shameless testimonial

if you've never had one of these in your morning shower/bath, you are missing out.  this is a bona fide, natural, from-the-ocean sponge.  after my surgery,  i was oh-so tender and a regular washcloth was way too rough.  we had a natural sponge so i used that because it was soft as silk on my tender area.  it was used to shreds so i had to get more.  these come from tarpon springs, florida, the epicenter of sponge diving...as far as i know.  they are very reasonably priced and cheap to mail because they weigh so little.  no matter, they are worth 10x their weight in gold.  i highly recommend you get some and experience the difference from washcloths or those nylon shower scrubby thingies. 

scraps no more

so, the solid scrap squares have been assembled into these scrappy 4-patch units.  like a true disciple of the bonnie hunter repurpose/scrapsaver doctrine, i make every effort not to see anything in the trash larger than 1" square.  if i can't get an inchie out of a scrap, out it goes.  with fabric now at $10 plus per yard (except at marden's!), it behooves one to be as thrifty as possible in busting one's stash.  these units got tucked away with the little solid 9-patch units and the solid QSTs recently sewn.  once the ocean waves is a flimsy, i'll have a better idea of how much solid stash is left and can start on my scrappy solid bow tie quilt and cross it off my WHIMM list.    

for sale

normally i don't try and sell used magazines, preferring to pass them along.  this magazine retails for a bit more than most, $6.99 per issue, and i'm trying to recoup postage costs for swaps etc.  asking $3 per issue plus media mail shipping from maine.  pictured are dec 2011, feb & apr 2012 issues.  plenty of interesting articles about talented quilters, famous and not.  and the best thing is they are not chock full of fabric ads like many magazine nor will you find lots of repetitious patterns either.  but it's the many reading articles i really enjoy.  **** as usual, didn't get as much done as i'd planned over the weekend but still plenty of prep work for picking up to sew these next few days that i work.  i've also got half pieced one of the 3 complicated blocks of JT2 with the big applique and feathered star left.  this plus quilting on the feathered star kept me occupied.  nearly done with quilting the corner squares and setting triangles, meaning the border is next.   with almost the whole month to go, i should be able to finish this and perhaps a couple of small projects too. 

today so far

i'm certain this doesn't happen to you, but i had to clear the decks a bit before i could start any sewing today.  lo and behold!  i found the watermelon fabric project and decided today was the day to get this started.  i had to tweak the pattern a bit to get the most out of my small collection, but it's ready to start; mixture of applique and piecing.  also this morning prepped fabrics for the may little quilt from the online group headed by kathleen tracy.  i've cooked and eaten lunch and listening to "prairie home companion," after which i'll be ready for a nap.  was up late last night reading and then up early this AM so i'm in slow motion now.  after a brief snooze, i'll pick up "just takes 2" for most of the day's remainder.  now that my 3 days off are broken up, i tend to forego sleep to squeeze every minute out of the day.  **** temps are now hovering around 60 so it is really beach weather now, if there's no wind.  got my summer haircut yesterday and have to find a new beach chair...then i'll be good to go!

Errata

Re: my quilting thread survey.  Although I stated all threads I tried were 40 wt, in fact that is not the case.  On closer inspection, the Aurifil is a 28 wt thread and the Coats & Clark is a 22 wt thread.  Maybe that is why I don't like it...too thick.  And even though the King Tut IS a 40 wt thread, there is only a barely discernible difference in the weight of that when compared to the Aurifil.  In the end, it all comes down to the ease of use, not price or weight.  I do prefer the Aurifil but will use all the brands I currently have and my guess is nobody would know the difference.  And even though I need to be thrifty, I quilt for enjoyment, period. 

scrapbusting

not wanting to toss some solid waste triangles, i repurposed them into QSTs or quarter square triangles.  they need squaring up but will make a great mini-amish quilt at some point.  now i can start on the scrap squares on the right!  many of the solid scraps came from the cherrywood scrap bags from which i already cut a few projects (the honeycomb for one) and although the scrap bags were reasonably priced, cherrywood yardage is pricey, so i want to be sure and use up every square inch possible.  these pre-assembled units make it simple to make mini quilts in record time, but even if they don't get used, no doubt somebody out there in quilt blog land could use them.  **** another gray and dreary day here in coastal maine.  we are getting april weather in may!  this after getting may weather in march.  no matter, anything but snow.

the winner!

maybe you knew already but the best quilting thread in this little group is the aurifil.  i found it to be just a tad stronger than the other 2 favorites--king tut and mettler.  the glazed coats and clark is strongest because of the glazing, but i knew it would be the least favorite when the testing began.  these are all good quality quilting threads and i'll use them all, of course.  but if i had to buy another spool, i'd go for the aurifil.  so, this year at maine quilts i'll invest in a spool or two of natural color for quilts where i use muslin or the little reproduction quilts.  **** been busy quilting on the feathered star which is about 2/3 complete at this point.  the binding is all prepped and ready for what should be a may finish.  and i'm ignoring the desire to start a couple more small quilts....at least for today.

ocean waves

so, 2 waves are done so far.  there is no deadline on this project.  i just wanted to see how it was going to turn out so i whipped up these.  it also gives me a better idea of how many triangles i will need.  it's quite possible this will use up a significant portion of my solids stash but it remains to be seen.  these are fairly large compared to a lot of ocean waves i've seen but no matter.  it was a pattern on my wish list and my quilts are made with hand quilting in mind.  the background is charcoal kona solid, a world of difference from black and much easier on the eyes.  **** an important birthday in our family yesterday, my mother's great-aunt turned 99!

3 for 3

today 3 new blocks were posted for just takes 2 but no matter, i got 3 done...so does that make me even?  well, at least i'm not any further behind.  if i can get 2 more done tomorrow, then i'll be ahead a bit more.  and i also worked on another UFO today; will show pictures later.  **** it was a dreary, dismal, downright dowdy day with heavy rain....we got our april showers in may!   just returned home from work, so one more day and i'll have a break.  i've a pincushion to finish, more of JT2 and the UFO and maybe some quilting on the feathered star.  **** the soft tissue discomfort from my fall last week has nearly dissipated.   oh, and my new hancock's of paducah catalog came today....got my list made already; so many, many gorgeous new fabrics.....i was simply swooning over them!

a tuesday test

here we have 4 "name brand" spools of quilting thread.  i hand quilt exclusively, so i have a small stash of this on hand always.  these all happen to be white.  from left to right:  aurifil, mettler, coats & clark and king tut.  these are all cotton 40 wt threads.  i have tried all except the aurifil, which gets tested today.  which one will be my fave?  so far i'd have to say the king tut EXCEPT it can be difficult to thread.  the coats & clark is a glazed cotton making is easier to thread but i don't like the feel of the glazing.  the mettler was my hands' down favorite until i tried the king tut...no glazing and nice result.  i do have a few spools of el cheapo quilting thread on hand that are glazed, but these are used for basting only and get tossed as i proceed in the quilting.  it's the kind of thread that walmart might sell for 59 cents or so.  no doubt you'll be on pins and needles (no pun) until i post the final result tomorrow or sometime this week.  of course, whichever is chosen the best doesn't mean i'll toss the others--too pricey to casually discard.  they will all get used up and then i'll stock only my favorite.  i can tell you now, though, it won't be the glazed coats & clark.