All Three Long Arms

This is what I was working on yesterday after Sandy's Tilda Sampler was done. It's Diane's 6th quilt.

Come Sail Away

After working on the two Bernina's I had to reset my arm before jumping on DW. Even though we've taken off his computer hardware and have lightened him up, I still reset for a little bit.

I decided to try something new around the house. I made this.

Did we actually forget this holiday?

That didn't take too awful long and I wanted to actually sew something. I did a test block for the upcoming retreat and the Granny Squares blocks is one of the projects I'll be working on. 

Granny Square block by Lori Holt

I'm glad I always make myself do a test block. While the block itself turned out pretty perfect, I trimmed it a little not so perfect. I'll put it on the bottom somewhere or make a pillow out of it. 

Andrew called just as I was firing up DW. I was able to get three blocks worked on DW for Hannah's quilt while talking to him. Since there is so much writing and color changes, this one is going to take some time to get done. 

Off to do some skating and grocery getting. 

After working around the house Saturday morning and making fish tacos for lunch (Jim was late getting home from Food Bank), I headed finally headed into the studio. 

The first order of business was to get the cousin quilt finished. 

I need to call her and let her know I'll be coming through Charlotte a week from today for her to have.

Next, get Hannah's backing onto DW and start frame ironing. Okay. That's started.

What to do next? I can't really start anything big (my rules) until all the Christmas gifts are finished. But, I do need a Christmas bow to put on the studio door in a few weeks. We always decorate on Thanksgiving night. 

That may change this year. The grandkids usually help to decorate and they aren't coming up until the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The house will be lit though. I hope. 

Here is my start on the Christmas bow...

And of course, yesterday was a non-studio day. We ran to Wal-Mart and Home Depot up in West Branch looking for pillow inserts for Hannah and Penelopes pillows as well as window film. We struck out on both accounts. 

Today I hope to finish Sandy's Tilda Sampler on Marty. I have a 12/1 deadline in the queue I should probably tackle next and get started on that before heading down south. So. Much. Pressure! It's not the only December deadline I have and UGH, it keeps me awake at night. 

After Visiting

We had a delightful visit with mom and Chad yesterday. Tried the new Char House restaurant in Gladwin. Great food but freezing in the place; it was 44 degrees outside and yet the radiators in the old structure were stone cold. 

Once we were done with lunch we headed home via Pieces of Thyme. The original backing I got for the cousin quilt was too small by only a couple of inches so found a perfect back in flannel instead. Got that loaded on DW and am just doing an E2E on it.

After one pass and happy DW's stitch regulator is working after having taken all the computer components off, I was back in on Christmas gifts. The girls' pillows are sewn and all I need are the inserts. 

I also got caught up on the Temperature quilt blocks but had to go back and rip a few seams because I forgot the monthly placeholder between October and November. With that fixed I cut more green strips for our garland and then started gridding out fusible for another big [holiday] bow. I could have bought the premarked stuff but am watching the pennies before Shipshe. 

Once that was done I started pulling fabrics to begin cutting today. I'll be working on the bow at retreat and need to cut all the 2 1/2" blocks before I leave. Cutting here is much easier than trying to talk and cut there. 

I was on the phone with the Germany kids this morning for over an hour so I"m blogging late since after the phone conversation (and shower) decided the bathrooms all needed a good scrubbing. Now I can play the rest of the day. 

DW Is Stripped

Off to skate with my getting-to-know-you "geezer" friends. I am past the half-way point on Sandy's Tilda Sampler. I haven't grabbed any pics because, well, we've seen this quilt so many times previously. 

I did get Elijah's quilt bound and here is the set he'll be receiving for Christmas. 

While I was working on Marty yesterday, Jim was working on this project at the other end of the studio. 

The carriage drives the motors for the ProStitcher

A naked machine

He has removed the ProStitcher off DW. I don't use it. I don't like. I don't have control and it adds a LOT of weight to my free motion work. 

I haven't tested him out yet to make sure we have all the necessary connections for the stitch regulator, but I'm sure it'll be okay. 

I also started Tristans pillow top. Jim assisted on the color selections and this is what we came up with. 

Happy Halloween

Do you participate in Halloween? We like the cutesy stuff for Halloween: Ghosts, pumpkins, the dressing up. What we don't like is all the creepy movies, disgusting movies, killing, death, satin-like fictional creatures. Halloween, IMO, has become dark and dangerous. 

So, have fun with the kids and their costumes, but unfortunately, we get zero trick or treaters and really don't participate in this holiday.

We do, however, participate heavily in Thanksgiving. Which, again, IMO, is way understated, has more meaning than Halloween, and gets lost somewhere between Halloween and Christmas. Don't we live in a weird world?

I got a good start on Sandy's quilt yesterday morning. Then the beautiful afternoon presented itself and the long arming mojo disappeared. Jim and I did some color touring, had a few errands to run, and attended an estate sale. I got a new fall/spring jacket from the MSU Marching Band and Jim got a new MSU throw as well as a soap stone. 

When we finally came back home my quilting mojo had returned. Sometimes it only takes a few hours to fire me back up. I got the borders on the cousin quilt and it's ready to hit the long arm.

Before I load this later I'm going to background quilt the pillows for Hannah, Penelope, and Tristan. It's easier to do it on the long arm than the DMS.

Meanwhile, and speaking of long arms, Elijah's quilt is quilted and off the frame. I need to trim it and get his pillow done at some point today. Want to hear something cute? Jim is on my industrial machine right now repairing his rag quilt before we wash it. I guess it's going to be a sewing kind of day for everybody.

Shopping for Insurance

Jim shops around for insurance every few years. He likes to make sure we are paying a fair price and the coverage on our stuff is well insured but not over insured (there is such a thing). His phone has been buzzing all morning. Talk about vultures!

Dianes quilt is done! I have her next back ironing on the frame. Here's what I'll be working on today on Marty. 

I wonder how many of these I've done?

This will be done similarly to the past Tilda Samplers so I don't have to think about what to put in.

Janice picked up her quilt yesterday and was over the moon at how it turned out. I'm so glad I was able to take a top she didn't particularly like and make it something she now wants to enter into a show. 

While talking to Andrew last night on his way home I put the blocks, and then the top, together for the cousin quilt. I still have to get two borders attached but the body is together. 

Once we hung up with Andrew (Jim joined in the conversation about half-way through) I jumped on DW to work another row in Elijah's quilt. I have one more row and two borders to go. The cousin quilt will be loaded next since I want to deliver it when I head down to Shipshewana in a few weeks. 

New Hours

I went into my web site yesterday to modify hours of availability with my 'retirement'. Same with Google. However, one of the two (I can't remember which one) would only let me either be closed on Friday or stay with the same hours (10-4). I wanted to reduce Friday to 10-12 since we seem to get pulled away on Friday afternoons for one reason or another. 

I opted to mark it closed and if somebody needs to come on Friday I'll make arrangements to be here. 

Meanwhile, here's some of the quilting going into Janice's quilt.

A corner

The border corner

After working I took a few minutes to cut up a bunch of strips. More on this later. 

Strips in green, white/off white, and red

I got the top together on the horse quilt and have to get a bunch of borders in next.

After getting that top where I wanted to be last night, I moved over to DW. I removed and trimmed Jacobs quilt and made the binding after that. It's not attached but ready for me to do when next available. Not tonight.

Tonight I have a QQQ meeting up in Oscoda and we have to leave here around 4:30 to get up there in time for the meeting. 

Taking A Me Day

Technically we are supposed to be in Ohio, but because of Hazels situation right now, we postponed that trip. I had already, in my head, scheduled a day off yesterday so I 'played' in the studio working on holiday gifts for the grands. 

Here's Zechariah's set all complete. 

They call him Zecky but I spelled it like I wanted

After working all morning and most of the afternoon on his pillow (took way longer than I thought it would), I jumped on DW and worked on these three blocks.

Block 15

Block 14

Block 13

The QAL from Sam Alberts and Quilting Curve Studio is going to Jacob. I have to get this quilt done so I can get his gift(s) finished. But I did start his pillow.

We have to run to town to get some ingredients for dog food. We are making it here because Hazel is on soft foods for a few weeks. We replicate the Farmers Dog recipe in our insta-pot. I'm hoping to jump on DW to work the remaining five blocks later today. 

Out of the Box

As we get older we fall into a comfortable routine. When the routine is disrupted it's like working outside of the box or coloring outside of the lines. Remember in our younger years routine changes didn't seem as big a deal?

Today is back to the norm, but I quite like getting outside of the box. I like change. I like to mix things up. While getting back to the norm is like a favorite pair of shoes; comfortable but not quite as supportive or clean anymore, let's get those shoes really dirty! More in a bit.

Here is some of the quilting going into Lynettes quilt. 

Frosty?

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

Honk

The previous night I did get all the blocks done on the QAL and only had to do the border. Here are the last four blocks. 

Block 12

Block 11

Block 10

block nine

And the last big block in the Quilt Room is finished meaning it's time to get the whole thing put together.

Last block is done

I have a few hours left to go in Lynette's quilt this morning and then my day will be done. I may start in on the fifth quilt from Diane, but since it's supposed to be nice today (another pic-perf autumn day) it may be difficult to stay in the studio this afternoon. 

Yesterday was another 'norm' day, but I'm doing my skating exercises to regain the balance I've lost and adjust to my new 'older' body (which is not 16 anymore). I'm planning on sticking with my skating (re)endeavor and that's getting the shoes very dirty!

Where Was I Yesterday?

I did do quilting things both Tuesday and Wednesday, but yesterday morning I was off and running with Jim. We were doing this...

Trying to get the old boots off. The bolts/nuts were rusted on. 

My old skates received a minor overhaul. New boots, cleaned bearings, and new inserts. Here they are ready for me to pick up on Sunday...

The skates reconditioned

Here's the thing about my skating habit. I used to go whenever I could. Didn't matter the weather, temperatures (most rinks are not air conditioned), inside or outside, I loved to skate and would get on them as much as possible. I started training for speed/distance competitions and then I found out I was pregnant.

The doctor said I was not allowed on my skates. Life, moving, college, boys, moving, new careers, moving, and now age have gotten in the way along my lifes path. 

Nearly 40 years later I'm treading into a very familiar, yet oddly new experience. When ya start losing your balance (as we do as we age), skating becomes a new experience all over again. And, my skates were not done yesterday in time for me to enjoy getting on the floor. I grabbed a pair of rentals and at least played for a little while. Well, played is not correct. Trying not to fall is more like it.

But it'll come. 

Back to the quilting end of things. Tuesday was a busy day. Here is what I've been working on the past two days...

Another Tilda

And since I've been long winded this morning I'll just tell you all the blocks in the 9-Patch QAL are done. I just need to get the border in. The last block in the Quilt Room is being constructed and I've got a little less than half done on Lynette's Tilda quilt above. 

The Doug (Dug, Dugg?)

Normal work day yesterday except I knocked off a little early. I took this pic before we left.

A view from our front (back) deck

I wanted to show the Fowler's where the new pontoon was going to 'live' over the summer. Speaking of pontoons, it's now in our yard. Which is why I had to knock off early. Jim wanted to avoid post-work traffic going through Midland with a pontoon boat. 

Home at last

I was pondering all week what to name the pontoon. It's a Bennington. Caleb's FFA advisors last name was Pennington. His first name was Doug. I keep calling the pontoon Doug so I believe that is going to be the name we settle on for the new toy.

Once we got home and settled Doug in the yard (for now) and let the girls out for a bit, I hustled in the studio and was able to get the next set of sashings/borders quilted in and the four blocks above done on the QAL.

Then I started cutting. 

Just a few pieces in the next block

It had been dark for quite some time by the time I left out of the studio. Making up for the couple of hours we were gone maybe?

A very rainy day today (hurray) which makes quilting perfect!

Getting a Late Start

When I woke up at 7:30 this morning my intention was to just lay there and watch nature outside the window. I woke back up around 8:40. Oops. Must have been tired.

Dianes quilt is nearly done but I'm shifting over to this piece to get it done for the holiday.

Lynette's Quilted Witch by Lori Holt

Pumpkins!

I'm free motion quilting pumpkins of all shapes and sizes into the border. 

I pieced the next block in the Quilt Room

Scrap bins and bolts of fabric

Block #4

Block #3

Block #2

Block #1

Not sure why these loaded in reverse but I started the QAL with Natalia Bonner of Piece n' Quilt in Utah last night. I was having so much fun I did four blocks. I had all three long arms busy yesterday!

More of the same today while enjoying the picture perfect weather the past week (mid-70's with sunshine).

First Order of Business

Wow, did I get some things done in the studio yesterday. I think I was making up for the past two unproductive days. 

First: All the pieces for the Granny Squares top are cut, organized, and ready to head to a retreat. Check. 

Next. Finish the Book Nook quilt on DW. Check.

Next. Get binding on said Book Nook quilt and shoot a photo before putting it away. Check.

The pumpkin was still sweating from the cold night we had so was finally able to get it dollied up for the fall season. Check. 

Get new top loaded onto DW for the 9-Patch Quilt-Along with Natalia Bonner. Check.

Decided on a different border treatment than she put in because I know this quilt-along is a bit simpler than the one I'm doing with Sam from Quilting Curve Studio. How about this?

I'm now ready to actually participate in the QAL since I have the borders and sashing started. Yay!

Because I had spent a lot of time on DW yesterday getting things finished and started, I pulled away from him around 7:00 to do some cutting for the next block on the Quilt Room. 

But today I'll not be doing that. In fact, I should be heading to Crosswell for a fantastic fabric sale going on but it's a 2 1/2 hour drive one way and the sale started yesterday. Chances are, everything is picked over and it's too nice to be in the truck all day long (again) today. 

Jim has applesauce he wants to start. There is another sale next weekend in Harrison with even better prices than Crosswell and I'll just attend that on Friday (Saturday, we have family coming up). 

I need to run into town sometime today to find a foam core board for the super-mini design wall I'm going to need for the Granny Square planning. I also need to wash down the trim and ceiling fan in the guest bedroom to prepare it for painting so I'll start there and later we can run in after Jim fends off all the mean bees out right now while he's peeling and coring apples outside.