Busy over the weekend

I'm in what is called the holiday rush to get the last of the quilts finished for the year.  I wanted to have all the quilts finished by the first of November so I could do some things for myself before Christmas.  Needless to say, I have missed my own deadline.  Well, hopefully I can get most of it done this week and still have some time for my own work. 

Over the weekend I did these two pillow covers to go with the quilt I did last week.  (posted about it on my hints blog)

Same design on the setting triangles.

Same line dancing on the pieced squares.

Then I quilted this quilt. 

The owner likes very minimal quilting.  I did bows on the outside border and a simple wavy line on the inside border.

Flutterbys on the pieced squares and line dancing around them.

Larger flutterbys on the solid squares.

Next I finished this quilt.  Again, lightly quilted designs.

Flowers on the outside border and a loop design on the inside border.

Line dancing on the blocks. 

More of the line dancing.

I have three more tops to quilt (large ones), two pillow tops to quilt, and two memory quilts to get pieced before quilting them.  My goal is to get the rest of tops quilted this week.  I'm hoping to piece the memory quilts as well.  After I get approval on the memory tops I can get those quilted.   

On point quilt

This is the next quilt going on the machine.  It's an on point set quilt with special issues.  I'm going to be doing some posts on my helpful hints blog about dealing with the special issues of on point quilts.  I realized I had very few posts on that blog about quilting hints.  I kinda got fully involved with frugal foods and other stuff then neglected quilt or sewing posts.  Later I hope to do more posts about dealing with issue quilts, my backward piecing techniques, and some other sewing stuff.  If you want to follow the posts about this quilt just click on the link on the side bar. 

I'll still be posting how I'm progressing on this quilt on this blog.  I plan hope to make some changes to all three blogs over the holiday break.... after all the customer quilts are finished for the year.  I'm going to put links into pages at the top where everything will be easier to find.

Over the weekend I worked some more on my window quilts.  I sewed the bar holders and the cabone rings into place.  Next will be attaching the strings to raise and lower them.  One step closer to getting those darned window quilts installed.  Thank goodness it hasn't gotten really cold yet.  I've still got a little time. 

I planning hoping to do quite a bit of organizing over the holiday break too.   It's been too long since I actually did any organizing of my craft stuff.  It's hard to be creative when I can't find the one thing I need.  You know the one thing that is perfect for the next step but it's hidden underneath all the other one things I wasn't able to find several days ago for the other craft.  We all know about that don't we.  Those things that tend to hide from us until we are busy with something else, then they pop up to be right in view.  Strange but they weren't there the other day when I was looking for them.  Everything needs a home.  I'm going to do my best to find them one.

The solid squares finished

I got the solid squares and the setting triangles of the quilt finished before Ladybug arrived.  Today I'll work on the sashing around the squares and hopefully get the pieced squares done too. 

With all the kitchen work over the weekend.... once again, I didn't get the window quilts installed.  Bummer.  First things first though.  Preserving the harvest had to be done first.  I'm going to try installing at least a couple of the window quilts this coming weekend.  This month is slowly slipping away from me.  The holidays are looming around the corner.  I want the last of the quilts finished in the next 3 to 4 weeks.  My customers don't mind if it takes longer.  It's me that wants them finished.  I want to do some cleaning and organizing in November, December, and January.  I also want to do some sewing of my own during this time.

I'm so close and yet so far from getting my life to what I want it to be.  A little work, a little relaxing, a little fun, a little crafting, a little cooking..... oh heck, you know what I mean.  I'm going to go quilt now.

Continuing on

I don't know if you can see the stitching or not but I got the feathers along the border finished.  Today I will do the lines between them. 

I try to do the borders first on these quilts to minimize the amount of fullness in the border.  When the center area is quilted first it only compounds the problem of a wavy border.  Why?  Well because when doing the quilting it draws up the fabric.  The more it draws up in the center area, the more wavy effect on the border. 

I have two appointments today and two tomorrow so I'm not sure how much quilting I'm going to get accomplished.  If I can get the lines between the feathers done it will help keep me on schedule. 

About the bread

This is the quilt currently on the machine.  I've done the stitch in the ditch around all the pieces to stabilize it.  There are some places where the fabric is way too thick to stitch around.  I haven't figured out what design to use for the border triangles yet.  I've started doing the background design even though it won't be very visible when finished.  It's more for texture. 

I had to stop about midway through the day to go get my commodities foods.  These really do help with my food budget except sometimes it's more than I can eat in a month.  I give the excess to someone I know can use it too but doesn't qualify to get commodities.

Of course, when my brother takes me to get the commodities we stop by the thrift store only a couple of blocks away.  I found a couple of things I could use.  I'd thought about dehydrating some eggs which requires a non-stick skillet to prepare them.  I found a decent skillet I can use and it only cost a dollar because everything was 50 percent off for the day.  I found a hand mixer to have here in case the power is out and I still want to mix up something.  If the electric is off, I can still cook because I have a gas stove.  We never know when a storm may knock out our power. 

I got a spoon, a french fry cutter, and the cutest Ladybug computer mouse.  Everything together cost only 3.75 which wasn't bad at all.  About the bread I baked.  I remembered that back in the days when I baked bread regularly, I used mashed potatoes in the recipe.  The mashed potatoes is what keeps the crust soft.  Well anyway, I did an internet search for a bread recipe using potatoes.  I came across this site in a round about way.  I first found a YouTube video of someone baking bread and followed it back to the site.  It's called Fun with food storage written by a member of the LDS church.   

I spent quite awhile looking at the site.  I like her site because the lady does a lot of the things that are similar to my desired way of life.  Not the religious part but the organized, scratch cooking, frugal thinking part.  Her site has sort of updated versions of what many of us cooked back in the 1960s and 1970s.  What's old is new again.  It's refreshing to see young people doing the things I've long ago forgotten how to do and want to learn to do again. 

Better day

I'll start with the next finished quilt.  For the same customer and with the same type quilting. 

A close up of the red square showing the quilting.

A view from the back.

It's nice to read the comments yesterday from those who have experienced the same things.  I felt very violated yesterday.  Reading the comments helped me feel much better because I knew I wasn't alone.  I've made all the phone calls.  Most places told me to call the bank, which I already did.  My brother is going to help with a loan for what I can't earn in the next 12 weeks.  I'll repay him when my money is returned to me.

I have thought about using an insurance company like Lifelock or Credit shield but I resent paying someone to protect what should be the responsibility of the banking industry.  This is my personal opinion..... paying for insurance is like placing a monthly bet that something will happen.  If it does happen, I win.  If it doesn't happen, the insurance company wins.  Well, even when something does happen, it's still up to the insurance company to tell me if I won and whether I will get paid or not.  What kind of bookie is that?  Ok, I'll get off the soap box about how foolish some types insurances are.  I could rant on and on about that but I won't.  Let's just say I only have insurance when the law requires me to have it.  My meager income doesn't allow for placing loosing bets every month.

I believe that credit card stealing and identity theft is only going to get worse over time.  A bad economy that's getting worse each day will only make people more desperate.  I don't care what the financial experts say.... the economy is getting worse.  I see the signs all around me.  Homeless shelters getting so full they need to purchase a five story hotel to house everyone.  Unemployment lines getting so long they wrap completely around the block.  Soup kitchens running out of food before everyone gets fed.  I trust what I see, not what I'm told.

This one quilted

I got this quilt finished yesterday.  He wanted horizontal and vertical lines but not straight lines.  He wanted wonky lines like the ones in the quilt top design. 

Here's a close up from the front.

Here's how it looks on the back.

You might think doing less than perfect lines would be easy.  It's not easy because I've spent years practicing to make very straight freehand lines.  It's kind of like learning to play a musical instrument until your fairly good at it then trying to play like a beginner again.

Kathi, thanks for the gentle cyber push.  I'm hoping to be working on finishing the window quilts in the next couple of weeks.  I still need to put the pulley strings, rings, and wood bars on them before they can be hung on the windows.   

LW, the next time you plan to paint (any room), pick out your curtains first then choose your paint.  It's much easier to match a paint color to fabric than the other way around.  Paint color match mixing is offered in a lot of places..... but do you see fabric color match mixing before we buy fabric offered anywhere?  (giggle)  

Cross stitched one done

I went around all the design with clear thread and used white thread to follow the background design.  This is the center area.

The center area from the back.

The corner from the front.

The corner from the back.

The side from the front.

The side from the back.

Whew!  That was a lot of stops and starts. 

On to the next one.  Hmm.... which one?  I do try to balance my time by doing a time consuming one then a quick one.  A quick one should logically be next.  It's also getting closer to cold weather so maybe I really should work on the window quilts I've talked about for several months?  Hmm..... plain fabric, panto design, easy on, easy off.  Not today though, because it's shopping day.  Time to get off the computer,  put something in the crockpot, and get myself ready to go.

Got it stabilized

Well, it's finally stabilized.  Its a cross stitched whole cloth.  Many people don't realize that the cross stitch kits are actually supposed to be layered before the cross stitching is done.   The stitching is supposed to make a reversible quilt.  The stitching is supposed to be the quilting too.  The faint lines of the background design are supposed to be running stitches.  Down at one dot, back up at the next.  In all my years as a professional machine quilter, I've never seen a cross stitch quilt done properly.  Umm..... maybe that's why?  If done properly there'd be no need to take it to a quilter so it's not going to be brought to me.

I went around all the flowers with clear thread and now I plan to follow the markings to do the background with white thread. 

I won't be finishing this one this weekend.  I plan to go through more things to get ready for the yard sale.  I may not get a chance to post over the weekend.  It will depend on whether I get a lot done or not. 

My daughter likes to watch scary movies.  Lots of scary movies.  Well, for me, all I have to do is turn on the news to get scared.  If I really want to get the crap scared out of me, I do an internet search.  Geeze..... it's enough to make me want to buy some depends.  The tv news tells of wars and murder and natural disasters.  I can handle that... a little.  BUT an internet search is absolutely heart pounding sometimes.  If I read too much it would drive me bonkers.  Don't believe me?  Try a search of your own.  Use these key words.....  sustainable living or emergency preparedness or economic crisis.  If you are like me; you'll get sights like how to train a hawk to gather your food, how to use fire arms to defend your home and where to store the ammunition, and storing a year supply of fuel in your house.  Now THAT'S scary.  The wrong kind of spark and there'd be no more need for the family to keep fuel. 

Ok, now that I've scared myself quite enough for one computer session, it's time to start sorting and organizing for the yard sale. 

Another view for opinions

I've put this quilt onto my design wall and taken a full view photo.  You can click on it to get a larger view and see it better.  How do the colors look now?  Are they too much?

A closer view.

And a closer view of one section.

My thought is that I will do faux trapunto of the embroidery flowers so it relates to the wool applique which is already padded and embelished.  I can't quilt onto the existing applique because the hopping foot won't go over it.  Too thick.  The very center of the large flower stands about 1 1/2 inch above the flower.  I don't want to break a needle either if it should hit a bead.  The center flower will need at least some quilting to hold the large area together.  I'm not sure how it will be done just yet.

The applique is very colorful which is why I thought a colorful thread would work.  If I pick out the color thread and use a dark one to blend in with the background, it would be just a plain trapunto design around the applique. 

Ok, this one is being set aside until I figure out what to do.  It's not scheduled to be finished for a couple more weeks so I've got some time.

Opinions please

I took a little time between current work to start on this quilt.  I'm doing some free motion embroidery in the background before doing the actual quilting.

Before I complete more of the embroidery I need opinions.  Is this too much color in the background?

What I mean is.... the quilt has lots of color already.  I've used a bright color variegated thread for these. 

I added just a bit of color around some parts of the applique too.

Before I do more of the embroidery I would like to know if others think it's too much color for the type of quilt?  If it's too much color I can pick it out and do something else.  I don't want to overwhelm the original design with lots of background color.  What I'm hoping is the color thread will be just subtle enough from a distance that people will ask "what is that?" and want to get closer to see it. 

I thought about emailing the original designer of this quilt to ask her opinion but I can't remember who it is.  I thought I had book marked her site and can't find that either.  It's one of "those" kinds of days. 

One more finished

This quilt is finally finished.  It took all of yesterday to do the one remaining border.  Quilting this took a lot longer than I thought it would.

I did a leafy design on the outside border.

Here is a view of the design from the back.

I did a flower and leaf vine on the second border.  (the one that my eyes see as two)

A view from the back.

I did a loose outline around the outside edge of the faux applique and double echo around that.

This is from the back.

I did a leaf design on the corner stone blocks.

A view from the back.

I did a triangle leaf design on the setting triangles.

A view of it from the back.  I like that design.  I'll probably use it again in another quilt sometime.

I did an outline of the outside edge of the faux applique blocks and a double echo around that.

From the back.

I did line dancing on the pieced blocks.

From the back too.

This person really likes minimal quilting on her quilts.  I had to repeatedly fight the urge to quilt it heavily because there seemed to be tons of places where I could have done tiny designs.  The backing is a painted white on white design.  This type fabric will often cause the stitching to look bad until it's washed.  Washing softens up the painted part so the stitching relaxes into the quilt. 

Another quilt is loaded on the machine and waiting for me.