Cabin Fever Cure - Challenge Yourself!

Snoodles at Lily Pad Quilts in hosting a  Cabin Fever Party. Check out what everyone is doing to combat cabin fever  this Winter by clicking the link above.

Wish this was my view right about now!

Cabin Fever??   Yep - we had signs of it popping up around here.

Much closer to what my view really is today.

December was the month of Sick Dogs and snow.  January was the Polar Vortex and more snow. February was a snow/cold cycle with some thunder snow and sleet/rain mixed in.  The last three months have not been conducive to road trips, riding or eating healthy either (the freezer was housing several pints of Ben & Jerry's, (replenished a few times). All those days of staying inside because it was not fit for woman or beast outside, can make the walls close in a bit. 

I've been in the studio - cleaning, organizing and stitching. I cranked through piecing and quilting my Caribbean Solstice quilt in January and started on the first row of Daring Downton Debacle Challenge quilt. February brought the second row of the DDD challenge quilt. Then came the all too brief thaw and a new balmy temp of 46 degrees - for 1 day. We are back down in the 20's temp-wise, snow expected and it just makes you want to slump in a chair as winter drags you back down.
blah, blah, blah, blah, blah......

ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!!

Clearly some Drastic Measures are needed here!!  And I had just the thing waiting in the wings.

BRIGHT COLORS!

CHALLENGING FABRIC!!  

It's SILK Dupioni, for Pete's sake!!!

DESIGN DECISIONS!!!

Time to beat the Cabin Fever into submission.  I switched on EVERY light I had in the studio (and we all know I need more lights in there), lit a spearmint candle (for a bright Spring-like energy), made a large pot of tea and got busy.

I originally thought I would just improv piece this top.  I couldn't  - I tried but couldn't do it.  I don't have a lot of the silk and didn't want to waste it.  I may take the leftovers and try something improv after this top if done.

I started with the smallest center square block of all the colors to see how they played against the black.

OOO - Dramatic contrast!!

Then moved on to working each individual color.  Here's the fuchsia blocks for the very center of the top.

This is what I have done so far.

Taken in the windy early morning light - love the glow!

I have enough of the bright colors but I am going to be short of the black.  It's already on order from Country Keepsakes

It is a Challenge (my word for 2014) and that's the whole point of doing it now. I need something to break the monotony of winter.  Yes, I have a lot of project planned that have Spring deadlines. I'm not ready to start stitching on them yet - those designs still need some work.  I have to pay close attention when I am working with the silks - they demand full concentration.   The silk is bright and slippery and sheds threads like mad! There is a learning curve for handling the stitching of it. The bright colors make me smile and that releases endorphins - excellent for beating cabin fever.

Break out of your usual quilt routine - throw in some bright colors, try new techniques, change your size, scale and direction, make a fabric mess in your studio or just play with fabric!  Those are my antidotes for cabin fever.

Most of winter is in our rear view mirror.  It will give us a few more mule kicks before Spring blows in but we come this far and the days are getting longer, giving us more daylight hours. I've also read, watched Downton Abbey Season 1, 2 & 3 on DVD, planned the repainting of the downstairs bathroom (bicycle yellow - a light, bright, lemony, creamy yellow and Belgian cream), helped with the new closet install, and cooked.

That's all for now... I need to go de-silk thread my studio, the stairway carpet and a dog or two.  What are you doing to overcome your cabin fever?