Attempting to Blog -- Again

Trying out my old blog - been years! Let's see if I can add a picture and a little comment. This is the Barbara Brackman block of the month Threads of Memory in honor of the Underground Railroad. I used batiks with a black background and used flying geese for the sashing. I don't think the picture looks as good as the real quilt. In any event, I had fun doing this.

I read lots of blogs and use Pinterest for inspiration. I would love to get back into sharing what I am up to. Ozzie is hoping I will share some of his pictures too. He is on shaky legs tonight because he had his teeth cleaned today. The sedative has him knocked silly. Poor Ozzie.

Fred Johnston pottery, Seagrove, NC

Fred Johnston pottery, Seagrove, NC, a photo by hsvjean on Flickr.

This is one of my favorite pieces of pottery we brought home from our vacation to North Carolina last month. We had such a good time chatting with Fred Johnston and each of the potters we visited. We have revamped our bookshelves so that we have room for the pottery. Allen really was excited by a piece of pottery made into a fabulous pug, but we didn't bring it home. Maybe a commission for Ozzie pottery?

Hotel Sewing

 

This is my 1941 Featherweight all set up to sew in the hotel room. She hums right along, even though she feels tiny after using my new big girl Bernina. I bought a little red Trolley case last summer, and she is easy to haul and set up.

 

I used a pattern that I bought up at Chatanooga Quilts(Fat Quarter Quilitng: Simply Charming - 9 Small Quilts by Lori Smith) and had the fabric cut and ready to go. It didn't take long the first night to chain piece all of the strips.

 

The second night, I made the four patches. Since the strips started out at 1 1/2 inches, these are not very big.

 

I carefully laid out all of the rows with the setting triangles and stitched the rows one evening. The next evening, I put the rows together into the top. We stayed in hotels seven nights, so I guess I should have taken a little bigger project or two projects. Hotel sewing works well for us. Allen doesn't mind having the television choice to himself while I sew for an hour or so, and the Featherweight is quiet, so it doesn't bother him. I used to get fidgety or anxious in the evenings on trips, but no more!

I quilted this at home on the Bernina, added the binding, took the picture, ....and then noticed the mistake. It is going to live there since I am not un-quilting it at this point. It is about 16 x 18 inches finished. I like it, but geez, the turned block is pretty glaring to me. Oh well, I had fun, and there are eight other patterns to try.

Ozzie meets a real, live horse

Ozzie meets a real, live horse, a photo by hsvjean on Flickr.

Ozzie watches TV. He gets very animated and talkative when a horse or dog is on the screen. Oz will even watch an entire movie sitting on Allen's lap if it has lots of horses. So we decided to take him to meet a real horse. He was pretty excited and a bit intimidated by the size of the horse. He wasn't afraid, but he got still and just stared. Not such a tough pug when he's eyeball to eyeball with a live horse!

New Bernina!

I am playing around figuring out how to add pics to Blogger, thus the second post in one day. I wanted to show a bit of my sewing space. Sure, I would love a giant room -- I would certainly add in a couch or comfy chair for anyone visiting me when I am sewing, but I love my room because it is all my space. I can make a mess or clean it up, and it will be the same when I get back to it later. I don't have to clean it up for dinner or for company, and I can have multiple projects underway. I recovered my ironing board this summer, and I added a pincushion and little trash can, plus an over-sized spool to keep my scissors from getting lost. Silly stuff!

The big deal, however, is that I have a new Bernina 750QE. She is big! The best parts are the increased size between the needle and the arm, the bright, bright LED lights, the hover system for the foot, the built in dual feed system, and the interface with the stitches - all digital. Oh, and it has this giant bobbin that holds twice as much, which means less interruptions sewing. I have been following a forum about this machine, and apparently some people have had trouble with the quality of the stitches. I have not had a problem, thank goodness. I have lots to learn, and I guess I will go to the shop for the lessons, but it has been a pretty easy transition from my 440QE. I did not get the embroidery module, as that is just not my interest. It does have 9mm stitch width, up from the normal 5, and lots of decorative stitches. I haven't played much yet, but I have done a good bit of patchwork and free-motion quilting. I am really excited to have time to sew this summer!

I'll post more about my sewing room soon - as well as some other home renovation projects.

Grandmother's Choice Week 44

I've been working on Barbara Brackman's Grandmother's Choice Block of the Week celebrating women's choice most of the last year. Each block is 8 1/2 inches square, and I've done them all in red, black, white or off white, and a bit of tan or gold. The history she shares on each blog is fascinating, and I look forward to reading and sewing each Saturday. Only four weeks to go, and then I will put it together with black sashing and cheddar cornerstones. You can see all of the blocks on my Flickr account by clicking HERE.

Back to Blogging

I am going to try to get back to blogging. I started out on Blogger, moved to WordPress, and kept up with a blog for several years. Then last year, I got bogged down with who knows what - stress with many changes at school (including a one-to-one digital initiative), and I just didn't keep up with it. However, I think that I miss keeping something akin to a journal, especially posting about my quilting and handwork.

I have lots of projects that I've completed over the last year, but I will just start with my most recent quilt. It is about 60" square and was made using a kaleidoscope ruler. Since it is July and since Allen is partial to red, white, and blue, this one is pretty patriotic, and it is on my table for the Fourth of July. I machine quilted it on my Bernina 750QE - yup, it's new! More on that in another post. I am slowly, and I do mean slowly, improving at free-motion quilting.

This is our very jealous Ozzie and our youngest grandson, Ryland. He is not quite 14 months old. He stands and takes some hesitant steps by himself. We kept him overnight last night so his mom and dad could have an evening alone to celebrate their sixth anniversary. Oh, and thanks to Shannon for helping with my blog - again!