Mariner's Compass - a work in process

Sometimes I get overwhelmed by the beauty of a project I'm working on. And this paper-pieced Mariner's Compass is one such project. I'd love to take credit for the fabric combination, but the credit goes to Jinny Beyer and her terrific color sense. I'm still making some decisions about border fabrics and proportions. But the hard work is done. Click on the picture to see the beautiful details. 24" x 24"

Variations on a Theme

Sewn bags are hot. There are tons of patterns. Buddy Marjorie Hughes gave me this pattern for quilted bags using fat quarters. I'm not sure where this set of fabrics came from. I know they are a bit Christmassy and wintery. But it is still January, right? The red pockets, red handles, and stitching in red thread are good complements to these fabrics.

But remember that my fascination for bags began with Wayne's gift to me of a Mors bag as well as an introduction to the Mors Bags website. There is a free pattern there as well as tracking of people who have established "pods" at morsbags.com. Wayne is now over 100 bags, and I am catching up with him.

We just discovered our bed sheet has worn away in one area. After it's washed, I think I'll cut the remaining good parts into linings for Mors bags. Reduce, reuse, recycle!

Turning Corners - and 8 more bags

I've turned so many corners with my knee rehab. Yesterday I forgot - FORGOT! I tell you - to take a pain medication. And last week I actually spent 3 straight hours in the studio instead of a little 45-minute stint. After my physical therapy session today, I spoke with the director of nursing at the hospital and gave her 9 bags to distribute to my nurses and PCT's. And of course I had to give the nursing director a bag for her efforts. So now that this task has been completed, I'm feeling like I'm ready to
resume work on some projects, like Kim and Tim's Tumbling Blocks Wedding Quilt and the Mariner's Compass in blues, purples, and teals for Janet Sylkatis's 60th birthday.

These bags all have boxed bottoms and a pocket on one side. Just Mors Bags - kicked up a notch.

Four down - lots more to go!

 While I'm not quite ready to sing "Back in the Saddle Again," I am inching towards it. These 4 - some boxed, some flat - are complete. There was a time when I was cranking out 6 bags a day. And perhaps I'll get back to that point. Meanwhile, I'm happy to be getting upstairs a couple of times a day, even if I don't stay very long. Sewing with my right foot is feeling less and less awkward, and I can feel my stamina increasing. Nice. Very nice!

Baby Steps

 This may not look like much, but this picture is actually quite significant. Today I began work again in the Studio. I'm making simple Mors bags for the nursing staff I came in contact with at LaGrange. So there is fabric selection, ironing, measuring/cutting, and making the handles before the bags can be assembled. And that is what I did today, including sewing the handles. None of this was pain-free and took 3 sessions to the studio to accomplish. But that's okay - it's a start. Tomorrow I can put these two together and think about the next pair I want to make. I'm thrilled to see the return to a normal schedule. In some ways the break from sewing/quilting has been nice, but now I'm ready to get back to work!

A White Christmas

 Courtesy of my brother Doug, here are most of the Whites at Mom and Dad's - Autumn Green, 67th and Cicero, in Chicago. Missing from this picture are niece Jennifer (in Florida with her husband), niece Candace (in the bathroom), and grand-niece Elle (sleeping). Brother Al made Skyline Chili, sister Paula brought a sandwich platter, brother Doug had various goodies, John brought all the fixin's for the chili, and Mom and Dad provided the pies. Lovely day - a luxury to be with family. We are blessed. On a negative note, the Vicodin I'm taking for knee pain and rehab seems to heighten the senses, especially hearing. My dad's accordion music is lovely, but my brother took this shot when I had obviously had enough. On a positive note, I've been up in my studio a couple of times. While doing the stairs is manageable, using the foot pedal of the sewing machine isn't - just yet.

Time to Reflect

 Now that I'm in the recuperative part of the total right knee replacement, I know I won't be getting up to the studio for 10 - 14 days or so. Since I can't quilt, this break gives me an opportunity to plan the projects I really want to do in the next few months and then priortize these projects. The first two are both pieces of wall art, a bright tumbling blocks with a back background for Kim and Tim Gibbons wedding and a Mariner's Compass in teals, blues, and purples for Janet Sylkaitis's 60th birthday. Of course more quilted totes. I mean, of course! There is a pile of fabrics that I want to use for Mors bags. And then there are projects like the one pictured here (courtesy of quiltfabric.com). I like the drama of the on-point setting as well as the color range. Perhaps this down time won't be so bad after all!

The Elves Have Left the Building!

The big push is over. These three bags are completed. Lynita is purchasing 2 of them, the nicely organized vertical stripes. The scrap tote is for my surgeon's wife - someone who knows her Bible and will appreciate the spirit behind this Amazing Technicolor Dream Tote. I have a couple of projects laid out and ready to go as soon as I can get back to the studio. Of course I wanted to make another 20 or 30 various Christmas gifts - maybe they can be gifts for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Day!

For Kevin's Family

Kevin died in his sleep 6 months ago when he was 31. His family - his mother, his father, his brothers, his niece, his nephew - is grieving. This first year of missing Kevin is painful. The family has gone through a Thanksgiving without him as well as what would have been Kevin's 32nd birthday. Now this anguished family faces their first Christmas without him.

Kevin's mother Lynita is a woman I did a quilt for over 5 years ago. Before I did her wall quilt, she had just seen a t-shirt quilt that I completed. So now, years later, our paths are crossed, under the saddest of circumstances. She gave me Kevin's clothes and suggested wall hangings for her family. Her son Adam and Lynita spent an hour with me in the studio, articulating which shirts/pieces should go in which quilt and what colors/fabrics I could use as sashing and borders.

Adam and his brother David both have wall hangings that are 35" x 60."








Kevin's father, his niece, and his nephew all have hangings that are 24" x 24."










Lynita's is 24" x 48".

Grieving is a process that lasts a lifetime. And there are so many paths to grief recovery. I admire Lynita for helping her family identify a way that they can not only grieve for Kevin's death but also for helping her family - and herself - find a way to commemorate Kevin's life. Kevin will be present Christmas Day.

Well Under Way

The current project of 6 wall hangings is coming together nicely. 3 of the pieces are horizontal wall hangings about 3' x 5'. And 3 of the pieces are 2' x 2' wall hangings. The quilting has begun, and I think I'll complete them by early next week. Then I'm shutting the studio down for a month while I have a total knee replacement. I'll miss the sewing, but I'm thrilled with the thought of a new body part!