One Creative Family

Have been working on table runners, pet mats, quillows, and finishing up so many little things that I have started.  My goal is to finish WHIPs this week.  Mission accomplished. Tues carpal tunnel surgery and not sure how long I won’t be able to sew.  I can start new projects once I can.  I also have some embroidery and applique ready to work on in a few weeks.  Won’t be having too much time in the sewing room for a week or 2 in April.

Now on to the question of the day…….HOW DO YOU ORGANIZE YOUR DIGITIZED PATTERNS, OR IDEAS FOR FUTURE PROJECTS?  I have so many and when looking for then I spend so much time trying to find them that I just say to heck with it.  I have embroidery files that I am trying to organize also.  Just so much going thru the brain these days and I need organization.  My fabrics are all organized to where I can see and get to it anytime.  same with the threads.  Just not my data.  So far I am trying to organize by projects.

All suggestions welcome.

 

Since I don’t have a long arm quilting machine I decided I needed to find something that makes my quilting easier. Especially on those large King Size quilts.  I did just that.  I found something called “Sewslip multi-purpose sheets” from Gossamer Designs.  I love it.  It measures 18×12 and sits on your machine arm.  There is a hole that fits over the dogfeed of the machine.  This makes the quilt sandwich just slide around.  It reduces the drag from a not so slick machine base and doesn’t take as much flopping the quilt, or tugging of it.  I first saw this on a Youtube video by Man Sew and is sold thru Missouri Star Quilts. (I am sold on both these places.  I paid under $30 for it and two years later it is still like new.  Believe me it is on the machine at least once a week.

What do you use to help make your quilting go smoothly?  I am always on the look out for new gadgets. Now I have heard that the silicone baking sheets work also and are cheaper.  Your thoughts on this?  I have never used them even in baking.

Here is a BIG AND IMPORTANT  question for any quilters out there.  How do you decide what to quilt where on a quilt? This is my biggest struggle and am constantly trying to choose.  Sometimes I just know, but not for the most part.

Just a bit of useless information………………TODAY IS ICE CREAM DAY.  Go out and enjoy some.

Alicia has been very busy making little “Flower Dolls,” and Sweet Babies.  With a change in jobs she has been getting a new routine together and not been as creative as she would like.  She did work a night job and now is working days and it is taking time to adjust.  Now she is out making her Dear Ole Mom.  Here are a few of the things she is making.

1. The Flower Baby.Destiny tested.  “She is just perfect.”  Little hand tested.
2. Crochet Baby Doll with changeable clothes.
   

   

   Dress can be changed, shoes come off, and yessssssssssssssssssssAndddddddddd  changeable shorts.  Aren’t these so cute.  She is thinking of making a few outfits  to sell separate.  She does amazing work.

More to come…… have a creative day.

Looking at the calendar and seeing Easter only a few days away brings a dance in my soul.  I have already started “Spring cleaning” and looking forward to open windows and a nice breeze and fresh air blowing thru the house.  This afternoon we will bring up and antique marble top dresser from downstairs guest room up to the sewing room where I can store some fabric in and get rid of stacks of things.

I want to start picking out paint for the inside of the house and have a New fresh look.  My son and daughter in law(I hate this word, I couldn’t love her more if she was my own) said they would help and I am sure his sisters will be joining in.  Will be such fun.

This May we will be celebrating 2 Granddaughters graduating from High School and starting to prepare themselves for college.  I can’t believe just yesterday they were little running around the house playing dress up.  For the most part we are a very Blessed World.  3 Granddaughters getting ready for Prom.

Enjoy your days and treasure every minute of it.  Good or bad, embrace them.

Well I finished the quilt I was struggling with and I will admit it does look better than I thought it would.  I am glad.  I just need a little more color, but this is for someone else not me.  I really hope she likes it

Now is the time to move on to the next project.  Finish a Quillow and then I will figure something out.  I can honestly always find something new or update old things.  Last night I went thru some books my Mother In Law had and found a pattern from the 70’s. It is Hexies and is a “50 State Hexagon Quilt”  If anyone is interested in making this just leave a comment and I will post all of what I have.  Will also make it so it is a good quality.

I also found these magazines and am surprised because she didn’t quilt and did not like sewing.These magazines had adds on the back to order other magazines for 50 cents.  When was the last time you ordered a magazine for 50 cents?

You all have a wonderful day and be kind to yourselves.

Have you ever wondered how on God’s Good Green Earth did I get myself into this mess?  That is where I am at right now.  I am working on a quilt that I was asked and I agreed to make.  The story is the mother and daughter were working on this quilt(they had cut the pieces only) before the mother’s health took a turn for the worse and the daughter put it to me, “We would like the quilt finished before she dies” (she is 89 and in a nursing home in poor health).  I said ok.  I was given the block and no idea what came next.  Daughter said anything.  I did a bargello pattern.  Once finished my daughter took a picture to show the daughter and guess what?  She wanted a 9 patch block. I took it apart and made the 9 patch.  I am starting to quilt it and look at it and get frustrated with myself, because I am finding I dislike this quilt and have avoiding the quilting because I don’t want to mess it up.  Hubby said it was flat in colors.  It doesn’t  seem to have a personality that I can enhance with the quilting.

So my question is how do you quilt a quit and make it look good even when you don’t “feel it”, “it doesn’t speak to you”. etc.  however you want to phrase it?

I will be working on the quilting this afternoon.  I did decide I will be using a variegated purple thread.  I think that will add a pop to it that it is missing.  Maybe that will bring what it is missing.  I know everyone’s taste is different.  I have to have a splash of color in my quilts.  Actually most have a little more than a splash.

What is your taste in colors?  Does it depend on the quilt? How do your quilts or your projects speak to you?

Happy making today.

We were out yesterday shopping and stopped in at a few Antique Shops in town and was looking for old buttons.  I was shocked!  One store had “Antique Buttons” in a quart jar and was asking $100. for them.  Yes, the decimal is in the right place.  These were not that old either.  In the second store she had an Old Mason jar with the zinc lid on it, the jar had a blueish tint to it full of old buttons for $18.50, and she sold them to me for $15.

I like old buttons, the look, feel, and the uniqueness of them.  As I went thru the buttons I found some big (size of a silver dollar) silver and rhinestone buttons and even some metal ones.  The metal ones were painted white.  I also found a few mills that were used during WWII.  You find such wonderful things.  

I will be hitting some Estate Sales and Thrift stores for buttons.  The one Antique store was a little loco to think $100 was a good price for buttons.

What do you like to collect?  What attracts you to them?  Do you use them or just look at them?

I do use the buttons from time to time.

My goal this week is to get about 10 different aprons made for our sale in June.  So far 4 made and more cut out and ready to go.  When working on multiple of same items I work in an assembly line.  It works well for me and I can see an end as my finished pile grows.  I am not sure of everything I want to make, but I guess I will know when to stop.  That will be the evening before the Fair.

As I sit here, writing I am watching the squirrels and birds outside my window and catch myself forgetting what I am doing.  Maybe today should be a day of getting outside and enjoy the day or part of it.  I can’t wait to see the green grass and flowers in my gardens coming up.  Hubby’s grandmother would say not to do any gardening until the day after Easter (April 1st this year), because that is the true sign of Spring.Too many times we have had a frost after I did some gardening.

The weather is going to be good tomorrow so a trip to the Kansas City Zoo is called for.  We enjoy going, and sometimes we take the grandkids, but mostly just 2 old people walking along watching the kids play and the new animals enjoying the sunshine.  Hope everyone has a fun and productive day.

 

 

All UFO’s finished and I am getting ready to start on some more aprons and pet mats, and a few more Quillows.  I don’t want to make too many until I see how they sell.  This past few weeks I have been trying to do too much.  I don’t seem to be getting anything totally accomplished and this drives me crazy.  I have gone back to my lists.  I love having structure.  Some days it is chaos, but there is some structure.  How do you work best?  How do you manage to get everything you want to do in a day?  Do you focus on one thing at a time?

Since I know myself to be an all or nothing personality, I have given myself time limits on each different task.  These are fun things such as sewing, painting, and genealogy.  I do housework then spend the rest of the day in thew sewing room or doing what I want.  Hopefully I can get it all done and done well each day.  We will see how this goes.

Now on to a new project.  Here is the fabric and pattern I will be using for  my next quilt.I would seriously like to know how you do all you want to do in a day and be successful with it.  You may have a better way than I do.  Till tomorrow have a great day and keep yourself well.

I have had shelves about 20inches wide and 12 inches deep in my sewing room from the floor to the ceiling.  I have put books or fabric and things like this for years.  Sunday night I went to get some fabric off one of the shelves and the top shelf started to fall and all of a sudden I was in an avalanche of fabric.  Hubby had to spend most of Monday re building them for me.  Now I have them more organized.  We decided I need a room the size of my sewing room 14×14 feet just for my fabric and books.  Not going to happen, but I can dream.

We  are under an winter ice watch until 6pm tonight. It is raining and I can see signs of ice outside already and wind is blowing sounding really cold.  Yesterday started out in the 60’s.  Now freezing rain.  A great day for sewing.

I was working on a quilt for a lady in the nursing home who gave me just 3.5 inch squares and said it is going to be a King size and there were no directions so I did this pattern.

After getting all the rows made and putting together my daughter took a picture and showed the lady’s mother and we found out it was to be a Nine Patch.  So seam ripper in hand I will get this done.  I have a full day planned.

What do you do when the weather doesn’t want to cooperate?