Making Things; A Quilting Project. (x 2)

When my 3 1/2 year old nephew's momma opened an amazing childrens' & maternity boutique a year after he was born, I knew I was in trouble. I kept asking myself the same question over and over: How am I, a first-time, non-mom Aunt ever to meet the challenge of being awesomesauce (i really just said that. i know.) in the eyes of a little gem when his momma's specialty is providing advice and access to the best ubercool toys/clothes/products out there? After much consideration, yammering, general indecision and blank stares from my husband, I made a decision that from then on I would Make Him Things, that's how.

It first started, this Making of Things, as his first birthday approached in 2007. I wanted to give him something that he could keep, that he would use often and would grow with him. I decided on a kid sized wooden table and chairs. Something he could use in various parts of the house, eat at occasionally, play on, and generally have all to himself and his buddies. I loved my table and chairs as a kid; drawing, lego, puzzles, games, you name it, we used it for it. I still have that table and one of the chairs in my basement that i pull out for our kidlet visitors to play and colour and snack on. One observant sweetpea asked me if it was mine when i was a kid, and when i replied yes she ran her hands over its chipped green edges and faded yellow daisy print top and cooed *i really like it...*. I knew that I wanted to be the one to give that same joy to my little buddy, so I contacted his mom and she agreed, it woud be perfect. i painted a table and two chairs with bright bold colours. It was amazing to see the little man excitedly laugh and smile, sit there and slap his hands on the top, excited to have a place to sit that actually fit his own size. Success!

As other holidays and occassions approached I went with some handmade gifts made by others, as well as some Things Made by me. I embarked on creating an original alphabet painting for Christmas 2008 and an upcycled rocking chair you might remember me yakking about for his 3rd birthday in 2009. With the addition of another sweet little man in late summer of this year, a little brother to the other, I knew I wanted to make them both something special for the holidays. I knew I was maxing out the furniture category; the people only have so much space. I went for something different.

Sewing. Quilts!

I mean, I made a quilt about 5 years ago that I love, so why not pull out my little Singer and plug away through the fall? Knowing how much my brother and I both LoVEd our blankets as kidlets, I knew it could work. So, its not a big Fun Gift for them now, but something that over the years i hope they grow to appreciate having around.(My husband made sure to include a remote dumptruck that took care of that problem.) So I started in late October. I picked out the colour schemes for the quilts, looked around and found 2 great, free, online patterns for inspiration and technical guidance. I used this post on a Rag Style Quilt and this one about a Flannel Rag Quilt. I really wanted to focus on flannel, a texture with softness for sweet fingers and faces.

Once the patterns were found I went straight to work. I decided on fabric first. I wanted to pick 5 cotton flannels for each quilt (lets call them L and D), with each quilt having a 2-colour theme. With dark, light, pattern, as well as tertiary and background themes considered, I ended up going back twice before deciding on the combos and making a final purchase. With so many choices, I was happy it only took me that long. Here is what i came up with:

Fabric for L: Turquoise, Navy & White.

Fabric for D: Dark Khaki, Light Blue & Light Green.

After that was done, I set to cutting out all my squares using the templates i had cut out from some sturdy scrap cardboard, a self-healing cutting matt, a metal cutting edge and a cutting wheel. Super time saver, that wheel. The templates served as a guideline for me.

It was at this point that I started to remember how little sewing their actually is in making a quilt, in relation to all the OTHER details: cutting, pinning, stacking, sewing, pinning, unpinning, sewing, repinning and trimming. (Turns out streaming old episodes of The Office are the perfect companion for such activites.) A Legend of Fabrics was established on corkboards, one for each quilt. I highly recommend doing so.

I also drew out the quilt on paper in advance, so I had a map of the sequence of the squares. I did it assembly line style, switching from one task to another, back in forth between quilts, fabrics, stages, taking breaks and a couple of long absenses so as to not get too bored and make sure to finish. Once the end of November hit, I knew I had to get to the final push, and finish up the quilts. Having gotten stuck before the final push to completion, I knew it was game time. Off I went, sewing through the night, loving the hum and constant whir of the machine. It was nice. The quilts were done in no time, and soon i was sitting in the basement trimming the fringed edges. Ok, for 3 days straight, in front of the television. I was very happy I had bothered to grab a titanium spring-handled cutting tool for the edges. Its rasor sharp little beak was the key to cutting fringe well. I highly suggest something like this one, which I used.

Before I knew it I was at the final stage: tossing them in the washing machine (one at a time) and then dryer so to create the yummy fringed edges and get that nice quilted effect. I cannot even relay how much fuzz and lint come off those things. I was sure to keep them in the dryer without heat for another hour each, emptying the lint tray every 15 minutes in an attempt to get rid of the all the loose threads bursting out. After a final inspection and securing any loose threads, i was actually finished.

So here they are, the final quilts! Just a couple of shots, showing both sides: one ragged and one smooth. Each is about the size of a twin bed. The parents were excited, I was happy to give the Things Made over to be loved and another tradition has been passed on! Love it.

Thanks for the patience and switching modes, more catching up to come!

♥ leel

ring a ding ding ding. its a new year post.

So, here we are. 2010. Isn't that the SEQUEL to that futuristic movie we all watched in awe and fear in the days of youth? Pardon my french, but how the fuck did we get to 2010? Period. Question mark, whatever. HOW did we get here?

HOW?

I mean, I remember ringing in 1984 with anticipation, every new years of the 90s are black spots in the ole memory bank. Remember the leading up to the new millennium and the chaotic conspiracies of Y2K? Remember ringing in 2001? I was in a bar, kickin it old school with vodka, soda and lime, time on my side and nobody to answer to. THAT seemed surreal at the time. *2001* No, it was surreal, flipping the calendar to the date of that far off film. And now? And Now. Here we are. Here, IN 2010. To quote Dave Matthews, *My mind is blown.*

But somehow I am so ok with it. I am oddly calm about it. Anticipating it, even. For me, that is huge. I don't generally anticipate anything in life. In the past anticipation has bitten me in the ass, so i tend to try and stay in the moment. I mean, i have a whole lot of fun in the moment, i just make sure to point my compass in the general direction i want to go, and go with it. But this year it feels different. Maybe I say that every year. This year, I am actually excited about what is to come. I feel like 2009 was a desert for me, a meandering into the wastelands, assessing fire pits and past travellers bones, leaving things behind, picking things up and and finding the strength to just trust my instincts. To journey back into the world of the living. to start a new DECADE anew. Wiser. Stronger. Refreshed.

And that is just what it feels like. The entire decade behind me could be a drama mini-series with my name on it. Truly. But I'm leaving that behind. This year is a new decade, and feel more ready to ride the wave of life than ever.

Which brings me to Resolutions. None here. I have been pretty good at keeping them in the past. In fact I have kept most of them. One could be an entire chapter in that mini-series. No kidding. it started out as *I will only accept men in my life who give me the respect i deserve* and ended with me somehow being celibate for the entire YEAR. By October my friends were cheering me on to make it to December. I made it. But only until about 12:07am Jan. 1. Good times those 90s. and 2000s. Where was I? ah! The present.

So now. Now I tend to pick a theme and just go with it. Last year, 2009, I promised myself I would observe the art of Patience. Learn the value in having it, learning to watch more and do less. Doing less. Less jumping to conclusions, rushing through each day, more reflection and the simple act of being patient. I think it has helped me immensely, i don;t feel so rushed and panicked on a day to day basis and I plan to continue to use its wisdom in the coming years. Isn't that better than unrealistic temporary goals? Isn't that the point?!

So this year, my new theme will be action. more action, less re-action. more doing, less thinking, more jumping, and leaping and flying and less holding the fort down for everyone else. more dancing in the front row, not sitting in the back. more more more. just more. if last year was the winter of my discontent, this is definitely my springtime. I plan on fully embracing it.

So yes. I will be getting on with some art related, DIY fun times. This little creative space wasn't ever intended to be a journal, but it has become one as of late. So be it. I will continue to write here, post here, intersperse some personal crap with some art.You know. No real plans. Some exciting developments that I am excited to share about one of my DIYs is to come, I will be sharing some of the details of my new business and I promise, I will blog about the quilts i made for my nephews in the coming days so stay tuned!

I really just wanted to say happy new year all, and that i hope the new year shapes out to be just what you need. and lots of Action for me :)

♥ leel

p.s. I also plan to put more emphasis on proper capitalization, spellcheck and punctuation in 2010. Fine. Less confusion for all, right?

p.p.s. I still hate to re-read the entire post before publishing. This may be evident at times. Such is life.

hey ryan

where do you lurk online? what do you think about, relate to enough, get reved up enough about that you leave a comment on a blog post? have you ever felt such a surge that you found your comment turning into its own blog post?

well my friends, im inviting you in.

i tend to leave personal comments to personal blog posts, which i guess is the point since the author has opened up, touched on the topic, so it fits. my personal ramblings can be found in the comments of blogs that include much better written blogs by BHJ and a Million Universes, for instance. as im sure many of you can relate, i consider some of these blogs and the actual humans behind them as my little online family. people i relate to that i only know online. people i have somehow found, in this world, that i seem to relate to. not in a creepy way, freaks. in a wow! cool! hey there (waves)! sorta way. in this particular instance i started to leave a comment on Pacing The Panic Room and his post entitled Grandpa. I encourage you to head over there and check out Ryan (<= link to previous post) and his awesome blog of photography. This post was timed for me. Im convinced. So as I wrote my short reply, it turned into a monster all about ME and not really at all to him, and so i decided just to cut and paste the whole thing here and avoid the embarrassment of hiding behind other peoples blogs.

here we go:

hey ryan,

this post hit a soft spot. i am also in the god-awful process of trying to navigate which connections to make, hold on to or reestablish in my own Family. at this point i am actually more estranged than connected. being adopted and then having parents divorce in my effing 30s has way spun my mind.

in my early 20s i met my birthmother, 1/2 sister, a houseful of relatives who all look exactly like me, talked like me, were artistic and creative - like me! My grandfather came from across the country to meet me one summer. He said he loved me and was so happy to meet me. It was nice really nice. And then I came home. And then I was sad, and then really angry for never having the chance to have that love and support my whole life. people that looked like me. guilt and anger brewed from having to hide it from my adopted family since my effing father & his family would not accept that reunion. so i stopped communicating with the biological side. the guilt was too much for me, in this case. it still is. now i feel bad for NOT talking to them, but guilty towards my other family for wanting and perhaps needing to know the blood side. oh life! damn catch 22.

then there is the father thing. i have never met my birthfather. he does not know i exist. i have his name, thats it. product of a one night stand. classic or what? its naturally totally effing complicated as well. my adoptive father (who i call dad)and i have not spoken in 11 months. there. i said it. he lives 5 minutes down the road. he sent me a letter telling me he was getting remarried to his mistress of 3 years (who he left my mother for 10 days after our wedding) a birthday card in May to say Enjoy Your Day, and not a single phone call. i so have no time for that BS. so, i have to figure out if i want to find out where i come from. i know 1/2, and that hasnt turned out so shit hot, but i have answers, right? dont we all want to know where we come from and how we fit into the long chain of evolution? i surely do. maybe that comes from feeling so disconnected my entire life, to now being 37 and saying eff the wondering, lets find this shit out and deal with it. you know, slay some of those dragons.

so to stay or to go? it does come down to what some others mentioned in the comments - regret. but dont look at it like that. look at it from 20 years from now and what THAT ryan would feel with either choices. think of the discussions and examples you want to set for LB and the Tangerine - and especially Cole. But most of all for YOU. Do you want to let your life be guided with love - as hokey as that is - or with hate. You can choose. You can tell your kids that you met your grandfather and gave that a chance. You can be different than your parents.

Holy Shit. I think I need to find my father.