The Great Time Escape

12:15pm
After four days of cold temperatures, gray skies and snow flurries, the sun found us and it is a gorgeous day.  The mountains are pure white.  So, why can't I get anything done?  Do you ever have days like that?  Actually I have gotten plenty done, just not what I had planned.

1.  Walked the dog for 45 minutes
2.  Practiced the piano 30 or 40 minutes
3.  Made super-fiber, sourdough bread.
4.  Called my daughter to ask a couple of questions and chatted almost one hour.
5.  Ate lunch.

Wow!  That's pretty amazing ... and to think that I felt like I had not accomplished a thing the whole morning. Smell the bread? In 30 minutes we get our first bite slathered with butter melting all over our fingers.

TIP:  When you have these feelings of dis-accomplishment, sit down a minute and think about what you actually did.  Even sitting down to read a book is productive.  So is sitting on the deck watching the beauty around you.  We all need variety, relaxation and beauty in our lives to help us tap into our creativity.  A little flexibility helps too.

I didn't get a lot of old, family photos keyworded in Adobe Lightroom as planned, but that job will still be there later this afternoon.  Right now I am heading to the sewing room.

1:30 pm
I just finished another star and am without another sewing project ready at hand.  Now I need to computerize the next star design so I can print out the paper for paper piecing.  Then I will have something to sew tomorrow.  Here is the one I finished today:

I think this is my favorite so far

I spent a lot of time over the weekend doing the computer planning for my next big quilt and I am now ready to shop.  Oh goodie!!  Once I have fabric I will cover each color block with a swatch of the actual fabric.  This helps me keep things straight when I am paper piecing a complex spiral.  Below is my shopping plan, which I will put in a plastic sleeve along with a picture of the quilt:

Shopping Plan

TIP:  Add your name, address and phone number to your planning sheet when you go to the store so the store can call to let you know where you left it.  Ask me how I know!! One time my husband dropped by the quilt store to pick it up for me, and when he walked in, the class and customers all became absolutely silent.  He is big, dark and bearded, so he does not look like he belongs in a quilt store even though he is quite harmless. He picked up my papers and quickly escaped.

TIP:  It saves time and money when you are shopping if you know exactly what you need.  I always add a bit to the fabric amounts to be safe, but it is structured to avoid waste.  Yes, it takes some time before the shopping trip to plan it out, but for me it is very worthwhile.  I also live far away from quilt stores.

Here is a sneak preview of the computer drawing of one spiral for my next major project:

Definitely my favorite colors

This is going to be a challenge.  The longest piece (dark blue) is 18 inches long so it will take three pieces of paper taped together to accommodate the whole triangle.  Actually I digitally divided it into three pieces, which fit nicely all on one piece of paper to minimize waste.  I just have to cut the pieces apart and tape them together to get the long spiral.  I am going to try using surgical paper tape to reassemble the spiral.  I am hoping it will hold together until I am done.  I will do one as a tester before printing out all the sheets of paper, and will give you an update on the success or failure of this jerry-rigged endeavor.  

Sew a happy seam this week.