Quilting. The Complete Course.

So this story starts a few weeks ago. We went to Mohegan Sun in Connecticut to gamble. We each won some money playing Black Jack and then moved to the craps table. Unfortunately, Matt lost all his money, but I won almost $200! CRAZY! I started slow but cozied up to the people next to me who gave me a few tips. I have a secret - I know how to play craps. I don't know the terminology, but I know how to win. I have found (through research) that standing there and saying I don't know how to play makes the people around me give me lost of hints and tips that I don't know. And so I won a ton!!!!

Then go back a few more days before that. I finished my quilting class, Adventures in Quilting. And that week we were in Connecticut, I finished sewing on the binding. It is officially done. And Joyce (my teacher) suggested that if we wanted to take another class we should take the Complete Course. It is a sampler quilt. It has 13 blocks and 4 large border pieces. Each of the blocks is different and practices a different skill. I wanted to sign up for this course. I wanted it a lot. But it was a lot more expensive than Adventures in Quilting was. So much more money.

So put the whole thing together. I won money. The course cost money... It is like it was meant to be! So I took my winnings and registered for that course and here we are two weeks into the course and I have pictures to share with you.

Week 1. We talked about supplies and the how-to's of cutting. We talked about the grain and bias of the fabric. I knew some of this information from the books I have and the previous course. But there was a lot of info that was new to me. The biggest tip for me was so stupid. Annette (my new teacher) said something so smart and filled with common sense: measure after each cut and after each seam.

Week 2. We started sewing. Each of our machines got a once over by Annette to make sure we were ready to go. Then we practiced. For homework we cut 1.5 x 6 inch strips (from some hideous fabric that was provided to us - gross) and practiced sewing them with 1/4 inch seams. And here is where we measured to make sure we were accurate. I WAS! I high-fived my fabric. Is that weird?  I didn't think so either.

Then we worked on a sample 9 patch. Now I made twenty 9 patches for the last quilt. I can make those in my sleep. But this time I applied the new tip: MEASURE! For this quilt all our squares should be 9.5 inches square. So I measured again and I was sooooo accurate!




Homework this week? Two squares.
So let's start my quilt. Want to see my fabrics? Annette told us to pick a focus fabric and then 5-6 fat quarters. I expect to buy more fabric later. It just seems inevitable. But these are the fabrics I have so far.

The jacks are my focus fabric. I love them. I have been stalking them in the store for the last 5 weeks. Every time I went to the store I went over and talked to them. I pet them. I was that weird lady. But I loved them. I just didn't have a reason to purchase them. Until this class. I even tried avoiding them for a while before realizing that we were meant to be together. I even bought 3 other fabrics (the reds and polka dots) from the same line because we were meant for each other. I had the two smaller grays, the green leaves, and blue flowers. I bought the large gray daisies again. They were in the Adventures quilt too.

So two squares done!
First I made my 9 patch. And I measured it! Awesome and accurate! So much better than the other quilts!



Then my 2 by 2. This was new to me. YAY! I started by making 2 strip sets. I cut my fabric to the desired width and length. And sewed them together. Measure again. Here I had to take one apart and put it back together. I had not sewn it consistently. Once I had it right, I cut the strips into 5 inch squares. Then I put them together. I tried them two ways - the cream spiral or the green spiral. The green was soooo overwhelming visually. So I went with the cream spiral. This was so easy to make. I took four 5 inch squares and rotated them. Taadah! I did it! And I measured it. And it worked! Thank goodness I measured after every step. If I hadn't redone the strip sets, my finished square would not have worked out at all. It would not have been square.

Now, I am honest. I don't like to sugar coat it. I am not loving this course yet. I say yet because it is still early in the course, and so far we have done things that I know how to do. I am excited about some of the upcoming weeks. But so far. Not so much. Maybe soon. Hopefully soon.

This weekend. In West Virginia.

10ish years ago, Matt was working for an adventure summer camp. On one trip, they took the kids into West Virginia to camp and climb mountains. That day it was raining and they didn't get to climb. Recently, he read an article about those same mountains and found them on the web. So for his birthday, his 31st birthday, we went to West Virginia and climbed that mountain.

WV is gorgeous! The scenery is beyond beautiful. We drove in on Friday, checked into the cabin, and went straight to Nelson Rocks to climb. We were originally scheduled to climb on Saturday, but we were afraid of the weather (it rained) and moved it to Friday. So when we got to La Via Ferrata (the Iron Path) we found out we were the only ones scheduled to go on Friday! Private tour! It was a 15 minute walk to the bottom of the climb. And then it went straight up. We climbed straight up and then across on ledges. At one point we went straight around the side of the mountain - it was a ridge.

Then we crossed a suspended bridge. I loved it. Matt, not so much. He is not the biggest fan of heights... but he soldiered across like a champ! I enjoyed the walk across the bridge, and even stopped to take pictures of the cavern and the heights. I had a wonderful time.

Originally, I didn't want to go with him. A friend of his was going to climb with him. But I am so glad that I went! It was such an amazing experience. And it was beautiful!

We went out for dinner at the only restaurant near our cabin. Above the only store. And we ate delicious subs. Then we went back to the cabin to wait for Tim & Sarah. About the cabin... none of the walls went up to the ceiling. Not in the bedrooms, not in the bathroom, nowhere. There was no privacy at all. It was interesting. Oh and we were located in the place in deep spot in the valley that had no cell phone service, AT ALL. It was crazy to be that disconnected from other people. And I loved it. I lost all my online games, but I enjoyed it.

Saturday, we woke up and had a big meaty breakfast. Then we looked for quick hikes that we could go on without being drenched. Oh and with the dogs too. They had spent a lot of time in the car and in the cabin. I felt badly for them.  Check out Misty's teeth - she is definitely a country dog.  hehehe

So Matt found us a waterfall with a footpath. And away we went.  It was a gorgeous waterfall. We drove around to another view and it was breathtaking.

We spent the rest of the day playing games and eating a ton. It was a wonderful weekend. And it was fun to celebrate Matt's birthday with his BFF & Sarah.

Happy Birthday to my best friend and favorite person in the world!

A jewelry solution!

Let's see, almost 6 years ago I had a roommate who had an amazing rack for hanging her jewelry. Her mother had an old window and put a screen behind it. It was perfect for hanging jewelry. And it was huge! It was a house window. There was space for all her earrings and hanging space on the window for cup hooks to hold her necklaces and bracelets.

I asked Matt to build me a similar jewelry rack around the same time. He built me a beautiful foot and a half square. It held maybe 1/3 of my earrings and 1/2 my necklaces. It just never worked out the way we wanted it to.

For the last 3 years (since we have been living together) I have been looking for a better solution. I had the jewelry tree. It was overflowing. I had pushpins in the wall. They were a mess.

A few weeks ago we were at Home Depot and I found a solution!
I found a metal grate cover. There were a number of different patterns - sound circular, some rectangular. And it was perfect!

Matt found a very pretty (and feminine) piece of molding to use for the front. And he sandwiched the metal between the front and the back piece of molding. We spray painted the whole thing "Oil Rub Bronze." It was the can we had in the basement. And voila - I have the most amazing earring display ever!

Best part - the whole thing cost us about $15. To say "I love it" is the biggest understatement in the world!

Getting back into routine

Monday, April 9

9 weeks until summer. That’s right. I have 9 weeks. I realized something this past week. I don’t understand how to maintain my body weight. I know how to lose weight. And I know how to stop working out. But I don’t know how to maintain the healthy body weight that I want. I understand the concept. But I don’t seem to be that good at follow through – but we have heard that before.

Today is the last day of Spring Break. So I am up and I am going to work out and tomorrow I am going to get up early and start again. My goal is to work out every day this week.

Alright here is today’s workout from Body Rock. I modified a lot of it.

I am doing 50/10 and 2 rounds.

1) Push ups	20	15
2) Squat and Shoulder Press – Using 6 lb. medicine ball	20	19
3) 2 Burpees 10 High Knees	4 sets	4 sets
4) Plank Jacks	25 – help I can’t breathe	30
5) Squat Lift Twist	16	20
6) Sandbag Press and Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	16	16

Okay I made a decision during that workout. I am going to do this workout every day this week. Next week I will do different exercises. This way I can clearly see a change in the number of each exercise I can do. I can also up the weight if it feels too easy. Also it means I cannot lie and say I don’t have a workout to do because I purposely did not look one up the night before. Commitment. I am making one. See you tomorrow bright and early.

Tuesday, April 10

I am awake. I am up. The dogs are fed. I am going to workout!

I am doing 50/10 and 2 rounds.

	Monday		Tuesday
1) Push ups	20 J	15	15	18
2) Squat and Shoulder Press – Using 6 lb. medicine ball	20	19	17	20
3) 2 Burpees 10 High Knees	4 sets	4 sets	5 sets	3
4) Plank Jacks	25 – help I can’t breathe	30	30	30 – oh the breathing
5) Squat Lift Twist	16	20	20	20
6) Sandbag Press and Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	16	16	20	18

Okay I think I died a little in the middle there. But I am a sweaty mess! So that is a good sign. I did take an extra 10 seconds after the first round for water. But water is important, so it didn’t bother me. Also, my muscles ACHED the whole first round. I could barely do the first set of plank jacks my legs resisted them so very much. I think I need to stretch first. WAIT, I KNOW I NEED TO STRETCH FIRST. I will add that to the chart for tomorrow and to my timer. Done. Did. Stretched.

Wednesday, April 11

I’m not sure where the minutes went. But I woke up on time, and now I am running late for this workout. Shit. Gotta make this work and count.

	Tuesday		Wednesday
STRETCH arms & legs JUMPING JACKS	--	--	50	--
1) Push ups	15	18	15	14
2) Squat and Shoulder Press – Using 10 lb. medicine ball	17	20	20	20
3) 2 Burpees 10 High Knees	5 sets	3	5 sets	4
4) Plank Jacks	30	30 – oh the breathing	25	30
5) Squat Lift Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	20	20	23	20
6) Sandbag Press and Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	20	18	23	24

Man, pushups and plank jacks hurt. Every time they hurt so bad. Not so good. So bad. I hoped they would get easier, but they don’t. Plank jacks did with the stretching. I think. I could breathe this time. That was an improvement. I am looking forward to another two days! And I picked my reward for making it through a full five-day week – a jellyroll of fabric for quilting. They are cutting a beautiful collection that I saw in the store yesterday. If I make it through the next two days without screwing it up, then I can buy the jellyroll. Then my next reward will be after 10 days. See you tomorrow.

Thursday April 12

	Wednesday		Thursday
STRETCH arms & legs JUMPING JACKS	50	--	50	--
1) Push ups	15	14	13	14
2) Squat and Shoulder Press – Using 10 lb. medicine ball	20	20	20	17
3) 2 Burpees 10 High Knees	5 sets	4	4	4
4) Plank Jacks	25	30	35	30
5) Squat Lift Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	23	20	25	23
6) Sandbag Press and Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	23	24	24	24

I need to go to sleep earlier if I keep waking up and working out. I am starting to get very tired because I stay up playing games on my phone. I know – totally dumb. Whatever. Tonight no games after 10. Sleep after 10. I can do that. And I am so tired of plank jacks. They suck. Especially after burpees. They suck a lot. But my favorite part of the workout? When the timer whistles at me to signal the workout is over. Is that sad? I guess, 5 days of the same exact workout kind of sucks too. I am tired of it. And I still have one more day left. Whatevs – I can make it. !!!!!!! See you tomorrow.

Friday April 13

LAST ONE LAST ONE LAST WORKOUT OF THE WEEK!!!! Can you tell I am excited? All I wanted was to sleep in this morning. But nope. It didn’t happen. I am up and ready to do my last workout! I can do this!

	Thursday		Friday
STRETCH arms & legs JUMPING JACKS	50	--	54	--
1) Push ups	13	14	13	10
2) Squat and Shoulder Press – Using 10 lb. medicine ball	20	17	20	23
3) 2 Burpees 10 High Knees	4	4	5	4
4) Plank Jacks	35	30	36	30
5) Squat Lift Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	25	23	24	20
6) Sandbag Press and Twist – using 6 lb. medicine ball	24	24	20	22
STRETCH	--	--	--	--

Boom! I did this! Yup it was me. 5 days in a row. I almost forgot about my prize too! But then I saw it this morning doing my formatting. Jelly Roll! Jelly Roll! DID IT! MISSION ACCOMPLISHED! Okay, so I can do this. I had the motivation. And now I have the determination as well. Just maintain. I can do this. 

I'll have a new workout on Monday. And I can't wait!