I asked a simple question

At least I thought it was a simple question

 You can see what I'm trying to do here can't you? 

Magic 4 squares.

I know there are charts, but I was lazy

And I can never find the one I keep by my sewing table

And I didn't have my tablet to look it up online 

(that it was less than 20 feet away on the couch, is beside the point. Shuush! I'm telling a story!)

So I asked my dear darling Husband, who was 5' away at the table finishing his morning coffee, if there was an easy formula to figure out.

how big a square I need to start with if I want 4- 2.5" halfsquare triangles out of it.

2 hours later, a demonstration of what I  wanted and why, how I got there and a discussion encompassing, Pythagorean theorem and the square root of two later.................>

 

I'll go look up the chart *sigh*

 

The other solution, that I remembered later (Its always AFTER isn't it?), that a 3"x 6" rectangle marked on the diagonal and sewed on either side and no major maths needed.

Note; I said EASY. 

You know, something the non mathemegical can understand and maybe even, throw in a calculator for the answer.

Aaaand now he is writing code to do the math for me, because he realizes I am not mathly. I dont have the heart to tell him I have a work around. This simple question has kept him busy for two days now. 

Who would I be if I squashed his fun now?  

This is why I love this Man.

A continuation as seen by the man himself

My philosophy on CQ

AKA "that's my story and I'm sticking to it" 

I started Cq sometime in the 90's, 

 

after ploughing through the many stages of sane quilting 

Piecing,  hand quilting, English paper piecing, applique, Baltimore album quilting, longarming

and exhausting my patience for X-stitch.

Which didn't take long.

 

 

It also gave me the excuse I needed, to take up any other hobby, my short attention span desired. 

It forced, FORCED I say!, to take up beading and ribbon folding.

 

 It has given my, already magpie like tendencies, to blossom into a full blown
dragon hoard.

 

 

and caused me many an hour of uninterrupted "Zen" time.

 

Slow stitching is my happy place.

 

When I pick up a needle, I can feel my heart rate slow and the bugs in my brain quiet.

 

Cross stitch is a wonderful space to play.

 

This is not to say I have quit any of the other hobbies.

No, no! 

A quick peruse of this blog will tell you that.

While this tends towards a bit of a schizophrenic existence

and piles of UFOs

 

 

 

I will never  run out of things to do.

More Jacobin

Back to my hole,

Oooh look! An artsy photo!

But It's a fun hole, full of embroidery technique to practices your skills on.

 

 

And now that it is back to gloomy I can prove that I actually went outside for a while

 with this lovely pinkish color I have picked up! 

 

 

Battlement couching, burden stitch, flyleaf and raised stem

 

 Why is it I never take photos of a thing 

till I'm halfway finished with it?

pictures are best in sunlight though.

 

Anyway having fun here so it don't matter

Progress!

 

 

 Lest you think this happens overnight 

I have been working on this thing since November.

So many stitches here from Padded buttonhole with bullion picots, to more battlement stitch, satin stitch, Flyleaf stitch, a crapton, (I  have it on good authority, that is a valid measurement!) of french knots.

I an determined to finish this someday........