1st and 2nd borders done...some assembly was required...


I am so happy to have made decisions about the borders for "Contentment," my original quilt celebrating our marriage (our 23rd anniversary is on October 23).  I started this project just before our 20th anniversary.  Zeesh!  Birthing this project has been like having a baby...in slow motion!

The first border has the pieces woven like a chain (my "chain and bull's eye" border...Steve calls it the "ball and chain border").  That seems appropriate for an anniversary quilt.

I am calling the second border my "pop bead and bull's eye" border since Steve said it reminded him of a toddler's pop-together toys.  I could not make a decision about using one blue, so I used twenty-eight (stash justification at its BEST!) and almost as many purples.


I felt the first border wasn't heavy or solid enough so I knew I wanted the second border to have the visual weight of a solid strip of color but be more interesting than that.  

It's getting too big for the table the top is spread on and the outer border is not even on it yet. It is about 44-inches square right now. It will be about 58-inches square after the final border.


Tuesday night I drew ALL FOUR of the 7-inch wide outer borders.  I don't know where the sudden big dump of creativity came from, but I was happy to receive it as I have been totally stressing about the outer border for weeks.  

As I watched TV tonight (Debate #3), I played "paper dolls" and cut out all the freezer paper pieces I had traced for border number one.  I did not throw the scissors at the TV, but I did lob some rolled up clean socks!


Watching TV (Masterpiece Theater) last Sunday night (NEVER makes me throw scissors...or socks), I cut out the freezer paper pieces for the last thirteen "LITTLE TREASURES" blocks that I drafted last week.  Remember that these are my original hand applique patterns that finish 6-inches (can be 9- or 12-inches) so most of the pieces are a little small.  Once these are done, I will have 72 finished!

I sort the smaller freezer paper pieces into cupcake papers until I can get them pressed onto fabric.  The larger pieces go into a sheet pocket protector with the pattern.  This way I don't get down to the quilt cave missing any pieces...thank God for the beading tweezers I use to shuffle all these little pieces around!  Using them bypasses my fumbly fingers.


It was 90 degrees this afternoon.  It hasn't rained on our little mountain since August 29...we have not had any rain on the roof since we had to have all the screws holding down the metal roofing replaced...don't know for certain yet that the leaks are now addressed.  We are having a mostly colorless fall.  There are trees that are seriously stressed, including magnolias which makes me very worried that we might lose them.

Please send rain!

In stitches, 
Teresa  :o)

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