Catching up . . .

Long time since I posted, but I've had a house guest, not to mention a bout of shingles. Boo-hiss! I'm a cheap drunk . . . used to go to nickel beer night, and take a dime . . . so, I usually respond well to medications, too. Since I last suffered this malady, the medication routine has changed, and I didn't feel so much like a zombie . . . or like I'd been on a 10-cent drunk! The biggest aftermath that I have noticed, fortunately, is a lack of stamina, but that's building up, too, and I'd say I'm back to 98% normal . . . whatever that is!

My house guest has been our eldest niece, who lives about one hour from Lafayette. Her mother is DH's eldest sister, with a 28 year gap between the two of them, not to mention 6 more brothers, and 4 more sisters. Helen, at 92, has been at the nursing home across the street from our home since last May, after falling down the stairs, and breaking her leg and wrist. She suffers the symptoms of Alzheimer's, and Jane, her daughter, is the only person she recognizes most of the time. With our 20 inches of snow, and road closings, we were delighted to have Jane stay with us. She's a wonderful guest, and we actually had a lot of fun. She said it's been the longest vacation she was ever on . . . about 3 1/2 weeks actually, but it went by so quickly, it seemed like a mere weekend.

Knowing my fondness for old quilts, Jane brought this Double Wedding Ring beauty, made by her paternal grandmother. It is a feast for the eyes with the striking red background, and the piecing is a festival of 20's and 30's prints, including some feed sack prints. As the pictures show, it is in marvelous condition.

Last weekend, Jane needed to check in at home, and there was an auction . . . surprise, surprise . . . so, we had breakfast, and piled into the van for a trip to Monticello. The auctioneer is not one of my favorites. For one thing, when the price offered isn't what he thinks it should be, he berates the crowd, telling them they should check "downtown" to see the value of the object. He also will arbitrarily remove items from the sale if he doesn't like the price offered . . which is a clear violation of the law. If it's advertised without a reserve, he has a legal obligation to sell it. Needless to say, his crowd usually thins out pretty quickly, and at the end, he is subject to selling tables full of items for $1. To make matters worse, he makes derogatory comments against a religious entity, and everyone there wonders how he can be so politically incorrect in these times.

We did buy just a couple things. DH scored a small metal Lily thread cabinet, and a box full of old wooden spools. He found about a dozen Lily spools which will go in the cabinet. There was also a grocery sack full of knitting needles, so he bought that for me. (At that point, Jane and I had gone to her house.) There was another cache of embroidery kits of various types, that he bid on, and the lady who won the bid was kind enough to give me about ten circular knitting needles she found in the bottom of that bag. When DH bid on the bag of knitting needles, he didn't realize they had thrown in four boxes of yarns that were under the table. I found more needles in that stash. The knitter had been a maker of afghans, and there were multiple skeins of acrylic yarns included in those boxes. DH will take all that bounty to our Senior Citizens Center, where the ladies make afghans and other items for sale in their gift shop. We finally have convinced them that sending us a thank you note each time we bring yarn is an unnecessary expense. We are happy that they can put it to use, and that's thanks enough.

My sock knitting frenzy continues. I started a pair of a lace pattern, but have decided that using the self-striping yarns is entertainment enough, and I enjoy the rhythm of just making plain socks. I've also knitted another sweater for my grandson's "American Boy", and my grand-daughter's American Girl has a fun little vest with a turquoise yarn with nubbies of pink, purple, yellow, and green. I used the purl side of stockinette because it seems more of the nubbies show. Both were fun, and fast to produce.

It's time once again to "plow" my studio, which hasn't yet recovered from my Miss Mary's Retreat. I need to take quite a few of the UFO's down to the basement to "mature", and focus on finishing one or two tops. I'm sure my knitting frenzy will be put aside for quilting again because next Saturday, a few of us are heading to Bloomington, Indiana, for the Indiana Heritage Quilt Show, which will be inspiring. I'm trying to stay on a "fabric diet" for this event. We'll see how that goes!

Hot knitting!

I've been on a knitting frenzy for several weeks, mostly knitting socks with the fun, self-striping yarns, but including an occasional solid color. The deep purple are a pair for my sister-in-law, and the yarn has little color slubs scattered throughout it. I worked the ribbing in a mock cable, which is very subtle. I think she will enjoy them.

My grand-daughter has American Girl dolls, and in my never ending quest for the title of "Nana of the Year", I have made several sweaters for her collection. The most recently finished just needed buttons and finishing, but I kept putting it off. Finally, I sat down one evening, and completed the yellow vest with daisy buttons, and a light purple "Henley" style for her.

My 3-year-old grandson, Ben, watching his sister play, has been pleading his case for an American "Boy". So, recently, he acquired his version . . . a Cabbage Patch doll, which he promptly named, "Addy", for his brother. One of his first efforts was to try to put his sister's American Girl sweaters on his American Boy. Later that evening, I received a phone call from him, with the assistance of his giggling older sister reporting that the doll needed clothes, and Ben told me he wanted a sweater, too.

The sewing machine assisted in the assembly of a couple shirts, and a pair of purple jeans. One of the shirts has Batman and Robin on it, favorites of Ben. The other has crayons and star buttons, though the closures are velcro to make it easier for those chubby, little, cute hands.

I scouted around, and was fortunate to locate a booklet of sweater patterns on E-Bay. Naturally, no price was too high, when it is for one's grandchild, but I negotiated a nice reasonable price, and as soon as it arrived, commenced knitting with choices made from a basket of yarns left from other projects. For Ben, I was careful to select easily washable yarns, but I have been known to use mohair for his sister's dolls. Projects completed include the green "snowsuit", complete with cable sweater, hat and pants, and a couple pullovers. The turquoise one was actually one I started for his sister's doll, but the gauge was out of whack and it was going to be too large. Once I had the knitting book, I proportioned sleeves to fit the front and back already completed, and was one project to the good in very short order. The last sweater shown was an ombre yarn pullover, with buttons on the shoulders. I can't wait to see that cute little face when I get to give these to him. Unfortunately, the heavy winter storm which attacked us Tuesday forced me to cancel my trip to Virginia today. But, I'll re-schdule soon, and that just gives me a bit more time to keep knitting . . . working on purple socks for grand-daughter's doll at the moment!

Continuing the thread . . . .

Another auction score!

It's winter, so that means it is also "refinishing season" for my DH. Here's one of his latest efforts with a sewing box. The top drawer is false, and actually lifts up to reveal a small compartment. It appears to have three additional drawers, however, the bottom two are actually a single combination providing a deeper drawer. It was ratty, and dirty, and scratched, but, once again, his skill has triumphed.

The little sewing machine on top was a surprise. We were at an auction, and I had not even seen the machine, though it was listed in the sale ad. Bidding began, and I looked around for DH, believing he was on the other side of the building where they were selling tools. I couldn't see him behind me, but that was where the bidding was originating. Another frequent auction attendee, Bill, usually buys sewing machines and restores them for sale on E-Bay, so I thought he must be after the prize. I just kept to my knitting, firm in the belief that it would sell at a price well beyond my budget. The winning bid was hammered, and the machine carried to the back of the room behind me. Imagine my surprise when the ring man turned and brought it to me! I nearly jumped out of my seat. Behind me, peaking around a pillar, I spotted Norm. So, this little Betsy Ross toy machine, manufactured by Gibraltar Manufacturing in the 1950's in New Jersey, has a cherished spot in our home.

We're looking forward to an auction on Saturday. My niece has been spending a few days with us to be in closer proximity to her mother, my DH's eldest sister, who is 92, and in the nursing home located across the street from our house. Jane asked Norm if he knew anything about old foreign monies, and he reported he had a few contacts, though he felt his knowledge was limited. A few days later, she returned and brought a box of coins, both foreign and American money. A couple interesting pieces included coins minted in the New Orleans mint, which closed in 1905. He helped her catalog her pieces, and contacted an auctioneer who specializes in coins. The auctioneer had a cancellation, so her coins will be substituted and offered to the public on Saturday. I'll report how she does, but we both gasped when she said she nearly took the American money, rolled it into coin wrappers, and cashed it in for face value. There were a number of 1800's coins that are pure silver. It will be nice to see her achieve a little extra pocket money for something that has been in her closet for years!

No one will be surprised to learn that I also bought a box of knitting needles at the sale. Actually, they had a needle roll with about 20 pairs of straight needles in it. The bidding quickly went to about $25, which was still a bargain, but more than I wanted to spend on knitting needles I didn't need. I set my sites on a long box that had circular needles, straight needles, double-pointed needles, and other knitting notions, just dumped into it. Successful bid was $17.50, which yielded 27 sets of straights, 34 double-points, and 26 circular. There were a number of odd needles, but I pulled out my little stash of "orphans" at home, and was able to pair up an additional four pair of straight needles, as well as three sets of double-points, matching not only size, but color and manufacturer. When I teach someone to knit, I launch them into their new hobby with as complete a set of needles as I can provide, to encourage them to keep with it. (I've also been known to share when someone is desperately seeking something hard to find.)

Next post, I'll show the results of my current knitting frenzy in my quest for title of "Nana of the Year".

Retreat Results

Retreat came and went in a whirlwind. Of course, I had projects for about two weeks, upon review. But I did get quite a bit accomplished. First, i worked on a couple of my red and white Kansas Troubles blocks, just to get warmed up.

Then, I attacked the "scrap box". Last year, Linda G. was working from a bright yellow shoe box of scraps, making a pieced setting for some of the Lorilei girls. She was going to toss the remainder of the scraps, but I protested, and she gave the box to me. I got out my box of Kabnet Wax deli paper (see Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville website), marked a 10 1/2 inch square, with a 2" wide diagonal line for the purpose of centering my starter strip. I chose a white background with small black stars to be the constant fabric. Also in the box were some black as well as white half-square triangles for a 3" finish. Centering my starter strip, I just began adding bright strips of various sizes, to the point where the half-square would fit in the corner. Just worked with my "hand-me-down" strips at first. Since Miss Mary's Quilting Cottage is right next door to the Quilter's Harvest, we had to make a daily foray into the shop, just in case we may have missed something on a previous visit. I selected about ten fat quarters to add to the mix, and just kept going. We also made a "field trip" to Sew Creative, to visit our Mary J., who was working that day. A quick stop at my house, to grab a tub of brights, and I managed to assemble about 20 blocks. I'm planning to make about 28 more. It's going to be bright and fun, don't you think?

What may even be more fun is that we have launched a new tradition with the original yellow shoe box. I've added strips, and as soon as I complete my blocks, I'm passing it along to Ginny K. to play with it. It should be interesting to examine the fabrics when the box has made a full round to see if any of the original fabrics remain.

Next up, the quest of assembling the two remaining sets of shop hop blocks from the four shop hops I participated in in 2006. I had taken time to cut all the pieces, so I merely needed to open each packet and sew them together. With the good journaling habits I've learned from Laura, I pasted each instruction sheet into my journal, noting which shop distributed it, and the date I assembled it. Next project will be to descide on a set. The pinks and turquoises are the 2006 Flamingo Trot blocks from Tampa, Florida, area.

The last packet of shop hop blocks were from the 2006 Paducah Booth Hop featuring Judy Martin's fabric line for Timeless Treasures. I have always loved Judy's approach to quilt making. She doesn't rely on short cuts so much, but offers correct cutting instructions for perfect assembly. Ive managed to collect all of her books. Her book, "Scrap Quilts", has seen so many miles of use, that I had to take it to Kinko's to have plastic covers and coiled binding added to keep it together.

I think I made a remarkable amount of progress. Nothing can explain the fun, and how hard we laughed. There isn't any kind of "training" that prepares one for the aching sides from laughing. What a gift . . . friendship is the thread that quilts our hearts together.

Launch time!

Jan has arrived from Texas, and zero hour for departure to Miss Mary's Quilting Cottage approaches. This means it is time for the final cut. I made my selections, and whittled the stack to these six containers. I will, however, confess to pulling out some excess fabrics, and consolidating two projects in one container in at least one case. The trick is selecting the right mix of applique and piecing projects.

My food contributions are nearly complete. Last night, I sauted ground chuck as well as onions and celery. The will become part of my soup du Miss Mary's, "Cabbage Patch Stew". The recipe came from the 1998 Taste of Home Annual Cookbook. My DH started to complain that I hadn't made any for him yet this year. I whipped up a batch of lemon bars, and finished off the cookfest with sauted breakfast sausage, to be included in a breakfast casserole. It's easy and great because it is assembled, with sausage, cubed bread, eggs, milk, and cheddar cheese, all refrigerated overnight. Just pop it in the oven first thing in the morning, and serve.

Classic story about "breakfast casserole". I have prepared it many times over the years, and my husband loves it. One weekend, we had guests, and it was on the menu. Our guests included 3-year-old Weslie. I brought the casserole dish to the table fresh from the oven. Weslie took one look, and clapped her hands together, exclaiming, "OHHHHH! I just LOVE quiche!" I had never used the term in front of my DH. He turned to look at me so quickly, he nearly twisted his head off his neck!

I've just been told it's my turn in the shower to get beautiful, and we'll start to load the van. I just hope my sides are in condition for the laughing which always accompany one of these events!

Launching the 2007 Retreat "Season"!

Let the madness begin! It's almost here. Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, will find me with about 10 of my best friends at Miss Mary's Quilting Cottage. I've started a little stack of things to take. From the top down, I have:
1) Paducah Booth Hop Blocks
2) My Santa applique blocks
3) A strips and strings project complete with Kabinet Wax, ready to start sewing
4) Half square triangles, for "leaders and enders"
5) Kissin' Cousins quilt blocks to assemble
6) Millenium blocks, ready to sash and assemble (Way ahead on that one! Whoops . . . different millenium!)
7) Illiana Shop Hop blocks assembled, ready to set together
8) Florida Shop Hop blocks for 2005, assembled, and ready to set
9) Florida Shop Hop blocks for 2006, cut and ready to assemble.
10) A strippy Basket Block quilt top, ready to sew strips together
11) Perfume bottle blocks, ready to sash and set together
12) Pre-cut Contrary Wife blocks, ready to assemble
13) Kansas Troubles blocks in progress. I put some up on my fleece to see how they look. I like the way some of the red and white setting triangles look pink in the picture. I'm past half done with the piecing. Will have to think about borders.
14) Tea Pot blocks from The Quilt Company.
15) A blooming cup of Tea applique project.
16) A top that needs a few pieced blocks to make the border.

Since I will only be gone 4 days, I suspect this list will be subject to a great deal of cutting down. We chatted about renting a PODS unit to have our projects delivered, then putting our cars inside the unit, so we won't have to clean snow and ice off the windows. That was Marguerite's idea. I don't know why everyone says she's so dumb?

My sister-in-law, Jan, will be arriving Wednesday from Texas. She sent a box ahead, with her projects. We keep a featherweight and lamp, and most of the other tools she will need. She has a drawer in my studio where I stash things for her, and a couple drawers in the guest room for things she decides to leave here. We even keep a winter coat for her, so she doesn't have to haul it back and forth. When she comes off the plane, we will be in the terminal with the coat all warmed up for her.

I will try to take some "action" photos while we are in attendance at Miss Mary's. By Sunday, we should all be covered with thread, and happily exhausted.

Happy New Year . . .

It's New Year's Day, my DH is working at an antique auction, and I've stayed home to continue the "plowing" of my studio. It's going well . . . I've actually struck carpet, and have more than just a path to the sewing machine.

I made a brief visit to the auction to see if there was anything I couldn't possibly live without . . . they didn't have much, but they had a lot of it! So, it's going to be a long day for DH, but as you can imagine, the clock is going double time for me, since I must return to the workaday world tomorrow. On my way home from the auction, it seemed like a good time to stop by the local Hobby Lobby. All the clearance table fabrics were on sale for half the lowest price marked. I only picked up as much as I could carry in one trip . . . must get back to my exercise program to build my arm strength! I found a nice beige neutral, a Hoffman print with sea creatures in bright colors, a cute Halloween print (for $1 per yard!), some brights, and an adorable border print in black and white with poodles for my friend, Kathy. What a great way to spend New Year's Day!

Our group is getting wired up for our annual Miss Mary's Quilting Cottage adventure at the end of January. I've been carefully stacking projects which I might possibly take to work on. If I take them all, I'll have to rent a PODS unit to have them delivered! There is likely to be a whole lot of "whittling" done to the stack. I have good intentions of taking an applique project, and one or two piecing projects in hopes of getting tops assembled. We've been talking about this trip since about Thanksgiving, or immediately after returning from the Florida Shop Hop . . . . whichever came first! We have enough food to stay for a week, but it's only four days . . . which goes entirely too quickly, of course. Last year, I managed to get the center of my Dear Jane quilt assembled, and followed up with hand-piecing of the triangle border. It's all together now . . . I need to put aside my applique and piecing projects, and address some of my "ready-to-quilt" collection.

I did have a mission in mind, when I stopped at Hobby Lobby, and amazingly, I actually accomplished it. I was looking for a white with a small print in brights, or a white with black small scale print. I found white with small black stars scattered at random. I intend to mate it with a shoe box full of bright strips given to me at Miss Mary's last year, and assemble one of Bonnie Hunter's strip quilts using Kab-net Wax deli paper for a foundation. That should be a great mindless kind of task for those sewing days when I don't care to think too much.

I hear my Featherweight calling me . . . along with the box of Contrary Wife blocks all ready for assembly. I'd better launch dinner in the crockpot, and get sewing while I have the chance.

For the New Year, may your needle always be threaded, and the thread be free from knots!

Time's flying and so are my fingers!

I've been neglecting my blogging, but not my needlework! Between my applique and sock knitting, my fingers are seldom still.

Was lucky to go on a road trip with a three of my good friends a few weeks ago. We went to Crown Point, Indiana, to a shop called, "Bits and Pieces". Really nice shop that was discovered last summer on the Illiana Shop Hop. I found a wonderful pattern for lots of Santas. I have an addiction to Christmas quilts. Just love them! Next stop was the Fabric Center in Morris, Illinois. They have such a wonderful selection of batiks . . . if the perfect one isn't in their offerings, it hasn't been made!

I've continued to work on my shop hop block inventory. I just finished the last two blocks from the First Annual Illiana Shop Hop, titled, "Leave Summer Behind". That leaves two more sets, but they are both all pieced.


I've been neglecting my blogging, but not my needlework! Between my applique and sock knitting, my fingers are seldom still.

Was lucky to go on a road trip with a three of my good friends a few weeks ago. We went to Crown Point, Indiana, to a shop called, "Bits and Pieces". Really nice shop that was discovered last summer on the Illiana Shop Hop. I found a wonderful pattern for lots of Santas. I have an addiction to Christmas quilts. Just love them! Next stop was the Fabric Center in Morris, Illinois. They have such a wonderful selection of batiks . . . if the perfect one isn't in their offerings, it hasn't been made!

I've continued to work on my shop hop block inventory. I just finished the last two blocks from the First Annual Illiana Shop Hop, titled, "Leave Summer Behind". That leaves two more sets, but they are both all pieced.

I was supposed to complete my Artist's Trading Cards by our group's Christmas exchange. I found a mini-teapot pattern from a number of years ago, and launched the first one using that pattern. The pattern had three pieces, the top, the body of the teapot, and the base, and there was "daylight" between the three pieces. I just didn't like it, so I ditched it, and decided I would postpone my distribution to our January retreat. I didn't want to feel rushed and exasperated, but would rather enjoy the project, and think of my friends while creating the ATC's. I started over, and altered the pattern to have the pieces joined together. I made a contrast base, and instead of having the gap between the top and the pot, I repeated the base fabric as a very narrow trim . . . probably about 1/16th of an inch wide. I'm delighted with the result, and anxious to move onto the next ones. I just grabbed the stack of scraps from making perfume bottles, so my choices all have gold or silver on them. It's tempting to launch another giant quilt, with lots of exotic teapots! But, I'll just keep repeating . . . finish some UFO's!

We didn't leave home for the Holidays, but I seemed to spend quite a bit of time in the car. I hauled out my knitting for the road trip above, since I wanted to avoide being car sick doing any applique in the backseat! I managed to finish a sock, to complete another pair on that trip. I always take a project to auctions with me, too, so that gives me the benefit of unrestricted knitting time. The biggest problem I have at an auction is getting carried along with the cadence of the auctioneer's calls. The faster they sell, the faster I knit. Once, I knitted seven inches past where I was supposed to make a pattern change!

DH and I did a little bit of shopping together, and he drove, so I carried along my knitting. I've been using some self-striping yarns for the socks. They are great fun to make, and feel wonderful to wear with the crisp weather. The self-striping yarns make it go quickly, as the color changes come up, and one wants to "continue the thread" to see the next color change. I actually made some "dorm socks" for my daughter-in-law on Friday and Saturday, and wrapped them for her for Christmas. She put them on immediately, and loves them. The pattern was a freebie, written for a specific yarn, but it seemed harsh and scratchy to me when I felt it. So, I chose another that was much softer. I have a basket full of sock yarns next to my "nest" in the living room. I'm hoping for a blizzard . . . or at least unlimited time to devote to my handwork. Aren't we all?

Piecing Paradise!

I must say I thoroughly enjoyed my Thanksgiving long weekend. My husband had to do a rush paint job for one of the Purdue sororities that he usually paints for in the summer. He was so concerned that he wouldn't be able to complete it in the alloted 4 1/2 days, that on Thursday morning, he went over and worked four hours in the morning, while I was cooking. His progress was somewhat impeded on Saturday, when he arrived to find water running down a previously painted wall. Investigation revealed it wasn't bath plumbing. It turned out that in one of the rooms, the occupants had forced a bunch of things into the corner near the radiator, and snapped the valve off. So, if he had not been in the house, the resulting leak would have continued without any attention until late Sunday afternoon. The house mother was really glad he was there! He called the house maintenance man, who came immediately, and called the plumbers to take care of that problem while Norm repainted the wall that was damaged. He worked until 6:30PM on Sunday evening determined to finish.

The net result was that I had all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday, to do anything I wished. I prepared applique templates for blocks in progress, pieced the last two Block of the Month kits from my LQS, washed some fabrics, knitted a bit, watched movies, and did some other piecing, too. When the "sameness" of some of my piecing began to be monotonous, I decided I would drag out the first of four shop hop block collections, and begin to piece those. It was so satisfying to pick up a kit, make a few cuts, and have a completed block in short order. I made five of the nine kits from my first Florida shop hop last year on Sunday afternoon, and two more last night. The two kits remaining are a mindbender for me, since their construction is based in some of the popular "short cuts". Since I don't suffer math anxiety, and don't use those techniques, I'm finding them difficult to assemble. In one of the kits, there are lots of seams that I would have eliminated, but the fabric provided is configured such that it isn't possible to make a straight-forward cutting of the pieces for assembly. In the other, a bias edge is placed on the outside edge of the block intentionally. I suppose it doesn't make much difference for only one block, but it goes against my "grain"! EQ5 to the rescue . . . I'll redraft it to eliminate that bias edge, if I can do it within the pieces provided! Fortunately, I collected fat quarters of some of the fabrics used in the blocks; so, perhaps I can re-cut from those to make assembly easier.

Seeing the end of that project in view, I grabbed my other kits to review. Only one of the other shop hop projects has any applique, and those suggest fusing. I love doing applique so much, I have no interest in using that technique. I think of John Flynn's comment on fusing in a class that I took from him at Quilt America. He said, "If you are going to hot glue your quilts, you might just as well use duct tape!" All in all, one must consider the use (and abuse) the finished project will receive, but I find handwork so relaxing, I can't picture fusing becoming a technique of choice for me.

Friday was a really good day. I went to my LQS to pick up a Block of the Month kit. I always check the sale fabrics, and in this case, the grab bag bin. I scored some greens in one grab bag, some brights in another, and some extra blocks for the previous BOM called Monday Madness. In that project, an 8-inch classic block was made in greens and neutral framed with a red sawtooth border. The applique blocks are Old World Santas. Those extra BOM kits will make a few more blocks if I need them, and permit me to create an original set for my quilt.

Then, the really special purchase of the day . . . for the holiday weekend, of course, they had many items in the shop on sale. That included some floor samples of their Pfaff and Bernina machines. I kept looking at the selection, and one of my friends who works there, suggested that I test drive them. She set up a couple, and I fiddled around with them, and they were all lovely. I couldn't make up my mind, so I asked her which she would buy from those offered. I knew I did not want a machine with computer add-ons . . . been there, done that . . . and spent more in repairs than I paid for that machine in the first place. She put her choice machine on the table for me, and I played with it for a few minutes. Then, I turned around and said, "I'm taking this one home with me." It's a Pfaff 1529; has plenty of bells and whistles, and does everything I want it to do. It is capable of machine quilting, if I ever decide I really want to pursue that. Sewing with that was an added attraction for the balance of the weekend.

Finally, we have a Featherweight acquired at auction that we took for service. There was short in the foot control, and the tension needed correction. Fortunately, there is a wonderful sewing machine service shop in nearby Lebanon, Indiana, owned by Gary Sink. The man is a magician with a sewing machine. He worked his magic on this latest acquisition, and we are keeping it for our grand-daughter. Sews like a dream, of course!

Hope everyone enjoyed the holiday weekend as much as I did!

More fun for button collectors!

Looking around at a couple other blogs, and I noticed some wonderful vintage buttons at Scraps and Threadtales. If you love vintage buttons, be sure to take a look.

I'm trying to get myself organized, so I can accomplish something. Our small quilt group is exchanging Artist's Trading Cards. They are to finish the approximate size of a baseball card. With only about a month to go, and ten or twelve to make, I thought today, I better get started. One nice thing is that they can be made completely from scraps! I'm trying to decide if I additionally want to make mine with seasonal fabrics. I'm doing applique, and my "icon" has only three pieces . . . it's a tiny tea pot. Next question is if they should be all one fabric, or two! I tend to think they will be more interesting with two fabrics, so the lid and base have a little more contrast. The rules are that embellishments cannot contribute to the thickness of the ATC more than the depth of a dime. That eliminates lots of beads, or anything of that sort. I'm looking forward to getting started this evening.

Florida Fabrics for Fun!

The tea pot fabric I couldn't resist is shown here with the fabrics selected to make a rose, as well as the pattern I found later! I'm certain that I need to add a couple fabrics to the rose choices, and probably delete one or two, also. That mauve one is really screaming at me in this photo . . . saying, "Get me out of here!" Not sure what color I will use for a background. Perhaps a very pale sage, if I can find one.


Here are my shop hop fabrics selected to accompany the block kits acquired from each shop along our path. The theme fabric for Flamingo Trot, of course, was the flamingo fabric in the center. I don't know if I will use all of these in the quilt, but at least I have a number of candidates! Don't really have any setting in mind. Thought I would decide after I make the blocks! Since I just love applique, I may have to make a center medallion, and use the blocks to border it. I've got a couple interesting flamino applique candidates in my library. I'll just let my imagination stew on this subject for a while. I'm sure something will come to me!

Needless to say, I bought more than I could EASILY carry with me on the plane. Fortunately, Melanie had an extra suitcase that she needed to send back to Indiana. Being the generally good-hearted soul I am, I volunteered to put my fabric choices in it, and check it through. Laura helped me, too. And, we included the purchases we made to bring back for the other gals in our group who weren't able to make the trip. Amazingly enough, we filled the extra suitcase up, but didn't go over the weight limit . . . that was what I was afraid would happen!

From cheery to dreary!

Who could resist traveling with such a great crew? (From the left, Laura, Kathy, Patti, Marguerite, Jan, and our hostess, Melanie.) Picture was taken on the lanai at Melanie's home in Florida. We all flew in to participate in a shop hop called, "The Flamingo Trot". Needless to say, a great time was had by all. Now, we are all back in our appointed locations, and I don't know about Kathy or Jan's locations, but it is dark and dreary and raining here for me!

Because I was afraid there might be a worldwide shortage of cotton fabrics, which might limit my ability to create the quilts running around my brain cells, I was a good participant. I purchased the shop hop blocks at each location, and sufficient fabrics to create a lovely remembrance of the trip. Might be enough in that stack to cover my mini-van.

Being the great American that I am, I contributed to the economy by selecting additional fabrics for some other projects. In one case, I found a fabric that I couldn't live without, and thought how lovely it would be to pick up the rose trim on tea pots and tea cups in the print for applique. I selected some fabrics in a color run of reds, and a couple sage greens, light and dark, for stems and leaves. I reasoned that I probably have suitable patterns in my collection to follow through with the project in my imagination. At the next shop, I found an applique pattern that I walked by and examined at least six times. Finally, I was compelled to purchase it, because, of course, I already have the fabrics for it! Am I lucky, or what?

Next post, I'll make you drool with a display of my fabrics, and some additional snapshots, "on location."

Borders on a stalled project

Tired of spinning in circles, I decided to attack those UFO's that required the shortest amount of attention to enable moving them to my "quilt top collection". Here's the first one. It started as a "cheater" panel . . . also known as "ready to quilt". While they serve the purpose of a quick gift quite nicely, I like to think I have more imagination than just "slapping on some borders, and calling it a quilt". This was a sample for a class called, "Everybody loves a cheater!". The focus was to use the panel as a starting point, but create something more personal. As can be seen, I framed the large portion of the panel to bring it out to an even measurement. Then surrounded it with blocks. The star blocks feature the remaining portions of the panel at the center. I had some orphan maple leaf blocks that were not used in my Maple Leaf quilt. I made a few more using the same neutral as the star blocks, and framed them with flying geese, four patches, and even an hour glass, or two. If I were to make this top again, I would omit the hour glass blocks, because the flying geese, and four-patches provide more interest. (The photo is taken with the top draped over the quilt I posted previously . . . the blue isn't part of the Sweet Potatoes plus quilt top.)

Just a few days until some of my quilting friends and I head for Florida for a quilt shop hop . . . second annual event, even. We had such a wonderful time last year, we decided to do it again. Most of us will fly to Atlanta where we connect with Jan, coming in from Texas, and Patti, who will board at Atlanta. We have our meeting point selected, we'll have lunch, and then all will board the flight to Tampa. From then on, it's party hearty!

A Heap of "Square Ones"

First, the picture is of probably my all time favorite quilt I ever made. It's from Judy Martin's early book, Scrap Quilts, published back in the 1980's. (The book is such a favorite, it started to disassemble, and I had to have it spiral bound to keep it together!) DH and I were going to New Mexico and Texas, and I needed a small project to take on the plane, and to last the duration of the trip. I prepared all the star block corners, the bias binding, and lots of scrappy leaves . . . packed them in a little pink tool box, and away I went! Now, I wouldn't be able to carry all my little tools on in that fashion, so I travel with knitting on a plastic circular needle, and a novel to read.

Since I had done so well, keeping to my quota of six perfume bottle blocks, and was actually ahead of my target by Friday, I decided to take the evening off. Saturday morning, I started out fresh, made my 6 Friday blocks, and plowed on through to finish the full complement of perfume bottles. Thinking of names certainly made that go quickly. I almost couldn't wait to see what the next fabric in line was, to start pondering a name for its "fragrance". Another decision made . . . the fabrics that qualified by having gold on theme, but didn't seem to fit a flowery, or romantic theme, will be given "dime store perfume" names. First one up . . . Odie Coloney!

Next matter at hand is the skewed set. I launched EQ5 to work up a template. I wasn't happy with the result. The piece is too narrow to really show off my setting fabric. So, then I calculated the size of the finished blocks if I enlarge the half-rectangle to a more suitable width. Of course, the quilt size increased exponentially. With my planned set, the blocks would finish at 90 X 105", with no border. And, I want to have a border . . . that's where I plan to include the title of the quilt, "Eau de Parfum". I need to contemplate this a bit longer. Maybe I have two quilt tops . . . it's happened before!

Endless imagination

Trying to get my studio back to being more than just one giant heap of stuff, I started by grabbing my perfume bottle quilt "kit", and dedicated myself to cutting the fabrics I selected for bottles, and the background pieces. Without the bulk of extra yardage in the box, the blocks already made almost fit, and the lid can go on it! Tuesday, I set a goal of making 6 blocks every day until I have them all done. At that point, the count to be completed was 48. The first day, over lunch, before quilt group, and after I got home, I managed to finish 9 blocks. Wednesday evening, I sat down and started working on my quota of six. I don't know what stimulated my imagination, but as I was sewing, I started thinking of perfume names inspired by each fabric. Since then, it's been a game that is hard to give up and go to bed. Usually, though, when I start making mistakes, like wrong side of the background down, or seam a bit too wide, I know progress has met the law of diminishing returns.

All the fabrics used in the perfume bottles have gold on them, with a few silver, and even a copper or two. A couple prints that have an Asian look inspired the titles, "Chrysanthemum Empress" and "The Emporer's Garden". The print with pine cones and gold needles had me stumped for a bit . . . I didn't think "Pinesol" sounded too enchanting or would inspire a woman to wear it. Finally, the muse struck, and that became "Passion in the Pines". The most difficult part is refraining from using the words "passion" and "garden" too often.

Of course, now I'm starting to think it would be fun to embroider these names onto each block. Only 168 of them. Yup . . . I'm wound too tight!

The thoughts of fragrance do remind me of a funny story, however. Several years ago, at a Quilt America conference in Indianapolis (wish we still had that one to attend), I took a class on care and cleaning of the Featherweight. I was planning to have lunch that day with a friend who is a land surveyor, and at the time, we worked together frequently. I was sitting next to a gal I knew from our Guild, and I told her, "Sherry, when we break for lunch, you have to tell me if I have grease on my face or anything." She agreed, and when the appointed hour came, she checked me over, and said, "You don't have any grease or dirt on you, but you smell like WD-40". I thought about it a minute and said, "Maybe that's a good thing!"

P.S. In the three days of my quota plan, I have completed 28 blocks!

Florida Fun!

Two years ago, I was lucky enough to be invited to St. Petersburg, Florida, by my friend, Melanie. We managed to visit a few quilt shops, and learned that we missed a shop hop by just one week. But, that didn't mean we would miss the next one! Last year, eight of us flew into Tampa-St. Pete, and participated in the shop hop. We rented a mini-van, and hit the quilt shops during the day, had appetizers and Margaritas on the deck in the evening, before going out to dinner. We had such a good time, we decided it should be an annual event.

Just two weeks away now, and there will be six or seven of us on this excursion. Last year, we decided to do a block swap, and each of us made a Margarita block. Those blocks were given to my sister-in-law, Jan, somewhat as a repayment for a practical joke . . . and also, as another practical joke, since it meant she then had several projects going at once. Jan is a project person, and works through start to finish. Just hates to have more than one thing going at once. Her quilt turned out just wonderfully, and a picture of it appears in March 3, 2006, posting to Laura's blog. It shows all of us with the quilt on the front porch at one of our retreats, pointing to the block we made.

This year's block is flip flops. I made mine Friday evening, and completed it Saturday. It was great fun. We are using Pat Sloan's flip flop pattern (www.quiltershome.com) from her free pattern, titled, "Where are your shoes and socks?". I chose to put mine on a white background that has brightly colored little stars. The soles are pink with multi-colored, multi-sized polka dots. For the thong portion, I used a piece of trim that looks like flowers, and embellished the toe with a ribbon rose. Every time I look at it, it makes me giggle. It's not only frilly, it's silly! I just love whimsical quilts.

I'm looking forward, too, to collecting the blocks from the shop hop. Since going to Florida last year, I have participated in one among vendors at the AQS show in Paducah, which featured Judy Martin's fabric line released last spring. I've not made any decisions on how I will assemble it yet. Just a few weeks ago, Marguerite and I made the rounds of the First Annual Illiana Shop Hop. I was pleased that the fabrics in those blocks include some in my stash already, and the blocks will make a great border to a plan I have to use them. And, of course, I have the blocks I collected in Florida last year, with a more than adequate quantity of additional fabrics to make a great quilt. If there is ever a cotton shortage, I've laid aside a good supply of fabrics and projects to get me through the "drought"!

Reminds me of the time I came home from a little trip with two books of 1001 embroidery transfer patterns. I told my DH they would provide inspiration for quilt making. He responded, "Oh, heart be still . . . that's what you need . . . 2002 more ideas for quilts!"

Well, duh!!!

Since DH changed his mind about four times before we actually left on vacation, and we actually departed the evening before our original plan, I left many things that I wanted to take behind . . . including the camera. I even thought about it as I drove home from the office, and that might be forgiven if I didn't have a four-minute commute!

I also forgot to grab some different jewelry, so I wore pearl earrings the entire trip . . . they look great with jeans and a sweatshirt!

Here's the worst part . . . I packed my wonderful sewing case made for me by Dawn. But I left the fold up sandpaper/cutting board my sister-in-law, Jan, made for me . . . and what's worse is that my current applique projects were tucked inside. So, I busied myself on the drive with reading and working on my "Nana of the Year" title by knitting sweaters, and doing the hand-work on clothes for my DGD's American Girl dolls.

We stopped in Lexington, Virginia, on the way east, and visited an antique gallery, primarily to walk and stretch a bit. I found a neat small sewing box, with a roll-top lid, similar in construction to the larger one on legs acquired last trip. An antique shop in Charlottesville yielded a neat English thimble with "critters" . . . I think they look like foxes, but friends have voted for cats or dogs, too. This has been a good year for thimble acquisitions! I scored three at auctions the weekend before we left town, all from the late 1800's.

The grand-kids are growing like weeds, as one would expect. Ben is the youngest, and he's a match for Grandpa. He loves all the super heroes, with Batman as a particular favorite. He launched a conversation about what character Grandpa should be for Halloween. Ben's recommendation was Darth Vader. Grandpa asked for hints on his portrayal, and Ben put those cute baby hands over his mouth and said, "Luke . . . I am your fah-der".

Grandpa has always teased the kids by corrupting the names of television and movie characters. So, when Ben was showing his Yoda, Grandpa kept referring to him as yogurt. At one point, Ben disappeared and came back from the kitchen, where he had removed a container of yogurt from the fridge. He held it up in a perfect "Vanna White" type display, and announced, "Grandpa . . . dis is yogurt . . . we eat dis. That is Yoda." At dinner, we were recounting this conversation to his Daddy, as Ben sat on his lap. Daddy asked, "Well, Ben . . . did you get Grandpa straightened out?" Ben held up his hands in a gesture of frustration and said, "He was annoying me!" I laughed so hard, I couldn't breathe.

We went to pre-school, two soccer games, and the bookstore on our visit. The kids love books, and I'm always willing to buy them. My husband is always grateful that Barnes and Noble doesn't have shopping carts, so I can't buy more than I can carry!

One afternoon, I got to sew with my granddaughter. I brought along my Featherweight, and a few patterns. We went through them, and made a list of garments for me to make. The first five she picked out for her friends! I managed to make three dresses, a romper, and a pair of pajamas, along with three sweaters for delivery this trip. I'm going to see how many I can make before its time to send off the Christmas box. I have two more sweaters I knitted on the way home . . . Nana of the Year is my target you know!

Needles flying . . .

We're getting ready to go to see our son and his family, so I am frantically grabbing at things I need to finish and pack, or at least get to the point where I can complete them during the 12 hour drive. I have three doll sweaters knitted, ready to assemble, and dragged out the clothes I've started for my grand-daughters American Girl dolls. I think she knows that Nana is a sure thing on that subject because she parlayed a birthday gift certificate to the American Girl store with a discount coupon and bought a third doll, instead of clothes for the two she already has.

The clothes aren't difficult, but there are parts that are awkward to assemble, for example, puffed sleeves in a 5-inch armhole, complicated by elastic. I've made wedding gowns in my time that were more easily manipulated. The pay-off, of course, is the smile on my grand-daughter's face. Or, even on the phone, when she calls to report a package has arrived, one can hear the smile in her voice.

Our grandson has invited us to his pre-school. He's pretty excited about that. And, I remember the older two were so proud to have us there, too.

I know I'll have an opportunity to go to the quilt shop, Cottonwood, in Charlottesville, Virginia. But, I keep telling myself I should stay away to save my mad money for a shop hop in Florida in one month. This has been a good year for "excellent adventures"!

I'll try to take lots of pictures in Virginia, and post them when I return.

New Project "Blues"!

Like everyone else, I have a number of unfinished projects. And, I have been dedicating myself to completing them, too, with the possible exception of launching those which were to be samples for our Guild Retreat.

Of course, one never stops looking at new possibilities. Dawn displayed her cute quilt top made from an adorable print featuring Gingerbread men, and embellished with letters a'la' Tonya spelling out "Gingerbread". I've always wanted to do Gingerbread Men, and found an adorable pattern at www.fourtwinsisters.com. I thought it would be perfect to use lots of different Christmas prints to create the little vests. I picked out and laid aside background and "Gingerbread" fabrics, along with sufficient yardage of the same Gingerbread print Dawn used to make the border. I made notes of my plan in a journal, made a few templates, and put it all together to be ready to launch, once I cleared away a few of the unfinished predecessors. I included the companion Gingerbread House pattern, having thought of a way to add it to the project. I nearly hurt my arm, patting myself on the back for being so good, and not cutting into the fabrics immediately, to just make one block. (Betcha' can't make just one!)

Tuesday evening, I went to Quilt Guild. Wouldn't you know they sabotaged my good efforts? On the agenda was the distribution of rules for the 2008 Challenge. It's a house challenge. And there I sat, with an idea completely assembled in my mind, fabrics chosen and set aside, and even templates made. I think I've shown remarkable restraint, because here it is Thursday, and I still haven't cut into the fabrics! In the meantime, however, I figured out a cute way to make both Gingerbread boys, and Gingerbread Girls.

The voice of my conscience, also known as my sister-in-law, Jan, probably is shaking her head. She tries to curb my enthusiasm, always encouraging to finish one before starting another. That's where the differences show up . . . she's a project person . . . I'm a process person. She plans her project and follows through to the end. I always have to let things stew a bit along the way, and move back and forth through a variety of projects. But, I never get bored!

Sewing collectibles

One of my other interesting collections consists of little sewing rocking chairs, and birds. These have been gifts and auction finds, and it is really amazing the variety of "critters" available. The majority of the collection is of the rocking chair variety, where the seat is a pincushion, and there are spindles for spools on each side of the chair. Frequently, there is a slot in the back to hold scissors, too, and some have a little tiny drawer under the seat. The birds are always interesting because they usually rely on scissors to create the beak. Changing the scissors completely changes the "personality" of the bird. I also have a cobbler's bench, a squirrel, some hats, and a rocking horse in my collection.

I finally had to confess to my husband that there was another collection which I managed to conceal from him for some time. He thought my auction purchases of small wooden sewing boxes were to provide some winter re-finishing projects for him. These come in lots of sizes and shapes. In the 1920's, a popular style was shaped from one piece of wood, creating a rounded barrel shaped bottom, with hinged lids on top. There are some shaped like maple sugar buckets on legs. My most recent acquisition has a rounded bottom with a roll top that is seated in a channel that goes completely around the barrel of the bottom. My husband spotted it in an antique shop on our last trip to Virginia. He let me choose between it, and another that had been hand made. The other one was huge, first of all, and in a familiar style, but it also was so heavy, I could hardly lift it while it was empty! So, I went for the unique one. He has one for this winter's projects that looks like a pie-carrier, complete with a scalloped edge. It has a handle and center hinges for the two sides of the lid.

DH has a few collections of his own. He likes to collect old kitchen tools, and they are displayed on a wall in the kitchen. It's a feast for the eyes for guests . . . if the tool is recognized, the comment is frequently, "my grandma had one of those." One thing that throws us into a panic is when someone comments, "I love your decor." We don't think of it as decorating . . . we just put up stuff we like!

Well, I didn't get the pictures where I wanted them, but at least they all made it!