Finally Finished!

YAY!!!

 Hubby makes a good quilt holder for photo ops.

It didn't take that long to do once I put my mind to it.  It was just getting up and DOING it!

By the time came to fill in the backgrounds of the blocks, I tried one pattern and wasn't crazy about it but didn't really want to do meandering AGAIN... but I did - on all but two blocks.  When it came time to do the meandering, I 'bit the bullet' and turned the stitch control off.  Man! Does Mo'e ever go fast !!!   Now that this quilt is off the frame, I'm going to put some practice fabric on and see if I can figure out how to adjust the size of my stitches and/or the speed at which he does them because, while they are 'nice', the stitches are tinier than I like.  I'd certainly hate to have to pick any of them out.

Not sure how much sewing I'll be doing in the next week or so.  My kids will be here on the 8th of Sept. and I'd like to have some other things done around here before they get here... including getting out some of the quilts that are piled in the closet so they can go through them and choose ones to take home with them.

Ok, almost time to start dinner... 

take care...

ttyl.......

No time for quilting

Sad but true.  Monday and Tuesday this week, I was re-organizing some of my quilting 'stash' in order to get it out of our family room.  99% has been moved.. some of it twice <sigh> .

Today, is bill paying and grocery shopping day.

Tomorrow morning, I'm escaping to Grand Rapids and the AQS quilt show... just for half day, though.

Tomorrow afternoon, I'm interviewing a cleaning lady... well, she's coming here and we'll see if she's willing to take on this mess.

Friday morning, I think the hubby of one of my friends is coming over to relieve us of the behemoth tv that died months ago. (Replacement was delivered on Tuesday morning).  I also have to run into Lansing to get a board to replace the one that gson "H" is going to remove sometime Saturday... oh yeah - almost forgot that I have appointment for pedicure and hubby is going to get his hair(s) cut while I'm getting the pedi.- that's Friday afternoon.

and I have to take the behemoth tv and various other items to the 'big' recycling event Saturday morning.

Sunday, we're off to Indiana for another concert by hubby's favorite gospel group, but we don't leave until late afternoon so MAYBE I'll be able to get some sewing done.  Actually, what I'd really like to do is get back to working on the Gnome for the Holidays quilt that's been on Mo'e for over a month now... not sure my legs and back will be up to it after all that's been going on this week, but I want to try.  Five minutes at a time is better than nothing.

And on that note, I've got to go get dressed so we can head to the bank and then get groceries - gotta find checkbook first ....

take care....

don't work too hard....

ttyl

Sew in Weekend

No photos today... I can't even remember what I did at sew in yesterday... oh yeah, I tried to come up with some sort of plan/design for the blocks I 'inherited' from a quilt friend who passed away earlier this year.  When one of the other guild members mentioned that there might be a secondary design involved, I tried to get a hold of the late quilter's sister, who is also a member of the guild.  The two of them usually did things together when it was quilting involved.  I couldn't get a hold of her, but I'll keep trying... just might see her at the Grand Rapids AQS show this coming Thursday.  I'm not in a real rush to get it done; it can wait until the next sew in or even the one in Oct.  It's not going to be that big, so it shouldn't take long to sew the blocks together and into a top.

After I got home (early) from sew in, hubby wanted to know if I would like to go over to Walmart with him sometime that evening.... he doesn't drive, so he was asking me round about to drive him over there lol.  I needed more chocolate so it was a "Yes, we can do that.. and while we're there, I'll  pick up a couple of Subway sandwiches for our dinner" :).  Did that and then on the way out of the parking lot, there was a banging noise coming from behind the glove box... it happened a time or two earlier this week, but I didn't have time to worry about it.  This time, I hear it and I start thinking... "It's Friday, 4:30... the repair shop is about 15 minutes away... and we have the trip up to Sandy Pines on Sunday and I don't want to hear that noise all the way up there and back home".. so we went over to the dealership and darned if I didn't miss him (Chris - my favorite repairman) by less than 10 seconds.  So, I talked to the owner of the shop and he said to come back at 1 today and Chris could look at it.  So I went... and Chris was saying something about five motors up there and one is definitely original and one looks like a replacement that might have happened either last summer or maybe the year before, but I think it was last summer.  He couldn't replace the part today, but did unplug it so it won't bang on me while I'm driving down the road(s) tomorrow.  I'll call Monday to set up appointment to get the new part in.

Today, I did get SOME blocks sewn together.... 121 of them in rows of 11 each.  String blocks and crumb blocks that should finish out at about 66" x 66" and will make a good charity quilt... not pretty, but hopefully warm.  Again, no photos.  I'll take some later.

Oh! and I had some good news about the purple striped quilt I did a few weeks ago...

I had put it away after trying to even up the bottom edge... but felt like I was trimming way more than I really needed to.  Today, I took it to the sew in and we laid it out on the floor and measured... one side and the middle measure at 74 1/2" and the other side measured 74 3/4"... like my quilting friend, Cathy S. said "who's going to notice 1/4"?"... and I agree... so, I'm leaving it as it is and will get the backing fabrics pieced so that I can load it onto Mo'e in the very near future... I think I'll be quilting it with lots and lots of feathers - my favorite.

Ok, time to go watch some tv before bed... there should be a new episode of Restaurant Impossible.

take care......

ttyl........

Quick Update

Yesterday, I didn't do a whole heck of a lot... found a ziplock with three fat quarters and a pattern for a table runner inside.  Decided that it had been sitting along wayyyyy too long... this would be the next project.  Started measuring the fat quarters... only 20" long and the pattern called for 21"... later, I would realize that these would have worked, but by then, I had already cut out table runner number one of two... and ended up with <sigh> more scraps.

 Here are one and two... and I even have binding and backing for the blue one... need to come up with something else for binding on number two.

Hubby was kind of bugging me about a smallish box that's been outside my sewing room door for probably at least a couple of years... I knew there were plastic bags ( like you would get at quilt shops or stores nicer than Walmart and didn't want to get rid of them.  There was also a large empty pet food bag - I use them for wastebaskets in my sewing room.  Anyway, this morning I decided that I'd better sort through and get rid of what wasn't worth saving.  Come to find out there was scrap papers left from when I was scrapbooking... more than a decade ago.  I think I had set them aside with the plan to give them to one of my cousins who scrapbooks.  Well, either Buddy or one of the cats has 'lifted their leg' against one corner of the box so I decided to just toss the box out, scrap papers and all.

 While going through the box, I found a dime ( my dime savings jar is just up and to the left of where the box sat) AND I found a pattern - with some of the fabric I thought I'd use for it- that I've been wanting to do for quite awhile.  

I checked out the fabric requirements and checked the fabric that was with it... one might work, but not the other.  Went 'shopping' in my stash room and found everything I'd need except for a red print and 'ground colored' fabric.... Well, I knew where to find the ground color ( in my sewing room closet stash) and, I haven't looked yet, but I'm pretty sure I have a red in my red bin that will work.

Since the applique' pieces had already been traced onto paper back fusible, I grabbed my solid black yardage and started fusing and then cutting and then fusing onto the background... which gave me a bit of a problem -- it's supposed to be 32 1/2" x 32 1/2" but I messed up one side by an inch... so evened it out to 31 1/2"... I'll just have to remember to make the inner border a little bit bigger or the next pieces won't fit like they're supposed to.  Ok... this is getting longer than I planned.... here's the quilt top so far... just fused, no stitching yet.

I probably should have trimmed the straight edges of the trees a bit... it was a bit of a problem fitting both bears in without having baby bear's nose up mama's hind end.  It should be fine as long as she doesn't make any sudden stops lol.

Hubby has dr appointment late morning tomorrow, then I'm going to try to get us into the secretary of state's office to renew my driver's license and get hubby a valid state I.D.... he keeps saying that his expired driver's license is good enough, but we keep telling him that it isn't.  Some places require ID that isn't expired.  Anyway, so probably not much in the way of sewing will be done tomorrow.  

Yikes!  It just dawned on me that guild sew in is this weekend... as in the day after tomorrow.  Ok, I've got this... already have one project ready to go... I think I'll do a quick check for my string blocks and maybe I can take them to work on Saturday.

Ok, I'm outta here....

take care.......

ttyl.........

A mini happy dance

Only one dog done today..... 

 because while I sat pondering what to work on next... I spotted two pieces of print fabric that were left from when I made this bag...

I had added some solid fabrics to the 'leftover' pieces with the plans of making another bag.  I decided that today was the day to do it...
It wasn't as easy and quick as I thought it would be... I had to do some thinking and remembering... but only had to rip out one seam and then only because I prefer to turn bags right side out from the bottom lining seam and not at the top between handles straps.  I did use pins more than I usually do, but it was worth it.

Here's the new bag... same print on both sides...no pockets outside...

  nor inside.... this is actually a light olive green with yellow strips on each side.

Between these two projects and 'talking' with my oldest daughter about plans for their upcoming trip up here for my birthday, it's all I managed to get done.

I'm still trying to figure out how to get '25 lbs of squirming piglet into a 5 lbs potato sack'  lol... It looks like I'll have to put some more 'stuff' under Moe's frame - it's about the only solution I can come up with right now.  I want my family room back!!  Right now, there's even stuff piled all over the couch in here and poor Buddy has to take his naps on the floor.

Well, guess that's it for tonight

take care...
ttyl....

OOPS! forgot a title....

 Finished this fella yesterday  his name is Skipper... the background is actually a bright green that got washed out in the photo taking....
Then it was on to this guy.... and he gave me a heck of a time....I was stitching away using a double blanket stitch to secure all the pieces down when I heard a POP every time the needle went up and down.  Quickly stopping the stitching and cutting threads to see what the heck is going on........ can you see my problem sticking out from three corners?

 Here's another pic with the block turned over... now do you see the problem?  When making blocks for a quilt, it's not a good idea to sew the pattern directions to the back of the block.  NOT the first time I've sewn something to the back of a block... not even the second time... MAYBE the third but I have a feeling there were probably more times than that; that's all I can remember right off.

Ok, here is Winston... all fixed and finished.

 Today it was these three...

 Can't remember his name right off.. and below is Prissy

Shoot!  I can't remember this guy's name either....but he reminds me of my late uncle, Elmer... and I'm not sure why.

and here's a fuzzy photo of the next on my list.... it will probably be Monday before I get to it... tomorrow is family reunion day.

The dogs aren't the only thing I've been working on...  a quilt friend passed away earlier this year and I have some of her UFO's... this is one of them... I don't know what she was planning on doing with them, but there are 27 blocks that were not squared up... squaring them at 7 1/2" was the best I could do which meant that on some blocks, I might have cut off an inch of 'overhang' ( one piece that was larger than the rest of the pieces in the block).  I'll be taking it to the next sew in where I can lay them out on the floor and others can help me arrange them... they aren't all from the same fabric combinations.  There are some uncut blocks of some of the fabrics that she used for these and I think I'm going to cut them into strips and make binding.  I might even be able to find something in the charity quilt fabrics that might work as backing... we'll have to see.

Ok, that's it for tonight.... oldest daughter has been sending me photos and messages... we sent her tickets to see The Booth Brothers in concert near the town where she lives and she's been asking questions and said that two of the 'brothers' remembered my husband and myself  - they should since I made and hubby presented each of them with quilts this past January <smile>

This is Michael Booth.

ok... Buddy is patiently waiting for me so he can go to bed....

take care...

ttyl.....

Shhh! Don't tell the doctor

but I HAD to take my brace off more than I probably should.... oh wait!  You don't know who my doctor is, do you?  Guess I'm safe then. LOL.  I KNOW I should be wearing it all the time, but DANG my arm gets sore from it AND I can't get much of anything done.  I'm a klutz as it is; this brace just makes it worse.

So, while I have had the brace off, I've managed to get some sewing done and even did a little bit on the quilt that's been on Mo'e for almost a month?!?!

Ok, I can't remember what came first... but sometime in the last 36 hours, I did one border and stitched in the ditch around inner border/sashing on my Gnome for the Holidays quilt that's on Mo'e.

And I made my RSC for August - sure hope this is the last of the blues for this year... I really had to scramble to find enough light/brights without having to cut into larger pieces.

 And, I started - and finished this block.  Ok, I KNOW this one was started the day before yesterday... just the tracing onto paper back fusible - the rest was done yesterday morning.

I think I did the RSC first thing this morning and then went to work on my second dog block...

These are Amy Bradley designs... realized that I must have really REALLY wanted to do them because when I was 'cleaning' my stash, I found TWO copies of the pattern set.

Here's #2... before completion ... take a good look at the second photo - and the third one, too.

 Can you see what I did?.... Not the first time and, apparently, won't be the last.  I slid the block over to the sewing machine and stitched a couple of double blanket stitches when I noticed that the needle was making a large POPPING sound... what the heck?.... well, yeah, when you're making the needle go through SEVERAL ( like maybe 6) pages of printer paper along with the phone book page and a couple layers of fabric with fusible in between....  like I said, not the first time.... although first time for this many layers.

Ok, got that corrected and here he is completed and ready to go up on the design wall with the first block.  His name is Winston... I can't remember the chihuahua's name...

And here comes Skipper... he's fused down but only his shirt is double blanket stitched.  The rest will wait until tomorrow.  I had to stop to fix dinner... hot dogs with store bought cole slaw and potato salad - yeah, I worked hard fixing that dinner lol.

Well, guess that's it for tonight.... 

Take care...

ttyl........

ARGHHH

Guess I won't be doing a whole lot of sewing for awhile.  The Dr. said to try it for a couple of months and if it doesn't seem to be helping then I'll need to see about getting a shot or maybe surgery, which I really really don't want.

I MIGHT be able to long arm, though :).  I'm going to try this wrist brace over the weekend and see how I do with it - it's already making my life difficult... having trouble typing.  Maybe by Monday, I'll be a little more used to it and I can try and work on the quilt that's been on Mo'e since the July 11th?
In the meantime...
take care
ttyl...