Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Goodbye August 2011

Parting is such sweet sorrow. NOT! Come on September with cooler temperatures and RAIN!

I lied. I told you a week ago I would take pictures of our new quilting room. I forgot. I forgot to grab the camera as I was leaving. Today, I put the camera in my purse and forgot to GET OUT and take pictures. One of these days I will remember to do all three. We were laughing and cutting up today. Dixie was talking about how a cut up her new husband is. He keeps her laughing and that is so wonderful for her.

Part of the reason I forgot to take pictures--I had finished quilting Jan's quilt and brought it to her at quilting and of course everyone wanted to see it. And then several of us had C.A.S.A. quilts we had finished and had to show them. And then I had brought examples of the backing fabric I have on hand for Jan to see for her next quilt. And then it was time to quilt. And then it was time to eat. And then it was time to quilt again. And then it was time to go home. Blah-blah-blah.

Here's Jan's quilt. Isn't it pretty? I don't know if you can tell or not. I used a snowflake overall pattern. And after I took it off the frame I loaded this little C.A.S.A. quilt. Got it quilted and bound within two days. Fastest I have EVER gotten a quilt done. Woohoo! Of course, I sewed the binding on by machine. I didn't have matching purple thread so I used a variegated purple and used one of the specialty stitches on my Kenmore to sew it down instead of by hand. Much faster! I have another quilt loaded and I'm quilting it. I will also bind this one. Hopefully I can get it done by the weekend.

                                         Jan's quilt.
                                          C.A.S.A. quilt. The colors are washed out in both pictures.

Wildfires are burning again. Possum Kingdom Lake has a huge fire burning. Twenty or more houses have been burned and thousands of acres. Today a big grassfire started up south of Bridgeport. Two houses and possibly a third have burned. I will know more tomorrow. One TV station out of  DFW is reporting that it is 0 per cent contained.  From our viewpoint the smoke line was much smaller before sundown. Another station has reported a more accurate report. Firefighters will remain tonight and watch it closely for the next few days.

Ya'll stay safe and be blessed,

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Wednesday

Yes, quilting with the Kraz-z Quilters. I will take my camera and take pictures of our new room.

I have updated our Wise County Quilt Guild blog if you want to see pics from Saturday's meeting.
http://wisecountyquiltguild.blogspot.com/

Blessings,

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

A "GO" Giveaway

MooseStash Quilting is holding a giveaway of an Accuquilt Baby Go die cutter. Hurry on over and sign up and do me a favor--tell her I sent you. I'm going now to sign up. See 'ya.

Blessings,
Marilyn

We had a wonderful meeting at guild last Saturday. I took pictures of the show and tell and will link to the post on our WCQG site just as soon as I download the pictures and do that. Ahem. Tonight I have been invited to a local group to peddle my goods. Be back soon to post more.

Friday, August 19, 2011

Update on Friday

DH came home. We ate. Then I asked him to look at the mower and see if I had something set wrong. Yup, it was operator error. I was told I didn't need to choke it except on a cold start. Okay, got it. I finished mowing. Did some weedeating before it got dark. Good end to the day.

Tomorrow morning is guild meeting. We have a special program. I will take my camera.

Good night,
Marilyn

Dresden Plates

I got to thinking--yes, I know it happens and sometimes it can be dangerous. LOL I got to thinking that YOU might like to know how to make Dresden Plates. Oh please say you do! Even if you don't I'll still luv ya.

Here is an awesome tutorial--  Of course these are the POINTED blades with I believe ARE easier. Anyway you get a nice finish on the edges.
http://www.designsbyloftcreations.com/2009/04/easy-dresden-tutorial.html

And then I saw these Dresdens with 3D triangles created by Edyta Sitar  and my heart skipped a beat--literally. This is a free pattern if you register with allpeoplequilt.com . Oh, how I wish I had found this BEFORE I needle turned my edges. I am so doing this next time!
http://www.allpeoplequilt.com/projects-ideas/table-toppers-runners/bold-sunburst_1.html

And I wouldn't have found the link above IF I hadn't listed to Pat Sloan's Creative Talk Radio program where she interviewed Edyta Sitar. Big plus I now know how to say her name. LOL  Edyta is a very talented quilter with some very good techniques and tips.

And remember these? http://cateringquilter.blogspot.com/2009/03/i-won.html  I am still thinking of how I want to set them. I absolutely love these.

Enjoy and I hope you might want to try making a Dresden Plate.

Blessings,
Marilyn



Best Laid Plans

You know when you get up and have things you want to get done and then they start going down hill? You've had one of those days, too?! Then you know how I feel. First thing this morning I call to see if DH's prescription is ready for pickup. It was out of refills--I knew that--I also knew they would fax the doctor. They haven't heard from the doctor. I call the doctor's office. They say they didn't get the fax. Also the doctor won't be in until Tuesday. Call pharmacy back and they will loan us enough until then. I love our Brookshire's Pharmacy. They have a drive-thru window. It rocks!

I get that done plus other errands. I filled up the gas can so I can mow the yard. I get changed and fill up the mower. It starts just fine. I start mowing. I kill the engine to pick up a stick I didn't see before. It's hard to start back up. But it does. I had to stop another time. That time it wouldn't start up again. Drats. Double drats. I only like about fifteen minutes more. Hopefully it is only an air filter stopped up or something.

Have a blessed and productive day,
Marilyn


Thursday, August 18, 2011

More progress

One more Dresden Plate block done. Total 16 so far.  I think I will give myself a day off. The Dresdens are getting a little boring.  Don't worry I'll be back to them.  And don't worry I won't be starting a new project -- I have plenty on-going ones to work on! LOL

It's still hot here 106 or 107.  I thought you needed to know that. You can suffer with me if not in person then in spirit.

Local news: A body wrapped in a tarp hidden in a barn was found about a mile and half from where we live. Last night DH and another guy went to visit a friend in the hospital in Ft. Worth last night. His friend picked him up and when they left our house they took the county road toward Hwy. 114. They saw police cars in front of a residence. They returned the same route and there was a sheriff's deputy positioned at the same house with the yellow tape you see. After he got home and right before he went to bed he asked me if I had heard about a body being found. The man they visited has a relative who had called him and told him since he lives in the same general area. Today a man has been charged with murder. They have identified the body as a female but don't have an identity yet.   This sort of stuff happens on TV shows that we watch. Another tragedy: a young boy on accident fatally shot himself this week in our small town . I can't imagine what the family must be going through. 

Blessings,

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Wednesday

Again, all ready. Where does the time go? In the last post I wrote about the Dresden Plates. I hand pieced number 16 last night and hopefully tonight will get it appliqued while watching TV.  My stitches have improved as well as my turning a good curve. I've always shied away from needle turn applique before. It just always seemed so feedily (is that a word?). But you know -- I am finding I can do feedily. Surprise, surprise.

Have I told you about the Dresden Plates? If so bear with me--I AM menopausal! And lately the hot flashes are back--no fun--especially in 100+ weather. LOL We did a reprieve Saturday. It stayed in the 80s most of the day. So nice. But I digress. Back to the Plates. I started out planning this quilt for my daughter for her high school graduation. At that time two sweet ladies in my Kraz-z Quilters Agnes and Jessie started helping cut plates because I soon found out I didn't have enough variety in my very small stash at that time.

Agnes had moved to our area from Austin after her husband died from Alzheimer's disease. She was a go getter. She could quilt circles around me and did on a regular basis. She made many a baby quilt for young mothers in our area. I remember going to her apartment. I picked her up or took her home from quilting sometimes. She used one of those rolling walkers and up until the last years of her life always insisted on loading it herself.  But you know what? She never drove a car. She said she always lived within walking distance of where she worked. She was an accountant in a department store for years in Austin. Her and her husband had one son who gifted her with three grandchildren and one is now our sheriff.

Jessie had raised four boys on a farm and buried two husbands, both died from cancer. She was married to each one 27 years. I loved to listen to her stories of her boys and raising them. She always said she never had time to make raised (yeast) bread. It was biscuits or cornbread at her house. Cook oh, that woman could cook! She told of bathing her boys in a washtub in the summer out in the yard.  This kind of stuff is what I love about quilting around a frame!

Both ladies have gone on to their reward. I can still hear them talk. Jessie always thought we made too much of a fuss putting a quilt in the frames. Principle--too many cooks spoil. She's pretty much right. Sometimes it sounds like a bunch of hens. Let two or three put it in and it goes much smoother. LOL Jessie ALWAYS put her quilts on the frame by herself at her house. I remember going to her house once with the Kraz-z Quilters. She had some nice quilts. Funny thing about her--she never used quilting thread. Just regular cotton thread.

Agnes and Jessie cut out most of the slices of the Dresden Plates. I didn't ask them to they just did. And they weren't too happy with me not getting it together snap, snap.LOL I hope they are smiling now. And that I am enjoying doing it is even better.  I wasn't so much into piecing then. I had just learned to hand quilt and felt pretty intimidated by piecing.

The Dresden Plate quilt is no longer a UFO (unfinished object) but a WIP (work in progress) for those who might not know. My daughter has been patient --somewhat. She knows her mother. She has since graduated from high school, college and is now working on her masters. It will look nice in her older style home.

Thanks for visiting and blessings to you,
Marilyn



Monday, August 15, 2011

I need your help

I am in need of advice. I have fifteen Dresden Plates so far. I am thinking of yellow centers. Originally (in the 90s)-- yes, it is an old UFO-- I was going to use Marti Michell's pattern.  It is 80 x something. My daughter doesn't have a full size or queen size bed anymore. She has a king. So either I have to revamp this pattern or I go for something else. Right now I am voting for something else. I spent a lot of time yesterday looking for ideas on the web. I saw sashing - plain, pieced, no sashing. Here's a link to the pieced sashing. I saw piano key type borders out of the same fabrics as the slices --I like that.  I saw little mini dresdens set as cornerstones. I like that too. At this point I figure I will probably have to make more Dresden Plates. I do like the on point setting of Marti Michell's pattern. But I'm not in love with the basket in the center. I had already planned on just using a plain Dresden block there. I really like the softness of these fabrics. I played around in EQ5 last night --thank you Patsy-- and came up with a layout on point with sashing between the blocks and half Dresden blocks in the side setting triangles. If I go that route I've to get busy and make another 17 blocks and that includes the halves.  I have plenty of the background fabric. My original plan was to use it for the backing of the quilt. I don't have enough to do that anymore. 

Whatever I decide to do means more piecing at this point. I have a turn coming up -- there are two people in front of me-- at Kraz-z Quilters and I would really like to get this ready for my turn. So I've got to get it ready because I really would like to have it hand quilted.

I am open to any and all suggestions.

Thank you.
Marilyn

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Rain!

It is raining! Hallelujah! Oh, Lord, please let it rain all over the state of Texas and everywhere it is dry.


How's your day?

I was up early. The little doggie, Sissy, woke me up at 2:30am to go outside. Back to sleep after she gets her business done and awake at 5:15. Unload the dishwasher, wash pans that soaked over night. Put a load of clothes to washing; got DH off to work; then started mixing up banana bread. The bread is out of the oven -- I am always on a quest for a good loaf of banana bread. If you have a recipe you like I would love to give it a try. I know, I know banana bread is pretty basic. But there are differing amounts of baking soda, fats, and liquids. This recipe this morning called for buttermilk. I will let you know how I like it. I had a slice years ago of a lady's banana bread and if there was ever a perfect loaf of banana bread it was hers. That was more than 30 years ago. I told her how wonderful it was and she acted like it was no big deal. I asked her how she made hers. She said, "I use ______ in my bread."  My two older children were very small and I must have been distracted and of course another factor I was still learning to cook. It couldn't have had anything to do with the fact that she was an accomplished cook with four children and a husband and I was still learning cooking terms and other things. It couldn't have had anything to do with I felt inept in her presence and  too timid to ask her to repeat herself.  I cannot remember if she said she used butter. Or she could have said lard.  I don't know but I have been in search for that perfect loaf of banana bread ever since. I have never tried lard. I've heard it makes wonderful pie crust. It's that whole lard thing. Lardo--has always been a slur word for people overweight.

Speaking of weight--ahem. I haven't had much exercise this summer. No garden. No yard work due to the drought. Staying inside due to the heat. All have added up. As in weight gain. I'm going to blame The Pioneer Woman! It's all her fault. She posted about iced coffee. I love iced coffee. I like it best with chocolate syrup and milk. And one isn't enough! But I found out yesterday I'm not alone in the weight gain department. Several at quilting spoke yesterday of gaining weight. It's been too dang hot to do anything! But sweat! And evidently sweat doesn't weigh that much. Except when it's IN your body. That is a big injustice! It's my story and I'm sticking to it.  ANYWAY we all know weight is easy to put on -- harder to come off. So again I am in need of reducing my intake and increasing my activity.

Time to change the subject! LOL We have lower temperatures! Yesterday it was only 106. Today it should be less and by Friday or Saturday it will be iffy to hit 100. Yahoo! We even have a chance of rain. Yahoo!
Thank you, God.

I hope to connect with a lady today who has a couple of boxes of fabric to donate to our Kraz-z Quilters. We have had lots of donations. People have been very generous. We have been blown away.

Time to hang out that wash.

Blessings to everyone,
Marilyn

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Wednesday

And I don't have to remind you what that means! LOL Kraz-z Quilters! I missed last week with the grandkids here. We normally pop in for a few minutes so I can show off my growing grandkids but it was going to be like 108 to 110 and decided we would just stay home and sew IN THE A/C. I found out they were few in number and went home around 1pm anyway.

We are close to breaking a record heat wave. There is a record set in 1980 of 42 days of 100+. Saturday will be the day to be the breaker. We have been around 108 to 107 for the last several days. Tomorrow is to be just as hot and then (I think) we begin to come down a degree or two every day. Saturday and Sunday may or may not get to 100. Here's my thinking: Two thoughts here--If we've endured this awful heat wave what are two more days to set a record--I mean shouldn't we get SOMETHING out of it? That's the first thought. The other--let's be done with this NOW! The sooner the better. LOL 

Gainesville which is about 60 miles north of us got rain last night. Yay Gainesville! We could see the clouds. They looked so nice. So inviting. This morning DFW weather news reported 56% humidity.  I had washed DH's bib overalls after he got home yesterday. I forgot to hang them out until about night fall. I thought -- What the heck--I can always throw them in the dryer. I got up around 5:15 and they were perfectly dry. In normal summer weather conditions they would not have dried. I have been hanging clothes on the clothes line all summer to save on the electric bill.

I got a phone call yesterday from DGD Aimee. She had gotten her package. The last of the doll clothes I had sewn. She liked them. Just what I wanted to hear! Now to start thinking of what to do for DGS Mac for his birthday next month.  Any ideas? His great grandmother made him a DS case. I had thought of a messenger bag for him to carry his stuff in. But not sure about that. His dad might think it looks too much like a purse.

Blessings to you,
Marilyn



Tuesday, August 09, 2011

Childhood Illustrator

In my sidebar I have changed the Blog of Note to Featured Site and please go visit Sarah Jane's Studios. She is an awesome illustrator of children. She has prints, posters, stationary, embroidery patterns in her shop. Also she has a fabric line out called Children At Play. I just love the innocence! So please go visit and come back and let me know what you think.

I so want to get some of her embroidery patterns and embroider. It must be sewing all those doll clothes. Tee Hee.

Blessings,
Marilyn

Monday, August 08, 2011

Glorious Monday to you

I don't have much to add to that. LOL I could complain about how HOT it still is. But it wouldn't do any good to complain. I could complain that the leaves are falling like it was autumn due to the drought. But it wouldn't do any good.  So no complaining!

I finished up all the doll clothes for DGD Aimee and put them in the mail this morning. I forgot to take a picture. I am such a bad blogger! I was in a hurry and I simply forgot. I will describe them -- I made a t-shirt from a red print with dog bones and kitties and doggies; a royal blue knit skirt, a royal blue pair of leggings, a long-sleeved blue background with multi-colored hearts print tunic; a coordinating print striped pants; a black floral print jumper; and two hobo bags-one blue jean and the other taupe linen) and a purse out of the same striped print as the pants. My fat sack and tote bag sewing experience came in real handy. I lined the purse and squared the bottom corners. It turned out so cute! I will see if DD Amanda will send me a picture.

Aimee's dad made her bunk beds for her dollies for her birthday. And she got a new American Girl doll - Kit. She was thrilled. Good thing I made more clothes--wouldn't want those dollies to run out of clothes. LOL

Back to work. I've got a new shipment in to price and machine quilting to do.

Ya'll have a blessed week.

Marilyn


Thursday, August 04, 2011

Grandkids

The older two grandkids came for a visit. DGD Aimee wants American Girl doll clothes so that's what she and I are sewing on. We'll finish piecing her quilt that she's worked on the last several visits. DGS Mac has folded some origami shapes, watched TV, and played computer games. We're off today to Wal-Mart to find velcro for the doll clothes that doesn't have the adhesive. My sewing machines do not like it. Do you how long it's been since I've sewn doll clothes?!

 We dug out the Legos that their uncles had played with when they were young. I love to listen to kids play and use their imaginations.
Aimee is sewing her blocks together and into rows and the rows together. She's worked on this several times when she come for visits. This time it was sewn totally together.



 She is sewing this for a C.A.S.A. quilt. Doen't she look proud?  She thinks it needs a border. What do you think and if so what color?

These are the doll clothes we sewed. The purple tank top was a free pattern found here.  The dress was another free pattern found here. There are lots more free patterns just check them out.  When we went to Wal-Mart I found the two patterns showm. Aimee wanted PJs for her dolls so we used the Simplicity pattern to make the pants and tops. I love sew in velcro to make doll clothes. It rocks! Not pictured is a skirt that I managed to get done minutes before we left to take them home this afternoon. I had a scrap left from the skirt I made Aimee last year. And I mean a scrap! It was barely enough to make a gathered skirt with an overskirt and waistband.  I got out the Kenmore. Poor baby hasn't been used much since I fell in love with the little Elna. I drew lines on the skirts and Aimee sewed one of the decorative stitches spaced horizonally down the skirt. The stitch was a scallop and we used the last one as the edge of the skirt and I took sharp scissors and cut the fabric away from the scallop stitching. Looked really cool.  She is such a slave driver! We didn't get the jumper or the purse we were going to sew done and she asked me if I was still going to sew them. And then she decided that I could sew them and mail them to her. She is so into completing projects and can't stand to see something incomplete. Oh I forgot! We also make pillowcases. One for both of them. I forgot to take pictures. : (

And since it was so hot we watched movies and of course we had to eat ice cream!


We have had 109 to 110 temperatures this week. These very hot and dry days are going to be memorable. DH pulled our well. We have public water for the house and animals but used to use the well to irrigate. The well hasn't worked for several years. We figured it was the pump. It could be the pump but for sure the water level has dropped and it won't do any good to put a new one in right now. We'll keep praying for rain.


Blessings,