good-bye-hello

Hope your holidays were excellent.  Ours were mighty fine (wait-didn't that used to be a brand of pudding?).  In any event, I'm trying to put things in order so I can face the New Year with calm and intention.  Notice I didn't say "calm intention".  That would so not happen.  With that in mind, I spent the other day checking out all my "small" projects, that is, projects with small blocks, not necessarily small finished sizes. 
So far, I've gotten blocks ready to sew for:

the star quilt from Blackbird Designs' Country Inn, the pattern called

"Shooting Stars".   I have 40+ of these done, and now about 10 more ready ro go.  I only need a total of 169, so I've got a good start (she says smugly).

Then I got :

baskets counted and organized snd ready to go.  It's from another Blackbird Design book that I can't find right now to tell you the title.  This one takes over 300 blocks and I've got 30-something done (she says not so smugly, since she started this a good 9 months to a year before the stars).

Then, I got a bunch of pieces cut out for:

these cute little spool blocks that are going on all over blogland.  I'm doing these with  Inklingo's POTC lite collection.  (That's Lucy Boston's Patchwork of the Crosses which you can read all about on the Inklingo site).  I'll tell you more about these little lovelies over the next few days. 

And then:

 I got this block pieced.  Cindy Blackberg gives piecing direction with the rubber stamps, but did  I pay attention to them?  Oh, no.  The next one, I'll try her way.

And because I can't be stopped, I'm getting a set of pieces done later today for yet another project that I'll post a picture of tomorrow. 

now you see why "calm" and "intention" don't really go together in this case.  Two totally different states of mind in my case.  

I did get the hand quilting on the Valentine repro I'm doing for the shop finished   I'm waiting for the binding fabric to get sent down ffrom the shop because of course I didn't take it home with me the last time I was there.  You'll get a full picture as soon as it gets finished. 

Well, celebrate with joy and thankfulness, and may the New Year be kind to us all.

linda

pre-holiday haze

I have nothing wrapped yet.  Nothing.  I do have the shopping done.  I have not mixed up the cookie dough. I do have a plan for the next 4 days.  There's power in a plan.  Most of my plan involves quilting (both doing and dreaming) and eating.  I like this plan a lot. 
Inklingo just came out with the new Feathered Star patterns and design book.  The design book is free for a short time, so get yourself downloading now.  I'm hoping for GC's for Inklingo as part of my Christmas. : -) 

And because I have nothing else to do,  and since I found a cute Cindy Blackberg stamp set at work for a little sunflower quilt, I got most of it cut out and started

.  I said I just got started.  They make 8" blocks and in utter sweetness will look something like this:

I think I'm leaving off the dark border, though. 

I was wondering for the umpteenth time the other day, why I feel this need to start so many projects.  I mean actively start them, not just buy them.  At this point all I can come up with is I need to feel a sense of ownership-if I start it, it can be finished.  And it says something about my faith in the future, that I'll have time to finish it or at least decide it's fate. And that's my thought for the day.   later.  linda

a day at home-almost

Got the rest of the fabrics for my new spring project cut at work yesterday and proceeded to leave them and all the ones I already had washed and marked right there on the table.  This was after I realized Tuesday nite that I couldn't find the magazine that had the picture of the old quilt in it that I was going to draft up for our yearly red and green quilt for the shop.  As my friend in North Dakota would say,  Uff-da.  The good news is I did find the magazine last nite after an additional half hour of looking. 

Wondered if I had time this morning to run up to the shop (a mere hour away) to get the stuff before DH and I went to a matinee showing of the new Harry Potter movie,  but then I looked out the window and saw that the "flurries" we were supposed to get is turning into 1-2 inches.  I don't mind driving in the snow if nobody else is out there.  So, got to find a new project for this morning.  The birds are happy, though: 

Can you say,big fat cardinal?

I did remember to bring home a small wall hanging that I had done in English paper piecing last year.  It'll go up on the dining room wall as soon as I can find the little no nail hangers. 

Time to go actually work on a project between refereeing the puppies:

later.

linda

she's baaaccckkkkk-again

The fog of allergies, colds and sick dogs has lifted.  I managed to get stuff done, but can't remember what, exactly.  Had my computer totally hacked, so lost lots of stuff.  So, what have I got to say for myself today?  In short: ain't life grand?  I feel very philosophical, but will spare you.  But check out our winter wonderland:

I know, ya gotta be in the mood. 

I've been working on a Valentine quilt.  It's a reproduction of one done in the 1800's.  It's over half quilted.  Should be in the shop after the holidays.  I posted some pictures of waste canvas cross stitch on : http://www.goodwivesco.com/.  Go to the web site and click on the blog.

And, yes, it's supposed to be vertical, and I rotated it and it still came up this way.  But after the hack, I'm just grateful things come up.  :-). 

Then....I've been working on some top stitch applique, and there's a good video of it here : http://www.pieceocake.com/ on

Piece o' Cake's web site under "videos". (enough repetition on my part to get that out?)

(close-up)  Are those stitches cute or what.  I have to start on a Spring project today that uses regular needle turn applique, and I'm fighting it!

Well, I should actually go sew, so something gets done. 
later
linda

something else new

I know I've said it before, but I have a short attention span.  Today's evidence:

 This is not really my fault.  This is Melanie's fault (one of my bosses at Good Wives).  She's been waltzing

in with her Grandmother's Flower Garden repro that she's working on, and

it's an easy one piece pattern. 

So, I wanted an easy one piece pattern, too, that was a repro.  Ergo......

I'm using Inklingo, and it's printing up great, and the piecing is so easy.  The diamond shape is from the FREE diamond, triangle square download.  The quilt I'm repro-ing is on page 80 of Classic Quilts from The American Museum in Britain.  It's called Sunburst Quilt, and it's from 1875-900.  Made by Elizabeth Mitchell(nee Cannon).  St. Cloud, MN.

The original has a yellow sateen background quilted in red thread.  Will I be so bold?  Time will tell. 

the real question is, when will it get finished?  Stay tuned......

linda

Where does all the snot come from?

That was always a big question around our house when my daughter was growing up.  Between allergies and the occassional cold we should have bought stock in Puff's with lotion, because we are the prime users of this product.  Well, nothing's changed.  We started out October with allergies-some of the worst in ages-and not just for me-because of the kind of summer and fall we're having.  And then, before they're even done, I get a Fall cold.  I'll be back with pix of the few things I've been able to work on as soon as this finishes clearing up.  Oh! The answer to the question is: the snot locker.
later....
linda

raspberry creams

I've been busy.  I've got a project done for the shop, but I also decided on what color combo I'm using for my pickled clams, aka raspberry creams.  Pink and brown!

At first I thought I'd just do a whole bunch of different colors, and so I grabbed the colors in the single above, and did it that way, and reversed.  Well, once I saw this, I was hooked and did several more lickety split.  Love it.  Now I'm collecting a bunch of pinks and browns to go with the ones I have.  What fun.  I also tried a larger piece of freezer paper for the Inklingo, using just one layer of the Reynolds freezer paper, and it worked beautifully.  Happy camper.  I can do 3 strips a nite and sew at least one and a half onto the clam the next.  I could do more, but for the two new puppies.  Pix to come!  Inklingo is the best!

later.

linda

snips and strips and puppy dog yips

This part of the reason it's been a long week:

No, not two pictures of one dog.  Two pictures of two new puppies.  Yes, they look like our other dogs.  Yes, we now have 4 Maltese.  Yes, we are nuts.   Our older ones, Moose and Milli, are not really happy right now, but they're not aggressive, so that's good.  The puppies, whose names we think will be Tanque(yes, that's Tank), and Olive, are very active and way too curious, and like my slippers way too much.  (For those of you not dog lovers, I apologize and will only put short updates on occasion.)

In the mean time, I've got my appliqued star count up to 25, and have 27 more prepped to go.  I did another pickled clamshell.  Ignore the "lovely" background".  I've been trying out different color combos, still can't decide.  I've got 2 more set to go, a pink with chocolate and a chocolate with pink.  I suppose I could put these all together eventually, but ...........

I also got the center hunk of that pineapple quilt quilted.   It amazes me how much free-er everything feels now that I've remembered why I like the hand done pieces.  They look hand done!  What a concept.  And yet, one that I so easily forget when looking at all the things in shows and in magazines. 

Big sigh.  Well, off to get some more stuff done so I can have more show and tell!

later...

Linda

Inklingo

I've talked about Inklingo before, I think.  Now I've got a button!!  Check it out on your right>
  If you've never been there before, check it out--that's right, just click on the button!  But I have to warn you.  It's addictive.  No more shape marking, no more templates.  Adaptable to all kinds of patterns.  And now you can design your own!  There are free design books available, free patterns.  You can even try it out for free!  Check out the "Support and Goodies" part of the dashboard.  Then go to "Shop and Freebies"  to see what's available.  Then join the yahoo group.  It's not for everybody--nothing is--but you can use it for hand or machine sewing--or a combo for both.  And the accuracy is to die for.

                                                       Check out this pickled clamshell!
   I'd never have attempted this before Inklingo.  But I'm so glad I get to play with it.  Now, if I could only decide on a color way.....
later.
linda

stitch musings

                                      Yes, I'm in a musing mood today.  I was working on hand quilting a throw that I'd finished quite some time ago.  I'll show you the whole thing when it gets farther along.  But look.  All things considered, this isn't bad.  But it's not perfect.  And that's what started me musing.  Do I have any plans to ever enter this into a show?  No. So why am I obsessing over these small irregularities?   I even started to pick things out.  This is going on my wall or couch, for goodness sakes.  Do I get many things done?  Some, but like most of us, not as much as I'd like.  But most of the time I don't because I spend too much time worrying about these little oopsies instead of just getting on with it.  In the big scheme of things, it doesn't look bad at all.  I do like to do the best I can.  This isn't the best I can do, but it's good, all things considered.  Why do I have to beat myself up for something that shouldn't  be that big a deal?  Do you guys ever do stuff like that, or do you let go and get productive?  So, I think I'm going to let that be my major quest at this point.  Be productive.  Not sloppy, by any means, but give myself permission to be human and make human works, because if I wanted it done perfectly, couldn't I just do it on a machine?  (Thanks for letting me work this out!)

linda

Progress!

What will I miss most, now that we're past Labor Day?  The warm humid nights?  The 90+ degree days? The warm humid 90+degree days?  No!  I'll miss the $1.00 any size drink at McDonald's!  I'm a fountain diet Coke junkie.  Not canned, not bottled.  Fountain.  With lootttssss of ice.  My DH calls them my coke snow cones.  I'll still cough up the $, just not as fast or as joyfully.  Ah, there's always next summer.

Now, I did mention progress.  I have a French General pincushion in the shape of a log.  Liked it, but they lined it with something that impeded the pins.  So I wanted to make another one.  I did.  But it was the same size as the FG one.  Decided I wanted a lap "work top" that I could stick pins in.  Voila!  It's about 16"x6".  This top side is out of a cotton overshot fabric that I have a yard of, and was saving for the right project.  The bottom, which of course you can't see, is red cotton velveteen.  It's a medium tea-dyed muslin for the ruffle.  I can't wear ruffles, but I like them, so I sneak them in when I can.  I filled it with crushed walnuts.  Yes, it's heavy.  But, the size is great to lay a couple of pieces of patchwork out on, or applique, and think and plan, and I now have a HUGE place to put my pins and needles, so hopefully I'll stop "losing" them in my clothes, the couch, the floor.....

Then, I finished up a reproduction of a sweet baby quilt in "Quilts  The Fabric of Friendship".  Including the quilting and binding.  The colors aren't quite this dull or as bright as the one below, but somewhere in between.  I used Inklingo for all of the half square triangles.  I have to tell you.  I am so pleased with the way this quilt turned out.  It's the first machine piecing I've done in a long time that came out nice!  There are points where there are supposed to be points.  And there are a lot of points.  Most of this I attribute to Inklingo, but mostly because I have become fanatical about a "scant quarter inch".  I got a cute little ruler for measuring this from Perkins Dry Goods called, Perfect Piecing Seam Guide.  You put your needle down in the hold in the ruler and put a straight edge or foot guide right down next to the ruler edge.  Remove ruler, and you're set to go.    I mean, look down 

there at those points, will you?!  I was so happy!!                                                                                                                     

Then, I got a new download from Inklingo for Pickled Clamshells.  I got the 11" version.  I'm still playing with the color way.  This one has a French Provencal look.  And halfway through the piecing of this one clamshell, I stopped and put the backing on this baby quilt.  It's strippy.  I didn't pick out the fabrics for the back.  My boss did.  And she snuck in this blue fabric that has just captivated me.  I don't know why, I can't explain it.  I do know that I'll be trying to find some time at work tomorrow to find something perfect to go with it.  I can see this as a 19th century house dress, but it also looks like some kind of anemone, or creature from the black lagoon (hideously creepy laughter).  In the back of the quilt, it kind of disappears, but still looks good.  I think it's all a plot.  I don't know whose, but it's a plot.

One last note, today.  I got this quilt quilted my my Sashiko machine.  I'm thrilled with it.  So far, I can only do straight lines and multiples there of, but I got this quilted in about 3 hours.  Yippie skippie!  And I like it!  Yes, a machine did this!  There's only one thread. There's no invisible nylon filament between the thread that shows. It looks machine quilted on the back side, but that works for me.  Okay, time to go applique and get ready for work tomorrow.  Later.

Diamonds are a girl's best...

I was working on my stars last night and the darn "dry eye" hit me, and I couldn't see as easily as I'd like in order to applique, so I went back to some diamonds I've been working on for a few months using Inklingo.

The piecing is easy and perfect even if I do say so myself.  Check out the closeups:This is just so painless, and the results are great.  I get so happy when I see all those little points on the front!  (I know, I need a life).  The piecing seems to be a bit easier on the eyes than applique.  Yes, another reason we have multiple projects!

I also finished a hexagon table runner this week.  I didn't use Inklingo for this.  I used a rubber stamp, instead.  The fabric use would have been much more economical had I opted for the Inklingo, but was doing it for the shop, and they weren't using Inklingo as yet. 

Have a few more things to do before I run errands today, so ....later.

linda

quick intro

I've been quilting since '75 and knitting since I was seven (yeah, in the old days when polyester yarn was new!).  I've had a number of lives and very happy where I am now.  I live surrounded by parks and farmland about 20 miles outside of Columbus, OH, but work one day a week at a lovely shop in Marion, OH, called Good Wives Co. , which deals with repro fabrics and furniture.  I work on their blog, make projects for them and myself and have projects stacked up like every good quilter should.  I'll be talking about what I'm doing on my own time for me, and yes, there will be cross-over with some of the shop stuff, but I'll try real hard to not be repetitive, or push stuff for the shop, as this is my space for showing and musing.  Yes, I muse. 
I must say that I have become addicted to a process/site called Inklingo.  I have no association other than being an avid fan.  As I like hand piecing but not marking, Inklingo is perfect, as you can have your printer put the marks right on your fabric, and never trace around a single template!   And it's all perfectly the same!   You can sew by machine, also, but I don't, yet.  Go there right now!  http://www.inklingo.com/ and join the yahoo group and check out the blogs and start sewing.  Which I'm going to do right now, because I was supposed to spend the day sewing, but instead designed this blog. 
More soon. And there will be photos, just not today.
linda