BLOCK 49 AND DONE

 I finished the Quilters Playcation 2024 improv block - number 49 - the last one!

Then I took everything off the design wall so I could put all of the blocks up to see how it looked.

IMPROV BLOCK 48

Here is the 48th improv block by Cheryl Arkison on Quilters Playcation 2024.  I didn't get to make it last week while I was at the Joe Retreat.  So, I was catching up today.

Only one more to go!

I MADE A BEE

 Continuing to work on my MAYBE, I made the B today while hanging with the Brave Patch Monday Sewcial.

SMALL BOWL

 I saw this ball of cotton string.  It is much larger diameter than other string I've seen.  It's made for cooks.  But I thought it would make an interesting small bowl.  So I made one!

HOLIDAY DINNER

 We had Darrell's oldest son's family over for dinner today.  We ordered a Spiral Cut Ham and I made Green Bean Casserole using beans and onions from our garden.  And I made Potatoes Au Gratin with the last of our garden potatoes.  I used Cheddar and Smoked Cheddar in the cheese sauce. 

I had made a Pumpkin Pie and a Chocolate Merigue Pie yesterday.

It was all well received.

Stirring a white sauce for Au Gratin Potatoes.

I MADE A WHY

 I watched Joe's Quilt Freedom Workshop this morning.

And while I did, I worked on my Maybe.

I made the Y.

We went for a walk in Lincoln Park this morning.  It was very windy!

HOME AGAIN

 I woke up very early this morning, 3am, and couldn't get back to sleep.  I got up at around 4:30am, took a shower and got dressed.  I stripped the bedding and packed up everything.  

I went downstairs and packed up my sewing supplies and took them to my car.  Then I sat down and enjoyed my morning tea and crossword.  I just needed to kill a few hours until breakfast.

I took my Kindle into the Great Room and read for a while.  Eventually people started to rise and come down.

After breakfast, I looked at the ferry schedule again.  If I left right that minute I could make the 9:55am ferry to Fauntleroy.  That sounded way better than hanging for another hour and a half until the 11:15 ferry.  So, off I ran.

I made it to the early ferry.  I was home by 11 and very tired.

And it's Friday the Thirteenth.  I'm going to take a nap.

SKETCHING AT JOE RETREAT

 Occassionally I would get tired of sewing and I would sketch.

RIBBONS

 Today Joe gave us two narrow strips of fabric.  He showed us how he draped fabric to create a quilt that he showed us.  He wanted us to drape our strips and figure out how to sew them into a background.

I was burned out.  This was not for me.

So, I sketched for a bit.  While I was sketching I came up with an idea and began to piece it.

This is as far as I got today.

WEDNESDAY AT JOE RETREAT

 I finished the Borders project from yesterday.

After lunch, Joe had us pick two fabrics and cut 6" by 5" retangles.  Then had us cut them diagonally and sew pairs together.  Once we had the Half Rectangle Triangles (HRTs), we cut them in half the long way.

He invited us to sew them together in any arrangement.  I immediately saw a Snake - probably because the Monday Sewcial group on Brave Patch had a Challenge about making a Snake Quilt.

Here are some variations.

I have an idea for making another Snake Quilt using these as the jumping off point.

BORDERS

 Today's Joe Project was about Borders.  He asked us to make a border using two fabrics.  

Joe had us choose a fabric from a bag of fabrics he brought, without looking, and use it with ours to make one of the sides of the border.  The other side would be made with our other border fabric and a piece of clothing we were asked to bring.  I didn't bring clothing, so I used one of other fabrics I brought.

This green dotted fabric is the one I picked from Joe's bag.

We had homemade tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches for lunch.

Back to work after lunch.

Working on the next side, I wasn't happy with how it was going and quit early.

SALMON FOR DINNER

 The food at the Saint Andrew's Retreat Center is one of the main reasons for going to the Joe Retreat.  Tonight we had Salmon.  What a treat!

Always a dessert after dinner.

CUT, SEW, REPEAT

The first day of the Joe Retreat, and his instruction for the day is to think of a theme.  Then cut some fabrics, sew them together and repeat.

So we were off and running.

 

I picked some fabrics and started sewing.

Joe provided the music.

My project at the end of the day.

GREAT BREAKFASTS

 Staying at Saint Andrew's starts every morning with a great breakfast.  They usually serve up eggs and bacon, and oatmeal with the fixings, and Greek Yogurt with berries.  There is toast and juices, and sometimes muffins.  It's always good.

GOING TO UNION

 I'm all packed and set out for my week at the Joe Retreat in Union Washington on Hood Canal.  We'll be staying at the Saint Andrew's House Retreat Center.

It's just 2 miles from home to the Fauntleroy Ferry Dock where I boarded the ferry to Southworth on the Olympic Peninsula.  It was a nice day for a ferry ride.

It was a plus that when I arrived at Saint Andrews it wasn't raining.  I unloaded my stuff and started setting everything up.

Just arriving at St Andrews

The windows in the workroom looking out at Hood Canal and the Olympic Mountains.

The view from the workroom.

My little room - we make our own beds.

Getting everything set up.

IMPROV BLOCK 47

 I wasn't able to finish the improv block of the week for Quilters Playcation 2024 with Cheryl Arkison on Tuesday.

But, I got it done today.  Two bowls.

THIS WEEK IN THE ART CAVE

 I've been enjoying making some art with Andrea Chebeleu's Watch.Learn.Play.

They meet every Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

Every month is a different palette and a different technique.

December is Vermillion, Hansa Yellow Deep and Phthalo Blue (GS) with a focus on drawing.

I've been enjoying it completely.

INSET CIRCLES

 I put the Dalek back up on the wall.

I'm going to start making the inset circles for it.

These first few are 3-1/2" with a little dark border.  These are true circles.  The rest of them won't be.  That's why I'm starting with these.  I think they might be the easiest.

I'm using the freezer paper method.

First I put in the black circle for the border.

Then I cut down the black and inset the yellow circle.

I got three done, that leaves just 21 to do.

HOLIDAY DECORATIONS

 I put some of the Little Houses I made last year and the new Little Trees on the server by the front door.

We are ready for the Holidays.

SEAMQGBOM2024 IS A TOP

 I sewed together all of the blocks and extra blocks made for the Seattle Modern Quilt Guild's Block of the Month for 2024.  It is now a quilt top.  It took me most of today.

It is 64" by 80".  I made extra blocks to make it rectangular and bigger.

FIXED BLOCK 46

 I messed up Block 46 of the Playcation2024 Improv block on Tuesday.

I fixed it today.

LITTLE TREES

 I got the Little Trees made.  They are from a pattern by Ann Wood Handmades.

ART TUESDAY

 I joined Andrea Chebeleu of Watch.Learn.Play today to make some art for a while.  I'm not sure if I just made a mess or what!  There are parts I really love, so maybe I'll just cut it up and use it somewhere else.

So much fun!  And that's the point.

And, since it's Tuesday, I joined Cheryl Arkison for one of the last Quilters Playcation 2024 improv blocks.  I was doing so well, actually following her instructions and making a block that would look almost like hers and then I trimmed it and no!  I trimmed it a quarter inch too short.  I give up!

MAKING LITTLE TREES

 I saw a free pattern from Ann Wood for Little Trees.  I cut the fabric and made the tree parts yesterday.  Today I'm making the trucks and bases.

Using Darrell's shop I used his disc sander to make the sticks for the trunks pointy at both ends.

And his drill press to make holes in the bases for the trunks.

I'm fortunate to have his expertise and shop at my disposal.  If left to my own methods it would have taken much longer and been more difficult to do this.  And I probably would have hurt myself trying to sharpen the ends with an exacto knife.