The great OUTDOORS!!!!!

LifeTime Athletic - what an amazing gym, although it is throwing my sewing schedule WAY OUT OF WHACK. I have abandoned the personal training - too expensive and now taking Team Fitness with Maria. Ah Maria - what can I say about her. She is brutal, she is evil, she is AMAZING. She is an older lady - well about my age?????   But fit??????   Well - she would and could run circles around me. She is so high energy and just brightens up the class.

I feel badly for the Team Weight Loss - their instructor is pretty tame. She barely speaks, she does NOT motivate and I think most of the participants are just hanging in because they have paid for the classes.

But last night was the BEST night at the gym. Normally I do NOT go to the gym at night and after last night I know why!!!!!!    Now it was a HOT HOT HOT day and I think the pool area was PACKED, but at eight o'clock the pool area was CLOSED to allow an OUTDOOR YOGA class. Wow - it was so much fun.

When I arrived on deck - there were a LOT of people there. Note to self - on these specialty events - get there earlier!!!   But there was lots of room so no worries, although I wondered how I would hear them. Well there was live music and the two instructors had microphones. We got a glow stick and we were set.

The heat had lessened considerably by then and we got to watch the sun set while we did the class. It was AMAZING. I felt like I had been doing yoga for years. It wasn't that difficult of a class, but it was long. At the end they encouraged people to jump in the pool and while I had my bathing suit under my shorts, I declined. It wasn't that warm by then and I am not a water person. I wish I had taken my camera with me - it was pretty cool. I hope they do more!

But even though the pool had long closed, the gym is a HOPPING place at that time of night. They could not keep up with towels and members (not all of them) are PIGS. Why do people need THREE towels to have a shower????   Do they use THREE towels at home???  I doubt it. And for the woman who shaved her DARK DARK DARK  hair (not evening going there as to where it came from) in the shower and left the hair and two razors in the shower - that was just GROSS GROSS GROSS. I mean really - just pick it up and put it in the garbage. I really felt for those girls who work in the locker room. They were running and probably do that every night.

I think I will stick with mornings at the gym - it is MUCH QUIETER.


Before I went to the yoga class - I TESTED myself. I went to Chapters. I know if Joyce is reading this - she will be asking herself - "Why did you go?????"    Well the magazines come in on Tuesday and Friday and I hadn't been there this week. I scoured the shelf for what was new - then picked up four to browse through. Hmmmmm - wasn't sure if I had a couple of them so took a picture to remind myself to look at them at home - can't be buying duplicates at the price of them these days. And I found an absolutely GORGEOUS block of the month - I'll show you in a minute. Bottom line - I DID NOT buy anything. ACK ACK ACK!!!!!   I need more days like that, but there is one that I will go back and buy.

The block of the month???   Well Linda - I would advise you to NOT look at the link. You'll know why when you see the quilt..


Block of the Month



I mean is that not the cutest or what???????   I really really really want to do this.


Oh yes - and that going to the gym thing also messes up my blogging time. I will just have to regig my schedule so I can fit everything in again.

Now here is another issue that I have. We make lists, we have things that we want to do, things that we have to do. But have you noticed how much time is taken up with USELESS (but necessary) things. Following up on phone calls, searching for information and then not having to use the information. That is the BIGGEST time waster issue I have and will try to stop doing that kind of thing.

Tuesday I spent at The Quilting Bee. I took a class on the HandiQuilter. No I do not have a HandiQuilter, but I wanted to pick Kelly's brain (she is an amazing quilter) and I wanted to try another machine. OH MY GOD - compared to my machine - the HandiQuilter weighs NOTHING. Well that is not true - apparently it is heavier than my machine. OK - now I have to call my dealer to see what we can do about lightening the load. While my machine is much better than it used to be, I still think something can be done to make it better. See - stuff like that. What a consumer of time this effort is going to be. But if my machine works like the HandiQuilter it will be worth it, but at what price?????

Examples of a sashing - quilted by Kelly

Another great sashing idea - again quilted by Kelly

More great ideas - again quilted by Kelly

Part of the problem is to find ideas so I bit the bullet and purchased these books, plus she gave me a couple of web sites that she uses for inspiration.

Quilting idea books

I am working on this celtic quilt and need inspiration. all the stitch in the ditch is done - yeah and around the applique is done - yeah!!!   Had to take it off the machine yesterday as Joyce came and quilted one of her quilts. I know - I should have been done, but I just couldn't get myself motivated to get it done.

Now I have the background quilting to do. Back on the machine tomorrow.

Current customer project

Now I learn all kinds of things from quilters and not necessarily about quilting - for the knitters among us - have a look at this................

Linda's sock - who knew that those skeins of yarn actually work out this way!!!!!

Here is the ball of yarn. The only bad news - the other sock - that skein had been wound in the OPPOSITE direction so the pattern is a bit different. See - little things like that - HUGE time wasters. Because yes - she is going to rip it out. 

Do you know what this is??????   This is Karen's sock

Those bars are needle covers to prevent your stitches from falling off the needles. I love them. 

And at our Christmas Club we had the show n tell for the current projects, but we had other show n tell as well.

Tony's quilt from the Cockadoodle mystery. This is a great pattern especially if you have a fabric you don't want to cut up. Call Cockadoodle to get the pattern

Linda's mystery quilt

Mary is into making dolls - isn't she cute!!!!

And LOTS of beads. I love it. 

And this is Elliott!!!!   He is so adorable - when babies are this cute and happy - you want to take them home!!!!!

I am participating in a couple (OK - THREE tinners - exchanges projects). And I am HAPPY, no ECSTATIC    to report that my Halloween tinner from the guild has been recovered!!!!!    Yeah - I was worried that I wouldn't get it back - but it is going to come home with me next week. Yeah!!!!!    Thanks to Linda P for rescuing it.

Had to stop at Fabricland the other day because M needs to get fabric to sew more PJ pants. She needs to learn to sew - well really sew!!!!   I also found this great fabric which will be perfect for one of my tinners projects - the theme is Randy Rules the Roost and is all about roosters and chickens. What do you think?????

Found this GREAT fabric for the back of my quilt 

 One of my goals on Monday is come home with LESS than I go with. Some days there is a LOT of shuffling around - I take stuff in, other take stuff in - we shuffle it around and come home - sometimes with more than we took, sometimes with less.

Daphne had a big bag of fabric and I came home with TWO pieces.

How could I refuse a piece of ORANGE gingham

And this lovely VINTAGE remnant from Eaton's. How long ago did Eaton's stop selling fabric?????   This piece must be near an ANTIQUE - well not really, but it is old!!!!

Spent a bit of time the other night on the magazine issue. I am happy to report that I did THROW out ONE magazine of my own. This is HARD - I mean these are the FIRST magazines that I bought when I started to quilt.

However when I look through them - I realize that I do not really need a pattern to make a pinwheel quilt.
OK - slow and steady I will get through them.

And thanks to all who commented about the magazines. It sounds like we all share the same feelings for those things - some of us are just dealing with it better than others. It sounds like getting started is the worst - then it becomes easier. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!!!!


Well - I see it is time to go - I have quilts to quilt, quilt tops to sew, articles to write, post cards to make, blocks to finish - not sure what I will choose first.


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



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