2012, the year in stitches

Phew, I'm back!  I have had the hardest time contemplating a blog post: the past 6 weeks have been very hectic, both while wrapping up the semester (trying to tie up loose ends before I start a research leave in January) and then in a frenzy of crafting activity once work let up.

But first and foremost: happy holidays and happy new year to you all!

I have typed and retyped and finally deleted my attempts to say something profound and somehow affirming about the way 2012 has ended. It seems an impossible task, in the face of violence that was both almost incomprehensible and yet so tragically real.  I am so grateful for my family, my life, my city...and my heart goes out to those who have suffered so greatly.

On a lighter note, I did a little sewing this year and it brought me great pleasure -- as have my sewing friends, near and far.  It's hard to imagine my life without stitches and without my quilt-world friends!

Without further ado, here are quilty objects that I brought to completion this year -- 15 quilts, ranging from crib- to king-sized; 3 hand-quilted pillows; a tote featuring mini-English paper piecing; and a wool suiting pincushion also EPP'ed.

Here are some other odds and ends -- including some knitting, some garment sewing, and some things not completely finished (like my Farmer's Wife sampler, which I finished piecing but have not yet quilted) or very much "in progress" (like my Ruby Star-inspired Pony Club sampler, which I am enjoying immensely).

There are lots of odds and ends missing from those mosaics -- more dresses and simple skirts for Frida, a bunch of cowls and scarves knit this fall for Chloe and me, for example -- but it's fun to take stock of all this.  And one project has squeaked in under the wire, leaping from the WIP pile to the "quilt me" pile just yesterday:

Yes, that's a "swoon" quilt, which I had 2/3 pieced last spring...but which sat in a closet until a couple of days ago.  It feels great to have this done (or at least fully pieced).

I have learned so much through my sewing adventures this year and there is so much more I want to learn and to try in the coming year!

I am really looking forward to 2013,  excited about the two projects on my desk (one a monograph that will bring to completion research I started several years before Frida was born, another a book that promises to be visually beautiful and non-academic).  

I hope the new year brings us all joy, peace, happiness, and creativity. xx