Let's go for a walk

So it was pouring rain yesterday morning. Even the girls did NOT want to go outside. That's very unusual, but it was wet! However once the rain went away and the sun came out, people came out of their houses in droves! The girls and I went for a long walk and at some point, there were so many people to "dodge" on the streets, that everyone was crossing what is normally a fairly busy street at random intervals to keep our social distancing.

It was great to see so many people out - I just hope that people will realize how nice it is to walk and keep at it once we are through this crisis.

I've been diligently working away at the sewing machine and doing some tidying. I haven't fired up the long arm in a while, but that's OK. There's no rush on anything.


OH -- I'm going to start off the day with a question. In my tidying up, I came across this project. A TON of batik 2 ½" squares cut. They need a background. I found a HUGE hunk of this blue batik in the bag. It's not cut up but is supposed to be the background.

But what about white? I have so much solid white that I'd like to get it used up.

Squares on white

And I have huge pieces of muslin - would that work???

Squares with muslin

The original was done with a light background. I don't know that it matters to me and I like all three options. I do like the white option myself. There are two blocks to the quilt - the center of one block is batik and the next round is white and the final round is batik. The second block is the reverse. So the background plays a huge part in the quilt.

I've also been hanging out in Studio U enjoying the natural light from the windows and getting some handwork done. While I'm doing the handwork, I'm watching the first season (2007) of The Quilt Show (Alex Anderson and Ricky Tims). Somewhere along the line, I bought the first three series on DVD. I never watched them. So I borrowed a DVD player and I need to get them watched. I also have a stack of machine quilting and technique DVDs.

I do NOT understand my NEED (at that time) to own these things but never watch them. Why???  It's just a mystery to me and I spent so much money on this kind of stuff. Anyway - I'm thoroughly enjoying the videos. I don't have a need to watch the other seasons of The Quilt Show, but I'm enjoying the ones I have available to me.

The show is still going and you can check it out here on their website. There are a couple of free videos that you can watch as well. It's a subscription service but they have free stuff on their web site.

One of the hand things I'm working on is to finish the tracing and cutting of those seasonal wall hangings (designed by Patrick Lose). This is October. It's ready for the satin stitching.

October wall hanging

And here are nine of the twelve. They are so darn cute and I love how bright and cheery they are!!!

Nine seasonal wall hangings

I have to get some pet mats finished. There's a stack of them waiting by the serger and I just can't seem to get there in the day. But here's the cutting scrap box and it's overflowing - yet again! I think I have about 4 or maybe five of the bags left. Then I'll have to get busy and make some more. I certainly never run out of things to do!!!!

Scraps to make another pet mat

This pattern came to me in a box of stuff that I inherited I don't want the pattern - does anyone want it for free?? It was to support the Mennonite Relief Sale in 2016. 

Mennonite RElief patter from 2016

I inherited this block (from that quilt) which wasn't done very well, so I took it apart, cut the pieces so they were the same size and once I sew it back together, it'll go in the orphan block box. 

Orphan block - almost done

It's a long time since my sewing machines and sergers were this organized. All the not currently used stuff is stored on one table. There's one more serger and one more embroidery arm missing from the table, but there's also no more room!! Those machines take up loads of space. I'm just glad they are all together.

The parking lot for sewing machines, sergers, and embroidery bits

It was time to get that binding made for Peaceful Year. I had to cut ELEVEN strips. That's how huge this quilt is. I put the binding in a plastic bag to protect it from fraying.

Binding is made

Then this quilt got added to the "to be quilted" pile and it was noted on the list in the red binder as well.

To be quilted quilt

 I spent a lot of time prepping the backpack project for the retreat. Holy - there are a LOT of pieces to cut. Main fabric, quilted fabric, lining and coordinating fabric, bits of foam, stabilizers, hardware. But it's done. In this picture, it wasn't quite finished. Notice how all the bits are labeled? It'll be way easier to make this one than the first one. I did NOT label any of the pieces which caused some angst as I worked on it. It took forever!!!

Prepping the backpack

When that picture was taken, I still had all these pieces to cut. Each square was a label for something.

STill to cut

The project is now in the laundry basket. That was the LAST project that's going in the basket and while the basket is overflowing (well - it's heaped high), it all fit in one spot. All that remains is to pack some tools and basic supplies. That's for tomorrow. Just two more sleeps - I can hardly wait. Remember - this is a virtual retreat!! We might be silly, but we're not that silly that we'd violate the social distancing orders that are out there at the moment.

From the remainder of the quilted fabric, I've managed to cut some smaller pieces that'll work to make some zippered pouches.

Leftover bits to make zippered pouches

I have to confess that I'm not a fan of the homemade masks. What's the point I asked myself? Well, here's a very good video that explains it a bit better. I'm good with anything if there's a good reason. While it can't guarantee 100% that you won't catch the virus, it can help. I wouldn't be surprised if when we are allowed out, that it'll be mandatory for everyone to wear a mask. EVERYONE!!

DH and I had a great discussion last night. I hope the same thing is happening in your house. We are actually sitting down (well we always do) for dinner, but our discussions are varied and well - entertaining! We've decided that we would not be upset to catch this virus. Not that we're going to intentionally endanger ourselves. But we're both healthy and the odds are in our favor that we won't die. That doesn't guarantee it - there is no guarantee to anything. But we're OK if it happens. You also have to realize that we're both high-risk takers and have been for years.

I found two patterns that you can make directly in the embroidery hoop if you're into that. Perhaps later today, I'll give them a whirl. Actually, Ronda found the one at the Kimberbell site and the other came in an e-mail. She made both of them yesterday. NO pictures. Here's the one from Embroidery Library.    And here's the one from Kimberbell.   Just scroll down the page to get the link.

It'll be fun to make one from some of the funky novelty prints I have. And if I never wear it - it'll be a reminder of this current situation. I don't think it'll make much of a dent in the novelty print stash.

I've been working on other stuff as well, but that's it for today. OH -- I should tell you that thanks to TWO of my readers, I was able to find my zipper tape from a Canadian source. The first one didn't have what I was looking for, but the second one did. And after much contemplation over the darn color, I placed my order. I paid the same price as I would have for the US order but at least it's in CDN dollars so I don't have to take the hit on the exchange.

I did have a chuckle as I placed the order. The zipper tape costs $10.79 in the US with $15 shipping. At the CDN site, the zipper tape was $15 and $10 to ship!  Thanks to all of you for keeping me honest. I should have KNOWN to search for a CDN shop to buy from since I'm always saying how important it is.

The big question is - will it get here in time for the retreat? The store (I'm not sure if they have a physical store or just online), is in Ontario so there's hope!!!

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!!

So much fabric and nothing works!

Hmm - I'm listening to and reading news about the current situation. What will we call this period when it's over? This time? The current situation? We'll have to come up with a name because it's pretty serious and is something that'll be remembered and its effects will be felt for years to come.

I see the library sent out a note that if you're looking for recommendations that they have lists of recommendations. NO - I am NOT going to check that list. I don't need any more books to read at the moment.

Speaking of which, it appears that I like to have a fiction and a non-fiction book on the go at the same time (always). Oops - make that two fiction books - one is audio and one is a physical copy. I just finished reading Over-Dressed - The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion by Elizabeth L. Cline. Hmmm - I would tend to agree with most of what she includes in the book. Unfortunately, the book was written in 2012 and there have been NO major changes (to my very limited knowledge) in this area.

Wages and working conditions are down to bare minimums while clothing companies demand even lower and lower prices so the consumer can pay less and buy MORE. I hate to say it, but quilting cotton is in the same boat. How much is too much fabric?? Could this current situation be a wakeup call? I doubt it - the moment that we're allowed to get back to business, those fabric companies will be cranking out so much more. I'm glad I'm over the buying frenzy. It's just a sad state of affairs that we can't be content with what we have.

But it all boils down to money and how everyone wants to more. A good example is the buying season for clothes. There used to be two - fall when you bought your new school clothes. And then spring. However, that offered only two (new) buying seasons for consumers. Clothing companies decided that if customers had NEW stuff every month or even every week, well - they would buy more and they did.

The same thing in the fabric industry. There used to be two fabric releases per year. Now there are four. And that is simply because the fabric companies wanted to make more money so they are offering more to the consumer to buy. Consumers feel the need to buy because they won't ever see this fabric again. Well, I hate to tell you, but if you start to go through the archives of fabric releases, NOTHING is new. And what company X puts out this release, company Y puts out the next release.

If you look at a particular fabric designer - let's say we look at Me and My Sister. They have 24 different collections on their web site. A good number of them have the same look. The only thing that has changed is the design - cute florals. I know - I got caught up in that and then realized what was happening. Pick ANY fabric designer and look at their fabric archives. How much of the SAME thing do we need???  I don't have an issue with Me and My Sister - I just randomly picked them because I have a LOT of their fabric. And I've NEVER used any of it.

And here's the problem - what I bought before is NOT what I like now. So I'm sitting with baskets of fabric that while I still like, I don't know how to use it in a quilt. I much prefer tone on tones instead of prints, yet I was attracted to the prints. This morning, I was looking for a small amount of red that I could use for the border on a small quilt. I'm in the prep stage for the upcoming retreat (remember - it's a virtual one).

I haven't dumped the basket out yet, but just a quick peek tells me that there is NOTHING in there like what I envision.

Red fabric basket

I will dump the basket out later today and search for something. I WILL find something. It might not be exactly what I'm envisioning, but I refuse to buy more when I have this obscene amount of fabric. That's why buying just for the sake of buying or because something is on sale or because it's pretty - is NOT a responsible way to buy something. Yet those marketing people are doing a great job of making us feel that we absolutely cannot live without it!

I did get some sewing done yesterday, but only after I spent a HUGE amount of time on the computer. I still have more computer work this morning, but not nearly as much so that's a good thing.

OH -- I did get the next assignment done for Vintage Christmas and that homework got sent out. I love VIRTUAL sewing groups!!!

Block on of the Vintage Christmas homework

And here's the second block. As you can see - I'm working with a very limited palette. Just because I wanted to try something different. So each time, I do one block with a bit of red and one block with a bit of green. White for the background and greys for everything else. A very good experiment.

Block two of the Vintage Christmas homework

Here are all my blocks to date. There are 42 blocks and we have 12 done. Only 30 to go!!!  Then I need to start thinking about how to put this together. I think I'll keep it simple and just sash the blocks like the quilt on the cover of the book.

Vintage Christmas blocks so far

Let's see - Oh yes - I got the backing sewn together for Pieceful Year. I used three different fabrics but it doesn't look half bad! I used up two smaller pieces and one large piece. That was a bonus. It's not pressed, but I'll press it when it's going on the long arm. I still need to make the binding, but it's a yarn-dyed fabric and I need to put a new rotary blade in to help it from fraying to death.

Backing for Pieceful Year

I managed to get the binding completely on that other quilt as well.

Binding on a scrap quilt

Then it was time to tidy up a bit. I seem to have amassed a lot of embroidery hoops. This is from four different embroidery machines and a few extra I bought along the way. Yikes - what a mess.

A laundry basket of embroidery hoops

I'm not sure that I like this solution but it was one way to get them out of sight and not get damaged. I found an over the door rack for towels. I tucked it inside one of the closets in Studio B.

Embroidery hoops are now hung up

I do have a drawer that I could put some of the smaller ones in. And I could buy one more of those racks and put it on the back of another door. Because I know when I want a hoop, it's going to be the big one in the back and it's going to be a pain to get it off the rack. Does anyone have a better solution???

I got out my zipper box to look for a zipper for my backpack.

The jam-packed container of zippers

AHA -- I found a package of zipper tape in navy. That'll work perfectly for the backpack. DONE!!

Navy zipper tape

 I decided it was time to find a second box for the zippers. Remember all the zippers that I found the other day? Well, they were NOT going to fit in the original box. I HATE having two boxes - but at least all the zippers are together and when I want to find one - I know that I'm looking at all that I have. Well - I hope so. Until I find the next project filled with zippers!

Two containers of zippers

I went to order the zipper tape (in green) for the yoga bag. Hmm - $15 US to mail one package of the zipper tape. They are going to check on Monday for me if they can drop the price by a wee bit. DH said - the shipping is not expensive if you need the zipper. Well - I like that philosophy and I might just go ahead and pay that price. I haven't been buying anything so it's not that big of a deal. And the color I'm ordering just might work better in the backpack than the navy. I'll see what happens on Monday.

I did a bit of organizing, consolidating on the worktables. They still look full and are still a mess, but progress is being made even though it doesn't look like it. There's still a lot that just needs to be put away! Why can't I get it put away??

Worktables are still covered with stuff

 But I now have an empty laundry basket and a couple of other containers. I need to set the timer and spend ONE hour to get more of this cleared up!!

An empty laundry basket

I was up in Studio U yesterday watching some videos. The sun was out and it was glorious up there. I had borrowed a CD player from Katheleen so I could watch some videos that I purchased years ago and had never watched. I've been negligent in doing that so now I'm going to cram watch those videos. I want them watched and out of the house!!!

As we went for our walks yesterday, especially in the afternoon, there were a lot of people out. As I passed through one area, two men were sitting in lawn chairs (more than 6 feet apart) in the driveway of one house. We had a wee chat. Did I notice they were social distancing? Yes - and they had glasses of wine in their hands. It was hilarious!! I was even offered a glass! I declined. And one of my neighbors had a friend deliver coffee and they proceeded to visit on the little patio in the front of her house.

I think it's important to remember that we are still allowed to visit people, we just need to keep our distance from them. But get outside - the weather is amazing. I walked almost 8 miles yesterday. And then I sat in the backyard for longer and watched the girls play and read my non-fiction book. I'm not getting nearly as much sewing and quilting done as I would normally - I don't have a deadline.

You know what? I'm perfectly OK with that. There's MORE to life than sewing and quilting. GASP!!!!

I have a show and tell from our Aviatrix Medallion class which would have happened last night. This belongs to Cathy. She made the simple version of the center star and I have to say that I LOVE this version better than the original. The original is just so busy compared to the rest of the quilt. Nicely done Cathy!!!!

Cathy's Aviatrix Medallion quilt (so far)

One thing I'll say that has surprised me in this current situation. I haven't seen any noticeable decrease in the speed of the internet. Perhaps it's just that I'm not on it a whole lot, but I was expecting to go to dial-up speed which hasn't been the case. Yeah - to all the telecom workers for keeping the internet in tip-top shape!!!!

On that note, I"m out of here!!!

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!

UFO Show and Tell Part Two

Wasn't that exciting to see all those UFOs from our meeting this past weekend? Well, I've got more today as I didn't have all the pictures assembled yesterday. Here's what else we're working on.

I got such a chuckle from this picture that I had to share it with you. This is Katheleen's UFO cupboard. It looks like an IKEA cabinet. Don't you love how all those scrapbook cases fit so neatly onto the shelves? They all appear to be labeled. That's a lot of UFOs. I think she'll be participating in the club for a while. The big question is - are there UFO's on the other side? or just this side?

Katheleen's UFO closet

 This is a quilt she made and the UFO resulted from the leftovers.

Katheleen's quilt

And here are the leftovers. I do like doing something with the leftovers rather than just shoving them in the stash. I guess it depends on what's leftover.

The leftovers from the quilt

 So her goal for the month was to whip up some table runners and toppers that could be used in the same room as the quilt. I think those pieces go well with her sofa!!!

The finished table runners

 Her commitment for the next month is to finish the hand embroidery on two blocks from Snow Days.

Katheleen's commitment for next month

Elaine S is also working on Stitcher's Garden quilt. Her goal was to get the top together (minus the borders) and here it is. It looks awesome. This project is going on hold until she can find an appropriate fabric for the borders. There are five borders on this quilt.

Elaine S - Stitcher's Garden quilt

Her goal for the coming month is to dig out the Snowman Collector quilt and take inventory of what is in the box, what needs to be done, etc.

The pattern for Snowman Collector

Diane's goal was to get this quilt quilted and bound. I had to laugh as I was getting updates from her as the morning progressed. Diane never leaves her commitment until the last day. But here she is binding the quilt.

The binding is in progress

 Here's Diane's finished quilt. I love the colorway. I haven't seen her next commitment yet as we didn't get together for Monday, but I need that soon to put it in the book.

Diane's finished quilt

Laura's goal was to finish two more sets of wedges for the PRISM squared quilt.

Two more sets of wedges

So far this is what she has assembled. The wedge sets are not sewn together in the photo below. At least I don't think they are. Her goal for the coming month is to complete the LAST two sets of wedges. I bet she's going to be thrilled to get that done.

Laura's PRISM squared to date

 And then there was me. My goal was to get the top of Stitcher's Garden together (minus the borders). And it's done! You didn't hear the little scream I gave when I pressed the final seam?

My Stitcher's Garden quilt top

I didn't have anything in my stash that would work for borders (and I did my own thing with the borders), but I was pretty sure that I wanted green. I found some the other day when I had popped into a quilt shop. After cutting the strips for the inner border, I had a 2 ½" strip left. That's perfect. Scrap for the green scrap box but nothing for the stash.

Only a 2 ½" strip was leftover

And that border went on the quilt.

The inner border is now on the quilt

I was on a roll (and this happened AFTER our UFO meeting), I got to work and put the final border on. Again, I had mere scraps of fabric leftover from the yardage that I had purchased. No more excessive buying, but I have no qualms about buying something if I need it.

The finished quilt top

 I scoured the stash room to find some fabric for the backing. The first time I had looked, I didn't see anything I liked. The second time, I did find something and there was JUST ENOUGH on the bolt. I had to put two seams in it and that little square is all that was left and the backing is barely large enough. Perfect!!!!

A scrap of fabric from the backing

And there's one more bolt of fabric - GONE. Sadly, there are lots more where that came from, but one at a time works for me.

An empty bolt of fabric

And there we have it - the completed quilt top, the binding and the backing. The pictures don't do justice to the brightness of that quilt top. It's BRIGHT, but the green helps to pull it together. Botton line - it got moved to the "to be quilted" pile. I got to cross this off one of my 2018 UFO list. There are still four quilts on that list, but I'm good with that. They are NOT being forgotten.

The Stitcher's Garden quilt is ready to be quilted

So what's my goal for next month? This is the Peaceful Year quilt. It's the FIRST $10 quilt that we ever did at The Hobby Horse. That goes back a LONG, LONG time. The top is together and has been for years.

Oh boy - when I laid it out, I realized how HUGE this quilt is. I had forgotten how big it was.

Pieceful Year quilt

The quilt has two borders and the borders are in progress so my goal is to get them on the quilt. One of the borders (one side only) is pieced, but not sewn on.

One of the borders

And wasn't I commenting on customers who used yarn-dyed fabric for the borders? Well, here's another quilt that uses yarn-dyed fabric. The entire quilt is made from it. Oh boy!! With all those seams, this is going to be a nightmare to prevent stretching along the edges.

My yard-dyed fabric

 This yellow must be the inner border. It's not a yarn-dyed and I'm not so sure that I like it. I'll have to do some checking and see if I can find something else. This quilt is from my 2020 UFO list.

The inner border

The best part about finishing up a UFO? Getting to empty the project box so you can fill it with another project.

The project box for Stitcher's Garden

All the fabric is now back in the appropriate baskets of fabric in the stash room and the scraps are in the appropriate scrap box. Yeah!!!!  That feels great and I hope that the next UFO doesn't take me that long. Well - it can't since I committed to getting that quilt top completed for next month. Yikes - we have a sit n sew day tomorrow. Guess what I'll be working on?

WOW!!!!  That's so exciting to see some of those old projects dredged up and getting completed. I really do believe that we can make huge dents in our UFO stashes. I know we can!!!  And I know that a lot of you are working on them as well and I've got a few more things to share tomorrow.

On that note, I'm out of here.

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!