Sunday, March 19, 2023

Hearthstone Fabric Collection

 Hello Everyone,

I was so excited when I discovered my fabric collection in the 'Coming Soon' section on the Fat Quarter Shop website. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to see this collection coming to fruition.

I am the face to this fabric, but there are many other faces behind the scenes that made this happen.  Yes, I came up with the concept, the colors, and the inspiration, but the talented graphic artists at Marcus Fabrics brought it to life.  I couldn't have done this without their guidance and help.

There were many zoom calls, emails back and forth changing this and that.  It has been so educational for me to learn about the ins and outs of fabric design.  Now I can't wait to start on my next fabric collection!

I've been very quiet lately on my blog, but very busy behind the scenes.  I had a very long to-do list when I returned from the Pieceful Gathering retreat in Illinois. I've been filling Etsy orders, pattern writing for my block of the month program, working on taxes (insert weary face here), and shoveling snow (insert a wearier face here).

I'm well on my way writing the pattern for Bridle Path.  I'm also finishing up the quilt.  I'm still on the fence as to whether or not to machine quilt it myself.  I have to decide pretty soon because Fat Quarter Shop wants to photograph the quilt for their BOM program.  After that, the quilt will travel around the country to other quilt shops.  It will most likely be hanging at Hancock's of Paducah as they will be offering kits. Since the story behind the quilt originated in Kentucky, I'm very excited to have it on display in their shop.

On the home front, the torrential rains melted about 2 feet of snow away.  More rain is in the forecast for today and the snow begins again on Tuesday.  Is there no end?  

We contacted several people to clear a path to our propane tank to no avail. The company delivering propane wouldn't deliver if we didn't clear a path down from the road.  One gentleman, and I use that term loosely, very quickly told me he would never shovel.  Our propane tank is on a hill and is not easily accessible.  I took this picture of my propane tank and posted it in January of 2018.  I did a parody of Erma Bombeck and said, "Life is greener under the propane tank."  I said that because it is located outside my sewing room.


One young man said he was willing to snowshoe over to the tank to find out the percentage of propane left in the tank.  Just that trek cost us $100.00.  He was a nice 20-something kid, but really?  Anyway, we were down to 30% on a Thursday.  Even with conservation and freezing our tail feathers off, we were down to 20% the following week.  We kept the woodburning stove going 24/7 and we were still cold since we turned the heater off.  My sewing room resembled working in a meat locker since it is the farthest room from the fire.  We were showering every other day and never used hot water when washing clothes.

We had to bite the bullet and tackle the path-clearing job ourselves.  Our plan of attack was Mr. Joe would use the snowblower on the 6' berm at the road, while I started digging from the propane tank up the hill.  For starters I should have attached stilts on my snowshoes to get to the tank!  The snow was crotch-high, which is a scientific term we have used multiple times this Winter.  Do you know how hard it is to walk in snow that deep on a hill?  I would have made better time if I had just rolled my body over to the tank, or I could have ridden the sled down the 6' berm directly to the tank.

To make a long story short, we finished the job and felt very proud of ourselves. That afternoon required a long nap by the fire.  I called the propane company and told them we were down to 20%, and there was a clear path to the tank. I was told we needed to conserve since she had no way on knowing when they could get a driver out to our area.  There were cabins in our neighborhood completely out of propane and we just had to wait our turn.  It was then that I played the 'elder card' but to no avail.  About three days later, the propane truck came by our cabin, and I could have kissed his feet!  The driver scrambled down our nicely shoveled path like a mountain goat and we were in business.  Hot showers and heater here we come!  Our propane bill is one bill I will not complain about paying this month.  I will have to be sitting down when I open the envelope, because the bill could top out at $1,000.  The joys of living in the mountains are never-ending.

Soon,
Lynn
















21 comments:

  1. sounds like an awful experience with the snow I have heard so much of it and between snow and rain you have had it so bad. I'm glad you finally got the propane tank full. The quilt looks beautiful - I hadn't seen that it would be a BOM for the FQS.

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    1. This Winter is the worst we've experienced since we bought our first place up here in 1999. The locals say this is how it used to be in the old days.....like the 80's!

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  2. So glad to hear that you finally got propane. Mark and I moved to New Jersey last summer expecting to get snow this winter, but we only got 2 inches all winter. I love your new quilt and your fabric line. Stay safe.

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    1. Good to hear from you, Bev. We have enough snow in my county to cover all of New Jersey with several feet! It makes me happy that you like the new quilt and fabric.

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  3. Congrats! I'm so excited and happy for you!

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  4. So glad to hear from you. Have been wondering and worrying about about you and Mr. Joe. Let's hope this outrageous weather comes to a close here real soon. It's a whole 35 sunny windy degrees here on our hill but the wind does make it cold. Later this week we're expecting mid 70's.

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    1. We are lucky to get the temperature in the cabin up to 70!

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  5. We are so glad you found an opportunity to write! I have been checking your blog several times a day. It's good to hear all is relatively well. Thanks so much for letting us know . I hope that young man never needs help with anything. We will criss our fingers the next storm isn't so inundating

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    1. So far, the storm hasn't been too bad today. It might be a different story on Tuesday.

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  6. I love the fabric line. Can't wait. And your story on digging out the propane tank was just great. Don't envy all the digging and dealing with tons of snow. Kiddos to you both.

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    1. I'm so glad you like the fabric line. Now about those 'kiddos'. We'd be in the Guiness Book of World Records if we had more 'kiddos' at our age!

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  7. Your quilt is beautiful! I suggest next summer you replace your propane tank with a much larger one, one that is large enough to hold all your LP for the winter. The price is much lower during the summer and you won't have to go through the excitement you just experienced.

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  8. $100 to snow shoe down to read a meter? The kids today are amazing, aren't they? I hired a teen to scoop the kitty litter every other day while on vacation. She didn't have to feed or play with Polly as we have an auto-feeder while on vacation and Polly doesn't like strangers. Come scoop and leave. We were charged $25/visit!!! Today's youths hold themselves in very high esteem these days. I'll find someone else next time for sure. Glad you've got heat & hot water again. Life is good!

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    1. Yes, life is good even through we are in the midst of another snowstorm!

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  9. Like others, I’ve been checking your blog daily hoping for a post from you. So glad to hear that you’ve got heat (the things we take for granted…) and that you and Mr. Joe are OK. Can’t wait to see your new fabric line in the quilt shops. I’m sure you are beyond thrilled!

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    1. I made your deep dish pizza recipe when I returned home from the retreat. We love it. I'm looking forward to seeing my material is shops too!

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  10. Hey neighbor! Hasn’t it been an adventure? The silver lining is we never lost power! Glad the propane situation was finally rectified! If you are with EPG, you can check your tank level online now! You just need to create your account up there.

    Love the fabric line and cannot wait to do the block of the month. It is so thrilling for me to know a fabric and pattern creator! You are amazing!

    Diana Davis

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  11. An adventure is an understatement! What a Winter! It's exciting for me to know such a creative person as yourself. You inspire me!

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  12. Sometimes, I am very happy living in my warm Texas climate. We only like ice in our snow cones and tea. Hope things get normal for you….can’t wait for the new fabric line and quilt to start on. Great work, Lynn!

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