Right now in life, I am:

MAKING quilts! I finished piecing the top of my paper airplanes quilt that I started at the Cotton and Steel Craft South Workshop (see photos of the process here, here, here, and here.) I sent it off to a long-arm quilter to quilt and finish it off. I’ve already started on my next quilt, a value quilt! I’m so excited to use some of the fabrics I’ve been collecting for years! (see the fabrics here, here, and here.) I plan on attempting to quilt this one myself!
COOKING lots of homemade GF margherita pizza. Seriously, we’ve made 8 homemade pizzas this month. Working on perfecting a crust recipe!
DRINKING lemon green tea with honey every morning out of my favorite mug that I made in my ceramics class last spring.
READING several quilting books. For Christmas last year, my dad got me several quilting books I’d been eyeing. I’ve read all but part of the last one this month! Quilting with a Modern Slant: People, Patterns, and Techniques Inspiring the Modern Quilt Community by Rachel May has been a really great read! It highlights many big quilters in the modern quilt world, talks about their processes, gives history of the modern quilting tradition (with nods to the art quilting and traditional quilting worlds), and has been really inspiring. I love that it talks about quilting like the art form that it is. My painting work in college had a big nod to the quilting industry and I was really inspired by that while reading. I wish I’d read this book earlier!

WANTING to continue experimenting with different surface pattern designs, working to define my style. Also excited about future quilts! I’m really enjoying the composition and design process of quilting. Also really wanting to paint and take wheel throwing ceramics again.
PLAYING Paul Simon and James Taylor on the record player. 
SEWING patchwork for quilts! 
CROCHETING nothing lately. Crocheting has taken a back seat to other creative endeavors. I’ve really been thinking the last few days about getting out that throw blanket I started last year to work on again. 
WISHING for lovely fall days ahead! This summer has been a warm one!

ENJOYING playing with pretty fabrics. Just looking through fabrics for my next quilt has been so inspiring!
WAITING on the California King size sheets I ordered for our bedroom to come in to get to work on finishing up that room! No, we don’t have a Cal King, we have a Queen size bed, but the Cal King was all they had left in the sheet design I had envisioned for the room! There will be some sewing/tweaking happening in my future!
LIKING using my office/studio area for a multitude of purposes lately. I’ve been sewing/quilting/cutting fabric in there, sketching in India ink for pattern designs, setting up my desktop computer at my desk, and hoping to start painting again in there soon!
WONDERING why I’ve been getting so many headaches lately! Almost every afternoon I’ve been getting bad tension headaches. My back and neck have been pretty tight lately too, regardless of trips to the chiropractor, Pilates, and the steam room at the gym! I guess the stress of fall publications at work have really just been getting to me.
LOVING our new foyer shelves, dresser, and church pew!! That room has really been shaping up lately into the vision I’ve had for it! Loving how much more useful, practical, pretty, and functional it is now! We’ve used that room more in the last month than we have in years!

HOPING that my value quilt comes together well! I’m still so new to quilting that I get a little intimidated, although I have high hopes for this quilt! I think it is going to be beautiful! It will be the first quilt I’ve attempted to quilt and bind myself, so that should be interesting…
MARVELING at the beauty and talent of people. Surrounded by pretty fabrics has me admiring many of my favorite designers all over again.
NEEDING some quiet and relaxing time after how busy I’ve been at work this month. No wonder I’ve been getting so many headaches.
LEARNING about quilting! (as if I haven’t already mentioned that a million times already…) Really though, I’m enjoying learning more about this art and the many artists that specialize in it.
SMELLING homemade pizza…mmm…. 

WEARING these new leather shoes I got on our trip to Nashville. Leather t-strap heels! I thought I’d sworn off all heels, but these are so low that they are comfortable and I’m really liking them! Also embracing wearing minimal make-up.
FOLLOWING me around and having to be in the middle of everything (Violet again), up on my cutting table this time.
NOTICING the transformation of this city, just in the six years we’ve lived here. Last Saturday was the 10th anniversary of Katrina. Drew and I spent the day working with RHINO on a Habitat build for the New Orleans Day of Service (photos here and here).
KNOWING that the secret to success in the art/design industry is learning to sketch and create daily. Working on that. I’ve really gotten into sketching a lot this month. Here is one of my sketches, turned pattern.
THINKING about how much I would like to spend my days napping and relaxing like my cat does.

BOOKMARKING lots of quilting ideas!
CELEBRATING Violet’s 1st birthday! August 18!
OPENING a couple cute new circle skirts I bought from ModCloth. I’ve been admiring that vintage style for a long time!
LAUGHING at Violet’s photo, above! 
FEELING grateful for creativity.

Past Life Right Now posts:
July 2015 | June 2015 | May 2015 | April 2015 | March 2015 | February 2015 | January 2015
December 2014 | November 2014  | October 2014 | September 2014 | August 2014 | July 2014 | June 2014