I've got a couple dozen of these blocks done so far, and am pleased with the ease at which they can be turned out. I have put my iron right next to my sewing machine so I can avoid getting up to the pressing station, which saves time and steps.
I have been cutting out a couple dozen strips of fabric at a time, so I have a nice variety of combinations to choose from. My goal is not to have more than two blocks with the same fabrics. If I mess up and put the same fabrics together more than once I will live with it, but I am trying not to.
It is still hot as blazes here. Another 100 degree day. Eva's daddy took her to swim practice yesterday so I was spared. Whew. But it's up to me again today, so I am going to be prepared. I have a chair, an umbrella, a gigantic hat, and a big container for ice water. This time I am going to try not to get sunstroke.
A few of you expressed surprise that there is no covering to provide shade. Well, here's my take on it–the swim practices are held at the local high school. It is all very bare bones. There is a huge pool and a big area of concrete surrounding it. I think the powers that be designed it so that the kids who are swimming are in the pool doing their laps, and if you aren't one of them, you probably don't have any business being there. They sure didn't make any accommodation for observers! That's fine if you have a 16 year old, but a lot of parents of 8 year olds want to stay and watch. If the practices were held at the local country club, there would be picnic tables, umbrellas and overhangs.
As I recall, when I was a teenager, my high school was open to the public for swimming in the summer and there wasn't a speck of shade. Just hot concrete that we baked on. It's a wonder we don't all have skin damage. We were pretty casual about using sun screen back in the day too. Baby oil with a few drops of iodine to stain our skin was all the rage. Do any of you remember Bain de Soleil? It was a gel like sun screen with an SPF of about 8, that was kind of bronze colored when you smeared it on. It made my lily white legs look like they were tan already. I loved that stuff and had no idea that it wasn't doing a bit of good to protect my skin. Now we spray on the SPF 50, but it's too late for my freckled and spotty old body.
27 responses to “One Block Progress”
Nicole, it looks like you have found the perfect summer sewing project, something that will be easy to squeeze into any spare minutes of time you get. I love the blocks you’ve pieced. Enjoy your summer with Eva, moments to be cherished for sure. I’m thinking of piecing a few Christmas in July projects, keep that in the back of you mind as you sail through June.
Nicole, it looks like you have found the perfect summer sewing project, something that will be easy to squeeze into any spare minutes of time you get. I love the blocks you’ve pieced. Enjoy your summer with Eva, moments to be cherished for sure. I’m thinking of piecing a few Christmas in July projects, keep that in the back of you mind as you sail through June.
Nicole, it looks like you have found the perfect summer sewing project, something that will be easy to squeeze into any spare minutes of time you get. I love the blocks you’ve pieced. Enjoy your summer with Eva, moments to be cherished for sure. I’m thinking of piecing a few Christmas in July projects, keep that in the back of you mind as you sail through June.
Reading your blog post this morning certainly brought back memories. Not only did we use baby oil when out in the sun, (where we baked for hours!), but we used a product called Sun In for our hair. It was a lemon scented spray that was supposed to make our hair turn more blond being out in the sun. And for some reason, we all wanted to be blonds! Now that my hair colour comes out of a box, I know that being in the sun too long makes my hair go a shade of yellow without any other product! Your blocks look great and I’m thinking that it would be a great project for using up scraps.
Reading your blog post this morning certainly brought back memories. Not only did we use baby oil when out in the sun, (where we baked for hours!), but we used a product called Sun In for our hair. It was a lemon scented spray that was supposed to make our hair turn more blond being out in the sun. And for some reason, we all wanted to be blonds! Now that my hair colour comes out of a box, I know that being in the sun too long makes my hair go a shade of yellow without any other product! Your blocks look great and I’m thinking that it would be a great project for using up scraps.
Reading your blog post this morning certainly brought back memories. Not only did we use baby oil when out in the sun, (where we baked for hours!), but we used a product called Sun In for our hair. It was a lemon scented spray that was supposed to make our hair turn more blond being out in the sun. And for some reason, we all wanted to be blonds! Now that my hair colour comes out of a box, I know that being in the sun too long makes my hair go a shade of yellow without any other product! Your blocks look great and I’m thinking that it would be a great project for using up scraps.
The blocks look great! It will be a wonderful quilt. Yes, I did all those terrible things for my skin and hair during my teens. What were we thinking???
Mary
The blocks look great! It will be a wonderful quilt. Yes, I did all those terrible things for my skin and hair during my teens. What were we thinking???
Mary
The blocks look great! It will be a wonderful quilt. Yes, I did all those terrible things for my skin and hair during my teens. What were we thinking???
Mary
Love the array of blocks you’ve made and, like you, I’d hope not to repeat fabric combinations but wouldn’t sweat it if it happened.
Glad yuo’re well supplied to keep cool at pool-side today! Remember QT? It was Quick Tan for a fake tan but made me look a bit orange so I didn’t use it more than once. Oh, to find the Fountain of Middle Age! I was nearly invincible then and knew more than I did when young! 🙂
Hugs!
Love the array of blocks you’ve made and, like you, I’d hope not to repeat fabric combinations but wouldn’t sweat it if it happened.
Glad yuo’re well supplied to keep cool at pool-side today! Remember QT? It was Quick Tan for a fake tan but made me look a bit orange so I didn’t use it more than once. Oh, to find the Fountain of Middle Age! I was nearly invincible then and knew more than I did when young! 🙂
Hugs!
Love the array of blocks you’ve made and, like you, I’d hope not to repeat fabric combinations but wouldn’t sweat it if it happened.
Glad yuo’re well supplied to keep cool at pool-side today! Remember QT? It was Quick Tan for a fake tan but made me look a bit orange so I didn’t use it more than once. Oh, to find the Fountain of Middle Age! I was nearly invincible then and knew more than I did when young! 🙂
Hugs!
My face has so much sun damage. We walked beans in the hot Iowa summer sun with no sunscreen, and in college we laid on the dorm roof slathered in baby oil. I so wish I had taken better care of my skin, but nobody thought a thing about it back in the 60s and 70s. Now I can hardly tolerate being out in the blazing sun. Good luck with swim practice. It sounds like you are prepared!
My face has so much sun damage. We walked beans in the hot Iowa summer sun with no sunscreen, and in college we laid on the dorm roof slathered in baby oil. I so wish I had taken better care of my skin, but nobody thought a thing about it back in the 60s and 70s. Now I can hardly tolerate being out in the blazing sun. Good luck with swim practice. It sounds like you are prepared!
My face has so much sun damage. We walked beans in the hot Iowa summer sun with no sunscreen, and in college we laid on the dorm roof slathered in baby oil. I so wish I had taken better care of my skin, but nobody thought a thing about it back in the 60s and 70s. Now I can hardly tolerate being out in the blazing sun. Good luck with swim practice. It sounds like you are prepared!
Bain de’ Soleil, Coppertone, baby oil…all followed with a dose of Solarcaine for the sunburn that was inevitable! I grew up on Ft. Lauderdale beach during the ‘Where the Boys Are’ era so weekends & summers were spent in.the.sun. ☀️🔥 Would I change it? Nope!
Your blocks are a great way to fill a spare hour or two as it happens & see progress toward a finish!
Bain de’ Soleil, Coppertone, baby oil…all followed with a dose of Solarcaine for the sunburn that was inevitable! I grew up on Ft. Lauderdale beach during the ‘Where the Boys Are’ era so weekends & summers were spent in.the.sun. ☀️🔥 Would I change it? Nope!
Your blocks are a great way to fill a spare hour or two as it happens & see progress toward a finish!
Bain de’ Soleil, Coppertone, baby oil…all followed with a dose of Solarcaine for the sunburn that was inevitable! I grew up on Ft. Lauderdale beach during the ‘Where the Boys Are’ era so weekends & summers were spent in.the.sun. ☀️🔥 Would I change it? Nope!
Your blocks are a great way to fill a spare hour or two as it happens & see progress toward a finish!
That is going to be a beautiful quilt! Yep, I have so much sun damage from my youth. 🙁
That is going to be a beautiful quilt! Yep, I have so much sun damage from my youth. 🙁
That is going to be a beautiful quilt! Yep, I have so much sun damage from my youth. 🙁
Love where you are heading with your blocks!
Since I never got tanned (not even when I spent threee weeks in the Mediterranean in summer) I normally stay out of the sun. The good thing about this is that I look 10 years younger then I actually am.
Love where you are heading with your blocks!
Since I never got tanned (not even when I spent threee weeks in the Mediterranean in summer) I normally stay out of the sun. The good thing about this is that I look 10 years younger then I actually am.
Love where you are heading with your blocks!
Since I never got tanned (not even when I spent threee weeks in the Mediterranean in summer) I normally stay out of the sun. The good thing about this is that I look 10 years younger then I actually am.
My high school pool was the same–and used for public swimming in the summer. We did have a set of bleachers for spectators to sit on for swim meets and water polo games, but definitely no shade. I worked my way through college life guarding and teaching swimming at that same pool. Now I’ve had some basal cell cancer removed from my nose. And I’m avoiding the sun like the plague.
My high school pool was the same–and used for public swimming in the summer. We did have a set of bleachers for spectators to sit on for swim meets and water polo games, but definitely no shade. I worked my way through college life guarding and teaching swimming at that same pool. Now I’ve had some basal cell cancer removed from my nose. And I’m avoiding the sun like the plague.
My high school pool was the same–and used for public swimming in the summer. We did have a set of bleachers for spectators to sit on for swim meets and water polo games, but definitely no shade. I worked my way through college life guarding and teaching swimming at that same pool. Now I’ve had some basal cell cancer removed from my nose. And I’m avoiding the sun like the plague.