...LATE to report...(get it??)

As everyone else has already reported, a fun day was had yesterday at a certain person's super cool studio!


We all had projects to share...if you didn't already know this, NOBODY embroiders as beautifully as Monica does. Seriously.


Pam, being more accustomed to the celebrity stunt quilter life, was prepared by actually coordinating her wardrobe to her latest quilt (you'll see). Show off.



As for me? I tried avoiding the camera(s).
With limited success.

A break from painting

Painting my kitchen is turning out to be quite an experience. A slow, tedious experience. And I have to say I will never do it again. I've always wanted white cabinets and that's what I'll eventually have, but it's costing me some sanity I really can't spare.
But it's coming along. One of the only things that's keeping me going is looking forward to the day I can hang this vintage towel on my stove!

So the ideas keep coming for Nick's apartment...just hope I can get everything done in time. And that he and Kari don't end up rolling their eyes at my efforts!



Back when Pam and I were at Prairie Queens I picked up some of this amazing Paula Prass fabric--totally not what I usually go for but I love it and hoped the kids would too. And they do! The quilt is turning out a bit bigger than I'd planned...I'll get a better pic when the top is finished. I can say that these are the biggest half square triangles I've ever made.

So it's back upstairs for me to hopefully finish the quilt top and move on to the next project!

a brief intermission

The leg is on the mend so I'm in a rush to get as much as possible finished around here before the next heat wave. The last few days have been great so I've been doing lots of painting in the kitchen. BTW, if you're wondering how to make a small kitchen seem larger? Start painting it.

Anyway, bits of sewing have been done--both for the Sisboom Room and for Nick's new apartment. Those pics are still on my camera, which because of the downstairs upheaval, I cannot find.

So I thought I'd leave you with some pics from last summer--it's of a place I was dreaming of returning to back when it was 110 degrees here. So what do you say? Shall we go to the Isle of Sark?

Cars are not allowed on Sark, so after the ferry from Guernsey gets you to the island, you take a tractor up to the top.

Toby will take us on a tour.



If you love gardening, Sark is a great place to do it.




Toby knows where all the great views are.





How about some more garden photos?

We have to check out the dove cote...a wonder if the doves have to follow a schedule so that there's always one for the tourists to photograph.





Shall we investigate the garden maze? Of course!










My favorite part was being lucky enough to see these two adorable hedgehog babies...


We'd probably better head back to the dock...the ferry will be here soon to take us back to Guernsey.



Well, it's time for me to get back to dismantling the kitchen--but before I go, I want to wish Ailsa a (slightly belated) Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday!

If you haven't already, please hop on over to Pam's to wish her the best birthday ever and a year full of Pam Kitty Mornings!

aaaand, we're back down to earth

Turns out, there's only so much a summer skirt can do.

I'd planned to pretty much take the summer off this year. Just too many family things going on. So it seemed like a good time to tackle some household tasks as well. The Sisboom Room is on temporary hold since Nick will be living here until August. Paint chips are already tacked up, but in the meantime, there were other rooms to address.

Actually, when you consider that we've been in this house for 11 years and have raised 3 sons here, what room doesn't need some attention?

Oh and let's not forget all the furniture that Nick will be taking with him that needs to be painted to fit in with their color scheme. Which reminds me of the furniture that's staying that could be freshened up with some new paint.

A logical, organized person would address one room at a time. One project at a time.

A sane person wouldn't get so very excited when her husband announces he's having a dumpster delivered for the week.

You can see where this is going.
Furniture everywhere!
Tearing apart ugly old kid-abused computer desks!
Running to Lowe's for armloads of spray paint!
Learning that Lowe's is having a sale on house paint!
Gathering more paint chips!
Running back to Lowe's for multiple gallons of awesome Martha colors!
Gleefully tearing off strips of old wallpaper in the kitchen!
Teaching Nick the pure joy of using spray paint!
Going back outside to move the painted coffee table onto the patio before the sprinklers come on!
Seeing that the table isn't heavy at all!
Somehow losing my grip on it and smashing it into my right shin!

Watching everything come grinding to a halt.
A very painful and ugly halt.
Sigh.

It's been a week now. I still have to keep my leg up for a big part of the day. If I'd been considering any of the jewel tones for my rooms I could just take my leg to Lowe's for color matching.

So this has meant no cutting. No sewing. Just a few minutes here and there of ceiling painting and wallpaper stripping. And feeling just a bit sorry for myself. One positive--I found a totally appropriate app for my iphone--if you have an iphone and plenty of time to spend not accomplishing anything, I recommend "Yard Sale". It's the best .99 I've spent in ages. It's basically a seek and find game, but you're finding stuff at different yard sales and then you take the items home and repurpose them! You glue things and sand things and get this--you spray paint them!

Some of the reviewers of the game seem to feel that pretending to make a shelf is boring. That decorating a pretend room is stupid. It's not. It's the only thing that's kept me sane this week.

"Sane" being a relative term, of course.