Jones Treadle Machine - go or no-go?

The clear out continues and gets a bit harder with each bag or box packed up for the charity shop...

On the bubble right now is this Jones treadle sewing machine circa 1890 (looked it up once but have forgotten the exact date.)

It moves freely...

had drawers of parts...

including a manuel...

and fun decals...

but do I need it?  It has been in the garage for several years...but I don't have a treadle machine anymore....urghhhhh....

I'll think it about it tomorrow...

in the mean time I will work non the guild donation quilt.  It is the Kaffee Fassett vase and bowl pattern.  It took me way too long to square up the blocks!  That part is done and I hope to have this out of my studio this week...

continue to find some fun things in the piles like this runner (?)  It is all hand stitched and lays almost flat!  I may just quilt it up...

Well back to work now....

Day to play and day to work

My selection for viewers choice...great use of fabric!  A Karen Stone pattern.

Yesterday I took a break from organizing and packing and went to a quilt show with some of my wool-ie buddies.

Susan Edmondson's booth...always bright and creative!

The show was up in Columbia S.C.  Oddly since it was a sweltering 100 degrees out being inside and looking at quilts seemed like a good thing!

Now I know it also sounds a bit crazy to be shopping when I am packing to move...

I didn't buy big stuff...

Some threads and neutrals from Shakerwoods Woolens

Mainly threads...

and a couple yards of Phillip Jacobs that will go well in Florida!

Today it is back to the to-do list!  We are having movers do the majority of the packing and moving.  After the last two moves however I decided that I will always pack and move my quilt collection myself.

If I pack a few each day then the van will be full Monday.

Of course I've been packing a few each day for weeks!

It is fun to unfold and look at each quilt before packing.  So you can see why this takes so long!

The other big project for the day...getting all the cat hair off of the rugs!

It is a nice sunny day with a bit of a breeze.  So good day for getting the fuzz off the rugs then roll them up before Goldie and roll all over them again!

Pieces of my Heart lessons learned

I know I am supposed to be working on UFO's but a few weeks ago I saw a facebook post showing Wendy Williams's new quilt "Pieces of my Heart."

(Photo of finished quilt from Material Obsessions website)

I loved it so I ordered it from Austrailia and started working on it the week it arrived!  First, I still love this quilt and I am going to finish it.  I may even finish it this month!  I have however learned a lot...

Second - it is useful to check online to see if there are any videos.  I had only gone as far as pulling fabric and reading the direction when I found a 4 minute video by Wendy and Material Obsessions.  That made my life a lot easier!

Third - when you have enough fabric/scraps add a few more on each end of the value spectrum.  I started out with almost all reds and pinks.  After watching the video I added a lot more purples, oranges and yellows.  Also added more textures.  Really happy I did.  I have everything from Kaffee to Mary Engelbreight and everything in between!

Fourth - the technique is sort of a flip and sew log cabin...when trimming use a really long ruler.  My first half has a bit of ruler drift since I was only using a 15 inch ruler.  duh!

Fifth - pin often.  The heart can get a bit wobbley particularly as you get to the outer rows.

Sixth - press, press, press...hit it with a bit of best press or starch and press again.

I hope to get the last row onto the left side of the heart today and maybe even start the background piecing.  

This quilt also has a lot of wool embroidered hearts.  My friend Paula gave a bag of wool bits in lots of different shades of red, pink, orange and purple.  Can't wait to start playing with those!

On other projects...I had a finish!

This went to a fund raiser for a friend's sister's medical bills.

And this quilt top is for my sister!  It is Bonnie Hunter's Trip around the world pattern only put on point.  Yes, I took and fairly easy pattern and managed to make it complicated!  I have the backing ready to piece so should have this to the longarmer this month...phew.  Good thing for me they still need quilts in the summer up in Maine!

On the cutting table...

I'm learning that typing with a broken baby finger is tough...heck a lot of things are tough!  (washing dished one handed...the worst!)

But I have a deadline to get the kits out to the guild members for our 2018 donation quilt so past couple of days I've been cutting fabric very slowly and carefully!

We are making Kaffe Fasset's Vases and Bowls.  Naively I thought working with a kit would make the process faster and easier then last year when I drafted a pattern and we picked out the fabrics ourselves.  I was wrong.

I have a pile of leftover fabric...which makes me nervous...sort of like when you put together flat-pack furniture and have extra screws and bits left over.  You wonder if the furniture will collapse the first time it is used!

The there are the fabrics that there is no-way you can get all the pieces required cut from it!  I made multiple templates and laid them out on the fabric...not going to work!  Went online and ordered another 1/2 yard.  That is also the challenge - the local quilt shops do not carry much if any Kaffee.  Closest is s 2 hour drive!

I am close to halfway with the kitting...now what to do with all these pretty bits of leftovers?!

What Terriers do...

Amazing how much one week of quilt show activities can wear you out!

Still in recovery mode...of course Watson's adventure this morning didn't help!  He and Jake the dog next door have been barking for months.  With all the rain the past week the ground was ripe for a tunneling under the fence...because that is what Terriers do...

To make a long story short...Dobby came into the quilt room in a huff...I heard the barking...tried to call Watson back but Jake couldn't decide if he wanted to play with Watson or eat Watson.  Either way he wouldn't let Watson near the fence.  So I had to go in...both dogs are ok but I'm a bit banged/bitten up.  Yikes.

That and a totally muddy bathroom from both Watson and I trying to clean-up...what a day.

When this all happened I was trying to put away my new Quilt Show acquisitions!  I bought a lot of threads, wools, and even a couple of holiday kits.  One vendor had fatquarters 20 for $25!  What a deal!  And since we don't have a local shop carrying wools I always stock up at Shakerwood Woolens and Auntie Ju's.   The stitched golf ball is from Garage Art...will make something for my husband with that!

Pieced and Appliqued, pattern from Collector with a needle

some more photos from the show...

From left to right, Best Hand quilting, Judges Choice, and Best of show...

My friend Shannon made this for her husband...

and also this one above from Piece of Cake that she appliqued got a first place ribbon!

and of course we had a lot of kaffe...

Still at work...

Well the move in to the new sewing space is taking more time and energy than I expected...needless to say it is still very much in progress.

I love the new shelves.  I am trying to be good about labeling everything as I put the box up.  Should make finding UFO's or "pre-cuts" (AKA the Bonnie Hunter system) much easier!

I'm going to sew up some curtains to go across the bottom three shelves.  I'm going to use the striped fabric and the Kaffe flowers.  The plaid will cover the extra chair.

I moved this beighe cabinet from the guest bedroom...

I decided to go bold!  Since there is only one painted piece of furniture in the room I pulled one of my favorite colors from a Kaffe fabric!

This cabinet makes me happy!  The top shelves will hold my favorite inspirations things like scottie figurines, Polish pottery, a few Dutch plates, and some pincushions.  The bottom cabinet will store my Westminister/Kaffe fabrics.

Watson and Dobby seem to like the space!

This inspirational phrase now hangs above the closet!

All this moving stuff around has worn poor Watson out!

I also need to be doing some work in my garden.  Trying to convince my DH that gardening isn't evil and getting a bit of dirt on your hands will not hurt you.  As luck would have it as I was pointing out where the plants needed to go the big black King snake that lives near our fence decided to visit...unlikely I will get DH to work in the garden anytime soon!