Almost No Sewing

I/we were on the road a lot last week.  I spent a lot of Monday with the dishwasher repair men (no it is not working) and Tuesday was away looking for matching vinyl to repair the new furniture (see Sherlock’s story below).  I can’t seem to remember what all kept me from the studio Wed – Fri except that I have spent a great deal of time at the sink.  I had forgotten how much I don’t like washing dishes and have completely forgotten the “dish washing rules” my mother pounded into my head.  Saturday DH and I went looking for a footstool that would allow our doxies to get up and down from the couch without taking that great giant leap (bad for doxie backs).  We spent all day and decided on this one: 
DH found it but we thought it was a little expensive until we trekked through many other stores and saw lots of stools and all for more money.  So, back to Hobby Lobby and home she came.  Doesn’t se fit in with our eclectic quilts motif?





Sunday afternoon I finally got into the studio and started on this, my last BOM for the year.  It is from Denise who seems to have high expectations for us. 










This is the layout for this block.  Please note that it takes 6 sheets of paper.  That’s because it is an 18” block!  Not only that but she expects us to make two of them by March 15th.  The making is not the hard part, it is the drawing, choosing all those different fabrics, and figuring out the best background fabric for the whole quilt.  Of course I could have done some of that before she released Block(s) 1 on Saturday but I didn’t.





So this is how far I got.  Doesn’t look like much, does it?  Well, it isn’t but mostly that is because I didn’t read the directions and only drew and cut fusible for one of the two blocks.  So today I get to do it all over again.  The good part is that I made a mistake and didn’t realize that one of the hats is reversed so when I do the second set of hats I can do two reversed ones and all will be right.  Then it is on to the fabric hunt.






While we were in Pensacola we did our usual stop at the book store where they had 2014 calendars for $3.  We found this one that was perfect for Sherlock.  He has eaten into clothes, both old and new, two quilts and a throw, and the new furniture that we had not had for even 24 hours.  He now is not left out with the other dogs when we go away, even to the studio, but must be crated.  I have never crated a dog but this has become a necessity.  And it is hard for us because he is a very loving dog.






However, he does not really like being left in the cage and has been able to push the door open to escape.  So DH put a cement block against the door and look what happened.  We now have Sherlock/Rudolph the Red Nosed Doxie.  Needless to say we will be putting something with a smoother surface against the door next time. 





It appears that our winter weather has finally returned to normal and we may even be seeing the beginnings of spring.  This is our front yard with leafless trees and the sun just beginning to make it’s way in.  This week I need to cut back the gardenia bush that was hit hard by the ice but I think is still living.  This will be the second time Winter has tried to kill that bush but it will live to bloom another day.

We have family in NH and MD that are still getting snow but everywhere else things appear to be improving.  I hope that winter is beginning to break where you are living and that you have a great week.  Gari 

Owls Everywhere

I have been really working on catching up on the owl BOM from Fat Cat Patterns.    He is one of the bigger blocks (see below). 















This is most of the owls I have completed.  One is under the needle being appliqued.  I only have one more block to complete and I will be all caught up.  Of course that block is another 3 owl composition, like the one on the bottom left, so it may take me the rest of the month to do.  The sashing in this picture is just up there as an idea.  They are leftovers from a binding I used several years ago and I don’t have enough to complete this quilt. 







My red Christmas cactus is in full bloom. 













But I am really impressed with the white cactus.  Doesn’t this bloom look like an orchid?  Of course it is only a little over an inch across so I wouldn’t be able to use it for a corsage. 










 The temps here in the Deep South have dipped below freezing so look how the doxies are keeping themselves warm.










They did spare a little time for me, posing for this picture. 












And I took this picture for my daughter in law who is a rabid Auburn fan.  The sweater came with our older doxie but it now fits Sherlock.  I tried to get him to do  a cheer but he said it was too cold. 

Back in Business

This has been a very busy week (3 days).

For those who didn’t read my Sunday post, this door (full, heavy industrial glass) fell into my hands that afternoon.  So Monday I called the young man who put the roof on the deck last summer.  He and two helpers came on Tuesday, they took the door off, repaired the rotten casing, rehung the door and then put that little “rooflet” above it to insure no water finds it’s way into the wood again.  I can’t tell you how happy I was to be able to again enter my studio.








  How is Sherlock doing, I hear people asking.  Well, he is doing GREAT.  Of course I’m not sure he felt that way yesterday when he got to visit the vet again for that required surgery that comes with being a rescue dog but by today he was again in fine fettle. 





Can you see him with the other doxies?  He doesn’t do as much barking but he is on high alert when they do.











This is my little group, all watching the wild cat that eats at our house.  They just make me smile.










I did finish my 3rd pair of socks: they really are the same size.  Look at how the tops start out the same.  I thought I was so smart, pulling out enough yarn to start with the same colors.  However, you can see that a little over half way down the yarn threw me a curve.  But I am really happy with how they turned out and how much I am learning about knitting socks.






When I was at a yarn shop in MD I found this keychain.  With this by my side, look what a beautiful toe.  This is the best one I have done and yes, I am very proud of my work here.








And I made the binding for Weave.  I really like this fabric which will give this quilt a scrappy look all the way.
















And lastly, this is for Wanda.  Look at my Christmas cactus.  Wanda of Exuberant Color has given me great advice on how to care for this plant: let it live outside all summer, take it into a dark place, see the flower buds.  These are only a couple but there are over 20 buds that are growing and plumping up.  Soon this will be the most flowering I have ever had and it will be on a plant that I have had for over a year (also a first). 


This has been a busy week with way too much going on for someone who has grown accustomed to days on end with no excitement.  Now it is time to settle down to some routine days. 

Fun Week

Last night DH and I attended a concert called Joy at the Beach directed by Karen, a friend from my working days.  The singing group was formed following Hurricane Ivan, which devastated the Pensacola Beach area, as a way of healing and a promise of rejuvenation.  They have been presenting musical programs now for 7 years.  It was a fun and refreshing program.  And, based on the audience, Christmas is not just for children!


While in Pensacola we made our obligatory stop at Dunkin.   As usual they had cool stuff for sale and we had to get this, a DD t-shirt.  Now I admit that I don’t like Starbucks coffee (too bitter) but I found this really funny and so two of them came home with us. 



Today I added something to our Christmas village scene.  It is the quilt on the right, a feathered star quilt top I finished 2-3 years ago and still haven’t quilted it.  I was very annoyed with the big blank blue wall and remembered that I had this “star” quilt that would just fit that space.  What is funny is that Flight School, the quilt on the left, was first hung as a flimsy and then quilted after that Christmas.  Maybe that bodes well for the Feathered Star. 



Several times a day I walk in the woods with these two dogs.




Note that although we are all walking in the same woods, two of us are going in two different directions.  Sometimes I feel like I am being pulled apart: did you know that doxies are VERY strong?



Sometimes they pull together, a lot like sled dogs (and I am the sled).  We all get our exercise when we go for a walk in the woods.



But besides the exercise we are always running into beautiful things hiding out in our wonderful woods.



But lest you think that life is all travel, music, decorating, puppies, and wood walks, I have been sewing.  Here you see the results of having ALL of Step 1 and Step 2 of Bonnie Hunter’s Easy Street Mystery DONE!!  And it is only Wednesday.  I even had time to draw the Teapot BOM for December and to pick out the fabric. 
I will be on the road again tomorrow but will be back for the Step 3 unveiling on Friday. 

A March Finish

This is my Design “Wall” for this week.  It is also my Color Pallet Challenge finish for March.  And, it is the first mug rug I have made.  Some of the fabrics I used were from a set of fat quarters Vickie sent me several months ago.  I got the crazy quilt block from EQ7 and elongated it to be more practical.

 

 

 

 

After I sewed the the decorative stitches between the patches I marked curves on each of the patches, except one.  These I used as the quilting and did it with my DSM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the quilting was done I put the binding on, a leftover binding from an earlier quilt.  And do you see my new binding clips?  When I got them on this I thought they looked like the curlers we used to use to get curls in our hair.  Cool, huh?

 

And here it is, all done and ready for coffee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the back, fabric left over from an earlier quilt.  Pretty much this also matches the color challenge, don’t you think?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I also have started a new, nonquilting project, but this is as much as I can show for now.  I hope to have it done before the end of the month.

 

 

 

 

And, as a final thought, I thought I would share why it takes me so long to get anything done.  I took this while I was “working” on an EQ project.  As you can tell, it is not easy to get anything done.  And, of course, aren’t my babies beautiful? 

 

Now, it is time to go to Patchwork Times and see all the quilting creativity going on over there.