What NOT to sew!

I typically stay at Holiday Inns, and when I arrive in the room, it is COLD, so I have to turn the thermostat up a couple of degrees to turn the fan/air conditioning off. I have no issues putting on a sweater, but I am not a fan of cold rooms when I'm traveling, since I don't typically have my warm clothes with me. 

Something very unusual happened on my reading lists. I typically have an e-book and an audiobook on the go at the same time. BOTH books I'm currently reading are related to a long-time family feud! What are the chances? Lots of drama, but now I need to know how the drama ends! Absolutely amazing what can happen when you don't talk it out. Something as silly as a cake can cause a 25-year feud? Oh boy!! 

One book is called Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano, and the other is This is Not About Us by Allegra Goodman. Both are good if you are into just following "normal" family lives. It's also amazing how today's generation feels guilted into things or traditions by their dead parents. I thought this only happened when your parents were alive. Yikes!!!

I have loads of books in my hold list, and two are on suspend, which I need to fix soon. I will be able to unsuspend at least one, probably later today. It's when they all come in at the same time that is a problem. But thankfully, you can suspend books if they come in before you can read them. 

So how did the day go yesterday? 

This is how my crazy dogs handle the heat. Murphy is outside lying in the full sun. 

Mom - I'm not hot at all!!! Pant Pant!!!

Lexi is happy to sit or lie in front of the fan. She has the hang of the fan now, and it's her trusty companion. 

MOM - this fan is pretty cool!!! LOL!!

For me? I went for two short walks yesterday. I put my hat on to keep the sun off my head, and with my ventilated Tilley, it worked just fine. That walk to the library was in the morning. Then I walked to the grocery store just before dinner. Not an issue - it's just a pain when you come in the house, and your face takes longer than you would like to stop perspiring! A few dashes of cold water help. 

I had computer work to get done in the morning, and then I went downstairs to see what was in those laundry baskets. Oh my—I'll share a bit more tomorrow, but I also found this bag of hankies!!! To be honest, I forgot I even had this bag. Someone gave it to me, but I don't even remember who. I have a few ideas for making things with these, so they will be set aside. 

A bag of hankies

I had an inkling of where my Goo Gone was, and when I opened the container, there it was. I should have looked the previous day before I borrowed a bottle. It's in a container with a lot of small things that need gluing, so the old glue needs to be removed. I should work on that container during the virtual retreat! 

My Goo Gone is no longer AWOL.

The good news is that after a LOT of hard work, that one rail is clean as a whistle. I ended up rubbing a coat of Goo Gone into the thick gob of glue on the rail. I let it sit, and then I went back with the scraper and scraped it off. It peeled off in long curls for the most part, but it was a slow process. Then I scraped up the little bits left, and I ran Goo Gone over the rail several times before it was clean. The floor is also clean. 

The rail is clean

I need to sew the channel with the metal bits into it, and I'll try to do that today. Then tomorrow, I can get the new leader on the long arm. Slow and steady. I don't need the long arm at the moment, although I do have quilts to quilt. And then I need to find out when the other two leaders will arrive and plan accordingly. It's going to take a long time to get each one on, but that's OK. I can do one at a time and take a break in between. 

I bought a bit of fabric on my recent voyages, not that I need any. However, one can always use white. I often use white as a background, and you never know if you have enough, so I just end up using several of them and make a scrappy background. Guess what? You never run out, and you are using up bits all the time. It's a great way to work with backgrounds. 

More white fabric

I also bought these two teal fabrics. They are gorgeous, and I don't need them, but I don't have a lot of these colors, so why not? 

Two teal fabrics

And then I bought a wide back. I love dandelions, and this one is gorgeous. It's from Northcott's Whisper collection. 

Wide backing

And then I did a bad thing when I was in the store. I was showing a quilt that I made from "vintage" Tula Pink fabric. I am not a super fan of Tula Pink fabric, but I had bought some years ago. I actually have made two quilts, and I'm not a fan of either. The staff gasped (they stock some Tula Pink fabrics), and so I felt compelled to redeem myself, and I bought a bundle of some of the latest collection, along with some "blenders"  

My Tula Pink bundle

You can see the fabrics in the bundle here. 

The fabrics on the right side

And here are the fabrics on the second side. 

The fabrics on the left side

The big question now is what the heck am I going to do with it? I need a pattern that will accommodate those larger prints, or do I just cut it up and make something? I'll need to think about that. 

As I was unpacking my samples, or should I say, putting them away, I hung up my "goals" sign. This is my word for 2026. Now that we are in the second half of the year, I still have a lot on the Visual To Do list, and I need to make sure I am on track to get them done. 

My word of the year for 2026

And you also get to see the state of my Tequila Lime quilt. I had 3 of 8 sections done. I decided it would be a good thing to work on, so now there are only two sections left to sew. 

Progress on Tequila Lime

But it wasn't without its issues. I sewed the two sections of points onto the center diamonds, and then I needed to add two pieces to make the 1/8 triangle. Well, I sewed one piece on and realized that it was on the incorrect side of the diamond. So I took it off and sewed it on the other side and then added the final piece, only to realize that what I had originally sewed was correct, so more ripping! But at least three more sections were completed, and the top half is all together, as is the bottom-right corner. 

I should be able to finish today. 

However, there are some pins in the edges as markers. And I was remembering to take them out as I stitched. One was hidden, and I couldn't figure out why the sewing machine was veering off the ¼" seam allowance. I pushed ahead instead of checking, and it was only when the machine went into high gear that I realized a pin was there. 

And the sewing machine needle went right through the center of the pin. 

Oops -- I sewed right through the pin!

What are the chances of that happening? And that is what they mean when they talk about penetration power on the PFAFF creative icon 2!!!!! 

I'm not sure if you have seen the ads, but the PFAFF creative icon 3 will be released this fall, and they are releasing teasers. It seems to have a very interesting quilt feature, and I hope to have more information later this month when I get to see a working version in person. Software is a huge component of our sewing/embroidery machines these days. As we know with all software, it takes time to get all the components working correctly. 

I was clearing off the puzzle table from all the stuff I had brought home, and that was done, although I still have loads of things that need to be tidied up - i.e., serging the edges of samples. 

But since that table was clear and I haven't done a complete puzzle in a while, it was time. After all, look what this puzzle box says. 

So true!!!!

It is so true - you can mindlessly scroll for hours. And what do you have to show for it when you are done? Nothing! Probably not even any new knowledge, since there are a lot of political reels these days, and a fair amount is just for entertainment, but the bulk of it is just rubbish!!! But gosh -- they know how to make things that make you want to click!!!!

So I placed all the puzzle pieces (even for a 500-piece puzzle) onto my design boards and kept the border out. This puzzle is wicked, as there is one corner at the top where the pieces are very hard to place. There are no identifiers along the edge, and I had to leave the pieces out until I had the inside done in that area. 

The next puzzle is prepped.

I will share the puzzle with you tomorrow. I finished it this morning while listening to another chapter of the audiobook. Hey --- now that the child is old enough to participate in the story and the mom has fed her lies about her father - I want to know what happens!!!! 

I also dug out my UFO commitment for June - we had to delay the session for one week because of my travel, and now I need to finish that off today. So lots to do and that's OK by me. I have a very interesting audiobook to keep me entertained while I sew. 

And on that note - I'm out of here. Let's hope the heat breaks after today, and we have a bit more reasonable temperatures so that walking outdoors isn't a killer. Thankfully, my body is happy with the heat, and it's all about taking it easy. 

OH—the links for the Virtual Retreat. 

Here they are:

Saturday: July 4th from 6 PM - 9 PM

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88967393876?pwd=vcTbpbd0PF0zZYrL5D8XH5jaRAugPg.1

Meeting ID: 889 6739 3876
Passcode: 753764

Sunday: July 5th from 3 PM - 9 PM

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84936943764?pwd=F4GB0CFWZUDAukXjGmbNLR1GS6CreN.1


Meeting ID: 849 3694 3764
Passcode: 777609

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!