what a junkie

this photo is to taunt liz and encourage her in our naughty purchase habits

so i've been acting like a total fabric/quilting junkie for the last few days. my mr. accompanied our eldest son on a scout campout (what an awesome dad!) and i took full advantage of his absence to do my thing as much as i pleased.

day one, i congratulated myself on taking the kids to swim lessons clear across town (normally his job) and feeding them two wonderful meals (they got breakfast themselves). this completely justified putting the little ones in front of the tv on a not-tv day so i could sew and staying up too late exploring quilty blogland. all-in-all, i felt pretty balanced. but i also woke-up with a sewing/computer hangover.

day two, i fed myself spiritually as i tried to overcome the hangover. i think i was dehydrated. and my poor hands and arms were leaning toward tendinitis. so i made my mom give me an in-depth arm/hand massage when she came over. then i proceeded with my plans to do nothing but sew and sew some more.

however, when i approached my nice, concealed dining room crafting spot, i realized it wasn't so . . . nice . . . or concealed. my, that happens fast!

 yes, it was a room full of rubbish. i knew something needed to be done before i could sew in it. there were several projects lounging around in store bags and other miscellaneous, non-sewing items on the table. i decided to head to joann, etc to fetch some more project bins and the floss i needed to finish off my nephew's 4sq blanket. and return some decor items that didn't work out at marshall's next door while i was at it. this was very ambitious of me.

however, i was not ambitious enough to change clothes to do it. that was above and beyond what was required. so i went in my pjs: a nice white t-shirt and grey yoga pants. it didn't totally scream "she's in her pajamas!", thus it was acceptable to me. i slipped on my sporty comfy mom shoes to complete the outfit. i considered quickly tying a scarf around my neck but figured that would totally give me away as trying to look like i'd made some efforts at grooming when i hadn't. i'd share a picture, but it was still too scary a sight to post on a blog dedicated to pretty sewing stuff. just imagine, if you will.

i was so good at both stores. no purchases beyond those i went for. i think i was blessed to not be attracted to any items i didn't need because i can't explain it otherwise. i was drawn to a few new craft books, but refrained, knowing i could get them cheaper online. to be perfectly honest, i did also snag this:

i have a sometimes crush on mollie makes, a british crafting mag. sometimes it's too kitschy for me. this issue was perfect. i knew daughter #1 would love the doggie finger puppets. so it went in the basket, too. other than that, i stuck to the plan: returns (money back?!), project bins, floss. period.

okay, quick sidetrack here: while i was looking up the link to the mag, look what i spied on their site.

 aren't these ladies adorable? they are a new betty doll to be featured in the next issue. i guess i better keep my eyes open for it. too cute.

so i went to the store in my pjs and was a conservative shopper.

and when i got home, a neat little square package from fabric.com was sitting on my doorstep.

repeat of opening photo for reference

last week, for some really good reason i can't remember at all now, i went on fabric.com and saw a holiday weekend coupon. and i made a selection of (stacks, l to r) amy butler, some botanical and handscript prints, valori wells's "caravan", and some of anna maria horner's "loulouthi" and "field study" lines. i also got that mod orange print just for the heck of it. my favorite print, i think is the amy butler butterfly from the "alchemy" collection (on top). i think the idea i had for most of this was to make something similar to rachel (stitched in color) 's colorbrick quilt, with some modifications of my own, of course. i want to do a combo of bricks and strips. it's sketched out already in my notebook.

it was completely naughty, i know. admittedly, i'm a total junkie. my main problem, as i see it, is that my mind creates far faster than my poor little hands can. it's years ahead of the digits. if i could just make the quilts as quickly as i could design them and purchase the goods, all would be well.

back to my good deeds for the day.
i sorted that new box of fabric and got to work on the "hidden" dining room craft elements.

 i made a new basket for my fmq items. when i tried to photograph it, my bestest little sewing helper stepped in to offer her assistance. i look forward to the day she learns the skill of "putting back" in addition to "taking out." i threw my lens cap out of reach, pointing it out to her. that did the trick. she can't stand it to be off the camera.

 with her out of the way just long enough, i could properly photograph the contents of the basket: scratch paper for doodling practice, books, supreme slider, quilting needles, fm foot, some aurafil thread i've been meaning to try. everything in one spot for my next adventure.

 i put those new project bins to use and cleaned up the old ones. this stack more or less represents all the projects i've got going or plan to start soon. there are also a few that are just sorting of various kinds.

after slaving away for hours (or maybe just one), i got the room back into acceptable order. it still doesn't look like someones nice dining room, but neither does it resemble a crafting heap, either. much better.