I Wish I could Say....

I wish I could say,

I didn't have much to show you this week

because. . . 

I was on an African safari,

I had been sunbathing on some beautiful tropical beach,

or had impulsively joined the circus.

Unfortunately, nothing that exciting.

So instead,

I've been slowly working on

machine quilting a simple panel for a

baby quilt

Appliqueing my blocks for Christmas,

sewing a backing using leftovers,

and playing with some vintage hst's for my next doll quilt.

I just wanted to let you know

I've been sewing

and we'll see what I have done next week.

Until Next Time-

Kyle

The Back Burner

 It seems 

that I have a lot of projects on the back burner,

and I need to get to them.

I'll be working hard and

multitasking,

but you'll just have to stop by

next week

 to see if
or

 what I've accomplished. 

Have a great week.

Until Next Time-
Kyle

Listen to the Rhythm

 All week I have been trying to think

of something interesting to write about.

I've been a bachlorette for the past 5 days,

so I was using this time

 to work on a number of projects

without too many interruptions, except

for the ones I created for myself.

But as much as I thought I would actually

finish something, it didn't happened.

Instead, I found myself doing more

prepping than anything else, 

which is not too exciting or clever to write about.

I kept hearing rhythms in my head.

Quilters rhythms like,

 prep, prep, fuse,

A-Z with Ewe and Me

Finally the borders.

 I was also hearing

cut, cut, sew a little,

I wanted to use some of the leftover fabrics

 from the A-Z with Ewe and Me sampler

 in the Falling Charms pattern from the 

Missouri Quilt Co. that

Paulette was using for a baby quilt, 

(I'm making two different sizes)

and

I had to make a few more nine patches to go

with the ones I'll be getting in the mail soon

from the nine patch swap that Barb organized.

 

 How about

trace, trace, cut

(more Noah and Matilda blocks)

I had to recut two of the blocks from

last month because I left them on the AIRPLANE!

and

pin, pin, sew together.

The Home for the Holidays quilt

Today, though, I will be doing something

very interesting.

I'm attending Ricky Tim's Quilt Seminar

with guest appearances with Alex Anderson.

So maybe next week,

I might be quilting to a whole new rhythm.
Who knows.

  Until Next Time-

More Than Quilting, Once in Awhile

This week included

some utility sewing.

Every two year old boy

who loves cars and trucks

and anything with wheels

needs new curtains

that are for big boys.

These are things that Nana's 

just have to do.

 Quilts and arty things just

have to wait.

Even Michelangelo had

(online photo)
 to paint ceilings once in awhile.

Until Next Time-

A Theorem

 High school geometry class 

was a long time ago.

Some where in all those theorems and such

must have been:

The Whole Equals the Sum of Its Parts.

(If not, I apologize to anyone who is 

a mathematician.)

This continually popped in my head as I was 

piecing quilt blocks last week.

I'm a pretty good sewer most days and
hit the 1/4" mark most of the time.

But on this particular day my simple project turned out

not to be so simple.

I was constructing a checkered board border.

How easy to put one and half inch squares together
into simple nine patch blocks.

and then sew together to make a border.

The border turned out an inch and half too long.

My quarter inch was slightly a skewed.

Usually I stop and measure

 the small units that make up

 the whole block.

If they're not the correct size,

the block will be off,

 no matter how much steam I press with.

(Quilt making interpretation of the geometry theorem)

Rip.

Once the nine patches were the correct size

the border was the correct length.

Funny how that works out.

 The same was true as I was sewing some

HST together.

If the parts aren't right,

the block won't be either.

Trust me.

It's a theorem.

***

Just in case you're looking for a cute Halloween line,

I used parts of the 

Boo Crew (Moda, Sweetwater) 

for my border.

Super cute and fun

Until Next Time-

Multitasking

I love the concept of using another quilting project 

as the leaders and enders of a current project.

 It's like getting double mileage on a tank of gas.

Or better yet

multitasking,

which I love to do.

 

 The only problem

 is that you have to think and plan ahead.

Otherwise, you have nothing to sew.

I've got this great box

 that I keep my serendipity quilt in.

Every once in a while I have to stop

and regroup and open it up

to get some more

thangles,

and red and cream 2 inch strips

ready to become my "Leaders and Enders".

Once they're pinned together

in different combinations,

I'm ready to start sewing again.

It doesn't take long

before I end up with a 

great big pile of these.

 Parts for another day.

Not much effort required.

 Until Next Time-

Hand Stitching

I've had several people ask me

 if I would share my hand piecing secrets.

 Nothing I do is a secret, 

so here are a couple of my how to tips.

 I use only cotton thread 

and pick a color that blends

 with the darker color

 rather than the lighter side.

 I  use a #10 between needle.

 I use this size needle for almost everything.

 Pieces that are going to be hand pieced

 need to have the stitching line

 drawn on the wrong side of the fabric.
The sewing line is important here.

 Then cut out with a scant 1/4 inch seam.
The cutting line isn't the important line in hand piecing.

 Place right sides together. 

Using straight pins match up

 the pencil lines.

Check the other side.

 I knot my thread and start with a back stitch.

 Then I use a small running stitch
 pushing the fabric onto the needle.

I usually get 4-5 stitches on the needle
and then slide them off.
 Small even stitches work best..

 When I start the next set of stitches
 I'm in the habit of starting with a back stitch
and then the running stitches.
 Better secure than sorry.
 
 I end with a back stitch and then a knot

When I attach multiple pieces together and
I get to another seam allowance,
I treat it as if I were starting and stopping a single piece,

 then poke the needle through to the other side of the seam
 and begin the pattern again.

 I do press as I go,

 just like machine piecing.

. Because none of the seam allowances are stitched down,
 you can manipulate them any direction that best fits the block.

 Ready to give it a try?
 Hope so.

 Until Next Time-

Grrrr!

 Did you feel it?

I hope not.

I'm sure the Seismologists had an unexplained

high reading on their equipment yesterday afternoon.

If they pinpointed the disturbance,

they would have found it came from my house.

It was created by the extra loud

Grrrrrrrrs!

The stomping of feet,

the banging of my head on the sewing machine,

and the

aggressive ripping from

"Jack, the Ripper."

I have come to the conclusion

that paper piecing is not for me.

I was working on the 

Just Takes 2 blocks.

This simple airplane block 

to be exact.

I had the worse time.

When I would try to sew the background pieces

up against the angle of the red,

they would never cover the area it was suppose to.

Rip, rip, rip, rip.

If I had known it would be so challenging,

I could have cut out the pieces and sewn

it the regular way.

I certainly would have had it done faster.

I can't even tell you how I got the 

block to be right.

But I can tell you,

I won't be paper piecing

these blocks again.

I'd rather hand piece the hard ones.

I wasn't happy.

(I'm better now)

Until Next Time-

A Make Over

It was time for a makeover this past weekend. 

No,

 I didn't go to the Clinique counter at Macy's

 or the Mary Kay lady didn't come over.

 It wasn't a makeover for me. 

I haven't bothered with any make-up for a

few days because it's been so hot

I'm sure it would run right off my face!

No, it was for my grooven

mauve

cushion on my antique rocker.

Every new mommy needs a rocker, so

I wanted to make over the cushion for

my daughter who's due

in less than 3 weeks.

It took a couple of months to find the right 

fabric to meet her modern IKEA decorating scheme.

But we persevered doing online shopping

and finally found 

Basic Grey's newest

Christmas line from Moda

called Blitzen at

Fat Quarter Shop.

This particular piece of fabric in the line

sure doesn't say Christmas, does it.

She loves it and it fits in

perfectly with her IKEA decor.

It looks sleek and modern.

I even added cording to the edges.

I never liked doing that very much until 

a friend, who taught Bernina classes, said

"Why don't you use the cording foot?"

Dah!

What a difference a foot makes!

When you have the right equipment, 

the job can even be fun.

Well, I wouldn't go that far with

adding cording, but it sure did make

it easier to do.

Now the rocker is ready 

for the new baby and the new mommy

to rock and rock the night away.

Have fun!

Until Next Time-