Kitty approved

It has been a productive week.  I started a Twister quilt which was about half done when Shorty decided she wanted to test it out.  I have a cutting table temporarily set up in front of the fireplace and Shorty took up temporary residence on the WIP.  Shorty is my official tester... any new piece of fabric laid down in an accessible spot is fair game.  She likes to move around and test out new resting places, so it is always good to provide new test sites for her.

A couple days ago I finished the piecing on the Twister and it is now ready to be neatly folded and put into the "ready to be quilted" stack.  Now if I could only find a home for this lap size quilt, it might stay at the top of the stack.  This was a fun quilt to make.  I learned from the test quilt I worked on a couple weeks ago (posted previously below), but my husband still thinks there is not enough contrast... some pinwheels are less visible than others... but that is what it's all about... isn't it?  I actually bought a pattern for the placement of the blocks to get the desired appearance.  The pattern example used black as the background material... but I really, really do not like working with black.  My eyes just have such a hard time adjusting and seeing what I am working on.  Outside of the background, all of the other fabrics are from my stash.  I did not have enough of anything that would work for the background, so I bought the brown.  I did not have any fabric samples with me to judge the contrast, so I think it turned out pretty good for guesswork.

A couple weeks ago we took the leap into the latest in coffee makers....  at least it was a leap for us.  Both my husband and I didn't think we needed one of those Keurig machines.  We had our coffee making technique all figured out.  Well my husband saw an advertisement for a K-cup which allows you to make a cup of coffee using your own coffee instead of having to buy the pre-packaged cups... which does not mean that we won't use the pre-packaged cups, but we have the choice.  Yesterday I removed our old green coffee maker to a pantry shelf.  We had left it on the counter... just in case the Keurig didn't work as we had anticipated.  In front of the old green machine is the 3 boxes of samples for the Keurig.  I found a deal with 105 different coffees and teas... I have a list handy so that we can record our opinions to help us decide which ones are worth buying again, and those that are not to our liking.  We are really loving this new experience in coffee.  We bought a big box of Newman's Special Blend at Sam's, and that is already more than half gone.

   

I have been wanting to make a patio out in the back yard.  I had heard about a form to make your own patio blocks and bought the form a few months ago already.  Earlier this week I decided it would be good to do a test in the front yard in front of the access for the outdoor faucet.  This is two castings of the form, which took two 80# bags of ready mixed concrete.  My husband even bought a new wheelbarrow to help make the job a little easier.  I like it so much, I think I am going to expand my new pathway to go across the whole front of the deck... and if I get it done, I will be sure to post a picture.  We bought some more bags of concrete mix yesterday... so my work is waiting for another good day to work outside.

 LBNL - Last but not least, I thought I would try my hand at English Paper Piecing.  Last week I bought the book "Hexa Go-Go".  It is a very good book with a few really nice projects to get you started.  Now as most people already know, EPP is a hand sewn technique. This sew book is the first project in the book.  The Hexies are of course done by hand, but the rest of this project is sewn on the machine.  This is a place to keep your handwork tools together while you are working on your hexies for the project at hand. This sewbook is 4 1/2" tall which makes it a quite handy size.  Of couse I still have yet to put it into use, but I am sure that it will work quite nicely.

The inside has pockets, and felt is layered to hold your pins and needles.  I used one of my antique buttons for the closure... the fabric is all from my stash, including the felt.  Now I will have to see what new project I can start to add to my UFOs.

Hope your week ahead is a good one.

Roll Top Desk... where is it?

I have a couple friends who have been making these things that they are calling a "snood".  I tried to find directions for how to make a snood, and what I found did not look like the snoods that my friends had.  So I asked one of my friends how hers was made and she gave me the stitch count and hook size and off I went looking in my stash for yarn that I could use as practice to see if I could get mine to turn out OK.  I had some Fun Fur left from a couple years ago on a different scarf fad.  I didn't have enough of one color, so I just grabbed two totally different colors.  I actually liked how it turned out.  Now I found instructions for similar scarves/hoods, but they were calling them cowl neck scarves.  A snood was described as something you make to cover up your hair... usually long hair.  I think it is a mobius scarf that can be used as a hoody...  A scarf with a twist.

 In case it slipped by your attention... I have a couple feline friends that live at my house... four to be exact.  Often times my socks have kitties on them.






I was browsing through my newsletter from Superior Threads today and they had a tip from a customer that told how she kept her bobbins with the proper thread.  I won't try to describe her little tutorial, but I thought this was a pretty neat idea.  You can go check out her instructions by clicking on this link...  Maria Elkins' tutorial .  It uses a fat straw, and when I first tried to do one, I was having an issue understanding just how it was supposed to work.  Once I went back to look at her pictures and instructions again, it became clear that I had not read it correctly the first time. 

Back several years ago I saved up my money and bought myself a roll top desk.  I had it before we moved to Texas... but no one in Texas was aware of this desk that has been sitting in our computer room, in the same spot, since we moved here.  The initial reason was that I put a lamp on the desktop that was too tall to close the top.  Then of course it doesn't take long to load up a desktop so that it becomes difficult to find a clear spot.  A couple weeks ago I tried to talk my husband into helping me move the desk.  I wanted to turn it so that someone looking in the room from the hall would not see the clutter on my desk.  He suggested we think on it for a week first.  I then started doing some organizing and clearing out of the clutter, and before I knew it, the  only obstacle in the way of closing the roll top desk... was the tall lamp.  Changed the lamp, and I found my beautiful roll top desk.  I mentioned it to a couple friends, and they had no clue where in my house I was hiding my roll top desk.

It is sometimes a couple weeks in between getting a quilt done.  I don't remember when my friend brought this one to me to be quilted, but I finished the quilting this afternoon.  It is always a good day when I finish a quilt.  Now this is only one corner, but it is enough to help me recall when someone asks... remember that quilt you did for my last year... when you do lots of quilts for other people, they kind of all run together.  

Finally... another pair of socks.  It was so cold this morning that when we went into town to go to breakfast... I surely had my socks on... and I also wore a scarf and gloves and my leather fully lined jacket.  Today I actually think it is colder here than it is up north.  Of course it never stays cold for very long here... but it seems extra cold because we aren't used to it anymore.  Now our kitties are Texas kitties and they are choosing to stay inside... so that confirms it... it is cold outside.

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Socks and Shorty and Quilts

Fridays are typical days for a trip into San Antonio.  Quite often one of our stops is at JoAnn's.  You never know what you  might find on sale, or how many coupons you can use.  I'm always on the lookout for a new gadget, or maybe some yarn.  There are lots of options to help organize my sewing space... and my most favorite item to find is a new pair of socks..  There are always lots of  socks to choose from... usually specific to the closest holiday.  They didn't have any Christmas ones left today, but I bought a couple with hearts on them.  This pair, bought a few weeks ago, isn't really holiday specific... I just liked the colors... I guess these aren't that colorful, but I liked the design.  Anyone who is around me very much is aware that they can count on my socks being quite colorful or crazy... or both.

I wasn't looking to take any pictures tonight, but I glanced over and found Shorty in a new spot.  The sewing box/stand has not really found a new permanent spot in our newly changed around living room, but Shorty found it inviting.  She is always looking for new places to claim as her spot, and this one was quite unique.  The handle around her middle is stationery on the stand, and she just slid in and made herself comfortable.

This photo op with Shorty prompted me to go out on the porch and take the picture I thought I should have taken earlier today... our esperanza still has blossoms on it... and it is January.  I don't remember blossoms hanging on quite this long before.  Even the seed pods have not started to dry yet.

 Recently I bought a new quilting ruler... or do you call it a tool.  Anyhow it is intended to make a quilt called a Twister.  I have a friend who recently finished a twister table topper and I thought it looked like a fun quilt to make.  I wanted to start off and make a practice piece, so I grabbed a few pieces of fabric and started cutting. I sewed them together in a way I thought might work.  I knew what I was looking for... a pinwheel.  Well, when it was done I showed it to my husband and he said it was really hard to pick out the pinwheels.  I have to agree now that I back up and look at it from a different perspective.  The best part of making a practice piece is you can learn what not to do when you start your "real" quilt.

Last, but certainly not least... this is the quilt that has been waiting to be quilted for 3 years.  I have been reluctant to put it on the frame because I put so much time in all the piecing and its intricate detail, that it intimidates me.  I have not been able to decide how I will quilt it.  I determined the problem... I would not think about it if it was folded away in a drawer... out of sight.   I have now taken it out and hung it over my sewing room door.  I put a folded batting strip across the top of the door to protect the quilt, but it is in my face every day now... so I am confident that I will get it done... in the near future.  It is quite an awesome quilt. Once I get the quilting done, I may consider putting prairie points on with the binding.  It may be too much, but I have that to think about for a while.

Quilt for sale

I'm going to try something different today.  I recently finished a quilt, and my husband asked me what I was going to do with it, cause he could see nothing we had that it went with.  I had no one in mind when I started the quilt... I just wanted to use a batik fat quarter bundle that I had bought a couple years ago in Arizona. Also, I saw a different technique I wanted to try... so I pulled this "Enchanted Journey" bundle out and went shopping for a suitable batik backing.

The quilt really turned out cool, and I will definitely use the technique to make another one, but meanwhile I thought I would see if anyone was interested in buying this quilt.  It measures 36" wide by 50" long.  My price for this quilt is $75.  If you are interested, leave a comment and I will get back to you.

Four Dresses Done

I have figured how to deal with my "house" issue on those pillowcases.  I opened the side seam above the ruffle, then I cut an 18" square out on the house side.   After I reoriented the houses, I used my serger to stitch the houses back into the pillowcase.
Sugar gave them his approval.

I finished more than a couple quilts in the past few weeks. I don't have pictures of all of them, but I have included a couple here.  The Dresden Plate quilt was mostly all hand appliqued.  I don't usually quilt over hand applique, but I knew it would not be possible to leave that plate with no stitching. I didn't want to go with stitch in the ditch, so I came up with the idea to make little swirls in each blade of the plate. 
It think it really turned out very nicely.

       Now on to something totally different...

How many people listen to your children ask for something that they just have to have right now… and you turn around and go get it for them?  I think that is what they call instant gratification.  A short time ago I read an article that I should have bookmarked.  Besides I don’t have children living at home, and none of our children live within 800 miles… so it was not something I thought would come into play for me.  I  have learned a long time ago, that no matter what advice I might have to offer, my “technology” is out of date, so it doesn’t matter what I think, they are going to do it their own way regardless.  This means I pretty much keep my mouth shut when it comes to my opinion of how I would handle a situation.  I know silence is one step away from giving consent… but if I offer my thoughts, I am likely to be blasted or shut out, which means I keep quiet… sometimes with a very sore tongue.

Anyhow the article I am referring to suggested a wish list for your kids.  Whenever they see something they want, you instantly put it on their wish list.  Then when some important event comes along that would suggest a gift is appropriate, they get to pick from their wish list.  Of course it might not require a real important event, but something worthy of a reward.  So in actuality they might have decided something that looked really cool to start with, by the time they get to look at the list to make a choice, it may not be so important that they have that item.  This would teach them a little about waiting and appreciation.  The article did not include this thought, but I’m thinking that the wish list could be split to include little events and big events… like a bicycle would go on the big event side of the list and a video would go on the little event list.  That way if they did something really great… like a birthday, you would tell them they could choose anything off either list, but if they bring a paper home from school with an A on it, you could tell them to pick something from the little event list.  Maybe sometimes you could let them pick two items.  No matter… they are making a choice after waiting, which means it is likely they will appreciate the item that much more.

Basically I’m seeing so much “It’s all about me” attitude in our young people… of course most have inherited that from their parents… or it has been taught that it was OK to act that way by the instant gratification that they receive from their actions.  As many adults can attest to, it is much harder to get ahead in this world if all your credit cards are maxed out… which can easily happen if you have to have everything right now.  Wouldn’t it be nice to learn the benefit of waiting at an early age?

Pillowcase dress question

 Recently in a church periodical there was an article about making dresses from pillowcases for children in Africa.  We have a group going on a mission trip in April... not to Africa, but a place where the little girls would love to have a new dress.  Word has got out and I received a call from an elderly lady who had lots of pillowcases, so I went to pick up a whole bag of gently used pillowcases with the hope that our quilting group could convert them into cute little dresses.

My problem arose when I pulled out 4 of these "house" pillowcases with a great ruffle on the bottom.  They would make real cute girly dresses with that ruffle, but the houses are sideways.  I have thought of cutting a square out and turning the house, and stitching it back in place in the correct orientation, but I'm not sure it would turn out OK.  Does anyone have any ideas on how I should deal with this house issue?  Is there something I could add, or cover up, or should I cut the front off and sew the backs from two to the front of the other two... if that makes any sense.  We will tackle this project after the first of the year, so I do have some time to think on it... but in the meantime I thought someone might have a good alternative.
 
On another totally different note, the other day I was looking for something in my sewing room. In the process of my search, I uncovered a few UFOs.  Not all of my UFOs are quilting related.  I had a few knitting projects and a cro-knit afghan among those that I discovered. I have already finished 3 of those UFOs... two scarves and the afghan.  I have alot more knitting needles than I remembered having. There are many quilting projects as well, hiding in my sewing room, and I think I need to make a list and add to it when I make these discoveries... so they don't stay lost too long.

I finished one of my own quilts that will be a Christmas present.  This has been an ongoing project for more than a couple years... the pieced blocks anyhow.  Originally it was for one grandson who is now too old to appreciate John Deere... at least not a quilted one.  The panel was a great find on eBay.

I have a couple grand-daughters that will be receiving their first sewing machines this Christmas.  I have decided to put together a sewing kit for each of them.  One of my additions to their boxes I finished in one afternoon... these cute little pincushions.  I asked my husband which chicken was the cutest... I didn't take the time to make the new ones from 2 little log cabin squares .  Even though the beak and comb on the new ones are cuter... he thought the original one I made a couple years ago was much cuter. Quicker is not always better.

I lost my directions and did a Google search and found some pretty good instructions.  The part I liked the best was the filling.  I had previously used sand.  This lady used rice.  Now I'm thinking rice was too coarse and would look pokey.  She used a little coffee grinder to run the rice through.  What a great idea... I never would have considered that... but it worked beautifully. There are still bits of rice, but most of it is almost the consistency of coarse salt.  I think the girls will like these... they won't have my original to compare it to.

Photo Op Day Trip

A photo op can appear when you least expect it, but sometimes you wake up and know that it is a great day to find some of those photo ops... intentionally.  A few years back, when we first moved here to South Texas, a couple friends took us on a mission tour.  There are a few missions along the Mission Trail in  San Antonio. We have been to a couple of the missions since then, but a couple weeks ago Ron and I decided we would try to recreate that day's adventure again.  Of course the Alamo is the start if you want to hit them all, but we started at Mission Concepcion.

 

The missions have lots of history and the architecture and structures are typically in varying stages of reconstruction.  There is always signs of refurbishing going on, but they have done a fabulous job of preserving these buildings and grounds.  Concepcion was not hard to find, but we kind of stumbled on it because we forgot to check out a map first.  Once you get to one of the missions, there is alot of information available to show you how to find the others.

 The second mission we visited was San Juan.  I was very disappointed that I had not brought my camera bag with me.  I hung the camera around my neck and left the bag in the car.  About half way around the perimeter I discovered that my camera battery was out.  I had a fresh battery in my bag, but I guess I learned that I should at least put my backup battery in a more accessible location... like my pocket. It was too far to go for my battery.  Ron got to take lots of great shots of the grist mill that was at the far end of this mission.  I will have to wait till next time.  Ron and I see things slightly different sometimes,  so when we are taking pictures, it is interesting to see the diverse perspectives.

 I really enjoy taking pictures at Mission Espada, specifically this church.  I often find doors to be very interesting.  Mission Espada even has a mission kitty.

 

I have quilted a few quilts lately, but somehow my camera wasn't handy, because it seems I am missing all those pictures.  This is the last one I quilted.  It was only a baby size quilt, but sometimes they are the most fun because I can finish them quickly.  This one has giraffes and lions and elephants.  I often like to piece the back... it adds character to the quilt, and usually it is because the backing was a little short.

This quilt is for a lady at church that really doesn't sew.  The quilt was pieced by a family member and it has been waiting for quite some time to be quilted.  When I received the top, there was no backing with it, which meant that it would be a whole lot easier for me to find something in my stash than it would be to try to explain what type and size the fabric needed to be for the back.  I found a piece that had many of the colors, but it was just shy of being large enough to work.  I matched it up with another fabric and I thought it made a perfect addition to the character of the back. 

I will have to get busy in the next couple of weeks so that I can finish a quilt or two before Christmas.