The Latest….

Latest read….

Latest find….

Latest  Start...

Latest (first) clue in Bonnie Hunter / Quiltville mystery…..
300 -1/2 square triangles...

And Lastly….

The Latest proof of Why We Can't Have Nice Things….

Quick and Easy Sewing

Earlier in the week I wanted to do some simple, mindless sewing as well as play around with my new Accuquilt Studio …..in just minutes I had a pile of strips which I then cut into squares and I did a quick "Plus" layout.  Thrifted mens shirts were my fabric of choice when I decided that my project could turn into a masculine Christmas gift.

I used my 2.5" strip die to cut my strips as well as my squares...

My faithful sewing companion , Doug, has given this project his approval.

Now to find a back for this and, I think,  a pillow form!

Christmas in October

Look what came in today's mail!!!

My Accuquilt Studio!

If you need me, I'll be slicing up my stash……..

I'm On A Roll!

Here it is!  My Grand Illusion.

Bonnie Hunter's 2014 Mystery Quilt.

I was desperate to get it done (minus a hanging sleeve and label…I still need to do that) before this years mystery started and I am very happy to have succeeded.

 Finished size is about 76"x92".

I found a fabulous large print for the backside.

The pantograph I used to quilt it is called Circle of Life.

Lastly, the quilt has been Inspected (and approved) By Doug! 

Mid October Posting

I'm absolutely amazed at how quickly time is going by….although some days seem to drag on forever.

This quilt was on the UFO pile for quite awhile….I wasn't sure how I was going to quilt it until just a couple months ago, but even knowing that I didn't seem to make the time to get it on the machine to get it done.

 The name of the quilt is Why Are We Going North….which comes from a story from a trip we took as a family years ago and will forever be embedded into out memories……
I saw a similar quilt on Pinterest and felt inspired to make it….

I used matchstick quilting on it which I did on my Handiquilter Avante.

I'm happy to have finished this one and get it off my UFO list.

Coming Soon…...

A long-delayed finish……

See you soon!

September….Again?

I'm not sure how it is that I've turned the calendar and it's September already/again.  Time flies!

It seems , lately, as if my life has been hijacked.  So many things to do that aren't a normal part of my "Normal".  Takes away my energy to play and create sometimes.

Yesterday, however, I was determined that I would spend some time in my sewing room.
Doug the Cat naturally followed me……and he kept me very busy trying to keep him safe and my sanity intact.

I'm sure you can understand how distracting this could be….

And this as well….

But despite the challenges that Doug was giving me, I still managed to sew some scraps together and trim them down to 6.5"

I'm not sure what I will do with these blocks…but it felt good to be able to do something with the overflowing scrap bin(s) that haunts me.

Breaking the Drought

Not a weather-related drought.  Lord knows we've had more than enough rain here!

A sewing drought is what seems to be my problem.  I just cannot get myself to settle in to my chair and get anything done.

This is, in large part, one of my distractions:

Meet Doug.

Doug is about 4.5 weeks old.  He is  rescued orphan kitty.

He needs to be bottle fed and, believe it or not, Manually Pooped.

Don't Ask!!

Doug is almost constantly in motion.  Climbing.  Scrambling.  Running.

Cracking us up.  Forcing us to love him.

How can we not?

This morning he napped long enough that I was able to get into the sewing room and 

play with some fabric that I've had sitting and waiting for me to sew up for a few months now.

These are some pillowcases I made for my nieces birthday, which I missed because I've been preoccupied with Doug, among other things.

So now I can get these wrapped up and delivered….

Hopefully this is just a warm up to more finishes….

Todays 5-7-5

 Intoxicating.

The scent of lilacs, heated

in breezy sunlight.

A Trip to NYC

Last week I traveled to NYC to visit Elle….and celebrated the 7th anniversary of her breaking my heart and moving to NYC.

I've recovered from the broken heart, and she has grown and learned so much that I certainly cannot imagine her being anywhere but there……

We had a great time….we went to The Met and saw an awesome exhibit called 

China:  Through The Looking Glass.

It was a blend of artifacts and costumes created by famous designers…it was awesome.

Here's a peek at one of my favorites:

One afternoon, after walking all over Manhattan, we went to visit some of her friends who were having drinks on their rooftop.

We eventually worked our way inside of the building, and most of our group filed into the elevator.

Unfortunately for us, our group caused the elevator to be ever so slightly overweight, causing us to get caught between floors, resulting in our needing to be RESCUED by none other than the FDNY.

Which prompted much excitement and joy….

(and selfie-taking)….

And comments about it being the Best Day Ever!

Nashville

A small glimpse into our trip to the Nashville Rock and Roll Marathon in April, 2015:

Jelly Roll Race Day

Today we had a Jellyroll Race at The Farm….

And our winner was Claudette!

Look at that confident smile!

This novice, who has 2 completed quilts to her credit, beat out some strong competitors…

Like Sue, who came in second.  Sue has been quilting for a couple years now, and she is cranking out quilts on a fairly regular basis.

She beat me.  I came in 3rd.  I'm not sure how the heck that happened.  I accepted my defeat gracefully, but there might be some teenie tiny voodoo doll making in the near future.  She might want to watch her back.  

She beat Nancy.  Nancy came in 4th.  

I'm betting there was some thoughtful decision making as she sewed her strips together.

I should mention that Nancy was the Winner of the 1600" Strip.!!!

Faye did not participate in the race, but she brought along her Jellyroll quilt to share.

She worked on some paper pieced blocks…you can find her work at 

mimispassions.blogspot.com

We had a fun afternoon.  Good eats, Funny Conversation.

Thanks Again, Ladies!

More Ca$h and Carry!

I'm on a tiny roll here…another Ca$sh and Carry pouch.

The print is a vintage Michael Miller fabric.  I'm guessing its at least 8-10 years old.  

At Least!

These projects are fun to do.  They take less than an hour to make, and they use such a minimal amount of fabric that they are easy to make from my stash.  They also help me use up miles and miles of scrap batting !

Btw…the blue fabrics from the last bag was called Hand-Made for Benartex by Michele D'Amore Designs.

Friday Night Sewing

Last night the house was quiet, so I decided to make a quick little project.

This is the Strip Zip by Atkinson Designs.

Its about 7.5" long…just big enough to hold my glasses or my cell phone.

A fun, fast project.

I'm working my way through a yard of the two fabrics…pretty soon all that will be left are a few scraps and strings to use in future quilts.

Quilt Cam!!

So my morning started out great when I read that Bonnie Hunter was doing Quilt Cam tonight.

I didn't get a chance to do any sewing at all for the last few days…so this was my chance AND my reason to set time aside and spend a little quality time in front of my machine.

So I pulled out this little quilt that has been waiting to be quilted for about 2 years now.

Yes.  2 Years.

(My head is hanging in shame….)

So at 9pm, I fired up my computer, threaded my machine, and got to work.

I just started stitching…with no real plan.  Just lots of straight line quilting…..

And I was having a great time, feeling really good about attacking one of my UFO's…..

(A good friend would ignore those points not lining up.  I'm just saying.)

When I flipped the quilt over and saw this.

Ugh….

The back had flipped over itself and I had stitched into it.

So now, I need to decide if I will rip that stitching out and start over, of if I will just trim that away and continue on. 

If you know me, well,  you know which way I am leaning.