Return to Sender!

I am HOWLING with laughter….

There is an inbox in Facebook where you get “email” messages from your friends, and if messages come that are “NOT” from the safety of your known and friended friends, they go into this folder called “Other.”

That's it right there -- the one with the 12 by it.

I always forget to CHECK Other ----and lots of times there are things in there I need to reply to about book questions, about teaching dates in various cities, and website/pattern stuff, etc – most of the time it’s all legit.

But I am dying laughing at this one…..Sometimes you just GOT to “Read it before you delete it”, you know?

Hi, How are you doing?I hope you are doing great?

I want to use this opportunity to inform you that I sincerely appreciate your looks!

I believe you don't mind us knowing each other.My Name is Steven,I am from Austin,Texas.Am a 9years widower,I live with my pet dogs Wamma and Sandy.

I am Man with sense of humor,I am passionate and romantic,I have the fear of God in me, I have respect for my fellow human being,Till when we get to understand each other more, you learn everything about me!

For me distance does not matter, Am ready to relocate and come for you. Age difference is not a problem, what matters most is the Heart of loving! It will be wonderful of you to send me a feedback if you want us to get along,I promise to make you happy!Thanks.

OH BOY!!

((I am imagining this said with a Russian accent, whether he is from Austin, or not! LOL!))

And he BETTER have the fear of GOD in him…..

My looks? I’m past 50, dude! And my profile says “MARRIED!”

But what’s even funnier --

I must have SUCH a ONE TRACK MIND ----

I read the second line and actually thought he was saying that he “sincerely appreciates my BOOKS!”

Guffaw.

I’m way too old for these kinds of shenanigans.

Especially since the last picture of “me” posted on my facebook page was of Sherry’s & my FEET from yesterday's pedicure! ((oh, now that's a scary thought!))

Thanks for the chuckle guy, wherever you are really from!

I need to warn you, I carry a rotary cutter and I’m not afraid to use it!

Evening Edition! Free Kindle Book!

I’m leaving this for you to download while the Hubster and I go have a very special birthday dinner with Baby Michelle, who is getting to be a VERY BIG GIRL!

I can’t believe she is one already. And sadly, it may be our last dinner together, as Michelle and her parents, Michael & Harriet, are moving to Texas where Michael has a new job. It will be so sad to see them go. I’ve really enjoyed having them close.

There are not enough little girls in my life, and I’m going to miss this one especially!

I’ve been laying on the couch on an ice pack, with my kindle fire at my side. This freebie came across my radar, and I know several of you love civil war stories as well as civil war era quilts, and thought you might enjoy this one. It was still free when I downloaded it a bit ago.

Noble Cause by Jessica James is free in the Amazon Kindle store.

Genre: Historical Drama.

Book Description:

This is the tale of Colonel Alexander Hunter, a dauntless and daring Confederate cavalry officer, who, with his band of intrepid outcasts, becomes a legend in the rolling hills of northern Virginia.

Inspired by love of country and guided by a sense of duty and honor, Hunter must make a desperate choice when he discovers the woman he promised his dying brother he would protect is the Union spy he vowed to his men he would destroy.

Readers will discover the fine line between friends and enemies when the paths of these two tenacious foes cross by the fates of war and their destinies become entwined forever.

Noble Cause is the recipient of the coveted John Esten Cooke Award for Southern Fiction and captured the title for Regional Fiction in the 2011 Next Generation Indie Award contest. It was also a Finalist in the USA "Best Books 2011" Awards for Historical Fiction.

In April 2012, it was named a Finalist in Foreword Magazine's BOOK OF THE YEAR contest in the Romance category. Winners to be announced in June.
Often compared to Gone with the Wind, Midwest Book Review called Noble Cause "a riveting piece of historical fiction."

There may be more couch time for me when we get back ---but it should be a nice and fun low-key evening – and who can resist Kenyan food for dinner? It’s not something I get every day!

Antiquing in Mooresville!

My doctor’s appointment this morning was a pain in the patootey--- literally! I wound up with a steroid shot in the butt, which means you really CAN say I’m now quilting on steroids!

Turns out that what I have is known as “Piriformis Syndrome” Which basically means that my sciatic nerve is inflamed between the piriformis muscle and the superior gemellus muscle – the nerve travels between these two deep hip rotators and can become inflamed --- and the pain follows the pathway of the nerve, below the knee following the entire path of the sciatic nerve. Below the knee is the peroneal nerve, and that seems to be inflamed too, so the doc thought a good ole shot in the butt might help things heal a bit faster. ((Yes, all that good neuromuscular therapy training still comes into good reference use at times!))

It’s just horrible when it hurts to sit, hurts to sit and sew, hurts to sit in the car to go anywhere, hurts to sit in an airplane ---

I’ve been dealing with this for months now, and I’ve got a driving trip up to Ohio on the 10th so I needed to see a doc to see if there was something we could do. I’m supposed to call back on Friday if this is not significantly better, and maybe start a supplementary steroid pack as well.

She also recommended I get another shot before taking that long plane ride to Bali in August. Sounds like a good idea to me because although I am ecstatic about that adventurous trip, the thought of being chained to a seat on a plane for that many hours really had me worried with how bad this has been hurting.

Besides – how can I ride an elephant if I’m bothered by pain down my leg?!

So I’m home. And I’m hopeful.

I’m also going through some of the photos from yesterday’s antique run to Mooresville, NC --- Oh, did we find some goodies!

And Cindy, the Purple Quilter – I thought of you when we arrived there. Did you think of me waving at you? I was!

The antique mall, American Classic Antiques, is large and is two stories – lots of bannister space to hang delicious quilts! You can tell from the photo above that we found plenty of eye candy to behold!

My eyes went directly to the Perkiomen Valley 9 patch variation at the far left of the photo. There were actually two related quilts in this pattern here. Whether they were by the same maker, we couldn’t tell…but TWO Perkiomen Valley 9 patch quilts in ONE antique mall? Oh. BOY!

This is the first one. Isn’t this Awesome!?

Close up of corner section. I loved all the light shirting fabrics used on the “light side” of the 9 patch unit ---the dark side of the block uses 2 fabrics per block – I liked the effect. You could see where one block ended and another one started. It was so interesting to follow the progression of the blocks this way. Can you see the maker arranging these on her “design floor” before selecting a final lay-out?

The bottom half of the quilt as it hung over the railing. What a WONDERFUL quilt!

Circa 1900. Price has been marked down from $450 to $295. Still too rich for my blood, but I was thrilled to see that it did come from the Perkiomen Valley of Pennsylvania!

And the “Sister” quilt:

There was not as much room to lay this one out as the other…we did the best we could with the narrow space we had! The “lights” have more color in them than the “lights” in the previous quilt – though some of the fabrics are the same. Also – these blocks have 3 fabrics per “dark side” of the block, where the other quilt had only 2 fabrics on the dark side. Can you see the difference between them? This one has a much more “Muddy” look to it just because it is more intensely scrappy. I love this block, it is so versatile and can be arranged in any log cabin lay out!

Close up of blocks!

There are more quilts to show, but I need to go lie down and ice this hip.

More to follow!

Smelly Musty Machine Cases!

I don’t have time to write my antique mall run with Sherry this morning….acckkk! I’ve got a doctor’s appointment that I’ve completely forgotten about!

So instead – I’m going to post a question from a reader, along with some responses for her on what she can do with the problem!  If you have any other ideas --- please chime in with your comment below!  Let’s find out what to do with these stinky cases!

While most of these comments deal with featherweight case issues, it applies to ANY machine case of “a certain age” where wood cases were covered with vinyl “leatherette” and animal based glue was used to adhere the vinyl to the wood.  In some cases

the wood was even particle board, and that could have been made with animal based glue to hold the wood chips together as well.

 Debbie Writes:

Bonnie:
In reading your email about your Great-Grandma's machine and seeing the picture of the machine I wonder if you could answer a question for me?

I have a machine that sits in the same kind of case your machine sat in. That brown kind of case, not sure what it is really made of but my question is this....

I purchased a machine that sits in a case like that and the case smells horrible, like someone had left it on the floor when they sprayed for bugs. You can't even touch the machine without having your hands smell like bug spray. So I thought no problem I would air it out and it would take care of itself right???

Wrong I have had it sitting outside for the past 2 months LOL and it still smells horrible.... Any ideas how I can get the smell out without destroying the case?

I thought if anyone would know about this you would.... with your love of vintage machines and all.

 Anabeth writes:

I acquired my 1934 FW in May from a woman in my textile arts guild. It
belonged to her mother and she learned to sew on it. The poor machine had
sat in a damp basement for the last 20 years and it had that musty smell
that everyone talks about.  During August, when it was above 90 degrees
every day -- hot and dry -- it occurred to me to put the case in the attic
to bake. It worked! The smell is no longer there! The machine works like a
dream.

Jodi writes:

...and when my little friend was returned, it had a very bad mildew
problem.  I cleaned it up, but it still has that distinctive smell :( !  I
have tried airing, sunning, crumpled newspaper, all to no end...

Try a mild solution of spic and span with clorox.  It will not hurt the paint
and it will kill the mildew.  Be sure to rinse it off throughly and dry it.

Marilyn writes:

About the odor in the cases - I don't have this problem but thought it
might help to close the case in a big plastic bag with a box of baking
soda. Also if the odor is caused by moisture, maybe put kitty litter in
the bag or silica gel which is used to dry flowers.

Anonymous writes:

Someone posted a note to quiltnet that she got rid of the old smell in
her Featherweight by using "lava rocks" which she purchased at Bed, Bath and
Beyond.  I haven't bought  them...I agree with Janice who posted that she
enjoyed the smell.

Lynda writes:

Last year, I tried washing out the inside of the case and then airing it outside in full sun and it did help with the smell for a while.

I had a brainstorm, first i cleaned the inside with a dilute bleach solution paying special attention to the corners and crevices and then I baked the open case in the hottest place I could think of, my car.

We are just starting summer here it was 90 outside and probably 120 or so in the car. I did the case in early morning, and did not have to use the car all day. when I took it out this evening, it smelled pretty good. I think i'll try keeping an open bag of kitty litter in there this winter.

Jane writes:

My FW also had an awful mildewy/musty odor when I first purchased it. I took the advice of several people and wiped down my case with a mild clorox solution. I then put the case on my deck for several days on the really hot days during summer and it did a great job on most of the odor.

When I brought my case inside, I just couldn't make myself put kitty litter or any of the other remedies in my case. Instead, I stuffed about 5 scented dryer sheets in the case and when I open it....... ummmm.... it smells sooooo good.

I also think that putting your case in a HOT & DRY area for awhile is a good idea. I know that the airing on the deck sure helped mine.

Lynda writes:

Here is a method that I have used pretty successfully to eliminate the dreaded "Featherweight Odor". first i wash the inside of the case with a diluted bleach solution. Then I let it dry out in the hottest place that I know, a carwith all of the windows closed, on a sunny day.

I baked the case in the closed car in direct sun for as long as possible. This is usually pretty successful, but in very stubborn cases may need to be repeated. If your winters are damp, you may need to repeat this every summer.

I find that it is usually the case, not the machine that has "Foul Odor", and the machine just needs to be aired out.

Carol wrote:

Referring the question about mold and mildew in the case. Try wiping out with a damp cloth and dry. Then put baking soda in a cup or bowl to absorb the smell.

If this fails try spraying with lysol and set out in the sun.

It may take several tries. I tried the lysol method on my flute case that had been stored for years. It worked for that. Hopefully the sun will arrive soon so you can try
the lysol/sun method. Let me know if it works for you.

Suzanne wrote:

Here is a method that I have used pretty successfully to eliminate the dreaded "Featherweight Odor".

You might want to try kitty litter. I have put kitty litter in musty smelling suitcases and it works! I would air the machine outside on a nice dry day first to get rid of as much musty smell as possible.

Lynn Wrote:

I have been following the trail of FW case odor and offer these hints from my experience. I too am highly allergic to molds and have a violent sneezing and shortness of breath when opening the FW case, so I am pretty convinced that white powdery stuff is mold.

My guess is that in the history of these FW cases that most were stored on the floor of a dark closet until needed. Not likely that the original owners kept the case in a dry, airy place for too long if the machines were originally purchased for mending.

POSSIBLE SOLUTION: I wiped the inside and outside of my FW case with Lysol and put it in the sun to dry. This was not too effective since in near the beach in SO CA near it is never really "dry". Baking soda had only minimal effect and did not get rid of the odor.

BETTER SOLUTION: So I came up with the following for mild mold cases based on a theory about glue.

1.Keep the FW case in a dry upstairs room, up off the floor, with lots of air circulation. Never in a dark closet or on the floor.

2. Place GEL SILICATE packages in the case when it is closed. I got several in boxes along with new shoes. These little packages absorb the moisture inside the case. So far, the odor is greatly reduced and no new white mold
has grown on either the inside or outside of the case in 2 years. The odor is very slight and I can live in the same room with the case.

3. Perhaps those of you who have had success with other remedies live in dryer climates for at least part of a year. Near the beach we experience dampness and fog daily so there is no way to get the case completely dry,
but providing the gel silicate bags seems to do a pretty good job in creating a better environment for the inside of the case. It might be better for the machine too as it would cut down on moisture trapped inside and prevent rust to machine parts.

This is just a guess, but I think the GLUE used in the case construction is the reason why FW is the culprit. My case has a vinyl cloth on the inside and that would certainly trap moisture between the box and the cloth. Hide, rabbit skin,animal hoofs and blood are often used in woodworking and to "paper" or size canvas. I remembered that in art class we learned to prepare rabbit skin glue/sizing for our oil paint canvases. Each can of dry crystals came with a gel silicate package inside and we were instructed to
keep the glue crystals in a dry place. Our instructor told us that rabbit skin glue (and I would guess this is true for hide or hoof glues too) tends to mold easily. This type of glue is effective in sealing the linen canvas from the paint oils and in drawing up the canvas tight to the frame.

It occurred to me that perhaps these older FW cases might be made from pressed cardboard, wood or pressed sawdust and they may have used this cheap and effective glue. All the hide glues are still used in industry and for woodworking, although there are better glues available today. The glue crystals, prepared with hot water, will deteriorate quickly and mold when cooled--they must not have been stabilized with an agent to prevent molds. It is highly likely that these cases were made with animal glues, but even if wheat paste glues were used, the result would also be mold formation.

Lynda writes:

First, leave the machine out of it's case for awhile. Most of the machines pick up the odor from their cases, I believe it is the glue used in the cases that creates that lovely smell. Put the case with an opened box of safeguard soap in a sealed plastic bag aside for at least three weeks.

Then, if you want to to eliminate the odor from the machine, take off the plate from the bottom of the machine. You will find a felt like gasket under that plate. Take it out and trace it onto an old pizza box or other similar cardboard. Cut out the new replacement gasket and put

it in place of the felt like one.

The felt like material can absorb odors and make the machine smell badly, also the spool felt can absorb odors as well. You can get replacement spool felt discs at any Singer dealer.

Once you have replaced these felt items, and leave the machine out of the case for a few weeks, the machine's odor should go from strong to mild and possibly nonexistent over time.

I have tried so many methods, in the past, to get my case to smell better, including airing outdoors, activated charcoal, baking soda, fabric softener sheets, baking soda, cedar, etc., etc. and nothing works like a bar of safeguard soap in the case - no other brand seems to do the trick.

BTW, the odor won't leave completely, but I keep the opened box of soap in my case all the time and it is just "ok" with that.

I only put the machine in the case to transport from one place to another, then it is taken out
immediately once I am at my destination.

I hope that gives you some ideas of what to do with the musty smelly cases out there that contain the machines we love!

A Day to Play!

Such a fun day in Statesville/Mooresville!

I’m so glad this worked out, and that I had a free day to drive to Statesville and come rescue Sherry from the boredom of waiting for an RV to be worked on so they could head west on their way home.

I’ve sat in car dealerships for hours on end. I’m sure that camper world is no different – boring waiting room, really bad coffee, and terrible daytime TV.

I even offered to have both Sherry and her hubby Ray come out for lunch while the RV was being worked on, but what a great guy! He told us to go enjoy ourselves --- and he took the bundled up laundry, put it in the truck and went off to play “Mr Fluff & Fold” at the laundromat while we endulged our lunch time hungers with chips, salsa, and yummy fajitas!

There was still time to kill --- we couldn’t get a hold of Ray to see if everything was done yet, so we headed out to find the nearest nail salon for girly pedicure time. It was at this time when we saw the Chick-fil-A cow doing his thing down the road in the back of a pickup truck, and a few minutes later when we turned around in the parking lot….playing the drums on the corner of the road. ((Wait a minute – do you think this was the SAME cow? Or are there multiple cows?!!))

Doesn’t Sherry look relaxed?! I love the massage chairs!

We talked and laughed and caught up --- it had been since January when I stayed with her in California while I was out there. It was fun having her on MY side of the country and hearing of her exploits of the past 6 weeks that she and Ray have been RV-ing it cross-country.

Yes, she caught me mid-texting! But my feet are feeling very happy!

And on go the funky foamy faux-sandals. How does anyone walk in these things? I trip over them every time!

Dark Purple and Light Purple. That would be me on the right with ZERO suntan!

From there, we headed down to Mooresville to see what kind of Antiquing Trouble we could find ourselves in!

Sherry, taking a pic of me, taking a pic of her! This was a very cool place, and I have lots of photos to share of this one, so those are going to have to wait until tomorrow. It’s nearly 7:30 and I better figure out what to do for dinner!

As for Sherry and Ray --- they are well on their way up toward Kentucky by now! Doesn’t this look like fun?

I was right behind them at this stop sign ----then we were off on our separate ways. Be safe, friends!

iPhone-o-Gram! What's in YOUR truck??

Sherry and I just ate ourselves full of fajitas at Mi Pueblo in Statesville!

On our way to the car--we saw this pick-up truck with the Chick-fil-A cow dancing in the back.

Hysterical!

On our way for pedicures---enjoying a fun girly-time day!

Ps---update! We had to turn around in a parking lot---lo and behold! The cow was now playing drums on the road side. Lol!

Gramma Manuel’s Machine---

I only ever recall my Great-grandma Manuel from way back in my early childhood memories.

I don’t remember how old I was when she passed away, but her sepia toned portrait hung in our house for as long as I could remember. She was simply refered amongst family as the “white haired” grandma.

I thought she must have lived to be ancient ---but I think she was only in her 70s when she passed away. Funny how a child’s brain determines what is old---and I’m sure to my 4 or 5 year old self, she was OLD.

My mom told me once that her grandmother Manuel’s hair started turning white in her 40s. She never dyed it, and it was long ----she just always twisted it up into a bun at the back of her neck. I can relate to that. I’ll probably end up doing the same thing. It’s sensible, easy, and leaves more money for buying fabric!

I’d be completely happy if I never have to have another PERM in my life ever ever again! ((It’s been around 15 years since I have had one ---what a nightmare those were, bad smells and all!))

Gramma Manuel wore simple rimless glasses. I guess I’m following her there too --- but my favorite pair of glasses ever? The blue cats eye pair with “diamond” studs I wore in 2nd grade. Now THOSE were cool!

Several years ago I took a trip up to Minnesota for a family reunion. My Mom’s Sister, Auntie Joy, took me down to her basement and pulled out this ratty dirty machine case. Joy is my mom’s youngest sister ---which puts Joy and myself only 5 years apart in age, so we were raised more like cousins than aunt/niece. ((Oh, did I idolize her growing up! She was SO sophisticated and beautiful and stylish ----oh I still idolize her!))

Back to the machine ---

She said she’d been hanging on to this for years, but just wanted it to go to someone who would love it,with the thought that it should be passed down to the women of our family. I hefted this machine home on the plane as my “carry-on”. It only weighs something like 43 lbs!

The fact that Joy still had this machine is a wonder. My Grandma ((Mom's & Joy's mother)) passed away when I was but 5 years old, and Joy was only 10. I really don't have anything else as a memory of my maternal grandmother, not to mention my great-grandmother -- so this was a real treasure to me.

The machine needed cleaning and oiling –and the case itself is in pretty bad shape. But after all this time, the machine, a class 15 Singer from 1942 RUNS like a champ.

I pulled her out yesterday to piece a backing:

**Side Note:**

What was I saving 15 yards of THIS double pink for anyway?

Do you see that? IN THE YEAR 2000!!! FIFTEEN YARDS?! Let’s just say that a good hunk of it is now used and what’s left I have determined to be the zig zag border on Nearly Insane – it’s insane I’ve hoarded hearded this fabric this long!

I did get the backing pieced and the quilt quilted --- can’t show it to you yet, it’s for a future project ---but I have to tell you that I was nearly weepy sewing on Great Gramma Manuel’s Singer.

When she got this machine, MY Grandma, her daughter --- was a teenage wife & mother. It was quite the bit of gossip too, in a small Minnesota town in the early 1940s, when her daughter, Verna Fern Manuel up and married Dr. Alvin K Mach ---the local dentist who was at least 10 years her senior. ((Maybe more)) Grandma was something like 16 years young and they eloped to Iowa. I’m not sure I have details right –but I’ll double check at the family reunion in Idaho over 4th of July ---Auntie Joy is coming from Minnesota too. Yay. Oh, I love family story time!

So Verna Fern and Alvin set up housekeeping --- and at some point Great Grandma Manuel’s machine came to live with Verna Fern --- where she sewed clothes and skating costumes for her daughter, my mother Anita. My mom says she remembers this machine in the house, but whether she sewed on it herself I am not sure. More info to find out ----

But can you see why I was so emotional while simply piecing a backing and putting on a binding yesterday?

This machine has been touched by 4 generations of women in my family. I wish I knew what else it had sewn. Wouldn’t it be nice if machines came with diaries to list every article it ever made? Who’s hem’s it raised, who’s knees it patched, who’s curtains it crafted? I don’t get this machine out to play enough. Sometimes I pass it by for zippier, flashier models with fancy colors and sleeker body types, more features ---but this is the machine I have the most connection to.

I’m off today to run to Statesville to spend a bit of time with a California Friend, Sherry, who has been traveling the country with her hubby in their 5th wheel ---I need to catch her before they head back west, so today is it!

We’ll grab some lunch, and there may be some antiquing stops on the way --- or----wouldn’t it be fun to do some girly stuff and go get a pedicure? It all depends on how much time we have while they are having maintenance done on their 5th wheel before they hit the road --- we’ll play it by ear and it will be great to see each other again!

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

----And They All Fall Down!

LAST Monday, which happened to be Memorial Day, when Lisa was over to sew ---we had noticed that yes, even in the basement, SUMMER was radiating it’s lovely heat making my studio a bit on the stuffy side. Time to pull out the oscillating fan I use to kind of move some air around here to make it feel not so “close”.

I couldn’t find it anywhere. WHERE did I put it? Did I move it after the closet re-do?

I checked upstairs…I checked in the guest room closet. I checked the garage, the storage room off the sun-room, I checked everywhere.

I finally opted for a floor fan that would at least blow a bit of air on our ankles ……but it didn’t oscillate.

Fast forward to SATURDAY ---I spy this TURBO OSCILLATING COLUMN FAN at Sam’s and think --- this has GOT to be just what I want, what I need! And home it comes.

Now---

Remember THIS PHOTO of my Jubilee blocks on my design wall from THIS POST last week?

After plugging in my fan, and spending time at the computer I looked up after printing out batches of invoices and labels to find THIS:

Where did everything go?! LOL!!

Everything else had been blown off the design wall that is semi-behind a door ---and landed in a heap on the floor.

I’m thinking maybe TURBO FAN is not such a great idea in a room with a design wall!

Oh, and the original oscillating fan that I could NOT find? Found it. As soon as I moved the roll of batting we needed for Lisa’s quilt yesterday --- THERE IT WAS.

Figures!

In Search of Brigitte Sieber!

Brigitte,

I hate blasting this out to the Blogiverse, but I tried responding via the email address you left on your order, and it bounced back to me as undeliverable!

I have no other way to email you. I hope you see this.

I need you to contact me regarding your Pre-Order of String Fling.

It’s in regards to the shipping ---

Please contact me at Quiltville@Gmail.com

Thank You!

Noon-Time Kindle Freebie!

This is about the time of day when I’d be posting pictures of a workshop in progress, or of some scenic site along a roadway, or pictures of antique mall visits or early morning walk jogs.

I’m home. I’m pressing and cutting and kitting up.

I’m printing invoices and mailing labels.

I. WASHED. WINDOWS!

None of which is even slightly entertaining enough to show photos of ---

I just stopped my manic bouts of housekeeping for a bite of lunch and to do an email check, a bit of surfing ((As a reward to myself, because I can do that!!)) and found this book free on Amazon.

Love Unlisted: A Novel by Stephanie Haddad has received an average user rating of 4 out of 5 stars based on 18 customer reviews.

Book Description:

Grace Shields keeps her hectic life manageable one way and one way only: she makes lists, lots of them. Lists of her favorite Jackie Chan movies. Lists of her boyfriend’s Pros and Cons. Lists about her favorite places to get a pizza.

To Grace, each one is a very serious matter. And that’s why no one ever reads the lists. Well, no one except for a few people who got a hold of them by accident…

1. Her best friend Bernsie, who understands the lists might be the only thing keeping Grace out of an asylum;

2. A child psychologist she was forced to see after her father passed away and the listing become more than just a hobby;

3. A very-nearly-almost fiancé who left Grace because of the lists.

Now, as Grace struggles to deal with a career that’s getting away from her and the frustration of living with her brother George, the lists are all she can do to cope.

Enter Colin Kilbourne, a free-spirited musician with a knack for ruffling Grace’s pristine feathers. And spilling coffee on her favorite work clothes.

Immediately drawn to his carefree, stress-free attitude, Grace knows they’d be mismatched in every possible way. But that mischievous charm is hard to resist.

What’s a girl to do when the lists tell you to do one thing and your hearts tells you another?

Are you a list maker? I am! I have post it notes and papers stuck all around my desk. I have notes pinned to the quilts on the walls…half the stuff I can’t even remember what the note was for when I first wrote it ----THAT’s what pulled me in to wanting to read this book!

It’s a short one, only 228 pages, and should be a cute read!

And with that, the dryer beeps and more domesticity calls -----

Enjoy your afternoon!

The 12 Hour Chicken Marathon!

We sewed and we sewed ----or, Lisa sewed, and I helped occasionally, and mostly I chained myself to the computer to print out invoices and sheets of mailing labels!

But having her here made it all so much better than if I was doing all that paperwork by myself!

I want all these invoices and labels raring and ready to go when books arrive, and don’t want to take time THEN to do all the printing – because it does take time and I want the books on their way to their new owners as quickly as is humanly possible.

The chicken quilt is MASSIVE! We measured and it was 106” X 110”. It’s for someone in California who simply asked for a “King Sized Chicken Quilt” as if they were asking for a simply normal piece of everyday, ordinary chocolate cake!

I’m sure Lisa swallowed hard upon the request, but they’d never know. She’s just very professional that way --- while ME on the other hand, have nicknamed this quilt CHICKENZILLA because it is Ginormous! But adorable. How could you not smile at these guys?

For those asking --- Lisa replied back in the comments section of yesterday’s post --- this is a Buggy Barn pattern, and can be found on their website. I think it is adorable! I can’t decide if I like the comb-crowns or the tails the best…they are just too cute! And life-size. These people are going to be dreaming of killer chickens in the night… :cD

The quilting was done by 4:30pm and we had plenty of energy and daylight to spare, so I rounded up a red plaid in the stash, cranked it through the accuquilt studio into binding strips, and while Lisa commenced sewing the binding on --- I went back to the computer and yes --- printed MORE invoices and MORE mailing labels…thinking all the while I’d rather be sewing too, but we had an add-on to the agenda---

If she could get the binding on – we could order pizza delivered and have a Sunday evening Binding Fest! She could bind the Godzilla Chickens, and I could finish up the binding on Florabunda --- win, win, win, right? I could get some needle time in, myself!

Shelby, helping to keep the chickens from flying away while Lisa binds ---

Of course, Shelby is no respecter of persons ((or chickens!)) as long as a cozy quilt is involved, and she came and helped me out quite a bit too!

This morning, I’m pleased to say – it’s done….well, except for the label and hanging sleeve, but I couldn’t wait to get that “FINISHED” photo!

The panto I used is called “Harvest Winds” by Urban Elementz. I scaled it fairly small because I wanted the quilting to fill each square in the quilt. I’m more happy with this quilt than I really thought I would be when I started it. I have that confession to make!

I knew what I wanted, I wasn’t sure what I was doing was going to pull off the job though – and I’m happy to say it did, even though I know many of you would not have chosen to go the route I did with the varying solid yellows. Sometimes you gotta be brave even when others are stating plainly that they don’t like it, aren’t crazy about it, or wouldn’t do it that way. Follow your OWN muse!

LOVE it on the guest bed upstairs!

So what’s up for your Monday? It’s a brand new week! I see more kitting up of future quilt projects in my future, for stitching on the road ---which doesn’t leave anything really interesting to post about. I’ve got ONE WEEK left until I head to Ohio. And then the travel adventures will begin again, but I gotta tell ya, it’s been so nice to live life on the “normal scale” the past couple of weeks!

And The Winner of the Bloggy-versary Give-Away Is ----

TADA!!!

348 entries for Friday’s post with a Give-Away of Quiltmaker Magazine’s most recent July/Aug 2012 issue!

I almost forgot to draw a winner – Lisa and I have been quilting our brains out today ---The chicken quilt is off the machine, the binding is sewn on, and now we plan on having girls chick-flick night complete with pizza delivery while we bind ourselves silly!

It’s been great having her here…she’s been working at the machine, and at getting a binding on, while I’ve been at the computer all day printing invoices for the book pre-orders and printing sheets of mailing labels to go with them. It’s a monotonous brain-numbing task, and having someone here to laugh with made it all go down with a spoon full of sugar!

So let’s get on to it shall we?

Our winner is SALLY of String Thing Along!

She writes:

I started reading your blog in 2006. As room mother for my daughter's 1st grade class, I wanted to work with the children to make a quilt for their teacher (who had been so special to our family, having taught my son twice for 1st grade). She is an artist, so appreciates special things.

I used google, looking for quilt ideas. That is how I found Bonnie's name. I emailed her and she answered promptly. Said she was on the road teaching at the moment, but suggested I visit the quiltville chat group and ask for suggestions there....that it was a lively, helpful group with lots of experience and ideas. I visited them and life hasn't been the same since. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

(Oh, the quilt for the teacher? It was an award winner at our very competitive quilt show! Had the kids draw pictures, I traced them onto muslin, had the kids color them with fabric ink, then I cut their figures out and appliqued them onto the pieced background. There was a soccer team playing a game, baby rabbits underground in burrow, petting zoo, kite flyers, blimp, airplane, flowers, birds sitting on nests in trees, girl in field of flowers, beach with cabana, etc...lots of details!Such fun.

I've enjoyed your blog. I've learned to really appreciate the old sewing machines. I enjoy reading your chatter about them! I teach children sewing on old machines because they are so sturdy. I have no desire for a new computerized one. (Well, maybe would like to try one....) Thanks for all the inspiration, Bonnie. If you endorse a vitamin pill, I bet all of us would dash out and buy it!!:) Am amazed at how much you get done!

Sally, I left you a comment on your blog trying to reach you. Please get back to me with your snail mail address and we’ll get this out to you right away!

Thanks to everyone for playing along!