Let's sleep on it

You've heard the expression before - sleep on it. Well, that seems to be working like a charm for me. 

I have a quilt top that's on my list to get completed this year. Can I find the darn quilt top? Nope - I have the pattern and the container with all the extra fabric, but no quilt top. I know I had the top after everything got moved back in, but where did I put it? I searched and searched and nothing. 

Then yesterday morning, I woke up and knew exactly where the quilt top was. I ran downstairs and VOILA - there was the quilt top right where my brain told me it would be!!!  It was in the storage room on top of a box of projects. I NEVER even looked in this room as it isn't a place where I would normally look. Now I have to remember that I have projects stored in that room!! I had a good laugh over it. 

The quilt top is hiding on top of the plastic boxes

This morning I woke up to remember a quilt that I want to take to my class with me. I'm loving this system. I wish I could be very specific and consistent about what I remember when I wake up! Just goes to show that our brains are in fact working when our bodies are asleep.

While I was supposed to be quilting a quilt yesterday, I just couldn't wrap my head around it so I did some tidying and I've got loads to share with you tomorrow. I'm getting excited with the way the new space is arranged and I'm trying to keep ALL projects/fabrics, etc out of the main sewing area. And it has to be neat and tidy behind those closed doors. So far, so good.

But back to the Sit n Sew day on Thursday. When I was looking for that quilt top, I came across a couple of projects and decided they would be good to work on even though they were not on my radar screen. This quilt top was a Marti Michell one that I taught many years ago. It's quite bright. Well - it just needed backing and binding. There was fabric with the quilt top.

A quilt top that needs backing and binding

You can't tell from this picture, but there's a LOT of piecing in this backing. Yes - you can see the green pieces I had to add, but not the rest. The bottom line is that the backing is now done.

The backing for the quilt top

 This is all of that crazy fabric that I had left. I had a bright orange set out for the binding, but I think it needs green instead. I searched in my stash and have NOTHING that works for this quilt for binding. That is now on my shopping list. I like having a shopping list - it helps to keep me in check if I hit a quilt store.

Scraps left from piecing the backing

I had also pulled a scrap quilt that needed backing and binding. I found the perfect fabric in my fabric bolt stash and made the backing. The binding will be made from the leftovers once the quilt is trimmed. That eliminated one more bolt of fabric, and the small leftover piece got moved to the folded backings section. I'm in LOVE with my new system and I LOVE the fact that ALL LIKE things are getting put in the same place and I LOVE even more that I can easily access everything.

Another quilt top with the backing

I'm sure that all of you can relate about not accessing your stuff easily and it's frustrating. While I wasn't in that bad of shape before, it wasn't a pretty sight and often took a bit of effort to find things. Now, it's so easy to see all the options for quilt backing - it's scary. And since it's so easy - I might just get through the two tubs of quilts that need backings!

Then it was off to do some more organizing. This time it was the Halloween fabric. Although I cut enough fabric from my Halloween bin to make eleven quilts (several years ago in a fun class), the laundry basket was heaped again. Now how did that happen??? I am NOT ALLOWED to buy more Halloween fabric EVER. I already have three or four quilts of my own and all this fabric???  Am I crazy????

A tub filled with Halloween fabric

I found pre-cuts, panels, kits and lots and lots of yardage. Sorry - none of it is up for sale at this time. I'm just sorting.

Kits, pre-cuts and a whole lot more

While I was hunting, I also came across a pizza box with two small butterfly projects in it. Hmm - I could easily finish those - they both needed the borders put on. This first one is a circular project, but you can make it square if you want. The circular part was already done and the outer border was pieced. It just needed to be attached to the butterfly. Seriously???  What happened that I did not finish this???

The center of the project and the border

A few minutes later and the border was attached to the butterfly.

The top is now done

The pattern was in the box as well as two hunks of fabric. From one, I took what I needed for the backing and I cut the binding from the other. The excess fabric is now filed in the appropriate basket in the stash room and the project with the pattern, binding, and backing are in the "to be quilted" pile.

A project ready for quilting

That makes THREE projects that got moved to the "to be quilted" pile. Yikes - I'd better get myself organized and get back to quilting.

But this is so exciting that these projects are getting completed. Honestly, if they never get quilted, I would be happy, but I'll get them quilted! The more that I do, the more that I want to do and the more that I tidy up and organize, the more I want to get it all done! I can't wait to see holes in my storage space, but I think that's not going to happen for a wee while.

Hmm - in searching through boxes of stuff, I found another tool for stuffing. So why aren't all the stuffing tools in one place??  They were in THREE different spots. That's totally insane. I must find a container to put them all in and then to remember where that gets stored. 

Another stuffing tool

After the ladies left on Sit n Sew day, I did get another quilt done for a customer. I just have to sew the binding on before it goes out the door.

Customer quilt - done

I remember someone telling me that the mess was going to get a whole lot worse before I got done and they were right!!  This is the corner of Studio B that I'm working on. There are some pieces of furniture in there that need to be placed, but there's also a lot of extra stuff in there. It actually looks quite different now - OK - not a huge amount of difference. But I'm working on it!

A corner of Studio B that needs to be tidied up

I started to work on the pre-cuts. Oh boy - I have a LOT of pre-cuts. More on that tomorrow. 

The work tables are being put to good use

What's funny (NOT!) is that just when I think I've got everything together, I find another basket or another bag filled with the same kind of thing. What the heck was I thinking when I bought all this stuff?? Totally out of control and such a waste. I don't mean waste in a bad sense, but seriously? How much time do I think I have to sew? And the worst part? Some of this had NEVER been unpacked from the original shopping bag. Now that's a serious problem!!! No more!!!

I thought I'd share a couple of pictures from the backyard - well the fish pond. I'm in love with my fish. In previous years, the darn little things were never interested in eating. Now you can't walk close to the pond without them swimming to the side to beg for food.

We also had loads of lilies in the past, but we cleaned a good part of them out in the spring. I've had the occasional bloom. Here's one of them and so pretty. That's NOT a good picture!

Lily pad flower in the pond

I have seven relatively large fish considering they were feeder fish that originally cost forty-nine cents. Not sure if these are the original fish or not. But the babies???  OMG -- we're experiencing a population explosion in the pond. There are LOADS of fry. Because most of them are still black, it's hard to appreciate how many there actually are, but you can see those that are changing color. Yikes - we're going to have to cull before winter. Anyone want goldfish?? And NO - you can't have my big ones.

Feeding frenzy

I'm off to teach a makeup class this morning and then a sewing day at The Hobby Horse. Then I need to get my butt back to the long arm. This quilt NEEDS to be in a box by Monday and even then, that's late for it to go, but it's a custom quilted one and just taking me longer than I planned. OK - not the quilting, the motivating myself to get it quilted is taking the time. But I think I'm good now - all the patterns are decided and I made decent progress once I got myself motivated yesterday. 

On that note, I'm out of here. 

Have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!