TAG - you are IT!!!!

It is AMAZING what one can accomplish when one is "chained" to their desk!   Helen Anne was over using the long arm yesterday and while I technically don't need to be here all day, I like to be here in the event something goes awry and then I am able to fix it and get them back on track. Helen Anne is pretty independent and managed to get THREE quilts done yesterday!!!   And me?????   Well my day started out like this..........................


I had borrowed a book from the library, then when I gone home I was certain that I had the book so I was trying to find it. Then FRUSTRATED because my books are EVERYWHERE.  Not necessarily everywhere, but LIKE subjects are NOT together. So if I want a book on applique - I have to search the entire collection in order to find something.

As usual - I started small.......................

Let's just pull the books off the smallest shelf

Oh crud - might as well do the other book case as well

And this is how it looks this morning - OK - not quite that bad - I did manage to get some of them back on the shelf. 

I also got some from the other main book shelf and incorporated them into these shelves and I did a bit of sorting on the big bookcase as well, but it looks the same.  I am tempted to get boxes from the LCBO - sort the magazines by title, put them in boxes and put all the books on the shelves instead of having some of them on the floor.

BUT I MUST start going through the magazines at a FASTER rate than I am.  I started going through The Quilter in January of 2013 and I still haven't gone through them all. I still have about a dozen more issues to go through.  I don't have a problem getting rid of them and not keeping anything, but I do WANT to read them before they go, otherwise what a waste!!!!!    So - I MUST make time in the day to make that happen.


I have to laugh because I can envision my day like this:

9:00 - 9:25 - read quilt magazines
9:26 - 9:59 - read quilt book
10:00 - 10:15 - cut Farmer's Wife blocks
10:16 - 10:30 - cut second Farmer's Wife blocks
10:31 - 11:00 - embroidery
etc....................


There are only so many hours in a day and well - I can't work on EVERY PROJECT every day!!!!!!!!

The other thing I need to do with my books is put them in an electronic database (sound familiar????)   Checked out the software that I currently have for books that I have read and I can use my phone as a scanner (but must buy the scanner first - $7 - I don't know if the software works with any other scanner) and I must UPGRADE my version of Book Collector.   I have a note into the support team right now waiting an answer. Oh yes - this organizing just NEVER STOPS!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I will likely do a fast sort on the remaining books and throw them back on the shelf. At least it is better than it was?  A bit anyway!!!!!


Well of course I got bored with dealing with the books, so I decided I could NOT put off prepping my homework any longer. I am teaching Farm Fresh and Garden Party (Both are by Buggy Barn) at the Hobby Horse.

Farm Fresh

Garden Party

I AM GOING TO MAKE A HUGE EFFORT to stay ahead of the class.  Oh GOD - if only that would happen I would be so happy.   I JUST HAVE TO MAKE THAT COMMITMENT to myself.

And that is what I spent the entire day doing yesterday and I LOVED IT!!!!!!!    But how much space does it take to do applique?????  


LOTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My stuff was spread out all over three tables -  Fabric was sitting on one, light box on another, cutting and ironing on another 

My work station

The patterns are HUGE and this makes it cumbersome to trace the designs

Some of the pieces ready to be trimmed down

I ended up with FIVE blocks that are prepped - now don't be getting too excited - they are PREPPED like above. That means, the individual pieces need to be cut out and then I will use the starch method to turn the edges. 

Work station looking a bit cleaner????

One box filled with prepped stuff ready for the next stage!!!!

And the Monday basket all ready to go  with applique

Last Monday I threw all the fabric, freezer paper and patterns into the laundry basket. It was just too overwhelming with limited table space.   So now - I just have to cut out the pieces and then I have my own small press mat - it will be perfect for Monday/Thursday sewing.

And look - the table looks not too bad now!!!!!!!!!!!

Just before Ruti's closed yesterday, I had to scoot over (yet again) to get some more background fabric for Garden Party. Picked up the greens that go in the bottom of each column.   Then I arrived home and OH CRUD - I think I left the booklet with the colour picture at the store??????   If I didn't, I am going to be irked because I can't find it in the house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then I got one more Farmer's Wife block cut

And another one - that leaves SIXTEEN!!!!!!   I can almost see the light at the end of the tunnel

Now I have a dilemna.  I am a pretty decent quilter. I can figure out yardages for pretty much anything - mostly in my head. BUT I have to figure out how much yarn I need for the sashing of those log cabin squares that I am knitting??????   How much yard do I need?????

Remember my squares

Well I bought 5 skeins of this for the sashing. Do you like the colour??????

Now here is my thought on it all:

There are 100 M on the variegated skeins
There are 200 M on the brown skeins


Each block is about the same "area" as three sashing pieces. For the entire afghan, I need 50 "sashings". Each skein of 100 M makes about the equivalent of FOUR sashings, so a skein of 200 M should make about 8 sashings. Therefore - 50 divided by 8 - I need FOUR more skeins of yarn??????   I would rather buy more and make the afghan bigger (which I think I will do since I believe I have MORE than what is required for the original one).

ACK - I need help on this or just throw money at it - buy four more skeins and make it as big as what I can get.  Here is a picture of what I am aiming for. If you want the pattern - check out this free download from Ravelry. Not sure if that link is the exact same pattern, but close enough.

What my log cabin should look like sort of - I used the SAME colour yarn throughout - not different colourways like above

I am happy to report that it is NOT just me that is getting things done these days. The last quilt that Helen Anne threw on the machine was a mystery quilt from the Lady's Circle Patchwork quilts.  Do you want to know when she started it?????    Take a guess - I haven't even been quilting that long.  


Yep - TWENTY YEARS!!!!!!


Awesome job Helen Anne. She (and her quilts) looked like a pro yesterday!!!!

Helen Anne with her twenty year old mystery quilt - and now it is quilted!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have got some quilting done myself - here are two quilts that just need to be trimmed and back to the cutomer

Customer quilt - DONE

Another customer quilt - DONE

On the subject of macrame - Susan brought up a GOOD point yesterday. She wants some plant hangers for her window but where does one buy macrame cord?????  

I have this HUGE spindle of cording - got it from M's high school - it was sitting in the automotive department. Anyway - it is huge and I was going to crochet a rug out of it. Won't that be fun on the hands!!!!!!!!   Have to wear a guard on my finger to prevent chaffing!!!!!

Huge spindle of cording

Hey Susan - thought you might be interested - not only did I have plant hangers...............  

See the plant hanger in the window - obviously I took this picture because the dog was watching outside while sitting on the bed - ON MY QUILT no less.   See that clock radio and that lamp????   YEP - still got em!!!!!    Matter of fact - just bought lamps last week in an effort to ditch those old ones. This picture was taken in early 80's. 

Yep - that dog liked to watch out the window, but there is another macrame hanger in the window. And YEP - still got that desk and that chair. 

Now if anyone laughs at the next picture - well - NO laughing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This picture is from an even earlier era - 1979 probably and LOOK - I even had MACRAME HANGERS for my speakers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yep - look at those speak hangers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OK - you can STOP laughing now!!!!!!!!   It isn't that funny!!!!!!!!!!!!



I do not seem to have any pictures of the hanger that I made with the big glass shelf. I remember our sterio sat on that thing. It was great for cleaning - nothing sat on the floor!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I remember that sweatshirt that I am wearing - my brother brought it back from the NorthWest Territories.



Today is the first day of the FitBit challenge at the gym.  I wanted my tea from Tim's but did NOT want to drive. So I got out my townie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   It was SO HAPPY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Townie all ready to go for a ride!!!!!!!!!!!!

Might as well snap a few photos along the way - OK - so I took a detour to go past the mall!!!!!!!!!!!!   

Some damage to the trees because of the ice storm

This tree just split in half

The pyramid structure is almost gone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Parked outside Tim's - that cup holder is amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And speaking of FitBit's - I walked the dogs yesterday morning and the only other time I went out was to Ruti's where I was able to park right in front. Despite the fact that I was doing applique all day - I still managed to do 35 flights of stairs and over 10,000 steps!!!!!!!!!!!!!     Just a hyper person I guess!!!!!!!!  


Oh yes - the reason I called this post - TAG.   Helen Anne and I were chatting about tagging photos - she is an avid photographer as well.   I decided I should do some more reading. According to Mike Hagen from the book "Thousands of Photos - Now What?", tagging photos is the LEAST liked job of photography.  He states that EACH photo should have between five to ten tags.   He also states that he can tag about 2,000 images per hour!!!!!!!!!!!    Hmmmmm - so that folder of rogue photos (10,000 rogue photos) would take the expert FIVE hours and I am the amateur. Oh CRUD!!!!!!!!!    I WILL BECOME AN EXPERT just to get this done.

I have  my Lightroom manual and the books from the library out and I am learning. I am going to learn to do that task efficiently even if it KILLS ME!!!!!!!!!!    The beauty of tagging everything is just staggering.  There is nothing like being able to see EXACTLY what you want when you want.  And I WANT THAT.   I also want that for my quilt book collection!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  

Watch out - I am on a tear today!!!!!!!!!!!   My goal - get another quilt quilted, 15,000 steps, do something with the books and maybe do some piecing????    Tag - you are IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Have an AWESOME DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1


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