Cutting it Close

A few days ago I wrote that I might not have enough of the gray print to make four stars for this quartet, but I was going to keep on until I used up the print. WHEW! I made it ... this is literally -- I mean LITERALLY -- cutting it close. Here are the four stars, complete but without border yet. I had just barely enough gray -- here are the scraps that remained when I did the last triangle.

These little gray pieces were so small I swept them right into the wastebasket. You can see there's very little of the gold or very light fabric either, but I was certain there was enough because so little is needed for the star. So I guess this confirms the accuracy of my "eyeballing" estimates. But I think I'll try to avoid such close calls in the future.

Given that sense of self-confidence, I actually began doiing the NY Times Sunday crossword puzzle in pen! [I get the Sunday magazine on Saturday since it is delivered to me] It's not all confience, though I usually manage to finish the puzzles, but the paper has a coating so that most of the pencils I own look very pale and I find my mind actually works better when I can see what I've written more clearly. So it may be messy where the first answer is wrong, but I'll see how it works. I LOVE having the puzzle on Saturday, I can sit in bed and make myself sleepy mulling the last few tough words.

Speaking of confidence, even though all the street crossings are still messy with the remnants of ice and snow piled there by shovelers and snow plows, I went out twice today without my trekking pole -- walking like a person with no hip problem. In fact, I am convincing myself I AM now a person with -- well, hardly any -- hip problem. A residual stiffness that has to be worked through. But I now pronounce that episode ended, done, finished, over and consigned to memory ... a strong enough memory to remain cautious on those icy corners. It feels good to feel normal ... if a little older and more cautious.

Back to Quilting

I have been watching the great world and the many fascinating things in it; but I have also been quilting. Really I hav e. Here is #17 in the star quartet series. It's called "Boot-iful star" because the bright center motif looked like boots right from the git-go. It's a relatively simple quilt which went quickly. I entirely used up all the fabrics in the central portion so had to use different fabrics for the borders -- oops, that is except for the binding which is the background fabric of which I had enough to cut on bias binding In the picture it is finished except for the cat that gets added to each one, fused on -- the cats are from a fabric with about a dozen different cats and I had a fat quarter so I think I counted about 45 usable cats. I don't know if I'll do that many quilts but at this point it's beginning to seem possible. I haven't lost my fascination with Carol Doak's many variations.

In fact, I've got half the next one done .. or maybe not. It's this following picture but I may ot have enough of the gray backgrount print for the necessary four star squares. In all cases of choosing fabrics I've been an "eye-baller" not a measurer. One of my objectives is to use up flower prints and calicos that I am not terribly fond of. But as I go along on the new one, I waffle as I wonder if the gray will suffice, often I think no, sometimes I think yes. The only way to find out is to go on and see. If not enough then these stars go into the orphan block collection and I start over again.



This quilting business is all live and learn, don't take mistakes too seriously. Should there be enough gray print, great, if not, I've got a navy calico that would be a good backgound and I could use light blues or possibly, again, yellows or maybe pinks. So it's an ongoing adventure. I know some people take everything like a high school math test that will get them praise from teacher and parents. But I haven't been there in a long time. This is what used to be called a "hobby" and is nowadays called as "passion." But not a self-defining activity. I'm curious and I'm having fun. I like watching patterns appear, I like the great variety of stars possible, I like using up my stash, especially the sort of ugly fabrics like the gray -- which become much less ugly when put into something like this star. So that's it, no moral, no life lessons -- unless we really stretch our analogy making which I don't feel inclined to do tonight.