Start to finish.

It all started here. I bought the book Material Obsession 2 and there was one quilt called jazz hands made from one simple kite shaped template . It required hand piecing and I decided I needed a project to sit and do in the evenings while my husband was watching television, to keep me occupied. One thing lead to another and....

then I decided to try for more contrast. By the second block I had quit trying to piece the entire thing by hand. The triangle units were still hand pieced but they were sewn together into the hexagon shape by machine. Frankly I was astonished that the points matched as well as they did. Pressing the back correctly was a major factor.

By the time I got to this block I started looking online for inspiration. I found Marti Mitchell's blog and started reading it from the beginning.

By the time I got to this block I had ordered Marti Mitchell's template "H" for the Kite and Crown which makes a larger hexagon and lead to.....

(By the way, this is my favorite block.)

The good news is that block number 5 was made with the templates I ordered and were rotary cut and completely pieced by machine. The bad news was that I had five blocks laying on the table in two different sizes. The next day my husband had a doctor appointment in Franklin, NC. We stopped at W**M*** to pick up our vitamins and such and I went to the fabric department to see what kind of quilt batting they may have. I spotted this grey/brown polka dot and thought it might be an interesting way to set these hexagons and without any real plan I bought a couple of yards to bring home for an audition. The next day I calculated the difference in size of the smaller units to the larger one and started cutting strips. I surrounded the small hexagons and without any real plan I just laid them on the table and started making up partial blocks to fill in the edges. Once I had a rectangle sewn together I ran upstairs and threw it over my husband and discovered it was way too small to cover up the big guy.

I just started cutting strips for borders and sewing them on. I'd stop and see how they fit my husband. He was laid out on the couch watching a movie at the time. when I finally had him covered with room to spare I pressed the top and set it aside.

While hunting for flannel to put on the back I came across a bag of batting scraps so I sewed together enough to do the job. Then I basted it together and machine quilted it in a sort of wavy line across the quilt because I didn't think I was capable of sewing straight lines. Then I gathered up the rest of the fabric scraps on the table that I could cut
2 1/2" strips and machine sewed on a scrappy binding. Except for the original five experimental blocks, the time to put this together and finish was about 2 days. the fastest quilt I ever made.


Just in time! It's getting cold and my husband has already enjoyed a snuggle under it.

So there it is. I was having trouble getting a picture so I took it to work and asked my friend Bonnie to hold it for me. She was doing a great job until I told her to smile.

The next thing I knew the whole quilt was bouncing up and down and jiggling back and forth as she had a giggle fit. If it's blurry, it's her fault!

Just kidding, dear Bonnie. See her little shoes, isn't she cute.......

Enjoy this blessed day! Sue

Oh good heavens, Sue, I have been telling myself. Get back to it!

The past couple of months have been so busy at work that I come home every day and collapse with something mindless to fill the time until I get to go to sleep. Days off have been a frantic race to get caught up on the house, doctor appointments and other necessary trips to town. Finally I got what I really needed… 3 days off work in a row so I can get some rest and get caught up. I’m too old for working 5 days a week. Not only that but I am married to an old man (I do love older men) and he is a bit time consuming as well.

So, here I am and this is what I have been up to.

I was just getting this quilt started and here I am auditioning borders.

It is done at last. I just pulled it out of the dryer and took it out to hang up for a photo. We have not has any sun, to speak of, for days so this is the best I could do. I absolutely love the way it came out. This is for a soon to arrive grandchild. We do not yet know the sex of the dear one. The parents want to be surprised. I did have a dream though.... I have a feeling it will be a girl. If not I will really be surprised.

I love the texture, I only quilted the background and it made the stripes of the maze pop up. I used two layers of a low loft polyester batting that I had on hand. I wanted it to be soft and fluffy but not hot as it is headed for south Florida

The backing fabric was too narrow to fit so I used my scraps to make a filler stripe. I didn't have much left. I was planning an alternative corner fill in around the central motif that were some fan shapes but I like the partial maze in the corner better.

I am sure I will find something else to do with those fan blades I cut out.

Here we are at the final phase of the remodel on out son's trailer. 

I don't have any current pictures but he is moved in and happy as a clam. In other exciting news, he found a job at Snowbird Mountain Lodge and really likes it. He really needed something to do other than hang around with a couple of old farts like his parents. His boss is respectful of his disabilities as he is a veteran as well.

The view driving to work is as stunning as ever. I leave early every day. I have this thing about being late and consequently, if the fog permits in the morning I have two overlooks to stop and enjoy the view for a minute or two. 

When I stopped at the overlook to see the sunrise, I thought this was a much more interesting photo. Instead or joining them over at the edge I sat in the car and enjoyed them enjoying it as well. 

So now that I have primed the pump, so to speak, I need to take some more photos and show you some more stuff.

See you again soon!

Hugs, Sue

The Process

Strips are being sewn, wedges are being cut, fabric is being tossed willy-nilly about. Not sure exactly where I'm going yet but the process is way over half the fun!

I spent 20 minutes or more sitting at a picnic table eating lunch yesterday. I was totally absorbed with this wall. All of the beauty of Tuskegee valley was invisible as I sat and stared at this. Anybody see a quilt pattern? I was intrigued by the proportion of the various widths of stone and how they meshed with larger and smaller pieces to make up a mostly uniform grout line. 

One other thought. One of the fabulous fringe benefits of having a blog is that the links you put there are available to you by simply looking at your own blog. No more searching for those things you saw but can't exactly remember what the website was called. 

Have fun today, I intend to do so! Hugs, Sue

Interlocking Season's Quilt Block

I surprised myself. I found this cool tutorial link on Amy Badskirt's blog. The actual tutorial is at The Parfait Cafe. It is called Interlocking Seasons Quilt Block. The surprise is that I was able to do this in one short evening. 

I have been reading Amy's blog from the beginning. It is fun, fun and fun, all wrapped up together. I wish I lived next door so I could invite myself over and breathe some of that creative air surrounding her. Breathing in your own creative air gets old after a few decades. 

I think I will set it with big triangles at the sides on point. Gotta go to Iron Horse to work right now and shift gears to paperwork and hospitality. Hopefully it is busy so I won't have time to daydream. I have big ideas for all of that negative space. More to follow..... 

Enjoy this beautiful day! Hugs, Sue

Where did that come from?

 How did that six foot wooden ladder get in my car? If you read yesterday's post where I had the car completely full of boat cushions, I must confess that on the way to deliver them I saw this beauty at the local "strip mall." I must also confess that the term "strip mall" refers to the Graham County garbage collection area. 

When I was growing up we always had residential pick up of our garbage. If the neighbor had something interesting you put the dog on a leash and pretended to take a leisurely stroll down the street while checking out possible finds. Then you had two options, you could wait until dark and sneak down there and run off with it...  OR, as my Mom did, I always marched right up to the front door and knocked and asked if I could have it. 

When I moved to North Carolina at the tender age of 50, I discovered that there was no curb side pickup. You have to take your garbage to a central location and put it in dumpsters. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. I was shopping at the "strip mall" at every opportunity. Then I found out this was illegal, GASP! I had to learn restrain myself.

To complicate matters, people who have something they think someone might like desperately need, will leave these items on the ground next to the dumpsters. This is a grey area. this ladder was standing fully open and upright a good foot away from the dumpster and as I zipped by and saw it I did a 180 to go back to check it out. 

The next issue I faced was that the car was already pretty full of boat cushions. I had to be careful not to harm them while loading the 6 foot ladder on top of the headrests, sideways. sort of. My luck was with me as I accomplished this task in complete safety. Thank you infinite universe, I have been wanting an old wooden ladder for quite some time. I have two projects in mind for it. 

For the next "Where did that come from from," I bring you this:

Take in that loveliness and have a blessed day, Hugs Sue

I've been busy!

I am trying to get caught up with things in the shop but that may be impossible during the summer. I try to get my clients to bring me their stuff in the winter when I have relatively little to do but no,.. they wait until I start back to work at Iron Horse and I'm working five and six days a week. Eventually it will all get done. This week I have recovered some seats for David Prince. He calls me when he is in a jam with his boat rental fleet. Memorial Day weekend is upon us.

This is my little truck. It is a 1999 VW Jetta and his name is Felix. I haven't had many boy cars over the course of my driving career but he is a winner. Fun to drive, dependable, and you would not believe what I am able to cram inside him. I asked my husband about the possibility of adding a roof rack but he told me I was pushing my luck. Today I am hauling a small load.

Three bench cushions in the back seat 

and as you can see below, 

the captains chair in the front seat. 

Only the seat bottom was cracked, 

While the rest of the upholstery 

was somewhat discolored, 

it was in good condition. 

                                                                                                                                                            I also have a bunch of flower pots in the trunk for a co-worker who is one of our work camper. They have a motorcycle and it is not so handy to bring home flower pots and I had a stack stored under the house.  Next we need to plan what flowers she wants and make a run for those.                                                                                                                 Unfortunately while I have much more to share, I have to get a move on and get to work early. I have to deliver these cushions before I go to my real job. Hopefully I can squeeze out a bit more time tomorrow to sit at the computer and eat chocolate while I type. Enjoy this beautiful day!    Hugs, Sue

36th wedding anniversary.

I dreamed about a quilt last night and it finally woke me up and I had to get a pencil and paper at 3:30 am and sketch it so I could go back to sleep.That usually occurs when I spend most of the evening online, reading quilt blogs but I didn't do that last night.

Rat Pack rally at Iron Horse in 2013. This kind of stuff goes on all season. 

Earl and I spent a delightful evening at Iron Horse. It was the annual, for the employees, Cinco de Mayo dinner which coincides with our anniversary. Some of our regular guests were there and people I have gotten to know over the past four year working there. I feel like it is a wonderful second family we have been given.

It also coincided with someone's birthday so there was singing and candles and applause and much laughter. At our end of the table Earl and I had flowers and cards and one dear lady bought me a box of crackers she knows I enjoy. I suppose that sounds silly but she know what I like and she knows I only buy them as special treat.

Toward the end of the evening, a dear friend Bonnie came to sit with me to congratulate us for surviving 36 years together.Whenever I see Bonnie around she is listening to someone. No matter the story, she stands there so connected and caring you cant help but tell her all about yourself. She is such a deeply devoted christian the light just seems to glow around her.She and her husband make such a cute pair, wherever she goes in the room his eyes follow her with such love. Just looking at them makes you feel all warm and fuzzy about the idea of everlasting love and commitment.

I wound up telling Bonnie how Earl and I got together and about our incredible journey through life. We have been so blessed. That realization is with me everyday and it is so uplifting that when I have problems it gives me faith that everything will work out. It wasn't always that way. It took me a while to stop worrying. I considered myself a optimistic pessimist. I figured if I obsessed about the things I feared the most, they might not happen and then I would be pleasantly surprised. My husband was not a worrier, he was too busy working for the power company and he worked a lot of overtime. As a result, most of the daily child rearing fell to me.

 Earl and I didn't have any children after we married but we adopted one and had custody of two more. That's when things got complicated and more fun. A little girl moved next door and her mom worked all the time. She was lonely and started coming over and she finally declared her place in the family as the big sister. The kids got old enough to go to school and the boys brought home two friends that needed a place to stay because their family was having problems. Those boys also became a part of our family.

Because I thought these kids needed a stay at home mom Earl and I decided that was the best thing to do. Then our friends started asking if their children, could stay with us for day care. Those children came to call us Aunt and Uncle and our family expanded more.

It wasn't long before our house was too small so we built a bigger one. My sister was having problems so she came to live with us with her girls. Those four little girls became so close, that now as adults they still thank me for the years they spent with us.

There are so many children I think of as my own. I'm not trying to take anything away from their parents. We are friends with those people and think of them as my sisters and brothers. We were co-parents. That old saying, "You can't pick your family," is so wrong. It truly does, "take a village to raise a child."

Foe example, the island we lived on was very supportive of our endeavor. The school refused to let me pay for lunches. People would give me the clothes their children outgrew. When I went to the goodwill store to shop with the kids, no matter what we had or how many bags we filled the total bill was always $5.00. The Methodist church gave me furniture. the Catholic church gave me food. I never asked for anything but people responded to what they perceived as a need.

For the most part, our life was been wonderfully happy. I had a bit of trouble when things first got complicated. I laid my troubles on the pastor of my church. He knew how much time I spent in the car driving kids around so he taped two notes to the dash board of my van. The first said: Live in the moment, don't obsess about the future or beat yourself up about the past. FEAR= False Evidence Appearing Real. The second said: Surrender to the flow of life and allow it to provide for you, easily and comfortably. Don't forget to breathe.

Even today when I feel stress creeping up on me my mantra is "Surrender to the flow, surrender to the flow. Breathe"

I"m sorry this post is particularly wordy with few pictures. I just had to share with you my experiences. If you are worried or afraid, try to surrender to the flow. God wants to help but you have to allow him to do his work. When we are stressed, our breathing becomes shallow so take a deep breath and blow it out slow. it relaxes you a bit. Worry never accomplishes anything. Things turn out the way they are going to anyway.

It has been a wonderful journey with the man of my dreams, and I thank God every day 

for helping me find him

Have a blessed day!

A beautiful day!

After prolonged rain and overcast, chilly days we are having a small run of beautiful weather. I have tomorrow off  and I am hoping it holds so I can be home to enjoy at least one of them.

Last week I finally got the monster on the boat. I promised pictures of what I had on the shop table.

It was a 10' x 10' bimini top. 

This whole boat needs work. Next I will be working on the rear mooring cover, upholstery of the seats and finally, side enclosures. This project is like adopting a child. It feels like a long term investment of my time and physical resources. 

It was so pretty outside this morning I grabbed my first cup of coffee and wandered into the back yard. The next thing I knew I had climbed the fence and holding on tight to the fence wire and posts, I was leaning over the steep embankment below our cabin, pulling weeds. I was tugging on a particularly stubborn clump of something and something ELSE slithered away. Without loosing my grip I squeaked "Hay-ya!" and jumped sideways. Then I saw the little guy. A grass snake was looking at me, totally unimpressed with my karate kid moves. 

I decided to climb back over the fence and get dressed so I did't look so silly. After all, I don't see any of my neighbors gardening in their PJ's. No, wait! I don't have any neighbors.

After breakfast I went downstairs to straighten up in the shop. I was cleaning off a shelf and spotted what I thought was one of our dog Tom-Tom's squeaky toys. When he tears them up I often sew them back together a few times before I give up on them. 

 I grabbed it and yelled "Hay-ya and threw it. Fortunately no-one was around to see me hurl a dead mouse in a trap halfway across the shop. It landed conveniently near the front door. All I had to do was pick it up and carry it outside to open the trap to dump it in the bushes. At least he might become a meal for some critter. Karate Kid part 2. 

I don't know how many episodes to expect today but now it time to get ready for work.

Have a blessed day.

Work, work and the other work.

Where have I been? The motorcycle resort I work at is seasonal and when it opens April 1st it's time to train the work campers. The office manager, the young lady that has been there a lot longer, and I, have been working lots of hours to get everyone trained up. It seems we have two good recruits. After this week new kids have a couple of solo shifts and then we can revert to our regular schedule. Whatever that may be. I have also been working on a BIG project in the shop.

I finally managed to get my table cleared off!

Unwrapped about 15 yards of Sunbrella Plus.

 Doubled it, sewed it together on one side, flipped it open and top stitched it,

with my baby Zena, the barbarian warrior princess. 

Just as I was ready to proceed, my husband showed up with........

A Singer 128-23 It's 3/4 size in a beautiful wooden case. 

My husband sat down and without any interference from me threaded it up and it sewed like a dream. Then he gave it a good once over with oil can and let me take it for a whirl. Imagine my surprise when I was looking at the accessories and found long skinny bobbins! It's a vibrating shuttle!

I got so excited just talking about it, I lost my bag of carrots I was munching and had to regroup. Ah. there it is, I ate all of them and the bag is empty and hard to see it with all the junk on my desk.

The next machine is an Elgin. It was originally made by the Elgin Watch and Bicycle Company but this one is probably post WW2 because there is a made in Japan sticker on the end. This poor baby was a mess. We blew a whole morning tearing it apart to find out what the problem was. 

That big round silver thingey that the cams sit on to produce the decorative stitches was frozen solid. My DH Earl almost completely disassembled all of that stuff you see there into individual parts. Then he hit them with PB Blaster, scrubbed some of it with wire brushes, wiped everything down and put it back together, then oiled it.  It only took three tries before we figured out where everything meshed back together and all the springs hooked up. Then we went to work on the underneath part, cleaning and oiling, what a mess! I think this machine was in a home with one or a few heavy smokers. Even the outside was covered with dark brown tarry looking stuff. I washed the outside with car wash and waxed it with McGuires. Ta-Da! It sews! I have some upper tension issues and I need to take the whole tension assembly apart and clean it. It is probably gummed up too. I had to put that aside for now and get back to WORK! You know work in the shop, not the work at Ironhorse where they pay me to show up and play with the customers.

The monster on the table is a 10' by 10' bimini top for a monster pontoon boat. As of today I have it finished and ready to put back on the frame and tomorrow I will take it back to the marina and install it on the boat. I'll post some photos. 

Have a wonderful day. It's bright and sunny here with a pretty stiff wind. I worked outside in the garden a bit this morning so now I need to eat some lunch and get ready for work, you know, work, work where they actually pay me, Ironhorse Motorcycle Lodge. That work, not my work here in the shop. 

Sue

Eureka!

The Singer 66 my husband brought me didn't have a case, cabinet or foot pedal. He built a box to put it in so I could oil it and free it up but I had no way to see if the motor ran.  When I was cleaning off the table Monday, I was putting the Singer 306K away in its case and had to unplug the power/foot controller. I stood there for a few seconds staring at the plug in my hand. Then it hit me… it would fit the 66. I hooked it up and plugged it in and bingo! The motor runs great and the machine hums right along.

Tuesday was town day. When you live where we do, you don't just "go" to the store, it is usually a planned day trip. I warned all participating parties it would be a quick one, no dawdling. We went in and hit both thrift stores, the dollar store (aka. Robbinsville Walmart). Ingles was the last stop and then home. We set a record arrival home time of 1:30 pm which left me time for the shop downstairs.

Check out that bobbin winder...and the dirt...it needs a new tire. I wanted to see if it sewed FIRST.

While I figured out how to wind a fresh bobbin and replaced the needle, DH Earl found a nail the correct diameter and touched it up with the bench grinder to provide a spool pin. I dug some denim out of my stash of old bluejeans and I began to wing a pair of work gauntlets for Earl. The poor guy always wears a long sleeve work shirt but he still tears his arms up. I made one with heaver denim that is stiff and one with stretch denim that would be less constricting. He will test them today.

Right off the bat, that machine sewed. I think the top tension was fiddled with or bumped because I had to increase the top tension quite a bit but it now has a beautiful stitch. It sewed through up to sixteen layers of denim over the seams and never slowed down. I am so delighted with this machine! It's a keeper.

Happy Wednesday! Sue

Tutorial

I spent the morning trying to clear my table. I managed to put away four of the six machines camping there, when I spied those motorcycle jackets. I went upstairs and retrieved poor old "Dirty Ken" and brought him down. He is the one with the free arm.

I wish I had pictures of the "before." I found him in a basement. I had stopped at a rummage sale and there was a machine there but it was above my price range. I asked the nice lady if she had any other machines. We went downstairs to this overwhelming huge space full of "stuff." It

 was all dirty. She told me that this building used to be a brake shop and my body immediately went into asthma mode. Purely psychological I'm sure but I didn't reach for my inhaler because I didn't want that dust to penetrate deeper in my lungs. She led me to this machine, It was so dirty I had to find a rag on the floor to mop it off a bit to figure it out. I found a plug and tested it to see if the motor turned it over. I must admit this was a pity purchase. I couldn't bear to leave this machine here. There were other machines there, as well but they were older and I am on a very limited budget. I told her what I would pay and she wanted more. I told her that I get that. She could clean it up herself and get more money. I wasn't trying to rip her off, I just have my limits. When I got ready to leave she decided to accept my offer. She even found the case and gave me that, as well. Bless her heart, she helped this poor little machine live to sew again.

It took me half a day to clean and oil it up but it came out fine. The free arm is what I needed right now so here we go. I had two jackets to do so I snapped some pictures. 

I have no idea how the professionals do it. I have no claim to that status. My mom started teaching me to sew when I was four years old. Except for home economics, I have had no formal training. From doing this I learned to bast the patch on. The jackets are stiff and there is a slick backing on the patch. At first I tried to pin but when you are trying to wrestle it through the machine you sometimes run a pin in your hand. Rule #1: Don't bleed on the fabric. (doing my Leroy Jethro Gibbs)

Try to flatten the jacket out as much as possible, starting at the front edge work your way towards the sleeve. When you get down the sleeve a bit make sure the free arm of the machine is going down the sleeve. You might have to grab the armhole opening and work it over the free arm like dressing a reluctant child. 

I aim for a a starting point at the upper left side of the patch and then work my way to the bottom right. Be sure to back stitch at each end. Sometimes I only get three or four stitches before you have to re-position and flatten your work, I use a fairly long stitch, why torture yourself. 

 Half way there!

Starting again at the upper left corner, work your way to the bottom left and leave that needle down as you gently turn to come across the bottom. As you sew you may may to stop and rotate the sleeve around the free arm. Take your time. 

Ta-da!!! Now clip those stitches and pull the basting stitches out. No blood was shed. 

 Don't forget to turn the sleeve inside out and get those threads clipped as well. As you can see. I'm not the only one who had a thread ball or two. Mine is on the left. Don't beat yourself up. As long as you slip a fingernail under the edge of the patch on the front side and it seems tight, don't sweat it. There are probably 10 years of patches on this jacket. All have thread balls and none have come loose or have fallen off. 

This is the foot I SHOULD have used. It's clear and I could have seen what I was doing better.

Five more years and the patch sewing will have to move to the front or rear of the jacket.

If you have patches and a free-arm machine give it a try. If it's on the front or rear of the jacket a free-arm is not necessary. A size 16 needle and slow is all you need.

May the force be with you!
Sue

Getting organized.

This is what I need to figure our today. All of these have to find somewhere to be... other than the  middle of my work table. Three of them I might be able to wedge in somewhere, Locations for the other two have yet to be determined. Earl said he would build some shelves for me where we just removed the propane heater. Our shop is like one of those puzzles where you have to move one square to move the next. Hopefully I will be able to make some order here.

In the rear there, are some motorcycle jackets I need to sew patches on. I work at a motorcycle resort and occasionally, that happy chore follows me home.

I am grateful to have a large place to sew. I never had that until recently. When we moved to NC in June of 2003, our house was only 12 by 24 feet. We were tiny house people before they had that show on television. My one and only sewing machine lived in a box in the corner with some stuff piled on top.

My husband set to work to build a 18 by 26 shop. It took about a 5 months but when he was done, I promptly confiscated 6 foot of the end against the house to put in a "real" bathroom and utility room for the washer and dryer I hoped to acquire. I'm not complaining about going to town to do the laundry. I quickly discovered a cleaner who did drop off laundry service and so I did. Then I went to do the shopping and picked up the clean and folded stuff on the way home. About 2 months later my husband commented, "When did you start ironing my blue jeans?" I was busted.

Eventually we acquired a washer and dryer from our friend Larry in Florida. We were still working on our slow move north after hurricane Charlie. It took a year to sell what was left of our house down there and we made multiple trips with two vehicles with two utility trailers. My take over of half of "his" shop is another story.

I had better get busy, I also have to work the evening shift at Iron Horse today. Time's a'wastin!

Sue