Blogging and Habits

In 2023, I blogged about "decluttering" most weeks. It was a very helpful, motivational tool for me. (I made 48 blog entries in 52 weeks and got rid of a lot of stuff . . . )

Since I keep wanting to spend more time in my studio, sewing and being creative, I set that as my 2024 blogging theme. I made 43 entries in 52 weeks, so clearly I was a bit less successful. 

I've thought about when we were doing the "One Thing" challenge back in 2016. Each week, Louie and I picked one thing we wanted to get done. If I got mine done quickly and had time, I'd add another thing to the whiteboard. He stopped doing it when he realized I was blogging about it. I promised to stop mentioning him, but he was done. 

I'm also thinking that I should be focusing on more important, spiritual matters. I think if I just go with "One Thing" and decide each week, I can be prayerful about what God wants me to do. I have a monthly white board that might be a helpful tool. I'm going to give it a try - first entry on Sunday, January 5th, 2025.

I think I'll also do a monthly "recap" / look ahead . . . let's see how this goes.

2024 Studio Post #43 - Minor Fix

This is my last entry for the year. (Posting on 12/31 for 12.29.24) I haven't made great strides in sewing this year, but it was more than in 2023! 

 

A friend bought these bracelets for a specific prayer request for her family. The bracelets were too tight for two people, so I measured their wrists with a strip of paper and added elastic. I probably should have gone to buy black elastic, but I went with what I had on hand.

 

The message is "The Lord will provide." There are several Bible verses that have this meaning, but my favorite is Philippians 4:19 "And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of His glory in Christ Jesus." (NIV)

 

The ends were originally connected with a LOT of adhesive and some stitching. I used a seam ripper to remove the stitching, pulled one end off the little black tab, and added some elastic. Then I covered the connector areas with the original black logo piece and a bit of fleece. My stitching isn't very elegant, but I think it will work. I need to change the needle on my Brother . . . it has been working hard lately.

 

The one on the left is mine. The last week has been pretty busy with Christmas celebrations, hosting, etc. What a wonderful year it has been!

 

 

 

2024 Studio Post #42 - Christmas! Stockings, Pillowcases, "Swag bags"

I have been sewing a LOT this past week! I made a few more Christmas stockings, but I made so many mistakes that I now have a quick "cheat sheet" of how to put it together the way I want with three layers, no visible seams (also no quilting), a cuff, and a hanging loop. I am DONE making stockings for at least ten months! (That's my sincere hope.)

I made four pillowcases - one for each of my grandsons and one each for me and Louie. I am using them as wrapping paper this year. (stamps for me, sailboats for Louie, Star Wars for Joshua, and dinosaurs for Benjamin)

The pillowcase looks a bit funny because I took the photo with his gift inside it.

I also decided to use up some more of the Christmas fabric I got from Bob Degen more than a few years ago. His wife Ann had owned a quilt shop, but when dementia stole her away from him, he wanted to donate fabric. Louise and I went to his house and visited and went home with lots of fabric. I keep meaning to contact him to thank him and let him know I think of him and his wife when I sew!

I made "swag bags" for people to take home their stocking stuffers. Bags can be so handy! I typically tell them the bag is part of their gift, but if they're going to throw it away, please give it back to me so I can launder and re-use it. I'm not sure about the ribbon I used for the handles . . . it seems too papery? Anyhow, I'm using up what I have!

2024 Studio Posts #41 & #42 - Seriously!

 Even though I've had TIME to do things, I think I'm trying to do more things than are manageable!

On 12/8/24, if I had blogged, it would have been about finishing the Christmas stockings I was making for local teens who attend the Treehouse programs. Here are the last two I got sewn (and stuffed and donated):

I've now made LOTS of stockings. The big size is great for some purposes, but this size works better for this project. I wasn't able to find my old templates and directions, so I "re-did" them this year. I try to hang onto things so that I don't have to re-learn them.

Last week, I worked on repairing cloth shopping bags for my sister Louise. I gave her the birthday gift of acts of service. She gave me a box of bags that needed repair. It was a fun challenge! (Though some of the bags should probably have been tossed out. . . )

The ecru bag was FLAT, so I asked her if I could give it a bottom. I love that I've learned how to do this! I turned it inside out, cut little notches in the corners, and serged it.

The blue bag's handles were in really bad shape, so I cut them off and put on the black straps.  

 

There were other bags where I added a piece of horse blanket fabric and zig zagged the edges. There were holes / tears / weak spots. It was like a treasure hunt to find and fix the problems!

 

I also whipped together three little "treasure" bags for my grandson Joshua. He likes to collect things (acorns, pine cones, etc.) and play different make believe games. I made these bags for him and put treats in them for one of his stocking stuffers. Here's the cutest of them:

 

Last of all, I made him a Star Wars pillowcase with a black cuff that has space-themed fabric. I may just wrap his actual present in it!

 

Last week, I volunteered at his school, making pillowcases with different students as part of their Service Club.

 

Whew! Now it's Monday morning and I'm late getting out the door.
 

Old Music

My sister asked me for help "rehoming" the albums she had inherited from our uncle. They were taking up space and collecting dust. Initially, I thought about trying to make money off them for her . . . Ha!

I started by looking up and calling record stores in the Twin Cities. After all, vinyl has made a resurgence in popularity lately! Here are the ones I called:

• Mill City Sound (Hopkins)
• SolSta Records (St. Louis Park)
• Know Name Records (Richfield)
• South Metro Music (Burnsville)
• Roadrunner Records (Minneapolis)

At least the guy at Roadrunner was willing to take a look at them! I drove over and he came out to my car. The basic response I got from these places was that the albums from the 1930s and 1940s were just too old. There's no market for them. One guy even said that he doesn't bother with anything older than Motown or the Beatles.

Then I tried the V/A. They don't have room to store albums and don't even have any turntables any more.

The Librarian from the University of Minnesota Music School library got back to me after a few days (I had left a voice mail) saying that they didn't accept donations and didn't have room to store records.

I haven't heard back from the Minneapolis Central librarian who handles special collections including records. I also haven't heard back from Allison Herrara of NPR Classical music.

I finally posted on Facebook and got lots of suggestions!

• Half Price Books
• Goodwill
• Electric Fetus
• nursing homes
• Ultimate Collectibles (Hopkins)
• Restored Thrift Store (Lakeville)
• Joe Lauro's (www.old78s.com/index.php)
• DJ Records USA (https://djrecordsusa.com/)

The last one emailed a response to my inquiry, but he didn't want any of the albums.

 

In between my initial attempts and posting on FB, I brought the bags and boxes into the house and made a spreadsheet with the Title, Artist, Label, and any other info that I thought might be helpful. I shared the list with people who expressed interest. There were 393 records! One friend picked about a dozen that interested her and I delivered them to her at church the next Sunday. 

 

Finally, my knight in shining armor appeared! Minneapolis Vintage Music is open Wed-Sat 11am- 6pm. The owner, Scott, specializes in 78s, but he was willing to take ALL the records! We had a lovely chat and I am so appreciative of his willingness to help rehome these records!

1820 East 38th Street in Minneapolis (Cedar & 38th). 612.729.8929. 

Vintage Music Company FAQs (I've learned so much on this journey!)

 

I am  so glad to be done with this project! On to another.

Studio Post #40 - Not Much

 Besides hosting Thanksgiving last week, I wasn't feeling very dynamic. I didn't do much of anything. Today (Wednesday 12/4) I started to repair some cloth shopping bags my sister wants to use. I completely understand the sentiment - repair things rather than just tossing them out. It's how we were raised.

But sometimes cloth bags are made of really thin cheap fabric. And sometimes your time is more valuable than the object you're spending time repairing. But my birthday gift to her was a gift of service and this is one of the things she's asked me to do. So I'll repair a bunch of bags!

No photos. I'm already three days past my self-imposed "Sunday blog deadline," and I just started these buggers!

Studio Post #39 - More Stockings and a Purse

I'm blogging this on Tuesday because I've been sick with some crud that I cannot shake! Last week, I attended a day and a half of a three day retreat. I was not very energetic or ambitious, but I got some stuff done.

Goal one was to make more Christmas stockings for our church project of blessing local teens. Here are some of the ones I got done at the retreat. The fleece stockings are so easy! (Plus, I'm trying to use up my fleece.)

Goal two was to make a replacement for my "sub bag" that I've worn out. It's a handy place to hold pens, post-its, bandaids, lip balm, etc. while I'm teaching. My original one was wearing out (and it's already been patched up, plus I've replaced the strap twice). The first one I didn't box the bottom corners (giving it less capacity) and I haven't added the strap yet. The blue one is functional. I'm not super thrilled with how it turned out, but it will work!

My original goal was to work on the wedding quilt for Morgan and Angela (married in 2016!) but I felt crummy enough (and made enough silly mistakes) that I'm glad I just left it in my car.

I'm so thankful that I rarely get ill. It is unusual for me to be dragging like this.

Studio Post #38 - Christmas stockings

I don't have photos to post. The stockings I made are at church for a missions activity. I may update this entry later.

I made some out of fleece and hope to make more this week. I'm going to an MQ in-town retreat this week (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday) so I anticipate a better post next Sunday!

Studio Post #37 - Minor Repair and Medora Progress

This past week, I expected to spend more time in my studio . . . but that didn't pan out.

I did put a pocket patch on a pair of old jeans. Because I like to tuck my cell phone in my back left pocket, that's where I get the most wear and tear (until it won't even hold my phone any more!). This isn't pretty, but neither are the jeans. I can use the pocket again! 

 

There was also a pretty good sized hole in the right knee, so I put a piece of fleece on the inside. That feels good on my knee and my youngest grandson can still "pick" at the loose fabric on the outside.

 

Yes, I used red thread. I just didn't care about color coordinating it. The patch below looks a bit weird because I pulled out a scrap of fleece that "matched" the shape of the damage to the denim. I just sewed around it!

 

I also pressed and cut some pieces for the Medora quilt I'm working on. No photos until I've made more progress. Some of the cutting is putzy and I refuse to get a special ruler to do it (though I could probably put out a call to borrow one). I won the pattern a few months ago and thought I'd give it a try. I'm making the crib size quilt to see if I like it enough to make a larger one.

At our MQ monthly meeting yesterday, I connected with my friend Rose. We have a strategy for Teresa's brother's quilt and dates in January for me to go to her house to long arm it. That's progress!

Studio Post #36 - Gift Bag and a Repair

I knew it was going to be a busy week, so I did a few small things and took a photo. I'm blogging a day early and hope to do more sewing in the week ahead! It helps to have a more orderly studio.

 

The washcloth had a seam coming loose, so I sewed it down and tossed it in the wash.

I wanted to give my daughter-in-law a birthday gift so I sewed a bag to put it in. I like how it turned out.

 

I don't buy wrapping paper any more. I like using fabric! If my family members want to keep the bags, they can. If they don't, I get them back and wash them to re-use.

2024 Studio Post #35 - Crazy Quilt Curve

 So I've joined the Scott County Crazy Quilters this year. They meet three times in the spring and three times in the second half of the year - August, September, and October. I'm still mostly doing it "on my own" by trying to copy from my books. (So far, my main book is Creative Stitching, second edition, by Sue Spargo.) But it's nice to have their encouragement, experience, and example as I stitch. The meeting last week means it will be six months before I meet with them again. I plan to bring my "bin" of crazy quilt stuff up to the lake so I can stitch when I'm up there. 

Last week, I added all the green parts.

 

The heart is a velvet-feeling fabric and the stitch around it is called a "closed fly stitch." I used a super thin ribbon as thread.

 

The fuzzy green thread at top right is not done yet. I ran out of time!

 

I took pictures of a finished quilt another person brought. Looking at it gave me ideas. But I've decided I don't want to post those pictures here.

 

I also did a big sort and organize in my studio. There's a lot more to do, but at least it's less cluttered. And I realized that I have a LOT of fabric!!! I need to stop grabbing things off the "free" table and / or sew a lot more!  

I think I added the word "curve" to my title because I'm in a definite learning curve with this!

2024 Studio Post #34 - Another 5 in 1 . . .

This is so sad. This entry represents September 22 - October 20 in terms of five weeks of sewing. Clearly, I've not been a great time manager. For the first four of those weeks, I would have had very little to share. I mostly used my studio as a dumping ground for various things. I also made the studio into my youngest grandson's bedroom for one night.

 

I worked on a few small things:

• finding some trim for my Crazy quilt block
• ripping out and resewing the "hem" of the toilet paper storage cover for Strawberry Lake. (I had only folded it over once and it was raveling a bit after laundering. Now it has a double fold hem.)
• I sewed a replacement mat for my grandson's swing (that will have a separate entry)
  
• gathering up supplies to bring to the In Town Retreat

 

I had so much fun in January that I signed up for the October 17-19 In Town Retreat. Once again, I stayed at my friend's house and had such a good time!

I had inherited a child size fleece mitten (and I still have lots of fleece from my mother-in-law!) so I planned to make a mate for the mitten. I didn't care that it wouldn't match - I would have a pair for my grandson to use if he didn't have his with or they got all wet. But when I finished it, I realized that I had accidentally made a second left hand mitten. I set it aside and worked on something else. Later, I decided to just make two right hand mittens and be done with it! I carefully made two more mittens but when I turned them right side out, I had two more left hand mittens! I was both frustrated AND mad at myself.

 

I realized my mistake and drew a little picture of what I should have cut and sewn. I packed it away for another day. And then my compulsion to FINISH had me pulling it out and making FOUR right hand mittens (referring to my drawing) so now I have four pairs of little mittens for the grands. (Plus a slightly larger pair at the left.) Sigh. It was a learning experience. The directions I followed included a cuff, but I just made basic mittens. I also made my own template because I didn't want to give my email to get the free pattern. I have too much junk coming into my mailbox already!

Another project I worked on was the Medora challenge crib quilt. I cut out most of the pieces, but didn't have my own rulers there and decided to hold off on it. The design has an odd angle and I'm not going to get the fancy ruler, so I'll need to measure really carefully before I cut out the shapes. I don't use patterns often and I'm trying to be more careful. (I won this pattern at the August or September meeting.) I feel good about where I'm at and may bring it with me to the November retreat.

 

 

The most important project I worked on was the wedding quilt for my oldest and his wife. They got married in 2016 . . . and I bought the fabric with my daughter-in-law in 2017. I had planned to do a disappearing nine patch and had 5" squares on my design wall for a long, long time. But I'm glad I didn't move forward with that. I think a log cabin block with lights on one side and darks on the other will work better. I did some cutting and sewing and look forward to doing more with that. I have two more light fabrics and one more dark fabric to add. I made almost fifty of these blocks so far, but I need to trim about twenty to size. Again, I'm trying to be more precise!

I am encouraged that I'm finally moving forward with this. I don't usually spend lots of money buying fabric, so I think I've been a bit scared about messing this up.

This is what I had decided for the nine patch . . . and it just doesn't work.

I finally finished all the stitching on my 2024 Challenge - Morning Glories - wall hanging. I had it in the show, but didn't feel finished with it. It's packed away for spring now. (Pics below.)

 

I had a few other small things with me. I did some journaling in my quilt "scrap" book. I grabbed some fabric off the "free" table while telling myself, "You don't need more stuff!" But five yards of music themed fabric?! How could I pass that up?

Vincent Van Gogh

I had seen a few clips involving Van Gogh on YouTube and was curious about the show. There are several movies about Vincent Van Gogh and I selected Loving Vincent from the library. What a trip! 

 

The entire movie is drawn / painted based on Van Gogh's artistic style. It reminded me of the immersion experience that Ann and I went to. At times, it was visually challenging, but I loved at the end when they showed pictures of the actors that the characters were based on. 

 

I really loved how we got to "see" Van Gogh from different people's perspectives. (Also fascinating that the story is told from the POV of the postmaster's son.) Van Gogh died at age 37 and his younger brother died within the same year at age 33 from syphilis. Theo's son was named for his artist uncle and lived until 1978. Vincent Van Gogh (the nephew) preserved his uncle's legacy. I am curious to read the correspondence that survived these men. They wrote a lot of letters!

After watching this, I got two books on Vincent and his art (which I haven't looked at yet). I also requested the Dr. Who DVD from the library that holds the video clips that sparked this for me! (It's Vincent and the Doctor - Season 5, Episode 10.) That actor brought tears to my eyes!

I also wanted to note that I've always pronounced the name "Van Go" (as do most Americans!) but on The Great British Baking Show and in the Dr. Who clip, Europeans always say, "Van Goff." I'm guessing they're correct . . .

2024 Studio Post #33 - a Placemat and Pockets in my Nightgown

What an interesting week! I was able to spend a few days up at the lake with my sister Ann. I brought a number of different projects (sewing and otherwise). My first priority was to add pockets to my white nightgown (originally a robe, but I use it as a nightgown). 

I like pockets! I like having my phone with me (partially because I use a step tracker app) and pockets save my hands from having to grab and hold. They aren't super pretty, but they're very functional. When I got home, I serged the seams so they won't fray. 

This photo looks weird because the nightgown is inside out (to show the pockets) and the way it's draped makes it look wider than tall!

I also made a label for my bed quilt. I decided to name it "Refracting Rainbows." I haven't stitched the label in yet, but I may do it today.

I also repaired my "sub purse." The strap was really frayed. I wear it every time I substitute teach. It has gum, pens, bandaids, etc. It's just handy! I have the fabric set aside to sew a new one, but I haven't gotten around to that yet.

Before I went up to the lake, I had started on a strawberry-themed placemat. Some of our placemats at the lake are looking a bit rough. I quilted and bound it yesterday. I'm not super happy with how it turned out but I'm also unsure how to make others that are better. I'm still learning!

The placemat is actually rectangular, but the angle is due to trying to keep my hands from making shadows on it . . . it's still kind of wonky.

My Brain

I wanted to find my map of Florida so I went through my maps box. I couldn't find Florida, so I laid out all my maps on the guest room bed. I didn't have Florida! (I found it later in my file folder for the trip we're planning to Florida . . . )

As I looked at all these maps, I wondered why I hadn't just stored them in alpha order. Then I remembered. Some maps have two completely different states on them. How does one alphabetize "Colorado Wyoming" or any North / South states?

 

I thought about making folders for the regions of the United States (West, Southwest, Midwest, Northeast, Southeast), Canada, and other locations (county, Caribbean, etc.). And where do Alaska and Hawaii belong?! Then I realized that investing time in this level of organization is completely unnecessary! I just stacked them up and put them back in my map box.

 

My brain sometimes frustrates me. I want things to be organized and orderly. I chose the word "Simplify" for the 2024-25 school year. I'm tired of making things more difficult than they need to be. I really like having paper maps sometimes. But I don't use them often. I almost always have technology at my fingertips. It's okay to just chuck these in a box and access them when I want / need to.

 

Forgetting that I had already taken the Florida map out and put it with my trip planning info . . . that's a separate brain issue!

2024 Studio Blog #32 - Medora Pattern

 At last Saturday's MQ meeting, I won a pattern! The 2025 show will feature "Medora" quilts. The pattern designer (Jill Blair of Materiella) was at the meeting and shared some of her quilts. Then she gave away twenty copies of the pattern. I'm not much of a pattern person, but I could also stand to follow directions and be more careful!

Since I can be a bit wild with my ideas and sewing, I decided to start by making a crib quilt. It's small and do-able. So when I got home from the meeting, I picked out some fabrics. That's it. That's as far as I got. But I love feeling excited and inspired!

If I like the design and the process, I may make a larger Medora quilt. It would be so nice to have a quilt in the 2025 show. And I'd love to build up a stash of baby quilts to give as gifts when someone's expecting.

2024 Studio Post #31 - Random Projects

I'm posting three days early this week! I got into the studio to make a "box" for our pontoon boat for trash and recycling. (I'm going to test it out before making a second one.) I used some of the horse blanket scraps my boss gave me. It was quick and a little sloppy, but it's a prototype. 

 

I also used one small scrap of the fabric to make a little container to hold threads or other junk when I'm hand stitching. When I went to the Crazy Quilters meeting last week, I just made a little pile on the table, but I kept brushing against it. If this little thing doesn't work out, I'll just throw it away.

 

I also stitched up a pair of underpants that had a weak seam, but I'm not posting a picture of that! I think I'll bring my hand stitching bag with me to the lake and try to learn some crazy quilt stitches. I haven't gone to JoAnn's yet to buy embroidery needles, though . . .

2024 Studio Post #30 - Teresa's Brother's Quilt - Made By Their Mom

My friend Teresa lost her mom a year ago. Her mom had made a quilt for Teresa and had started to make one for Teresa's brother. Teresa asked me about it. I jumped at the chance to finish it for her brother! (She doesn't have other quilters in her life.) I've done a tiny bit of stitching so far but wanted these pictures of what she had already made. So much work went into this quilt. What a precious gift from a mother to her son.

 

After I finish stitching on the off-white, I'll find a stencil to stitch in the large open areas. I want to make sure it's okay with Teresa, first, though. Then I plan to attach the two pieces (one is skinnier than the other) and bind it. Again, I'll check with Teresa on the choice of fabric for the binding. 

 

The large green stitching is what she used to baste the layers together. I'll remove it when I'm done with the hand quilting. I've had it for a year now (almost) and I've only stitched a little bit on it so far. Time to get to work on it!

 

 

2024 Studio Post #29 - Tie Dye!

I have wanted to learn how to tie-dye for ages!  Everyone tells me it's so easy, but I just wasn't sure how to go about it. I had set aside three or four garments that had stains but I liked otherwise. I finally went to JoAnn Fabrics sometime in the past year and bought a tie-dye "kit" but was too chicken (or busy) to read the directions and try it.

Then a few cool things came together! At the Akina camp in late July, they provided everyone with black t-shirts and some foam stencils (as well as foam letters, flowers, hearts, etc.). We each decorated our own shirt, then the gal in charge of crafts - Dorenda (?) sprayed bleach water over the foam. This is how my shirt turned out:

 

 

Then the cousins organizing the family reunion asked about people's interest in shirts. Most people said not to bother, so another cousin suggested we tie-dye! Yay! I brought my garments and tie-dye kit, but there were more than enough other supplies to use there! Louie told me I could do a shirt of his first as my "trial" experience. It didn't turn out at all like I was hoping. 

 

Then I tried to do a striped-type thing on my dress. It didn't turn out as I expected, either, but I wore it. I like this dress because it's sleeveless and has pockets. I don't know what I stained it with, but I'm so glad it still fits! I was trying so hard to not be wasteful with the dye that I didn't use quite enough to really get a cool effect. Live and learn!

Another one of his cousins rinsed everyone's tie dyed garments and laundered them all, so I still have the opportunity to practice these skills. I have my kit and I can find more rubber bands. It says that the dye should be used fairly soon after being mixed up, so I'll have to find time to dye a couple different things all in one session. I still need to clean up my studio so I can sew, but I did a creative fabric thing last week!

2024 Studio Post #28 - No pictures

I meant to write before we went on vacation to Michigan, but here I am a full week and a day late, and not much to show for it.

My studio is a disaster dumping zone. I didn't even bring any stitching with me. AND I got Covid and "shared" it with the whole family. Ugh.

This entry is for Sunday, 8/11 and Sunday, 8/18. We're home from vacation and recovering from illness. I did a tiny repair job on our quilt up at the lake (in early August) but didn't take a picture of it. 

I have moved a few of the kids' games from my studio closet down to the game cabinet (to make more room for fabric). 

Oh!!! I just thought of something fabric-related I can share from our Michigan trip! New entry on its way . . .

2024 Studio Post #27 - MQ Challenge Piece

 I'm blogging on Sunday, August 4, 2024, which means I'm back on track!

I bought the $5 challenge envelope last fall or over the winter . . . I don't really remember. It was a different way to do the challenge for sure! (Usually, we get some fat quarters of interesting fabrics.) The envelope had:

• a rectangle of bird fabric with one complete bird and several cut in half
• a piece of bright orange elastic (rounded, not super stretchy)
• a piece of silvery / teal thread (from France!)
• an elongated hexie (shape had to be used somewhere)
• a piece of black fabric with a rainbow hued grid all over it

 

The other fabrics in the picture are ones I picked out to use with the given pieces. I played around on paper with various ideas. It was fun to just brainstorm ways to use these pieces! I had some fun ideas, but ultimately decided to go with the scene of a bird on a nest in a tree. I used all the pieces of bird from my fabric! I even "Frankensteined" one at the top - the beak and body don't really match. 

 

I didn't get it completely done in time. I was at the venue in Duluth stitching my 3D leaves on it, with people offering to help. I had an hour left before the deadline, but decided to say, "Good enough." It felt so good to have a challenge in the show! I wish I'd taken a picture of all of them . . . it was amazing to see what people came up with! Louise's co-chair Mary won first place. It was such a fun challenge!

 

I liked the buttons I added as "eggs" in the nest. I liked playing with the leaves - both 2D and 3D. My stitching isn't very polished, but I had fun. 

I also had fun including all the bird pieces - with two just poking their tails out from behind the trunk. 

I like the blue "sky" fabric I picked and also the collage-type fabrics for the tree trunk and branches. 

The sun and sunrise effect didn't look quite like what I hoped for, but it gave me the name "Morning Glories." I also think of how much I love to hear bird song and see sunrises. I love to praise God in the morning (and all day long) and reflect on my blessings.

We're up at the lake and I brought this with to do a bit more stitching. I may or may not update this post with another photo. I don't want to feel pressured . . . I want to enjoy stitching. That said, it's nice to FINISH projects and celebrate getting something done. 

 

You can always add more, but sometimes you recognize it's time to move on to new projects.

2024 Studio Post #26 - It's Done!

Well, technically, I still need to choose a name for it and sew a label on the back, but it's got the binding on and it's on our bed! Every time I walk into our room, I smile. It is lively!

I really like the rows of flying geese on each side. And I like the "framed" rectangles at top where the pillows are. I had fun quilting it at Rose's and am so glad I played with different techniques and words.

 

Too bad I didn't take my nightgown and books off it before taking the picture . . . 

 

This post was for 7.28.24 and I'm writing it on 8.1.24. Now I have a few days to come up with next Sunday's post!

 

2024 Studio Post #25 - Quick Carry Bag

I threw this together in about twenty minutes before going to camp with Akina. I had intended to make a whole bunch of them for the kids, but that didn't happen this year.

I have lots of horse blanket fabric scraps from my nice boss. I got a book on bag-making from the library. I just hadn't taken the time to figure out how to make what I wanted. So before going to camp, I threw this together! It's big enough for a pillow, blanket, etc. I want to make them deeper than this one and use stronger straps / reinforce them.

But as a prototype, I'm happy with it!

 

I took measurements so I can plan out the next one better, but I am wading through piles of papers so may need to come back and add info later.

 

 

Titus likes to hang out by me, but this isn't  a very good scale picture. He's much bigger than the bag!

 

 This post was intended for July 21, 2024 but I'm posting it on August 1. Trying to get caught up on lots of stuff today!

2024 Studio Post #24 - Binding!

 Hooray! Progress this past week! (Though I'm posting my 7.14.24 entry on 7.16 . . . . )

I finally made my binding! I was going to try to make the bias continuous binding, but I was too intimidated and rushed. I just cut 2 1/4" strips from my fabric and "spliced" them. I could have been more careful, but I've gotten better at it.

I sewed the binding on so I could bring it to the lake. That process was a little rough, but I hope to improve as I do this more often.

At the lake, I've hand-stitched the binding to the back all along one long side and halfway across the bottom. Part of me wants to continue stitching, but I have a lot to do today before we pack up and go. Plus, my hands get sore if I stitch too long.

I'm eager to finish this quilt and get it onto our bed at home!

2024 Studio Post #23 - Baby Steps

I *finally* trimmed this quilt (still unnamed) and cut the angles on the lower corners. It's on the guest bed so I can get the bigger view and measure for making the binding (next step!).

 

This post (on 7.16.24) was intended on 7.7.24. I'm behind again . . .

Studio Post #22 - Tie Fleece Blankets

A week ago Saturday, we had a "Blanket Blessings" day at church where a group of us made fleece tie blankets to donate. People at church donated the kits and we lined them up, cut out corners, made the fringe, and tied knots. 

We completed seven in three hours. One person will get them to the ICU nurse who works with terminal patients. We want to be a blessing to people whether they know Jesus or not. I made tags to put on the blankets that have a note for the recipients.

Ruth posed for me. They were really pretty and very soft. I have some more packs of them to prep for others to finish. I hope to get into my sewing room today (7.5.24) to work on some projects!

Studio Post #21 - Five in One: I Lost a Month

 If I had blogged each week, this is how it might have looked . . . 

May 26 - Nothing. I had a bin of sewing projects prepped and packed for our twelve days at the lake. I did not, however, open it.

June 2 - Nothing. Again. Too darn busy with this, that, and the other.

June 9 - Frenzied preparation for the quilt show! I sewed a sleeve onto the back of Benjamin's Trail. I added a second sleeve (regulation directions) over the sleeve on my God Heals wall hanging. I made a second fabric quilt bag for entering my work. I worked feverishly on the 2024 Challenge which I called Morning Glory. 

June 16 - In Duluth on Monday, June 10, I finished stitching on the "leaves" of my Morning Glory and added the hanging sleeve. It was done "enough" and I hope to add the rest of the detail later this summer. The quilt show was both wonderful and exhausting. I should have lots of lovely pictures, but I'm just playing catch up on my blogging. But I had THREE things in the show this year! No ribbons, but I had THREE things in the show!

June 23 - Last week, I mostly just put away things from my MN Quilt show trip and worked. And had a grandma day. And packed to come up to the lake. I have my small hand-stitching bag with me and may work on some hexies later. I just needed to get back on track with my blogging. I hope to actually do some sewing this week so I have something more significant to post next Sunday!

Studio Post #20 - What's in a Name?

The main sewing thing I did last week was pack up all my 2024 Challenge bits and pieces to bring to the lake to work on here. It's a new week and I haven't taken the pieces out yet.

The other thing I did was brainstorm names for my queen sized quilt in process. It started out as the MQ 2017 Challenge "Go with the FLW." I've already blogged about it when I took the parts of it to the in-town retreat in January and almost finished the top. Now the top is finished AND I've long-armed it. I had fully intended to trim off the excess batting and backing, make the binding, and sew it onto the top so I could bring it with me to the lake to finish. Alas, I got too darn busy at the end of April and start of May, so it sits at home.

I have, however, come up with some name possibilities for it:

• By Committee (because I kept asking others for their opinions)
• Go Against the FLW (instead of Go with the FLW)
• Directions? What Directions?
• Make Up My Mind!
• I'm No Architect (FLW = Frank Lloyd Wright)
• Neither Structure Nor Style ("Neither Nor" for short)
• It May Be Wild, But It's Mine

 

Some people think naming quilts is pretentious. I don't care. I think it's fun. And it's easier to refer to specific quilts that way. (I don't make enough quilts to get really confused, but I still like naming them.) I didn't bring my quilt "journal" with me to the lake, but I'm curious to check and see if I've recorded all the quilts I've made and what I named them.

2024 Studio Post #19 - The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Since I didn't want to blog that I did nothing, but I had an over-busy week, I went into my studio to work on my 2024 Challenge piece. I'm very excited to do this piece! (And since I've entered it in the show, I need to get going on it. I need to drop off the finished wall hanging on June 11.) No pictures until I'm done, but I cut out the two-sided interfacing to start building my tree and branches.

That was the good. The bad is . . . my iron leaked all its water out. I was surprised, but started to fill it with more distilled water. Then I noticed that the water was pouring out. I've broken my iron! It got knocked to the ground last time I used it when I was trying to access the hallway closet and the door fell off. I'm sad. I hope it's fixable.

The ugly is my studio . . . it's been a dumping ground lately. I've pulled out bins and projects and then not put things away properly. I don't know that I'll have time to straighten it up before we head to the lake.

Studio Post #18 - PJ Pocket

I was ready to make an entry that said "Nothing - again." But then I realized that I had prepped some hand sewing to bring to Saturday's MQ meeting! It's not much, but it is SOMEthing!

Two winters ago, I dropped my fuzzy red monkey PJ bottoms on the hot stove at the lake. I replaced some of the melted plastic-y fabric (yay polyester) with a piece of red fleece. But as I wore those PJ bottoms this winter, I realized that the right hand pocket was semi-singed and had two little holes in it. It bugged me.

So I took a small piece of super-fuzzy grey fleece with a lamb on it and pinned it in place. While I was listening to the presenter, I stitched it onto the icky pants pocket fabric. I did it on the inside of the pocket so I could feel the lovely softness!

Not much, but it's something!

I Have Never Before Loved a Car as Much as I Love My Volt

I have owned a Vega, a Chevette, 3 Suburbans, and an Impala. But in December of 2020, we bought a 2017 Chevy Volt. I tell all my family regularly how much I love my car! I have also never had to spend so much time learning about how a car works.

For the first month or so, I would take out the manual after parking and read about another feature or use the index to find out how to . . . do whatever I wanted to do that I couldn't figure out. For a while, I joked that my phone and my car were smarter than I am!

The Volt is a hybrid and that is perfect for me! When we got it, the lifetime average was 163 miles per gallon. (This picture shows 160 mpg because it was a month after we bought it.) I'm guessing the previous owner had a short commute and mostly ran it on electricity. I've driven it hundreds of miles - sometimes in one weekend! When I do a lot of highway distance driving, I'm sad that my mileage is so "bad" - only 40 mpg! Louie has to remind me that only my Chevette ever came close to that kind of mileage. (Also in this image, I had only driven 9.6 miles. But it didn't use a drop of gas. Short commutes and in-town driving along with warm weather make this car almost gas-free!)

I'm really glad we bought it in December and I got used to it during a cold Minnesota winter. That helped keep my expectations low. This car definitely prefers summer weather and city driving. Last summer, there were several times when I put in 7-8 gallons of gas (the tank holds a max of 8.9 gallons) and I had traveled over 1,200 miles since the previous fill! That is one of my favorite things about this car! Whether the gas prices are high or low, it just doesn't cost much to fill it up.

Sadly, my lifetime average is below 100 miles now. But it doesn't make me sad to think about road trips to Michigan, Grand Marais, Strawberry Lake, Green Bay, . . . and I love that I don't have to worry about finding a charging station and waiting until the car has enough power. I could just treat it like a gasoline-powered car if I wanted to.

It isn't primarily gasoline powered, though! My typical routine is to plug it in when I pull into the garage. I can leave it to charge at 8 amps or set it to 12 amps. It tells me what time it anticipates being fully charged. The charging cord is easy to unplug (if the garage isn't too messy) and take with me if I want. The first few months we had it, I tracked the difference in the increase of our Xcel energy bill and the decrease of our "transportation" budget. We definitely were saving money on powering this car! The comparison got a bit muddied by the increase in Xcel rates soon after, but overall I believe this is more economical. And I love it.

It's fun to drive and peppy. It has encouraged me to be a more careful driver instead of acting as though I'm driving a sports car because I can see how quickly I'm draining my battery if I do quick starts. The battery is recharged during braking and coasting. (I've also been reading more articles about things like regenerative braking and the difference between a Volt and a Prius.) Technically, the Volt is considered a PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) but I am still trying to understand the technology.

I'm shocked that Chevy stopped making the Volt after the 2019 model year. I think they were ahead of their time with this car. I now understand why our friend Marty Coddington raved about his Volt. (He and his wife have owned at least three that I know about.) I have enthusiastically gushed to many people about my wonderful car! I really, really, really wish that Chevrolet would bring this back. I would be 100% up for buying another one . . . though that may not be for another decade or so!

Maintenance is so easy. I check the oil regularly, but the dash system also shows me the "oil life." So far, Louie has changed it twice for me . . . after about 16,000 miles. That is so bizarre to me! I used to make sure the oil got changed every 3-5 K and I would check it for level and color. Now I check it, but it's that lovely caramel color and doesn't go down. I realize that the battery technology means that the internal combustion engine doesn't get as much of a workout, but this is crazy!

I love my car!

2024 Studio Post #17 - longarm quilting and misc small projects

It's ironic to me that I'm blogging about my studio, but I spent almost no time in there this week!

 

I went to my friend Rose's house for most of two days to longarm my FLW quilt. I'm not posting a picture here because I've already posted some and I still need to bind it. It feels so good to have the quilting done! I should have been better about planning the quilting, though. I started getting bored and doing whatever random thing occurred to me. Ah well, I get better at some things the more I do them. I hope to plan better next quilt and take the time to do it well. This is for our bed at home and it's already a wild quilt in terms of the colors and design - why not the quilting, too?

 

I also did some sewing yesterday during our MQ Committee Zoom meeting. I stitched up a little pillow I like to use in the car for my grandson's carseat (to fill in some of the car's contours). I also sewed Louie's green jacket lining that was a bit shredded. It's not the neatest, but it's much better! I had more meeting than repair projects, so I sewed on some of my hexies. (Note to self: prep more hand sewing before another Zoom meeting!)

 

No pictures this week. Oh! One picture of Rose's cat, Fearless. He's huge!

I have size 10 1/2 feet. Trust me, this guy is a very big cat!

Studio Post #16 - Queen Size Quilt Top for Our Bed

Nothing momentous this week, but I (and my sister Louise) both pressed fabric yesterday. (The pieces I had laundered last week, mostly from the "Free" table at Minnesota Quilters.)

I pieced together enough fabric for a backing.

I'll finish basting together the batting either tonight or tomorrow evening. (I thought about buying a big enough piece, but decided to make do with what I have here at home.)

Tuesday, I'll head to my friend Rose's house to start quilting it! I hope to come up with a quilting plan before then.

I wasn't going to bother with a photo, but then I decided it would be helpful for me to have one to plan out my quilting.

 

This is the Go With the FLW (Frank Lloyd Wright) challenge that I started in 2017. It has turned out to be a bit bizarre - both in the color scheme and in the design I ended up making. Ah, well. It's for our bed at home and I'll like cuddling under it. Louie humors me.

 

It's bigger than the open space in our house and I didn't want to lay it outside on the grass. It measures 98" wide x 106" long. I took the photo on the side but them rotated it to how it will lay on the bed. This perspective distorted the overall look.

Also, in writing this, I realize I need to come up with a name for this quilt. I'll add that to the To-Do list. This is the design Mike created. At some point, I decided I didn't care for it . . . and went off on my own crazy-train!