Happy Easter - 3/31/13

Happy Easter!!

To celebrate I made an Easter Sudoku Quilt -
Or at least I made the top - ;))

I showed you one before -
But TODAY is THE DAY -
So you get to see it again - ;))

May you have a VERY NICE DAY -

May all of your Easter Eggs -

Have VERY PRETTY COLORS -

And -

May all of your Chocolate Rabbits -

Have VERY LONG EARS! - ;))

Happy Easter, everybody!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

Mail Call - KM -

Not long ago -

KatieM - HERE - and I worked out another trade -

I sent her some thread boxes - HERE -

And she sent me some Quarter Pound Beef Patties -

Just kidding - ;))

The box had all sorts of goodies inside -

This fabric will be PERFECT -
For a neutral in the border for these blocks -

And even more neutrals in this pile -
The one on the far right is Tan with Red Roses -
PERFECT for my LHQSQ -

Some calicos for Foundation Paper Piecing -
I love the small scale of these prints -

AND a bunch of machine embroidered squares -

This is one of about a dozen black quilt blocks -

And here are some of the red Christmas ones -

Pretty good trade, huh? - ;))

THANKS, KATIE!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

Are you superstitious? -

Most of you know that I do my stuff early -

And then "schedule" it -

To run “live” on certain days -

To give me a chance to actually SEW something - ;))

So by Wednesday -

I had posts scheduled for Friday and Easter Sunday - ;))

Now I'm not particularly religious -

But I am a bit superstitious -

And I realized - while I was “scheduling” -

That my six hundred sixty-sixth post was coming up -

So I had it scheduled for Sunday -

Just in case there is anything to the "specialness" of that number - ;))

Sunday - I figured if there was any bad "juju" attached to that number -

That it might be offset by any good "juju" attached to Easter - ;))

I don't really believe in either - but - as they say - it can't hurt - ;))

And then I figured that I would just get this over with -

And let my Easter Sunday post -

Be my Easter Sunday post - ;))

So THIS is my six hundred sixty-sixth published post -

And I’m posting my six hundred sixty-seventh one in just a minute - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

Friends -

When I started blogging -

One of my very first comments -

Was from Julie Fukuda - HERE - ;))

Julie is Left-Handed -

Lives in Tokyo -

And does everything BY HAND -

Her work is simply AMAZING - ;))

She is one very sweet lady -

And I am proud to call her my FRIEND - ;))

And it seems that she likes me too -

Because she is making a “Followers Quilt” -

And she made a block especially for me - ;))

You can read about it - HERE -


THANK YOU, JULIE!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

SPAM or NOT SPAM?? -

So I can’t decide -

Is this SPAM or NOT SPAM?? -

Hi, I just got one of these machines and I am a beginner. Thank you for your helpful instructions on how to remove the bobby. Can you also show how to thread the machine? I am trying and cannot figure that out. Thanks. on LHQ - Sewing Machine Question

This was a comment in my “Awaiting moderation” folder -
I omitted the name and contact information of the sender - on purpose - ;))

And - as I say in my header to the “Comment” section -

I love reading your comments -
they let me know that I’m not just talking to myself - ;))

FYI - I have always restricted comments to “Registered User” - and I have always moderated my comments - and I will continue to do so. I like to read your comments before I publish them - and I DO publish ALL of them - whether you agree with me or not. The only ones that I DO NOT publish are the “buy-me” and "spam" crap.

So - if you want to leave a comment but don’t like your word verification choice - hit the little arrow thingy to the right of the box until you find one that you DO like. I can’t always read them either but word verification is there for a reason and I refuse to be bullied into taking it off - ;))

I can’t decide whether to delete it or not -
Because I can’t decide if this is SPAM or NOT SPAM -

On the one hand -
It could be a legitimate comment -
Asking for help on threading the machine -
The commenter did get past the word verification -

BUT on the other hand -

The post is dated July 2011 -
That’s almost two years ago -
And - if I didn’t moderate my comments -
I would NEVER have seen this one -

AND -

That particular sewing machine is one of my oldest -
So I doubt seriously that the commenter “just got one” -

AND -

I have no idea what a "bobby" is -
I'm pretty sure I said "bobbin" in the post -
If you're a beginner - it helps if you learn the names of things -

AND -

The sender is a “no-reply” commenter -
So I can’t answer the question directly -

AND -

When I checked the profile -
There was VERY little information -
“On Blogger since March 2013” - Today???
“Profile pageviews - 1” - Mine???

So -

I’m leaning toward SPAM -

What do you guys think? - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

Design Wall Monday - 3/25/13

DESIGN WALL MONDAY - 3/25/13
Check out all of us who link up with Judy L. at Patchwork Times on Mondays.
We have some awesome stuff on our walls!
Well, THEY do - ME - not so much sometimes - ;))
===

The Sudoko Quilts for May - June - and July -
Are all cut and "kitted" -
I can't show you any more than this right now -
But I will when I actually work on them - ;))

At the beginning of this month -
I had put away the Folk Art Christmas Tree for a while -
To be pulled out again on the 25th -

Folk Art Christmas Tree - HERE -
Folk Art Christmas - by Cindy Taylor Oates - (c) Taylor Made Designs -

Because on the 25th of each month -
Until the end of the month -
I plan to work on a Christmas project -

One of my entries in the LTRTCWSA - 2013 -
Leisurely Turtle Race To Christmas With Squirrels Allowed - 2013 -
The little “Race” that Linda - HERE - and I started - HERE -

Just a couple of days every month -
And the 25th sounded right in my head - ;))

I had hoped to get all of the applique done on this -
By the end of LAST month -
As my February entry in the LTRTCWSA - 2013 -
But that didn’t happen - ;))

You can’t really tell from the photo -
But I have the Angels done -
And the Stars -
And the Reindeer -
And the LEFT-Hand - ;))

All I need to do now is the Bow -
And all of the Red stuff -
The Birds -
The Circles -
And the Hearts - ;))

So - for the next few days -

I plan to work on this little goody -

Might even FINISH it -

Which - in my world - means -

Finish the Machine Applique -

And get the borders ON!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

LHQSQ - Blocks 76 - 80 on the wall -

I got the sashing on another bunch of blocks - HERE -

For my LHQSQ -
Left-Handed Quilter Sampler Quilt -

Block #76 - Mississippi -

Block #77 - Nine-Patch Variation -

Block #78 - Nine-Patch 2 Variation -

Block #79 - Bird of Paradise -

Block #80 - Optical Illusion -

And they are up on the wall -

Only 19 more blocks to go - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

BOB's back -

Some of you may have already noticed that -

BOB's back -

She got lonely over on her own little blog -

So she's back -

BOB and I are two sides of the same coin -

And it's hard to be happy happy all of the time -

When what I really want to do is rant - ;))

It reminds me of the line in "Dirty Dancing" -

"Baby" is telling "Johnny" - HERE -

We're supposed to do the show in two days, you won't show me the lifts, I'm not sure of the turns, I'm doing all this to save your a$$, what I really want to do is drop you on it!

So BOB is back -

And will rant or not -

Depending on her/my mood that day -

She/I may be funny -

She/I may be interesting -

She/I may be irreverent -

She/I may be politically incorrect -

She/I may be controversial -

She/I may offend some readers -

But she/I will definitely be ME -

It's my blog -

And I'll rant if I want to -

Rant if I want to -

Rant if I want to -

You would rant too -

If it happened to you* - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

=====

NOTE -
For those of you who don't know -
I am paraphrasing the song lyrics of -
It’s My Party - Lesley Gore - HERE -

Songwriter(s): Herb Wiener, Seymour Sy Gottlieb, Wally Gold, John Gluck Jr
Copyright: Chappell & Co. Inc.

Another DUH! moment -

The other day I had another DUH! moment -

When I realized -

How easy it would be -

To move my ironing board -

To the LEFT of SusieQ -

To save some “scooting” time -

Between piecing -

And pressing -

Repeat after me -

DUH!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

Progress Report - 3/20/13

So I worked on my Easter Sudoku Quilt - ;))

After I had finished the blocks -

I realized that I had forgotten "Orange" -

In the mix of Easter egg colors -

So I fixed that with Orange cornerstones -

And got the sashes and cornerstones on -

Now to audition border fabrics -

The Orange in the middle is the cornerstone fabric -
So it really isn't a choice - ;))

My first choice was this Coral tone-on-tone -
But I didn’t have enough of it -

And I didn’t have enough of the Pink tone-on-tone either -

I had another pretty Pink -
But it was a little too light -

Then I thought that maybe -
I could try a “Grass” Green -
Gotta have some Easter “Grass” - ;))
But it clashed with the Turquoise -

Then I thought of a pastel Orange/Peach -
But it was too light -

So the winner is just a bit darker -
Orange Sherbet -

TAH DAH!!

Happy SPRING!!! - ;))


Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

Design Wall Monday - 3/18/13

DESIGN WALL MONDAY - 3/18/13
Check out all of us who link up with Judy L. at Patchwork Times on Mondays.
We have some awesome stuff on our walls!
Well, THEY do - ME - not so much sometimes - ;))
===

I finished the top for the St. Patrick’s Day Sudoku Quilt -
And showed you that yesterday -

And I made the “Heart” for my Memory Quilt -

Then I made the “Heart” for the Easter Sudoku Quilt -
While I was at it - ;))

Today I want/need to finish up the Easter Sudoku Quilt -

The blocks are made -

The side sashes are attached -
And the bottom sashes/cornerstones are ready to go -
The lonesome square is for the TOP LEFT corner - ;))

So now I need to finish the sashes and cornerstones -
I showed you how I do that - HERE -

Then get the top together -

And put some borders on -

But before I can do that -

I need to audition some border fabrics -

And that’s the plan - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew

St. Patrick's Day -

HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY!!

I had wanted to get the top together -

On my St. Patrick’s Day Sudoku Quilt -

In time to post it today - ;))

I got the blocks together and sashed -

And the borders ON!! -

TA DAH!! -

Here’s a close-up of the border fabric -
I tend to go with darker borders for some reason - ;))

Here’s another close-up -
Just because - ;))

Have a HAPPY ST. PATRICK’S DAY!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

A Left-Handed Quilter Blog Hop -

I see Blog Hops all over blogland -

They seem to be the current “thing” to do - ;))

Most of them require that you sign up -

Get some pattern and/or supplies -

And make something to SHARE with other bloggers -

Then - on your day -

You post your project -

And invite everyone to visit everyone else -

On the Hop - ;))

That sounded like fun -

Except for the getting the pattern and/or supplies part -

That sounded like free advertising or a bunch of sales -

For whoever provided the pattern and/or supplies -

SO -

I came up with my own version -

Sign-ups only -

No pattern - no supplies - no specific project -

Just a Blog Hop -

From one Blog to another -

AND -

It seems that I already had one set up -

It is the page/tab at the top of my blog -

LEFTIES -

We SHARE our Left-Handedness -

And our tips -

And our tricks -

EVERY DAY -

SO -

Here's a list of other LEFTIES - whose blogs you can visit.

Tell them A LEFT-HANDED QUILTER sent you.

=====

LEFT-HANDED QUILTERS ;))

KITTY - (ME) - A Left-Handed Quilter -  You're already here. ;))

BOB - (My alter-ego - Bitchy Old Broad) - Quilter BOB

CHRIS - Shared Creativity

DONNA - Quilting Studio Adventures

WAYNE - Wayne's Quilts

JULIE - My Quilt Diary

SUE - Keep Calm, The Kettle's On!

FROG QUILTER - Frog Quilter

SUSANM - sewsue

KATIE Z. - Zana's Ninis

SUSAN - Susan Sews

TRACY - My World in a Stitch

STEFFI - ...just Quilts

OSAGE BLUFF QUILTER - Osage Bluff Quilter

DONNA - Quilting Grandma

DEBBY - LoopyLefty

SHERRY - Books, Hooks, Sticks, etc.

THE QUILT WITCHES - The Quilt Witches

EDIT - 3/16/13 - Newest addition to LEFTIES list - ;))
MARTHA - Quilt To The Edge


RIGHT-HANDED FRIENDS OF A LEFT-HANDED QUILTER ;))

KATIE M. – Katie and Kwilts

JUDEE – meinca

KAREN M. - Karen's Sewing Room

LINDA - Linda quilts

LINDA J - life, quilts and a cat too

BILLIEBEE - BillieBee's Blog


NO-BLOG LEFTIES - No bloggie - No button ;((

ROSE

BEA

CHERI

QUILTING CHRIS

=======

Happy Hopping!! - ;))


Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

BOB and Flannel -

BOB doesn’t get it -

What’s the big deal with Flannel? -

Why do some quilters love it so much? -

BOB doesn't like it at all -

I know that it's soft and fuzzy -

BUT -

I think that it's also very flimsy -

And very linty when I try to wash/dry it -

And very stretchy when I try to sew it -

And it’s usually more expensive than regular cotton -

So what’s the big deal? -

I don’t get it -

I don't buy it either - ;))



But then again - it’s probably just me - ;)

Left-Handed Thimbles -

Yesterday I got a comment on a post -

That I wrote last February -

Last YEAR February -

Not last month - ;))

I have always moderated my comments -

So that I don’t miss any -

Especially on older posts -

Because you never know who is reading what -

Or what they may have to say - ;))

Anyway -

I got this email from Simon -
As a comment on my Thimbles post - HERE -

Simon said -
(Honest - ;))

simon condonMarch 12, 2013 at 4:24 AM
Ok - I just got asked by my girlfriend to find her a left handed thimble. After the initial laughing stopped I realised she was serious and we had a "discussion" about thimbles being symmetrical and not made for a certain hand. Could someone please confirm for me (and my girlfriend) that there is no such thing as a left handed thimble? Thank you - Simon.

I replied -

A Left-Handed QuilterMarch 12, 2013 at 10:33 AM
Simon - As far as I know, thimbles are neither Right-Handed nor Left-Handed. The ones that I have seen and used are symmetrical and can be used on either hand. BUT I may be wrong. If you like, I will pose your question on my blog and see if I can get more information for you - ;))

After I hit “Send” -

I realized that - of course -

Simon is a “no-reply commenter” -

So my response went to somewhere in la-la land -

But - I ask you -

Is there such a thing as a Left-Handed Thimble?

Simon and I would like to know - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

TUSAL - 3/11/13

I have joined hundreds of other stitchers in Daffycat’s TUSAL 2013 - HERE -

It's a Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long - ;)) -

To play the game -

I have to fill my glass container -

With saved thread clippings -

Or ORTS - Old Ratty Threads -

Fabric trimmings -

Stitching cast-offs -

And then -

On the New Moon -

Take a picture of the ORTS in my jar -

Post it to my blog -

With a link back to her TUSAL post - HERE -

And label the Totally Useless posts with “TUSAL” -

It's EASY -

It's TOTALLY USELESS -

And -

It's FUN!! - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

BOB and Daylight Savings Time -

BOB doesn’t like Daylight Savings Time -

And thinks that is a royal pain nuisance -

BOB wishes that they would just leave the clocks ALONE -

With the time change -

BOB has/had to wake up an hour EARLIER -

Today -

To be up at the SAME time -

As I was yesterday -

Because some idiot(s) -

Thought that it was a good idea - :))

I never have understood -

How messing with the clocks -

SAVES Daylight -

Daylight is Daylight -

You don’t get MORE -

Just because you change your clock -



But then again - it’s probably just me - ;))

Progress Report - 3/8/13

For this Progress Report -
I thought I would list the projects -
That I have been playing with since last time -
The ones currently “In Progress” -
And give you a Status Report on each -
Should have thought of this format sooner - ;))

St. Patrick’s Day Sudoku Quilt -
I got all of the blocks together -

To give you a better idea of the fabrics that I used -
Here’s a close-up of Block #5 -

And Block #6 -

Easter Sudoku Quilt -
Here’s a close-up of the fabrics -

You can’t really tell -
Because they are all pastel -
But the last two in the top row - Pink and Blue - are solids -
The second row Yellow and Purple are the same print -
The second row Green and third row Pink are the same print -
The third/bottom row Purple and Yellow are the same print -

It doesn’t really matter which order the fabrics are in -
One of each will show up in each and every block -
That’s the magic of Sudoku - ;))

I got all of the blocks together -

Maybe you can see better in this one -

Dresden Plate -
I found this in my stash a couple of weeks ago -
While I was looking for something else - of course - ;))

It’s a kit of Pre-cut Dresden Plate pieces -
Enough to make 30 plates -
To be appliqued to 14” blocks -

In case you’re wondering why I thought -
In my last post -
That $5 for 42 - 2-1/2” charms was expensive -

Check out how much this kit cost me -
Way back when -
$9.99 - ;))

So - for some mindless sewing -
I stitched up a couple of pair -
For a quarter circle - fan -
And put it on a blue background -

Then I tried it on a Pink Gingham print -
That I got from JoAnn’s thinking it was a “Woven” Gingham print -
(NOT the same thing - ;))

Anyway -
I kinda like how the Pink Checks show through the White fabric -
Very subtle -

And because the Dresden Plate kit fabric is a cotton/polyester blend -
(THAT should tell you how long it has been in my stash - haha) -
I think that I will leave the background block ”in” -
As opposed to cutting it out from the backside of the applique -
To help stabilize the block -

I don’t have to decide on the background fabric just yet -
I just wanted something handy -
That I don't have to cut -
That I don't have to sash -
That I don't have to plan -
That I can just SEW -

Unlike these guys -

Now I need to cut some sashing and cornerstones -

And continue on my merry way - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -

P.S. - If you haven't already - go back to my last post and read all of the comments - ;))
We had some interesting information going back and forth - ;))

BOB and Mini-Charm Packs -

Have you seen those new PRE-CUTS?

The Mini-Charm Packs?

They are little sets of PRE-CUT 2-1/2” Squares - so CUTE!!

BUT - BOB thinks that the pricing on some of them is down right EXPENSIVE!

I saw a set of 42 - 2-1/2” Mini-Charms for $5 -
And a set of 42 - 5” Squares (Charm Squares) for $10 -
And a set of 42 - 10” Squares (Layer Cake) for $40 -
And a set of 40 (not 42) - 2-1/2” Strips (Jelly Roll) for $40 -
Same company - same fabric line - just different sizes - ;))

And the pricing SOUNDS right -
You can get 2 sets of the Minis for the same price as one 5” set -
Because 2-1/2” x 2 = 5”
And you can get TWO Mini-Charms from a 5” Square -

BUT don’t be fooled!! -

BOB can get FOUR 2-1/2” squares from each 5” Square -

So BOB thinks that you should get FOUR sets of the Minis for the same price -

NOT TWO - ;))

If I bought $10 worth of the 5” Charms and cut each one into quarters -
42 Charms x 4 -
I would have 168 Mini-Charms -

If I bought $10 worth of the 2-1/2” Mini-Charms -
2 packs of 42 -
I would have 84 Mini-Charms -
HALF as many - for the same $10 -

And that doesn’t sound right to me.

$10 should get me the same number of Mini-Charms -
Not HALF as many just because they are PRE-CUT -

The pricing on the Layer Cake sounds about right -
You can get FOUR 5” Charms from each 10” Square -
And the price of one Layer Cake is FOUR times the cost of the 5” Charms - ;))

So - just for fun -
I tried to calculate the $$$ per yard -
Check my math - I could be wrong -
Or just skip to the last part - ;))

2-1/2” Mini-Charms - 42 Mini-Charms for $5 -
2-1/2” strip - 40” wide = 16 Mini-Charms per strip
1 yard - 36” long = 14 strips @ 2-1/2” plus 1” extra
14 strips @ 16 Mini-Charms per strip = 224 Mini-Charms per yard
If -
42 Mini-Charms for $5 = 11.90 cents each
then -
224 Mini-Charms @ 11.90 cents each = $26.66 per yard

5” Charms - 42 Charms for $10 -
5” strip - 40” wide = 8 Charms per strip
1 yard - 36” long = 7 strips @ 5” plus 1” extra
7 strips @ 8 Charms per strip = 56 Charms per yard
If -
42 Charms for $10 = 23.81 cents each
Then -
56 Charms @ 23.81 cents each = $13.33 per yard

10” Square - Layer Cake - 42 Squares for $40 -
Same as the 5” Charms -
You get 4 - 5” Charms from one 10” Square -
And the price is 4 times the cost of the 5” Charm -
56 Charms @ 23.81 cents each = $13.33 per yard

2-1/2” Strips - Jelly Roll - 40 (not 42) for $40 -
2-1/2” strip - 40” wide = 1 Jelly Roll Strip -
1 yard - 36” long = 14 Jelly Roll Strips @ 2-1/2” plus 1” extra
40 (not 42) Strips for $40 = $1.00 each
14 Strips @ $1.00 each = $14.00 per yard

=====

I know that they charge extra to PRE-CUT them for me -

But that's a LOT extra -

And it might be worth it to YOU -

But for the amount of FABRIC that I get for the $$$ -

I think that - at these prices -

If I want some Mini-Charm 2-1/2” squares -

I’ll buy some 5” Charms -

Or some 10" Squares -

And cut them myself -

Thankyouverymuch - ;))



But then again, it's probably just me - ;))

Design Wall Monday - 3/4/13

DESIGN WALL MONDAY - 3/4/13
Check out all of us who link up with Judy L. at Patchwork Times on Mondays.
We have some awesome stuff on our walls!
Well, THEY do - ME - not so much sometimes - ;))
===

I put away the Folk Art Christmas Tree for now -
Folk Art Christmas Tree - HERE -
Folk Art Christmas - by Cindy Taylor Oates - (c) Taylor Made Designs -

I'll pull it out again on the 25th -

On the 25th of each month -
Until the end of the month -
I plan to work on a Christmas project -
One of my entries in the LTRTCWSA - 2013 -
Leisurely Turtle Race To Christmas With Squirrels Allowed - 2013 -
The little “Race” that Linda - HERE - and I started - HERE -

A couple of days a month -
And the 25th just sounded right in my head - ;))

Anyway - as we all know -

This month we have TWO Holidays -

St. Patrick’s Day on March 17 -

And Easter on March 31 - ;))

So - last month - when I chose the fabrics -
For my Valentine’s Day Sudoku Quilt - HERE -

I went ahead and chose some fabrics -
For a St. Patrick’s Day Sudoku Quilt -

And an Easter Sudoku Quilt -

And then I cut my 9 stacks of 9 fabrics for each -
And set them aside -

Easter - 9 stacks of 9

My FAVORITE fabric is one that I chose -
For the St. Patrick’s Day Sudoku Quilt -
I asked my bloggy buddy - Julie Fukuda - HERE -
And she said that -

The writing is Japanese. It contains both Chinese characters, "kanji" and Japanese phonetic alphabet, "hiragana".

The color is PERFECT -
And I just couldn’t resist -
I HAD to include it - ;))

I pulled out the baggie and “cheat sheet” -

After making two Sudoku Quilts -
I decided to assemble this one a little differently -

Rather than lay out all of the squares first -
I chose my squares as I went along -
And chain-pieced them -

Block #1 - #4 - and #7 are done -
The rest are ready to go -

So today I should be able to get the blocks made -
The sashing and cornerstones attached -
And the top together -
And the borders on -

At least that’s the plan - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -