Still in the Zone, Just in a Different Way.....

Getting ready to work on some new quilts that require a new skill set means practice, practice, practice. So there is not much progress on the actual quilts because I haven't really started them.
I'm still in the reading and learning phase.

So, first things first....I needed to reorganize my workspace so that I could do the extra steps necessary when paper piecing. So I got a little worktable to put to my right at the corner of the sewing table
so that I can press and trim as I go.

I also found the neatest iron ..... I love it because it is heavy and I don't feel like I really need to press down. It is hot. It has burst of steam when I need it for actually ironing clothes and getting a good crease in things. It is big so that I can really press fabric in a snap.
Did I mention that I love it? I do. Hamilton Beach I love your iron!

I'm practicing on some simple paper piecing projects.
They probably won't end up in a quilt....but I'm learning some stuff I wouldn't have learned without practicing and would have been really sad to learn while working on my actual quilts....so, it's a good thing.



This paper piecing stuff requires new and unfamiliar tools as well as new ways of looking at the block. Sort of working backwards and feels like I'm guessing at whether the fabric will actually cover the
shape when it's stitched in. A little crazy making for this quilter.

I now have a selection of tools from which many quilts could spring if I get enthused, which at this point I am not. Still, my niece has made her request and I love this girl to pieces so I want to meet her expectations and challenge mine.

So, in the midst of all this preparedness our city had it's annual quilt show sponsored by the local quild. I didn't take a single picture and spent more time looking through the vendor section than the show. Yet, there were some stunning quilts.

Luckily I found a picture of one of the quilts that really caught my eye. It is an image of the sugar skulls that signal that it is Dia de los Muertos in Mexico. I love those images and this quilt was outstanding in person....sparkly, embellished, and so well executed it got my vote for best in show.

And, so today I work on some more practice blocks while Maya stays alert at her post. Checking the view from her ever-vigilant post for any stray leaves that might bounce across the lawn or heaven forbid an errant squirrel come into the yard setting off a race from the slider in the living room to the big window in the bedroom.