To the hospital and will be back posting next week or so, hopefully.

And I leave you a little tease of the nursery…

Have a lovely week!

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Well, sort of–I fixed an old bow-tie quilt that I bought for $15 about seven years ago or so.  I loved its pale sun-bleached colors, but it was tattered with a big ugly brown stain that kept it tucked away in a closet for years. But I kept it with the belief that one day I’d fix it or use it for something else.

Of course that day coincides with being in my 41st week of pregnancy when you are so desperate to do something with your time other than write negative reviews of Yelp to Mr.  Stork and eviction notices to your unborn child.

It started out quite innocently on my last day of work when Jen and I wandered into a little store in the Mission called The Bell Jar where they had some pretty vintage quilt squares for sale.  I bought two thinking I could use them for the quilt, which came out of the closet when I was looking for a bit of extra bedding.

Here it is in the beginning stages after I covered the big brown stain using the vintage patch I bought from the Bell Jar.  You can see all of the white…

And here  is a close-up of the ruined squares that I thought I would fix in my spare time.

I forgot how much I enjoy hand sewing. It was calming and something I could do and feel like I was being productive that didn’t involve lifting heaving objects or playing with deadly chemicals.  As I worked on the quilt, I saw more and more little patches that needed fixing.

If nothing else this quilt was a great excuse to raid my fabric stash and sew up little nine patch squares using up the sweet squares I bought from Alicia Paulson’s site ages ago. She’s got a great eye for color. And I must admit, I didn’t hand sew them–I ran them through my serger. So naughty!

Forty-plus patches and almost three weeks of evenings, I give you this:

And another close up:

I like it so much, I’m taking it to the hospital with me for my post labor room. They recommend having a nice blanket to personalize your room. And this one is very personalized and is part of my story for the Peach. I think she’ll like it too.

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Did I ever mention the wallpaper in the nursery?

When we bought the house, we knew the exact room we wanted to use for the nursery. Although at first look, it didn’t ooze baby charm. It oozed 70s paneling with a touch of “Bonanza” in the light fixtures. Which Mr. Sweetie ripped off the walls the day we got the keys.

Only to reveal a buried treasure of wallpaper–five plus layers of vintage wallpaper that needed to be pried off the wall.

Some of the wallpapers were charming–like this “I love Lucy–the Westport years” colonial wallpaper–you can see the clipper ship peeking through the stripes and evil clown wallpapers around it.

Does anyone else get the “ILL” reference? I think I watched WAY too much “I Love Lucy” growing up and clearly it had a very sticky influence for me pregnancy clothes and design wise.  Does anyone else remember the ballet prints she had in her bedroom? Or the vintage spinning wheel she wanted for her Westport house?  Since I grew up in Westport, CT, I’m sure this might have had to do something with loving that look.

Anyway, here ismy Sweetie teaching that wallpaper a lesson–8 by 11 inches of steam at a time.

But the real winner is this overwhelming brown plaid:

I thought I’d seen somewhere before–oh yeah, the Drapers’ kitchen from MadMen.  Gotta love that.  Hey, and her kitchen curtains are looking mighty familiar…  Oh good Lord…

Weeks of after-work hours, and quite a bit of additional time from the rents, we finally managed to get the wallpaper off. And then came the tiring tasks of washing the walls, spackling the walls, sanding the walls, and washing the walls again before we finally painted them.

A last minute decision was made for blue walls. Which I can’t lie–are inspired by my new fancy for red and light blue/aqua, brought on I’m sure by too much time staring at Cath Kitson’s addictive books and one too many return visit to charming blogs like Alicia’s or Miss Vintage Pleasure.

More nursery updates to come! But hopefully a baby update to come before that.

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Just short of offering this kid a pony, I’m doing things to coax our little Peach out.  The first was the quilt and now this–some knitting fun and a place for her.

I have been too anxious to even think about casting on something that I won’t have time to finish before the baby comes, and too pregnancy-brained to follow an actual pattern, so knitting projects have had to be pulled back to the most basic ones. But basic doesn’t mean not full of charm or perfect for the baby.

I somehow managed to finish this sweet little set of booties with a matching hat made from yarn I already had around–nicely modeled by Raggedy Anne.

Raggedy is also testing the little nook we carved out for the baby in our bedroom room, since the nursery is not ready yet. I’ll give you a sneak peak of it tomorrow hopefully…  We patched together the little space with an old bookcase that holds the burp cloths I edged with vintagey fabric, as well as IKEA tins full of the tiniest little shirts in size newborn just waiting for the Peach.  Oh and a little box full of the sweetest footies ever.

The top of my great Aunt Lil’s mirrored dresser is the perfect place for a changing table. And the co-sleeper was too big, so we are putting the wee one in a vintage pram from the 40s that can be wheeled from room to room.

It’s not big, my little Peach, but much love went into creating this welcoming place for you–so please come out–we are waiting for you. We’ve packed out bags and are ready to go.

We just need you to let us know when you are ready to go.

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Well, I’m still pregnant. So very very pregnant.

A friend on Facebook said, “it’s no use shaking the tree to get the fruit out–better to wait.”  However, I must admit I’d like to strangle that tree and have my little Peach fall into my welcoming arms.

But instead I build a nest for her. A quilt to catch her and wrap her in against this cold bright world. Perhaps that is what she is waiting for.

Since the move, the quilt has been skittled around from room to room,  pieced together from the vintage tablecloth I bought ages ago.  I never sat down and said, “today I will make the quilt”–it sort of just bloomed on its own.  And machine quilting isn’t as easy as it looks. It takes time and measurements and a bit of fiddling at times.

Mistakes were made (too fluffy of a batting traded out for an adhesive one.) And many stitches were taken out. Not for perfection–just to make sure the little quilt was getting the right guidance. I don’t think there is a straight line of stitching on it despite the blue markers made with a t-ruler, but I don’t think sthe baby will mind.

Here is the quilt.

It is not perfect but it was a joy to make.

I always think of that one line from Wes Anderson’s American Express video.  I know–bizarre, but inspiration can come from the most unusually places:

“There is beauty in the flaws and vice versa.”

Which is so true for quilting and for life. It’s the every day things that bring so much joy. So, I sit here trying not to be too impatient with  my little Peach and just enjoy this little bit of life as I finish this quilt early on a Saturday morning, listening to Ben Lee and Sean Lennon sing background to my whirring machine.

Patience. I will always wait for you, sweet baby.

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Unfortunately, due to technical compooter difficulties, I haven’t been able to post for the past week, which has indeed been a bummer, so I expect a few posts over the next few days until I deliver.

Which by the way has not happened yet. My due date came and went with nary a proper labor contraction. The day did include a couple of good errands like a run to IKEA for last minute nesting, a dead car battery, a missed OBGYN appt., and tons of traffic.  Hmm… I wonder if I make the baby her quilt, if she’ll come out… Stay tuned for more posts on that…

Oh and I’m huge–as I wrote some friends earlier this week you can see and the wall of China from space.

Anyway, back to my original post I was writing and wanted to post Monday.

Ever since I my cousin, Cheryl unwrapped her Barbie Dream House* that fateful Christmas morning all those years ago, I’ve dreamed about the way I would decorate it.* And now that I’m in a house I plan on being in for hopefully a long time I want to make the right decisions.

I can’t remember the name of the designer who said  to only bring things into your house that are useful and/or beautiful, but it is something I am now cleaving to, which means waiting on items until you find just the right thing that suits your fancy to a T. Like this:

I don’t know why, but I love Love LOVE these dear curtains I made from a vintage tablecloth bought off of Ebay last year thinking they would be nice somewhere in my old kitchen. Kinda kitschy, but full of that late 50’s charm that I find so dear. And they match the older yellow counter-tops we inherited with the house along with our vintage red kitchen table we’ve had for awhile.  Here is a close up of the pattern:

The valance I made–well, I’m still under debate on that. It looks a bit heavy, so I might have to pull that back a bit. We’ll see.

But the curtains make me smile. Isn’t that was your house is suppose to make you do?

So, while I still have rooms that look like this:

I can just turn my head to the kitchen curtains and smile.

*I know. I didn’t get the dream house–instead my parents thought I would enjoy the barbie mobile home/camper, which to this day I still find confusing as I’m not much of a camper or motorist, but hilarious nonetheless.

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Sorry the posts dried up in January. Between work, the move and the pregnancy, I’ve been pretty much tuckered out, but now that I’m officially on maternity leave and my parents are snugly tucked into the back room to help get the house ready before the little ticking time-bomb in my belly goes off, I’m now able to unleash the nesting hormone to its full effect.

I must admit, it’s pretty tough moving into a new house when you are in your 39th week of pregnancy. But not for the reasons you’d think. It’s because you are looking down the barrel of a craft/nesting explosion of awesomeness and you:

1. Can’t lift anything heavier than 15 lbs
2. Can’t get on a step stool to put up anything like curtains, shelves, etc.
3. Can’t paint anything

And of course I want to do all three things on an hourly basis. All that compounded with feeling utterly exhausted from a full day of work when I get home hasn’t helped much either.  So poor Mr. Sweetie has to do the work of two people. And of course a few of my uber dandy friends  (I’m looking start at the Pharphys and GIN/LIN combo as well as the sister and the beloved rents) have been super helpful in making a huge dent in all of the work. Words cannot express how thankful I am for their help.

And the house is showing improvements little by little, day by day.

So expect several posts laden with pictures over the next week as I try to cram in as many house projects we before this little lady decides to flee the coop.  Speaking of the bump,  here’s a rather awful picture of me, but a great one of the Peach.  And I’m bigger now!

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