First Finished WIP of 2017

Receiving surprise tickets to Garth Brooks, realizing your toddler has allowed you to sleep for a solid number of hours and finishing a work in progress that’s been a long time coming…I think those are three of my favorite feelings. Today’s cheerfulness is brought to you by the latter.

The denim and flannel quilt in question was a project for a friend. Her stepfather passed and I turned his many, many pairs of jeans into a queen-sized bed quilt. It was a beautiful project to bring to life and I am so thrilled it turned out how they envisioned. Each pair of jeans is represented throughout.

I think it weighs 1,000 lbs. Approximately.

 

Now, if you’re familiar with rag quilts I’m sure you know that washing and drying them achieves that awesome frayed look with a cool, laid-back vibe. What people don’t advertise is that they look like a HOT MESS after the first few rounds. Don’t cry when after the fourth dry cycle, your somewhat damp quilt looks like this:

A hair cut with some spring-action snips will make everything better. I swear. My recommendation is to do this particular task with some wine and a movie because it can be a bit tedious. Then again, my recommendations for pretty much everything is to do it with wine and a movie, so you do you.

(I’m sure you photographers want to know what I’m shooting with to achieve such a professional photo. It’s the rose gold iPhone that’s not the huge one that doesn’t fit in your pocket…second newest? I think? What number are they on now, iPhone 19?)

After more use, love and fraying, this guy is gonna be perfect. The best part about rag quilts is that I’m pretty sure they can last forever, and washing and drying just makes them cozier.

Next project? I’m FINALLY going to make Ella a car seat poncho with the Ninja Turtle fleece she picked out. If she ever lets it go.

TURTLE POWER!

I Just Went In For Rotary Blades…

The number one priority project in my sewing life right now is a denim and flannel rag quilt for a friend. The backing fabric just came in, so I’m ready to cut! Sadly, my trusty Olfa 60mm was dull to the point of skipping spots, and there is nothing more annoying than that, so off to Jo-Ann’s we went with the simple list…mayyyybe some thread too. I have a coupon. 

Six pillow forms later, it was time to come back. I couldn’t help it–my couch NEEDS pillows and they were 50% off! Looking for some awesome quilted cover inspiration as my next project to use up some Jen Kingwell Gardenvale fabric–anyone have a favorite go-to pattern? 

It’s a beautifully snowy day outside and it makes me want to do nothing but drink wine and sew. Waiting on nap time…

Stargazing

Today was the last day of holiday break for hubby and we spent it doing exciting things like errands, housecleaning (as seen in this depiction of child labor) and grocery shopping. 

Ella received a gift card for Christmas and we used it today on one of our stops to get her one of those toy lanterns which doubles as a star projector on the ceiling. She loves it and has made it a special part of our night time routine where we sing “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” approximately 100 times and then she says, “Night night stars!” and kisses the lamp. Yes, it’s as cute as it sounds. 

The purchase was a fitting theme for me today, as I’ve begun a journey into reading the Bible in a year for the first time. I’m pretty sure 99% of my Christian friends have done this before, but I have not. It was a trendy thing to do as a New Year’s resolution when I was a youth group attendee back in the late 90s/early 2000s. Don’t worry, I did have a WWJD bracelet I rocked with a DC Talk bucket hat while rapping “Supertones Strike Back,” so I didn’t miss out completely. 

Anyway, true to form, I was already a day behind by January 2nd (is that some kind of record?), so I read the Creation story through Noah. 

I have three questions from the January 1 and 2 readings that I’ve never really thought about in these familiar stories, and I’d love to know your thoughts. 

1. What is the significance of saying, “according to its kind” over and over in the Creation story? It feels redundant and whenever things feel redundant there is usually a reason. 

2. “Your desire shall be for your husband and he shall rule over you.” This is what Eve is essentially cursed with (besides making childbirth the worst. When God gives a consequence He doesn’t hold back, does He?) but it seems strange to me. I don’t get it. Her desire shall be for her husband…is that negative? I get the “he’ll rule over you” part in the whole man-is-the-head-of-the-household portion of the Bible that comes later. The pairing of these two phrases together seems odd. Why did he say that? (Also, the feminist in me cringed when I read the word “rule,” as later in the New Testament it makes it pretty dang clear that the marriage relationship is meant to be a mutually respectful one built on love and trust. But that’s beside the point.)

3. Cain: who is he afraid of when he says whoever finds him will kill him? Aren’t he and Adam and Eve supposed to be the only people on the planet so far? I’ve always thought that the Creation story was a beautiful allegory of how God created the universe to evolve into what it is in His timing more than a literal 7 24-hour period, but this seems to be a plot hole, for lack of a better phrase. 

Thanks for any thoughts shared! I didn’t anticipate to get all religion-focused on my mommy blog, but I’m so curious to hear what people think.