Category: 2014

PIQF 2014

TFQ came down for a visit and we went to the Pacific International Quilt Festival on Saturday. In the past we have gone in time for the Preview on Wednesday, stayed over night on Thursday and Friday and really indulged in quilt show ecstasy. TFQ was not able to come down for the last year or two and I didn’t stay over at all last year. This year we just spent one day and that seemed fine.

Overall, the quilts at the show seemed dark. I think I have been looking at a lot of quilts with white or light or light grey backgrounds lately. These are the feel of quilts I have been making lately also, as you know. The show quilts seemed darker to me. There were a lot of pictorial quilts and a lot of quilts with serious surface design.

Dinghy by Shelly Burge
Dinghy by Shelly Burge

I took a few photos of quilts that struck some chord. One was a quilt depicting dinghies, which would normally fall into the not so appealing pictorial quilt. TFQ was the first one to notice this quilt. This one, surprisingly was interesting because of the use of color.

I really like that violet solid on the left side of the hull. I also like the oars and the inside of the hull on the left side of the left hand dinghy.

I am on the fence about the water. I like the bold choice of the red, but I can’t decide when it was a good choice.

Sheila Walwyn, South Africa, Still Life with Copper Pot
Sheila Walwyn, South Africa, Still Life with Copper Pot

I am not sure how this quilt will look to you, but it was really appealing to me from a Tarts Come to Tea point of view. As you know that quilt is on my list to finish and one thing stopping me is how to quilt a couple of the larger vessels.

If you look closely at the tall, gold pot, you will see the quilt and it makes me wonder if something like that would be suitable for the Tarts? The roundness of the circles would echo the roundness of the large teapot. If it is appropriate, could I actually do the quilting?

In terms of this quilt, I like the still life idea and I also like the use of different fabrics for the background.

Dina Carmiel, Israel, A Touch of Autumn
Dina Carmiel, Israel, A Touch of Autumn

I have been thinking about the leftover octagons from the Russian Rubix. I thought of making them into snowballs, but wasn’t 100% happy with that as a finished block only. When I saw Dina Carmiel’s A Touch of Autumn I got a new idea that would make the piece much better. Take out the hexagons from the piece on the left and add some nine patches and I think that it could be an interesting project and an interesting donation quilt. I like the secondary pattern and it would give me a good opportunity to work with the same colors I have been using. Another series, I guess.

In a way I was looking for true inspiration for current projects and I didn’t even really know it. I found inspiration for 2 projects and, possibly, a third.

It was a great opportunity to visit the vendors. I hadn’t been at a quilt show, really, in awhile and it was appealing to see a lot of different fabrics in one place. I was really looking forward to seeing the vendors. There were a lot of the same vendors who have been there forever, but some new ones as well. We saw some really bright and cheerful fabrics. One of my favorite booths was Quiltin’ Cousins. I love the look of their booth as well as the fabrics. The other booth that was great was Beyond the Reef, which sells rolls of Hawaiian fabric, though in recent years they have brought different fabrics to PIQF. They were really nice and cheerful in that booth. They seemed to be having a great time. I bought some Flatter along with some fabric. I have been wanting to try it and it just seemed like a good time to get some.

Civil War Elegance by Linda Bergemann
Civil War Elegance by Linda Bergemann

We did get inspired by one quilt and may start a joint project based on that quilt. The quilt is called civil War Elegance by Linda Bergmann of Elk Grove, California. Stay tuned for more info.

 

 

**Copyright notice is for photos only not for quilts

More Border on the Russian Rubix

Russian Rubix Top
Russian Rubix Top

I made some progress over the weekend and it felt good. The whole top is sewn together and I have started work on the border. I didn’t have enough time to do as much I as I would have liked, but I have to be happy with what I was able to do. I really wanted to keep working on the border and will again this weekend or next.

Upper Right Hand Corner, Russian Rubix
Upper Right Hand Corner, Russian Rubix

I am not the sort of person who measures out every little piece, so I can just hope that the border works out. I will know when I get to the end of the top row. I know all you math people are screaming about how crazy that would make you, but that is the way I work. It could be that I am making trouble for myself to allow myself the opportunity to fix it. I don’t think so, but you never know.

I will talk about them more, but I have to say that I really like the Fons & Porter Setting Triangles Ruler. I could not figure out the Marti Michell version of the same tool. The F&P ruler is really making setting those border blocks together easy.

Previous Posts:

High School History Art Project

The Young Man came home the other day and told me about a project/assignment he had for history. he had to write 5-10 entries in a journal of a character to be assigned on the Oregon Trail. He was assigned an 18 year old young man with $45 dollars. We brainstormed a little bit on the content and then he said he wanted to make the paper look old for extra credit.

I thought about this and suggested tea dyeing. I am not a tea dyeing kind of girl, nor do I do much with paper arts, but I thought I could make this happen. After work, on my way to the gym I asked him to let his tea bags dry out a little bit and determined to do the tea dyeing when I got home.

When I got home, he found me the ‘old looking paper’ he wanted to use. This was interesting, because it turned out to be college ruled binder paper. Huh? I wasn’t in the mood to argue and it was his project.

I spread the paper out on the kitchen counter and squeezed and rubbed the tea bags on the paper. To dry them, I microwaved the paper on high for 10-20 seconds. The effect was ok, but not as dark as the Y.M. had hoped. He did a second round with the tea bags, which made it better, but still not great.

Cinnamon 'Dyeing'
Cinnamon ‘Dyeing’

After dinner, as I was tidying up, I spied my giant bottle of cinnamon. It is the right color, so I poured some on the paper and rubbed with my fingers. The paper was really gritty, but also way more brown than the tea and not wet. The Y.M. was really happy with the effect.

Once the paper was finished, he took it and began writing the entries.

In the morning, I cut a piece of my book binding thread and, on the way to the train, I told him how to ‘bind‘ the papers together and tie them off. He didn’t take the time to make a cover, but, for the short time we had to do the extra parts of the project, I thought it looked good. I hope his teacher agrees, especially since the project smells like cinnamon.
image

Nephews Success

I finally got my act together and sent off the latest niece-phews quilts to the intended recipients. The Disappearing Pinwheel and the Wonky Nine Patch headed off about a week ago to two brothers, the youngest of my nephews. I was thrilled to finally get them out of the house. All reports were that the boys liked them. The boys liking them is the most important part. Truly. An added bonus.

Finished: Wonky 9 Patch
Finished: Wonky 9 Patch

The orange of the Wonky Nine Patch was a bold choice. I made it, because when I started the quilt, Aidan told me, in an offhand way, he really liked orange.  It stuck in my head and when I saw Kathleen’s quilt, it all jelled in my head. I was a little nervous about the orange, because some of the prints were tending towards the girly side. Also, boys, and kids in general, change their mind as often as they change their underwear…almost.

I didn’t say anything to anyone (Shhhh! Don’t tell!) and nobody has said anything to me. Aidan’s mom said the colors were perfect and I am so glad.

I have to say, again, probably, that I love that blue batik. It isn’t turquoise, but it also isn’t really in the navy family. It is a great water blue. If I see it again, I’ll buy 10 yards. That is probably too much, but I’ll have enough.

Disappearing Pinwheel Finished
Disappearing Pinwheel Finished

Pierce, the youngest of all of my nieces and nephews, got the Disappearing Pinwheel. I was concerned, again that it would be too girly, but the grey makes it boyish.

Looking at it again really makes me like the layout. If only I had thought to switch a pinwheel block with one of the Disappearing Pinwheel blocks, that would have added interest.

I have a loose project making quilts for all of my nieces and nephews. So far I have made 7 quilts for 7 youngsters. I have 8 more to make. As you know, I make them when I feel like making one or when I  get inspired to make a quilt and then don’t know who should get it. I started out with the idea that I would give each niece or nephew a quilt when they graduated from college, but that didn’t quite work with my creative process. Some of the younger kids may end up with two quilts – an additional quilt when they get to college. We’ll see.

Aidan with quilt
Aidan with quilt
Pierce with quilt
Pierce with quilt

Creative Prompt #280: Instrument

musical instrument

Oxford Instruments is a leading provider of high technology tools and systems for research and industry.

Instrument (2003 movie)

rental instrument

dental instrument

Definition1: “A musical instrument is an instrument created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates to the beginnings of human culture. Early musical instruments may have been used for ritual, such as a trumpet to signal success on the hunt, or a drum in a religious ceremony. Cultures eventually developed composition and performance of melodies for entertainment. Musical instruments evolved in step with changing applications.

The date and origin of the first device considered a musical instrument is disputed. The oldest object that some scholars refer to as a musical instrument, a simple flute, dates back as far as 67,000 years. Some consensus dates early flutes to about 37,000 years ago. However, most historians believe that determining a specific time of musical instrument invention is impossible due to the subjectivity of the definition and the relative instability of materials used to make them. Many early musical instruments were made from animal skins, bone, wood, and other non-durable materials.

Musical instruments developed independently in many populated regions of the world. However, contact among civilizations caused rapid spread and adaptation of most instruments in places far from their origin. By the Middle Ages, instruments from Mesopotamia were in Maritime Southeast Asia, and Europeans played instruments from North Africa. Development in the Americas occurred at a slower pace, but cultures of North, Central, and South America shared musical instruments. By 1400, musical instrument development slowed in many areas and was dominated by the Occident.

Musical instrument classification is a discipline in its own right, and many systems of classification have been used over the years. Instruments can be classified by their effective range, their material composition, their size, etc. However, the most common academic method, Hornbostel-Sachs, uses the means by which they produce sound. The academic study of musical instruments is called organology.” (Wikipedia)

Definition2: “A device used to determine the present value of quantity under measurement” (Wikipedia)

A digital creative studio in Portland

Native Instruments is a leading manufacturer of software and hardware for computer-based audio production and DJing.

Science and technology

Music

Other

Post the direct URL (link) where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. I would really like to keep all the artwork together and provide a way for others to see your work and/or your blog.

We are also talking about this on Twitter. Use the hashtag #CPP

The Creative Prompt Project, also, has a Flickr group, which you can join to  post your responses. I created this spot so those of you without blogs and websites would have a place to post your responses.

Jackie in Black & Grey

Jackie's Donation Blocks
Jackie’s Donation Blocks

I haven’t been able to make it to my PO Box recently and when my mom went for me, what a bonanza! Lots of fun goodies, including some blocks for the Black & Grey Teenaged Boy Donation Quilt from Jackie! WOW! What a great surprise and these blocks will really look great with the others I have.

I know I keep saying this, but I really, really need to put all the blocks out and take another picture. I need to see where I am.

This makes me think that I am continuing to make blocks for some reason that I don’t know or I haven’t decided to reveal? Perhaps these blocks are some kind of therapy?

I’ll think about it later.

As Promised, A Journal Cover

Blue Tree Journal Cover
Blue Tree Journal Cover

I have two blue journal covers in process. One is finished (read on!) and the other is still in the piecing stage. When I wrote the previous post, I thought I used a picture of the other journal cover, but I actually used the picture of this Blue Tree journal cover, which is, happily, also the one I finished. For once I was organized even though I thought I wasn’t. 😉

Anyway, I was about to finish all the pages in a journal and I needed to finish a new journal cover. I buckled down last weekend and put the finishing touches on this one. I finished just in the nick of time.

This journal cover is named after the fabric in the middle, which is a slice from a back I made some months ago with trees, White Birch trees, I think, printed on it.

Surprisingly, to me, at least, I started off with the front cover being the part of the journal cover you see on the left. It is ok in terms of interesting-ness, but nothing special. What was preventing me from using the other side, which I really liked, as the front was the Wizard of Oz fabric, which ended up smack dab in the middle of the part that was the most interesting.

I kept looking at the back and since the front and back are interchangeable, I just switched the cover around and am now using a new front. I like it and don’t even see the Wizard of Oz fabric.

Henry 2

As you saw on a recent Design Wall Monday post, I have been working on another piece of mosaic piecing.

Finally, over last weekend, there was enough yardage to really make progress on another softie. I have had another owl on my mind and decided it was time to cut out the parts. I finished almost all of the cutting except the eyes and the beak.

Henry 2 in process
Henry 2 in process

This past weekend, I cut out the eyes and the beak. They required some fusible and interfacing, so I worked on that in between my other projects. I thought I might get him done, but I worked more on the Russian Rubix and made some serious progress there. There is plenty to do on Henry.

I also need to get more of the plastic beads I use to weigh down pincushions. This will all shake out this weekend or soon

The project is coming together pretty well. I am worried about not having enough schnibbles with which to fill him, but I am also trying to be Zen about the whole thing and let it happen as I need the pieces and parts. I am such a control freak that it is hard.

As with Henry 1, Henry 2 is for a friend who is going through a tough time.

I really liked making this owl and have plans for more. It is a good gift that makes people smile. Sadly, I am now officially out of scraps of brown fabric. I may have to dive into my brown yardage if I want to make more of these.

More soon.

 

Various & Sundry #11 – mid October 2014

Have you taken a look at the tutorials page lately? There are a lot of great step-by-step directions on various quiltmaking techniques and I have made some updates lately.

Exhibits, Websites and Blogs

I have a quilt in an exhibit at the San Francisco Public Library. The exhibit, Primal Green 2, started on October 11 and will end in April 2015. This is a kind of follow up to our Primal Green exhibit from a few years ago. Read all about it in a recent newsletter.

Modern Quilts Illustrated will no longer have subscriptions. Read all about it on the Craft Nectar website.

Marie Bostwick has new shop on CafePress! This is something she has been working on “for some time. The shop features unique Cobbled Court themed merchandise including t-shirt, tote bags, coffee mugs and more, souvenirs of your armchair travels to the fictional village of New Bern, home of the Cobbled Court Quilt Shop.”

100% of profits from purchases will be donated to charity! Proceeds will be shared equally among The National Down Syndrome Society, Quilts for Kids, The Freedom Service Dogs Foundation, and The National Domestic Violence Hotline.

Banned Books Week passed and Tanesha and Sandy did their excellent work encouraging art quilts again using BBW as the theme. Tanesha has a comprehensive list of BBW links on her blog, Crafty Garden Mom. Take a look at the Flickr group for all of the entries, including past entries. I saw a post on a blog by a woman whose mother tried to alter school district reading list because of the content of the books. One thing that I notice when I read a book that someone somewhere has tried to ban is that the books seem really tame to us, especially those that are older. I also saw a post that discusses the 10 more popular reasons for banning books and gives examples of books that were banned. A great reading list, if you ask me.

Antonia left a comment on the Triangle Technique post and left her URL. I went to take a look and found a quilting search engine, Quilting Hub. I didn’t have a lot of time to explore, but there was a pretty comprehensive list of quilt related stores, guilds and other organizations when I put in my zip code.

I really like Jackie’s blog and I thought her recent Week in Review post was particularly good. I am amazed at how much she gets done in a week and I read her post wanting more info about all of her projects. I love the photos in her post as well.

Jill, over at the Quilt Rat pointed me to the Janome blog where I saw a great tutorial on installing a concealed zipper. The post is about using one of the Janome feet, so you get 2-for-1.

TFQ sent me a link to a site that shows how to make a Pineapple block with no paper piecing and no special rulers. I really think this is similar to the way the Possibilities ladies show how to make a Pineapple Block. I don’t know how I feel about it since I just bought the special Creative Grids Pineapple Trim Ruler.

Fabric, Tools, Books & Supplies

I saw a whole bunch of posts for the new Konas. finally I got to see them all on Pinterest. I am probably late to the party. My favorites are Jamaica and Heliotrope. What are yours?

Modern Stitch Holidays is available for purchase at the Interweave site. I haven’t been to any stores to see if it is available elsewhere. I love the colors and the pillow design is luscious. You know I am a sucker for turquoise! Still, I probably won’t buy this magazine as I rarely, if ever, make holiday projects. $14.99 is too pricey for eye candy right now.

Are you afraid you are a fabri-holic even though nobody is being injured or going hungry because of your fabric ‘habit’? Do you go on regular fabric diets? Read this post and give up those nasty habits. Enjoy your fabric!

Party Favor
Party Favor

Peggy gave these fabrics out as party favors when we did the Charity Sew Day. They are a little different for me, but I like them and it was fun to get a gift as a small thank you.

Projects

Aneela Hoey has a great post about foldover pouches. There are a couple of different styles and they look like they would be great gifts for friends. The larger pouch is about $9 and the smaller is about $7, both are for patterns only. While I was there I saw her book pouch as well. That is also a fun project.

I do believe that story quiltmakers tell about the ugly fabric making the fabulous fabric look even more fabulous. Ugly fabric is ugly and I am not using it. You can’t make me. 😉 Then I saw Jackie’s Ugly Quilt. The Jacob’s Ladder one. I really like it. I don’t want it, but I really like the way it came out. Jacob’s Ladder is a fabulous pattern regardless, but this quilt is not what I would consider ugly. There is a lot of interest, the eye moves around the piece and it is interesting. Good work, Jackie.

I made a bag for all of my cables and cords for traveling. I like it, but it is big. I have a lot of cords, so it has to be. I saw another version and like it very much. Free PDF pattern download.

The colors and yardage requirements for Bonnie Hunter’s Winter mystery quilt are posted (Posts will be retired on June 1, 2015, so print now). Is it that time of year already? No, I am probably not doing it, but I really like the colors. I have been thinking about color stories lately and Bonnie’s explanation of her choice of colors is a great story, though I am not a fan of her actual fabric choices- mauvey in the pink realm for me. You know I like BRIGHT and to each her own. I saw an article in House Beautiful with great colors. Since I am thinking of color stories there may be a blog post about it.

NQR

The Smithsonian is out of beta for their transcription project. They are crowdsourcing the transcription of hand written diaries that have been digitized. The examples aren’t really enticing for me, because they are famous people everyone knows a lot about already. I will be more interested when they start transcribing diaries of normal women who had ‘normal’ or ‘everyday’ lives – people like you and me who went to work, picked the kids up from school and made quilts. If you want to help, take a look at the instructions.

Road Show

Marie Bostwick is on the road again signing books. She had an event on September 26 and the subsequent dates are:

  • October 20 York County Quilters Guild, Rock Hill, SC
  • October 21 Greater Columbia Quilters, Columbia, SC
  • October 23 Florida Writer’s Foundation, Lake Mary, FL
  • October 29-31 Houston International Quilt Festival, Houston, TX
    *Marie will be signing at The Craftsman’s Touch booth in the vendor mall on Wednesday during Preview, Thursday all day, and Friday morning.

*Marie will be teaching a day-long workshop for aspiring writers, “Conception to Completion: A Bestselling Author’s Guide to Writing.” See her website for more information. Visit her online calendar for more details or go to her website.

Last But Not Least

And one last thought….

http://etc-alltherest.blogspot.com/2014/09/1630-start-somewhere-inspirational-quote.html
http://etc-alltherest.blogspot.com/2014/09/1630-start-somewhere-inspirational-quote.html

Doing Good in Black & Grey

Doing Good Blocks
Doing Good Blocks

I managed to finish the four blocks I was working on most recently, but couldn’t put together any new ones yet. I really need to lay the whole piece out and see what I have.

I had a few more choices in this group since cutting some additional patches. I like the way these look. they are as cheerful and happy as grey and black blocks can be.

I wasn’t ready for color when I started this quilt, but I am glad I am ready now. I started this quilt a long time ago and I can see the evolution of the blocks as time passes.

Progress on the Russian Rubix

Early October Progress
Early October Progress

I did some sewing on the Russian Rubix, but not enough to call the top finished yet. I don’t have dates for finishing the top planned. It will get done when it get done.

I moved around some of the blocks with the blanks, because there were too many blank blocks next to each other. I am making progress. I have 16 blocks together and am sewing two to three together as I have a moment.

Previous Posts:

Creative Prompt #279: Hello!

Hello magazine

Hello Dolly

Definition: “Hello is a salutation or greeting in the English language. It is attested in writing as early as the 1860s.[1]” (Wikipedia)

Evernote Hello

Hello is an interactive design agency. We create intelligent, living systems for people to experience.

Hello toothpaste, mouthwash, breath spray. seriously friendly oral care. naturally friendly. delicious flavors.

Learn a new language anytime, anywhere with Hello–Hello.

HELLO! has gladly said ‘hello‘ to a diverse slate of high-profile productions, producing provocative content for a wide range of media including commercials, etc.

Hello (2008 movie)

It’s easy to get swept up in a Drinking Culture. Every now and then we need a rope to pull us back to dry land. Hello Sunday Morning is that rope.

Lindt HELLO is the chocolate that inspires connections and conversations everywhere it goes.

The GNU Hello program produces a familiar, friendly greeting.

The latest Tweets from Hello (@hello). We like to build things. Meet Sense. San Francisco.

Hello Kitty!

At Hello Cupcake, we make our gourmet cupcakes fresh and from scratch, all-day, every day in our Dupont Circlhttps://www.artquiltmaker.com/blog/wp-admin/post.php?post=24549&action=edit&message=10e shop.

World Hello Day

Hello Ruby is a children’s book that teaches programming fundamentals through stories and kid-friendly activities.

Post the direct URL (link) where your drawing, doodle, artwork is posted (e.g. your blog, Flickr) in the comments area of this post. I would really like to keep all the artwork together and provide a way for others to see your work and/or your blog.

We are also talking about this on Twitter. Use the hashtag #CPP

The Creative Prompt Project, also, has a Flickr group, which you can join to  post your responses. I created this spot so those of you without blogs and websites would have a place to post your responses.

Green T Quilt

Worktable
Worktable

As I mentioned yesterday, Gerre and I teamed up for the Charity Race Sew Day. we were 4th in line to pick fabric and ended up with a variety of green colors. Gerre and I looked at each other in disappointment, but knew that the recipient would like it and got to work.

We pushed two tables together and used that as our workspace. We laid out most (the table wasn’t THAT big) of the pieces, cut the background and Gerre started sewing.

Gerre & Jaye Blocks
Gerre & Jaye Blocks

After cutting the background, I paired up pieces and parts and handed them to Gerre. She put them through the machine. I cut them off, pressed them, then paired them off again with other pieces and handed them back to Gerre to sew.

I thought we did very well and sewed pretty quickly. Still, we weren’t first with a finished top. I don’t sew very quickly in general, and, though I wasn’t sewing, I was pleased that we were able to finish as quickly as we did with little or no drama. I was organized and got Gerre the pieces she needed efficiently. She was a sewing rock star. Our system worked.

After we finished the piecing, we found a vintage sheet that was large enough for the back and layered and basted the top. I thought we were being nice for some other guild member, but Gerre said that she will quilt it. I offered to bind it so the piece will be done when we hand it in.

Gerre & Jaye Blocks: Chunking in Process
Gerre & Jaye Blocks: Chunking in Process

I showed Gerre how to “chunk a top.” It is harder if you don’t have a design wall and lots of leaders and enders. That plug lump in the middle of the table didn’t help, though it was useful for making the machine work. We started making postage stamp blocks in between to try and keep the T blocks in order.

I really think this is a great pattern for charity quilts. It is interesting. There are lots of ways to put it together and it comes out well. I want to work with Gerre again.

Finished T Quilt
Finished T Quilt

BAMQG Charity Sew Day

Worker Bees
Worker Bees

We finished 10 quilts and almost  11.

Worker Bees
Worker Bees

Peggy and Michelle did a great job organizing the Charity Day Race Game and 8 of the quilts we made were from the kits Michelle and Peggy put together before the event. They are awesome, dedicated and well organized.

Worker Bees
Worker Bees

We all got kits and set to work. Peggy had done a lot of the cutting already, so we all only had to cut backgrounds and sew.

Michelle and Jennifer worked on a red version of the T quilt with a lot of Joel Dewberry Notting Hill fabric.

I was on a team with Gerre and she took the first sewing shift. I wasn’t really paying attention to how other teams organized their sewing and cutting and pressing and pinning, but our organization worked very well.

Rhonda and Ruth worked on a turquoise version with some Pearl Bracelets and a lot of fish fabric.

Diana worked on a pastel version with some Aneela Hoey fabrics and Jennifer finished a second green top that really looked like light in a forest.

Karen and Joelle finished another red top with a lot of card game fabric that they joked they would give to Kenny Rogers. Peggy made a brown version that looked like candy and Michelle finished a second top with a blue solid background. Gerre and I finished a top with green Ts and a light background. the quilts all used the same pattern, but were so different and fun.

Gerre & Jaye's Bonus Quilt
Gerre & Jaye’s Bonus Quilt

After the T quilts were done many people worked on making postage stamp blocks, including Gerre and I. We made as many pink and white postage stamp blocks as we could, then we added in some yellow and white blocks in to bring the quilt up to size. We didn’t finish it. Gerre put me in the sewing driver’s seat and I kept screwing up when sewing the blocks together, so we pinned the blocks together and Gerre will finish the top at home.