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Saturday, March 31, 2012

Hotel Stitchin’ Time!


I’m cozied up in my room stitching Wild & Goosey blocks!

It’s amazing how resourceful one can be when needed ---after dinner we stopped by the Dollar Tree so I could get some outlet extenders --- Hotels never have enough available plugs. These will now live in my suitcase for future use.

I must say however, that the iron is driving me nuts --- it’s one of those that shuts off in 15 minutes, and I have to un-plug it and re-plug it to start it up again. UGH!

I'm laughing at the caption on the iron ---because my BRAIN feels the same way quite often too! AUTO OFF after 15 minutes --- UNPLUG to reset!

Let's just say that my evenings in my room stitching away is the equivalent of "Unplug to Reset".

Don't you agree?

I evidently forgot to pack my small travel iron ---maybe I need a second one of those to just LIVE in the suitcase too?

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But now that I have the plug extenders that is a lot easier to accomplish than crawling under the desk every 15 minutes!

That round tray? It’s the tray for the ice bucket and it’s perfect to keep the crumbs from falling off the desk and on to the floor. I find it easiest to just grab a handful of crumbs.....and work with just that handful until I can't work from it anymore...rather than digging through a large bucket and being faced with too many choices when looking for the "right thing."

When the variety starts to be lacking in the handful I'm working with, I add another handful to it to spice it up a bit, and keep going.

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My crumbs are contained in a plastic zipper pouch that a sheet set came in. Do you save all these for quilting totes too? I probably even BOUGHT these sheets for the simple fact that they came with a zippered pouch! Not like they would ever be used for sheet storage --- but they are perfect for transporting crumbs in the suitcase….

The zip lock bag holds some odd sizes of squares that were gifted by someone – they are working great for the larger side triangles on my blocks ---

We had a great day with our workshop --- I’m going to spend some time and get those pics ready to post in the morning so be looking for that ----

I’m winding down this day with a bit of TV as background noise, my jammies, a hot cuppa tea, puttering on the computer, and stitching up some MORE Wild & Goosey blocks!

33 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:27 PM EDT

    You put everything to good use, the tray, the pouch (I save those too) and the plug extensions.
    I am thinking maybe one of those really small irons for fused applique...lighter weight for traveling...not sure how much a tiny iron weighs. Then again, most hotels now have irons, or you could just ask for one at the desk...less to carry. Enjoy your evening.
    Faye

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  2. Oh, I absolutely LOVE those zipper bags! I have oodles of them. They are so handy for all sorts of projects and things that need to be toted along. And I don't know how we survived prior to zip lock bags!

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  3. May I ask how you travel with your machine. No problem with security? Do you put it under the seat in fro t of you? International? Thanks for any info, love your machine!

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  4. Your Wild & Goosey Blocks are really pretty! Oh yes, an iron that has to be unplugged to reset would drive me bonkers! We lived in the Quad Cities many moons ago. Have fun, but you always seem to do that! Night, Bonnie! Love you.

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  5. I usually forget something important everytime I travel despite the lists I make, but I think the idea of a travel iron for the suitcase is a good idea since you travel so much. Do you have a bag that is packed with all the essentials you need while traveling for your on the road sewing.
    I ordered your Adventures with Leaders and Enders from Amazon last week, it should be here in a couple of days, I wanna see what this process is all about.
    Happy Sewing!

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  6. Anonymous10:04 PM EDT

    I so love the blocks you're working on. Enjoy your evening.
    Maryella

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  7. Anonymous10:06 PM EDT

    That iron must be a Sunbeam! We were staying in a townhouse "hotel" for a month before and I decided to do an easy quilt by hand. I thought I was going crazy with the iron shutting off in the midst of fusing appliqué shapes to backgrounds.

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  8. I used to travel with my kids school sports teams and learned to always travel with an extension cord. In those days, I also had to bring my own coffee pot and alarm clock. Motels/ hotels have come a long way, but those plugs under the desk....

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  9. I use the plastic bags that sheets and comforter come in for my quilt projects too!!

    And I am loving your motel sewing set up!!! Yes, you need to have a travel iron and extra plug in extenders and anything that you need for your travels in your bag AT ALL TIMES never to be removed!!! They are part of your travel needs and they need to be there!!

    Have a great night and I hope you get more done than you thought you would!!

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  10. Paper piecing... do you find it relaxing?
    I find it counter intuitive, I always have to really pay attention to what I am doing.

    these blocks are adorable......how big are they?

    Happy Sewing

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  11. if you get one of those silicone iron rest things ( like an iron shaped potholder) and you leave the iron in the horizontal position, it doesn't turn off.

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  12. Anonymous12:54 AM EDT

    I'm new to your blog and this may be a silly question...I love the little flying geese blocks. Is there a place to download the little pattern?
    And I noticed a light on your Featherweight that seems unique. Can you tell me a little more about it?
    Thank you!

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  13. I just love your Wild and Goosey block. Since I'm EQ inept, is there a chance that you would share it with your readers? Please?

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  14. Very fun blocks! I love to see how you turn each hotel room into your own little studio away from home.

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  15. p.s. That iron would drive me crazy!!

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  16. My iron shuts off after 8 minutes, but it resets once you put it down on the fabric. It still drives me nuts though. You have to wait for it to get hot again. The only good thing is that if I ever "really" forget to turn it off, there will be no worries! Loved seeing your hotel room set up and how you get so much accomplished.

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  17. I have an iron like that and it's brand new---I bought it without looking carefully at the box. I guess I'll just put up with it until it makes me so nuts that I go buy another one!

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  18. Anonymous8:37 AM EDT

    Where do can I get that paper piece pattern? Thanks for your inspiration. Debbie

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  19. Anonymous8:46 AM EDT

    from Debbie d_lindgren@sbcglobal.net

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  20. Dear Everyone --- This is a block I just started last week -- it's not a done quilt, so there is no pattern available as yet. I'm considering including it in one of my Quiltmaker Magazine "Addicted To Scraps" columns in the future - it would be PERFECT for that because then everyone could get the paper piecing template in the right size --- so please be patient with me.

    Some things I post patterns freely right away ---some things need to be reserved for book deadlines and are not free. And some, like this one, are best saved for my magazine column --- and we are all happy!

    Bonnie

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  21. ohhhh I cannot wait for the issue with that pattern it really is wonderful!!

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  22. I do like the pattern - I like the color combo on them as well.Good to see you are having some down time. Glad to see that Jo is there with you at the classes- she is how I learned about you - through the teaching of the crumb blocks. Mine is still in the creating stage, but they are so fun to make! Have a great productive day!

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  23. I so love reading your blog.... your ideas and thoughts cause me to "unplug to reset" I Love it! I was going to get rid of some odd blocks that were sewn the wrong direction...I was actually thinking "yard sale!". But NOW, I'm thinking, maybe I should just cut them up and use them as scraps....I had never thought of that! Thanks for the great idea! Keep talking Bonnie, I'm listening! LOL

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  24. I love your re-use of 'sheet bags'...I save them ALL the time and my kids laugh...but they are PERFECT for a scrap project. I have a couple on my sewing table that are all pink scraps and one that is all blue scraps for a monochromatic quilt. They fill up fast!

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  25. I love your little goosey blocks! They are so cute! I too have a collection of zipper bags. They are great for travel. I store projects in them and just pop those in my suitcase. Thanks for sharing! K-

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  26. Thanks for following up! Your presentation at our Heart of the Triad Quilt guild meeting remains one of my favorites. I bought a couple of your books, started using your leaders and enders system & follow your great blog... Have even followed up and read one of your kindle freebies recommendations! Thanks so much for sharing! Looking forward to your wild geese article! Happy stitching, b

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  27. I love that they pack sheets ect in perfect bags for quilting - I buy them for the packaging too :)

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  28. Anonymous2:55 PM EDT

    Can't wait for the pattern! I was wondering how your geese looked so perfect! I should have guessed paper piecing.

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  29. Wow!! This is one of the best post i have read so far.

    Hi, Nice to see a pretty professionally done blog on the this rich subject.

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  31. Love the paper piecing block you have in front of the machine.
    I had to purge some of my pouches when we moved in July. ;o)

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  32. Recently read that someone travels with a power strip -- they plug it in and then use the several plug openings to power things they need to use -- like phone/computer rechargers, sewing machines, irons, etc. Sounds like a good idea to me.

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  33. Hi Bonnie! My name is Jill and I love your blog! Thinking of subscribing to Quiltmaker, just to get that cute block! I've seen a few pictures of your featherweights and I'm interested in how you are able to use the large spool of thread with them. Do you have some sort of adapter that will hold the larger spool? I keep a machine at our hunting lease, so I can sew while the guys are in the woods. But, I'm having to bring thread up, since I thought I could only use a regular spool of thread. Any ideas you could share would be great! By the way, I'm currently working on your Star Struck quilt pattern using plaid shirts! Thanks for all you share!

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