April 2009

I’ve had the (not so) fabulous opportunity of wearing glasses for the past 20ish years.  Wow.  That makes me feel old. So like every year, last November I got a new prescription.  And then a couple months later bubbles formed between something and something in the lens.  The lens place replaced the lenses and guess what?  They bubbled again.  Great.  So today, with a horrible headache and feeling incredible nauseous due to the bubbles being in my line of sight (I’m ridiculously sensitive to such things) I went elsewhere and got new glasses.  Magically my headache is gone and all the muscles in my face and eye area are so relaxed.  Ahh… I can see now.  Maybe I can actually get some work done!

This wasn’t really a blog worthy event but I liked my title so I had to share.

The super social elite of Raleigh gathered tonight for *the* event of the season.

Yes friends, Mr. Liam turned two today.

It was a party full of …

… new Wall-E books…

… a new Wall-E in town … who made sure the old Wall-Es knew he was boss …

.. a good ol’ strangling by your older sister..

… Wall-E decorations of every sort …

… your first ever Krispy Kreme straight off the conveyor belt …

… and then vehemently signing for more …

… and some fab quality time with one of the fab party guests …

…and some fun at the park … just being a little boy …

(He doesn’t have an overbite but he certainly does seem to when he smiles!)

And by the end of the party, the guest of honor was more than ready for bed.

He’s grown so much since last year.  Sniff.

I promise to be less sniffly tomorrow … maybe …

Liam is definitely a beach and water lover.  His birthday is this week so we took the little guy to the beach this weekend for some fun.

Smile Liam!

We also visited the aquarium at Fort Fisher.  Far from the one in Baltimore but the kiddos didn’t seem to mind.

I will forever have nightmares about this creature.  I had to put Liam in the picture for size comparison.  I think it would have eaten Liam had it been given the chance.

Wheeeee!

Lots of fun but I really need a nap now.

While a celebratory septua-centennial cupcake in a cup does sound quite tasty, I’d rather not spend the next 700 years on the Axiom in order to get one.

So go out today and hug a tree.

I won’t say who I used to do work for but they were big on the tree hugging.   And my kids love to hug trees.  Maeve fell in love with hugging trees when she was 2.5 at Disney.

So that’s it for Earth Day here.

(And yes, this is mostly just a humorous post.  One has to do a lot more than hug a tree but it’s hilarious to see the kid folk do so.)

On to the complex vs. easy pattern topic …

amanda says:
If I like the way the final product looks, I’m definitely willing to put the time in – i.e. my english paper pieced hexagon quilt.

That sounds gorgeous.  One day I want to attempt one.  Liam starts Kindy in July 2012… hmm…

Nichole says:
… In fact, so many of the quilts we see today in patterns or magazines are geared to beginners, pre cuts, or the time-challenged quilter. …

This is one of the reasons I asked.  A lot of the patterns I see boast about how quick they are or how simple they are.  So is simple better?  Or at least appeal to a wider audience?  I try to have a mix of complex and easy.  Like when Golden Waves came out, I also did Elden Street which was a much simpler pattern.  The idea I’m inquiring about here actually does use pre-cuts (which I totally love because of the variety you then have in the quilt) but you just have a lot of cutting and piecing to do.

Barbara says:
Ahh I’m new to quilting so an easy one is better for me, I love your patterns and I’m just about to start cutting for a Modern Rose Garden Mini (tell me it’s easy!)…

That’s probably one of the easiest I have (the small size helps!).  Have fun with it!

Sonja from Belgium says:
Honestly, I would say both! So that we have the choice;D

I actually considered this.  And still might do it.  I drew up a sketch of the easier version and I really didn’t like it as much.  It wasn’t bad, just not wow-y.

Thank you everyone for the feedback!  It was very helpful.  I think for this particular pattern I’ll go with the complex one but keep in mind the beginners and those looking for quick quilts and make sure I still do some simpler patterns with each release.

(Which BTW, did I ever mention patterns are coming out less frequently but more with each release?  I’m aiming for at least 4 releases a year with 2-4 patterns in each release.  It’s just easier and cheaper that way since I’m not printing them myself anymore.)

Back to work…