Last night I was too sleepy to write, but I have time for a quick note before the day takes off.
Esther commented on my entry that included my discussion of dogwood trees. She said there were plenty where she lived and was surprised that we didn't have any. Well, I may have overstated the case a bit, and proof of that came yesterday as I drove to my piano lesson. My preferred route takes me over Manning Boulevard on both sides of Western Avenue (from Washington to Western and from Western to New Scotland Avenue). Both halves of Manning are a pleasure, especially at this time of year. And both sides have some dogwoods, not many, but some. To clarify the point about these trees we don't have many up here and most are older specimens. What we have lost are the dogwoods that used to peep out from the edges of woods, their horizontal branches just glimpsed as we drove past. Those "wild" trees are gone, decimated by disease years ago. Now there are only the specimen, nursery grown trees. Remarkably enough, the dogwood fell out of favor (most likely because of that disease) so they have become rare. One doesn't seem them in the nurseries as flowering crab apples, cherries, and redbud are more popular.
Yesterday afternoon, I spent a delicious amount of time sorting through the fabrics chosen for the girlfriend quilts Mary Ellen and I are going to make. As I mentioned before, she and I selected the fabrics together, but each of us will put together combinations that are pleasing to us. Part of the fun of this is waiting to see what Mary Ellen's blocks are like compared to my use of the same materials. That was in my mind as I selected combinations from among the fabrics. First of all, it was simply fun to look at the lovely colors we chose (I keep my fabrics in Roy G. Biv order - as I do with anything that isn't otherwise in alphabetical order, like my spices). As I decided on the colors for one block, because of the organization method I use, I was able to find those fabrics easily within the pile while still keeping the pile neat. That's helpful when the choices varies from block to block. The second and equally enjoyable part of that job was wondering how Mary Ellen would combine her colors. There were some that I was able to say, "Oh, she'll choose this color instead of my choice," or "She might choose this pattern but in the same color choice as mine." There are all kinds of surprising pleasures in this shared project!
Today, among other tasks, I will iron those fabrics that need it, re-checking the combinations as I do so, and maybe have enough time to cut out some more blocks. Both Mary Ellen and I use small plastic storage bags to hold the cut pieces for each block, and then I put those bags in a larger tote bag that can hang on the chair I use while sewing. All I have to do is reach in the bag, and I have a block all ready to sew. I don't allow myself to choose which block I'll sew next. This is the only time I seem to be able to tolerate true random choice (as compared to my "controlled random" selections!).
I hope your day has a special pleasure in store for you, too!
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