daily life · longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilt top · quilting · quilts · sewing · weight

An Older UFO


Here’s one I really should finish.  I love this little quilt.  It’s a New York Beauty pattern that was in a Fons & Porter issue.  I had so much fun piecing and quilting this one, that I really would like to find time to do another.  Especially since I have my A-1 Elite now.  I quilted this one back when I still had my Gammill Premier, with no stitch regulator.  I need to add a sleeve for hanging, and bind it.  BUT, I keep wavering back and forth on whether or not to add more bling bling to it.  What do you think?  I really didn’t want to overdo with the crystals, and some days I think it’s fine like it is, and then somedays, like today, I think that it looks unfinished.  Since I added crystals to each point in the center medallion, should I add them to each of the points of the rest of the fans?  I’d love to hear your opinions.

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My baby quilt customer came for her quilt Tuesday, and loved it.  She had also brought another baby quilt, that has a great story.  It was a blue, pink, & white flannel quilt.  I forgot to take a pic of it.  It was pieced by her 83 yr. old father.  The blue fabric had white hearts, so I quilted it with an all over heart pattern, and she loved it, too.  She left me a couple lap quilts made by her dad, and said she has more at home.  The little baby quilt had a few issues, but it quilted up just great.  I had to take one tuck in one border, to deal with a bit of extra fabric, but I just thought how wonderful that this baby will have a quilt pieced by it’s great grandFATHER.  It’s a privilege to get to quilt those! And it’s such a great feeling when your customer comes to get their quilts and they are so happy with them.  She’s a beginning quilter and she was thrilled with them.  Seeing the customer’s happy face is as much fun as getting paid for quilting  🙂  

I got off work a little early this afternoon, and am making some piecing progress on my 9P quilts.  I won’t get much done this Saturday, as I will be on the golf course following my son around at his tournament.  Yep, DH & I will be spending our 11th anniversary together in a golf cart.  Sure hope my son plays better this tournament than he has the last two.  That would be a great anniversary prezzie, to see him have a good day. 

One of my readers asked me to say something in my blog about how I photograph my quilts, to get the quilting to show so well.  Well, I’m certainly no photography expert, but here’s what I do…I plop them down where I have the best natural light coming in, at the time.  Such as the living room floor in front of our glass door & windows.  Or on my bed, with the light coming in from the side window.  I really need to get a photo stand so I can hang the larger ones.  Really, good sidelighting seems to show the quilting the best.  I don’t use the flash, except to get a good pic of the colors, sometimes.

Another reader asked me to share how I’m losing my weight.  I’m faithfully exercising no LESS than three times a week, trying hard to exercise four or five days.  I’m either walking on my Treadclimber at home, or in the mornings, I go in to work a bit early, and walk “laps” at the courthouse.  My office is on the third floor, so as I do the laps, I go down one stairwell, to the first floor, and up the stairwell at the opposite end of the courthouse, back up to the third floor.  I try to do at least 10 of those laps.  The stairs do wonders for your lower body  😉   Also, I’m paying more attention to what is going in my mouth, and why.  Am I really hungry? Also, how much I’m eating.  I pay more attention to fat grams, than anything else.  And that’s pretty much it.

I went for my massage therapy yesterday, and my chiropractic adjustment.  My massage therapist and chiropractor are in the same building, and family.  Between the two of them, my shoulder is feeling pretty darn good today.  The massage was especially wonderful. 

I’m going to get back to piecing, so I can have something else to post about!

quilting · stash busting · weight

Sunday Report Time


Well, I missed last week completely, so you’d think I’d have something substantial to report this week.  Not really.  I haven’t purchased any fabric, and today I managed to get four more rows pieced for my Eleanor Burns 9P & Stripes quilts.  I was going to sew up a storm today.  But instead, I seem to have managed to just fiddle fart the day away.  I did do some laundry and a wee bit of house work. 

My parents stopped by for a short visit today, on their way home from my brother’s house.  My mother will be the final recipient of my Wild Onion jacket.  She tried it on and it fits her PERFECTLY! No weird poof at the back of the shoulders, as it does on me.  I’m thrilled about that, as I wanted to make her one anyway.  So now I do have to get that binding done.  Then I can add that fabric used to my official tally for the year. 

Judy, I am waiting til I actually finish a project to tally the fabric used.  How does that sound?  And thus far this year, though I’ve pulled quite a bit of fabric from my shelves for the projects I’m working on, I haven’t finished any of them yet.  So my UFO list is growing….lol. To date, I have added 19 yards to the stash.

Weekly weigh in! My starting weight this week was 147.  My weight today was 144!  I lost a total of 3 lbs. this week! Yea! That puts me at a total of 10 lbs.  If I can lose 10 more, I will be so happy!

Finally, the NASCAR race is getting ready to start.  Rain delay…I was afraid they might postpone it til tomorrow, when I will be at work.  But they are about to go green!  TTYL!

Blogroll · food · longarm quilting · machine quilting · Mark Lipinski · quilt top · quilting · quilts

A Heart Full of Gratitude


Wow, what a week! I think I have said “thank you” more times this last three days than I have the last three months.  And I’m going to say it some more.  I have been so touched by all the comments regarding the quilt in my previous post.  Truly, I’m a little overwhelmed.  I was already thrilled with the responses from you, my regular readers, who for whatever reasons keep coming back to visit me here.  Many of you have been with me on different online message boards for longarm quilters since my longarm journey began.  You guys know that I’m that quilter that doubts myself all the time.  I’m used to being the one doing the drooling over someone else’s gorgeous quilting.  You guys have been the best cheerleaders, teachers, and encouragers, and you have no idea how much your friendships mean to me, and how much I enjoy “knowing” you.  I can’t wait to get to meet some of you in person, and give you all a great big hug.  And I have to give credit where credit is due.  You guys are my inspiration.  And those wonderful teachers among you, whose DVD’s and videos I have purchased, and watched over and over, thank you for putting such great teaching products out there.  For the feathers I used on this particular quilt, I have to credit Renae Haddadin, Sharon Schamber, & Sherry Rogers-Harrison, whose book I have.  Also, Jamie Wallen for the inspiration for the feather motif in the very center of the quilt.

Mark Lipinski, you really have no idea how surprised I was when I discovered you had tagged me in your blog.  Or how much I appreciated what you said about my quilting.  I have to thank you for my two biggest blog visitor days EVER! Truly, I felt very honored that you chose to highlight me in your blog.  My husband told me I better quit reading it or I was going to get a migraine from my head swelling 🙂  I found your blog right after you started it, I believe with your very first post.  As soon as I read it, I immediately added you to my blogroll, and have been faithfully reading it ever since.  You are one of my regular stops in blog land.  Now I’m gonna have to get a subscription to your mag. 🙂   Seriously, thank you.

I had another wonderful surprise this morning, from Carla B.  Check out this awesome cartoon she made! She made a “Pickle Award”.  I think it’s FABULOUS!  What do you think, Mark?  I printed it out and will have to find a spot in my quilting room where I can always enjoy it.

And if all the above were not enough, I was suprised by another act of kindess this week.  When I got to work Thursday morning, I found an envelope of old pictures laying on my desk.  A friend had been by and dropped them off while I was out sick Wednesday afternoon.  At first, I was trying to figure out who these kids were, and why did someone leave pictures of them on my desk?  Then it dawned on me…OMG! That is ME, and MY BABY! Do I look like a boy or what?

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Isn’t he a doll?

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These were taken 16 years ago next month, at my friend’s house.  She found them when cleaning out her cedar chest, and thought I should have them.  There were a few more, but I won’t bore you with all of them.

Check out this super cool baby quilt I had the privilege of quilting for a customer yesterday.  I love the fabrics she used.  What a great nursery this babe is going to have.

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Something new (to me) that I discovered this week, is this yummy fruit.  It’s a pummelo.  I liked it!

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Thanks to my friend Diane, who called me last night to make sure I didn’t miss my favorite NASCAR driver, Bobby Labonte, on Trackside last night. 

I really have been flying high the last couple days, and I think I have more than used up my 15 minutes of blog fame,  so one more time, THANK YOU!!

chickens · family · longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilting · quilts · vintage tops

Vintage Quilt Pics & New Chickens


First, the quilt, since this blog is mainly about quilting.

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Now, my new chicken! Isn’t she adorable? 🙂  I found her in a local shop, in the 70% off stuff.  She cost me thirteen dollars and some change, after tax.  Originally, she was $42.99.  She’s big & heavy.  Some kind of pottery, not resin.  I had to bring her home.

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And I meant to blog about this chicken two or three weeks ago.  My friend’s mother came to visit her, and brought this for her to give to me.  She was helping work and estate sale, found this, and thought I needed to have it.  What a nice surprise.

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I should be at work right now.  I went this morning, and shortly after I got there, I got really sick at my stomach. Hope it’s just a 24 hr. thing.  My son is now sick with that upper respiratory flu that’s going around.  And of course, he has a golf tournament this weekend.  After a big “family meeting” Monday night, things are much better with us.  He seems to be understanding the reasons for the rules we were disagreeing over, and that for now, at his age, the rules stand.  I got a note from him yesterday, laying on a plate of fresh baked brownies, that said “I’m sorry. I love you.”

daily life · machine quilting · NASCAR · quilting · weight

Monday Menagerie and a Meme


Since I didn’t get around to a Sunday report yesterday, I’ll throw some of that in here.  I don’t have much to report as far as accomplishments, mostly due to the trip.  I did finish quilting the vintage top, and I’ll try to get some pics of that up soon.  Other than that, nothing really noteworthy quilting wise.  I didn’t buy any fabric.  I did quilt a customer fleece blanket, and I have a baby quilt coming in this week to quilt.

My weigh-in report is not so good.  I knew it wouldn’t be this week, but I didn’t know that my mother was going to make us a batch of cookies to take on our trip.  How could I say no?  And OMG, they were good.  They were addicting good.  My friend and I that went together ate the whole bag in two days.  I know there were at least 2 dozen, maybe 3.  She made a bag for the boys, too.  Five boys on the golf team, and they didn’t even eat all of theirs.  I’m serious, we could not stop eating them…we started calling them “crack” cookies, ’cause that must be how a crack addict feels…lol.  Ok, so remember those 2 lbs I lost last week?  Guess what came back to me?  Yep…starting weight was 145…my weight yesterday was 147, for a total GAIN of 2 lbs.  Crap! Oh well, I’ll be back on track this week.  I’m disappointed, but not discouraged! Besides the cookies are all gone now 🙂

I totally enjoyed watching the Daytona 500 yesterday, even though I was having a somewhat bad day otherwise.  I was happy to see Ryan Newman win, too.  Really happy to see Kyle Busch NOT win 🙂   My apologies to you Busch brother fans.  I don’t really care for either of them. 

Why was I not having a good day?  I have had a relatively easy child to raise, thus far.  He’s a good kid, really good kid.  I’m not just prejudiced, he is a good kid.  And I’ve always been able to reason with him.  But we have begun to butt heads a bit, and it’s all over a girl.  Lord, give me the wisdom, strength, and heart to handle 16.   And give him the wisdom to understand.  And please don’t ever let him decide to move out and go live with his real dad and step-mom (which he says he will never do, but I still worry about it).

Now for a bit of fun.  I was tagged a few days ago by Southern Girl Musings, to do this little Meme.  Here are the rules.

Now, you chosen ones, this is what you have to do:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Okay, now for my 7 things:

1. I love going bass fishing with my husband.

2. I was named after my uncle Randy Matson, who was an Olympic Silver medalist in 1964, and the Gold medalist in the 1968 Olympics, for throwing the shot put. 

3.  I love NASCAR! Boogity, boogity, boogity…let’s go racin’ boys! 

4. I wear a gun to work, a .40 caliber Glock.

5. In the spring, if we have had a lot of rain, and our yard gets a lot of baby toads in it, I will go around the yard and collect them in a bucket, before my son mows, so they won’t get smashed.  Then I let them go again, after he is done…every week, til they are gone.

6. I’m not much of a traveler…I’m uncomfortable in unfamiliar situations.

7.  I’m not what I call a “foofy” girl…you know…a really girly girl…hair & makeup done perfectly “all” the time, manicures, etc. 

Hmmm…who to tag…how about Diane, Kay, Gayle, Jan, Freda, Carla, and Terri.  Ok, so play if you like, if not, that’s fine, too! No pressure.  If I didn’t tag you, and you want to play anyway, go right ahead!

daily life · family · quilting

I’m Off For a Couple Days


I’ll be leaving town today…won’t be back til Sat. night.  High school golf season is starting.  I will be following my son around a golf course Friday and Saturday, in Plainview, TX.  I will also probably be freezing half to death, as the weather is supposed to be pretty crappy.  I will be without any internet or email access, so I’ll be out of touch til I get back.  Talk to you then!

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No, Not Again


I had planned to work on a Meme post I’ve been tagged for, and that was going to be my post today.  But just a bit ago, I learned more heartbreaking news.  Once again, one of our online “family” members has been hit with a horrible tragedy.  Please keep our Dear Gina in your prayers, as her son James was killed in a car accident last night, and her son Kelly, who was with him, is in ICU.

longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilt top · quilting · quilts · stash busting · vintage tops · weight

Sunday Report, True Confessions


In addition to the beautiful So Fine threads I bought this week, I bought fabric.  I decided that I didn’t have a suitable backing fabric for the the lighter version of the two 9P & stripes I’m making.  I will be able to find a suitable fabric for the darker one in my stash, but with all this feather practice I’m doing, I wanted something really good for the lighter one.  I hope it turns out really nice. I bought 14 yds of this beautiful Benartex Giverny fabric for $4.05 a yd. from www.thousandsofbolts.com.  I really only needed 10 yds,  but they only had 14 listed in stock, so I figured the other four may as well come along for the ride    🙂  And while I was at it, I went ahead and ordered 5 yds. of this beautiful golden fabric, to use for the back of my Storm at Sea top, that has been finished for quite awhile.

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And, I didn’t stop there.  I bought these stencils. Ronda always inpires me with the beautiful quilting she does, and she recommends using stencils.  With all the feather backtracking practice I’ve been doing, I might be getting up enough nerve to try some pretty stencils.

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I’m still working on feathering that vintage top to death.  I’m actually feeling feather frazzled…I’m ready to get it off my machine.  One last edge to do…but man does that precision work make my shoulder scream.  I’ve been getting a little more careless with my backtracking, and some of the CC’s, trying to hurry it up a bit.  It’s just for me, anyway, and I’ve gotten some great experience working on it.  However, I now have three paying jobs coming in soon, so I need to get done so I’ll be ready for them.

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I did sew up my Wild Onion jacket, and I’m pleased with the quilting.  However, I think I used the wrong batting.  It’s too stiff, and it puffs out weird at the back of the shoulders.  I used Quilter’s Dream request loft poly.   So if I make another, what batting would you suggest?  A light weight cotton, maybe? Also, I think I’ll make the shorter version.

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Sunday weigh in: starting weight this week was 147.  Today my weight was 145, for a loss this week of 2 lbs! Total weight loss is now at 9 lbs.  I’m not sure I’ll do so well this next week.  DH was gone from Sunday to Thursday this week, so it was really a lot easier for me to eat less calories. 

So, that’s my report.  I wasn’t really good, but I don’t feel a bit bad!