Another Pinterest pin - - NAILED! (but not in a good way)

Ah...the best laid plans...etc., etc.

Being a new-comer to the K-W area, I depend on the GPS on my phone to get me EVERYWHERE.  (I suspect the most seasoned native armed with a map and a compass would be unable to navigate themselves across this town - - but I'm naturally suspicious).  I saw this pin on Pinterest from "Positively Splendid" and thought, "AHA!  THIS is exactly what I need to attach to my dashboard to hold my phone when I'm wheeling around."

(photo from positivelysplendid.com)

AAAAAND here's the nighmare I made:

I had a number of problems with the construction of this THING.  First of all, the pattern calls for a layer of Peltex AND a layer of fusible fleece.  Not a problem, I happen to have both of these substances.  I should have stopped at this tell-tale instruction: "Note: The photos below do not show the fusible fleece backing on the back main body piece, since that was a later addition to the pattern." I can confidently say that the pattern was NOT tested after making additions to the pattern instructions.  Here is my evidence:

1.Trying to turn this thing inside-out was akin to pulling teeth.  Most of the seam on the top curve is hand sewn, because I had to keep ripping out more and more stitches to turn the piece.  Have you ever tried handsewing a curved edge that has fused fleece on one side and Peltex on the other?  Don't.

2.The material was too thick to close the grommet.  I had to cut the stitching out around the hole, and dig out some of the peltex and fleece.

3. The vaguely box shaped pleat at the bottom - too thick to be functional (i.e. no extra space was created within the pocket.

Okay...so the thing is done.  I can make use of it, right?

Nope - I have a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (a great phone!) - it's dimensions are: 151.2 x 79.2 x 8.3 mm (5.95 x 3.12 x 0.33 in).  In short?  It doesn't fit.

Back to the drawing board...

BAM! Life changed! Another Pin: NAILED!

Oh man....I just did the unthinkable.  I shortened a dress.  A gorgeous dress that I risked $6 on at a thrift store in the city where Itty Bitty attends university. A dress, very nearly ankle length (and I'm 5' 6") which was going to be THE most adorable piece in my summer wardrobe...if I could figure out how to whack 12" off the bottom of it.

Today I found this tutorial while visiting Pinterest, and screwed up all of my courage.  I practiced on the lining of the skirt - whoa!  Slick as anything!  Took a deep breath, and carried on with the outer skirt.  Hmm...a little harder maneuvering over the side seams - but I did it!

I'll never be afraid again.  Thank you Pinterest and of course, Stef at GirlInspired.

Anxiety Level: Warp Factor 8

It's a bittersweet time

This past week I've been saying good-bye to my long(ish) term clients.  Lots of hugs - a few tears - a couple of laughs - - I have this one guy, incredibly ill with bipolar that I've been working with fairly frequently in the last two years or so - - he came in Friday and we reminisced about all the good times we have had when he was manic.  A mom and son that I've seen from time to time to work on different issues dropped in the same day and brought me a bottle of wine and a box of chocolates.  The mom speaks almost no English at all, but told me "I love you".  I was so touched, because I recognize that this gift represents a big chunk of their income once the rent is paid - getting misty typing this story.  A woman that I've seen a half dozen times in the past six months stopped by the office and told our receptionist to tell me that she wished she could move to Waterloo so she could still work with me.  Ahh social work process - termination phase is an emotional roller coaster for everyone!

We were approved for the house we REALLY wanted to rent - I'm getting excited about settling into our new 'home'.  
We went to a town-wide yard sale in Mannheim yesterday, and I made a couple of purchases to feather our nest.  I've been on the look out for a headboard for Itty Bitty's bed for about five years, and finally found one yesterday for $5!  Nothing quilty - unless you count this jar that I am going to fill with buttons:

It's a Longaberger Blue Ribbon quart sealer.  I thought it might have a little bit of value, but I must say I'm shocked at the prices I saw on eBay for them.  I have a scrap of fabric printed with vintage pearl buttons on it that I will cover the lid with.

Okay - so some stash-talk.  I went to Quilter's Nine Patch in Elmira last weekend, and purchased some $5 bags of scraps.  I had a blast tearing them apart, and chopping them up, and piecing them together!  Here's one example of the contents of a bag that I brought home.

This month's Annie's Creative Quilters Fabric Club.  Yup - I'm cancelling my membership.  I haven't made anything with the fabric I've received - - it's just going in my swelling stash.

Itty Bitty has a "thing" for Batman.  I couldn't resist these two fat quarters that I picked up at Greenwood Quiltery.

On to what I've been sewing! From the bags of scraps I got a lot of Civil War reproduction scraps.  I pieced 59 nine-patches (finishing at 3") - I'm quickly filling my jar!  I now have 170 blocks.

 I am still making split nine-patches (finishing at 6 inches).  I think I have 91 blocks now.

Okay - so I couldn't NOT cut into the orange/pink/grey prints that I showed above.  I had this pillow pinned on one of my pinterest boards:

I can't say I "nailed it" - - there isn't enough contrast in the fabrics I have used, but I think if I quilt around the perimeters of each cross, it might highlight the pattern a bit.

Sunday is all about 'Slow Stitching' - I used up the smallest sock monkey scraps that remained from the bag of scraps I bought (yes, another $5 bag from Quilter's Nine Patch) to make a mug rug for a young lady at work.  I need to stitch down the binding.  I added some ric-rac as a "flange".  It didn't turn out as cute as I thought it would.  Oh well!  

I have two more blocks ready to go for "Love Blooms Here" - the series from Quiltmaker magazine.  I'll probably work on hand appliqueing tonight in front of the TV.  

Sunday Checking In

My plans to do some morning sewing in order to get on top of some UFO's is working.  I completed some more blocks for A Grateful Heart.

But this weekend, it was time to work on WHATEVER I WANT!!!  

I made this tote (a pin from Pinterest!) is from a Moda Bake Shop tutorial: Hushabye Tote 

In addition to this tote, I also played around making some blocks to add to the growing piles:

• 18 - 3" nine patches (for a total of 111)
• 10 - 6" crumb blocks
• 6 - 6" split nine patches

On Friday, Hubby and I had a bit of time to go for a bit of a drive.  Two of the stops included Cherished Pieces in Tillsonburg, and Quilt Junction in Waterford.  I made a couple of purchases - - but mostly books rather than fabric!  Here's this week's new additions to the stash though.  

I've been drooling over the Tim Holtz fabric for months - and was delighted to come face-to-face with it in Tillsonburg!  I treated myself to a bundle of 10" charms.  They were offering a class of a great pillow using these fabrics - - too far for me to take part, but look as some of these projects on Pinterest.

I also found some solid FQ's in the $2 bin.  I can always find room in my stash for solids.  Moda's Sweet Serenade charm pack and a matching FQ came from Waterford.  I must have been in the mood for "ephemera" type prints that day.

I meant to spend the afternoon working on the next blocks in the Love Blooms Here 6-part series from Quiltmaker magazine.  I had been looking for this issue for nearly two weeks, and finally found it yesterday at the drug store.

Instead, I learned that my great nephew was playing in a basketball tournament in town, so Hubby and I went over and watched a very entertaining and exciting game!

So tonight I'll try to make a start on those Love Blooms Here blocks while I catch this week's episode of Mr. Selfridge on PBS.

Working through some Stash

Another Pin: NAILED!!!

I saw this on Pinterest: http://seaside-stitches.blogspot.nl/2013/03/fabric-box-tutorial.html

So, using some of the scrappy stuff from my thrift store find from Friday, I whipped up a couple of boxes and matching mug rugs.  They need some more hand stitches yet.

  

Another Pin: NAILED!!!

And I saw this on Pinterest as well: http://www.modabakeshop.com/2013/08/quilted-patchwork-pouch.html

The tutorial called for a Moda mini-charm pack, but I found a stack of HSTs at 2.5" that were going to waste, so I used them.  I still have a few left over HSTs, so I'm going to make a smaller matching bag.

I believe I have 71 Split Nine Patches done now.  The pattern calls for 80 blocks, but I think I could just keep going!

Aaaaaand, just when I had my stash all whipped into shape, I couldn't resist purchasing a bag full of fabric samples when I was home on Thursday.

Fast and Fun

Another Pinterest Pin: NAILED!

I recently pinned this tip to one of my Pinterest Boards

Image from: http://mikkidesignho.me

Couldn't find these mesh bags at the Dollar Store, but I did find patterned tulle and a roll of ribbon, and quickly (maybe 30 minutes?) sewed up eight sachets, and I think they are just as nice! (And so does Gibby!)

I cut the tulle ribbon 12" long -- it's about 4" wide I reckon -- folded in half and stitched 1/4" inch from each edge.  This was a good excuse to tidy up a couple of shelves of our linen closet.  The last few were tucked into my dresser drawers.  

Silence is Golden...

I haven't posted in 2 weeks ...and if you ask my mom, I'm boring!

I've been on an organizing rampage for since I last posted, with a goal of getting this sewing room put ship-shape before Itty Bitty comes home for the summer and turns it back into his bedroom.

To that end, I believe I've now touched every piece in my stash, and either folded it neatly, or cut it up into usable sizes in the fashion of Joan Ford's Scrap Therapy method.  And just when I think I've gotten to the bottom of the stash, I turn around and find MORE fabric!  I've gone through a number of blades, and it's time to get a new cutting mat.

All the while, I'm still sewing together split nine-patches (forty-three blocks) and crumb blocks (about a hundred now). I've also pieced about 80 or so string blocks for "Jamestown Landing" from Bonnie Hunter's String Fling.  I've been using up thread too - - any pale colour of thread gets wound on to bobbins, and that way I can just flip in a new bobbin when the previous one runs out of thread without having to go through the nonsense of re-threading my machine.  This has certainly helped me clear out some nearly empty spools!

I still have to figure out how I'm going to organize this mess.  We went down to Ikea on Monday to have a look-see - - the goal being something storage related.  I came home with nothing.  I need a SYSTEM!!  ARGH!!!!!!

New stash this week: Provencial by Clothworks arrived from Annie's Creative Quilters Fabric Club.

Another "PIN": nailed:

http://aquilterstable.blogspot.ca/2013/05/wordy-mouse-pad-tutorial.html

Does Anything Feel Better Than a New Blade in Your Rotary Cutter?

There are a millions of small pleasures in this life that we simply need to close our eyes, feel, and savour.  Things like slipping into bed the first time after changing the sheets, baby laughter, correctly picking the fastest moving check-out at the grocery store, a perfectly sharpened pencil, sunlight filtred through autumn leaves, driving on a hilly road and feeling that slight roller-coastery feeling, spying snowdrops after a long winter.

But today I'm thinking that the best feeling experience is slicing through fabric with a brand new blade.

How did you celebrated Worldwide Quilting Day?  Me?  I'm still celebrating!  I have been marathon-ing old episodes of The Quilt Show, which have been available for free all weekend.  It's not too late to catch a couple of episodes -- available until 12 midnight PST tonight.

While I've been watching - I've been taming my stash with Joan Ford's Scrap Therapy method.

I know I've been talking about this for a couple of weeks.  I actually started cutting the other night - - all of my 30s & 40s repros are now sliced up and ready to go - I'm thinking of making the quilt that's on the cover of "Cut the Scraps", which I purchased earlier this week.  It's been tough NOT cutting 2.5" squares - this seems to be a size I do use quite a bit - - so I have to remind myself that I can cut 5" squares into four matching 2.5" squares.

Of course - - this leads to a ton of odd shaped cut offs, which I have been carefully piecing together as per Victoria Findlay Wolfe's 15 Minutes of Play.

This image is "borrowed" from Paula Prass's blog Show & Tell. Scroll down to the bottom of THIS POST LINKED HERE to see how she has her fabric organized.  Quilter porn!!!!

So....I whipped up a batch of homemade spray starch a la Quilting Sheep 

• 2 cups distilled water
• 2 oz vodka
• 6-12 drops of 100% pure essential oil - lavender is nice
• 1/3 cup of liquid starch

I have been using this recipe for about four years.  I can't think of a thing I'd change.  It takes out the toughest wrinkles, and really crisps up tired fabric without flakes or gunking up my iron.

Anyway....back to the piecing - I iron through a stack of fabric, cut it, setting aside the odd shaped cut offs, and when I've got through that stack, I start sewing together the blocks.  So far I have pieced 30 6.5" blocks.  I'm thinking that I might whip up a batch of 8-pointed stars, like the 2nd block of the first row pictured in the book.

Something else that I've been piecing between trimming is this jar full of 3" nine patches created out of CW repros.  I have 93 so far.

I also sorted through all of my strings, and divided them into colour families.  Inspired by a couple of quilts in Bonnie Hunter's String Fling book - - I'm feeling like I might start piecing some string blocks too.  I don't have a project in mind, but if I start by just doing neutral blocks in a usable size (maybe 8.5"?) then something is sure to come to me.

I've also been working on my "Leader/Ender" Scrappy Split Nine Patch blocks - I'm working on my 10th block right now.

 Let's talk about tea.  

I gave up coffee about three months ago.  This was a HUGE deal, because I am an enormous fanatic about my coffee.  Due to some tummy issues, I was forced to quit coffee to cut back on the caffeine.  So I switched to tea.  I don't drink my tea very strong, and despite all the urban legends, tea does have about 1/3 the caffeine of coffee.  I figured I was good.  Nope.  I saw my nutritionist about a month ago, and she insisted the tea had to go - - or switch to decaf.

Oh my gaaaawwwd!  After some initial stubbornness (spell check insists there are 2 'n's in stubbornness - that just looks weird, but I digress) - -  I resisted the urge to toss myself on the floor kicking and screaming like a 3 year old at the grocery store who is denied a Kinder Egg - -   and grudgingly agreed to give it a try.

Now before you add a comment about try this herbal or that fancy schmancy flavour - - I have to tell you, I hate all tea except good old fashioned Orange Pekoe.  I'm not so much of a snob that I have to insist on a brand - - whatever is on sale and I have a coupon for is perfect.

I tried Red Rose Orange Pekoe Decaf first.  (Remember that commercial?  "Only in Canada, hey?  Pity!")

Terrible - - I had to use two bags to brew one cup, and that's pretty bad for me: a person who doesn't enjoy a strong cup of tea.  A box of 80 bags was only slightly cheaper than Tetley (which was my next trial).  But if you're Canadian and feeling nostalgic, enjoy the commercial, and check out the photos of the Wade figurines that came in boxes of tea in the 60's and 70's.  I remember my Nanna kept a troupe of the Nursery Rhyme figurines on her kitchen window sill.

Next - I tried the more expensive Tetley decaf.  A box of 80 bags at Walmart was just shy of $8.  Within a few days of my purchase, I began to see news items related to young girls being sold into slavery and involving Tetley - - and as if that wasn't enough to turn me off - - it wasn't great flavour.

Now -- and this is going to sound sooooo strange to my fellow Canadians -- there is not a Tim Horton's near my home or work, so I rarely get to go there - - even though it's RRRROLLL up the RRRRIM time! - - however, if I'm out and about, I will head into a drive through and order an "XL decaf Orange Pekoe, one bag in and one bag on the side" - - that's right.  At Timmy's, if you order an XL tea, they put two bags in, but one is plenty strong for me, and I can save the spare bag for another time.

Hubby and I were out on the road yesterday for a drive to nowhere in particular, just to blow the dust off. (For the record, I didn't get to go to ANY fabric or quilt stores - but I DID have to endure  visits to two music stores in Orangeville.  Ugh - nothing more boring to me, and the first one smelled like coffee and marijuana.  Musicians!  grrrr!)  

Coming home on country roads, I got a smidge anxious when we were a little lost, I realized I really should have gotten gas before leaving civilization, crawling through white out conditions, the snow plough we were following turned around as we hit the county line, and we passed an accident (police were already on scene, and it looked under control, so I didn't stop).  When we finally arrived in Fergus, a place I often travel to and/or through for work, I pulled over at the first Timmy's I came to.  I needed to a break from the car and to unwrap my white knuckled grip on the steering wheel.

I ordered my tea, and because I was actually IN the Timmy's and not the Drive-thru, I asked about the price of tea.  A box of 40 bags came to $3.49.  Perfect!  I am the happiest tea drinker in the world now!

Can you stand one more thing?

Maybe you've seen this 'pinned' on Pinterest:

The instructions are here - - but I had never tried it.  I had a grapefruit that was beyond eating --the peel was dry and the flesh was getting squishy-- so I thought what the heck?  Cut it up, put it in a 2-cup Pyrex measuring cup with water and nuked it for five minutes.  I let it sit for another 2 minutes, and the icky stuff wiped right off with a paper towel, and the overpowering smell of popcorn was erased.  I'm thinking that any citrus fruit will work.  Keep that little tip in mind.

Attention Stash - You're getting TAMED

Further to last week's culling to the UFO's, I'm taking steps to tame the stash.  I've been hoarding fabric for too long, and it's time to set it free.

Towards that end, I've been creating Little Dresses for Africa.  I've got several more cut out and hemmed, but I'm all out of bias tape!  (Family & friends, check your sewing boxes - if you have 1/4" bias tape you're not going to use in this century, pass it on to me).  There's lots of good quality fabric in my stash which will never go into a quilt.

I'm also working on piecing a top together that I've been working on, on and off, for a few months, inspired by a quilt I have pinned on Pinterest.  I have all of the flying geese pieced, it's just a matter of putting them together.

The original inspiration is from Hoosier Toni's blog. 

Another Pinterest Pin - NAILED!

 Cauliflower Soup

I made a batch of this soup this afternoon - - YUM!!!  I pureed it in the blender to make it easier for me to eat in my post-surgical state,  left out the hot sauce (I'm not a fan), and it is super tasty.

Slow Sunday Stitching - 29/12/2013

I saw this image on Pinterest and pinned to my 'small sewing projects' pin board.  It linked to an etsy shop, and the item is no long available.  But I thought....I can do this!

I found a clip art image of a sewing machine online, embroidered it on natural muslin, glued a card circle to the inner hoop, layered four circles of batting, and finished by trimming the muslin down, and gluing it to the inside of the inner hoop on the back.  I think I nailed it!