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The Most Exhausting Time of Year
Dec. 11th, 2020 04:40 pmI've been sick (not covid) for a couple months now. It started as a UTI, bloomed into a yeast infection after the antibiotics, and then into bacterial vaginosis after the antifungals. And then there's the mysterious Pulse Stuff and Low Grade Fever and Fatigue and Dizziness and Digestive Stuff that I think is just post-antibiotic fuckery? I've just been having a real bad time. I'm on the mend now, and have been significantly improved this past week or so. Should be totally fine by Christmas.
Speaking of which, the crafting frenzy has begun. I'm already done with two presents - we are mailing my grandparents their presents this year and having a video chat, thanks to the plague. Man, remember how I started making masks way back in February? Everyone who wanted one has one, and I stopped after making like three hundred. The hospital had and has real problems with supply, but the administrators wouldn't accept homemade masks. What a fucking year this has been. Anyway, back to Christmas. I am lucky to have grandparents with distinct themes - cats for my grandma (she breeds em) and nautical stuff for my grandpa (he has a boat).
My grandpa got a drawstring bag with Deluxe Additions such as grommets and a mariner's compass block. I drafted the block in Quilt Assistant, and man, I'm never going back to doing that shit by hand. It turned out so well: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIqVfHoDHbP/
I quilted the mariner's compass a little so that it didn't flop or warp. Also, I can admit, I just love quilting. I don't love grommets, though. Those bastards.
My grandma got a quilted cat zipper pouch. I had the cutest little buttons to use for eyes, and even made piping for the bag: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIqVv5GjPjH/
This was one of those projects where most of my fabric stash got dumped out on my bed so I could put stuff together. Turns out, what I was looking for was an extremely dark, saturated fabric for contrast. That purple batik was really satisfying to work with. It's rare to find a really dark print, by the way - they're printed on white fabric, and even the black ones look a little dusty, and the threads fray out white. For a really dark fabric, you want solids or batiks.
I bet I can finish presents for my parents before the deadline, and then I have friends with very forgiving deadlines, and guildmates to finish stuff for at my leisure, then a couple more grandparents I won't be seeing for a while. I am always a disaster in December, but I'm especially tired this year.
Speaking of which, the crafting frenzy has begun. I'm already done with two presents - we are mailing my grandparents their presents this year and having a video chat, thanks to the plague. Man, remember how I started making masks way back in February? Everyone who wanted one has one, and I stopped after making like three hundred. The hospital had and has real problems with supply, but the administrators wouldn't accept homemade masks. What a fucking year this has been. Anyway, back to Christmas. I am lucky to have grandparents with distinct themes - cats for my grandma (she breeds em) and nautical stuff for my grandpa (he has a boat).
My grandpa got a drawstring bag with Deluxe Additions such as grommets and a mariner's compass block. I drafted the block in Quilt Assistant, and man, I'm never going back to doing that shit by hand. It turned out so well: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIqVfHoDHbP/
I quilted the mariner's compass a little so that it didn't flop or warp. Also, I can admit, I just love quilting. I don't love grommets, though. Those bastards.
My grandma got a quilted cat zipper pouch. I had the cutest little buttons to use for eyes, and even made piping for the bag: https://www.instagram.com/p/CIqVv5GjPjH/
This was one of those projects where most of my fabric stash got dumped out on my bed so I could put stuff together. Turns out, what I was looking for was an extremely dark, saturated fabric for contrast. That purple batik was really satisfying to work with. It's rare to find a really dark print, by the way - they're printed on white fabric, and even the black ones look a little dusty, and the threads fray out white. For a really dark fabric, you want solids or batiks.
I bet I can finish presents for my parents before the deadline, and then I have friends with very forgiving deadlines, and guildmates to finish stuff for at my leisure, then a couple more grandparents I won't be seeing for a while. I am always a disaster in December, but I'm especially tired this year.
