new sidebar link

while browsing today, i found this blog and simply HAD to add this badge to my home page.  i wholeheartedly support and encourage hand quilting because it is sooo enjoyable; i know, many don't have the time or the interest, but give it a try....you might become a devotee.  i am currently hand quilting my amish center diamond quilt.  the great thing about quilting (or many other things also) is that the stitch improves with continual practice.  when starting a new quilting project after a time away, it takes a bit to get into the rhythm of the stitching.  once the rhythm kicks in, it's easy to pick it up at every free moment. 

my confession

as a refresher, i'll remind you of my previous confession....i am (or was) a log cabin flunkie.  new york beauty?  no problem; cathedral windows?  piece of cake, but log cabin success evaded me.....until now.  here are my first six after receiving some invaluable tips that catapulted me into log cabin heaven!  and i didn't have to take any one of them out...no ripping, no redoing, nada!  my last log cabin disaster was the amish wallhanging; 9 blocks, 5 of which were redone at least once.  i'm pretty sure it's a case of right/left confusion, but a real pro gave me some inside tricks that have nothing to do with turning them, well almost.  i am giddy with log cabin success, truly!  i also got some ideas on organizing my strips to avoid the wrinkled clump in the shoebox.  that's my chore for the weekend, to get them all ironed and sorted lights/darks.  to quote mrs. goodneedle, "life is good!"  **** i spent a bit more time quilting on the amish center diamond and have pulled out stencils for the remaining 2 long borders.  only the corner squares on the final border need quilting, along with the 2 outside long borders.  i also got the gray scrappy pinwheel quilt basted with the wool batt.  that will probably be the next to get quilted.  it's over 40 degrees here today, so not sure how long winter will last or if it will ever really get here.  thank you jet stream!

orca bay deconstructed

the title is a bit of a misnomer as i haven't actually CONstructed the top yet.  what you see are all the various parts in various stages of completion.  yes, all the ohio star blocks are done as are the cheddar strippy squares.  i've still more purple strippies to do as well as finish up the green triangles AND cut the light triangles for the border units.  whew!  i am on my third set of 6 bobbins for this project alone; that's right, i've already used 12 bobbins of thread, currently on my 13th, not to mention my 3rd spool of the stuff.  i am still thinking this will be a january finish as i've almost nothing else to do every day.  **** i've also been quilting on the center diamond, just about finishing the 4th brown triangle; next are the brown corner squares of the next border and then the borders, for which i'm thinking baptist fans....not sure yet.  i've had a stencil of fans i bought ages ago and this would be a good place to use it, i think.  once that border is done, it's just the outside, which is about 11" wide--plenty of luscious quilting space indeed!

first finish

and they're off!  this is my first finish of 2012, right off my UFO list.  i finished the binding last night and dunked it in cold water to remove the quilting lines.  even the yellow chalk came off, which is a very good thing!  this will go in my pile of finished items that i'd like to sell at some point.  only 27 to go.  i also spent time quilting on the center diamond last night, since the weather is now officially frigid--albeit the ground still green as a shamrock.  that's right, we are still "sans snow" for which the snowmobilers and skiers are all now on prozac, but those of us who hate to drive in the stuff are happy as proverbial clams! 

sneak peek

even though i haven't finished all the parts yet, i couldn't resist putting this together to get a preview of the finished top.  i spent most of monday working on the ohio star blocks and they are just about done.  i still have plenty of purple strippy squares to do and some of the green triangles to finish as well.  i haven't even cut the "lights" for the border yet either.  however, i will have a UFO finish this week some time, so that's good.  ****  also, spent time trying to create a bit more space in my room.  i've gone through all the elfa drawers and pleased to find they hold less fabric.  i also found a smaller tote for all my cross-stitch patterns/fabric, also good.  next up?  pulled some small pieces that have to be cut into squares/strips.  i have to do this occasionally.  ***** on the job front, i got another response to my applications, so that would be a game changer for sure. 

a table quandary

this is a table i saw on the IKEA website.  trouble is, closest IKEA 125 miles from here and it can't be shipped.  sooo, there are 2 other tables i've been considering for the old viking.  both are from staples.  one is a melamine topped 4-foot table, the other is a formed resin top 4-foot table.  i've read comments on both.  the resin looks sturdy but customer comments indicate it's a bit wobbly.  the melamine top is made of particle board, so i'm wondering about the long-term life of that.  at the thrift the other day, i looked at a sewing machine and that table was made of particle board.  when i opened it up and pulled out the machine, it fell out onto the floor.  i checked home depot and lowe's and they have about the same thing....both of these are in my price range.  i'm not totally sold on any of the options i've seen so far.  the antique table is solid wood, no particle board and no resin.  i had hoped to select the melamine top but i've reconsidered and will keep looking.  i was considering an elfa desk with the wire drawers, but that top is also particle board.  perhaps the melamine or resin table WITH a wood topper might be the most economical solution.  years ago i had the ideal table and it was in storage for a long time, but i finally tossed it because it seemed pointless to keep.  where was my crystal ball then?

it's heeeeere!

here it is, 2012, a new year; 366 days or 8784 hours or 527,040 minutes or….you get the idea.  As quilters, all these lovely minutes are tantalizing segments of quilting, sewing, binding, patching, appliquéing, designing, traveling, learning and socializing.  Don’t forget, though, included in those segments are possibly (gulp) cooking and cleaning, driving, family nurturing, working, healing, refereeing, caregiving, and maybe even just surviving.   When it’s put in that perspective, we are amazed we even got any quilting done at all.   But reducing life into an efficiency task isn’t necessary.  What is important is to make the best use of our time, be good stewards of those precious minutes, like we take care of others and planet earth.  

the start of a new year is a time for resolutions, hopes, plans, goals more quilting!  I’ll throw the proverbial caution to the wind and carry on as usual, drooling over woven cotton and its color that calls this moth to its flames.  I’ll still cut it up into little pieces and sew them back together, satisfying my creative soul like nothing else.  You might think sheesh; this woman needs to get a life/job/husband/grandchildren, something to steer her off this over-zealous quilt fetish.  Well, I do (sort of)/looking/happily divorced/not yet, but none of those things fill that little corner of quilty hunger.  From the look around, though, I’ve plenty of company in that respect and I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Not for a year/day/hour/minute!

chain piece frenzy

thursday was a super sewing day.  first, i finished a window curtain for my DSIL that gets mailed today.  thank you for being patient!  then, i went back to my orca bay project, still working on catching up.  i squared up the cheddar squares that were done, yes!  next, i tackled the triangle part.  here you see my stack of chain pieced triangles.  i wish i could say they were done but nooooo; today i must cut more and re-chain this entire pile!  then they will be done.  the last thing i did was wind 5 more bobbins as i used up 6 whole bobbins this week so far.  bonnie will be posting the final part this weekend, so i'm hoping another week will have this into a flimsy, two at the most.  this needs to be gone by the end of january for certain and i need to get back to quilting on the amish center diamond.  do you think i can do 2 finishes in january?  i'll certainly try. 

comments on orca bay colors

i sure do appreciate everyone's kind comments about the colors i chose for "fat tuesday on orca bay."  i have to admit, i only went with the scraps of which i had the most.  these are not especially favorite colors of mine at all.  i went for high contrast and when i pulled them and put them together i realized how "wow" they actually were.   hope you all keep watching and see when the cheddars and more purple added to the mix.  ****  our 50-degree temps from today are slowly waning and frigid air moving in slowly.  this day has been another gift for us, usually knee-deep in snow and ice about now.  i feel bad for the people who rely on snow for their daily sustenance, snowplowers and the like.  but i have to say it's real nice to go out and not have to clean off the car or inch along on slippery roads.   but that's today; tomorrow could be an entirely different situation.  now, off to shower and slip into those jammies.....

tuesday progress

the stars are stacking up and making good progress on orca bay.  still have most of the purple strippies to do and also more of those green triangles too.  with temps hovering around 50 here today; that's right, 50...will be sewing with the window open until tonight when it's dropping to 14, right...14!  wacky winter indeed!