Snuggling Down

December 29, 20162 Comments

After a freakishly warm Christmas Day, the weather here in WNY has taken a turn for the winter. I don’t know why, but I rarely catch any pictures of the big day, but I did manage to wrestle my teenager into a family picture in front of the tree.

Dad had to photobomb his way in!

This morning, we woke up to a mild Hollywood-style snowstorm with big, fat flakes tumbling down out of a puffy, white sky.

It is completely lovely, and it reminds me that the end of Christmas does not mean the end of cold weather. I’m rustling around in my recipe file, looking for the appropriate soup recipe with which to scent the house.

I do have to run to town later. Shockingly, I have not yet purchased my 2017 calendar — and Boots must go with me, because my darling kitty needs a rabies shot. He’s in for a rude awakening soon.

Sorry in advance, kitty!

Over the last few days I’ve been working on a new Valentine’s day project. Soon I’m going to need a new season-appropriate wall hanging for my office and I’ve decided that the color scheme on this Jenny Doan pattern of Missouri Star Quilt Company belongs more in my house than my office.

I just love this charm pack pattern. It’s fast and fun and stands the test of time.

My new design uses two jelly rolls: one red and one white. I’m excited to show it to you. I’m hoping to finish the quilt top today. Stay warm friends!

P.S. This week marks the first anniversary of the start of Gray Barn Designs! It has been so much fun meeting everyone and making new friends. Cindy and I are honored by your friendship and we are inspired by your stories and your work. Happy 2017!

Winter Solstice

December 21, 2016December 21, 20161 Comment

It’s been a little quiet at my pay-the-bills job (shout out to @Tierneycreates for the moniker). I work for a not-for-profit on a college campus, and all the students and faculty have left for the holidays. This makes for some looonnnng days.

Just a quick mid-morning nap.

Luckily, there is a greenhouse on campus that comes equipped with little benches and tables. This respite from the cold and snow provides a needed vitamin D fix on winter days –and keeps my creative soul nourished on even the most dull work days. My boss is an excellent gentleman: he knows that marketing types are most productive when they are not sitting behind their computer all day, so today, instead of taking a nap, I headed to the greenhouse for some brainstorming.

There, I discovered new life and it makes me hopeful for spring on this darkest of days of the year. I started out in the desert room. It is full of cacti and succulents. I wish I could name them.

The desert room has some beautiful blossoms.

I have no idea what any of these plants are, but they are life-affirming.

The next room is a planting room. In it grows a cherry tomato plant about the size of a golf cart. I have to confess to stealing a tomato and popping it in my mouth this morning. The taste exploded in my mouth. It was incredibly delicious. I never, ever eat store-bought fresh tomatoes in the wintertime because they taste like red plastic. This was the real deal. If I had to choose a last meal, I think it would include a sun-ripened fresh tomato sandwich.

Site of future breakfasts.

Next, there is a tropical room. It is lush and green and it is home to a small waterfall and some cute koi. This room is great for my sinuses. The thick, rich air is alive with promise.

The bright colors are mesmerizing.

Finally, the greenhouse has a hydroponics lab. This morning I discovered that students are working on a strawberry growing project. Previous years have hosted lettuces and herbs. I’ll have to keep a close eye on this inventory, in case it ripens while everyone is gone!

This reminds me — I can’t wait to see how mom reacts to Cindy’s Strawberry quilt on Christmas Day!

Just a few more hours and I’ll be on my own Christmas break. I hope this tour helped you through the winter solstice. Happy shortest day of the year!

FOUND: The Blues!

December 16, 20165 Comments

I’ve been looking for just the right blue fabrics to make a bed size quilt for a good friend. She loves the color blue but my stash is woefully lacking in blues. In my quilting travels, nothing materialized (pun intended!) until I found the blues in Annabelle by Williamsburg from Windham Fabrics.

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I’m using the “floating 8” pattern published in Precut Quilts by janie lou. This book is one of my favorites; it features modern, fresh designs using precuts. I think the mix of these traditional fabrics with janie’s modern design will be beautiful!

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My local quilt shop did not have precuts on hand, so I am in the process of cutting 5 inch squares from fat quarters. Once I finish cutting my fabrics, this quilt will go together quickly. I’ll add this to my Christmas vacation projects and soon I will be celebrating that I finally found the blues!

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Planned But Banned!

December 12, 2016December 12, 20162 Comments

Ever plan a quilt, buy the fabric and then have it banned from your household? “How could this possibly ever happen?”, you ask politely!

In Sandy’s November 17, 2016 blog post, she mentioned her “little” boy had his heart broken. The quilt she planned for the heart breaker now had to be finished under the cover of darkness and sneaked out of the house…banned! It was never to be seen again by the heart broken young man.

Alas, I helped plan this quilt and had to rescue it from demise! Sandy put all the fabric in a brown paper bag. The anonymous brown bag left her house and was swiftly placed in my car as if it contained the dreaded turkey leftovers. Below is the inspirational color scheme: dscn7397

The inspirational pattern was published in the December 14, 2014 edition of American Patchwork & Quilting. It’s called “Modern Floral” and was designed by Tammy Silvers of Tamarinis.

We had fun shopping for the fabrics at Material Rewards, a local quilt shop. Mom was with us and she helped steer us in the right direction with color choices. She says she is not a quilter, but she is really good with color choices!

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Sandy cut out all the fabrics and even sewed the major blocks together…awesome job! Now all I have to do is get all the pieces and parts organized and continue sewing away!

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