Old Red Barn Co.

An ending. A beginning.

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Mon, 10 Feb 2020 21:03:00 +0000

I suppose my time writing and publishing here are done. Eleven years is a pretty good run. This space was a place to document, process, and share so many things. Thoughts going on in my head. Family moments. Letters to my daughters. Things I made with my hands. Flowers and gardens and greenhouses and seeds. This blog afforded me the opportunity to write a book, contribute to numerous magazines, share tutorials on host websites and be interviewed for podcasts.

This blog has served my family as such a remarkable time capsule of our lives. We access it from time to time to remember stories, snag photos, determine dates of when something happened and, of course, to reminisce. Eleven years of written and photographic history at the touch of a keyboard has been incredibly more useful than I would have ever imagined back in 2009.

These days it's rare that I have a camera in my hands other than my phone. I still stop and photograph and notice and think about things... but the way that I share them has changed. Snap, caption, post to Instagram. That's sorta the pace of things in this current season of life. In a blink that will change too.

What makes all this change bearable is the fact that human connection is the thread that remains constant. This space created friendships that have carried forward to the next.

For each and every one of you, I'm grateful. I'll see you on Instagram. And whatever comes after that.

With love,
dana

Two More Quilts for Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Sat, 30 Nov 2019 20:07:00 +0000

Whew! Since my last post I've sold quite a few quilts and, I've gotta say, it feels much less scary now to let them go out into the world. Thank you for your purchases and indulging me. Many sold here and several more sold via my Old Red Barn Co. Facebook page. I know that this space hasn't been visited by you looking for something for sale and yet, that's what I've had here for awhile. I appreciate your tolerance for such diversions and hope that you know how much I appreciate whatever your reasons are for being here today... and for all the years before now.

In my last post update, I said that I had two more quilts for sale. The first is this traditional log cabin quilt that measures 66"x78". The center square of each block is the cutest little woodland deer measuring 1" square. The blocks are arranged in a way that makes bold strips diagonally across the quilt. It's backed in a light blue fabric with scattered daisy bouquets. Machine wash and dry. For sale for $300 plus shipping to you.

The second quilt is a traditional postage stamp quilt with a modern twist. The tiny squares are set among rainbow hued solid colors that cascade across the quilt. It measures 60"x73" and is backed with a mix of some of my favorite fabric prints of all times. This quilt has hundreds of fabrics in it from little bits and pieces of quilts that I've made over the years. Machine wash and dry. For sale for $300 plus shipping to you.

Ok. These (plus the few remaining in my last post) are all that I plan to sell for now. If you see something you'd like, shoot me an email by hitting that envelope icon over on the top on the right hand side. Once you claim one, I'll work with you to calculate shipping, send you a PayPal money request and get it in the mail to you.

Selling these quilts that I've poured my heart and soul into feels like such a vulnerable act. I bet you can relate to that. Right? I mean, when I make something for someone I really, really hope that they like it. Do you too? It doesn't have to be a quilt. It can be a birthday card and a pan of lasagna. You make something for someone and you really hope they like it. These quilts were not made for someone specifically but they are creations from my inner most self. I spent hours choosing fabrics, block designs, sewing, placing and rearranging, basting, quilting, and binding and they feel like bits of me. Putting "bits of me" up for sale makes me feel, like I said, vulnerable. But it feels much less scary now. Thanks for allowing me to share them.

-dana

Quilt Sale - Prices reduced on remaining quilts!

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 17 Sep 2019 15:53:00 +0000

UPDATE as of Nov 15, 2019 -- I've deleted photos of quilts that have sold. Any image remaining here means it's still available. AND, I've reduced the prices. I've got two additional recently finished quilts that I plan to sell as well and hope to get them added next week. If you're curious what those two quilts are you can view snippets here and here. (Those will be priced at $300 each.)

It's time for a quilt sale. Why? Because we've got lots of quilts. And I keep making more.

Every quilt is handmade by me. 100% cotton. Machine wash and machine tumble dry. Prices and quilt measurements are indicated in each photo above. Shipping will be whatever the actual shipping cost is to send it to you.

Interested in one in particular? Send me an email (click the envelop icon in the upper right hand side bar) and I can answer any questions you have.

Let me know which one you want. We will figure out shipping together and I'll send you a PayPal invoice. Once paid, I'll wrap and box it up and send it on it's happy way to you. Sound good?

Fingers crossed you find something you love.

And thank you from the bottom of my heart.

-dana

P.S. I plan to post this on my Old Red Barn Co. Facebook page and would love any re-shares you might consider. I'm trying to figure out an effective way to succinctly post it on Instagram too. :)

Back to it

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 27 Aug 2019 15:22:00 +0000

Here it is the end of summer where I find myself like I have every year for the last 16 years. The girls go back to school and I deep clean and organize a few things that were put on hold during the summer months. I eventually sit down in the over sized office chair, spin it around to sit squarely in front of the computer, and then stare at the screen for a few days. Wanting to encapsulate the last few months into words, I sit here and surf the Internet instead. And play a billion games of solitaire.

One daughter returned to college. The other entered her senior year of high school. First apartments. College tours. Passports obtained. Quilts made. Coaches met. Trails hiked. Lakes paddled. Cars repaired. Gardens harvested. And many hours sitting in the living room waiting for one or both to arrive home in the dark stillness of night.

The above quilt is from a pattern called "Stripe Me Lucky" by Michelle McKillop for Jen Kingwell Designs. It is one of my favorite quilts I've ever made. It's scrappy and you know how I love a scrappy quilt. And that zig zag border is just so cute. I collected dozens of 100% cotton striped shirts from thrift stores for this quilt in order to have a variety of striped fabrics. Honestly, that has changed they way I think about buying fabric. I've got a keen eye at the thrift store now looking at clothing as possible quilt fabric. This winter I'd like to amass a good variety of corduroy and try something new. We shall see.

I also made this solid 2x4 quilt (it's a free tutorial from Film in the Fridge and this is the third one I've made.) That new apartment needed a new quilt and my daughter wanted it to coordinate with the quilt I made her for her dorm freshman year. She picked the fabric and helped pair them up for each block. She also kept me company and opened safety pins for me while I basted it. Love is stitched into each and every seam.

I also made this quilt after seeing @jaceynotjc on Instagram making similar blocks. I loved, loved, loved making those blocks and can totally see myself making more in the future. The color palette was a fun departure for me. I used brown in each block and didn't use any red. The end result feels very vintage to me.

That's summer. In a nutshell. With so many of the delicious details brushed aside that make summer special. Like the music of the crickets floating through the windows. The fireworks exploding over the sunset lake. A crowd of people eating popsicles to remember Papa. And the notes left on my bathroom mirror telling me thank you for this and that.

Fall is my favorite. But summer is pretty alright too.

-dana

Stray cats that become stay cats

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 22 May 2019 13:13:00 +0000

Over the years, several stray cats have stopped at our house. Dogs too, for that matter. The guy in the top, Sweetie Boy, showed up about 14 years ago as a 4 month old kitten. You don't earn a name like Sweetie Boy unless . . . unless . . . well, unless you're sweet. And he is. He has been the proud hunter of more mice that I can count, let mean, wandering tom cats know to keep on trucking and graciously welcomed new pets to the circle over the years.

The other two showed up earlier this year and have quickly wiggled their way into the family. Bomber, the black one, is young. Still a kitten for sure. He's one of the coolest cats I've ever known. He could be hundreds of yards away when he spots me step outside and he comes running and drive bombs right into me. Hence the name Bomber. He also really likes to hide in the bushes and jump out and scare me. As absolutely as often as possible. He's especially fond of my husband. They all are actually. Probably because he stops and pets them every single time, no mater what.

Then there is Brownie. She is timid. So soft. And now that she knows us, she is loyal and sweet. WE really like having her and her scratchy little meow around.

Outdoor, stray cats that become stay cats are pretty cool.

-dana

Sharing what I will

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 24 Apr 2019 12:30:00 +0000

Earlier this year, my blog turned 11 years old. Back in the day, I would post thoughts and photos on motherhood. But my beautiful daughters reached an age where it just didn't feel right to share them so freely here. I still have big thoughts about motherhood and what my role/responsibility/meaning/am I doing it right/future looks like, but they just don't get top billing around here anymore.

Like, prom was a few weeks ago.

But spring here is beautiful. And it's comfortable to share images of that.

-dana

Father's Choice quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 16 Apr 2019 19:26:00 +0000

My latest finish. The individual block is historically called Father's Choice. Bright happy colors in an over sized block. An excellent quilt holder that knows to keep her feet hidden. And a stray outdoor cat that has decided to call our house home.

-dana

P.S. If you want more details about this quilt and progress photos of it along the way, search the hashtag #danasfatherschoicequilt on Instagram.

Spending my days

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 27 Mar 2019 17:51:00 +0000

The past weeks have been busy. One has been home from college for spring break. The other had spring break the week before that. I've taken on a bit more work from home and that always comes with loads of hours of learning curve. I've been out in the greenhouse putting tiny seeds into tiny little pots of dirt and checking them incessantly for signs of germination. And in a mad frenzy of weed pulling, I tweaked my shoulder. Or that could have been from making the bed. It's hard to say really what did it but it's prevented me from sewing.

In between all the busy, however, I have pulled lots of blue fabrics. I've wanted to revisit the Wyoming Valley quilt block and thought I would do so with a scrappy mix of blue and white fabrics. I made a sampler quilt a few years ago and one of my favorites in that quilt is the Wyoming Valley block. You can see some of the blues in the photo above. That is if you can look past the beginning pile of what has become my stripe fabric obsession.

I've been wanting to make the Stripe Me Lucky quilt and realized that I needed a massive variety of striped fabric in order to do the pattern justice. So, one day at the thrift store, I wondered over to the men's button up shirt section and found several 100% cotton shirts. That has led me to visiting every thrift shop in the tri-state area and beyond. The men's button up shirt section is a gold mine! What amazing finds to be found! I mean, look at all those stripes.

Wonder when I'll get to do something with them. . .

-dana

Scrappy quilts for the win!

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 13 Mar 2019 13:49:00 +0000

You don't need me to tell you of my deep love for scrappy quilts. Broken record on repeat. Interestingly enough, I just searched my own blog with the term "scrappy quilt" and the first thing to pop up was a post from about this time last year with photos of a quilt I made with this exact quilt block proclaiming my love of . . . wait for it . . .SCRAPPY QUILTS!

To quote myself (ha!!!): I love a billion different fabrics and colors together in one quilt. I love making the riot of color come together. This quilt has me fired up and committed to making ALL THE SCRAPPY QUILTS! All scrappy, all the time! (all caps, jazz hands and bug eyes too!!)

I'm nothing if not predictable.

-dana

Absence. Explained.

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Fri, 08 Mar 2019 14:19:00 +0000

It's a waffling back and forth kind of thing. It's a I-have-time-for this or I-have-time-for-that kind of thing. Sit at a computer (more than I already do) or play with fabric. Or, even as the sun starts to shine more and more each day, play in the dirt.

Waffling, sure. But also 2018 was doozy. My mom dealt with a very serious health issue that began in May of last year. My dad continued to deal with ongoing health issues. It was new ground for our family to have two parents needing such careful attention. I'm a days drive away from them. Much of this fell on my brother. I love my brother. He's an amazing man. He was there in so many heavy ways. Heavy in the sense that your chest feels compressed and forcing it to move up and down with breath is hard. He has his own wife and daughter and business to tend. Dude. My brother - he's the real deal.

Posting pretty quilt pictures seems frivolous in depths of heavy family stuff, no?

Plus there's the whole thing of by mentioning the heavy stuff, the attention somehow shifts to me. That feels like misguided and unwarranted attention. Makes me kinda squirmy. I'm more of a heads-down-hands-in-my-jeans-pockets-nothing-to-see-here kinda girl.

My dad passed in early February. Parkinson's took him swiftly at the end but it never owned him, for he was always there. He knows how much I love him. And I certainly know how much he loves me. He guided me in life and I miss him. And I'm so very glad that he is free of his broken body.

Absence. Explained. And I'm feeling squirmy.

So . . . pretty quilts!

xo,
dana

Winter Posies

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 12 Feb 2019 18:28:00 +0000

I love winter. I really do. I love layering up in warm clothes and drinking hot chocolate underneath a pile of quilts. I love to cook winter foods . . . stews, roasts, soups. When it comes right down to it, I just love to hibernate. I like to gather everyone from their outside pursuits and just cuddle inside. But as February creeps by, and the seed catalogs start piling up on my coffee table, I start to get the smallest, little hope for spring. It's rained a bazillion days this dark, gray winter. Our driveway is a sloshy pit of mud. Our roof is leaking in two particularly pesky spots that we can't attend to until it's warmer. And those 70 degree days that we had last week tipped me over the edge. I'm ready for spring. Luckily for me, my hellebores bloom each February and remind me that I can be patient.

So I'll keep hibernating.

-dana

New year. New quilts.

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 08 Jan 2019 13:59:00 +0000

Just like that 2018 is over. I made 15 quilts, two large cross stitch projects, two small cross stitch projects and several zipper topped bags. Clearly, 2018 was a good year for making.

In February of 2018 I pulled every bit of fabric I owned out and sorted, organized and took a long, serious look at it. I decided to spend the remainder of the year sewing strictly from fabric that I already owned. In other words, not buying anything new . . . no matter how much I wanted to. I also used that time to sell or donate fabric and supplies that I would never use.

I stuck to it, mostly. I did buy the fabric and pattern to make my Synchronous Firefly Quilt. But, how could I not? And I immediately used it so it never became part of my fabric stash. I also bought 12 fat quarters of Halloween fabric that also got immediately turned into a quilt. I never shared that one here but certainly did on Instagram. I'll do my best to share it next Halloween because I absolutely love it.

Anyway, I used up a ton of fabric in 2018 and it felt really good. As the year progressed and I used more and more fabric, momentum continued to build and I'm carrying it forward into this year. I'm going to continue sewing from the stash of fabrics I already own. I spent yesterday taking stock and sorting my supplies and have 10 quilts worth of fabric ready to go before I then start working solely with scraps. By scraps, I mean the fabric that is random cuts of a fat quarter or less that I have organized by color. If I had to guess I would say that I probably have five or six quilts worth of fabric from my "scraps." So, that probably means that a more realistic guess is eight or nine.

Twenty quilts in 2019? I doubt it. But I do plan to continue to make huge progress in using up what I already have.

One final comment in this regard, I still continue to buy vintage sheets/linens for quilt backings. They have the prettiest prints, the best colors and are always super soft. The fact that they cost nearly nothing doesn't hurt either. I don't count these purchases as "buying new fabric" even though it is new to me. The vintage sheets get used up 100% of the time and I don't have many sitting around giving me side eye.

As for other crafty goals for 2019, my plans include:

Choosing at least one long term cross stitch project to work on in the evenings (or at track meets!)
Selling a few quilts. After all, how many quilts can one house hold? I have never figured out the best method for this. I've sold some here. I've sold some on my Old Red Barn Co. Facebook page. I even opened an online shop for a short time and sold a few there. I'm thinking of trying Instagram this time but I'm not sure as most people that would see the posts are quilters and I can't imagine many quilters wanting to buy quilts. I don't know. People generally love quilts but when they see the price tag, it's often more than they want to pay. I get it. But supplies and time are expensive. I digress.
Hauling out the big camera (instead of the one on my phone!) and getting back to photography. Documenting life and noticing beauty.

Happy New Year, y'all.

-dana

P.S. The two finished quilts were my last quilts of 2018. The blocks in progress above are my first of 2019.

Making stuff and being all busy with stuff. You know.

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 17:46:00 +0000

Apparently I now blog about once a month. That seems pitiful. Right? I mean I have photos saved from this summer of projects, events, things I find beautiful, and thoughts that accompany the images that I have stored neatly on my hard drive to post here. It's November and over the summer we hiked to the top of a mountain to watch a meteor shower. And that sunset over the lake was awe inspiring. I wanted to share that. Then in August sometime I went out and cut lots of spearmint from the galvanized tub that I grow it in so that it doesn't take over. Mint will spread everywhere when you turn your back on it. I cut a ton of spearmint and shoved it into a gallon of vinegar. I let it sit for about a week and then had a wonderfully smelling household cleaner that I put in spray bottles. I used that like crazy... in fact, I became mildly obsessed and started using it on ALL THE THINGS. Since then I've made several more batches. I wanted to share that. Also, since the spearmint is now dormant for winter, I've started adding about 20 drops of spearmint essential oil to a full spray bottle of vinegar for the same effect. That little tidbit is actually fairly timely because I just made my first batch that way yesterday.

And I've made several more quilts since sharing the last. That pink and red and peachy 16 patch quilt? I'm very into that color palette lately. The autumn colored half-square triangle four patch quilt? That guy is backed in corduroy and therefore a little heavier and more snuggly for this time of year. That stack of squares and fabric trimmings above? Currently sewn up and in rows ready to assemble into a quilt. All that fabric is long hoarded barkcloth and I don't really know whether to quilt it or hand tie it so it's been sitting for weeks and weeks. In the meantime, I made another Halloween quilt to add to my growing collection. I've been binding it the last several evenings. Hey! Another timely thing... but no accompanying photo.

Making stuff and being all busy with stuff. You know. I know you know.

-dana

We rented an RV and spent two weeks in Maine

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 02 Oct 2018 16:53:00 +0000

At the end of July, we rented a RV and spent two weeks in Maine. We drove first to New Hampshire where Razor and the girls hang glided. We ate dinner that night in Claremont where we unexpectedly met a cast member from a reality show that Licious is mildly obsessed with. Then we spent a day wondering through Vermont to our first real destination of Wells, Maine. Razor had the Untamed New England Expedition Adventure Race and he and his team departed out of Durham, New Hampshire. The girls and I spent those five days exploring up and down the Maine coast from Portsmouth, New Hampshire to Freeport, Maine. We saw breathtaking rocky, cliff shorelines and stunning lighthouses. We ate lobster and halibut. We were there right at the height of wild blueberry season and indulged in blueberry everything from soda to ice cream. Sushi in Portland. Sea glass hunting in Kennebunkport. Souvenir shopping at a billion shops. We had a great week together.

Just the three of us had to move the RV once. I drove it like a boss and backed it right into the space with the two best helpers I could ever ask for.

Sneakily, we figured out where the race would finish and made it there just in time to see Razor and his team finish. Tired but full of stories, we drove him and all his super smelly gear back to the RV where we fed him the best fried halibut before he crashed.

The next day we rolled out for a meandering drive to Acadia National Park. We stopped several times along the way to see light houses and search for sea glass. My favorite sea glass spot was Belfast.

Acadia was remarkable. The views. The landscape. The sea. The lobster traps. Bar Harbor. The food. Southwest Harbor and the boat ride on the RL Gott out to Frenchboro. We saw harbor seals, harbor porpoise, gray seals, bald eagles and cormorants. And lots and lots of other unforgettable sights, sounds, and flavors. The 18 photos above hardly even scratch the surface.

I love my crew. We rocked RV living so hard. Everyday was a game of Tetris to get us in and out of that moving vehicle of family bonding. Countless quarters to shower and do laundry. Falling asleep each night with my feet near the kitchen faucet. The daily contortionist shuffle of bed-to-table-back-to-bed-again. It really was one of the best trips. And, Maine was gorgeous.

-dana

Synchronous Firefly Quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Thu, 06 Sep 2018 12:50:00 +0000

Have you heard of or, better yet, seen the synchronous fireflies in Great Smoky Mountain National Park? Certain species of fireflies, or lightening bugs, glow in unison and seeing them far from civilization and competing artificial light sources is magical. They blink on and then off together. Hundreds of them in unison. It's really something.

We've never gotten a lottery ticket to see the official, official event along the trails in the campground that the park puts on. But we drive the old logging roads, hike into dark woods and cruise the loop of Cades Cove each spring and have seen their synchronicity. And when I look out into the corner of my yard each evening in early summertime, I'm pretty sure I see them there too. Not hundreds of them. Just those that live for their brief time right in my yard. Sometimes I wonder if my eyes are playing tricks on me. But I watch and wait and watch and wait. And I see them blink together.

Obviously, this is my Synchronous Fireflies quilt. Cause, I mean, duh. No brainer. Had to be done.

-dana

P.S. Pattern from Pen and Paper Patterns can be found here at Pattern Drop. You can even buy the same fabrics I used from Sewtopia here.

P.S. For some reason I'm no longer getting emails each time I get a comment on a post. This means that I'm not able to send an email response to your comments like I have for the past 10 years. And when I go to the actual post itself, I'm not given the option to reply there either. It's a glitch and I'm doing my best to work through it and see what settings have changed and what I can do to fix it. I apologize for my lack of responses. I do not like to be rude and I apologize if it appears that I am being exactly that.

And just like that, summer is over. Basically.

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 21 Aug 2018 14:07:00 +0000

No. No. I know. Summer isn't over. But once vacations are done, your high school aged daughter goes back to school and you move your college girl back to school, summer is over.

I never shared this patriotic star quilt here. I made it mostly in June and finished it up right around July 4th. It's bold and graphic. Minimally quilted. Large enough to take to the park to watch fireworks each summer. Plus, it used up lots of fabric that I had been saving for just this purpose.

Lots to share about our trip to Maine. Hopefully soon.

-dana

The softest, lightest, airiest quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 31 Jul 2018 15:00:00 +0000

I told you I've been making lots of quilts. No joke, ya'll.

This quilt is made entire of cotton lawn fabrics from the "Sleeping Porch" line by Heather Ross for Windham Fabrics. I used a pattern called Designer Star Quilt from May Chappell. It went together in a snap. Really. Like, from pulling the fabrics, pressing them, cutting them, sewing them into the quilt top, basting, quilting and binding, I probably have seven hours invested.

And this sucker is soft, silky, light weight and so perfect for summer.

-dana

A quilt with a rainbow of Ohio Star blocks

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Mon, 16 Jul 2018 12:30:00 +0000

I mentioned last time that I've been making lots of quilts this year. I am always making quilts but I've made about twice the amount that I usually do by this time each year. It's that "flow" thing I talked about. It's such a good stress reliever. And 2018 has been heavy on the stress as both of my parents have some pretty hefty health issues going on. I don't really like saying that out loud here for many reasons. 1) I don't really want/need/like the associated sympathy that goes along with such pronouncements; 2) that is their story to tell, not mine; 3) telling the world makes it all the more real. So, I'm just going to talk about this particular quilt, 'kay?

The Ohio Star quilt block is an all time favorite of mine. Long before I was a quilter, I appreciated the graphic nature of the block and have known it's name probably since I was 20 years old. I figured it was high time I made an entire quilt with nothing but Ohio Star blocks. So I did. In a rainbow of scrappy colors and prints. And then I arranged them in rainbow order across the quilt. I chose a vintage red polka dot sheet for the backing and quilted it with loads of tiny loops. It's truly one of my favorite quilts I've ever made.

Back to the flow.

-dana

So, I've been making quilts and stuff

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Thu, 05 Jul 2018 19:04:00 +0000

Summer. I've been making lots of quilts this summer. In fact, I've been making lots of quilts this year in general. This scrappy, String Diamond quilt isn't even my most recent. I've made three more since this one. I'm on a roll I guess. I really do love making quilts but my productivity probably has more to do with the mindset I get into while creating them. I call it "flow." I'm in the "flow" during the making process. It's not really an altered state . . . but it kind of is. Flow is when my body is physically present buy my mind is in this relaxed state of awesomeness where it's operating to perform the task at hand but not working on anything else but that. I'm not worried, anxious, planning, dreaming, happy, sad or anything. I'm simply just in the "flow." And that has been so nice.

Anyway.

I foundation pieced skinny strips of fabric onto muslin and then cut each block to 5.5" x 10.5". I quilted it with simple straight lines along seams. It's backed in corduroy.

-dana

Spring snippets (including a finished 2 x 4 quilt!)

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 15 May 2018 18:17:00 +0000

A week before my oldest left for college last year I pulled a hamstring. It was a doozie and in addition to taking forever to heal, it caused me to compensate and use muscles in different ways. It caused a ripple affect and made my back all wacky and hurt most days. Why am I sharing this? Hang in there a second.

This spring my youngest daughter played (again) two varsity sports. Most weeks had two soccer games and a track meet. I spent many days wrapped in warm clothes and quilts on metal bleachers cheering her on. This is where I would normally share photos of her on the field or track. However, several months ago I made the decision that both girls should tell their stories instead of me. Which means I instead share photos of the elk on the side of the road as we left a soccer game. And of the cinnamon rolls I baked because she asked.

Sending our oldest off to college was hard in an emotional sense. I've written about it before. And though she has been many miles away from us, we have seen each other often, talked daily, texted multiple times a day and, really, remained very much part of each other's daily life. I've missed her but I've really handled it quite well. Better than I would have predicted had you asked me beforehand.

It's no secret that I make a lot of quilts but so far 2018 is a banner year for quilt making around here. My most recent finish is this 2 x 4 quilt. It's king sized and made especially for our bed.

The colors and prints in this quilt are my favorites. It feels vintage and truly makes me smile each and every time I look at it. One print in particular reminds me of my grandmother. I remember running errands with her when I would visit in the summertime. She was always so prepared for any occasion. She had this bag with a hard plastic handle that snapped at the top. This bag was always in the back of her white station wagon ... or was it yellow? I think she must have had both a white car and a yellow car at different times because I remember them both. Anyway, this bag. It was always in the back of the car and was always there if we needed a way to carry something. The lining of the bag must be a close match to one of the prints in this quilt. It must be because it's acutely familiar and every time I see the print I think instantly of grandma's bag. Did I mention that the bag also contained an umbrella with the matching print?

I used Yours Truly and Welsummer fabrics from Cotton & Steel for a majority of this quilt. I used this tutorial from Film in the Fridge to make the 2x4 blocks.

So, my oldest has been home from college for summer for a few weeks now.

Guess who's back is no longer hurting?

Like an overnight miracle.

I guess I wasn't handling her absence as well as I had convinced myself I was.

-dana

Giant star block quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 17 Apr 2018 12:00:00 +0000

Several years back I bought an entire kit to make a gorgeous multi-block quilt. By "kit", I mean it included the pattern and all the fabric. And that sucker sat on my shelf for years. Years it sat there staring at me. Mocking me. It had the potential to make a gorgeous quilt. (Duh. I wouldn't have bought it otherwise.) But, any time I took it out of the box and thought about making it, I just didn't want to. I always packed it all away and put it back on the shelf. Well, enough of that madness. I made the very first block and then made three more of that same first block but in different fabric combinations. Over on instagram I referred to it as my #ilikebigblocksandicannotlie quilt (thanks @trudi_wood for that hashtag!)

I learned not to buy kits. And I absolutely love this quilt.

-dana

The spring break thing

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 10 Apr 2018 17:14:00 +0000

As luck would have it, both girls had the same week for spring break. With one in college, and missing her so, Razor and I spent many hours planning trips in our head. Out west to hike in the Grand Canyon. Moab. NYC. Or Florida. But as the week drew near, we piled into cars and drove the familiar roads to my parent's house. The weather in March is perfect there. My brother and family live there too. It's far enough to feel like we get away, but close enough to make it only a day's drive. Plus, the situation is such where having the four of us on hand was helpful to them both.

I never made it out to the beach but looking at the photos that Razor took, perhaps I should have. Truth be told, I'm just not a beach person. The salty surf and air blown sand certainly have their place but given a list of options, the beach will always be last in line for me I think. Weird. I know.

Anyway. Being together as a larger family unit felt good. And though Razor and I have been married for almost 22 years, I always notice how seamlessly he fits in with my extended family. Every time we are all together I pause and am grateful that they all accept him and love him as their own. And our kids of course...but you know what I mean. My brother and husband spent many hours tending a burn pile. They joked and laughed and carried on in the dirt, smoke and manual labor of it all. I love that they are friends.

Now I'm feeling the constant push and pull of getting my hands into the dirt, creating new fabric combinations in quilt form and running here and there for high school sporting events. I've got lots of seeds started in the greenhouse. I'm making a new king sized quilt for our bed. And I've been to three soccer games and two track meets in the last two weeks.

Reading back these words. I really, truly, deeply love my life.

-dana

And yet another new quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Wed, 14 Mar 2018 15:44:00 +0000

You know that I like to scour thrift shops for unique finds and vintage treasures. One thing I always keep my eye out for is vintage sheets with bright colors and fun prints. I often use vintage sheets for the backing fabric for my quilts. In my years of thrifting, I've found lots of great sheets and have been ~~hording~~ saving bits of my favorites. I finally used all those bits and made a quilt. I love how the stars are hidden and yet pop out and become visible depending on how you look at it. I love how soft to the touch and drapey this quilt it. I love the colors. I just flat out love it. Hard.

-dana

Another new quilt - Rob Pete or Orange Peel Quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Tue, 06 Mar 2018 15:30:00 +0000

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that I started this one in December. I used a mix of tiny floral prints on a mixed background of gray and white. I've given it to my parents because I love them and hadn't given them a quilt in awhile. Quilts are love. And I really love them. They are the best.

-dana

X Plus Quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Dana) — Mon, 26 Feb 2018 14:24:00 +0000

I started this quilt last June. I made all the blocks and even assembled the quilt top but it wasn't until December that I finally basted it up and got 'er done! One thing that this quilt taught me . . . well, just reinforced yet again . . . is that I love scrappy quilts. I love a billion different fabrics and colors together in one quilt. I love making the riot of color come together. This quilt has me fired up and committed to making ALL THE SCRAPPY QUILTS! All scrappy, all the time! (all caps, jazz hands and bug eyes too!!)

-dana