This year started out emotionally difficult for myself, but nothing like what my dear friend Emily is going through. Her father died two years ago, her mother last year (car accident), she's had 6 or so miscarriages in the past year and half and just two weeks ago, she was diagnosed with stage 3b (or 4, depending on pathology) ovarian cancer.
And...she's the most amazing person I have ever met!! She's a writer, a marriage and family therapist (day job), and works with the deaf community.
Until now. I suppose cancer calls for some paper piecing.
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| My first block, see that giant pucker? What the...? |
It's so easy!! Why I waited so long is beyond me! I have a few more blocks to do, then I'll be done.
But, now I'm not sure how to proceed. Do you tear the paper off before you put the blocks together? Or after? Or does it even matter? And holy schnikes Batman, that's a lot of fabric waste! Do you keep those scraps for later paper piecing? I've never been too much of a scrap keeper, but this hurts my heart a little. And if you keep the paper on, do you just tape it to your design wall? Cause it ain't stickin' with all that paper on back. And does paper piecing take longer than traditional piecing, or am I just slow?? There seems to be a lot of extra steps, like folding paper, and extra cutting. Just me??
Anyway, I've got plans to incorporate the "color" for ovarian cancer, which is TEAL. Which I have a lot of. I mean...A. LOT.
I gotta put the rest aside, and get back to sewing, gotta be quick on this one :/ But thankfully the way the cancer presented itself (hard rocks) it may have saved her life.
You can get to know Emily and her sweet husband (a playwright for Broadway and UncommonGoods) via her blog. You won't regret it. And if you'd like to donate to help with the medical expenses (which would be AWESOME and I'd love you forever), that's here.
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| Baby Zoey's Quilt |
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| Vintage Happy Churn Dash |
what a wonderful quilt for your friend
ReplyDeleteLife sure throws us unexpected curves. Last July 30, I had a second MRI to see if my breast cancer was back and in my brain (it wasn't). The same day, my daughter had a D&C to terminate an unsustainable pregnancy. I was still reeling from the MRI with calming drugs when there was a loud knock at my door. The police chaplain informed me that my husband (actually ex of only 7 months) had been found dead in his apartment. What a day. Then Dec 14 my daughter's father-in-law was found dead - he had died in his sleep. So two of my grandsons lost two of their 3 grandfathers last year. Now, it's almost July 30 and I'm going through cancer testing again. I quilt and it's difficult to concentrate on it, yet it is my therapy. As part of grief healing, I have volunteered to do a 5-10 minute ed segment at quilt guild each month. Some of best supporters are the people (men and women) at the quilt guild. You are a wonderful friend. I will be praying for your friend. Having a positive attitude sure helps in the battles (all of them) of life. The teal will be beautiful with the other colors you have selected. You are doing a gorgeous job on the quilt. I embrace and wear more pink now - blue is still have favorite color and pink is becoming a close second. Again, thanks for being a great friend - you mean more to your friend than words can express.
ReplyDeleteSo very sorry to hear about your friend's medical issues. Praying all turns out for the best for her. I love the quilt you are making for her - lovely. Looks like rays of sun.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Shauna
DeleteI learned a valuable lesson when my best friends husband died. "Mourn with those that mourn" means more than crying with them. You have to DO something, something physical. A quilt is the best! That quilt will be beautiful. And I'm in love with the churn dash!
ReplyDeleteXO sweet sister!
PS I would save the scraps that are bigger than 2x2
ReplyDeleteYour churn dash is looking fantastic! And i can't believe that's your first go at paper piecing!! You're a natural!
ReplyDeleteI like to pre-cut all my pieces first so there's little scrap left over, but it does add a lot more time! And i find paper piecing to take way longer than regular piecing, but the precision you can get is fantastic! Sorry to hear about your friend :( The finished quilt for her will be an absolute treasure! (and i keep all my scraps!!)
Testing...
ReplyDeleteOk, that was weird. I have tried to comment on this post and it kept rejecting my comments. I thought I'd try on my new laptop and my comment on Jenni's post didn't publish, but my comment above did...? Is this a user error? At any rate. I'm wondering how your friend is doing now. I think your quilt is gorgeous, your first go at paper-piecing is going pretty well! The fabric waste is the one thing that KILLS me! I save small scraps if I REALLY love the fabric. It's so hard to throw them away. Your churn dash is fabulous. I had to get an FQ of that fabric once I saw it here!
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