Knitting, Quilting, and Stuff

This sweater is really coming along.  I have not been spending as much time knitting as I had been so the progress has slowed, a bit.













However, I am very close to where the pattern suggests to stop the body and begin the band.  However, I really like my sweaters to be a little longer, and I am adjusting for shrinkage after washing (it cotton you know) so I plan to go to 14” and then around 3” of garter stitching for the band.



















I did do some pattern window shopping and have decided that my next project is going to be fingerless gloves.  My studio doesn’t have central heat or air and in the winter it takes some time to warm up.  I think that having most of my hands covered might make it easier to get in there and get busy even while the heaters are getting it warm.  Anyway, just for variety, I may start the gloves later this month.




Meanwhile I went fabric shopping.  I mentioned in my last post that our family has two babies on the way but since then a third one has been announced.  The babies are due in August, November, and December.  So, I am in baby quilt planning mode.  I really want do to pieced quilts so am open to any pattern suggestions.


















I only know the sex of the August baby so am buying neutrals.  I love the bottom fabric, it may show up on more than one quilt.

























  I also bought flannels.  I watched a video tutorial from the Missouri Quilt Company on a self binding receiving blanket and thought, if it wasn’t too difficult, I might make a couple of them.





















Here is the first one, completed.  Isn’t it beautiful?  I will probably be running back to the fabric store to get more of these two because I love them so much.  Anyway, this is not hard to do except that I washed my flannel and then it was not quite 40”.  For the next one I will wait to wash it until after the blanket is completed.  Or, I will just reduce the size by 1”.  Who knows?












And my puppy picture for today.  As I was getting dressed this morning, and obviously prior to making my bed, I looked over to see his.  Abby is giving Sherlock his morning bath.  And, unlike many young boys, he is just lying there, taking it.  This really does make for one very happy family.








Other knitting ideas can be seen at the link up at Patchwork Times.  Have a great rest of the the week. 
Gari

May 19th Design Wall

Sometime this past week I realized that I needed to make a baby quilt.  In fact I realized that I currently need to make three: DH wants one for a student he is exceptionally proud of and there are two pregnant women in our family.  So here is the start of baby quilt #1.  The white tumblers are part of the group I “found” when routing in my white fabric stash: I do not remember cutting them. 


















The bear fabric has been in my stash for ages and I cut up all I had.  This is as big as this quilt can get. 























I did start sewing these together but it was late Sunday afternoon so I didn’t get very far.













I do plan to do some fabric shopping later this week for backing for this little quilt and for the two others.










I have decided to start another new project, a table runner designed by Esther Aliu.  She designs wonderful applique quilts but they are way beyond my abilities so I was excited when she offered her yahoo group a table runner for Easter.  Of course it is way past Easter but I think I can do this one so I have kind of started.  I am going to work slowly on this but it should show up every once in a while.








This is a picture of our house.  Look closely, through our trees, and you can see it.  I am showing this because Saturday evening no where looked so good. 

Reason? 

Saturday afternoon DH and I went to Pensacola (120 miles) to check out a couple of antique malls, looking for small acrylic shelving (no luck).  We had a great afternoon and got home around 7pm.  However, upon getting out of the car I realized that I didn’t have my purse.  We decided that I had left it at a frozen yogurt shop way back in FL.  I called and they had found my purse so we jumped in the car and again headed toward the Gulf coast.   We finally got home, to stay, a little after midnight and even in the dark, our home never looked better.   Nothing like a little excitement to spice up life, huh?

Linking with Patchwork Times for great quilting inspiration.

Eric’s Boots: Blogger’s Quilt Festival

This is my entry into the Blogger’s Quilt Festival.  As always my last finished quilt is my favorite thus I present Eric’s Boots, my current favorite.














The boots were a BOM from Moose on the Porch in 2010, I think.  I had a great time picking out the fabrics for each of the boots, making them my own.











The sashing/
border fabric has been in my stash for a few years.  I LOVE it but it hasn’t wanted to play nice with other fabrics ……. until now.


Three times I put the blocks on the wall and three times I put them back in the BOM “waiting” box.







And then along came these machine embroidery designs, from Artistic Thread Works, and they were perfect.  I had just had my embroidery machine serviced so I quickly sewed them up and this quilt was finally born.












I had the top completed in time for DH’s birthday.  He is a old timey B-Western fan and memorabilia collector and this quilt will fit in nicely in our museum like great room.















This the backing for Eric’s Boots.  I found it in my stash: I think I had thought to make curtains but that never happened.














I am very excited about this quilt.  I tend to not be able to make a quilt using the designer’s layout and Eric’s Boots is no exception.

Thanks for visiting,  Gari

Labels, Labels, Labels, and Mother’s Day

I put this picture on Facebook for Mother’s Day but thought I would share it here.  This is our family’s 4 generations of mothers: My mother, me, my daughter and granddaughter.  We have Mother’s Day all over the southeast. 










DH and I went to Mellow Mushroom for lunch: doesn’t this look good?  Well I’m here to tell you that it was GREAT! 















I finally got the binding put on the Boots quilt.  I had to wait until I had the label designed (EQ design wall?).
















I am working with a new software: it is so much easier to stay with the old one but I like the challenge. 























I also have pinned the label on the Funky Chickens quilt but it isn’t sewn on yet.  I plan to take a couple of these quilts to guild Tuesday and would like the labels to be there when I do.













I have started stitching down the Underground Railroad label.  I have to say that all these labels have severely cut into my knitting time. 














And this also cuts into my knitting time.  After DH and three dogs join me on the swing, there is precious little room for knitting.  But who can say no to these cuties.















I did finish my placemats, first real finish since March.  But I think I am on a roll now.





I will be linking up with Patchwork Times, a great place to get your creative juices flowing.

A Little Work with a Lot of Rest In Between.

I am really excited that I am again using Live Writer to compose my blog post.  And I have my son #1 to thank as he told me where to look on the web to find it.  It is really good to have this old friend back. 



So, on my needles is my sweater, surprise, surprise.  I am really impressed with how it is looking and anxious to see it done.  I am trying to knit at least 4 rows a day which is almost 1”.

I have been looking at some other patterns but trying not to start another knitting project until this one is done. 


I put in some time and finally got the cutting table cleared.  It is funny how difficult it is to work when you can’t see the top of the table.











Once the table was cleared I was able to square this quilt and ready it for binding.



















I even got the binding strips cut and sewn together: it is the black one.  **DH got me this tie rack a couple of years ago but it took me a couple of months to figure out how to use it.  Now I hang my 2 1/2” strips here when I am working with them: so much easier to keep them organized.  Anyway, tomorrow I will be finishing the binding and then we just have to wait for me to make the label so I can sew them  together onto the quilt.













And while I was on a roll I went back to a UFO project, placemats.  2 or 3 years ago I made placemats for my family for Christmas and some for DH and me.  Well, I got kind of tired of placemats so our placemats have been done a little at a time.  Above are the last two.







I am quilting them using some of the fancy stitches on my new machine.

















It is so much fun to stitch fancy stitches.  I still have a few more spaces to add stitches and then on to the binding which has been ready for that 2-3 years. 

So that’s all I have been able to accomplish so far this week.  Now on to the BOMs I seem to have forgotten to do last month. 

Good Start to May

Every day last week I put in some time quilting DH's Boots quilt.  After quilting the majority of the quilt I began detailing the 12 boots.  This morning I made it up to the top row of boots when I discovered this.  The top of this boot had not been appliqued down.  Of course I did make them about 2 years ago but it was a shock when the hopping foot tried to take that piece of fabric out. 





I decided to cover this mistake with a curlicue stitching.  It took me longer than I expected to detail all of the boots because of the numerous thread changes due to the variety of colors I had used.  I must remember that when working on other applique projects. 

And early today I completed the quilting of this quilt.  I still need to cut the strips for the binding but that will have to wait until I can clear the cutting table.  I must figure out how to put things away so they don't pile up where I don't really want them. 













Below are two of the several quilt labels I am making.  I used to make my labels as I finished my quilts but I have fallen woefully behind.  But our guild is having a show in November so I am trying to get caught up. 

And last but not least, here is my
design wall today.  I decided to finally get busy working on my Celtic Solstice.  I had pieces but nothing put together so today I put 5 blocks together and up on the wall.  And I seem to have made a mistake: can you find it?  I guess I know what I will be doing tomorrow.  :-(



I will be linking with Patchwork Times along with several other talented quilters.  I never have time to read all the blogs that link there but if you go over there, too, between us we can get them all read.  :-)  Have a great week,  Gari

Progress, Sweet Progress

This has been a good quilting week.  I finished the regular quilting on the Boots quilt.  I took this picture with only the light from the window because it shows off the texture of the loop-d-loops.














 Now I am going back through the quilt quilting in detail on the appliqued boots.  I really want them to only have a little puff and not wind up sagging after some use and washing.  I have completed the detail on two boots so still have 10 more to go.

And look, Judy, how far I have gotten on my sweater!  I am on the arm row.







This is the sleeve.  It is a short
 sleeved sweater so this one is done and I am on my way to the second one.  You know, it just may be possible that I will be able to wear this this summer.