Fabric Explosion

The upstairs of my house looks like a bomb went off. There is fabric everywhere: remnants I’ve pulled from the stash, pieces too small to put back into the stash but too large for the scrap bin—I’m getting the urge to make potholders—and all the small pieces that will show up in a scrap quilt one of these days. I’ve got all three boxes of thread and bobbins out where I can see them. The fence in the hallway is draped with pieces waiting to be assembled and with finished products waiting to be hung up. It is a good thing that the husband and I are the only people living here at the moment, and that he only comes up there to sleep.

[I am actually very organized—all of my supplies are in labeled plastic bins, but those bins are spread throughout four different rooms. Some time this winter, when the husband is here and can help me, I really need to rearrange some furniture and make this setup a bit more efficient.]

I made four aprons yesterday (the top one on this pile still needs topstitching, but it’s assembled):

I set up my production line so that I was changing thread colors as few times as possible. I use a medium gray for assembly; it’s the topstitching that matters most. Vittorio is performing admirably—I’ve always said that that machine only needs me to operate the foot pedal because he knows how to do everything else.

I am feeling the need to manage expectations. I’ve gotten a few questions from knitters about whether the re-launch of the Big Sky Knitting Designs website means that I am going to start designing knits again. The short answer to that question is “no,” although it is lovely to be wanted. While I am happy to help knitters with existing patterns, I feel absolutely no pull in that direction, which is odd because there was a time when I ate, slept, and breathed knitting and loved every minute of it. Times change.

And yes, this website has space for a store, but I’m still working out how that will happen. I’m trying to live in the space between having all the details worked out and leaving room for serendipity. Part of my brain is screaming “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail,” and the other half is yelling, “The universe always throws a wrench into the works!” There are also some things happening behind the scenes. For now, I am going to sew—with a loose plan—and see what happens. I accumulated all of this fabric for a reason and I am enjoying working with it.

In other news, the husband tells me that the doors are going up on the new shop in the next couple of days. That will be huge as he will be able to work in there and be out of the weather. The electrician still needs to do the wiring and install the lights, but this is another big step toward finishing this project.

Kalispell just got a Smart Foodservice store. I stopped in there the other day. Holy cow. I need to make a list and go back. I thought Costco was a great place to shop, but Smart Foodservice has food in husband-sized quantities. If you’re not familiar, Smart Foodservice supplies restaurants, although it is open to the public. This is a commentary on how much food the husband consumes that I should have been shopping at a restaurant food supply store all these years.

The Lutheran church called yesterday to make sure I am available to play for their Advent services. How weird to think that we’re halfway through November already.

And the eye doctor appointment I thought I had scheduled for last month is actually next week. I am getting tired of having to switch glasses—or take them off altogether—so often. Hopefully we can get that addressed.