CONFINEMENT!!!!

WHAT A DAY!!!!!!!    I have to admit I am very lucky or my brain is working a mile a minute in the subconscious and doesn't communicate to me!!!!   Especially when it comes to designing quilts.

Yesterday, Laury was here to use the long arm. She started at 8. Now even though she took to the machine immediately - she has a LOT of experience with machine quilting so that helped a LOT, I never like to leave the people who rent the machine alone. It isn't fair to them and I like to keep an eye on them - just in case.

She was here a  LONG time and I was busy sewing and sewing and sewing and sewing. Even after she left at 6 PM - I kept sewing and sewing and sewing and sewing. I GOT SO MUCH DONE.

Now for the bad news - I can't show you what I was working on!!!!!   Yes - the first few days of the month are gone - that feeling of "I have NOTHING due this month". OH OH - let's look at the schedule - yep there are THREE projects with deadlines this month. All fun and if they don't get done - it is no big deal, but from a personal accomplishment status - it is IMPORTANT to me that they get done.

Cutting and sewing, making blocks - then cutting and more sewing and VOILA - 544 BLOCKS. I know - sounds crazy!!!!!!    But the quilt will be really cute. I just wasn't sure how many blocks I needed or how big the quilt will be. I just sewed up the fabric that was designated for this project and I can't get any more. Well after some fancy math with the calculator this morning (and confirmed on EQ7), can you guess how many blocks I need??????   543!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!     How is that for COINCIDENCE!!!!!!!!! Of course - I was jumping up and down when I realized that YES after all that sewing - that it will work and the finished size of the quilt (without borders) is 62 by 70 or something like that. PERFECT PERFECT PERFECT

And you know what - I had a LOT of fun just sewing these mindless blocks. And THANKS to Laury for keeping me CONFINED to the basement.

This is Laury's GORGEOUS CARPET BAG that she made from selvedges. 

I have TWO of these bags that I started YEARS ago and NOT done. I think I am going to have to designate next year as the "finish the bag year".

BUT - this year - I am focused on the BORDERS, BACKINGS and BINDINGS and I am making GREAT progress. 

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you are working on the current Border Creek Mystery and have NOT seen the finished product - then GO NOT FURTHER. 

My border, binding and backing project yesterday was the lap size of the current Border Creek Mystery. It is DONE DONE DONE!!!!!!!

Border Creek Mystery

Border, backing and binding - DONE DONE DONE

Now only those who are working on Border Creek may take a double take on this picture. I sewed the two halves together the OPPOSITE way outlined in the pattern. Why???   I laid it on the floor both ways and decided that I liked this way better.

Who would have thought that there would be ORANGE DOG fabric. Thanks Liz who picked this up at their recent quilt show in Etobicoke. 

While out the other day - I managed to find a few fabrics I did not have - mostly I Spy. I have to STOP buying that stuff or start making quilts with it. It is really out of control!!!!!!

As some of you may know - quilting is a DANGEROUS activity. And if you are looking at the picture - NO I did not go insane and try to slit my wrists!!!!!    Quilting is a VERY VERY repetitive activity and from time to time - we get those nasty repetitive injuries. I had done some major major cutting a couple of weeks ago and the next day, I could barely move my wrist. No big deal - it is just a repetitive strain. Since I was in the middle of a major project, I asked the physio people what I could do about it. Other than STOP doing the activity - TAPE IT. I have started to tape my wrist whenever I have some major cutting to do and it doesn't hurt when I cut, nor does it hurt the next day. PERFECT!!!!!!  

Taped wrist - mine!!!!

Now that I have to tape my wrists before I cut - does that mean quilting is an athletic activity?????   Anyway - when I was at SportsChek for cleats for M - look what I found.....................

That is the stuff that you put on your skin BEFORE the tape so that you don't rip your skin off.  I still have some MEDICAL colour that I am using - then I will use the orange!!!!!!

I know it is sad when I have to resort to this extreme, but hey - I could be dead tomorrow and I am NOT going to let a small pain stop me from doing anything!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And LOOK what else I got done yesterday. I finished sewing the diamonds together from the Storm at Sea. OK - so I am not making a lot of progress on the 12 for (20)12, but I am MAKING PROGRESS and that is what it is all about.  Now the pieces need to be assembled in blocks of FOUR and then the blocks together.

Last of the diamonds for Storm at Sea and ONE piece left over

Let's just say that I am THINKING very seriously about what commitments I will take on next year. I am getting a ton of sewing done and making a dent (however small) in the UFO stack, but imagine if I had started a bunch of new stuff - this old stuff would still be sitting there. And technically when I dig out some of these old things - there are now NEW. I still want to support what the guilds are doing, but there is going to be a limit. And I am a softy so even if the commitments get reduced by 50 percent - that will be HUGE from a time commitment stand point.

On that note - I had better get some paper work done this morning. There is NOTHING like paperwork to put a cramp in your style. ICK ICK ICK



Have a great day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Ciao!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!