tula tuesday::week 36

 block number 62

from tula pink's

city sampler

100 modern quilt blocks.

 ...and the snowy inspiration.

 block number 36...

and the inspiration. 

After a month off from this project, stitching two blocks may help me get back into the swing of things. Lots of snow today and a high of 21, low of 5 degrees forecast for tomorrow. Seems like a really early winter to me.

I also stitched another Japanese Rice Bag today, using this little bit of stitching. Check back tomorrow to check it out. I'll post some ideas for solstice gifting, too.

xo

reflecting

This is a tough day for me. Perhaps you struggle too? 

I sit on the knife edge of honoring veterans and abhorring war. (My dad was a proud Marine whose artistic skills (perversely) created training materials that supported troops in Korea. He requested that an honor guard serve at his internment. I could not tolerate the rifle salute and I still remember it as an intrusion on that day).

So I make room for reflection today.

Melissa at Tiny Happy had a tutorial for crafting a white poppy pin on her blog years ago. You can find it here. It is a peaceful alternative to the traditional red poppy. It was easy to stitch. 

I support Veterans For Peace and the work they do to “build a culture of peace by using our experiences and lifting our voices.” Their “Reclaiming Armistice Day” is about “pushing the celebration of peace into the national conversation on Veterans Day”. 

And the work of the American Friends Service Committee merits consideration as a cause to support, too. 

And then there is this quote that rings with truth...
"Wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows." -MLK Jr. 🕊

stitching in the present moment

 snowy afternoon stitching,

using a scrap of selvedge and 

some embroidery floss.

edges turned under and ready to pin.

solstice ideas.

xo

(riffing off of this)

snow is a comin' (and kooser)

 my car has her snow tires on and 

 a new windshield scraper is tucked under the front seat

(not sure where the old one went...). 

i dug up the last of the leeks this afternoon.

did you know that you can plant your freshly dug, untrimmed 

leeks in a container in the root cellar and they will stay fresh?

on my list of things to do tomorrow.

 i marvel at the sage.

her silvery leaves keep growing long after everything

else in the garden gives up.

we can often find her, tucked under a blanket of snow,

ready to flavor a thanksgiving or holiday turkey.

i love to sizzle her leaves in olive oil (along

 with slivered leeks) to use 

as a garnish for pasta and soups.

here's our weather station, perched at the top 

of the pole that holds up our clothesline.

today marks the first day of ted kooser's

Winter Morning Walks:

one hundred postcards to Jim Harrison

some of us are reading it again,

or maybe for the first time.

"The sky hangs thin and wet on its clothesline."

 that's surely how it feels as we wait for the first measurable

snow of the season here in vermont.

i look forward to spending a few, quiet and peaceful

moments for the next one hundred days

with the solace of kooser's writing.

let me know how it goes for you, dearest readers.

xo

a birthday quilt for maggie

 Our dearest little Magpie turns one year old today.

Yesterday was cold and rainy in Brooklyn,

so she opened her package from
Grandma and Gramdpa in Vermont a day early.

(She had an inkling of what might be inside).

 Her Mama wrapped her up in her new quilt

and they had a little snuggle time

before heading out into the world.

This little cutie pie has the most precious of smiles.

She's a city girl who charms folks on the subway and buses that 

rumble along her commute.

She's a "reeder" who loves her books.

She loves her veggies.

She and her Mama and Papa make such an adorable family.

Thank goodness for technology that allows all of us to stay

in touch with her as she grows before our very eyes.

 This is the fabric that started the quilt.

I could not resist these wee critters.

 I used this book that I bought in the early 2000's
to create the Seminole strips.

Maybe you noticed the birch fabric added here and there?

When I spotted the grey gingham checked fabric

I knew it would make a perfect binding.

And how about those elections?
I can't seem to get enough of those amazingly gorgeous smiles
 on the faces of the women
who are shifting the balance of power.

Maggie,
I'm guessing someday you will have a few things to say
about how the world is run.
Grow strong and brave and joyous,
little one.

xoxoxoxoxoxox
with love from your Grandma in Vermont.

two projects: a sew and a sow

 THE SEW PROJECT
I "met" Karen Stevens on Instagram and fell in love with her slow stitching aesthetic. I bought one of her fun indigo moon zipper pouches from her Easy shop and I do love it. Imagine my delight when she asked me to be a tester for her Modern Japanese Rice Pouch pdf pattern! I pulled out an actual fabric rice bag (basmati, not sushi) from my fabric stash and some of my homegrown, hand dyed indigo and special bits and pieces and stitched up this version of her bag. The bag is easy to follow and Karen has a special 15% off through Thursday.

Here's the other side of my bag. You can follow Karen on Instagram here and check out her website where you'll find a link to her Etsy shop. Check it out!

THE SOW PROJECT

My brother and sister-in-law are moving and cannot take the two funky little hoop houses that they built with them. In mid-September, Batman and I drove down to Massachusetts to rescue one of them. It was a snug fit, but we got the most important parts of the hoop house loaded into the pick up, tied it all down very carefully and hauled it back up to Vermont.

We started working on construction right away. We built a base with new lumber. We thought Batman might run into the typical ledge that follows the spine of the Braintree Hills, but he was able to dig a nice, deep central ditch.

The hoops went up, compost was hauled and added and we were excited about our progress. Then the rains began, the temperature dropped and our scheduled weekend work was postponed...

Finally, this past weekend the sun came out, we bundled up and headed out to finish things up.

Lifting this heavy window unit up onto the base was tricky business, but we did it! (Doug and Ra had used salvaged vinyl windows to create the ends, complete with screens!)

The second end was not as heavy and felt so much easier! We have decided to wait until the late winter to put the plastic sheeting up and over the hoops.

Here's Batman, (who is 6' 5" tall) standing in the house, without bumping his head, thanks to that nice deep ditch he dug.

We are curious to see how much this hoop house will increase our growing season. Imagine fresh greens while there's still spring snow on the ground...fingers crossed! And every time we step into the hoop house we'll take a bit of gratitude with us...for Doug and Ra's generosity. xo

Is there anything as hopeful as sowing seeds in the dirt? All winter long, we'll be able to look out the window and see this hoop house, filled with possibility!

old friends and new friends in november

These gloomy days just won't quit this autumn! But how I do love this time of year, when our beloveds who have left us feel so close that they are nearly with us. The veil is truly thin. I do so love to take time to remember them...My dad’s way of seeing color and form in the natural world, my grandmother’s aura where I always felt welcomed, Abi Tim’s wide circle of love, Abi Joan’s zest for life, Erin’s youthful Light, Great Aunt Margretta’s twinkling personality, Caleb’s exuberance, beloved pets...the list grows longer every year, and for that I am sad. But to have known them and to have loved them...that is where the magic is. Who are you remembering today?

And at the very same time we are missing people, new folks come into our lives. Yesterday I drove down to King Arthur Flour (maybe you all think I live there?) to meet Vicki G who is taking a few classes there this weekend. She is a sewandsowlife reader who lives in Illinois. She got in touch with me earlier this fall to let me know she'd be in Vermont in November. We spent about 45 minutes chatting over our mugs of coffee. We talked about our mutual love of Vermont, quilting (she's a quilter!), baking and the state of the world. By the time she had to head off to her gathering at 5, I felt certain I had made a new and dear friend. 

These are the things we need to remember, friends...

• as we lose people, new folks come along to form new bonds.
• as we feel challenged by our times, we can be reminded that we may find kindred and like minded spirits if we simply reach out (with a phone call, and email, a bit of snail mail...)
• even as these gloomy days plod on, there is comfort to be found, sitting in the circle of light from a lamp...stitching, reading, listening, chatting, writing...

If the sun comes out tomorrow (finally) as forecast, Batman and I will be able to finish a really sweet project. And there's been so much sewing going on that I haven't been able to share with you...I will, SOON!

Happy Saturday, dearest readers.