Lost and found!

I love how we all have similar interests!!! And we have no end to the creativity and fun we have while doing those. I got a picture from Lynn, and she used the orange collage fabric in her butterfly quilt! It was probably used near the bottom in that orange bit? But maybe also on the border. 

Another use of the collage fabric

Either way --- it's a fun fabric, but I won't be searching for more. I have my fat quarter of orange, and that's good enough for me. 

As for doing puzzles on the computer -- that's an amazing alternative to doing them in person. I am trying to get away from constantly using the computer for everything, as I spend a lot of time each day writing, emailing, or making a presentation. It's nothing to find new puzzles by exchanging them with others, buying them from the thrift store on senior discount day (yesterday: 5 books and three 1000-piece puzzles) for $30, tax included! That's a lot of entertainment for $30!!! And getting rid of the puzzles? That is definitely not an issue because I can return them to the thrift store and get a 25% coupon, or I can pass them along to others in my circle. 

There is something about laying them out on the design boards (no trays for me!), and then searching through them. I am a very analytical person, and the arranging and rearranging of the pieces is something my brain needs to function. It's repetitive, extremely calming, and very therapeutic! 

Did I make progress yesterday? Oh yes --- I waited patiently until after dinner, then grabbed all the blue and green pieces, as well as a few with tiny bits of red and yellow that I had missed the times before. I'm down to four design boards with pieces now. What I love about this is that the space required is so minimal. And it's right in the middle of my sewing chaos, and yet I don't see it during the day. 

The amount of space I need is equal to the size of the puzzle, which is the end of a banquet table. 

Great progress on the puzzle

Putting the blue and green pieces in the puzzle went so quickly, I felt somewhat "cheated!" but that's OK, I had other things to do. To give me a bit more satisfaction, I pulled the pieces for tonight and placed them on a design board, now that I have a free one. So I'm all set when the time comes. I am teaching myself discipline and focus by stopping when I say I will. I need that because I have a very addictive brain, and if I let it go, I would get no sleep. 

Speaking of sleep! After reading about sleep in the Brain at Rest book, sleep is probably one of the most important things you can do for yourself, and yet so many people poo-poo how much sleep they need and are running on empty. Did you know that sleep helps rebuild and repair your body, including your immune system? You NEED sleep. I got 6 hours 40 minutes according to my app, out of 7 and a half that I was in bed, so that's not so bad. 

And napping? The author of the book "The Brain at Rest" LOVES napping, and so do I. 30 minutes is a good amount to nap. EVERY DAY!!!!

I was cleaning up a folder with more paper crap -- I just cannot imagine leaving this to someone else. There wasn't much in, but the dental bills (dating back to 2001) are now gone. I've decided to keep the medical stuff for the current year, after it's been claimed by insurance. At this point, we do not need those bills for income tax purposes - maybe sometime in the future, the total amount we pay will be higher, but for now, I keep one year (labeled) and then out it goes. I even made a label for the folder. 

My very thin medical folder

Then realized I already had another thin folder, also labeled "medical". So the two folders were amalgamated, and the empty one is in the supply cabinet. I had a few spare moments in the kitchen yesterday, so I even went through some of what was set aside for today. Oh my—I may even have to get another folder out! Slow and steady! 

Ooops --- duplicate!

When I'm buzzing around taking pictures in Studio B and then realize that I have put my phone down somewhere, but where - it can be a problem. Yesterday, I couldn't find the darn thing anywhere, and because it's completely silent (no vibration, no buzz), I couldn't call it. Only after going back over my racks did I realize it was UNDER this mat, where the serger sits. Seriously??? I need to stop doing that!

The phone was under the mat!

Before you think I'm completely mad and slipped it under the mat, not so. The mat wasn't under the serger, and I was taking pictures of the serger. Then I slipped the mat onto the table and put the serger back on the mat. I didn't realize my phone was beside the serger, and the mat went over it. 

And then I found it under the yarn by the long arm. 

Another hiding spot for the phone

One day, I will lose it for good. I need to put it in my pocket instead of setting it down. But I got lots of work done - not as much as I would have liked, but then I never accomplish as much as I set out to, as I always have big dreams, but I'm still on target to get everything done by when it needs to be done. That even included some handwork!!! I have some YouTube videos to watch, so I sat there doing the homework while watching them. 

I have this bag of ornaments I was working on and have almost finished them all, but some small, fussy pieces needed to be cut out, and some hand stitching was required. So I set up a TV table beside the computer, and the stuff resides there. I have 2/3 of the fiddly cutting done, and then I need to sew on six bells and draw some faces. OH - and some fusing. Then I can call these things done! Another bag of stuff that has been sitting on the current project table. 

My evening handwork project

What is nice about those current project tables is that they handily contain all the current projects. OK -- that's a lie since there are tubs of stuff on the floor that are too large to go on the table, but that's OK -- they are contained and form a wall around Murphy's mat, so she has a nice dark area to sleep. But the most important thing is that NOTHING additional has been added to those tables in months! So that is a huge bonus!!! It means I'm actually getting ahead of the game! And I love games!!!

I started culling the T-shirts in my drawer. I will never wear these again, so they went in the pile of T-shirts from which to make a T-shirt quilt for myself. I love T-shirt quilts as they are heavy and I LOVE heavy quilts. 

T-shirts for my T-shirt quilt!

Yes - I like to wear bicycle T-shirts, but the black one has a V-neck, and I can't stand wearing a V-neck. The purple one is starting to wear thin, so both are retired. The one from the fabric company - where will I ever wear that again? But it will go into the memory T-shirt quilt that I plan to make. Hey, I can make as many as I want!

I am feeling pretty content these days. So much to do, but I can only do a little bit each day, and there is absolutely ZERO rush to get this stuff done. No deadline, and I can completely ignore the mess. I don't see it, just like a hoarder doesn't see the mess in their house. I completely ignore that current project table! I'm good with that. I want to enjoy the process of making, not rush to finish something. 

The girls were in their glory yesterday. It was very cold (it must be cold for me to say that), and they loved being outside. Something interesting had attracted their attention in the forest. 

MOM - please open the gate!

And that Murphy - you give her an inch and next thing you know, she has pushed my chair completely out of the way and lies in the very spot I need to be to work! Sigh!!!! 

MOM - just keeping your spot warm!

No news on the package - it's still "in transit," so I expect that I'll only see it pop up in my mailbox unannounced. It's still within the delivery window. If it hasn't arrived by the end of the delivery window, I'll be at the post office asking questions. 

And on that note, I'm out of her and on my way to spin class. Good grief - I see it's still cold this morning, but hopefully no wind. That wind was bitter in the morning, and there was a layer of granular ice (in most spots). Yuck!!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Liquid embroidery - do you remember?

Good grief --- I dreamt about being somewhere and trying to help someone thread a serger! Just as I was about to find out why the thread was breaking, the alarm went off! At least it was a logical (for me), non-emotional dream, but why am I remembering them so often these days? 

Even though I don't have any major tasks these days, my days are full, and yet I'm not getting much done! Well, that's a lie -- I spent all morning at the computer and managed to get things done that I haven't done in a while. Invoices, research for projects, a bit of work on the presentations, sending emails, ordering things, etc. And then the afternoon was a wash as I had to take a walk, read a bit, go shopping with the car (2 hours!), and work on that extra job (about 90 minutes left). And before you know it, the entire day was gone. How does that happen? I never even got to the sewing machine!

But I knew that's how it would go in the "quiet" times. I have things to do, and I always will; I just hope things don't get too crazy busy. 

I think I mentioned that another of my toenails was going to go, and it did the other day. This one was stuck under the nailbed, so I had to tape it down, as I couldn't pull it out. But the other night it popped off. I've no idea why that one went - there was no bruising, no signs of trauma at all, and it was on the left foot. But all is good. See -- you may not want to read that, but I may want to go back to my blog one day to find out what happened to my toes and how many!

When I wrote that about the missing stencil brush the other day, I felt just like my Mom! She would write everything down in her diaries, and when there was a discussion or a dispute, she would pull them out and set everyone straight! Oh dear! I should ask her about the diaries. I don't think she writes in them any longer. But I wonder where they are? I bet there are a few scathing stories in them! 

Here's another excellent reason to keep a towel on your ironing surface! I accidentally tipped the iron over yesterday, and water spilled out. Instead of making a huge stain on the ironing board cover, only the towel got wet! At some point, I need to make the towel more permanent, but it hasn't happened yet, and it's definitely NOT a priority. 

Spilled water on the towel

Speaking of priorities, I came across this on IG yesterday and thought it was really fitting for me and many of my friends. 

Is this a quilter or what? 

Whether this is actually true or not, I'm sticking to it! I can't imagine sewing on only one project at a time. What if today, I don't feel like doing whatever is next, but I feel like doing something else? There is no danger of not finding something that matches my energy level on any given day!

For those who know me in person, I typically wear a T-shirt with a bicycle logo on the front. I've noticed that some of these shirts are in need of retirement, as I would love to create a T-shirt quilt from them, and I need to keep them somewhat intact. There's no need to buy new clothes since I have plenty in my closet that aren't getting worn. I'll slowly wean myself off the bicycle T-shirts, and I suspect there are several that aren't in the rotation, so I need to get organized to make that happen. One can't go from all bicycles to no bicycles overnight! 

I found this one, which is hilarious because it isn't this what we think we can do? 

Now, the idea is that my gym, Lifetime, offers everything you could want! But if you don't know that, well, I could be swamped for the rest of my life, which I will be! 

I notice in some areas that the leaves are changing right down to the inside, which is beautiful, but also a sign that fall is fast approaching. OK - I think it's already here, but you know what I mean. Although yesterday was so beautiful, I should have worn shorts while shopping. 

The leaves are changing deep in the forest

And Miss Lexi is getting used to her bed and is quite happy to sleep overnight or during the day in there. Hmm - I wonder if she will share when we have company? 

MOM - I love my bed!

OH -- I have so many pictures to share and keep shifting them to the next day. Here are the things from my Mom that I sorted the other day. 

I laid it all out on the ironing surface to get a visual of it all. This is where I found that garden catalogue. My Mom was really into liquid embroidery for many years. OK -- what hobby was she NOT into? But it was good for her as she got out with a group of friends - my poor dad was the chauffeur, and we did NOT live close. Years later, she got into card making, and he was the chauffeur again. Mom didn't just become a casual in these crafts; she was hardcore, just like me and my quilting friends. Remember the brands? Artex and Liqui-Chem or something like that!

The quilt blocks were done with liquid embroidery

I found this panel of quilt blocks featuring a nursery rhyme-type goose. Shoot, I should have taken a close-up! I don't know how many of these blocks there are, but there are lots, and all of them are hand-painted. 

Nursery-rhyme goose blocks

There are numerous quilt blocks featuring fairies. Again -- all hand-painted and all done! 

Fairy blocks

I found this pillow panel. 

Pillow panel

As well as a ton of these blocks. There is a paper template, two painted blocks, and a large stack of unpainted blocks. I had to chuckle because I made a quilt using these blocks, which I painted blue. I made a quilt from them and used it. It started to disintegrate, so I took it apart and planned to use only the good blocks to make a small quilt. If only I had paint, I could paint new ones! 

Floral blocks

Mom wanted to know if I could use the embroidery machine on them, which is a good idea. Could I digitize something and exactly place it over the lines? 

Then I found another pile of flowers (I'm guessing they used the colored pictures in the catalogue), and these are all done. Apparently, they met once a month to paint a block. That's a LOT of meetings! 

Painted flowers

I also found a pile of newsprint patterns with mom's handwriting on them, with the paint numbers and the picture. These are great options for anyone looking for ephemera for journaling. I kept a few, but the rest will go in the recycling if no one wants them. 

Paper patterns on newsprint

There were a half dozen partially completed blocks, which are currently in a pile. 

When I questioned Mom the other day about these, she gave me the story. My question to her was, did she paint all these, or did she get them at a garage sale? No, she insists she painted them all, and I believe her. She said, "Oh, your aunt has all those blocks." I said, " NO - I have all the blocks." She never made mention of them to me at all, because she knows she wasn't supposed to have them! I agreed to bring out the flower blocks so she can pick twelve, and then I can make a quilt for her. She will never use the quilt, but it's the least I can do since I'll make quilts anyway, and they can be donated. She might as well have the satisfaction of picking the blocks in one of them. 

So I get to bundle those off with me next week. The rest of the stuff - she doesn't get! And it's in my pile of community project stuff to finish off. I also found a ton of blank fabric squares, and I'm pretty sure these are polyester/cotton blend. They would be suitable for making machine embroidery samples - they are all white, which isn't my favorite color, but I kept them. 

And I'm hoping that will be the last of all that stuff. We no longer visit the house, and I'm fairly certain we have taken everything of value. I'm sure there is much more we could find, but seriously? I'm done!

It is refreshing to have a conversation with Mom about her stuff, and she did not demand to have it all back. Well, she had already reviewed all this, and it didn't stay at her house - it did go to my aunt's, so I give her credit for that. Now, if we can only get rid of a bunch of scrapbooking stamps! There is an entire closet filled with them, and I'll see if I can sell some more when I'm out there next week! I need to talk to my aunt about it and find out exactly what happened! 

I see it's time for me to get my butt in gear to get to spin class. And now to quickly edit what I wrote. 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!

Building a T-shirt

 I'm here at the retreat! We're back at Retreat at the Farm in Shelbourne. I arrived at 7 PM, and it's good to be back even if I have to work most of the week. Hey -- I have presentations to prep and samples to sew, but I can have more fun doing that while visiting with friends than being at home. 

I brought most things I need, and whatever I'm missing, then we'll make it up! There is one thing that I have a big issue with my phone charger. I have two, but again, I've misplaced the spare one. Now, how the heck can I do that? So I threw the main one in my bag, only to discover this morning that it was the charger for my headphones. Are you kidding me? 

However, I brought my data cable for connecting the phone to the computer, and with the block from the headphone charger, I'm in business. OK -- so this is ridiculous, and when I'm back home, I'm finding that spare charger, and it's going in my office backpack, and it will stay there. I'm also labeling the darn thing. It's a pain with all these chargers, and those ends look so similar, but they are not! 

However, I brought enough stuff to make it work! 

Yesterday was a lot of fun! Dealer training is always an interesting experience, and there are a lot of "COVID" dealers. These people came on board during COVID and have done exceedingly well in getting their businesses off the ground. That is super exciting to see. 

So we went through all the NEW products that are coming. Sorry --- not going to talk about it in more detail, but LOTS of cool new things and some of the exciting things we currently have and that you love are being brought to lower price points, which is VERY exciting. 

And then there is some BRAND new stuff and one of them we chatted about it Ditto. I love it but haven't had time to play with it. In case you don't know what it is -- it's the garment projection system. I won't have time to do much this month as my laptop, and I will have developed quite a relationship by the end of this month. I only use my laptop when I'm away, which should tell you about my schedule. The girls are NOT going to be happy. 

Neither will my steps. Oh boy -- I didn't make my steps yesterday. I still managed about 8 KM, but well below my goal of 12.5 KM or 13 if you go by my current virtual challenge. I'll try to make up some of that today, but it will be hard as I have two presentations to prepare and give. And I have to make a trip to the grocery store. 

However, one of the presentations is almost finished, and the second is well underway. I won't need much more time to make it happen. 

I'll be able to get out bright and early this morning to get in the first walk, so that'll be good. Two months make a big difference in the lightness in the morning, although that will change this coming weekend. 

Back to the dealer meeting. It was great, and hopefully, after they see the samples, the dealers will want us to come to their stores for events! Yep --- it's going to be a fun year. Oh shoot -- I'll have to share a photo of one of our projects. I'll add that to the blog tomorrow, as I'm not downloading another picture this morning. 

This was my car when I left the house. At the last minute, things just randomly got shoved in there. I had stuff for the dealer meeting, so that bag is gone. I have some things to give to others here at the retreat, so I'll have a lot less stuff on the way back and pack a little more carefully! 

Packed for retreat

Even the front seat got filled with stuff. OH -- see that bright turquoise color? That's part of the project that I'll share tomorrow. 

The front seat is also full

Yep -- I was full up. I need a NEW BIGGER car! I wasn't all that happy with all that stuff because I didn't really have a clear view for shoulder checking, so I had to be careful. 

Packed to the top!

When I walked into the sewing room this morning, it was BRIGHT. There's a full moon outside, and it is beautiful. 

The full moon

However, I've no idea what happened to my sewing table. It looks like a hurricane blew threw. I'm not usually that messy ever! But that happens when you randomly pack and then randomly unload the car late at night. I've got a few things to serge, so I'm starting with that. Then I'll put the serger away and dig the sewing machine out of the car. 

My sewing table - a MESS

So what am I serging? I'm finishing off my T-shirt. It was mostly done, but I needed to hem the sleeves and add the band to the top. I added the band last night, and I'll finish the sleeve hems this morning. 

My new T-shirt

I've made T-shirts before, but I'm still learning some of the ins and outs of the serger. I confess that I've had a serger for many years but never a cover stitch, which is new to me. This PFAFF admire air 7000 has a cover stitch, and it's a BREEZE to convert from cover stitch to overlock. And it's a breeze to thread with air threading on all three loopers. 

Plus, I've added the cover stitch hemmer attachment into the mix. But my cover stitch hem on the bottom looks pretty decent. Can you tell that's my first attempt? I know!!!!  OK -- I confess that the hem could be better where I went over the seams (more practice needed), but I learned a ton putting that on. 

The cover stitch hem

Even the neckband got a coverstitch treatment. I see that some commercial t-shirts have a band that covers the back neck seam. I've always wondered why, but it's to cover up the messy start and stop!!! Who knew? Now that's my guess, but it sounds good to me. My back neck seam is a bit messy. 

The cover stitch neckband

You can learn so much by taking things apart -- well, most times, you just need to look at the garments to see how they were constructed. You don't even need to take them apart. 

So it was a great day, and we're still missing one person, who will arrive on Wednesday. It was just a crazy week, but it couldn't be changed. 

On that note, I'm out of here. I need to get out for that morning walk to clear my head, go to the grocery store, and finish the presentations. Then I can sew. I won't get much sewing done today. But I'm OK with that. I knew that was going to happen. Today is probably the only "tough" day, and after that, the presentation prep is much easier or already complete. 

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!!!

Cutting it close!

What an AMAZING day yesterday! Some great discussions on tools that quilters buy but never seem to use to their fullest extent! Things like digital cutters, EQ8, and embroidery software! We have enough interest to form clubs for all of them, and I want these groups to be manageable, or we lose the ability for everyone to chat. So we'll see how many people sign up! 

I now have a bit of paperwork to prep for each of them, and I have this afternoon and tomorrow to do so.

The minute that we were done, I was out the door as I had 20 points (I said 10 yesterday, but it was really 20) that I needed to close off the geocaching goal for this session. The clock reset last night, and I made it. 

I got 500+ points! 

It was a much nicer day than the previous day. Somewhere in that parking lot is a geocache! I was going for easy ones. It was a perfect day of the week to get them in an industrial-type parking lot. Not such a good idea to hit a mall on Sunday afternoon. 

A geocache in this parking lot

Then I walked to the second location and had to laugh when I arrived. You are supposed to sign the log book when you find the cache, which comes in ALL sizes and shapes. So the second cache was here. Was one supposed to sign the BIG, very obvious book? No, but I thought it funny that someone left a notebook right by the cache. Intentional or accident? 

Is that the logbook? 

Then I made a quick stop at Micheal's (more on that another day) and spotted this giant ball of yarn. It's HUGE. And huge thick chenille-type yarn seems to be very popular. So you can make an afghan in a day? 

A big ball of yarn!

Two long phone calls, and on those two calls, my phone did not cut out once! I will save money if I pay the penalty and get a new phone, but the current offerings could be more spectacular. It doesn't make sense to get the same phone, and the next one from what I have (S21) is the S22, and all they did more or less is slightly change the size. Why is that? That's the most ridiculous thing EVER! Then your cases don't fit. A MONEY GRAB if ever I saw! I don't want a flip or folding phone, and I don't want a huge note. The only option would be to change the brand. Hmmm!! A bit more research needs to happen. 

Then it was off to the long arm. Another smaller quilt and so much fun to do. OK -- it's not like I don't like the large ones, but nice to change it up. The one for today is small, so I'll load that during Monday's sewing and quilt it when we're done.

Customer quilt - DONE

I dealt with the papers from my screen print design yesterday, and I cut them up into 8 1/2" by 11 and used them to take notes during the discussions. I hate to see things go to waste! 

I spotted this in one of the tubs. MORE designs that I prepped for screen printing, and this was one of my favorites - a  smattering of maple leaves. 

Another design for screen printing

There were three different screens for this one, and I layered them -- just like when the fabric companies print their fabric. Did you know that with conventional methods, you can go as high as 18 screens (each screen is one color)? But with digital printing, there are no screens and no color limit. That's why digital printing is more realistic than traditional screen printing. 

My three designs

Anyway -- the inspiration for this design came from the forest floor in the fall. I printed two different colorways for it. One was on tan fabric with gold and burgundy. Not sure what the third color was. And the second colorway was black with grey and two other colors. I still have the black one, but I didn't want to dig through the fabric pile last night to get it. I will try to locate it today. The original colorway was made into a quilt that got sold. I sure wish I could locate the pictures for that. I might try that because I thought it was a pretty unique quilt. 

I cut four T-shirts in those laundry baskets and stowed them away with other cycling T-shirts to make a memory quilt. 

The start of a T-shirt quilt

I dug out a couple of other things to deal with today, and they are sitting on the cutting table, but I forgot to take pictures last night, so you'll see them tomorrow. A little bit at a time! While it would likely take only a few minutes to empty the bag and put everything away, this is fun. It's like my own advent calendar! Even opening those rolls of paper in the bins is kind of fun. It's bringing back loads of memories. I'm taking pictures and then dealing with the pieces! 

I think there are many rolls of BRAND new paper in those tubs, so I'll have to find a home for those as I haven't touched them in how many years? Do I really need a massive roll of tracing paper? I might look through the supplies and take them to the textile studio to see if any students want them. And there are at least three rolls of brown wrapping paper. Do I need all that? I don't think so. 

I haven't been posting what's in my advent calendars. I just opened two of them this morning. It's been a busy week, and it hasn't been on my radar. This is going to be another busy week. Not stupid busy, just busy. Lots of stuff to prep, which means writing, but not deadline writing, so that's good. And we're going to have a big show and tell of our advent calendars this morning, so I can't wait. 

However, the adventure advent calendar that I bought? It's HARD!! After looking at all three clues to solve Day One, I'm still on Day Two. I've already looked at the first clue for Day Two. OK -- so that part was OK, but now what? This is the clue --- how do I get three numbers from this? 

The clues for Day Two

I'm going to take it downstairs to think in peace and quiet and see what happens. But at this rate, I'll finish it by Christmas next year!

Well, I'm off to spin class. Last Monday, there was an issue with the sound system, but we all love Joseph so much that no one left. Although I did the same distance I normally do, I have to admit that music is a huge motivator. I wasn't there on Wednesday, but I bet it's fixed now. Yikes --- you could hear every heavy breath and cough! 

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Making T-shirts

 

During Quilt Canada, I stumbled across some demos from The Sewing Room in Calgary. I really liked the teachers and what they were demoing and just their entire setup. I found out that they had a T-shirt class in August and well, I want to learn how to use my serger better. So I enrolled. I believe we are 15 in the class - that's crazy!!! And they have a perfect set-up for multiple cameras. Very well done, but then they have a techie person who works for them. 

The first day we chatted about sizing and drafting the pattern, which of course, I didn't do until yesterday! No, wait -- I did all the sizing stuff, and at least my fabric was washed. I just had not drafted out the pattern.

I was able to draft out the pattern - I mean -- there are three pieces - a front, a back, and a sleeve. I didn't get too scientific about the sizing. According to the calculation, I'm three different sizes - one for the top, one for the waist, and one for the hips - so I fudged that together to get my size. 

Then I laid out my fabric, but not before I had to remove EVERYTHING from the cutting table. It's all on the floor. As a matter of fact, the studio looks like a tornado went through. 

A huge mess

Stuff on the floor - but it's only temporary

I needed to find some clear elastic or twill tape. So boxes of supplies got pulled from shelves and are still sitting on the floor. 

Looking for clear elastic

And twill tape

I didn't find clear elastic, although I'm sure I have some. I did find a couple of yards of white narrow twill tape. Who knew that I had that? I might need a couple of extra containers to properly put all this stuff away. I think it all needs to be resorted and perhaps expand a box or two. 

I mentioned that I bought a striped fabric. Do you know how much "fun" it is to work with a striped fabric? Oh darn -- the pattern weights were upstairs, and then I finally got myself organized, and yes - I cut the whole thing out with the rotary cutter. 

Cutting the T-shirt

It was a total hands-on sewing class. This is how it looks -- your teacher on the computer in Calgary, and I'm sitting in front of the serger, in Ontario. The format works just fine. Although everyone was muted - I'm not sure why. The teacher didn't mute us - everyone muted themselves. Then they would ask questions in the chatbox. I asked in person -- good grief -- we don't need to be silent about the entire process. 

Following the instructions while serging

And people -- we have to ask questions! I asked questions about stuff that I didn't know. That's why I signed up for the class. 

I made out not bad. I learned how to properly rip out serged seams, and yes - I screwed up the neckband and had to rip part of it out. But it was super easy! 

And then this happened. I knew that the upper looper thread was getting low but totally forgot to keep an eye on it. I had to go back and redo a wee bit of the neckband  - yet again!

The upper looper thread ran out

I had a couple of ends of spools of serger thread, and being too cheap to throw them out, I ended another spool. This time, I caught the thread and tied it off to the new spool. 

Another spool of serger thread bites the dust

Things were going well until I went to put the sleeves in. The first one went in like a charm. When I went to pin the second one, I realized that I had cut TWO left sleeves. Normally I could cut a pair of sleeves, but I cut them one at a time and forgot to flip the pattern for the second one. 

Two left sleeves

This fabric is super wide - well, 54" or something like that, and I cut the front, the back, and the two sleeves from that width. This is why I cut the sleeves one at a time. 

Trying to cut the second sleeve

And here's my new T-shirt. Next week, we'll be doing the hemming, so the neck still needs some stitching, as do the sleeves and the bottom. I think I'll cut the bottom off. I didn't measure it against some of my other T-shirts, and this is a bit too long. But that's what this T-shirt was all about - checking to see if the pattern worked. 

The T-shirt FITS

The back of the T-shirt

I LOVE it. It actually fits pretty well, and I would wear this in public. But since I'm making the T-shirt, I can make changes. So for the next one, and there will be a next one - I'll make the sleeves a little longer, a narrow neckband, slightly longer shoulders, and definitely shorter in length. I may consider making it slightly larger in the bust area. I'll try it on later and have a critical look in the mirror. But I was super excited!!! And the material I bought is so soft - I got it on sale at Fabricland. I LOVE it. I wonder what other fabric might work? 

It's not like I need a T-shirt - I sure don't. But perhaps it's time to retire some of my current T-shirts and make a couple of "grown-up" shirts without a bike on them. Just because!

I didn't get out for a walk until after dinner. And, of course, I had to find another geocache. Can you see it in the tree? 

The geocache in the tree

How about now? 

Ah - there's the geocache

What I love about this hobby is that you can do it solo or with others. You can do it anywhere; it doesn't require special equipment - just your phone and a pen clipped to the collar of your T-shirt. Simple stuff and not expensive. Low key, and that suits me just fine. 

I almost died in the spin class. I'm taking my own pace, and I need to learn to eat better. I ate a helping of almonds before class when I should have remembered that I can't eat the entire helping at once. It didn't sit well, but I have to relearn all those habits! Half before and half after! There were only 14 of us in the class. There was room for more - are people away on vacation? Afraid to go to the gym? I say - get on with life and take precautions!

I have another quilt loaded for later today. I have a couple of road trips to make and debating if today is the day. I need batting as I've pretty much completely run out, so I may make that road trip today. Plus, I need to drop some work off for my MIL before she goes stir crazy. Good grief - she's in her mid-80s but still needs to sew something every day!!! That's actually good news - she is binding my community project quilts, and I hope that I can be like her when I'm that age. 

So what exciting thing will you do today??? I have enough of that striped fabric left that I can probably make TWO more T-shirts. One for me and one for M. We can be matching - mother/daughter!!! How cute would that be? I say one for M because she could get away with a cropped shirt, while I would not. 

And I have to say that it was super fun to do something totally different - no quilts, no sewing quilts!

Anyway --  I'm off!

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!