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!

Catchin' flies...

Isn't that just a hoot?! Abe had the jitters during Bible study last night- I knew he was sleepy because he missed his nap. Daddy finally settled him in between him and John- no room to wiggle and he was asleep in 60 seconds! Sitting like a big man, of course.

Two gallons of strips...

No, I don't usually measure my fabrics that way, but I had two 1-gallon ziplock bags, filled with strips. All different widths and fabrics- from reproductions to batiks. This is the start of my coin quilt. I have a few more blocks(7.5x10.5") to make, and then I can put it all together with strips of something from the stash- I'm trying real hard to use up what I have. I'm thinking a golden-toned neutral. I foundation pieced them using pages from my telephone book. An old telephone book. I was amazed at how fast it went. I'll treat the kids into pulling off all the paper- funny how the little ones think that is a high time!


Funny thing happened after I decided to not sell the little pocket papers... John had a friend ask for 20... so we did, and he made $3 per book- 50 cents of each sale was mine. Enough to buy more notebooks. It felt good to sew on a quilt again after these little projects. Hope everyone had a great weekend and a non-stressful Monday!!

Stuck in the middle...

clowns on the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am, stuck in the middle with you...

Been listening to some classic rock and thought this song fit this picture to a T. Tucked in like sardines in a can, but they don't seem to mind. My room has room darkening curtains and they like to take their naps in my bed. It was easier when we had the king-size bed. The queen size is a bit more of a challenge! I rarely let them sleep here as there is not a spare inch for Mom.

We've been eating tomatoes from the garden. So yummy. Sliced on toast or just eaten with salt, they are fantastic. Or, as Abe would say, "Fantacular!" We'll be canning tomatoes in a week or two. I love to can tomatoes- so easy compared to green beans. But I'll do both and be very happy this winter that I did. Time for naps!