Quilt #2

A new quilt project!

I came across this tutorial and it looks like a good next step in trying a quilt.  I made a straight line quilt last year, which now belongs to Pepper.

This new quilt will belong to my daughter.  She is due to arrive in March, so I have plenty of time to pull this together (or do I??).  I am excited to see how this goes with a different shape, and a LOT more sewing.

The fabrics I got:

Starting to cut out the many many triangles today!

working it

I've been keeping busy with little stuff:

Pins!  And more pins!!

For a class reunion

Kalisher keeps us busy.  Art is love.

Pretty vellum bunting for a party in BKLYN!

SYNCSTUDIO woop woop!

The LIST

David and I were recently shot into gear to get the house in order.  It is officially GET THE HOUSE IN ORDER time.

Earlier this year we checked off a few other overdue to-do list items, like removing dead trees from the back yard.  There are just some things we should not attempt to DIY- like cutting down trees with the potential of smashing your house.  We called professionals, and I got to watch nervously from inside.

What we've done so far:
Cut down trees
Started so back yard clearing & clean-up
had plumber fix faucet

What we need to do:
sell the Toyota
touch up paint in master bath
paint above chair rail in craft room
organize/clean out craft room closet (we did David's downstairs office closet last year)
DEEP CLEAN the house (wiping baseboards and cleaning blinds, etc)
upholster craft room reading chair
fix back gate
strip & repaint/seal the deck
create landing pad for trash bins outside
create walkway in front garden

What looms in the future:
painting the house (you're supposed to do that every 5-6 years, right?)
still thinking about that detached office out back
make downstairs office a guest room again

LET'S DO THIS!

Gunlocked

The chairs!!!  YAY!

little collections

After touching up the walls in the bedroom MONTHS ago, we finally got some artwork back up.  It is feeling complete again in the bedroom.  I made these teeny tiny little things:

Hannah gave me these lil' canvas babes in a craft box for my birthday in April.

Also in April, I got some fancy earrings.  I love them.  I do not wear them very often, as exercise and GIANT fancy earrings tend not to mix.   Most of my earrings are in a ceramic egg crate, and they are studs so it makes sense.  I did not want to store these like that... so I put them on the wall!  Then I was inspired to make a little collection of fancy lady things.

art deco in the house

Nothing says (old) lady more like cross-stitch amiright? And nothing says fancy like displaying your jewelry on the wall.  I love it.

To continue decorating the bedroom, I am going to take some neat-looking bottles and make a little collection with fake flowers- I can always swap in fresh ones when we have guests.

And speaking of little collections, I gathered these babies in Alabama last year around Thanksgiving.  We may have the opportunity to visit the gulf coast again this year and I can't wait to find more tiny whole shells.

the black one is the size of a dime

And finally, here is my collection of (mostly) living things by the window!  The guy on the far left was a wedding favor from Alex & Adam, and is still kicking after almost 2 years!

a little R & R

It has been over 2 years since I have taken this much time off from work all at one time.  A whole week!!  The Wintons and The Smiths spent a week at Ocean Isle Beach and it was just what the doctor ordered.  It was great to rest my body, and quiet my mind.  While at the beach, I did a tiny little cross-stitch:

Now I am back in Durham and I feel ready for action!

I have so many ideas and projects... in fact I whipped up a circle/cowl scarf yesterday in about 10 minutes.  Here is Pepper modeling it:

Coming soon:  backyard progress pics and Gunlocke chair pics

See & Hear

APRIL 21.  THIS SUNDAY.  NIGHTLIGHT.  5PM.

David has been working on this event, a visual arts + music gathering.  Three artists and three musicians.  He has been making display & lighting concepts and I cannot wait to see it all put together. I helped paint some display pieces, and the big wooden flag.

Come out on Sunday!  IT IS FREEEE!! 

it really ties the room together

A new rug for the living room!
We got FLOR tiles last year.  I liked planning a totally unique rug, but I was very disappointed to find out that the tile style & colors we ordered were discontinued six months later.  I was ready to buy more FLOR tiles to expand out rug, but that was no longer a possibility.   RugsUSA.com to the rescue!  We  got our black & white chevron kitchen rug there for a good deal, so I began looking again.  My friend Sabrina has had good luck there as well. I came across this puppy at 50% off, so why not go big?  Now I can't wait to see the Gunlocke chairs in the living room.

oh, hello

Well.  2013 was off to a rough start.  I am happy to report that things are looking up for March.  I have not had much time (or desire) for projects lately, so my spring to do list is still a to do list.

I repainted the upstairs bathroom and it looks great!  The hexagon wall is going to take much longer.  The unopened gallon of paint I had leftover did not match what I originally used.  So instead of just touching up a few spots, I have to redo the entire wall.  By hand.  Which is slow.  

Over the weekend, I played outside in Durham and helped these guys take some pictures:

They are launching their new website soon.  If you know of any brides-to-be in NC, let them know!  

We have a lot of family time planned for March.  In April, I will hit a pretty cool milestone, and David has an interesting side project event.  Here's hoping things keep moving on & up for spring!

small stuff

Homemade Peppermint Patties

These are SO GOOD.  I found the recipe here last month.  The smaller discs work better when trying to drench them in chocolate, but I couldn't resist making hearts and Mississippis.  I am definitely going to make these again!

Cross-Stitch Arrows

I have been wanting to make some more small artwork, and trying some quickly gratifying sewing projects.  Then I got my DIY magazine in the mail last week (thanks Hannah!!) and copied this arrow design.  Pepper helped me pick out the colors.

YAY Pins

It is no secret that I love what I do for a living.  I say "yay" entirely too much while I teach, and I wanted to share my enthusiasm with my class-takers.  I gave these YAY pins to the folks who took my TRX class this weekend.  

Today I started to touch up and redo the walls in the upstairs bathroom.  Hoping to get that completed before we get our roommate/buddy/house guest next Sunday!  

Project Projections

Welcome 2013!
Happy Birthday Lowell & Louise!

In 2012, we tackled some major house projects.  Scraping the popcorn from the great room ceiling, painting almost everything, and putting down hardwood floors.  We have no plans on stopping for this year!

Here are some things we want to get done in 2013:

1. (re)paint any rooms/walls that have not been touched (up)
2. refinish and reupholster our Gunlocke chairs (already in progress!!)
3. have the other chair reupholstered
4. build an outdoor office in the back yard!
5. landscape the front yard (including making a brick or stone pad for the trash and recycling bins, and a new front walkway)
6. make lighting for downstairs bathroom
7. host a dinner party (or two or three)