Winter of Care and Repair: carrying the process forward

From the quiet stillness of the winter solstice in December 2025 to the first breath of the spring equinox this past Friday, March 20, I participated once again in the Winter of Care and Repair Challenge. It's a simple but meaningful practice to care for what we already have. 

Winter of Care and Repair: mending blue jeans with an inside patch and running stitches.

Mending: a stitch in time…

Over these past three months, I worked my way through a variety of mends (my favorite form of C&R). Each mend may be small on its own but is powerful in accumulation. These are my successes:

• I strengthened a pair of my soft-with-wear jeans through slow stitching (shown above),
• patched holes in several socks, 
• extended the life of a favorite purse by repairing its handle, 
• gave new structure to bath towels with fresh hems,

Mending socks with Scanfil mending thread.

• hemmed a pair of jeans for a BIL (who has a very short inseam),

Shortening a pair of jeans.

• and mended a silk drawstring travel bag that hold my slippers in my suitcase.

Repair of my drawstring travel bag for my slippers.

Some repairs felt especially satisfying. The most meaningful project was repairing a quilt that I made for a BIL (Brother #2) by adding new appliqué patches to worn blocks and attaching a new binding over frayed edges where needed.

Worn fabrics and holes in a much-loved quilt.

Each new patch was carefully needle-turned and appliquéd to match the seam lines of the patchwork below. After the new fabrics were applied, I re-quilted the areas, trying to blend the new quilting with the previous quilting motifs and join the new quilting lines with the existing.

“Checks and Balances” with new appliqué patches attached.

An additional (new) label documents the repair, so this quilt now carries both its history and its renewal.

Original label (right) and new label to document the quilt’s story.

Home maintenance

The Winter of Care and Repair extended beyond fabric. We turned our attention to home, specifically the kitchen. We repaired a door hinge on the refrigerator and I tightened the screws on a wiggly door handle. It was practical work that ultimately saved a significant expense by avoiding the need for replacement. These moments of maintenance reinforced just how much value lives in a little attention. 

Paper recycling

This season also included recycling and creative paper reuse. 

Two junk journals made with discontinued sales boards and recycled brown packing papers.

I made several junk journals from recycled paper and old sales materials, transforming what might have been waste into something both functional and expressive. 

• One journal was used for Junk Journal January, 
• two pocket-size journals hold space for drawing and sketching (shown above), and 
• the most current journal is for my “Scrap a Day”100 Day Project. 

Handmade journal using recycled papers.

These handmade books have already become my go-to books for journaling and drawing. And making them helps me practice various hand bookbinding techniques.

A new life for fabric scraps

Another meaningful project in the Winter of Care and Repair entailed the making and giving from materials I have on hand. Using scraps and discontinued fabric samples, I created several charity quilts—

• three to provide warmth for the outside cats, 
• two for a work associate who cares for her own cats and several outside cats,
• and I have three quilt tops awaiting my quilt guild’s charity Cuddle Quilt workshop where I can get them basted. 

Two quilts made from recycled fabric samples and fabric scraps from my stash.

Two small scrappy kitty quilts for the outside cats.

These quilts, made from remnants, became acts of care that extended beyond my own home, reminding me that even the smallest scraps can be gathered and made into something purposeful and kind. 

Changing a mindset changes relationships

What I’ve learned through this season is that repair is not just about objects. It’s about relationship—to our belongings, our resources, our habitat, and our habits. It’s about resisting the ease of disposal and rediscovering the satisfaction of stewardship… choosing restoration over replacement.

As spring 2026 begins, I’m carrying this practice of Care and Repair forward. It’s a mindset and part of how I want to move through the world: attentively, mindfully, resourcefully, and with respect for what I already have. Because small acts, over time, can make a big difference.

A different approach to FMQ: mark making with thread

Earlier this month, I embarked on a weekend getaway to the Cumberland plateau for a free-motion quilting workshop with Memphis textile artist, Paula Kovarik. The workshop, At Play in the Garden of Stitch, was hosted by Shakerag Off Season. 

Responding to paint spatters on a drop cloth with free-motion quilting.

Free-motion quilting continuous lines. How many different lines can be made?

The workshop offered a refreshing shift in how I think about quilting. Instead of looking at the functional aspect of the quilting stitches—holding the three layers of a quilt together or creating background texture to support the patchwork composition—Paula’s approach to free-motion quilting was more like drawing and mark making. The sewing machine became a drawing tool to make lines, shapes, and colored fills, in addition to creating texture. 

Thread sketching in contrasting thread to create new focal points.

With that approach in mind, I now understand her preference for 40 wt, 3-ply thread. The thread has a more pronounced presence on the surface of the work. With a heavier thread, every line can hold its own. The stitches can read like sketched lines, and if the thread is of a contrasting color, it can shift the focus from the patchwork to the quilting. 

Quilting doodles with fills.

Since I rarely ever mark my quilt tops for quilting, Paula’s direction to respond intuitively to the fabric surface or previous stitched lines was a familiar and welcoming free-motion concept for me. A no-mark approach is something I have always loved about free-motion quilting! So it was easy to embrace the direction of this workshop. 

Quilting ideas for an existing piece

A valuable take-away that came out of this workshop was getting Paula’s feedback on a collaborative textile piece I started in another workshop last summer. Examining the piece through her lens of “thread as drawing” opened up new possibilities for how I might quilt it. We discussed ideas for how quilting lines could echo the circular format of the mandala composition—creating a subtle rhythm and supporting the radial layout of the piece. She also suggested to quilt over some of the appliqués—which would definitely make the quilting more manageable... and enjoyable for the quilter. 

Collaboration piece awaiting quilting.

The workshop was a playful weekend of experimentation and free-motion quilting. It was a reminder that quilting can be as much about mark making and exploration as it is about function and tradition.

The retreat facility

A view of the valley from the classroom.

The facility—where this workshop and an abstract painting workshop was held—is located on a tranquil, picturesque campus. Upon arrival, I was pleasantly surprised to meet up with several artist friends from past workshops—Michelle, who was my roommate for the weekend, Becky, Susan, Claire (our class assistant), Karen, and Paul. 

Friendships were renewed.

16 days into the Scrap-a-Day 100 Day Project

My second 100 Day Project for 2026 is a Scrap a Day project. This 100 Day Project started on February 22 and I’m adding a 1-1/4” square to a small, handmade journal to document ordinary, daily activities.

100 Day Project 2026: Scrap-a-Day

This is the front cover of my Scrap-a-Day journal (4-1/4” x 5-5/8”) beside the paper punch I use for punching out the daily squares. At some point, I’ll add a title to the cover.

100 Day Scrap-a-Day Journal. 4-1/4” x 5-5/8”.

With four scraps per page, here are the first 16 days.

Day 1: from a fabric header 

Day 2: I bought spools for thread and this is from the bag 

Day 3: sandwich from Donato’s Pizza, Bowling Green, KY

Day 4: second dinner from Donato’s

Days 1 - 4.

Day 5: the plate from hotel breakfast 

Day 6: stamp from today’s mail 

Day 7: label print-out; sending a USPS package 

Day 8: sticker from an “ugly” orange fruit

Day 9: label from a French Fat Quarter (approx 19” x 27”) 

Day10: Ray’s BBQ sauce label 

Day 11: packaging from Pilot roller ball pens (for a class) 

Day 12: Small Shells pasta box (dinner side item)

Days 5 - 12.

Day 13: from an email with a supply list for a workshop

Day 14: logo on a flyer for the workshop location

Day 15: marketing flyer for a painting workshop

Day 16: practice lettering on a scrap of paper 

Day 12 - 16.

Easy.

     Simple. 

          Do-able.

                            Marking time.

Create Daily Tracker: month three begins

March 1st marks the start of a new month on my Create Daily Tracker 2026. I’m currently immersed in two 100 Day Projects: The 100 Day Stitch Book and A Scrap a Day. 

Create Daily Tracker 2026.

The 100 Day Stitch Book is now at Day 45, with nine pages complete. I love incorporating fabric and yarn scraps with slow stitching. The pages fill slowly—but the steady act of commitment adds up and the compositions get more complex and interesting each day. 

Pages 7 and 8 of the 100 Day Stitch Book, 2026.

My Scrap a Day 100 Day Project began a week ago on February 22. I’m filling up a small pocket journal with daily found papers—punching out 1-1/4” squares. I’m looking forward to filling the pages with a variety of small images. 

Scrap a Day, 100 Day Project.

The new month starts the next section of the Create Daily Tracker—with new boxes to color, new stitch patterns, and collecting more paper scraps. I’m feeling energized to continue the daily practice and making progress.