Puppy Love DONE!!

No that isn't your eyes playing tricks on you, you read that post title right! Puppy Love is quilted, bound, washed and ready for use. I'm really happy with the way it turned out. I can't believe it took me a year to get that done after the quilt top and back had been finished. Binding was going great until I got to the join. I ended up hand sewing it after many attempts to machine stitch. No matter how pinned it was (tried with lots of pins. less pins, no pins) I just couldn't get it together. I realized I forgot to label my quilt. LOL. I'll try to remember on the next one.

Front

Murphy's Law came into play. After a few beautiful sunny days, it came out of the dryer after the sun had started going down and the weather forecast for the next few days is rain. I quickly ran out and pinned it to the clothes line and took some pictures.

I think the back looks interesting, but I'm not sure if I would go to all that trouble for a back again. I was pretty worried it wouldn't line up or would be off center.

Back

We are actually happy about the rain that's coming our way. We put down top soil down on our front yard on Monday to level it along with a ton of grass seed. Also we got the side garden built and planted. Previously, the space between the house and the walk was filled with river rock. I think Chris did a fabulous job relaying the walk and building the gardens using all materials we had in the garage.

Now on to my one of my mom's quilts. Not sure which I want to start on first. Hopefully it won't take a year to finish!!

One last look

Backyard haven

I didn't think to take a a before picture but let me tell you, just a few touches and some flowers and our backyard went from tired and worn out to feeling like a shiny new penny.

Chris and I spent the morning putting up our no dig fence to keep the dogs out of the back garden. Not much going on in there other than a small clamatis (it's second year), our dwarf cherry tree, my lillies and the hanging pots. We are slowly replacing the soil so next year can plant strawberries, raspberries, and whatever vegetables we can find in that back garden.

We put down the sod in the corners, went out and bought flowers and cleaned out and refilled all our pots with new soil and flower seeds. I tend to over fill my side garden, I just love that instant pop of color.

We still need to do something about the bbq area. Chris feels all it needs is some river rock, while I'd like a platform of some kind. We'll see. I'll take a picture again in a month or so when my Clamatis's are in full bloom. This is our little piece of  heaven.

Off to see what we can do in the front. Fingers crossed it turns out as nice. Once that's done maybe I can find some sewing time.

Not much progress

Not much to report, my quilting on my puppy love quilt continues to be a work in progress. I did get more done but still have a ways to go. I also worked on hexies for my grandmothers flower garden using Paris Flea Market while watching the season finale's of some of our favorite shows.

Chris has been on vacation for over a week & my vacation started yesterday for a week. Yesterday was our wedding anniversary, we enjoyed spending the day together doing some running around. As you can see from our wedding pictures to the left we didn't do the traditional big wedding with white dress and tuxedo's. This was a second wedding for both of us and we wanted it small and to do it our way. We got married in our house with only a few people and a bbq reception in the backyard. My girlfriend made my cake. It was a topsy turvey made to match Chris's shirt. I should have moved the flowers from behind, she had silver sprigs that you can't see coming our the top like sparklers. As beautiful as this cake looked it tasted even better. One layer banana chocolate chip, one butter-cream and the top was chocolate.

With the kids off to school, we headed out to the garden center and about 15 minutes in the rain started. Soaked to the skin we bought what we had on our cart (2 Ivy's for the front of the house) and drove to Lowe's. We did get the pieces for a fence we've been talking about for awhile for the back garden, but with the rain neither of us were really in the frame of mind to make any decisions for flowers and greenery. We did quite a bit of running around  here and there stopping for a late lunch before making our way home. It was a wonderful day despite the rainy weather.

 One of those trips was to the Fabric store. It's closing in a month for renovations so everything is 60% off. I couldn't resist and bought this minky to pair up with my denim quilt. Chris picked out and bought me the scissors. They were atrociously expensive even with the discount as an anniversary gift.

The fabric below is for Chris. He bought an Elna Supermatic for $10. a few weeks ago. After a clean, oil and some tweaking it is running like a dream. My scrap bucket has taken a beating so he decided it was time to get some fabric of his own. From his selections I'm sure you can guess who picked out the fabric on my Puppy love quilt. LOL

Lots to do this week with both of us off, not sure if I'm going to get much time in my sewing room though. Fingers crossed.

Puppy love - Some progress

I've finally spent some time working on my puppy love quilt. I'm doing large waves. Some are hits, some are misses (the really bad misses were ripped and restarted). This exercise has re-enforced that for now, I'm going to work quilt as you go style as much as possible. I start off strong but lose my rhythm trying to move the quilt up. I still have the waves to do across before I start panicking thinking about binding.

The background/backing fabric for youngest's Kansas Troubles - Token of Friendship quilt has arrived. It was like a surprise bag, I'd forgotten exactly which fabrics I'd ordered within minutes of placing the order with the exception of the beige and the darkest fabric. I'm pretty sure I had meant to remove at least one of those reds. My own bad habit coming to bite me. When shopping online I tend to add a lot to the shopping cart, compare my choices from there and just remove the ones I decide to pass on. I remember paring it down earlier in the process but waffling between those reds. I know I'd check-mark the one I decided to pass on as Remove once the decision was made. I have a sneaky suspicion that I forgot to update my shopping cart one last time before clicking checkout. I think it all looks pretty good together and wish all my oops moments turned out so well. I'm more than set for this quilt and I'm sure I will have no problem finding a use for any leftover fabric.

Mother's day this coming weekend and I haven't even started on either of her quilts. While Mom knows they won't be ready for a good while yet, I would like to at least be able to show her the beginnings of one when we go for dinner Sunday night. Time to get hustling!

Where does the time go!?!

This year has been another whirlwind & I'm shocked to see May is just around the corner. I swear the older the kids get, the faster time seems to move. Chris has been hard at work polishing up the old Singer. Look at her shine! I'm sure its not threaded correctly, I will need to look this up before I try to use it.

Not much to report this week despite wanting to get sewing in on Sunday afternoon. I did work out some variations of the Carpenters Wheel/Swoon on grid paper and showed my daughter, even included the a mock up of the original Swoon pattern. We all chose the same two patterns as our favourites. I'll be going with the one she likes the best.

It was time for another clean up of my sewing area, moved my machines around, wiped down everything and organized as I went. I love when my sewing area is tidy. I still need more storage and am hoping we can find some this weekend (they were sold out of the color that matches what I already have last time we checked). We got a smaller cube which is working well for odds and ends and is a perfect place for my Brother to rest on top of.  My Desk needs to be refinished one of these days (sigh). What you don't see is the Treadmill in the other corner that has more fabric piled on it and closet that is begging to be cleaned out so I can use it as part of my sewing area. We have a plan for all of that but it won't be happening for awhile so I'll, refrain from getting too excited for now.

See that basket full of jeans (bottom right middle picture)? Everyone tackled their bedroom closets a few weeks ago and all these were marked for the garbage bin. This is just the un-donatable stack that was buried at the back of our closet. I still have a stacks of baskets from the girls to go through (the majority of this will be hardly worn and still in fashion, some girl will be happy to find it for a steal at the donation store, but I'm sure there are few worn out pairs of jeans in there) and get my son to take a few minutes to add his cast off's to the pile. I'm seeing the beginning of what will one day be a Jeans quilt.

I'm surprised to see how my stash has grown in the past year. From having only a small basket with a single jelly roll and a few fat quarters that first month to a year later a large cupboard that I can't stuff any more fabric in. My scraps stash is more extensive than that original selection I had to work with! I've decided I'm going to put myself on a fabric diet for the next while. Now that doesn't mean I'm giving up my fabric of the month clubs. I love getting those little surprises in the mail and what I receive through these clubs are primarily what I use for my Farmers Wife blocks. I just love that what I get is so different than anything I would choose on my own, so in a sense it's broadening my choices in fabric selection (that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it). But unless buying a particular fabric will make or break the project I'm working on, I'm refraining. No more planning and buying for future projects until some of the ones on my plate are done.

First step is to revisit the Puppy Love quilt (formerly the Doggie quilt). I still need to fix or redo the backing (too small), figure out how I'm going to quilt it then bind.This quilt first made its debut exactly one year today. Flying By post - April 30, 2013. It took no time to piece together - even the back with the flying geese. I think I like this quilt more now than I did when I first made it. Still have a tiny regret using the brown instead of the black, but that's how we live and learn.

Next at the top of my list is one of my mom's quilts. I always have the Farmers Wife as a fall back if I need a some play time. I'll admit I'm itching to do a block or two of the girls quilts to get a feel for how they will turn out. It's a real incentive to get moving forward!!

Wish me luck!!

Learning Lesson: Trust yourself - Mom's quilts

I found Dick and Jane fabric online that screams of childhood memories. My mother sat with me for hours with these books and know she did the same with my kids when she took care of them during the day while I worked in an office (office closed and I was lucky to get moved to a work from home position when my youngest was 9) . When I purchased this fabric I had a plan. I was going bold and keeping it to primary colors.

Long story short, I told my middle sister about it and she talked me out of using the original color scheme. Here's how she responded:  
That won't work anywhere in mom's house. 
Are you making this to be used or stuffed in a closet? 
She doesn't have anything vintage and nothing is done in primary colors. 
You need to plan the colors around the spare room.

Although the house is over 150 years old it's fairly modern except for one room. This spare room is pinks, greens and white & is where all the kid stuff is stored. It is very girly and has all older furniture. All our old books (including the entire Dick and Jane series) in a bookshelf handmade by my father over 50 years ago, an old refinished vanity, treasures of mine, both my sisters and the grand-kids that were left over the years and most importantly the rocking chair her father gave her when my oldest sister was born (just shy of 50 years ago). So my sister convinced me to change the plan but I'll be honest with the change of plans the excitement I originally had wasn't there.

Mom and Dad are on vacation and we've been doing basement checks every few days so I was able to take some pictures of the room with no one the wiser. Basement check done, I drove to the LQS with the photo's of the room and the new plan. The ladies at the store were incredibly helpful. We worked together and picked the fabric to match the room.

After we had gotten a great theme going that would work with the room, we discussed what I was actually doing with the fabric and what I had originally envisioned, one of the ladies told me what I needed to hear. Go back to the original plan to work with the those panels.

Still loving what we picked to go in that room, we took a quick look at patterns and I really loved the look of the Simply Sassy. We added the middle fabric to the original selection (which kind of works but kind of doesn't) to add an extra pop of color and I like the way it ties the pink and the green in. The bright pink is actually more dusty than in the picture and is going where the brighter yellow is in the pattern. The light grey is the outer border and white will replace the black. Now I have 2 quilts planned for my mother and was hoping to have one finished in time for mother's day . And the best part is the original excitement is back.

The lesson I learned, give yourself a bit of credit, trust yourself and your vision. Just because someone else doesn't love your plan doesn't mean its wrong. Stop letting others talk you out of something you are excited about. This is for my own enjoyment, they aren't commissioned pieces. So I figure this gives me freedom to follow my heart where ever it takes me.

(The top portion of this post sat in draft since I wrote it March 15)
Last weekend we had my parents over for Easter dinner. I took the plunge and showed my mom the fabric for the quilts I had planned for her with the disclaimer, these were to be for Mother's day but I'm not going to make it. When she saw the Dick and Jane selection her reaction told me I had a hit. She is so excited and loves the fabric I picked to go with it. She said they are well worth the wait!

Helpful links I found reading blogs:
Tutorial on burying your knots - I love Crazy Mom Quilts & it seems so simple when it's shown like this!

Quilt as you go based on Ann Peterson's Craftsy class Quilting-Big-Projects-on-a-Small-Machine: littleislandquilting (she got permission to give this quick tutorial) I found this really helpful as I was trying to figure out how to attach the back section. There are other tips and tricks in this tutorial and has moved to the top of my list of classes I want to take.

Off to do some Sunday Sewing, hope everyone has a wonderful day.

My trusty Singer & a Mystery case

My trusty Singer and the Mystery Case

I've mentioned my old singer on here before. I bought it with birthday money from my parents for my 21st birthday and used it non stop until I went back to work right around the time my son turned 2 (he'll be 21 in June) In that first year and a half I made a really incredible polar fleece snow suit with a quilted liner and double zippers (wish I had pictures), some layettes and a precious moments quilt for my god daughter (that was an utter mess), and tons of light weight summer overalls for my son. I loved that machine!

Mystery case hint

After returning to work my trusty singer never came out of the box again. It followed me through a move a year later to a house around the corner from my parents, 2 more children, a divorce, going back to school along with a new career, a new relationship (that would be Chris), and even survived a nasty basement flood. In all those years never did I think to throw it away or put it out in any of our numerous garage sales. Since moving into our forever home 10 years ago, it sat tucked away by the furnace. Writing this I think about what else has been with me as long and I have to say the list is short. Other than my children, a few key pieces of furniture, a few childhood friends (Curious George and Digger) and our family photos, my life has been somewhat disposable.... but I digress.

More hints from the Mystery case

Since I started this quilty journey we moved the box closer to my sewing area and every now and then we'd discuss getting it fixed. The past few weeks Chris started looking around at pricing and sad to say we found we could buy a replacement machine of the same year for less than the work it needed. Now Chris is a pretty handy guy, and have I mentioned he works on huge printing machines with lots of little moving parts for a living. What did we have to lose?

Chris spent Tuesday afternoon taking apart my singer and proceeded to completely clean, oil, check every part and even fixed my broken presser foot lift. Right after work I tested it out and have had a hard time leaving it alone since. I'm shocked by the difference. I remember why I loved this machine. Sews straight as an arrow (even though I forgot to change the needle - I'm horrified to say that needle is at least 19 years old), feeds like a dream no matter the thickness, no fuss - no muss. Its a bit noisier than my one year old brother but it feels sturdy. When Chris asked how it was working the only way I could describe it was it felt like butter putting the fabric through. So my $400 Singer from 92 with a simple dial of 18 stitches vs my 2013 computerized $400 brother with 67 stitches, there is just no comparison - the singer wins hands down. This will be my primary machine going forward.

Now to the Mystery Case: Chris was given this old sewing machine case years ago (before we met) along with an electric organ after his grandma Betty died. Like my Singer it survived moves, garage sales, floods, and even a fire during the time he had it. Unfortunately, the case does show the wounds of it's experiences. So here's where the mystery comes in - there was no key to unlock it. While he knew it was an older sewing machine, he had no clue what year or model it was, what shape it was in or even if it was fully intact. We always assumed it would be from the 50's. Inspired after fixing my Singer, he went looking on-line & found an easy way to break into the box without breaking it .... who knew all he needed was a 3mm flat head screw driver. Take a look at what we had:

1924 Singer 128 -13

This is definitely not what we were expecting!! All the important parts are there and considering it was obviously very well loved and used for many years before it was stored for 20 odd years, all the parts are free moving and rust free. The foot pedal is not original but from a 50's featherweight. The serial number of the machine is still very visible even though a bit tarnished & using that we were able to look it up to discover the year and model, with the information on the motor pinpoint it to the 13.

Other than the bobbin, shuttle and a few needles, the side box contained buttons. The light needs some work, looks like it melted at some point, but my dad is an electrician (or was until he retired 10 years ago) and looking at it won't be an issue for him. We aren't too concerned with what it's missing, a quick search on eBay tells us we can get what we need. We can't do anything about those worn decals, but we're going to give her some TLC and make her shine.

While the resale value we figure is under $50, the personal value is priceless! She is a 90 yr old beauty!