Stitching Away

I'm almost done with my stitching project - the first one on real linen. I've really enjoyed this project! The last little bit should be finished up in no time.

I had put this to the side to work on knitting and quilting projects. It's been hard to resist. Do you ever hear a project call out to you? Mine do. Thankfully they don't seem to talk to me at the same time. I'm really enjoying stitching blogs. It's a great way to learn & find inspiration.

And my quilt? It didn't fall apart in the wash! Whoot!!!

I attended QuiltFest this weekend.  I have a couple QuiltFest pictures I'll post in the next few weeks. It was so nice to see all the quilts and mingle with the crowds. I love the quilts from the young quilters. Not only for their talent but also because I see them carrying on the love of the craft into their generation. I can hardly wait until my nieces are old enough to start work on a project with their Aunt Jackie!

Quilt Finished and Yarn Dyeing

Last night I finished the binding on the kid size lap quilt I've been working on. I didn't have very much to finish so it went quickly. I'm donating this quilt as the friend who gave me the main fabric knits for charity very regularly. I think she'd be pleased that I'm doing so. This is only the 2nd quilting project I have finished. The first was a table runner for my mom made from the scraps of the first quilt top I finished. I'm pleased that there are some finished projects coming out of my quilting even if I am giving them all away!

When binding, do you stitch up into the mitered corned or just take a stitch or 2 at where the fabric meets? I've heard about both methods. I did 2 each way. The 2 where I just took a stitch or 2 in the corner where the fabric meets seem to look more pleasing. I ran out of fabric for the binding so I used the little bits I'd cut off from my strips for the main body of the quilt.

As I type, it's in the washer. I was a bit hesitant to wash it. Let's hope it doesn't fall apart!
The color is more accurate in this photo.

Last weekend there was a Midnight Knit In at my LYS, KnitWitz. There was a special learning opportunity - yarn dyeing! Jane was the instructor and did a fantastic job! It's a different method that what I've learned but there is no one method in dyeing yarn. You really can't do it wrong. There was a lot of interest and since I'd dyed before, I just watched and took some pictures. Everything was set up outside and thankfully it was not one of those humid days when it's miserable to be outside after dark.

This method was to take loosely balled yarn and dip it into dye. Then you squeeze out the excess, turn your ball, and dip it in another color. Fun!

Rinse and spin out the excess! Isn't it pretty?

Hang up to dry!

I've seen several of the dried yarn skeins and they're beautiful. I can't wait to see what everyone does with them!

First Stitches

My first stitches with my new Bernina 440QE have been made. The first thing I did when I unpacked the box was to figure out how to thread it and load the bobbin. I thought I was set so off I went. Something wasn't quite right and I managed to bend the needle and jam it.

I didn't take a picture of that.

I couldn't figure out how to get the needle out. I was just beyond myself at that point. And then I realized that Google was my friend. Google helped me figure it out and get going. As I needed to quilt my Go Green Shopper Bag I was working on, I went immediately to the BSR and hooked it up. I really like the BSR mode 1. So my first real sewing with my new machine was stippling with the BSR!

Next I had to sew on cotton belting for the bag handles. Even though I had several layers to sew through it was no problem with the patchwork foot. I was worried about this as I've never sewn through this many layers. No worries!

I trimmed everything up and this is where I'm at now. I have to sew the sides and bottom on which should be easy, it's one continuous piece. Then I'll have to cut and sew the binding on. I don't think I'll get that done before QuiltFest this weekend. I was going to use the bag to hold my quilting purchases before sending it on to my mom. With my schedule, I just don't think it is going to get done. One thing I hope to purchase is a good thimble. My fingers just can't handle sewing on binding without some protection. Any ideas on thimbles?

I wanted to post an updated photo of the progress on my black lace shawl but it was too dark by the time I got home and had dinner. I've knit about 25,000 stitches on it and it's about 25 - 35% complete. Not a quick knit but fun!

I can't wait to get the thread for my next stitching project. Of course, I haven't finished my first project but I'm not that far from being finished. I'm almost afraid to go ahead and finish it off without something in the wings to start immediately. Once I get my stash built up a little bit, I shouldn't have that problem anymore! Won't that be fun?!

A Bad Week Ends Well!

It has been a crazy stressful week at work this week. I ended up working 24 hours between Thursday and Friday. I was so fried that I could not knit or stitch a single stitch. Not one. Those of you who know me well know that is unusual as these things are my stress relief. It was just too much towards the end of the week. All I could do was crawl into bed and do some mindless surfing on the computer. This is simply the nature of the mortgage business and while I'm used to it, it still can be exhausting. On the other side of the coin, I hate it when it's slow!

But the week was not a total loss. Look what I brought home with me yesterday!

When the dealer brought the box out of the back room, my mouth just opened. I had no idea they'd have it in inventory and was prepared to wait a couple of weeks. I know I had not completed all my research but a good deal was too much to resist. I had been to the dealer several times and G went with me Thursday night. He said for me to go ahead and get the 820 as "you'll never need to buy another machine again". I couldn't justify the expense for my current skill level and I'd still need another machine to take to classes. So I went back yesterday and finalized my decision to purchase a Bernina 440QE. Oddly enough, it was the machine I fell in love with last year when I first started quilting and began reading blogs.

Honestly, I was a little scared to open the box!

When I got to this point, I knew I made the right decision. A good machine for me that will give me more capabilities but isn't too much for me (like the 820 would be).

Here she is right out of the box with the accessory case attached to the back.

The little accessory case is cute but I'm sure I'll soon outgrow it.

All plugged in and ready to go!

Time for me to go play!

Drooling and Itching

I had a very busy weekend and somehow managed to not take photos! I was just so busy!

Saturday I spent the morning playing around with sewing machines at the Bernina dealer. I was very happy with the Bernina's. The stitch quality is just amazing. I spent the afternoon knitting with friends. That is always a nice way to spend a couple of hours!

Today I spent the day as a guest of my friend Melody at her Sampler Guild gathering. What a GREAT group of ladies! The gathering took place at a bed and breakfast that is just gorgeous, the ladies were so very friendly (and talented) and I obviously had a great time. I came away even more enthused about stitching. Six of us stopped and ate dinner. The food was just delicious. Real hush puppies and delicious fried shrimp. I consider myself very honored to have been invited today. Thank you Melody! It was the highlight of my weekend!

Jill, the B&B owner, is a very talented stitcher and her home was filled with wonderful and inspiring samplers. She also has a shop in the bed and breakfast and I spent some time drooling over charts. It was very hard to limit myself to purchasing just two. I want to do it all!

I thought Quakers and Quilts would be a great one as I also love to quilt. It would be wonderful hanging in my quilting/knitting/stitching room when I get one. The thread is being ordered but will take a couple of weeks. I'm just itching to get started! I hope I can wait!

Providence Sampler by Brenda Keyes. Isn't it just lovely?!

My Dragon Melody Shawl is slowly coming along. Here is the latest picture showing how the bind off is going. I'm now working perpendicular to the rest of the project. One stitch is bound off every other row so it will be slow going as there are 569 stitches. This is a poor picture and does not show well the color changes in the yarn.

G had a busy weekend too. Today he had a 56 mile bike ride with the bike group he just joined. He's just gotten started with biking and this is the longest ride he's done so far. In a few months, he'll be ready for longer rides. It's nice to see him get involved in a hobby. Mine have brought me such joy and unexpected friendships that I treasure.

Another weekend is ending and I'm getting ready for the work week ahead. I think I'll do that by stitching a bit more and a doing a couple rows of knitting! Happy Stitches!