New Project Bag

 

As much as I love my long-term projects, sometimes I just need to finish something.  When one of my Tuesday quilting friends showed up with a project bag she recently made, I had to make one too.  It was my first attempt at sewing in a double-pull zipper.  It was a lot of fun, and I’ve already started using it.

We are still in 100+ degree days and are predicted to remain so for a while.  According to the Austin station we watch, we are now at 22 plus consecutive days.  We had another AC scare last week.  Fortunately, only a capacitor needed replacing.  The AC guy who got here promptly the morning after we reported the problem continues to be my hero.

 In other news, an armadillo has adopted us.  I knew something was toppling my flower pots over during the night, but I didn't know if the culprit was an armadillo or a skunk.  Both dig holes in the yard.  I finally caught it in the act of trying to dig his way out of the yard while one of our dogs hovered a few inches away barking loudly.  Fortunately, he was right next to the gate and I was able to open it and give him a nudge with my foot to get his attention.  That’s when I learned that they make a nose between a grunt and a growl as they run away.

 

 

We live close enough to a pond to see a wide variety of dragon flies every year.  This one actually posed for me.

 

...and yet another frozen yogurt lunch.

…my “assistant” asleep on the job, again.

 

Group Project Finish, and Staying Cool

Last week I happily turned in this block to the group project coordinator.  It was definitely the most complex applique I have ever attempted, but at least I didn’t have to tackle it alone.  In addition to the friend who finished off the embroidery, another kindly helped me prep some of the more difficult shapes.

I have only to watch the news to know everyone is dealing with extreme weather.  So, I’m not indulging in a pity party when I report that every day since my last post we had highs over 100 degrees.  I’m only noting it here for my own future reference.  One day had a high of 111 degrees.  How are we dealing with the unrelenting heat?  Well, we went to a nice cool theater to watch the latest Indiana Jones movie one afternoon; and one day we had frozen yogurt for lunch.  Basically, it’s just trying to take it one day at a time. 

 

This is where you’ll find me most evenings for another week; watching recordings of the Tour de France and working on hexagons.

July 4th Check-In

My Tuesday sewing with friends’ group won’t meet today because of the July 4th holiday.  Instead, I will be working on this project at home.  I thought I was ready to start on the border and then discovered another section in the center that needed to be quilted.

 

Four more rows of my thimble/tumbler quilt are pieced and ready to be pinned to the design wall.  It looks like they are smiling.

 

I think our July 4^th will be a quiet one as we are not expecting visitors this year.  Bob has his daily recording of the Tour de France and I have my projects.    

 

 

It's Hot!

 Julia was with us Fathers’ Day weekend and it was a wonderful visit.  The only problem:  an AC that decided to go on the blink during…

 

My new hero is the AC guy who came out Monday and quickly had it back in working order. 

 Also on Monday evening, we experienced a rare weather phenomenon called a heat burst.  By 8:30 our outside temperature was down to the mid-90s.  Suddenly we were being pummeled by ferocious winds and the temperature jumped back up to 106 degrees.  We lost several sizable limbs, but fortunately the experience was quickly over.  I don’t know what the wind speed was, but I’m certain some of the gusts would have knocked me off my feet.  Heat bursts, I learned, usually happen in the evening or nighttime as thunder storms decay.  This week is predicted to be even hotter.  Good weather to stay in and stitch.

 

Part of my sewing time last week was spent prepping little applique circles for the group project.  They certainly aren’t perfect, but I’m calling them done.  After they are stitched down I go back and use a moist cotton swab to get rid of the excess starch. This is the last bit to do before handing it over to a kind friend who agreed to embroider the stems.  It’s been decades since I embroidered.

 

Now that log cabin blocks are off my design wall, I was able to pin it up.  It’s a long way from done, but I’m really liking it.

 

Another turtle rescue happened last week.  It’s as big as the first one, but I don’t think it was the same turtle.

This and That

Whenever possible, I spend my Tuesdays sewing with a group of friends.  I joined the group in 2007 when a local quilt shop let us meet there.  Since then, the quilt shop has closed and we continue to meet in spaces we rent.  By our estimate we moved into this space in August 2015.  The group has lost and gained members over the years.  Some of our members are winter Texans.  Our Christmas gathering usually has about 12 in attendance. This Tuesday I wore a t-shirt that makes a statement and worked on a group applique project.

I’m closing in on a finish.  Just a few tiny circles and some embroideries are left.  I can probably foist the embroidery part onto a friend, but no one is interested in doing the tiny circles for me.  I really, really want to finish this so I can spend more time on my own projects!

Today is Flag Day.  I purchased this pre-planted arrangement at the garden center and have it positioned by our front door.  When the flag has faded, I will be able to replace it with something else.

Every year turtles manage to trap themselves inside our fence.  The dogs alerted me to his presence this morning and I was able to rescue him.  I don’t know enough about turtles to say whether this is a “him” looking for love or a “her” seeking a place to deposit her eggs.  I only know our yard with its two dogs is not a place for either.

 

A Small Finish

It took far more effort than I expected, but my foundation pieced block assignment for the guild’s donation quilt is finally finished.  I already had my workstation set up for paper piecing and expected to make short work of this.  I had forgotten, however, how challenging paper piecing triangle shapes are for me.  I finally had it done and up on the design wall for a picture….

 

…Wait, that’s not right!  The only comfort was, the mistake was in the instructions and not my work.  Fortunately it was where I could get to it and correct it.

  

…much better.  The block is called Crown of Thorns and we were instructed to leave the paper in and not to do the final trim.

 Our thermometer registered 102 degrees yesterday and despite what the graphic below shows, will probably reach 100 degrees again today.  At 1:30 we are already at 97.9 degrees.  The rest of the week looks pretty hot too.

We are expecting company for Father’s Day, so I am in house-cleaning mode this week. 

Girls' Day Out

I love a good quilt show, and the one in Kerrville last weekend was a lot of fun.  When I was offered the opportunity to join two friends for the outing, I jumped at the chance.

  

This was the Best of Show winner by Carole Pinkham.  I’ve seen photographs of other versions of this pattern, but this was the first one I could see in person. 

Carole’s statement:

 

 I notice that her quilt had sold.  If I ever completed such a masterpiece, I doubt I would be able to part with it.

 Of course, any trip to Kerrville mandates a stop at Creations Quilt Shop.  Even though we got there only half an hour before closing, I managed to find a few things.