I Went to the Animal Fair

Ok, the Howard County Fair(grounds). They were having an Alpaca fiber exhibit. And since it's only a few minutes from my house I took a short roadtrip up. Unfortunately I forgot my camera so I have no photos of the really cute critters. They're much smaller than I thought they'd be, and much softer. They make noises similar to sheep but softer and quieter. I hear you can even housebreak them. Really? So I'm re-thinking my post retirement activities. Wonder how they get along with chickens? I did buy a couple of skeins of yarn. This one's hand dyed and 100% alpaca. I also bought a pattern to make it into a lace cowl from the same vendor.

These 2 are 30% Merino and are natural colors - not dyed. I have a 2 color pattern planned for them. Though, with my knitting speed, I don't recomment you hold your breath waiting for the results. But it should be really pretty when it's done.
In other news. I see a lot of pattern matching in the fashion mags but am scared to try it. What do you think: Too much? What the hell are you thinking? Go go girl, wish I had your fashion sense? Stick to solids and let Mondo do the mixing?

And finally, more serger woes. Seriously? WTF? See my nicely finished pink sample? Looks fine, doesn't it? Now look at my real garment. These were done at the same time - in fact I didn't even cut the threads between the sample and the shirt until I was done stitching. I really just don't understand. Really. I ended up actually overcasting this mess on my Viking. Pah.

And in closing, don't forget you use your JoAnn's 60% off + dollars off coupons. Best sale in a long time - I got a whole bag of stuff I didn't need for the price of the cutting board I've had my eye on for some time. I do so love me a good sale.

Success!

After a couple of attempts last week using a Simplicity and a New Look pattern that gave me results that just hung off my shoulders, I went a different direction this weekend. I pulled out Vogue 1247 for a quick skirt. I'm going to New York for a quick weekend with my husband next Friday and wanted something cool but not so casual as shorts. This seemed to fit the bill. I used a 100% cotton from G Street that reminds me of that old stable, kettle cloth. Remember that fabric? I used to love it. But anyway, I found this 1.5 yard remnant a couple of months ago and immediately thought "summer skirt". And I realized yesterday that it wanted to be this Vogue pattern. I added about 7 inches to the bottom, as I'm no longer 17 and skinny. I needed a zipper for this (I realized how little red I sew when I looked for a zipper) and found this CUTE button for the back. I thought about using these (I have 2) on the pockets but decided not to when it came time to do the button holes. It just didn't feel right for the skirt. But I think it's quite nice on the back waistband. If you haven't looked at this pattern, you should. It goes together nicely, has those bitchin' front pockets and only takes about 1.5 yards of fabric after making it long enough for a real human. A bit of head scratching for a minute to figure out how to put the front together to make the pockets, but after that it went FAST. I didn't do the hong-kong finish in the interest of time and patience, but I did serge all the insides except around the pockets - sergers and curves don't mix. I just did a machine overcast there. Of course my Viking wouldn't do the buttonhole. It did the sample beautifully and then wouldn't feed the fabric for the real one. So after unpicking that mess I hauled out my Singer buttonholer and made it on my 201. THANK YOU SINGER, you RULE! One try and done.

You can also see the wonky stitches my serger started doing again. WHY? It was fine and then it wasn't. This was a test scrap for both serging and buttonholes. Buttonholes went better than serging.

In other news... my son and I went to the early-bird showing of the final Harry Potter this morning. It finally happened - I spent more on the food than on the show, the first showing in each of the theatres is only $6 and the popcorn, etc. was $19. Erg! But the movie was great - all the HP's have been. We didn't see the 3D version, but kind of wishing we had. We may go back in a couple of weeks - after NYC.

Well, I'm off to finish some laundry and think about what to take with me next weekend. I'm taking the train up to Penn Station and husband will be taking the train down from Connecticut. I don't suspect I'll get in any time for fabric shopping this trip - just can't convince my husband that it's fun. Must keep working on that.

ETA: Kuby, if you're still around, I'm not sure if you're asking about the shirt I'm wearing in the picture or the one included with the pattern. I DID make the shirt I'm wearing - it's a Kwik-Sew tee-shirt pattern. No, I didn't make the top incuded in the pattern - I'm not a huge fan of the huge shirts. HTH.

Saturday

After I did my grocery shopping this morning, I had the rest of the day to do as I pleased. And it pleased me to play with my new serger (SQUEEEE!) and make the Burda turtleneck #120 from September that's all the rage on the sewing scene right now. I will say that this truly is a great little pattern. It took exactly hour on the machine. I serged (SQUEEE!) the shoulders/neck and side seams. I put the sleeves in flat on my sewing machine which took longer than all the rest together. My Topaz really hated this fabric. Really. Even ate a whole in it at one edge. I had to do the sleeves from the center out and then center out again. PITA. I don't have the accessories to switch my serger to do a coverstitch so I just Steam-a-seamed the hem and cuffs. Fabric is from THE WALL at G Street and was actually in my "what was I thinking box" until I drug it out for this first serging attempt. Ok, that was the good part. Remember I said one hour on the machine? Well, it was 2 hours tracing off the horrid new Burda sheets. Maybe that's why I look so sad in the picture? These things seriously BITE. This was 3 lousy pieces with no pleats or placards or other fancy-schmancy markings. 2 HOURS! Though that does include laying out and cutting this springy stretchy as all get out fabric. I'll definitely use this pattern again, though. Not just because it's great but because of all the work it took to trace the dang thing out.
Ok, next up. My quilting project. Tell me what you think. Please.

The center piece is a cotton kimono I've been dragging around for 40 years (at least). It's a large child size and I love the fabric but will never wear it. I found the fabric on the left and really like it with it. The fabric on the right? Not so sure. I love it, but just not sure I love it with the other two, I may be putting it there just because it's Japanese. Comments? Please? I do think I need 3 fabrics, but not sure what #3 should be.

And more...

I woke up this morning to a house that was 57 degrees (F), and had to turn on the heat to knock the chill off. So I figured I'd better post my summer time pictures before it was too late.

Just a few short weeks ago we went into Baltimore and had lunch and roamed around the Inner Harbor a bit. It was HOT! Too hot and almost made me sick. No shade, no breeze even on the water. Which left me thinking of ways to get cool.

First, I offer you the well ventilated car. Maybe they can afford doors for the winter?

The harbor was really busy that day, with a Navy ship pulling into port, lots of people hanging out and they all got hot. Well, most of them. There were a few that found a great way to chill. What do you think of their method? Made me wish I was 6 years old again. Bet they had ice cream, too.

I hope that you can click and grow this picture. Its a bush in our backyard that we've dubbed the bee tree. I can't believe how many bees and butterflies there are. About a mile away is a fruit/farm stand that sell honey from their own bees. Wonder if they're really MY bees? Kacy (the DOOOOGGG) loved snapping at the bees out there. Doubt the bees were as enthusiastic about her visits.

And finally, our transition into fall. A little football catch in the driveway. Kacy's mostest favorite game in the whole wide world. Does this dog look 10 years old to you? Yeah, me neither. And if you look really closely, you'll see the ice cream machine just at the car bumper. Yummm.

Tomorrow is my birthday, the age will remain a mystery. But, though its not pretty, it does beat the alternative. Anyway, I went to JoAnn's yesterday - cause I still had a 50% off coupon. Can't let those babies expire! So I bought a pair of Gingher scissors for $15 since I'd purchased my large cutting mat at 40% off. Love the coupons! For my birthday, my husband bought me - from the Viking gallery in the store (and not subject to the JA coupons, dang it) - a walking foot and a spring free motion foot. I should let him know....

Anyway, these feet forced me to find a new storage solution for my feet - so for $6 I got a bigger box, I like the ones they carry in the jewelry making area. I went home and put all my feet in the new box and played with the label maker. I do love me some feets. And some organization. FUN, FUN, FUN.

After that I put the walking foot on the machine and played a bit. Oh My GOD!!! This thing rocks! Seriously rocks. I've been fighting the boucle on the purple/black "Mondo" skirt because the fabric is spongy and just creeps along. Well, no more my friend! Slapped that waist facing on first time.

I bought a couple of coordinating fabrics for new place mats, too. I want to re-make my Bargello mats that, lets just say "didn't launder well" but that took way more time than I have. This will be 4 mats with 2 different sides and will make the binding out of the 2 fabrics.

And now the dilemma. Should I use my new walking foot to quilt these??? Or my new free motion foot? Ahhh, choices.....

I've been quite busy.

I got up this morning and after walking the dog went to the grocery store and then Hancock's to pick up a few things needed for some planned and in progress projects. I decided against G Street for both time and money's sake.

I have finished my BWOF April 09 #101. I reviewed it over at PR already, so I probably won't do so again, though this one looks very different. Again I didn't put on the pockets. It just gives it a more casual look than I want. I may make it one more time (hey, it's already traced!) in a lightweight denim and do the pockets and top stitching. I DID make it 3 inches longer. I just like my skirts a little longer than this one was. For now, I bought this fabric at G Street earlier this spring from THE WALL (duh...) thinking shirt. But it wanted to be a skirt. Who am I to argue? It really is a much nicer piece of all cotton than I originally thought, but it really wants to hold both creases you don't want and pin holes. Hopefully they will wash out some. And it wrinkles like your granny. I made some piping and used it on the front between the yoke and front panel. I orginally thought to use it between the front and side panels, but decided it would be too much. So I have some piping left over for another project. Cool. The buttons I had in stash. I couldn't believe I had these! They were freakin' perfect. I think this is from the stash my MIL gave me over Christmas. Otherwise this skirt is really easy. Side zipper, no waist band. Ignore the BWOF directions for the yoke and you'll be done in a flash. I spent more time on the piping than anything. And you want to know something REALLY scary? I have some shoes that match the blue. Told you it was scary.


I also replaced the tie in my lounge pants with a ribbon - much easier and more comfortable. The bias tape was too heavy and the wrong fabric. And I have more of this, too. (from Hancock's today).

Up tomorrow will be a shirt to match the pants. I was going to put an embroidery on it, but couldn't find the right colors at Hancock's. Not sure if it was me or Hancock's. But I may do an applique before I'm done. I got it cut out this evening, I'll be using my Jalie pattern - with the waist lowered by 2". Pretty boring photo, I know. But I took it, I'll use it.

But before I do that tomorrow, I want to do some embroidery on some cotton I bought (yes, at Hancock's) for some new place mats. This will be my second attempt at embroidery and the first with a purpose. My machine is a little messed up, though. It's supposed to recognize the embroidery unit automatically, but it wasn't doing so. I finally pulled it off and found the connector wasn't stable and was pushed back into the machine. I pulled it out, connected it and am good to go. But I need to get that fixed. Maybe. Without the auto- detect it provides a wider and longer base for sewing/quilting. Hmmm. Anyway, I'm looking forward to playing with that tomorrow. I have 4 to do. Or maybe 8 if I make them reversible or maybe use a different embroidery on the flip side. Do I really have to go back to work on Monday? This is so much more fun.

Oh, and I also replaced a button on a pair of Target shorts. Sorry, no photo here. I know you're disappointed. You'll get over it.

I may cut out another pair of pants while I have my stuff out. I need pants badly. And hem the two pairs sitting on my shelf. That would help. So would loosing 10 pounts.

A while back I mentioned I found a new pin catcher at Jo Ann's while visiting my son. Since I've finally found my camera, here it is: isn't the cutest thing? I like the divider, my plan is to put metal only pins on one side and my plastic on the other side and use it at the ironing board. So I can easily accept iron friendly pins.

I know you were all glad I found my camera. But you should be careful of what you wish for. I spent a few minutes cleaning out the bobbin case. Yes, this is all from the bobbin case. Not the dryer. Apparently it isn't safe to leave me unattended for an entire weekend with a working camera and computer. I take pictures of lint and post them on the Internet.

I have something new in the works for (maybe) tomorrow. I worked on it a bit today, but it's a bigger project than I usually tackle (blog wise) where I just ramble and post pictures.

The fabric that doesn't want to be made

Or an epic in sewing.
Now that I've gotten my blog to behave better it was off to my sewing room last night. To finish the now stupid easy skirt that started off as a very simple Simplicity. That I went to JoAnn's to get elastic for that I forgot. That I finally got on my road trip with karent last weekend when I went to Hobby Lobby for the first time ever. I closed in my oh-so-simple waistband made from a piece of the original midriff and threaded through the finally purchased "no roll" elastic and proceeded to sew the elastic together. Nope, not gonna happen. After about 10 tries, I gave up for the night. No matter what stitch, facing, paper, fabric or needle I used my machine just wasn't going to sew this stuff together with edges abutting or to a piece of fabric to abbut. Nope. So the next night (it had to spend some time in timeout - you know that) I just overlapped the darn things, stuck a piece of tearaway behind it and sewed it up and pulled it into the waist. Bulky? Yep. Done? Yep.
Next step. THE HEM. Ugly is the work for the "pre-chosen" stretch-light hem. So I threaded up a double needle to try. Broke on the first trip down. No idea what it could have hit. I set the machine to double needle - 4MM. Had wide throat plate and foot. And it was the right side needle that broke and the shank was shifted to the left. So I replaced my old needle, re-threaded and tried the blind hem for knits. Again, no go. Every stitch just shoved the fabric into the throat plate. Pah! Tonight, I Steam-a-seam. I can't believe how much time I've spent on this dumb skirt.
AND (DH's out of town) I will cut out something fun to make. AND (yep, getting cocky here) finally hem my last Marlene pants. Don't have to make dinner, there's nothing on TV tonight. And I'm not putting another needle to the knit skirt. EVER.
As previously mentioned, I spent last weekend taking care of some family business from my dad's estate and then hung out with my BFF, karen. We did all kinds of fun, chick things. Shopped until we dropped. My first trip (won't the be the last) to Hobby Lobby. Their fabric isn't really "me", but their notions and accessories and other stuff is top notch. And they have brands I don't see in JA's or Hancock's. And lots of other useless junk that I love to look at. And a discount shoe store, and a couple of thrift stores (came up blank there - you just never know), and Kohl's where I was reminded of why I was making my own underpinnings ($10 a pair for panties! on sale) and some much needed bras. And Books-a-million. And I stopped at Dress Barn the day before I found a couple of really cute summer dresses. Wearing one today. And Hancock's - they were in the middle of a remodel - where they had Simplicity for $1 each. And Lowe's (gotta keep the plumbing working) and got our nails - all 40 of them done. Then, on Saturday we went to Asheville to Waechter's. You can see our haul from there on Karen's blog, we used the last of the light on her deck to photograph the fabrics. And wonderful Indy patterns where they have a large number of them made up for you to look at and touch. The 2 I bought were due to this amazing idea. I'd overlooked them on the envelope, but really liked the garment. Karen bought a couple that I want to trace off, too.
So know you know the rest of the story. Film at 11.

(Dis)Organization and some quilting

A little slower than I'd planned, but here are some pictures of my organizational fit (a.k.a. Income Tax avoidance) from Sunday. See my nicely labeled box o'feet? I even have spaces for ones that I intend to purchase or have ordered and not received. Frankly this level of organization scares me a little. But I've really enjoyed being able to quickly pull out and put back whichever one I want. I'm not wild about the storage area on my machine being behind the machine, and I had more feet than it has spaces, so it works quite well. In fact, the pretty box scares me more than this:My sewing room this morning with stuff falling everywhere. See the black and white fabric on the Singer stool? That goes with the pattern pieces on the green mat that goes with the small wad behind my machine of a pair of knickers that may not make it. Having FITS over the elastic. I've seen elastic do things on this machine I didn't know it could do.

I've been making some real progress with my quilt, though. Here are all the strips cut and ready to piece.

I put 2 blocks together and laid them out to see how it would look. (on the ironing board - that's why the lower left corner droops)

Here are the rest of the strips sewn into half-blocks. I only over ran one square and had to take it apart and put it together the right way. Now the bad news. And I don't know WHY!?! The squares aren't lining up. I've checked (I swear!) my raw pieces and my stitches and they're all the right size. But when I put them together I get this:Look where the 2 squares are sewn together. This was every time. I really don't get it. I will finish piecing and then square them all up to the same size. But WTF?

And, because I just thought it looked kind of neat:

I'm off for a little (as possible) family time in my hometown and a weekend with a friend. And I won't be sewing (probably) but I may be shopping... Stay tuned for "THE HAUL" It's likely to be pretty awesome.

Short Weekend

I can't believe it's Sunday night already. Maybe Saturday afternoon, but not Sunday night.
I got my haircut yesterday morning. I knew I was past due, but when the salon looked me up they said I was last there in June. That would be 2008. Yeah....
Then we spent the afternoon - ALL afternoon - looking at houses in Maryland. Lots and lots of Maryland houses. In the rain. Lots and lots of rain. But, as I was told, at least we could eliminate any with leaky basements.
I did make it to JoAnn's in Columbia, MD. I will give that one a thumbs up - for a JA's. It was clean, well stocked, organized and they had 3 cutters and still the lines were LONG. So long that I didn't buy anything that required cutting, W was with me and he has zero patience for anything fiber related - I only had the time he spent next door buying maps (of Howard County, MD, duh...) . The place was packed - mostly in the sewing area. I'd forgotten that JA's is a Viking dealer. And they have an EXCELLENT selection of feet. Like all of them... And they were all in stock. And the sales lady was nice and knew her stuff. I was restrained - I only bought one - but then I just bought on-line and from the dealer (where are the red-faced icons when you need one?) . I got a box to put my feet in and labeled it today, in a small fit of organizing (aka avoiding finishing the taxes). Um, and a quilting ruler that I put to good use today. And the batting for my quilt, a cotton/poly blend. But still no backing for it. That was all the fun stuff, unless you are a safety pin fan. Oh, and I FORGOT the elastic for my skirt. Yeah, the real reason I went in the first place. It was on my list and everything. I blame the feet, I'm easily distracted by shiny things.
I have finished sewing all my quilt strips, cut all the strips into squares and sewn 2 blocks. LaurieH over on SG suggested that I should add a more solidy (tone on tone-ish) fabric into my quilt. Well, it was too late on this one, but I will definitely follow her advice on the next one. I'll post some pictures tomorrow evening, and you will see that the busy-ness needs breaking up. It is definitely still okay, but a calmer stripe would have been a wise choice. Thanks LaurieH! That's why I LOVE the Internet.
And that's the whole weekend. Seriously. Oh, and I did some laundry.

Off and running

I got 7 of the 20 strips sewn together this evening. That's pretty good for me for a week night where I have to feed and walk the dog and then fix dinner and clean up the kitchen, take a shower and be glued in front of the TV by 8 for Survivor. I owe it all to my new toys for my new toy. I switched out for the straight stitch plate, and my machine has a lockout for using this plate so I can't mess up and use a zig-zag stitch and break a needle. And I also purchased a 1/4" edge stitch foot. My seams are so much nicer this time around. Not wonky or crooked, they're - well - 1/4" all the way down. It's just amazing how different it is sewing with this machine and with the right accessories. I didn't get a single thread nest in 14 seams and I started at the beginning of each piece of fabric and used the "fix". Yes, in awe. Lovin' it. This is so relaxing to start these long seams at a medium speed and just feed the fabric through smoothly. In the zone.

No new underpinnings (thanks, Wendy, this is a word I DO like), too busy piecing and walking and cooking. I'm trying to watch "Harper's Island" right now. It sounded like a good idea, but I'm becoming less enamoured. Too young and silly I'm beginning to think. Ah well, it's a summer filler.

Couple of comments...

Wendy, I'm glad you received your major award. You things like this always take six to eight weeks for delivery. Yes, the blind hemmer worked like a dream, a charm, a miracle! The foot with my machine has a guide and the left (as you look at it) side is a little raised from the right side to allow for the folds. Then you adjust the zig-zag width so that it just nicks your folded fabric. The guide + the elevation difference keeps the fabric straight. It was a wonder to behold. I seriously wanted to dance. I will say that the difference isn't likely the machine, but the foot and being sure you have the right settings. And go fairly slowly. Now the rolled hem is an entirely different animal that may bite. Not taking any chances and I leave it locked in it's box. Maybe I should work with the Thread's article....

My MIL is getting pretty old and has trouble now actually carrying on a conversation. You pretty much just talk to her or not. You don't get a lot of meaningful give and take. But when was in my sewing room she changed. She talked about my stash, her stash, the obsession of sewests to hang onto every little scrap, how to fit a jacket better, why my quilt worked, why the next-next one won't (she was right, I'm rethinking), my old Singer, my new Viking (she wouldn't touch it, not a single time, LOL), her Touch and Throw, her old treadle that Papaw put a motor on, etc., etc. She loved looking at the BWOF mags - she's never seen anything but the big 4, this was amazing to her. Her eyes were bright and she was her old self. It made me realize how different she is now. Getting old sucks.

My Simplicy dress will become a skirt. I put the bodice only together on Friday morning and slipped it over my head. The bodice, where it should meet the midriff below the girls, doesn't even come to the, um, shall we say apex of the bust line. Not fixable, not usable. I measured the total distance from neck to waist and it was ok - about an inch short, but the difference in the bodice was OFF OFF OFF. I may try again, adding about 3 inches to this part of the dress (it's high in the back, not just over the bustline). But I'll finish the bottom part into a pull on skirt for summer and maybe some undies to match. For some reason that amuses me. Now, I need elastic. With no sewing money left after my Fabric.com splurge and my saving 25% yesterday.

Well, this is a busy week, I'd better get at it. Catch you on the flip side (meaning when I get bored and take a break AND have something to say). I'll leave you with a picture from the National Botanical Gardens. One of Saturday's highlights.

Class

No, I still have none. Even though I took one today. My first sewing class since Junior High when I made white hip-huggers. So, yeah, it's been a while. This was a new owner's class from the dealer. I can't believe how much I learned. There were 6 in the class with various machines - one drop in Pfaff, the rest Vikings of various makes: my Topaz, an Emerald (um, which fell apart IN THE CLASS! yes, she had to leave it with them! A knob or something fell off the top and into the machine. This was brand new out of the box in the parking lot. Had never sewn a stitch until this afternoon!), a Sapphire (all the crown jewells), a Quilt Master (or something like that) and another older one I didn't see closely.

There were all kinds of sewists: on woman who "sews everything, well I haven't made shoes yet" to "I'm sorry, but do I have a bobbin?" It went well dispite the varying abilities.

We did something with every foot we have, though I think we missed one of the buttonhole feet. So we made buttonholes, piping (yes, piping) with our zipper foot, sewed on buttons, blind hemmed (happy dance here, oh yeah!), did some decorative stuff with the memory, overcasted, knit stitched. It was about 4.5 hours and a ton o'fun. I was pleased with both the class and how much fun it was and how much I learned. I'm much more confident with my machine now.

So my last word on this is that if you're offered a class, take it. You may be amazed at what you can learn. I'm so glad I did this today, and am thinking of joining their embroidery club to get some experience.

And I used my 25% off coupon to buy some extra feet and a straight stitch plate.

My MIL was here this weekend and we went into the windy crowds that thronged DC yesterday. It was a mess, it took hours to get from one place to another and so windy it was hard to stand upright. They went to Annapolis today while I went to class and it was a much prettier day. She goes back home in the morning. It was her first time in DC, I think she enjoyed it, being blown away not withstanding.

Oh, and SHE liked my quilt.

You've got questions, I've got answers

Corgihouse/Gwen: I don't think stabilizer is the answer, I think it's getting "hung up" on all the "stuff" inside the waistband right there. Like the top of the zipper and the seam allowances. Hummm, maybe it WOULD help the fabric not slip against the feed dogs so it would feed right (I should type out my thoughts more often). Be more grippy? I have some tear-away and some wash-away. I'll see which has the most texture and give it one more try. Unless I think I can make the last one work (they're in the timeout corner right now.) These are a nice summer weight black (yeah, poly, but for work who cares?) and I'm dying to use the blind hem stitch.

The quilt link is here . It's referred to as a Rail Fence. On the page I linked is the link for the download in pdf form. It took about a minute for the email with the attachment to land in my in-box. And it was a very good instructional guide. There are a number of freebies from this site, actually. I just picked this one because it fit all my criteria. Oh, and one more I forgot: (5) not too country looking like chickens or farmhouses (I think I was up to #5).

I, of course, did NOT have time to go to Hancock's last night. I left in time, but then put dinner on, fed and walked the dog, then I decided to do some BWOF tracing and browsing. Next project is still a little up in the air so I magazine shopped. Perhaps tonight.... Last chance. Tomorrow we're having the carpet cleaned (thank you Kacy), Thursday I have to be at another office with a longer commute and that brings me to Friday morning - a good chance there. My MIL is coming to visit for the weekend, though so I won't get much done. This is her first time in DC, so we'll be doing the tourist stuff. And I'm taking my "New Owners class" on Sunday afternoon.

Bored yet? This ought to wake you up and leave you with a disturbed mind image. You're welcome.

I don't know how this happened.

Seriously, I'm at a loss as to how I got here. But here I am. My next quilting (say what!?!) project. I found this one on Victorian Quilt Designs for a design that looks hard and gives an interesting result but is really easy and they have a tutorial page. There's a free download for directions and (very importantly) dimensions. If you look closely, you'll see that it's only 3 stripes, cut and angled alternately. I wanted (1) no curves (2) no triangles (3) easy to cut (4) easy to piece (5) interesting result. Yes, my friends, I WANT IT ALL, and I want it now. I think this fits all the above referenced categories. Will I have time to go to Hancock's tonight? I'm thinking maroons and pinks? Maybe or greens and wines?
In other news. I'm still have extreme buttonhole woes. My new Viking (still love saying that) does fine, in fact beauteous button holes. But it's getting hung up on the bottom one of the 2 (just above the zipper) in the zipper ends and seams allowances and other stuff that's right there. And I don't know what to do about it - and my Marlene pants are stuck with one nice BH and one that should be ripped back out (again) but may not make it. No pictures, black on black on texture - no way. It isn't logical to put the BH's in BEFORE attaching the waist band - though I'd have nice buttonholes, I have no doubt. In fact, my entire waist band finishing just isn't up to snuff. There was a thread on PR that I followed intensely hoping to solve some of my issues, but it just didn't. Must I drag out my books that I purchased just for this occurrence? But I don't think my books are going to solve the button hole issue.

A PM response on steroids

I received a PM on a website and my response to her got a little long. Okay, a lot long. So long that it occurred to me that it was a darn good start to a blog entry. So now everyone will have the opportunity read my ramblings.

The winners of the major awards have claimed their prizes and the leg shaped lamps will be on their way tomorrow. Oddly neither recipient thinks their prize is sucky. But neither of them claimed Bea Arthur's tunic patterns, either.

The Marlene pants have come out from under the sewing machine and are in progress. The big construction is done - side, inside and crotch seams. And I interfaced the fly and waistband last night. I may try to put the zip in tonight and start the waist band. Week day sewing is pretty hit and miss and not very concentrated. I forgot the stupid pockets, again, and am debating on whether to pick out the side seams and add them or just skip them. Leaning towards the skip part because (a) I'm lazy (b) the thread is really hard to see on this fabric (c) I'm lazy and (d) It's too much trouble. Oddly enough, I'm looking forward to putting in buttonholes with my new machine. And using the blind hem stitch with the correct foot that works. I've already had a blast actually FINISHING my seams with the overcast stitch. But my old machine did an easier job of putting the button on - it was a one step deal, this one has a couple of quirks.

The quilt will probably get a backing (leaning towards a sheet) and a quilting start this weekend. Thank you all for the nice things you said about it. I love the look, but the proportions are off. I'll work on that next go-around. My MIL is coming for a visit in a couple of weeks, and I'd like to show it to her and then let her get me started on the next one. One more beginners question: when I start to quilt - by machine (good one on the hand quilting, Karendee, I'm still snickering) do I start in the middle and work my way out? Or on one edge and work to the other edge? I'm thinking middle and out to minimize slipping? (I don't have a walking foot). I will probably just stitch in the ditch, though I'm considering putting a couple of embroideries in a few places - just because I can. My batting is poly - I already own it. Next time I'll probably buy cotton, though. I like the feel of it better.

And One for Wendy...

The Threads is still available. Let me know where you want it sent. Sure I can't interest you in some Golden Girls costumery?

And the next Marlene pants are out from under the Singer, they have the basic construction done, meaning legs and crotch seams done and the seams finished. Finishing the seams was great and something I'd never really been able to do. My Pfaff would just squirt the fabric from out of the edge of the presser foot. Viking -ok, she needs a real name - feeds the fabric straight and does the overcast stitch very nicely. Part of the difference is Pfaff had you try this at the edge of the foot, Viking does it in the center of the foot. Tomorrow night I will probably only get the interfacing fused and maybe (eh, we'll see) the zipper. Probably not more than that.

I finished the quilt top. I haven't photo'd yet, but it's kind of neat. My proportions are off - too long and thin, but the pattern turned out interesting. I don't know (a) what to use as backing and (b) how to quilt it - patternwise. Suggestions? I know there's no pic here, but there are a few in previous posts. I have batting.

And I did my first embroidery. No use for the pieces, but it worked perfectly. Another teaser, maybe some photo's tomorrow night. Heck, maybe I'll frame them, my sewing room could use some "art". I used green thread (one of the spools that came with the machine) on dark blue linen, so it's nice. Sorry, all of you who were waiting for Winny to Pooh on my BurdaButt. I am still working on the double B graphic for my back pockets, LOL. Weny: you can share it as a member of the BurdaButt Club.

This morning we took a walk on the GW Parkway to view the eagle family. You can stand on the trail and see the nest across the street. (Photo complements ) She took much better photo's than I did, you should really take a look. Just scroll thru the pictures until you get to the eagles. There are a number of really nice shots. While we watched, an osprey raided the next. Not sure of the damage - if any - done. One of the eagle returned and chased it off pretty violently. It was quite a site.

Prizes and Dog Beds

First I want to clearly state that the dog beds are NOT available as a prize. Just want to be clear on that, as I know they would be first pick and Kacy wouldn't like that. But on my day off I made 2 new bed covers for the dog. Yes, I know, I sew for my dog. Bleck.

Now for the real prizes. Wendy and Brooke have their choice from any of the below items. The Threads is #98 Jan 2002, Sewing News is Feb/Mar 2009. The Burda patterns are pretty 1980's. In fact, I'm pretty sure Bea Arthur used 5976, but you might like some of the details. In fact, if you want all 4, they're yours. Otherwise its just sucky. (I warned you). You're not seeing double, there are 2 of V8085. Sizes 6-8-10 is new and uncut. Sizes 12-14-16 is cut but all there (pretty sure, I'm good about that). M 5391 sizes 4-12 has been cut and same conditions apply. M5519 is sizes SX, S, M and is new and uncut. V8365 is sized 6-12, new and uncut. V1041 is new and uncut. That's the list, for now. Except for the Burda patterns, these are just "not me" purchases. The shorts are all too low slung for my BurdaButt, I ended up 2 of the Anne Klein pattern, and the dress just isn't something I would wear. The Burda was a bad Ebay purchase. The mags are duplicates.

And Wendy, you're welcome to use the BB name. Maybe we should start a club? Leave those Vogue behinds behind. I haven't tried the Oct Special, mainly because it didn't have a waist band, but I have some brown twill I just washed up, so I may give it a shot.

And my final shot is my quilt. I'm about 1/2 done with piecing it. All in all, for a first attempt and no instructions directions or clues, I'm darn pleased. Funny, I bought an embroidery machine and the first thing I do with it is make a quilt. Oh well. It happens.

It's a conspiracy.

I'm pretty sure there is a universal conspiracy to prevent me from playing with my new sewing machine. At first I thought it was just my DH, who decided the best way to spend Saturday afternoon was to look at birds at Petco and TV's at Target - neither of which are we in the market for. And the best way to spend Sunday was to drive aimlessly throughout rainy and cold Maryland looking for open houses - we didn't find a single one. But then the vacuum cleaner clogged and had to be dismantled, cleaned and reassembled and the dog barfed (yet again) in the hallway and I had to work late 2 days in a row and the Biggest Loser ran it's usual 2 hour program and I got a new Threads magazine and a friend is going through a difficult time that I keep thinking about, I was pretty sure it was a universal conspiracy.

I have managed to finish cutting the quilt - I decided to go squares after all, and this took longer than I thought. I have plenty of even the green (even after donating one strip for the dog to look Irish yesterday) and will have plenty of strips left for a border and binding. And I sewed 2 rows together last night. I will try to put together a few more rows tonight and take a couple of pictures so you can see how it's going to look. For a raw beginner, I'm happy. My DH wants to know why I didn't buy fabrics to go with our living room. Dumb question, does he think I actually PLAN this stuff? Seriously.

There are a couple of quilting classes coming up at G Street this spring that I'm thinking of taking. Any DC area sewists want to join me? The new schedule is now on their web page. I'm looking at the beginner's line of classes for this - not the koi pond or one square (yet). Let me know, it could be fun. (BTW, their Rockville store is moving this summer)


Now I only had one guess on my pants pattern. Now is that because (a) it was too easy (b) you know my prizes will suck (c) you didn't read to the end of the posting so you were unaware of the question (d) there are so many fabulous pants patterns out there you knew I couldn't choose just one so I frankenpatterned?


Hints: It's not a big 4, the answer is in my blog, and what did I declare BeeBee REALLY stands for? And yes, my prizes probably suck.


A random picture off the net. But I think he needs a puppy treat.

My New Toy - YEAH!

The the Pfeasco has ended. In case you missed it, the background is here. I traded in my Pfaff Smart 200c yesterday. We went back to Bonny's and I spent some time with Frank, after spending a great deal of time on the Internet and I came home with a much lighter wallet (or heavier credit card bill) and a new machine. I now own a Viking Topaz 30. This is much more machine than I had before. And it has some pretty cool features. I won't bore you with the details, if you're interested you can always check out Viking's Web Site . For those of you "in the know", it is pretty much a Sapphire model with the embroidery unit attached. It's new, only out since last November, and they did some nice upgrades as a spill over from the Diamond - that costs more than my first house. Well, not really, but it's pricey. My favorite "gee whiz" items (so far) are the auto thread cutter, start/stop button (you don't have to use the foot pedal - take note of this if any of my CC friends are reading) and how the presser foot lowers itself and starts to sew. There isn't even a lever to drop it with. (That's a little weird, I have to say). I'm still basking in the glow of new ownership and haven't actually sewn anything yet. Just a bunch of junk on junk. Stitches on scraps. The most constructive was fixing a zipper seam, about 10 stitches worth. I kind of forgot, in the heat of the battle and the dilemma over what to do about this that I would need something to sew when I brought the baby home. As you can see here it pretty much took over our apartment yesterday. DH had enough and left me to it - he did go with me to Bonny's though. And I guess Kacy was ready to trade the whole mess in for her ball.

So in order to have something to work on, this morning I cut out a pair of pants (free prize to the first person who guesses the pattern). No pictures, that just too dull to even photograph. And this afternoon I turned this: My quilt fabrics, into this: Which would be my quilt fabrics cut into 3" strips. Not too exciting, but I also did my taxes (YIKES!) and drove aimlessly around Maryland for about 3 hours. Something I just can't explain, even to myself. Of course, in between it looked like this: That's my Singer 201 hiding beneath the fabric that has been washed, dried and pressed. And yes, the new toy is on the table behind. I'm not sure what I'm going to do next with the strips, as I don't have the same amount of every color (apparently I'm not known for my quilt planning expertise). I starting thinking blocks, but the different number of squares of each color - I'm particularly light on the green - make this difficult. And I want to keep it simple. I may do strips, then the numbers of each won't matter so much. My bed quilt is like this. My new machine (yeah, I like saying that) has some nice piecing and quilting features - particularly for a "non-quiliting" model (Sapphire has a quilting model if you're interested) like the pressure foot float that lifts up the foot automatically when you stop in needle down, the auto tension, extra lift on the foot and feed dog drop, plus a wide range of quilting stitches. Roughly the second row of stitches in the picture above - though I know you can really see them well, trust me, it's a lot.

I need to put the Singer back down in its hidey hole, I suppose, but I'm glad I had that re-bonding time. A silver lining to the Pfaff mess was discovering that so many of my sewing problems and short falls wasn't me. If was Pfaff. I CAN sew a straight line. I CAN sew at the edge. I CAN still eyeball a seam allowance.

Sew, I'm a happier camper tonight. I'm still a little peeved about the whole thing, but it feels good to have made a decision and moved on. Kind of like tossing that wadder or UFO in garbage. No more "what ifs" or "maybes" Done is done. I didn't get the deal of the century, but I'm sewing again and I have a machine that I will not outgrow and that will continue to serve and challenge me for a long time to come. And you can bet that the first time it hiccups, it will be back with Frank.

My son was here last weekend, one reason for the Pfaff/Viking delay. We went to Arlington National cemetery and Philly. There was a full honors ceremony while we were at Arlington. Very moving.