Feline Friday - 12/9/16

Momma's been cleaning and decorating Casa Grande - she says there is going to be a party on Sunday!! I hope it won't be too cold cuz I am gonna ring that bell to go outside as soon as the first lady gets here! You can bet your Friskies on it!

This morning Momma was "cleaning" the quilt lab. I guess that's what you call it when you put all the random piles of stuff on the central cutting table and then slowly file or trash it all. The ladies like to see Momma's projects so there is no need to have the lab "'perfect."

The sewing table only has her 3 current projects and 2 gifts. She even added a cat bed just for me cuz I was having a bad morning (that fluffernutter is getting coal for Christmas!!). I like this bed best cuz it's lined with cozy sheep stuff and has a thin coating of catnip!

I know you are wondering why the old cutting mat is on the SEWING table! Well - she felt the need to work on her mystery quilt for just 5 minutes - she hasn't done any stitching all week. Poor Momma! I'll forgive her as long as she puts it away tonight. I like having a clean table to lounge on...

An InLinkz Link-up

World Wide Blog Hop

Hello and Welcome to my edition of the World Wide Blog Hop!

If you’re new to my blog, I hope you’ll come back often. I generally post about my quilts, including English Paper Piecing (we have a monthly EPP linky party called HeLP on the 17th of each month), books (another monthly linky party called Bibliophile Files on the first Tuesday) and my cats (a weekly linky called Feline Friday).

I was nominated last week by Chantal – I can’t remember how long we’ve known each other now but I’m pretty sure it started with hexies. LOL! Be sure to visit her blog which is full of bright quilts and crocheted items, book reviews and much more!

1.  What am I working on?

I guess I have 2 main projects at the moment (but I'm always working on bits of other projects at the same time!). The first is to work on my ruby Beauty blocks from the class that I took with Bonnie Hunter a week ago.

 

Just this Saturday I made over a hundred more four patches and 150 more HSTs. This week I’ll put more blocks together to see how many more parts I need. Mom loves red so I plan to give this quilt to her (so far it’s a secret...shhhh!!!!). I measured their bed this weekend but I have yet to figure out exactly how many blocks I need. Maybe it’s best not to think that far ahead since, at just 6” for each block, it’s going to be a lot!

Zorro REFUSED to look at the camera.
I suppose he thought he would be in trouble since he isn't often allowed on my sewing table.

I’m also working on my Value Proposition hexie quilt along blocks. I’m behind because it’s school tax season and I run to the school every day during lunch instead of doing hexies. I’ll catch up soon enough. This is block #9. I’m doing them out of order so I have this block plus 4 more to catch up. In case you haven’t seen my previous posts, each block has a teal in it but the rest is scrappy. Gotta love scrappy!

2.  How does my work differ from others of it's genre?

I don’t know that I really differ from anyone else’s work. Janet will tell you that at times I have completely forgotten I own a sewing machine because I’m all about the hexies but I don’t think I do anything outlandish. I love color and I love lots of (little) pieces and I don’t like hand work unless it’s hexies. Go figure…I’m just like a lot of other people. LOL.

 

3.  Why do I create what I do?

Basically, quilting is my therapy. I can certainly tell when I’ve been away from my hexies or my sewing machine. I can get down right C.R.A.N.K.Y. I’ve somehow had lots of time to sew in the last two weeks and I feel like I’m on cloud nine, even at just an hour or two a night after working both jobs. I feel relaxed and ready for another long day.

4.  How does my creative process work?

I’m lost somewhere between OCD and ADD or maybe even ADHD at times. Even tho my “stuff” looks like a mess, I pretty much know where it is and what project it’s for. There are piles of pressed scraps to trim, baskets of partially finished zipper bags and mugrugs for upcoming craft bazaars, baskets corralling fabrics for a specific project, crocks of rulers and choco and underneath it all is my cutting mat, ironing board and sewing machine. I’m in piggy heaven. LOL.

Red & neutral on table are for Ruby Beauty Blocks.
Design Wall is always covered with bits of projects.
Plastic bins under the table Dad made me are the FQ stash, Bag is selvages.
Finished blocks hang on the end of the table while I wait to finish quilts.

When I work on a quilt I’m very methodical…preferring to make all I’ll need for a certain part of the project at one time and then moving on to the next part. On the other hand, I get bored working on a project and move on to something else for a while which leaves me with UFOs out the wazoo. Leader/Enders work great for me because I’m actually working on 2 kinds of projects at the same time but also because some of my L/E projects are made from scraps so I’m always mixing up the cutting with the sewing with the cleaning up. It’s a never ending battle of finding something to entertain myself. I guess it boils down to being more about the process than the finished product for me.

Curio cabinet holds hexie projects and L/Es
Green trug is full of scraps to trim.

Oh goodness, the last photo reminded me of a very important part of my so called process. 99.9% of the time I am listening to an audiobook while I'm in my studio. At the moment, I only have 2 audio books checked out of the library so I'm a little panicky since I usually have 5 to 10 out at any time. Hopefully when I swing by the library today I can stock up properly.

Well, that was a brief snapshot of me, now I would like you to visit a couple friends:

Denise and I have been friends for eons. We have a lot in common in our personal lives including tea parties, quilting, cats and hexies. It’s been a fun ride and I always look forward to hearing from her!

Missy is another friend that I can’t remember when or where online we met. She always has a lot of colorful projects, sews on treadle machines, shares yummy recipes and has a fabulous clowder of cats that she shares on my Feline Friday linky parties.

Be sure to visit Denise and Missy any time but definitely next Monday when they answer the Hop questions and link to more fabulous bloggers.

not-so-Wordless Wednesday

BEFORE & AFTER

Can you find my helper in the after photo? He's kinda hidden...but nice and cozy.

For years I have wanted shutters for the front/studio windows. It's so easy for people driving or walking by to see what I am doing at any time of the day, especially at night with the flourescent lights on. Rosie would even stop her walk to look in the window so she could wave if I was working there. Some days I just don't want people to see me in my pjs and bed head hair!

What shutters I could find at Home Depot/Lowes were pretty pricey and come to find out they weren't the right size anyway. The only reason I know they wouldn't fitright size is becasue Santa investigated this year! After realizing they wouldn't fit, he decided to make me some, sneaking into my house while I was at work to measure and remeasure the window frames. Each of the four panels has removable dowels at top and bottom allowing me to change the fabric panels at will. Mom thought I could make quilts that would fit the space but I started with just the purple fabric as it was faster to start with. I thought it might be fun to make Christmas panels some day.

I was really surpirsed at how much bigger and brighter the space seemed after removing those half rotten sheers that came with the house. I still need to make the valance - I have fabric that looks like green Olfa mats and I will probably use the same purple to "line" them so the purple shows from the outside.

Next remodel job here at Casa Grande is my bedroom...then I can do the Studio!! I'll paint the trim white again and the recessed panels under the windows will be purple, the floors will get the same laminate as the rest of the house (yeah - no more pink carpet!) and I'll finally have to decide what to do about the paneling. The window bump out area appears to have the original wallpaper on plaster. It will be a bugger to remove but since it's starting to crumble at the bottom it will probably need to be replaced.

NewFOs and UFOs

Somehow I never started the NewFO I thought I would in January...not to worry tho as I did start 5 other projects! One is done, I hope another is done this weekend and one is probably long term altho a little addictive.

This is the NewFO I finished already. A mug rug that was donated to my local library for their V-Day fundraiser. I had planned to also make one with hexies instead of the hearts but forgot until I was typing this post. I haven't picked colors for the hexie version yet.

This is the NewFO that I hope is finished this weekend. I haven't specified what it is but several people have made some very close guesses.

This is my addictive NewFO. I had thought it would be long term but it's too easy to grab for a few minutes here and there. This could be a good thing so that I don't have parts sitting around forever. Maybe I should aim for the end of the year? I'll still collect selvages but I'm not sure what the next project will be and I need to see how many I have left when this quilt is done anyway.

This NewFO would probably be pretty easy to get finished and since I hope to keep up with the doll-quilt-a-month-a-long at http://sentimentalquilter.blogspot.com/2012/02/february-small-quilt-challenge.html (this is the link for the next doll quilt) I better get caught up and keep the quilting simple. I had thought about fans but we shall see when I get the red backing on what strikes me.

The last NewFO isn't done yet because I wasn't sure how I wanted to proceed. This is a cover for my Kindle and my original idea was to make the hexies go all the way around without any seams but I wasn't sure how to make that work along with the tutorial that I working from. I've now decided that the best way to proceed will be to make the hexies a little bit bigger, quilt this to the batting and then do the seams as on the tutorial. I think it will be safer for the Kindle. Now if I could just figure out what's wrong with my wifi connection all will be honky dorey.

My January UFO was my Blooming 9-Patch, probably started 4 or 5 years ago. I had hoped to finish the top (which turned out I just needed borders) and get her quilted this month. I purchased the border fabrics and got part of it on but had to stop when I was just a little short on the light purple fabric. I did buy another quarter yard but I still need to finish the borders. I bought batting (on sale!) and I should have enough scraps to piece the back. I would like to think this doesn't now go to the bottom of the UFO pile but who knows.

My February UFO is RollRollCottonBoll which was Bonnie's 2010 mystery project. I've actually listed RRCB for 2 months in this year's UFO Challenge so I don't have specific goals this month other than to make progress. I have 4 steps left: neutral string blocks (and y'all know how much I love them!), assembling the 600 HSTs from those 2 skinny bins into sashing and attaching them to the blocks which are under the red and neutral fabrics, assembling the center of the top and then the borders (parts are in that black dish to the left). OK - no real pressure this month and I like that!

Almost Wordless Wednesday

I had hoped to have the secret purple project done to post before and after photos today but it didn't happen...I still need to do more of this:

Design Wall Monday - 1/30/12

I know I was busy all weekend sew why oh why don't I have much to show for it?? I guess cuz most of it wasn't photo worthy. I mean who wants to see a pic of my clean laundry or shoveled driveway ?? :)

I put together a few more "kits" for my hexie diamonds - can't wait to see how the cork fabric looks on hexies. Once those kits are sewn together I think I'll need only 2 or 3 more diamonds for this round. At that point I'll decide if it needs to be bigger and if not, do I square it off or maintain the diamond/star points? It might come down to deciding how to finish the edges that determines if it's squared off or not.

I worked on hexies while watching season 6 of Lost. I'm pretty good at stitching and watching movies but I do think I want to watch the last episode again solely because there was so much going on. I would watch the whole season again but it's due back at the library Thursday... Watching the DVD specials certainly helped explain a few things...

I putzed at putting some of my selvages together. I sewed them into twosies and then into foursies. I now have a whole 4 blocks together :) I think the remaining foursies will need only 1 or 2 selvages to be the right size. I still need to go thru the second box to cut at least one 7" section from each selvage. After I see how many blocks that becomes, I'll decide if I obliterate the collection to all become selvage blocks or if I just need a portion of them.

I also worked on this purple project which I can't show you until it's done. It's pretty fussy but I like the final look. The only hint I'll give is they're for my studio...I guess that was 2 hints...

Almost Wordless Wednesday

Before...

After...

It's amazing what a little organization, tossing and putting away can do for the mojo. Cheapo baskets to organize projects were a great help.