You won’t want to put ‘The Spymistress’ down

Filled with intrigued, danger and a woman who was far ahead of her time, Elm Creek Quilts author Jennifer Chiaverini does not disappoint with “The Spymistress.” Following the life of Elizabeth Van Lew just before, during and after the Civil War, the historical novel delves into the covert activities the real life Military Intelligence Hall […]

Cloth diaper sweat shop … I mean retreat

They’re done! All 36 cloth diapers are assembled, the PUL has been resealed and they are neatly arranged in the changing table dresser. I finished this monumental task over the weekend at quilt retreat, where I didn’t actually do any quilting, but did enjoy the company of plenty of women who did. They all had […]

Productive insomnia

I’ve reached that point in my pregnancy where sleep is elusive. I’m up every couple hours dealing with heartburn, sore hips or pressure on my sciatic nerve, and let’s not forget the increasingly frequent trips to the bathroom. Then there are the mornings where I wake up an hour or so before my alarm with […]

Diaper sewing marathon – Part one

Me: “I went through 10 yards of Velcro yesterday.” Husband: “That’s a first down.” I had a cloth diaper sewing marathon over the weekend. It was all in preparation for getting as much work done as possible before quilt retreat next weekend so I can get this very essential task done well in advance of […]

It’s going to be a sewing weekend!

This weekend I have zero plans. No in-laws to get the house spotless for. No closets I feel the need to organize. No events I need to attend. That means I’m sewing all weekend. It’s been a while since I spent the weekend at my machine and besides a quick clean of the house and […]

It’s all about good preparation

When I attended my first quilt retreat I brought a stack of fat quarters and a pattern from a magazine I wanted to make. My table-mate brought all her pieces pre-cut and ready to sew. We both got about the same amount of work done, but at the end of the weekend, it looked like […]

March quilting goals

I feel so behind. Here we are almost a full week into March and I still haven’t set my quilting goals for the month, or sewn a stitch outside of the Block of the Month class I taught last Saturday. Finish nursery sewing March is going to be dominated by baby nursery sewing. I’m down […]

February quilting goals: How’d I do?

I had such wonderful sewing goals for this month. But alas, the best laid plans are meant to be broken. I didn’t accomplish anywhere near what I wanted to thanks to a short month, and an unexpected sewing machine repair that left me without a machine for a week. Here’s what I did manage to […]