Trying to catch up

I dug out another tub and found more small pieces so been trying to catch up and slice them up for usable pieces. I need variety to make some more blocks. Work at it awhile and then go check on my husband. He has been trying to get odds and ends worked through so we can do the roof on the garage in the next month. 

Here are some light 2.5 inch squares cut and also some strips that were leftover when cutting the fabric up. Today I won't have a lot of time to get back at it so plan on cleaning up the piles I have laying around and getting them in the correct tubs. I really wanted to sew today, but know it won't happen unless I get her down for a nap. Granddaughter #2 is busy when she is here.  

We had lightening and thunder night that kept me up part of the night. After 1:30 am  it was wild here. We got another 8/10ths of an inch of rain and this is what the sky looks like right now. Tonight it is suppose to get worse. No wonder rivers and creeks are flooding.  We have been mowing as much as twice a week if not three times. With so much rain and we live in an old river bottom so the ground is real fertile. The grass take leaps between rains. 

My company left yesterday afternoon and we will try and get back into a routine around here. Need to clean out refrigerator and get rid of any science projects growing in there. I'm sure I will have to go to the garbage after while today. I have baskets of fabric trimmings I need to get rid of. Start on the new batch of slivers. Stay dry and cool today. Chris

Visitors

My Granddaughter got to meet her Great Aunt, my sister today. Weren't sure of who she was at first, but they became friends fairly fast. They played for awhile and they needed to get going.

We had my  sister and mom out last night for supper and she went home today. She had a 4 hour trip ahead of her so she wanted to get home before dark. 

I did some cutting this morning, but no sewing. So we will see how it goes tomorrow. I know I get the baby tomorrow so I'm sure none after she comes.

May have her again on Tuesday. It is what it is. Chris

Some of this and some of that

Today is one of those catch up days. We have company in town and not sure when they are available to visit. So I chose three different projects that are short term as far as finishing them in case I get interrupted. These scrappy quilted blocks need binding. I will sew it on first at the machine so I can do handwork while visiting.

This is my scrap bucket. It is full to overfull. I need to make strings or more crazy scrap blocks. I have some smaller projects I want to complete before Christmas this next year and they will come out of this bucket. I had a picture of three shirts I bought at a thrift hop and it disappeared. They need to be cut up into strips and squares today also. I ran the vac yesterday and need to check the kitchen floor today. Always threads and crumbs. My fruity Computer is going crazy this morning. Better get off before it blows up. Chris

UPDATE: We got through changing banks to a local bank instead of a regional one. There are so many rules for the elderly to follow because of taxes and inheritance issues. Buyer beware when dealing with banks. 

Have to put on my thinking cap today

No pictures in this post. Today we are looking for a new bank for my Mother. She is very unhappy and we can't have that going on. So an appointment at 10 am and then we need to re-group because my sister is coming to visit this afternoon. She lives out of state and Mom hasn't seen her for awhile.

I'm contemplating  whether to buy a new Darning foot for my machine. I have a generic one and I thought it wasn't preforming well. Have to consider the user also. DAH! So did some research and I think I am going to do some modification. Went to Leah Day's You Tube videos and found a video as to how to fix the foot to work better for you. Rubber band and a bent needle bar maybe will work. Can't hurt it because if I break it I was going to buy a new one anyway. Wish me luck.

We had the baby all day yesterday and she was such a character. She is a tease and she know what she is doing to get you to laugh. Shades of her Father. We went for walks and we went visiting and road on the lawn mower with Grandpa and kept us hopping.

We then got on Skype with big brother and sister. So she had fun doing that. Joys of having your grandkids.

After appointment today I need to vacuum the house. Thread are everywhere. Really need to shampoo carpet, but not enough energy to get that involved today. Stay cool today it is suppose to get really warm. Chris

I think I'm in over my head

Months ago we had a meeting with my Mother's financial guy over her funds. We thought we had everything handled. Well the bank has been sold and the person we dealt with is gone. Now we have to go through all this again. Because what was agreed on before will not fly with the new bank officials.

Being Power of Attorney and Executor of someone else's money is not nice. If you make the wrong decision you pay dearly for this decision.

What happened to putting money in your mattress? Chris

Moving forward

Machine is up and running. Sewed on it for three hours this morning and didn't miss a beat. I got the tensions as perfect as they can be had it hums along quietly. It threads differently, but has a perfect stitch. I haven't wound a bobbin yet, but by tomorrow it will be given a run for it's money on that front. It uses the same bobbins as two of my other machines which is a help.

I got two of these coasters bound and finished. I have three more to finish binding on them. My Mother has a Dr's appointment today so taken them with me to finish while I'm waiting. She is going to have eye surgery in about 10 days. Then that will be over and done with. 

We are trying to get ready to get our garage roof replaced. Been a lot of extra running buying necessary things. My son and step-son are going to do the work with Dad's supervision. Had to buy some tools and knife blades, vents, nails and we haven't bought the shingles yet. Then a dumpster has to be rented. It adds up real quick like. Next year we need to re-roof the house also. Then everything will match. When you own property it never ends the fix and repair part. Stay cool Chris

So much fun

I think I have I have 16 of these stitched. Now need to bind them. I have several more to sandwich and stitch.

Here is some of the detail of the stitching which is the quilting that I'm doing. Each one is different with many colors and stitching. No two will ever be alike.

As you can see they are just fun to do. Chris

Deco stitching for quilting

These scrap blocks or crumb blocks what ever you want to call them are sitting there waiting to be used. I thought coasters. Sop I cut waste batting and muslin pieces for the back of them. Here is the out come. 

I use black thread and did deco stitches from my machine to quilt through the sandwich of the block, batting and backing. It is fun to sit and decide what stitch to use. 

Not a real clear picture, but feather stitching, herringbone, zig-zag also, but anything to use for quilting through the sandwich.  

This is cut off batting I have saved from trimming quilts after quilting. The scraps to make the blocks are just that scraps. So I'm using up everything I have to make these coasters. 

I had computer issues this morning and found out it was something I did imagine that. Fixed now. Chris

Picture heavy

In the dumpster along with the dishes and doll was a Montgomery Ward Precision Round Bobbin model 188 sewing machine from the 50's. No foot control, but the motor runs and the needle moves and bobbin case is there. This was made in Japan not sure of year, but I think I can find it. I have a controller with a lamp and controller  block to see if it works well. Needs a belt and bobbin donut which I can get it locally. It is dirty here and needs cleaning of the oil and lubricant spots to get rid of the gummy stuff. This should work well when cleaned up and a few parts.   

Blooms in my garden this morning

Spider Wort

Painted Garden Shed.

My garden that has no weeds has some now. 

New window in garage and a new to us windmill out in the garden.

 Maiden hair Iris in bloom.

Work in Progress. This back yard has evolved. I think we have a good mix and maybe need to move a couple more things in the new future. This is my corner of the World. Chris

Oh WOW.......

Went to You Tube and there are several videos about the June Tailor Shape Cut Ruler. So if you have one take a look to get the best advantage.

This will be a time saver for me cutting strips squares diamonds and hexies. Chris
I do not work for June Tailor just thought the info would be good for those that don't know the info is out there.

Work Day

I was given this June Tailor strip cutting template. It is quite large and wasn't sure if I would like it, but thought if it worked it would be an asset. I was looking on Pinterest the other day and there was a video of how to use it. I think it is on You Tube. Will look for the link later and post it. As you can see I have plenty in this basket to cut up. 

They have been having rummage sales out here by where I live and I found 6-100% cotton men's shirts in good colored plaids. Well for now my husband took over 5 of them. I cut up one so far. He maybe will give up the rest before long. Trying to get enough plaids to make a Blackford Beauty block quilt top. I think it takes on a masculine look with all the plaids. 

We have dumpsters in the community we live in. The rummage sales are over and people just dump the rest of the stuff. We got a king sized beautiful headboard, dishes. I'm always looking for large platters. So I found this stuff in the dumpster that still had the price tags on them.

These deco plates were there also. I'm sure I can find a use for them. Plus I have red walls in my kitchen. So maybe use them as a wall hanging type collage.

There were several porcelain dolls and most had the faces broken, but this one. I saw it on eBay for about $50. Not sure it would bring that much, but I have granddaughters so maybe add to the collection I already have.  Yes I know more stuff to store. Oh well more for my son to take to the landfill.

I got the day over with yesterday and it went ok. Was a lot longer than suppose to be, but what can I do about that. I need angel wings to do what I did. It was hard not to tell her off. I have a hole in my tongue, but it is behind me for this time. Chris

Maverick Stars and 9-patches

I have been working on these blocks for about a week now. The scrappy star or Maverick Star are piling up, but I have all these 9-patches also. So thought I would place them together in a quilt.

I have some rich dark brown fabric I think for sashing and will sash each block to showcase what the block is. Wasn't sure if the block with the star in it was standing out well enough against the other 9-patches. Taking this picture and standing back to look at it I can see it, but I think the sashing will help the over all picture. 

I have a job to do today that I'm not looking forward to. Supervising a visitation with my youngest Granddaughter's biological Mother.  I do not trust this person and I will have to bite my tongue. Also the weather is suppose to get bad and where do you take a 16 month old in a public place during bad weather. We can't sit in McDonalds play area for 3 hours. Wish me luck on handling this well. Chris

Gloomy day

We had almost 6 inches of rain in 24 hours and the next 24 hours brought 2 more inches. Overcast today and hopefully things start to dry out. Even the leaves on the trees look waterlogged.

Up at 2:30 am. Couldn't lay there any longer. I got up and started sewing. Made about 40 9-patches. They will come in handy down the road. I have plans for some of them to finish the dancing 9's I have started.

Today is rummage sale day in the park where we live. 13 rummage sales all going on in walking distance. They open at 8 am. See if I can find baby clothes and or 100% cotton shirts to cut up and use. Enjoy your day. Chris

Rain Rain go away

Overnight we got 5 inches of rain, hail and wind. no damage here, You can see the rain gauge and how full it is. We are suppose to get more rain today and large amounts again.

There is 2.5 inches of standing water in this flower pot. Have to get this to drain out. Flash flooding is predicted for our area and I'm sure certain areas experienced it last night. We had .85 inches earlier in the day and I emptied the rain gauge at 5 pm last night. So almost 6 inches in less than 24 hours. We will not mow today. Chris 

Blocks into Candle Mats

 The crazy scrap blocks I pictured earlier I finished off into candle mats. They are similar colors and the same size so they could be used in the same setting. 

This size could be used for mug rugs if you want to have a snack with your cup of tea or coffee. It is using up scraps and I quilted it as I stitched the fabric strips ion the outer edges. I pieced the center layered it with the backing and batting. Then as I added strips around and stitched them through all layers and press the strips and keep adding. Then after trimming I added bias binding. Quick gift for someone if you get invited to something at the last minute. Stay cool. Over 90 degrees here. Chris 

Stitching going on, but not a lot of interest. Making more 9's. They are colorful. I have noticed how many make strip sets and cut to segments of their choice. In my method I cut the squares for more random stitching. The reason for this method for me is I had smaller pieces and couldn't make strip sets. Hence I started this way and continued. 

As you can see I have tubs of squares. These are 2.5 inch squares. I just pull a few out and add more as I need variety. If your method works for you then great. No right or wrong way of doing this.

In between I made some scrappy crazy blocks. I am going to make some candle rugs and coasters with these. You know how glasses sweat

in the Summer months and I don't want tabletops ruined with damp glasses. These are corners and extra pieces leftover from squaring up piles of scraps that have either been given to me or I accumulated over the course of time.

We had rain, but nothing serious as other areas of the country did. We are in line for more storms today. Hopefully all of you are safe and not in the path of these storms. Chris

Pressing board

My June Tailor large pressing board has seen better days. It is stained and has spray starch baked on the surface. I decided I would ask to get a smaller one made. We used 3/8 inch square of plywood that my husband cut for me. I doubles a batting piece and used a canvas over it and stapled it to the back. Oh my is it nice.

  I can set it beside my cutting board on my small portable table have room to cut and press. Some like a solid surface to press on and I prefer a softer surface. It works great and if the cover gets dirty I can replace it. Something that small makes me happy today.

I had a very bad night so was up at 12:30 am. I grabbed my squares and made 9-patches to get them sewn up for the dancing 9's. I think I need a few more and then I can assemble the whole top. Well I should qualify  that statement. I make it in two or three sections quilt each and then join them.

I got hamburger out for supper, but cooked carrots, celery, onions, and chicken breasts for meals the next couple days.

We went to my Stepson's for Father's Day and had fillets on the grill, baked potatoes, salads and homemade pies. Was wonderful, but I got sick from it. To much bacon. I'm allergic to the nitrates so I was miserable all night. After my husband gets into the house he is mowing I will be down for the count. Keep on sewing to humid to be outside today. Chris

Simple sewing

This is going to be a candle rug. I need to start on the binding. I thought I would make this out of some small scraps that were hanging around on the cutting table. This is a flip and sew method. I had backing and batting layered together and I placed the fabric in layers and pressed as I sewed them. It is a crazy block method and It is machine quilted to the backing and batting without quilting lines showing on the top. 

My step daughter-in-law sells candles and I thought she might appreciate some of these in her home. I will make some more maybe seasonal ones for her. I can use some more also. Small pieces can make useful items when you make small quilts. Chris 

Outside time

We went over to play with the twin granddaughters of my neighbor. They were visiting their grandma today also.

They were going to go swimming in the wading pool, but with the wind it is just a little cool out. Autumn wasn't sure what to do with the big ball so she would pick it up and carry it around. 

Needless to say grandma is wearing out and they still have to drive back from dropping her step brother off at the airport. He should be taking off soon. 

She finally fell asleep so hopefully she is out for awhile and keeps them up tonight. Isn't that what Grandma's are suppose to do? LOL Chris 

Morning sewing while the rest of you slept

Couldn't sleep this morning. Had a bad night and yet I really needed to sleep because the baby is coming. So up at 3:20 am and decided to sew. Since I have a couple sets of blocks going with 2.5 inch squares I just jumped into making scrappy stars. 

As I get some of the strips made to complete the blocks I lay them out and pick the best combo for the next block. I have a lot of the deep red in these so I wait until I get a group that they will work in. 

I got bored with finding the star points so I made some nine patches that I need to finish the Dancing 9's. All the same size squares so easy to use as leaders and enders when chain piecing. This way I'm working on two quilt block sets at one time. Keeps the mind going and less boredom on my part. Hope you have a beautiful day. suppose to be nice here. Chris

Part of the layout

 Dancing 9's are starting to come together. This is the first sewn together. I laid some out to see if I liked it.

All but 6 of them are here on this bed I want to make enough to make a queen quilt. I laid them out to see how many more I needed. I can piece maybe 20 more 9's and add to the length and width that way. When you change the dimensions you have to wing it for amounts. I plan on a light weight batting to make it more of a Summer weight quilt. Off to get back out all the 2.5 inch squares I cut yesterday and make some more 9's. Chris

Few things changed outside

We live in a manufactured home community and we have dumpsters we take out garbage to. Sitting outside the dumpsters the other night were plastic shopping bags with plants in them. I recognized they were huge Hosta plants. So we loaded them up and last night after all the rain stopped we went out and played in the mud. 

This is one single leaf off of these plants. We had to move five other plants to get these placed where we thought they would look good. Not only is it large leafed, but the stalks are almost 2 foot tall. This will make a statement when they regain their full potential in a couple years. I just looked and they are still standing. They didn't go into shock as other plants do when you transplant them.

We are finally getting a mix of plants we like and low maintenance for us old times to handle. Wish we could find some more plants with a little more color all the time even after they bloom. Have to haunt the garden centers. Chris

Has anyone bought used books on Amazon? I found an out of print quilting book used for a decent price and didn't know if it is buyer beware type thing????

A passion for a quilt

I have had a passion for this block made into a quilt. This is a picture and directions from Jo Morton. It was in an older issue of American Patchwork and Quilting magazine dated December 2010. I like the look. The brown and rust tones really tug at me. 

I wish I could get some dedicated time to make this. It is 5 inch blocks. So for a quilt of any size means many, many strips cut and sewn for it. 

I guess this will be on my bucket list. I will start cutting strips to work towards a goal, but I will have to make some purchases to get variety. Yes she has her own fabric line and all the colors at her finger tips. So maybe will have to substitute a few colors. This is a long list of what to make quilts. Chris 

Changing direction for the rest of the day

 As I cut strips there are small pieces laying around. I save them. Why? well I can't bare to through them out. I will make blocks out of them. Basically I'm creating fabric by sewing them together. Thinking about making blocks to make a tote bag out of them. Will have to think this project through.

Here is the recent tub of scraps that need to be tamed. This is a 4 gallon tub and it is full to the brim. Need to work on something without doing a lot of thinking. 

Here are some of the scrappy blocks I have made. As you can see they hold your interest because they are not symmetrical. Any shape works when sewing these together. Makes me smile because I feel gratified I'm using it all up. Yes I'm crazy, but who cares. Chris