The Calm before the Storm

Ahhh! Thursday night before a big snowstorm and the husband away skiing for the evening so I am left to my own devices. All this week I have been "on hiatus" from quilting - this is my usual routine. Once I finish a quilt, having devoted every spare minute to it's creation, I take a bit of time off before I start the next one. Sometimes it is only a week, sometimes longer but the next quilt is never far from my thoughts. I also need the downtime to catch up on the things I have let slide around the house and for the management of the household - catch up on the laundry and ironing (You iron? I hear you say. Yes, I am the last person on the planet still ironing...) the bank statement, the filing. You know, all the usual day to day stuff.

So, in hiatus mood, I took my time getting home tonight and stopped over to one of my favorite haunts, Joann Fabrics. I needed interfacing for the white cotton nightgown I am planning to make for myself (couldn't find a nightgown I liked so resorted to sewing one). The material is two sets of long white 100% cotton curtains from Martha Stewart which I bought at my local Goodwill Store. I figured it was quality material, it is four pieces 84 inches long and has nice white on white embroidery. All this for the amazing price of $5.00 AND I get to help save the planet by recycling. At the fabric store the same amount would have cost me $40+ !

Well, I never manage to get out of Joann Fabrics with just what I intended to purchase. They were having a great sale (when are they not having a great sale, I ask you?) so I picked up a gorgeous heart print and some co-ordinated Debbie Mumm that will probably end up being Artemis and Tom's wedding quilt (#3 on THE LIST after my daughter Jamie and her husband Jeff's wedding quilt). The wonderful sales clerk at the cutting counter asked me what I was I planning to make. She is a hand quilter and we had already discussed our current projects. I told her this is my rule for buying fabric: If you see something and you like it, get it. You can figure out what you will do with it later. Similarly is the rule of YES! YES! YES! This guideline applies to kissing boys and buying shoes and any other life altering decisions, as well as fabric selection. Simply put, if it doesn't shout YES! YES! YES! - the answer is NO. My daughters heard this guideline alot growing up. Motherly advise. Anyway. Consequently, by following these two rules, I have quite a stash of fabric!

Is that good or bad?

So for a few days more, I will enjoy my downtime and then dive into Laura and Rob's quilt. I guess you could say this is the calm before the storm. The weatherman is predicting 8-10 inches of the white stuff starting tomorrow and I am predicting that I will finish the wedding quilt by the end of the year. Let's see who is more accurate!