My Cutting Counter

This is how I set up my cutting space. On the wall next to it hang my large rulers. Everything here I find useful and it's easy to get to. (Well, the tassels are just fun.) Underneath this is a large cabinet where I keep my supplies.

Back from Columbus!

Sorry I've been gone so long, kids. I've been visiting my sis-in-law, Barbara, in Columbus, Ohio. She's not doing so well, so I brought her a prayer quilt. Send up a prayer for her comfort, will ya?

I named Barbara's quilt "Order From Chaos." The pattern is French Braid and I made it up from a picture I saw online. Pretty neat, huh? I used tons of scraps! When I was trying to figure out what to use as a border, I ran into trouble. I tried green, then gold, the blue, but nothing looked right. I finally figured out that it couldn't possibly work as just one color... so I used four!


I took my traveling sewing machine and sewed in the hotel room at night. Yes, I'm crazy. And yes, that's Hello Kitty you see on the machine. It's a stripped-down Janome: very light, half-sized, no light, and only one speed. Still, it gives a really straight stitch and keeps me sane. Tips for visiting Columbus:

• Drink bottled water--the tap tastes like chlorine
• Drive! The streets are well-lit and the signs are plentiful.
• Go to Schmidt's Sausage Haus und Restaurant in German Village. Fun even when you're alone. And go late. That's when the band (Squeezin' and Wheezin') arrives--accordion and tuba!
• While you're there, stop into The Red Stable. Cool, funky jewelry adjusted to you while you wait! (And at really decent prices!)
  
• Wear red. It's a big football town.
  
• If you're looking for a friendly church in the southwest part of town, here it is.
• And yes, if you must shop for fabric... go to Quilting Beginnings. It's right by the airport!

The Back is Done!

Yes, Kiwi Twist is now ready for quilting--look out, Yuki!

I was watching an episode of Quilt in a Day and saw that a featured quilter liked to use up the leftovers from her quilts on the back. So, for my back, I used the extra 2 blocks and the leafy fabric to create a panel down the middle. I must admit, some Kiwi fabric is leftover... maybe I'll make a purse!
I'll post a pic soon--I'm having a little trouble with the website.

Hail to the King!

Finally! I got the last borders on Kiwi Twist and had a bit of a surprise waiting for me: it's a king! Well, it might be a large queen. (Does that make it an empress?)

Here's the history: I purchased the inspiration fabrics while on vacation in New Zealand three years ago. Then, two years later, I decided to go with the twist and turn pattern. Skip ahead to about four weeks ago when laying it out and I discovered that I had accidentally made 44 blocks instead of the 30 I had originally planned. Today I finally laid it out on a standard king mattress and it fits! (a little short for sleeping maybe, but...)

Now I have to get a back ready (time to dig into the stash!)---hoo-eee! Then it's off to Yuki for quilting!

An Amazing Gift

Last week, Therese decided to blow my mind and surprise me with a quilt top. She said that this scrappy version of this was my idea so she was giving it to me. THANK YOU!!!! I get to do whatever I want with it.... I am completely blown away. It's hard to make me speechless, but she did it! I was in such a state I couldn't accept that it was real until today, a week later!
It's a large lap-size quilt. I love it! (And I've got fabric in the stash to back it--woo-hoo!)

Below you'll see some fabrics that I think are muted. I want to use thiem in that muted fabric block swap I mentioned in my last post. But I don't know... do these seem muted to the general public? Each seems to have a grey or brown undertone. What do you think?

Cut it Up Thursday

Scrapbuster Alert! Cut it Up Thursday led to 30 blocks being made! The swap calls for Double 4-Patch blocks made with cream and muted colors. I'm not much for the muties, but I did have a few in my scraps. So chop, chop! I had a rough day yesterday and spent the mental part of today processing while my fingers did the walking...or the quilting!

I think I'll keep my 10 faves and send the other 20 in. Then I'll get 20 new ones from quilters all over the country! Fun 'n' games! The deadline's not for a while yet--Nov 12--maybe I'll make more!

I also had a chat with one of my very besties, Dawn. She's so good at keeping it real. And the best mom around! While on the phone, not only did I start the cutting, I sorted my "Unsorted Scraps" box. Now they're all in the right places: Light, Medium, Dark, and Bright.

Cleaning Day!

Stashbuster sets reminders for each day of the week. Today was Clear a Surface--have they been looking in my studio?

BEFORE
AFTER

And I was supposed to report if I found anything good.

1. 5 cents
2. 2 receipts dated from 2003
3. A ticket into the Vatican and one into Disneyland Paris
4. Nothing alive, thank God!
   

Scaredy Cat Ready to Go!

I finished the Scaredy Cat Tote with 3 hours 'til October--In the words of Perry Como, hoop tee-do! I really knuckled down and worked hard.

To keep me entertained, I picked up season 1 of the series, "Lost." Good show. Sorry I missed it.

Now I suppose I should get back to the New Zealand quilt. I'm thinking of calling it "Kiwi Twist!" I've got to do some frogging on it because I used the wrong black in the borders--arggh! (For those of you unfamiliar with the term, frogging or frog stitch means to take out sewing, so-called because you "rip-it, rip-it, rip-it!"

Scaredy Cat

Interrupting your regularly scheduled projects to present the current obsession: The Scaredy Cat Tote! I just adore the Beverly Cleary 1950's feel to the illustrations. It's a charm pack from Moda. Make me feel like a kid--can't you just taste candy corn? The colors are vintage-y, too. It seems I only need 1-1/4 yard of coordinating fabric--not like the directions, calling for, um, more. However, the charm pack only had 33 charms, while the pattern calls for 38. I just cut more from the coordinating fabric, but I only have one kind. So the inside pockets may look a little boring, if not odd. What's Hallowe'en without a little weirdness, anyway?

I know I'll only be able to carry this tote for the month of October, so I figure I'd better get it done in a big hurry. I started it this afternoon and, as we had guests for dinner, that took away a fair amount of working time. (Totally worth it: company always makes the food taste better!) If I work tomorrow, I can get it done in time for October 1st!

The Perfect Portable Project

I'm sitting there during open house, listening to teachers tell about their upcoming projects and what are my hands doing while the ears are doing their job? The perfect portable project:

Socks that only need one stitch, thousands of times. Knit, knit, knit, knit.... Bonjour, Madame French Teacher. Knit, knit... Howdy, Mr. Associated Student Body....Knit, knit... Good morrow, Mistress English, I like Midsummer Night's Dream, too.... Knit, knit, dodge ball, knit.... Yes, Coach, her P.E. Clothes will get washed... Knit, knit.... Algebra homework counts for how much?... Knit, knit, knit... Hey, Professor Science, did your wife put a flyer for her dental services on my car while I've been stuck in here listening to you? (sigh)

In other news, I finished another tote (that makes a total of 3!) and am working another. Here are the fabrics: I seem to be getting the technique down. I really like putting in the magnetic snap--it makes the bag look so professional!