Only 5 days

In my last post for the One Monthly Goal I let the cat out of the bag so to speak about my falling off the "Focus" wagon of getting stuff done and only starting new things I already had in my stash. Well I caved in only 5 days.  Wow - that's horrible.  So here's where I tell you that my Sister and I are each making one, and they are gifts for our grandchildren.  And even though it was her pattern and not mine, we are both using my stash.  Does any of that make it better?  Probably not.  :) Oh well if I still have ufo's when I go to heaven, set a match to the pile and know I had fun while I was doing it.  :) 
So here's the pattern that derailed me - 

It's an advent calendar with 25 little pockets. 

In the pattern, they have colored the pictures and then it is embroidered. We are doing part wool applique and part embroidery.  We traced out larger squares on our muslin, and for the last few days we have been appliqueing the wool and tracing the embroidery parts.   Here are my 25 blocks. We left them all together so we don't have to try and embroider on a tiny little piece of fabric.

Here's a close up of a few of the blocks. 

 Once we get the applique whip stitched and the embroidery done  we will trim these to 2 1/2" and then add the border to make them into pockets.  I think there is also some embroidery in the borders too. Guess I figure that out when I get all these done.
This makes #4 of projects that are hand work that are in my current cue.
I am still working on an embroidered wall hanging for Halloween. 
I am about 1/2 done with the embroidery, and I already have the border blocks made.
There are the two wool crazy table mats - left to finish up, (Spring and Crazy) 


(Picture from pattern cover)
And then the other is "Over the River and Through the Woods" Embroidery quilt.  I have one panel traced and have started the embroidery on it.

And I got all the flying geese and blocks cut out and will work on that at the retreat.  That I am sure is enough hand work for quite a while. 
In the last few days I also got the borders on this panel and got it sandwiched ready to quilt.  

It glows in the dark.

Not sure how I will quilt the part that glows.  I know there is glow in the dark thread I may need to get some.  This is for my granddaughter she really likes Jack.  
Okay that's what I've been up to for the last few days.  Oh Oh Oh and I cleaned my sewing room.  Like getting rid of dust elephants and putting away all the scraps kinda clean.  

My room is very big - approx 14 x 28 - so I share it with our Puppy crate and exercise equipment and add'l storage.  

And one more thing - Did I mention we have a puppy?  lol more like a bulldozer.  She's 34 pounds of pure muscle and doesn't know it.  She had surgery on Tuesday to get spayed.  They told us to keep the cone on her head and not let her jump or run for 10-14 days.  Oh ya right. We hate the cone more than she does, cause she runs into us full force and the edges of the cone hurt. She tore across the yard at 50 mph today and was jumping like a wild woman tonight. 

 Here she is on the way to the vet......

 Here she is the night she came home......

Like I said she is adjusting to the cone better than we are.  It's a lot of work taking on a new puppy, especially a big one - but I'm already in love with her. 
Have a blessed evening.  
Lynn 

Third of Three

Well I am home from my 3rd of the 3 retreats.  I was doing good momentum was going good until I got home then I crashed.  I unpacked a bunch of my stuff sat down and I fell asleep hard.  15 mins later I got a text that jarred me like a cattle prod.   
I thought after a night or two of good sleep and I'd be back to normal, but we have been on the run with errands and appointments so the jury is still out on the good as new thing. LOL I slept for 9 hours we got up got ready and headed to hubby's doctor appointment then from there we needed go to Kingman (about an hour away) to pick up my sewing machine that has been in the shop for ever.  The part it needed was on back order. Anyway when we got home from that it was only about 1:30 or 2pm but hubby and I both were so so sleepy.  He went and hit a bucket of golf balls to practice his game a little and I worked on the "Where I Belong" Quilt that I worked on at retreat #2.  It only needed it's 2 borders and I was able to get them done.  

As I was showing it to hubby, I said yay a ufo done.  He informed me that if it wasn't quilted yet it was still a ufo.  Yes he got a dirty look.  :).  
So at the retreat the last of the trio... I only worked on the black and white pinwheel quilt.  I had my 640 HST that I was making into sashing units.  

I ended up taking a couple of hours to check my hst and re-trim a few of them.  My handy short cut on how I trim maybe isn't the best because some were off.  Anyway that took away from sewing time but I did still get a lot done.  Since I needed 80 I was putting them in piles of 8 so I could count 10%, 20%... As of the end of the retreat I got the remaining 2 blocks done 

and I  am 75% done with the sashing units which is my One Monthly Goal.  :) 

I met a few new people this time and one of them was Carla.  

She was working on a panel and I told her I had the same panel.  Well she bought hers as a kit -

 This is it before she put the last border on.  

And when she was done she gave me the left over fabric and the pattern.  Wasn't that sweet. 
So of course I had to come home and dig mine out.  I think there will be enough of her scraps to make a nice top out of it.  

Okay this post has taken me way too long and I need to get going.   We have an appointment and then hopefully I can come home and do some sewing. 

Hope you all have a wonderful day - Blessings,  Lynn 

Days of our Lives

I'm probably dating myself here, but I feel like the last week has been a combo of "As the World Turns" and "Days of our Lives".  
Lots has been going on, not all of which is sewing related... I'll explain more about that in a minute. 
Along with getting ready 3 retreats - 3 weeks in a row - I let a shiny thing sneak in.  A small wall hanging, by McKenna Ryan.

 The Border isn't sewn on yet but I'll have that finished up shortly. What and who is this for?  you and hubby ask ... I dunno.  :)

The other distraction I've had is a book.  I normally listen to books while I work, but a friend of mine kept saying how this was her favorite book so I said I'd give it a try... Well it is very good and instead of doing my hand stitching at night, there's been a few nights that I've just sat and read.   

As for sewing, I did get the two borders on my "Christmas Card" Quilt (It still has overlay stars that will be sewn on the border)

Then I hand stitched the faces on the Angels and Carolers. The Bunny still needs its whiskers.  

Slowly, things are getting done. And since the first of the 3 retreats starts Friday (in just 2 days) I'm sure I will get some major sewing in.  
So what else is going on?  Hubby got a new doctor, so he's running all the new doctor tests as a baseline.  Then there have been a few extra tests due to some symptoms he's having. Then as discovery happens, things are implemented such as a CPAP machine for starters. So it seems like every 2 days we have another appointment, or test or lab visit.  One yesterday another tomorrow... And keeping all of them straight and what needs to be done as prep work seems like a full time job. :)
Then because we have gained weight over the summer, I'm trying to look up recipes so I can cook some healthier items for us.  I've been making lots of soups and then trying to make low carb recipes.  

I feel like I'm constantly on the go or busy - I just don't have a lot to show for it - Yet!   :)
Today I want to finish the quail wall hanging, and cut some squares to make HST for a UFO I'll be working on at one of the retreats. 
So I hopefully I will be letting you know I made great progress on that.
Have a Blessed Day!
Lynn 

Paying it forward

Every year one of the guilds I belong to makes little Christmas stockings for Charity and the Angel Tree at one of our hospitals.  Well my snowbird Sister won't be here until 3 days after they are due, my friend Gloria is out of town with her son who is in the hospital and my other friend Cheryl just left town for her annual visit to see her son and grandsons. Since none of them will be here this month for the charity sew and since I didn't want to pack up my machine and take on Friday, I did 3 each (which is what they requested) for the 4 of us. 

I have one more that I made last year that needed to be fixed, I think I'll get it fixed and then there will be a bakers dozen. 
While I was doing that I put on a pot of soup and it is done so I'm enjoying a bowl that.  Hubby has a doctors appointment so we'll do that this afternoon. If I have any more time in the sewing room I'll get this mess cleaned up and next up I will be doing cutting.  I need to make some bindings and also start  cutting out circles for some fabric bowls we are going to give out at the retreat.  
Have a Blessed day!
Lynn

Production Line

Yesterday just fell into place. Right after breakfast I started a pot of Vegetable Beef Soup and put it in the crock pot.  The fan for our A/C is acting up so I didn't want to heat the house anymore than needed. 

 Then after Hubby left for golf, I called my Sis and talked with her for quite a while.  We text every day but like to catch up on the phone every few days.   So while I was talking with her, I hand stitched the binding on this table topper. 

 Here's the back.

 This one I did the day before to try out the machine after getting it home from repairs.  I was able to stitch this one my machine.

 Here's the back.

 Then I started trimming up the blocks for Daisy Days, and laying them out to see how it would look.  The top block needs to be finished and then I can start putting it all together.

 Then took out my Halloween embroidery that I've just started and looked at the pieced border.

So I started looking for black to use (note to self - you need black fabric bad)  once I found the black I wanted to use, I started cutting out the pieces.  And since the A/C is struggling and my sewing room was the coolest room in the house.... I started sewing the blocks.  I needed 4 HST and 32 QST. 

 It's been a while since I've made QST.  Good to keep up the skills. 

Before I knew it all my borders strips were cut (will cut exact size when embroidery done) and the piece border blocks were sewn and trimmed. 

Then because it was still kind of early and my sewing room was still nice and cool - I worked some more on the last block of Daisy Days.  I normally would do this in the living room with Hubby while watching or at least listening to what is on TV, but the cool room kept me where I was.  

Here is where it was when I started on it, I was still working on the lettering. 

This is where I finished last night before bed. 

I tried filtering and enhancing the picture but it is still hard to see some of the colors.  

I finished the lettering, did the pointed part of the banner, the rounded part of banner and the pink on top of banner.  Then I started doing the Bee and it's trail. 

So not too bad for a day's play in the sewing room.  

Now I'm off to give it another try and see what I can accomplish. 

Have a Blessed Day!

Lynn