What's on your design wall? Go see Judy to see other design walls.
Puttering Around
7 hours ago
Monday, February 27, 2012
Design Wall Monday - 2/27/2012
I made the wings to make the Orca Bay border. Now to dig up some neutrals to cut the triangles from. I am still stash challenged but remember that someone sent me a yard of PFD muslin. I dont see why that wouldn't work. Here is the center as it stands today.
What's on your design wall? Go see Judy to see other design walls.
What's on your design wall? Go see Judy to see other design walls.
Thursday, February 23, 2012
How's This Krista?
I was asked about how my blog showed up in her blogroll. Thanks to my sidekick Patrick we figured out that I can have a "title". Learn something new every day!
More OB Progress
I only sewed for about an hour or so last night. I am putting together the rows in panels of 4 rows. This will allow me to press everything really well before I put the whole top together. I watched Krista successfully sew her rows together without pinning. I thought I'd give it a try and it went very smoothly. Thanks Krista! Saves lots of time.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Orca Bay Progress
Looks like the quilting mojo may be back. Last night after tidying up the apartment from having left the teen home alone for the weekend I decided to continue sewing on OB. I had found a quick and easy way to put the Ohio Star rows together without spreading everything out so I decided to do the same for the "skinny" rows.
I looked the completed rows over that I had sewn over the weekend and got a plan in my mind and started sewing. I sewed all the blue strip pieces to the end of the "crab" units. When I started putting rows together I realized that I should have sewn the blue block on one end for half and on the other end for the other half. I guess I should have done one rows worth before sewing them all.
I got my trusty seam ripper out and picked out about half of the blocks that I had just sewn. I started assembling the rows and should be able to finish them up tonight. I can see an OB center in the near future!
Looks like the quilting mojo may be back. Last night after tidying up the apartment from having left the teen home alone for the weekend I decided to continue sewing on OB. I had found a quick and easy way to put the Ohio Star rows together without spreading everything out so I decided to do the same for the "skinny" rows.
I looked the completed rows over that I had sewn over the weekend and got a plan in my mind and started sewing. I sewed all the blue strip pieces to the end of the "crab" units. When I started putting rows together I realized that I should have sewn the blue block on one end for half and on the other end for the other half. I guess I should have done one rows worth before sewing them all.
I got my trusty seam ripper out and picked out about half of the blocks that I had just sewn. I started assembling the rows and should be able to finish them up tonight. I can see an OB center in the near future!
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Patchworktime's First Annual Retreat
When Judy announced she would be hosting a retreat I quickly signed up since it was just a little over three hours away. Then the fire happened and I felt too overwhelmed to attend. I wrote Judy and begged off.
When she posted about the closeness of the event date I felt saddened that I would miss it and knew I would regret not attending. I just happened to read a post of a quilter that was visiting the DFW area and and asked her where she was. She responded and asked if I was going to Judy's retreat. I told her no and my reasons why and talked about it probably being full. She encouraged me to ask.
I posted a comment on Judy's post about the event and simpy asked "Are you full". I got one of the fastest responses I think I ever saw that said "No. Can you come?" We exchanged a few emails and then I thought about it and talked with my BFF about it. She simply said GO! With all the stress over how things are NOT going with the house everyone involved felt it would be good for me to get my face out of the house business for a weekend.
I called and made my room reservation. I tried to scrounge up a roommate but did not succeed. I then began my plans for attending. I was up late Thursday night doing laundry and getting things ready. When my eyes popped open at 5 a.m. I thought "Why not?". I got up. Packed the car and was on the road by 5:30 arriving just before 9.
I registered for my room and climbed the stairs to the meeting room. This was my first ever quilt retreat so I was not sure what to expect. I walked into a room full of quilters and several husbands. There were 2 to a table. I walked to the back corner and found a lone quilter. Who other than Cheryl. The lady that encouraged me to attend!
I got the lay of the land and went to the car to get my supplies. I had my Orca Bay in a box in a carry on type bag along with all my tools. I also brought my friends Featherweight. I setup and began happily sewing.
There was plenty of good food, good conversation and new friendships. I sewed the entire weekend making wings for the red strip parts and then assembling the "crabs" from Orca Bay. That is all I did for all of Friday and Saturday until about 9 or 10 p.m. that night. I managed to assemble three full rows before bed. When I got up Sunday morning I decided that I could quickly and easily assemble the Ohio Star rows and that is just what I did before packing up and heading off from the retreat. I missed show and tell as all I had were pieces at that point but I was sure to pull others over to see what I had accomplished before packing it up!
When Judy announced she would be hosting a retreat I quickly signed up since it was just a little over three hours away. Then the fire happened and I felt too overwhelmed to attend. I wrote Judy and begged off.
When she posted about the closeness of the event date I felt saddened that I would miss it and knew I would regret not attending. I just happened to read a post of a quilter that was visiting the DFW area and and asked her where she was. She responded and asked if I was going to Judy's retreat. I told her no and my reasons why and talked about it probably being full. She encouraged me to ask.
I posted a comment on Judy's post about the event and simpy asked "Are you full". I got one of the fastest responses I think I ever saw that said "No. Can you come?" We exchanged a few emails and then I thought about it and talked with my BFF about it. She simply said GO! With all the stress over how things are NOT going with the house everyone involved felt it would be good for me to get my face out of the house business for a weekend.
I called and made my room reservation. I tried to scrounge up a roommate but did not succeed. I then began my plans for attending. I was up late Thursday night doing laundry and getting things ready. When my eyes popped open at 5 a.m. I thought "Why not?". I got up. Packed the car and was on the road by 5:30 arriving just before 9.
I registered for my room and climbed the stairs to the meeting room. This was my first ever quilt retreat so I was not sure what to expect. I walked into a room full of quilters and several husbands. There were 2 to a table. I walked to the back corner and found a lone quilter. Who other than Cheryl. The lady that encouraged me to attend!
I got the lay of the land and went to the car to get my supplies. I had my Orca Bay in a box in a carry on type bag along with all my tools. I also brought my friends Featherweight. I setup and began happily sewing.
There was plenty of good food, good conversation and new friendships. I sewed the entire weekend making wings for the red strip parts and then assembling the "crabs" from Orca Bay. That is all I did for all of Friday and Saturday until about 9 or 10 p.m. that night. I managed to assemble three full rows before bed. When I got up Sunday morning I decided that I could quickly and easily assemble the Ohio Star rows and that is just what I did before packing up and heading off from the retreat. I missed show and tell as all I had were pieces at that point but I was sure to pull others over to see what I had accomplished before packing it up!
Thursday, February 09, 2012
State of My Stash
I need some input. I had a house fire in January and all my sewing stuff is boxed up in my garage. I am trying to see the silver lining in this as I have been working to downsize some things and this appears to be the BIG shove to get me to accelerate the process.
I have yarn, cross stitch supplies and of course my quilting stash that the recovery company will not clean so it is left to me. Here is where I need your input. My plan is to clean all those things that I want to keep and move them into my sewing room or other storage. I was thinking I should only put things in the sewing room that I plan to make in the immediate future and then store the rest elsewhere. I live in Texas and have toyed with the idea of storing things in totes in my garage which is not air conditioned.
What experience do others have with storing fabric and yarn in a garage? Is there a compelling reason NOT to do this? What things should I take into consideration considering this stuff could be in my garage potentially for several years. Just think, I get to weigh (I am using the 4 yards per pound rule of thumb) all my stash and will have a really good idea how much I actually have. Is that a good thing or bad thing? I'll let you judge that one for yourselves.
Thanks for your ideas.
I need some input. I had a house fire in January and all my sewing stuff is boxed up in my garage. I am trying to see the silver lining in this as I have been working to downsize some things and this appears to be the BIG shove to get me to accelerate the process.
I have yarn, cross stitch supplies and of course my quilting stash that the recovery company will not clean so it is left to me. Here is where I need your input. My plan is to clean all those things that I want to keep and move them into my sewing room or other storage. I was thinking I should only put things in the sewing room that I plan to make in the immediate future and then store the rest elsewhere. I live in Texas and have toyed with the idea of storing things in totes in my garage which is not air conditioned.
What experience do others have with storing fabric and yarn in a garage? Is there a compelling reason NOT to do this? What things should I take into consideration considering this stuff could be in my garage potentially for several years. Just think, I get to weigh (I am using the 4 yards per pound rule of thumb) all my stash and will have a really good idea how much I actually have. Is that a good thing or bad thing? I'll let you judge that one for yourselves.
Thanks for your ideas.
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
A Fix Job
A coworker mentioned that she had received a quilt for her wedding. She told me that she had loved it to death and that it had a few loose seams. I told her that I would be happy to look at it to see if I could fix it. I imagined having to whip stitch a few places to help keep it together.
She brought it to me at the office and I opened it a little to take a peek. By all appearances it looked as though that was all it needed from the part I could see. Imagine my surprise when I opened it up to find that there were sections missing!
I mulled over in my mind how I was going to fix this thing. It certainly is a much larger job than I thought. I toyed with the idea of trying to whip stitch things in place. I even thought about moving sections from the edges into the center and replacing those pieces with new fabric. Then I gave myself a reality check. I knew I would not finish it if I tried to approach it in that manner.
I took pictures and showed them to my coworker. I told her it was in much worse condition than she described. I told her I wanted to remove the quilting. It is hand utility quilting. I then wanted to move patches from the edge into the center and put new pieces to replace those. She agreed to this approach. Now I will also have to quilt it again. Did I mention the backing needs repair too? It's ok. Another project to work on while I am away from my stash.
She brought it to me at the office and I opened it a little to take a peek. By all appearances it looked as though that was all it needed from the part I could see. Imagine my surprise when I opened it up to find that there were sections missing!
I mulled over in my mind how I was going to fix this thing. It certainly is a much larger job than I thought. I toyed with the idea of trying to whip stitch things in place. I even thought about moving sections from the edges into the center and replacing those pieces with new fabric. Then I gave myself a reality check. I knew I would not finish it if I tried to approach it in that manner.
I took pictures and showed them to my coworker. I told her it was in much worse condition than she described. I told her I wanted to remove the quilting. It is hand utility quilting. I then wanted to move patches from the edge into the center and put new pieces to replace those. She agreed to this approach. Now I will also have to quilt it again. Did I mention the backing needs repair too? It's ok. Another project to work on while I am away from my stash.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
No Sewing But Lots of Working
I spent the weekend cleaning out the house. The first two pictures are my sewing room. I have a few more things left to inventory and pack. There is no rhyme or reason to what is and isn't taken by the recovery company. My current plan is to get this finished Saturday afternoon.
I spent the weekend cleaning out the house. The first two pictures are my sewing room. I have a few more things left to inventory and pack. There is no rhyme or reason to what is and isn't taken by the recovery company. My current plan is to get this finished Saturday afternoon.
This is the source of the fire. It started in the dryer and went up the wall to the ceiling and across into the kitchen. Luckily it did not spread further out into the house. Everything is covered in soot and smoke and was removed from the house for cleaning. Those things left behind are my responsibility to clean if I choose.
My son and I moved to an apartment today. Most of it will be setup by the time I get home from work. I doubt I will get to sew much this week but I sure am going to try!
Friday, January 27, 2012
And She Sewed....
So my goal was to get to the halfway mark of making all the winged triangles I needed for the center blocks. I fell short by 10 or so. But what I really wanted to do was to make this little baby. Bonnie likened it to a crab. See the eyes? They are white. I love it. So many on Bonnie's yahoogroup had alignment issues or questions and I had to try it to see if I would face the same problem.
It isn't pressed yet so it is curling up a tad. I think it looks great. I was going to make as many of these as I had wings for but then decided to keep trucking on the wings. All the wings. Only about 200 to go. You know I am going to do something different don't you? LOL! Maybe finish off 4 blocks worth so I can make a little setting to see what it looks like. I am hopeless!
So my goal was to get to the halfway mark of making all the winged triangles I needed for the center blocks. I fell short by 10 or so. But what I really wanted to do was to make this little baby. Bonnie likened it to a crab. See the eyes? They are white. I love it. So many on Bonnie's yahoogroup had alignment issues or questions and I had to try it to see if I would face the same problem.
It isn't pressed yet so it is curling up a tad. I think it looks great. I was going to make as many of these as I had wings for but then decided to keep trucking on the wings. All the wings. Only about 200 to go. You know I am going to do something different don't you? LOL! Maybe finish off 4 blocks worth so I can make a little setting to see what it looks like. I am hopeless!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Still Sewing
I sewed another three hours or so last night. I was adding triangles to HSTs to make wings. I am going to have a little giveaway. Can you guess how many wings I made in that three hour period? HSTs were already assembled and the triangles to be sewn on were already cut. I realize this is a bad picture. I added two triangles to each HST.
I am not sure what I will give away but will pull something together.
I sewed another three hours or so last night. I was adding triangles to HSTs to make wings. I am going to have a little giveaway. Can you guess how many wings I made in that three hour period? HSTs were already assembled and the triangles to be sewn on were already cut. I realize this is a bad picture. I added two triangles to each HST.
I am not sure what I will give away but will pull something together.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Black and White
I completed my Ohio Stars for Bonnie Hunter's Orca Bay mystery. I skipped a step and have to go back to that. I have to add wings (triangles) to 350 HSTs.
Knowing how I work I will sew a few of these and work on another step repeating from the top. Have to break up the monotony somehow!
I completed my Ohio Stars for Bonnie Hunter's Orca Bay mystery. I skipped a step and have to go back to that. I have to add wings (triangles) to 350 HSTs.
Knowing how I work I will sew a few of these and work on another step repeating from the top. Have to break up the monotony somehow!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Design Wall Monday - January 23, 2012
I have not sewn for myself since March of 2011. On New Year's Day we had a house fire that gutted my kitchen and my laundry room. My son and I took some clothes and a few other things to live with until we could move back into our house. This is not going to be for another 3 months at least according to my builder and the insurance company.
Just that morning I had decided that I was going to start sewing again and had even completed some mending. I had dug out a project that I was going to start working on again to see if I could get my quilty mojo going. Then the fire happened.
I noticed a lot of people on Bonnie Hunter's QuiltvilleChat yahoogroup mentioning that they had accidentally made too many parts while making her Orca Bay mystery quilt. I thought it would be fun to ask these folks if they would send me their spare parts so that I could try to cobble together a rainbow Orca Bay. That was how simple my plan was. No thought to where I would get a sewing machine or that fact that I didnt have any notions what so ever.
Bonnie put a message on her group asking to send me Orca bay parts. To date I have received over 25 packages of notions, FQs, scraps, yardage, Orca Bay pieces and parts and even what I lovingly call my Orca Bay in a box. Teresa from the QuiltvilleChat group decided that she did not want to finish her quilt. She had completed through step 4 of 8. She sent all the pieces plus some additional fabric. Between her box and the other packages I have been pulling strips and continued cutting for the mystery.
I have completed 7 of the light Ohio stars and only have 21 more of those to go. I have started assembling the pieces for the 28 dark Ohio stars as well. I can't wait to get back to sewing!
I have not sewn for myself since March of 2011. On New Year's Day we had a house fire that gutted my kitchen and my laundry room. My son and I took some clothes and a few other things to live with until we could move back into our house. This is not going to be for another 3 months at least according to my builder and the insurance company.
Just that morning I had decided that I was going to start sewing again and had even completed some mending. I had dug out a project that I was going to start working on again to see if I could get my quilty mojo going. Then the fire happened.
I noticed a lot of people on Bonnie Hunter's QuiltvilleChat yahoogroup mentioning that they had accidentally made too many parts while making her Orca Bay mystery quilt. I thought it would be fun to ask these folks if they would send me their spare parts so that I could try to cobble together a rainbow Orca Bay. That was how simple my plan was. No thought to where I would get a sewing machine or that fact that I didnt have any notions what so ever.
Bonnie put a message on her group asking to send me Orca bay parts. To date I have received over 25 packages of notions, FQs, scraps, yardage, Orca Bay pieces and parts and even what I lovingly call my Orca Bay in a box. Teresa from the QuiltvilleChat group decided that she did not want to finish her quilt. She had completed through step 4 of 8. She sent all the pieces plus some additional fabric. Between her box and the other packages I have been pulling strips and continued cutting for the mystery.
I have completed 7 of the light Ohio stars and only have 21 more of those to go. I have started assembling the pieces for the 28 dark Ohio stars as well. I can't wait to get back to sewing!
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
How's This for a Hug?
My friends tirane and Mimi made this hug quilt for me to wrap in and comfort me over the passing of my husband. It is hard to believe it has been two months already.
If you look closely at the backing you will see the word friends quilted in amongst the pebble path to signify friends being there through the path of life and it's trials and tribulations.
The close up is to show you the daisy motif tirane used to quilt it. She knows I love daisies.
My friends tirane and Mimi made this hug quilt for me to wrap in and comfort me over the passing of my husband. It is hard to believe it has been two months already.
If you look closely at the backing you will see the word friends quilted in amongst the pebble path to signify friends being there through the path of life and it's trials and tribulations.
The close up is to show you the daisy motif tirane used to quilt it. She knows I love daisies.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Sunday, September 25, 2011
I sewed!!
The last thing I remember sewing was the binding on my Mother's quilt. Maybe I sewed a little on my denim and flannel blocks too. But with everything going on since March I know that my sewing machine and I have not been close.
My daughter asked me to make her a "Hello Kitty" fleece blanket. I told her go find the fleece and call me and I will buy it and make the blanket. She found it in record time and even came and got me to take me to buy it.
I had made a fleece blanket for my neighbor Kelly some time ago. Last year while she was helping me and took my son to the hospital for a stay (she stayed too) her blanket went missing. I called her and asked her to go look at fleece with us. She had a piece that her daughter Amanda had bought and needed a coordinating piece. She went with us and found what she was looking for.
That was last night. Kelly took all the fleece to her house and washed it and we had a sewing date today. 3 hours later we had the two blankets below and some big smiles. This effort will put a smile on my face too because I was pushed to find all my sewing paraphenalia in order to accomplish this mission. Now that I know where it is I can get sewing again for myself!
Friday, September 23, 2011
Friday, August 26, 2011
A Finish
I had started this little afghan when I first went to Monroe in 2009. I felt bored by it. Now I wonder if it was because I wasn't thrilled with the intended recipient at the time. When I picked it back up with no recipient in mind I worked at it with regularity until I totally finished it last night at my "yarn" guild.
Everyone asked me who it was for. I really had no idea. We then talked about the new baby that the owners of Scrumbious had. They had let us hold a party at their business even though we filled the place and potentially could have run others off. I had just written them a thank you note the night before when it dawned on me what a wonderful opportunity I had here. I wrapped it up and gifted this little afghan to them this afternoon and they seemed to really like it.
I had started this little afghan when I first went to Monroe in 2009. I felt bored by it. Now I wonder if it was because I wasn't thrilled with the intended recipient at the time. When I picked it back up with no recipient in mind I worked at it with regularity until I totally finished it last night at my "yarn" guild.
Everyone asked me who it was for. I really had no idea. We then talked about the new baby that the owners of Scrumbious had. They had let us hold a party at their business even though we filled the place and potentially could have run others off. I had just written them a thank you note the night before when it dawned on me what a wonderful opportunity I had here. I wrapped it up and gifted this little afghan to them this afternoon and they seemed to really like it.
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