End of the week/month catch up

Despite all my plans to blog daily - or at least every other day - just isn't happening.  It's not like I haven't been busy and have nothing to share because I have been and I do - I just couldn't seem to sit down and actually post.

First off is the pic of my new bag/purse that I told about in my last entry.  I've been using it for about a week now and I'm really liking it... not too big, not too small and plenty of room for everything I sometimes feel the need to carry with me.

After finishing the bag, I decided to start working on ANYTHING in the hopes that it would distract me enough so that I could find that missing pattern and pattern book.  No such luck but here's the top I did manage to do.

A couple of years ago - maybe three?, I went to a quilt show in Jackson with Vicki, Joyce and Cathy V.... Someone from the show was selling jelly rolls for $10 each; the proceeds went to their charity quilt fund, I believe.  I'm assuming that one or more members of the guild donated strips to make the jelly rolls.  Vicki and I each bought one; I think she made her's into a 1600 quilt top and, after it was quilted, donated it to Siren.  

Well, mine has been sitting here waiting for inspiration.. I finally found it.    It's called Rail on a Row... laptop size. I found some blue fabric of my own to do the inner border and then found the OLD ( so old some was faded and had to be tossed) burgundy and blue floral for the outer borders.

The next day, I decided to work on the Bright Scrappy Throw.  The blocks were pieced and I had enough for the large lap quilt, but I had thought I'd like to make it bigger - like maybe queen size.... nixed that idea the other day and stitched the blocks together to make this one...

I do love this pattern.  A few years ago I had made it using scraps and had a polka dot on black print for the sashing and borders - very loosely quilted since it was before I had my long arm.  So cozy.  I used it here on the couch in the family room until recently when I decided to wash it ( again) and pack it away for a few months.  Replaced it with my Goodnight Irene quilt for now.

I haven't taken a pic of what I've been working on the past two days... just of some of the fabrics - did those only because I'm not quite sure what I want to use.

This was my initial choice... the white are squares set on point and then made square with the green print... the red for sashing  & inner border and the last print for the outer borders.

Now I'm wondering if that circle print will work.... the colors are good - it's the print itself that has me wondering.  Another option is this....

There will still be the white squares on point... only change is switching white for the red and then the red for the outer border.  That choice seems to be the 'safest' - but is it what I want??  I still have another day or so before I finish the blocks and have to make a decision.

I kind of broke my rule about only using fabrics from my stash with this one - first off, because I don't have yardage of white.. then I found that I didn't have yardage to use for the sashing and borders.  It's going to be an adorable baby quilt - which will probably go in my stash/collection for a future great grandbaby.  Well, at least the green print and the fabrics I'm using for the motifs are from the stash :).

Need to go find something for dinner... hope to finish the remaining blocks for this quilt tonight - if not tonight, then definitely tomorrow.

TTYL

Just a quickie

I'm STILL looking for the book and the pattern that I declared were MIA yesterday, but working on other things ( including housework -yuck) in the meantime.

Finished this this morning...

Ok, so I embellished it a tiny bit  LOL... it just 'screamed' for me to do it.

Times up... hubby's mowing the lawn and I need to get laundry started.

TTYL 

Frustration

I am so tired of 'losing' things.  This morning I wanted to finish cutting the background blocks for both the Christmas Row by Row and the Vintage Tin quilts that I'm working on.  Everything went fine with the Christmas RxR... things changed once I switched over to the Vintage Tin.  I've kept both projects in separate boxes so that everything is organized when I have the time ( and in the right mood) to work on either one.

I remember taking the lid off from the Vintage Tin box and seeing the pattern for the next block I want to embroider.  I moved it to get to the fabric underneath.... that's when my Hell began.  I don't know where I set it when I moved it - obviously not someplace close by or obvious because now I CANT find it!!!!   I've moved things, searched through the box several times, checked to see if it had fallen on the floor - looked UNDER the box which was sitting in my chair... even moved the freezer out a bit to see if it had fallen behind when I was putting the fabric onto the freezer top ( my cutting surface).   I went through every page of the pattern... every pattern there except this one - which is actually two patterns on the same paper.   It's nowhere to be found!!!!

And this isn't the only thing missing.  I've also been searching high and low for my pattern book that I used to make step-daughter a nativity wall hanging and table runner a few years ago.  Now that I want to make them for my oldest daughter, I can't find it.  I don't know if I loaned it out, donated it to the UFO auction or if it's just 'hiding in a really good place'.

Enough is enough!  I'm taking a nap.

TTYL

Ok, took a nap ( about 2 1/2 hours) ... still no sight of either of the MIA pattern/book.  So, after the nap I went looking for the pattern to make one of those small 'snap' bags - made with metal measuring tape - I found one, but it's larger than what I want to make.  Can I find the pattern for the smaller one???  OHN (oh, h--- no).

Apparently, it's just not my day to get things done in my sewing room.  It's getting ridiculous, though.... I've been cleaning the room over the past couple of weeks so it's not like the Vintage Tin pattern could get 'lost' in a pile - especially since I didn't set it aside to work on later.  I was in a small 3 foot by 3 foot area - it COULDN'T have gotten that far away.  I am really getting frustrated - even  asked St. Anthony to help me, but he is either ignoring me while he searches for more important things - or he realized that I'm a Southern Baptist  LOL.

I've gone through the drawers in the file cabinet and looked through one of the pattern boxes out here in the living room looking for the snap bag pattern... no luck so far, but have other places to check for that.  I just thought that while I still had the fabric scraps out in front of me from making my new purse/bag ( one that I've been wanting to do for at least two years) yesterday, I'd make me a little change purse and maybe a tissue case to match it.  I guess I'll have to set the fabric scraps aside ( and probably lose them, too) until I find the pattern.  It hung on the gray shelves for the longest time; I saw it daily.  I'm thinking I stashed it away when I replace that set of shelves - just WHERE is the question.

Almost dinner time... then back to doing SOMETHING in my sewing room until it's time for my Sunday evening shows.

TTYL
Update: 12:04 a.m.

I found the missing Vintage Tin pattern.... it wasn't in the box it was supposed to be after all... I must have thought I had moved it but moved something else instead.  It was in the Amish with a Twist BOM box!!   Thank you St. Anthony <3 <3   Now, please help me find the other two items I'm searching for, pretty please.  :)

Caught It!

 I started out so good this morning.  Using up leftover 2" squares from the Scalloped Potato quilt class, I've been making blocks for another quilt ( I think I mentioned it yesterday).  Stitched up one this morning and laid out pieces for another one.

Then I decided that I'd work on my blocks for my Judi Madsen Iquilt class using the backing fabric leftover from the I Love My All Stars quilt since it's still on the frame (Mo'e).  Found some 'scrap batting and laid it out... laid out the traditional block, basted it along the top and proceeded to stitch in the ditch like Judi instructed.  Got half way around when I noticed this...

my finger is on the lower corner of the top

and here's where the backing ends

I'm so glad that I caught it in time.  Yes, I had already stitched in the ditch half way around, but it was easy enough to take the stitches out - took less than 10 minutes. 

So now, the backing still sits on Mo'e.  I'm going to call Ethel to see if I can put her embroidered snowmen on with the backing 'scrap'.  As long as it's already loaded, I want to use it.

TTYL

Eight days a week

That popped into my head as I was checking to see when I posted last.  Now, to remember what all I've done in those eight days.
First, I finished my I Love My All Stars quilt!!  YAY!!  It's not perfect, but darned close to it.

This was my first time trying So-Fine thread and also the cotton/wool blend batting from Connecting Threads.  I LOVE the So-Fine - it gave me a couple of issues, but I worked them out.  I really couldn't tell any difference in the cotton/wool versus the cotton/poly that I usually use.  I have two more pieces that I'll use for one of my 'garden' quilts - don't know if I'll buy again or not.

The borders, in my mind, were going to be piano key stitched... well, I wasn't concentrating on what I was doing when I started stitching them and I ended up with 'corrugated' borders - that's ok, I like them.

I finished that quilt at 5:30 on Thurs. night - just in time to take to guild meeting - with only two sides of the label still needing to be hand stitched on. 

Friday, I pretty much putzed around... spent an hour in E.R. with a quilting friend and took my 'stuff' for Saturday's class to the library, but didn't even set up.  I did talk with Gloria about doing quilt blocks for Linda G. as a departure gift ( she's moving to Arizona within the next few months).  Gloria wanted to do something with a cruise ship - we looked online but didn't see anything exactly cruise ship, but did find a paper pieced ship that she liked.  This pattern had other transportation blocks so we decided that's what we'd offer up for others to do for Linda.  I printed up two of each when I got home... brought them in Saturday and told the gals there about them and our plan - the patterns went like hotcakes, even after I requested a dollar for each copy to help cover my costs ( I paid $10 for the patterns and then there was my ink and paper used).

Saturday was spent in class with Toni, who was our guest 'teacher'.  Such a nice lady... she brought a bunch of her quilts to show and she made copies of some of the patterns to give to us.  It was also Ruth's birthday and we had cake after enjoying the potluck lunch we had.  I didn't get as much done as I had hoped to, but I got the scallops sewn onto a few blocks.  I THOUGHT I needed more scallops, but now that I look at the quilt, I realize that I probably didn't.  I had wanted to make the blocks look like they were floating on the background.  If I had put them up on my design wall, I probably would have realized that I was right in the first place.  Oh well, I still like it.

Yesterday, I finished making the 'needed' scallops and got them stitched down. Then it was on to stitching the blocks into a quilt top before adding a small inner border and the larger outer border.  I finished about 10 last night.

 I even have a good idea of how I want to quilt it... it just has to wait in line.

Saturday, I got a small 9 block quilt top plus 2 'orphan' blocks from Gloria.  They were made by guild members in 2003 ( before I joined the guild); I only recognized four names - and only one of them is still a member.
Here's one of the blocks....

 I printed this up in black and white and proceeded to design a quilting pattern for it.  Since there are only the nine blocks in the piece and then the two orphans, I'm just going to do the same thing in each - I THINK.  Going to try it on one of the orphans first.  As I got to looking at the top this morning, I noticed that the blocks did not all meet up around the edge like they should have.  I took the parts of the seams out and redid them.  I'd really like to add a small border before loading this onto Mo'e... called Gloria to ask her if it would be ok with her, but she didn't answer ( either she wasn't home or her phone wasn't working again).  I don't think she'll have a problem with it, but I want to ask her to be sure.

Back to the blocks for Linda G., I realized this morning that the patterns DID NOT print at 100%... more like 75%.  I posted a message on our FB page letting the gals know... and that I would test a pattern and let them know.

It worked, just came out at 8" instead of 10.5".  I don't have a problem with that - hope no one else does.

OOPS!  The wheels go UNDER the car, not up in the air hovering over the car. LOL

Here's the first block completed.

I'm not thrilled with the satin stitching around the headlights, but it is what it is.  I should have switched machines... "Marie" does not do satin stitching as nicely as "Jan" ( my older Janome) does.

Since I still have LOTS of 2" squares left from the "Scalloped Potato" scrap quilt, I started making more blocks.  I'll use them to make another quilt like "S.P." - just without the scallops.

Guess that's all ... think we're all caught up.  Hopefully, I won't wait another eight days before posting again.  :)

TTYL

Productive Morning

Woo Hoo!  It's not even noon yet and I've already found a missing Ricky Tims DVD AND a kid's quilt pattern that I've been looking for for a couple of years... and I stitched up about 10 of the scallops for the upcoming Scalloped Potato class AND stitched sashing onto rows 4-7 of the I Love My All Stars quilt top.

Unfortunately, it's time for a nap... I'll set the alarm on my phone this time so that I don't take a four hour nap like I did yesterday.

After the nap, I want to get the rest of the sashing sewn on along with the outer borders; then I can call the top done.  If my body co-operates, I'm hoping to do some practicing on Mo'e this afternoon and then load the All Star quilt onto it.  Since I already know what I want to do in the background, it makes sense to do this one now instead of putting it at the bottom of the list of Waiting To Be Quilted.  I'm not sure what I want to do in the borders yet, but thought I'd do just straight stitching next to the ditches for the sashing.

This is what I'm thinking about doing with the borders... I know it's not a good pic, but it's the best of the four or so that I took.   Maybe I'll do something else - will have to look through my 'stuff' to see if I can come up with another idea.

Ok  nap time

TTYL

SIGH

I finally finished the I Love My All Stars blocks last night.  Wouldn't you know that the next to last one would give me such a hard time that it took almost two hours to do - bad enough that each block took an average of one hour EACH.  I'm not sure what happened to this ornery block but I finally got it to fit.
This morning, I stitched the blocks together... now they're waiting for the sashing.

 The pattern calls for gray sashing and I have some in my stash - but it was supposed to be used on another quilt... sigh, guess I'll go ahead and 'rob from Peter to pay Paul" and I'll get some for the other quilt at another date.

Yesterday morning, I finally convinced myself that I HAD to go to Walmart to buy a new iron ( and ironing board cover since I needed one of those, too).  Just another cheap set... $9 and change for the iron and $4 and change for the cover.  I also bought the backing fabric for the All Stars quilt .. a nice white polka dot on a gray background ( kind of like a Swiss dot?).

Came back home and tried to put the new cover onto the ironing board ( after taking old one off, of course) and it didn't quite fit.  There was this  'nasty' white foam padding on the back which proceeded to tear as I was trying to get the cover on.  Once I succeeded in getting the cover on, that white foam made big lumps in it, so I took it back off and tore it all out... now the cover fits like it's supposed to.  I still had the padding on the board itself so that cheap foamy stuff wasn't needed anyway.  I can't remember how long ago I bought that padding, at least two or three covers ago... but it still works, so it can stay until I need to replace the cover again - and when that happens, I'm going to buy a new board.  I got this one -used- almost 30 years ago and it's annoyed me for years; I've just been too cheap/frugal/thrifty to replace it - I'm one of those who believe that if it still works, there's no reason to get rid of it.  :(

I just looked at the pic... it looks like the top row is longer than the ones below it - NOT GOOD.  I went and looked at the actual rows... no, the top row is not lined up correctly on the wall... the other rows are more to the left than the top row is.  Whew!!

I've got to do a quick clean up of the sewing area ( and freezer top) before I can lay out the fabric to cut the sashing.. The bin that this quilt has been in can be cleaned out - will I fill it with another 'quilt in the works', with my fat quarter collection or just leave it empty?  We'll have to wait and see.

TTYL