Tuesday, May 11, 2021

Really Random: The Midweek Edition

 A week ago Sunday, we headed back to the Monterey-Carmel coast to do some more quilt photography, and to hopefully see the pink ice plants in bloom. This usually occurs the end of April/beginning of May, and they did not disappoint. The water was choppy and the waves were crashing. It was a beautiful day.





My intrepid quilt holder, Mark, also never complains, even when it means climbing down some sketchy stone steps...



My friend, Dotty, texted me the other day to let me know that a quilt top I had donated had been beautifully hand quilted. She wondered if I even remembered it, as I had given it to her quite awhile ago. Of course I remembered it! I told her that the fabric line was  Sherbet Pips by Aneela Hoey, a British designer, and her first fabric line for Moda.

"Sherbet Pips? What kind of name is that??" Well, in case you too are wondering...
Dotty often rolls her eyes at the idea that I know so many facts about fabric. She is more of an "if I like it, I'll sew with it. I don't need to know anything about it" kind of quilter. I keep telling her that fabric info is like sports trivia to me. 

I considered sending this to my daughter-in-law...or maybe even trying it here at home the next time Ella and Gabe get on each other's nerves.
Mark has been officiating a lot of softball games lately. As you might guess, refs are not always the most popular individuals. It was very nice to receive this email of affirmation when he contacted the athletic director to confirm the time of the game. 

Speaking of sports...here is some really random information.

Aaron has been an avid follower of the UniWatch blog for years. Don't miss the tag line: The Obsessive Study of Athletics Aesthetics. No kidding. If you want to know why a team uniform now has stripes that are, say, 1/8 inch narrower, or why they have changed to some new and hideous color, you can find out and weigh in with your opinion on whether that was a good or bad idea, etc., then this is the place for you!

Anyway...they began offering Uni Watch seam rippers. And I would not have even known this except we were at Aaron and Christa's a week or so ago and I became the recipient of an official Uni Watch seam ripper of my very own. 

You might be asking yourself, "Why do they even offer seam rippers?" Well, as you can see in the photo, apparently not everyone likes have the manufacturer's label on their hat. Now you can eliminate it.  And be sure to notice that last sentence about the decals being oriented for either a left-handed or right-handed user?  It's all in the details. Oh wait, that's exactly what the entire blog is about--details!


The seam ripper got almost immediate use. Aaron sent me a before and after of his Dodgers hat:




Which leads me to my next bit of info. They are refreshing their tent trailer, which includes recovering the bench cushions. Christa had purchased some nice curtains from Target that will work nicely, and gives a nice amount of fabric for an affordable price/yard.  Since I'm set up with the cutting board and a semi industrial sewing machine, before I even had time to think about what I was saying, I offered to do the work for them. We decided that undoing the side and bottom hems would give us just the added inches we needed. My next thought was that I didn't feel like unhemming two curtains. 

And then I remembered. Oh, yeah. I'm not the only one with seam ripper experience.
We planted our dahlia bed. Now we are waiting for evidence of some growth...

We got a new set of pots and pans, and included was the cutest little 5" skillet.  Its cuteness brings us an absurd amount of joy in the morning...

We gave up our "real" daily newspaper and transitioned to the digital version after the price got too astronomical, and the news was always a day old. But I sure miss turning those pages in the morning. And Aaron has been known to say "what's a newspaper" a time or two when he realized we were still getting it every morning.


For the first time since the pandemic, a friend and I drove to nearby Reedley and went to the local quilt shop, and then had lunch at a local Mediterranean restaurant. Such a treat...but the strangest thing was how odd it felt to have someone who is not part of our family riding in the car with me. Each of these "firsts" is a little disconcerting to me. Do you feel that way as well?
I'm joining another sewalong in June. Hopefully this will help to make me accountable...
Mother's Day can be complicated for many different reasons. 

But one thing I know for sure--I would not trade this family for anything in the world. 


7 comments:

05 08
Charlotte M. said... #

Our local quilt shop here is by appointment only.

Needled Mom said... #

It’s a beautiful family, Cindy. I hope your dahlias will be up and blooming soon.

Rochelle aka Bella Quilts said... #

Wonderful post with lots of varied information. Love that you were able to travel with a non-family member to a quilt shop. I do have moments when I forget to grab a mask as I exit the car and then have to go back to get it. Love that Aaron now has his own seam ripper...and is using it! The portrait of the family is lovely.

Jacqui's Quilts said... #

Love your random tidbits in this blog! We're still in lockdown over here in Ont. Canada, but hoping we will be able to travel to quilt shops with friends soon!! I have that Sherbet Pips fabric too...a jelly roll and yardage. Someday I will actually use it. It's one of those...too cute to use fabrics LOL. That email to the ref was heart warming...so much abuse for those people! Restores a little hope for humanity LOL.

Anne / Springleaf Studios said... #

So many things in this post. Love those photos at the beach with the ice plants and your quilts. Beautiful. Love that you put Aaron to work with the seam ripper. When we traveled to Kansas for a family wedding last month things finally felt normal to me. I never once thought about Covid. Hope you had a wonderful Mother's Day.

Marty said... #

I get your blog from Feedly (a "gathering" app, I guess). I think I will be ok after the Blogger change (?I hope!) I sure do enjoy reading it!

OPQuilt said... #

This is my regular quilty newspaper: your blog posts. I love that Aaron helped you unpick all that stitching so you could help him sew cushions for the camper. And now you have your own specialty seam ripper (I still use the one your Dad made).
Our trip to Utah last week forced me into feeling "normal": when I went to the quilt guild meeting, only three of us were wearing masks: me, and two who had been in the hospital for covid. I took mine off and on the whole meeting, not able to decide how I felt. Glad you are having experiences that bring pleasure: fabric shops and lunch out!