An Experimental Project

 

I am still enjoying playing with my 830, and the other day after I embroidered the feathers on the table runner, I decided to try something with the mega hoop. I had purchased a design collection, Initial Style, some time ago and decided it was time to give it a whirl. I'm so pleased with how it turned out! All the way through I was thinking, "It's just an experiment, it'll be okay to toss it," but you know, I like it so well, I may make another to use as a gift. The apple fabric, found in my stash, is perfect with the colors.

I just finished stitching down the binding, and now I'm off to get some dinner on the table. Happy Memorial Day weekend to you all. I'm thankful for our country and the men who have defended it for us through the years.

Heart Stoppin' TV

Whoa, I'm still trying to get my heart started after last night's NCIS. Yes, I'm hopelessly hooked on that show, have been since day one. Mark Harmon's smile? It's the best. And the season finale? Goodness! And now we have to wait until next fall to see what happens. Who invented cliffhangers?!?

I'm so glad Dan got home in time to watch. There's no way I can watch an intense (and potentially scary) TV show without him, and I couldn't bear to wait to find out what happened (that was before I knew how they were going to leave me dangling...)

And yes, I love the new NCIS: LA, too, but I haven't traveled as far with them; they're just not quite part of my "family" yet. But it's good, and I do really enjoy it.

CBS is bringing on a new show staring Tom Selleck, and I'm looking forward to checking it out. I loved Magnum, PI, and have all the shows on DVD, courtesy of my sweetheart who combed Shopkos throughout the area to surprise me. (Just another reason why I'm crazy about him!) And speaking of Tom, have you seen the Jesse Stone movies he makes for TV? They're sooo good. Even my mom asks me to tip her off so she can be sure to watch. Dan is especially a fan.

On a sad note, CBS has cancelled Numb3rs. We loved that show not so much for the action, but for the wonderful sense of family the main characters portrayed. It was good, and we will will miss it.

And now, your roving TV critic is signing off to do some stitching. Happy day!

Oh My Goodness!

Wow. Dan is in Coeur d'Alene for a few days, so I decided to slay another buffalo. Yup, it was time. So to the kitchen I went, picked up the runner I recently made, and bopped down to my sewing room. I set the 830 up for embroidery, got out the JUMBO hoop, and brought up a quilting design. I measured, I plotted, I rescaled, I rotated, and I hooped. I said a prayer, and I pushed start. Oh my goodness.


Can you see those beautiful stitches, those incredible feathers? And that hoop! It's huge, but it's so easy to use! I dream of quilting feathers on my HQ-16 quilting machine, but until then...


I liked this runner, but it was just flat with only stitch-in-the-ditch quilting. Now it has some character and I love it.

Thimbles That Bind

It was Christmas of 1971, just two weeks before Dan and I were married, when his mom gave me a silver thimble. As I opened it, she asked, "You do use a thimble, don't you?" Now I'd been raised to tell the truth, and the truth was, "Umm, no, I don't." I still remember how hard those words were to get out. I'd tried thimbles at various times, even owned several, but they felt clumsy on my finger so in frustration, I'd always removed them within a few minutes.

Helen died in September of 1989, and through all those years, I'd kept the beautiful thimble, but hadn't used it. In the '90's I began to make quilts in earnest and discovered that if I didn't wear a thimble, I ended up with a hole in my finger before I was done stitching the binding. Yes, I'm one who does the last stage by hand. It binds me to those great-grandmothers whose quilting inspired me, and I truly enjoy the quiet process of finishing up my quilts in such a timeless way. When I'm all done, I feel as if I've stitched in a little bit of myself.

I'm truly sorry Helen didn't live to see me use my thimble. It fits me perfectly, and every time I use it I think of her. Sometimes mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law don't get along well. Helen and I started out okay, but it was our mutual love of sewing that truly drew us together and made us friends. Each trip to Spokane would find the two of us hitting the road in her little blue VW bug, scoping out various fabric shops, chatting and planning on the way, and comparing purchases when we arrived back at her house. I still miss her.

Hemmed In

Well, so much for my being an everyday blogger. Or even an every other day blogger. And so much for being retired with too much time on my hands. Who knew the retired life could be so busy??

First, it appears that everyone who's not married in our church is about to get married. Showers. On a bi-weekly basis. And those who are married and young are all having babies. Showers, on a bi-weekly basis. And apparently we are currently in a speed mode because in less than two weeks time we are having like four showers. I often take part of the food, and usually make whatever gift I give, or at least part of it. I can't keep up!! But I do feel it's important to support these young couples and families.

My house is looking rather, umm, dusty. I did take time out the other day and swamp out the frig. Yesterday I attacked our bathroom, worked at the shop for three hours behind the counter (love that!), and then came home, heated up the last of a batch of black-eyed pea soup (pressure cooked!), and then fell into a heap while we watched In Harms Way, one of my favorite John Wayne movies. We found the DVD Saturday night at Shopko after leaving a graduation party for our friend Will (of Will and Briana) who graduated from WSU. (It was a cheap $5.50 and now we don't have to view an old, worn out taped-from-TV video.)

Meanwhile, while trying to find a temporary home for Moby Stitch, I was motivated to clean out my sewing room closet. It's a big walk-in space with shelves. Who knew what was on those shelves? Not me. So it was sort, ponder, stack, and reshelve. There is still work to be done, but I have a large box of things to donate somewhere. And I have done a bit more stitching:


The pattern for this runner is from Anka's Treasures and it uses charm squares. The squares I used were part of a birthday gift from Ann several years ago (charm squares have to age!). I was going to use my BSR, but I don't have a steady spot for Moby and he bounced too much, so I just stitched in the ditch instead. I'm still toying with adding some machine-embroidered quilting to it.

I had a lovely Mother's Day and enjoyed lunch after church with Ann, Eric, Cameron and Keaton. Matt called on their way home from NYC where he'd taken Amy for Mother's Day. He had ordered tickets for the Statue of Liberty back in January and they climbed to the crown as part of her gift. He said it was windy and they could feel her sway! We agreed it was probably not something I would ever enjoy... As he and I were talking I could hear a strange voice and finally asked what I heard. He said it was the GPS talking to Amy as she made her way onto the Beltway. Amazing!

So here we are. I need to make the bed (the cat is still snoozing away on it), fix some lunch, make some cookies for a men's Bible Study, and then attend a shop staff meeting at 5:30. Oh yeah, I need to find time soon to machine quilt a quilt made by a local class of kindergartners. It shouldn't take too long, but it's on that list in the back of my mind. Nagging at me. Gotta get it done.

I'm off to get something done. Even if it's wrong. (Credit to Jane Frensdorf)

A Completed Project

I got the little wall hanging done, but I think for now it's turned into a table topper. Or a desk topper. :-) This little piece of Americana turned out so cute! It's a kit I bought in a "Snap Sack" a few weeks ago and it's called Liberty Belle. I loved stitching it up on my new machine.


My summer decorations are all flag based since the holidays focus on our country: Memorial Day, Flag Day, the 4th of July, and Labor Day. Next to Christmas, it's my favorite time to decorate. And it's just about upon us!

By the way, Dan has taken to calling my new machine "Moby Stitch." Since it is a Great White Bernina, I think I like it!