Knitting and Maybe Cleaning

I was so excited when I got my knitted shell finished in time to wear it for Mother's Day.  And it fits just like I wanted it to.  I am thinking about trying to knit little caps for the top of the arm holes but probably will be to lazy to figure that out and do it.   Anyway, on this special day our son-in-law invited us to join him and our daughter to celebrate their 29th wedding anniversary.  It was a surprise for her and she even cried when she saw us arrive (happy tears we were told).

And with the shell completed I started another pair of "leftover" socks.  I have knit 3 pair of purple socks so these will be a combination of those three.  And, because I can knit socks in my sleep, I just sent for yarn for a summer cardigan.  It will be the first time I will be doing cables and trying to follow a chart.  I think I will have to practice a lot before I begin.

And I had to share this little owl.  I ran into it in Walmart in the children's department: it is the perfect size for a socks project bag.  Just shows that you have to keep your eyes open no matter where you are.

I think it has been years since I won anything but recently I hit the jackpot.  I won these items from Julie at The Crafty Quilter.  My winnings included a quilt pattern, a Moda charm pack and a beautiful fabric necklace made by Julie.  I was excited when she told me I had won but way more excited when I opened the package.  Thank you, Julie.

People who have been reading my blog for some time know that I became quite ill last summer.  But really it started several month before, we just didn't realize what was happening.  This picture really shows how long it has been since I was up and going: this quilt was put on the frame in September, 2014.  I was whizzing right along and then two things happened: The machine started snapping the thread and I was unable to stand long enough to deal with it.  So this is where the quilt is now and I have quilted about 3 rows and have 2 to go.  I should have it done this month but the next two pictures will show why that may not happen.

This is my ironing board.  Both ends are piled with fabrics from three or four different projects.  With just that little space I have not been able to do much and am easily frustrated when I try.  My goal this week is to clear this off so I can begin to be quilting productive again.

However there is one other problem.  Under all of this, accumulated over the last several months, is my 3' x 5' cutting table.  My current plan is to put everything here into a laundry basket so I can work on the table and then work from the basket to put things away.  During my illness I would come to work, get things out and then be overwhelmed either by the mess or my lack of energy and just leave the area.  My husband offered to clean it up but I was afraid I would never find anything so I am going to work at it a little at a time.

My studio is a 3 room mobile office divided into a quilting room, a sewing room, and a prep/knitting room.  All of the rooms need work but I think that if I can get these areas up and running I can deal with whatever else needs to be done.  At least that is my plan.

I am very fortunate.  I was diagnosed with breast cancer that has moved into my entire skeletal system.  We thought it was a death sentence but with medication I appear to be MUCH better than I was and am able to do most of what I was doing before I knew I was sick.  God has been so very good to me and I hope to be able to use the time given to me wisely.  Gari

May 1st….Let the Cleaning Begin

By 8:30 this morning I was in the studio to begin the GREAT CLEANING.  I walked in and ………..  froze.  What a big job lay before me.


I had already decided that the first task was to find the cutting table.










But looking at it I wasn’t sure it could be done in only one day.









Every square inch was covered with the debris of projects that have been completed, are still in the works, and/or are being looked at for future works.

One of the things I had decided was that I needed to find places for everything that I was going to keep so it wasn’t just cleaning but also organizing. 









I worked, took short breaks, went out for lunch and worked some more and finally…..




I finished with this.  I knew I would need this space open so that I can use it for sorting and organizing of all the junk stuff I will be going through the rest of the week.  However, I do plan on this table looking like this at the end of each day




I finished around 5 and then spent a little time sewing the binding on Henrietta.  I didn’t get it quite finished because DH called me to dinner and I felt I had earned the pizza we were having. 
Oh, well, tomorrow is another day.