Third Time's the Charm

 I don't know if the pandemic has made jobs more stressful or if it finally pushed employees to the point where we can say "unacceptable," but after leaving the fiber job because of the toxic and hateful environment, I joined a start-up company only to realize by my third day that I had made a mistake.  In February I joined a local heating & air conditioning company as their marketing director, and I love it. I get a lot of comments about job hopping, but I bring skills to the table and I'm only going to spend my time with a company that recognizes and appreciates that.

 And if finding a job where I'm NOT sick with anxiety on Sunday nights wasn't enough, I've already met one of my crafting goals this year:  A FINISHED QUILT!  This,

is now finished, quilted, and in our living room!  I love these greens together.  Originally I'd picked them out to make baskets as gifts, but then loved them so much that I decided we needed a quilt in these colors.  Probably not how that was supposed to work..............

This is my husband's year to make gifts, but I decided to get ahead for next year, so I've made some new kimono ornaments,

finished some table runners I'm really happy with,

and am working on 3 that are honestly not turning out that well.  I think the prints are just too busy:


Since the pattern swirl disappears in the prints, I added gold rickrack to one to see if it helped, and the jury is still out. 


It's not bad, but it just isn't great.  What DID turn out great are the new jackets I made for the new job. 


The crossword puzzle jacket was a stretch for me, in all honesty, and I wasn't sure I would wear it, but I LOVE it.  It's just whimsical and fun and I have even worn it multiple times!

Speaking of whimsical, I'm working on a stained glass quilt

which I thought would be easier after making all the table runners, but where I could trade blocks into different runners to match intensity, today I finally had to remove a set of blocks that just stood out too much from the rest in the overall quilt.  And had to be reminded that working from even the barest, most basic plan might have given me a better idea of how many blocks I needed.  Oops.

Spring is finally here, and I am enjoying the early flowers,





especially since they're deer-proof.  I had hyacinths, too, but every year I forget how fast they bloom and die.  This is why my favorite plants are the hellebores.  They're blooming and will keep blooming most of the year.  What's not to love?

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