Stockings from a sweater

Houston is just next week, and OAY starts in 13 days. I have been busy lately trying to finish up projects and add a few more additional items to my inventory that I will be taking to the Once a Year Holiday Market.  Stockings is an item category that was requested, so I have been trying to add a few more of those.  Although I have made some from other materials, I have made a few stockings from sweaters.  That sounds kind of strange, but if you look at a sweater with a creative eye, it is amazing what you could come up with.  These stockings pictured are all from one sweater.  The larger ones are all about 18" long.  The ribbing at the edge of the sweater is the finished edge at the top of the stockings. The two larger on the right are actually from the sleeves, which I left mostly intact.  I used a pattern for the two on the left, but kind of winged it when I got to the sleeves.  I'm still not sure about the bows... the stockings might be fine without any embellishment.  If I leave the bows, they can be taken off by whoever buys them.  I just don't want them to be a distraction.

It is pretty straight forward to use a pattern and get a stocking cut from the body of the sweater, but it took a little more innovation to get the stockings from the sleeves.  I may have to try to put a tutorial together.  It turned out to be pretty easy, but I had to tweak it a bit from where I started.  Second one always goes faster.

I went to the Goodwill store the other day looking for a couple sweaters for stockings, and if I picked sweaters with a pink tag, they were only $.99.  I went out of the store with an armful.  They filled two washer loads when I got home.  I didn't buy any to wear for myself, but there were some really nice sweaters.  If I don't sell the stockings I get made at this show, I will probably be bringing an armful of sweaters back to Goodwill after the show.  My picture does not really do these justice.  The green yarn has metallic gold through it and the knitted weave is pretty open, so the red felt I used to line these shows through. I figure I should be able to sell these for at least $15, so I could make $60 from one sweater that cost me $.99.  Yes, I have to add the cost of felt, but that adds a minimal amount.  They actually go together pretty quickly, so my time is also at a minimum.

I have a couple other sweater stockings done that are completely different and quite unique.  I am hopeful that sweater stockings will be a good addition to my offerings.

Almost time for Houston

Is anyone getting ready to head to Houston?  This will be my first year and I was not able to find a hotel room close by, so I opted to board a bus with a lot of other quilters in San Antonio and only be at the Quilt Show for the one day this year.  I can get a better feel for just how much time I want to spend there next year, and hopefully be able to make hotel reservations close to the show.

I am participating in a show in two weeks.  I hesitate to call it a craft show because that conjures up a vision of booths and tables.  This is a juried show with only a set number of artisans.  The hall is setup like a gift shop where all the same type of items are displayed together.  There is a Christmas tree where everyone who made ornaments hang them all together.  Jewelry is in one area, and so it goes with all the other categories of items.  This show has been going on for 20 years and it is an annual event for many of the patrons.  People try to get there early on the first day to have their choice of ornaments.  No one who is a participating artisan is limited to what they can sell, but it must be made by that artisan.  I have only been to the show once because I have not lived here that long and was not aware of it until last year.  I was asked to submit my application for consideration... I'm not real sure what I have got myself into.  Hopefully all of the items will be good sellers.  I will be happy if I sell half of what I take there to be sold.  If my husband decides there is something he can make for next year... my membership permits my husband to also create items for sale.  There are several couples that are part of this organization. 

I have done some quilted items, a few stuffed animals, lots of ornaments, several stockings, some toy items, and lots of other miscellaneous creations.  I did some calculating earlier today and at the moment I have over 100 items and I think I'm almost out of steam to start a
nything new at this point.  I may leave it where I'm at and start planning for next year.  Once you are in, it is your decision to opt out for the following year.  For me, the option to do this next year will depend on how well I do this year.  It requires a fair amount of time and effort... I do have to consider that everyone else had almost a whole year to prepare for this upcoming show and I had half that amount of time considering when I knew that I had been voted in.

I am at countdown to the Houston show followed by countdown to OAY (Once a Year).  I'll be very happy when this year's OAY is finished so I can get back to some serious quilting.

It's good to be home

One week ago today we left on an adventure that we anticipated being a whirlwind, and I want to tell you that it held up to that expectation.  We boarded a plane early Thursday morning and headed to Columbus, Ohio to help facilitate the move of my father-in-law and his wife to Phoenix, Arizona.  We had several family members on hand to help.  The truck was loaded and ready to go by noon on Saturday.  The next phase of the move was for Ron and I to drive the rental truck and my father-in-law's mini-van the 2,000 miles to Phoenix.  They did not ride with us... my brother-in-law flew in to escort them on their flight to Phoenix.  There are actually 4 states represented in this picture.  Ohio, California, Texas and Arizona.  Our journey spanned 4 days... with only two drivers and two vehicles and there was no relief drivers... we had to limit the number of miles we could drive in one day.

 We really didn't go through very many big cities, so our close calls were held to a minimum, as at least 90% of our driving was during daylight hours.

I cannot tell you exactly where we were at this point, but it was in Arizona.  I really got to learn what the back of the rental truck looked like.

The last rest area that we stopped at before arriving at our destination was really quite beautiful with all the rock formations around.  It was pretty close to Benson, Arizona.  I had forgotten that the rocky landscape extended that far south in Arizona.  Goes to show how easy I can forget as I have been across I-10 a few times and I certainly should have remembered all those rocks. 

They really do Micky D's a bit different in Arizona. 

Our flight home yesterday went very smooth.  It is good to be back home and to have Dad and June safely in Phoenix. 

It was alot to accomplish in one week, but determination can get it done.

What is a recumbent trike?

Have you ever seen a recumbent trike?  My husband has always been an avid bike rider and I tagged along after I entered the picture.  A few years back I talked him into trying out a recumbent bike and we ended up buying two of them because they are so much better on your back, and in my case for my wrists and neck.  Well a couple of years ago I had a close call when I was attempting to turn back towards home... I thought I looked and listened and it was clear, but I pulled almost right in front of a car that had to be in a blind spot when I looked.  Mirrors are very important on a recumbent because you cannot turn to look.  The car missed me with blaring horn and my bike slid sideways so that the tire of the car was literally about 3" from running over the tire of my bike.  I was OK, but I was definitely down and the driver just kept on going.  He disappeared around the bend without even knowing if I got up.


Needless to say, I have been reluctant to ride since   then, and my husband has been missing those outings.  He sometimes rides alone, but it is always nicer to have someone along for the ride.  He is the one that started looking at the trikes.  Now trikes in my mind had been for old ladies, but upon looking at all the pictures and information out there online, I realized that they are for people of all ages and some are really geared for racing and long distance endurance riding.  They give you a much safer ride, you can actually look around much easier and you won't fall over when you stop, so when you want to make a turn you don't have to unclip... you just stop look and then turn. Mirrors are still important on any bike, but being able to look before you make a potentially dangerous move is really a great relief.  Did I mention that I was even able to answer my cell phone while riding along?  I am not a real cell phone person, but I do have one with me usually and wouldn't you know it rang when I was riding and I was able to answer.  That was way cool.

 We jumped right into the bike scene joining an organized ride with a recumbent group out of San Antonio and we rode the Mission Trail for a ways and put in almost 20 miles.  That was two days after the bikes arrived, and after not riding for nearly two years, that was quite an accomplishment for me.  The following week we did a Ride to Remember, which was all bikes, not just recumbents.  I had a "mechanical" issue and we only rode 12 miles that day.  Around the block at home is 3 miles and we do that often... so we are starting to get back into shape.  It takes a while to build up your stamina, but now when the doctor asks if I am getting any regular exercise, I won't have to make any excuses.

Farmer's Wife Sampler is progressing

 As you could see in my last post, I have been working on the blocks for my Farmer's Wife Sampler.  I'm trying to keep my momentum going so it doesn't get pushed into my unfinished category.  There really is alot going on, but it seems I can usually finish a block or two now and then.  Right now I think I am up to 55 blocks done.   My latest three...

 

I have been enjoying the challenge of making each block unique, totally random from my scrap/stash.  I am not following any particular rule regarding my selection of the pieces.  Each block is an individual palette... I look at the block in the book and go to my scrap/stash to find some pieces that will work together for that specific block.  I made a decision on how I am going to put my blocks together.  I got my inspiration from a layout posted on the Yahoo Group for FWS.  The standard layout has the blocks on point and separated by very narrow strips of sashing.  The layout I am aiming for is in columns of on-point blocks with setting triangles.  The sashing between the columns is a floral border print.  I have not decided on the outside borders yet. I do know that I will not be using all 111 blocks in one quilt.  My current plan is to use only 70 in a queen size layout.  I do hope to finish all 111 blocks, with the second quilt probably being a lap quilt or something similar.

I want to point out that I would not have as many blocks done if I had not bought the CD that loads into my EQ6. It offers a bit more diversity in how to approach this project. I am using all foundation piecing.  I am convinced that there is no other way to do this without losing my mind.  Paper piecing not only helps with the speed of completing the blocks, but also ensures a much more accurate finished block.

September is almost half gone

It really has been very busy around here... but what's new?  I have not been able to take the time to post anything new here in a while.  Last week we had some excitement on the weather front here in south Texas.  We were getting quite dry and really needing some rain... well we  had rain for a few days in a row, and I think it started Tuesday with a storm that was about as windy as I have seen it here... it took down a tree in the yard next door, and another one in our backyard.  The tree next door was quite a large tree, and it was hollow.

The tree in our back yard was a younger tree, although still pretty good size and quite green, but the soil here is mostly sand and this tree came up by the roots.  There was flooding as close as San Antonio.  I-35 up towards Dallas was closed in both directions for a while on Wednesday I think... due to flooding.  We are somewhat on a hill, so flooding typically is not a concern for us here at our house.

On the quilting front I have been doing some quilting for friends and trying to get some blocks done for my Farmer's Wife Sampler.  I think I am up to 39 blocks now.  I actually have done many more than that, but 39 which can be used as true FWS blocks.  This is a clip from my design board that is dominated by these 6 " blocks.

I joined a group on Yahoo for the Farmer's Wife Sampler that keeps me focused on getting these blocks done.  The group posts a new block each week, which is not in the same order as in the book.  With 111 blocks, if you only do one block a week, it would take more than two years before you would have all the blocks done and able to put together your quilt.  The group started last October, so it is realistic for me to make an effort to catch up.  Many of my UFOs do not have a target date for completion, so they get pushed aside when something new comes along, so having a target to aim for is very helpful.  I'm impressed with how well my blocks are coming along.  I'm doing them by paper piecing and that seems to give me a consistently good result.

Have a good week!

Total change of pace

Before we left for our trip to Colorado, the last quilt I worked on was the quilt that we have been working on at our Monday quilt group at church for several months now.  We were able to get the top all sewn together, complete with the borders.  We had a bit of a discussion about the choices made for the borders, but I think it turned out to be a nice compliment to our scrap quilt.

Our Colorado trip finally happened, and this time we had guests go with us.  Actually they followed us.  We had some rain along the trip in and I was concerned that Cottonwood Pass would be too messy for a safe trip over. I said alot of prayers as we got closer and the rain subsided enough to allow us to go in through Cottonwood.  Beth who was driving the other car was a novice to the mountain passes, and Cottonwood is paved on the Eastern slope, but it is a dirt road without any guardrails on the Western slope.  Beth was OK driving to the summit, but I jumped in the drivers seat for her on the descent into Taylor Park, for which she was very grateful.  Barb was also very happy to have me driving. 

We did not have any big plans for touring, it was intended to be a relaxing getaway.  Ron & I often don't leave the area around the cabin for several days at a time.  Barb & Beth  were in awe of the beautiful mountains and lakes, and the scenery in general.
Mirror Lake was one of the highlights.  Getting to Mirror Lake is not intended for a normal car... the road is pretty rough and very rocky.  Once at the lake, you are surrounded by the beauty.


On our trip down the canyon into Gunnison they were able to see the expanse of Taylor Reservoir.  The reservoir is surrounded by a multitude of breath taking mountain vistas
The opportunity for pictures are everywhere.

 

Our cabin is situated in the pines where it is not possible to see the sunset very good, so we took the opportunity to drive to the entrance to the sub-division and sit and enjoy the changes in the view as the sun went down.  We didn't get any great shades of red in the setting sun, but we did get a clear meaning of the term "purple mountains majesty".

Hope you enjoyed the pictures.  Now I will have to get back to some serious quilting.