Here we are, 15 days into the new year, and I have yet to sew a single, solitary stitch.

Strange, I admit.

Ok, I have done a bit of needlepoint and a little knitting. I have also been cutting fabric. Lots and lots of fabric. Three quilts worth of fabric. They will be the first quilts I sew this year and will make up the majority of my charity quilting for 2015. Last year, while I was head down working on the book that is not to be, I did manage to complete two quilts that I donated to our school/church carnival. Both of those quilts were completed tops and the fact that the tops were ready was one of the main reasons they ended up in the dontation pile.

This year, I want to be more intentional with my donations. I want the quilts to be bigger - a good throw size at least. I also don't want to have to think too much about these quilts. Of course, it's a given that they should be beautiful and well-made, but I don't think it is necessary that they be my original design. So, this year I bought three quilt kits on sale. Of course, I could have purchased patterns and sourced the fabric myself (from my stash, no less), but this way it all showed up in a box, ready to go. There is something extremely liberating about approaching my donations this way: no over-thinking, no indecisiveness, no extraneous choices. I just get to cut and sew.

I'm finding that this is a wonderful way for me to ease into the new year. I spent a lot of time last year thinking about quilts, trying to find perfect fabric combinations and testing new ideas. And it was great, but it was exhausting at the same time. I'm enjoying this small respite that I have created for myself. Without knowing it, I gave myself the permission to rest. And I still get to sew, to create, to make! Win-win-win!

I realize, now, that this forced break might possibly be the best gift I could have given myself. I imagine that once I get these three quilts all sewn up, I will be itching to make something of my own. And if I'm not, I'll probably buy another kit.

At the beginning of December, having decided not to go through with my book, I found myself freed up from commitments and decided to make a few Christmas gifts. I don't know about you, but I find that as I get older, it is very hard to come up with gifts for my parents that they want let alone something that they need. I can almost always find something for my mom, Mary Grace, but this year I didn't have anything that I was excited about giving her. So, as these things happen, she moved to the top of my handmade gift list and I knew that only one thing would do: a quilt.

While I had some time, I didn't have a ton of time so I knew that it would have to be a fairly fast sew. I also wanted this quilt to live at my parents' house in Telluride, where we spent Christmas and where we have so many great family memories. I landed on the Proverbial Quilt by Denyse Schmidt, spelling out the nickname one of the carpenters gave the house when it was being built years ago, Mary Graceland.

I wanted the quilt to be classic and simple so I limited myself to just three fabrics: one for the background, one for the letters (and backing) and one for the binding. I bought all three at Purl Soho when Fatty and I were in New York. The background fabric is a Robert Kaufman chambray and the letters were pieced with Liberty of London John in Navy. The binding is also Liberty - Agandca in Navy.

The back, shown here horizontally, was pieced out of necessity. Otherwise known as bad math on my part. That said, I love how it came together. I improvisationally pieced the 2014  (thank you, Denyse, for showing me how to do that!) and made the rest of it work, using almost every little bit of Liberty and chambray I had. I imagined it would be used to cuddle up on the couch with and it ended up being a good throw size - about 57" wide by 70" long.

I used a cotton batting that I had on hand (I think Warm and Natural) and quilted it with free motion loops in navy thread. I don't think I will ever tire of this style of quilting. It has interest and movement without being too busy for such a simple design. I did wash and dry this quilt before giving it to my mom. The chambray and Liberty combination is a winner: it is super soft with lovely drape and a good amount of crinkle. Cozy!

Jane didn't have school so my day was a little upside down in a good way. She helped me clean out the sewing machines and projects at school and we grabbed lunch together. I dropped her at the library to study, did a quick run to the grocery and then we picked up Kate. When both girls were busy working, I snuck upstairs and cut into the Liberty I bought in New York. I was chomping at the bit to start making and over the course of the evening, in between helping with Algebra II and making dinner, I managed to sew a few seams. Today, more of the same.

Last Friday, I took a plane East to New York where I spent a craft weekend with Denyse Schmidt and Heather Ross in the Catskills. There was a small group of us (12? 13?) staying in a large house, laughing, making, eating, drinking, stitching, talking, making jam until Sunday afternoon. Everyone could work on whatever they wanted to explore. It took me awhile to decide what to take along, but in the end I decided on Denyse's Proverbial Quilt pattern.

I decided that I wanted a very scrappy looking quilt. I chose a bunch of low volume prints from my stash and decided that if there was ever a time to use all the Flea Market Fancy and Katie Jump Rope hanging around, it was for this. When I mentioned my plan to Denyse, she immediately said, "You can improv that pattern, you know."

And when Denyse tells me to improv, I do it.

Using the pattern as a guide, I sliced and diced my fabrics into strips. I rustled up some paper bags to pull the fabrics from so I wouldn't over think color and pattern and then I just sewed. The first few letters took some time to piece as some were a little short and others had to be cut down. But once I got the hang of it, it was liberating and fun.

Often when I am working in my studio, all by myself, with my head down and eyes focused on what is right in front of me, I get a little tunnel vision. Improv sewing opens me up creatively and making the beginnings of this quilt was enjoyable. It is so important for me to remember to play and have fun. This is what it is all about. And making letters improv style was challenging in the best way. I love wrapping my brain around these kinds of puzzles. Let me tell you, I was pretty damn proud of my "M".

I left the Catskills on Sunday afternoon with new friends, renewed enthusiasm and the beginnings of a VERY large quilt. It's going to take some time to get this one completed, especially with other projects that have firm deadlines on the horizon. Maybe I can a letter or two when I have time? Or a word a weekend? Regardless of when I finish, I am so excited about this quilt and all its possibilities.

Thanks you Heather and Denyse for a wonderful weekend. It was just what I needed.

My friend, Malka Dubrawsky, is getting ready to film a class on Creative Live called "Ten Ways to Love Improvisational Quilting." Are you familiar with Creative Live? It's a great platform to learn so many new creative things. You can watch classes for free while they are streaming the live filming - this allows you to participate from the comfort of your own home. You can post questions that the instructors answer and, because the classes also have a live in studio audience, you get the benefit of listening in on some discussion, too. And if you can't make the class while it is streaming, you can purchase it to watch when you have the time to devote to it. Cool, huh?

Malka's class is next week (October 8 and 9) and I am so excited to watch it. I have been a long-time admirer of her work and find it to be incredibly inspiring. I know that this class will be a treasure trove of good tips and a great jumping off point for my own work. Malka has an amazing eye for color and pattern and her approach to quilting is fresh and modern. And I'm doubly excited because I love improvisational quilting. There are so many ways to approach this fun technique and I'm looking forward to how Malka approaches it in her own work and how I can take what I learn and apply it to my work.

As a little warm up yesterday, I decided I would do an hour of improvisational piecing. Looking around the studio for some raw materials, I found a small pile of narrow (1") Liberty scraps. I sewed strips in sets of three and then chopped them apart. I pulled a fat quarter of pink crossweave cotton from my stash and cut some random strips and started adding them. The first block got two strips of pink on adjacent sides. I really liked the way that looked, so I kept doing the same thing. When the hour was up, I stopped. I'm not sure where this is going (mini quilt, maybe?), or even if I will continue to do anything with it, but I walked away very pleased with what I had done. I especially like the idea of taking small, almost unusable pieces and combining them to make something with greater substance.

There is nothing that recharges my creative batteries like improvisational quilting. The freedom, the spontaneity, the quick decisions, the play  - all those things that happen when I am sewing fabric together without over-planning and over-thinking - are so freeing. I am continuously looking at quilting in a new light when I improv. It's inspiring when it's good AND when it's bad so regardless of the actual, tangible results, I always walk away with something good - a possibility, an idea, or, heck, even a quilt. Win-win.

I hope you take the opportunity to learn from Malka. Creative Live is generously offering a copy of Malka's class to one of my readers. To enter, please comment on this post before Sunday, October 5 at 5pm EST. I'd love to hear if you improv quilt and, if so, why. You can also follow along on the rest of the blog tour to hear more about how other quilters are inspired by improvisational piecing and quilting. Good luck!

9/30 Modern Sewciety

10/2 Fresh Modern Quilts

10/6 Cheryl Arkison

10/7 Wise Craft Handmade

I made myself a new t-shirt over the weekend using this Liberty jersey that I picked up at Duckadilly Fabrics and some Riley Blake striped knit for the sleeves. The pattern is the Metro T-shirt by Liesl & Co. I've been on a knit sewing tear recently and I knew that this would come together quickly. I originally made it with long sleeves, but decided that they should be 3/4 length once I tried it on.

This is where the problems started.

I cut off the right sleeve approximately 7 inches from the cuff and check with all members of the family that this is indeed a good length. Confirmation given, I went upstairs and cut off the other sleeve the same way. I hemmed them both us using a double needle, hemmed the bottom of the shirt and topstitched around the neckline. Excited, I try on the t-shirt. Are you ready? The shirt had one short sleeve and one long sleeve.

I CUT OFF THE WRONG F-ING SLEEVE.

Oy. (Cue the tears and the disbelief at my incredibly stupid mistake.)

In the end, it all worked out ok. I had extra fabric for the second sleeve. I tore out all the serging stitches and did my best at reinserting the second sleeve correctly, although it was not nearly as neat as the first had been. In the end, it is good. And I've got a cute new tee, so there's that.

Nitty gritty: I made a size L, the same size I would buy off the rack. I think it fits well. I did not lengthen it like I normally do and it is plenty long. I used my sewing machine with a ball point needle and polyester thread. I serged the seams after sewing them instead of just using the serger. I did the hems and topstitching with a double needle because I just love how that looks.

5 minutes.

10 to 15 fabrics in a cohesive palette all from my stash.

Myriad possibilities.

Left to right, Collection and Designer:

Pretty Potent by Anna Maria Horner, Flea Market Fancy by Denyse Schmidt, Backyard Garden by Cloud 9 for JoAnn's, True Colors by Anna Maria Horner (2 prints in a row), Juliana Horner for JoAnn's (collection name missing from the selvedge), Innocent Crush by Anna Maria Horner, Dowry by Anna Maria Horner, Sun Print Text by Alison Glass, Catnap by Lizzy House, Pearl Bracelet by Lizzy House, Color Me Happy by Vanessa Christenson, Quilts 1700- 2010 by Liberty for the V&A Museum, Geo Style by Kei Fabrics

(Please note: Because all of these fabrics are from my stash, some of them may be out of print.)

What I like about this group: Green! Blue! Those are my colors and I will never get tired of them. Also, there is a lot of movement in these fabrics. And shape repetition - circles, vines, leaves/petal shapes. That part happened organically - I was more concentrated on finding the right mix of colors and scale to round it out. But I do love the happy accidents when they happen.

Happy Friday. Enjoy the weekend.

Because I keep putting my scissors down and not being able to find them, I made a scissors lanyard. Simple fix, really. Now I can just wear them around my neck. I used a strip of Liberty that was laying around, cut to 1.5" wide. I pressed it in half, opened it up, pressed the raw edges into the center crease, folded it closed and sewed it shut. Easy peasy and long overdue. Now I will not drop them between the seat of my car and the console while I'm stitching in the carpool line because they will be on my person. Look at me...I am brilliant!

And then, as these things happen, I decided that I need something in which to carry the threads and fabrics required for car sewing. Pouch, of course! I picked out the fabric based on the zipper colors I had on hand. A little hand sewing and some machine sewing and I am in applique-on-the-go business. Cooking with gas, I tell you! Said pouch is about 10" x 8", the exterior fabric is Hatbox by Alexia Abegg, the interior fabric is a coral dot I had in the stash, I used perle cotton to embroider a running stitch around Kentucky 3 times and a 12 inch zipper was cut to fit. Did I miss anything?

In all seriousness, it is killing me that I can't show you what I am working on (book!!!) so I am contriving small, satisfying sews to share here when time allows. And sometimes when time does not allow and I really should be doing something else, but I only have 40 minutes and that is not enough time to conquer the next logical book step. So, ta da! Lanyard and pouch! Which I will be putting to use in just ten minutes time as I head out the door to pick up my high schooler. (Yes, it's still weird when I stop and think about that.)

Happy making to you!