Coral Reef from Yarn!

This is absolutely amazing. I wish I could see it in person. I love the intersection between art and science -- it makes my quest as a quilter and crafter feel somewhat related to my goals as a scientist.

Check out the Hyperbolic Coral Reef here.

More Beginning Quilting Tips

* Squaring up your blocks after making them inevitably means that you will have to rip out seams and re-sew them. As one of my classmates said, "I wish I'd paid more attention while making these things, it would have made this part easier." No kidding. Watch out for those quarter inch seams...they'll gettcha!

* Sew around the edge of your quilt top (quarter inch from the edge, running stitch -- nothing fancy) once it's all pieced and before you make your quilt sandwich. I can't say I really understand this part but apparently it has something to do with preventing your quilt top from becoming not-square. (I have a feeling advanced quilters are reading this and laughing -- that's OK).

* Binding strips are sewn together on an angle because it prevents bunching at the seams when you roll your binding and sew to to your quilt. My guess is a diagonal seam also distributes tension a little better to that seam, so your binding doesn't pop open inadvertently.

* When taking a quilting class at a store ALWAYS ask what the total cost of the class is, and if it's OK to bring your own fabric and what supplies will be supplied as part of the cost of the class. The cost of my class has doubled due to unnecessary supply purchases, and my inability/reluctance to ask these questions and/or just assuming that it was all inclusive.

* Color choices and fabric pattern picking: is this generational or learned? There are some wonky color/fabric choices in my class.

Quilt 1

I think I am officially becoming a quilter. The last block (lower right) still has to have all of its pieces sewn together. And then there's the boarders between the blocks and the boarder on the outside. I'm enjoying the process and the rules of quilting (what you piece together and what order you sew them all together -- it's very theoretical and meditative at the same time). I'd actually like to quilt it by hand, but that may be a whole 'nother can o' worms.

Beginning Quilting

These are some of the things I learned at my first quilting class:

- Don't iron your fabric in a back and forth motion. Instead, press your fabric in an up and down motion because this means you won't make the fabric fibers move around in funny ways.

- Don't reverse stitch your seams, because in quilts it doesn't matter anyway.

- It's Ok to start with the needle of your sewing machine in the 'down' position without it being in the fabric, but have your fabric right up against your needle.

- Press your stitching before pressing your seam open because it helps 'set' your stitches.

- Apparently it's not always necessary to wash your fabrics before cutting. This seems a little gross to me, though, so I'll just keep washing my fabrics first. It makes for more intense pressing with the iron.

- When using a rotary cutter make sure the blade is sharp (I didn't know they were easily replaced, but it makes sense) and make sure to cut slowly and "inch" the hand holding the ruler/straightedge as you cut. Watch your fingers, 'cause blood on your fabrics REALLY means you gotta wash 'em first!!

- People have amazingly different taste in fabric colors, patterns, etc. It's probably the most amusing part of my class so far.

- Fabric guilt: gotta learn to fight it when it's too late to change your choices (but there's SO MUCH to pick from!!).

- Fabrics when they're cut down to size for the blocks sure do look different together than when they're by themselves on the big bolts.

Obviously, this might seem like a bunch of randomness. As one of my classmates asked, "So what do you do?" "Oh, I'm in grad school." "What are you doing taking a quilting class?!" Honestly, it might not be the most effective use of my time, but as a grad student I struggle with abstract learning goals and hazy benchmarks of understanding so it's nice to come away from three hours of a class where I have used my brain and my hands and I can say, "Today I learned how to properly use a rotary cutter and sew a seam." That, my friends, is progress I can set my watch to. I've got five more weeks and a sample quilt on the way!!

Examination

It is almost as bad to proctor a final exam as it is to take one. Almost.
Words my students wanted me to help them define:
"defoliate" -- when all the leaves fall off
"hallucinate" -- it's something that happens in your mind. Oh, like when you're in the desert and you see things? Yes! Exactly like that.
"prevalence" -- the frequency with which something occurs (like Lyme Disease infections)
"sympatric and allopatric speciation" -- sorry, can't tell you!
"gestation" -- Really?! But no, can't tell you.


They finished. We left the freezing room. Out.

Have Knives, Will Cook

It's amazing when the pieces of my life come together unexpectedly. And I am especially amazed when my blog-reading life jives with my physical life. A few days ago on Soule Mama's blog I noticed this book on the side bar. The words "Tassajara" brought back memories of dozens of slices of toast eaten during my years of living in Northern California. We'd stop at Bell Market on the way home and pick up a loaf.

"Tassajara toast, Poppy! With lots of butter!" That's what we'd chirp to my dad for whenever he asked us if we wanted a snack. We are a BIG toast family -- always in search of the perfect loaf, and we've burnt out a toaster or two over the past years.

Just today, I put in my latest Netflix entitled "How To Cook Your Life" and was totally floored to see my worlds collide, because it turns out that this documentary is a film about Edward Espe Brown who wrote the Tassajara Bread Book.

I really enjoyed this little film. I'm not a Zen follower, nor do I make my own bread (although I've since been inspired to try, but probably after our 100+ degree summer is over), but this film is great. It spoke to me as a graduate student on several levels. Watching Brown get frustrated with a bottle of oil and slice off the plastic lid with a cleaver saying "Why do they do this to people?" symbolized both my past and current frustrations and mimicked my internal and external temper tantrums. Watch Brown mangle a packaged block of cheese -- you'll get it.

I think the most important message of the movie for me was to remember to be in the moment; to accept imperfection; to focus on the singular task at hand; to let my hands do things hands ought to do.

Two of Brown's quotes stick with me. He says we ought to "treat the food as though it were your eye sight; treat it as though it were that precious." I believe that this is not just true about food, but about everything we value in life: our work, our education, our family, our planet.

He also says: "when you're cooking, you're not just cooking, you're not just working on food, you're also working on yourself...the food will taste better when the cook is joyful." Again, there are many things that nourish my life besides the food I eat. And I must be cognoscente that when I am producing a "thing" (like a dissertation) I am also working on myself and the world around me to improve both and to share my joy.

Brown reminds us to look past our temper tantrums, our inner and outer moments of weakness, and be joyful. Loving the toast.

The photo is from here, where you can also watch a trailer for the film.

Giant Granny Square = Easy Baby Blanket

It wasn't until recently that I started photographing my craft projects. I made this blanket last year for my youngest cousin. I used the easiest crochet stitch and pattern I knew how to work with: the Granny Square. Except, I made a giant one! I just kept going round and round until I had about 19 rows to each side. For the boarder I added white yarn for a little embellishment.

This particular blanket was made with some synthetic yarn from Michael's. Not usually my first choice, but in this case I wanted something that was light weight, washable and cheap because I used about 6 skeins of yarn (100g each, I think).

I'm happy to say that this blanket has been well loved. It's been washed and but in a diaper bag, gone on multiple trips and it's help up with minimal pilling. I don't know where the hat went, but I'm sure that while it fit it was used.


It seems that at the time I thought hanging it on the fence to get a photo was a good idea. No damage done, but I've got to get a little bit more creative in my photo-ops!