Semi Finish?

 It is Saturday Sharing day.  Time to link up with Thearica over at Pigtales and Quilts

http://www.pigtalesandquilts.com/



I put on the last border for my Easy Street.  YEAH ME!

This quilt is huge.  I actually ordered wide backing fabric for it, it is on back order but it is a fun turquoise blue so I can't wait, and it was completely stitched on my featherweight. 

I am working on putting the borders on my Ginger Rose quilt.

Yes my quilt was a kit and looks exactly like this picture, it was purchased by my honey when we went on a trip to Florida last year.  DH wants it bigger so I am trying to figure out how to make one more larger border.  I do have plenty of scraps. 

My bright idea of the day, there is an old Kenmore machine in a cabinet upstairs.  I don't like the machine.  DH took the machine out of the cabinet and brought it down for a clean up.

Needs the hardware fixed, it is just a laminate.  I think maybe it needs a paint job.  So it is going to get cleaned, and a painted white.  I think that will make it cheery.  Found lots of instructions on painting laminate furniture so hopefully it turns out totally cute!

Then my blue girl is going to be put into this cabinet.

She is a Japanese Machine that I found at an estate sale for $25 in a cabinet.  I love the blue, it is only a straight stitch machine but she can really be a workhorse when it comes to piecing. The cabinet  she came in was suspect at best, someone added weird spindly  legs, it was not stable, so she was removed, and the cabinet was relegated to the burn pile. She needs some rewiring, and DH is great at stuff like that but first I have to get her new home remodeled.

What are you going to do on this beautiful Saturday?

Scrap Busting

Remember that huge box of fabric I sent from my mother's when I was visiting?

It has been sitting in my playroom for a couple of weeks and combined with the rest of the mess it was in the way.  So yesterday I decided to tackle this box.  This box was 35 lbs worth of fabric and believe me it was well packed. 

Completely unpacking the box resulted in this

Yes that is my fabric stash.  She is bursting at the seams

This pile of scrap pieces on my cutting table

The green bin overflowing with Christmas fabrics, the clear bin next to it overflowing with reproduction and feedsack fabrics. 

Since my scraps were overflowing 2 boxes and piled as high as my sorting bins yesterday for a couple of hours and several hours this morning were devoted to scrap busting.  It resulted in a much smaller pile on my cutting table.

Trust me it was much worse. 

I ended up with a huge stack of 2 1/2 inch squares
and my box of 1 inch squares that I am using for a leader and ender project is full again.

I also found a 4 inch charm pack of a fabric that I no longer had the matching jelly roll.  But I had lots of scraps left from that quilt so I kitted them all up to make a project later and donate it, since that is what happened to the earlier Jelly Roll.

Overall I felt like I accomplished a ton, and  I feel like I can sew the final border on my Easy Street, and get back to my jewel box quilt guilt free....especially since it is snowing like crazy.  Great reason to stay inside and nap and sew!  TGIF!

How Do Your Projects Grow?

As I was cleaning my fabric from every flat surface in the dining room, and my sewing room due to the current projects I am working on I wondered how others store their current WIP?

I currently use project boxes.  I got oodles of these little plastic shoe boxes with lids for $1.00 a piece.  They are great to put my scraps in.  I have them organized in .5 inch increments starting with 1 inch squares, and strips (over 5 inches long) up to 5 inch squares.  So when I do a scrap busting day they are within easy reach they sit on my cutting table.

Project boxes can travel from room to room.  My ancient flying geese getting retrimmed in the living room.

They store my current project with the cuts I have already made and my pattern.

Pumpkins in progress for gifts

The lids are great for holding pieces-  leftover parts from Easy Street which need to be put into a scrap box.

Small projects like my Christmas Table Runner that I want to make are stored in zip lock baggies and tacked to my cork board.

I even have project drawers-  this was organized when my mother came to visit a few years ago.  Can't find the pattern, or the templates but I do know that it is a bear paw quilt block.

Yes there are several quilts waiting to be finished on top of this drawer and hanging at the side.

And I even have old project grocery bags....look from back in the paper days!

How do you keep your projects organized?

Wednesday Rush part 2

I got one border up on Easy Street, the dining room table has all jewel box quilt pieces, and batik fabrics have been put into the project boxes, and all the clothes were folded, and partially put away. 

We also did a run to the nearest store to get The Finn a swing, and I assembled it.  So not too bad considering that it was a trip to the store, and an hour assembling an infant swing.

My stash enhancement came for my jewel box quilt also.....

Some multi colors

A couple of blues

Yellows and oranges

Reds, and some pinks

And some greens.  I can't wait to have the time to get back to work on the Jewel box Quilt!

Wednesday Rush

I think I have mentioned we have a new baby in the house.  Meet the Finn

He is a handful.  He is now over 1 month old and my newest daughter Rose and her girls cutie patootie Addyson

and her baby sister Emmalyn

are dying to see him, so they are coming to visit tomorrow and stay for dinner.  Um yeah after 1 1/2 years I have never had to cook a formal dinner.  We have had impromptu get-togethers and I usually make every one bring a dish or two.  This is my first official foray into making an actual dinner.  That is not the problem....

This is my problem....
Laundry to fold sitting on the dining room table. 

My jewel box fabric stash of batiks, and extra squares to put away...wow not until you see pictures do you realize how really ugly paint and wallpaper are....

OK no one really cares what my sewing room looks like, but I was working on putting the borders on my Easy Street and actually putting away some of the fabric which was acquired at my mother's.

My plan of attack for the day?  I had started a square for my jewel box and I have a border pinned onto my Easy Street.  I think sew the border on Easy Street that should only take a few minutes, cut out the fabric for my green jewel box square.  Then put away my batik stash from the dining room table, box up my squares into a project box,  fold clothes, and if there is any time left after that put the last border on Easy Street, and sew a bit on the green jewel box  square. 

Amazing a few minutes of blogging and talking it through doesn't seem quite so overwhelming and intimidating!  Happy Wednesday everyone!

2013 Quilt Drive

Just had to give a shout out to Thearica at Pigtales and Quilts.  She has organized a quilt drive for The Masonic Home for Children and The Central Children's Home, both in Oxford, NC.

Check it out!  There is nothing more fulfilling to me than making a quilt and donating it to an organization.



Please check out the blog and if you have the time make a quilt or two to donate!  The blessings you receive in return are abundant!

"And I Can't Tell a Lie"

Good morning it is President's day.  What does that mean?  It is a combination of Lincoln's and Washington's Birthdays.  It also means, no school for the minions, and DH since he is a city employee is home too. 

DH said he would move my dryer into the laundry room.  It currently looks like this.

This house is very old, and this was once the bathroom.  No window, there was a tub, sink and toilet in here.  After DH decided to make the old sitting room into the bathroom, this room was relegated to laundry duty instead of running up and down the old rickety cellar stairs. 

This is the bathroom which was remodeled several years ago.  Tub,

Large sink and vanity with a big cupboard for towels.  Can you tell we have little boys living in the house?  I did discover that I need to do a better cleaning job, the moldings around the floor definitely need a good scrubbing just from the dust in this house. 

And a huge walk in shower.  Quite a change right? 
Anyway I was told if I cleaned out the laundry room, moved the dining room table and chairs, and moved the big leather recliner hubby would bring in the red matching high efficiency dryer that was mine and has been living in the garage for the past year.

I cleaned out the laundry room to make room, grabbed the broom and was overwhelmed with the dust bunnies in the laundry room, and dining room.  These are the little rascals that I managed to trap and contain.

Yes that is just one pass through the laundry room, and the dining room.  Now what is so bad about this.  DH was making fun of the dust bunnies in the dining room.  Um yeah....those dust bunnies had been thoroughly eradicated last week before I moved to cutting my jewel box quilt out there.

Any ideas how to keep these critters in check?  I think maybe I should actually fear for my life if this is what happens in just one week.  Imagine what it would be in a month?!?! AND we do not have any fur bearing pets, just the minions.

My job is done, so I can now sew with a clear conscience....Have a wonderful Monday!