checking in

Best laid plans are subject to change. I had intended for a week or so to get that last WTIL quilt in the stack quilted---it didn't happen. SO challenge quilt first and then close out the 07 year of donation quilt work.

What intervened? Well, the last couple of years other than the nativity set being put out and DJ adding lights to the cedar tree outside, I have not decorated for the holidays. Much of my previous decorating surfaces is no longer available for various reasons so I couldn't go all out even if I wanted to. Which I didn't..........

Then DJ was looking through a sales flyer and found a reasonably priced 6 foot artificial tree and bought one as a surprise for me on Friday. We decorated it that afternoon. I spent the rest of the afternoon putting other things up and going through the boxes to see what we could get rid of. I was horrified to find out both of my snow globes had lost their liquid and one was still dripping---my good Dept. 56 one that had been a gift and I don't think I can replace, gone. The other was a department store promotional one for 2000--cute but not so emotionally attached. Which strands of lights work and which don't? Why are keeping this stuff? I was able to combine two boxes and hope DJ can do the same with the inside and outside lights.


I am showing the two little quilts that are on display. The one above is a "take off" on a Tonee White angel quilt from "Appliquilt for Christmas" The golfing friend's wife and I started this on one of their visits. I enlarged it a bit and probably scaled the angels down a bit in size so I could add the line from "It's a Wonderful Life"----did the little girl say "his" or "its" wings? I recorded the last part of the movie and listened to it repeatedly before I did the stitching. I heard it as "his"

The other wall hanging is up in the spot usually reserved for my Katrinka Designs "Multi-seasonal Banner"--never did get the Santa insert done for that thing, and should. This Debbie Mumm Santa that Joy and I worked on together is up instead. As I look at this, I am reminded on our day of sewing together as well as her being my secret pal "gifter" that year--some of the fabrics in the pieced border are gifts from her. The ornament he is holding is a hand painted one from a friend in Bloomington, IL and my former quilt guild, now deceased. I also have a little wreath up on my sewing room door that Carolyn had made. Gifted quilter and gifted artist.


I have a Christmas log cabin quilt top completed and even pinned but obviously, not gracing my bed--still waiting to be quilted and antiquing up in the closet. SIGH, maybe next year. This is Pippi's "new" napping spot. She had ignored her wool throw for weeks when it was sitting on the pressing/cutting table but throw it on the bed when she had decided the pillows were the place to be and she is all over it, LOL. I picked this woven throw at the Amana Colonies years ago when DJ and I took a little mini-vacation there.

I do have hopes of working on my own version of the Oxmoor House BOM though this year. After all, I finished one last year for my friend Betsy at her family's request after she passed away. The picture shows the top though I think I have one after I finished the binding and it came back from the long armer. This was the second one she had worked on and I knew she was making substitutions in blocks from those in the project bag. It was not going to be an exact replica of the one that went to her other son. I redesigned it to fit in those blocks. I did the same for my own quilt, long set aside.

Which brings me to the next deterrent to sewing this past weekend--- Jane had given us tickets to the lodge pancake tickets and she and her mom were at the event when we arrived. She said a couple of the girls were going over to the Birmingham area quilt shop to their Christmas open house and they had room in the car if I wanted to go. Miss a day of shopping with the girls? My low back and right knee were expressing dissatisfaction with me and I had already decided to lay off a day of walking. What time are you leaving and were do we meet?

The shop Heart to Heart was featuring their HQ proquilting machine and was doing some hands on, door prizes, goodies and so forth. I got a few 30's fats, one pattern, the quilt sampler magazine for my collection. I even found some little glass bulbs to put on reindeer antlers, a block that I had included in Betsy's quilt though I used something else for hers.

Then the girls wanted to run down to Knit and Stitch in the same strip mall. I didn't even know there was one down there---let's go! Oh, the yarns were so pretty. Aline got some floss to start some redwork Sunbonnet Sue's from an Aunt Martha transfer but I was more fascinated with the sweater that one of the women was working on. A cardigan #9725 from Knitting Pure and Simple that was knit from the neck down and without sewing sections together. On display in cool variegated yard was the pullover version #9724 yarn. I got them both--only one was in stock but the owner will mail the other one when it comes in. Turns out that is the same pullover pattern that Cher used on one she made. We lost them temporarily while Aline and I paid for our purchases--they had run into the Sew Bizz shop a couple of doors down. Turns out they service and sell Brother machines and parts which is good to know as an owner of same. Terry found some fabric she wanted there. (She also insisted that we stop at a garage sale coming and going--to each their own) Lunch at Cracker Barrel and home around 4.

I found a Coats and Clarks yarn at Wal-mart the next day in fall colors that will look good with my auburn hair but not enough skeins so I ran up to the supercenter north of us and got the rest. Since the whole thing is knit on a combination of double point needles circular needles I thought I was good to go. Yikes, I was missing the #9 points from my Denise Interchangeable Knitting set I had received as a long ago Christmas gift from my parents but thankfully, the company has been sold from the original makers of the item. The new team have a website rather than the ancient address I had on file with the kit and sell replacement points and cables. I also found out that the largest sized double points I had were 8's. Found an online supplier for those since Wal-mart only had straight needles. After the fact, I remembered that I could have probably drove down to Hobby Lobby some 15 miles from the house to see if they possibly had any. Oh, well!

I wanted to knit, doggone it! I thought about the ancient knitting UFO I had--a pullover Aran knit that probably won't even fit it has been sitting for so long. It might fit my niece though. I hate sewing these sections together. That and time factors is what was holding this up---one stinkin' shoulder seam, really. Someone, somewhere (Pam?) suggested that I just join it with the sewing machine--a little hard to feed on my contrary machine but it worked. I picked up the neck stitches and have a couple rows done for pickup work, TV time with DJ. I probably won't get it done in time for Christmas but maybe her birthday. A little progress anyway. I had also started an Aran cardigan a couple years ago--the back is done and a bit of one front--as a carry along project on a plane trip. No shortage of things I can work on when the mood strikes.

Monday I spent the morning doing the calculations on what I needed to cut for my merkitties project. I did some re-designing on the corner units first since I noticed that there was an easier way to piece them then I had it in the original drawing. Once it was straight in my head, I cut it out and stitched up the strip sets. The design requires big flying geese units so I'll use the no waste four at once method there. Another part, some diagonal corners for the fill in parts. I did the Puss in the Corners and half Puss in the Corner's yesterday and I'll do a pile of 4 patches today and move on to the square in the squares if I have time. Some progress on that then before the Dec. 10th deadline. Thank heavens, this is not a huge quilt, LOL.

Well, that's how it goes around here. I think it has warmed up sufficiently to get dressed and head to the walking trail. Sun's out, breeze is blowing but up to 48 degrees so should not have to bundle up too much. I just got some thermal underwear that I could have used three days ago but I am just as happy not to have to use them.