Dear Lola,
Being a sewing insomniac has its perks – I get to harness my
restless brain and legs in the middle of the night and create pretty things
with fabric. When my hubby is snoring
and doing his best Darth Vader impression, I can sneak out of the bed into my sewing
space and find sanity and a little peace and quiet.
Sometimes my nocturnal sewing lasts just an hour and
sometimes I get bursts of energy that last into the early morning. I find happiness and serenity near my fabric
stash. I may only plan a future project,
finish a current project or cruise the web for sewing inspiration - but it's all good. I love being "Sew Sleepless".
My midnight sewing sojourns feel like I’m getting away with
a forbidden pleasure. It’s “sew
naughty”! I would liken it to sneaking out under my parents’ watchful eye to go
joyriding in their car and not getting caught.
What’s the harm in it if no one gets hurt and you don’t get caught? But then there is the converse argument – if
no one knows you’ve gone out and done the joyriding – did it really happen? Sometimes a person just needs proof of their
naughty behavior, right?
As you know, I'm working on my Michael Miller Clubhouse
Quilt – my most ambitious quilting project ever. When this baby is done, I will have a
queen-sized quilt that I may or may not be able to part with when it’s
finished. I started the project and
originally planned to give it to my son and beloved daughter-in-law as a
Christmas gift. I’ve put so much heart
and soul into this quilt that I already have an irrational attachment to it!
Our group is currently on Month 10 of this 12-month program,
and things are coming along quite nicely.
I have survived Flying Geese (see my earlier post), Half-square
triangles, Quarter-square triangles and more pressing than I care to think
about! I’ve kept up with the assignments
and made lots of new friends in the process.
All in all – it’s been a good thing.
Ok, so you are wondering…where is this all leading? Well last night during a nocturnal sewing
session – I was on a roll. I had the DVD
player loaded with an episode of Glee I had never seen and I was chain piecing
like crazy! My plans to complete the
Month 10 assignment were ahead of schedule and I could focus on completing a
bonus project. Woohoo – my pride was
showing. I had to finish 9 blocks of
the 14 blocks that will become part of an intricate border.
The countdown was on: 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and then it hit
me! My pile of completed blocks was
getting tall; my pile of pieces left was getting small! My brain was processing and yet I wasn’t getting
the right message. Uh-oh – something
isn’t looking good. And then it dawned
on me; I’ve got an odd number of dark colored triangles left! That can’t be – the triangles were cut in
pairs – where did this lone ranger of a triangle go? The search was on! And now Lola, you know where this is going don’t
you?
Good Block
Gleeful Wayward Block
After searching high and low, blaming the "trolls" who steal
my sewing stuff when I’m not looking, and retracing my sewing steps. I found the missing triangle – it was right
were I had incorrectly attached it! I
guess watching that Glee episode and sewing in the middle of the night wasn’t such a good idea!
It’s true – a person shouldn't sew to distraction! I have the indisputable proof! I haven’t decided if I will save and maybe
even frame this rogue block as a reminder of why it’s very reckless to sew
important projects in the middle of the night while watching the television or
if I will un-sew the wayward triangle and correct the mistake. If I do fix it, I can slip the corrected
block into my quilt – but then no one will know the story of the gleeful,
wayward block created by a sleepless quilter in the middle of the night. No one will know I have been “sew naughty” –
but then what’s the fun in that?
Hugs and stitches,
