Back to Normal

The last time I posted I was having my meds adjusted.  I'm back on track and I'm sorry I vented on the blog but life isn't always sunshine and lollipops.

Back to quilting!  I finished a table runner I started in a Sandy Klop class this past fall.  When I saw the pattern it screamed peppermint candy to me so I made a Christmas table runner.  Unfortunately I didn't finish it until a week after Christmas-or 51 weeks before next Christmas!

   

Completed table

runner

I used invisible thread so it was difficult to photograph.  I free motioned feathers in the candy stripes and swirls in the outer corners of each block.  I wanted to try curved cross-hatching in the centers and was pleased with the outcome!  I did use templates and wanted to become more comfortable using them.

I met a wonderful quilter who lives in my area who teaches at the dealership where I bought my longarm.  It seems like everytime she's teaching there I have other plans out of town!  I got in touch with her and she came to my house to give me a private lesson.  I learned SO MUCH!  I'm much more comfortable using templates and she showed me some other templates I should get.  I want to do a rope motif around a customer's quilt I have and we played with one she brought.  I ordered it and am practicing on a charity quilt.

Rope template

This is a charity quilt someone in my guild did and I'm quilting it.  It's a great way to practice and someone will get a quilt.  They won't care if there's mistakes on it and I work on new skills.  I plan on doing at least one a month-more if I don't have many customer quilts.  I''m going through my sketch books and doing a different vine motif in each empty zig-zag.

 Leafy vine

Leaves and curls

I've done more but it's rolled up on the take-up bar.  I'll post those pictures when I take the quilt off the frame.  I have a few more zig-zags to do and I hope to finish it up this afternoon.  

BTW-the music I was listening to while quilting this was the Sly & the Family Stone station on Pandora.

Happy Stitching!

Pity Party

Who wants to party the day after Christmas?  I hated my birthday as a kid because my family would lump my celebration and presents all together.  "This is your birthday and Christmas present".  As a kid, I hated it!  Everyone else got 2 separate celebrations.  As the years passed and I had my own family my husband did a great job planning a separate celebration.  As the girls got older and moved out into the world they all came home for Christmas and I would have them with me on my birthday.  But now, jobs and distance prohibit them from coming home.  Bryn and Colleen made it home for Christmas but Co had to go back to Grand Rapids at 6:30 this morning to be at work by 10:00.  Joe had a busy day at work and was tired tonight.  Bryn was getting together with friends, many who were going back to their new homes tomorrow.  I'll admit,  I'm really sad and feel cheated again.  Joe went to bed at 9:00- no card, no present and not even a cake!  I felt like I was coming out of my depression but this is really crappy and I'm afraid this will set me back!  Ally and Katie didn't even call.  Ally did acknowledge me on facebook but I would have liked a call.  We are supposed to go to Chicago tomorrow but I really don't feel like it now.

At my age, I really shouldn't care about my birthday but I do!  Maybe next year I should plan something for myself.  I've never done a day at a spa or anything decadent like that but then again, they will probably be closed the day after Christmas.  And heaven forbid, I should go shopping the day after Christmas!  My idea of hell on earth!

Oh well.  Maybe I'll just pour myself another drink and watch late night tv.

Not Posting

I haven't posted lately because, quite honestly, I've been severely depressed.  I was diagnosed with SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) years ago by a psychiatrist and have been taking antidepressants and sitting in front of a lamp prescribed to me by the doctor as well.  We've had a particularly grey late fall and the drugs and light therapy have not done the trick so far.  I've been doing nothing but sitting in front of my computer and playing Candy Crush, Pet Rescue and Farm Heros.  I have the attention span of a gnat.  I usually love decorating my house for Christmas but could barely put up the tree this year.  I pushed myself to sew the other day but could only sit there for about an hour.  I have been working out and it feels good but I come home and just sit around.
   I went to the doctor today and she's increasing my antidepressant and we'll see how that affects me.  I may have to add a second drug to get this under control.  I'm hoping I'm out of the dumps before Christmas.
  Hope I have some projects to show soon after I get my mojo back.

Getting Ready for the Holidays

Gosh!  I've been busy!  Not only have we gotten my daughter's wedding dress but I've also found mine!  I'm so excited!  I didn't want to get mine until Ally got hers so they wouldn't fight!  They both have layers of tulle (or a layer in my case) and lace.  Hers is ivory (duh) and mine is navy.  We found her dress the first of two weekends we planned to look.  We had a trip booked to Boston to look at dresses at a shop my sister-in-law had good luck with (the dress, not the marriage).  Anyway, we took 4 of the 5 flower girls out to try on dresses for them!  They thought they were all princesses!

 Ally looking at the dresses

 Elizabeth 

 Celia

 Hadley doing her spins!

 Hannah, Celia, Elizabeth & Hadley

 That's a LOT of dress!

Bryn holding up the brides' maid dress with 3 of the dresses we are considering

This weekend her fiance's parents were in town to look at rehearsal dinner venues and to see where the wedding will be.  It was a busy but nice weekend.

I've been busy quilting as well.  I helped a friend make a tee shirt quilt for her daughter like the one I made for myself.  I'll be quilting it in another week or 2.  I did finish the tee shirt part of a quilt for a woman I know from the gym and have been waiting for her to pick out the border fabric so I can finish it and get paid.  I already have 10 hours into it and would like it done.

I did get this wall hanging done for a customer's granddaughter.  It's a fused applique so none of the pieces were sewn down.  It did quilt up quickly and I think she'll be pleased.

I do have 2 more quilts to quilt before Christmas.  I'm getting more comfortable using templates and need to practice a bit more because I want to use them on one of the quilts.  Practice, practice, practice!

Happy Stitching!

Busy Week

 I finished this quilt yesterday and am really pleased with how it turned out.  The customer is a neighbor and had a preview of it the other day when she was walking her dog.  IShe  seemed really pleased.  I did get a rack so I can hang a quilt to photograph it and to show the client without clamping it to the curtain rod in the family room, blocking most of the light from the room!  It was a good thing.  Today a friend came by to ask me about an antique quilt she had and saw the quilt hanging in the living room.  She loved it and is going to go through her sons' tee shirts and possibly have some made for them.

This coming week is a short one for me as I leave for Chicago Thursday night to spend the weekend shopping for a wedding dress for my eldest daughter!  I'm going to spend some time working on my Dancing Lady quilt I started at Empty Spools this past spring. In anticipation of spending my time sewing I started  a crockpot full of pulled pork!  YUM!!!

 Pulled pork

Then I set up my computer by my sewing machine and watched a few episodes of The Quilt Show.  I watched an episode with Jean Wells Keenan.  I'm signed up to take a class from her at Empty Spools next spring.  Ricki talked me into it (Ricki Made Me Do It) and now I'm really excited about it!  I need Ricki to push me artistically.  She talked me into taking Ursula Kern's class and I probably learned more from her than just about any other teacher except for Jinny Beyer.  Same same but different.

 Sewing machine set-up

My goals for this week is to quilt the simple Turning Twenty quilt I did for Ally and Josh to give their friends.  I want to take it with me to Chicago this weekend.  Then I get to play with Dancing Lady.  It' took me almost a complete block today to get back in the swing of the process.  I'd like to get the majority of the blocks done by the time I leave.  When I get home I'll get back to making the next tee shirt quilt then I have 2 quilt tops to quilt for another customer.

Until next time,

Happy Stitiching

Unproductive Weekend

You know "those" days.  The ones where no matter how busy you are you get nothing done?  That's been my 4 day weekend.

Thursday started out so promising!  Got up and went to workout for the first time since mid-July.  I was really looking forward to it!  Had a great workout, showered then jumped in the car and headed to the Sewing Expo!  Had my "shopping list" of things I needed and the resolve not to buy anything I really didn't need (read: no new projects).  It was a beautiful fall day for a drive.  Got there in about 30 minutes with little traffic.  Paid my parking fee and found a parking place near the door!  Woo Hoo!  Walked in and up to the counter only to find out it doesn't start until Friday!  Had to laugh at myself.  Oh well!  I figured I'd go to a quilt store with a great selection of fabrics that I rarely go to because it's out of the way for me.  I was half way there so I headed west-not on the freeway but the scenic route.  Unfortunately, the scenic route was not as scenic as it was years ago!  Now I know.  Since I was coming the back way, I was a bit turned around so had to stop and look up the address on my phone (Thank you, iPhone!).  Got there only to find out they were in the process of moving!  REALLY?!?  TODAY?!?  Had to laugh at myself again!  I'm so funny!!!  At least I have a fun car to drive

(My Little Pony) and it was a beautiful day!  I did stop at a little shop on the way back and picked up some fat quarters for a quilt my eldest daughter has commissioned me to make as a wedding gift for some friends that just got married in Maine.

I finally returned home and put my knee up to ice and relax.  I did work the top of the tee-shirt quilt I want to have on the frame this coming week.  Had a quiet evening since Joe was on a golf trip.

Friday was a free day.  I had planned on just staying at home and sewing all day.  Then, silly me, decided to try the Sewing Expo again.  I was really disappointed in the venders.  There wasn't much quilt related.  There were some but not the variety I had hoped for.  I did stop by the Innova booth to see my friends there-Cathy & Jeff.  Cathy told me that a lot of the quilt venders had broken off and were in Birch Run (about and hour away) at new event billed as a One Stop Shop Hop.  OOOO!  It's a nice day so, what the heck.  Looked up the address, plugged it in the GPS and off I went in My Little Pony.  Got there about an hour later and didn't even have to pay for parking!  (I guess karma was with me because I paid for parking twice for the Sewing Expo)  Cut to the chase-it was small.  I suppose it was the first year they have done this and hopefully, it will grow.  I was thinking, after I left, I have been to Houston the past 2 years and to the Grand Rapids show last month.  I've been spoiled.  I have learned to have a list as you walk in and I don't need any more projects to start.

I did get home just as my daughter brought home my grand-dog, Guapo!  She was going out with some friends so I got to spend the evening with "The Guap-ster"!

Saturday I got the Pig Tree decorated!

My Bryn had gotten me a string of pig lights so I decided to get out the pig ornaments I have collected over the years and display them year-round!  After that, I got some of the fall decorations around the house and finished putting the borders on the tee shirt quilt!  

Sunday was a bust!  I got a call from Colleen, who was back home in Grand Rapids saying she had left her laundry (and her room mate's) at our house!  Really?!?  So we met in Lansing, about 90 miles away, and had lunch.  It really took a chunk out of my day.  I did get home and pieced a bit of the turning 20 quilt I'm making for Ally's friend before going to a prayer service for a friend.

So, it's Monday and I'm primed to work.  I've already been with customer service to update a program on my long arm, seen my student, and getting ready to hit the machine!  Woo Hoo!  After quilting the tee shirt quilt, I'm going to work on The Dancing Lady quilt I started last March at Empty Spools.  Next week I'll get back to the customer quilts.

Happy Stitching!

Back on Track!

Home from my wonderful trip to Ireland.  Didn't get a chance to post while away.  Had busy days and enjoyed the Irish beer at night!  My favorite Irish brew was Galway Hooker!  GET YOUR MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER!  A Galway Hooker is a type of sailing vessel!

It took a few days to get back on Eastern Time zone then allow my knee to settle down after all the walking around in Ireland.  Hit M'Lady to get this quilt finished!  I'm really pleased with it!  This picture adds another meaning to "Sunshine and Shadow"!

Next, I finished the tee shirt quilt I made for a client.  I'm really pleased with how it turned out.  I'm always nervous before a client sees the finished product!  Sweatin' bullets!

I'm ready to start on the next tee shirt quilt but I had a cortisone shot in my knee today and have learned the hard way that I have to REALLY take it easy the first 24-48 hours or I will be in tears.  No exaggeration! I've been chomping at the bit to get going but in the mean time, I've come up with another idea to market in addition to the tee shirt quilts!  Hopefully I can work on it tomorrow when I will feel comfortable enough to at least sit at the sewing machine.  Pictures to follow

Until then,

Happy Stitching!