I've challenged myself again, this time to cut 1000 2 1/2" squares for the little quilts. It shouldn't be too hard, since I've got a box of scraps I pulled together when I was rummaging through the sewing room last week, and a bag from Mom and her quilting buddy, and a few 1/3 yard cuts I just picked up at the 40% off sale at Joann's. (I know, that's cheating, but I wanted some bright stuff to throw in.)

Usually, I cut the squares a couple hundred at a time, just enough to keep a couple of quilts ahead of myself. My goal has been to have a box overflowing with little squares, but I never make time to actually cut them.

When we were running errands yesterday, the little voice in my head told me it would be a good idea to stop at the thrift store on the far end of town. I rarely drive out there, because Grandma goes every week and if there was something I needed, she's probably going to have found it already. Yesterday, though, I had to go for myself.

Turns out my thirteen-year-old hasn't found her little inner voice yet, so I had to explain the whole "following your hunches because they usually steer you in the right direction, and as long as you're not following them off a cliff or telling you to drink the poison kool aid, it's okay if they were wrong" thing to her. She didn't get it.

The voices were right. I found two of the linen tea towels I like to collect for fifty cents a piece and a really nice vintage sheet --



And another sheet that'll be perfect for backing that courthouse steps quilt if the 100% polyester behaves the way I hope it will. That fabric content might've scared me off, but it's such a perfect print I would've bought it as yardage.





The little baby hats and booties are piling up. I swear I've finished more than one pair of the little socks, because I remember turning more heels, but they're not in the box with the rest. The knitting is getting steadily easier. I've been doing the little lace hats without looking at the pattern, which makes me think I might be ready to tackle a bigger project again. (for the last two years, all of my bigger projects have ended in disaster, so I stopped starting them.

But Quinn needs a green sweater, if only to make him give up the awful one I made for Heath a couple of years ago. If the sweater wasn't bad enough, he also found the hat that I made with the leftover yarn and insists on wearing them together.

I suppose I could just hide them in the attic, but knitting him a new sweater would make him happier. As long as it's green. There was a green cotton sweater that's his size and also looked nice, but the washer ate it. Have I mentioned how much I hate that washer?

And this is tomorrow's challenge -- fifteen different pairs of 5" red blocks. The sixteenth pair is already made up into a test block, so I can't show that one yet.



Today's inspiration --

An absolutely awesome knitted camel, made more awesome by the fact that there's a free pattern for it online.

Lost at Sea, a fantastic piece of embroidery which has wet looking hair trailing down from it.

And this great explanation of English Paper Piecing.