the end of November

I haven't checked my e-mail in over a week.

And now I'm scared to.

I get about a hundred e-mails a day;

most of them are junk,

but there are some that I'll need to tend to,

and weeding through it all takes forever.

~

Remember my china cabinet??

The one that I had to drive the trailer

to go get!?!

We finally painted it

and moved it 

to the spot that it's been waiting for its whole life

💛

It's a tiny tad more 'French's' mustard than I'd have preferred,

but I love it anyway.

As soon as I find the china 

that we bought in East Berlin

while it was still a communist country

I'll fill it up!

~

As you can see,

we also put up the Christmas tree

(and plugged in the frasier fir fragrance...)

though we have yet to put any ornaments on it.

~

no - that's not true.

There is the Operation Christmas Child ornament 

that Lexi picked up when we worked our shoebox shift.

~

For several weekends,
Tyler has been working on our stair rail

and we finally got that finished and up this weekend, too.

I love it so much!!

~

I may have gone a bit overboard,

but I've finalized the fabric pull 

for my new commissioned project.

I'm hoping to get my first block made today,

and after that,

I'll aim for a pair of blocks every work day

(double that when the blocks are small and simple)

I estimate it'll take 4-6 months to complete.

~

Along with other leftovers,

Mom and Bill gave us 

both the ham bone

and the turkey carcass

 after Thanksgiving,

so we had a delicious ham and bean soup yesterday

and our (almost) annual day-after-Thanksgiving

 turkey noodle soup.

They were both scrumptious,

but now I am ready to get back to not eating carbs!

~

I only have four more granny circles

to turn into squares and join!

(obviously, this was taken a few days ago...)
I use an empty candle jar to keep a row of circles contained and in order :-)

I discovered there is a thing called continuous join as you go

which is ever so much better than join as you go

which is better

by far

than joining afterward,

so that has sped the process up considerably.

I couldn't find an exact tutorial,

so I sorta cobbled together bits and pieces

from various blogs and videos

and muddled through

until I figured out a good method.

I should probably write it up 

so I can use it if I ever make another one...

breaking news

Back a few weeks ago,

I told you about TaeKwonDo testing,

and how the girls didn't break all of their boards.

Well.

What I didn't tell you then,

was,

Mr. Townsend had told Tyler and me 

that he knew they could do it;

they'd broken all of their boards in class.

So he was going to let them test again at make-up testing,

but he wouldn't let them know 

that they were testing for their black belts -

they would just think they were practicing.

He was fairly certain that removing the pressure

would allow them to pass with flying colors.

And it did!

I am so pleased to announce that both Lily and Lexi

are now,

finally,

 Christ First TaeKwonDo Black Belts

I'm so proud of you, Girls!!

You can see videos of their board breaks

here, on my Instagram page.

I am soooo grateful that one of our friends

recorded them,

since neither Tyler or I were there

(so as to maintain the illusion of 'practicing')

lately

The kids had TaeKwondoTesting yesterday.

Boys had mid-terms

and girls were both testing (again) for their black belts.

Gramma and Grandpa Bill came down to cheer them on,

but Jeremiah was the only one who passed.

The others were understandably sad,

but they were still happy for their friends and brother who did pass,

and I was proud of all 4 of them.

~

I was supposed to get a package yesterday.

Fabric - 

that I planned on playing with today,

but our mail carrier said it was undeliverable

because of "bad road".

I wasn't quite as gracious in my disappointment

as my children were.

Granted,

our driveway does get a bit sketchy,

but it certainly isn't bad enough

to warrant non-delivery of packages!

Tyler and the boys

fixed it anyways.

~

We haven't done just a ton of house projects

in the past few months,

but Tyler did finish making

 and installed the pantry door

a few weeks ago.

I love it!

(but it's terribly hard to photograph.)

He bought the window for $2.50 at a yard sale,

and built the door around it.

The barn door hardware was a bargain Snagshout purchase,

originally ordered for the upstairs bathroom,

but it worked even more perfectly in the kitchen.

We pretty much just leave it open,

but it's nice to have the option to close it.

~

Remember the circle centered granny squares?

I finally finished all 168 circles

and started turning them into squares and joining them.

I got 3 rows done super fast

(meaning - I ignored most other responsibilities

for a whole day

and may have even frustrated my very fabric-tolerant husband,

but I was trying to build muscle memory

so I wouldn't have to re-figure how to do it)

and then decided I definitely wasn't happy with my yarn choice

(I suspected I wasn't when I bought it...)

so I have been undoing

and redoing those 3 rows.

I like the new yarn much better,

so it was a wise call.

(but I still haven't gotten all 3 rows re-done,

and it's been over a week....)

I still like fabric

better than yarn.

~

The boys are taking a writing class on Monday afternoons.

They aren't exactly enjoying it,

but they are doing well.

Adding in another day of being out and about

is wearing out the momma, though!

In addition,

the class is only one hour long, 

and in an area of FSM 

that isn't convenient for most of our shopping needs

so I can't even redeem the time by running errands.

The girls and I did go to Michaels a few times

since it's somewhat nearby,

but that's not financially feasible

on a weekly basis

because it's very hard 

for 3 crafters 

to just 

look

at Michaels.

I am glad to have some assistance in teaching writing though.

~

Once I got all quilt commitments finished,

I started really hoping for a new commisioned project.

I've only given 2 machines this year...

I didn't exactly pray about it,

but God certainly knew it was on my heart.

A few days ago,

an old friend messaged that she would like to commission me

to make her a quilt!

I am so looking forward to reconnecting with her 

through the process,

and I'm excited to actually feel a little excited

about a project.

And 

of course,

 I am thrilled to be able to give a few more machines,

though this'll be a bit of a doozy

and it's unlikely I will finish this year.

that's just the beginnings of the fabric pull :-) some will be weeded out and many more will be added

~

If you'd like to see some of the progress pictures

from my dad's quilt,

you'll find them on instagram with the # lovebuildsahomequilt.

I am making a concerted effort to post more on the blog,

but there is no denying that it's much easier

to quickly post on Instagram

so you can always check over there

if you get tired of waiting for me here.

love builds a home, a finished quilt

I have started this post so many times in my head,

but it never gets very far.

I think I need to begin

as things were before I ever started this quilt...

I keep a running list in my head,

and sometimes on Pinterest,

of what quilt I might make for which person.

Several years ago,

when my dad and Jeannie started
going to Arizona over the winter to help build houses,

I made a note to self

- 'house quilt for Dad' -

and when I'd happen upon one that I sort of liked,

I added it to my Pinterest board

so when it was their turn for a quilt,

I'd have some ideas to pull from.

And then, in Spring of 2016
 we started building our house,

and my dad sacrificed sooo much time

to help us build it,

and teach us how to build

(oh Y'all. I don't know if I can write this.)

and Jeannie sacrificed him,

so he could do that.

I knew that nothing on my Pinterest board was worthy.

There is very little in our house that Dad didn't have a hand in.

In October of 2016,

I invited Jeannie to go to the quilt show with me.

I figured it was something we could do together
 that we'd both enjoy,

but also

I wanted to be able to ascertain what sort of quilts she was drawn to

and what colors she'd like.

I'm sneaky like that :-)

I discovered that she had a preference for traditional styles,

and she liked a red and green color scheme

because at one point she said,

- and I remember where we were standing -

"I really like green and red quilts." 

and I thought,

"Well, that was easy."

As soon as I'd finished piecing Alicia's quilt,

I sat down and designed a couple of house quilts,

and texted photos to Marin,

whom I often bug with that sort of thing,

and asked her which one she thought was better for them.

She thought either would be fabulous

 - because she is so sweet 

she thinks everything I do is fabulous -

so I decided that I should make the more complicated quilt,

because that seemed only fair;

they'd helped so much!
And this was supposed to be a token of our gratitude, after all.

After settling on the design,

I drew up plans and cutting instructions for each different block,

(though my center house was an actual pattern

from a book by Lori Holt)

and even designed two different foundation paper piecing patterns

for the pine trees.

Even though Jeannie wanted green and red,

I didn't want the quilt to be Christmasy,
so I added in yellows and blues that would go in their house

and my 'reds' included a reeeeally wide range,

including pinks and corals.

I was still gathering fabrics when this was snapped

I collected scads of fabrics
(I used 170 of them)
because she'd told me once that she 'liked all the fabrics'

and made the first block July 25th, 2017.

I had hoped it would be a Christmas gift that year,

but,

as we were quite heavily involved in building an actual house

at the same time,

I knew that might not happen.

I had 2 commissioned projects that I was working on 

at the time, too,

and both of them had hard deadlines,

so they were top priority.

I diligently sewed every chance I got

but I didn't come close to finishing by Christmas.

I didn't even finish the top
by when we got together for Christmas,

which actually was in November, 

because they were going to AZ earlier than usual.

No worries.

We gave them a gift card for eating out,

and a certificate for the meal of their choice in our new kitchen

when they got back to Arkansas.

We would give them the quilt then.

I finished the top January 12th

and made the back the next day.

Then I basted it

and started the hand quilting.

I finished the hand quilting early-mid April.

and started machine quilting April 15th.

I'd stayed home from church that day,

and set up a temporary quilting station in the dining room
by laying a piece of melamine board on my portable massage table
(use what you got....)

I had to hit it fast and hard;

because they were coming for dinner in 12 days.
and we'd be camping for 4 of them.

Machine quilting was a nightmare.

You may remember my machine is not so great
with the free motion quilting....

To make matters worse

I chose 80 wt Invisifil thread.

I knew I'd be doing a good bit of traveling back and forth

 over stitched lines,

and Ronda just raves about the thread,

and she quilts beautifully,

so, of course, if I used what she used,

my quilting would be amazing too.

Or some such stupid logic.

80 wt thread is super thin,

and you can barely see it,

so I wasn't overly pleased with how the quilting looked

and my already contrary Juki hated the thread,

but I was so sure it was my best bet

for a beautiful quilt,

and I really wanted my dad's quilt to be extra beautiful.

Firstly,

because it truly was a tangible expression of our deep gratitude

for all of his help.
His help was superb; the quilt should be too.

But secondly because,

I'm still just a girl who wanted her dad
 to think she's pretty great.

And I wasn't so great with all the building stuff.

Oh sure, 

I run on about my badges,

and I did give it tremendous effort,
and even did a decent job for a middle-aged woman
who knew nothing about construction

but building a house isn't really my thing.

Quilts are my thing....

So I stupidly pressed on with the not pretty,

barely visible

(hello - INVISIfil)

giving me fits several times an hour thread.

After a few days of absolute fighting with the quilting,

the machine,

and ridiculously slow progress,

I knew there was no way I could be finished

by my second deadline.

Before they came for dinner on the 27th,
I folded the quilt 

and shoved it in a bag in my closet
and stuck it on the top shelf.

We showed them the work we'd done on the house

since they'd been here last,

and we played a few games.

And that was the last time I saw my dad

before the hospital.

 I never got to give him his quilt.

And yes - I am well aware that he couldn't care less about a quilt
now that he is heaven,
but it makes me sad all the same.

The quilt wasn't just for my dad,
it was for Jeannie, too,
so I needed to finish it.

And I did - slowly

My machine went back to the shop,
again,
and I bought a new machine
(who also does not care for 80 wt thread)

I worked on the quilt as my heart could handle it,
but there were many tears.

What began as a thank-you
turned into a tribute.

Though I'm unhappy with my thread choice,
I'm proud of the quilt.
I think it's some of my best work.

I sewed on the label on Oct 3rd.
Finally finished.

I put it in the local quilt show the first weekend of October.
For display only though - no judging.

And then
in a 'full circle' turn of events,
Jeannie texted me and said,
"I thought I'd come down and go to the quilt show"

So we went together.
And she saw their (now, her) quilt
for the first time.

This is where I'd normally say something nice to
and about the recipient,
but I am so so spent from writing this post
and I know Jeannie understands.
I love you, Jeannie. Hugs and scritches.

almost Christmas

As soon as I'd finished piecing the Razorback quilt in July,

I texted my sister,

"When is Lindsey getting married?"

and was a little surprised by the
"October 20th"

reply.

I had to get moving - fast!!

I knew my niece liked red

(though her favorite color is blue)

but the thing I wasn't positive about was 

would she and her new hubby like a quilt??

My sister thought so,

but she couldn't be positive either

without asking,

but I wanted it to be a surprise,

so told her not to ask ~ I'd just take my chances.

California Dreamin' fabric- how I love you!

I decided that their quilt should be Christmasy enough

that if they didn't love it,

they could pack it up,

and only pull it out at Christmas time,

guilt free.

But if they did love it

and would want to use it year round,

it wouldn't be too Christmasy for that option either.

Almost Christmas.

I used 125 fabrics all together

and pieced it over the course of 2+ months.

Quilting went surprisingly quickly,

 and - except for sewing through my finger -

quite uneventfully,

and only took about 2 weeks.

I bound it by machine,

and labeled it.

After a quick run through the wash

(gentle cycle, warm water)

I pulled it out of the dryer

(the texture is so delicious)

with 4 days to spare.

It turns out

that they do like quilts,

and Lindsey has been secretly hoping for one 

for a few years :-)

Lindsey ~ I love you, sweet girl!

Big congratulations.

Tyler ~ welcome to the (crazy) family.

We wish you a long and happy marriage.

I hope most of your days together 

feel

almost like Christmas.

💗

big thanks to my silly quilt holders!!