quilting

Good Saturday Morning!


I hope all my bloggy friends are having a good day. I am dropping in for another quick post just to let y’all know all is well and good in my world. I am simply super busy right now. We had a wonderful Easter holiday with family. I really had fun with this one. She is my little shadow when we are together. This is the only little girl out of 7, soon to be 8, grandchildren. Anytime I mention grandchildren, I get comments about being a young grandmother. My hubby is 14 years older than I am, and I have two older stepdaughters. I only throw that in only for clarification that I did not start having children in my early teens…lol. I had my only biological child at age 25. So, this is my little granddaughter (thanks to my hubby) and I think she is just pretty awesome. I love her and she loves me. You don’t have to be “blood related” to be “family”. We sure have a good time together!

000_8821

And most of the rest of my attention last week was spent here:

100_19581

The District 1-AAA District G@lf Champs…woohoo! And the third place individual medalist, my son.

100_1959

The tournament was held in Lubbock. Our regional tournament, this next week, will be there, as well. So I’ll continue to be a bit scarce in blogland for just a bit longer. But I’ll be chatting with y’all soon!

Post script & warning…I apologize in advance if my language in the following paragraph offends you.

Yes…the g@lf is purposeful…I’m trying to prevent a blog scraper from scraping this content again. Apparently, the word g@lf was the key to being scraped by a stupid blog.  I usually let those slide if it’s just a quilt post, as I have not the time or energy to deal with those asswipe scrapers, but when they scrape a post that is totally personal content, it fricking pisses me off! So I deleted my first post and am reposting it, hoping they won’t pick up on it again.

quilting

A Quick Check In


Just thought I’d better do a quick post letting y’all know I haven’t dropped off the face of the earth.  I have been out of town for the last few days.  I was in Austin for a work conference.  Now I am home, but getting ready for a houseful of company coming this weekend, so I’ll be still be scarce for a few days.  I hope everyone has a blessed Easter holiday!!

quilting

Current Conditions


Taken in my backyard.

000_8551

000_8548

This pic is taken looking over my back fence.  I should be able to see a city water tower, and the football stadium, several buildings and houses beyond this field, that separates my neighborhood from the rest of town.  Can’t see any of them.

000_8546

000_8533

My poor tulips.  I did not go into the office today.  They are announcing on the radio that the courthouse will have limited availability today, and the sheriff is saying please stay home if you can.

fabric · one block wonder quilt · pretty fabric · quilt top · quilting · quilts

One Block Wondering


Ok, so I’ve told y’all that I’m supposed to take a One Block Wonder class with the quilt guild, but it isn’t til April 18th.  Who can wait that long, once they have the book already? Not me! I had to go ahead and do some playing.  I finally felt like fondling some fabric again, and instead of working on one of the gazillion projects I already have started, I wanted to do something new.  Maybe it’s spring fever.  Since we are doing the octagon version at guild, I pulled out the original fabric from my stash, that I wanted to use, but didn’t have enough for the eight repeats needed.  Since the hexagon version doesn’t use as much fabric, I have enough for it.

The fabric, with my new rotary cutter laying on it, just because I noticed that it matches…lol!

000_8522

000_8523

The first set of blocks:

000_85181

This is so hard to stop working on, once you start.  Each block is a little surprise.  I can’t wait to see how the next row of blocks turns out, and how they look added into these.  Not only are the blocks a surprise, but you don’t know what the quilt will look like, either, till you get all the blocks together, and start playing with them.  Too much fun!

daily life · fabric · Mark Lipinski · quilting · stash busting

What Have I Been Doing?


It would seem that I’ve been really, really busy…given the obvious lack of blogging, but I don’t have much to show for where my time is going.  I have been being much more faithful about squeezing in some time on the Treadclimber, after I get home from work, before I prepare supper, and have lost ten lbs. since the first of the year.  I’m very happy about that, but I’m also where I was when I got stuck last year, and then discouraged.  I’m trying not to do that this year, no matter how slow it is coming off.

The dinner I am cooking tonight might not be conducive to weight loss.  Here it is before going in the oven.  Yum. I like some homemade pizza.

000_84991

I have been trying to prepare more of our meals in the evenings.  That eats up a chunk of my free time, along with the workout beforehand. It seems when I add a new activity, something else is sure to fall behind.  Right now, it’s the housework and quilting.  Isn’t is always the housework, though?  Dust…where does it all come from??

I have been doing some reading.  Even though I haven’t taken a single stitch in about a week, I’ve been reading about quilting.  My Quilter’s Home issue came, and my OBW book, for the upcoming class at guild.

000_85042

Mark has a pattern for a mini iron & crystal wand keeper, that I really want to try to make.  I’d like to make one larger, also, for my curling iron or flat iron.  There’s also a great scissor review in this issue.

I bought fabric for the OBW quilt.  I mentioned it in my last stash report, but here’s a pic.  I bought it from Knot & Bolts.  I think it will make a cool OBW.

000_8253

We aren’t supposed to start any of it til the class.  At the class we are doing the octagon version.  And once I break down and buy some new fabric, for any reason, that seems to be all it takes to get me started.  I will have confessions for this week’s stash report.  I bought another fabric that I thought would make a good OBW, but now that I have it in my possession, the pattern isn’t as large as I thought, so I’m doubtful that it will be successful, but I’m going to try it anyway.  And I’ll try the hexagon version with it.  I hope to work on it before I go to class.  After reading over the book yesterday, I was One Block Wondering in my dreams last night.

000_8501

And when I went to checkout, my cart told me I could get XX more yards for the same shipping price. (I’ll not tell how many yards til Sunday!) Well, I had already seen this cutie, and, promptly went back and added those XX yards of it to my cart!

000_8503

Love those funky little chickens!

I also read a book that I loved…Same Kind Of Different As Me.  I read it, then read it aloud for my DH.  He loved it, too.  It was a very emotional read, for me.

April will be an even busier month for me.  I have to travel to Austin, with my boss, for a few days, for the Texas Probation Association annual conference.  When I get home, I have some special company coming for the Easter weekend.  The next week, we are off to Lubbock for my son’s district golf tournament, and while we are there, my DH has an appointment with another doctor for his ankle.  Then, depending on how the team does at District, I could possibly be traveling back to Lubbock the next week, for regionals.  I am taking a short break from customer work, til my life slows back down a bit.  I have some quilts in queue, but they aren’t in my possession yet, and I think I will leave it that way til later in May, or possibly June. I haven’t even started the quilting on my 9P & Stripe quilt I have ready.  I have to find my limitations, and learn to work within them, or I might implode.

quilting

Technical Difficulties


This blogger is currently experiencing technical difficulties, most likely due to the recent “spring forward” time change.  She is finding the adjustment period especially challenging this year.  Hopefully, the situation will correct itself soon, and she will return to a more regular posting schedule.  Thank you for your patience. 🙂

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

Sunday Stash Report


Wow, I went a whole week between posts.  But it was a busy week with my day job, so there wasn’t much to say.  Not that I could post about, anyway.

I do have changes to report in my stash this week.  I busted 10 yards for backing, and it is just barely going to be big enough for my top.  I knew it would be close, but I really want to use this fabric for the back of this quilt.  It’s flannel, so I think there may have been a bit more shrinkage than I might have had with a regular cotton.

000_8222

000_8223

As you can see, it’s a real tight squeeze on the sides.  I have plenty extra the other direction, though.  I will make it work!

I also ordered 8 yards for a one block wonder class I’m taking next month, for quilt guild.  I tried my best to find something suitable in my stash, but the only two that I thought would work, I did not have enough yardage.  So I had to order some.  It will arrive some time this week, but I’m going to go ahead and count it as incoming today.

So here’s my yearly totals.

  • Incoming Yardage to date: 8 yds.
  • Outgoing Yardage to date:  30.5 yds.
  • Total Stash Busted to date: 22.5 yds.
I also finished the binding on the memorial t-shirt quilt, and made the label.  I just have to attach the label and it will be completely finished.  I was able to use some of the scraps from the first quilt, made of his plaid cotton shirts, in the back of this one.
000_8219
000_8221
000_8220
I also made some good progress on one of my stash quilts today.  My Boston Commons top.
000_8224
Now, I have to decide how I want to quilt my 9P & stripe, that I made the backing for.  It is going on the longarm next! And it’s MINE! Yay!
Have a great week! Try to find time for something you love to do!
love of my life · quilting

Sunday Stash Report


No change in my stash numbers, but I did finish up my customer’s Spiderman quilt.  Yay! I have a wallhanging size to do a pantograph on next, and then one of my own is up!  And it’s a king…so that is gonna use up a nice chunk of fabric for backing.

And Happy 12th Anniversary to DH & me!!  Yes, I’d marry him all over again if I had it to do over. 🙂

And Woohooohooo, Bobby Labonte got a 5th place finish at Las Vegas today!  Yes!!

000_82021

000_8203

000_8204

000_8199