longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilt top · quilting · quilts · stash busting

Sunday Stash Report, 8-31-08


This week I did not buy any fabric.  And I even went to a fabric store yesterday!  The only thing I bought was a pattern for a quilt with chickens on it.  I love going to that store, though (Sands Fabrics in Pampa).  There are always some beautiful quilts hanging there to see…some pretty longarm eye candy, too. 

I have used one yard from my stash for the memorial quilt.  I now have the top together, except for the outside border.

I used 1.5 yds this week making those little jewelry/notions bags I blogged about in the previous post.  I made these two today.

So zero yards added this week, and 2.5 yards busted. Year to date:

  • Incoming 83 yards
  • Outgoing 95.25 yards
  • Total busted 11.25 yards

I’m still going in the right direction!  I’m determined to end this year with a positive total.  My fabric is falling off the shelves in my closet. 

I finished the repair work on my storm at sea binding, and am back to stitching.  That will be a 2008 finish before long.  I just piddled around, back and forth, between projects today.  My seasonal allergies are in full bloom today.  I couldn’t get far from a kleenex today.  I broke down and started back on the prescription nasal spray today.  I also made these sand tarts today:

Did you get to do something you love today?  I hope so!  I’m looking forward to another day off from my day job tomorrow.  Enjoy your labor day!

daily life · longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilting · quilts · sewing · stash busting

A Small Thursday Thump :-)


I have one small thump today.  I’ve been stitching away in the evenings, stitching down the binding on my storm at sea quilt.  I rounded the third corner last night, so pleased with how good it’s looking, only to notice a funny looking spot in the binding fabric.  Upon closer inspection, I discover it’s a small slit in the fabric.  Great!  Next, I start looking to determine how much I am going to have to detach, so that I can replace that piece of binding, when all the way down that edge, and around the last corner, I see a snag in the binding fabric.  Of course, both of these flaws are on the outside of the binding.  Couldn’t have landed on the part that’s going to be closed up into the quilt, nope, right on the outside layer.  So instead of stitching, I’m now unstitching.  I don’t like unstitching.  I like the doing part of quilting, not the undoing.  Oh well, like I said, small thump.  Minor setback.  Just an aggravation.

I have had a few write and ask me about my test results.  I meant to post about that Sunday, and forgot.  I have nothing really new to report.  I never heard back from my doctor, so I went to the hospital and got copies of my reports and read them myself.  The MRI on my c-spine, mentions some “concentrical disc bulging” and some “mild facet degenerative changes and hypertrophy”.  I think the one on my brain was fine, except they said in the report they  injected me with contrast dye, which they didn’t.  Called the hospital about that, to make sure it was really my brain…lol.  I think that’s probably just a med. transcriptioner mistake…you know, just automatic verbage that they didn’t delete.  The only thing that I could pick out on the blood work was the high red blood count, that the doctor mentioned when he did call me, but the followup report test didn’t seem to show anything unusual.  The lupus test and hormone results were on the same report.  That report had me listed as a 42 year old male.  Soooo….not sure what I think of that.  I haven’t called the lab…I was pretty disgusted at that point, and fed up with the whole ordeal. 

In the meantime, I have been having my husband, or son, whichever is handy, apply some pressure to the muscles around my shoulder blade, to keep working on those pressure points between massage appts.  And, I’ve been putting an ice pack on it every night while I’m sitting in bed stitching and watching t.v.  I don’t know if that is making a difference or not, but I have felt much better this last week.  Much less pain in that area.  It’s been great to have some relief!  And maybe it’s because some of you have said prayers for me.  Thank you for that! I believe in the power of prayer.  I’ve been saying them for me, too.  I felt even better after my massage therapist, and chiropractor got through with me on Tuesday.  I’m starting to think that maybe a lot of it is repetative muscle injury.  Maybe from being on computers too much all day, and those muscles back there are getting screwed up, and pulling everything else out of place.  I’m not giving up on getting better.  That is why I haven’t been blogging as much, though…I’m trying to lessen my time at the keyboard and mouse.

I finished the quilting on the Chinese coins baby quilt.  I worked on it during lunch Monday, and after I got home.  I’ll post pics of it when I get it all finished.  It came out really cute, though. 

I have gotten two more rows of the first memory quilt finished.  And I found this great tutorial , on Debby Maddy’s blog, while blog surfing.  Thank you for sharing it, Debby.  I had fun giving it a try, and I think this is a great gift project.  I am sure I will be digging through my fabric stash to make a few more of these. 

So how is your week going?  Have you taken time to do something you love?

quilting · quilts

Just Us Quilters – Where did it go??


Ok, I know several of us signed up on the “Just Us Quilters” list, hosted by Nikki.  When I click the link to go visit the site, it says that blog has been removed, as has her other blog, Nikki’s Ventures.  Anyone know why or where it went?  Or if it’s coming back?  Just curious…it was a great list, and I enjoyed browsing the blogs on it.  If it’s not coming back, I want to take the link out of my sidebar.

longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilting · stash busting

Stash Busting Report, 8-24-08


I busted 4 & 1/3 yds this week.  I used four yard fleece on a fleece blanket, that I forgot to photo.  I used 1/3 yd. making binding for the storm at sea. 

YTD totals:

  • Incoming Yardage to date: 83
  • Outgoing Yardage to date:  92 & 3/4 yds.
  • Total Stash Busted to date: 9 & 3/4 yds.

It’s been a busy week.  I made a fleece blanket.  I quilted the customer wallhanging, and that took most of my spare time during the week, and yesterday.  Small quilt, but time consuming.  No pics yet, as it is my customer’s for a guild challenge. 

I loaded up the commissioned baby quilt (Chinese coins that I posted recently), and did one pass of a panto on it.  It’s looking good!  I also attached a hanging sleeve, and did the machine stitching of the binding to the front, on my storm at sea quilt. 

Corky, my longarm, got her “spa treatment”.  This involves removing the front cover piece and oiling several points in the front, oiling all the regular oiling points, loosening the covers that give me access to the gears, so that I could pack some more grease on them, and just giving her an allover cleaning.  I cleaned the table, table tracks, carriage tracks and wheels. 

I also attacked the huge mess that was in my closet, and cleaned out a big sack of clothes.  Woohoo…that’s like a weight off.  How does it get in such a shape? 

Seems like such a boring post without pics.  Glad you stopped by.  Hope you have a great week ahead!

longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilting · quilts

Wonderful Wednesday Mail Surprise!


Teresa! Thank you so much!  What a sweet surpise the mail brought today.  I’ve wondered what these taste like for a long time!  Now I know…yum! I thank you, and my family does, too. 🙂  And yes, they made it just fine, with no melting.  You really, really made my day.  Hugs to you!!

I also have a cute little swallow pic to share with y’all today.  This is the newest little batch of fledglings.  This is what they look like when it’s raining outside. 

I wish they didn’t make such a big mess, right at my front door, but I don’t have the heart to make them leave. 😦

I must get back to quilting! I picked up a small customer job, but it’s gonna take a fair amount of time.  It’s a rush job, to be shown at the next guilt meeting, as part of their challenge. I’ve been praying that everything goes smooth sailing on this one!  Sew far, sew good, but I’ve barely gotten started.

daily life · longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilt top · quilting · quilts · sewing · stash busting

Another W.O.B. Bites the Dust


Yesterday, I just felt the need for that satisfaction that comes from finishing something.  So, after I finished the quilting on the Oz quilt, I pulled one of my quilts that has been waiting on binding, Greg’s courthouse steps quilt.  The sad part, is that this one was Greg’s Christmas present last year.  Well, at least he will be using it before Christmas this year.  I did the binding completely by machine, so I could get it all done in one day, plus added the label.  I much prefer to attach my binding to the front of my quilts, by machine, then do the finishing stitching to the back by hand, because they look so much better.  I do a good job on those.  This one, I attached to the back, by machine, then flipped it over, and stitched it to the top, also by machine.  This is a technique I am still trying to perfect.  But in this case, done is good, hubby is happy, and so am I.  That gets two of my w.o.b.’s done this month.  Woohoo!  I used 2/3 of a yard for the binding, and that is my stash busted amount for this week.  Total incoming for the week is zero.  YTD total busted is 5 & 5/12 yds.  (I’m not ashamed to admit I had to use a free online fraction calculator to come up with that amount…lol).

I woke up to a beautiful, rainy day this morning.  And it has not stopped.

I’m loving it! I’m piddling around on laundry, worked on the memorial quilt, and just enjoying some down time.  I’m having the next best thing to a pajama day.  Nice comfy sweats & a big, sloppy t-shirt, with fuzzy house shoes day.

Yesterday, was cool & cloudy.  I’m glad I got out to the garden to harvest.

Who else has really enjoyed watching Michael Phelps make history?  I am officially now a Phelps Phan.  He seems like such a nice guy.  Congratulations, Michael!

I conclude my post today, with a couple pics of the first Olympic hero in my life.  My Uncle Randy, another really nice guy.  I was born in 1966, right between his Olympics, and named after him.  I had asthma really bad, and would get so sick at times.  He would come over sometimes, and sit up with me at night, when I was a baby, so my parents could get some sleep. 

Silver medal, Tokyo Olympics, 1964
Silver medal, Tokyo Olympics, 1964
Gold medal winner, Mexico City, 1968
Gold medal winner, Mexico City, 1968

 

This post has been quite a hodge podge of topics!  Hope you are enjoying your Sunday as much as I am mine.

longarm quilting · machine quilting · quilting

We’re off to see the Wizard!


Finally!  This one took me way too long.  It was really a challenge for me.  It’s for a customer and will be a Christmas gift to one of her granddaughters.

The little girl’s nickname is Butterfly, so I stenciled butterflies in the border and connected them with swirls.

The back shows how much stitching there really is.

I hope she likes it!  I have another finish to report, but I’m saving that for tomorrow’s post.  See you then!

longarm quilting · quilt top · quilting · quilts

Simple


Suzanne has a post on her blog today about simple quilting.  Sometimes a simple piecing pattern is the right choice.  Here is my start on the first of two memory quilts commissioned by a family.  The squares are cut from shirts that belonged to to their 14 year old brother, who was tragically lost in an auto accident 7 years ago.  The quilts will be a gift to their mother.  What an honor to be trusted with such a special project.

This is  what I’ve been working on this week, along with trying to finish up a custom quilting job that has been on my machine waaaayyyyy too long. 

TGIF!!

daily life · longarm quilting · quilting · quilts · stash busting

I’ve Been Busy This Week


But not necessarily quilting.  My stash report is unchanged from last week.  None in, none out.  I have almost finished cutting the squares from the plaid shirts for the first of the two memory quilts I’m making.  I also finished a long overdue binding.  YEA!!

I made this quilt two years ago, and played all over it with fantasy freehand quilting, inspired by Nichole Webb & Jamie Wallen.  Many of you have seen this one before, so I will spare you the pics.  If you’ve not seen it, and would like to see some closeups of the quilting, there are a ton of pics in this webshots album, http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/550151887DlpMBr.  I even got a label made and attached.  It is FINISHED!

It was a really busy week at my day job, so by the time I got home most days, I was pretty tired.  But otherwise, I’m feeling much better than I had been the three weeks prior.  I had my MRI yesterday morning, on my head & cervical spine.  I’ve not heard anymore from my doctor yet, which leads me to think that nothing else has shown up in the other lab work, and he has nothing new to tell me and is waiting for all the results to come in. 

While I have been feeling better, I decided it was time to work on some long neglected tasks around here.  Remember I textured & painted my entryway last year?  It was right before I ended up in bed for five days with severe muscle spasms in my back…well, I’ve had the paint for the rest of the living room, but have been afraid of triggering another spasm attack.  I started on it last weekend.  I am doing only one wall at a time.  This is a bit of the entryway…The color isn’t exactly true.

This is the paneling in our living room…yuk.

A bit of wall I haven’t painted yet, by the fireplace.

The wall I painted this weekend, next to the other side of the fireplace.  Isn’t this going to look much better?

I’m going to have to get some new switch & outlet covers.  It sure brings the fireplace out and makes it more of a focal point in the room.  Wonder how long it will take me to get the remaining walls done…I also spent some time on some much needed cleaning and reorganizing.  I even pulled a few of my quilting books and will take them to one of my friends at work tomorrow, to see if she would like to have them.

I’m looking for a good steam press…any advice on a good brand would be appreciated!  Have a great week!