TyQuilts Designs

I’m just back from a 6 day road trip to NY and back for a family wedding. I didn’t have to do any of the driving so I brought along a new knitting project. I am about 3/4 done with a new sock. I am using a sock yarn by an Italian company Lana Grossa. I really like the colors but the yarn twists as it comes off the skein, driving me slightly nuts. I am still adapting the basic pattern I used for my first pair of socks to perfect the fit. I lengthened the cuff on this pair so that the cuff will show at the top of my new boots.

I also brought along the first two books of the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer and am totally hooked. Despite being an avid reader, I was late to hear the buzz about these books, and then when I did I wasn’t interested. I enjoy some fantasy, but have never previously enjoyed books with vampires as characters- even written by my favorite author Nora Roberts. However, I kept hearing people rave about this series and so I caved before the trip and bought the first two. These books are wonderful. The story grips you right from the beginning and just doesn’t let you go. I had to go out and buy the last two books today. That is one advantage to coming late into a series. You don’t have to wait a year or more for the next book.

With the help of a more experienced knitting friend, I was able to reblock and complete my booga bag. It isn’t photographing very well, but turned out very cute. These felted bags could be addicting. I have another in the works.

I have been remiss in not posting this next picture Sooner. A friend Sue was making tote bags a couple of months back and they were wonderful. I mentioned how I hate that kind of sewing, and she generously made me one. This totebag is the perfect size, not to big and not too small for toting around my knitting and I especially love the inner pocket so my smaller items don’t get lost and the snap to keep it closed. Sue is one of the most prolific quilters I know, in addition to homeschooling and raising a large family. You can check out her blog Quilting Chatter to see what she is up to.

In my last post on my August Tif, I mentioned that I was envious of people who could ” wing it” with their art. I didn’t express myself very well. I in no way meant that being an artist doesn’t entail lots of hard work, and planning, I was commenting on people who could start with just the vision in their head, and change and adapt that vision as the project progresses. I tend to need a complete plan in place before I start, and rarely veer away from that plan. As you can see, I have made some progress, although it is slow going and doesn’t look like much yet. I am using size 11 seed beads, and chose 18 count fabric, probably not the best idea, but if I go up in count, the piece just becomes to big to look good with this level of simplicity. For now I will be leaving it as is and continuing on.

While I wish I was one of those people who could just wing their creative endeavors and come up with something spectacular, that isn’t me.. I have to have a plan. Someone suggested paper piecing to help with the little pieces for my August tif piece on balance, and that was a great idea, but I have decided to go with simple cross stitch embroidery and beading for this project. As you can see in the picture I have it all graphed out and many of my supplies chosen.

I almost decided against using embroidery of any form because I am intimidated by the absolutely magical embroidery that so many in the challenge are able to do, but I was able to put a halt to that negative self talk. I am not in this challenge to compete with or compare myself to anyone else. I joined to stretch my own creative wings and just simply have fun, so I bought a light up magnifying glass that hangs around the neck, and am ready to go.

In thinking of balance, one of the things that has been throwing the balance off in my life is health. Nothing devastating like cancer or heart disease etc, etc, but I have been dealing with chronic insomnia. Some days I am just too tired to even attempt any of the things I should do or want to do when I get home from work. I saw a new doc today and received a bunch of assignments to do to try to help my sleep, so hopefully as I achieve some success in conquering that area of my life, the others will automatically become easier to keep from spinning out of control. Time will tell, but I am feeling optimistic.

I finished my first (and definitely not last) pair of socks yesterday. They fit great and look terrific with the new boots. I am hoping to get a lot of knitting, quilting, and other hand work done evenings while watching the Olympics. I should have lots to post in the next couple of weeks.

I have decided to use embroidery and beads for this months TIF. See my original thoughts on the challenge here. Hopefully, I will have something to post in the next couple of days. I need to sketch out my plan first.

For the August TIF Challenge, Sharon asked “In my chaotic and hectic life I often admire people who are able to maintain balance in their lives. What is balance to you? Do you maintain a balanced life? How do you balance aspects of your life? That is the challenge this month – balance”

Balance is something I struggle with. I try to balance my work and my creative life, but then housework falls into chaos. Keeping the five main areas of my life- Family, Church, work, creativity, and home responsibilities feels like a constant juggling act, and it doesn’t take much to have everything spinning out of control. As I sit in my cluttered office/studio I can see that home responsibilities usually are the most lacking any kind of balance. I think about changing that, then go read a book or pick up my knitting, or sit down at the computer etc, etc… I am good about keeping a work-life balance. but then feel guilty about not picking up extra shifts at work when needed. It is hard to keep it all in balance

Minnesota is having it’s second annual state wide shop hop starting today. Several months ago, I was asked by Quilt Cove in Eagan, MN to design a project to showcase the shop hop fabrics (designed by Holly Taylor for Moda) that they could kit for the hop. Today I am unveiling that project. It is a table runner called Minnesota Crossroads.

The fabrics