Rete Quilts | Creating a Crafty Life Deep in the Heart of Texas

Welcome 2009!

Posted on January 2, 2009 by Rete

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a safe and happy New Year’s Eve and Day. We didn’t have any big plans – just relaxed around the house and watched movies. Geoff and Emily shot off a few fireworks and then we toasted the new year with a bottle of bubbly (just the grown-ups).

I’m really looking forward to being more creative in 2009. Last year I got really burned out with the whole creative process. That probably had something to do with the quilt show that took entirely too much of my time and energy, which were at very low levels during the latter half of the year. Some unresolved health issues played a major part of that, but things are looking up now.

Gearing up for Christmas, I felt the creative stirrings begin. I didn’t have any plans for making any gifts for people this year, but I did get a commission for a knit scarf and promptly began another when it was done. It didn’t get gifted for Christmas (in fact, it’s still not finished), but it was nice to have something mindless to work on during the last few slow days at work.

I also got a new sewing machine a few weeks before Christmas. It’s way more machine than I’m used to and I’m still playing with it and trying to get comfortable with it. I started sewing a quilt which was presented as a mystery quilt online with clues coming out all day Christmas. I didn’t get going on it til after all the festivities were concluded and am still working on it. I haven’t decided on the borders yet.

And this weekend I’m taking a class! Our guild is offering a class with Norah McMeeking – a quilt from her book, Bella Bella Quilts. I can’t wait!!

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Post-Thanksgiving Wrap-up

Posted on November 28, 2008 by Rete

Happy Thanksgiving and Day After…

Hopefully everyone celebrated the holiday in the manner they chose and got a chance to eat way too many pieces of pie. We gathered at my in-laws and proceeded to stuff ourselves silly and tell embarrassing stories about each other.

I took a pie, and I was told by several attendees not to lose the recipe. In the off chance I have no idea what they’re talking about when they ask me to bring it next year, I’m linking to the recipe here. Hopefully I’ll remember to check the blog when that day comes.

Anyone who tries to make this recipe, it’s marvelous and your family will praise your kitchen skills, but be careful when whipping the cream. If you pour the caramel in too quickly it will deflate the cream and if you whip the cream further to try to salvage it, it will become butter. I knew that before I did it and still it happened.

Everyone I told that story said “Mmm. Caramel butter.” No one realized as I did that as tasty as it might have been, it looked quite a bit like cat vomit. The second batch worked out much better.

We did go out and do a little bit of shopping this afternoon (no we were not even tempted to brave the 4 a.m. crowds… did you hear about the guy that got trampled in Walmart? Crazy people.) When we went it looked like everything was pretty much back to normal.

Have a great weekend! I’m going to attempt to create a little bit of order in my sewing room. Wish me luck! If you haven’t heard back from me in three days, send a search party….

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45…

Posted on November 10, 2008 by Rete

…days til Christmas. Most years that would be enough to put me into panic mode. But not this year. I don’t think I’m making any presents this year. I’ve been too busy with the quilt show, recovering from the quilt show, and having the illness that would not leave. I’ve been sick a month. I’m so glad I’m better now.

Maybe it’s about time I start making my lists and checking them twice… I have no clue what to get people this year. Maybe this will be the year of the cookie baskets. Hmmm… that doesn’t sound too bad at all.

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Whelmed

Posted on September 17, 2008 by Rete

It is official. I am ‘whelmed. I have found myself on the far side of overcommitted and am trying to dig my way out from under my sense of duty. Meaning that I volunteered for the Quilt Show again. As in one too many times for my personal sanity levels. They aren’t that high to begin with, and after chairing the show last time they were at all time low levels.

I haven’t mentioned much about the quilt show this year, mainly because I’m in charge of the awards. And since one of the co-chairs is making me feel disagreeable and rebellious, I perversely don’t want to give any updates. If you are a co-chair for my show and are feeling a bit paranoid right now, it’s one of the other ones… really. You’re the one I really like and I wish I could be more cooperative for your sake, but I just can’t right now. Sorry.

So right now I’m in survival mode until September 28th at 8 pm, when the show should be all over and done with, all the quilts returned to their owners. My quilt should be riding home with me in my car and I will sigh the sweet sigh of relief that it is all over. Unless of course I don’t finish my quilt, in which case I won’t be picking it up on Sunday since it won’t have gone into the show in the first place. It’s a fickle existence being a quilt. If your quilter gets too busy making the damned awards for the show and doesn’t have time to finish you, you don’t get to go to the show. How sad.

Plus I’ve been sick the last few days, and sleep has taken precedence over award making. And quilt-making. And almost everything else as well. It doesn’t look good for the little quilt.

September 29th will be the beginning of a whole new era of my near future. The era of doing projects for me. Or people who I want to do projects for. But doing the projects I want to do first and foremost. And not volunteering for the quilt show again for a good long while. Because really, how stupid could one person be?

Categories: mind ramblings | Comments Off

PIF – Update

Posted on August 24, 2008 by Rete

In December, a Pay It Forward train was going through the crafty community, and I jumped on board. I’ve been mulling over several projects that I think my various recipients would enjoy, and have been working on them off and on…

but a couple weeks ago I got an awesome gift from my PIF giver, PoMo Golightly.

This lovely little clutch:

Isn’t it too cute?

It was great to open a package that I wasn’t expecting and find fabulous goodies inside! I guess I should finish up my own PIFs and brighten someone else’s day pretty soon…

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Back in the Groove

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Rete

You don’t know how many times I’ved pulled up the blog and was ready to type… but I’ve been having a problem. I have lots to share but everything I want to share has a picture.

And I’ve been so busy at work on the computer that the last thing I want to do when I get home is plug in the camera and upload pictures. In fact, I haven’t turned on the computer at home in nearly a week.

But our busy season at work is starting to wind down and I’m chomping at the bit to share with you some of the projects I’ve been working on. So tonight I vow to upload at least 2 pictures to share with you and ease myself back into the blogging groove.

Now that school’s starting next week I’m trying to get my routines back in place and tweak the areas that need work. I just ordered a calendar from Flylady and it is fantastic! The squares are plenty big to hold lots of information. It’s Great!!

Categories: daily life | Comments Off

Overheard

Posted on August 4, 2008 by Rete

Post Office sign
Originally uploaded by aubergene

at the post office…

Customer: (plops package up on counter)

Clerk: This will be $6.80 for 2-3 day delivery or $5.95 for 7-10 day delivery.

Customer: Okay

Clerk: Which one?

Customer: I’m sorry, can you repeat that?

Clerk: It will be $6.80 for 2-3 day delivery or $5.95 for 7-10 day delivery.

Customer: Which one is cheaper?

Clerk: ????? The $5.95.

Customer: Okay, that one.

Then she spend 75 cents on delivery confirmation.

Categories: Uncategorized | Comments Off

A Busy Summer

Posted on August 3, 2008 by Rete

It’s gotten to that point in summer when things are really busy, yet it so hot and muggy that it makes me very lazy about things. So I have some pictures that I’ve been meaning to blog, and yet haven’t blogged yet.

Last week Emily came home from school with some very interesting facepaint. A clown had visited her summer daycare and made balloon animals and all sorts of fun things. She’s having a blast with weekly field trips and splash days and taking weeks off to spend time with various grandparents. This week she’s going to a half day ballet camp. Hopefully she’ll learn a lot and still be able to show us what she learned at the end of the day.

The end of the summer is when I’m especially busy at work since we’re trying to renew all our contracts before the beginning of the fiscal year. Of course, since I’ve just begun this job and it’s a little different than my previous, I’m still learning exactly what this means for me. And I’m still helping out with my old position, getting their contracts together for all the new students that are starting the stipend program this fall.

In other words, it’s crunch time. A word of advice, if you’re looking to change jobs, staying in the same division or even the same company leaves you in a tough spot of not being able to just walk away from the work load you’re looking to escape. I’m hoping my old boss is able to find a replacement soon.

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K is for Kindred

Posted on July 20, 2008 by Rete

This is Kindred. He likes to jump up onto our television, and from there jump to the top of the armoire that holds our DVD player and other electronics. I think he does it to get away from the other cat, Porkrind, who is quite stupid and thinks it’s fun to hide under the coffee table and ambush Kindred whenever he strolls through the living room on the way to have a snack or drink of water. Porkrind has so far not been smart enough to figure out how Kindred gets to the top of the armoire.

Unfortunately, Kindred also has access to a shelf along the adjacent wall where we display our decorative knick knacks and collectibles, such as my collection of Jim Shore angels and Geoff’s dragon sculptures. We have caught him on this shelf once or twice, but he is usually careful about not knocking anything over, slowly turning around so as not to bump anything and returning to the armoire for his nap or making his way back down his electronic stairs to tease Porkrind with his tail.

Friday, however, when we returned home from work, there had been an incident… I’m not sure what startled Kindred to make a more drastic descent from his shelf wanderings, but there were casualties. Kindred has been informed that we are incredibly displeased with him and we’ve been discussing options for the armoire that would discourage cat visitation . I’m still wondering if one of these days we’ll find Porkrind up there, and realize we’ve blamed the wrong cat for his transgressions. But how long could you stay mad at a face like this?