Ardea's Nest

A New Year and A New Life for an Old Dress!

2012-01-07T22:02:00.003-05:00

I hope everyone had a Happy New Year!!! We celebrated Christmas with my daughter and her family and my brother and niece on New Year’s Day since we were out of town visiting hubby’s family over Christmas. We had dinner and presents and a fine time.
I made another skirt to go with another store bought top as an outfit for my upcoming vacation.

You can’t tell from this photo, but the blue in the skirt is in the tiny stylized flowers on the shirt. And though I couldn’t match the crocheted trim on the shirt exactly, I felt the trim I did use on the skirt had a similar feel and it is the same color. And before you wonder, yes, that shirt is very sheer. I have an ecru color tank to where under it. The fabric and trim were given to me and this is the same pattern I used on the other skirts, so this is basically a freebie! It should have gone very quickly, too, but unfortunately I had two pieces of that crochet trim and the first one I sewed on the skirt was about 8 inches to short. Note to self: Pay more attention to what you are doing and a little less to Judge Judy (I just love her!).
Now I have obviously been obsessed with clothes lately. They make quick and relatively easy projects and I just haven't’ had the attention span to think about quilting lately. I have found lots of neat blogs and posts about sewing clothes and about remaking old clothes into new ones. I decided that was a challenge that intrigued me and I set out to find something to tear down and remake.
I found this dress at the Goodwill for $2.50. I figured there was plenty of fabric to work with!

As you can see in this lovely photo, the dress had a fitted bodice above the breast area the rest was basically a muumuu with pockets. The emblems you see on the dress and bodice are all machine embroidered. The tag says it is a 1X.
I determined to save all of the embroidery and at first thought I would simply take in the sides by a couple inches or more to make it fit. But then I got inspired and ended up with this!

It now has gathers on the lower half of the bodice, a fitted waist, and pleats in the skirt. You can see the effect better from a side angle.

I love how it looks on Constance, but it looks absolutely awful on me. The fit is fine, but that is NOT my color. That’s OK. Back to the Goodwill it goes, but I learned a lot while doing this and I don’t think it will be my last redo!

My New Year’s Resolutions

2011-12-30T10:50:00.001-05:00

Maybe… I think… I hope… We’ll see…

Surfing the web and looking at crafty magazines inspires me, makes me hopeful and happy. But getting down to crafting has lately been making me mostly frustrated and stressed. I know what the problem is. It isn’t even a new problem, but it is twofold.

For some stupid reason I have a very hard time just doing something I enjoy even if there is no “need” for it. Logically I know that the therapeutic nature of the activity and sense of pride and accomplishment should be reason enough, but if I haven’t got a recipient or “reason” to craft, I feel guilty. Like I’m wasting time and money that I should be spending on fixing my house up, or doing chores, or whatever. I know - Crazy, right?! That said, I also know that I am not likely to get over this quirk. Maybe it comes from being poor as a child and being raised by my grandmother who’s refrain “If you’d lived through the depression you’d understand…” still rings in my head. Whatever.

My second hang up is my incessant need to over-commit myself. I have always done that. With work, school, my kids, my family, my friends, my crafting… Here’s a “for instance”. I decided for Christmas that I would really like to give my female coworkers home made gifts. This in itself would have been OK, if I hadn’t decided I needed 12 whatevers less than two weeks before the holiday. I turned myself into a twitching mess with the stress of it all. And why? No one knew of my intentions, so no one was going to be upset with me if it didn’t pan out. In fact, it didn’t pan out (more on that in a future post, I am sure!) and I bought the office a new set of sharp knives for the kitchen which is something that was sorely needed, usable by the guys, too, and not too expensive since I had a coupon.

So after all of that I have come to my resolutions. For 2012 I want to try my best to avoid crafting commitments. I know I won’t avoid other non-crafty commitments. You can’t expect me to go cold turkey! But crafting commitments are especially stressful because they often come in the form of swaps. And then you CAN’T not do it! I would rather die than not produce a gift for someone who faithfully sends me one! We’ll see how that goes, but this is still the easier of the two resolutions.

The second resolution will be much harder. I want to craft. I want to try new things. I want to make something I see online because it is cute. I want to dig into my stash of fabric, trims, doo-dads, and ideas and just go from there! I want to not start the creative process with a “need”, but with an inspiration. I am going to allow myself to make something that looks fun, but for which I have no real need or desire to personally own. I mean, these sorts of things don't spoil! I actually could make things and hang on to them until I find a use for them, couldn't I! I have recently read a few posts from folks who keep a bag/box of items like that that they can grab something from when a gift is needed. How convenient! Seems those last minute gifts are always needed when I have about 600,000 other things to get done, as well. And by the time Christmas comes, I might have a head start on that gift thing. I might have a quilt or doll or other item I can donate. I still plan on crafting for a reason when the reason exists (I am currently really liking making myself some fun things to wear) but I want to also make some of those really cute things I see on the web for kids or teens of which I no longer have either (WOW! - maybe a little "empty nester" syndrome going on there!).

I have actually gotten started on my resolutions already. While searching for a tutorial on making a scarf like this (click photo for link)

I ran across these (click photos for links)

And I was inspired to make this!

It’s wrapped around my neck and layered over a white T-shirt and off-white vest, so the picture is a little unclear. The lace and rick rack is mounted on linen and the whole thing is backed with minky. I have tons of buttons inherited from my mom and used a bunch of them on just the front to sort of create a brooch effect.

And I bought myself a Christmas present. I ordered a box of thread from Threadart.com and once it arrived, I realized I had no where to put all of it! So I ordered some peg board hooks from Ebay and bought a half sheet of peg board. I cut it to size and mounted it on some 1x2 strips of wood. I then painted them to match my walls, installed the hooks, and voila!

Before I bought the hooks, I measured my spools and made sure I had hooks long enough to accommodate the spool and the matching bobbin (see that little one in the center?).

Isn’t that neat? Well I’m impressed anyway! I know there are folks out there who do not believe that one should store thread out in the open like that because it should be protected from dust and light. And they are probably right. But I just love looking at it! And I haven’t bought from Threadart.com before, but I read several good reviews and the price was right. I have been picking up clothes at the second hand store that I want to alter and play around with. I just didn’t want to buy several spools of expensive thread to match everything. This seemed a good option.

Well, my posts are fewer and farther between now and it might be a bit before I get back at it again as I am having the family to our house for Christmas on New Year’s Day and hubby and I are off on vacation in about 2 weeks. I can not wait to hit that beach! Happy New Year, everyone!

Yearning for a Calmer Christmas

2011-12-17T21:26:00.001-05:00

I’m Back…. Sort Of

2011-12-12T21:22:00.000-05:00

Hi all. I am back online. My computer is fixed enough that I can surf and post, but I still have to reload all of my programs, files, and settings. I shouldn’t complain. At least I was able to get my files off the old computer. It took several days, but they weren’t lost!
I have done a little sewing which I will share with you in a sec. But first I have to warn you all that though I am back on line, my posts may be sparse for a while. There is a combination of “stuff” going on right now that is requiring introversion of much of my energies just to get myself through the day each day. You all are so supportive and I have missed you so much, but things are just so… “you know”… right now. I am sure (at least I hope) that a lot of this is depression and will pass with time. Christmas without my mom seems to be hitting me hard this year. And there are other things. I noticed that when my computer was down and I involved myself with crafting, reading, watching a movie, or working on the house, I felt better. I think the productivity of it all is what helps. This is a long and rambling post, but generally I find holding a conversation too taxing lately. Anyhow, the gist is that I apologize for my absence and also for my impending unreliability as a poster – at least for a while. This, too, shall pass.
Now, if you are still reading…. on to some of what I have been up to…

Hubby and I are going on vacation in January. I am seriously counting on that event being very good for my mood! So in preparation, I decided I would get myself a new wardrobe. But while I found tops that would work, I couldn't find suitable skirts. So out came the handy sewing machine and now Connie has clothes!

Now remember, only the skirts are mine. And I know they are simple, but I did have to line the second one. And with my current mindset, I had to rip out a lot of seams, too!

Ok, enough boo hoo from me. I'll talk to you soon-ish.

Still Here, But Still Not ONLINE!!!!

2011-11-28T09:11:00.001-05:00

Just a quick note from my desktop at work to let you all know I am here but still without a computer at home. Hopefully I will be up and running some time this week!!

Aaaack!

2011-11-18T09:34:00.001-05:00

Just a note to let you all know that my computer is not working. Can’t get online. Can’t even start it up if not in Safe Mode. So I am (very slowwwwwly) copying things I want to keep to a jump drive. My son, the computer guru, comes home next week for Thanksgiving. I’ll let him see what he thinks. Frankly, if he can’t fix it, I may have to get a new one. Wow! I feel like such a traitor even saying that!

But I wanted to let you all know that it might be a while before I am online again – unless I can find times like this one to sneak on at work.

I didn’t realize how tough it would be without my computer. Just knowing I can’t log on soon as I get home is distressing. Well, I know I will survive. And if you don’t hear from me much (not that I’ve been Chatty Cathy lately anyway), you’ll know why.

Talk to you all soon – I hope!

A Very Happy Birthday, Indeed!

2011-11-15T21:42:00.001-05:00

Boy did I get some great goodies this year!

Of course I already introduced you to Constance…

And hubby got me two very nice sweaters and two pairs of footies to keep me warm!

And then I received such a surprise from a friend. Cyndi from Cut-Up and Sew! blog (isn’t that the cutest name?) sent me a gift certificate from the Fat Quarter Shop. She is so sweet!

So last night after Boston Cream pie and ice cream (I’m not much for traditional birthday cake, so hubby always treats me to Boston Cream pie), I sat down to shop.

First I thought maybe I’d buy this fun alien fabric for a quilt for my son. Remember that game from when we were kids? But I worried that he might not use it at college, might not want to look like a MaMa’s boy in front of his 3 roommates, you know.

Then I thought maybe I’d get this really cute pillow pattern. Though I just love the one with the zippers, I remember how much my Dean-a likes zippers, too (and I don’t mean that in a good way!).

But then it suddenly dawned on my exactly what I should get! A while ago (seems like ages and ages ago, really) I won this pattern from Sue Hauser at Alderwood Quilts.

I think it is pretty obvious why I chose this pattern, but of course I haven’t had time for sewing lately. Still, when I saw this fat quarter bundle, that pattern immediately came to mind.

What do you think? I think this will make perfect doggies! Thanks so much, Cyndi! What a great way to end my birthday!

Trees, Chilis, and Puppy Beds, Oh My!

2011-11-13T19:58:00.001-05:00

More quilt blocks have arrived!!

I received another leaf/tree block…

And here they all are together…

I had originally planned a quilt for these. But now I am actually contemplating throw pillows… I’ll have to think on it some more.

And I received two more chili pepper blocks.

Here is my whole group of chili blocks…

Isn’t that quilt just going to radiate warmth? This is not a pattern I would normally have chosen, or probably these colors, either, but I am so pleased with these choices!

Did you know there is a Goodwill auction site online? Who knew? Well, at least one of you did because I read about it on your blog and that’s how I found out about it. Sorry I don’t remember which blog that was, but thanks for the info. Anyhow, I do feel the shipping is a little steep, but if you don’t overbid, I guess it evens out. I bid on and won a box of fabric scraps and included were these upholstery samples…

I took them apart and cut away the ends with the grommets and then sewed them all back together randomly and ended up with this…

It measures around 40 x 60 inches and is going to be a floor pillow for the dogs. Now I either need to find another lot of upholstery samples, or I can use my 40% off coupon and get some cheap from Joann Fabric. I happen to really like this piece. I don’t like the way the colors show in this photo – the creams are really much creamier and the colors are warm and earthy in person.

Sammie and Dean-a seem to approve!

An Early Birthday for Me!

2011-11-06T20:43:00.001-05:00

I belong to a group of online crafters and we have a little birthday club. My birthday isn’t for another week, but the organizer sent my birthday money early and I was able to use it to get this wonderful gift for myself.

Isn’t she great? I just love looking at her, though I must admit she has startled me a few times! The dogs don’t bark at her anymore though. Hubby named her Constance.

I received another swab block in the mail. I just love how all of the blocks have been so different from each other. That is what I’d hoped would happen.

And I created two more blocks for swap partners, too.

Pretty beachy colors in this one. Makes me yearn for vacation!

This block is for a swapper who hopes to make a quilt for her father from her swap squares. I sure hope everyone hurries and sends their blocks her way.

I also painted my front doors (I have two). I have put on two coats and will have to do at least one more. I’m using dark green paint over a light teal color. The green may not stick to the door well, but it sure has stained my fingernails!

This morning I took a break before beginning my house cleaning and went to Joann fabrics for a big sale. I didn’t get much quilt fabric, but I did get a lot of fabric for clothes and some patterns. Maybe the next time you see Constance, she’ll be dressed!!

I am Proud to Say “I Knew Her When”

2011-10-31T14:03:00.001-04:00

My blog friend Jules is featured today on Craft Gossip. You’ll never know a sweeter person. She does amazing needle work and makes the cutest dolls. In fact, she sent one to me.

Check out the post and then go visit Jules!!!

This is My Kind of Home Improvement

2011-10-30T23:00:00.001-04:00

This weekend was about patching walls and painting. Pretty boring stuff. But on Saturday after I had finished what was on my list, I realized I had an hour before I needed to think about dinner. So I set to work on a home improvement task I could really enjoy.

Last week when they were 50% off I bought myself a cutting table from Joann Fabric. It folds up so it can be moved out of the way, but it isn’t the most gorgeous thing. In case you didn’t know, my sewing room is my home’s formal living room. We have no use for a formal living room when we also have a family room and a rec room in the basement, so I inherited that space for sewing and crafts. Still, it can be seen from the dining room so I feel I need to keep it neat and want the fixtures to be nice. Here is a picture of the table (never mind all of the mess around it. I’ll get to that later in this post).

So I decided to make a cover for it. I bought some clearance fabric at Joann’s that was close to my wall color. The table is 35.5x18 so I folded the fabric in half and measured 54 inches from the fold all the way down, drew a line and sewed on that line. Then I cut away the excess fabric. The fabric I chose was taffeta, so I cut it with pinking shears to keep it from raveling. This left me with what essentially looked like a giant pillow case. I slipped the pillow case over my table wrong side out and this is how it looked.

I centered that top seam over the top of the table and the folded down the “ears” on either side.

I measured the distance from the end of the “ear” seam to the point where the fabric folded and adjusted the table back and forth until the two ears were the same length. In this instance, the distance was 9 inches.

For any of you who have made a purse with a square bottom, you may recognize this next step. If you haven’t, then I hope I explain it clearly enough. I took the cover off of the table and flattened the ears so that the side seam and the top seen were aligned. On the ear with no side seam, I ironed a crease in the middle and aligned that with the top seam. It looks like this when you have it all matched up nicely.

Now I measured up the seam from the point where the seam ends at the tip of the ear…

and I marked this point. I used an ink pen because I knew it wouldn’t show, I was taking pictures, and I was in a hurry. Please do not send out the sewing police! (Also, please ignore the second crooked line in the photo. Taffeta is slippery!)

Now I put to use my 12 inch square ruler. See that diagonal line on the ruler?

I aligned the diagonal with the folded edge of the ear and the top of the ruler with my mark.

Then drew across the top of the ruler (through the mark), flipped the ruler, and drew the rest of the line so that it went from fold to fold through the mark.

I stitched on that line and then cute away the fabric on the ear side of the line and repeated for the other side.

I slipped the cover on the table still right side out so that I could turn up the hem. Once the hem was done, I turned it right side out and Tada!

I think that is a better look from the dining room. I chose a fabric that blends with the wall because that space above the table is reserved for a quilt and I didn’t want competing patterns.

I haven’t even picked out what quilt or even what type of quilt it will be, but I think this space is just crying out for one, don’t you?

Now, about that mess in the earlier photos… See that closet door to the left of the table above? That is a coat closet, but as we have another much larger one in the family room, I can use this one for storage. So I decided to make shelves for it and I had to paint it because I forgot to do that when I painted the room.

In order to build these shelves, I had to pull everything out and it was laying all over the place in my sewing room. I had to keep it out until the paint was dry. I didn’t paint the shelves, but covered them with clear contact paper.

Do you see all that extra space? I could actually go shopping for more fabric!

Sneaking a Little Crafting Time

2011-10-26T21:06:00.001-04:00

Still real busy with the house remodel. Nothing much to share on that front though, unless you like looking at pics of me filling nail holes or patching dings in drywall.

But I have snuck in some crafting time and I finally have something I can share with you.

First up is my one and only Halloween decoration this year. We don’t decorate for Halloween much anymore since the kids are grown, but it really is one of the funnest in decorating terms, if you ask me. When I saw this on the Michaels website, I just had to make it. Really easy and very cheap since I waited until the Halloween stuff was on clearance!

And since I was in the clearance shopping mode, I nosed around and found these cute birds. An inexpensive nest, some moss, a little bit of this and that from the scrap box, and voila!

I love birds and think maybe I’ll start collecting them for the shelves in my living room… or the mantel…

I also threw together some boxes for under my sewing table. My chair was so high that I couldn’t comfortably touch the floor or my sewing machine pedal.

My honey put an outlet in the floor for me under that box on the right, so no more tripping on cords. (Pretend you can’t see that construction dust! I didn’t notice it until I saw this picture!)

Then I took a break from crafting to visit with the new baby.

So did Grandpa. Why do babies always make grandpas do that?

Today was about a little sewing.

I have a lot of rather plain sweaters and tops for work. I have been noticing a lot of tutorials on the web pertaining to dressing up your wardrobe, so I thought I’d give it a shot.

I know this looks like a picture of my camera, but it isn’t. I like my “new” shirt.

And I had this pair of pants that were too short.

See? Those or my flattest flat shoes and look how short those things are! Now you can see that there is plenty of fabric for lengthening, but that never works out right and you can always see the faded line. So instead I did this.

And then I added a little grosgrain just to dress them up.

Finally, I made a quilt square for the Block Swap Adventure. My partner wanted a wonky house in red, yellow, blue, and green. This took me 2 hours! Wonky is very difficult when you are anal!

OK, that’s it. Hope it won’t be two weeks before I have something to share again!!

Look What I Got!

2011-10-18T08:34:00.001-04:00

A new baby granddaughter! Do you see some girly sewing in my future?!?

The Sewing Room is Mostly Unpacked!

2011-10-05T17:56:00.001-04:00

No stitching again this past weekend, but I did unpack nearly everything. The paint is on the walls and I am loving the space!

I still need to get that dresser under my ironing board painted, but it just hadn’t stopped raining. Now, finally we are forecast to have a dry weekend.

My embroidery threads would have been handier on the other side of the room where my embroidery machine will live, but this was where the wall space was.

This desk is where my embroidery machine will be, but I knew I’d have to move it again. I worry about the computer and the calibration so I left it in it’s wheeled case for now.

As you can see, the other end of the room leaves a little to be desired…

And then all that organization was out the window. Can you see why?

Yep! My new floor went down! I want you to know that I did over 50% of this flooring on my own.

I used this…

and these, and of course the handy dandy miter saw.

I’m telling you, if you don’t know how to use power tools, you really need to learn. The beauty of it is that it allows me to do much of what I would have to ask hubby to do or to pay someone else to do. It means less work for hubby, I don’t have to wait until he has time to get to it, and there is more money in my pocket when it is all done!

Speaking of tools, check out these…

These are needle felted dryer balls. I did not make them. I bought them from CleanSypria on Etsy. I chose red, white, and blue to go with my laundry room, but there are many colors for you to choose from. They also come in a variety of scents from which you can choose and you can kick up the scent anytime when needed with essential oil. You put them in the dryer with your clothes and they soften them and take out the static. They really do work. I recently forgot to add then to a load and the laundry snapped, crackled, and popped the whole time I folded it.

I think they look really cute in a basket on my dryer. I might even have to get a few more!

Sorry for the Downtime

2011-09-27T11:46:00.001-04:00

But I have a few irons in the fire at the moment and none are finished enough to share. I have been blog hopping and commenting here and there, but I just haven’t had anything to post about. So just so you know I still care (I do, I really do!), here are a few feel goods I found on the net. Enjoy!

I don’t know if I ever mentioned it, but I have two degrees – one in nursing which you probably know, and one in Special Education. Being a crafter, and having that educational background, a story shared by grrl + dog touches my soul. Be sure to check out these two blog posts; There but for the grace pt 1 and There but for the grace pt 2. You really can’t miss these!

WFH Day

2011-09-21T21:29:00.001-04:00

Today our company had a WFH Day to test our DR plans. Now, if you are among the lucky ones who don’t know what all that means, let me reword… Today our company had a Work From Home Day to test our Disaster Recovery plans. Not a disaster like a natural disaster or anything, but one like if the building we work in burned. Our board of directors requires that we be able to continue servicing our clients and we had the choice of setting up a second work site or setting everyone up to work from home. The second one was not only more economical since most people already have cell phones and internet and their own laptops or computers, but it was also much more desirable to us workers!

Anyhow, once the test was done, there was a little time left in my day. I didn’t have anything to show you this weekend because I grouted my tile and couldn’t really get a picture that showed the before and after difference. So, instead I will show you what I did today.

This is a square I made for the Let’s Bee Together Swap. The pattern and fabric were chosen by the recipient of the month. Isn’t it pretty?

This next square is for my partner this month in the Block Swap Adventure. I feel like I cheated choosing such a simple block, but she wanted country and what is more country than a Hole in the Barn Door? Plus that fabric was busy enough that I felt a simpler block would be better. Hope my partner agrees.

And I prepped some fabric I purchased for a Mystery Quilt on Quilters Club of America website. I haven’t done one of these before and I found choosing the fabric very nerve wracking!

Ok, that’s it. Back to the grindstone!

A Weekend of Tools

2011-09-12T21:46:00.003-04:00

First I used this…

to do this (the untiled portion is where the microwave will go)…

and this…

It was amazingly easy with that little saw. Very dirty, but easy. Grouting will have to wait. After two days, the mastic still wasn’t dry. It’s been cooler here, but very humid.

So, after I washed up and put away my new toy saw, I decided to see if I could steal some time in my sewing room. I painted the walls and of course that required moving everything around and I discovered that my beloved antique ironing board had a broken leg. It was cracked nearly through and I could see it was a hot iron on a bare foot waiting to happen. But I love that ironing board and didn’t want to see it go. So I decided to see what sort of a Frankenstein creation I could devise to save it.

First I removed the legs. Then I assembled a three sided box out of pine boards and attached it to the under side of the ironing board. I didn’t remove all of the metal leg pieces from the board because they were attached with rivets and I didn’t want to break the board.

Next I attached the bottom side of the box to the top of an old dresser I have in my sewing room and use to store stuff in.

I plopped the top of the box onto the bottom and attached with screws through the side.

See the box? I suppose I could have closed the ends, but who’s going to see them?

Now my dilemma was that I didn’t have a cover for the board for I had to cut the old one off to do this surgery (kind of like they do in the ER when you are in an accident). This board is wider than most and I’ve tried the large covers, but they never seem to stay on so I stapled the last one to the board. That’s why it had to be cut off. So I got some old wrapping paper that was a little worse for the wear anyway (I didn’t have enough of my white pattern drawing paper) and I laid it on top of the board and traced.

A crayon would have been a better tracing utensil than the carpenter’s pencil I used, but I haven’t unpacked that box, yet. (See the green walls?)

Then I pinned it to some prequilted fabric that is a pretty pale green that I bought at Joann’s with my 40% off coupon and cut it out. I used my ruler to stay approximately 4 inches from the line.

I attached double fold bias tape to the raw, lining up the tape to the raw edge and staying about an 1/8th of an inch from that edge.

And then I attached some more…

When I got back to where I started, I left a gap between the two ends.

Then I folded it over and stitched down the other side again staying very close to the edge.

In fact, I tried to keep the folded edge of the tape very close to the seam I stitched on the opposite side.

Why all of this close stitching? I was making a tube through which I could insert a cord.

I have no pictures of that part of the process, but I can tell you that it is not a fun task for someone with carpal tunnel.

I had enough of the quilted material to cut out a piece the same size as the board and I stapled it in place on the edges just for a little extra padding. Then I put the cover on the board and pulled the cord tight and tied it off and Voila!

Now you are probably wonder why on earth I would put a green cover on an ironing board attached to this orange dresser, but do not fret. I plan on making that orange dresser into a chocolate brown dresser but mother nature has decided that for the time being my town is in the exact epicenter of a rain forest. Therefore, spray painting outdoors is not possible. So I will have to do that at a later date. I think the chocolate brown will go well with my green walls.

So this week I used a tile saw, a staple gun, a hammer, a chisel, a nail claw bar, a drill, a screwdriver, a pencil, a sewing machine, scissors, and a ruler. And tonight this laptop is a “toolish” as it gets!

Oh, I almost forgot! I sent a package of scraps to a fellow Buckeye, Jayne from Jayne's Quilting Room who has a friend named Amie. Amie is making a postage stamp quilt, which I feel is a very large endeavor to begin with, but to top it off, Amie has decided to make every one inch square, all 9072 of them, from a different fabric. Amie is taking donations because to be able to that on her own would require a stash we would all die for! Amie hasn't got a blog, but if you are interested in following her progress check out Jayne's blog, especially this post and this post.

September 11

2011-09-11T09:41:00.002-04:00

I still cry, but I still dream.
One Song by Tevin Campbell.
If we all sing one song
One song of love
One song of peace
One song to make all our troubles cease
One hymn, one theme, one hope, one dream
Imagine what tomorrow would bring
If we all sing one song
If we all learn the words
Just think how great the sound would be
And since the tune is in freedom's key
One voice you'd hear, so pure, so clear
Imagine what tomorrow would bring
If we all sing one song
There's just one sun that warms our day
The same moon and stars light our way
This little ball whirling in space
It's our only home, our only place
If we all sing one song
One song of love
One song of peace
One song to make all our troubles cease
Imagine what tomorrow would bring
If we all sing one song
If we all sing one song
One song of love
One song of peace
One song to make all our troubles cease
Imagine what tomorrow would bring
Just imagine what tomorrow would bring
Just imagine what tomorrow would bring
If we all sing
If we all sing one song.

A Whirlwind Three Days

2011-09-05T22:11:00.001-04:00

Hubby and I were really looking forward to this weekend as a chance to get things done. As usual, we planned to do far more than we could have ever gotten done! But we are moving forward.

Hubby borrowed his father-in-law’s bobcat and began filling in the utility trench in our back yard. We are going to have a landscaper come in, but he just had to get out there and play with his toy!

While he did that, I painted. Now the kitchen and dining room are painted.

Once I finished that, I set to tearing up the carpet in what will be my sewing room. Then I arranged my furniture as I think I will be keeping it.

I have my sewing space at the far end and a sitting area in front of the fireplace. My kitchen cart cutting table is on wheels and can be pulled into the open area when needed.

Yep, there really is a fireplace behind all that! Believe it or not, that isn’t even all of the carpet. I put some in the garage.

Hubby didn’t sit down and rest, either. He worked on installing new lighting and began putting on the wood trim.

See the neat half door he built to keep the dogs in the laundry room while we aren’t home? If you don’t know why we needed this, you haven’t got dogs! It will be stained to match the trim.

Well, back to work tomorrow. I need a rest!

A Little Something to Keep You Cool

2011-09-01T12:39:00.001-04:00

It’s headed back up over 90 degrees tomorrow. If it’s hot where you are, here’s a little something to help cool you down!

We Have a Floor!

2011-08-29T08:27:00.001-04:00

The new dining room and kitchen floor is in. It went down pretty easily – much more easily than the last floor we did! I measured and ordered the flooring myself and was off by only 30 square feet or so. Thought that was pretty good. We are going to do my sewing room and the hall with the same flooring so it will get used.

My son says it is too busy. But then he loves clean, modern, minimalistic designs.

My hubby and I are not deterred. We love it.

The dogs are going to have to get used to slipping and sliding and Steve and I aren’t going to be doing a lot of bending or crouching for the next couple of days, but it was worth it! Now for some paint…

Hope everyone got through the hurricane OK!

What Are You Doing This Weekend?

2011-08-27T12:30:00.001-04:00

Did You Know This?

2011-08-25T18:40:00.001-04:00

Quoted from Science Daily:

“Findings, published online this week in the journal Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health, show that air vented from machines using the top-selling scented liquid laundry detergent and scented dryer sheet contains hazardous chemicals, including two that are classified as carcinogens.”

“Analysis of the captured gases found more than 25 volatile organic compounds, including seven hazardous air pollutants, coming out of the vents. Of those, two chemicals -- acetaldehyde and benzene -- are classified by the Environmental Protection Agency as carcinogens, for which the agency has established no safe exposure level.”

I didn’t know this. I don’t use any scented laundry products because my hubby has sensitive skin and they make him itch (which I found disturbing in itself, mind you). I use organic biodegradable not tested on animals detergent, vinegar in my softener dispenser, and I never use bleach. I do like sweet smelling laundry as much as the next girl though. My favorite scent is the one Mother Nature supplies and I hope to be able to install a clothesline at my new home next year. But until then, I have been adding a couple of drops of essential oil to the softener dispenser with that vinegar. I don’t know if that gives of bad fumes or not. I sure hope not!

Updates

2011-08-21T22:54:00.001-04:00

Things have been moving slowly here. It has rained and rained. I was contemplating trading in my Mini

for a Duck!

After the footer was dug and poured for the garage, we pumped it out many times hoping that the concrete would dry and the excavator could back fill it. The water would get two feet deep in areas. My son suggested we acquire a few gators and just call it a moat!

The 3 day roof job took 2 weeks. But it is done now and we had no leaks at all. The color in this photo isn’t great, but it is a green roof on a redwood home.

Now we can tell folks we live in the Lincoln Log house – remember those?

Finally today the garage is going up. It is supposed to take two days. However, this wall only took one hour. I might be surprised to see them next week.

All the rain has brought out the bugs. This spider must be eating very well. Look how big he is. I know some of you live where this wouldn’t even count as a “real” spider. But it is big for Ohio! That’s hubby’s hand and it would never have been that close to the spider if the spider weren’t on the outside of the screen!

I have no idea what type it was. I don’t care. They do good work. I just hope he does keeps doing it OUTSIDE. I also hope he is a HE…

When I wasn’t fretting over the spider or marveling at the workers, I made this…

I know it isn’t much of a show-n-tell, but it really challenged me. The square was easy enough, but the colors were way outside my comfort zone. This is an awful photo. I took several in several different places, but just couldn’t capture the colors. But they look very much like the colors in the example photo my partner sent…

Chartreuse, eggplant and medium gray. I sure hope I got it right!

I received another tree block very much unlike the rest. It is appliquéd. Isn’t it great!

I have a new acquisition for my sewing room. It was like a brainstorm, I’m telling you. The right height, not too big. What do you think?

I even assembled it myself. If you can’t tell from the photo, it is a kitchen island cart. That makes it just the right height. And you can see the cutting area is plenty for small projects. I’ll keep my folding table for pinning quilts and large projects, but this will save a lot of space. Space tired hot pups need, obviously!

Apparently that sheet I threw over the love seat to keep off some of the hair is much more comfy when wadded up!

Work is calling so I’ll have more to share later!

Pets on Quilts on Parade!

2011-08-19T09:29:00.001-04:00

I hope you have seen SewCalGirl’s Pets on Quilts Show! If not, go here. Too much fun!!

I haven’t had time to sew lately, but SewCalGirl’s Quilt Show got me to looking back and I found an occasional pet here and there. The Rat Pack asks who would ever have guessed that!!!

I had forgotten about this beagle quilt pattern I tested for Aniko Feher. The pattern is now available on her website.

And this little fairy has a rather unusual pet…

And I’m not sure if this guy is a pet or an interloper…

I am sure this wizard loves his pet, though.

As for my pets, though they have yet to be incorporated on a quilt, I have found that they do love quilts, especially Dean-a. Here she is under a quilt with Frank…

And on a quilt with Sammie.

In fact, Dean-a likes quilts so much, she even tests them out before they are “born”!

Ahhhh, Pets and Quilts – two of my favorite things!!! Thanks, SewCalGal!

All Work and No Play…

2011-08-10T11:23:00.001-04:00

Makes this a dull blog!!

I am in the middle of a long string of long days at work and the progress on the house has been slow and sewing hasn’t been getting done, either. So I think for now I will share a few of my “stash links” with you…

This may be one of my new favorite websites ever!! (click on the picture)

And after a good laugh, a little seriousness, please…

Ya, that was a little funny. So is this…

Awwww… I need a kitten!

While we are on an animal binge… WHO THINKS UP THESE CAPTIONS?!

And just so you don’t think that I have TOTALLY forgotten that this is SUPPOSED to be a crafting blog, check out THIS link…

I don’t know if I’ll have time to participate (hey – quit laughing!!), but I do know I will be watching to see what everyone posts!!!

As Busy As a Bee

2011-07-31T22:00:00.002-04:00

From Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, (the Squire's Tale), 1386-1400:

Ey! Goddes mercy!” sayd our Hoste tho,
Now such a wyf I pray God keep me fro.
Lo, suche sleightes and subtilitees
In wommen be; for ay as busy as bees
Be thay us seely men for to desceyve,
And from a soth ever a lie thay weyve.
And by this Marchaundes tale it proveth wel.

I don’t know what all that means, but I know that the drill sergeant in my head has hollered “DOUBLE TIME”!
I apologize again for my absence and neglect. I have been working at work a lot. I was out of town for work for 4 days, too. And of course there is the never ending remodel of the new house while maintaining the old house until it sells. However, this weekend my hubby went to Indiana to visit his brother and I finally got to whisper sweet nothings to my sewing machine!
First, though, let me share what the mailman brought this week.
There were two more chili pepper blocks for my Let’s Bee Together swap quilt…

This one is from Lana in Texas. I just love it!

And this one is from Jadie in Illinois for the Block Swap Adventure. She obviously has an embroidery machine which she employed to sign the block. Please don’t tell my embroidery machine – she hasn’t been uncovered in over a month!
I also received a tree block from Colleen in North Carolina.

Just look at all of those tiny pieces and the lovely fabric she sent with it! I’m tellin’ ya’, it was like Christmas in July!!
With all of this receivin’, I had to get to some givin’. My July partner for the Block Swap Adventure was Tiffany who loves pink and wonky blocks and has an affinity for stars. Well, let me just tell you this, I don’t do pink much and have never done a wonky star. So, challenge set, I got to work and look what I did!

I’ve got to tell you that I am pretty proud of that. And it was pretty easy, too! In fact…
Jadie sent some fabric along for her Let’s Bee Together block. She sent red, white, and blue and asked for a star theme of our choice. I liked the last wonky star so much, I did it again! I hope she doesn’t mind the center fabric I added. That 4.5 inch square has been patiently waiting for the chance to be used!

And I also received fabric from Erin for her Let’s Bee Together block. Erin sent red, white, and black and a neat quilt saying along. She said we could do anything we wanted as long as we included the saying and at least some of the red. I think this block was a no-brainer. Of course a Nine Patch is part of a Twelve Step Program!

So I made a Nine Patch and sat it on the steps!
Needless to say, I really enjoyed my morning. But work waits for no man (or seamstress), so off I went to the kitchen. Now, you will have to use your imagination here…

I added handles to the cabinets and drawers. They’re not all on in this picture, but I wanted to catch the light. I hung that pendant light which took a while because our house is wired really funny. It was up and down the steps several times till I discovered what breaker that light was on. Then I wired the dimmer switch wrong and had to figure that out. But now it is done and one less thing for hubby to do when he returns.
I had been concerned that one of the baby deer had come to harm. I saw the momma and one baby in the yard the other day, but couldn’t find the other. Also, I saw tracks that seemed to come from momma and only one baby. Then I saw two deer in the yard. I was so sure that one baby was gone that I thought I was seeing momma and a baby. Thank goodness for zoom lens because look what I was really seeing…

Two babies! Yay! Now I can rest easier. Whenever I finally get a chance to rest, that is!

Thank Goodness I Found This!

2011-07-25T11:54:00.001-04:00

I am such a bad blog mom!

Borrowed from the thefrogumblelog.

Garage Excavation Inspection & Square Five

2011-07-19T20:53:00.001-04:00

This spring a mama deer gave birth to twins across the street in the neighbors’ flower bed. As soon as the babies could walk, mama moved them into the woods behind my house. But every morning, mama brings them out and they walk through our back yard, down the drive way, and across the street to eat some of the neighbors’ flowers. Late last week the deer emerged from the trees to the really ugly construction scene. There they inspected the newly excavated area for the garage footers.

I was very nervous as they walked along the edge of the excavation. It is about 50 inches deep. Luckily baby deer are a lot more agile than baby humans!

Soon enough the deer will be able to pass a good way through our yard behind the garage without being seen.

This is the footer and the partial new walls. The rest will be stick built.

Last nigh we had a torrential rainstorm. The official total was 4.78 inches in about 2 to 3 hours. Now our garage has a moat – inside and out!

We also had a little water in the basement and everything is an awful muddy mess, but we did better than some. Folks a short way away had to be evacuated by boat from their homes!

So, when the mud gets too much, I am thrilled to have another chili pepper square to take my mind off of it all.

Another beaut and the quilt is growing.

Also, Debra Lee included a nice extra for me!

Ain’t that lovely? Much, much better than mud!

R.I.P. Sherwood Schwartz

2011-07-13T10:48:00.001-04:00

Very few people can be credited with shaping my life (at least my early years) as much as you did. Thanks for the good memories!

Gilligan's Island Opening Theme in Color. Watch more top selected videos about: Gilligan's Island

Bring On the New!

2011-07-11T22:41:00.001-04:00

My new kitchen cupboards are going in and I love them! It will be a couple weeks until the counter top comes in so I have no sink and therefore I am not cooking. But At least I can go out and visit my cabinets!

And the new septic is in. While that is reassuring to know, I will not be going out to visit it.

If you think that is ugly, check out the view on the other side of my house where they are excavating for the new garage…

This is the view out my family room window.

Lovely, huh? I have been at work a lot lately, day and night, and it is just as well because that view makes me anxious. I know it will get better. As hubby said, “This time next year we will look back and want to do it all again”. – NOT!

So, thank goodness for my swaps! I got another gorgeous hot pepper square in the mail.

Thank you Robyn! I love it and it goes great with the other squares!

And thanks also for the fun pepper scraps!

Cross your fingers that my next post features far less piled up dirt!

A Little Tearing Down

2011-06-26T22:08:00.001-04:00

This is a picture of my kitchen as we bought it. We do have our new appliances in, but nothing else was different.

This was how it looked yesterday after I attacked it with that demolition hammer…

and here is the current version…

The new cupboards come the week of July 4th but I have a long work week ahead and may be out of town over the holiday with work, so we decided to get a start on the tear down. There were two full layers of flooring to remove. We completely filled the bed of Steve’s pickup with the debris!

And while I was toiling, the postman rang twice!

Two more lovely blocks come for my Let’s Bee Together Swap quilt. I am so loving it! Thank you Linda and Charlene!

Couple Videos for You!

2011-06-24T09:39:00.001-04:00

Talk about an identity crisis!!

And this one is very different from the one above, but I just love it!

Don’t You Just Hate Irresponsible Swappers?

2011-06-20T11:29:00.001-04:00

And this time that person is me!!!!

I was unpacking a box of things that I had packed separately. You know - those things you feel are important and will need to be easily found. Fortunately I hadn’t had any emergencies and therefore hadn’t needed to get into the box. Unfortunately I had packed the material Jorie had sent me to make her quilt square for the Let’s Bee Together Swap last month in that box and forgot all about it!! How embarrassing is that?

Well, here is the block, in Jorie’s fabrics. She asked that we make whatever block we wanted and just include a little note as to why we chose it. Well, I chose an hourglass block because I thought it would represent the wait Jorie has had to endure! I hope she likes it!

Next, I made a block for this month’s Block Swap Adventure. This one is for Jody Sanders whose blog is named Because I’m Me. Isn’t that a great name? Jody wanted a bright and modern wonky block. Here is what I came up with…

I know it isn’t very intricate, but I felt the patterns were too large to go with smaller pieces. Recognize the fabric?

And Jody sent me a great block to add to my collection…

Here they are all together,,,

Did you just drool on your keyboard? I did!

I was the fabric sender for the month of June in the Let’s Bee Together Swap. I send chili pepper fabrics I have been collecting and I requested any block so long as the maker included a white piece somewhere and signed the block for me. Here is the first one…

This is from Erin and she has a lovely blog called My Patchwork Life. I am very excited after seeing this block. These squares should make a fun quilt!

Remember when I told you Dean-a had hives last week? She’s all better now and it was nothing more than a nuisance for her, but being a hive aficionado myself, I sure felt bad for her. I didn’t realize hubby had gotten a photo, but I found it on the camera. Look at that poor baby!

Ok. I am off to work, work, work. Talk to you soon!

Coming Along…

2011-06-15T10:08:00.000-04:00

Well, the work continues. As it is with major redo’s, it is actually looking worse before it looks better. Here is a picture of how I spent my weekend off…

That’s me running a stump grinder after the trees were removed to make way for the new garage and septic system. Ain’t I the picture of glamour?!? There’s poison ivy in the brush behind me and believe it or not, I managed NOT to get any on me!

It was actually not a bad day. I have been working loooooong hours at my real job and it was nice to get out in the yard and not think too hard. I just hired a girl last night who will be taking some of the load off. I am very happy not only to have help, but because I believe this girl will be a great worker.

Dean-a was not as lucky as I was where allergies are concerned. She awoke Monday morning with hives. I think she might have been bitten by something? I had to be on the road for work by 6:30 AM, so I had no time to deal with her. Luckily my son came home from college this weekend and was able to keep an eye on her and give her the lovin’ she so deserved. She seems better today and will be back to her bouncy self after two days of grogginess from the Benedryl we gave her for the itching.

I have two quilt squares to work on for swaps. Not big projects, but at least I can do a little sewing! In the meantime, here are a couple fun things for you…

I Quick Glimpse of My New Sewing Space!

2011-06-05T20:32:00.001-04:00

My new home has a formal living room and a large family room. The family room is the one I have shown you pictures of before with the huge fireplace and vaulted ceiling. I have no use for a formal living room so we have debated what we should do with it. At one point we thought we might put our workout equipment in there, but hubby has a heavy bag and a speed bag he would like to hang and the basement is better for that. Then we considered making it a pool table room, but we realized the windows would be an issue and there is a really large room in the basement that would work better. So, we have decided it should be my new sewing space. It will mean I will have to keep it neat. I hope that isn’t a mountain too high to climb! Today I set about setting it up, to an extent, at least. I can’t finish it off because we are planning a master bedroom remodel and will need to move our king size bed into the living room during that, but I wanted to get a taste of how it will work out. What do you think?

The Rat Pack likes that loveseat in front of the window so they can get up on the back of it and look out. I inherited one of the old office desks and it is going to work great for my embroidery machine. I had to get that set up to test it because one of the movers dropped it. My heart about stopped! It was more of a tip-over than a true drop, but I feared for the calibration. However, all is well! I also inherited a small but very sturdy dining table with one leaf that my regular machine sits on. There is room to have it several inches from the wall so I can work on larger items.

Don’t mind the boxes and I know one day I will find the shades to that floor lamp! That is a true wood burning fireplace behind those boxes. It is open on the front and back and also serves the dining room. Truthfully, I don’t think we will be apt to use it much at all, but I will enjoy putting my do-dads on the mantel and hearth! I don’t know what color it will get painted as it adjoins the dining area, so the color will flow through, but I can work with that.

This is the view across the room from the sewing machine end. That ugly orange dresser will be one of the first replacements I make, but it will serve for now. That under bed box holds artificial flowers I use for crafting. It won’t fit under the loveseat, so I am going to get some large decorative floor vases or other vessels and arrange the flowers in them on the hearth. I covered my old table with that cloth just to dress it up a little. That may prove unhandy – we’ll see. The room in the basement I had planned to use (which will now be the one day pool table room) would have been larger, but with little natural light, away from the rest of the house, and cold year round. This room will be much more comfortable. Isn’t hubby sweet to let me set up in the front room? Well, he is getting a really neat garage built for his woodshop and car studio.

I’m looking forward to coming home this week one evening and working on my swap square for the Block Swap Adventure!

I’m Still Here!

2011-05-30T21:59:00.001-04:00

This moving stuff is hard work! Our new home is coming along. It was a foreclosure, so we expected a lot of work. We are enjoying it, but for now, there will be very little sewing!

I’ll share some pictures, but be warned – they aren’t for the faint of heart!

We won’t be parking in the garage for awhile!

We had some trees taken down and the deck had to go too to put in the new septic tank.

My living room…

My sewing room… Someday…

The dining room… See how we saved just enough space for the two of us to eat?

We did get a dog run built for the dogs. Doesn’t seem like a large accomplishment, but it has been raining like crazy here! Though the sun shown yesterday when I was taking this picture, it rained last night. I don’t think we’ve had a solid 24 hours without rain in weeks!

And here are my lovely new washer and dryer! It is nice not having to bend over to get the clothes in and out of the dryer.

I have been working a ton, too. In fact I leave tomorrow at 2 and won’t be back till Thursday at 5 or so for 3 or 4 hours, then back to work until about 5 on Friday. I’ll work on and off through the weekend, too. So, thanks for bearing with me through this. I’ll sew again one day!

The Time Has Come!

2011-05-15T09:20:00.001-04:00

We are moving into our new house on Friday. There is a ton of work to do and last minute packing. I won’t be online much, maybe skimming blogs without commenting on most (which I did today) because time is so short. I am working 9 to 12 hours a day on Monday through Friday and as much as 6 hours a day on Saturday and Sunday at my job in addition to what we are doing at the houses. We began some painting in our new house yesterday and are going back again today. Stanley Steemer was in yesterday to clean all the carpet upstairs and we tore out the carpet in my son’s room. Tomorrow the guy will come to measure for the new carpet. Hubby is on “vacation” this week. I put that in quotes because although he does not have to go into work, he’ll likely wish he had with all the work on the new house he’ll be doing. For example, tomorrow, in addition to the carpet guy, he will organize and assist the following; a team of maids who will be doing the cleaning I can’t do pre-move because I am working, a fencing contractor for the Rat Pack, a kitchen contractor coming to take initial measurements so I can get my new kitchen going, a contractor who will be building us a new garage and putting on a new roof, and a septic/excavation contractor who will be replacing or making major changes to the septic system and to the drainage around our house. On Tuesday he will have the fence guy back, and an exterminator to treat the house as it is cedar sided and a real treat for wood boring bees. Wednesday is the carpet installation in son’s room and delivery of my new washer and dryer. At some point I will get scheduled a well guy to chlorinate the stinky well water, and the K9 Grass guy who will be laying a turf dog run to tame the muddy dog paws. All that while painting and doing repairs and on and on. I feel bad that I will be working! Poor guy!

Yesterday morning we were awakened by a call from hubby’s work. Even though it was the first day of his vacation, one of the managers had to call because during the night there had been an incident at one of the shops hubby manages. He is a district manager for a quick oil change company and apparently a drunk driver had lost control of his car and drove through one of the garages taking out the 20 foot sign out front and two garage doors. Hubby went over just to touch base and reassure himself all was under control. I took that bit of downtime and used it to make up my other March swap square.

This is my square for the Let’s Bee Together Swap. I did have to tear out a couple of small spaces, but I am happy with the square and enjoyed making it. For this swap, my partner sent me the fabric and asked for a pinwheel square, especially one like the ones featured in the ps I Quilt pinwheel sampler quilt along. I’ve never made a pinwheel before and was intimidated by it. Now I think I will make one again. That is one of the great things about a swap like this. It gets you to try something new.

Ok that’s it. Gotta motivate. There’s work to do!! You may not hear from me for several days. But I’ll be back. And when I am, I’ll be jonesin’ for some quiltin’!

It Really Is Therapy for the Soul

2011-05-09T21:49:00.001-04:00

Our house closed today. Now we have to see if the seller will give us the key on the date originally planned or if she is going to make us wait. This is nerve wracking and I am sick of staring at boxes. Luckily, I HAD to go to the fabric store and I HAD to take time out of my busy schedule to make up a block for the Block Swap Adventure. Sorry I didn’t iron it before I took pictures. I’ve never heard anyone say ironing is good for the soul anyway!

My partner wanted an Amish Star in red and turquoise and she said that a theme was emerging because most of the other blocks she has received had an animal in one of the fabrics. I hope this makes her happy. It made me happy. I didn’t have to tear out a single stitch.

Nope. No Sewing.

2011-05-05T20:00:00.001-04:00

I awoke at 4:22 this morning and couldn’t get back to sleep. Partly because I knew I had to get up at 5 anyway, and partly because, though I love my Rat Pack, Puggles snore! Then I worked an 11 hour day. If there is one thing I have learned over the years, it is that one should not sew when she is exhausted. So that will have to wait.

“Why,” you ask, “is she posting this if she hasn’t got anything to share?” Ahhhh, have faith! Before I sat down and my back end melted into this recliner, my lovely hubby helped me go out to fetch a couple prizes.

Yes, I know they look rough. But the White on the right actually works! And the treadle on the one on the left moves like butter. I don’t actually plan on using either of them, I just want to clean them up and look at them. My new sewing room will be quite large and there will be space for them there for sure. I love them! Hubby thinks I am crazy. I say that with a little Murphy’s Oil Soap, wood glue, and elbow grease, they will be treasures. I love to think of the ladies that used to use these. I truly believe they will bring good mojo to my new sewing space. And I think they are works of art. You can’t see it because of the dirt, but the one on the left has little flowers painted on it. I bet it was gorgeous when new. And get a load of these gams…

Yep. My version of a pinup girl, for sure!

Today I Cut…

2011-05-04T22:01:00.001-04:00

Maybe tomorrow I will be able to sew. These pieces will become two of the swap blocks I need to make this month. I know… you are thinking, “Really? You cut out two squares? That’s it?” Believe me. I realize this is a very minor achievement. But this is the room I am working in…

Now I knew this was going to happen when I packed up my sewing room. I knew these blocks were due in May. But I also knew that if I didn’t pack up this room, I’d never pack up these rooms…

Pretty bad, huh? We sent the sofa and love seat to the upholsterer to have the cushions recovered. When she is finished she will send them to our new house. If we ever get into it! It was supposed to close last Friday, but being a foreclosure, the lawyers have it backed up. They said it would be closed by this Friday. We’ll see. The seller is being very nice and says she’ll move out on the previously agreed upon date as long as it closes in time. That date is May 11. The lawyers better get the lead out!!! Meanwhile, we are living sparsely.

But the outside looks nice.

A little sun today. And supposedly more tomorrow. It is nearly too much to believe!

I Might Not Be Sewing…

2011-04-30T09:38:00.001-04:00

But somebody is! And that somebody is Jackie!!! As proof I submit to you what the postman brought for me yesterday. It is the latest of the blocks I have received in the Block Swap Adventure!

I have asked my partners to use autumn colors and to think “trees and leaves”. Isn’t this a great and unique block? I am so happy I joined this swap. I have been very impressed by the variety of blocks I have received so far.

Sorry I don’t have a picture of all four together. I have already packed the first three for “the Big Move”.

I had originally planned a quilt for these blocks, but now I am thinking that I may make wall art out of them!

You should visit Jackie’s blog, Sisters in Stitches, which she shares with her sister, Jodi. I was already a follower of their blog and so I was very excited to find she was my swap partner in April.

Now I have to sneak a few minutes next week to create a block for my May partner. Of course, it will also mean I have to go to the fabric store since I have packed away my fabric. Ahhh, such are the sacrifices we swappers must make (wink, wink)!

Guilty!!!

2011-04-24T20:37:00.001-04:00

Of blog neglect, that is. And I do apologize. I have been soooo busy with work, packing, and getting our house ready to go on the market.

This weekend was spent packing up the kitchen. Look at all of these boxes and there are still two sets of cupboards, all the food, and the bare essentials left to pack. How can I possible use all of this stuff, let alone need it?

Lying on the table are pictures and wall art too big for any of the boxes I currently have. I have removed everything from the walls that is going with us except my husband’s homemade medicine chest which he didn’t want down just yet. This is what my walls look like now.

Isn’t that attractive? If I have one helpful hint to pass on to everyone it is this… If you think you might ever move again and would want to patch picture holes, make yourself a master list of paint colors, manufacturer, etc. for each room of your house. I spent a good deal of time today trying to find the paints and then to figure out which beige went where, for example. And I have moved 3 times, so I have no excuse! Do as I say, not as I do.

It continues to rain here and I believe we should be building an ark instead of buying a house. I suppose it doesn’t matter when one is inside packing. But it is sooo depressing! And I do eventually need to finish the yard work.

I am also going into fabric withdrawal. I haven’t sealed up my container of scraps, yet. Because I just cut all my scraps into shapes with my Go! not too long ago, there is currently actually a little space in the container still and I am using it as a place to toss odds and ends as I find them. I am thinking I might have to pull out some scraps and maybe do some more hexies or some yo-yos. Not sure if my carpal tunnel agrees, though. If not, well then maybe I will just pull some scraps out and whisper sweet nothings in their ears!

My Dogs are Barkin’

2011-04-19T18:21:00.001-04:00

Isn’t that what I just said in my last post? Well, with these babies, that wouldn’t be just a cute saying!

And though this is my favorite pair of shoes designed by Kobi Levi, there are quite a few on his blog that I wouldn’t turn my nose up at!

(Ya, had a little down time at work today!)

Movin’, Movin’, Movin’

2011-04-17T22:48:00.001-04:00

Keep movin', movin', movin'
Though they're disapprovin'
Keep them dogies movin'
Rawhide!

Remember that Blues Brothers song? As I packed and packed for our big upcoming move I just couldn’t help humming this song. And tonight, my dogs are barkin’ (and I don’t mean the four legged furry ones).

Here is what my craft room looked like in September of last year.

And here is what it looks like now.

View Full Album

Everything is packed except the last few essentials. I know I have 3 swap blocks I will have to put together before the move, so the machine stays out till then (good thing I have an excuse!). If you are wondering how much stuff you have in your crafting space, I can tell you that packing it all up for a move sure is an eye opener!!

Spring knees and a Spring Theme Winner

2011-04-16T14:25:00.001-04:00

Do your knees look like this in the spring?

They do if your ground is this saturated on an 80 degree day with sunshine so bright that I ended up with sunburn…

And if your gardens look like this…

We don’t cut back our gardens in the fall because I like to leave it for the birds to pick at. So this is a springtime ritual. It feels good to get outside and work after a long, cold, gray winter!

Mother Nature’s creatures are stirring, too! We have a mouse (or mice) under our back deck. Ask me how I know…

They spend quite a lot of time snuffling at the spaces in the boards, sometimes seemingly trying to actually snort the poor mouse out of the crack and sometimes tilting their head from side to side to get a better view of what ever it is they think they might see under there. It is really pretty funny. Please ignore the weeds. I haven’t gotten around to the back of the house, yet! And please ignore the hose. Cheap piece of so-n-so just wouldn’t wind!

And I have a winner to announce in my AccuQuilt Spring Theme Blog Hop give away! Congratulations to Vicki of Vicki B Quilts, her BRAND SPANKING NEW blog!!!! Go visit her! Vicki, we’ll be watching to see what great things you create!

I Don’t Believe It!

2011-04-12T16:12:00.002-04:00

But it’s true!
Welcome to all the Spring Theme Blog Hop participants!! If you are looking for my Spring quilt “tutorial” and give away, it can be found here. (Give away now closed.)
But that isn’t what I don’t believe. What I don’t believe is that my entry in AccuQuilt’s Barn Quilt Design Contest has been chosen as one of the top 100! Woohoo!! (Between you and me, I don’t know how many entries they had – may only have been 100! But I’m not asking. Just going to enjoy the warm fuzzies!)

The next round of the contest will be decided by the votes of visitors to the AccuQuilt web site. There are some amazing blocks to choose from. I encourage you to stop over and look through them. And if you are so moved, maybe you can vote for me (again, it’s just about the warm fuzzies!)

Spring Theme Blog Hop & Giveaway!

2011-04-11T15:51:00.004-04:00

(Give away now closed. Thanks to all who entered!! )

I am participating in the Spring Theme Blog Hop hosted by SewCalGal. Every participant has created a spring themed AccuQuilt friendly project to share. There will be two new blogs to visit each day through April 15. Today is my turn to share.
You’ve seen my quilt before. Remember this?

The pieces for this quilt were cut nearly entirely using my AccuQuilt Go! though you could certainly cut this quilt by hand, too. I am not going to attempt a full scale tutorial by any means, but I would like to share the “pattern” for this little quilt.
My quilt finished at 41 inches square. To make a quilt top like mine, you will need 1/2 yard of each of 4 focus fabrics and 1/2 yard of fabric for the sashing (At least that is what Electric Quilt says, which is what I used to design this quilt). You will need scraps of coordinating fabric for the butterflies and flowers and a VERY light weight fusible web or glue stick with which to attach them to the quilt before stitching. Do not use heavy fusible or you will never be able to quilt through all the layers after you fuse. And of course you will need fabric for your backing and binding, as well as batting and thread. I used the 1 1/2 inch strip, 3 1/2 by 6 1/2 inch rectangle, 3 1/2 square, 6 1/2 square, and heart dies.
Here goes:

From each of the 4 focus fabrics cut;
- four 6x6 inch squares
- four 3x3 inch squares
- eight 3x6 inch rectangles
From the sashing fabric, cut 10 1.5 inch strips times width of the fabric.
Using the pieces cut from the focus fabrics, assemble 4 of each of the following 9x9 inch blocks;
Take 3 of the sashing strips and cut them into pieces 9 inches long.
Sew columns of the quilt using 4 of your 9 inch blocks and 3 of your 9 inch strips. Follow the layout above and you will end up with 4 columns like this;
Using 3 of the sashing strips, connect the columns like this and add one strip on the far left and far right;
Add your last two sashing strips to the top and bottom and voila!
To make the butterflies and flowers, iron the fusible web onto the back of the fabric scraps. Do not peel off the paper. Cut the fabric with the fusible web ironed onto it into a size suitable for the heart die. I cut all three sizes of hearts at one time. The number and variety of hearts you cut will depend on your own preference. Remove the paper and layer the hearts on one another in a way that pleases you. I made the flowers from 4 large hearts with 4 medium hearts centered on each and 4 small hearts arranged around the center. The butterflies are made from two large hearts with two medium hearts centered on them for the top wings and two medium hearts with two small hearts centered on them for the bottom wings. I free handed an elongated oval and a slightly smaller elongated oval for the butterfly bodies.
Arrange your flowers and butterflies and fuse/glue.
Layer, quilt, bind, and you are finished in only 10 steps! Ha!

I had contemplated adding buttons to the center of the flowers or embroidering antennae on the butterflies and details on the petals, but I decided that the fabric in this quilt was busy enough and that would be overkill.
***For being so patient with me while I had computer problems and didn’t get this up in time, I am going to send one person 1/2 yard of each of the focus fabrics in the background of this quilt. Get yourself some black for the sashing and some scraps for the flowers and butterflies and you can be Springy too! Just leave a comment. I’ll draw a name on Saturday the 16th.***
SewCalGal is also sharing a springy project she has completed today and the rest of the line up is below.

Tues., April 12th
Bejeweled Quilts (Barb) - http://bejeweledquilts.blogspot.com/
SewCindy (Cindy) - www.sewcindy.blogspot.com

Wed., April 13th
Sunshower Quilts (Katrina) - http://www.sunshowerquilts.blogspot.com/
Just Plain Laine (Laine) - http://JustPlainLaine.com

Thu., April 14th
Bits & Pieces (Terri) - http://terriesandelin.blogspot.com/
Rosebud Quilting (Michelle) - http://rosebudquilting.blogspot.com/

Fri., April 15th
Hollyhock Quilts (Glenna) - www.hollyhockquilts.com
A Quilting Life (Sherry) - www.aquiltinglife.com
Be sure to visit all the blogs. There are bound to be lots of fun projects to see. And even if you don’t own an AccuQuilt product, you might get some ideas for quilts you can create none the less.

In a Full Out Run and STILL 2 Steps Behind!!!

2011-04-11T10:23:00.001-04:00

My HUGEST apologies to all my friends!!! House buying and my job have come down hard and heavy at the same time!!!! In fact, there were two 24 hour periods last week when I worked 20 of those hours! But fear not! I will survive! In the meantime, technical difficulties are throwing in their two cents and I am have trouble posting my Spring Theme Blog Hop hosted by SewCalGal in which several folks will be sharing spring theme projects made with AccuQuilt products. This is frustrating because I prepared the post two weeks ago worried that I would be this busy now. But I will be at another computer this afternoon and I will post it then. To whet your whistle I will tell you that it is a “pattern” for my Spring Quilt that I donated to the auction for American Veterans with PTSD. Hang tight! It’ll be good, I swear!!!! And to make amends for the delay, there will be a give away involved!! So be sure to stop back later.

In the meantime, hop on over to SewCalGal and see what goodness she has to share because she is sharing day one with me and HAS her post POSTED!!!!

Technology; Can’t Live Without It…

2011-04-03T20:57:00.001-04:00

And boy did I learn that this weekend!!! Our Microsoft Exchange server at work went down on Friday afternoon. It was a total crash and everyone had to be moved to a whole new server which wasn’t completed until today. For many companies having a system crash on the weekend would be better than having it happen during the week, but my company happens to be busiest on weekends and holidays. I got up early Saturday and spent 5 and one half hours trying to coordinate business via phone calls. I know a lot of people think that individuals in our society are becoming more and more isolated because of the internet. I don’t know that I agree with that idea in general, but I sure can tell you that life is much easier when you can type up and send a detailed email to an entire distribution list with a read receipt request as opposed to calling everyone, going over every step and request, and writing down and keeping accurate records of who has been called and the name of the person at each establishment with whom you spoke. And then when you finally get to the end of the list, you start back at the beginning checking in with each contact to be sure your requests are being carried out. Ughhhh!!

However, I felt pretty good when it was all completed. Unfortunately, about then my hubby called me in to help him in the process of rebuilding his brother’s computer. So, I got up at 7, and stopped fiddling with technology at around 7 pm that night. No housework, no baby quilt sewing as I had hoped.

This AM, after 2 hours of phone calls I did get to sew for a bit before I had to physically leave the house to work for a few hours. When you see what I did, you will note that it is NOT a quilt as I had promised.

Originally I was going to cut apart the animal squares and use the zebra print for sashing, but then I realized that really wasn’t necessary and I just made a sandwich of top, batting, and backing. I added the ribbon tags on the sides.

I didn’t really have time to do a bunch of FMQ and thought creating a grid between all the pictures would have been not only overkill, but boring. This blanket is only 36 inches by 44 inches and no quilting is really necessary. I envision it will be used as a floor blanket. But I felt like I was really cheaping out by stopping there, so I decided to turn it into a quillow and added stitching on the fold lines only. Then because I had some of the animal squares fabric left (I just love that colorful fabric), I made a little taggie toy with some crinkly paper sewn inside. Here is a pic of the blanket all folded up and tucked into the pillow. Sorry about the photo quality and I hadn’t even trimmed all the strings before I took this as there was a thunderstorm moving in and we were losing what little light we had, so I hurried to get any decent picture at all.

And a close up of the fabric. I just love the bright colors! Hope baby Gabriel does too!

A Completed Swap Block

2011-04-01T13:54:00.001-04:00

I completed a swap block for the Block Swap Adventure this week. That’s about all the sewing I got done. I have been packing and working and cleaning and cleaning and… well, you know. Anyhow, here is the block I made for Jackie (click on her name to visit her blog which she shares with her sister Jodi):

Jackie asked for any star block in black, red, and white, preferably modern fabrics. This block is called simply “Another Star” . Though the pattern called for only two fabrics, I changed out the corners for the black because I wanted the star to stand out more. I hope it works for her!

I hope to get a quickie baby quilt done this weekend for the new son of a man my husband works with. I really need to get out and clean up the flower beds. However, Mother Nature had other plans…

Sorry I haven’t had a lot to share with you lately. I didn’t figure you would want to see pictures of the dust on top of my fridge or of the dust bunnies seeking refuge under my washer and dryer. But I have noticed quite a few posts around blogland this week from folks who haven’t got a lot to share, either. Must be “that time of year”! My fingers are crossed that I will have a small quilt to share Sunday night. I have to work a little on Sunday, so I plan on keeping this one simple so it will get done quickly. Talk to you then!

Look What I Received!

2011-03-28T21:15:00.001-04:00

Is that gorgeous or what?!! If you are jealous (and I know you are…), you can still join in the fun. Visit the Block Swap Adventure to get more info.

I am loving this swap! This quilt is gonna look good on my bed in my new bedroom in my new house!

I Don’t Want to Jinx It…

2011-03-24T22:05:00.001-04:00

But it looks like we may have bought a house. We still have to get through the inspection, though.

Pretty different from what I had showed you before, huh? But look at this…

We couldn’t pass that up. Cross your fingers for us.

With DS home on spring break, there isn’t much sewing going on. It’s kind of hard to do with crossed fingers anyway!

Just a Quick Post…

2011-03-21T20:45:00.001-04:00

My son is home from college on spring break and I don’t know how much sewing I’ll be doing until he returns. Aside from enjoying one another’s company, spring break is the time when we do check ups and dentist appointments and all that, and we have family to visit, so it’s a busy time.

But I did get the little house wall hanging finished for my realtor. I still have to put a label on it, but it is other wise ready to go.

Here are two pictures of the front. See the difference?

The sign hangs on a little chain and she can turn it. I think she’ll get a kick out of that.

Here is the back where you can see the quilting.

You can see the colored top threads in some spots, but I am OK with that. The spot on the right by the tree really isn’t that glaring. Must be the way the sun caught it.

And I want to show you one of my favorite tools for finishing these types of quilts. With all that stitching in all those patterns, with all those different top thread colors, a lot of thread tails have to be knotted and buried. These needles make that so much easier to do. They are called “easy threading”, “self threading”, or “calyx eye”.

They have two eyes. The bottom one is just a regular eye. The top one though, is topped by a groove and though it is very hard to see, there is a slit in the bottom of that groove. To thread the needle, you stretch the thread across the slot and pull it downward into the eye. That eye is not good for sewing because the thread will just slip right back out when you pull it. In fact, the bottom eye really isn’t good for any kind of heavy sewing as it is pretty fragile (notice there is one missing in the pack?). But it will hold the thread tails long enough to bury them and is much quicker than using a needle threader, which I have to use because I just can’t see that little eye anymore.

Now the spiral eye needle looks like it would be beefy enough to actually use for sewing, but it also looks like you have to order them online and for a heavier price tag than the Dritz needles, but I may keep them in the back of my mind anyway. I found them here and there are lots of online stores that sell them, too.

If I Close My Eyes, You Can’t See Me!

2011-03-17T18:16:00.001-04:00

Oh, I just had to share this! Too funny!

Have You Submitted Your Design?

2011-03-16T23:15:00.001-04:00

AccuQuilt is hosting a Barn Quilt Design Contest. You don’t have to design a whole quilt, just one block. You needn’t have an AccuQuilt product to enter and your block needn’t be traditional. If you are interested, click on the link above for more info. Here’s my block…

Eye of the Sun. Hope they meant what they said about it not having to be traditional!!

If I didn't own a cat or dog…

2011-03-15T22:46:00.001-04:00

I didn’t write this, but I sure could have!

If I didn’t own a cat or dog…

I could walk barefoot around the yard in safety.

My house could have carpet instead of tile and laminate
All flat surfaces, clothing, furniture, and cars would be hair/fur-free.

When the doorbell rings, my home wouldn't sound like a kennel.

I could also get to the door without
pushing through all the fuzzy bodies who beat me there.
I could sit on the couch and my bed any way I wanted, without having to take into consideration how much space several fur bodies need to get comfortable.

I would have enough money, and no guilt, to go on a real vacation.
I would not be on a first-name basis with 6 veterinarians, as I put their yet unborn grandkids through college.

The most used words in my vocabulary would not be:
"out," "sit," "down", "come," "no," "stay,"
And "leave it ALONE.

My house would not be cordoned off into zones with baby gates and makeshift barriers.

I would not talk 'baby talk'. 'Eat your din din'. 'Yummy Yummy for the tummy'..
My house would not look like a day care center, with toys everywhere.

My pockets would not contain things like poop bags, treats and an extra leash.

I would no longer have to spell the words B-A-L-L,
W-A-L-K, T-R-E-A-T, O-U-T, G-O, R-I-D-E, S-U-P-P-E-R,
And C-O-O-K-I-E.
I would not have as many leaves INSIDE my house as
Outside.

I would not look strangely at people who think having
ONE dog/cat ties them down too much.

I'd look forward to spring and the rainy season instead
Of dreading 'mud' season.
I would not have to answer the question: 'Why do you
Have so many animals?' from people who will never know the joy of being loved unconditionally by the closest thing
to an angel they will ever encounter.

How EMPTY my life would be!!!

I’m Not the Only One House Hunting

2011-03-13T22:06:00.001-04:00

This morning when I got up and went to fill the bird feeder on my back deck, I saw a robin! They say that is the true harbinger of spring! The snow from the other day was all gone by yesterday afternoon and though it was cloudy, it didn’t rain today. Still, it is so damp out from all the snow and rain we have had over the last few weeks that the pavement remains wet.

Since it was warmer than it has been in a while, I found myself standing there on the deck listening to all of the wonderful tweeting and chirping going on. I couldn’t see them, but I could hear the geese in the water behind my house. The males fight for the females this time of year. When they get at it, they will chase each other right out into the street.

As I was standing there, I noticed a pair of birds making a nest in one of the old woodpecker holes in a tree in the neighbor’s yard. I couldn’t see what type they were because the tree is a way off, but I could see them come and go and knew that’s what they were up to. I’ll have to get out the binoculars to see who is moving in!

Speaking of house hunting… my realtor is a real sweetheart. I am making her a wall hanging to thank her for all her hard work and because we love the fact that she is not at all high pressure with us, but a real bulldog with the other realtors on our behalf. I am going to add a brown border like a frame and after quilting it, I will embellish it some more. It is looking a little plain just yet.

Stay safe and cozy everyone. Thoughts and prayers to the poor unfortunate people in Japan who have lost their homes and, in many cases, so much more.

It’s a Winter Wonderland,.. Again!

2011-03-11T08:54:00.001-05:00

Here is what we woke up to…

The snow is so sticky and wet that it filled the individual holes in the wire fencing.

I will probably hear boos from the peanut gallery for saying it, but I would so rather have this than 45 degree nonstop rain and wind like we had for the last two days. Once this is plowed and shoveled that’s it – no getting soaked loading groceries or putting gas in your car! Plus, it really is gorgeous. You can’t tell from these photos because the camera toned it down, but it is so bright out there that you almost have to squint. And the sun isn’t even out. Much better than those gray days.

Perfecting My Piecing

2011-03-10T23:58:00.001-05:00

Though I have made a few quilts over the years, I was feeling really nervous about piecing blocks for the two monthly swaps I am in. However, because I couldn’t shy away and because I refused to ship off wonky blocks, I have been working on learning tips, staying calm, and being confident. I know you saw the first block already, but now it is pressed and trimmed. The second block I made today.

Both blocks finished at just a hair over 12.5 inches. I am so happy with them. Here is the magic combination for me.

Sharp blades are not a luxury. They are a necessity. The ones in this picture are from Harbor Freight. $1.99 for a two pack. Gotta love that! I bought the Omnigrid rulers as a set when they were on sale for 50% off. They are 4.5, 6.5, 9.5, and 12.5. No more unsquare squares for me. And the Bamboo Pointer Creaser comes in handy for pressing down seams. Which reminds me that I can’t forget this tool…

Yep. I fingered pressed this second block, too. And I didn’t use any pins. But these aren’t the only ingredients in my newly perfected piecing recipe. I also love my Bendable Bright Light that I got for Christmas.

I turned out the lights in the room and took before and after picks so you could see the difference that little spot light makes.

The final two ingredients come from my machine itself. That would be the flexible settings that can be saved in memory and recalled at the touch of a button…

and the quarter inch seam foot attachment.

I set my needle all the way to the right and just sew away with the edge of the fabric against that little guide there.

At the risk of sounding like a real dork, I have to tell you that I was pretty nervous and frustrated about these pieced blocks each month. But I am over that now and really enjoying myself.

When Irish Eyes Aren’t Smiling

2011-03-06T21:26:00.001-05:00

Have you ever used Warm & Natural batting?

It’s my favorite. If you’ve used it, you will recognize this next photo, even though it is a lousy one.

It has these little flecks in it that I suppose are part of the cotton plant. Today I learned why they now sell “Warm & White” which is basically the same, but made of “whitened cotton fibers”.

I finished my St. Patrick’s Day quilt and put it in the washer with a color catcher even though I didn’t expect any problems. After it was almost dry, I pulled it out and ran an iron over the shamrock squares. This is what I saw…

Can you see the spots? I rewashed it to be sure and it came out the same. The spots on the batting are showing through the white of the squares! It looks like someone sneezed all over it with a mouth full of coffee or tea! I can’t send this to the auction my girlfriend is hosting for veterans with PTSD! Oh, well. Guess it will live with me. When I get my new quilting studio, it will go on the wall as a reminder – not that I’ll forget. It never crossed my mind. I’ve used that batting before and not had this problem. Maybe it is because I have large areas of white that aren’t quilted because I don’t really notice it on the quilted squares. Good thing I had already made and given her the Spring quilt I made.

Oh, and this shot is for Gene!

The spool I used wasn’t large enough (and I didn’t cut the binding on the bias because I hadn’t watched your video, yet), but this was way better that fighting that long strip all the way around this quilt! Thanks for the tip!

After finishing this quilt, I moved on to one of the swap blocks I need to make for this month. For this block the recipient sent the fabric and said we could pick the square pattern.

The squares we make are 12 1/2 inches unfinished and I have had some trouble with that. I read somewhere recently that you should not iron as you sew. I figured I’d give it a shot and only finger pressed my seams. It worked like a charm. I don’t know why, but it did. Good thing too, because I turned on my iron to give this a final press and let it warm up. When it was ready, I picked it up and it shut off never to come on again. And this is my new iron! Maybe it was miffed that I finger pressed the seams? I know I have blogged about my iron woes before. I must be iron cursed. So that is why this looks a little wonky and isn’t trimmed yet. I’ll have to get a new iron tomorrow.

It was a good thing the mail man came yesterday and I was still riding off the good vibes from the package he brought to get me through this day. A few days ago I won a give away hosted by Sue Hauser at Alderwood Quilts. This was my official win…

This great bear paw quilt pattern and the daisies to make it (I stole the image from Sue’s blog because my picture was truly awful). In the center of each square are four quarters of daisies and in the very center is a little dark square. My idea is to use this to make a floor pillow for my niece for Christmas next year. I figure those centers are calling out to be tufted with buttons from my mom’s stash.

Then I purchased these two patterns to go with the above win.

What is really neat about these is that they are on clearance and included are the daisies to make them! The fabric line is nearly sold out, so Sue has made “mini kits” shall we say. I will have to buy some coordinating fabric separately, but the flowers are the important part. You should check out her sale here.

I also bought this great dog pattern. I couldn’t pass this up. There are 16 different dog head designs.

And Sue is such a sweetheart that she threw in these white daisies and this cute pattern, too!

Sue, you saved me from a real bout of feeling sorry for myself! Thank you!

And by the way, I finally have a photo of me that doesn’t make me want to bury my head in the sand. Unfortunately it was taken while I was sitting on the edge of my tub and there is a towel rack in the back ground, but hey, beggars can’t be choosers. So I am no longer hiding behind my sweet Puggle Dean-a in my profile pic anymore.

House Hunting Update

2011-03-04T08:23:00.001-05:00

I should have posted this sooner since so many of you have been asking me, but I guess I was having a pout. On Wednesday we met a builder at the “white house” I posted about earlier. It is small and needed a master addition, a garage for hubby’s car restoration and woodworking hobbies, and a quilt studio for me. Unfortunately, in the 70’s an addition was added onto which our addition would need to be added. At that time, the area where this house sits was very rural and codes were lax. Now the township has really tightened the rules and the building code blows away what existed then. To be fair, the builder said that is common all over. Anyway, some of the changes that would come in to play here would have required major deconstruction and rebuild of the current addition in order to add the addition we want. Because of that, the price was just not going to work for us. For the amount of money required, we can just buy another home and not have to wait 6 months or more for the construction and straddle two mortgages for the better part of a year. So we were a little disappointed, but we are looking at it as “meant to be”. It wasn’t the one. It would be a great house for someone without BIG hobbies, though. We decided against the other two because we want to be closer to where I work. So back to the drawing board. But we’ll find what we are looking for – unless, of course, Fate has it that we should stay here. That wouldn’t be the end of the world, but I don’t expect that will happen, either.

The upside is that I am taking a day or two off from house hunting/planning to clear my head. So I will clean,and grocery shop, and if my work phone stays quiet, I will sew. Yes, you heard me right. I said, SEW!!! That St. Patrick’s Day quilt is in my site.

Do You Know Gene Black?

2011-02-28T21:01:00.001-05:00

If you don’t, now would be a great time to get to know him. He has posted a great video on cutting bias strips for binding. I haven’t tried it yet, but I think even I could do it! Click on the picture to go to his blog post and video link.

Busy As A Bee!

2011-02-27T21:42:00.001-05:00

This house hunting stuff is a lot of work! Leaning toward the white one with the porch swing in my earlier post. But it needs a master bed/bath addition, a large garage for hubby’s woodworking and car restoration work and a studio for me. So I spent a good deal of time today drawing up a couple of plans so I will have something to show the builder on Wednesday. He is meeting me at the house to tell me if what we want is feasible and within our budget. If not, we aren’t going to bid on the house. I am invested in it enough now that I hope he says it will work and be priced right.

But to keep my sanity, I did get into my sewing room for a while before dinner to work on the St. Patrick’s Day quilt. You can now see the Irish Chain. I added shamrocks to the blank squares. They are fused on and still need stitched. I also used my machine to embroider bumble bees on 3 of the shamrocks. I am having fun with this!

If the Luck O’ the Irish Be With Me…

2011-02-24T20:54:00.001-05:00

I’ll get this quilt done in time to give it to my friend for her silent auction fundraiser for American vets with PTSD.

See the cute little bumble bees?

I bet there are at least of few of you who can guess what pattern I am using!

I’ve got grocery shopping, work, and house shopping tomorrow, and date night with hubby tomorrow night. Then a visit with the tax preparer, stacking of firewood, and painting of bricks in the basement on Saturday. So though I know the suspense is killing you, you are probably going to have to wait until at least Sunday for another peak!

I Suppose It’s Time to Come Clean

2011-02-22T21:22:00.001-05:00

There have been a lot of things keeping me busy lately. I thought I’d let you know what a few of them are.

I have been very busy with work. While most folks don’t know President’s Day even passed, the people my company serves take great advantage of the long weekend and we were flat out from Thursday clear through yesterday. Then the whole day today was spent on the paperwork generated by all that business.

I finally finished my spring quilt.

I know you thought I’d never get it done. It’s OK. I was beginning to wonder myself!

Yesterday this happened…

By the time it was finished snowing, there were 8 inches. All of the snow melted over the weekend and it got muddy and sloppy in the yard. To keep the mud under control we have a rug path – I can not seem to teach the Rat Pack to wipe their feet at all!

See Sammie running by on her way outside to play in the snow? One would think that with all that snow and all those rugs, I’d get a break from this…

Can you see the muddy foot prints? If not, click on the picture and take a closer look. Wouldn’t want you to miss out on all the fun! Sometimes the wood floors make me crazy, but then it occurs to me that all that dirt would still be there, just trapped in carpet.

Then there is work in the basement. We have been working to make finished rooms down there. This weekend I painted door frames, hung towel racks, and painted this…

…brick by brick. Only 10 bazillion to go! I love the affect, and I don’t mind the work, but the paint is NAAAA-STY! So I can only do a small section at a time. I really like the stamped concrete they are using in new homes.

However, the thing that has been taking up the most of my time lately will not have that neat stamped concrete. Hubby and I are looking for a new home. Here are the latest 3 on our short list…

This one was built in 1850. Unfortunately, much of the woodwork has been removed over the years. Guess in the 70s it wasn’t fashionable because that seems to have been the last time it was remodeled. However, it is close to my work and from that porch you have a lazy view of a pond. We have already visited this one and we are going back for a second closer look.

This one was built in 1924 and has nice woodwork, but hubby isn’t so sure about the neighborhood that has grown up around it. I haven’t driven by, yet. We are going to look at it on Friday, but he and I usually feel the same on these things.

Then there is this one which I absolutely love! The woodwork inside is amazing and it is in a cute little town. Look at this picture of it lit up at night!

Can you stand it? Doesn’t it look like a magazine picture! Unfortunately, the cute little town this one is in is pretty far from my work and I have the gnawing suspicion that I may be needing to be more physically available on the work end of town. Little towns aren’t fast at clearing 8 inches of snow. I have to keep that in mind, too. We are going to look at this one on Thursday before we revisit the other one.

They all have a wood burning fireplace which for us is a must. They will all need Puggle-proof fences. Hubby will be getting a large garage to restore cars in and hopefully a wood shop, even if we have to build it. We will either build a master suite on the first floor or update the existing one. And I will be getting a quilt studio – NOT that I’ll ever have time to work in it!! None of these may be the one, but I just wanted to let you all know that I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth, given up quilting, or decided to avoid you all.

Please Stand By…

2011-02-17T15:18:00.001-05:00

I know I have been quiet. Busy with work (President’s Day weekend is a big one for us) and dealing with some personal “drama”. Nothing terrible, dangerous, or life shattering – just demanding of my (quilting) time, unfortunately. This too shall pass, some wise man once said. Update at 11 (or whenever I get caught up!).

I Enjoyed That So Much, I’m Doing It Again

2011-02-13T22:06:00.001-05:00

I haven’t got many pics to share with you today. My son came home for the weekend and we hung out yesterday and I didn’t sew. Today I began quilting my spring quilt. I was going along fine until I realized that the backing on the very edge turned back and got caught up in the stippling. So I ripped out stitches till after dark and couldn’t get decent picture. Tomorrow I have GOT to catch up on house work, but maybe after that I can get back at that quilt. And if I PAY ATTENTION to what I am doing, maybe I’ll make some progress!

I can show you the quilt blocks I sent out this month to my partner in the Block Swap Adventure, Susan. She let me know she has received them. First I made the one on the left. It is called Ocean Waves and I cut it with my Go! But I must have stretched the fabric when I did because though I ripped it out and started over, it just would not come out to 12.5 inches. So I made the one on the right. It is called Arkansas Cross Roads. I know some of you are batik lovers, and while I like them, I just haven’t used them much. I actually had to go out to get these! I was wowed by all the gorgeous colors and patterns available.

It matches the block she received from her January partner much better, anyway. Fate has a way of working things out. Maybe she can use the wonky first attempt to make a pillow or something.

Progress & Another Great Block Received

2011-02-10T22:31:00.001-05:00

I have made some headway on my spring quilt. A friend of mine is hosting a silent auction to raise money for war veterans with PTSD and asked if I would be willing to donate something. I will be giving her this.

The blocks are together and black sashing has been added. It is approximately 40 inches square.

This close up lets you see the colors in the fabrics.

I didn’t stop there. From the beginning I have planned appliques for this quilt.

The colors and motifs are taken from the black fabric.

I am sure you can see that the appliques are created from heart shapes which I cut using the Go! This weekend I plan to get it quilted.

Today I received another great quilt block in the mail from my latest Block Swap Adventure partner, Susan. I love it!

Can you believe all of those 1 inch squares?! We get to chose our block pattern. Just so you know, I asked Susan for a block with the theme of leaf or tree. She chose this block and named it “Willow Tree in the Rain”. I so appreciate all of her work!

Spring Is Just Around the Corner

2011-02-08T21:35:00.001-05:00

I have to keep telling myself that. –3°F tonight. I have to keep positive.

Besides, my spring quilt is coming along. Hope to work on it more tomorrow.

I Got Nothing Done – Why Am I So Tired?

2011-02-07T20:20:00.001-05:00

Oh yes… Now I remember and I’ll show you why…

This is my DGS and he spent the weekend with us. He is four and VERY busy.

We practiced putting on our shoes.

We colored with magic markers.

We played legos, and race cars, and remote control cars. We played and played and played.

This is what the dogs did (there is safety in numbers, you know!)

And when he went home Sunday afternoon, I sat and sat and sat and the dogs did more of what they did when he was here. LOL!

But I was recuperated enough today to get some sewing done, thank goodness.

Unfortunately I can only share a little of it as it is for swaps.

I can share this one because the recipient supplied the fabric and chose the pattern. This is for the Let’s Bee Together Swap.

I can’t share the other one exactly, but I can tell you it started with this…

And ended with this…

I had to go to the store to get those batiks. Somehow I have managed not to get a batik collection going. I may have to think on that… I also started on my EQ/Go!! Spring Quilt that I designed and have been planning on doing. I should have pictures of that to share with you tomorrow.

Time for a Short Intermission

2011-02-04T17:47:00.001-05:00

OK – not really. Seems like it though if you are a reader of my blog! Sorry about that. Not much going on at the moment. Working on a couple swap blocks, but I can’t share those.

I can tell you about the weather, but just about everyone has heard one version or another of that story first hand lately!

Our weather has made for some pretty pictures…

The wind blew the bird seed out of the feeder. It was strewn for at least 20 feet across the yard. But since the ice storm had frozen hard the top of the snow, the birds just went down and picked it up. I watched them on the deck.

You can appreciate the ice layer when you look at this picture. It reminds me of one of those sparkly Christmas cards with the glitter glued to the snowy parts!

I did get a delivery from Kelly over at I Have a Notion. I had participated in the IHAN Needle Exchange Program a while ago. I told you about it before, but if you missed it, here’s the gist: You send Kelly a new/used/broken needle along with a SASE and she’ll send you a free Superior Titanium Coated Topstitch Sewing Machine Needle in the size of your choice. When I sewed with the new needle she sent me, I was impressed. I mean I liked it and all, but I wasn’t sure I wanted to send away for needles. But of course the time came that that needle eventually wore out and I had to replace it with one of my regular needles. That’s when I fell in love. The titanium needle was soooo much better for FMQ. It slides through the multiple layers with ease and though I wouldn’t recommend you try it, I actually hit one of my full size curved quilt basting safety pins and the needle didn’t break! After I switched back to my regular brand, I really noticed the difference. I was quilting a wall quilt with thin batting and the quilt wanted to travel up and down with the needle. Very frustrating. So I sent Kelly a note and she helped me order two packs of the Superior Titanium Coated Topstitch Sewing Machine Needles!

Here is a blow up of the card she put in. She is too funny!! If you haven’t tried these needles, you should hop over to IHAN and get the details on how you can!

And no – I am not affiliated with the Superior Brand or with IHAN, though Kelly is a fellow Buckeye and no one can fault me for giving her points for that! I am, however, CHEAP! So if I am making you a recommendation, you know it is not on a whim!

Scraps and Snow

2011-01-31T22:06:00.001-05:00

Hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine was busy busy. Hubby left for a business trip very early Sunday morning so all the chores and errands had to be crammed into Saturday. Then Sunday I decided I had to tackle my scraps. I honestly do not know how I ever got so many scraps!!!

I had started this process a few weeks ago, got sidetracked, and never got back. So Sunday was the day!

I pulled out the Go! cutter and a variety of dies and got down to it. By the time I was finished, I had filled 9 of these shoe boxes full and a half dozen more part way.

I had pulled out this giant bag thinking it would hold the scrappiest scraps – those too small to be cut on the go.

It wasn’t big enough at all. In the end I filled two trash bags with those tiny bits and pieces!

Insane!!

So not much sewing got done. I do have a couple of runway models here to show you some things I started on last week, though.

Coats for Puggles!

Unfortunately I ran out of fabric before I got one made for Dean-a. I’ll have to pick up a piece. They really need boots more than coats, but I had the fleece and wool in my stash and I don’t think they would wear boots. But they’ll be toasty when we walk in the snow!

Speaking of snow, when I got up early Saturday morning, I found we had had a beautiful snowfall overnight. But what was really neat was the individual snowflakes. I don’t often get to see the perfect snowflake so I took some pictures to share.

Look at that small shiny one in the last photo!!! Stay warm (or cool for my Aussie friends!)!

What Is This World Coming To?!

2011-01-28T16:32:00.001-05:00

A few days ago a of section S. Main St. was blocked off because a homeowner had found a suspicious container in the basement of his newly acquired home. Per the news, said container was somehow labeled so as to alert the homeowner to the fact that it contained something nefarious. The homeowner called the local authorities who then called the FBI and men in white hooded hazmat suits removed the container and took a sample to Quantico for testing. The map at the right shows my house approximately at A and the suspect house approximately at B, about 15 minutes up the road. This is a small town. In fact, the map at right shows the meeting of two towns as the container was found in the small town next to mine. No one around here thought this would turn out to be anything. I mean this isn’t New York City or Washington D.C. It is small town America. We are safe, right?

Today the news issued a bulletin. The suspicious substance was Ricin. While Ricin is not as toxic as Anthrax, for example, it can cause death in 3-5 days and long term organ damage is likely in survivors. What if that new homeowner had opened that container? Thank goodness he didn’t blow off whatever labeling was on it. It freaks me out because I drive past that house every day. It freaks me out because hubby drives past that house every day. It freaks me out because there are other houses surrounding that house. But mostly it freaks me out because there is a grade school only a few hundred feet from that house.

I’m a Star!

2011-01-27T21:26:00.001-05:00

OK, I know CleverQuilter Jean is humoring me, but she did send me a certificate and a pin!

I won this for solving a Quilt Block Jumble. If you aren’t familiar with the Quilting is Murder Mystery, you should check it out.

And today I finished the Sunflower for Sandy. It will go in the mail tomorrow. I really hope it makes Sandy smile. It was very easy to do and I would highly recommend Beth Helfter’s patterns which you can purchase at QuiltWoman.com.

Swap, Swap, Swappin’ Away!

2011-01-25T20:00:00.001-05:00

My January Block Swap Adventure Partner has let me know she has received her block, so now I can share the one I made her. She asked for a log cabin in Autumn which just happens to be right up my alley, so I really enjoyed making this one!

If you are debating a swap like this, you can still join in. It is an ongoing open swap with a different partner each month.

Then over on Swap-bot I participated in the Valentine’s Day Hot Pad Swap. Here is the hot pad I received…

It is somewhat difficult to see the heart, but I think you can make it out. This will never see the bottom of a hot pot. Nope; it’s going on my bulletin board with all the other swapping goodies I have received. And as an extra treat, my partner included a homemade wash cloth.

I know there are people who use these for dish clothes, but not me. I love them in the tub!

I have my hot pad finished and ready to go in the mail for my partner…

This swap came along at just the right time for I had purchased a remnant of Insul-Bright at Joann Fabric on a whim because I had always been curious about it. I expected it to be all bulky and stiff, but it was very easy to work with.

I have been working on my sunflower and after much sweat and tears, have finished the stitching around all the leaves and petals. Lesson learned. It will be easy sailing from here.

Recipients of Patterns Chosen

2011-01-24T13:37:00.001-05:00

Lisa will receive the bag pattern group (1) and Nancy will receive the baby, Christmas, etc group (2). Ladies, contact me at ardeasnest@gmail.com and I’ll get your packages off to you!

Growing a Sunflower in Winter!

2011-01-23T19:57:00.001-05:00

Remember this lovely kit I won from Beth Helfter of Quilting Hottie Haven ?

I have begun working on it. So far it has gone from this…

to this…

to this!

I will finish it, but it is taking forever! It isn’t because of the pattern or the kit. The pattern is very good and easy to follow and the kit contained well more than enough fabric. But the appliqué stitching is my issue. The fusible web I bought is awful! It is too thick and really sticky. The thread keeps breaking and the machine keeps skipping stitches. I threw that fusible web out and I won’t make that mistake again! I haven’t done any appliqué stitching on the petals yet. But I will not be giving up. I have plans for this quiltlet. I want to send it to Sandy. I know there are at least a few of you who know her, though she hasn’t got a blog. She is an avid blog-hopper and frequent commenter. Sandy has been battling cancer and is in the hospital again. I thought maybe she might like a little sunshine right now. I even thought maybe fate had a hand in my winning this kit. Though the more pragmatic person would call it coincidence, I like searching for and finding hidden meaning in everyday things like that. Probably silly but a little positive thinking never hurts, so I let myself go!

The Fallout from My Cleaning Frenzy

2011-01-22T20:53:00.002-05:00

The patterns are going Lisa and Nancy!

The sewing room is clean – AGAIN! Wish I knew who keeps messing it up! Whomever she is, I bet she is the same person that keeps purchasing things I will never use. I will have a hefty Goodwill load on Monday.
But before I take that load in, I wondered if any of you might be interested in a few patterns.

Group one is for purses, totes, and back packs. All are uncut. Look at those cute back packs and messenger bags. And they are EASY!

Group two is for Christmas decorations, laptop and cell phone cases, diaper bags, and gift containers. Can you see the owls on the mantel and on the tree skirt? These are all uncut, too.
If you are interested in either of these groups, leave a comment. And if there are any takers, Sunday night I’ll pick a couple names. Be sure to let me know whether you are interested in one or both groups.
Apparently the Rat Pack was not impressed by my cleaning and organizing. Just look…

Do you see them all?

Dean-a on the loveseat to the right.

Frank on the sofa to the left.

And Sammie in the chair in the middle. Sammie really appreciates a good pillow. She’s lying on two in that same chair as I type!!
Bunch of lazies!
I’ve got another good tip for you. Judy over at Sew Fun Quilts has posted an Easy Peasy Machine Binding Tutorial. It’s a great tute. If you are a binding aficionado, read all the way to the end. You won’t be disappointed!

2011-01-20T20:34:00.000-05:00

It’s about time, don’t you think?
Today I moved this…

Over here…

See?

After that I went into my sewing room to “install” my latest gadget. I got risers for under my cutting table. My lower back has been killing me. So I stopped at Walmart and picked these babies up.

Of course there are 4 of them. Raises the table up just right. But of course I then decided to clean, organize, and ultimately rearrange my sewing room again! So no sewing for me today. There’s always tomorrow!

I found a great tip on The Quilt Rat blog for prewashing yardage. Check it out! I know there’s been a lot of debate lately: to prewash or not to prewash, but if you are a prewasher, this looks like just the thing!

Just a reminder… I have received some WONDERFUL comments from folks on some of my posts, but there was no return email. If you don’t want to leave an email, that’s fine. I just don’t want anyone thinking I am not grateful for the time you took to leave a comment. So if you wonder why I haven’t responded, check your settings to see if you are set up to leave an email address with your comment. Or, if you prefer not to share your address via your Google Account or Open ID or whatever, but would like a response, leave your email with your comment.

Dollar Store Decor

2011-01-19T22:20:00.001-05:00

You all know I love birds. And I am quite sure that I have told you before that I am cheap. So, when I saw these birdie gift bags at the Dollar Store I knew immediately what I would do with them. Oh, and by the way – notice that one of these features the Tufted Titmouse which was the little bird you all helped me identify when I got my feeder. They are regular visitors now and some of my favorites along with the comical little Blackcapped Chickadees (which I was also lucky enough to find!).

It took some hunting, but I finally found some suitable picture frames on clearance at Walmart for 3 dollars each. I cut the bags apart added the frames, and voila! Art!

As I’ve said before… It’s the little things!!

You Are Worth the Time

2011-01-18T22:23:00.001-05:00

My friend, Di posted this video on her blog, di-did-it. She called it too important not to share. Boy is she right!

Martin Luther King, Jr

2011-01-17T14:26:00.001-05:00

“On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, ‘Is it safe?’ Expediency asks the question, ‘Is it politic?’ And Vanity comes along and asks the question, ‘Is it popular?’ But Conscience asks the question ‘Is it right?’ And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right. I believe today that there is a need for all people of good will to come together with a massive act of conscience and say in the words of the old Negro spiritual, ‘We ain't goin' study war no more.’ This is the challenge facing modern man.”

"Remaining Awake Through a Great Revolution", an address at the Episcopal National Cathedral, Washington D.C. (31 March 1968)

Click the link to hear this great speech. I wish I knew we were making him proud, but so much of his speech seems just as relevant today as it did over 40 years ago. 40 years is not much in the history of mankind, but is very much in the history of a man.

I “Harley” Got Finished!

2011-01-16T21:11:00.001-05:00

Oooooohhh, bad, bad pun! But it doesn’t change the fact that hubby’s Harley quilt is finished!

Here are pictures of the back of last two blocks I quilted – the top two in the picture above…

I cheated on the binding. I love my hubby, but he’s all about the pretty colors and the stitching is pretty much lost on him I think. So I didn’t figure he’d care if I cheated. So I cut the binding on my Go! using the 2 1/2” strip die and turned in one side 3/4”. I sewed the binding to the back, raw edges even, using a 1/4” seam. (Excuse the fuzz in the pictures; I hadn’t washed the quilt, yet.)

Then I flipped the binding to the front and stitched it down close to the ironed edge of the binding. In the picture of the back above you can see the seam to the right of the binding.

The front ended up with a wider than normal binding, but I actually like this technique and may well use it for other quilts depending on the recipient. I know my carpal tunnel thanks me!

Outside the Basket

2011-01-15T22:01:00.001-05:00

After all that talk about how I organize my WIPs, today I went “outside the basket”. But it was for a good reason. I belong to a Yahoo group of crafting friends. Many of the members, probably half at least, as well as the group’s founder, live in Australia. While none of them lost their homes, they have many friends and relatives who have lost everything. One member has lost 3 family members, one just 2 1/2 years old. This group has a Healing Hearts Bank which we all contribute to and from it are made quilts for members when they experience bad times. The group made me one when my mom passed. This time we are going to send quilts to the family and friends of members who were affected. A quilt certainly can’t replace a child, but it is our way of passing along compassion at such an awful time. So today I made these:

There would have been one more, but when I was ironing it the Niagara non-aerosal spray starch scorched! This has never happened to me before.

I ironed this one with the starch and all was fine.

Then I ironed this one and just look! These were the first two I did. I didn’t use starch on any of the rest, so I know it wasn’t my iron spitting.

Boy did that tick me off. It wasn’t like it was a huge loss, but if you are like me and have a wee fabric obsession (and I know you do!), then you understand my frustration at having to throw away a perfectly good quilt block! To be fair, I didn’t even try to wash it out. How about that Best Press starch? Do any of you use it?

My Let’s Bee Together Block Arrived

2011-01-14T10:57:00.000-05:00

So I can show it to you now. In this swap, the hostess for the month sends out fabric and the other swappers all make a block. Linda said we could make any block we wanted. This is called Bachelor’s Puzzle.

The colors look washed out, but I just couldn’t get them right. They are lavender, green, beige, and white. But do you know what is funny? Linda received the same block at the same time from another swapper!! You should go to the Let’s Bee Together blog and check them both out. Linda’s pictures are much better than mine is!

Blind Quilter

2011-01-13T20:25:00.001-05:00

Quilts are about feeling. Or at least they should be. And if you’ve forgotten that as I think maybe I had, watching this might help you to remember. And it might also help you to feel less short-changed and more blessed!

January Block Swap Adventure Block Received

2011-01-10T21:25:00.001-05:00

This amazing block came all the way from Australia. It was made by Cathy Cates. She has a blog called Cathy’s Sewing Room if you’d like to stop by and say, “Hi!”. Isn’t it gorgeous!?! I am blown away. Thank you, Cathy!

I just saw on Stray Stitches that new members to the swap are always welcome if you’d like to join! Click the button in the side bar to the right (Block Swap Adventure).

Motor Cycle Mania!!

2011-01-09T21:38:00.001-05:00

Hubby has a Harley and we like to ride. Haven’t been for a while, though because he had one knee replaced in March and the other in October. We are hoping to ride this summer.

You all know the great gifts I got for Christmas and most were from him. He is a great supporter in my sewing and quilting obsession encouraging me to get both of my new machines. He asked me for a Harley quilt a while back and the least I could do is make one up. However, Harley Davidson does not make fabric. I’d buy it if they did at just about any price to make him happy. They do make sheets and I bought a set of those, but I wasn’t jazzed about the texture or the print. Then I had an idea to make a quilt from bandannas and I ordered several from EBay vendors and gave them to him for Christmas. I would have preferred to have given him the quilt, but I didn’t get the epiphany until it was too late to make that happen. So now I am working away.

Here is the pieced and sandwiched quilt which I put together with a stitch in the ditch on all seams for starters.

This part was simple enough. I cut the bandannas down to 18.5 inches and added 2 inch sashing. The quilt looks small here, but it is 42 inches wide by 62 inches long. I was concerned about the bandannas and whether they would hold up to sewing because they are not 100% cotton, but they have been fine. Now I am on to the machine quilting. A quilt like this is not suited for a meander or stipple stitch. So I decided to quilt around the motifs. Here is what is done so far. You can’t see much on the front, but I like the effect on the back.

I definitely didn’t get the backing tight enough. But I don’t think hubby will care. I don’t think he will even look at it much!

Hubby also decided he would like a sweatshirt with a Harley emblem for working in the garage on his car that he is restoring. Now I love the guy, but have you priced Harley clothes? We have our share, but they are certainly not for wearing when you are sandblasting rust off of a 40 year old car! So, though I am risking the wrath of Harley here, I bootlegged the emblem design in the PE-Design software that Tonya from Hillbilly Handiworks sent me. She said she wasn’t using it anymore and offered to send it to me. Wasn’t that nice of her? I think so, too!

So here is the first stitch out. He asked that it be all orange. I need to adjust the stitch density on the “M” and there are a few outline stitches that need re-aligned. You can still see the hoop mark as I had just taken it off, but that goes away on these sweatshirts.

I feel a little creepy about bootlegging the design, but then I don’t plan on selling it and will still be buying the “nice” things at the Harley store. But 40 or 50 dollars for a work shirt is out of my range.

So Vroom-Vroom to all!

A Win and Some WIP Organization

2011-01-08T19:26:00.001-05:00

I don’t know if you have heard about The Quilt Pattern Magazine or not, but it is a new digital magazine that released its first issue this month. Several bloggers had give aways for a free subscription. I entered most of them and I did not win a subscription. (However, a one year subscription is only 13.99, so I am not out of luck. That’s pretty cheap for a quilting magazine and I love that it is digital.) But I did not lose, either. How, you ask, can that be? Why because Beth Helfter of Quilting Hottie Haven offered up some runner up prizes and I won one of them! I’ll get to what I won in a moment, but let me show you what the first runner up won (I hope Beth doesn’t mind me showing this photo!)

This book contains 80 pages of the cutest stinking patterns! I am not going to totally steal all of Beth’s photos, so to get a peak inside, you need to go over to QuiltWoman.com and check it out. Beth swears that “Perfection is Overrated” and that all quilters can and would enjoy this book. I am very jealous of the first runner up, but truthfully, I have a grandson and don’t know any little girls, so I don’t know if I would’ve got full use of this lovely book. I strongly encourage any of you with daughters or grand-daughters to check it out, though. It sure would make a great Christmas present in 2011!

Ok, so on to the second runner up – ME!! What I won was actually even better that the book above (at least IMHO). Check this out!

This is one of Beth’s original patterns, Sunflower and Sky, and the kit to put it all together! Because I was too lame a photographer to think to remove it from the plastic packaging and you can’t really see the picture, I am borrowing from Beth’s store, EvaPaige Quilt Designs.

Isn’t that adorable? In the first photo you can see she included a little baggy of beads and I just so happen to have about 900 million buttons my button collecting mom left to me in which I am sure I can find some great sunflower seed candidates! Pretty good second runner up prize, eh?

As I lovingly took my new favorite thing into my sewing room to put it safely away, I got the urge to share with you one of the ways I organize my WIPs and what I believe is one of the reason I don’t have any UFOs.

I picked up these plastic baskets at the dollar store. I fill them with the pieces/parts to projects on which I am currently working and the pieces/parts of things I want to do next. I then stack them up. So, the top one contains 2 sweatshirts I want to embroider for hubby and fabrics from the Harley Quilt I am currently making him. I hope to get each of those projects to a point I can share with you tomorrow. The second basket contains the back pack tackle box I made for my grandson because I need to shorten the straps and a pattern I traced of my BIL’s wheelchair armrest for which my SIL asked that I try to make a cover. The third basket contains some fabric I bought at the second hand store a while ago that I think will make a cute quilt, but I think it is going to get bumped back to the stash right now to be replaced by the Sunflower and Sky kit. The fourth and last basket contains the fabric for a quilt I have designed in my new EQ6 that will have a Spring theme for a blogger quilt show I am considering being a part of. Of course I could buy more baskets, but I purposefully didn’t because the point is that I work on projects in the order they are stacked. I likely will add embroidery projects along the way because the Quattro can hum away while I sew on the Janome, and I am thinking of making up some yo-yos in the evenings while I watch TV with hubby, but other than that and sewing on a button here and there, no projects get started until the one in the current basket is done. This method also helps me keep track of what is due for swaps and the like. And as I stack projects in their basket, I know right away if I need to buy something so that I have all the things I need when I get to that basket! I know it’s not rocket science, but it works for me and I thought I’d share!

Things Are Getting Back to Normal!

2011-01-07T08:59:00.002-05:00

The Puggles are getting back into their routine which on these snowy days contains a lot of snuggly napping!
I am busy with work and the beginning of the year things that always have to be done, but I had a few minutes to work on another swap block. This one is for the Block Swap Adventure. In this swap you are assigned a partner each month with whom you will exchange one 12.5 inch unfinished block. You each pick a pattern and list your favorite colors. My partner this month is Cathy Cates. Cathy has a blog at http://cathy-mysewingroom.blogspot.com/ if you’d like to stop by and say, “Hi”! Cathy and I happen to love the same colors, so I really enjoyed making this block. She gave me two blocks to choose from and I chose the log cabin. Even though she knows the colors and the pattern, here are just a couple of sneak peaks…

With the new snow that came last night, today will be about shoveling and slogging through to get to the grocery store. This is one of those days when it is really hard to complain about the snow, though. The sun is shining and everything is lovely and fresh.

Though shoveling is not on my top 20 list of favorite things to do, it does count as exercise. If I motivate now, maybe I will get to sew this afternoon.
In case you have noticed, I have added a weight loss ticker at the top of my blog posts. I belong to a great group of friends on Yahoo in the C-R-A-F-T group and we have a weight loss challenge that starts on the 7th. However, hubby and I started on Monday of this week. I love the first weeks of weight loss because the weight comes off rather quickly! And FYI – I realize that 120 is probably not going to happen. I’d be happy with 130, but anything less would be welcome for sure!

Just a Little Peek

2011-01-05T21:48:00.002-05:00

I swore I’d sit at my machine today. And I did. For a few. Just a few. I’m lucky to have the occasion to work from home, but I was really busy with paperwork today.
However, at least I got one of my swap squares done! This is for the Let’s Bee Together swap hosted by Linda of Stray Stitches. In this swap, each participant hosts a month, so to speak. In her month she sends fabric to each of the other 11 players. Just enough for a 12.5 inch unfinished quilt square. Linda said she didn’t care what sort of block we send back, though you can give guidelines if you like. So here is a small peak of the block I am sending – just so you all know I do remember where I keep my sewing machine!

Dean-a is home and healing up. She still has a fair amount of pain, but she is eating and moving around and doing better than I would be, I am sure. Tomorrow we go to the doc to have the pain patch removed. I can’t remove it because it is stapled to her side so she can’t pull it off. I hope the doc gives us some pain pills for her, poor thing. I know she is doing as well as expected, but it is strange to see our little “Dean-a Bean-a” (because we say she is as active as a jumping bean) looking like this… Little Sweetie…

Busy Day But Not a Lick of Stitching!

2011-01-03T15:54:00.001-05:00

We de-Christmased today. Figured I should get that out of the way while Dean-a is in the hospital. We visited with her for a bit and she should be home tomorrow. Here is a photo of the offending item…

We have no idea what it is, but it is hard as a rock. I have never bought her anything that rigid. I have no idea how she even swallowed it, not to mention why! I am wondering if it is possible that it was once softer and stomach acid made it hard? Whatever the case, thanks again to all you great people for all the kind comments!!

Right now hubby is at the doctor with something in his eye that we can’t get out. We flushed and flushed to no avail. He asked me to STICK A Q-TIP under his eye lid and try to get it out! Uh, NO!!! I told him my RN credentials do not extend to extraction of anything from the eye. But he has one of those insurance companies that require you to jump through hoops, stand on your head, and say the alphabet backwards in Latin before they will approve your visit. He called this morning and they told him the doc in town wasn’t in today. Yet they said if he went to the ER he would have to pay 500 out of pocket on top of his co-pay. He didn’t want to have to go that route what with our new piece of plastic that cost as much as a nice second hand car, and I believe also because he HATES the ER! So I told him he better get nasty or I was going to and they finally got him an appointment at 3 o’clock this afternoon. Of course we had just parked at the vet when they called back with the appt. Hence the shortened visit with Dean-a.

So we are apparently planning to get 2011 off to a hectic start. I am hoping we will get it out of our systems and have a pleasanter rest of the year to look forward too!

I plan on going into the office tomorrow AM so I can pick up Dean-a when she is ready. Hopefully I can say “Hi” to my machine tomorrow afternoon. If not, then no one is standing between me and Janome on Wednesday!!!! (It’s only Jan 3 and I already feel behind for the year – ARRRGH!)

Dean-a Update 2

2011-01-02T20:50:00.002-05:00

Update to the Update: Surgery is over already and everything went well! Phew! It was a piece of plastic. I still can't imagine what it is from. I'll have to see it for myself tomorrow.
Just got back from the hospital. It turns out this is likely not a bone, but a piece of plastic as it does not appear to be shrinking. If it was bone, her stomach acid would be dissolving it. The hospital where she is does not do the scope down the throat, so they called two other hospitals that do. The doctor at one said no way would he attempt to remove it that route. At the other hospital the tech said that they would do a scope (without consulting a doctor – no offense to any techs out there) and they would call in a doctor “if necessary”. There would be a danger associated with transporting Dean-a to another hospital as she gets car sick and since her belly is now empty there is nothing to cushion the intruder and it’s sharp edges should her belly begin contracting. Or, the nervousness of the drive could cause it to move into the intestines and it is unlikely she could pass it that route. So, since I didn’t know whether the second hospital would be able to remove it or would even try, I decided not to chance the drive and Dean-a will be having surgery tonight to remove whatever this is. Though it is costly and there will be healing involved, the doctor says she is otherwise doing very well and can come home on Tuesday if all goes as planned. I know the scope would have been less invasive, but I didn’t like the fact that at one hospital the doctor said “No way” and at the other hospital the technician said “It can be done if necessary”. Wasn’t getting the warm fuzzies. I really like Dr. Kelly. I think she truly cares about her patients. And other than it being about the costliest vet in town, I have absolutely no complaints about the care they have given any of my dogs. In fact, we used to go to another much less expensive vet and they twice administered drugs to Sammie which she is allergic to and she was nearly unable to breath and had to be admitted for emergency care. Actually, they did it 3 times, though the first was the first time she’d ever had the drug and no one knew what the reaction would be so I can’t blame them for that. The second time it happened because it hadn’t been recorded the first time it happened, and the third time it happened because no one checked the chart for allergies. So, in this case I guess I get what I pay for. I am feeling strangely calmer now. I feel I have committed Dean-a to very capable care, though of course I feel awful about the surgery and that the situation happened at all. The doctor is going to tell us what it is after the surgery. I am very curious about that.

Dean-a Update

2011-01-02T13:44:00.001-05:00

Thanks to everyone for the well wishes for Dean-a. I know she is a dog and not a child, but I also know there are a fair number of animal lovers amongst you who know how much we love our baby!We just visited with her and talked with the doctor. The obstruction is clearing, but now that her stomach is emptying, they can see the source of the blockage and it is a chicken bone. We had barbecued chicken for Christmas and though I am very sure no one knowingly gave her a bone, she could have snagged one out of the garbage, stole one from the table or counter top (yes she can jump that high now), or someone might have even dropped one unknowingly in all of the activity of a family dinner. In any event, the doc says that it might dissolve on its own. If not, they may have to go in and get it. Dean-a will be staying at the hospital tonight, but there is a repeat x-ray at 4 pm and repeat blood work at 8 pm and then we’ll know a little more. I’m going to go back tonight for another visit, I think, though I almost wonder if it doesn’t upset her more when we leave her again.

Just Got Home from Doggie ER

2011-01-01T22:12:00.001-05:00

I had to rush Dean-a to the emergency vet today and I’ve just gotten home. She has a blockage somewhere in her digestive tract. Right now her stomach is 3 times its normal size and blocking the view on the xrays, so they can’t see much more of what is going on. She is in a lot of pain and her liver enzymes are 10 times normal value. The doc said they will start her on IV fluids and meds and she could be better in 24 hours. Or she could get worse and require surgery. I felt so bad leaving her there, though I really do trust them, and Sammie is just crying and whining for her. I sure hope the fluids do the job. The expense of surgery would be immense!

So take it from me as Gospel when I tell you to listen to what they say – don’t give your dogs table scraps and don’t let them overeat. I really tried to keep them safe at the holidays, but I fear I wasn’t vigilant enough.

RIP Geraldine Doyle!

2010-12-31T09:30:00.001-05:00

http://shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2010/12/rip-geraldine-doyle.html