Farmer's Wife Friday--Better a Farmer...

The eleventh week of the FWQAL for me and Cindy, finds us a making some challenging blocks to go along with the letter from Mrs C.R.M of Ramsey County, N.D. Let me introduce Tall Pine Tree, on the left, and Night and Day, on the right....

Mrs. M is pretty incensed that anyone would think her a slave to a thoughtless husband! She writes, "A farmer spends the winter months reading and has awakened to the fact that many farm wives are considered drudges. He thinks of what he has read, and applies to himself. If he loves his wife, is she not in his thoughts? Is he not planning to make her life easier? Emphatically, yes!" The 'Night and Day' block symbolizes his devotion....

 For me it symbolizes how long it almost took me to make this block! Remember that wonky thingy that I posted yesterday....

Well, that was my first try at making the upper left section of the 6 inch block. Ugh! it turned out sort of diamond shaped! What could be wrong? I double checked my templates and tried again. No better! Then, studying the pattern, I came to the conclusion that the templates for the dark and light larger triangles were transposed, thus making it impossible to make a square. Trying out my conclusion produced this lovely looking, complicated block!

 I patted myself on the back really hard and decided to email the author, Laurie Hird, about my discovery. I won't bore you with the details of the emails passed back and forth between us, but surprisingly it turns out that I was correct and am actually the first to point out the error in the two years since the book's publication! Secretly, I'm thinking that maybe I am the first and ONLY person to have ever actually ATTEMPTED to make the block!........ Nah! 
I will say that I was very impressed that Laurie did not just brush off my comment about the block as just a inept seamstress, but tested it out herself and found that not only were pieces #61 and #61R transposed, but 61R is not even included on the CD at the back of the book! Her conclusion is that the mistake was made by the graphic designer who created the CD. She will be adding the correction to her website. Whew!
Okay! If you are still with me, and care, here is the second, less complicated block...

 I'm not sure if it was because I was so rattled by the first block or what, but I actually did more 'unsewing' on this one than any I have made so far....all user error!! I like this block. It might be fun to some day use it to make a "Timber-lake" quilt. My husband is a Tall Pine in my eyes! Hee, hee!

I'm glad to be a country woman rather than a city gal who, "hasn't the beautiful, wide out-doors, the green fields, flowers, trees, or the invigorating fresh air which the country woman has and loves."
I wonder how Cindy did with her blocks this week? Better go check....