Stash Report Week 38

Howdy!

As predicted, I did little sewing.  The fall weather is just too nice to spend it sitting in the house.  This quilter likes to be active.  Here's a link to what's been going on this week.

This pretty little Dresden plate got a bath.  It came from Grandma's. I think Grandpa's first mother-in-law made it, a Mrs. Alexander.  I will have to get her full name from the obituary index the next time I'm home. I could email the library, duh.

For some reason Grandma kept it draped over the back of a recliner in her living room for years.  Everyone that sat in that recliner left a little something behind and it had some really dirty spots. Of course, I didn't think to take photos until it was soaking. It looks tons better!!

I used one sample pack of Vintage Textile Soak.  It's a small quilt, cot size maybe, so it fit into my kitchen sink and stayed there overnight.  I didn't think the water would ever run clear when I rinsed it yesterday morning.

We have a qualified quilt appraiser in our guild.  I'm going to have her appraise this Dresden plate and this lovely Pickledish.  Look at that binding!

Grandpa's mother made this (my step grandfather, that is).  Her name was Mertie Zimmerman and all I know about her is that she was a young widow with two sons who always had a needle in her hand when she sat down. I know some of her grandchildren and need to ask them about her.

I still haven't purchased any fabric but plans are brewing.  I don't how much longer I can hold out!  However, I did get new stuff to play with this week.  Leona sent me an envelope of batik scraps - yummy!

A few pieces have been pulled for an applique class I will take next month.  There are some neutral scraps.  It is so hard to find neutral batiks - at least at my LQSs.  I haven't looked closely but my guess is there's a yard here.  So my numbers change a little.


Used this week: 0

Used year to date: 28.525

Added this week (purchased/won): 0

Added this week (inherited/gifted): 1

Added year to date (purchased/won): 33.131

Added year to date (inherited/gifted): 66.75

Added year to date total: 99.881

Net used for 2012: -71.356

Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports. 

Stash Report Week 37

Howdy!

I missed last week's report due to my own laziness.  Blogging just didn't fit into my day.  It was the first Sunday full of NFL games and DH had to call DirectTV and order the Sunday Ticket.  He was so funny.  See, he told me a few weeks ago that he cancelled the Ticket and I was stunned.  I mean, he's in two fantasy football leagues. The whole reason we have DirectTV is because no other provider has the Ticket.  Needless to say, his ordering it an hour before the first game started was not surprising!

 All of my quilt-related work the last two weeks has been getting two large tops ready for quilting.  I debated whether to have them basted by my long armer or to once again use Marti Michell's book Machine Quilting in Sections.  Marti won for two reasons: (1) money, which wouldn't be much, but saving is saving, and (2) did I want to actually quilt one huge quilt or handle smalle pieces.

When I got out the 8-9 yards of flannel for one back - I had my decision!  I was not about to wrestle around a 90x100 quilt sandwich that was backed with all that flannel.  Man - that was heavy!!

So, I have no expectations of getting these quilted, pieced back together, borders added, and binding on any time soon.  It's fall, the weather here is awesome and my poor yard and flower beds need lots of work.

Plus, for the first time I have signed up for activities with my guild in October.  Most of the guild's workshops fall on a week day afternoon and I have childcare issues.  This time there is a hand applique workshop on a Saturday and also a Saturday day retreat.

My numbers have not changed one single bit!


Used this week: 0

Used year to date: 28.525

Added this week (purchased/won): 0

Added this week (inherited/gifted): 0

Added year to date (purchased/won): 33.131

Added year to date (inherited/gifted): 65.75

Added year to date total: 98.881

Net used for 2012: -70.356

Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports. 

Quilty Friends are Great and a "New" Iron.

"Congratulations on owning this fine quality product...

Its many modern features will make your every day more pleasant and enjoyable."

Quilty friend Cheri got on the case to find me a new, old iron.  She started using vintage irons a few years ago and is making converts of many quilters in our area.

See, lots of us know Cheri because she is a long arm quilter and taught for many years in one of our several area LQSs.  Cheri often brought a homemade snack for her students, to keep their strength up.

This one is a cute GE travel iron with a nice pointy tip.  Perfect for retreats, etc.

Cheri warned me that it would get hot.  Whewwee!  I had to turn it down to the wool setting to use on my cotton strips.  Unlike my other irons set to dry, this one pressed out the wrinkles and they stayed!

The little red lever under the handle switches between 120v and 230 volts.

However, if I need a little steam, check this out.  It's an attachment.

Fill it with water and screw it onto the iron!  Ha - loving the novelty of this little iron.

The instructions say that there was another cap that would allow for spraying, too.  That cap and the international travel plugs are gone, but that's ok - "it's cute as a button."  The receipt in the instruction booklet from a Famous Barr department store is dated 13 August 1968.

Cheri and I met for lunch and when she gave me the iron it was in this cute iron caddy that she made.  That's Cheri!!

Thank you, Cheri, I love it!!

Stash Report Week 35

Howdy!

Looking back on my week I started to say, disappointedly, that I didn't get much done.  However, I did some more work on my scraps.

In fact, I spent about 8 hours total cutting scraps into strips and squares (when there's not enough for a strip).  Wish I had taken a few pics along the way.  Last year I decided cutting my leftovers into strip sounded like a good idea but I hadn't decided on sizes so I cut to whatever was available on the leftover, be it 1.5" or 2.25" or 2.75".  Well, now that I've listened to Bonnie Hunter and decided to standardize (I am an archivist with a library degree, standardization is my blood), I needed to go through these scraps one more time. 

No, all of my scraps are not cut.  The ones that I generated in my own projects are cut but I still have loads from my grandma and from my friend, Beth, to cut.

It also gave me the opportunity to make things more tidy and free up two slightly larger plastic bins.  I started keeping scraps in whatever plastic containers I saved from our recycling bin and then kept those in a larger tub.  These shoes boxes are much easier and there are now two boxes completely full of 2.5 strips that I have cut.  That doesn't include the two bali pops and three jelly rolls sitting around my sewing corner.  I may bookmark this post - I'll read it whenever I'm tempted to buy more fabric!

It was a funny coincidence that most of the cutting and organizing happened on the day of my guild meeting with a speaker, whom I had forgotten about, who talked to us about using up our scraps. And boy! did she bring the quilts to show.  She was local and I think she brought about 6 tubs of quilts!  Her name is Tea Mahone and she had scrappy patterns to sell but she doesn't have her website set up for selling them - shoot!  I woud've bought at least one if I hadn't spent all my cash on the applique workshop that the guild has scheduled for October. Check our her Exploding Star quilt - love it and she has directions for 3 sizes.

But, I didn't leave empty-handed - oh no!  You see, a member brought all kinds of stuff to give away and it is hard to pass that up! - patterns (all kinds not just quilting), magazines, a few books, and some muslin.  Well, I resisted everything before the meeting, even the muslin, and we all know one can never have enough neutrals.  When it was still sitting there and our intermission was almost over, well, I just couldn't control myself.  I took the lightest muslin piece (2.5 yds) there and the light gray fabric (1.25 yds).

Another, more experienced, member who was looking through the patterns said I got the best piece there.  The other pieces were unbleached and a tad heavy.  The gray is just an old solid, about 50" wide that will come in handy someday.

So, my stash increased again.  I'm putting this in the "purchased/won" column.  If I subtract my inherited fabric, and only look at the purchased/won year to date, I'm not doing too badly.  However, it's all that inherited fabric that reminds me not to buy more fabric.  Funny how that works, huh?

from the recipe's URL, not mine

I spent this morning in the kitchen. DH and DS were occupied and DH cleaned the kitchen a bit by doing a few dishes so I could cook.  Can't cook in an untidy kitchen! So, by noon the house smelled of bacon and spinach quiche, a double batch of tomato sauce for lasagna, and one pan of smores bread pudding.

And, I'm done today.  The sun is out and the Isaac rain has moved one - the rainy days didn't bother me at all!  We may even hit the St. Louis Zoo tomorrow morning.  Hope you're all enjoying your holiday weekend!



Used this week: 0

Used year to date: 28.525

Added this week (purchased/won): 3.75

Added this week (inherited/gifted): 0

Added year to date (purchased/won): 33.131

Added year to date (inherited/gifted): 65.75

Added year to date total: 98.881

Net used for 2012: -70.356

Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports. 

Have a great week!

Finishes! ...and Stash Report Week 34

Finally, two UFOs are finished!

This first one is a disappearing 9 patch pattern from the Moda Bake Shop.  It used two charm packs and some sashing.  Since I got 4 yards of the brown fabric for $1.99/yd at a LQS, it made a great sashing and backing to use for self-binding.  It is just the right size for the dining table that we brought from Grandma's house and it used about 5.5 yards.

The second project is from the Civil War BOM that my guild did last year.  We're sharing our quilts at our meeting on Tuesday night. Each month I made a 12 inch version for the raffle and a 6 inch version of the blocks to keep so that I would have a manageable project to complete.  Again, the backing also became my self binding - love that technique! The muslin background is from Grandma's stash.  This one used about 2.25 yards.

You may remember that I won some of the 12 inch blocks. However, I need to make a few more to make a larger quilt so that one will probably remain on the UFO list til at least next year.

The leftovers from the backings are neatly placed in the scrap saver's system.  Ready to move on to the next UFO...wonder which it will be!

My will power is still in place despite the pretty batiks that have been on sale.  No new fabric came into the house this week.

Used this week: 7.75

Used year to date: 28.525

Added this week (purchased/won): 0

Added this week (inherited/gifted): 0

Added year to date (purchased/won): 29.381

Added year to date (inherited/gifted): 65.75

Added year to date total: 95.131

Net used for 2012: -66.606

Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports. 

Have a great week!

Stash Report Week 33

Howdy!

Did you know that size matters in the bird world?  It does - these blue jays, who are not regular visitors to our wooded back yard, caused quite a ruckus yesterday morning at the bird bath.  The robins were quite put out at being relegated to second place in line!

What a week - DH attended an out of town conference most of the week and DS started kindergarten - of changes! 

Plus, our lovely below-average temperatures continued.  One afternoon I had to turn the a/c on due to the humidity, not the heat.  However, that was short-lived when another cold front moved through.  We're still very dry, two hours of moving the sprinkler around the yard, but at least we can enjoy being outdoors.

I got in some sewing - woohoo!!  These T-blocks, or the pieces for the blocks, have been sitting on my sewing table since about February.  I knew there were a few pieces that still needed to be cut but I had forgotten which fabrics.  Sew, I decided to sit and work through them to determine what was left to be done.

Chain piecing two blocks at a time on the featherweight went so quickly!  And, it wasn't terribly boring doing the same block over and over again.  

Another exciting part of my week - my iron arrived!  Linda at Stray Stitches recommended the Continental Dry Iron and I added it to my Amazon.com wish list.  Well, at $29.99, I thought I'd wait and shop around a bit.  Quilty friend Cheri "has a guy" that ferrets out vintage dry irons and she's got him on the job for me.  

Sunday afternoon I happened to check my wish list and the price was 49% off! That made the iron about $14.99 with free shipping b/c, of course, I easily added the $10 necessary to get to the qualifying $25 purchase total.  

I am so glad I did.  I've only used it on about 8 blocks and I like the point. It's nice and a bit heavy so it won't tumble over at the slightest nudge. The poor ol' Black & Decker still works but it just won't stay on.  In pressing a single block it might shut off as many as 3 times!

Hoping for some finishes this week - I think I've said that before.

To the Numbers:

Used this week: 0

Used year to date: 20.775

Added this week (purchased/won): 0

Added this week (inherited/gifted): 0

Added year to date (purchased/won): 29.381

Added year to date (inherited/gifted): 65.75

Added year to date total: 95.131

Net used for 2012: -74.356

Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports. 

Have a great week!

Stash Report Week 32

These flew over our house early yesterday morning.

We had temps in the 60s overnight, for the first time since mid June, and they must have taken advantage of flying in the cooler air.  I recognized the sound of the hot air filling the balloons - yep, we had our windows open - for the past 2 days!  Summer is definitely my least favorite season.

Yesterday we took DS to the "fun town" to play mini golf...

... and ride some rides

...and enjoy being outdoors, what a novelty!

I've managed to accomplish nothing this week in the sewing department.  Bindings still need to be put on.  However, I have high hopes for the near future.  DS starts kindergarten this Tuesday.  It's only a half day but it will be 5 days/week, rather than the 3 mornings of pre-school.  

No fabric has been added - woohoo! And, I've been cutting some of the scraps that my friend gave me in June.

Here's what I start with, rather odd shapes and sizes.  This is where the GO Baby! comes in sooooo handy.  

I looked through all the free patterns on Bonnie Hunter's Quiltville and decided that I could make Fourth of July exclusively from these scraps.  So, I now have 240 3.5" squares.  This would make an easy leader/ender project.

some limited fussy cutting amidst the GO cuts

There's still lots more to cut from these scraps, but I used a couple empty shoe boxes to put the remainder in so I could clear the table and actually sew for a bit in what's left of this weekend.  Oh - and I did go buy six more 5 quart shoe boxes on Monday - lol!

How was your week?  Have Better weather, is school starting, find good deals on fabric, get any finishes?

To the Numbers:

Used this week: 0

Used year to date: 20.775

Added this week (purchased/won): 0

Added this week (inherited/gifted): 0

Added year to date (purchased/won): 29.381

Added year to date (inherited/gifted): 65.75

Added year to date total: 95.131

Net used for 2012: -74.356

Please click over to Patchwork Times and see other stash reports. 

Have a great week!