Henry & Patrick

For Monday - Henry's Tentacles

For Tuesday -- Annabelle

On the Wednesday before Christmas, my mum-in-law bought the three of us sock creatures to make. She picked out a reindeer, Alex an owl, me a cow. I originally wanted an octopus, but they were all out, and a little bit of cow-country was calling deep from my soul. A cow made out of pink and black striped socks.

On Monday night, the three of us sat in the living room, the fire blazing, watching Top Gear and starting our respective sock creatures. It was delightful to have a needle and thread in my hands again. I made the body, with stumpy legs, and stuffed it. Cut, stuffed and attached the short arms. Cut out the black heel of one sock, sewed and stuffed it impeccably as its snout; stiched a wry mouth in lime green thread; and attached two buttons for nostrils. Its tail sported a white felt tip to whack away the imaginary sock flies. Ears and smaller horns were attached to the top of her sock-toe head. All that was left were the eyes and the udders. My cow was a girl.

On Tuesday night, we sat round the fire again, with a movie on the television and only be picking up my sock creature. My cow was taking shape and I felt the udders should come next, before the eyes. Carefully a large circle was cut in white felt, along with four smaller circles, all attached in the same lime green thread. The button that came with my sock cow were four of the same shape, with one slightly more orangey than the other pink ones. I sewed the orangey-pink button as her left eye; the last pink one as her right--and there was Annabelle.

With each sock creature, there comes a birth certificate. Annabelle was born on just after midnight on the 30th of December 2009 to Erica Marie. She likes to curl up at night with her tail stuck under her nose, models her style after The Nightmare Before Christmas, and appreciates snuggles and hugs.

For Christmas -- An Unknown Box

For Christmas this year, Alex and I are with her parents and brother. The day is filled with food, tea and the opening of the presents. Many presents filled in the space below, around, and extending beyond the gorgeously decorated Christmas tree! This year, I didn't ask for much, and what I did was useful or random or just plain fun: new clothes, make-up, books. From my own parents, I wanted them to focus on saving up money to come to our wedding in England in April. From Alex, anything she fancied. From her family, anything that made them think of me really. So, I was expecting eccentric, electic gifts--which is what I got, and then there was an unknown box.

There was a box without a tag. It was large, heavy, very box shaped. When I unwrapped it, I let out a cry of joy and lept up to hug Alex's parents: they had gotten me a sewing machine.

Since I moved to England in January, I have wanted a sewing machine. I probably would have purchased one before I left and brought it with me, but the power conversion is different. I said I would save up my wages from my first bar job here, and there were bills to pay instead. Before I left, I learned to quilt, started to make more things of my own. All year I've been dreaming of things to make, finding the perfect fabrics. And now I can put all the dreams into action.

Designer Prints

Fabric makes me giggle. Have I already told you that? It makes me giggle, and wiggle and want to clap my hands. Over fabric. Just bolts of fabric. Have I already written that?

Not in the children's morning programming kind of way though. Or the Made for TV movie motif. Just really excited.

I spent an hour and a half in a fabric store this afternoon. I'm still giggling.

My First Quilt

Yesterday, June 16, 2009, I finished the last stitches on my first quilt. Unable to resist, we slept with it last night. Today, however, it was washed and hung out to dry. A real quilt, begun in September 2008 as I prepared to move to across the ocean to make a new home.

I starting cutting in October. Sewing in November. Attempted to quilt it by machine in December, only to rip out all the stitching and re-pin the layers on Christmas day, before I packed up in a box and shipped it to London.

The final pins on Christmas day

A king size creation, the binding took a while to complete by hand--my great-grandma's Singer table top machine not the easiest to travel with on a airplane. But, I managed it. And as Alex say, I think it adds a nice touch.

Anchors and Strawberries just for Alex & me

It is a scrap quilt, although I wish I could say they were all scraps I had just lying around. Some, yes: the handkerchief pattern, the multiple versions of red & white polka dots. Some I found new (see: 1930s reproduction fabrics) and some from the back rooms of Yreka's finest charity shops. Some of the best finds actually. Others are from my psuedo-grandma, Em, who gave me the start to this quilt, and a few others from G'ma Jan, who's been sewing for years.

Finally settled on tying off the quilt, it works.

Ever a romantic, the pattern I chose for this quilt is called "Because Two People Fell in Love." While the nice woman from the South who submitted the pattern to a quilting magazine that she used for her daughter and son-in-law's wedding quilt may or may not approve of Alex and I's love, I felt the sentiment of the title was spot on, and just that simple.

When I started the quilt, I was piecing together what my life had been over the last years and trying to sort it into boxes and bags and suitcases, trying to predict what I might need in the next moves I would make. Piecing things together, I decided, was like the steps of making a quilt. There's "the vision," as fellow quilter Leslie and I call it, the finding of fabric, cutting the squares, laying it out to get the feel for it all.

Everything in making a quilt is one step at a time, taking things in stride, following a pattern but always bending the rules. Frustrating and rewarding. Filled with love and hard work.

As we lay in bed last night, testing the warmth of the new quilt, we were already dreaming of what a winter quilt might look like: big strips of fabric, blues and purples maybe. But for now, we have our quilt, drying on the line, summer just about to begin, two women in love.

'Because Two People Fell In Love'
(Clotheslines again, I just can't help it.)

Thanks to Em, G'ma Jan, and LuAnn for much needed advice and supplies. Leslie, Katie F, and Reneé for learning to quilt with me. Kate and j. for inspiration, fabric and listening to my constant reports on "how the quilt's coming along." Dad, for letting us young quilters take over the house. Mom, for patience and helping me rip out all those damn stitches. And Alex, for loving it with me.

(Can you tell how huge of a project this was for me?)

Tulip

A Note on Squirrels

I am making a purple stuffed squirrel and I want to name her 'Tulip.' She is going to be constructed with purple flowery Liberty of London fabrics, stuffed with purple verigated yarn from the charity shop around the corner and deep purple embroidery thread. I think I want to name her Tulip because the skunk in Bambi is called 'Flower' and 'Flower' makes me happy inside. 'Tulip' is going to be a present for someone who is far, far away from they live, and even though I'm not sure squirrels even exist in her home country (they might only be here), I still think 'Tulip' will bring her happiness too.

Red & White

Red & white patterned cotton fabric makes me beyond happy to see, let alone touch. My fingertips want to automatically traces the pattern, as if it were raised or a different texture. Looking at my almost-finished, very first quilt, I could sew with red thread--the red of Valentine bunting--over and over, a pattern, a stitch, the red, white and pink coming together.