Karen

This is for my sister, Karen. She asked me when was I going to post something on my blog? Today is the day. I have been working lots of overtime and my new car fund is growing. I am not sure what kind of car I am going to get. I do have some must haves on the list. It must have heat (my current car had lukewarm heat this past winter), it must have four doors as I still take my niece and nephew for rides in the car and it is murder trying to get car seats into the backseat without four doors. So far that is the only things on my list.

I went to a cabin on Lake Cumberland last weekend to quilt with our quilt group. I now am the proud owner of one completed block and 71 blocks in various stages of being done. Also I have the binding on my Olympic Project 2010 but it needs to be hand stitched down. Pictures will follow soon. I also am the proud owner of  $100  worth of fabric. Some more 30's prints for a different quilt and some brights to finish an orange, purple and flowered top that needs just bit to be ready for quilting. I had taken several projects to work on but I had too much fun setting on the patio and watching the water, the birds, and enjoying a fire every night. Good friends and great food!!

Here is what I did once I got off of work today. I decided I needed to hang up a quilt in my landing. I made this quilt years ago to hide the fuse box in my condo. It is 3 dimensional bowties that were machine pieced and hand quilted. A few of my bears and a sign from my kitchen. I need to make a trip to JoAnn's tomorrow to get a patriotic sign to put up there.

Tomorrow I am meeting some friends for lunch and hoping to get some flowers for the yard. And to work on my mom's purse. It is Mother's Day 2009. I am kind of behind on lots of things. Pictures will follow. I am seeing her on Monday after I get off of work. It would be nice for her to have for this summer. I am using lots of brights for this purse.

In stitches,
Judy

stash repoort

I am not using my stash but I am giving it away bit by bit. Once work settles down I will get back to sewing. My small quilt group is leaving for a mini retreat on Thursday and I am hoping to start a few things and maybe finish a thing or two. I am making table runners for my sisters and my mom for use at Christmas but they will get them at Thanksgiving. My daughter in law will get a table topper.


Used this Week: .50 yds
Used year to Date: 39.375 yards
Added this Week: 0 yards
Added Year to Date: 21.25 yards

Net Used for 2010: 18.125 yards

Check out the  blog  Judy L  and see what else is happening

In stitches,
Judy

Happy Mother's Day!!

I am hoping everyone had a good day today. I got a phone call from my son and my daughter in law. They sent me a cool teddy bear for Mother's Day!! My very own spa bear. I love it!!! I collect bears as well as fabric.

My mom, my sister Becky and my sister Patty and her kids Vincent and Lily met at a local park. Vincent and Lily with some help from me and mom got Patty a pressure cooker for Mother's Day. She really wanted one and her kids were such good helpers. I got my mom a lovely pink and purple fuschia hanging basket for her front porch. We also had a great hike.

Yesterday after work, Jennifer and I checked out the local quilt shop. They were having a sale. I ended up buying a bit more 30's prints and a 60 degree ruler. I have several pieces of striped Christmas fabric to make tablerunners for my sisters, my mom and myself to give to them at Thanksgiving in order for them to have the tablerunners for the month of December. When we got back to the house dinner was wating for us. Another friend had come over to use my washer and she made an awesome dinner for us. Jennifer was able to machine quilt a baby quilt for Kids Komfort. She was so excited with her progress. I got to mess around with my EQ5. I still cannot get EQ6 to load on my computer, but I have lined up some computer help to get me ready for EQ7, reward for working all this overtime.

Here is my stash report for May. I did add a bit of fabric while I was at the quilt shop and I did not use any fabric this week. Oh well. Check out Judy L's blog to see how everyone else is doing.

Used this Week:: 0 yds
Used year to Date: 38.875 yards
Added this Week: 1.75 yrds
Added Year to Date: 21.25 yards

Net used to for 2010: 17.625


Hope everyone had a good day today and has a great week with lots of quilting time.

In stitches,
Judy

The weekend is coming!

I have it on good authority that the weekend is coming and also the rain. It seems that any time I am not working a weekend's worth of overtime it rains. I think I can still do yard work in the rain as long as there is no lightning and I am not using long metal poles.

My goal is to do something sewing related every day. Tonight I am working in the sewing room for a bit before I go to bed. The sewing room is quite messy and needs lots of TLC. Pictures will follow once it is back to "normal".

I am getting some reading done in the form of audio books. I have done one this week so far and I am starting another one tomorrow. I read them and then give them to the gal who sits next to me and listens to and then I order more from the library. I used to listen on my ride to work but that is so much shorter now.

This is my angel, Thomas, who has been gone 13 years this past Monday.

In stitches,
Judy

Wow

I would like to say that I have been quilting so much that I am unable to keep up with my blog. But it is not true. I can say that I am working so much overtime that I cannot do any thing else. That would be the truth. I am doing about 20 hours of overtime a week and working 6 days a week. I am getting ready to leave now to go to work. The only sewing I have done is fixing the elastic  in my niece's first communion dress. I did some quilting on the Olympic table runner and that is almost done.

I came into the office the other day and found this on my keyboard. A beanie baby bat. After my earlier experience with the bat in my kitchen, my desk is now being guarded by this bat!!!

We celebrated Easter on April 18th and the family was all there except for my kids in New York and my brother in law. The family got to meet the newest member of the clan, Maddie. She is my niece's daughter that was born just before my birthday in March. This is a picture of my godchild, Lily holding Maddie. I am thinking this is my first entry for the fair in July.

We took our annual walk after eating dinner and we stopped in to see Joyce and Junior and to see what was new at their little farm. Miniature horses. And a promise of baby miniature horses for next Easter.

We also played baseball and every team needs a mascot. This is Vincent our mascot. We are not Irish but this what he found in the toy room at my sister's.

I am really hoping to get to the sewing room soon. I keep taking fabric out for other people's projects but nothing for me. I am usually tired and ripping out is not something I want to do. And I know that would happen right now if I tried to sew. I look at magazines and I went to the guild meeting on Monday and let our members tempt me  with their completed projects. I want to quilt!!!

Design Wall

This is the design floor in the sewing room. I have not gotten much done this week. I sewed appliques on T-shirts for Vincent and Lily, my nephew and niece, for their birthdays. They are getting sleeping bags for camping and I contributed $$'s to that fund, but I thought they needd stuff to open.

Stop by Judy L's and see what is on the design wall.

In stitches,

Judy

Stash Report

I am finally making some progress in the sewing room and getting my stash under control. I am not doing much sewing at all because I am racking in the overtime at work. Good move for the new car fund. But I did have my friend, Jennifer, come and browse the stash. She is just getting back into quilting and needs to start a stash. I am feeding her stash like you would feed a sourdough starter. It certainly works for me.


Used this Week: 25 yards
Used Added this Week: 5.25 yards
Added this Week: 5.25 yards
Added Year to Date: 19.50 yards


Net Used for 2010: 19.375 yards
 
 
Go check out how everyone else is doing at Judy L on their stashes.
 
 
In stitches,
 
Judy

Happy weekend

Work has not slowed down one bit and I just finished a 60 hour week that followed a 54 hour week, No sewing has been done here in a long time. But I am going to be doing some serious stash busting tomorrow. A gal from work is coming tomorrow to relieve me of some of my stash. I am very excited to have her here. I am going to make homemade spaghetti/ pizza sauce for our homemade pizza and then down to the sewing room to add to her beginnings of a stash.Good food and good fabric and good friends.

I tried to get a picture of the sewing room as it is now, but the lighting is poor and the pictures are not that good. I will get more pictures later.

But here is an oldie but goodie. This quilt is made from a nine patch block swap I did many years ago. I used really thin cotton batting and it looks pretty and can be used in the summer.


In stitches,

Judy

Life is crazy!!!

Ever since January 1st, we have been waiting for the overtime to kick in at work. It kicked in last week with voluntary overtime, which I took 14 hours towards my car fund. It's mandatory now and  so far this week I have done 12 hours including 6 on Easter. We won't do Easter until the 18th. No sewing for me right now. I am hoping to get to the sewing machine this weekend. No plans for working any this weekend.

I slept in the basement last night. It was 80 degrees in the house. Yuck. But it is always about 20 degrees cooler in the basement. It was wonderful and I was able to do this while I took the curlers out of my hair. I can hear my alarm thru the floorboards. Uncarpeted hardwood floors.

My friend, Jennifer, from work is coming to "shop" my stash this weekend. Jennifer is just getting back into quilting and my stash needs some thinning so it works for everyone.

Have a good day and keep on sewing!!

In stitches,
Judy

It's kidney stone time

I am prone to kidney stones. Lots of little ones up there and for whatever reason one starting moving downward yesterday. I was only able to do 1.5 hours of overtime before I had to leave. I came home and got a bit to eat and some heavy drugs and took to the bed. I am feeling much better now and I will be able to work some more overtime tonight after my shift. No more time in the sewing room but $$'s towards the car fund. And of course, the weather is going to be nice and I will  be in the office looking out.  

Another quilt from my past. I cannot remember when I finished this one but it has to be over ten years ago. I gave it to my daughter in law while they were dating for her birthday.


In stitches,
Judy

Working on the Stash

I spent a couple of hours in the sewing room tonight and the only progress I have made is the fact there is NO fabric living in my pantry!!! That is a good thing. I have at least six bins that will need to be cut and sorted the quiltville way with Bonnie Hunter. I have fabric set aside to make Christmas table runners for my sisters. (Shhhh!! Karen this is a secret) and fabric to make a teddy bear quilt. I found the fabric from my first trip to New York and the pattern for the wall hanging I want to make. I found lots of other things I had forgotten about. I am not organized by a long shot but I am getting there. It is a long process but it will be worth it when I am finished. I know I will be more productive once the room is straightened up. Once I am completely finished with the room I will post pictures.

Here is a quilt from my past. I made this quilt for my Nick, when he was on his 8th grade class trip. I am thinking it is about 14 yrs old. It went to college and is now living in New York City and I got to use it while I was visiting earlier this month.

In stitches,
Judy

Design Wall Monday

Guess what I found in my sewing room? It is a sampler quilt from my EQ group from my old guild about 10 years ago. I need to put it on my bed and see what I need to add in the way of borders to make it fit my bed. I even found the fabric that goes with this project. Now I need to find some time to sew. I am looking at old magazines at work during my lunch and making more plans.

Stop in and visit with Judy L and see what others are doing with their design walls.


In stitches,
Judy

Stash Report

Wow, it's the end of March and I am stll in the black but barely. I have several projects started but until I finish them completely I am not subtracting that from my stash. An incentive to get things done. Talk at work is there will be mandatory overtime starting this week. I am thinking about stopping at the office today and get a jump on the overtime. We have turnaround times to meet and there was a lot of stuff left last night that was not done. This is going to cut into my sewing time but will add $$'s to my new car fund. My car had lukewarm heat this winter and I would love to have good heat for the next winter in Ohio.

Used this Week: 0 yards
Used year to Date: 13.875 yards
Added this Week: 7.0 yards
Added Year to Date: 14.25 yards
Net Used for 2010: .375 yards
 
Stop in at Judy's to see how everyone else is doing the last Sunday of March!!!!
 
In stitches,
 
Judy
 
 

Mother Nature Is Listening

It snowed last night and Mother Nature listened to me. I asked at the beginning of winter for snow just on the grass and not on the roads or sidewalks and I got that this morning. Of course, it the end of March and the beginning of Spring. Oh well!!!
I must tell you about my friend, Jennifer, from work, And thank her for recapturing my quilting spirit. She had quilted in the past and life came along and  took her away from quilting. She's back. I have been lending her my quilt magazines to get her going, gave her some 2.5" strips, and I give her something new it day to investigate. Today it is half square triangles made from Thangles. It is refreshing to see the excitement in her eyes with every new thing I throw her way. I remember why I started quilting and why I will continue to quilt.


In stitches,

Judy

Spring is Here

Spring is here and the weather is changing and it staying lighter longer in the evenings. All good things. I have seem to have been vistited by the fabric fairy and I have been buying fabric like crazy. I was out on Saturday and bought fabric for the quilt in the previous entry. Soft, baby colors that remind me of Spring. Last night I stopped at JoAnn's to pick up a container to put cookies in and I peeked at the calico wall. Bad idea. I now have enough fabric to make another baby quilt in blue springlike colors. I need to stop at the grocery after work tonight, good thing they don't sell fabric.

In stitches,

Judy

Design in my Mind

I have been toying with a quilt block in my mind for almost a week. I was able to get it paper this morning at work and tonight it has taken a life of it's own on EQ5.  I went out on Saturday and bought yardage to make this quilt. I picked soft baby colors. But I picked bold colors for the mock up.

In stitches,

Judy

It's Design Time

Every time I woke up last night a quilt block greeted me. It is a safe bet that it is time to get it on paper. I think it is going to be my next masterpiece. I hope there is fabric in the stash to create it. If not, I may take myself to the fabric store before work. I have a gift card that I could use to me started. It is a shame it's so early that nothing is open. Take deep breaths and relax, everything will work out.

I have been working on a paper lined, hand pieced Grandmother's Flower Garden variation for more years that I can remember. I started it while I was married for the intention of using it on our king sized waterbed. I am now divorced and have gotten a smaller bed but it is no closer to being done. I drag it out once a year and work on it. But I have a huge amount of the flowers already put together and I am going to use them for another project. I am thinking tablerunner. And I am thinking that it would make a good entry for the Fair. Last time I entered a tablerunner in the Fair, I decided on Christmas and so did most everyone else. Easter won that year. This one will be different and I am hoping will catch the judge's eye.  That is another project bouncing around in the brain trying to get out. There is at least one more idea up there involving wood, modge podge, fabric and a sharpie maker. It will have to stay up there for another week or so. If it turns out it will make an appearance here.

Today and next Saturday will be my last two Saturdays to work. The staffing issues have been worked out and I am keeping the shift I have. Monday thru Friday no weekends. Off at 4:30 and there is daylight now to play in. I will take my tablerunner to amuse myself and my cutting stuff to work on the stack of fabric odd fabric that needs to be cut down to strips for other projects. There is a gal at work just getting back into quilting after several years away from it. I have offered her fabric from my stash and her reply was only if you have extras. I have fabric in my pantry now. Not much food on the shelves but three rubbermaid boxes of fabric. I can cut at my desk and leave her some fabric as a surprise for Monday on her desk.

I am going to cook this weekend. I am going to make another batch of  Spaghetti Sauce. I pop everything in my small crockpot and in a few hours it is done. And I am thinking about cabbage and sausage in the big crockpot. And a batch of Peanut Butter Blossom cookies for a gal at work who is leaving. Her last day is Thursday so I have a little bit of time.

Monday my sister and I were out wandering the countryside in her new Jeep. Hi Karen!! And taking pictures of the unusual and the interesting. Much easier than taking pictures of humans. I keep cutting off the tops of people's head. I thought the way the moss was growing in the this creek bed was interesting and I had Karen stop in the middle of the road so I could take a picture. It was nice to see green in a rather gray and dreary day. Reminds us that Spring is coming!!! Happy Spring everyone.

In stitches,

Judy

Art quilts

Almost a year ago my sister challenged me to do an "Art Quilt". Not that is something that is way out of my comfort zone. But never one to back down from a challenge, I did an art quilt. Above is my rendition of an art quilt. It started out as a Forest Gump challenge at our guild, the box of chocolate thing with various pieces of fabric and trim and we could add our own fabric to it. Then I used bleach and common household items to lift the color out of the black fabric, I used lots of beads including hand beading my fringe. And you know, that after I finished the quilt I was hooked.

So I found this book months ago at Michael's and with my bonus money from work I bought it last night. I am excited about trying some of the techniques in this book. You will hear more about those experiences in later posts.

I have a basket with ivy in it on my front door and I try and change it seasonally or for the holidays. Last night I picked up some spring flowers and arranged them this morning, We have been told that spring starts tomorrow and that we should have snow showers on Monday. This is spring in Ohio and it is not unexpected.

Hope everyone does some sewing this weekend and enjoys the first day of spring!!!

In stitches,

Judy

I saw the sun!!!

We have turned the corner here in southern Ohio. Winter is a thing of the past!! Hopefully, no more snow!! Spring is coming slowly and it is bringing the sun back to my neighborhood. That is lovely.

I still have not done any sewing. Things are crazy at work. More training, new hours, shift bids, seniority!! Today I will get my new hours, hoping the for my current hours to stay the same. We shall see.

Don't forget to wear green in honor of St. Patrick's Day. I am going to be sporting my green earrings at work today. I do not own anything green except fabric and that would make an interesting fashion statement at work today!

In stitches,

Judy

Stash Report

Stash report better late than never. I am still adjusting to life. Work has been crazy with training and lots of off phone work. I have not been sewing or quilting. Not a good thing. I need to be working with fabric and soon. Tonight is Quilted Chaos meeting. I will be doing a little bit of hand quilting while I am there.Check out what everyone else has been up to at  Judy L's.

Used this week: .25 yd
Used year to date: 11.875 yds
Added this week: 1.5 yds
Added year to date: 7.25 yds.

Not too shabby for the first 3 months of the year. But room for improvement.

In stitches,

Judy

New York

I went to New York City to celebrate my birthday with my son and daughter in law. It was wonderful. The weather was nice and sunny. We did a lot of walking, eating, and visiting. I cooked on Friday night for them and a friend of theirs. We rented a zipcar and drove north along the Hudson River and stopped in Cold Springs, New York for dinner at Cathryn's Tuscan Grill. The food there was awesome and the town was quaint with lots of antique shops.

We went to only one quilt shop while I was there. The City Quilter was a shop we visited the last time I was in the city. I was on a mission. I was looking for a few more 30's prints for my Feed Sack quilt. I found 6 pieces for the quilt. I got them in 1/4 yd pieces and they are already cut up for the quilt.

I have not done much quilting since I have gotten back. I am getting ready to leave for work. I am working all day and will take my Olympic project along in case we are not busy. I would like to get that finished. I am going to stop at the quilt shop on the way to work and pick up a pattern that will use up lots of my scraps. Yeah!!!

Tomorrow I am walking with my mom and sister if the weather allows. Then I am going to my other sister's house to spend the night and part of the next day together. We are both off on Monday. Then I will be going to my Quilted Chaos meeting. It is my small quilt group.

Hello

I have not fallen off the face of the earth like some people have thought. I am home from my trip to New York City and I am still unwinding. I did go to work today but this evening I did nothing. And it felt good. It is now time for bed!!

I have lots to share from my trip including pictures. And I will update my blog tomorrow.

In stitches,

Judy

I am a Great Aunt

My niece had her baby early this morning. Hello to Madeline Elizabeth. She was born at 1:39 this morning just two days before my birthday!!! I still have to make the baby layettes for the older sisters. I will get right on that once I get back from my trip. I will package them up and mail them to each sister. Everyone likes getting mail.

Speaking of mail I got my prize from Bobbi for the Friday night Sew In. It came yesterday and I will post pictures after my trip, I have already packed my camera. I think I have every thing for my trip. My son called earlier and reminded not to eat a dinner while I am at the airport as my daughter in law is cooking for us. I am getting to airport around 3PM and even for me would be too early for dinner. I am allowed a snack though. I am taking a graham cracker parrillo protein bar . These bars are yummy and  will keep you full and does not mess with my blood sugar.

In stitches,

Judy

Tomorrow is Travel Day

I ended up coming home from work after 34 minutes with some stomach issues. I need to be fresh for my trip tomorrow. I was able to do two loads of laundry. I am not packed yet but I want to make sure that my clothes are dry. I do have a dryer but the door is bent and if I lean a trash can up against the door and tape it with duck tape I can use it. I needed to use today for sockes and underwear. Every thing else gets hung up on a line in my basement.  I am taking a few groceries and a couple of recipes because I will be cooking while I am up there. I called the quilt shop we visited last year and they are still open and we might go and visit it. I am looking for a few more 30's prints for my Feed Sack quilt.

I have no idea what the plans will be while I am there but I am packing for any scenario. The umbrella is coming along with my Yak Traxs . But the big ugly clunky boots are staying home!!! I will be taking a couple of trashy romance novels, a book on tape from a friend, some music and my portable cd player. No high class electronics for this gal.

I will take lots of pictures and update all of you when I get back.

In stitches,

Judy

Quilting with a purpose

Besides being addicted to fabric and quilting I like to enter my quilted items in the local county fair. So March is when I pull out my fair book from last year to see what I can make to fit the catergories that are listed in the book. This year it will be a machine pieced, machine quilted bed quilt, something hand pieced and hand quilted, a new wall hanging, a Christmas item of some sort, a tablerunner (not Christmas---learned my lesson the first year I did the fair. Everyone did Christmas and Easter won!!!) So if I am going to be quilting I might as well quilt with a purpose. And I am going to try use just my stash. We shall see.

In stitches,

Judy

Design Wall Monday

There was a song we used to sing as children about the "lonely little petunia in an onion patch". This is what my lone block on my design wall must feel like. I made the first of 72 blocks for my Scrap Basket Spectacular pattern called Feed Sack this morning before I went to work. It was quick and easy but I need to cut the rest of my strips the desired sizes which I will do after I finish this post. Check in at Judy L's to see what every one else is working on.

In stitches,

Judy

Stash Report

I have had a busy weekend and I finished another project except for tacking down the binding which I will do tonight while I have watching the Olympics. Of course, it is not my Olympic Project. I have finished my Kid's Komfort quilt and it is made entirely from my stash. 2.5" strips for the front and the binding and 5" strips for the back.

Here is my stash report for this week. Check out what is happening at Judy L's to see how everyone else is doing with their stash busting.

Used this week: 6.75 yds

Used year to date: 11.625

Added this week: 0 yds

Added year to date: 4.25 yds

Net used for 2010: 7.375

 

 

In stitches,

 

Judy

 

 

 

 

What about that Olympic Project

There are things that need to be done in order to work on the Olympic Project. I really should  be watching the Olympics and I should be quilting. I am doing neither of them. I have started stitching on the Olympic project in between calls at work. And this weekend I am going to do the machine quilting on the Kid's Komfort quilt. The guild meeting is Monday and I want to turn in the quilt. And since it all came from the stash it counts on Sunday's stash busting report along with the binding from the Iris quilt. Every little bit counts.

I am calling it a night. One more day to the weekend!!!!


In stitches,

Judy

My favorite part of a blog

I have given this much thought and have come to the conclusion that my favorite part of any blog is a picture. It  could be a picture of your family, your dog, your stash, your sewing room or what you are working on. It inspires me to see what is going on in your life. I am curious by nature and a picture answers that curiousity in me. So I am going to try and post often and have less posts without pictures. I want to share with you what is going on in my life.

Here is my first project finished in 2010!!! It is the Iris wall hanging. It is not promised to anyone but would certainly make a nice gift for someone for some reason or no reason. It will get tucked away in a safe location for just that purpose.

In stitches,

Judy

Count down to New York

I am leaving on Thursday, March 4th for my trip to New York City. My birthday is March 6th and I am spending it with my son and daughter in law in New York City. We will jointly celebrate our birthdays. Nick's was on February 21st. I am going to take some of the ingredients for dinner in my suitcase. I am making homemade spaghetti sauce for my stuffed manicotti, salad, bread and a chocolate raspberry truffle pie. These are all of Nick's favorites. And I enjoy making them for him and his wife, Tania.

I have an article, provided by my friend, Jeanette of fabric shops in the city. I managed to find two fabric shops and a bead shop last year on my trip. We shall see what happens this year. We are going to see a musical again this year. Last year it was South Pacific. No clue what we are seeing this time.

In stitches,

Judy

Design Wall Monday

Here is the next project I want to do. It is called Feed Sack and  it is from the book Scrap Basket Surprises.

 I am making the quilt to fit my full size bed that I am getting ready to redo. I am making my own head board,  scrapping and repainting a metal bed frame and put it all on risers. I figure I will need 72 blocks. I have cut up all of my 30's prints and 29 out of 72 4.5" squares for the center. So here are some of the strips that I cut today.Stop at Judy's and see what others are up to.

I saw my grass

After all the snow we have had in my corner of  Ohio, I saw my grass today!! It is brown but I think spring is coming!!!  The sun was out for a bit today and it was almost warm at 40 degrees. The snow is starting to melt and that is certainly a good sign.

Twenty eight years ago today was a Sunday and I was in labor. I gave birth to 6 lb 11 oz baby boy who is married and living in New York City. Happy Birthday, Nick!!

I participated in my first Friday Night Sew In. It was so motivating to get things done. And I won a prize!! It is so exciting. Please check out the llink to Friday Night Sew In on my sidebar and see what everyone else is working on. And join us for the sew in March. I know I am .

In stitches,

Judy

Sunday Stash Report

I have been busy in my sewing room but until each project is completed it is not logged into my stash busting report. So it will seem very meager this week. I am hoping to get more done this week and next week's report will be much different.

Used this Week: 0 yards


Used year to Date: 4.875 yards

Added this Week: 2 yards

Added Year to Date: 4.25 yards

Net Used for 2010: .625 yards
 
Stop in at Judy L's  blog to see what everyone else is up to this week.

Projects, Projects, Projects!!!!

I have finally gotten my act together and here are a few pictures of what is going on in my life. I have pulled out projects to finish and now I want to start a new project. Or at least get the cutting done on a new project for my bedroom. This is in part due to joining  Friday Night Sew In. It has motivated me into a sewing frenzy!!

This is what I call the Iris wall hanging. It was pieced by someone else and has been living in a box for many years. I have been hand quilting on it almost daily is almost done. I am going to check in the stash for a binding and attach it before leaving for work today.

Someone pointed out that Scrap Basket Surprises is an awesome book and I happened to have it out on the bench in sewing room. I took it to work and picked out a project to start. It is called Feed Sack. It looks like it would be easy to make. The last and only quilt I have made for my bed is flannel rag quilt that has gotten a lot of use lately. It has been cold and snowy here in my corner of Ohio.

 I have been collecting 30's prints for over 6 months  And here are a few of them ready for cutting. I am going to start cutting them today and hopefully once the Iris wall hanging and the Olympic project are done I can start on this one.  

 

Tonight when I get home from work, if I feel up to it, I am going to start machine qulting this Kid's Komfort quilt. The layering is just about done and it will be a true scrappy quilt. The top is made from 2.5 strips from stash. The back is made from 5" strips from my stash and the binding will also be scrappy. Kill the stash!!

In stitches,

Judy

Friday night sew in comes early

I am preparing for Friday night sew in early. I used 2.5" strips from my stash to make this top. I am going to make a pieced back and layer it for quilting tomorrow night. I am working on Saturday from 1PM to 9PM taking phone calls and I want to stitch down the binding in between calls. I need to stay busy and  I need to be at my desk. I have been working on my iris wall hanging and it is coming along nicely. I am going to bring it home with me tomorrow night and it should be ready for pictures. And binding!!

In stitches,

Judy

new picture

There is a new header picture on my blog. This is a favorite site of mine  at a local park near my home. This was taken  in either the spring or summer. It would be hard  to get there today. Too much snow. But on a good note it did not snow in my part of Ohio today. Yipee!!! I got a little bit of quilting done on the Iris wall hanging. But not much else. Been watching the Olympics but not stitching on my Olympic project.

In stitches,

Judy

Design Wall Monday

Here is what is on my design wall. It is my Olympic project. It is not going well. But it is snowing yet again. It is begining to sound like a broken record. I have been doing some quilting at work in between phone calls. Stop over at Judy L's page see what is on everyone else's wall.

In stitches,

Judy

Dinner with Family

I had dinner with my family on Sunday. My sister, Patty, made vegetable lasagne in the crockpot. We had salad and bread and some of my sister, Becky's candy from Valentine's Day. I made brownies from a box. And of course wine for those who partake of things like that.

I took some good pictures of the kids sledding down my mom's front hill but managed to erase everything in my camera. I have everything but the kid's sledding pictures saved to my computer.

We are having more snow again. We are expecting 7-9 inches or more by the end of the day. Yipee!! I am at work and will work on my iris wall quilt between calls. We are ususally slow on Mondays and today will not be any different.

In stitches,
Judy

My Olympic Project

I have decided to pull out yet another UFO for the Winter Olympics. This is a tablerunner given to me by friend almost a decade ago and it has been sitting patiently waiting for its turn to be quilted. The golden tones will go wonderfully in my dining room.

 I am not going to try and quilt tonight during the opening ceromonies as I am pooped and need my rest for tomorrow  is another 8 hour day at the office. I am taking the tablerunner with me in case the phones are silent and I can quilt. We are filling in for another office in Texas that will be closed because of snow. Of course, we were not so lucky to be closed for the 12 inches of snow we have had in last week. But we are in Ohio and we know how to handle snow. As you can see out the window this picture was taken when it was much warmer outside.

In stitches,

Judy

Thursday

It's not quite the weekend yet. It's Thursday. I got a little bit of hand quilting done on the Iris quilt today in between calls at work. And nothing done tonight at the house except for making a pan pizza for dinner. No new pictures of the outside. It is still snow covered and cold. My car is not sleeping in the garage because it cannot make it down the driveway. And the weatherman is forecasting more snow for Sunday. How depressing!

I am working  at least 4 hours on Saturday. It is not overtime as I wimped out on Tuesday and did not go to work. Then it will be time to work on the layette for this baby. I will start with the easy stuff first. Two doll quilts and then on to the harder stuff baby clothes without patterns.And what new mommy will need is a diaper bag to put the layette in.  Piece of cake. Baby Madeline is coming and want to have the layette done as soon as possible. I know my sister is working feverishly on the baby quilt for Madeline and her hubby does his best to help by pointing out that the baby could come any time and the quilt is not done. We all can use helpers like that.

I am off to bed under my flannel rag quilt. Nice and toasty warm to dream about warm and sunny anything.

In stitches,

Judy

More snow

It has snowed again and I wimped out and did not go to work. But look, it is after 9PM and that is the back end of a snowplow going down my street. We got another 6 inches on top of the other 6 incehs we got over the weekend. I put my car in the garage last night and now it is on my driveway near the street so I can get out in the morning. But now we are experiencing 30 mph winds and more snow. Tomorrow is still up in the air.

I wish I could say I got a lot of sewing done today but that would be a lie. I did read a lot of quilt blogs and got inspired to get busy in my sewing world. As much as I want to start something new with the Leaders and Enders on the design wall, I need to finish the baby quilt I am working on. I would like to start machine quilting it. I would be nice to finish something in 2010.

This is out my front door and the funky blue light is coming from the street light. It looks so pretty and serene but I was trying desparately to keep the door open while taking this picture. The winds were really whipping up.

In stitches and snow,

Judy

More about Monday

I finally finished shovelling my entire driveway yesterday. But there will no resting on my laurels. Snow is coming again to mess up my driveway. I have the car all packed with the snow essentials. My broom, shovel, melting compound, wiper fluid, blanket, and the broom scraper thing that I will take into the office with me in the morning. I just have to pack an overnight bag in case the weather is bad to travel home. Or maybe I will sleep at my desk. I am getting up early and leaving for the long 12 minute on a good day commute to the office. I have heard from several co-workers that they will not be coming in to the office tomorrow. I work in a call center and people who do not live in Ohio will still need their medications. If I was independently wealthy, I would stay home tomorrow but I have bills to pay so I will go to work in the white death tomorrow. 

In stitches,

Judy

Design Wall Monday

Leaders and Enders. These are just a few of the leaders and enders I have accumulated over the past several years. I found these in a bag in the sewing room with lots of 2.5" squares. I have checked out Bonnie Hunter's site on Quiltville.com and I have found several patterns I would like to try. Go check out Judy L's blog to see what everyone else is working on.

In stitches,

Judy

Sunday Stash Repot

It's Super Bowl Sunday and I am one of the few people not watching the game. I am not the least bit interested in football so I am finishing up the chores around the house. I have finished shoveling the driveway and now I am doing a load of laundry so there will be clean clothes for work tomorrow. I need to pack my lunch for work tomorrow. Chili I think.. Not much done on the sewing side today. I did get a good nap in between trips to driveway for shoveling.

I am still in good standing with the stash busting this week. I have not been any where near a quilt store or a fabric store so nothing followed me home. I am working on projects but nothing to report until the project is done. So go to http://www.patchworktimes.com/ and see what everyone else is up to with their stash busting.

Used this week: 0 yds
Used yr to date: 4.875 yds
Added this week: 0 yds
Added yr to date:: 2.25 yds

In stitches,
Judy

Saturday Snow Day

The weatherman was right after all. The snow that he predicted for us in Ohio did come after all. Last night when I went to bed I had my doubts, but this afternoon as I was shoveling the 6 inches off my long driveway, I was convinced. I realized this afternoon just how long my diriveway is. I know that I can park 5 cars on it back to back. I have done some of the driveway and will finish it later. Like tomorrow.

I have black bean chili in the crockpot and after I get a bowl of it for dinner I am getting busy down here  in the sewing room. I have 3 more blocks to make for my Kid's Komfort quilt. I would like to get it layered and quilted this weekend so I can have some hand work to do at our quilt meeting on Tuesday. I also want to start on the layette for this baby doll. In fact, I am making the layette three times. My great nieces, Bella and Aliie will become big sisters this month when their mom has Madeline. The girls got this baby from my mom Great Maggi for Christmas.

I bought an extra doll for a pattern and my niece Lily will have something to do whenever she comes to spent the night.I am going to be making a night gown, a dress, some pants and a shirt for each of the babies along with a doll quilt and diaper bag. My sister will take them with her when she goes to help out after the baby comes.

Let me explain the JK Project to you. My sister, Karen, is into to painting and drawing and in one of her magazine she read an article about painting using prompts. Every time the lady in article got stuck on her latest painting she would draw a prompt out of her bag of prompts and do that to her painting. So my sister and I spent an afternoon coming up our prompts. Exzmples of our prompts: Use black, embellish with buttons, use fancy yarn, use all or part of a magazine ad, etc. We decided on a color for the background of our individual projects. I should mention that I am fabric for my project and she is using a canvas. Pink is the starting point and size does not matter. Fancy yarn goes on tomorrow. I will keep you posted on the progress of this project.

I got this morning and took one more step towards getting of my new bat phobia. I have been afraid to cook in the kitchen since the bat incident. Today I took the perfectly good cookie that has bat kooties on it and put the cookie sheet in the recycle bin. I can always get a new cookie sheet and I want to be able to cook in my kitchen again.

In stitches,

Judy

It's Friday!!

All week long the weatherman in my town has been ranting about the white death that is coming on Friday. I woke to find sleet on my driveway and that weather conditions got worse as you drove north. Guess who was going north? You get the picture. I got dressed grabbed my stuff and our the door I went on trek north to work. The further north I got the sleet stopped and it was replaced by rain. I am thinking I like rain a lot better than sleet and it gave me chance to try out my new wiper blades and they worked awesome.

The weatherman has teased us with accumulating snow of 5-7 inches overnight. It really needs to get busy outside. I am thinking it will need to get colder so the sleet can change over to snow. I am glad that I do not have to go out again until Monday morning, but I am concerned that my mom has to drive in this mess in the morning.

I need to practice with my camera and figure out how to get the flash shut off. The pictures of the snow {what little there is} did not turn out.

Saturday will be for sewing. I need to make doll clothes for two babies and doll quilts for those babies. I am thinking the doll quilts will be the most fun. And the JK Project and Kid's Komfort.

In stitches,
Judy

Looking for the weekend

Today is Thursday and I know that the weekend is just around the corner. We are supposed to have snow tomorrow and Saturday. "Accumulating snow", is the newest term around here. And it also gets the weatherman off the hook. Anything over a dusting is accumulating. It is going to snow tomorrow and it will accumulate. There I could be a weatherman but then I would have to give up quilting. Nah!

I did some hand quilting during our slow times at work. It is a piece that I found in a box here in the sewing room. I have no idea what I am going to do with it once it is done. But just getting it done will be an accomplishment.

This weekend activities include laundry, dishes, making chili, finishing the 3 blocks I need for Kid's Komfort quilt, and working on the JK Project. But now I am off to bed so I can get up early to make the journey to work in the "accumulating snow".

In stitches,

Judy

Hump Day

White death is coming again to my corner of Ohio. Friday night into Saturday. Yipee for me not leaving the house. Not so good for my mom who leaves early Saturday morning to go to work. At least at 5:30 in the morning there will not be much traffic out on the roads. I am not running to the store to make a killing on milk and bread. I think I have everything to make a big pot of crockpot chili and some biscuits.

Got pulled off the phones to do faxes at work. It was steady all day and gives me a break from the phones. Wonder what tomorrow will bring?

Got the oil changed after work and they replaced my wiper blades. Good thing with all the bad weather coming my way I need to be able to see while I am driving. I was able to cook in the kitchen again tonight. That makes two nights in a row. I am slowly getting over the bat incident. I have turned off most of the lights and still sleep with the television on my bedroom but I did that before the bat incident.

This weekend I plan to finish up my current prompt on the JK Project, finish piecing the Kid's Komfort baby quilt and hope to get it quilted. As always, there is laundry and dishes and perhaps shoveling snow. I hope to get a few snow shots with my camera.

In stitches,
Judy

It's Tuesday

It has been slow at work again today. I got some quilting done while waiting for phone calls. I would much rather be busy than slow.

I cooked dinner tonight. That does not sound like a big accomplishment but for me it is. A week ago Monday I had an issue with a bat in my kitchen. I prevailed over the bat but I am a little gun shy about cooking in my kitchen. I have finally been able to turn off most the lights at night. But the cooking thing really bothered me and I adore cooking.

I am hoping to get some work done on the JK Project this weekend. I want to draw another prompt out of the bag. It is starting to get exciting. I also want to get my current Kid's Komfort quilt finished. I have 27 out of the 30 blocks pieced and I want to get it layered and quilted and bound. The binding will be done at my small quilt group when we meet next Tuesday.

In stitches,

Judy

Monday Design Wall

Nothing on the design wall today. I am working on projects from the UFO basket I finished the lamp for my dining room and am working on hand piecing a small wall hanging with Iris fabric. Check out Judy L's blog to see what everyone else is working on.

In stitches,

Judy

Stash report

It is the final report for January and I am still doing well. The stash is going down very slowly but there has not been any new purchases. The only thing I bought was a baby doll to make baby clothes for three little girls who have this baby doll. There goes more of my stash!!!

I did finish something weekend. A lamp for my dining room. I covered the lampshade in fabric and covered wooden spools with floss to look like thread and Styrofoam ball with fabric that coordinates with my walls and curtains. I still need to make a table runner and perhaps place mats.

Used this week: 0.125 yds

Used year to date: 4.875 yds

Added this week: 0 yds

Added yr to date: 2.25 yds

Check out Judy L's blog to see what everyone else is up to.

In stiches,

Judy