Quilts at Kaela's, baby Charlotte, quarantine in Tokyo

 

This Fall Festival Quilt (Jan Patek design) was in full use during my time at Kaela and Joe's in Texas.  

Tommy visited from college in Utah and Noelle visited from North Carolina.  I always knew Tommy was visiting, but Noelle's visit was a total surprise - the best surprise!  We all missed David and had him on FaceTime for long stretches at a time. 

Uncle Tommy bonding with Charlotte: 

I brought my Hartwell Stars quilt from Tokyo, to store at Kaela's temporarily.  

Mighty Zeus: 

And I washed Kaela and Joe's wedding quilt to freshen it up.  It makes me so happy to see that my quilts are really used and enjoyed.

Winter Quilt (blocks are from another Jan Patek design) which needed a little repair, 

And I was so happy to see how nicely Charlotte's baby quilt has washed up.  I really think quilts like this get better and better over time.

Aunt Noelle getting to know Charlotte: 

Minnie the best dog ever: 

Plenty of great tacos in Austin.  All take-out.  Glad to see Kaela and Joe taking social distancing very seriously. 

Hard to say farewell to this sweet little family but, it was time to get back home to David!  

A 24 hour journey home, with quite a process at the airports with a ton of paper work, two COVID tests,  slow lines, waiting, stress.  

Now I'm five days in to my two-week mandatory quarantine. However just a few minutes ago I heard from a friend in the know, that I am allowed to take solo walks outside during quarantine.  I'm so relieved!  

(There's a mascot for everything in Japan!!)

How I feel with jet lag, ha ha: 

xo

Cynthia 

Hartwell stars (stars in a time warp #2) finished!

At long last I finished my second Stars in a Time Warp quilt, from the many stars sewn along with Barbara Brackman's Civil War Quilts blog in 2015.  It was a great series and got me deep into my stash,





and into my local quilt store, The Quilted Crow, for fat quarters most weeks.







This is the first time I've ever sent out a quilt to a long arm quilter, and I couldn't be more pleased with the custom quilting Hannah did!

While piecing it into rows, I reflected on the long history of our house, the Russell-Hartwell farmhouse.

Built before the Revolution, it stayed in the Hartwell family until the 1960's and after that, only three owners before us.  We are just the next stewards in the line.  Sometimes when I step outside at night and can see the stars, I think, so much has changed all around us since the house was built in the 1740's, and who knows the countless episodes of sunshine and shadow the house has held -- but there it is -- the night sky - the constant - the same stars and moon people have watched forever.

So, I named it Hartwell Stars.  Not sure how long the quilt will live in the house (we have it up for sale) but... it took two years to make and will always remind me of home.










My first Stars in a Time Warp quilt is this one.  I think I'm all starred out for now, but probably not for long!



x
Cynthia

Sewing spaces

We're just winding down our February vacation, during which time I've had some good long stretches in the sewing room.

I snapped some pics in the good lighting yesterday - without cleaning up or "staging" anything (now I wish I had!), although I had just swiffered the floor!  Most of the furniture is from good ol' Ikea.

I feel very fortunate to have such a well lit and spacious sewing room.  It used to be Tommy's bedroom and has the best natural light in the house.  He upgraded to his sister's bedroom when she left home, and so I graduated from the attic, to this room.  I haven't always had a sewing room, and I probably won't always have one, but I sure am enjoying it while I can!

On the design wall (merely a piece of batting tacked to the wall), I have arranged one quadrant of my second "stars in a time warp" quilt - I'm calling it Hartwell Stars.  Here is the plan:

Too big to lay out all at once, so I am arranging it in four sections.

The closet was once a hallway, and the wall paper in there (what's left of it) dates probably from the 1880's.

For basting quilts, I head downstairs to the dining room.  I love my dining room table - nicks and marks from countless quilts basted - So many family meals around this table, and projects of all kinds.  It has withstood hard use.  Can you tell I'm feeling wistful, approaching the last months before we become empty nesters?

Where else does quilting take place around here?  When I am hand quilting or stitching sashiko, this is usually where I am, watching TV (Netflix, Hulu) with David in the evenings. 

 I love using my Mom's old Shaker box (actually, round Colonial style, single point - not the typical oval Shaker style) to hold my handwork essentials.  Like the dining room table, it is developing a nice patina from years of use.  Wabi sabi. 

A sewing room full of stuff is nice, but, here is (almost) all one really needs!!! 

  Thanks Wendy at The Constant Quilter for the nudge to post some sewing space pics!