Summer

With just 3 weeks left of our summer break, each day passes and I wonder what minuscule morsel of productivity I will get that day. I think my brain needed the break, but I really hoped to be further along on several projects. I have quilted a few quilts, one was rather large, but I still feel like I usually do more. I have been getting ready for 2 teaching jobs, one this month at Mancuso's World Quilt show in Manchester, NH and MQX Midwest in September in Springfield, IL. Getting ready always takes longer than it should - cutting fabrics, battings, backing fabric, making folders, etc finding out what you did not order...

Here's one baby quilt done back in late June and never shared... 

 Simple and sweet.

 Here's another of June's finishes...

I decided to load this absolute monstrosity (96"x124") in the summer, against all rules of quilting large customs while my kids are home. It was mostly quilted between 6am-10am, or on the weekends. Summer at least affords them sleep time. Not so much for me though...

 It is the Neimeyer Bali wedding star, beautifully pieced by Anna. I double batted this quilt so as to show off the elegant quilting.

 Quilting is done with beige, tan and a couple of colors of thread on the stars.

 It was on my frame about 2 weeks - an incredible number of hours!

 The owner was delighted, which is all that matters in the end.

 I have another Neimeyer quilt coming my way next week from Jackie Kunkel. When I get back from teaching next week, I will get going on it. It is about 1/2 the size of this beast though!

This next quilt was done last week, and the owner will be here at the end of the month to collect it. She's always challenging to quilt for because I know she does not prefer dense quilting. I'm not very good at keeping the density NOT dense. I just love the look of very dense stitching.

 It is a combination of linework, crosshatching and simple lightly-done fills.

 In June as soon as school got out, we took off for Jamaica for 11 days. We spent a week on the west coast, staying at a cliffside resort.  My kids got to jump into the turquoise water every day from a variety of heights up to about 15ft. He's my dare devil.

 Nice sunsets...lots of heat and humidity (just the way I love it).

 We spent 4 days in Montego Bay too, closer to ziplining, tubing, snorkeling. The kids also parasailed, played in the surf, etc. Hard to go wrong. It is a very happy, though poor place. I can easily see how people go there and stay though because it is beautiful.

Over the last 3 weeks, I have tackled painting 4 rooms in our house. Updating has been slow to happen over recent years.  Sophie's room is now aqua (there's her growing wall of fame).

 The powder room is a happy lavender.

 The kid's bathroom is green (though this makes it look much more chartreuse than it is. The half-peeled fish wallpapers that I put up when my oldest was one are now a thing of the past.

 And, his room was painted too. The last painting was 5-1/2 yrs ago when he was in 5th grade. Somehow, the kelly green walls, toy box and soccer wall stickers were slightly outgrown. The turquoise walls are much prettier (and the curtains are now a plain black panel drape, also much nicer than these faded gray ones.

On top of a little quilting, beach outtings, travel out of the country and painting, I can only say that I am still working on a couple of show quilts. My Value of Violet is finished with the quilting, but a full reveal will wait until the spring when it goes to its first show. Suffice it to say that I am pleased as punch with how it looks and am starting to think about how to bind it.

Hopefully your summer is just marginally more productive!