The Village Idiot

Does anyone even read this anymore?  I know I have certainly lost interest in keeping it updated, but since I use it to record all my quilting/knitting/beading projects, I guess I should at least update my projects.

I made these little ‘stuffies’ as I call them on my embroidery machine.  They were so much fun to make, but as usual, I didn’t have a clue what to do with them when I had them all made.  I decided to post them on Facebook and sell them for $10 each, with all proceeds going to our local Animal Shelter.  Thanks to the support of my friends, I was able to donate $100 to a very worthy cause.

There is a very talented lady at our Guild that takes old fur coats and turns them into teddy bears.  I had an old silver fox stole of my Mum’s that I couldn’t bring myself to throw out, and being the animal lover I am, I knew I could never wear it either.  Patti to the rescue.  She turned the stole into the most amazing bear.

My Judy Niemeyer group started a couple of weeks ago and I decided I’d make Fourth of July.

 

I think the most intimidating thing about it was getting started, but Judy has some excellent You Tube videos on how to prepare your templates and pattern pieces, so once I actually started, it went very smoothly.  I have starting stitching the blocks and I’m anxious to see how it’s going to look when I put it all together.  Picking the fabric was difficult as she tells you the quantities of light medium and dark, but you don’t really know where they are going until you start sewing.

I usually just work on one project at a time, but right now I have several irons in the fire.  I’m working on a quilt called Moonshine which is a Block of the Month.  I’m doing mine in blue, cream and red.

As if that weren’t enough on my plate, I also signed up for this BOM which I loved as soon as I saw it. 

I did finish my Spring Bouquet and had it quilted by Kelly Corfe the owner of The Quilting Bee.  Everyone asked me why I didn’t quilt it myself.  My answer to that is quite simple – if I could quilt like Kelly, I would have!

While this isn’t the best picture of the overall quilt, it is the best picture of the quilting which is amazing!  Hopefully you can click on it and enlarge it.  It is now hanging in our living room and I love it.

Now, to get back to the title of this post.  Last Saturday, Sandra and I went to Buffalo shopping.  We were almost at the border, when it struck me that I didn’t have my passport.  Just before we left, I decided to switch purses to a lighter weight one.  I keep my passport in my purse all the time (you never know when you might have to pop across the border) in a zippered compartment.  I still don’t know why all of a sudden I remembered that I hadn’t transferred my passport out of that pocket. 

Usually whenever I go out Leo will ask me if I have my passport – do I have my pills – do I have my keys and my response to him is always the same.  Yes, what do you think I am, the village idiot!  Well, obviously I am because when Sandra & I went to Buffalo for our annual Christmas shopping weekend, I forgot my pills – this time I forgot my passport.  Don’t think this doesn’t bother me – it does – a lot.  I find myself doing more and more stupid things lately.  My Aunt told me it’s because I have too much on my mind.  That sounds like a good excuse to me and I’m sticking with it!

I’m leaving on May 1st for a weekend on Mackinac Island in Michigan.  My friend Nikki and I are taking a wool applique class from Lisa Bongean of Primitive Gatherings.  To be honest, we are going just as much to stay in The Grand Hotel as we are for the class.  There are no cars allowed on Mackinac – it’s like stepping back in time.  It will probably be pretty chilly, but if we dress warmly, we should be O.K.  Famous last words.

With Friends Like This….

You know the rest!  This is an e-mail I received this morning from my friend Lee – you remember her – the one that doesn’t have a blog!  Here’s what she wrote:

Today is March 5th and you have missed an update on your blog for Feb....This is just a reminder!!!!!

Wasn’t that kind of her to remind me?  Don’t worry, I’ll get even with her……

We purchased a new computer last month and seem to have had nothing but frustration since it was installed.  When I went to write this post, I discovered Windows Live Writer (which I use to compose) wasn’t installed on the computer.  So, an hour and a half later, after trying to download it and remember passwords for Windows, Google and my Blog, I think I finally got it fixed.  Of course, there are a dozen other programs it downloaded at the same time and I’m sure Leo will be thrilled!

I was asked to make two baby quilts for gifts.  The first one is for a very special little boy that is due in about 4 weeks and has been diagnosed with Down Syndrome.  He is going to require heart surgery when he is a couple of months old and my heart just breaks for him and his parents.  He has also been diagnosed with IUGR (Intrauterine Growth Restriction) so I just hope everything turns out alright.  It just seems so unfair that some people are given so much to deal with.

Anyway, on to the quilt.  The gift giver wanted a little boy quilt as opposed to a baby quilt and wanted cars and trucks on it.  This is what I came up with:

I found this fabric which I thought was perfect for the back.

I’m hoping it will be a good teaching quilt with all the different vehicles.  Most of all, I’m hoping the little guy will be O.K. as he has a lot of people anxiously awaiting his arrival to shower him with love.

The other quilt giver had a specific request too – she wanted a green and yellow quilt with Winnie the Pooh.  I looked at Winnie fabric, but it was really thin and nasty, so I came up with the idea of an embroidered Pooh.  Of course, all the Disney designs are licensed to Brother, so finding a design wasn’t easy, but I did manage to find one on Etsy that wasn’t pirated and it stitched out very well.

She also wanted Minkie on the back.  I’d never worked with it before, but was pleasantly surprised at how well it quilted.  My only problem was the fluff from it all over the house!

I had some Minkie left over, so I decided to make a couple of little tag blankies for both babies.  I’ve been told babies love to play with the tags.  Not having any grandchildren, I wouldn’t know!!!  (But I’m not bitter.)

I’m busy stitching the binding on my Spring Bouquet.  I am so happy with it and can hardly wait to hang it in the living room.  I promise pictures next time.  I’m sure Lee will remind me

Happy New Year 2015

Christmas has come and gone and I, for one, am not sorry.  I find it a very sad time of year that reminds me of all the loved ones we’ve lost. 

 

I do, however, have some Christmas things to show you that I couldn’t post before they were given to their recipients.  I love to make Christmas themed gifts and am always drawn to Christmas kits and patterns.  There is something wrong with that!

 

This beaded bracelet was for Sandra and the one below is for her wonderful mother in law, Judy.

Sandra was also the recipient of this tissue holder which was done in the hoop on my embroidery machine.

I made these for my son in law’s sister who just had a wonderful new addition put on her house with her dream kitchen.

These Owl hot plate holders went to Sandra.

I showed you one of these trees in my last post, but I felt they needed a little something so added some snow and presents.

I’ve been working on a mystery quilt I made several years ago.  Here is a picture of the top:

Those big empty plain blocks always bothered me, so I decided to machine embroider some applique on them.  It’s a pretty tedious task – it takes me almost 2 hours to do one block – I could probably have hand appliqued them faster, but here is a not very good picture of one of them done:

There just don’t seem to be enough hours in a day to accomplish everything I want to.  I’ve been asked to make 3 baby quilts – one which is very special and is going to take a lot of work.  I also got talked into doing a Block of the Month for a quilt called Moonshine. 

I’m doing mine in dark blues, reds and creams. 

 

Yesterday Lee and I took a class on how to make thrummed mittens.  It was fun and I think these mitts are going to be really warm when they are done.

 

After our class we had a nice lunch, then went to Len’s Mill in Guelph.  I think the Guelph location has more fabric than any of the other locations I’ve been to.  I’ve been searching for ‘sky’ fabric for a couple of weeks, and had my choice of several there.  It’s too bad sky fabric wasn’t the only thing I bought

 

I will soon have to decide which Judy Niemeyer quilt I am going to do for the group starting in April.  I’m drawn to 4th of July, but it may be a bit ambitious for a first attempt at one of her patterns. 

 

There is also another quilt my friend Nikki showed me that I’d love to do.  It’s called Country Crossroads and it, too, is a block of the month.

 

Well, maybe if I got off the computer and actually DID some of the things on my list instead of just telling you about them, I might accomplish a bit more.

 

It’s been freezing in our part of the country the last couple of weeks, so I hope wherever you are you are staying warm and cuddling under a lovely quilt.

December Musings

Do you remember my annoying friend Lee?  The one who doesn’t have a blog but calls to ask me when I’m going to update mine?  Well, she asked again and guilted me into it!

 

I think I left off at our Guild’s quilt show and still had more pictures to share.

 

This is a Jinny Byer pattern called Moonglow.  I’ve always wanted to make one of these, but the pattern is free on her website and after I looked at it, I decided I didn’t want to dedicate the next ten years to one quilt.  That being said, I have joined a small group that are going to be working on a Judy Niemeyer quilt.  We are all going to be working on our own pattern, but hopefully will get help and support from each other.  It isn’t going to start until April, which is a good thing since I still haven’t decided which one I want to do.  I’m leaning towards Fourth of July  but I’d like to buy a kit rather than try and pick my own fabrics.

 

There’s a new baby in our house – a Babylock Ellisimo Gold.  I’ve always owned Husqvarna machines and never really considered another make as I had all the feet, embroidery hoops, software, etc. for them.  Then I saw the Babylock demonstrated and fell in love.  In my humble opinion, it is way ahead of the Husqvarna technology wise.  It’s very user friendly and I love sewing on it, as well as doing embroidery.  It came with everything I could possibly want, so buying more hoops or feet wasn’t an issue.  I’m trying to sell my Husqvarna/Viking SE but so far have had no interest.  It’s a great machine – I just like the Babylock more

 

I took an embroidery class where we learned how to do a tablerunner or quilt completely in the hoop.  I’m not sure I would do the technique again, but it’s always nice to learn new things.

 

 

Sandra and I went on our annual Christmas shopping trip to Buffalo a couple of weekends ago.  You might have heard about the 7 feet of snow they got!  Well, it seems like the snow literally cut the city in half – the south was hit really badly, but the northern part of the city got very little.  Luckily, we were staying in the part that had no snow and didn’t see any during our travels all weekend.  It was hard to believe that just 5 minutes south roofs were caving in from the weight of the snow.  We had a successful trip and I always enjoy spending time with my daughter.

 

I made her an Advent Calendar a few years ago, but she has taken to filling it every year for Darren, so I made her another one and gave it to her complete with 24 little gifts wrapped and numbered.

 

I also managed to finish the top of my Blueridge Beauty from Bonnie Hunter’s class. 

 

There is one heck of a lot of sewing in that top – two hundred odd half square triangles and the same of four patches.  Since I did it completely from my scrap bin, there was a LOT of cutting involved.  Let’s just say I’m glad it’s done!  Now I need to get it quilted.  Oh, by the way, Lee’s isn’t finished yet  

 

My favourite quilt store is about an hour away.  The Quilting Bee is a wonderful store and the owner, Kelly Korfe, has done so much for the local longarm community.  She is bringing in Judi Madsen of Green Fairy Quilts for classes.  Lee and I have signed up and are looking forward to learning from Judi. 

 

I saw a tutorial on Facebook the other day for a fabric tree and decided to give it a go.  This isn’t a very good picture, but I think I’d like to bling it up a bit with some hot fix crystals on some of the ‘branches’.  If I make another one, I’ll do that.

 

 

We are having our living and dining room painted this week.  We’re buying new furniture for the living room and not before time.  The stuff in there is so dated and while there isn’t anything wrong with it, I’m sick of the sight of it.  I’m sure someone in need will make good use of it.  I just wish I could wiggle my nose and all the new furniture would appear as I hate making decisions.  On the other hand, if I left it to Leo, we’d probably be sitting in a boat in our living room!

 

 

 

Trick or Treat

I was actually ahead of the game this year and got some Halloween sewing done early.  I made this wallhanging for my adopted grandsons, and also a treat bag for each of them.

It’s difficult to see, but I actually got out of my box and quilted a spider web on it!

I think they liked them.

I also made a tablerunner for Sandra – she loves Halloween and always decorates their house.

Then I decided I needed a fall wreath for the front door.  I used batiks this time – all from my scraps.  I really enjoyed making the first one, but for some reason this one seemed to take forever and I never thought I’d get it finished.  I was going to make one for Christmas, but I think I’ll wait until next year when I’ve forgotten what a PITA it was to make.

A friend I used to work with who is now retired has always wanted to take a beading class.  She practically begged me to take it with her and I told her I already had enough hobbies without getting addicted to another one.  You guessed it – I gave in and took a class.  I was hoping I’d hate it, but unfortunately, I really enjoyed it and can now add beading to my list of hobbies.  At least beads don’t take up much room and are easy to get in the house unnoticed!  This is the bracelet I made at the class.

I’ve also been doing some knitting – furry cowls to be specific.  I made one for Sandra and she loved it, so I had a couple of requests to knit more.  They are unbelievably soft and the best part – they don’t shed – not one little bit!

I made two more, but you get the idea.

 

I’m working on my Blueridge Beauty, but it’s going to be a while before that one is finished.  I’d love to be able to work on more than one quilting project at once, but when you have everything pulled out for something, it doesn’t make sense to put it all away and start working on something else.

 

I promised I’d share some pictures from our Guild’s Quilt Show.  I’ll post a couple now, and more next time.

 

 

 

 

We have some very talented quilters in our Guild.