It's just LOGIC!

Seriously?? What did I say the other day about my sewing projects? I said - there is NO applique or paper piecing. And then I spotted this. 

My clam shell APPLIQUE block

Yes, that is a block for the Green Tea and Sweet Beans by Jen Kingwell, which is supposed to be done (the center - no borders) by FRIDAY. I was going to start piecing it and realized that while the clam shells are glued to the block, they are NOT stitched in place. Sigh....................

So - let's get an audiobook going, dig out the thread, and guess what I'll be doing this afternoon. Shoot! I thought I was done, but alas, I was not. And there is a smidgen of applique on one other block. Today -- it MUST be done today!

However, I made good progress on the TWO Cabin in the Woods quilts. These were sew-alongs ($10 Quilt at The Hobby Horse) in 2005. WOW!!! This is the progress on one of them. 

Cabin in the Woods - Quilt number one!

There are still TWO pieced borders to go on top and then applique borders on all four sides. Two of those borders are partially completed for this quilt. This is the last you'll see of the quilt until after UFO. 

Here's the second quilt. I completed the applique (purple bear paws) last week, and I pieced the maple leaf blocks. And here's the status of the second quilt.  

Cabin in the Woods - Quilt number two

I used part of this for my applique class homework prep, so I'm double dipping on the projects, which works for me. I've more double dipping that I can do on the clam shells as well. I used felt and a hand blanket stitched with Perle cotton on the first quilt to finish the edges. 

Wool felt with hand blanket stitch

I used ultrasuede and a MACHINE blanket stitch with 40-weight machine embroidery thread to try something different for the second quilt. 

Ultra suede and a machine blanket stitch

For the brown border on the second one, there are some pieces already partially sewn that I can use. There is more than enough fabric there - I just need the time. 

The bits for the second brown border

But I've put this away temporarily (UFO is not until December 17) because there are THREE classes this weekend that I need to finish prepping for, and well -- I worked on one this morning and will work on the others for the remainder of this week. 

I need more design walls to hold everything! But there is a giant quilt almost sewn together (Barn Star Sampler), and once that is off, I'll have loads of room to work. 

I got the weirdest message on my PFAFF icon 2 this morning. What the heck does that mean? I've never seen it before, and nothing precipitated it - the thread didn't break, no needles broken, the bobbin had thread, etc. 

A weird message on the sewing machine

So, I waited a moment (about 5 seconds) to register what this was. I touched OK and continued to sew. Very strange!

I had walked over to Diane's the other day and picked up four more quilt tops! Those are added to the pile, and there are a "few" more to pick up! I must dig through more fabric baskets to see what I can find. There's no time this week as I've got some major sewing to accomplish. 

Community project quilts

Just before dinner, I opened the EXIT Game Advent Calendar. OH boy -- this looks complicated. So, I left it until DH joined me. Then he read the note, and we looked at the clues. The scene was intense as we peered into the box. At one point, we had the phone flashlight in action. We had to solve a code, and I was writing it down, and he said, "That's not spelling anything!" and was saying, more or less, that I was going down a rabbit hole. 

WAIT A MINUTE -- I had picked ONE incorrect color! And when I changed that color, the code was revealed. AHA! Now, who is smarter? 

Yep - we're like two little kids when we open that box. I have to say that I'm enjoying this one. Perhaps it's working in a team that makes it more fun. And this one is supposed to be easier than the one from last year. I LOVE the puzzles and that we can figure them out with some thought. 

I think a husband and wife team creates the puzzles, and I can't imagine that process. 

Well, I went down a rabbit hole. I was going to find the link to the EXIT Games team, and we won't go there. I watched some YouTube for advent reveals, then went to the library app to look for puzzle games by Dr. Gareth Moore, and then to the library website. And, well, it's time to stop fooling around. I have work to do today!!!!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!

Reducing the stash, one piece at a time

I have to laugh because I got several comments on how to prolong the life of a gluestick. And all of them are probably good. However, I would bet that the one that I had was OLD - ancient even! I might have been able to revive it, but it's gone. But thanks for the tips! I still have about four more glue sticks, so they might go in the freezer or wherever I should put them. Gosh -- I'm amazed at all the tips and tricks for everything! Why don't I know these? 

And just like that, I'm done with my presentations for this week! I had two last night and a very relaxed week for the remainder of the week. I do have loads of other stuff to do and some other non-work-related commitments, and let's not forget the writing and the long arm. Oh yes - no fear of running out of things to do around my house. 

I just don't get how anyone could be bored!

So back to the backgrounds that I'm creating. Here's what I did with the drunkard's path blocks. 

As I mentioned the other day, I have four odd blocks. So I trimmed them to the same size, which I think was 6". 

Four drunkard's path blocks

I'm going to sew them together to make a four-patch, and of course, there are many options for this. 

Auditioning the block positions

This is what I liked the best, and so the blocks got sewn together. 

My four drunkard's path blocks

Now what? Get out that ruler and slash that into strips. GASP!! Actually, I don't have any issues with doing this. Those four blocks are oddballs, and what am I going to do with them? So - I chose to experiment with them rather than let them sit. I cut each strip to about 1½". I think the first one was 2". 

The block is slashed into strips

Then I repositioned all the strips, and some of them got flipped in the process. I then sewed them back together again. There is no right or wrong in this. Just keep rearranging until you get something that looks half decent. Remember, this is a background. We're going to add to it. 

The new block

I felt that it was a bit skinny for the length, so back to the black scrap box where I pulled out the pieces I had trimmed from the initial blocks. Hmmm - just enough black to make it slightly wider. I need to sew those on later today. See how things work out? I didn't plan this a bit. I could also have cut the block apart and inserted a strip of the background fabric between each strip. I can take two blocks and interlink them. I can do anything I want - it's my experiment. 

The block with some black added to the sides

Here's an example of a piece I made using that same technique. This started out as half-square triangles. Some of the half-square triangles were made of bits of improv fabric, so that's why you see some small pieces. This is a GREAT way to make an improv block if you can't wrap your head around sewing small pieces together. 

Another improv block

I didn't embellish this one - it looked interesting enough on its own, so I quilted it with diagonal lines, and it's awaiting the binding. I could literally do the same with the drunkard's path block. 

I now have five backgrounds, and I need to come up with 5 more ideas. I have a couple more in mind. Some might just be duplicates of the styles I've already done. I'm OK with that. 

Have you started with a background? OH - I know - you're waiting until I have all 10 done so you can choose which one you want to use! And that's OK. 

I needed to find a third grey that I could use with my barn block. I knew I had just the right fabric, but where was it? I thought it might still be with the project. So I searched through my UFOs, and that project is missing. Well, it's not missing - I just can't find it! But then I thought I should go through the stash to see if I can find something else that'll work. OH - I found the fabric that I was originally looking for. Hmm - I guess the UFO has a different fabric. 

The third grey for my barn block

It doesn't matter - I found the fabric that I need to get the value contrast for that block. A project for tomorrow?  

Then I had a request from a friend - did I have more of this butterfly fabric, and if so, would I be willing to part with it? It took me all of two minutes to find the fabric, and I have two meters. Well, it's GONE. I bought this many years ago, and while it's a gorgeous fabric, Carol has run out and NEEDS this same fabric. So why would I want to keep it? No reason - I let it go!!!! 

The one thing that I've learned is that when you find a piece of great fabric, I used to buy LOTS. Then I learned that fabric companies regurgitate the SAME ideas over and over again. So what one company produces today, another will produce almost identical prints next year. There's NO NEED to buy something just because you like it. I now buy it because I NEED it to finish off a project. There's a difference - a HUGE difference. 

I wish I could say that using up all this fabric for the community projects or sewing it up in my projects or the occasional piece that goes to someone who needs it would be putting a dent in the stash. Not even close!!!! And I have a feeling that there's a lot more hidden away in the project boxes. 

Oh, speaking of stashes, I have a picture to share with you. Unfortunately, I don't have time to load it this morning, but I'll get it prepped for tomorrow. Oh boy - this person has a LOT of time on their hands. Just wait!!!

I was happy with what I accomplished at Monday sewing. I dug out my embroidery threads, and I was busily stitching the edges of my raw applique. 

Isn't this guy adorable??? 

My cute owl

It's hard to tell in the photos, but the images look so much more finished when the edges are stitched than when they are not. No - I think you can see the difference. There are five owls in total, and four are done. Well, the bodies are done. I still have noses, eyes, and toes - the fiddly bits. 

An owl with unstitched edges

Here's a close-up of some of the stitching. 

Detail of stitching on raw-edge applique

That's a mossy (edge) satin stitch. It's one of my favorite stitches on the machine. Actually, I fell in love with raw edge applique when I bought my first Husqvarna Viking sewing machine over 20 years ago. With the sensor foot that pops up to pivot, doing applique is so easy. 

I hope to finish the stitching later today, but there are still quite a few pieces to stitch in place, so we'll see how it goes. I do have a road trip and a couple of other things on the agenda. 

I thought I'd walk past Chapter's and the dollar store yesterday as there were a couple of things that I'm looking for, and I just wanted to browse. Nope - lineups outside both stores. I REFUSE to wait in a lineup, so I kept walking!

Well, that's it for today. I've got to put my thinking cap on for another background! OH -- I just thought of another one. OK -- so that makes two that I can potentially get done today. 

Don't forget the Virtual Retreat this weekend. That's Saturday evening from 6 - 9 PM and Sunday from 10 - 8 PM.  It's going to be super fun, and I have to say that the stack of projects sitting on my work table is slowly diminishing. Could they be all done by the end of the weekend? Some of them are on The Task Master for the week, and some are not. We'll see how it goes. 

Part of that will depend on the gazebo! And the weather - it's cold outside today. 

Well, have a super day!!!!

Ciao!!!

The clock is ticking

I've got two days to get the rest of the stuff done that I need to accomplish. I'm in pretty good shape, but there are still things that need to be done. Hopefully, most of them can be cleared up today?? I doubt it - it's going to take the two full days.

I made four labels yesterday and they are trimmed and pressed. I'll sew them on the quilts when I get out west. Yes - I've packed scissors and threads. I was going to do a photo transfer of the original map for the Hot Guy quilt, but the photocopy didn't turn out great so I'm going to make a fabric envelope for the back of the quilt and put the original in the envelope. Got to do that today! Made the binding for the T-shirt quilt. That has to be put on today. That covers all the personal stuff that has to go.

Then back to sample making. I'm done with the stitch-out samples. Well, I'm done all the stitching that going to happen before this trip. There's a few that still need to be trimmed and sewn back to back. That's also a job for later today.

They look amazing on the vinyl and I'm really happy with them.

These first two (they are double-sided but you're only seeing one side) are from the Husqvarna Viking Designer EPIC.

Sequin stitches 

Applique stitches

See - those applique stitches look awesome when they're all trimmed down.


This one is from the PFAFF Creative ICON.

Stacking stitches

I'll be teaching a class at The Hobby Horse in November on using decorative stitches. I know most of you don't have these high-end machines, but we're going to try using ANY and ALL of the decorative stitches on your own machine to make some cool things. That's on the agenda for when I get back home.

Four blocks on the magazine quilt are on the design wall. Five to go. The next three are mostly cut and partially assembled.  I'll get as much done as I can before I leave and the rest will be a cram day when I'm back as the quilt will need to be quilted as well. And it's due on August 28th. That one sort of snuck on me. Oh well - I'm still doing pretty good compared to what I used to do.

I got another customer quilt done yesterday. This one is gorgeous - I love the colors. It's waiting to be trimmed. I have to sew the binding on (one side only) however the customer is on vacation so there's no rush. It will be trimmed and bound after I return. See - I should be sewing the magazine quilt instead of quilting, but I have a commitment and I'm sticking to it!!!

Customer quilt - DONE

 That leaves two projects to embroider and a couple of demos to prepare and then pack. That's going to be the crazy thing - This is my suitcase. I can load 50 pounds in it and not pay extra (other than the normal baggage fee). I have a feeling that I'll be taking two suitcases for check-in. It's just not all going to fit into one. I'll share with you what I'll be taking.

The suitcase that needs to be packed

I was at the library the other day and picked up the latest copy of Sew News  (August/September). There's an excellent article on sewing machine needles. I learned a few things that I never knew. If you get a chance to review the magazine, check out that article.

Not that I need this, but it's so darn cute. Of course, we all know about Row by Row which is certainly declined in the last couple of years. They went too big too fast and no one wants to collect tons of rows year after year. But this COLLABORATIVE quilt is so cute. And Chicago is not that far away. I give Row by Row one more year - two at the most. I wonder what the quality of the pattern/kits is like?? The kits are laser cut so it would make sense to buy but at what price???

Thanks to you all - I now know what kind of running shoes to buy (cross-trainers with leather uppers) and that the Tony Hillerman books do get better. I just need to persevere. Thanks so much for the info!!!!

So here's another question for you. Where the heck can I buy SINGLE measuring spoons or cups?  I may just need the tablespoon for instance and I don't want to buy an entire set just to get the tablespoon - same thing for the measuring cups. Any ideas????

And I'm looking for something that seems to be quite elusive. It's a Clover product called the Mini Flower Loom. 

Clover Mini Flower Loom

I would prefer to NOT purchase this from the big on-line shopping store. I HATE them and refuse to buy unless it's a last resort. Our Canadian Micheal's doesn't have them. If you've seen them in a local store or your local quilt shop - let me know. I'd rather support them than that other place.

Now here is something so very cool and we need to find a way to make this happen and sort of fits in with the above comment about shopping. I'd be happy to take on someone - I don't know anyone but if you do and they are local???   Hey - I should contact that Mom who brought those two girls to the store the other day. Basically - I need to find someone to mentor in the quilting world. What a cool thing to do.

On that note, I want to get out on my bike this morning and then it'll be pedal to the metal for the rest of the day.

Have a super day!!!!


Ciao!!!

Know when tossing is best

On my way back from the gym, they were talking about Lucille Ball (on the radio) who would have celebrated her birthday yesterday. Apparently, she had a saying "put your oxygen mask on first", meaning take care of yourself first.  How true this is!  I see many people who live for their children or their parents and I get it that it's hard to put yourself first, but you must. Children won't be around forever, neither will our parents or our significant others. Then what will you do? I've seen it happen to people - they start to lose touch with their friends or their hobbies. It's hard to recover from that and guess what happens?? Loneliness - Depression!!!

Mind you, I'm probably the total opposite - I take care of me first almost 100%  all of the time and ignore everyone else! I'm a pretty selfish person if you look close enough.

Yesterday was a super productive day - yet again. I'm not really sure where this focus is coming from. I'm loving it and I wish I could have found that focus years ago! I like sewing and I like creating so why was it so hard before?

I know - there were tons of distractions and it was easy to leave things behind. No more!

One of the things I'm working on these days is samples. I have access to two gorgeous sewing machines that are filled with beautiful stitches. The problem with those stitches is that if you don't stitch them out, you've no idea how easy (or challenging) they are and you've no idea where to use them.

These stitches are from the Husqvarna Viking Designer EPIC. They're called applique stitches. This is what the piece looks like after I've finished stitching.

Applique stitches before trimming

I've started to trim the excess fabric away. I should say that I've programmed these stitches into the embroidery unit so technically they were embroidered, but you can stitch them out like any stitch. The sewing machine is programmed to stop where it needs to stop so you can insert the little piece of fabric. The best part?? It's so darn easy to program the stitches into the embroidery unit or to stitch them out on their own.

Some of the applique stitches have been trimmed

Aren't they adorable????  One is candy and the other is a girl with a red skirt!

Two of the applique stitches after trimming

Next up were the sequin stitches. Yes - these were also programmed into the embroidery unit. Super easy to program. The EPIC knows when to stop so you can insert the sequins. I have to say this was a wee bit challenging until I figured out a couple of tricks. Some of the stitches I will probably never use and some of them are so neat that I'm trying to figure out where to put them. On my jean jacket???  I could bling that jacket up with sequins!!!!

Sequin stitches built into the Designer EPIC

I'm stitching on vinyl which complicates some of the stitches especially if the stitching is quite dense. It's all a learning experience and I'm very happy with what I'm learning. I've got more samples to make and having fun doing it.

I always say that anyone with a sewing machine with decorative stitches should do these stitch outs. If you don't, you'll never know what the heck you have and you'll never use those stitches. But once you see what you have and how easy they are to do, well - you're more likely to use them for projects.

In the midst of all this, I have a magazine quilt to sew. My goal is to get it pieced or mostly pieced before I leave. I'm just starting! However, when I went to start sewing, I was having a heck of a time. I'm sewing on my Husqvarna Viking Designer Ruby deLuxe. Hmmm - something was terribly wrong.

It's hard to see the stitching in this picture, but the bobbin was bouncing around, making a horrible noise and the stitch quality wasn't so pretty.

The bad seam on the left, good seam on the right

That photo shows the bobbin part of the seam. I cleaned the bobbin case area and inserted a new needle. No difference. Yikes - I can't sew a quilt with that kind of a mess.

I checked the bobbin. It seemed to be OK, but let's try a different one. HOLY - like night and day. This bobbin doesn't look too worn - not like some others that I have, but for whatever reason, it's not happy.

Bobbin 

Needless to say, that bobbin is now history. Know when to get rid of things that aren't working - be that a bobbin, needles, thread or whatever. If it's not working - it might be worn out (those bobbins are plastic after all), it might be damaged - don't bother to waste your time with such a small item.

Bobbin is toast

Speaking of magazine quilts, another magazine (and another one of my quilts) got axed. Easy Quilts is history. That doesn't leave too many quilting magazines from that publisher. Well - I hadn't started that one and I would have had to make it when I got home. What will I do when I get home??? Oh yes - more unpacking, more samples, and clean up more UFOs.

Then I fired up the long arm to get the T-shirt quilt done. If those seams are pressed well, and the T-shirts are well stabilized, T-shirt quilts are a dream to quilt. I had zero issues with this. A huge thanks to Heather for giving me the T-shirts. If my brother doesn't want it, I'll bring it back and find someone who will appreciate it.

T-shirt quilt - DONE

And here's the backing!!!!  I love it!!!!

The backing of the T-shirt quilt

I took a wee bit of time and went to the mall. I got seven bottles of distilled water for the irons. I hate to shop, so I'm stocked for a couple of months.

I also went to the Bulk Barn to look at stuff. I found all kinds of goodies that I can use in my cereal and probably less expensive than my usual grocery store. I even found powdered peanut butter!!! Actually, I was looking for that thanks to a comment by Nancy the day before. That'll be great for smoothies and easier to put the powder in the Vitamix rather than scooping out the real thing.

Good stuff acquired at the Bulk Barn

Oh - there were lots of temptations there. Loads of chocolate and candy. The only decadent thing I bought were yogurt covered cranberries which is my "sweet" snack. I love the darn things.

I found a glass jar that I can use when I mix up my cereal topping and I also found a shaker for the cinnamon which resides beside the cereal. No more cumin in my cereal.

Cinnamon in a shaker

As I was buzzing through the store looking for a few more items, I saw this. Really?????  It's only August and sweltering hot!!!

Winter coats in case you're cold

I also got the binding on that small Dresden Quilt for my Mom. Time to make some labels.

On that note, it's time to get back to work!!!  I wonder what I'm going to learn today????

Have a super day!!!!


Ciao!!