Wind Advisory

We have a high wind advisory today, and it's supposed to last until tomorrow morning. I'm going to quilt anyway because I have three more tops that came in yesterday. Two were picked up, but I'm up one now. I can't let the weather dictate my work any longer. Although, I think in a lightning storm, I may make an exception. The winds are out of the west so I should be okay; it's the southerly winds that concern me more.

I'm still working on Lynette's and Linda's quilts, but after I worked in the studio last night, I shifted over to Christmas presents. Here's Yammy Cat all blanket stitched. 

Doesn't he look unamused?

Pod Cats are still in the works; it's mostly blanket stitched but I ran out of steam last night. 

I have a new customer coming at about noon today but only for a consultation on fixing a top she has inherited. She has an APQS Lenni and can quilt it herself, but has experienced some health issues, so I may actually end up doing this one for her.

Late Start

Because of my dentist appointment yesterday, and other interruptions, I didn't actually start quilting until around 2:00 in the afternoon. Here's some of what's going into Lynettes quilt...

Look at all the texture

When Jim finally got home (later than usual since he went hunting right after work), I was done with Lynettes quilt for the day and moved on to Linda N.'s quilt. Here's a little bit of what hers is getting...

Swirls and matchsticks

I'll continue on with both of these today. Once the evening began to deepen, I moved on to working on the kids' Christmas cat wall hangings. Yammy Cat is blanket stitched and ready for a trim/binding. Pod Cats will be worked on tonight (hopefully). 

I think I have a customer coming later today to pick up??? I don't remember that far back (last week) and I didn't write it down (naughty). The rest of the day is quilt, quilt, quilting with Christmas music in the background to keep me company. 

Decorating Done

After we get done with our Thanksgiving meal, we take a walk (to make room for dessert later) and then the grandkids and the adults decorate the house for the holiday. Except for the tree being up, the rest of the house is all festive.

Prior to everybody arriving on Friday, I was able to get the long arms loaded for this week. Here's what's on DW...

Lynette's beautifully embroidered top

I haven't had a chance to really think about how this one is going to be quilted. I may need to grab a couple of close-up pics and doodle on the iPad for what I want to go in here. 

Here's what's on Bernie...

Linda's Winter Gnomes

I have an idea of how I'm going to work this one. Maybe. At any case, I'm back from the dentist (first thing this morning) and I'm gong to grab some lunch before starting for the day. 

Getting Ready for Our Turkey Day

I've been cleaning like a madwoman all morning. The family starts arriving later this afternoon. I'm going to load both long arms this morning and then start food prep right after lunch. 

While Jim was out stringing lights yesterday, I made this cute pillow/pin cushion...

From the Farm Girl Vintage 2 book by Lori Holt

Once that was completed, I moved on to this...

???

When unrolled, it's a traveling silverware set. It's green friendly since now I'll never have to worry about plastic silverware. Not that we go out a lot. 

Just insert a set of silverware

That didn't take long to make and decided I could get the "cats" done before it got dark.

Yammy Cat and Pod Cats

Not a great pic, but you get the idea. They're adhered down to the surface but not yet blanket stitched. I'll work on those over the next few weeks. 

From there I moved onto starting something new. I bought a kit at the "yard sale" at Shipshewana and while rummaging through the studio, found it and started that. Everything is cut and now I'm piecing together...

Working from the center outward

And that's about all of my day yesterday. I surprise myself at how much I can accomplish in the studio when I don't have to "work". But I really did miss working on the big machines.

Happy Thanksgiving!

The girls and I started out our morning with a quick run up to get yesterdays [junk] mail. I'll be working on small projects today as Jim does the same. Well, hanging lights isn't such a small project if he puts up the usual amount. 

I also have to rearrange the backroom to accommodate the dorm fridge and the small table for everybody to put their stuff when arriving on Saturday.

Yesterday resulted in a very productive day. As I was perusing through IG this morning, it seems all the long armers were 'pulling' to finish out their day trying to get ready for the long weekend. Here's two more that were on and off DW...

Mystery Quilt #1

Mystery Quilt #2

So in all yesterday, I pulled four quilts off the machines. While finishing Bernadettes on Bernie I was playing a bit of thread chicken...

And I still had one whole section to work

But I won in the end. Another thing to be thankful for. Have a wonderful holiday. Don't eat too much and if you do, take a walk so you can eat that yummy dessert. 

Just Another Day

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. For Jim and I, it'll be just another day. Our Thanksgiving won't be until Saturday. That means Friday I'll be prepping all day. The two customer quilts need to be done today, and while we won't be celebrating the holiday on THE holiday, we'll still be 'working' around the house. 

Actually, I would like to sit and bind those potholders while watching the Thanksgiving Day parade and the Eukanuba Dog Show. That's why these two customer quilts need to be done today. I think it's doable.

Lucy was chillin' the other night. Since I don't really have any new quilting pics to post, here's one of her looking all cute-sy.

I'm so darn cute!

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I have SO MUCH to be thankful for: My supportive husband, my home, my customers, the kids, the grandkids, the dogs...my life. My life, on a whole, is a dream I nearly pinch myself every day to make sure I'm not dreaming. 

Long Hours

Another 11-hour day for me yesterday. Eight on DW, and three on Bernie. Here's some of the quilting detail going into Jeans quilt... 

Each block is receiving a different backfill

Here's some more quilting detail of Bernadettes quilt...

Morning sunshine showing detail

I have reached the 1/3 point on Jeans, and about the half-way point on Bernadettes. Today will be much of the same as yesterday. Sometimes it's kind of nice to know where you're headed for the day; it doesn't hurt my brain as much. 😉

The other part of my night was spent getting the front binding on those oven mitts. I'm going to have to hand bind (icky) the backside as I don't think I'll be able to get a nice finish if I try to get 10-12 layers under the machine needle. Now the dining room is cleaned up like nothing ever occurred here.