Well, I've taken a long, hard look at
how this is coming together...
👀👀👀
👺💣👿
And I've decided that I am not
really crazy about how...
Dark Days is looking...
An awful lot of hand stitching
went into this piece
and
sadly
it is not yielding the
results I had
hoped for...
S I G H
😒😔😞
I don't think I am
suited to SAL's.
I had continued thinking
that perhaps it would take a
turn to make me
actually "like" it...
that I would get that
interior feeling of
"Yes, this is going to be
just great"!
But--
nope.
❤❤❤
I will say that I have learned a lot:
Various methods of working
by hand and
certainly what I like
and don't like about
working in this fashion.;
But
most of all
what I don't like is
this resulting piece
[and after all that work,
I know, I know]!!
But I do not regret giving this
a try....
So, mes amies,
💙💙💙
I have decided to take a break
from it for now.
At this stage of my life, I only
want to make just what I
REALLY WANT
to make...
But....
I will continue watching the videos
and move on with my regularly
scheduled quilting agenda...
Somehow, though
on the bright side;)))
💓💖💗
this whole process has
brought me back to my love of
hand quilting...
and,
strangely enough,
machine piecing, too.
I have been really wanting to
get back to machine work..
I've thoroughly cleaned Helga's
bobbin area, put in a new needle
and am ready to do some more
"just for the joy of it"
piecing.:))))
😂😍
***********************
Tomorrow I will be doing my weekly
food shopping and our garden guy
will begin work dismantling
our little front, overgrown
garden which we can no longer
care for; and
he will be putting in
grass seed up to the edge
of our patio seating area..
Last Fall, we did pull what we could out
and then covered it to let most things
just die down...
We were not able to pull the
deep-seated roots out
and decided to call for help...
So,
that is where
I stand for now..
If you've made it through to the end of this
long posting I commend you
👌😉😍😎
Hugs,
Julierose, La Blageuse
(re-thinking-what-to work-on-next-euse)
Still enjoying "The Man Who Died Twice" by Richard Osman--it is a thoroughly funny book...
ReplyDeleteIf you're not feeling the love, I can understand you bailing on that SAL project. I think, as it stands, it would make a nice table topper. Perhaps add a narrow-ish strip of the lighter colours on the left so the blue-ish strip is framed? What do I know - but it's a thought!
ReplyDeleteI think the not knowing where we are going part of this project has kept me from jumping in bit I do like what you have here and wonder if a final border on all four sides would make it a nice wall hanging? I also fully support your intuition. So happy this has revived your desire to do more stitching.
ReplyDeleteSometimes, our projects just don't turn out the way we hoped for. Leave it for now. Maybe, you'll come up with something to change it up. I love your patio. So pretty! I think you should do what you love whether it's piecing or quilting. Life's too short!!
ReplyDeleteQALs and SALs can be a challenge, especially if it is a mystery. I agree with Magpie's Mumblings idea of adding lighter color fabrics to the other side of the dark ones at some point. The quilting is very pretty, Julierose. I hope you find a use for the piece.
ReplyDeleteI am actually relieved to read that you are not loving the way DD is looking. If it were mine, I would take the three "blocks" apart and finish each one individually as a mini. I especially like the woven rectangle which interestingly has slightly brighter colors. Here I am playing with LOTS of color to offset the darkness happening outside our control. And kudos for knowing when to call it quits on the garden work. I had to go to large pots on top of the ground and even those are being filled with annuals that take less effort than what I planted 5 years ago.
ReplyDeleteI really love Dark Days, it's so moody and intense, so artistic Perhaps if you think of it as an art piece--even framed?--it would grow on you? It's really quite wonderful.
ReplyDeleteBut yes give it a rest , no sense working on a project you're not enjoying.
It is sunny here but so cold. I walked Mo earlier this week , on the hunt for daffodils, but no.. Hope you and Tom are both well.
love
lizzy
PS I disagree about adding light bright colors to DD, the dark intensity of color is what makes it special. If never touched again, it forms a perfect diary f our world these past three months.
I agree with you about just making things you love and not spending time on things that don't bring you joy. Now, when I start something that isn't as pretty as I had hoped, I get rid of it. There is a quote I heard on a TV show last winter that explains it perfectly.
ReplyDelete"I ain't got time to fail anymore."
Gone are the hours and hours to fix things to make them right or push myself to finish something I don't love. Maybe it sounds selfish or unreasonable but that's where I am.
I find machine piecing so satisfying and could easily slip into just making blocks and never making them into anything (or just making small table mat pieces). I hope you find a project that makes your heart sing.
ReplyDeleteOh, Julierose, I'm so sorry you're not happy with Dark Days. It's such a disappointment to enjoy the process and like the parts you're working on, but then not like the whole. It's not finished yet, right, and you have more to add (if you decide to continue)? Maybe it could become a medallion quilt with the pomegranate blocks in the center and more around the edges? I really, really like the log cabin blocks.
ReplyDeleteI love how it looks. If you don't feel for continuing right now, do take a break, get back to your sewing machine and have fun! If it was me, I had added the dark colors used on the left side to the top, and the lighter fabrics used on the right to the bottom. And something else for the corners? Let in grow in your thoughts while working on other fun projects. It's a piece of art and I hope you'll finish it (when you feel for working on it again).
ReplyDeleteI have had some projects that just didn't "do it " for me too, Julierose. Sometimes I walk away and come back . Sometimes not. But it sounds like you learned a lot and it had some pluses in the progress. By the way , I think it looks fabulous! I hope all goes well with the reseeding of the grass .Have a wonderful weekend, sweet friend. Warm hugs.
ReplyDeleteAs you said, we're not getting any younger. If something doesn't bring you joy, than it's best to set it aside. Consider the project a learning experience (which you disd) and move on to working on the string/triangle piece. I also enjoyed the newest Osman book.
ReplyDeletePat
Oh my I understand all too well the feeling you have expressed here...I've been there many times. Your helpful commenters have some great ideas here on what could be done...taken apart for lovely minis, used as a table topper or adding a border to change up the overall look perhaps by using a colour of fabric you love. Anyway, onward and upward!
ReplyDeleteI've found myself in an 'uninspired' spot recently also. Maybe chalking it up to end of the month and intending like you to move into something more pleasing. Anyway, good luck with your new piecing :)
ReplyDeleteIf it drags you down, put it aside -- now is the time for some cheerful stitching!
ReplyDeleteI read 'the man who died twice' last week. Well, listened to it. I'm on book 4 now. Love his writing and this group of characters. It is ok to set things aside if they don't bring you joy. I think that is one of lifes hardest lessons to learn. Hope you have a wonderful 'April fools' day.
ReplyDeleteI know just where you're coming from Julierose!! I do like the idea from Julie to take them apart and have three small pieces. Too much pressure for me with large Sew Alongs small spaced out ones - one block per month would be great. On the same page also with the garden - we have a huge garden, I planted all sorts when we moved here around 40 years ago, now it is too much and honestly I have lost the drive and enthusiasm to try and save it all. You are doing the best thing, we reach the age where we have to just bite the bullet and do it. Your patio seating area is delightful.
ReplyDelete