Busy sewing week

 New year!  New goals!   

1) Progress on Merry Merry Snowmen! 

I have not only pieced the blocks for area 1 and 2, I have appliqued the features and took 2 evenings to add the hand details:  Block is 14 by 22 inches

2) Working on my Ocean Waves

Several more blocks pieced.  They require meticulous seam allowances to meet at the corners. And that requires removing stitches to fix them.  Ahhh! the joys of unstitching. 

2)  Sewcialites 2  

New block completed. The video by Kimberly Jolly of Fat Quarter Shop is helpful and I like how she showed techniques for square in a square ( with a paper piece) as well as alternative colorings for variations of the block. 

Back on track with the New Year

But in general I regret not blogging for the past couple of months.  My life has been complicated by lots of travel.  The 2nd trip to Canada was health related after Lloyd was sent by ambulance to the hospital then requiring a pace maker. Then he had a stroke. His recovery is still slow. But after 6 weeks, he was finally transferred to a rehab home. He is DETERMINED to get back home. I think I will return again this month. My last drive was 15 hours one way, so hard. 

Then during the Christmas holidays my spouse and I made a train trip to visit my grandkids. ( So glad I missed all that hoorah of the airlines. ) Love those boys and their parents. Time together makes the relationship build where distance is so hard.  One whole suitcase had presents and I loved the smiles that they brought.    P.S. Notice the Shark pajamas with Christmas hats and scarves.

I made 2 pencil cases for my grandsons. They are SHARKS!  One quilted and lined in red while the other is in orange.  The main fabric is a pair of jeans purchased from Goodwill.   In hindsight, I should have selected a pair having a lighter weight denim. It was so difficult to turn the tail fluke. They zip open at the mouth. Pattern  found online.  I hope they will use them and enjoy them.   I also purchased art supplies to go with them. 

SO It is 2023.   I almost typed in 19.. such a realization of my age. 

Since my return from Louisiana, I am totally focused on getting organized at home and for quilting.  I also got a Fitbit as a gift for Christmas that is making me health conscious. Lots of good vibes going including some devotional readings.   And after only a week, I already feel inspired and reaping the rewards of progress. 

So for quilting goals, 

1) I am hoping to finish one UFO per month.  ( For January I have an old snowman that needs a home. )

 2)  I am working on a quilt to finish for the guild show the end of March: 32 blocks made, 32 to go. This one is my Kim Diehl fabric Ocean Waves. 

 3) And I started a new quilt with a friend to spur each other on.  It is a Bunny Hill design: Merry, Merry Christmas and has 9 pieced and appliqued blocks all in reds. 

4) I have also started the Sewcialites 2 quilt along. I only have 4 blocks made, a little behind. I am using a small bolt of white and some bright Christmas fabrics. 

There are others on the pile, but this is a good start.    Hope your goals and projects are proceeding nicely. 

Thanksgiving come and gone

 It has been a fast couple of weeks. Over the past month, I have taken 2 trips to Canada to see my Mom and then a return trip after her husband ended up in the hospital. Lots of driving and adapting to different surroundings and requirements.  

I will always love seeing the lakes. 

On the positive side, I had some wonderful visits with Mom. Her Alzheimer's is an issue, but I have learned to talk about older times like her youth, my grandparents, and of course, my childhood growing up.  Hearing the details again are wonderful.  As an older person, a new perspective has aided some understanding of how things were in my household and how their marriage was. We usually all are wistful about our childhood and how things impacted us.  Having my mother's recall as well as my sister gives a spin to what I knew. 

What I have become has so been molded by her. I learned all kinds of sewing, embroidery, knitting, under her tutelage.  I played her flute ( and piccolo) through college and even later still owning it.   And I, too, became a teacher much as her mother and grandmother did.  We are different, yet we are similar. 

On the other hand, my step father is still in the hospital after 4 weeks barely eating, and not being able to stand or walk. He needed a pacemaker and in Ontario, socialized medicine does not work as we are used to. Further, he suffered a small stroke some time that first week and it went undetected missing that window where medication is key.  We hope, we encourage, and we pray.  I will probably return after the new year. 

In between, my daughter, husband, and I celebrated Thanksgiving with a turkey breast.  Of course, my daughter would not let us do without the characteristic side dishes. She made a glorious apple pie. Yum. 

I have been stitching in between.  I have finished my 100 blocks for angie @ gnomeangel and karen @ just get it done quilts.  I purchased the sashing fabric, but it will have to wait for the new year.

Additionally, I have made 32 blocks for my Ocean Waves quilt for my quilt show in March. 

I really love the colors and feel of how this is going. Halfway done with the blocks. 

So I hope all of you are busy and getting ready for the Holiday Season.

I love Christmas and for me, the Christian celebration is important. 

Secondly, the family gatherings and festivities are key as I look forward to being together.

First I will celebrate with my daughter and then take a trip south to my son and his family. 

May you all have fun and happy times and hopefully not too much bad weather with the big storm that is impending. 

Busy times

 Time has flown since I last blogged. It has been a gorgeous fall: the colors have been just amazing and the weather was kind enough to last through the first half of November.   Never has that happened in my experience. To be above 30s and 40s was a bonus and I loved leaving the warm outer clothing in the closet. 

I have continued to sew a little every day. 

I have finished my 100 blocks in 100 days by angie at gnomeangel.

Here are 2 of the 8  inch blocks from the end of the sequence.

             

Here are an assortment of the 4 by 8 inch blocks.

And this is a pile of various blocks: half are 8 inches square and half are 4 by 8 inches.

I have purchased a light blue solid to sash it.  

I have also knitted another scarf which needs to be blocked: It is a bright fun self striping sock yarn. And I learned how to make the holes for lace work.  

I have finished my wool applique center of a small quilt: 

And I continue to keep working on my ocean waves quilt: 

23 blocks made of the 64 I need. I love how it is looking. 

Currently I am waiting for a new iron to press my seams. My Rowenta finally gave out completely and my travel iron, just doesn't pack the punch to press it well. I have ordered a new CHI iron and am awaiting its arrival. 

Time flies

 Well, I was quilting a bit and have started my Ocean Waves for our quilt show next March as the theme is triangles.  Using my accumulation of Kim Diehl fabrics, I started making lots of triangles using preprinted papers. And I have well over 10 of the centers of the block completed.  

I love arranging the colors into rows. And then the piecing starts.  And I really want my corners to match.  So I need to use my seam ripper off and on.  Over all, the colors look amazing.  This will be a long term project.

But I did get a new tv stand which has storage underneath and my extra large ironing board on top.  Two needed things in one!!

I had a quilt retreat a month ago.  I remember wearing a sweatshirt to bed it was so cold as we were staying in a college dorm.  I am so glad to be done with that faze after seeing the rooms.  The sewing area was great and I was very productive. And here are some great tops that have made great progress:

The first is that my 25 blocks of  Blockheads #4 are put together with sashing and setting blocks.  And I have now purchased border fabrics.  But it will take a while to finish as I plan to do some applique.

This 2nd one is a small quilt I think each triangle is 3/4 inch.  I really like how it has turned out.  It is even layered and pinned and ready to quilt. 

My phone and computer and not cooperating.  I would love to show more photos, but hope tomorrow is better. 

Sorry for the delay in blogging. It isn't that I haven't been sewing.  I have more to show and tell. 

 

Gremlins, Goblins and Ghouls

Halloween is almost upon us.  And it is time to see all kinds of ghastly quilting delights. What Fun!

Many thanks to Joan for hosting and organizing this fun blog hop!  

Here in Wisconsin, the season of weather is arriving for fall. The trees are just fantastic: 

Whether just down the block or out for a country drive: it is totally gorgeous. 

And while we even had snow on Monday, it is amazing that the leaves have not just dropped from the trees as last year we had a rain that just stripped the trees. but this year we really are having  longer to appreciate their beauty.

And on the drive, we saw the funniest Halloween display: a whole tent of skeletons listening to a band and playing bingo.  Very creative.  On the other side of the driveway were many animal skeletons going over the rainbow bridge. 

But this is about our Halloween quilting: mine are rather cute and not too gruesome at all.

This one is more of a nostalgic appearance with creative borders.  A nice wall hanging.

Close up of quilting:

These are just table toppers from Halloween fabrics and a Terry Atkinson simple pattern from a charm pack.  I just separated the pieced squares into 9 patches with lattice.

And the one that has taken several attempts  at is:

It has gone in and out of the WIP box a few times.  But I am determined to get it done for Halloween this year. I have a cat to make for beside the pumpkins and a spider for the bottom row beside the candy pieces. The cute witch at the top and her green frog need eyes as well as some "Trick or Treat" lettering.

Gadgets galore!

Thanks to Carol for organizing all our Gadget appeal and for including me in the mix. 

 What quilter does not have and assortment of thingamabobs to help us in quilting. Such rulers, pointers, turners, and more to make our lives easier as a quilter.  

I have drawers full of things, some from when I first started sewing back 45/50 years ago.  I took the required home economics in middle school, but selected a class my senior year. I had already sewn my first dress with arm and neck facings as well as a zipper when I was 10. So I was well familiar with the sewing machine. However, it introduced me into tailoring where I made my first wool suit. 

And over many decades I have transitioned through sewing for my kids especially smocking dresses for my daughter. And I made baby quilts and accessories.  That blossomed into quilting where I continue to new and varied techniques each requiring new gadgets. 

Some needed gadgets are expensive like a good set of Gingher scissors. The large one I have had for decades. The smaller one is awesome and has serrated edges and perfectly cuts fine lines and inside points.

Some gadgets are very inexpensive like freezer paper and other dollar store items for storage.

But my favorite gadgets are 

1) my wool pressing mat.  I only have a 12 square as when they first came out they were pricey. But I pin  a layer of  muslin to protect it from various stiffening sprays which then can be removed, washed and repinned. ( I left the stains on it so you could see them, but then changed it. ) 

I really find this helps my seams to be flatter and less misshapen. Although I do use a spray stiffener. I am not partial to any one brand, but do love the misting spray bottle. 

2) my seam rippers and I have many for those times where mistakes happen.

These are inexpensive ( TJ Max) facial hair trimmers. Really!

(Sorry, my attempt at a video failed.  You open the seam and push it on the threads.  It cuts it without hurting the fabric.  I have also seen it pushed in between the 2 pieces of fabric to cut all the threads.  this is similar to a seam ripper with a ball on one of the points. 

I also love my normal Clover ones.  I keep misplacing them. 

3) frixion pens.  I just love these to mark fabrics. They have a wonderful fine line and come in a variety of colors. And they erase when ironed. Yeah!   I like the ones with the lids not the clicker ones. They are only about 3 dollars or such. 

4) Lastly my clear rulers. I use these at the ready to mark my diagonal lines for half square triangles. But additionally It is at my side to measure small fabric lengths and check seam allowances. These are usually next to my machine, unless they have wandered to another location. 

                                                 

5) Another notion I can not due without is my magnetic pin bowl. They were all the rage and beautifully painted.  But I purchased mine at Harbor Freight for a fraction of the cost.  This is so good to keep pins where they should be.  I find it so easy to drop the pin in the vicinity and it just goes there. It will attract pins, stick to your ironing board, and not spill when it is dropped.  

      

6)  An unusual notion is some pipe cleaners or chenille stems.  I really like these to help clean my sewing machine.  The fuzziness attracts the lint and holds it.  The wire in the middle is great for poking in cracks. 

         

7) Lastly, I love, love, love my thread cutter for chain piecing.  It was given as a gift as I would not have bought it for myself. And now, I can't sew without it. There are many brands and I think they all use a rotary blade you can spin or replace if it gets dull. My tiny screw driver is on the  bottom. 

        

Hope you learned something from the list and the photos.  Gadgets are ever evolving and we all want short cuts. 

Not quilting

 I think the title is misleading, but.......I have been knitting.

  I purchased the wonderful pattern and yarn several summers ago in Canada when I visited mom.  It was in one of my all time favorite shops which I have visited for decades.  This funny little shop with old wooden floors  has 2 sides: one for bulk items in barrels and the 2nd side has books and knitting.  

I always find fabulous books there. As I teenager and then young mother it was craft books: felt or floss or whatever.  Now, it is to find interesting books for my grandsons.  

But this trip I saw this awesome scarf on the back wall and surrounding it was the pattern and color variations of yarn.  I chose the blue/purple shaded one. Although, I really like the one on the cover now.

                                        

In progress at my station to be away from my husband who tested positive for Covid a 2nd time.

Up close of the colors which doesn't show the sheen of the metallics.

Tres finit!  Or great finish in English.  No fringe, as I didn't quite follow the pattern correctly.