Ambitious?

One nice by-product of Paul starting so early on their new job is that it also gets me out of bed nice-n-early.  His alarm tolls at 5:10AM, and I have been rolling out around 5:30AM to make coffee and send him off to his work.  This morning, I was downstairs shortly after 6:00AM to finish piecing the additional prepped Starstruck blocks.  My total stands at 52 right now..... that's not really a nice multiple for a quilter.

So....my options:  make 4 more blocks to allow for a 7x8 layout (approx. 56x64 with no borders or sashing) OR make 11 more for a 7x9 layout (approx. 56x72).  

Those options will be mulled over during my 5-hour drive to my sister's house.  For now, the Bernina was carefully packed up, and three projects neatly organized in some totes/shoe boxes.  Three doesn't seem too ambitious for a 4-day stay, does it?  

• Starstruck 2.5" strips packed for more blocks - in BLUE (and neutral)
• Pineapple Blossoms prepped units were packed for piecing - totally SCRAPPY
• Jamestown Landing units were packed at my L/E project - in BLUE (my broken dish blocks are almost completed--ALL leader-ender created)

 Happy Tuesday everyone!

I'm so blue......

ONLY because this day is coming to an end WAY TOO FAST!!!

Between the trip to the Quilt Shop mid-morning and having to close up shop by 5:00 tonight to make it to Cassie's softball game in time and needing to feed the kids in the middle somewhere and a little bit of laundry and keeping the animals hydrated during this heat.......... I reallly was getting into a rhythm!

I LOVE that this month is BLUE for Angela's Rainbow Scrap Challenge!  I have so much blue!  And I have TIME on my hands this month to DO something with all that blue!  Whooo-hoooo :)  {{Did you catch that rhyme??}} :-)

Two of my ongoing Jack-in-the-Box blocks were pieced.... in blue :D

... and the matching blue "bonus" diamond squares.

I actually have a PLAN this year for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, and I'm LOVING the monthly suspense-----what color will be next?!!?!?  Hmmm....August..... I wonder if Angela will be following "time-of-year" colors..... maybe Orange??    

Anyway....back to blue!  

PSHT!  Not even a teeny dent in all my blue scraps/strips...

And didn't even look at my stack of blues on the shelf...

BUT!  I DID spy my Starstruck blocks on the shelf!  OUT THEY CAME :)

And those 2.5" strips of blues and neutrals were organized - cut - pieced - and prepped into enough units to create another 18 blocks.  And of COURSE, when working with 2.5" bricks utilizing the stitch-n-flip method, BONUS TRIANGLES will be made (upper right of photo).

As I was zooming the units back through the machine for the second stitching, Cassie was looking over my shoulder, asking what I was doing.  Educational moment!  I explained what I was doing, WHY I was doing it, and showed her the bonus triangles that get created. 

Earlier today, I had pulled these bonus triangles off the shelf to press and prep for a potential border for my Frost-25 quilt.  She saw them, pointed to them during this explanation and asked if those were bonus triangles.  To which I confirmed yes.  

and she said.....

"WOW!  That's a lot of fabric people waste if they don't double-sew them!"

:0)

Startin' 'em young 

So, off to bed in a bit.  The girls and I are heading out to my sister's house tomorrow; a 5-hour drive.  I plan to pack the Starstruck blocks and some Pineapple Blossom prepped units I've had sitting on my shelf for a couple of years.  In fact, the Pineapple Blossom units were cut and prepped when I was at my sister's house two summers ago.  I'll have to include this fact into the name of that quilt somehow.

Happy Monday night!

Cross-stitching finish

THANKS KATHY for the little boost of hand-stitching incentive.  Cassie's little horse was finished this morning;  I'm thinking it may make a good labeling block for a quilt for Lindsay (niece).  She's far long out-grown one I made for her years ago.

Big Daddy made me giggle this morning;  crowing away from his "perch."  Almost looks like he's ready to jump on the girls' swing.

Hey, is it HOT by you today??  I just stepped outside to put the next load of clothes on the line;  I was so tempted to wipe my perspiration off on the damp, cool towels as I hung them.  Whoo-weee!  

Man vs. Deer

Paul:  {{whispering loudly from the bedroom window}} Amy! There are four bucks in the garden!

I grabbed the camera and follow him outside.  He proceeds to give me the "shooshing" hand signal.  Shortly after snapping a few pictures, he then proceeds to SHOUT:  "HEY!  Get outta there!"

I'm not sure what to giggle more at.... 

a) the fact that he needed to whisper to me while INSIDE the house... 

b) or that he was so cautious and quiet, ONLY to bellar for them to scatter....

c) OR that Shadow (our labrador retriever) slept through the whole thing (that's his house in this picture).

Happy Monday morning

Wiping off the dust...

Kathy posted about Sunday handwork;  this evening while walking up the basement stairs (after hanging clothes outside) I spied my cross-stitch bag (with a layer of dust on it).

After sorting through it and blowing off all the dust and wiping off all the cobwebs, I figured I could do a little handwork and finish up this little horse that Cassie started a couple of years ago; wanting to make a Christmas present for her cousin Lindsay.  I really forgot how enjoyable cross-stitching is;  and VERY easy!

It's almost 11:00 PM and I'm still going strong;  a cup of tea is brewing/steeping and I have the Matrix Revolution playing in the background.  Two little girl voices keep giggling upstairs (Cassie has a friend spending the night), so there is plenty to keep me entertained for the next hour or so.

BOM quilt done - "Freedom"

"Freedom" (58" x 84")

Once I finally just said......."Let go and get it done!" I was able to finish up the quilting on this long awaited BOM from 2010.

It took much of the afternoon, because everytime I came to a new block, I stopped and thought (way too long) about how I wanted it quilted.  I will let the pictures do the talking...

(This one is my favorite.  Those filler spirals are simple and could get quite addicting.)

So that's it.  It's done.  

And as many of us say from time to time:  

Done is better than perfect!

I figured I'd show all of you one of my FAVORITE tools when it comes to trimming quilt edges once quilting is complete;  it's my electric scissors that my mother-in-law gifted me sometime in the last couple of years.  SLICK-n-quick!!!!

FMQing - show-n-tell

This is something I never do;  practice Free Motion Quilting.

This morning, I prepped a few 6.5" scraps, oogled over Leah Day's free-motion-quilting project website, plugged in my Bernina stitch regulator (haven't used that in ages!!!!), and quilted away.

Something easy!  I can handle this okay.

Half-way through this design, I was getting annoyed with the stitch regulator.  I seemed "choppy-n-clunky," so I elected to turn it off for the final half (right side).   I actually like the freedom of no regulator, or at least not this one.  It almost felt like it was having difficulty "reading" the fabric; almost as if it didn't realize the fabric was moving.

This one seemed a bit more detailed, so the regulator came back on.  Kinda regretting that though.....

Looking ahead a few hundred designs, this one stood out.  Easy-peasy!  And so cute!

and then.........

I should have stopped while I was feeling good.  Gahhhhhhh!  I really loathe feathers!!!!!   It's a good thing I ran out of thread mid-quilting.  Blah.

My Sunday plans

I'm not sure if this is how I'm going to spend my Sunday....

or if I'm going to play around with some FMQ samples via Leah Day's blog...

I'm inspired to try some different FMQ designs because the quilt installed in the frame has been sitting and sitting because of my fear of FMQ.  I can't see this one completed with a pantograph;  it just doesn't seem to be pantograph-made.  SO, I'd like to venture out with some FMQ.

Kathy made a very "me" statement, hitting home to my fear of FMQ:  "No marking to do, but you must park any OCD tendencies at the door...!"
That's it right there!!!!  I have OCD tendencies when it comes to seeing perfection (or nearly perfection! :0) )

So, yah....that sounds like some fun today.

However, I see that Angela JUST posted the July color for Rainbow Scrap Challenge:  BLUE
..... so much fun stuff...