Things have changed a little bit this past week - I have started working part-time. I don't know what came over me but in December in the spur of the moment I contacted a former employer to see if he needed anyone on a part-time basis and he said he would contact me in January. Well January came and went and I didn't hear anything so I thought that was it but recently things did start happening and I started working last Monday. I had already had a very heavily scheduled week planned including an overnight trip visiting with one of my sisters, a couple day trips to Toronto, add in spending time researching and buying a vehicle and working at the new job meant that I had no time left for sewing or anything else for that matter! I am hoping that things will settle down quickly and I will be able to get back to my sewing routine - I had so many goals set for this month that I was not able to achieve - c'est la vie!
Joyfully sharing my quilting journey and other bits and pieces that make up daily life.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
The Winds of Change
Things have changed a little bit this past week - I have started working part-time. I don't know what came over me but in December in the spur of the moment I contacted a former employer to see if he needed anyone on a part-time basis and he said he would contact me in January. Well January came and went and I didn't hear anything so I thought that was it but recently things did start happening and I started working last Monday. I had already had a very heavily scheduled week planned including an overnight trip visiting with one of my sisters, a couple day trips to Toronto, add in spending time researching and buying a vehicle and working at the new job meant that I had no time left for sewing or anything else for that matter! I am hoping that things will settle down quickly and I will be able to get back to my sewing routine - I had so many goals set for this month that I was not able to achieve - c'est la vie!
Friday, March 23, 2012
Dear Jane - Cathie's Campfire (A-5)
Final Block |
Group Shot |
I did it - I got it done! I love the fabric I have chosen to use for this little block. It is a reddish orange and from a distance the motifs make me think of flames and embers - perfect for Cathie's Campfire. I finished sewing this block last night but after having a look at it I was not impressed at all. I can forgive many different transgressions when it comes to piecing these blocks - I am not perfect and neither are my blocks - but...this one had a hole where a group of seams came together and that is not acceptable ever.
Yikes - very bad sewing job! |
This morning, I undid the last two seams where I had sewn the sub-units together and resewed them and I think I did do a little better job of aligning things together.
There is a big change in the weather today. It is a little cooler, darker and dreary with rain. Kind of the way I have been feeling the last little while. I am still not feeling great and I am beginning to think that I actually have food poisoning and not a virus.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
A Little of This and That
Yippee....even though I have been 'under the weather' for the past few days I think I may still be on track to completing my Jacob's Ladder quilt this month. I was able to work on it yesterday and I nearly got 15 blocks completed. I sewed and cut my sub-units and then almost got them all sewn together into blocks. I really wanted to finish them but it was just too late and I was too tired so I finished sewing the final seam for each block and pressed them this morning. I had previously chosen all of my fabrics and cut all of the strips I would need for all the blocks (and some extras too) and that really helped to get things done. Only 26 more blocks required and then I can start sewing the top together!
I have a few things that I want to work on today - I have not made my Dear Jane block for this week yet so that is top of the list and I still need 8 more crumb blocks for another Project Linus quilt. Those 8 crumb blocks show up on my to-do list every day but they never seem to get done. I hope to change that today. I did get all of the pink 9-patch blocks made - there are now 48 - and I just need to decide how I want to set them with the sashing. I am not sure if I should add sashing around each block or group them into 4's and then sash them. I do really like the idea of grouping them into 4's so that just may be the way I go.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Midget Blocks - #54
Maple Leaf |
Cutting Maple Leaf |
This little block was fun to make - I used a combination of traditional piecing on my Singer 301 machine and the stems were paper-pieced on my Janome 6600. I really did not have too much difficulty putting this block together other than my stems are not aligned perfectly at the center of the block but I am okay with it. I really didn't notice that they were "off" until I had it all together and I was pressing the block. This block is also called Maple Leaf and is made up of 65 tiny pieces!
First 4 blocks I have made. |
Monday, March 19, 2012
Eeww - I Got a Bug!
Yesterday started out great - I had all of my quilting plans made and first on the list was to make 7 more of the pink 9 patches for the Project Linus quilt. Once I had them on the wall I decided that I would add another 6 more blocks and just as I was going to start sewing them together I got hit and hit bad with I don't know what. I had been feeling quite tired the past couple days and that should have tipped me off that something was heading my way! I got in my bed for a little lie down and things just got progressively worse. You don't need to hear the details but needless to say I am feeling a little better today. So yesterday, I spent the whole day and evening in bed or on the couch watching The Walking Dead marathon - love that show. I had been to the hospital on Friday for my mammogram and I wash my hands really well but it seems I picked something up anyway. I have so many things that I need to get done so I am glad I was able to get up and get going today even though I was still feeling "off" - I can assure you that I have taken many little rests!
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Rainbow Scrap Challenge - Pink 9 Patches
They look so much prettier in real life!! |
Friday, March 16, 2012
Earthtones - When Reality Hits
Second batch made....almost done! |
Are these extra??? Nope...still have lot of blocks to make! |
Happy birthday to my youngest son, Eric. He turns 22 today!! When Eric was born my husband and I were thinking that we might want a third child and we decided that on Eric's first birthday we would make our decision. Eric was and still is a joy but as he was attacking his first birthday cake my husband and I both looked at each other and said "uhn uhh" no more. Eric was quite the handful right from birth - a real go-getter - he pulled himself up into a standing position 10 days after he turned 6 months old and started walking on his own when he was 8 months old (as did his older brother Adam). Eric has turned into a wonderful young man and we couldn't be prouder!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Jacob's Ladder - Work in Progress
Strips ready for sewing and cutting. |
Extra strips to stock the strip bins. |
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Dear Jane - Courtney's Stethoscope (A-4)
As I admired the finished block, I had a thought that I should trim it so that the seam allowances would be a little more even looking - remember I have been eyeballing the 1/4" seam allowances so they really are not accurate. I proceeded to trim the block and I trimmed 3 sides before I realized that I had actually trimmed them to the sewing line and I had cut off the seam allowances. Now, how dumb was that??? uuummm the question is actually rhetorical! You can't believe how unhappy I was with myself. I just left it as it was and took a bath - a nice long hot soak. When I got back at it I removed the little edge pieces, recut them and sewed them on and now it looks so much better! Now that I have confessed my ineptitude I guess it I feel like I have "come clean".
See how I trimmed it... |
What have I done to my poor block! |
Monday, March 12, 2012
The Engineer's Wife
Basket, Broken Dishes, Churn Dash |
Sunday, March 11, 2012
My Quilt "Gratitude" is a Winner!
Gratitude |
Courage |
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Midget Blocks - #53
Blocks 51, 53 and 52 |
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Blue Seven Sisters Quilt
border fabric |
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Jacob's Ladder of Love
Total of 31 finished blocks! |
While I was sewing the latest batch of blocks together I was thinking about my nephew and somehow I got the name for this quilt - Jacob's Ladder of Love....I am so sappy!!
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Dear Jane - Hunter's Moon (A-3)
I ended up not using these at all! |
I decided that it would be easier to use the back-basting method. So, I put those little shapes aside and I proceeded to tracing the melon shapes on the wrong side of the background fabric and then realized that I had them oriented incorrectly.
Look closely-you can see the incorrect markings. |
I placed a rectangle of fabric on the front of the main fabric, back-basted and trimmed it a bit and then proceeded to stitching it. I got a little over-confident and trimmed the points too close and my first melon ended up not being long enough and I didn't realize it until I added the second melon. I definitely had to do the first one again because the tip was shredded!
I had to remove one of these melons! |
Monday, March 5, 2012
Oops...I Did it Again!
Weeks 1 & 2 |
Contrary Wife, Basket Weave, Big Dipper |
Calico Puzzle, Box, Autumn Tint |
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