It is official

It is official---the cabinet painting is completed when DJ hung the last cabinet door at 1530 Friday!

Took almost 5 weeks and a lot of patience on his part. Nothing slower than waiting for paint to dry, is there? Thankfully, we have had fairly seasonable weather with little rain chances during this process. (Average highs supposedly for us this time of year is about 60.)

Sure looks different in here! Now if I could just get rid of that awful counter top and put laminate flooring down in my sewing room, LOL. Girl can dream.

I will be at quilt group by the time this posts so catch you later!

Thinking Christmas

 Well, that 12.5 total yards of Christmas themed stuff that I want to use in the tree skirt is all washed and pressed.  Stacked and ready to go when I am ready to get started on the sewing.  I may start cutting later today or at least see what I have in the way of interfacing or flat batting.  My cursory reading of the pattern said to baste the backing and the batting together----I think.  Even something that I swapped with bloggy buddy alefthanded quilter may work---see down at the end of the POST.

Last evening I was also sorting through some things I had set aside from my pal Cher.  There were some nice Christmas backgrounds (and even some Halloween/fall prints for the row quilt I am doing) . Add those to the mix for another holiday project though.  I had another stack already pulled for an alternate tree skirt idea but the goofy instructions were off putting.  It came kitted up from an old BHG kit but it also had a nice holiday throw on the same pattern.  I know I have raided that stack over the years!

Really I am still getting myself sort of organized.  The big switcheroo.  I pulled out the Christmas tub of fabrics from under the sewing table.  I pulled some containers out of the bedroom closet to fill the spot under the table.  Then the FWIS sampler containers atop the armoire went into the closet to take its place.  I won't get back to that project for a couple months, I'm thinking.   The tub sits out till I decide I am done with it.

I seriously could use another snap lock container for some of this as I have a couple of groupings that are set aside for future projects that should not be raided!  Like this old UFO from back in maybe late 92-93??  There are others.

I think I was considering doing these little blocks for TWO miniature quilts, one for a secret pal and one for me.  There is a pile of flying geese units that I did not lay out.  I am to make a miniature quilt for Friendship Quilters as they are doing a mini quilt auction so it is possible that I have a head start with this stuff.  The piecing is not too bad---well, with the possible exception of those pinwheels.  Those are never my favorite block to start with even larger sized but I believe that I can do better with the advent of thangles.  The quilt that this makes is on the top row to the left.

 

I scanned and cropped it from the cover so perhaps you could see it a little better.  You can see it much better in a thumbnail view---larger just makes it look fuzzy.  I cannot believe that the maker actually mitered the borders on the quilt!   It is called "Christmas in the Country"  copyright 1989 by Pat Weir-Smith.  Finished size 12 1/2 x 15 1/2.  Miniature Quilts, winter 1992, Issue 8, pg. 18-19. 

 I will hang on to this copy along with a few others that I have saved out from that big pile of the magazines I showed you HERE.    I am passing the bulk of them on to someone who will appreciate them more than I will.   Some are currently out on loan to some of the gals at the November sew-in.  I'll look through those as they come in but chances are, they are going to Donna in the end.  

If I do not use the elements for the quilt as shown, then I am inclined to see if they will work into the Modified Oxmoor House quilt that I am really intending to complete in this next month or so.  Quit dreaming and do it!    The stars, houses and tree blocks all finish at 3 inch and I have 3 inch place holder sections.  Some 4 inch spots too. 

With all this mulling things over I am not getting anything concrete done but hey, that is how I operate sometimes.  Meanwhile I STILL have a peanut butter sheet cake to bake, want to run down the road to get a BOGO cup of coffee and hey, still not showered and dressed.  That's how I roll, LOL.  It gets done eventually.   As of last night about 10 p.m. one hat is almost done but I need to move on to the video about knitting with two circulars next.  Before that I  managed to get another month of archived posts pictures re-sized and

                                              You are currently using 699 MB (68.3%) of your 1024 MB. 

..........and I can say, take that Picassa!  It takes a little time but well worth it in the long run.  Off to do something about the shower, LOL.

Moving on

I finished up the monster quilt I showed you in the last post as planned yesterday afternoon, almost right on schedule. Aline had called me about something else and I told her I would be finished in an hour or so. What did she want to do about pickup and delivery? They attend church near my home and it being Wednesday evening, there is usually choir practice and/or Bible study going on.  We left it that one of them would probably run by before heading home.

Funny thing was her husband stopped  to pick up the quilt and the phone was ringing at the same time.
  I could guess who it was on the other end though we let it ring.  Aline was telling me that if I didn't see Hans by 7:45 he wouldn't be coming, LOL.    He'd already been and gone!

I have been knitting a bit in the evenings and started the hat on the right Tuesday evening.  Really I wanted to do it as using a true circular needle or "in the round" as they say but had already shut down the computer so just went with the standard methodology.  Circular needles but used straight like I normally do.  I am at the point with that watch cap where you switch over to stockinette stitching. 

Since I was done with the quilt before I had to worry about supper prep I cast on and followed along with the video tutorial I posted last month from knitdenise.  Well, I cast on twice because the first time I had done it far too tight and should have used a shorter 12 inch cable between the needles.  Another inch or two and I'll be doing the shaping for the top.  Then do I try the video for knitting with two circular needles OR switch to double points?

And just like that----I got more than one thing going, just like I do with quilting! 

And also considering another project with any leftover yarn.  I do like this Grape Fizz color and can see getting another skein when I am down near  Hobby Lobby next week.  I  may need more to finish it.  I know I can get two watch caps out of one skein of yarn but switching things out, maybe not. The hat is from the redheart dot come website for "knit roll brim hat".  Change things up a little bit and adapt for in the round. 

At some point I need to re-crochet the top of this hanging towel thing for the kitchen----provided I can remember where it is that I found the directions.  Just poking the button through the double crochet spaces has led to some raveling.

Oh, speaking of the kitchen.  DJ is just about done in there!  A couple coats of green on one last door and he is finished.  The ones he has already completed are hanging.  I'll get a "tada" picture taken when he is officially finished.  It really looks different in there!  I can also expect to have a return on my dryer top as he has had it taken over as his work/storage space since this whole deal started.  You can do the laundry but forget using that normally available surface for a folding/holding prep area.

At present I am pre-washing fabrics for Allison's tree skirt (and maybe stockings).  Most of this is half yards, from Connecting Threads.

Technicolor Tidings

Peppermint Frost

Sweet St. Nick--but only that candy on butterscotch background

The cream is for the background of the skirt, as my  niece requested.

I hope to combine this with other things in my stash, including what was cut away from the backing of my Patience Corner to make crazy patched sections of the "petal" segments of the tree skirt.   I know I have some charm squares left from my quilt and can incorporate some pieced elements into the segments, whatever.  She wanted a mix of fabrics that would go with any decor down the line.   So that is exactly what I will do.  I like the button and loop closure on this as well.  McCall's M6453

But first----slog through pressing all this fabric.  I hate to iron but half yards are not too bad as three yards of backing fabric.  Today may only be about prep work---and fill in with knitting for actual creative time.

Friendship Quilter's Christmas Party is on Saturday and I am signed up for dessert.  I am thinking I am going to make another peanut butter sheet cake since the girls seemed to enjoy that at the retreat in October.  I made cookies for the last sew-in a few weeks ago though I am wanting to try an Angel Sugar Crisp Cookie recipe I have flagged on pinterest from Taste of Home.  Maybe next week, midweek or so.

Well, I've got a date with the iron.  Good thing it is warm enough outside to open a window and maybe keep from getting overheated doing said pressing.

more quilting----but almost done!!

This is an image of the quilt I have been working on since Sunday afternoon.  My friend Aline's sister pieced it and if I am understanding correctly, it is the sister's first quilt.  Aline sashed and bordered it.

This puppy is BIG---like 85 inches square big.  I initially thought it was a 4 x 5 block set but nope, square.   As of last evening, all the interior of the quilt was completed when I did SID 16 of the blocks.  Some of the subtle flying geese in the border are done as well as the 4 patches Aline used.  By the time the last two days were done, I felt like I had been wrestling a bear!  Apparently I can do 80 ish quilts on my domestic machine but it is not always easy.

Today is the remaining border bits and I think I am just going to do "piano keys" 3 inches wide that will echo the size of the colored squares.  Aline and Lorraine will team up for the binding detail though I would have at least put it on for her by machine had Aline brought it with the quilt.

Almost done----and then tree skirts and maybe Christmas stockings will be doing more than just dancing in my head, LOL.  Once my Connecting Threads order is here I can get busy.

quilting

No posts for a few days.  I am busy quilting a quilt for Aline and her sister who did most of the piecing.

At this point I have it all locked in and have some of the border elements done and 9 blocks of 25 done.

I'm guessing I'll be done in about 2 days time and will see if I have permission to use Aline's picture of it.    Here is what it looked like from the backside when I closed up shop. 

good day

Woohoo!  Not only did I get my Christmas Patience Corner quilt binding done but the #2 Alabama Crimson Tide just beat the #3 Georgia Bulldogs to win the SEC Championship and the opportunity to face Notre Dame for the BCS Championship for the 2nd year in a row.  Roll Tide.

The quilt measures 83.5 x 95 and really is a perfect fit for my bed with that oversized pillow top mattress.  Thanks again to those that gave me fabrics to include in it and especially to Norma for quilting it.  I am thrilled!

Today was the Christmas parade in our little corner of NE Central Alabama.  I took the camera with me today to get some pictures.  You can see that it was a gorgeous day----hit close to 70 so there were quite a few people out.

This first one shows some of the elementary school kids dressed as Christmas packages.

Hauling a gazebo down the street to promote some builder---couldn't believe it!  Candy to toss out to the kids in the back.

Color Guard with an area band coming up behind them

The Shrine group always look like they are having a great time with their little go karts.

One of two Christmas "trees" --- too cute!  (That gas station has been closed for a long time---that is NOT the price of gas here locally)

The local band approaching-----

The man of the hour---normally he rides in on the fire truck but that lead off the parade instead---

Day two: binding

Okay, I did NOT get much of this done yesterday but I tend to procrastinate with the more tedious aspects of quilting.  It is well documented here, LOL.  I am maybe 3/4 of the way across the first bottom edge but the label is sewn down and about 9 inches on the adjacent long edge at this point?    Also my mind tends to wander to other matters---dreaming of the next quilt projects or solving the world's problems (not!)

December is here tomorrow.  I want this on my bed!!!  I guess I have to get with the program???  Norma, have you finished quilting your lovely quilt so  you can join me in the endeavor this weekend?

I may have gotten a little further on binding but my hands were cramping up a bit by last evening.  I guess between lots of mouse work on the computer lately and knitting the right hand especially was squawking at me by 9 p.m.

A couple of notes on binding.  I do a blind, applique like stitch and I always keep the bulk of the quilt away from me, working left to right with the stitches.  I do it very close together to bury the stitches so you can only see the effect of the stitching, not the stitch itself.   I call it binding, not hemming.

Why do I make that distinction??  You would be surprised how many people think binding a quilt IS hemming.  Like you hem a skirt hemming----with a tack stitch and then a long thread length to the next tacked stitch and sometimes with double thickness of thread.  Of course, they work right to left and in their laps and every blessed stinkin' stitch shows.  Little fingers and toes will get caught in there plus it looks bad.   When you make every effort to use the best fabrics, pick a lovely pattern, execute that pattern to the best of your abilities I do not see why you don't try to do better on your finishing.   Fast is not always better.  If you have good light while you watch TV and "love" to do binding, go for it.  I don't so I have to set up a situation where it is not on my lap and light sources from two directions.   Done is good but try to do your best in that area too, okay?

Normally too, I match the thread to the binding, not the backing but how do you match the stripe?  I tried it with a darker green and I was still seeing stitches so switched to a color that matched the backing.  So far the only spot where I have remotely seen any thread is the bits of red stripe concentration.

Off my high horse----and back to Christmas

The  little town Christmas parade is tomorrow.  Fa-la-la-la Lifetime Christmas movies (DJ watches that cr**, I don't)  or those sappy Hallmark Channel movies are probably playing incessantly from now until the end of the year.  Christmas Carols are playing in every shopping venue.  Ready or not!  It is coming.

I'll switch out the seasonal wall hangings tomorrow but I don't know how much other decorating will happen.   We got rid of another of my surface areas for putting anything out---hall way book shelf---earlier in the year.  DJ has started painting the lower part of the kitchen cabinets and the boxes will just be in the way.  He won't want to put the tree up for another couple weeks anyway.  The Nativity set always goes up even if the rest of it stays packed up.  I still don't have Christmas stockings made though I plan to every year.  The ones I currently have were some I picked up at a church bazaar.  (Unfortunately one of them is cut the reverse of what it should be so the stocking points backwards but I knew the maker) I have plans to do some from the Nancy Halvorsen's  book The Night Before Christmas.   I have no wreath either since the two bedraggled looking ones from years past were finally tossed BUT I have a neat one on one of the tree skirt patterns I just got recently, a quilty looking one.

See my bloggy friend alefthanded quilters recent post and comments about giving quilty gifts  HERE.   Basically know your audience before preceding in my opinion there!  I offered to make a tree skirt for my niece/godchild because she let me know she was looking for one.  I asked her opinion about the style and have a second email out about the fabric choices----traditional or is a more contemporary look okay?  I can go either way since I ordered some stuff from Connecting Threads.

Well, still in my jammies and Aline just dropped off the quilt I am going to quilt for her and her sister that will be a guess what, Christmas gift.  Guess who better get cracking if all that is ever to get done.

And sew it goes-----