Hooked on Quilting

I've been reading a bunch of blogs and they sometimes share their goals for the month and then update their progress at the end of the month. I'm going to TRY to stay focused and accomplish something. For real... 1. I MUST finish ripping out this Crayon quilt that's on my HQ16 so I can get another one loaded and move on from this nightmare.  Just a little to go. I can only do this for 15 minutes before my back begins to feel it, so it's #1 on the list because it's an easy thing to do when I have a few minutes, but one I'm always neglecting. I will then finish the two (or three, maybe) rows of quilting. The binding is not going to happen in August, but I can try. 2. This was a Craftsy kit and my first Kaffe fabrics and I am just not very thrilled with it, so I have had to force myself to put this together. Not sure if I'll ever quilt it...but it needs to come off my design wall.  Oh, did I mention that I actually bought Cheryl Ann's Design Wall...

Got a late start today so not much sewing time and went out to dinner. :( I was able to do some crosshatching on some fabric that matched the aprons and then I cut the pot holder and mitt. I have enough fabric to do a set for each apron. She's only two years old, but I hope they will last awhile. I did not use heat resistant batting so they are only for "fun" cooking. I was also able to create the other half of my design wall. It really sticks out in the hallway and it's not very sturdy so unless or until company comes, it's not going anywhere. Both design walls need some more thought put into them to make they more sturdy and more mobile/portable. Maybe I'll frame them with a light-weight wood. Suggestions? I also worked on Baltimore Autumn, Baltimore Liberty, A Modern Twist and Dino's. More photos soon.

For my birthday a couple of years ago, my daughter and her husband made me a design wall. It was 10' wide and 8' tall.  It was in 2' increments (so I could transport it, not as sturdy as the 4x8's) and placed on a wooden frame. He even sent me a video of how to assemble it!!! You can see the remains of it below. It was the only 10' wall upstairs that allowed me to take pics from the full design wall. Well, my studio is a finished room over the top of a very generous three-car garage. It's a wonderful room, however, all the side walls are vaulted/slanted and the end walls have windows, so there's no place tall enough for this 10' frame! I wish the studio were cleaner so I could share. :( I ended up using it out in the middle where the slants start, but it blocked most of the room. Last year, I disassembled it and moved it to the barn room which is yellow.  We call it the barn room because the previous owners had a mural of a barn in there. Weird.  I ...

I'm so sorry that I haven't been posting regularly. We had another grandson! Jacob Charles and his parents let me stay with them for a week after the birth! I had a great time and he's got red hair; first one and lots of it! My daughter did not have more than two days of heartburn so that shoots a hole in the old myth. :) I'll be posting soon about what I've been doing. I took my two sewing machines, serger, cutting mat and nearly my entire sewing studio so now I've been re-arranging furniture and re-organizing the room. My son-in-law constructed me a design wall that is 8' x 10' and because of my over-the-garage-room's slanted ceilings, I'm having trouble finding room for it!!! More soon.

Back in January, I, temporarily made a design wall. A MUST-HAVE for every quilter, if you read my blog, you'll know that I can't live without it and get upset every single day that my huge room has slanted ceilings and I can't have it against the wall!!!! The temporary wall has a few drawbacks, but I was so happy to have it that I've been living with them. 1. It's still too flimsy. 2. It blocks some of my HQ16 machine. 3. It blocks some of my cutting table. 4. The flannel is stretched properly yet. 5. Hard to move. 6. It really is in the way and if the window is open and there's a breeze, smaller blocks blow everywhere. This sounds like it's not worth it, but it really, really is. That's my whine for today...maybe I'll go look at wheels or one of those garment racks and see if I can adapt it to my needs. Or, maybe I'll just live with it for awhile longer. Or, maybe I should buy a "real" one. Gloria

When we moved to Kentucky, as a way to get involved (really, to lose weight and not have to exercise), I got back into tennis. I've been playing every week at a club and then joined their Interclub team. Today was our first doubles match and, surprisingly, my team mate Sarah and I won 2 sets! The Club sends three teams of two at each level (I'm at the bottom 3.0--got to start somewhere!) and our other two teams were defeated. This was our very first match ever, so there were nerves involved, we'll get 'em next time! I still seem to have cement shoes, but I'm chipping away at them. No weight loss either...should I dare hope for thyroid problems like Oprah? On the no-tennis days, I plan to use my new Wii-Fit and see if that helps...yes, I know, you have eat better along with the exercise, but that's not been happening either. I'm still alternating the sewing of the Double Delight and NYE Mystery this evening, but no photos as they are still just DD 3.5 square...

Well, I made one or two more blocks, so I haven't totally fizzled out. Notice the third block from the left on the bottom row hasn't been put together yet, but close. Do you see the pattern yet? Check out the new design wall...needs work, doesn't it?

I'm bound and determined to create a design wall and it's been quite a challenge for this room. I have a huge studio which is actually a room created from above my three-car garage plus the laundry room. The biggest challenge is that due to the peak of the garage, I have sloped ceilings with only about five feet of 8' ceilings right down the middle of the room! So, I can't have a design wall attached to any wall because of the windows at each end of the room. There's a couple of half walls with pillars that are holding up the roof and they are just in the way. Anyway, I'd started making a design wall in Baltimore with one blue foam board and this Home Depot only had pink so I'm a bit disappointed they don't have the same background, so I'm going to think about wrapping them before I put up the flannel permanently. For now, I've just sprayed it with removable adhesive and throw up the flannel. I can use it, at least. For now, I'm just leaning...