November journal

1. Loads of fabric pumpkins. I lost count, but there were more than 30.

2. Two more Squared Away quilt blocks - I did make two of this block, but when I went to take the picture, I realized I'd put one of them together wrong. Fortunately, I just need to take one of the side rows off to turn it around.

3. And it's not sewing, but I made my Christmas letter blocks ...

I'm excited to do a lot more sewing this month! I spent the summer traveling and doing theater and camps. This entire fall has been totally sucked up with editing a book. Ya know what? It's December tomorrow. I'm self-employed, and I don't work during Christmas! I'm doing service, and baking cookies, and sewing for my kids!

If anyone needs me, I'll be in the kitchen. See ya.

October journal

- RG's Gryffindor robe. My only Halloween sewing this year, and she was Hermione of course.

- Letter Z for zig-zag stitching - my rope purse! It's actually kind of heavy because of the amount of rope, and I'm terrified the handles are going to rip right off if I put anything more in it besides my wallet and phone. They're only glued - it's too thick to sew.

It only took me an entire four years to do the Sew All 26 Challenge, but I have persevered and completed it!

- one 10-inch block for the Night Sky quilt, for the first time in months. I have the second section of the quilt top almost together - just a hole of 10 or 11 inches. I'm debating about another 10-inch block (there are already four in that section), or a group of 4-inch blocks.

The Creativity Project - my entry

I came across The Creativity Project on the Leland Ave Studios website recently - 52 interviews with quilters around the world, one per week this year. I went back to the first one and have been reading through everything to get caught up. They're really interesting, but now that I'm up to number 20, it's starting to get repetitive. They all are with the modern/improvisational aesthetic. No precise piecing here! All solid-colored fabrics - not a print to be found. If there is one, it certainly would not be random scrappage from 20-40 years ago, as inhabits my fabric boxes, from other people giving me their old fabric when they clean out their sewing rooms. All have won competitions or been been featured at QuiltCon, some after quilting for only a couple of years.

So for fun, here's my "entry" into the Creativity Project. Maybe I'll actually submit it to that website - HA! Because I am SO not like that! Let me know what you think ...


BIO SKETCH:
Trina is a stay-at-home-mom who started sewing because she wanted pretty things in her house that she couldn't afford, but a couple of bloggers convinced her it was possible to make them herself. She grew up actually hating even the idea of sewing, because it was a girl thing and she wanted to do cool things at Scouts with her brothers ... too bad BSA didn't let girls join until Jan. 2019. Her bachelor's degree from Western Oregon University was the generic "Social Sciences" - it was a composite of history, government and journalism. Nothing to do with art. She has entered no quilt shows or competitions, she teaches no sewing classes, and she has received no recognition for her work beyond the Likes she got on Facebook from personal friends when she finished her first (and only, so far) quilt.

red sand on the south shore of Prince Edward Island, June 2018.

How would you describe your quilting style/aesthetic?
Mostly scrappy, because that's what I have. I have lots of fabric from other people cleaning out their sewing rooms and giving me their leftovers. Some was big enough to make into clothes, and some is just scraps. The fabric I've purchased myself has mostly been to make clothes for my kids, and the leftovers have been shifted into starting quilts.

All the pink I could find in my sewing boxes, including scraps from various dresses, into this rail-fence twin-sized quilt. Title: The Pink Babies. Started summer 2014, finished Dec. 2016.

How would you describe the creative environment in your home as a child?
Creativity at my house as kids was focused on music, story telling, and writing. Some of my siblings got into drawing, but not me. Textiles as an art medium is a totally new thing for me.

What artists and makers do you most admire or have an influence on your work?
Dana at Made Everyday gets full, 100% credit in helping me believe that sewing was something that I could even do in the first place. I did not set out to find her sewing blog. I wasn't looking for/at sewing blogs at all. I was doing online searches for home decorating ideas, and somehow managed to stumble across her website. She was posting tutorials of adorable clothes she was making for her daughter who was 3 or 4 - I have a daughter the same age. I didn't necessarily want to SEW, but I did want those clothes for my kid. So I started sewing clothes. A lot of the clothes-sewing bloggers I followed also made quilts, and that also looked like something I wanted to have in my home ... it was a natural evolution that I can't really pinpoint something specific that expanded my horizons. Now I follow primarily quilt blogs, and I've got it in my head to start making bags as well. Again, natural flow of the thought process and not anything I've specifically sought out.

The first article of clothing I ever made: a skirt attached to a store-bought shirt, fall 2011.

I could list a lot of bloggers who have given me ideas and inspiration, both clothes and quilt sewing, but the list has changed over the years. I still follow Made Everyday, and I also like Noodlehead and Stitched in Color right now. I'm also doing this year's Block of the Month with Academic Quilter.

Do you consider yourself a quilter, an artist, or some combination of both?
Probably more a quilter than an artist because I'm still very much at the beginning of my quilting/learning process. I knew when I started that I was either making zero quilts, or six. No in between, because I have 5 kids and a husband. I've finished one so far, two more started, and the other three planned. But I do believe that quilts can be art. Mine aren't necessarily "art" because they're meant to be on someone's bed. There are some out there that definitely are art!

How do you define "making with intention"? 
I define it as a pretentious phrase to make people feel better about themselves regarding their sewing. Is it possible to make without intention? If you're going to create something, even if it's just experimenting with your materials to see what happens, there's a certain amount of intention just to get off your couch and do something.

Do you think that having a craft makes us more compassionate? If so, then how?
I don't think compassion is inherent in craft. I'm sure people can get pretty arrogant about things they've made, which is an opposite of compassion. But if you're making something for someone, or to provide a service, yes. Craft can absolutely help one develop compassion.

How does creating feed your soul/spiritual purpose?
As a Mormon, I believe that creating IS our spiritual purpose. We get to share creating with God as we grow and develop. It is very cool to take random things - fabric and notions, in this case - and manipulate and organize them into something that's beautiful. That was what got me started in sewing - the motivation to get to the end result. I didn't want to sew, but I wanted the clothes and the quilts, and I was willing to do the work to get them.

Are there any rituals that you perform to prepare/ground yourself in your work?
I need a clean sewing table. My "sewing room" is a table stuck in the middle of an open storage room in my basement, so I'm surrounded by all kinds of random things. Camping gear, food storage, the laundry, all the coats and shoes, etc ... I need my physical environment to be at least a little bit tidy so I can focus, so the table itself has to be clean for me to work.

What is the support system you have in place for creating work?
My husband is so encouraging and supportive, he could carry this all on his own. Fortunately, he doesn't have to. My sister Mindy, who shares this blog, also started sewing around the same time I did and we've had a great time learning together. I've loved our joint projects - we made a quilt for our sister Tawnia, and another one for our parents.

They're also an awesome support - they travel between our two homes more than we can, and have always been willing to haul packages back and forth of fabric, patterns, and projects so we don't have to pay international shipping. The funniest was a couple of years ago - Tawnia was driving from Alberta to Connecticut with two huge garbage bags of fabric in her car, from Mindy to me ... and got quizzed at Customs when crossing Canada-US border. "What's with all the material?"

How do you deal with comparison to/envy of others? Can you describe a time when you used comparison/envy/admiration to push yourself in your own work and self-discovery?
My entire sewing hobby is based on admiration of others! Hard to narrow it down to just one or two specific moments. I read blogs and get ideas - my quilt list of things I want to make is 20-30 different things, so I'd better get busy. I don't really have an envious component to it, because I still consider myself a total beginner. And they are not. I am fine seeking inspiration and guidance.

The only envy-point, I guess, would be that they seem to be able to buy all the fabric under the sun - there's a lot that I want. I don't want to say that I "can't afford" it. I could buy it - my husband does have a good job and we are financially secure. But our income is not infinite and we have higher priorities for our money rather than more fabric.

What was the most challenging thing you ever made?
A dress, actually. The Fairy Tale dress from Oliver+S. The lining being attached to the dress was hard, and it was the first time I installed a zipper. It looks like a simple dress, but boy howdy, it was not! Easily the most complicated thing I've ever made, before or since.

June 2016

What does it mean to you to work in a traditionally domestic medium that historically has been regarded as predominantly female (aka "women's work")?
I find it hilarious, because I always avoided sewing for that very reason. I still shake my head about it on a regular basis. The first time my husband came home from work and saw me at a sewing machine, he stopped, turned around, and came back 5 seconds later with a camera.

The very first picture - the first thing I ever sewed was a Christmas tree skirt, that my friend cut out and pinned for me, and then loaned me her machine to sew it. Jan 2011.

How do you see your current work in the context of quilting history?
I don't. I see it in the context of my family's history. The Pink Babies quilt has a story with the title, and in the pieces in the quilt. I can tell you every single dress I made from those fabrics - who it was for, and why. The quilts I'm making for my other daughters also have meaning and significance to our family, but not really anyone else. If my quilts are only for my children and their descendants, and no one else ever hears my name, I'm good with that. As long as my family knows I love them and made these things for them, that's enough.

the Grandma Nancy's Heritage quilt - my husband's mother made the top, and we found it in her house after she passed away. I finished it and gave it to my daughters, May 2016.

February journal

1. Squared Away block of the month: 4 blocks. I finished two more blocks for light blue-January that had already been started. I did just two purple blocks for February, and Mindy and I will each get one of them. So Mindy and I each have a set of blocks that looks like this, so far:

2. Valentine's hearts in plastic canvas and yarn: my little girls wanted Valentine's decorations, and one of them found a few random sheets of plastic canvas that have been kicking around for forever. No more. It's all been cut into hearts, and yarn or ribbon looped through them to hang in the windows. TA and JK took turns stitching and we made a bunch of them. JK keeps calling it "knitting" and I keep correcting her to "embroidery." (There is no knitting in our house - I tried and it didn't take.) Happy Valentine's Day!

3. Night Sky quilt: only two more 10-inch blocks (the center one was January's block), but I finished what will be the top row of the quilt! Next target is to finish the entire second section.

4. Clothing: SM came home one day with costume instructions for the school play, and I had all of a week and a half to figure it out. And we were traveling for 5 of those 10 days. Thanks for the advance notice, School, that you don't have a costume shop and I had to take care of it. She's a "fairy tale peasant," in the chorus of Into the Woods. So I knocked out her peasant top using some white fabric from my quilting pile (I think it used to be a bedsheet) and these directions from Things of Cloth. It only took me a couple of hours, I was surprised but pleased it went that fast. The skirt is in the works, and I also need to make an apron. I'll do pictures of the whole costume together when it's done.

I'm glad that this got me kicked into gear on making clothing - the target is 12 items for the year, and here's two right together.

5. A Doll Like Me doll quilt drive: I committed to 6, and the first one is done. The traveling and the theater costume took cuts in line for my time.

I meant to do T and U for the Alphabet Challenge before going to V for Valentines ... I know what I'm doing for them but other things have obviously taken priority.

For March, it's time to make dresses and skirts for Easter, because it's April 1 this year. I've made Easter outfits only once before. Last summer, my mom found a close-out sale of a fabric store in Idaho and FaceTimed me (in Connecticut) while walking around the store choosing fabric. Best fabric shopping ever! The catch was, you had to buy what was left on the bolt. (I also got major yardage of flannel to use for quilt backs, and the whole load cost me only 50 bucks. And they were coming here on vacation anyway, so we didn't have to ship it!) I ended up with 8 yards of this lightweight cotton that's perfect for skirts and dresses. I'm going to try to use it ALL. I have the Carousel Dress pattern traced off and trimmed for either TA or JK.

family service project

Last fall, I started doing a Family Service Project every month. We participated in the town clean-up in East Hartford in September. We don't live there, but our church congregation boundaries include that town. In October and November, we committed our time to relief efforts for the hurricane that devastated Puerto Rico. We made hygiene kits, and fleece scarves to be given to PR natives who are moving to the Hartford area. In December, we went caroling at a senior home on Christmas Eve.

January's service was a bit of a bust. The girls were supposed to serve each other (in an effort to help them stop fighting so much). Maybe Adam and I didn't stay on top of it enough but it didn't get anywhere. 

So we're regrouping for February. Our next family service project will be making doll-size quilts for A Doll Like Me. 

January journal

I'm going to try to keep a monthly log here of the sewing, quilting, and household projects I'm working on, so I can keep myself moving forward and keep track of what I'm actually doing.

I made a Year Ten sewing/house/project list a couple of years ago for my 10th year of being home to raise my kids. I didn't get very far with it because there was a lot going on with homeschooling and just life. It occurs to me that 2018 is Year Ten of this blog (!!!!) and it's gone through a lot of changes. My life has gone through a lot of changes just in the past 10 months, including putting my kids into public school. So I have a lot more time at home to do things that are NOT fighting about doing math. (Don't worry - there's still plenty of fighting about math. And science. But it's in a much more condensed time of day.)

My overall sewing goal for this year is to sew at least 2 1/2 hours per week and make one article of clothing per month. With 5 girls and me, this should mean we each get two new handmade items this year! The main sewing focus is quilts.

SEWING
- clothing item ... Well, let's start with what I did NOT do this month ... I have fabric pulled and a tutorial up on my phone, but just didn't get to it.

- 5 more blocks on the Christmas log cabin for a total of 12. I was working on this at New Years, then thought - wait. I have my kids' quilts to finish. Why am I working on this now? So this has now been deliberately set aside (as opposed to ignoring it while other things are more interesting) until I finish Night Sky, Extreme Reader, and T's Town.

- 2 hours of stitching on my DC embroidered map. This is taking a LONG time, but I'm okay with that. I'm trying to get the entire bottom section done so I'm not shredding the pattern any further by leaning on it to work on higher sections.

- 2 zipper bags for a total of 9, at least 4 more to go. These are birthday presents for cousins. I'm out of interfacing so need to go to the store before I can finish this project.

- 5 blocks on SM's Night Sky quilt. Most of them were little 4-inchers, and one 10-inch. I almost think that the little ones shouldn't "count" for the block tally but really, they take as much or more time than the big ones! Large pieces of fabric are a lot easier to work with than tiny ones! I got the first section of five finished. February's target is to get section 2 done. Adam says I should take out the solar system colored section, but I was going to put little pieces of it in other sections too so it's not a one-off. Any feedback?

- 2 blocks for the Squared Away BOM (Block Of the Month). I saw this and thought it looked easy and kind of fun to make just a couple of blocks a month over the course of a year, and then get a quilt at the end! Mindy and I are going to make twin quilts - I made TWO of this block, and will give one of them to her and keep the other for myself. This particular BOM is intended to use up scraps, so they give a color every month - January was light blue, and this was the suggested block. I have another set of two with different light blue fabrics but they're not done yet. February is supposed to be purple, and the new block will be posted on Saturday.

Before it was sewn together and yes, I have two of them done. It's supposed to be 10 and a half inches square at the end, so there's a seam allowance around the outer edge. Mine was exactly 10 inches when I was finished, so somewhere in there, I'm doing my seams a shade more than a quarter-inch. I thought I was doing a correct quarter-inch seam, but apparently not if I'm losing a full half-inch. 

I decided my background will be white-on-white. I'm not sure where this fabric came from because I only had a little bit of it. Someone was cleaning out their fabric and giving me the little pieces. 

THE HOUSE
I also have a goal to do one project per month on the house. It could be sewing, but not necessarily - there's a lot of painting on the list. Adam did a lot of electrical work this month with fixing the 3-way wiring in a bunch of light switches. Whoever did them before we moved in had it all kinds of monkeyed up. That was his project. I suppose I could count it because it was a project done for the house. But no.

My project was cleaning cleaning cleaning the homeschool area of the playroom, and opening it up to be an art/activity area. The kids now do their homework in the kitchen or at the computer desk in the living room where I can keep an eye on them, so having a study area downstairs is no longer necessary. We have a couple of years worth of paper piled up, multiple boxes with random game and puzzle pieces in them, and a crazy number of books that aren't read anymore. It wasn't a decorating scheme or paint job, but it certainly needed to be done and ... I'm still working on it.

OTHER CRAFTINESS
At church, I do all the weeknight activities for the girls ages 8-11. (LDS: Activity Days) We had a meeting with all the families of kids turning 8 this year to introduce them to the programming and get them excited to come. This was a gift for the kids my friend Megan and I did - painted wood frames and blinged them up, with a little sign of the sections of the Faith in God award program. We even made two for the boys.

2015 sewing goal review

Congratulations to Mindy on reaching 100 recipes in a year! I, on the other hand, lost my cooking mojo a long time ago and never got into a rhythm with it this entire year. I just don't care. I did recently come across this recipe for buttermilk scones (while looking for something else on that blog) that totally nailed it. Hint - freeze the butter, then grate it with the food processor to speed up cutting it into the flour. And for making "buttermilk" - one cup of milk, one tablespoon of lemon juice, and let it sit for 5 minutes.

What I did do this year was sew. On January 1, I posted this list from the WhipStitch blog as my target for the year, along with the Alphabet Challenge ... and here are the results:

1. a treat for your sewing space: I saw this post on SouleMama about rope baskets, and followed it over to where she got the idea on Maya*Made. (Backtrack through this one - there are lots of rope basket posts with lovely photography.) I don't read these two blogs very often, but really like them. A few days later, I came across some rope for piping in a box of craft supplies someone gave me last summer and decided to try it out. Neither blog has a tutorial for the baskets - they want you to buy Maya's book of course - so I found this tutorial online. It took me a little bit to get it right and I had to go over some of the sections a second time to make sure it was all secure. But they were freaking EASY!! And I LOVE them! SM and I colored on these a bit with fabric markers to jazz them up a little. They were given to a friend as a gift, but I've since made more to corral the little odds and ends that are always floating around on a sewing table.

2. something for him: Adam's flannel pajama pants were done! And ready for Christmas! But they didn't look quite right, so I pulled out his store-bought pajama pants and laid the handmade ones on top ... too short in the groin rise, and too short in the legs. They actually fit ME. But no. This fabric is from his mother's house that I got when she passed away. I will not steal his pants. Fortunately, I had doubled over the waistband by a lot, so I have room to fix it. And I found some small pieces in my scrap box that I can use to extend the legs. So they're still in the sewing room, but close enough to count for this! Ha!

3. a skirt or dress for you: Sew clothing for myself? Yeah right.

4. a quilt or blanket for charity: My first quilt top is done! I'm going to use a regular top sheet for the backing but I haven't found room in the budget yet to get the batting because I want the good stuff. When it's all finished, I will post more (and better) pictures of it. And no, this is not going to charity. This is going on JE's bed. Completing this item will go on the Alphabet Challenge and is the first thing on my Year Ten list.

5. a garment for a child: RG's baptism dress. She still says it's boring because there's no color, and I still love the white-on-white embroidery.

6. a project using only scraps: I had some ideas for this, but don't think I ever got to any of them.

7. an accessory: my mom forgot to pack her kitchen aprons when she moved to New York for a year and a half. Tawnia and I took care of that for her birthday.

8. something in an unfamiliar textile: ROPE!!! Who sews with ROPE?!?! Also, the skirt on JE's Elsa dress is a sheer-ish cotton gauze, which I'd never sewn with before. It has a deeper blue lining behind it (which I have used before), which explains the rich color.

9. a project from a printed sewing pattern: I used patterns I've already done - the Rollerskate Dress for the baptism dress (above) and the Playtime Tunic from Oliver+S for all the Christmas nightgowns. I started with the Fairy Tale Dress pattern (also Oliver+S) but it's more difficult than anything else I've ever done. I was going super-slow and had to set it aside and move some other things to the top of the priority list. It's back in the line-up now that Christmas is done. Anyway, I made 4 nightgowns - this one is a variation on the pattern because I left off the sleeves. SM wanted this particular fabric and there wasn't enough for sleeves, but it turned out great anyway because of the dropped shoulder seams. It also doesn't go clear to the floor like the other girls' but it's past her knees so she has plenty of room to grow in it. (And yes, I made only 4 nightgowns, even with 5 girls. TA refuses to wear nightgowns right now, so she got a top and shorts, noted below.)

10. a quilt or block for a swap: Since this allows for a block, rather than an entire quilt ... I tried paper-piecing in February. I love it, but it took such a long time! This whole thing is actually four smaller blocks, and each of the four was twelve pieces each. So yeah. It took awhile to make one of these flowers. It will be put into a sampler quilt or just made into a pillow. I haven't decided yet.

11. a project from a PDF pattern: Dana Willard’s shorts pattern ... eight pairs later ... Three cotton pairs for during the day, and five flannels for pajamas. The flannels so far have all been for SM and TA because they keep asking for them. The other girls prefer to wear other things to bed, but I'm sure I will eventually make them flannel pajama shorts too. I can make a pair of these shorts in under an hour - I timed myself. This little monkey got flannel shorts with a top for her Christmas pajamas, because she's silly like that.

12. a bag or pouch: Bento tote bags for SM and TA for their dance classes

13. a project you Pinned but haven’t done yet: Hooray hooray! I did use a bookmarked project! The Elsa dress on Made by Rae was my model for JE's Elsa birthday dress. It's the one and only link moved into my "projects completed" folder, but at least I got the one!

14. applique or embroidery: I made this little simple skirt for JK out of the leftover fabric from making some shorts, and it needed a boost. I like the turquoise heart on it but don't look too close - my applique work needs A LOT of practice. It's a mess.

15. something doll sized: Not yet. I had a plan for Christmas that didn't happen, but has moved to JK's birthday in March.

16. use an unfamiliar tool or machine: I used embroidery stitches on my machine for the Christmas nightgowns. Does that count? I was using something on my machine that I'm not familiar with.

17. a project using fabric you designed: this had me stumped in January and continues to elude me. 

For the Alphabet Challenge, I did only E, F, and G this year. I have H almost done. I and J are started and on stand-by. So I have been moving forward with it, just reeeeeally slowly.

 Other things I made this year in addition to this particular list:
- two simple skirts from a dolphin/beach print my mom gave me
- another Elsa dress for TA's birthday, styled similar but with different fabrics from JE's Elsa dress
- a Wizard of Oz Dorothy dress for SM for Halloween, used this tutorial from Girl. Inspired. I didn't shirr the back (but I probably should go back and try it), and I put the straps over the shoulders instead of as a halter top.
- this pattern and tutorial are what I used for TA's Christmas pajamas.
- I finally finished a couple of Christmas decor projects I started forever ago: a scallop garland and embroidered fabric gift tags.
- 30-ish items fixed from the mending box ... which still looks untouched. What the heck?!?

Year 10

1 September 2006 was my first day of being a stay-at-home mom, and the first day of Operation Domestic Goddess. So this is YEAR TEN ... It seems like a milestone of sorts so I have 10 projects I want to complete in the next 365 days.

1. Finish my first quilt. It's so close! I'm doing the border on the piecing right now.

2. Embroider a DC map quilt. I was given one of these patterns for my birthday last year, and I'm excited to move this project to the front of the line. SM asked who will get it for their bed. No one. It's going on the wall.

3. Paint the master bathroom all white, trim the mirror, and recover the window. And while we're at it, new towels for Adam and me. We're still using the towels we bought when we got married.

4. Clean and stain the inside of an old steamer trunk Adam recently bought for me at a yard sale.

5. Make a strip quilt.

6. Paint a wall hanging with a meaningful quote on it. Yes, I have the quote selected. No, I will not tell you until it's done.

7. Sew at least one previously-bookmarked item of clothing for each of my five girls. I have SO many sewing projects bookmarked (my anti-Pinterest method). I need to do more of them.

8. Make new covers for my living room couch throw pillows. I've never liked the covers they came with and since the couch is white, I can do anything!

9. Update all the framed photos around my house, and rearrange our wall decor. Heck, finish putting everything up! There are still a few things here and there leaning against the wall after 2 years.

10. Make one 12-inch quilt block a week for the year.

A lofty ambition, to be sure. And these things have to be done in the midst of homeschooling, gardening, and all the food preservation we do all summer ... and those things aren't even on the list. We're also going to be hosting a family reunion here at our home next July, so we have some home plans related to that. Adam wants to expand our back porch deck. Wish us luck!