stuff and bother

So I've been very quiet for a couple of weeks. I'm in DC now, for another week and a half. Before I'm back to Ireland for an indeterminate amount of time and then it's DC for good. All this moving around and lack of certainty is starting to drive me bonkers. And my back, while getting better, is restricting the amount of time I can spend doing any one thing (including sewing or housework or sitting watching tv...). The inability to be consistently productive sucks! I make a bad patient, that's for sure.

My sewing has been restricted. But I've also felt an urge to rebel against lists and aims. I only end up beating myself over the head when I don't meet them. So I've been staying away from the blog. Only sewing when I wanted to. Resisting writing about it, because once I say it, I'll feel the need to make progress so I can update the blog. But I can't make sure progress, so it's extra stress I put on myself when it's the last thing I need.

I'm rambling now. I have made one cushion cover in the last two weeks.

The Orange Peel cushion for Curves Class. The last project I wanted to get done during class time. I'm really glad that it accidentally ended up last. It was supposed to be our practise project for precise curves before tackling the curves in the final quilt - the Wheel Quilt. I did these in the opposite order. Thank God! The orange peel block was challenging. Bizarrely, the curved piecing was the least frustrating part for me. The seams get bulky where the curves end and when you try to sew all four blocks together to form the cushion... well, my sewing machine had a slight knicker-fit, there was cursing, but I got there. It's not perfect. It was never going to be.

And now, 10 days later I can admire the cushion for the colours and shapes. The horror of sewing those seams together is fading. I still don't think I'll be attempting that block again. I'd have to really love the idea of the project or really love the person who wanted it to go back there. It definitely would have put me off tackling the precise curves in the wheel quilt if I'd done it first. But I didn't, so now I have both done - yay for procrastination (this time) !!!

I pieced the back, envelope style (I was in no frame of mind to tackle an invisible zipper).

Yesterday was a snow day in DC, and while that made no difference to my day, it did mean Paul was home all day! He bought some Kokka airplanes in black a little while back and wanted to learn how to sew a cushion cover to get over his fear of the sewing machine's needle. In the end I got out all the Kokka linens I have (scraps and the odd fat quarter) for Paul to choose from. The whole thing went more smoothly than I anticipated, and he only got stuck with a pin once and we both still have all our fingers - success! And the cushion turned out great!

If this is really slightly fuzzy, I'm very sorry!

Here are the airplanes on the back (envelope style again!).

All the cushions living happily on our sofa.

In the interests of taking the stress off sewing, and not giving myself hard deadlines. I decided to play with the leftovers of Paul's Rainbow Skittle Quilt. I'm enjoying it. I had not plan when I started. I just laid out the pieces and rearranged till I was happy. Here's a shot of what the dining room table looks like right now.

Hopefully, I'll have a top made before I head back to Ireland. I'll do my very best to respond to comments, as always :)