Some of This and Some of That in the Sewing Room

I touched a lot of different things in the studio last week.

 

I put all the finished thrift blocks on the design wall, ran a calculation of how many more I will need, and began pulling neutrals and prints.  According to my count, I need 40 more of the 2-inch squares to make the remaining 16-patch blocks for the layout I planned.  Sixteen have already been made so only 24 need to be constructed.  That should keep me at the machine for a while.

 

I had several king-size pillow cases that needed to be hemmed for our standard pillows.  They had been taking up oxygen in the studio for longer than I care to confess.  Finished.

 

I pieced some batting remnants to use with the apple-core project.  And, I also quilted that project using the walking foot on my domestic machine.  The entire project came from my stash.  No purchases!  I actually took it with me Tuesday with the intention of squaring it for binding and then thought better of it.  This is a hand pieced project and I need to think about how it trim it without causing the seams to come apart.

 

Julia spent several hours with us Saturday.  As I have graduated from the walker to a cane and no longer have a brace on my leg, I was ready for an outing.  We went to my favorite thrift store and came home with a fall wreath for the front door.

Productive Week

Once I was able to sit down at my sewing machine, I was able to turn out a boatload of 16-patches for my Scrappy Meets Thrift Challenge.  I need fewer than 10 more 16-patches, but will need to paper piece more of the two-inch thrift blocks before I go futher.  I still have some to work with, but need to be sure I have enough variety in the neutral fabrics.

The four borders have been attached to my Kim McClean project.  I appliqued two of the four corner flowers while at my Tuesday group today and may finish at least one of the remaining two watching the recording of last night's episode of The Voice.  

I had my first real PT session yesterday.  It went okay, but they told me they were going easy on me for my first workout.  I got to meet several other patients.  My issues are not nearly as serious as some of the ones they are dealing with.  My next appointment is tomorrow morning and I have a doctor's appointment in the afternoon.  Fingers crossed that I can stop wearing the brace on my leg.

Before and After and Machine Stitching Again

 

Before and After

After letting this piece sit on the coffee table where I looked at it several times during the day, I decided to remove the offending fabric and use something else.  I like it much better.

Also, since I’m able to stand at the design wall and cutting table more, I was able to prep the final border for my Kim McLean project for applique.  It will go with me tomorrow when a friend has kindly offered to take me to my Tuesday quilting group.  Bob will pick me up after a couple of hours and we will stop by the PT office to get the paperwork for Thursday’s assessment.

And, best of all, I was actually able to sit at my sewing machine for two hours without my leg throbbing.  Here are the two 16-patch blocks I completed.  That felt really good.

 

Progress!

I can’t say I enjoyed working on this little wall/table top quilt, but it served the purpose of keeping my hands and mind occupied while I’ve been healing.  It measures approximately 19 inches square.  I’m thinking about leaving the edges curved and trying to bind it with a bias binding.  I made an error in my light/dark sequence on the right side, and would like it better if I replaced the fourth unit from the top with a lighter fabric.  I haven’t decided whether to leave it for the time being, or perhaps permanently.

The backordered EPP project arrived yesterday, but now that I’m becoming more mobile, I may resume work on an existing project instead.  I have too many in-progress projects.  Also, I think I may be able to sit at a sewing machine for short periods now.

My second follow-up with the ortho doctor happened today.  He adjusted my brace where I can begin bending my knee up to 90 percent and he is setting up physical therapy for me, possibly as soon as next week.  If things go well, I may be able to stop wearing the brace after my next appointment in two weeks!

 

Checking In

When I made the decision last year to continue my blog, I set a goal of posting every week.  This is late because I had to get past the pity parties and stinky thinking first.  Things are going well...not according to MY plan...but just as they should.  The most effective weapon in my arsenal for this kind of sorry state of mind is gratitude.  Whenever I stop to concetrate on my blessings instead of my inconveniences, I do much better.

I ordered an EPP kit to work on while I recover.  It is a small-ish project with fabrics and templates included.  Unfortunately, I was later notified that part of it had to be backordered.  So, for the sake of my sanity, I tried to come up with an idea that involved tools and stash that I could reach from a wheelchair.  Standing at a design wall or cutting table or even sitting at a sewing machine is just not feasible right now.  I am forbidden to bend my injured leg.

Eventally I remembered this Apple Core template I had purchased eons ago but never used.  And then I remembered all those lovely batiks (many from Wanda) that were stored low enough for me to access.  I honestly don't know how far I will go with this, but I will keep it small.  It's a good project that will keep my hands and mind busy and give me a chance to learn how to handpiece.  However, learning to handpiece on curved seams and batik fabric is proving ambitious.

 

Luann Kessie has a tutorial on how to use this template that she posted in 2009.  I'm sure I purchased it sometime around then and it's time I put it to use.  YouTube has some helpful videos on handpiecing as well.  This is what I did last night.

Update:  I had my follow-up appointment with the ortho doctor this morning.  He is pleased that the fracture has not gotten any worse and is optimistic that surgery is not called for.  I still can't bend my leg, but I have graduated to a walker and am encouraged to start putting as much weight on my leg as I can tolerate.  Progress.

Just call me "Grace"

Last Tuesday I wasn't paying attention and tripped, falling with my full weight on my right knee.  My leg broke just below the knee.  It's not a bad break, as breaks go.  If I can avoid falling again or doing something else to make it worse before my next appointment on the 17th, I probably won't need surgery.  In the meantime, I'm learning a whole new set of skills, like moving from a wheelchair to anything else without bending or putting weight on my right leg.  No sewing has taken place since last Tuesday.

Members of our church family are kindly providing meals and hubby is also learning some new household skills.  It's just life...

Disruptions

Life certainly does not go on as usual when the interior of a house is getting painted!  Our painter is working very hard to make the process as painless as possible, but there seem to be continual questions to answer and decisions to make.  So, except for brief excursions for meals, we’ve tried to have one of us present all the time she is working.  My sewing room was the second room to be addressed and it is the most crowded room in the house. 

 

Here are some of the items that had to be moved out in order for her to work. 

 

The room finally became functional again Friday and I managed to add seven 16-patch blocks to the ones already completed.  I understand the new paint needs to age a little before using Command Strip hangers, so the design board is propped against the wall.  Otherwise, things are pretty much back to normal there.

 

Good thing, too.  My husband says sewing does for me what beer does for others, and I definitely am needing it through this process.

 

I'm not sure where last week went...

...but if anyone finds it, please do let me know.

My happy, messy work space.

More 16-patches on the design wall.

The baby wrens fledged last week.  Mamma wren was either so fast or so small she never activated the motion sensor camera we had aimed at the nest on our front porch.   This is the first time that has happened in several years, and never in a potted plant.

 

And another puzzle completed.

 

I don’t know how the next three weeks will play out.  After 19 years we have decided to paint our entire home interior, and possibly replace some of the carpeting.  There may not be much opportunity for stitching.

I almost forgot to mention that yesterday was the 15th anniversary for this blog.  About this time last year I was wrestling with a slump and seriously considered discontinuing it.  I'm glad I didn't.  I value the connections made through this blog.

Thrift Blocks and a Real Stinker

Last week I foundation pieced 21 Thrift Blocks and added three 16-patch blocks to the one I had already finished.  If my math is right and I don’t mess up any blocks while doing the final trim (both highly unlikely), I am within 31 blocks of reaching my goal.  We’ll see!

 

The only other news to report…

 

Somebody had a too close encounter with a skunk.

 

 

Side Tracked

Several of my quilty friends have been showing off these zippered bags.  Of course, nothing would do but that I made one too.

 

This was the result of my efforts.  I had been cautioned that the instructions for the zipper were counter-intuitive, but I lucked into a tutorial on YouTube that helped a lot.

 

One of the appealing features of this bag is that when it is open and the sides are turned down, you have easy access to the contents. It took a lot longer to finish than I expected.  My seam ripper and I bonded over the experience.  This week I hope to return to my regularly scheduled projects.

 

We spent Sunday in New Braunfels celebrating our grandson’s 22^nd birthday.  Such fun.  He heads back to Texas A&M this week for what may be his final two semesters.

 And…it begins again!  I'm pretty sure I'm addicted.

Happy to be Home Again

The quilt retreat last week was wonderful, and I am so happy to be home again!  The retreat center we used is in Mt Calm, Texas, and meals composed of comfort foods and desserts were provided.  Plus the snack table included lots of chocolate. It ended up being a 2-pound trip.  Now the sugar withdrawal and portion control work begins.  I believe I spent 17 days in July on the road.  That's highly unusual for me.

 

I completed 68 Thrift Blocks bringing my total to 328.  If my count is correct, I need 56 more.  I also decided to make my first 16-patch with the blocks.

 

The last day I was there I pulled out my Picnic Quilt pattern project using Kaffe fabrics and threw the completed blocks on the design wall.  When more blocks are made, I will be able to space out fabric repeats, and I expect some of the goodies gleaned from Wanda's Kaffe scraps will make an appearance.

 

One member of our group wears an apron when she sews and I liked the pattern so much I, of course, had to make one too.  So, my retail therapy there consisted of the pattern and two yards of fabric (on sale).

 

As I was packing up for the return trip, this guy decided to hitch a ride.  

The predicted cool down for the weekend has been a disappointment.  As I write this, the temperature is 98 degrees, and the showers missed us though we did hear a little thunder Saturday afternoon.

 

On the Go Again

This past week has allowed virtually no time for sewing.  It was spent unpacking, doing laundry, catching up on regular chores and then preparing for a quilt retreat which should be in progress when this posts.

I managed to finish 30 thrift blocks while we were in Wisconsin.  That brings my total to 260.  If I can complete a total of 384, I can make a quilt 48 x 64 inches before a border.  This will be one of the two projects going on retreat with me. 

 

My second project will be one using Kaffe Collective fabrics.  Those blocks finish at 12 inches.  That’s about as removed from 2-inch thrift blocks made of 1800s reproduction fabrics I can manage, and should provide some relief if I get tired of paper piecing. 

Usually, I take a handwork project as well.  I will be removing paper foundations in lieu of that.

Things are still green here as a result of the recent floods, but summer time has definitely arrived.  I believe the number of deaths from those floods stands at 135 with 37 of those being children.  The volunteer fire chief from our county remains as one of those unaccounted for. I am sorry for ending on such a sad note, but this last paragraph is mostly for my own records.

 

Home from Wisconsin, and a Visit with Wanda

 We arrived home yesterday following a 12-day trip to see family in Wisconsin.  The travel was arduous.  On the way there we were caught by a severe thunder storm in Oklahoma City that included hail.  A second severe storm surprised us while we were at dinner one night.  After we got back to the hotel, we learned that there had been tornados to the west of us.  And, on the way home we had to outrun another storm that was bearing down on our path.  It was a busy time with family celebrations and reconnecting with some we had not seen in many years.  There were bittersweet moments as well.

 

I finally found a quilt barn on a highway where we could pause for a picture.  These barns are very different from the ones I’m familiar with in our cattle ranching area.

 

I was ecstatic when on our return we were able to make a brief stopover in Sandwich to visit with Wanda.  We only had a couple of hours before we had to be on our way and Wanda and I made the most of it.  First, we explored her sewing spaces and I got to see some of her work in person.  Then some fabric negotiations took place…

 

My stash of green fabrics got a boost.

 

She let me have two pieces from her giveaway pile.  I was especially happy to get these examples of her crooked cornerstone series.  I’ve been tempted to try this technique and she talked me through her process.  Not shown are numerous cuts from her collection of solids.

 

Then we sat down at her work table and I got to play in her bin of Kaffe scraps.  Wanda knows a lot about the Kaffe Collective and its history. 

This visit was the fastest two hours of the entire trip, and I am so glad hubby was willing to make the pause in our travels.

 

During our first night home, this handsome fellow posed for me outside our fence. 

 

Our dogs were ecstatic to see us and I think our grandson was relieved that his house and dog watching duties were over.  It’s good to be home.

 

Hello...

...from lush, green Wisconsin where we are visiting family.  

Stitching as been on a catch as catch can basis since we settled into our hotel.  But, my sewing station is set up.

Progress is happening.

    

We quilters are EVERYWHERE!  This picture was taken at a tourist rest stop in Iowa.

I've also seen several lovely barn quilts, but it's hard to get a picture from a moving car.

I really enjoyed my visit to the Lake Michigan shoreline.

Mesoscale Convective Complex, AKA Rain Bomb

"Texas is a land of perennial drought, broken by the occasional devastating flood." - State Meteorologist, National Weather Service, 1927

This post has nothing to do with quilting.  Instead, it is for personal cathartic and record keeping purposes. 

First, heartfelt thanks to my blog friends for checking to see if we are okay.  We were very fortunate.  It was scary, but we came through it largely unscathed.  Those a few miles from us in any direction were not nearly so fortunate, as reported in the national news.  

 A mesoscale convective complex, is a large, organized cluster of thunderstorms that form over a wide area and can last for many hours.  In 2007 we were at Ground Zero in such a rain event.  Water rose all the way to our house foundation, but not into our house.  On that occasion I believe we accumulated something like 19 inches of rain.  This time, our back yard gauge received about seven inches over a three-day period.  I can still remember, in 2007, walking by one of our community ponds after the water receded and seeing dead fish along the shore.  Perhaps the force of the downpour or the change in water temperature was too much for them.  

This time, Ground Zero was to our southwest in an area close to the Guadalupe River and populated by several church campgrounds.  The combination of rain and flash flooding did the unthinkable.  As I write this, the death count stands at 80 as the search continues for those still unaccounted.

 This is typical of the notifications we received every two hours Saturday.

We carefully monitored weather radar all day and could see we were on the fringe of the worst.  However, the chief of our local volunteer fire department was swept away while attempting an emergency rescue.  Even in our less impacted area low water crossings washed away, homes flooded, lives lost.

There is one blessing.  The lakes and aquifers that sustain our households were approaching dangerously low levels.  This should have a positive impact there.  I don’t feel like celebrating, though.

Earlier in the week I did some quilting and began preparations for our upcoming trip to Wisconsin.  One of Bob’s brothers is having serious health issues and his sister will be celebrating their 50^th anniversary.  Thankfully, our grandson has kindly agreed to house and dog sit while we are gone, so our house will be occupied and the mutts get to stay in familiar space.

I cannot end this post without at least one positive note.  Butterflies have discovered our Greg’s Mist Flowers.

 

 

 

New Project

A quilter cannot live by 2-inch Thrift Blocks alone, much as I enjoy making them.  So, I decided to start cutting for a project inspired by one Wanda completed early this year.  The pattern I selected is set on point and I am using mostly Kaffe Collective fabrics.

 

This should be a good project to take on retreat in late July.  My projects are usually so tiny they rarely make it up on the design wall.  Maybe this one has a chance.  The blocks are large and set on point.  I made a few test blocks and put them up on my design wall just to see if I wanted to proceed.  A friend showed a quilt made from this pattern at a recent Guild meeting.  She assured me that it is easy, even though it is set on-point.

 

Only 15 Thrift Blocks for the Scrappy Meets Thrift Challenge were completed last week.

 

Thrift Blocks Are Happening Here

My sewing time this week focused on more 2-inch thrift blocks for the Scrappy Meets Thrift Challenge Sew-Along sponsored by Repro Quilter.  I finished 38 this week.  I should have pushed just a little harder and finished two more since I’ve been bagging them in groups of 20 to help me keep count.

 

This is a peek at my very messy sewing station these days.  I’ve been watching lots of YouTube videos while stitching away.  Paper piecing creates lots of tiny scraps from trimming up squares and I haven’t even started de-papering any blocks yet. 

 

Speaking of messes, the city was repaving the streets in our neighborhood this week.  That combined with the hot weather made staying inside very appealing though I did manage to make it to my monthly Guild meeting as well as my Tuesday quilting group.

 

I’ll be pulling out the cutting table again this week.  An unexpected opportunity to be part of another quilting retreat late in July has surfaced and I need to start prepping for that as well as our other travel plans in early July.  July is shaping up to be a busy month.

 

 

Lots of Cutting

Not much sewing machine work happened last week.

But I spent several hours at the cutting table.  These should be enough units for the Scrappy Meets Thrift Challenge to keep me in mindless sewing for a while.  Each pile is approximately 10 blocks.  

I also got the fabric for the alternate blocks cut into strips and ready for sub-cutting into 2 ½ inch squares.  

This is one of those times I really appreciated my die cutter.

We had some rain in the past few weeks, and we could tell that enough dirt had washed into the skunk hole that it was not active.  I filled in as much dirt as I could.  Then I layered old gutter guard webbing and weighted it down with concrete chunks and rocks.  It’s not pretty, but is positioned between the AC unit and house wall, so well hidden.

My two 98 cent tomato plants are producing.  They turned out to be a vining, indeterminant variety and have taken over one of my flower beds.  At least they are paying for my investment!