Of beeps and cats, slipcovers and courtesy

Oh dear God, save me from beeping things!

Have you seen that commercial on TV? I think it is about a car battery or a car, but it shows a guy on a ladder caught between beeping smoke alarms. Well, that was my night. I awoke about 1 a.m. to a kind of weak beeping noise (does that sound like the old lady in Christmas Vacation 'What's that squeaking sound?').

Could it be the door alarm?

Earlier in the evening, yesterday, a young man had come to the house after dark and knocked (rather forcefully) on our front door. I'm a rural Midwesterner by birth and my Mama raised me to answer doors, phones, and questions with dispatch and courtesy. My instincts kicked in and I arose, but it was after dark. For some perverse reason I turned on the porch light and then peeked out of the window. When I saw a stranger, I turned off the light and went back to my chair. It was rude. He could have hurt himself in the dark (although he made his way up to the door by the street light's glow). Still it bothered me. It was discourteous and I could have made him angry. Maybe he returned.... And those are the thoughts that sprang to mind when I heard the beeping sound.

It could be the door alarms. It could be the security system. It could be my husband's breathing machine telling me he was in distress. It could be the smoke detector.... At 1:15 a.m. I prowled through the house. Nope, nope, nope. Nope. None of the usual suspects. Back to bed and up again at 2:15 a.m. By 3:15 the beeping was getting stronger and seemed more like a whistle. And then I realized it was the low battery warning on an overhead lift contraption we have in our bedroom. Since my husband has ALS and since the disease will eventually make his body totally turn on him, not allowing him to move even a toe, the system will eventually be my best friend. Right now it stands guard over us from a far wall until it is needed. And as I remember this happening once before with the only solution to buy and replace the batteries, I knew it would be a long beeping night. And no my dear husband didn't awake. He slept blissfully through it all. 

I certainly didn't need the beeping sound nor the sleepless night. My pillow turned hard as a rock and I couldn't get comfortable. The blankets were too few or too many. I flipped them on and off. I rolled to the left, rolled to the right, sat up and then flopped on my stomach. I finally flipped back, giving up and staring at the dark ceiling.



Marcel and Bernie in happier times



Except while waiting for the next beep, I started redecorating the living room and came to the conclusion now that our last pet -- dear Marcel -- has died, I can have furniture with upholstery unsnagged by cat claws! Its been more than 30 years since I've lived in a cat-less house and the concept is new to me and dare I say engaging. I'll miss furry hugs, whisker tickles, and his body snuggled next to mine on the couch, but maybe a house without cat hair might be novel.

Marcel died peacefully after a stroke and several weeks (maybe months) of feeding him with a spoon and straw and cleaning up after him as he lay motionless on a towel. I carried him from room to room, and we watched movies together (I think he got quite addicted to Downton Abbey). His final moments were on our porch, soaking up the warmth of a sunbeam. His struggles are over and he looked quite peaceful and free of pain.

But back to my beeping night of redecorating thoughts. I had seen a house on an episode of Foyle's War. Doesn't everyone get their inspiration from old British movies?

It was a cheerful yellow, white trim and bright touches of color from the orange family -- burnt orange, I think. I'm thinking I would like to live in a house with those colors. It seems cheerful and soothing at the same time. Bright. Maybe kind of traditional in flavor? It would work well with my beloved Jacobean designs? So this morning I saw this wonderful little chair in this cheerful bright room and all of my genes that are looking for home are shouting at me "This is it, this is home...." (See photo above).

So, now that I have never made slipcovers or reupholstered furniture, I am contemplating jumping in with both feet. I've made pillows of course. And the back and seat of my chair and loveseat are loose pillows. But I'm not sure about the frame.... Any tips or suggestions?

Wait, wait! I hear that beeping sound again. That damn lift! No wait. There's a chorus of beeps. A harmony of chirps. Listen. Ahhhhh a good beeping sound. The coffemaker is telling me that the morning elixer is prepared.

Happy Saturday everyone and may all of your beeps be happy ones.

Ricky Tims inspired weekend

The weekend loomed before me without major projects, scheduled work, or anything I really needed to get done. Yes, I could do laundry, cook, clean, the usual chores, but nothing pressed. That elusive thing called 'free time' stood invitingly before me.

With my favorite Outlander audio book playing, I settled into a comfy chair with a few quilt books, seeking inspiration. Something not too hard. Some new technique, but not overwhelming. Something I wouldn't need my left-brain to figure out. Math and me -- not a great combination.

The word 'convergence' jumped out at me. What was it doing on the front of a quilt book? What a great word. Especially when followed by the terms: mysterious, magical, EASY, and fun. My kind of quilt project for this lazy weekend. Thus I opened Ricky Tim's book: Convergence Quilts.

In truth I've been looking for something to hang on the bare walls, something not too wild, but a little modern, a little artsy, a little different. Since we're living within a no-frills budget at this time, something I could make with what I already own, seemed the way to go. Ricky seemed to think I could do a convergence quilt. He nudged, "In my experience," he wrote in the book, "the most successful way to learn is to move past idle curiosity to actual exploration and experimentation."

He further nudged by suggesting that these quilts go together quickly and take up little time. Somewhere along the way I sensed that ugly fabrics, those I don't know what to do with or are not favorites would be perfect for a convergence quilt project. So I dug through my stash, came up with some leftovers from other projects and one with a rather modern larger design, and one that made me wonder why I had ever purchased it. Ricky's examples were mostly made using hand dyed fabrics and his finished products had a delightful artsy feel to them. Modern, perfect for my house. I used none such fabrics.

I read, followed directions, probably messed up one step at least, and proceeded happily zipping my little rotary cutter along fabric after fabric, stitching, reading, ironing, and then imagining. What I had created looked like a background. I added borders. I knew I had some fusible interfacing so I cut out some silhouettes from black fabric and ironed them on. And suddenly I have something that makes me smile. Will it win awards?

No.

Ricky addresses worries about making MY quilt verses one that looks like those made by award winners. He seems to stress just having fun with the project. Enjoying the process as well as the end product. I like this guy. I like the idea of making a quilt while wearing a cowboy hat. And I like the way he combines beautiful words, music, (harmonic convergence) and quilts.

It was a fun weekend and I will soon have something to hang on my wall. Although now I need to paint the wall to 'harmonize' with my new wall hanging. Modern? Artsy? Well, not exactly. But, well, it turned out better than I expected, so whatever style you want to call it, it will hang on the wall until I make something better. And each time I look at it I will remember this weekend spent with fabric and cats and my husband whooping in the background because America won the Ryder Cup.

Photos: (top) Quilt top with inspiring book and cat patterns. Center photo: Ricky Tims. Last photo: Quilt top with cat silhouettes pressed in place.

Purrfect combination: Cats and Quilts

If you have a love for cats and for quilting, the two shall soon become one. I have yet to meet a cat who can resist a quilt, particularly one under construction.

Cats and quilts have always been a part of my life. During childhood our many miscellaneous cats helped Mom at the quilt frame or kept the quilt in use between sessions. After all, what is a quilt for if not to cuddle up in? Currently our sweet yellow tiger, Bernie, wants to have a hand er I mean paw in (and a say) about construction of anything. But he has a definite curiosity about fabric projects. He even takes a turn at clean up. He carries away scraps and threads like a dog with a bone. Bernie is king of our household and our two older cats have learned to make the best of it. Above Marcel (the dark tiger) shares his favorite chair with ornery Bernie.

A quick web search brings lots of cat related projects together beginning with a favorite of mine: Jinny Beyer's tesselating tabbies kit with everything you need to make a quilt top and binding. She also offers a free pattern for her tesselating calio cats.

Lots of websites refer to cats. Judy Heim has dedicated her website Cats Who Quilt to ummm well, cats who quilt. And she has written a book aptly titled: Cats Who Quilt with illustrations by Irina Borisova. She has a heartwarming section dedicated to readers' stories about their cats. Some will tug at your soft spot, all will make you want to hug your cat.

A book or series of pattern books by Carol Armstrong have caught my eye. She incorporates light box applique into each highly stylized design and she specializes in the most delightfully personable critters. These books may find their way into my collection. I may not make many quilts, but I have a killer book collection. Rosie, Queen of the Rose Pattern and Cats in Quilts: Purrfect Projects, are just two of Armstrong's books full of her designs.

If you haven't tried your hand at coloring your own quilt blocks, but would like to give it a try, HGTV has a step-by-step project. The show's guest, Sheila Haynes Rauen, provides the pattern and instructions.

But, my all-time favorite cat-themed quilt or wall hanging is provided online by McCalls. It is Stairway to Cat Heaven. It fulfills all of my needs in a quilt -- nine patch (I don't know why, but I have a weakness for those little squares!) and cats.

Want to make an easy Catnap Quilt for you or for your cat, this pieced pattern makes use of scraps.

For a change of pace -- something you can buy already made for those days when you must leave the quilt frame or hurry to a quilt meeting and its raining umm cats and dogs -- a cat and quilts umbrella!

A page of patterns for cat lovers will get you in the meow mood.

And on a more serious note. For all of those cats and kittens, dogs and even hamsters, living in shelters, maybe you would care to make and donate a snuggle for a shelter animal. Hugs for Homeless Animals have many ways you can help these orphans find homes.