Something quilty...

Yeah, I know you're shocked. But I woke up at 3am a few days ago and thought I'd put to good use the time. I quilted and bound this little sweetie and now it sits by my sewing machine- making me smile.

We have been canning garden bounty. 14 quarts of apple pie filling and 6 quarts of tomatoes- just the tip of the iceberg. I have a 5 gallon bucket full of gorgeous striped apples- an antique Braeburn variety. Haven't found a worm yet. Amazing. And 3 gallons of tomatoes. My sweet neices have stopped by and given their hands to work and we made very light of it. So nice having good help with the canning- though it is still always tiring. But very satisfying.

I've been working on new pocket papers- trying to see how many I can squeeze in thoughout the day. So I am getting some sit down time in between canners. See? I know how to make the most of a 24 hour day! Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend- don't work too hard!

Kids at work...

really, they were working. Ok, I get home from shopping and notice my bed is "made." The quilt was on sideways. It was all nicely folded down with the sheets. Bekah pipes up that she made my bed and organized my "diabetes stuff." I thought it was just adorable the way she lined up all the meds and the sryinges...even if the syringes are a bit morose- better than the alternative. Just part of my life. She was so proud, grinning from ear to ear as only she can. Thank you sweet girl. So nice to come home to a clean room.

And I bet you're dying to hear the story behind that towel. Wouldn't want you to think that all my children are perfect...Abe was riding the bleach bottle like a car all around the kitchen table. I was sterilizing the sinks- canning tomatoes- and I set the bleach down by my feet... Abe commandeered it. I guess the bottle couldn't stand the pressure of a 4 year old. It leaked. He "wiped" up the mess with one of my best blue towels(sorry Sarah.) And left the towel covering the puddle. Bleach is some seriously caustic stuff. Just in case you were doubting. Literally ate a big ole hole in that towel. But he was being such a big boy by "cleaning" up his mess- not a drop of bleach on him or his clothes. weird.

I just love kids. good thing, huh?

Willy Nilly...

These days most people use the word, "random." But don't you think that the term willy nilly is ever so much more fun? This little tulip is my first real foray into machine applique- I have always used the needle turn method- kinda slow. On the machine, pretty fast. My friend, Sandy, gave me 10 of her sweet little retro crumb blocks. I was going to add them to my crumb stash, but hers measure 3.5" and mine are 4". What to do? When I decided to try a tulip, I realized I had very few pastel fabs-Eureka! I sewed 4 of those sweet blocks together to get a big enough piece for the tulip and then used four more as cornerstones and I'm thinking the end result is very sweet. Don't know what I'll do with it, but it was a learning project. Pillow? maybe. walhanging? Possibly.

Won't these adorable little bobbies just knock your socks off? I saw some for a baby at a fleamarket, and thought..hmmm...could I do that with bigger socks? I guess the answer is yes! The girls are in raptures and it only takes about 10 minutes for the pair, so I am pretty happy, too.

9 is a wonderful number...

I tried giving you a hint by using my name and posting at 9am. Good guess Lisa! I have 9 sewing machines plus one serger and one longarm. There are only 8 in the picture because I didn't want to bother with taking the Singer out of the cabinet. 2 of the machines don't work- one is a rust bound treadle Singer and one smokes when you turn it on- not a good sign. But I use them for decoration. The other 7... well, yeah I do use them all. The Singers: 201, 221, 301. My three favorites and the best little quilting machines. And then there is the Japanese equivalent to the featherweight(I can use the FW parts on it) called an Electrogrand- that's the pretty blue one. Belt driven so I only use it occasionally these days since I have the new gear driven ones. A Nechi- which is a work horse and John's favorite machine to use. And two Brother machines. Then there's the singer serger and the Gammill long arm. Sewing machines are like people- they have their strengths and weaknesses. That tan 301 will sew through two layers of jean flat felt seams- about 8 layers of fab- none of the others could touch that. It just feels good to try out a different machine for a while- plus, I have 8 kids, so there are plenty machines for them to learn on.

Table runner...

This was a little weekend project. I just piddled with it in between crumb blocks and crochet. I've been wanting to try the crown of thorns pattern for a while- since I hung up that quilt I showed you a little while back. I think it turned out very well. Just a simple little meander- a nice job to get my feet wet again on the quilting machine that I have been neglecting.

Whoopie!!!!!!!!!

Sorry the picture is blurry- I was just so excited, I'm sure my hands were shaking! That William of mine. What am I going to do with that sweet man? Why, keep him, of course!!!!

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I saw this sweet little machine at Wally World the other day when Sandy and I were in town. It was simple- yet had some stitches I've been wanting- like a blanket stitch (I am wanting to try some machine applique.) The price was only $139,which we considered very reasonable, and it has 50 stitches. It's as light as a feather and very compact. It has a drop-in bobbin and a clear cover so you can see when you are getting low on bobbin thread.

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So I mentioned to Bill that I found a machine that I wanted and that I was gonna start saving up for it... Shoulda known better. He was late coming home from work last night. We have something of a tradition that when daddy comes home, we all run out to meet him and squeeze his neck. We are just so thankful and happy to have him back in our world. He had a twinkle in his eye and opened the truck door for us to see what he had. The buggerhead. He was pleased that he surprised me and I was pleased that he actually listens to me!! I really did plan on saving up for it, but I have to admit, this was more fun!

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I have already sewn a postcard with some of those decorative stitches. And I pieced a block with it- ran very smoothly. I'll probably stick to my oldie machine for piecing- the 1/4 inch seam guide makes it so easy. Guess what I'll be doing, today?

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Challenge question: How many sewing machines does Nines have???

I've been published!

Ok, maybe not. My name isn't even mentioned, but but but...that is MY postcard on the left up there! how cool is that? It's just a little, free magazine that has a few essays of local goings-on. And somehow my postcard wound up in an article about Fabric Art Postcards. Doesn't take much to entertain me, I suppose. It just made me smile.

Here are the latest two doilies... My friend, Teresa, wants the blue one and I think I might keep the taupe one...it's more "me" and it looks mighty fine under one of my oil lamps. I am trying to fit a crocheted snowflake or two in between doilies. I can whip one up in 30 minutes or so. By Dec, I hope to have plenty for my tree. For snowflakes, I mostly pick out doily patterns and only do 5 or 6 rounds. No two are alike and I found some groovy thread- white with a tiny irredescent(sp) thread running through it- so it sparkles.

Quilting-wise...I've been playing with crumb blocks. I really am making a dent in the scrap basket- which is looking like it has the tummy bug and has spewed out it's dinner all over the work table! I bought two nice sheets, today, to use for backings. $3 each and I'm thinking that's a great deal. I might fire up that quilting machine soon- I've been taking a sabatical. Now I need batting, and since I have a coupon... the kids and I might need to take a run to the fab shop. Hope everyone had a great week and are geared up for a fun weekend!

Coin quilt top finished...

using only scraps and neutrals from my stash. I asked Bill to help me decide what color to use for the sashing and borders. He said the tan would make the blocks pop- I asked if that was a look we were going for?... he rolls his eyes and says in a sweet yet sarcastic tone, "You wouldn't have put that red and yellow in the quilt if ya didn't want it to stand out." So true. I can't wait to get it quilted and on my bed!

The quilt is queen size so it's a little big for this full size bed, but I wanted to show off my "new" guest bedroom furniture. Now company can sleep in style! Sweet William got it for me- the bed, a dresser and a chest- and they just look like they were made for this space. And that mountain of quilts on the chest is just a small portion of the quilts that live here. Yes, it's a sickness, and I have no intention of being healed!