Yes, I Did!

I previously blogged about my 19 projects in progress.  Wow, that was in February.  Since then, I've been experiencing something of a slump.  It really doesn't make sense but it is what it is.  I decided it was time to bring one of the 19 to a close.  I had been working on this little project out of HSTs that finish at 1".  Do you ever have one of those projects that you just seem to slog through?  That you really never love?  Well, this was one of those projects for me.  And it clearly showed in my workmanship.  So, guess what I did?

Oh yes I did, I trashed it. 

Now before anyone says I could give it away or use the fabric for something else.  It's ugly.  The fabric waste is very minimal (it was a scrap project).   It finishes at 12" square and would not keep someone warm or something like that.  If you've read my blog for very long, I don't mind making mistakes.  I love to learn.  It's not that I made mistakes.  It would make me feel bad to give it away it's so awful.  I don't want to look at it in my home.  I'm very happy with where it is currently and it will stay there!  

Lesson Learned:  It's perfectly ok to let some projects go!  

Hoping all your stitches (and mine) are happy ones!

Meet Sammy!

In December we welcomed a new member to our family.  My husband was doing a home visit and ran into this stray cat.  He said a few words and this cat just rolled over on his back.  Next thing you know, he's living with us.  Turns out he'd been a stray for over a year - his previous owners moved out of the apartment complex and left him.  We've named him Sammy but he responds best to Kitty Kat.

The pups and he made peace, though I don't think we'll ever find them curled up together.  I've waited 6 months to post about this because we weren't sure we were going to keep him due to my allergies.  Some days are worse than others and the allergies aren't all due to him. I would never describe myself as a "cat person" but this guy has stolen my heart! 

Hey there!  We've been away at my parent's little cabin in the mountains.  The week before we left and the two weeks after have been really crazy work wise.  Big re-org and now I'm supporting groups in two other states as well as my own.  I also have a new manager who has flown out to meet me and spend a couple of days.  Hopefully the next two or three weeks will be more normal.  I won't say calm - because calm isn't going to happen!  

I did manage to finish block 4 of Shores of Hawk Run Hollow.  It wasn't my favorite block to stitch but I do love it finished.  As you can tell, I didn't iron for this pic.  

Many of you may have known that I was a member of Azalea Sampler Guild for a few years.  You may have also followed our blog.  Unfortunately, the group disbanded quite some time ago.  Many of the members joined our local EGA Chapter.  We've recently started a blog that you might want to check out.  We'll be going in and filling in some of our prior activities and of course, keep up going forward.   If you're local, we'd love to have you visit one of our stitch ins.  If you're not local, I'd invite you to visit your local EGA chapter.  It's fun to meet up in person with other needle arts lovers!

Before I forget, I've added a widget to follow my blog with BlogLovin' as Google Reader will be decommissioned on July 1.  I'm still deciding whether or not I like BlogLovin' or Feedly best but BlogLovin' is winning right now.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I'm hoping I'll have needle and thread in hand more over the next few weeks. Hope all your stitches are happy ones!

Cotton Club Finis!

Things have been busy around here...for a while I was calling our home "The House of Yuck".  Even one of the pups was sick.  Thankfully, with the exception of a tendonitis issue, it's all behind us and today I can share a quick post about a finish - Cotton Club is done!  All that is left is a run through the washing machine.  Not a great shot below but I only had one quilt handler available and I really needed two.  Photos have been delayed due to rain and I didn't want to put it off any longer.  

Here is a little closer photo of the quilting.  It was quilted by the same longarmer that does all the quilting for Bonnie Blue/Red Crinoline Quilts (Paula Barnes).  They did a nice job. I love the way the braid looks with the triangles.  You probably can't see it here but each block has a different quilting pattern quilted on it.  The border had big feathers quilted on it.

I enjoyed every second of making this quilt.  I learned a lot while making it and it required a lot of precision from me.  It's also the first time I've ever sewn a mitered border.

It feels good to finish something and especially good that the finish is this quilt.  Other than this quilt I've been in a bit of a slump with the needle  Hoping to find a cure for that soon!  Wishing you all happy stitches!

Making Progress - One Step at a Time!

I'm making progress with some of my WIPs.  This quilt top is assembled - just tons and tons of threads to cut.  I have no idea why I didn't cut them as I sewed each block but I didn't.  The machine I used at the time didn't have an auto thread cutter, maybe that's why?  So I need to cut threads, iron the top and piece/iron the back and it should be good to drop off at the quilters.   I decided to wait to show the whole quilt until later when it's completely done.  

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Lesson Learned:  Take the time to clip threads as you go!

I also won this book from a giveaway Gene was hosting.  Thank you Gene!  I've been working on learning more about how to use my Go Cutter.  I've mastered basic square type shapes (no triangles yet).  I'm really relying on what I'm learning from this book for my next step...

....which is mastering strip cutting.  This one I have the most trepidation about as I'll be cutting on the fold.  I'll practice first but I really want to master cutting strips so I can cut binding strips.  I've already acquired my strip cutter in a 2.25" size.  I've found my bindings tend to be more full using that 1/4" less.  I also use 1 1/8" strips for single fold binding on smaller quilts.  I'll post about my experiences with the strip cutting when I actually get going.  I hope to use it on the quilt above!

Google reader is going away, have you heard?  I have no idea what I'm going to use.  I've been thinking of Blog Lovin' but haven't done much research.  I want to be sure that I can read my blogs in their entirety (unless the owner doesn't permit it) without having to click through unless I want to leave a comment.  Any thoughts or experiences you can share?  

The weekend is approaching and I hope you have a great one!  Thank you for your visits, your comments, your emails and your friendship!