to do with them. The same goes for a lot of the fabrics that I have got from the Op Shop - what am I going to do with them. Oh yes, it would be nice to do some art quilts/wall hangings but will I really get there ??? But then what will I do with all those fabrics, I don't want to just give them to Tracey - I don't think she deserves them. The furnishing fabrics are easy, I can give them to the Tuesday group for charity quilts.

I really should look at a lot of the other things that I have lying around as well. All that beautiful silk needs to be made up into whatever it was that I planned to make with it. All the wool that I bought for needle felting - well perhaps Shirley might like to have it. I really didn't get into the trading cards much as I wanted to and still might do something provided it is fabric which means there is a lot of "stuff" that can go out and I can give away some of it to people who do scrap booking.

If I have a good "dung out" I can concentrate on quilts and not be side tracked as I so often easily am. It will give me more space and room in my quilt room.

With all the rain we have been having I haven't got into the garden as much as I wanted to - there are a small number of jobs that I wanted to do and some plants that need to be put out. The poor lawn needs mowing too - I don't know when Derek is going to come again but I may have to do it myself when the weather dries out a bit.