Sooo/sew close to the finish line

Which is a good thing because we (guild members) received email today notifying us that the due date has been moved up to Nov.7th since there won't be a meeting on the 14th.

First up was working on the bird's feet... I traced my paper pattern on a medium weight stabilizer that I backed with a tear away paper ( which I probably didn't need).  This first pic is after I went around and stitched over my outline three times and trying to add some shadow.

Here, I'm adding the lightest of the three threads... after I finished with that thread, I went back and filled in spaces here and there with the medium brown.

Here, they are just pinned on... I wanted to get them in the right position.

A couple of hours later, the binding, label and hanging sleeve are stitched on along with the bird's legs/feet.

This is the back....

All that's left to do is hand stitch the leaves and a few of the flower petals down.

Dinner is over - time to go clean the kitchen up a little bit before Buddy starts whining that it's bedtime.

take care....

ttyl.....

More progress.....the end is near

The background is quilted and I stitched around the very edges of the bird and the post.

Next, I decided to add the black forked strip that starts over and under the eye and ends in the area of the back of the head ( something not really distinguishable on my bird).  Here's a pic of the thread painting of the forked strip in progress.  Once I finished that, I ran several black circles where the black outlines the eyeball.  Oh, and I also outline stitched wing and tail feathers and then just did a meander on the post.

Then it was on to making fabric flowers and leaves....

I was going to do one more flower, but technically that would make four with the flower bud and I wanted to keep them odd numbered... although, now that I look at it here, there are three flowers plus the bud so maybe I should add one more... I'll decide that tomorrow.

Here is where I stopped tonight.... with paper feet.  My friend, Katie, was helping me judge the size of the legs/feet... my first attempt was too thick; this is much better.  Now I just want to see if I can figure out how to get those feet to look more like they are on the post and not in front of it.  Maybe they'll look more real once the stitching is done.  I'm going to try thread painting them also, but a little differently than I did the 'black fork' on his head.  What I'm going to try is something I did on a granddaughter's quilt a few years ago.  I wanted an applique' similar to those 'patches' you can buy and either iron or sew onto a background and was able to do it by thread painting on a stabilizer.  When I did hers, it was much larger than two bird feet, but I think I can do it.... and not worry about messing up the quilt because they won't be attached to the quilt until I'm satisfied with how they look.

Ok, as usual, Buddy is waiting to go to bed.

take care....
ttyl....

Top finished!

TaaaDaaa!  

I actually finished it last night before dinner and ended up trimming off quite a bit because it became larger than the challenge allows ( 25" x 25").  Next up is to sandwich and quilt it ( on my domestic machine) then figure out how to give this poor bird some feet to stand on  and then make & add 3-D flowers and leaves...

All in all, I'm pretty happy with the results so far... but not sure I'd want to use this technique' again.  I spent quite a bit of time removing blocks that didn't even come close to matching up and it REALLY bugged me!  When I watched Timna Tarr demonstrate her technique on The Quilt Show with Ricky Timms and Alex Anderson, I noticed that her applique pieces didn't always match up, but I wanted mine to.  There are still some that aren't quite right, but they are close enough for me.  I just want to get this done so that I can move on to something else... like making a couple Christmas gifts.

Actually, I have more than a couple to make so I really need to get on the ball here... no more challenges or 'squirrels' allowed until after the holidays!!!

It's back to p.t. again tomorrow... and I'm not looking forward to it.  My leg has been even worse since the session last Thursday.  I've even had to resort to using my cane just to get up and go to the bathroom during the night - something I've never had to do.  In fact, I very seldom used the cane around the house; it was kept in the car and used when I had to walk any 'longer than the length of my house' distances.

Ok, time for me to quit stalling and get to work...

take care...
ttyl...

Oops! I overdid it!

Here's this weeks Frosty Friend....

 Today, it was back to working on the challenge bird....

I don't know where I messed up, but somehow I ended up with more vertical squares than I needed.
Hurt my knee again climbing up on the ladder to move the completed rows higher up to make room for the last few rows so after struggling to get the blocks for the latest two rows sewn into rows.  Had to call it quits, find an ice pack and call for dinner delivery.

MAYBE tomorrow I can finish up the top.  If not, maybe I can start making yo yo flowers and folded leaves.

It's not even six thirty, but I'm calling it a night... going to find a better ice pack and head for bed.

take care....
ttyl.......

Little more progress

I haven't felt like doing a whole lot of sewing with my leg messed up like it is.  I started p.t. on Monday and that went ok - I was even able to walk out of there without using the cane.  Yesterday was a different story... I'm really hurting now - sure hope that means I'm getting better!  I had hoped to go to guild tonight, but decided it would be too much walking for me.  Maybe next meeting.

Today, I spent a couple of hours in my sewing room working on the guild challenge... finished one row and then did another one -- and made some adjustments to a couple of the earlier blocks.  It doesn't look like it, but I'm over halfway done.  I still have to figure out how to do the bird's feet and stems for the flowers - along with extra flowers that I want to add after it's quilted - I'm thinking maybe yo yo flowers.  And I may make another adjustment to his/her back... I'm not real happy with how straight it looks... I'll look at it tomorrow - it may just be the way it looks in the photo.  It will also look a little better ( I think) when I go back and start sewing rows together again.  I stopped doing that when I found that I'd have to rip the seams back open in order to do adjustments that I felt it might need.

Ok, Buddy is whining... wanting to go to bed but won't go without me (afraid he might miss out on his bedtime snack is probably the truth! lol)

take care....
ttyl........

Quick note.... but several photos

Friday, I received my block of the week from fatcatpatterns.com.  I didn't work on it right away, but did get to it later in the day and had it done within a couple of hours.... and, I THOUGHT I had dl'ed it onto my laptop -apparently not... so will have to add it from my phone after I finish this.

There's not much more to say... hubby and I went on the color tour train ride yesterday... it was fun - not a whole lot of color change, but the weather was in the low 60's and the sun was shining

and we enjoyed talking with the couple who sat next to hubby.  The couple had their service dog with them, a beautiful golden retriever who was so excited about 'something' - not sure if it was the idea of being somewhere 'fun' or because she was around new people ( she took a liking to hubby) but she was definitely excited.


We stopped for a late lunch at the Big Boy restaurant in Brooklyn and I noticed three men in a booth - one of them looked VERY familiar.  I couldn't stop looking at him... finally sent a text message to one of my quilting friends, Linda B. asking if her husband was with her because it sure looked like him here in the restaurant.  It took her a couple minutes to reply... "that's him".  He and his friends were paying their bill just before I was at the counter to pay ours and I was able to chat with him for a few minutes.  I just thought it was kinda funny weird to spot someone I knew over fifty miles from home - and at a restaurant; if it had been at an event, I could see the chances increasing.

Ok, hope to get some sewing in today... back to working on my guild challenge... hopefully about halfway done on the top... less than 30 days before it's due.  I NEED to get at it.  If I remember right, it has to be completed... sandwiched, quilted, bound and labeled...by the due date.

going to retrieve the photo from phone...

take care....
ttyl....

Apparently.....

this is not a
good month for me.  First, it was my knee/leg and this week it's something else.  Not sure if it's the flu, but whatever it is left me feeling the worst I've felt in probably 20 years ( and that time it was the flu).  I have a dr. appointment this afternoon and maybe he'll have some answers.  Still not feeling 100% but certainly better than I did the night before last.

So, obviously, I haven't been in my sewing room since the day before yesterday.  I was going to blog that night while eating dinner in front of my laptop, but I couldn't even eat ( first sign something was wrong).

I made some changes in fabrics for the bird... and I must say, I like it a whole lot more now that I did.  -- I thought I had taken a couple of photos showing the progress beyond the head, but I'm not finding them. 
There might be some 'artistic license' when it comes time to add the flowers along the bottom. 
You can see the tip of the first flower and I have the 'block' for the remainder of it waiting to be added to the row.  I think when I get closer to the bottom of the post, there will be solid yellow 'blocks' that I'll add petals to while I'm quilting it.   Then, again, I may change my mind... it's probably a week away, so we'll just have to wait and see.
Now, I have to shower and get dressed so I can take the car into the shop to have heater motor replaced-- can't have my husband freezing while riding in the car this winter :).  Then groceries ( because he's getting anxious - afraid we'll run out of food? - he's probably out of junk food!)... then, off to the dr. 

take care...
don't catch what I did!
ttyl

Brace Off ...

and so was I.... off to my sewing room, that is/was.

First up was a 'squirrel'... something that I've been wanting to do for several months now... something that I wanted so bad that I sent all the way to Finland for a pattern that's not even in English! 

 The other day, before my leg went painfully wacky, I stopped at Walmart and picked up the fabrics for this project.  The red and the solid white are the only two fabrics ( well, the pink for the noses, too) that I already had in my stash.  It's hard to tell by this photo, but the 'ground' is a sparkly white... 

The top is finished - just need to sandwich, quilt and finish with hanging sleeve, label and binding.

AND, I have enough fabric left to make a matching table runner IF I want.

Next up was block #4 for the fatcatpatterns.com BOW(eek)... This gal still needs her eyes and mouth sewn down - I had to call it a night so that I could fix dinner.

No sewing today, probably.  Hubby and I are taking a color tour via an 'open car'/gondola with an old fashioned train engine doing the pulling.  We did this four years ago, but, because of his dementia, he doesn't remember it.  When I booked the trip a couple weeks ago, the weather was still warm with sunny skies for the most part - and I was really hoping for the same today, which is why I booked our seats outside.

  My weather guide says it's going to be about 50 degrees and partly cloudy with zero chance of rain --- sure hope it's right.  Just in case, I'm bringing a packet of commercial hand warmers and a quilt & told hubby to dress warm ( with his thin blood, he gets cold extremely easy).

And now I'm sitting here waiting for the mail carrier to drop off the two pkgs that I received notice for.  They are to be delivered any time between 9:30 and 12:30 - but we're leaving at 10:30 and won't be back until close to 5.  It's already 9:44, so PLEASE hurry up!  

Ok - guess I'd better get dressed - hubby might not say so, but he appreciates when I get out of my pajamas/nightgown and into proper clothing when we're going to be out in public together.  LOL

take care....

enjoy your Saturday ( those who aren't working for quilt money)

ttyl.....

9:57 - both pkgs  (plus an extra one I wasn't expecting today) just arrived

Nothing broken

I received a call from the orthopedic dr just before noon letting me know that they could fit me in at 2 this afternoon if I could make it.  Yes, I could! 
Well, after having my leg lifted and turned by sports dr AND the orthopedic dr, they came to the conclusion that I (or, as I understand it) merely bruised the muscle behind my knee that runs down my calf.  The O. dr said IF it was a torn meniscus, they wouldn't do anything about it at my age... what!?!?  But he'd be more than happy to give me a cortisone shot - Ummm NOOOOO!!  So the only other option he gave me was to try physical therapy for a few weeks - that I'm willing to try.

He also said that if the p.t. doesn't help, then he'll be HAPPY to give me the shot.... this man is just too focused on giving me a shot he knows I don't want.  And, he doesn't want me wearing the leg brace -said I can't move my knee with it on ( no duh!  I had to take it off to drive to the appointment and then put it back on before getting out of the car).

It doesn't hurt as bad today as it did yesterday, so I'm hoping these two drs. know what they're talking about... hopefully, tomorrow I can spend some time in my sewing room - got to make up for a couple of days.

Ok, I'm off to fix a quick dinner for hubby and myself while I decide whether I want to attend tonight's guild meeting.

take care...
ttyl..

I'm a wreck

I'm still using the brace for my carpal tunnel ( on occasion) and now, I'm using another one for my right leg.  Yesterday morning, I ran a couple of errands and stopped at Walmart on the way home.  I was limping but that's not unusual for me.  By the time I got home, my right leg was hurting and a few hours later, was almost impossible to stand on due to the pain.  But it wasn't enough to convince me to go to urgent care or the hospital. 
Once I dressed for bed, I noticed that the right leg was slightly larger than the left one... ok, so that should account for the discomfort.  Got up this morning and, yes, it was still a little swollen but still no big deal... or so I thought.
I had to go back to the car repair place to see about scheduling an appointment to have a motor replaced behind/under the glove box.  That was about 12:30.  As I'm walking down the steps of our deck to go to the car, I felt and heard something 'tearing' in my right leg - right behind my knee... dropped my purse in the process of trying to take another step with my right leg.  Had to wait for pain to subside, but finally made it to bottom of the steps, got my purse picked up and hobbled the rest of the way to the car... I figured whatever it was would ease up in just a few minutes.
Was I ever wrong!  It got worse.... I struggled out of the car and got into the repair shop, made the appointment, and struggled back out and into the car.  Drove home and pulled  into the drive & started honking the car horn trying to get hubby's attention ( the ol' fool won't use a cell phone!) 
He finally came to the door and I yelled for him to grab his walking stick and to get in the car... explaining to him that we were on our way to urgent care and that he might have to drive us back home.

After x-rays and several different staff members checking my leg out and giving me tylenol (for pain, yeah, right!), my leg was wrapped with ace bandage ( the brace they had wouldn't fit my leg, but I told them I still had one at home from when I tore the meniscus in my left leg) and I was sent home with notice that the orthopedic drs office would call me no later than Friday for an appointment.  ARGHHH   the least they could have done is give me a script for something stronger than Tylenol.

Ok, to make this long story a bit shorter... there won't be any sewing done here for at least the next few days - probably close to a week... darn it all!  I'll be able to trace my fatcatpatterns flakey friends BOW and maybe get the pieces fused and cut out, but no sewing with the machine... I'm not ambidextrous and using my left foot on the foot pedal just doesn't work well.

Hubby and I are scheduled to go on a color tour via open train car on Saturday... this could prove interesting ( trying to climb up the steps with the leg brace on) .

Well, Buddy is demanding my attention....

take care....
ttyl....

More Progress

.........just of a different kind; well, a different project.  I put the RSC blocks away to be worked on later ( maybe at next guild sew in).  I knew I had to get started on the guild challenge quilt that's due in just a few weeks.

We are to make a quilt 25" x 25" finished using as many of the colors in our inspiration photo as possible.  We can add one other fabric and we can use any technique that we want - paper piecing, painting, applique', etc.

This is my 'inspiration' photo... I didn't pick it, it was in an envelope that was handed to me by the guild v.p..  The background is more of a brown mustard color - something almost impossible match.  

I bought a yard of fabric thinking that it might work - and it had a bonus of being gradated from selvage to selvage... almost white on one end, kind of a medium grayish brown in the middle and darker gray/brown on the other end.  Decided today that it wasn't going to work and I went back to read the 'rules' again - that's when I noticed that I could use one other fabric in a color that's not in the photo and went 'shopping' in my stash room... found about a yard ( should be more than I need) of a lovely greenish grunge fabric.

After receiving the envelope with the photo and rules inside, I hemmed and hawed about how I was going to make it... I didn't want to do applique ( I seem to ALWAYS do that) but I didn't know what else I could do.  It doesn't HAVE to be of what's in the photo - it's the colors that count.  Anyway, finally in July, I was watching the latest video on The Quilt Show online and saw a new to me technique' developed by Timna Tarr and I knew I'd found what I wanted to do!  It's still applique' but it's different.

While I was in Lansing ( the BIG town nearby), I went into FedEx and had them enlarge the photo to 25"x 25".. the first time in b&w - BAD IDEA.  I had to go back a second time and ask them to do it again in color... the photos not as clear, but I can work with it.  I teasingly told the gals at one of the sew ins that I'd better win after all the money I sunk into getting the photo copied and enlarged.  It wasn't cheap!

Ok, so here's what I have so far.....

 First step was to draw lines 2" apart diagonally from corner to corner.

Then I had to cut 2" squares from freezer paper for the applique' 'blocks'... I'll give you more info on how to use them in a future post.

Here is what I have so far.... just some of the background ( the greenish grunge) and the bird's beak and throat.  I think I might have to go back and redo the bottom beak; it was my first attempt at doing one of these blocks and I cut off the 1/4" seam of the beak when I shouldn't have.  I may be able to save it as it is'; we'll see tomorrow when I go back to working on it.  The top of the beak is going to need some shading --- I'm going to try and do that with my oil pencils ( which I can't remember the name of right now).
  I'm using clear monopoly thread on top and silver/gray cotton thread in the bobbin to do tiny blanket stitches.... 1.5 x 1.5 on my Janome.  I think Timna used 1.8 in her demo but my machine goes from 2.0 right down to 1.5... nothing in between.  The same silver/gray cotton thread in the bobbin and matching thread on top for the seams.

Ok, so that's it for tonight.... there won't be much to report tomorrow since we have another date to see the Booth Brothers in the afternoon so I won't have a lot of time in my sewing room.

Take care...

ttyl.....

Still Progressing #2

Maybe a little slower today, but that's ok.  The first photo shows that I'm attaching sashing to all but 9 of the RSC blocks.  They are all done now and I'm pressing the seams open and sorting by color/shade before I add them back to the design wall.

Standing and pressing got to be too much so I started tracing the pattern for this week's Flakey Friend.. was even able to get it attached to the background fabric and everything is satin stitched down except for the stick arms and the broom stick - I'll do those tomorrow afternoon - maybe.

Once I get the RSC blocks off the wall ( which I'll do before I start sewing them together), I can get started on the guild challenge.  The picture I'm using for the pattern had been rolled up for a month or so and needed to be laid out and flattened - I did that two days ago -- it seems to be pretty flat now so it's ready for the next step.

that's it for today/tonight

take care.....
ttyl....

Still progressing

I don't have a lot of photos to show my progress, but that doesn't mean I haven't been doing it.

Here are some of the grays that I used for my October blocks in the RSC 2019.  After finishing these, I made five more with browns and called them my November blocks.  I also thought that I needed just one more block - just not of brown because I didn't have a lot of brown scraps;  I made another pink one....

There's not going to be room on my 'design wall' for all the blocks... there are 56 total... I'm planning on seven across and eight rows down.  You can see in the photo that I've started adding sashing... which are also from scraps; I don't remember which quilt top I was working on, but apparently I got a little over exuberant and cut either too many or the wrong size.  I haven't counted to see how many sashing pieces I have... it's just important to me that I use them up, however many there are.  I have yardage that I can use for any sashing I'll be lacking and for the borders - I just want to use up as much as I can of these strips.  Now, don't quote me on it or believe that my figures are carved in stone, but it looks like the quilt should finish at about 75" x 82"... this is bigger than the pattern called for.... and I could just change my mind and make two smaller quilts... I think those are supposed to finished at 57" x 57" and have a couple of blocks left over that I can use for labels.   Hmmm, I might just have talked myself right into doing it.  We'll see what happens tomorrow.

take care....
ttyl.....