Donna's Den

Less Struggling...

2009-10-06T06:50:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm back on track thanks to Cindi last night. Apparently, there is a nice EYELET in my sweater now. Well, not exactly nice, but you know what I mean. I will have to do a repair job when I go to block the sweater. But that won't be until I'm done (har har). I'm hoping it disappears before I get to that point.

Needless to say, I'm sitting next to Cindi on the plane.

Her daughter, Brianna, is going with us. She's the nearly 17 year old. A very mature nearly 17 year old. Cindi said that Brianna is having a tough time trying to decide WHICH knitting project to bring. I told Cindi to tell Brianna not to bring anything. I will keep her busy all on my lonesome!!

And the other gal, Thelma, is going to be doing the exact same project I am doing. Too bad it's not the same color yard or I'd accidently mix up our projects, no? :)

Oh, and I heard from the pattern company last night about their mistake in the pattern. The gal sounded so sweet in her email. How is that possible? I think I sound like a horse in my emails to others. But I digress...She said that there are NO ERRORS in that pattern. That's it's exactly right. Now, I'm a beginner but I know it's wrong. And Cindi says it's wrong. We can't both be wrong, can we? I forwarded her email to Cindi. She's the final word.

We'll we're off tomorrow. I can hardly wait. I'm working today and it's going to be so BUSY I won't have time to think about knitting.

Take care!

Still Struggling...

2009-10-05T18:21:00.000-07:00

Ok...one of the gals came by the house yesterday and told me to frog it. But she said to do it one stitch at a time. Like unknitting. It's called tink'ing. Tink is knit spelled backwards. (I am learning so much so quickly!)

So, I tinked yesterday afternoon. Took it out just back to the error and started again. When I had finished the row, I counted my stitches. 116. Great, right? Wrong. It's suppose to be 114. ARRGGHH.

So, I knitted/purled to where the extra two stitches were and knitted two together. No one will know but you and I. The error won't be seen as this piece is the back and I'm starting at the bottom and it's going to hang at my high hip. If anyone sees it...I have permission to smack them, right?

So...I'm knitting and purling along and all of a sudden, I see another funny stitch. Not funny ha-ha, funny strange. Great! I set it aside and do something else. Like call my psychiatrist. (KIDDING)

Tonight I am going to take it to Cindi and she will get me started again.

Rhonda told me that I'm doing an intermediate project and I am a self-declared beginner. So, I mentioned this to Cindi. She said yes, it's intermediate, but that I can do it. (Pray for me, Rhonda!)

You know...if others weren't taking THEIR knitting along and I would not have the undivided attention of three other experienced knitters on this trip....I would not be doing this.

...I think I can...I think I can...I think I can...

Struggling...

2009-10-04T11:25:00.000-07:00

I'm heading to Houston on Wednesday for the Houston Int'l Quilt Market. There are four of us ladies going...and we range in age from nearly 17 to 75! I am so looking forward to getting away, even though it may turn into a working vacation. Because we'll be buying goodies for the quilt shop.

Anyway, the ladies have all stated that they're taking their knitting along. Well, I hate being left out AND since all three of them are experts at knitting, this is actually the perfect time for me to start a project and take it along. I mean, I'll have three expert teachers at my beck and call. What could be better, you ask? Take a look at the project I've started. Here is a mistake already and the plane hasn't left the ground yet.

None of these ladies is available to me today, so I've been scouring the internet and found some really great knitting sites. After all that research, I believe the best course of action is to frog it. (knitting term meaning 'rip it'. I did not make that up!)

Below is another shot of the mistake. I don't know what happened. But it will need to be redone.

Here is the pattern I'm making with the yarn, too. It's merino wool, cashmere and silk. Sweet, no?

Like I said earlier, I am not an experienced knitter. But I was forced to email the company because this pattern is printed WRONG. It's a simple basket weave pattern. Knit 4, purl 4, etc. After 4 rows, you purl a row and then knit a row (on the right side of the sweater, it will look like two rows of purling). Then you have to look at what you did below and if you did 4 knits, then you have to do 4 purls. Hence the basketweave pattern. But what I gave you above is not the pattern that's printed in the book. I nicely pointed this out to the company and asked them to send me a corrected pattern, but I have yet to hear from them.

So, I'm heading in to my sewing room and will carefully FROG this out. The counting is difficult. After I've done my two rows of straight purl/knit, I have to begin counting to 4 again making sure that I'm doing the opposite pattern I've done below those two rows. The problem begins when I start my 2nd row of the pattern. I can't tell what my first row was. It's mildly frustrating. Good thing this is the lower back of the sweater. But still, I want it to be right.

I'll keep you posted.

Dave's Quilt Part 3

2009-09-13T16:26:00.001-07:00

Ten down, twenty to go. They are not too boring to do, but require alot of cutting.

Spiral Bonding

2009-09-12T18:13:00.001-07:00

Weird title,huh?

Well, I got this pattern, ruler and great fabric and decided to take a break from Dave's quilt and sew up these spiral table runner thingys.

Here is one all done. This is the varigated thread I'm going to stipple it with tomorrow (cause we're off to the car races tonight).

And here is a large shot of it all done. I'm making two of them. One in these teal colors and the other in purple Asian fabrics. Now, normally, I dislike Asian fabric, but in this case I am making an exception.

Oh, the bonding part. I've had my Singer 222 since March and I haven't sewed much with it because it's seems stiff and not smooth at all. Husband said it's because it's in such pristine condition, that it isn't "broken in yet". So, I decided to remedy that.

I took it out the other day and oiled/lubed all the right spots and set it up next to my Bernina. I'm sewing with it to break it in and it actually is alot smoother than I remember. Here is the other colorway fabric I'm using for that spiral thing.

This tablerunner look simple, but actually they are not for the faint of heart. You need a long 10 degree ruler and then you've got to cut all these wedge shapes. Now I'm right handed, so the right hand side of the ruler and the top are easy. But trying to cut the left side of the ruler is not fun.

I guess after two of these, I'll be better at it.

Another shot of "Pete" (named for the man I bought him from). Now to just keep him out and sew with him often to loosen him up is just the trick I need.

Hope you are all having a great weekend. Our summer weather is holding on. Right now, 6:20pm, it's 90 degrees. Take care.

Dave's Quilt Part 2

2009-09-06T13:54:00.000-07:00

First block done. I've bagged the flying geese ruler Cindi gave me. (She doesn't read my blog, so I think I'm pretty safe). I'll tell her why I didn't like it in person.

I used my "Square in a Square" ruler instead. This block has SIX flying geese in it.

If you double click and see it's a little wonky, don't worry. It will be sewn straight into a quilt top and won't look wonky there. Thankfully.

Twenty-nine more to go...oh boy FUN.

I also am wondering about doing all those half-square triangles for the sashing. I may come up with something else.

Cousin Dave's Quilt, Part 1

2009-09-06T09:52:00.001-07:00

I know, I know...it's been ages since I blogged last. That's only because I've been working on some quilts for a friend's QUILT BOOK that she is writing and I can't show you here what I'm doing. But how lucky am I to get to sew the book's samples!!

But, in the meantime, one of my favorite cousins contacted me and wanted me to make him a quilt. He had one made by our grandmother and was describing it to me at our yearly family reunion. I never got one, but he and several of my cousins did. (I was on the younger end of the crowd and only 6 when she died). From what I gather, her quilt was probably 4 inch squares all sewn together and tied with yarn. Nice and sentimental, but boring.

So, I sent Cousin Dave a TON of quilt photos to see what he wanted. He chose the one above. Hopefully, not for it's name.

Next, I determined I had all this fabric in my stash. YEAH! The only problem is is that this quilt is only 36 x 42 inches and won't cover Cousin Dave by much. The blocks are only 9 inches square. So, I asked my quilt shop owner, Cindi, to redo the math. She can do this so easily it's sickening. Anyway, she redid the block so they're 12 inches square and even graciously gave me a flying geese ruler to use. Sweet!

So, Cousin Dave....the above photo is the beginning of your quilt. Double click on any photo you see in my blog to make it larger. (Sorry, it's a bit blurry when you enlarge it) It's a long weekend and I'm starting today. I finished up TWO quilt tops yesterday for the quilt book, so now I'm sewing for myself...er...for you.

I actually can't wait to get started...so I'm off and running. Take care everyone.

Bindings and Batiks

2009-07-11T09:53:00.001-07:00

Well, I took Friday off from work to do some serious sewing without DH around the house. In the process, I discovered how really wonderful my 1941 Singer 201-2 sewing machine is for attaching binding to quilts. Remember, you can double click on the picture to enlarge it.

This quilt was a lot of fun to make. I found the pattern in a magazine. They had done two quilts, one in all green batiks and one in all orange batiks. I thought, hmmm...I've got a lot of those blue batiks in my stash. This is the result. I will make more of this style of quilt. I may even try using up scraps to make it look really wild!

And here is my baby with that blue batik quilt. I'm attaching the binding and I can't describe how smoothly and quietly that machine hums along. And having it inserted in it's cabinet with the extension to the left makes all the difference in the world.

Here is a wider shot of that machine and quilt. Really fun. If any of you are "bitten" by the vintage Singer bug (Debbie), I heartily recommend a Singer 201-2. It has the potted motor which means no belts. Totally gear driven. I will be leaving this machine in my will, as it is going to certainly outlast me.

Here is my machine with my second batik quilt that needed binding. This pattern is called Stash Box Quilt. Very fun, again, except using different colored squares. This quilt would look great in any fabric. I just like the batiks. And think about it using a lighter colored sashing instead of the black. Very cool. Also, double click on this photo and get a good look at that 1/4 inch foot. As far as I'm concerned, it's the best one on the market. None of my narrow-feed-dog-Singers mind it at all. (Note to self: buy another one in slant style)

A larger shot of that quilt on my machine. What a joy.

Some ask me why I quilt so much. Easy answer: my job is extremely stressful and this is my "release".

Treadle Trouble

2009-06-27T15:52:00.001-07:00

Lookie what I got today. DH got this at a yard sale near Spokane. He surprised me with it when he got home.

It's a 1937 Singer 15-88 treadle sewing machine.

Because it's a class 15 treadle, it has REVERSE! Yippee.

As you can see the cabinet it not in great shape. I may swap this machine out for my class 66 treadle cabinet. Then sell the 66.

I will have to wait until I sew with it. It spins freely right now, but does need cleaning. The decals are in great shape, though.

Now to go find that eBay seller and get another belt. Debbie...these things are addicting AND multiplying!

Machines Everywhere!

2009-06-21T16:04:00.001-07:00

The herd so far. I think it's fifteen and counting.

Above is my 1927 Singer model 66 treadle.

And here is my "second" sewing room. All three machines with cabinets put in there. It's a very small space but much appreciated. From left to right and forefront is my 1941 Singer 201-2, my 1961 Singer 500A (Rocketeer) and the 1927 Singer 66 treadle (shown above).

Old faithful, my Bernina 150QE. Totally faithful. But one day she will die and I doubt I'll replace her with another computerized machine. I'm simply having too much fun with these mechanical Singers that I can fix myself. So long Bernina dealer (and tons of money), hello DIY!

Another machine I reach for time and time again, my 1951ish Singer 301A. It's almost always on the table next to the Bernina.

This baby is the newest to the herd. A 1922 Singer 99K. No big deal, right? They made millions of them, right? But wait! This one is special. She's one in 8,000 made in 1922 that's made out of aluminum. I haven't done all the research yet, so I don't know how many aluminum 99's are out there. But I have a hunch 1922 was the only year. Just don't quote me on that yet. I haven't cleaned her up. This is how she came with a nice bentwood case with the Singer decal on the lid. Her base needs a little gluing, but so what? She's as light as a feather. Can't wait to dig in and rewire her. She's def. going to need it.

And last...the ensemble. From left to right, my 1961 Singer 222 (freearm), Whitey the 1964 Singer 221 featherweight, the 1954 Singer featherweight I inherited from my mother and a centennial featherweight I am fixing to sell.

I know. That's no where near the fifteen I listed at the beginning. But it's a herd. And they all have a good home and are all being used.

I posted this because Debbie recently acquired a great 1916 Singer 66 treadle (the Red Eye) and we've been emailing each other about care/cleaning. It's gotten me totally excited about my machines again. Not that I never was excited about the herd, but you know what I mean. Keep an eye on her blog for updates on how she's coming along with that machine. Phew, was her machine a mess! Keep cleaning, Debbie, and enjoy!

Follower

2009-05-10T14:57:00.000-07:00

I finally got into my blog backpage and did some managing that was long overdue. While doing so, I discovered I had a follower. And I discovered I could add my follower to my sidebar.

Charisma. Isn't she the cutest! I know I'm not popular and I know I just have a very small circle of friends, it's true. And I know Jesus loves me. But come on. It's great to know I have ONE follower!

She's my best girlfriend. Charisma~you're the greatest. Happy Mother's Day to you. :)

Resurrection

2009-04-12T20:56:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter everyone! And what a special Easter this is, too.

To update you on my friend, Janet, from my previous post...there is much to celebrate. God has been so good to her and so faithful to us who have been praying.

Yesterday, the doctors warmed her up to regular body temperature.
Today, they removed her from the ventilator. She is breathing on her own!

They removed the sedation and she was able to talk. She recognized and knew everyone who was there to see her in the hospital and she could recall birthdates when asked!!!

PHEW!!! Thank you Jesus. Janet is over a HUGE hurdle and on the road to recovery. And thank you to those who prayed with me. I appreciate it.

Prayer Request

2009-04-11T16:29:00.000-07:00

I don't normally do this sort of thing on my blog, but rules were meant to be broken.

This morning I received word that my closest girlfriend from my office went into full cardiac arrest last night. Blessedly, her two teenage daughters called 911 and were able to begin CPR on her until the ambulance arrived. She was airlifted to a Spokane hospital and is there in ICU.

The doctors are keeping her body temperature at 93 degrees until they can assess the damage. The latest update (3pm today) is that she opened her eyes, recognized her husband, and teared up at the sight of him. GREAT NEWS!

So, this is for all your pray-ers out there. Her name is Janet and we are praying for Jesus' healing touch on her body and for peace of mind for her family. After all, He is the Great Physician. Currently, Janet is on two church prayer chains in our area.

Also, the doctors are going to begin warming her up tomorrow. Maybe this Easter we'll see a real resurrection.

Thank you and Happy Easter.
Janet--I love you.

Wallets

2009-03-29T15:08:00.001-07:00

Yesterday I was at my local quilt shop and saw this pattern. I *had* to have it. My g/f working there asked how much I would charge her for making her this wallet. I said I would only charge her the cost of the pattern. After all, I *had* to have it, remember?

So, I walked out with the pattern to preread it and get ready to sew one up for her. She's still deciding on her fabric, but she had picked some great MOD fabric out. We'll see what she finally comes up with. If you're using only one fabric for the whole thing, it takes 3/4 yard and four zippers.

So, I went home and sewed this one up for myself out of some batiks I had in my stash.

It was a learning experience and I'm really glad I had an opportunity to sew it up for me before I worked on g/f's good fabric. Below is a shot of it loaded with my stuff.

It has two zippered pockets on the outside and one zippered pocket on the inside and all those places for holding your plastic and a open flap inside for money. Plus, the black thingy you see on the left is fold over elastic used to hold a pen in place. (It was all I had in the way of elastic). Oh, and that zipper is hand stitched in. Argh. But I didn't see a way to sew it in with machine. That is, until I looked closer and got to the second one below.

So, in my last post, you saw the cute purse I made for another g/f. Well...here is HER wallet made from the same fabric as her purse. I have to add bling and the hot iron is heating while I'm typing this. I hope she likes it. We're having lunch on Tuesday. I'll find out then. Be listening about noonish PDT for a really loud squeal. That will be Charisma.

Here is her's open. Hers went much faster and nicer than mine did. So, now I'm all prepared for g/f #1's good fabric. This zipper is stitched in. I hand basted it in and then stitched in the ditch from the topside. Then I hand picked the ends in and covered them with a fabric tab. It does finish the zipper ends nicely.

I haven't been feeling well this weekend. Sore and scratchy throat. We're going to be down a gal in the office this week, too, because of Spring break so I can't get sick. Pray.

Latest Projects

2009-03-28T11:00:00.001-07:00

Last weekend a good friend told me about a lady who had called her wanting a "black Singer" machine cleaned and tension adjusted. My friend thought of me for this job and gave me the lady's contact information. I phoned her up and went to her home and picked up her Singer 221 Featherweight. I gave it a thorough cleaning! I believe it was covered in nicotine gunk. Anyway, in the course of my cleaning, I took the foot controller apart because two of the rubber base mounts were broken.

This is what I found inside the foot controller! You might not be able to tell from the picture, but the tip of this feather is the prettiest shade of light blue. She must have owned a parakeet at one time, huh?

And I was enabled by another great friend to buy the buttonholer you see attached to my 222k. This is a special buttonholer that was only marketed in the UK and Australia. So, I bought this one from the UK a few weeks ago and cleaned it up and tried it out. It makes great buttonholes and WITHOUT the cams. You simply dial the size you want. Besides the nice buttonholes, it simply looks great on my featherweight.

And at my quilting club meeting last Wednesday night, I won the drawing for the cutest pink fat quarter set. Since they're really not my colors, I immediately thought of a girlfriend and how they are perfect colors for her. So, if she's reading my blog (which I think she does), then she already knows what she's getting for her birthday in August. If she IS reading this and wants it sooner than August, she'll have to tell me and I could be persuaded to get it to her before then.

I added bling, as you can see, to the purse. My g/f is all about pink and bling. Notice the fabric covered button. That was a first for me, too.

And here is the whole purse.

Well, I promised to blog more often and so far it's not happening, is it? Oh well. Life simply gets in the way. But these are a few of my latest projects.

Oh, and my post wouldn't be complete without (again-because I already called her) wishing my beautiful daughter, Adrian, a Happy 23rd Birthday. Love you Adrian!

New Toys

2009-02-14T10:52:00.001-08:00

WOW, I have recently acquired some great toys, huh?

Meet Whitey! Well, what else am I going to call her???
She is a 1964 white Singer Featherweight and boy is she ever smooth to sew with.

She's not without her blemishes, but I think it just adds to her character. What a sweet machine! (double click on the photos to enlarge)

And this one! This 1961 Singer 222K is a recent purchase from a friend in Canada. I haven't officially named him yet, but I'm thinking Pete (from the previous owner). What do you think?

Yesterday, I was sewing with Pete for the first time. I had cream colored cotton thread in the needle and the same thread in the bobbin. I was sewing two small cream colored blocks together and when I finished the seam, I cut the threads and checked the bobbin stitching. Lo and Behold...there was a royal blue thread in with my cream stitching. Now how did that happen?

So, Pete got the "spa" treatment. I had to remove his bobbin case assembly completely to get out the other threads that were stuck behind it. Once that was done, he got a complete oiling/lubing and now he's humming right along nicely.

Whitey came with a nice, clean, odor-free case and 3 extra bobbins and a bobbin case. Her foot pedal is hardwired into the machine. And it's not one of those Singer button foot controllers either. It's one of the wider clamshells that came with the Touch and Sew's.

Pete came with all his attachments in a red vinyl case, the manual, the embroidery hoop for the 222K, and a Greist buttonholer. His carrying case is also in great shape and has the red plastic tray attached to the side.

Both are great investments besides being totally fun to sew with. They join my inherited 1954 Singer featherweight, a 1961 Singer 301A, a 1961 Singer 500A (rocketeer) in a desk, a 1947 (pristine) Singer 15-91 and a Bernina 150QE.

Question: Am I done collecting antique Singers? I don't think so, but don't tell my husband!

Kreativ Blogger Award

2009-01-25T12:58:00.000-08:00

WOW! I've been nominated for this award. I'm speechless...well, not totally! Eyelets in the Seams awarded this to me. How utterly sweet of her and what a TOTAL shock! And I admit to feeling somewhat shamefaced. You see, I had forgotten that she HAD a blog and therefore, there was no link on my blog to hers. Situation resolved. Thank you, Michele. I promise to blog more often, too! ;)

So - Here are the rules of the award (copied from my presenter's blog) ~ 1. Copy the award to your site - 2. Link to the person from whom you received the award - 3. Nominate 7 (gulp...seven??? Are you sure???) other bloggers - 4. Link to those on your blog - 5. Leave a message on the blogs you nominated. In no particular order I present this award to:

1. Made by Amanda because she inspires me.
2. Our Family because she's my best girlfriend.
3. Gooch and Sophie. Now I've got to tell you about this blog. I found this link on Debbie Cook's site, Stitches and Seams. These two boston terriers photograph so funny, it makes my sides hurt. I've spent many an hour laughing at these two dogs. Hysterical!! Check out their Halloween photos if you don't believe me.
4. After the Dress . I love her Friday feedback. Lots of times I respond and she always acknowledges it the following Thursday. Cool!
5. Rhoto's Rag. What can I say? A good friend with a huge heart.
6. Wooly in Washington because we collect the same thing: Sheep! Except hers have to be fed.
7. Phew...can't believe I made it this far. I mean, I have some "famous" bloggers on my list and I doubt they would be interested in an award from me...but here goes. Number 7 is Quiltville. My alltime favorite blog to read. I love her scrap quilts. What inspiration and I've made several from her patterns that she freely gives on her site.

Thanks again, Michele!!

Another Mystery Quilt DOUBLE DELIGHT

2008-12-26T07:39:00.000-08:00

It's winter here. We've got lots of snow and bitter cold. I'm so glad I have a warm house to be in.

Well, Bonnie Hunter has posted info about another mystery quilt she's going to do for New Year's Eve sewing. I cannot believe how excited I am to start this one. It's 7:40 am here and I'm headed to my sewing room to check out my fabric stash for this mystery quilt.

Thanks Bonnie.

Mystery Quilt Done

2008-09-03T17:23:00.000-07:00

Done! Phew. I've said it before. That was GREAT fun. I almost am salivating at the thought of doing another mystery quilt.

I've pinned it up against a quilt on my living room wall, but here it is:

And there are a few surprises in it, too. This brown brick was left over from a duck stamp quilt I did for the local quilt shop, A Fabric Patch. I didn't fussy cut it, but a duck did show through on the edge.

And, of course, Emily loved it. What more to say?

I'm waiting to see the owner's sample with borders on it, but I doubt I'll do any. It's plenty big. Fifty something by seventy something. It's called Old Tobacco Road.

More Mystery Quilt

2008-09-01T10:36:00.001-07:00

This has been so much fun, I just have to share it with you. If you read my last post, I'm doing a Labor Day mystery quilt from Bonnie Hunter's website, Quiltville. She's done these step by step mystery quilts before, but I've never been able to join in. Something was always happening. But this weekend, I decided to jump right in.

So, first up I had to make one gazillion four patches. Light/dark colorways and no browns. No problem. Then I had to make two gazillion half square triangles and sew these up as pinwheels. Both of these blocks measure 3.5 inches unfinished. Now, the interesting thing about the pinwheels is you had to have each pinwheel the same color but each blade had to be a different fabric. For example, in the photo below on the right are my pinwheels lined up and ready to sew into bricks. The top pinwheel is green in colorway, but each green is a different fabric. Very cool. Also in the picture is Gadget's cat bed because she likes to lay right there and watch me and doze off as she's allowed AND my Singer 301. It has been humming right along sewing these up.

Here are the "bricks" sewed up. There are only half a gazillion of these. Now the special thing about these is the four patches HAVE to go a certain way, as shown in the picture. Also, I forgot to mention that all the pinwheels have to turn the same direction. Mine do. (*phew*)

Then I had to cut up bunch of brown/black/rust/dark tan 3.5 x 6.5 bricks, as shown below.

Then step four is laying them on the design wall and sewing them together. This is what I'll be doing today, my day off.

As you can see, the end brown bricks will be cut even, so there will be no zig zagged edge. Can you see it taking shape?

I have to tell you that this is SO much fun. Now, interestingly, I never minded cutting up and sewing all those four patches and pinwheels because I simply didn't know what this quilt was going to look like. So, it was no big deal to me to sew them up.

But honestly, if I was to look at this quilt all finished, I might not sew it up because I can hear myself saying "look at all those four patches and pinwheels...yuck".

So, you see how much fun a mystery quilt is? I might never have sewed this one up if I had seen the end product. So cool!

When I get this done, I'll post a final picture. Take care and I hope everyone is having a safe Labor Day holiday. Pray for those being affected by Gustav. They need our prayers.

Mystery Quilt Fun

2008-08-31T14:46:00.001-07:00

WOW, it's been a month since I posted last. Sorry. I can't help it. I've been busy.
Family reunions, car races, quilt retreats and all the usual Summer fun. Oh yeah, beating the husband on the golf course!

I have been a long time follower of Bonnie Hunter's site, Quiltville. She specializes in scrap quilts and since I have a TON of scraps, I'm doing things her way. I have told countless other quilter friends about her site and now they all know her when I talk about her. I've shared several of her scrap patterns with others and even demonstrated one I was working on at a recent retreat.

In the past, she's done some mystery quilts. Where you piece a quilt, step by step, not knowing what you're going to have until you get to the end. They always looked like fun.

This weekend, she has started Old Tobacco Road mystery quilt and I decided to join in. So far so good. A gazillion four patches AND two gazillion pinwheels. But lots of fun. I'm able to keep up, but I sew like a fiend. Good thing my Singer 301 is keeping up with me. The fun part for me is doing each step one at a time and not looking at the next step until I'm done with the step I'm on. What a challenge to stay AWAY from the computer.

So, that's where I will be this Labor Day weekend. Take care. Footage at 11.

Clunky, Rebirtha and New Babies

2008-07-31T17:52:00.000-07:00

Busy, busy, busy. That is now my new middle name! I cannot believe how fast the Summer is flying, too. Sheesh.

Ok, this is just a small part of what I've been doing lately. Our church is having a Backyard Bible School. It's just like a VBS, but held outside in a city park. Our church has two puppets they use with the kids to teach them Bible stories. Clunky and Rebirtha. I did not name them. Do NOT email me. Clunky is described as a boy in kindergarten for the 5th year in a row. He normally gets things wrong. Blessedly, he has Rebirtha to set him straight.

This year's theme is cars. And not the Pixar movie cars, either. Just cars. The pastor wanted me to sew up a couple of "car" shirts for these two. Now, Clunky only has a torso and Rebirtha has a whole body. He is a size 3 in a little boys shirt and she's a 24 mos in RTW. Below is what I came up with. The secretary at church loved them! She squealed when she saw them, too.

Next are my two new favorite machines. The first is Singer's 301. Mocha, short bed for you Singer techies out there. She sounds just like my featherweight, but is much faster. No wonder they call it "the featherweight on steroids"! Here is an "after" picture. After the "spa treatment". Her name is Ethel. Don't ask me. Months ago she told me her name and that was long before I saw her. A friend sold her to me and it took me about 4 months to get to the other side of the state to pick her up. In the meantime, Ethel told me her name. Go figure. I don't normally name my machines.

And for some equally strange reason, below is Steven. I know, he should be "Rocky", but he's Steven. I can't help it.

Got my Singer 500 Rocketeer off Craigslist for $40. He came with the same desk my 401 came with. So, now I have two desks and I'm not using either because I have a sewing room where they won't fit. He is in pristine condition. One minor flaw on the light cover. Other than that, he is beautiful! And both my 301 and 500 are a delight to sew with. Right now, they are center stage in my sewing room with my Bernina and Singer 185 stowed in another room. *gasp*

I've been sewing for the quilt shop and sewing for a gal who works at the quilt shop and trying to sew for myself here and there. But it isn't working out too well.

My family reunion was July 18 and DH's family reunion is this Saturday. I can't wait. His family is so nice and it's the second time we've gotten together. Last year was the first time my DH had met almost ALL of his cousins. Weird family, but hey! They're together now, and that's all that matters. I'll post pics after his reunion. Get both families with one post!

Take care!

Blog Header

2008-07-05T11:42:00.000-07:00

As you can see, I made a custom header for this blog. I also changed the color scheme to match the colors of the quilt in the header.

That Singer Featherweight is the machine I inherited from my Mother who inherited it from her Aunt Alda.

The quilt is called "Arctic Crystals" and it's made from green and blue/purple batiks. I made it at a quilt retreat a few years ago.

So, you all out there in blogdom...can you assist me in the following:

1. How to make the photo a bit higher and longer to fit in that header catagory.
2. To change the colors of my PR widget. (I may check into this and figure it out).

But I am loving this new me!
Thanks in advance to any/all help. Take care.

New Projects

2008-07-02T06:48:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd show you some shop samples I've made for my local quilt shop. I simply love the effect on this first quilt.

The fabric is this way on the bolt. There are four shaded areas divided by a line. You simply cut on the line (lengthwise cuts) and you have 4 different colors. I am going to make one for myself out of blues, greens and browns. Those will go with my living room walls.

This one below is a Halloween wallhanging.

It's not something I would sew for myself. But you'd be surprised at the number of ladies who come to the shop asking for Halloween fabric and then not knowing what to do with them. Well, here is a sample. The pattern is free. It's from clothworks.

Then there is this cute "ant" apron on a panel. It comes complete and it's a twill type fabric, so there was no need to put a backing on it. I simply serged the edges, pressed them over and stitched them down. The handles are all pressed in half and then stitched together and (using a tube turner) turned and sewn on. Oh and I insist on giving credit where credit is due. The curved patch pockets are courtesy of Debbie Cook's tutorial on "perfect curved patch pockets". Thanks Debbie! ;)

Lastly, is a Christmas wallhanging using Laurel Birch's cats fabric. The company is still creating more cat fabric using her designs. Ms. Birch passed away last year.

Anyway, just samples. But it's better than listening to my ranting of late. Remember to double click on the photos to see them up close.

I am in jury trial this week and am looking forward to having Friday off! I hope you all have a very safe 4th of July! Take care.

I Can't Hold Back Any Longer

2008-06-27T17:15:00.000-07:00

Warning: If you loved George Carlin, then you won't want to read this blog entry.

Ahhh....deep breath.

I have been dying (pun intended) to respond to all the people who leave comments on the Yahoo groups I belong to and other internet sites I visit about the recent death of George Carlin (hereafter, GC).

I have held back and not left comments, but OH, I wanted to. Then I thought, "Hey, your blog...do it there!" So here I am.

Ok, now, as everyone knows he was an atheist. But the only comments I hear are: "oh, he will be missed" and "he was so talented" and "he was so funny" and "may he rest in peace".

Give. Me. A. Break.

His ranting on religion is full of error. He once said:

"Religion easily has the greatest BS story ever told. Think about it, religion has actually convinced people that there's an INVISIBLE MAN...LIVING IN THE SKY...who watches every thing you do, every minute of every day. And the invisible man has a list of ten special things that he does not want you to do. And if you do any of these ten things, he has a special place full of fire and smoke and burning and torture and anguish where he will send to live and suffer and burn and choke and scream and cry for ever and ever 'til the end of time...but he loves you."

Boy did he get that WRONG!
1. Jesus is not invisible. He just doesn't reside on Earth any longer in bodily form. But He is here, living in the hearts of believers worldwide. And He is real and alive and one day I'm going to see Him in all His glory.

2. "He watches everything you do", etc. That's right He does. But not to sit in judgement of you. Jesus is on the Mercy Seat right now, not the Judgement Seat. That's why it's possible for people to get saved. If He were on the Judgement Seat, no one would be able to be saved. Right now...concentrate on the Mercy Seat. He's calling you to Himself.

3. "He has a list of 10 special things that he doesn't want you to do." Ok, here GC is referring to the 10 Commandments and he's wrong in thinking those are things we're "not suppose to do" because no one can keep the commandments. No one. Not even if you tried. They are called "the law" and they were given to the Jews. The Jews were to keep them. But they couldn't. That's why Jesus came to Earth. To call the Jews to himself and extend salvation to all mankind.

4. "And if you do any of these things, he has a special place", etc. etc. Yes, GC is referring to what people call Hell. The Bible refers to it as The Lake of Fire.

Here's where the "clincher" is.

Whether you keep the 10 Commandments or not does NOT determine whether you go to The Lake of Fire.

What puts you IN The Lake of Fire is your rejection of Jesus as Savior.

That's it folks. Nothing else. So simple. Yet GC not only makes a mockery of it, but thinks he's funny, too. This guy was gross (not to mention he had the foulest mouth I have ever heard)!

Closing thoughts:

GC died without acknowledging Jesus as Savior. So he can "rest in peace" for now but the next time he opens his eyes, he's going to be a believer. Because he's going to be standing in front of Jesus...and the joke will be on him.

What a shame. So much for a "talented" man, don't you think?
Don't let what is going to happen to GC, happen to you. Please.

Thanks for listening. I feel so much better now.

Frame Job

2008-06-17T18:18:00.000-07:00

Earlier, before my last (ranting) post, I told you about my scooter. A Yamaha Zuma.

Michele asked about fabric storage space. It reminded me that I forgot to post what is one of my favorite things about riding this scooter. The storage space below the seat. In England, it's called a "boot". So that's what I call it.

It holds my full face helmet when not in use and it will also hold two gallons of milk if I have to make a quick run to the store. It holds my purse, jacket, nonspillable coffee mug and anything else I need for my morning run to the office. Under that gray felt liner is a socket for the tire, the registration in a ziplog baggie and a bungee cord for tying things on the rack. But I admit I don't do that very often.

Das boot!
And for fun...I got this great license plate frame.

I saw one that said "born to quilt, forced to work" but I do more than just quilt. And "sew" is a shorter word. After all, I don't have THAT much room. ;)

It says it all! Take care everyone.

I've been tagged for a meme

2008-05-30T19:28:00.000-07:00

Gwen has tagged me for this meme. I have to admit, I haven't seen this particular meme going around, but I guess it's better than picking up the nearest book meme that I've seen. The nearest book happens to be my DH's Bible. On second thought, not a bad book!

Ok, here goes:

1) What was I doing 10 years ago:

Well, I had the same job I'm at now, which is being a paralegal for my county's prosecutor's office. DH was DBF then. HA! We've only been married 8 years.

2) What are 5 things on my to-do list today (and not in any particular order):

I've got a quilt to piece for the Fabric Patch. It's 40x40, so I will probably get it done tomorrow.
Put the laundry away.
Vacuum the carpets.
Remind myself NOT to make to-do lists!
I can't think of a fifth thing. Sorry.

3) Snacks I enjoy:

Ok, now I can easily name five things! Nachos, carrots, popcorn, nutri-grain bars, pistachios

4) Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

Wow! What a prospect. I'd make sure my kids were taken care of (and I don't mean bumped off so that I wouldn't have to share!). I'd make sure my Mom and brother and DH's brother and sister were taken care of. Wait...I'd quit my job. That would be FIRST! (Phew...what was I thinking). Yeah, quit job. Then hand out money to relatives. By the time I got to that point, I'd have relatives coming out of the woodwork!

Then, I'd find a really worthwhile charity, such as Make-A-Wish or Habitat for Humanity and give them alot. I'd pray and ask God where He would want me to give the money.

Eventually, I'd get around to buying a new house. The roof leaks horribly in this one and DH and I are going to "fix" it this year. Our plans are a new metal roof. But what the hay! I'm now a billionaire. New House!

You know, all this being aside, I really hate money. Always have. It divides people. Some have too much and others don't have enough. I hate it.

5) Places I have lived:
Olympia, Tacoma, Republic and Ephrata. That's it, folks. Washington state has always been home.

6) Courtesy Bus driver for my Dad's former VW dealership, maid at a motel, Veterinary Technician, cattle ranch operator (10K+ acres), cook and dishwasher in restaurant, Police/Fire/Ambulance dispatcher and Legal Secretary/Paralegal. That's it. Vast and varied.
Of course, this list does not include motherhood and being a wife.

7) 6 peeps I want to know more about (and not in any particular order):

Charisma
Rhonda
Amanda

Sorry, that's it folks. I'm a woman of few friends (that blog).

Have a great weekend everyone!

Wheels

2008-05-26T18:28:00.001-07:00

Oh yeah. Warm weather is finally here. These are my "warm weather" wheels. A 2002 Yamaha Zuma.

75 MPG. Yup. One fill up on this baby and I can ride ALL month long.

History: DH and I went shopping for one of these in late 2002. Saw a beautiful BLUE one on the showroom floor for $1800. I wanted it. DH wanted me to have one, too. But, come on. As soon as you drive it off the showroom floor, it depreciates in value. Why pay full price? DH constantly watches the nickel ads. Sure enough. March 2003, this baby was for sale. The previous owner had only put 50 miles on it. When DH went to buy it, the first thing he said to the seller was "it's not blue". The guys says "huh?". DH informs him that the wife wanted a blue one. Oh well.

As I was pulling into the driveway after work that night, there was DH sitting on the front porch witha smug expression on his face. The garage door was open (very unusual) and there inside where I park the car was this beauty. What a surprise. At a fraction of the showroom cost, too. Got my motorcycle endorsement (a WA state requirement) and I was all set.

Fast forward to 2008. I've had it for 5 years. I love it. It is SO much fun to ride.

It goes up to 40 MPH, but in this town, the fastest you can legally drive is 35. So, it's perfect.

Happy Memorial Day.

Zoom Zoom! ;)

New Singer Machine

2008-05-20T18:02:00.000-07:00

This baby is the newest addition to the "herd". She joins my Bernina, Singer 185J, and Singer featherweight. That does not include my serger and coverhem machine, either.

I found her on Craigslist ($50) with the help of a friend, who shall remain anonymous. ;) She came with the cabinet (which looks like a small desk) and almost all the attachments and manual. No buttonholer or walking foot, but those will come later.

She needed a VERY good cleaning. This is a "before" picture. She's on my cutting table where I gave her the spa treatment (to coin a phrase).

This is the "after" picture. I wonder if you can tell the difference, other than the light is on. Oh well. Take my word for it, she was filthy! She had sat a very long time in the garage of the previous owner. She certainly purrs right along. And power? You got it, baby.

When my husband picked her up for me, he spoke with the male of the house. He said his wife really used this machine and sewed all the kids' clothes on it and his shirts. I got the impression that he bought it for her new. The couple are in their mid-70's now. The Singer website is of no use as all "NA" serial numbered machines are listed as being made in 1951. But I doubt this is the case with this one. I've seen people advertise 1956 and 1958 models.

And this...is what came out of her bobbin area! Can you spell Y - U - C - K??

I thought of putting it on my spinning wheel and getting a skein of yarn out of it, but hey...I don't own a spinning wheel. So into the garbage it went. Good riddance. I will be taking very good care of this machine and it will, no doubt, outlast me.

Well, sorry this is so short, but I wanna go play with her now. Take care!

Nothing But Sewing

2008-05-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

First a big thank you for those who left compliments and well wishes. I appeciate them AND you!

I have obviously not blogged in a while, because I've been busy with the following:

This first shirt is for DH for our family reunion. The theme this year is a Luau. If you knew my husband like I do, you would know he would never be caught dead in an Hawaiian flower-dy shirt. But last year I found this great cotton/rayon at fabric.com and bought it for him. I washed it and folded it and then showed it to him saying "you only have to wear it for one day". He actually said "ok". So here it is.
This is the same shirt pattern I have always used for men's shirts. Simplicity 7330 OOP. I just scarfed one up on eBay this week for a paltry $3.45 including shipping. My pattern is about worn out even though I've traced it and put most of it on posterboard. Also, because this "surfer" shirt (that's what it actually is, right?) is only going to be worn one day by DH, I am giving it to my girlfriend who wants it. And the pattern is for her too, actually, after I make another tracing!

This is the first time I've done this convertible collar style. I've always only ever done the collar band/stand type. And I hate them. I have Kenneth King's book, video and Margaret Islander's video, and I have YET to sew up a collar like they do. I just have to buckle down and cut fake necklines and collars and stands and P-R-A-C-T-I-C-E. Yeah right.

This shirt below is actually the first shirt sewn. I didn't want to ruin the rayon print if I struggled with this collar type. But it was a cinch and I actually PREFER it to the collar stand shirts. Too bad the men in my life don't like it. DH thought it was a blouse. But that is partly because it's on my dressform. I wish I could make my son's long sleeved partly western style shirts with this collar. Maybe in the next "batch" I make for him, I'll slip one in and see if he notices!

Oh, the best part is I was able to talk DH into snaps instead of buttons. I showed him these from snapsource that look like buttons but are snaps. I think if you double click on the picture, you can see it. They are great and now I need to reorder them. I hadn't put any on the surfer shirt when I snapped the pic, but they're on it now. The ones on the striped shirt are antique brass and the ones on the surfer shirt are antique silver. Both look great and are a snap to put on (pun intended).

Below is the famous Amy Butler Weekender Bag that the people on pattern review have said was very difficult. I read each review and then the only change I made was to cut my bias strips for the piping wider than what the pattern calls for. They say cut them 1 1/2 inches wide, but I went 2 1/4 inches wide and then trimmed it after sewing. Much easier to handle that way and I was amazed at how NOT difficult this bag was to make. I'm ready to jump in and make one for myself. This one is at my local quilt shop on display.

And lastly...a pillow. In fact, it's actually a neck pillow and was so simple to make. Three pieces of fabric (8x14). Sew them together but leave an opening for stuffing. Loops on ends are optional. This also was done for my local quilt shop using a pattern they gave me, but honestly, you could do it all on your own just by looking at the sample I sewed. I hand stitched the opening closed and did it on the prequilted/chenille side where the hand stitches disappear into the chenille.

My work week went much better this week. We were starting a HUGE jury trial yesterday. I had 43 witnesses to try and figure out how to schedule so that not too many of them sat all day upstairs waiting to be called. Fortunately, the case settled at the last minute and I got to call all my witnesses off. Phew!

I hope everyone has a great weekend. It looks like it's finally Spring around here and DH and I are planning a round of golf Saturday. Take care and God Bless.

Happy Mother's Day! Call or hug your mother Sunday. Tell her that you love her and mean it!

April Flowers

2008-04-25T17:23:00.001-07:00

It's been a rather rough week at the office. I've said it before and I'll say it again...I love my job. I love every aspect of my job and I enjoy working for the county. I am assigned to work with a great prosecutor and I love organizing and managing the adult felony files that we have. What I detest about my job is trying to get along with the other ~~two year olds~~ ladies in my office.

Today, I needed a break. So where did I head? My local quilt shop. Their slogan is "Where Nice Matters". Isn't that nice? AND...one of the ladies is married to a man who works in my office. So she knows more than most about what goes on where I work. That helps, too.

So after the usual "how are you?", I got tearful because of my office. They all hugged me. Made me feel much better. Then back to my office where a short while later, I was greeted with the following:

Aren't they beautiful? I honestly never expected them to go to such a great length to make me feel better. I was totally surprised. The flowers came with a box of hand made chocolates. Four pieces, but they are the size of a golf ball. I had one this afternoon after lunch and it was a truffle. I hope the other three are, too. I'll pace myself and have only one a day until they're gone! (oink oink)

The card accompanying the flowers says "I've said my very best prayers...and I've said them all for you." Then they wrote "We love you so much! Please have a great day!" and then they signed it. *sigh* God is so good to give me such great friends.

A week or so ago, I sewed up the below wallhanging for them, at their request. They cut 12 kits and sold them all within a week. They are going to cut some more because it was so popular and it's very easy to do. AND...it looks so Spring-y considering the long winter we've had.

And I recently finished this one below. This quilt has a name...something like Basket of Flowers, but we call it "applifake". The only applique on the quilt are the four corner blocks. The rest just LOOKS appliqued. Very easy.

So, I've been busy sewing up a storm. I am totally LOVING my Singer 185J that I got on eBay a few months ago. I can not believe how fast and smooth it sews. It produces THE most perfect stitch I have ever seen and it's sews like butter. Honest. I've been doing all my piecing on it. Saves my Bernina, right?

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Busy as a Beaver

2008-04-05T11:40:00.001-07:00

I have been super busy sewing up a storm here. Below are two pictures of fabric bags that the Fabric Patch wanted me to sew up for them. The first bag is kind of droopy because there is no interfacing in the top portion above the pockets. I followed the pattern instructions, which were awful, to say the least. They were so bad, I emailed the company and pointed out all the mistakes/typos in their pattern. I never heard from them. They are either too busy to answer or not happy with my email. Ah well.

These two bags are made from jelly rolls of Moda fabrics. It takes 19 strips and 5 fat quarters to make this bag. There are 40 strips in a jelly roll. So, for payment for making the bags, I got to keep all the extra strips. I was given two jelly roll packages...so I have enough left over for a quilt. YAH!

You might be able to tell that this bag below HAS the interfacing in it. Also, the owner of this bad did not want ANY brown fabric in her bag. So...it's more pink, blue, yellow and green. These bags ARE easy to sew up...it's just the instructions are horribly written.

As I dropped off bag #2 at the quilt shop, they gave me several projects. As you can see below...I have a busy day ahead of me.

Clockwise from top left is a rather *unique* quilt. It's a border panel quilt and the back is brown minkee. I just have to sew the binding on it. Next is another quilt I did not sew. The Americana quilt. Again, just slap on the binding. Next is the Crazy Starz quilt I sewed up recently. Just putting on the binding. Then, one of last years Shop Hop quilts. You guessed it...binding. Then the colorful strips you see are another 32x40 wallhanging. This one needs to be pieced. I am hoping I can quilt this on my home machine, but we'll see. I don't like doing large type quilts at home. I have too many Gammills in the area to be wearing out my home machine for it. Lastly, bottom left corner is some home dec fabric from the quilt shop and two Amy Butler bag patterns. The owner wants me to sew these up so she can take them to Market in May.

So, that's my Saturday stuff to sew. I had better get at it, huh?

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

It's Amanda's Fault...

2008-04-01T19:00:00.000-07:00

When Made by Amanda posted what she bought on Etsy way back in November, I just HAD to have one, too.

Hers looks like this.

Mine arrived yesterday.

This pendant is made from an old typewriter key!

A very old typewriter key.

Some of you may have to Google "typewriter" to discover what I'm talking about.

I even left Amanda a comment saying how "cool" it was and I've been wanting one ever since.

Pathetic. I know. Thanks Amanda!

Quilt Retreat March 2008

2008-03-26T17:27:00.000-07:00

This is the fourth quilt retreat I've been on. All of them held at the same B&B (Rimrock Inn B&B) just outside Wenatchee, Washington. Beautiful. Below is my friend, Sheila, who went with me. She's the one responsible for starting me into the wonderful world of quilting. (DH...it's all HER fault!) This was a last minute type of retreat for us, too. I signed up the previous Saturday and I got Sheila to sign up the DAY BEFORE! I am so glad she went, though.

As you can see, we're all set up and sewing. Below is my machine as I faced Sheila. We shared two tables and had a TON of fun. We arrived Thursday afternoon and I sewed until 2:30 am Friday. Then I went to bed and got up at 8am Friday. I stayed up sewing until 5am on Saturday morning. Yep. I went to bed at 5am and got back up again at 9am. Phew...

Below is the UFO I took to finish. It's the BIG paper pieced pattern called Stars and Stripes Forever from RJR. This is the one I've been sewing on since January. It is HUGE! I've added a border and all it needs is to be gammilled. I will review it on PR when I get it all done and can get a better picture of it. It's 84x84 right now. I've since added a dark green border to it. Now it's closer to 90x90. Did I mention it's H U G E?

Below is a view out the sliding glass doors from where I sat sewing. It is always so pretty up there. For those familiar with the area, we are right below Mission Ridge Ski Resort.

We got back home Saturday evening in time to recover and make it to church. Now this was two weeks ago. Palm Sunday church.

I took a lot of photos but I realized I can't show many of them to you because we're all in our jammies! I would hate to get a nasty email from someone who went and then saw her picture on the net for all to see!

Well it's been a busy week. A very close friend of mine suffered a severe stroke on Easter Sunday and is currently in the hospital. But, the Lord Jesus is healing him. At first, he couldn't move his left side at all and now he has muscle resistance there and has wiggled his left toes and moved his left hand. He is feeding himself and can talk pretty darn clearly. Praise the Lord and if any of you out there are so inclined, please pray for Mike. He needs your prayers.

Hope everyone has a great week.

Car Show

2008-03-22T17:00:00.000-07:00

DH and I went to our local community college this morning and saw an extremely small car show. There were maybe 30 cars there and that included the new junk the local car dealers brought to entice people to buy.

But there were some real classics there, too. Below is a beautiful two-tone mustard colored Hudson Hornet. Remember Paul Newman's character in "Cars"? The blue Hudson Hornet? Well this is the same car. We not the same car, but one like it. You get the picture.

I thought it was gorgeous.

Then, get this. On an INSIDE car show, this car's convertible top was UP! What is up with that? (No pun intended.) It would look much better with the top down. Don't you think? It was a gorgeous salmon color...almost coral. Double click on any picture to enlarge it.

Next was my personal favorite, a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro. The essense of muscle car!

Then outside was this cute Chevy Belair. Small and pretty.

On the sewing front, I slapped three borders on a quilt and ran it down to the quilt shop. All tolled, I'll have five quilts on display at "market" in May in Portland OR. I won't get to go, but my local gals will be taking pictures for me.

Hope you all have a Happy Easter and go to church tomorrow!

It's a GUY thing...

2008-03-18T20:44:00.000-07:00

Last night right after dinner, I had to leave for Bible study. I asked DH if he would put dinner away. He said sure.

Ahem... THAT was not exactly what I meant.

Etsy

2008-03-12T12:42:00.001-07:00

I've become very familiar with the blogs I link to here. I check/read them each day. And I've noticed that Made by Amanda does Etsy alot. I looked into it one time, but didn't think that much about it one way or the other.

Then Saturday last, I decided to look at it again. Since I have a sheep/lamb collection, this is what I found! Brooches. Pins, really. Same maker. Bought all three. Cute, huh?

And I don't wear necklaces alot (hardly ever) because I just don't like that feeling of having some chain around my neck. I tend to wear brooches on my blazer lapels for the office. I have these great faux pearl earrings that I get alot of compliments on and I like wearing them because they're pretty. For a while now, I've been looking for a pearl brooch to wear on my jacket with my earrings (again, since I don't wear necklaces).

Below...it just arrived today. Cheap. Elegant looking. Can't wait to wear it and my earrings next Monday. But don't be mistaken. I'm not looking forward to Monday. I still cannot wait until tomorrow afternoon when I head for my "Quilt til I Wilt" weekend!!

Oh, and more are coming. There is a gorgeous faux garnet/ruby brooch coming AND one hand-painted pansy brooch, too. Stay tuned.

So, a shout out and THANK YOU to Amanda. Oh, and DH thanks you, too...I think!

What "Donna" means...HAHAHA

2008-03-11T06:59:00.000-07:00

What Donna Means
What Donna Means

You are balanced, orderly, and organized. You like your ducks in a row.

You are powerful and competent, especially in the workplace.

People can see you as stubborn and headstrong. You definitely have a dominant personality.

You are well rounded, with a complete perspective on life.

You are solid and dependable. You are loyal, and people can count on you.

At times, you can be a bit too serious. You tend to put too much pressure on yourself.

You are very intuitive and wise. You understand the world better than most people.

You also have a very active imagination. You often get carried away with your thoughts.

You are prone to a little paranoia and jealousy. You sometimes go overboard in interpreting signals.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.

You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.

You have the classic "Type A" personality.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Well, you that know me....is this right? Sheesh...I sound like an Amazon Woman!

Off to Retreat

2008-03-09T08:28:00.000-07:00

Well, since I can't upload any pictures this morning (I tried 3 times without success because of a Google error message), I'll just type.

Normally, I'm not a "last minute" kind of gal, but yesterday was different. A couple of weeks ago I was invited to attend the upcoming quilt retreat being held in Wenatchee and sponsored by the Fabric Patch. At the time, I didn't think I wanted to go. And to be honest, I forgot about it until yesterday. Then suddenly, I *wanted* to go! So, I hussled down to the quilt shop to see if there were still some openings and there were. So...off I go.

This is the routine:
Leave Thursday early afternoon. Arrive (45 minute drive) around 3pm. Unload machine and all the stuff you need. Change into sweats or pajamas. Begin sewing. Don't stop until it's time to leave Saturday 6pm. Honestly.

This will be my fourth quilt retreat. Charisma always comes with me, but she has finals this week for some college courses, so she won't know until Tuesday if she can go. Even if she can't go, I'll be fine. It will just cost me a bit more because I won't be sharing expenses.

Normally, Cindi picks a book (you get a 20% discount off the book and ALL notions you may need for the retreat) and a couple of patterns from the book to sew up that weekend. This time, she's picked a book entitled "Sweet Treats" and says WE can pick the projects. All the quilts in the book are sewn using half square triangles and four patches. Easy! Only thing...I'm not sure I want to sew anything out of the book. That's the great thing about these retreats. You can bring your UFO's and sew them up there, too. You honestly don't even HAVE to sew anything, if you don't want to. Just being there is great fun. Oh, the book also has recipes for sweet treats (doh) and we'll be getting a sampling of them, too! :)

There are other fun things to do at retreat. We have a "beautiful" and "ugly" fat quarter contest. I've won the most beautiful before. Charisma has one both before, but when you win, you get everyone's fat quarter that they brought. Yuck...winning the ugly fat quarter contest is NOT really winning. You get about a dozen other ugly fat quarters!!!!

Cindi also does a block swap, too. We'll each sew up two blocks of whatever we're told to do and then they go into two separate piles so that they will make up two quilts. Cindi generously gives the border fabric. There will be a drawing for each of the two quilts. Usually, Cindi donates "gammill" quilting time to each winner IF they can sew up all the blocks to make the quilt top. I won one year and got my blocks sewed together before the end of the retreat. It was great. I still have that quilt with a label that each gal signed. I even signed it because I didn't know if I'd win or not.

Cindi also hides little notions, etc. for us to find throughout the B&B for the chance at prizes. It's always a TON of fun. It's also great to bond with all these women. I've made many friends there.

The retreat is held at a B&B in Wenatchee. Our hostess cooks all our meals and she is wonderful! We get the whole B&B for the weekend to ourselves. Which is a good thing, if I'm sewing at 3am. Historically, Charisma and I are the last to go to bed and the first ones up in the morning. I remember our first retreat. We sewed until 3:30 am and then were up again at 7:30 am. I got about 5 hours sleep the entire weekend.

One of the great things about these retreats is that most of us are Christian ladies and the retreat ends Saturday at 6pm. This gives us time to get home, get unpacked and relax before heading off to church on Sunday. I love that I don't miss church when going to a retreat.

I will be taking my RJR paper piecing quilt and finishing it there. The other UFO will be a charity quilt that a girlfriend and I started last year. It's all 2 inch squares and half square triangles. I'll post pictures when I return. Hopefully Google won't give me any error messages.

So, tomorrow when I get into the office, I'll need to put in for half day Thursday and all of Friday off. That's pretty much the last detail. I am getting really excited for this. I love being up there and sewing all night long. Long after most everyone else has gone to bed. Hopefully, Charisma will be able to go, too.

Hope you all have a great week. I'm stoked for Thursday!

Promotion

2008-03-07T17:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I have no sewing photos for you tonight. It's been a long week at the office. The best thing that happened to me this week is that I got promoted. I am now officially a Paralegal. I consider it an honor. Before I was technically called "Legal Secretary IV/Paralegal" and the county only considered me a legal secretary. The term "paralegal" was not really used. Now it is! I am no longer a legal secretary. A very nice raise came along with the title. It's a real blessing from God.

The worst thing that happened to me this week was not really that bad. Some might consider it so, but I took it in stride. You see, my prosecutor and myself are in jury trial this week. I was actually called as a rebuttal witness this afternoon. I only had to answer two questions. Short and sweet. But it's the first time I've taken the stand in a jury trial. AND...as a preliminary question about myself, I was asked what my title is...! Guess what I said??? Yup...Paralegal! Tee Hee!!!! :)

And now back to paper piecing for RJR. I've still got to get this quilt done for market in May.
Hope you all have a great weekend.

Crazy Starz

2008-03-02T12:53:00.001-08:00

Well, I blogged about one of these quilts in my February 2nd entry, but I've since done another quilt from this pattern, so I thought I'd share both with you AND the pattern.

It's called Crazy Starz by Cindi Rang. If you're a regular reader, you know she owns my local quilt shop and graciously lets me sew up the shop samples. You can't imagine the deal I have with her. She phones me up and says..."Donna, can you come by? I have a project for you". I rush down there (break or lunchtime or after work, whichever is closest) and she hands me a lovely bundle of fabric and a pattern or book and tells me what she wants. I absolutely LOVE it. And it's funny, because SHE thinks she's getting the better deal. Yeah right! I get to sew with beautiful fabric and patterns. There is always a challenge to the projects she gives me. The "deal" is, I get to keep the pattern (even if it's a book!) and any extra fabric. I get the experience of sewing something I wouldn't normally sew for myself AND I don't keep the finished project. Most times I don't want it, just the experience of sewing it up. And she gets a shop sample basically for free (minus the pattern/book). It's a great arrangement.

Here is the first quilt I sewed with the pattern. These batiks are all Diamond Textiles batiks and they are drop dead gorgeous. This one was a crib sized quilt with lighter starz and dark background AND noodles. See the loops around the border? They are noodles! Now, you have to be careful putting these on a crib quilt obviously. But they look great on this small one here.

And I started this one below yesterday and finished it today. It's a larger quilt, throw size. And, it's dark starz on light background. Don't know what they're going to have me do for borders yet, if any, but it's complete as she gave it to me.

The pattern has two different sized starz in it. The small ones are 7 " and the large ones are 14".

And lest I forget to include a cat picture, here is Gadget loving my Bernina! Sometimes it's difficult to get any sewing done when she's in this mood.

I'm still sewing up quilts for RJR and they are keeping me plenty busy, but I played hookie this weekend and sewed up Crazy Starz for Cindi. It was a nice break.

Hope you all have a great week! God bless.

Photos from the Past

2008-02-22T15:50:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday, I went to StuffMart and took a handful of photos to scan. I then went back the next day and picked up the CD that they were created on. Obviously, we don't own a scanner.

Anyway, here some of them are. This shot below was when I was almost 2 and it was the front of a Christmas card my parents sent out that year. My brother, Jim, is behind me and we're on "Cinder" - HIS wonderhorse. I vividly remember this picture being taken by my father because they placed me on the FRONT of the horse. I NEVER got to ride on the front. It was my brother's horse, so I always took a back seat. Anyway, it's probably the reason I remember this photo so well. Can you say "bangs"???

Next is my high school senior picture. 1977. It's a tad cropped on the sides. Gosh, I look like I'm 15 and not almost 18, huh?

And this is Adrian's (daughter) senior picture. 2004. Beautiful, no?

And lastly is Levi's (son) senior picture. 2006. His proofs were given to me ON a cd by the photographer and I'm forever grateful. They all came out great. But I like this one the best because he's smiling.

I'm still busying paper piecing a quilt for RJR. I'll be working on it tomorrow all day and then Sunday, I've been invited to the quilt shop to sew all day long (after church) with about nine others. They are preparing for the Shop Hop that takes place in September/October. Phew!

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Quilts and Cats

2008-02-13T19:17:00.000-08:00

This wallhanging below was done for The Fabric Patch locally. I am almost positive (without going to look) that it's made with Moda fabric. It involved a panel and fat quarters. Very Easy. I totally love the colors.

Gizmo and Gadget below are pretty cozy looking, huh? It is so much fun to watch them lick each other's faces. Then they sleep. Flannel covered goose-down comforter. Envious. Pathetic.

Then the Fabric Patch had me do this quilt from the book entitled Cool Girls Quilt. It is a great book, considering my "girl" is almost 22 years old. These wallhangings and such are so much fun. I also did a sewing machine cover with the word "create" appliqued on. Very bright. I got to add BLING, too!

Otherwise, I've been busy piecing. RJR Fabrics has hired me to be a quilt tester and I'm having alot of fun. I've also made two great friends. One at RJR and the other is THE designer of the fabric and pattern. I'm excited and will show you those quilts when I am allowed to. Right now, they're "under wraps"...so to speak.

Stay tuned, if you can stay awake!

Happy Valentines Day to all...take care!

Quilts

2008-02-02T19:23:00.001-08:00

I've been really busy at work and then quilting at home. Below is a really cute crib sized quilt made from batiks from Diamond Textiles. The pattern is called Crazy Starz designed by Cindi Rang who owns the local quilt shop. I get to sew their shop samples. The little loops you see in the border are called noodles. It was alot of fun to sew and I just love the different batiks. It's fast becoming one of my favorite fabrics.

Finally, my heart bargello is up on the wall. Done. I love it. Not much else to say. Double click on the picture to enlarge it.

The other Diamond Textiles batik quilt is called Navajo Rose. This pattern was also designed by Cindi Rang. I loved these greens and blues. It's really a striking quilt. That light area is the sun shining through the window. This shot gives you an idea of the size. Twin size, to be exact.

And here is a close up of the block.

I've also done one other wall hanging for Cindi and am working on an applique quilt now. And, as a thank you, Cindi gave me two fat quarters of beautiful fabric, a bottle of fabric stiffener, a fabric stiffener applicator/scraper and two patterns for origami fabric. One pattern makes a check book cover and a credit card holder. The other pattern makes 4 different bookmarks. I'll take a shot of the bookmarks for another blog. I've made two already and given one away. They are really simple. More later on that.

It has snowed all day here today. Hope you're all having a great weekend!

Tagged

2008-01-31T17:42:00.000-08:00

I've been tagged. I remember when I first saw someone who blogged getting tagged and thought it was cute. I loved reading all the different responses. Now I'm on the receiving end thanks to Rhonda in Montreal.

So...without further adieu, here goes:

First the business end which people aren't doing correctly (IMHO).
*Link to the person who tagged you. (this means to make their name a clickable link, which I did.).
*Post the rules on your blog.
*Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
*Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
*Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

Six facts about me:
1. I used to worry endlessly. It was awful. Then I met Jesus and I am pretty much worry-free now. Thank you Jesus.

2. My father used to call me Mrs. Higginbotham when I was a child. My best girlfriend he called Mrs. Perkins. I have no idea why. Just his idea of teasing. It was cute, but not at the time!

3. In my entire life I've worked completely in the background. First job was a maid at a motel. Then, veterinary technician (working in the back of the hospital), then cook in a restaurant, then assisting in running a cattle ranch, then police dispatcher and now paralegal. All these jobs take second fiddle to someone else. Thankfully, in my case. But isn't that interesting? And not planned by me at all. Orchestration via God.

4. My husband tells me I snore. I don't believe him. He vowed to tape record me and kept a tape recorder by his side of the bed for almost a year. In that entire year, he was never able to catch me snoring. He simply never heard me snore again. The tape recorder is now gone and he says I'm back to snoring. Yeah, right!

5. I would not consider myself a neat freak, but I do have my desk arranged just so. I even have a container for small paperclips and one for large paperclips and heaven help the person who puts the large ones in the small container and vice versa. But I repeat, I am not a neat freak.

6. I currently am a paralegal at my county's prosecutor's office. Years ago I was the receptionist and one day I *accidently* answered the phone "prostitute's office". They then moved me to the felony desk. Go figure.

Ok, this is where I tag others.
Charisma
TwistedAngel (who I miss seeing blog, so maybe this will bring her around)
Made by Amanda

And I don't really know anyone else who may wish to participate, including those listed above. Oh well. And this is an open invite to all who WISH to be tagged.

Gadget and Poodles

2008-01-15T15:48:00.000-08:00

I've taken this week off from work just to stay home alone. I've been cleaning and sewing, mostly. I did get a pedicure AND a manicure yesterday and today I treated myself to a one hour deep tissue massage. All together now...AAAHHHHhhhhhhhhh......

One of my cleaning projects was our fireplace insert. I had emptied it of all the ash and had taken the ash bucket outside. When I returned...guess what? You got it...Gadget (aka The Brat Cat) had climbed inside to really sniff it out. I guess you could say without a doubt that the fireplace was completely cooled off from last nights fire!

Doesn't the saying go "curiosity killed the cat"? Gladly, not in this case.

And here is one of the last "banners" I'm making for that Seasoned Quilter wallhanging I have been blogging about. This one is obviously for the Fourth of July. You should see the original pattern photo. It shows a black poodle on a yellow background. The hat is blue and white striped and there's a star in the red whereas "we" decided that the stripes should be red and white and the stars are already on the blue fabric. We also did away with the yellow background. Yuck! His eyes are white brads that I usually reserve for my card making. They were the right size and I didn't have any buttons that would 'work'.

He's holding a sparkler and instead of using fabric for the sparkles, I used glue and glitter. The kind for fabric. All I have to do is "heat set" it and then it will be totally permanent and washing machine proof. It's very cool and new and available at your local quilt shop (well it's at my local quilt shop).

I especially like his flag scarf. The fabric is such that it actually looks like it's tied in a knot in the center, but it's just the print of the fabric. It's a nice touch.

And for some weird reason, I've posted a picture of the back of the poodle because of the way I edged the applique, you see a really good outline of the dog. Well, I thought it was neat, anyway.

So, I'm off to enjoy some shrimp alfredo fettucini...yum! Take care everyone.

Your Current Weather Forecast is...

2008-01-12T09:36:00.001-08:00

Snow, Snow, Snow! If you can't see it falling in this picture, double click on it. This shot was just taken a few minutes ago. Gosh...huge snowflakes. I love it!!
And below is how Gizmo and Gadget like to pass the time while it's snowing outside. They are snuggled up like two bugs in a rug!

Meanwhile, I have some housecleaning to do. And the best part is my "alone" time coming up this week. Yes....alone! I have TONS of things I want to do next week....ALONE!!!

Yesterday, the lunch gang I lunch with each Friday held my birthday lunch. I got two more gift cards to my local quilt shop!!! YIPPEE!!! Those two know that those gift cards won't be wasted!

Also, I'd like to take this time to shout out to Rhonda and Tony in Montreal. They surprised phoned me on Christmas and sang (each on an extension in their home) "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" and then last Wednesday on my birthday, they phoned and sang "Happy Birthday" to me. It was very SWEET! And they should hire out. The two of them honestly sound GREAT! Thanks Rhonda and Tony. Between you two and my new "friend" on myspace, you all made my day!

And for you out there that are reading this and are pray-ers, please pray for Earl. It's a long story and I don't know that I can "officially" go into here because of the confidentiality agreement I signed with my office, but suffice to say he was shot (he's a deputy sheriff here, but he was off-duty) and has undergone a couple of surgeries and needs prayer for healing. I've heard he's not "out of the woods" yet. So...I ask you out there to please pray for him. I'll post updates this week. Thank you!

Kitchens, Halloween and Thanksgiving

2008-01-10T19:28:00.001-08:00

Ok, this is a mish-mash of events. Below is a shot of my finally completed kitchen. If you remember (or care to remember), I stripped wallpaper and texturized and painted my kitchen back in...gosh June???

And I had left this area open above my sink for a nice wallhanging, quilted by moi. Double click on the picture if you can't read what it says. DH is not thrilled with it, but I think it's funny. Men!

And then to continue with the "Seasoned Quilter", here is Halloween's banner. The ghost is made from white batting. These things are so much fun. You all need to look up the Amy Bradley patterns and get them. So simple!

And here is Thanksgiving's entry. Alot more detail than the Halloween banner, but just as fun.

This last shot shows you that you just can't put a box down on the living room without a cat getting inside of it. Sheesh! Gadget kitty is smushed but she loves it!!!! The things that amuse the simple minded.

And speaking of amused...yesterday was my birthday and on my sidebar you will see a link to my myspace page. On it are four 'celebrities'. One of them...Ramon Franco from the 1989 TV show Tour of Duty actually sent me a private message "singing" me the Happy Birthday song. Now, how cool is that! It totally made my day.

I plan to get TONS of sewing done next week because I've taken the week off from work. I am just staying home and sewing. All by myself!!!! I can hardly wait.

Hope you're all enjoying your Winter. Take care!

Happy New Year and St. Patrick's Day...already???

2008-01-01T13:16:00.001-08:00

Ok, in the previous post, I showed you "The Seasoned Quilter" wallhanging I've been working on for the quilt shop. Below is St Patrick's Day.

Here is a close up of the shamrock garland. This one was "totally" fun to do!

And...I just love her eyes. Doesn't it remind you of the old "coke bottle bottom" glasses??

And...here "we" are right after midnight...(self portrait). Do we look tired, or what???

Happy New Year everyone! Oh, and I want take this opportunity to thank all of you that leave such nice, complimentary comments. I appreciate them AND you. :)

Seasoned Quilter Wallhanging

2007-12-30T07:27:00.001-08:00

Well to keep me really busy these past months, I've been sewing up a storm for my local quilt shop. Below is a wallhanging designed by Amy Bradley. It's called Seasoned Quilter and she's a tall gal. Her hands are sewn on top of the wallhanging and the fingers cover an "eye" of a hook and eye set. Then you make these smaller 11x13 inch banners to hang on her so it looks like she's holding them. I had a lot of fun working with this one because I really got to dig in my scrap bags for her. The quilt shop gave me the background, border and backing. All of the "gal" is from my scraps. (Remember, click on the picture to enlarge for detail). I need to take a picture of her holding one or two of these "banners". She's already at the quilt shop, but when they put her on display, I'll take a pic for here. Sorry folks.

Here is the first one (not quilted yet). The "welcome" banner comes with the pattern above. They're a complete set. The other months/holidays you buy separately. Again, these are all done totally with my scraps. It takes a half yard for the background, backing and binding.

So I finished the "woman" and the welcome banner in November or early December and then decided I'd better get Santa done for display at the quilt shop during December to help them sell patterns. I am not a Santa person, but I loved doing him. His beard is white batting and I bling'd his eyes blue!

Then, next comes Valentine's Day. This one below looks totally different from the one on the pattern. But that one didn't have ANY red on it and when I think Valentine's Day, I think red! So...I made it red. (Think I have control issues???) :)

And last for now is Easter's banner. These two bunnies are really cute and I bling'd their eyes, too! My girlfriend took one look at their smiles and had to have one. So I told her to go buy me 1/2 yard of that green background and I'd make her one exactly like this one. Got it done in one evening! She will love it. She's just going to put it on the wall without the woman appearing to hold it.

So, this is what's been keeping me busy up to and through the holidays. That and other quilts I'm making for a major quilt fabric manufacturer.

Next up will be St. Patrick's Day, then Halloween and Thanksgiving. I've still got Fourth of July to do, but I think the pattern is ugly and so will use the pattern, but totally change the colors like I did with Valentine's Day.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year. Stay safe!

Assorted Ideas

2007-12-22T13:16:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's been "forever" since I blogged last. I have been Busy with a capital B!

Below is a weird shot of my new Singer 185J. Remember in my last post, I said that this machine was built the same year as our house (1954)? Well, below is a shot of my machine up against my bathroom tub. What do you think? A popular color in 1954, huh?

And here below is a shot of my BOM (block of the month) civil war quilt all pieced. The more clever of you out there will note that there are 16 blocks in this BOM whereas there should only be 12, right? There were four optional blocks and I decided to sew them. I really like it and the quilt shop will have it on display. I think they're going to put it on their website, too. Cool, no? Each of these blocks has a name. Reading from left to right, first row: Palmetto Tree, Ohio Cluster, Corn and Beans, Birds in Air. Second row: Jacob's Ladder, T Crossing, Underground Railroad, Yankee Puzzle. Third row: Roses and Plumes, Friendship Star, Diamond 5, Lincoln's Platform. Fourth row: Lost Ship, Montgomery, Raylene's Fence, Union Square. (Ta-Da).

Next shot is Gadget. She's spending her holidays the way I wish I could spend mine. She just loves newspaper and loves to be under it. She was actually snoozing peacefully until I snapped this shot of her.

And lastly, because "we" didn't decorate this year for Christmas (yes, not even my nativity scene), I decided to bake cookies. No big deal really, except the only cookies I ever make are chocolate chip. But I wanted something I haven't baked in a while....Molasses Crinkles. Here they are below...yum! Hope DH likes them. But in case he doesn't....they're all mine!! :)

Here's wishing each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas!! Stay safe and go to church this weekend!!

Singer 185J

2007-12-05T16:24:00.000-08:00

Here is my newest baby. Yeah, like I needed another machine. But here she is in an "after" (cleaning) picture. She's minus her plastic base and cover because of poor packing. It broke during shipment. We're going to be refunded our money on the item plus shipping. So, this item is free. But to be honest, I'd rather be out the money and have the base/case intact.

I spent last night cleaning her up. Cute, huh?

Below are the broken pieces and base. Drat. Makes me sad/mad. Replacements are NOT easy to find, if at all.

Here's another pic below of a clean machine. She runs, but the needle tension assembly needs a going over. I can wind a bobbin and when I threaded the machine up, I could get the thread through the tension discs but not easily and the thread won't pull through them and the tension dial is on ZERO...so, that will take a little work on my part. But it's doable.

Got this on eBay for a sweet price. I already belong to a Yahoo Singer Featherweight group and last night I joined a Yahoo vintage Singer sewing machine group and was then able to download a $10 repair manual for free from them. They say this machine is a little workhorse. It's just like the Singer 99 model, but with an updated look/color. It was made in 1954.

Funny, but I'm going to be taking this machine into the bathroom. Our house was built in 1954 and it has a green tub that looks very similar to this machine. Hmmmm....I'll let you know! :)

I've already got some bobbins for it (class 66) and after fixing the tension assembly, she'll be ready to rock and roll. Oh yeah, the light bulb needs replacing.

The Lean Green Machine will be added to a well stocked herd. I also have a Bernina 150QE, a Simplicity sewing machine, two Featherweights (one is a centennial and I need to sell it...anyone?), a Simplicity serger and a Janome Coverpro 1000 machine. Oh yeah, DH has a Bernina 614 model which is about the same green color as this beauty.

Ok, enough already. There she is.

Have a great week, everyone!

Addendum: I have been inundated with emails/comments requesting a manual for this machine. Join the Yahoo group entitled "vintagesingers". Go to the file section and then click on "66-99-185 information". The manual is the first item in this directory. Do not leave me a comment here if your blog is set on "private". I promise I won't answer it.

TShirts and Thanksgiving

2007-11-24T07:47:00.001-08:00

...And not necessarily in that order. Wow, I sure love these four day weekends. Need to have more of them. I've been getting a TON of sewing done.

On PatternReview there are a lot of women who have made the Ottobre 2-2006 t shirts. They've been raving about them, so I bought the magazine and started in. Now, mind you, I already have a TNT tshirt (Vogue 8151). In fact, I have two TNT tshirts (and New Look 6730), but I have minor problems with them both.

The Vogue has a bust dart (not always fun to put in a knit, but it's doable) and the New Look has a center back seam (which can be eliminated) for shaping. I love them both. But I would like to combine them and have no back seam and no bust dart. Sounds easy, but it isn't always. Besides, again, others have raved about this Ottobre top, so here is my first one below:

That fabric was $2/yd at StuffMart. The end of the bolt said "polyester" but it's positively a cotton interlock. Not the greatest of recovery, but very nice and I love the color. It's a pretty deep burgundy with black dots. Not bad for a $4 shirt. But as you can see on Annie, the front is a bit too baggy. I don't have a tummy (thank you, Lord) and so I don't need that fullness there.

The next top is a nice crinkle knit I got from fabric.com. At the same time, I bought a ribbing knit to make a top out of, but discovered the colors are a perfect match, so I used it to bind the neckline. I've never done this technique, so it was strange. I double folded the binding as if I were applying it in the flat and stitched it to the right side. Then I folded it all the way under and stitched in the ditch on the front. It gives it a bit of a rolled binding look. I'm happy with it. But again, as you can see the front is baggy. And I cut the pattern down on the side seams.

So, here's my question for you out there who are reading this and can offer advice: Can't I just lay my front piece on the fold and pivot it out at the bottom so that the bottom hem of the center front lies an inch or so beyond the fold? (Did that make sense?)

This pattern is almost identical to the Vogue and New Look fronts. I can't understand where that extra fabric is coming from. I can't simply take it in more on the side seams, can I? Can't I remove the extra from the center front? The width at the neckline and chest is perfect.

Also...I hate the sleeves on both the Vogue and NL. The shoulder cap is so severe I have to sew basting stitches to ease it on the garment. I hate that. The Ottobre did NOT require that and for that reason I loved that pattern. I just need to figure out the bulk in the front.

Also, on that awesome website are online classes to take. Now, I've been a member for almost 3 years and have NEVER signed up for a class and have been wanting to. So...last night I signed up for the "Build a Better TShirt" class. I got a discount because I'm a member and it starts January 7 (right before my bday). I'm excited about learning how to...obviously...make a better tshirt.

So, for the last picture, I used TNT Vogue 8151 with the dart. I bought this fabric from Gorgeous Things and have wanted to sew it up since I bought it but was afraid. I didn't know what pattern to use, etc. I'm not very stylish, so I wasn't going to make a tunic top. I finally decided to just make a nice shell for work.

As you can see, I haven't sewn the side seams yet. I want to make this a 3/4 sleeve, too, like the blue one above. (The white turtleneck in the picture on Annie is her body cover) Because I used the Vogue pattern, this one won't have any bulk at the front. It does have bust darts, but it's a nice knit and will be ok.

I have also been sewing for Cindy of the quilt shop. I'll show it to you tomorrow.

Oh yes, before I forget. Thanksgiving. I found a few hours out of my day Thursday to head to the kitchen and whip up a small turkey dinner. Small, because there's just two of us here and it was a Butterball rolled turkey chest (we don't use the "b" word) roast. Of course, with all the trimmings. Delicious.

Have a Blessed weekend all!

Cappuccino Quilt

2007-11-16T11:14:00.001-08:00

During our "quilter's retreat" last weekend, I had the opportunity to buy some new fabric. I started out with 14 fat quarters of Moda's "Chez Moi" line. They are gorgeous chocolate browns and raspberry colors. At this point, I had all this great fabric, but what to do with it? Charisma reminded me of the Cappuccino quilt I made my son for his high school graduation. So, I supplemented this line of fabric with about 6 other quarter yard cuts. And then I began.

Below are 12 of the 15 large squares all done on my design wall.

And here are the two sets of 24 smaller blocks done on my design wall (total of 48). These are done but for adding a 1 inch border to each of the 48 blocks. I've been doing that the past few days. As of last night, I had five left to border.

And here's a picture of the blocks on my wall as laid out via the pattern guide. As I finish the smaller blocks, I put them on the wall where I want them. When I'm done, I'll stand back and see what needs to be rearranged. But otherwise, right now, I like the arrangment.

When I originally bought the fat quarters (and didn't have this pattern in mind), I knew I'd need some border fabric, so I bought a yard of the purple tone-on-tone and two yards of one of the nice raspberry prints. And this quilt doesn't call for borders. So....I'll see when I'm done. I may use the print for a border and the purple for binding.

Keep sewing everyone. Have a great weekend, too!

Heart Bargello, Part 3

2007-11-12T13:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, here is more of my heart bargello still in my sewing room. Remember, I was going to show a few friends how to sew theirs, so I sewed about 3/4 of my quilt.

And here is another close up of my bargello with the sheep border on it. I collect sheep and selected this fabric as my border.

And at the sewing weekend we just had (Friday and Saturday), I was able to finish it. Below is a shot of it, but it's pinned up against another quilt that's hanging on the wall. So, all that blue, etc is not a part of my quilt.

I am so glad it's done. Charisma finished her heart bargello, but still has 7 borders to add to it. I only wanted two borders because mine is going to be a wallhanging and my walls aren't big enough for it if I were to add all the borders on. So, I finished at two borders.

Another gal, Patty, spent alot of our weekend sewing up her panels and then Saturday night she started in on the quilt. I believe she got about 5-6 strips done before we had to head for home.

We started sewing (or I did) at 9am on Friday morning and I didn't close up the shop until 1:30am Saturday. Then I was back down at 9am Saturday and we finished up at 9:30 pm. We all decided we'd leave the shop cleaner than when we found it, so two gals scrubbed the bathrooms and emptied the wastebaskets and I vaccumed the place. Patty washed down the tables, etc. All in all, we had a GREAT TIME. We ordered pizza Friday for dinner and mexican food Saturday night. In between we had a whole table with food on it.

I got 5 projects donem but then again, most of my heart bargello (which is why we were getting together) was done before I got there and I even started another quilt that I'll show you another time. Phew. A special "thank you" to Cindi for letting us have her classroom to party.

Enjoy your Veteran's Day. And remember our servicemen serving our country. Dad, I'm thinking of you today!

Playing Catch Up...and other ramblings

2007-11-09T06:58:00.000-08:00

Wow, it's already the 9th of November and I haven't blogged this month at all! Guess I've just been too busy with sewing to actually sit down and talk about sewing.

As mentioned in my previous post, today is the day us gals have our sewing "party". We're meeting at my local quilt shop (thanks to the generous owner, Cindi) and we're going to sew for the next two days until we drop. The shop will be open it's regular hours, but we'll be in the back classroom sewing away. When the shop closes, we'll still be back there sewing. Psstt....I've got a key! Cindi said we can stay as late as we like. In fact, I'm going to get there this morning before they open and begin setting up. Others will arrive throughout the day. We've invited eight, but it looks like we're only going to be six. Which is fine. One gal will join us just for a few hours tonight and I'm looking forward to getting to know her. She's a friend of Charisma's.

So, the next time I post, you'll see pictures of our sewing. I'm going to be helping two of the gals sew up their heart bargellos and I actually am taking along about 5 projects. First is my heart bargello, but I doubt I'll get a chance to work on it. Then I've got some quilt blocks labeled and all ready to sew together. Next, there's a casserole carrier for Cindi. Then a pillow sham for a friend's daughter's quilt that was finished earlier this week. My friend, Sheila, is going to help me do this pillowsham "crumb" style. And Sheila and I have a huge quilt to do for the local Rotary club raffle. It's all two inch squares and two inch half square triangles. I have my half of the squares done and Sheila's going to be sewing up her "thangles" today. Each blocks consists of 64 squares and there's 20 blocks in the entire quilt. It's all scraps, too! Gotta love it. Again, I'll post pictures tomorrow.

Right now, I'm off and running to the quilt shop and it's only 7am! Talk at you later. Take care everyone.

Heart Bargello, Part 2

2007-10-31T17:47:00.001-07:00

Well, I've been chugging along on the Heart Bargello quilt. We gals get together next weekend to sew these up. They want me to teach, so I've given myself a huge head start. Besides, I'll probably have something else to sew while there and that way I can get up from my machine often for interruptions from the "students".

Here is the first dozen or so rows on my design wall. The small wallhanging on the left is for my "new" kitchen. I'll show it to you later when it's quilted.

Remember, you can click on the picture to enlarge it.

Here is a very good closeup of the tiny squares that make this picture happen! It is so cool sewing it up and I am loving it. Already looking forward to when I can do another one. It's not a pain at all!

And below, it's on my machine. I've already sewn the vertical rows and now I'm putting them together. Easy peasy. Honest.

Stay tuned for more of the Heart Bargello.

Have a safe Halloween. I'll be passing out candy and Gospel tracts. No sense in letting this pagan holiday interfer with putting the Gospel into tiny hands, huh?

Take care everyone!

Church Stories, Part 1

2007-10-30T14:53:00.000-07:00

DH and I have embarked on a "project" that everyone should do who is a regular church goer to one church only. We have decided to "see" what everyone else is doing in their churches. So, off we go.

The first Sunday, which was about 2 months ago, we went to a local church called The Bread of Life. From the moment we got inside before service started to the time we walked out the door after service....was a total of 55 minutes! Couldn't believe it. We're used to starting Sunday School at 9:30 and stopping at 10:15 and then service starting at 10:30 and going til noon.

The hymnal they used was called "Heaven's Highway Hymnal" or something very similar. In essence, it was twangy country music hymns. I knew one of them would be "I'll Fly Away", which I personally like, but not that twangy. And, lo and behold, we sang it that morning. DH and I grinned and bore it!

The message the pastor delivered was short and to the point. I don't remember what point, but it was short. He didn't seem like he had the "calling" to be a pastor, but who are we to judge. He looked like someone who was at a church board meeting and lost the vote on who would be pastor. Ah well.

After that we tried an Assembly of God in that little town. We liked it alot. We liked it so much that we accidently went two weeks in a row. Do you have any idea what happens when you attend a new church two weeks in a row? They tried to give us the "permanent" Sunday School book and the Pastor wanted us to come to his house for ice cream and talk. Yikes!

Last Sunday, we went to the Baptist church in that small neighboring town. The Pastor that spoke had been their Pastor from 1962-1967. He was there for a visit and so preached. The message was all about "holding fast" to faith, to Jesus, to what we've been taught and to not let false teachers lead us astray.

He told this amazing story of the Snapping Turtle. Growing up as a young boy, his father used to catch snapping turtles and sell their shells. These turtles were huge. As large as a washtub. So, the Pastor explained that one day when he was small, his father "drug" home a huge snapping turtle and rolled it on it's back (to prevent escape). His father would then hold out a large pair of pliers so that the turtle would latch onto it with it's mouth. As the turtle was "holding fast" to the pliers, his father would stretch it's neck out really far and then "whack", cut off it's head! I've got to tell you, EVERYONE in that congregation looked at each other and grimmaced. It was gross! And then the Pastor continued as if it was nothing. He said that after that his father would hold up the pliers and the turtle's head was still attached to it! Picture it! The Pastor said that "we all need to hold fast like that turtle to the pliers". Then he continued to say that his father would then take a hammer and hit the turtle's head until he crushed the head enough to get the jaws off the pliers.

I kid you not.

We were all so grossed out by then.....

On the way home, I asked DH what he thought of the service. He replied, "I could have gone an entire lifetime without hearing the Snapping Turtle story".

Amen.

Heart Bargello: Part 1

2007-10-28T14:23:00.000-07:00

Next up on the quilting scene is a quilt called Melinda's Heart. It's more commonly called "Heart Bargello". I looked up the word bargello...."to hand stitch in a zig zag pattern". That was not the definition I would have given a bargello. So, it shows you I'm no Noah Webster.

I wanted a wallhanging to put on my "new" living room walls which were recently painted brown. I also wanted to "shop my stash". So, after having Cindy Rang (Fabric Patch owner) help me (Thanks Cindy!), I present to you these fabrics below and the pattern. Cindy bundled them all up for me in a nice presentation package, even though 9 of the 16 fabrics are mine!

Below, here they are all laid out and numbered. The numbering on this quilt is essential to success. The lightest are the creams which slowly turn green which slowly turns dark green, which slowly turns brown till they end up light brown again.

Picking the colors for this quilt is really challenging. Hence, Cindy's help was needed.

Ok, I've followed the instructions "to the letter" and cut my strips. Here they all are on my sewing machine extension bed.

They look so nice, all in order and what not. I can't resist constantly looking at them.

So, below I've sewed my "panels". The largest set is colors 1-16 (all of them). They're on the bottom left. On the top are the darks....numbered 7-13-8. IOW, strips numbered 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8. In that order. And the last panel not shown is 13-6-6.

Ok, now the story. A group of us gals are getting together next weekend to sew. We've selected a secret location and there are eight of us. Four of us want to do this quilt. They've bought their kits (sold at the Fabric Patch) and are ready to go. They want MOI to teach them. Yeah, right I said. So I decided to get a head start because I don't want to get to our sewing "retreat" and learn myself AS I'm teaching them.

So, I sewed my panels which was easy enough. Then I started putting the strips all together to make the quilt. On my next post, I'll show you the strips and how they come together to make this heart bargello. The other gals won't mind that I've gotten this far. This quilt looks complicated and I'm sure they're just glad they can *gulp* rely on me to show them how to do it. And I needed a head start so that I can figure it out. And I've discovered it's not difficult at all.

So that's what's been going on around here. DH just left to run a few errands and asked me "what are you going to do while I'm gone?" I said "I don't know...." YEAH RIGHT! I'm off to my sewing studio.

Have a great week everyone! Be watching for Bargello, Part 2.

Blue Skies Smiling at Me...

2007-10-27T08:11:00.001-07:00

Nothing but Blue Skies, do I see....

Am I the only one here who recognizes that Irving Berlin song? I hope not and if I'm not alone, shout out to me about it.

Well, I've gone and done it. I "upgraded" (the proper techy talk) to a new digital camera and as you can see, it's B L U E !

It's officially called the Panasonic Lumix DMC FX10 digital camera. It's 6 mp. Not alot anymore, but twice as much as I was using. It's smaller and most importantly, is FASTER. My Fugifilm A330 was/is great, but it takes forever to start up. There were times when I'd miss a shot because I was still waiting for the green light!! ARRGGGHHHH. So, problem solved.

Sorry for the flash in this one. And those scratches aren't on the LCD screen as they appear. I put a protective cover over the screen by buying some screen protectors that are actually made for some sort of video game thingy. StuffMart...$6.88. Cheap insurance, huh?

So, from now on, you may notice a difference in the shots I take. Then again....

Have a blessed weekend everyone. See you in church!

What Time is it Anyway??

2007-10-17T19:48:00.001-07:00

Ok, this is what my local quilt shop has me sewing this week. They gave me this book called Fast Fun & Easy Creative Fabric Clocks and told me to get anything out of the shop that I needed to complete the clock. With the book, they gave me the clock mechanism to make it work.

I had them give me 1/2 yd of Fast 2 Fuse which is Timtex that is fusible on both sides.

I went through the book several times trying to decide which clock to make. I couldn't. I always have problems because most of the clocks in the book were done freeform. IOW, the clockmaker designed the shape of the clock on her own. I prefer a pattern. I'm not good at freeform.

But I finally decided on a dimensional circle clock because it was easy. And I was tired of having this project on my "to do" list. The quilt shop is doing a class on these clocks and the owner has one unassembled for demonstrative use. She wanted me to make one so that she could use it as the "ta da" clock. Well, it's not much of a Ta Da clock, but I guess it will do.

Overall, it was very easy to do. I used a compass and drew the circles on the Fast 2 Fuse and then cut out the circles. The largest circle needs backing fabric. I just grabbed some ivory tone-on-tone and used that. For the purples, I used my scraps. I took a marker from my Stampin Up supplies and ran it around on the edges to give it some more purple color. I also used varigated purple thread to quilt each circle individually. Then I stuck them all together and attached the clock mechanism. I also put the 12, 3, 6 & 9 numbers (they glue on) on the face. I put a battery in it and TA DA...it works!

And...it's done in my favorite colors!!!

Have a great week everyone!

Christmas Apron

2007-10-12T10:01:00.000-07:00

I've been working on TONS of sewing projects. So, I thought it was about time to show you some of them. Below is a Christmas apron and potholders on a panel. They're from Debbie Mumm. The panel consists of the apron front, two potholder fronts and 5 strips (2 of one fabric, 3 of another) for apron ties and potholder bindings. But I wasn't aware that two of the strips would be for potholder bindings, so I used them for the back of the apron ties.

You see, my quilt shop wanted me to make this reversible instead of just turning back the sides and stitching them down. So they picked out this cute red/green plaid. It was very easy. I first cut out the apron from the panel, making sure to leave 1/4" seam allowances. Then I laid the apron right side down on top of the plaid right side up. Then I cut out the plaid and took it to my machine and stitched all the way around it leaving an opening on the bottom of the apron. I figured when it came time to close the opening, no one would notice it because it's at the bottom.

Then I had to open up the stitching to allow for the ties on each side and the neck strap. I measured the neck strap from an apron I had already done and cut this one the same length. Then I fit them inside the seams and closed over it again. Make sense?

Here are the potholders. As stated, I didn't realize that two of the strips were for binding, so I cut the plaid on the bias and used it for binding. And, of course, plaid on the back. I put regular cotton quilt batting and insul-bright on the inside of the potholders. And finished it off with a loop for hanging.

Now they're on display at the quilt shop. The panel is $9.00 there.

Have a great weekend everyone!

The Chairs Have It!!

2007-10-09T16:01:00.000-07:00

Well, the long awaited chairs have arrived! We've been waiting for our finishing touches to arrive since I've redone the living room with new carpet and paint.

Below, Emily has totally made herself to home on one. We haven't even had time to remove the tags!!!

And here is Gadget (in the chair) and Gizmo checking them out. New smells. Gizmo says "Well Gadget, are they going to be comfy?" I think Gadget is saying "I don't know about comfy, but they smell like they were made by a German Shepherd!"

And now all we need is an interior decorator. I've got the carpet I love, the walls painted the way I like it and new chairs. Now for some wall hangings and other misc. trappings that decorators are known for. But alas, that will have to wait until....hmm...I don't know when. I have no taste in decorating and DH probably would not be thrilled to have a decorator in the house. So...I'll just have to do it myself. I have in mind to do a smaller bargello style quilt for the wall.

Time will tell. But until then, the chairs are winners!

Have a blessed week everyone!

More Purses

2007-10-03T13:49:00.000-07:00

Well, as you can see from these photos, I've not quite burned myself out on sewing purses (this link takes you to August entries where I did a three part series on sewing purses). I bought this really nice quilters cotton from a quilt shop in Odessa, WA. I hadn't seen this line of fabric at my local quilt shop, so I scarfed up several fat quarters.

My intent on making these two purses was to give one to Charisma and to sell the other. I had made her a bright pink purse and decided she needed a "winter" purse. It also gives her a chance to *ahem* wash the first one I gave her. I allowed Charisma to have her pick yesterday and she chose...drum roll please...the one on the left in the shot below.

And here I thought all along that she would chose this one below. Oh well.

They are fun to sew and hardly take any time. I can get two done in a couple of evenings.

Keep sewing everyone!

Sewing Assistants, Part III

2007-09-26T13:12:00.001-07:00

Ok, this is the third and last installment of the Sewing Assistants for me. Remember, number one was Emily, number two was Gizmo and now we have Gadget, aka The Brat Cat!

And below; here she is in all her innocent glory! This is the day she arrived at our house, December 23, 2006. A co-worker was housesitting for a couple whose cat had just had kittens and the couple wanted my co-worker to see if she could find homes for the kittens before they returned home. I immediately said YES!

Of course, as with almost all of the cats in our house, this one likes DH, too. Pathetic!
Below was her favorite spot to sleep. She did this for several months until she grew too large.

Then she moved in with Gizmo. Needless to say, Gizmo is less than thrilled with the arrangment. Gadget is none too happy about it either, but she is the Brat Cat, after all.

Finally, she found her own digs. Sheesh...cats. All they want to do all day long is sleep. I'd rather be sewing! So much for sewing assistants, huh?

Hope you're all having a purrfect week! (sorry :)

Sewing Assistants, Part II

2007-09-25T14:54:00.001-07:00

Ok, as promised...here's the middle cat...er sewing assistant. Gizmo. Below are my favorite pictures of her.

She looks pretty bored, huh?
DH had some items in a storage building belonging to a friend. These cats made themselves to home there and so DH (out of the kindness of his heart) took pity on them and fed them, etc. When "mother" had kittens, there were three. A black one, a white one and a gray one. The gray one was the runt and believe me, this one was really runty. So, when he gave up the storage building, he found homes for each cat and brought home this runt...er cat.

In the picture below, she looks pretty large, but honest, she's 3/4 size.

Because DH took such good care of her when she was a kitten, she totally dotes on him constantly. If I was the jealous type, I'd be jealous of this cat. Sheesh....DH walks in the door and she is right there for him. When he goes to the "loo" (it's an English word, google it) she's pawing at the door and making a fuss! When we sleep at night, the door is closed and each morning she tries getting in before the alarm goes off. We have to say "no" and she'll go away. But when I surface out of that door in the morning, she's always in the hallway waiting to get in so she can hop up on the bed and snuggle up with him. Sheesh! It's nearly pathetic.

So, as with the shot below...she has to be near him.

Now the truth. She's totally a scaredy cat! This is how she looks most days when sewing assistant #3 is chasing her. She's usually looking for a place to hide.

And as far as helping me with my sewing...forget it. She ventures into my sewing studio only to get attention. She gets it, too. :)

Hope you're all having a blessed week!

Sewing Assistants, Part I

2007-09-20T13:09:00.001-07:00

Since there isn't a whole lot to talk about, I thought I'd introduce you to my sewing assistants.

Below is Emily. She is our oldest. DH and I got her in 1999, just after purchasing our first house. DH answered an ad in the paper for kittens. When he showed up at the house, there were literally (litter-aly, sorry!) KITTENS everywhere. You see, there were three mother cats and each had a couple of litters. All the kittens were all mixed in and they were all nursing off of the first mother they came in contact with. And all the cats had the run of the house. The people were moving and...well you know the rest.

DH put small Emily in his pickup and brought her home. Problem? He didn't put her in a box. He just put her in the pickup. When he got home, he couldn't find her. I found her...she was under the seat. It's just that we had to practically remove the seat to get at her to get her out. She was so frightened!

When we got her inside, we kept her in an extra bedroom for a couple of days and then allowed her out to see her new surroundings.

At about this time, the neighbors had a flame point Siamese (Duke, who I'll show you another time) who made himself to home AT OUR HOUSE! Which turned out perfectly, in the end.

Anyway, so there was Duke and Emily.

Emily loves the fireplace in the winter, so this is where you can usually get a good shot of her.

Emily loves DH's boots and will go over (even when he's wearing them) and use them as a scratching post!! Here she is laying in front of them after just scratching them.

And, hence the name of this post, here she is assisting me with my sewing...er...pressing. She has discovered that after my ironing, the board is warm and the fabric is soft.

So, there you have it. Emily...the oldest.

Oh, this past Spring, she sprained her ankle and the vet said it would take her a long time to heal up. Well, as of this posting, she is still limping, albeit, not too much.

Take care everyone!

Golfing and Other Money Making Adventures

2007-09-16T21:33:00.000-07:00

This picture of DH was taken last year at an area golf course. DH and I love to golf during the Summer months. This year, unfortunately, we haven't been able to get out as much as we would have wanted. What with all the painting, carpeting, and chair picking out...we're too tired to golf.

But today was different. After church, we went to our local 9 hole 3 par course. It's great for the "short game". And it's not as easy as it looks. There is one huge water hole to shoot over and another where if you don't get it through the trees on the first try, you're sunk. Other than that, the shortest is 65 yards and the longest is 135 yards. A nice little challenge. We buy the yearly membership and golf as often as we can.

So, today we're out there hitting the course and after 9 holes, DH beats me by one stroke. For you non-golfers, just consider it one point.

Then we get set to golf another round and DH says to me, "how about a buck a stroke?" Meaning...the loser pays the winner a dollar for every stroke the winner won by. Now, DH just beat me and my putting really stunk today (which is what he was counting on!), but I'm always up for some friendly competition (right, Charisma?).

So, off we go. Now DH is keeping score on the card and I'm keeping score in my head (no comments, please). At the last hole, I am figuring I beat him by one or maybe two strokes. Which means....cha-ching! $1.00 or $2.00!!!!

I am watching him as he adds up the score. He's on the other side of the green from me, so I just stand there watching him. Then, with his back to me, he reaches in his back pocket and pulls out this wallet. Yeah...I think to myself! Then he comes walking over to me with the money and the score card. F-I-V-E DOLLARS!!!! WOO HOO!!!

I know, I know, it's not an awful lot...but come on! It's still cash!

So then, feeling really proud of myself, we get into the pickup and on the way home "we" decide that "we" need a gallon of milk. Guess what? Can you see the writing on the wall already? He pulls up to Rite Aid (cheapest milk in town) and tells me to get a gallon. I get out....yeah, you guessed it. I have to use my FIVE DOLLARS to buy a gallon of milk. So much for my winnings! The milk was $2.79.

Men...sheesh!

Chair Today, Gone Tomorrow

2007-09-07T13:29:00.000-07:00

So, to finish off our "new" living room, DH and I went chair shopping. First we checked out our local furniture store. They didn't have exactly what we wanted. So, Labor Day, we went to Spokane and checked out the La-Z-Boy distributor there. We found exactly what we were looking for in a chair. The style name is called Melanie. It was in a beautiful brown velvety type material. It was great. Problem? They only had ONE chair and we needed two. 'Cause DH and I won't fit into one chair (anymore!)...

While in Spokane, we discovered that the Melanie chair that we both loved WAS, in fact, at our local furniture store after all. And it was CHEAPER in our town than Spokane. AND...the only reason it was cheaper at home is that the Spokane store "jacked" the price up 10% and then said to us as we were walking into the store, "everything is 10% off". Some deal, huh?

So, back to home we headed and on Tuesday, I went into our local store and found not one, not two, but THREE brown Melanie chairs exactly like what we wanted. Oh boy...and they were the same price as the Spokane store AFTER the 10% markup. So, I bought two of them and they delivered them Wednesday night.

Here it is....in our living room....isn't she lovely? A moment of silence please.

She is so soft and cushy and inviting, don't you think? Doesn't this chair say "Please....come and sit in me a while....you'll love me"? Am I right??

So, then the trouble begins. DH comes home, takes one look at our two beauties and says "this is NOT the chair we picked out in Spokane". And no amount of reassurance would convince him to the contrary.

So...back to the furniture store they went and we BOTH went down the next day in search of two matching chairs. Yes, DH insists they match. Otherwise, I would have let the furniture store only take back ONE of the chairs.

So, DH and I finally picked out two chairs we liked. We had to order them. Six to eight weeks until delivery. We got to pick out the fabric we wanted (a nice brown tweed style) and they will attach the swivel bases to them. These two chairs will be fine...it's just that they are sooo boring! You cannot believe it. They don't invite you to sit down in them at all! But DH liked them and didn't like these two, so I *gulp* settled for letting him have his way.

One last note....below is how "my" beauty looked while in our living room. I think I'll have this picture enlarged and framed with a caption below it saying "What Could Have Been"....*sniff sniff*.

Have a great weekend everyone. I'll be drowning my sorrows in sewing. And when the new chairs arrive, I'll sit down on the carpet in protest!!! :)

Living Room, Part V (Nearly End Results)

2007-09-01T10:06:00.001-07:00

Ok, the carpet installer finished yesterday and we both are totally happy with the results!
So, apparently, is Gizmo. She's checking things out. When I got home last night from work, I vacuumed and then DH arrived home and we started moving stuff OUT of the kitchen and bedroom and back into the living room/family room.

It was kinda like that one show on HGTV, where they have unorganized people empty their house while it's being remodeled and then they move stuff back in, but in a much smaller quantity. Well, that's what I'm going to do. I'll move stuff back, but not nearly all of it. Some of it is just clutter and will go to the storage room in the garage for a garage sale next Spring.

And here we are after putting some of our furniture back. The blue recliner (with my rag quilt on it) you see below will go into the family room after we purchase new chairs Monday. I'm not sure what we'll do with the burgundy colored swiver rocker and rocking ottoman.

Oh, we had partial curtains up, just for looks. I took them down and planned to put up new ones, but gosh...I'm liking the way the room looks without them. Again, they were just decoration. We have mini blinds on the window for privacy at night. This will be a Winter project, to be sure.

And here is a shot of the family room and our huge oak rolltop desk. Gizmo was helping DH assemble it here. DH is actually hooking all the wires together for our computer. There's a surge protecter mounted inside the desk there where he's working. It's a pretty good setup. But BOY that desk is heavy. We took the top off and moved it by itself and it was heavy. Then moving the base....sheesh! I went to StuffMart and bought some of those slider/movers for carpet. Made the job of putting the desk back MUCH easier!

You certainly can't tell from the picture, but DH said last night that the family room looks wider with the lighter colored carpet. I agreed with him. It does seem much larger.

Now I'm off to buy trim paint and get them up. It will really finish off the rooms.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great Labor Day weekend and be safe!

Living Room, Part IV (We Picked a Winner)

2007-08-31T07:56:00.000-07:00

I called this blog entry "We Picked a Winner" because Emily surely thinks so. When I arrived home last night from work, the man was just finishing up for the day. He had put some new tack strips down, laid out all the padding and stapled it down (into my BHF, no less!!!) and has the carpet down and cut somewhat to fit. Today he will finish the job. I am loving it!

And here is Emily again.....totally enjoying the carpet, don't you think? Maybe she's just getting "high" off the carpet glue fumes. I guess we'll never know.

And this is how I found her this morning in the hallway. Sheesh....she's pathetic! She never lies like this.

And for those of you somewhat curious....here's a close up of the carpet. The brand is Mohawk. It's nylon and, as mentioned previously, it is not suppose to show any traffic patterns. The color is called Crackled Glaze. It's rather light in color and the dark threads you see are very dark brown. Again, I am loving it.

Can't wait for Monday. New chairs!!!

Hope you all have a great weekend.

Living Room, Part III (aka BHF)

2007-08-30T09:11:00.001-07:00

Ok, this is Carpet Day. DH worked tirelessly yesterday pulling up the old smelly carpet and padding. He also had to pull out a gazillion staples. He has a blister on his hand for it. All together now.....AAAAAHHHHHHHHH....

Ok, that should hold him.

Now on to my Beautiful Hardwood Floors (BHF). Oh my gosh....they're OAK! And I love them. Too bad DH doesn't like squeeky, loud, uncarpeted flooring, huh? I'd be tempted to call the carpet installers and tell them we've changed our mind. But since I've paid for half of the carpeting already and they're set to come today....it might not be a good idea. Oh, and if you double click on the picture, you'll see Gadget, aka the Brat Cat.

Ok, here's another shot of my BHF. You can really see the difference in paint colors in that corner. The white wall is actually a nice tan and the tan wall is actually a nice rich brown. Oh, did I mention my BHF?????

This shot was taken standing on my BHF looking into our family room which originally was the carport. The tiles you see are industrial strength. Can't wait to cover them in carpeting!!

Here's another shot of my BHF, yet again! Today, they will be covered in new carpet. Bummer.

Ok, thanks for indulging me while I go on and on about my BHF. It's just that natural wood is beautiful to me. And I had no idea that these floors would look so nice and have such rich color and character. Each slat is either 12 inches or 16 inches.

I have one consolation. After the carpeting is in, if I want to view my BHF, I can go to my sewing room. They're also in there. It's just this area is so much larger and the wood is really rich. Makes me want to really get in and scrub my sewing room floor and refinish it so it looks as deep and rich. Nahh........!

This weekend we're off to the big city to buy two La-Z-Boys....matching...to go in our new living/family room. Have a great weekend everyone!

Living Room, Part II (aka Painting 201)

2007-08-29T07:51:00.000-07:00

Ok, I've had to repaint the living room because the one wall in the shot below (that circle is light coming through the window, btw) was painted one shade darker than the rest of the walls and down the hallway. But you couldn't tell it was one shade darker. So I went Sunday and got a gallon of paint that was one more shade darker (the paint strip from the store has 6 colors on it in varying shades) and painted not only this wall below but the large wall that divides the house.

This shot below is part of that large wall. You can really see the difference in the light painted wall on the left and the two shades darker wall next to it. I love it now! And that's all the matters, right???? :)

DH (bless his heart) went through about 400 Q-Tips getting the corner perfectly straight. We couldn't use blue painters tape because the corner is not square and there's a slight texture on the wall and the paint would have "crept" under the tape.

Here is the same wall that goes toward our kitchen. The other reason I wanted this wall to be darker is because when I painted the light on all of it initially, it looked the same color that I just painted the kitchen in June. I didn't want my entire living room and hallway the same color as my kitchen. So, out came the darker shade. Also, that lighter shade pretty much matched the NEW carpet color and I didn't want my walls the exact same color as my carpet. I imagine people coming over (no one does) and as soon as you walk in the front door you say to yourself "ohhh...tan". Lovely thought, huh?

BTW, the carpet is coming tomorrow!!! DH is home today emptying the rooms of their final contents. Well, as much as he can do alone. The large oak roll top desk in the family room will have to be dismantled to get it out of that room. I'll have to help him carry it. Also, we opted to remove the old carpet and padding ourselves to save a few bucks. So, DH will start removing it today, too. He said he'll make it easy on himself and cut it up so that he doesn't have large chunks to haul out of the house. Makes sense!

Oh, and here's an interesting shot below. I'd love to have a psychologist analyze it for me. Here are our three cats. The oldest, Emily, is in the highest spot, the red chair. Next (in age, too) is Gizmo, relegated to the ottoman. And below them is Gadget, who btw has the cushiest spot...the comfy cozy cat bed. Interesting, huh?

Well, I can't wait for the carpet. I'll post pictures tomorrow of the empty rooms. THEN!!!! The carpet!

Have a great week everyone!

Living Room, Part I (aka Painting 101)

2007-08-26T06:49:00.000-07:00

Ok, once again DH left me home alone for the weekend and so I painted the living room in preparation for new carpet (yah!) that's coming Thursday and Friday.

Here is a somewhat before picture. The table is from the kitchen which is just to the right behind the fireplace. The entertainment center in the back corner usually has our television on it. But I'd started to clear the room, not only for painting but because all the rooms have to be emptied for the carpet installers.

As you can see, the walls are .....cough....blue. It was nice when DH decided to do it without asking me, but now we've lived here 8 years....it's time for a change.

Oh, DH added that high shelf, too. The cups you see there are my collection of British Royal Family Coronation souveniers. There are some Charles/Diana cups and some Queen Elizabeth II coronation cups and even some King George/Queen Elizabeth (Elizabeth II's parents) coronation cups from 1937. Cool, huh? Don't ask how I got started collecting them. I honestly don't know other than I remember when I saw them, I thought they were really beautiful with their insignias on them, etc. I am going to sell them all except for the plates. I think a few of the nice plates hung on a smaller type wall would be nice.

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Here's a shot showing the carpet that's coming up. It's a blue/gray and shows the traffic patterns, which I hate. That was the one thing I told the carpet saleslady....I wanted new carpet that didn't show the traffic patterns. So, that's what I picked out. It's a tan/sandy color nylon carpet. I'm trusting that the traffic patterns WON'T show....EVER!!!

Also, if you enlarge the shot by double clicking on it, you'll see another reason why we're replacing it. It's gotten stretched and has wrinkled badly. It looks awful.

The third reason for new carpet??? Maybe I can enlist some advice from you. We have three cats. One, Gizmo, was brought here after DH raised them in a shed near his shop. He brought her home because she was the runt. She'd been used to a litter box, but there was some old carpeting in the shed and if the litter box was really full, she'd "pee" on the carpet. So...guess what she does at our house? She's about 4 years old now. Spayed. And I don't think she does it anymore, but all along the wall edges of this carpet in our living room....she's pee'd. DH and I can smell it, but I've asked people who come over if they can smell it and they always say "no". But we can smell it.

So, you ask, why new carpet if the cat's going to pee on it? Yeah, I've asked myself that question, too. It was simply time for new carpet. We bought some spray and a black light off the internet. We're both really keeping the cat box clean, so she'll use it. She's not an outdoor cat....she's more like a "scare-dee cat", so kicking her buttola outside won't do. And I love her too much to "kill" her for peeing on the carpet. So we'll pray over it and watch her. Now...advice anyone? I'm all ears, honest.

Ok, I digressed. Here are the walls AFTER. When DH got home, he took off the rest of the door trim and he took down the shelf. The tan paint is called "Pita Bread". And, without realizing it, it's practically the same exact color I painted the kitchen in June. Oh well.

Also, see the blue recliner below? I talked DH into two new chairs for us both. We don't have people over. We don't entertain and it's just the two of us 99.9% of the time. So, I asked DH if we could spring for new furniture, too. I picked them out Saturday and DH will go look Monday and have the local furniture store order them. Two large Laz-y-Boy rocker/recliners. In Brown. Yeah!!!!

Notice my helper in the chair? That's Gadget. She is also a runt and she's 9 months old and totally RUNS the house. The other cat not mentioned is Emily, who is about 9 years old. Since Gadget loves the blue chair, we're going to delegate it to the family room, which is in that doorway you see. That's where we have an oak desk, computer, and TONS of books. There's a love seat in there, but we never use it. So the blue chair will take it's place. Maybe it will get some use. While one of us is on the puter, the other can sit in the chair and visit.

Here's a close up of the two paints. The one on the right is the Pita Bread and the other is called Stone Harbor. It's one shade darker and I bought a quart and painted just one wall for "effect". Yeah, right. You can hardly tell. Oh well.

So, sorry this post is so long, it's just that there was alot to tell/show you. So, all totalled, I painted the eating area, the living room and down the hallway.

I also want to say here: Thank you for the very nice complimentary comments I've received on other posts. They are appreciative.

Hope you all have a great week.

Nothing Happening I Can Share

2007-08-23T09:33:00.001-07:00

Ok, I imagine in my mind that there are many of you out there checking in and reading my blog. Yeah, I live in a dream world, but at least I'm being honest here. And it's been a week since I blogged. Only because I have nothing really to blog about.

Oh yeah, I'm sewing up a storm, but nothing I can show here. You see, my quilt shop is preparing for the shop hop in October and I've been sewing up the shop samples. I can't show them here because they're suppose to be secret. Yeah, I know. Most of you live hundreds of miles away and can't go on our shop hop, but still I am not allowed to show the samples yet.

But I will, after the hop is in progress. I'm on my third quilt sample for them. Yes, three! Can you say "overachiever"? Each quilt is exactly the same pattern, but you will be pleasantly surprised to find out how different they look simply by using totally different fabric.

Oh, the high school reunion dress? I just have to turn under the armhole edges and sew them down and then hem it. It's done and looks good. But that event is about a month away.

So, that's all that's happening. Oh, and just to enclose a picture, (which I always do) here is one from the southeast part of Washington state. DH and I like taking pictures that we can use as background on our computers. This one came out great for that purpose. Hopefully, you can use it to, if you like.

Take care everyone! And keep sewing!

The Purse, Part III

2007-08-16T16:49:00.000-07:00

Here is the black/red purse I made the other day. This one goes to the shop owner of The Fabric Patch. She gave me the fabric and I sewed it up. I personally picked out this fabric as some that would make a lovely purse. The owner thought so, too!

She especially liked the "puffer fish" fabric. So, I placed it front and center.

The side of the bag below.

And a somewhat blurry picture of the inside. Personally, I LOVED the lining fabric. Notice the pocket "came out" on the front inside?? Drat! I was tired while sewing it up. But the owner didn't mind one bit. Bless her heart!

I've since made ANOTHER purse from this same fabric, but a different arrangment. I've given it to a friend. I tried something different with that purse. The button I found (I forgot to take a pic) is a mother-of-pearl type large flower button. I mean about 2 inches large. I didn't want to do a buttonhole for it. So I bought the magnetic purse closure snaps and then I hot glue gunned the button to the outside. My friend is to tell me how that wears!

Last weekend, enroute to family reunion (blogged about below), I also bought more "winter" fabric that my friend Charisma loves. She's going to get a "winter" purse next! And I bought some beautiful bright coral colored fabric for another one.

Definitely have purses on the mind, huh? There are worse things to sew, right? Like a silly dress for a 30 year high school reunion coming up in a matter of weeks!

Have a blessed week everyone!

Another Family Reunion

2007-08-13T18:10:00.001-07:00

Just when I thought I'd blogged about my family reunion, up comes DH's family reunion. But theirs is different than ours. Ours....we get together the third weekend each July religiously. Theirs...they haven't gotten together since 1987! Phew!

So, here is a shot of just the second generation....the cousins! DH is the tall man in the back. This shot has at least 2 cousins missing....DH's twin brother and sister. They couldn't/wouldn't come. Their loss!

I cannot tell you how welcoming this bunch is. They were so warm to DH and I and it was fun because we were all in the same boat. NO ONE KNEW EACH OTHER!

We had name tags that had our names on them and who our parent was. DH's said he was Floyd's son, so everyone would know who he was. I forgot to mention, this is DH's father's side of the family. DH's father is one of 9 siblings. Only the youngest is left alive. And then come the cousins. Take a close look at that picture. Some cousins are approaching 80 (I think). DH is the youngest of his cousins. In my family, I'm third youngest among all the cousins.

Anyway, we had a great time. DH had never met most of these people. There were about 50 of us who showed up. We had a potluck luncheon and talked our heads off!

I still couldn't get over how much fun it was AND....I got them to have another one next year. I told them how "we" meet once a year, same time and so they've decided to claim the first Saturday each August as "their" time. So....this time next year...I'll have more pictures.

There was one group shot with all of us in it, but since I was in it, I didn't get a shot of it. I will await whoever has that shot to send it to me. DH and I would love to see it.

The Purse, Part II

2007-08-09T13:30:00.000-07:00

Ok, this the second purse. It's the same fabric line (Amy Butler) as Charisma's purse shown in the post prior to this one. It's just this is in blues and greens and not pinks.

Also, the owner of this purse wanted a shoulder strap, so the book "Bag Boutique" (link in previous post) tells you how to cut for it. I decided that two straps would over power the purse, so I just cut one and added them at the side seams.

Bling got added to this purse, too. But I didn't get a shot of it before giving the bag away.

Again, these are small purses. 10x12x3 approximately.

Here's a shot of the lining and pocket. This owner wanted it sewn deeper into the bag and so I obliged and also divided it off center. In other words, this is a divided pocket, just not down the middle.

These bags are so much fun to make and so easy and so quick.

Next up will be the purse for the owner of the Fabric Patch. It's in deep reds/blacks/grays.

Have a great day everyone!

THE Purse, Part I

2007-08-09T13:13:00.000-07:00

Ok, here it is. This is the long awaited (at least by Charisma) purse. I showed Charisma the book called Bag Boutique and this is the purse she picked out. She let me pick out the fabric and I know what she likes. I presented it to her today (a day early) for her birthday at lunch. She LOVED it!

It's about 10x12x3. Not too big.

Here's a shot of the lining and the pocket. It's actually a double pocket.

And for fun I added *bling*. Unfortunately, I took this picture before adding the bling. Sorry about that. She loved the bling anyway! Happy Birthday Charisma!!!

When I showed the Fabric Patch this purse, the owner and one worker gave me fabric and are paying me to make them a purse just like this one.

Stay tuned for their purses.

Doggie Bag Anyone???

2007-08-08T13:42:00.001-07:00

Sooner or later, everyone needs a Doggie Bag. Well, here's mine! Or actually, here's the one I made for the Fabric Patch...my local quilt shop.

The pattern for this cute bag comes out of a book entitled Fast, Fun and Easy Fabric Critter Bags. I admit that on other fabric, such as the samples in the book, the TEETH come out looking really goofy/cute. On this holstein/dalmation fabric, they blend in a bit too much for me. But "we" didn't know this before "we" sewed it up.

I got to pick out the collar fabric. That's always the fun part. Double click on the picture to make it larger. See the tail??? The fabric for the ears and tail is a brushed faux suede fabric that is really soft. They actually feel like a dog's ears.

And one of the other fun things about this bag was arranging the face parts to suit it. Here they are on my table. I had lots of choices as far as where to put the buttons on the black circles and where to put the black circles on the white circles, etc. You get the idea. AND....the really funny thing is the nose is made out of a CAT'S paw button....but don't tell anyone!

So, I'm obviously in a huge BAG mood, huh? Stayed tuned, more to come. The Charisma bag will be presented to her tomorrow and then I can show you others I've done with the same pattern. Hope you're all having a blessed day!

Quilter's Fabric Bag and a surprise!

2007-08-03T19:52:00.001-07:00

Ok, this should be the last of those fabric bags my quilt shop wanted me to make. This one is for a quilter. Duh, huh?

Again, it was lots of fun to embellish, but the quilt shop wanted it to be a bit more "formal", so I tried, but failed. I was having too much fun!!

Those funky buttons came out of a shoe box full of buttons I inherited. And I fussy cut those two patches and sewed them on and then frayed the edges a bit with a toothbrush. I had used that technique with the Christmas strip quilt I did recently.

Of course, the jumbo sized rick rack. And here is the lining and handles. Another creation done. I'll take it to them tomorrow. They have a really cute bag for me to do next, but it won't look like anything you've seen here so far. Stay tuned for the "Puppy" bag. You're gonna love it!

Oh yeah, the surprise. I got a pedicure WITH a flower and jeweled center! TEE HEE! :)

Hope you all have a great weekend! God bless.

I Got Simpsonized....and I hate that show!!!

2007-08-03T13:24:00.001-07:00

Ok, I hate this show. In fact, I hate everything about it. But I saw it on Gorgeous Things blog and just had to try it. It was mildly entertaining. A gal in my office says it looks just like me, so I must have done it right! Go Simpsonize Yourself. And have fun!

Teacher Fabric Gift Bag

2007-08-01T14:58:00.001-07:00

Wow, the lighting in the photo on this one makes it look good, huh?
This one was a TON of fun. I like using the bright colors, even though this one has alot of black on it.

I had fun buying embellishments for it. Below are the number buttons on grosgrain ribbon. Also a close up of the grommet.

And here is the lining shot. These bags are 15.5 x 15.5 inches and that's before sewing about a 3 inch bottom. So they're not the usual tote bag size, but just a smidge smaller.

And here's the other side with the ABC buttons! Also on the left is a pencil iron-on applique and a notepaper button, too.

Ok, think I've sewed enough? Not yet, folks! Up next will be a quilter's fabric bag. It's suppose to be more "formal" and not so "fun". Yeah, we'll see. Fun is way more fun than Formal! :)

More Fabric Gift Bags

2007-08-01T11:51:00.001-07:00

Just when you thought I was done with fabric gift bags.....! Here is one I completed a bit ago. It's just like the Christmas gift bag (same size/style) but it's in Retro 70's fabric.

As you can see, I had a lot of fun embellishing this bag. This rick rack is JUMBO sized and I sewed both sides down (not just one stitching line through the middle). It's about 1 inch wide. I found a cute tube of buttons at a stamping/craft store and bought them, because they were the perfect earth tone colors for this.

And before I left for my family reunion, my local quilt shop gave me this mini iron to have!! I told them I wanted to take my sewing with me, but not my iron or ironing board. Then they thought of this and presented it to me as a gift for all the sewing I do for them. How nice is that???

And the iron worked perfectly, albeit small! It didn't take up much room and I brought a sleeve board along as an ironing board. Both worked great.

And, since I can't figure out how to add another picture to this blog and have it appear at the bottom of my blog (or where I want it to go within the blog), I will submit another entry for the Teacher Bag.

The Class Reunion Dress, Part III

2007-07-29T15:24:00.000-07:00

1. The instructions in Power Sewing for inserting an invisible zip might be great if you're got slinky or slippery fabric. But I don't! This linen/cotton isn't the least bit slippery and therefore I got lost on the instructions. So, I just did it myself. It came our great (no bragging here, honest). I was very happy with the way it turned out. Can't tell where the bottom of the zipper ends and the dress back seam begins! AND you can't see the zipper in the back seam. Isn't that the point???

Ok, here's a bad self-portrait.
2. I've discovered in the many times I've tried the garment on, that I don't need the zipper!!! AAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!

Ok, I feel better now.

3. I ended up taking in the side seams so that they are 1 inch each side. AND, I ended up taking in the back princess seam from the waist to the armhole so that they are 1 inch, too.

Now I am liking the fit!!!

I need to do the facings and....help here!! I'm thinking about either fussy cutting them so that there is no embroidery on the side of the dress OR cutting them out of quilter's cotton that I have that's solid black. What do you all say???

If I use the quilters cotton, I've got to prewash it. It's going to be slightly less weighty than this linen/cotton, but I think it would work for facings. AND I'm going to attach the lining to the facings like Erica B did.

I've got the neck facing and the armhole facings. I think I'm going to make this the original boat neck style neckline and not the notched "v" neckline. I will save that for another dress because I can tell already that when I'm done tweaking this one, (which I think I am) I'll be making more.

I can still buy that to-die-for pique from Sawyer Brothers. Did you all click on that link in the other post? It's takes you directly to the fabric I want to buy and not the home page of SB.

Ok, I'm going to put the dress aside for now and begin another 15x15x3 inch bag for the quilt shop. Oh yeah, I've got to remember to post pictures of the other one I did in the 70's retro fabric. DH will be home soon from his "shop" (read: playhouse) and he wants to go golfing!!

I need to golf because sewing is not an aerobic activity!

The Class Reunion Dress, Part II

2007-07-29T13:34:00.000-07:00

So, yesterday I cut out the lining and sewed it up sans facings, hems and zipper. Since my high bust is 40, I cut an 18. But in looking at the front pattern pieces, it says a size 18 means the front will actually measure 46. I thought 6 inches was a lot of ease. But I cut that size anyway. I can always take it in.

Here it is on Annie. Not spectacular. Problem: I have no sewing buddy (cats don't count, right?) and since it zips up the back, I can't close the back up. Therefore, I can't feel the fit properly. And remember, I haven't sewn a dress ever. So I can't really tell how it's suppose to fit. If you enlarge the picture a bit, you'll see a small bust dart on the princess seam. Cool.

I'm thinking that I can always take the seams in. It won't be alot, but some. I just couldn't tell without someone helping me.

So, I proceeded to cut the fashion fabric. Remember, it's linen/cotton and a nice weight. Now the first piece I cut was the front on the fold. I was amazed when I was done, that I seemed to have fussy cut a spray of embroidered flowers right down the center. This has happened before with quilting, but gosh!! I cut the two center back pieces at this same time.

After the look of the front, I was more careful cutting the side fronts. I actually cut them seperately. I was able (because I bought extra fabric anticipating shrinkage) to get a nice spray of smaller flowers flowing down the side fronts. I also made sure (tried to, at least) that I didn't have any embroidery where I wouldn't want it. Like the nipple-zone and the front armhole where my arms would rub wearing it, etc.

I sewed side fronts to center front. I sewed side backs to each back piece. Then I thought I would NOT sew the side seams and shoulder seams until after I had inserted the invisible zipper. I thought it would be easier maniuplating the fabric if I just had two back pieces and not the front to mangle around like a gorilla trying to unzip it's suit off!

I remember reading many posts on Pattern Review where the seamstress would consult Power Sewing - Step By Step by Sandra Betzina to insert the invisible zipper and they all had great results. So, that's what I did, too. At least, I hope that's the reference book!

Now to go and sew it in. *gulp*...stayed tuned for Part III.

Oh, and thank you for all the comments on my last post. Remember, I'm all ears!

The Class Reunion Dress, Part I

2007-07-28T08:10:00.001-07:00

Ok, *gulp*, this is what I'm going to be working on in the next few hours. Realistically, it will be a week! It's not that I'm slow. I just don't own a single dress and have never sewed one! I've read all the reviews on this beauty on Pattern Review and other ladies' blogs. So here it is.

The reason for this dress is two-fold.
1. I want to sew a dress. Especially one I can wear to work sometimes.
2. I need something to wear for my 30 Year High School Class Reunion coming up on September 22. I thought to myself...."hey, you sew....sew something for the reunion". Some thoughts are better left alone, but this one wouldn't lie still.

I'm going to make View A. The one on the upper right part of the picture. BUT, I may make a sleeveless version of view D which is the tall pic on the left. I like the "V" neckline of that view, but want it sleeveless. And someone else who sewed it up said the short version (B) is too short. So that leaves that out!

Here is the fabric. It's 55% linen, 45% cotton. I've washed it and dried it twice. It should be totally preshunk, right? "More Fabric Savvy" by Sandra Betzina says to minimize wrinkles, iron the heck out of it (my translation) BEFORE washing it the first time. Apparently, it helps "set" the formaldehyde. EWWW... I had no idea linen was made with formaldehyde! TMI :)

I'm lining it in a black (soft) broadcloth. The embroidery on this linen will be too itchy, and it's a tad see through. Double click on the picture to enlarge it and then tell me what you think!

I think it's going to be nice enough for an evening (read: semi casual) dress. This reunion is being held at a casino. Yuk. But, the lights will be soft and it will be darker than I expect. All the more better to hide any sewing ooops, huh?

AND to top off all the stress, I'm installing a 20 inch invisible zipper! I've only ever done one and it was for the quilt shop on a baby's pillow ring. It came out ok. Just ok.

So, today DH is at the property and I'm in my sewing room. Gosh, I can't remember where I read this but I'm not going to make a muslin of this garment, per se. Someone (and I think it might have been Ann aka Gorgeous Things in an article for BeSewStylish) said to use your lining as a muslin garment! What a fabulous idea. After all, this pattern has the fronts for B, C & D cups, so that eliminates most of the work, right? Yeah, we'll see.

I've read Erica B's blog (see June 19, 2007) on this dress about twenty times. I want mine to come out like hers. I tried to find pique, but couldn't. Well, I did actually, but it's at Sawyer Brook and they want $14.95 a yard. It's drop dead gorgeous (pique) fabric and if this dress works out to fit great, I'm splurging and buying that fabric. I need 3 yds of it, though! I guess $45 is not a LOT to spend on a dress, right? I'll just wait and see.

OK, off to the sewing room! Hope you all have a great weekend. God Bless!

Fabric Gift Bags

2007-07-26T16:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, when I first started on these gift bags, my local quilt shop wanted me to do Christmas bags. They handed me some fat quarters and the pattern and off I went. I bought the rick-rack and pom poms. I had a button stash that I used. I think these turned out pretty good. This is just the Christmas bag.
Here is the lining. I was so excited because I got to pick it out and I loved this Peppermint Candy fabric. And it goes really well with the entire bag.

And this bag has a closure tab, so for the quilt shop, I sewed it up, too.

So, to keep things straight, this Christmas bag was the first one I did. Then I did one just like in retro 70's earth toned fabrics (not shown). These two bags are about 12"x18"x3". Quite tall, really.

Then for the reunion, I worked on two more bags. One shown earlier in the bright pink and blue fabric and the other not shown yet. Those bags are more 15"x15"x3".

The quilt shop loved them and they sold out of the pattern immediately. They have an order placed for a dozen more because they have come up with more gift bag ideas for me. The next one they're working on cutting the fabric for is a Teacher's Bag! I can imagine little apple buttons and pencil appliques, etc. The mind boggles!

So, that is it for today.

Reunion Sewing

2007-07-25T16:15:00.001-07:00

I already told you I took my Singer Featherweight along for the family reunion. Mostly because I love to sew, it was going to rain all weekend and my almost 90 year old mother was with us and she loves to watch the Seattle Mariners play (baseball).

So, after we arrived at the condo, DM turned on the game. DH took a nap (he drove the 6 + hours) and I immediately dug out my sewing.

Below is a gift bag made from fabric. I had two to make. This one made out of really nice bright fabric and another made from earth toned 70's mod-type fabric. (I'll have to finish it and post pictures later).

I had to finish it today when I got home because I didn't have any grommets to attach the handles with. My local StuffMart didn't have any in the sewing section, but the gal who owns my local quilt shop found them in the camping section. They had this wonderful pack of 20 grommets and the attaching tools. They were real cheap and were in the camping section because they are used to repair tents. Who woulda thunk it to look there? Not me!

The one side is done in turquoise and the other in bright pink. Now you have to realize I'm not really a crafty type person. I sew, true, and I quilt, but I don't usually embellish. Well I got my feet wet this weekend (no pun intended). I had a blast embellishing these bags.

Notice the varigated rick-rack, the different odd-sized buttons, the pom-poms, the grosgrain ribbon AND I fussy cut two huge flowers and appliqued them on the large tone-on-tone pieces. One on each side.

Here's a picture of the lining and the grommets and handles (which I thought was a great idea).

Oh, and here's the pattern. It's called Gift Bags for Christmas #266 by Cotton Way.

Again, I'll post pics of the other one. I'm going to finish it tonight.

Thanks for stopping by.

Family Reunion..The Pacific Ocean

2007-07-23T16:05:00.000-07:00

My father's family has gotten together for family reunions every Summer since about 1965. For the past 6-7 years, we've gathered at Moclips, Washington.

We typically arrive Friday afternoon and leave Sunday noonish. It's a 6 hour drive from home. Saturday afternoon we have a huge barbeque. Tons of food! And Saturday night we gather for a campfire and pass out the song books and sing the old songs our parents and grandparents loved. There are some great family classics like "The Burglar Boy Song" and "I've Been Working on the Railroad".

Here is a picture I took early Saturday morning with the ocean to my back. There are three buildings, two facing the ocean and one perpendicular to the ocean. The condo that DH, my mother and I shared is in the middle building. It's a one bedroom with a kitchen and deck. They are very nice and between our family and one other family (who we don't know), we take up all three buildings for the weekend. And we reserve one year in advance, so we're set for Reunion 2008.

It rained all weekend long. Literally, all weekend long. We are die hards, so we had our BBQ in the rain under canopies that were brought for shade from the sun! And our campfire singing this year was in a condo, gathered in close. By close, I mean there are 50 of us. Not everyone sings, but most join in.

Since it rained all weekend and we knew this before leaving home, DH let me graciously take my Singer Featherweight sewing machine and work on two projects I'm doing for my quilt shop.

Sunday morning we took a break after checking out and got together for our annual family pictures. The first one below is just the guys. They consist of my male cousins and my female cousin's husbands and all the male children. If you're interested, DH is third from the left! (Remember, clicking on the photo will enlarge it greatly). You can see my mom sitting in the chair on the right (white hair).

This photo below is of the ladies. DH took it from the side. He was also filming and there were alot of men lined up to take their pictures, too.

Someday I'll post a photo of the entire group. We knocked on a condo door and got a nice lady to come out and take our picture so we can all be in it. I can't wait to see it.

I am in the top row on the left wearing the two tone blue jacket. My mother is sitting in the chair on the far right, second one in. Wearing a tan coat. She will be 90 in November and we all sang Happy Birthday to her early!

Another great year, another opportunity to be with family. These cousins of mine are more like my brothers and sisters. Each one is special and it's so nice to get along with everyone!

Christmas in July

2007-07-19T16:12:00.001-07:00

In my hometown, it's Christmas in July. Up this week for my local quilt shop called Fabric Patch, they gave me the below strip quilt to make for them as a sample to hang in their shop. Here it is on my design wall. (double clicking on the pic will enlarge it greatly) It was very simple to make. It ended up being quite small...42x48 inches. Just the right size to "throw" over a sofa or loveseat at Christmastime to decorate.

Here is a close up of the cute snowmen carrying a tree. It's part of a panel of fabric that was cut for this quilt. The row of trees at the top of this shot is also a part of the same panel.

For this shot below, I used a strip of the striped fabric and then fussy cut the snowmen off of a panel and then backed them in white (cause the blue showed through) and then I stitched them down onto the blue stripes and frayed the edges with a toothbrush. It made a nice effect and easier than using "steam a seam" to iron them down. They won't come up at all either.

Here is the pattern sheet the quilt shop gave me. As you can see, very simple strips of fabric sewn together. The yellow stars are appliqued and stitched down. The light blue snowflakes are also appliqued, but not sewn down. To sew all around those curvy edges would have been a PITN.

So, it's been delivered to the quilt shop and they've given me my next projects. Fabric gift bags. I've already made one out of Christmas fabric (I told you it was Christmas in July here) and one out of some mod 70's type fabric. More later...

I'm off this weekend to a family reunion at the ocean. We do this every 3rd weekend in July. Been going on since the 60's. We're not like some families. We ALL get along great. My cousins are more like my brothers and sisters. I'll post pictures when I get back.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

The Lamb of God...

2007-07-13T18:12:00.000-07:00

Today, I thought I'd blog about my collections. First up is my collection of lambs. I collected them because Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. That's you and me. We need Jesus.

I've been collecting them for a few years now and here they are on display on my dresser. I haven't officially counted them yet.

The three below are some of my favorites. They are Christmas lambs. From left to right they are Eli, Zeb and Jake. Eli even has his own little lamb. I normally cut all tags off my lambs, but these three I didn't because they have such cute Biblical names. I love their garb, too.

And the lamb below is one I sewed myself. He's a Rumpled Quiltskin. That's the name of the pattern. This company has several animals you can sew. Farm animals and zoo animals, I think, are the classifications. I saw this lamb pattern and had to sew it up.

Ok, I counted 17 in the first picture. I know there is one at my office I got last Easter. That seems to be the time of year to buy them. And a co-worker bought me a statue of a lady holding a lamb. So that's 19 altogether.

Next up will be my collection of Queen Elizabeth II coronation souvenirs. Exciting, huh? Well, I gotta collect something!

Have a great weekend all!

Seminole Table Runner, Part II

2007-07-11T19:22:00.001-07:00

Ok, here is the finished tablerunner. I've had it done, just haven't blogged on it yet.
It measures 18x54. A nice long size. I quilted it on my Bernina 150QE using varigated green-to-red 100% cotton thread. The below picture shows it on my design wall with the last borders on it.

Here it is (both sides) on my kitchen table. I just love that green batik with the trees. Remember, click on the picture for a close up.

And here is a close up of the top showing the "meandering" that I did with the varigated thread.

Not a great job, but it's fine. The quilt shop was happy.

The matching placemats are done except for the binding. I didn't have enough green batik (actually saving it for another project), so I bought a nice snowflake red on red for it.

Nice to get another UFO done!

Uniquely You...or is it Uniquely Me??

2007-07-05T15:22:00.001-07:00

Ok, on a website a visit (alot) called Pattern Review, a "thread" started on Uniquely You dressforms. Since I have one, I tried posting photos from Photobucket, but had trouble. It's so much easier to blog here about it and post the pics here and then put this link into PR.

But before I shock you with a naked picture of my "Annie", here is our little Gadget kitty. She's 8 months old today!!

And here is a close up of Annie. Yes, people really do name their dressforms. This is a close up. You can see the sports bra I've put on her and then covered her with a tricot short sleeved shirt to make the test garments slide right on. I've always heard that you're suppose to put a bra on that you normally wear, but she's so "perky" that the sports bra smooshes her just right; Well at least to mimic me.

Here's a side view. As I told the gals on PR, my tummy is not that flat, but Annie's and my waist measurements are exactly the same. So, she must be wider than I am, huh?

And here's a full front shot. Click on the photo to enlarge it. As you can see, the cover is stretched down, but it doesn't go ALL the way to the bottom of the form. But close enough for me. I'm not fitting pants on Annie.

And...hold your breath...here she is naked! OMGosh...now you see why I had to put a sports bra on her. Dissection was a possibility, too! But I couldn't take the knife to Annie, so I went with the alternative.

Yowser! Good thing she's all covered now. I could barely stand to look at her. (blushing)

But she's great! She's my size from the shoulders down to the waist. She's very lightweight (I move her from sewing room to guest room) and I do use her neck as a pin cushion. She's fully pinnable. And she's been a great sewing buddy.

Seminole Table Runner

2007-06-26T17:25:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, Cindy, from my local quilt shop, The Fabric Patch, gave me a kit to make up a table runner for display at her shop. It's an Atkinson Design called Seminole Table Runner. It's very simple to make. In fact, I had the pattern already and had made it up as one of the first quilt projects I did. That was back in about 2004.

Then last year I bought this same kit from her. It came with the pattern (that I already had), so I gave the pattern to Charisma. And then I decided to use the fabric to make Christmas placemats instead of the table runner.

So I thought it was really cool to get to actually make the table runner again with the fabrics I had used for the placemats.

Here is the beginning of the piecing. You make 4 patches and then sew a two patch to each end. Then a 6.5" piece to the end of that.

I placed them on my design wall. It's the diagonally laid fabric below. Also, along side of it I put my as-yet-unfinished placemats. They're really a nice match.

When I blog tomorrow, I'll show you a close up of the fabric I'm using. The green is a batik with different trees on it. The two reds are batiks and the white is just white with red polka dots on it. After I sew the rows together on the table runner to make the large diagonal piece (yes, it's not sewn together yet), I'll trim down the ends and allow it to stand "on point". Quilters language for placing a square on it's point. Also, remember, clicking on the photo greatly enlarges it.

Thanks for the nice comments on my kitchen re-do. DH loved it. He returned home from the property after working Friday and Saturday there. Remember I told you about all the tons of mosquitos there? Well, he sprayed himself down, but apparently missed a spot because he returned home with about 300 bites on his back near the shoulders. OUCH!!! I've soaked them down with baking powder and water paste. Takes the sting/itch right out of them. He's been trying not to scratch.

So, while I had a great time around the house by myself, he had a miserable time scratching bites!

Such is life. Take care everyone!

While DH Was Out, Part II

2007-06-24T07:36:00.000-07:00

Ta Da! Done! Well except for the wood trim that goes on top of the countertop splash board thingy...what do you call it??

Charisma was absolutely right. I LOVE the color. It's funny, it's the exact color of the switchplate covers. But I am LOVING it!! It feels NEW and CLEAN.

The above picture shows my new CLEAN kitchen. I took the liberty of taking the stove apart and cleaning it (which I normally do). Scoured the sink. Mopped the floors.

Cleaned the windows inside and out. The sunlight on the counter in front of the microwave is from a skylight that is just above it. (If you click on the picture to make it larger, you'll discover I took this shot BEFORE cleaning the windows and you'll be able to see why we need the trim on top of the countertop back splash.)

I even took the liberty of buying a NEW papertowel holder! Yeah, I know. But the other one was a blue plastic ugly OLD thing. I tossed it and got a new METAL cool looking one. Yeah, I know...it's still a paper towel holder! But it's new for my new kitchen.

I need to find some artwork or some plates to display or maybe sew a small wallhanging to go over the sink. I actually was thinking of getting some fabric that matched the painted walls, the counter tops, black for the appliances and white for the sink and my window blinds are an off dark red. That would make for some interesting patchwork, huh?

But that's another project. For another day.

Hope you are having a great weekend! Enjoy your Sunday.

While DH Was Out, Part I

2007-06-23T05:29:00.000-07:00

This is what I do when DH is gone for a partial weekend. I remove the wallpaper from the kitchen walls and paint. Of course, he knew about it before he left. He just doesn't realize what's transpired, that's all.

To begin with, we bought this house June 1999. The couple who lived here owned it for 25 years and raised their family here. Then they were empty nesters who wintered in the south with their motorhome.

Fastforward to 1999. DH and loved the house the first time we saw it. Well, I loved it the first time I saw it. But, hey, I had been living in an apartment for 4 years. So, we bought the house.

The lady who lived here must have loved wallpaper, because it's in about every room but the living room and one bedroom. She did a pretty good job, but it's now 8 years older and it's starting to wear on me. A couple of years ago, I re-papered the bedroom (one wall only) and repainted the other walls.

This year it's the kitchen. I decided I was tired of the wallpaper and wanted to take it all down and paint. So, in the picture below, here I am in progress yesterday. As you can see, the wallboard underneath the wallpaper has been painted green. (yuk) The wallpaper came off in two layers. First the wallpaper and then the paper backing. Not too bad a job. I used a commercial product and it took me 2 hours total to clear the walls. Notice some of the scraps on the counters (which I love, btw-the counters, not the scraps!)

Here's a more complete picture, still in progress. Note the wall above the cupboard. It will be painted, too.

Now for color... The living room and kitchen eating area are a nice light blue, courtesy of DH. I'm not crazy about it, but it's there, nonetheless. I knew I didn't want blue on the walls in the kitchen and I knew I didn't want an apricot color, because the bathroom, our bedroom and my sewing room (a former bedroom) are all in that color. Don't ask me how that happened. I did that painting and haven't a clue how I did it. They aren't all the same exact color, but you can't tell that by walking from room to room. They look the same. (I smell another project coming!)

Anyway, I digress. Sorry. My friend, Charisma, has excellent taste and I have none, so I picked up some paint chips at StuffMart and she said "this one". She said I would love it. It's called....get this....Hazelnut Creme! How great a name for a kitchen, eh??? I love it! Thanks Charisma.

Now for the good part. When I removed the wallpaper, I discovered that the walls weren't textured (as in the rest of the house). They were pretty smooth with the normal defects. So, I spackled the defects and then set about buying two cans of spray on texture. Not the cheapest form of texturing, but the easiest and most popular (according to the gal at the hardware store who sold me the stuff).

So, last night about 10pm, I was spraying the kitchen walls down. The texture literally dries in like 5 minutes. I couldn't believe it. But I let it sit overnight. A girlfriend from my office brought me about 6 chick flicks to watch while DH was gone. WOO HOO!

The picture below just about shows you the entire kitchen. The dark units on the right are my black fridge and black built in oven. When we bought the house, all the appliances were black, so we had to have a black fridge. The sink is white though. You would NOT believe what HD wants for a black sink! We "settled" for white. The kitchen in whole is not a bad size. Nicely laid out. Nice cupboards, still. DH installed new kitchen sink and faucet in 2005. I'm loving my kitchen. But, wait. I haven't even painted yet.

Hence, Part I in the title. Stay tuned for Part II!

Pattern Review Website

2007-06-20T14:21:00.000-07:00

As you can see from my blog links, Pattern Review is a website for sewers. I have been a member for two years now. It's a great site. I can't believe how much I've learned from the ladies there (and some gentlemen, too).

One pattern everyone recommends is Simplicity 4076. There are three views and a TON of ladies have sewed them all up and reviewed them on this site.

I have attempted and am in the process of sewing view A/B, the cross over top. I haven't gotten it done because I'm also trying to finish sewing two western shirts for my son, who will be 19 on July 5. So, views A/B are sitting there waiting to be finished.

In the meantime, I've gotten really excited about view C/D. I've read up on all the reviews of this view and printed out tons of helpful hints. Now if I can just find the time to sew them up!

I'll attempt to post pictures of my progress. That way, this will be a sewing blog, which was my main intent when I started this. Hasn't happened yet, but I have squeeked in a few quilt pics! :)

The prosecutors at my office are all at a conference this week and won't be back until Monday. I haven't alot to do, so I may be working on altering this pattern for a possible FBA (full bust adjustment, to you non-sewers). I'm not convinced I need one. I'll have to flat measure the pattern first to decide.

And, my friend Charisma and I are going to be making a heart bargello quilt. It's third down the list actually called Melinda's Heart, but most of us call it a heart bargello. Charisma has her kit in the colors on that website. Pink to burgundy with greens. I want to make this a wallhanging (albeit a large one) out of blues to white and cream. I need to go buy my fabric. Then she and I will sit and sew! Ladies, this is not a quilt to be making while enjoying, say a glass of wine! Too complicated and will require some concentration on my part. I say "my part" because Charisma is going to leave it up to me to decipher the instructions! It will be easy, once we get going. I'll try and post the results as we go. We're waiting for a weekend where she and I can be alone at my house to sew until we drop. Knowing us, that will be the wee hours of the morning, because we can sew until 3 or 3:30 am!!

So...it's off to the races!! Have a great week everyone!

Father's Day

2007-06-17T16:26:00.000-07:00

Well, today is Father's Day and so I thought I'd write alittle about my Dad.

He was born in Rothimay Montana, the oldest of 8 kids (a set of twins died as infants). So, I only knew he was the oldest of 6 kids. The family moved to Hillsboro Oregon where my grandfather died when Dad was eleven. At about that time, he became the "bread winner" for the family and his mother.

He told me that he got his license shortly after this and learned to be a mechanic. He worked in various gas stations and the like.

He said he was the third man drafted into WWII. He also said he was a Master Sgt and and active First Sgt. Artillery. Phillipines. I didn't know it was Leyte until I read it in his obituary. You could never get Dad to talk about the war. He would only tell you how he was a mechanic for the military in Texas. Apparently, this was before he was shipped overseas.

Mom and he got married in October 1943. They settled in Olympia. My brother came along in 1956 and I joined the family two years later.

Dad and I were always especially close. My fondest memories of him are when I was in high school. Dad was the first one up. He would start a pot of coffee and get the morning paper and be reading it when I came down for breakfast before school. I would make myself a lunch and then fix myself breakfast. Usually, I just scrambled an egg and once in a while Dad would ask if I'd scramble one for him. Then we would sit quietly and eat or visit before Mom and my brother got up.

I always kissed him goodbye before leaving for school.

Many years later, I presented him with his granddaughter. He was in love! I was always "Daddy's girl" and my daughter soon became "Grandpa's girl".

Sadly, Dad was diagnosed with cancer in April 1988. I was then pregnant with my son. They gave Dad two months to live. When I heard that news, it was the absolute worst day of my life. It was harder to take that he had two months, than to hear he was dying of cancer. He told me, "it's the hand I've been dealt".

Thankfully, Dad accepted Jesus as his Saviour before he died. You could often find him listening to the Bible on tape during the days before his death.

As the New Testament says, he went to 'sleep' on June 19, 1988. It was Father's Day when he died... He is now awaiting the second coming of Christ and the resurrection of the dead. Thank you, God, for such giving me such a caring and loving earthly father! He taught me so much about life.

As an aside, my son, Levi, was born three weeks later. My Dad was a left hander and so is my son. They are the only ones in the family. Interestingly, one is gone and the other is born.

Thanks Dad! Happy Father's Day!

Friends, Tiger Lilies and Paint, oh my!

2007-06-16T14:32:00.001-07:00

Friends are a Godsend! Let me tell you that today, MY friend, Charisma came over and showed me how to seperate my Tiger Lilies so that they run the length of my back fence. Ok, I said, but what I was thinking was "what is she talking about" She said my lilies were overgrown in one area...crowding each other.

You can see in this "before" picture, the liles are on the far right up against the blue fence. They are just now beginning to bloom. They weren't in the above picture.

So, she dug up a bunch for me and we piled them up and then when she left, I went out and had to weed that fenceline and then I planted them along the length of the fence.

So, here are two "after" pictures. Ta Da!!

You see, fabric I know. Flowers, I don't know. It's very simple.

Oh, and while she was here, I showed her several paint chips to get her opinion on which color to paint my kitchen. You see, there's ugly wallpaper on it from the previous owners. (Note to self: take before pictures of wallpaper in kitchen). We've lived here for eight years now. It's time. Anyway, Charisma easily picked out the best color and said I would be very happy with that choice when it's done. I totally believe her!

I haven't an ounce of decorator's blood in me, nor landscaping. I can plant plants. I can paint walls. I just need someone to show me what would look good where.

So, the weeding is mostly done. The Tiger Lilies are transplanted and I now need to go buy a gallon of paint (and take pics). The work never ends!

Thanks Charisma!!!