What in the world was I thinking?

All I wanted to do was put an small Ikea shelf unit together to go with the large one I already have.

 

 

I remember telling Candy S. when I worked at her quilt shop we could NOT move one group of fabrics because it ALWAYS turned into moving the whole store around. I should have remembered it a bit sooner. Now all I can do is sit in the middle of this mess and whimper.

Maybe I can convince the man to bolt them to the wall tomorrow and then I can toss the fabrics into the holes and shut the door until after Christmas.

Remember when it looked like this? So neat and organized. I miss it so much.

Christmas Past

    
     This time of year I start thinking of stories my parents told me of their Christmases as poor sharecropper's children. How the meal was the gift or Papa walked to town and bought each one a candy cane and some nuts and an orange for their stocking. As a child I always got an orange in my stocking. I never understood until I was older. That was my Mom's cherished memory of Christmas. They didn't get oranges through the year, just at Christmas, so it was very special. Can you imagine just how good that orange must have tasted?  How they savored the smell as they peeled it.
They didn't get candy but a few times during the year and had to share between all the children. At Christmas each child got their own. Did they bite it? Take small licks to make it last longer?

Thinking about this makes me a bit more in the spirit so I'm off to put in a Christmas CD and mix up some of My Favorite Cookies, a favorite from my childhood.

Diane

Merry Christmas to me!

Yesterday morning Ray asked if we had to wait until Christmas morning to open our gifts. My answer was no, we are grown up. I thought he was asking because he and Joseph were going to a gun shops looking for their own "box of fun". I just assumed they would come home with something they didn't want to wait to play with.
The truth is, Ray had ordered me a gift! Cool huh?
I walked into my sewing room and saw a really pretty black box with the word DELL on it. Pretty exciting stuff!
I opened a beautiful XPS-18. If you don't know what that is, well it is a cross between a desktop, laptop and a tablet. It has a HUGE hard drive and speeds like a desktop, it is portable like a laptop and has a touch screen like a tablet.

Needless to say I was very surprised and super happy! My poor laptop has been limping for a while.
Of course with every squeal of happiness there have been groans of frustration. Learning a new computer and new Windows is hard on this cobwebby brain. Maybe by Christmas morning I will be able to play with fewer groans. 😊

I called EQ and since we have moved twice since I upgraded to EQ7 and I have not been able to locate the disk I had to order a replacement CD. Oh well so much for being organized huh?
Hopefully by next weekend I can play with quilt designs I have floating in my brain.

Ok off to learn more Windows 8...
If you hear whining, its just me...or some of the participants in Bonnie Hunter' a mystery. 😊

Diane

Treasures

We spent 11 hours yesterday going through Moma and Daddy's house sorting and dividing.

Bittersweet.

I left last night with a trunk full of treasures that was my Great Grandma's, left to my Grandma. These same treasures were then left to Moma when Grandma passed away. Last night they were passed to me. 

Finished and he likes it!

 I stopped the original hat that was on the needles and started this one to try a new shorter needle to see if I like it better than the longer needle and the magic loop method.
I like the shorter needle and it is easier and faster to make without the ML method, until...
you get closer to the end. I got confused on what to do so I went ahead and put the long needles with the long cord back in service and finished up the hat.

It looks like it works!  :)

I think the next hat with this yarn will be knit on a smaller size needle. This hat was made on US-8 for the ribbing and US-10 for the hat. Joseph thinks it will be fine for our warm Florida winters.

On the needles

I'm so excited I just had to show what I'm knitting.
I'm taking a class on Craftsy called Knit Lab- Knitting in the Round (I think that is correct) with Stefanie Japel and I really like it. I have taken an earlier class with the same instructor and I learned a lot and felt so good afterward I thought I would take this one when it was recently on sale.

I watched the first two projects and liked them pretty well, but the hat was what I wanted to do. Joseph told me when I knitted a hat he would wear it. So...

My first knitted hat...or almost.
I have some small ladders and one stitch is large because I did a yarn over and when I didn't mean to and noticed it on the next round, but so far so good.
I have learned knitting in the round with a design is not for perfectionist. I don't care for the jog in the design where they join up, but if you don't look for it you won't see it.

Today I am going to try and get to a knit shop that is not too far away, but they have such hours that I never get to go. I was thinking about looking for some soft warm yarn for my niece a hat. She lives in Oklahoma and walks every day. Last week it was one of the coldest spots in the lower 48 states. She needs a cute, warm hat. She will have to buy gloves, I haven't learned them yet.

Later,
Diane

It's home

I picked up my machine on Friday and couldn't be more happy. It is so quiet, I keep checking to see to make sure everything is stitching along properly. He even cleaned the outside! I mounted one of those bendy necked bright lights that you can point right on the needle area. Can you tell I forgot the name? :)  Anyway, those lights come with little adhesive mounted clips to hold the electrical cord out of the way and they are notorious for falling off or breaking leaving the adhesive stuck to the machine.  I thought once the machine came home I would remove those bits and replace them with some better 3M clips. Well! When I put the machine in place and gathered the adhesive removal stuff I saw that he had already removed them. Cool!
My only hesitation is...if I had to name one...he put a sticker with the store name and phone number, on the right side of the harp! If he would have just put it on the back or by the plug or some place I don't have to see it constantly. I understand why he put the sticker, but the placement...yuck! So I have decided to remove it. When I take my 1001 in for cleaning I will request they put the sticker on the back. I don't know why it bothers me so much but it does.

If you hear noise in the sewing room, it won't be the 1230!

Later,
Diane

Organization, that dirty O word

I agree and like the idea of Leaders and Enders. I just am not organized enough to practise it.  Just in case you don't know about Leaders and Enders here is a link to Bonnie Hunter's website where she explains what they are and how she came up with the idea.
http://quiltville.com/leadersenders.shtml

The L&E idea is probably one of the best ideas in quilt making. To me it is right up there with the rotary cutter and the quarter inch foot. It really is one of those V8, head bonking, light bulb moments. I'm sure Granny ( my original quilt mentor) would have made 300 quilts in her lifetime instead of a mear 150 if she had known or thought of the L&E idea.

or·gan·ize (ôrg-nz)

v.or·gan·ized, or·gan·iz·ing, or·gan·iz·es

1. To put together into an orderly, functional, structured whole.

Organization has always been a weakness of mine. If I could just get organized...has been a whine of mine since I have been married. Before I got married I never knew I was unorganized because I didn't have anything to be organized. We packed all of my belongings in two cardboard boxes and my suitcase.
Put my few items with my husband's few more (he had many boxes) into a 800 sq ft apartment, add in wedding gifts, furniture and two people who have no idea of what should go where and you have a mess. Thirty two years later...well you get the picture.

When we moved I did get my sewing room organized. Then we moved into this house and it has never been as nice. I just don't seem to have the skill to put things in a way I can use the room and walk in it at the same time.
Now knowing that, can you imagine me trying to organize a project and also a L&E to work on during the project?
BUT...I have so much happening in my extended family and friends lives that I find myself needing many items made and completed in a quick fashion.

1. Wedding quilt that is already overdue. (Don't ask!)
2.Cousin quilt (Just needs small amount of hand quilting and binding!!) 
3.Baby quilt for December birth (I think I have a top made already)
4.Wedding quilt for June  ( have design idea, just need to know what colors they hate)
5.Retirement quilt  (retirement end of this month! Just heard last week.)

Now mind you three of the five I learned about very recently and one of them I was not intending to make at all but feel I should.

So today I will go into my sewing room and try to get some work done in the O area.
If I get any O accomplished I will then try and decide if any of the tops I have made will work for gifts (I hope!). If not, I will look for some easy but pretty patterns that I can get in and out of the machine quickly. Maybe I can actually work with L&E to accomplish this. Fingers crossed!

Diane

No sewing here...

I've been home some but so has the husband, so no sewing (in the sewing room). I have knitted, and torn the papers from my Pineapple Crazy blocks, but no actual sewing in the sewing room.

 

I took my Bernina in to be looked at. The man at the shop was born in Switzerland and spent his first  working years at the Bernina factory and now repairs them here. It was beautiful to watch someone so familiar with a machine work. He asked me what the problem was and before I could finish my sentence he had started opening things, listening to it sew, feeling of areas, removing more parts, listening, pushing buttons. He said "your gears are worn". I looked at him and almost blushed! I almost said, "I'm sure yours are too at this age!" but then realized he was talking about the machine. He said that is very common for these machines and may not be too much of an issue. He might can just tighten everything up. I said, OK! Then he said, but they could be worn too badly to tighten so they might need replacing. My heart sank. I got this machine for a song, so I don't mind paying to have it repaired, but I also know Bernina is well known for costing an arm and a leg for not just repairs but parts and pieces.

I asked for an estimate if it was the gears and they did have to be replaced. The price made me wince a little but then I remembered the price I paid for it and added together it still didn't come to the value of the machine on the resale market. I HOPE this is all it is and I will have it back in a short amount of time, but we will see.

While Ray was home we went to Disney twice! Yep twice. I definitely need new sandals. My feet and legs haven't hurt like that in years. It could be I need to loose the equivalent of a small child in weight but I like the idea of trying new sandals first.

 

It was food and wine festival time at EPCOT so we had lots of happy parents and grandparents. I heard a couple of time while at the Magic Kingdom, adults strolling little whining kids around and a parent say "when do we get to go to EPCOT?" LOL
To tell the truth, during Food and Wine festival you do see much less adult whining and meltdowns.  I'm just saying.


Today...I MUST SEW!

Diane

Home again

Well I got the machine quilting finished. Yeah!
It's a good thing the machine work is finished since my faithful Bernie 1230 has developed a cough. It hacks every stitch. It doesn't sound good. I'm taking it in to see the doctor tomorrow. This is pretty nerve wracking. Before we moved here I had a great doc that took great care of my girls. Now I had to find a new one. I had no one to ask for help. Don't I sound pitiful?
I researched and found a husband/wife team who have been in business for 30 years. They are a pretty good distance from my house, but the closer dealer has only been in the business for less than a year. I went in there a few weeks ago asking about a new walking foot, I left unimpressed. Maybe they were having a bad day. Maybe I was having a bad day. I'll give them another visit, but not this time.
No pictures...yet...

Diane

When you really must get it basted!

A girl has to do what a girl had to do!

I basted this quilt in the hotel room on the bed.

Pinning the backing wasn't difficult. 

Spray basting was just a tad irritating.

I opened the window, turned on the A/C, turned on my portable fan blowing out the open window and turned on the bathroom exhaust. 

I sprayed the batting to the backing and left the room and sat downstairs with my iPad,

Sprayed the top to the batting and left the room, downstairs again. 

After a couple if hours it was done. 

I was surprised at how little smell the spray baste had. I usually baste outside on my Lanai so I never noticed a smell. Now I know it's because it has a very low odor. 

I don't recommend this to others so don't think I am saying this is a good thing. I was VERY careful but  I'm sure I will get my hands slapped by someone. 

New walking foot

Here is the new walking foot installed. I guess for the average person that is no big deal, but I have always had a time installing the walking foot on the Bernina. Fat stiff fingers don't help. :)

I played a bit seeing if it was all that and a box of cookies. Hoping I had not just spent a lot of fabric money on something that wasn't fantastic.


Verdict?

picture showing stitch in the ditch on the right side and echo stitching on the left

 

 

I LOVE IT!

 

For the first time ever my straight lines are straight! No bobbles and no wavy lines.  Plus this walking foot contraption is much quieter than the one I bought 20 years ago. MUCH quieter. I asked the dealer back then if it was supposed to make that much noise and she told me yes, but I don't believe it. It sounded like a loud clickity clack each time the needle bar went up and down.

Maybe with this quieter one and the stitch in the ditch sole I will enjoy quilting more and get some tops out of the closet and off the UFO list!

 

Diane

 

It's here!

My new walking foot arrived! I am so excited.

I have a 20 year old walking foot for my Bernina and it wasn't cutting it when I wanted to do stitch in the ditch. Plus the grabby part of the walking part wasn't grabbing very well. I took it to my local dealer which isn't real local and they said it looked pretty well worn. That is odd since everyone knows I don't quilt a lot. :^/

Anyway I finally forked over my sewing budget for a long time to buy the new set up with the stitch in the ditch foot. 

I will be basting this afternoon and hopefully quilting after dinner. 

Can I get a Woo and a Hoo???

Woo Hoo!!!

Pineapple CRAZY

Still pineappling away...

Sweet! 

😬

I'm not ignoring, just nothing new...

It's kind of boring saying the same thing every time; pineapples and cousin quilt. Yep that is what I'm still working on.
I keep getting sidetracked with knitting. I wanted to put a couple of pretty face cloths in with Laura's quilt so I have been working on a really pretty coral colored one. I found some soft cotton/bamboo blend yarn and it is coming out nice.
Maybe if I take a few minutes later I will post some picture, but they will not be much different than the last ones. I'll have part of a washcloth and more pineapples...exciting!

Later,

Diane

Borders on

 

This top wasn't too hard at all. Large pieces, star design, pretty colors...I like it!
Now I have to figure out how I want to quilt. I know I am going to spray baste and machine quilt. I will most likely stitch in the ditch each seam. Then I will try some dot to dot stitching. Nothing fancy.
Any ideas?

Diane

Border time!

What do you think?
Is it too close in color?
The colors are actually different, but the darker which is blue has some aqua in it.

It doesn't really matter, this is how it's going to be. I have everything pressed and ready to cut for the border.


Off to cut...

I learn so much from other bloggers

I was reading Judy Laquidara's post from the other day and she was telling about a new yogurt she found at Target.

If you like yogurt any at all you need to run to Target (the only place to buy it I believe) and grab some. It is SO good. I only have one that didn't pass the test and it was the Raspberry one. I don't like seeds and the seeds were left in, but the flavor was fabulous.

My husband really wishes I would quit reading other blogs as it really does make me want to try new things and that means buying stuff. Tough luck on him! :)

My cousin was diagnosed with breast cancer and had surgery Thursday. I went through my fabrics and have a quilt in mind. She will have radiation and possibly chemo therapy so I want to do something for her. She lives in Texas so I can't be there, but I can pray and make a quilt, so that is what I'm doing.  Her name is Laura if you have a mind to pray for her.

Off to sew,
Diane

Organization is the key to success!

ROTFLMBO!! And I know you are too! Especially if you know me and my organizational skills.

1. A place for everything and everything in its place.

Check!

2. Don't put it down, put it away.

Check!

3. File don't pile.

Check!


4. Quality over quantity.

OK, this is going to be a problem. I have a large quantity of quality.


One more saying, from Thumper..."If you can't say nothing nice, don't say nothing at all!"

Later,

Diane

Hello, my name is Diane...nice to meet you

I have been away, in more ways than one. :)
I recovered from the August retreat but it took a while. :)
I have another retreat I'm looking forward to in January. I'm pretty excited as its with Bonnie Hunter.  I'm now in the middle of deciding what fabrics to use in the class. I know some of the quilters will be using shirts, I want to use my Civil War fabrics. I need to decide what colors though. The pattern is Smith Mountain Morning and it is made with browns, blues and muslin. I like that and have pulled more than enough of those fabrics but then my eye went to the pink, brown and muslin and now I'm torn.  I have time to decide, so I will just do as my Papa used to do and ruminate on it.

I want very much to get my pineapples at least into a top before the retreat so I can show it in the Show and tell portion. So many of my friends saw the blocks and the mess I was making with the scraps and they oohed and aahhed over them that I want to have it finished. It's a goal.

(If you want to see a picture of the blocks here is a link to an older post http://www.dyedquilting.blogspot.com/2013/03/design-wallor-cutting-table.html)  I can't find the picture in my folder to link to so just click back.

  I did the math and finding that I miss counted and don't have as many made as I thought I did :(  but if I get 1.6 blocks a day made between now and the retreat I will have it made in time to get it into a top and maybe even quilted if I can bribe a friend into quilting between Christmas and the retreat. Usually the first few weeks after Christmas are used for resting for machine quilters but we will see what I can come up with.

Yesterday I got 30 pineapples in various stages of completion. I feel like I get a rhythm going and it goes faster. If I work on just dark rounds then trim, then light rounds, then trim it feels like it's faster. Maybe not, but I'm going with it. :)

I hear the pineapple calling my name...but wait...the husband is calling too...I guess I will work on pineapples tonight after supper.

Later,
Diane

Better now, new scissors and lesson learned

I think I really am better now.
In June I thought I was fine, but apparently not. My sadness and apparent depression were showing themselves in my constant anger and inability to be pleased by anyone.
I think I have survived though, and just in time! I'm sure the men in my life were getting pretty tired of it, although they never once snapped back or complained.

I have been sneaking into the sewing room and making some small paper pieced pineapple blocks. I think I wrote about them before. I'm back to being able to slide those through the machine and listen to my audio book and enjoy myself. So much so that I sat too long Saturday night and I have a kink in my back. :)

Jimmy and Lauren didn't get the wedding quilt, but we gave them a gift card to Target for incidentals they didn't get in the showers and a written promise that the quilt is on it's way. Now that it is in writing I have to stay focused. That just means I can't work on it this week as the muscle relaxers are making me unfocused. :)


This week I ordered the newest Karen K Buckley Perfect Scissors. and I LOVE them. These are 6" from tip to bottom. They are the perfect size for snipping threads while doing the paper piecing pineapples. The color is pretty too!



I have had the larger version for a few years and I do love them, but always felt they were a bit long and I have managed to hit the sewing machine and my table with the super pointy and super sharp tips. Leaving scars on the Bernina is not a good thing!
These are 7.5" from tip to bottom and the 1.5" really does make a difference.
I love these scissors because they are sharp and have a serrated blade which grabs the fabric and doesn't let it slide out of the blade while cutting. I also love them because they have a LARGE area for my fingers to go through. I have so many scissors that are relegated to the scissor drawer because they either won't let me put my fingers in or they won't let my finger go when I want to put them down.

Now I'm off to play a bit...
Diane

PS.I learned something new yesterday. My male dog loves to eat Hydrangea leaves. I also learned Hydrangea leaves are not good for him. Lesson learned! Hydrangea is now out of the lanai and out of his reach.

What's on my needles

Again, I am making a dishcloth. :)

I found out my niece is getting married in September so I thought I would make her a few items. Her mom is a quilter so I will let her do that. 

While at Hobby Lobby this  week I found some cotton yarn called "I love this Cotton" and boy do I! It is so soft and has a slight sheen to it and feels so nice going through my fingers. 

Diane

What's on the needles

I've never been able to do this type if post before now, since I am just now learning to knit.

I'm showing three if the dishcloths I have made. 

Pardon the picture, it was taken while driving through Texas from Oklahoma at about 65mph.

 

 

Turning a corner?

Last night I slept for the first time without dreams! At least I don't remember any, so I'm pretty happy. I have had sleep issues for years and basically learned to live with them, but since April I have been happy to not sleep. Horrible, sad, anxious dreams do not leave you feeling able to face the world with a smile.
Ray finally convinced me to go see my GP so yesterday was the day. We talked, and cried (her mother died several months ago) and she offered some help and suggested I try taking something. I told her I didn't want to take anything that made me want to sleep walk, drive or eat! I don't want to feel like a zombie or drunk. And since medications generally make me nervous did she gaurantee no scary results?
Her response..."There are no guarantees in life or medicine." I like an honest doctor. She told me to try this pill tonight and if it didn't help just don't take anymore. If it does maybe we have found a way for you to sleep without all the anxiety you are having.
Well Doc, you were right! Thanks!

Sewing in my sewing room is still not happening much. Some times I can go and sit while listening to a book and press or cut or even get a couple of seams done, but weirdly out of the blue I start crying and have to leave the room. It's crazy because sewing was always how I managed my feelings. If being a mom was getting hard or a child was making me wild eyed I knew my sewing room was where I could go to work it out. Now it seems All I do in there is think of Moma and cry.  When will this stop?
Lately I have been sitting in the living room and knitting or crocheting. After 20+ dishcloths and multiple face washcloths I'm wondering what else I can make.  Kari may come over today so I'm sure I will send some of this home with her. She is always so sweet to take stuff home.  She may just chunk it in the trash, but is so sweet and just oohs and aahs over it and puts it in her car.

I still have that wedding quilt looming over me. I have come to the conclusion. It will not be finsihed before the wedding.

Maybe I'll take a walk.

Diane

What I do when I can't concentrate

When I can't concentrate on writing or reading patterns or I don't have the energy to think I refold fabric and make the stacks neat again.

This time I decided I was already tired of the newest fabric arrangement. I can't see them in the closet. I think I mentioned that when I was movingthe sewing  room. 

I thought I would try putting the fabric in the Ikea shelves so I could see them easily. Thinking I might actually use some of the still loved but older fabrics.  

I also sorted the three shelves on the far right into boy quilt fabrics, girls and either. That way when I want to make something for a child I can get right at it without spending so much time sorting through. 

We will see how this works. 

Working on less  than 3 hours of sleep at night for weeks. I'm a walking zombie. When will this get better? Soon I hope.

Sweet children

My children are so sweet.
My youngest brought these to me.

Back home

I'm back home from Texas. I haven't done much more than a couple loads of laundry.
I can't seem to focus. I feel guilty living so far away and my two sisters and sister in law are left to check on Daddy.
Thirty years ago we moved away (with many moves over the years) so I have to live with that decision, but guilt does creep in on occasion.

I have two goals for today.
1. Go into my sewing room
2. Cook a meal

We will see how it goes

Diane

Moma, me and our love of sewing...

Me and my Moma shared a love of all things sewing. It all began very early for me. Moma sewed everything we wore. With 4 daughters that meant many hours at the sewing machine. I loved waking up from my nap as a child and the only sound in the house was the purr of the machine and the click of Moma's scissors.
Grandma Emfinger taught me to embroidery when I was about six years old and Moma taught me to crochet. We made many pillowcases with embroidery and then crocheted the edges. That was how we spent the time riding in the car to and from the lake while Daddy drove, well that or shelling peas or making butter in a mason jar.
When I got to jr. high and high school I got to take home economics classes. My final grade project one year was a complete outfit. We decided I would make a gown and house coat for Jennifer. We had so much fun picking the fabric, the trim and buttons. She taught me to take my time on the curves and gently pull the threads to gather the sleeves to make them fit. She dried my tears when I had to rip the sleeve out the third time since I kept sewing too fast and not doing a good enough job and my stitches showed on the front.
She never could teach me to make a button hole so I put snaps on the housecoat. Me and Moma got an A+ on that outfit. Well I got an A, Moma got the +.

Moma made my wedding veil when I married. She gathered and stitched and appliquéd the trim and beaded until it was almost too heavy to wear. She said she loved every minute. I loved the results but mostly I love that she wanted to do that for me.

After I married I was introduced to quilting and I found my sewing passion. Mom followed me into this, but only ankle deep. She loved quilts, she loved looking at patterns and shopping for the fabrics, but while I saw a Dresden Plate or Log Cabin quilt top in the fabrics, she saw skirts and blouses.
Moma loved to travel but didn't get to very much. We had the opportunity to go to a quilt retreat in Pennsylvania and we jumped at the chance. We drove from Mobile AL to Bird In Hand , PA and Moma oohed and aahhed the whole way.
We had so much fun!
Several years ago Moma gave me the old brown Singer that sewed so many miles of stitches. It made every dress, shirt, slip, prom dress, choir formal, Easter dress, and shirt for Daddy for 25 or 30 years before she wore it out and bought another. The old brown machine is only good for memories now but I don't walk past it that I don't think of all the love that came out of it.
The Barbie doll clothes she made for me and Dorie while we were taking our naps so they would be a surprise for Christmas. We had the best dressed Barbies in town!
The new birthday outfit every year, usually green, for the St Patrick's Day girl.
New dresses for the first day of school.
My prom dress, 4 bridesmaids dresses and my veil that was all made in a 6 week period because no one else's mom sewed and me and mom found the "perfect" pattern and fabric.

But mostly I remember the life lessons.
" slow down"
" measure carefully"
"Read the instructions"
"Spread the fullness out evenly"
" it isn't worth doing unless you're going to do it right"



We buried Moma yesterday.

Blogger is weird

Posts made a week ago are just showing up. :^/

I was able to see Daddy today. He saw Ray first and was so excited, then he asked where I was. I brought him a Whataburger, his favorite. I helped him eat that, he said he was full. I told him I brought a cookie so he brightened up and shoved it in. About five minutes later I was going to rake his meal tray out and asked if he wanted his pudding. He said there is always room for pudding! ;) Daddy loves his sweets.

Diane

Fun with my friends

Ray had to be in Mobile so of course I jumped in the truck.
Yesterday I was able to attend quilt guild and see so many of my favorite people. We went to lunch afterwards then on to my Nancy's. I had a wonderful time!

Today Karen drove over and got me and we ran the roads to Susan's quilt shop. Between yesterday and today I have added to my reproduction fabrics quite nicely. ;?)

Now I am sewing and watching last weeks Quiltcam. How fun.

Diane

iPhone, iPad or Blogger app...

I have two blog posts just sitting on my phone and won't load. I can't get them to delete either! So I am trying on the iPad to see if I can screw this up too. ;?)

Yesterday Karen took the morning off work to come see me. We had such a wonderful time! We drove over to Susan's heirloom sewing center and spent a good while bumping our gums (as my Papa would say) with the owners and workers. Had lots of laughs, caught up on gossip and spent a little money.

Today I pack up and head to Texas. My MIL is going to a family reunion and Ray and I are going to drive her and her two sisters. It will be so nice to have them as a captive audience for several hours and ask all sorts of questions.

I sure hope this posts...

Diane

Look what I learned !

I give credit to Judy Laquidara. I admire her socks all the time and would love to make my own. SE always tells everyone, " If you want to do something, learn how and do it!"
Well I have tried for years and I mean years, to learn to knit. I can crochet and love it, but knitting always confused me. Years ago while living in Mobile we had a quilt guild member from England that gave us knitting lessons. She was very patient and everyone learned so much for her. Everyone that is but me. I couldn't do it to save my life. It was a mental block I guess.

Long story short...I was playing around on You Tube Saturday night and happened to see a "learn to cast on" video. I watched it and nothing...couldn't see what she was doing. Who do so many people load videos that actually show the table they are at, but not so much what they are trying to show us?
Anyway...I tried another video...better but couldn't do it. I said I would try one more. Third time is a charm! I got it! It made sense! I can only cast on and do the knit stitch, but it's a start. My thoughts are make a dishcloth and get really good at this knit stitch then try to learn to purl.

WooHoo!

Diane

On the injured list

You know you have done way too much cutting and ironing when...

Bought at Joann's and they really help

Usually this keeps the arthritis in my thumb from getting too painful, but last night after wearing it most of the day and taking Naproxen with very little much help I had to get some relief.

I pulled out this and took more meds.  Funny thing is after thinking about it I'm not sure if it was just my thumb or if I managed to irritate my wrist. Once the Tylenol kicked in to help the Naproxen and I was in agony I was able to analyze and came up with more pain in the wrist than the base of the thumb. Who knows? Sounds about par for me. I can't have one minor pain  I have to kick it up a notch. I'll wear this today and see if I can nip this. I don't want to have to wear this on my trip coming up.

Suggestions:

Pay attention to any pain that creeps in. Don't keep pushing until it is bad. I think if I had stopped sooner I wouldn't be hurting so much.

MODERATION. I honestly can't do moderation well, but that is what my doctor keeps telling me so I will pass it along. Give yourself rest periods.

When you are in a time crunch, stop looking at new designs and redesigning old ones. PICK A PATTERN and stick to it! I could be finished with two king size quilt tops by now if I had stopped doing the butterfly thing. sheesh!



Ok, I will be careful and only piece today. It will be hard to not trim, but I will just stack it up and trim tomorrow. We will see what happens.

Diane

Design wall

I designed this quite a while back but as usual I sat it aside when something else came into the room. I think i moved it to do some mending on one of the kids clothes. They never bring one item, it's usually half of their closet at a time. Anyway the other day I opened a box that said 1 1/2" strips and I saw CW fabrics so I thought that was what I was getting. Nope!

This is what I came up with.

I like the appearance of curves.

More later.
Diane

Peek

This was the first idea.

 

Typical layout and piecing design

 I have always loved this pattern, so don't ask me why I didn't think of it first. I like the pattern, but don't like set in seams. So I redrew it in EQ to make it easier to piece. Then I recolored it.

Same layout, no inset seems.

I like this a LOT better. Then sometimes I look at it and I'm not sure. do the four light pieces jump out at you like headlights? I like the simple applique on the border. Does it look too dainty for as bold as the pattern is? I guess proportion is what I mean.

I made a sample and put it on the cork board so I can look at it. Maybe I should change some of the placements? I have already changed my mind about the cone/handle piece. It will be a lighter green since I don't want 25 green cones being the first thing you see. Also the green leaves will be darker. They need to be as strong as the flowers.

I originally thought about making it in my CW repro fabrics, but have changed my mind. So I am working from my stash which isn't wonderful since I have mainly bought CW fabrics for the past who knows how long. Maybe I should go buy some FQs while I am in Mobile. There are several places to shop in Pensacola and in Mississippi all being about an hour away.

Since I woke up so late this afternoon I think I will probably sew all night, which will mess with my sleep schedule even more. Oh well, if it isn't one thing it's another.

Tell me what you think of the block and the layout. I need hints since I am the only female in the house and I don't know any quilters here. This is when I miss my Mobile ladies all the more.

Diane

 

Sleep glorious sleep and wedding quilt maddness

Sleep, wonderful sleep. I finally got some last night...this morning..whenever it was.
I have been averaging about 4 hours for the past week or so and I am a 8-9 hours a night kinda gal. I HAVE to have sleep. Ray can live on 5-6 and function just fine. Not me!
Last night as I was looking at the clock and wishing my eyes would close I decided to listen to a book I have listened to many times. I thought it is such a comforting story and I love the narrator so I might could be lulled to sleep. BINGO! I don't know what time I fell asleep, but I slept until 1:30 PM!!! My day is shot, but who cares! It would be shot anyway if I walked around bleary eyed anyway.

Prior to not sleeping Ray and I were discussing the wedding quilt. Well I was whining and he was ignoring me. Finally out of desperation and fear that I would never shut up he asked me what I was whining about.

Me:  I can't find "THE" pattern. I know I keep jumping around and I have made a dozen sample blocks but they are not right. None of them. I don't like any of them!
Him:  You have a thousand books, a million magazines and EQ and Blockbase...you can't find ONE pattern that you like?
Me: I haven't looked at Blockbase or my magazines...I have looked at the books and have played around EQ.
Him: Try your magazines.

 This wasn't the exact conversation, but close enough for the G-rated blog post. Basically I whined and ranted and wailed about no one ever caring about all my stress and inability to create beautiful quilts. No one listens to me when I have a problem. Me asking how he can sit there working on his computer while I am in tears. Him looking at me as if to ask, "Are you talking to me?
That is when I stalked off and grabbed a handful of old magazines and sat in the floor mumbling under my breath.

I have magazines all over the floor in the hall (that is where the bookshelves are), in my sewing room floor, all over my foot stool which is the size of a small bed, and there are even some in the kitchen.

I found a couple I liked...made MORE sample blocks...narrowed it down more... reworked a design in EQ...maybe...maybe...oh I like this...
Pulled fabric from my stash. Measured. Measured again. I have everything I need, except background fabric. isn't that always the case? You always need to buy something! I got online and found a solid online for way less money than I could buy local. Like half the price. Since I needed 8 yards I bought it online. Yep, 8 yards. Large quilt.
I went ahead and cut as much as I could so when the fabric arrives I can wash, iron and cut quickly and start sewing. I still need to decide on greens. The pattern has, sashing, large piece in each block and applique vine and leaves and binding that are greens. I can't decide if I should use 3 different or if I should combine two of them. The blocks will be scrappy, the background one fabric, and so I need to decide so I can get busy making a thousand miles of vines.

Enough babbling...there is work to be done!
Diane

I should have known

Just when I think I can get a few things accomplished....

It has taken me all day to get this one measly block made. It is setting on top of the floral fabric that I used to pick the colors. I still like the block, but...it is probably the colors, or the fact I need more blocks or something but it looks very choppy the four dark pink squares are popping out at me.

Maybe it is the size of the block. This block finishes at 12" and I am used to working with smaller sizes. Maybe it is just too large.

On to the next block.

Diane