>>>>

Monday, September 10, 2012

One Hour of Needle & Thread: Week 1!

Lessons in life:

Sometimes you gotta take out what you put in!

And that was the discouraging part. I noticed as I was doing my One Hour of Needle & Thread at Sally’s the other night that the tension seemed funny on the binding…..sure enough…when I tugged on the binding I got loose stitches – they looked like railroad tracks or eyelashes on the front of the quilt where the binding was flipped and turned to the back to hand stitch down.

SO last night’s activity of UNSEWING one full side of the Nearly Completely Insane quilt undid the hour and a half of putting the stitches in the night before. Well Drat. Bummer.

But still – I did make great progress last week even with a busy week and dealing with body clock adjustments.

My total for the week of totally un-plugged, non machine oriented, hand stitching with my feet up in the recliner time was 10.5 hours! If I had told myself at the beginning of the week that I was going to do 10.5 hours of hand quilting or hand binding that week….I would have laughed my head off!

One hour a day. It adds up. The only day I missed was Friday because that is the day that I arrived in Aiken.

Don’t have an hour to spare? Shoot for 30 minutes. Shoot for 15 minutes.

Just be sure that the binding you are hand-sewing down has been stitched with the right machine tension first so you don’t have to UNDO the last hour that you put into it!

nearlyinsane 081

This is a picture of where I am now on the quilt. I have finished one row of fans on one side and turned the corner and am part way up the next side. It’s hard to get a detail shot on this quilt that shows you the fans…but this is where I’m at! Yes, Fans work from the outside edge of the quilt in toward the center, around and around and around ---so at least each round that I finish takes me closer to the center, and each consecutive round is SMALLER!

I’m inviting those who started with me last week and shared their STARTING pics HERE ---((If you haven’t checked since last week, go back and check! There are 40 who are charting their progress on their blogs with us!)) to share their progress with us in the linky below! If you are just starting and want to link up too, go for it! Remember to include a link back to THIS POST somewhere in your post (Not my whole blog or people will get lost trying to find this entry.) Show your progress. Link your post also back to last week’s post of where you started so that others can follow your progress.

Remember, we need the address of the specific POST when you link up. The address should end in .html NOT .com For instance, my blog address is quiltville.blogspot.com and that simply isn’t enough. To get the address of your specific POST, click on the title of the post and the address should appear at the top of your browser in the address bar.

The address for THIS post is http://quiltville.blogspot.com/2012/09/one-hour-of-needle-thread-week-1.html see the difference?

When in doubt, ask me. If you link it to your whole blog I’ll have to delete your entry and have you try again because I can’t fix it for you.

I’ve heard from so many that they just needed a gentle nudge, or a push, or a shove to get that goal on paper and get started.

It’s a great way to celebrate September as National Sewing Month!

I’m hoping that I’ll get oodles done today and there will be time for QuiltCam tonight! Not exactly sure what time – but I can usually squeeze it in around 8pm Eastern time…..so be looking! Yes, there are more bowtie blocks to be sewn, but I also want to get caught up on my Barrister’s Block Sow-Along blocks!




20 comments:

  1. Anonymous9:50 AM EDT

    I've always tried to do at least an hour a day of hand sewing. It relaxes me in a way machine work doesn't. My husband used to irritate the hell out of me when I would sit down at 10 PM with cross stitch or hand quilting, and he would say"while you're sewing, why don't you fix my pants?" Just not the same-

    ReplyDelete
  2. Such a beautiful quilt - I am a pink girl so I especially love the color combo. I have been working on a bedrunner for my MIL - I am doing the WHOLE THING by hand from sewing the blocks to applique to quilting. It is my FIRST "big" project so I am really proud of myself :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. I made progress! It's too bad I wore out by the end of the week, and this week we travel, but while I can, I'll be hand quilting!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I started, again, hand quilting my hand appliqued halloween quilt as my hour a day project. This week I think I did about eight or ten hours cross hatching and outlining, phew! I was wondering if we could open up a folder in the photos section for hand work progress. I don"t have a blog and I'm sure others would like to "show off" their progress too.
    Tracy

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anonymous11:24 AM EDT

    i was so excited about the 1 hr everyday hand work sew along i got out a quilt i started to hand quilt a few years ago and haven't touched for awhile and then it hit me........i do hand work every evening of some kind. duh. but the quilt that needs attention is out of the closet and this is a good thing. i so love all that you share with us...you are a wonderful person. thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anonymous12:07 PM EDT

    Thank you Bonnie for the never ending inspiration. I have become addicted to your blog and that's a good addiction. I'm working on using ten years of scraps. It was daunting until I read your scrap organizing suggestions. I have your first three books and I'm using the Leaders and Enders method. I'm sewing scraps into Chunky Churndash (free) and it's cutting hexagon papers from the scrap booking paper punches from eBay. My scraps will be cut on my accuquilt go for a hand pieced Hexies mosaic. Whew, I must fit in time for your live cam. Lol, it's a good thing I'm retired but I still don't have time for any other quilt blogs. I almost forgot to mention, it's in love with the Guilford County block and just bought some turkey red and cheddar fabric to make my very own! Thanks bunches. Susan MG in FL

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anonymous12:10 PM EDT

      I love my iPad but the typos in my post are from auto type I think. Sorry...it's should be I'm. Susan MG

      Delete
  7. Well look at it this way Bonnie...that will NEVER happen again when you attach binding. I fell short of my 7hrs of needle and thread but lots of work done this week. Can't wait to take a pic of what I "Did" accomplish and link up again...but looks like that won't happen today. Woke up to DH in 'handyman mode' - using our day off from work to replace an outside door/door frame...hmmm...wonder if needle and thread would work...LOL

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous12:14 PM EDT

    Since my husband likes to watch syfy, car shows, etc. and I really don't have much interest in them I sit on the love seat and do handwork while he watches tv. This way we are "doing" something together and it keeps him happy. It also means I can get in a good one to two hours of handwork each night. Sometimes I read, but mostly sew. I used to cut out quilts while he watched tv. We sold our pool table (my quilt cutting table) when he purchased my longarm so now cutting projects are a little trickier - sometimes I do those at the local quilt shop when I go in to sew with friends.

    I have finished a small wall hanging for my daughter's bathroom, a small table topper, half of the second table topper and have another small wall hanging waiting (all bindings) - then on to an applique border on a queen size quilt. Since I have been working on this quilt for a couple of years now it is time to get it finished! Really ... it sat for a whole 15 months when I was dealing with my broken arm so two years isn't really accurate. I have worked in different areas and now I am at the point where I am starting at one corner and working to the next. It is so nice when I arrive on some leaves and hearts that are already done and I can skip forward ... sometimes, it's the little things that count.

    So love this blog and I try to spend some time with the live cam too - I love your books, own two and always on the watch for a another when on sale or I have a coupon ... I will have them all some day. I took the leaders and enders book to my local copy shop and had them put a spiral binding on it - much easier to use and I have made three or four quilts from that book already - the last one is just waiting for the border (back, border and binding all ready purchased, just need to do it!)

    ReplyDelete
  9. Thanks for the heads up on QuiltCam, Bonnie! I had already figured out that if you are doing it, it was around 6 pm my time (PST)but quite often would hit the tail end of it. I'll be on the lookout tonight! Beautiful DJ, that pattern is on my "someday" list.

    ReplyDelete
  10. If there's one thing I've learned from you it's that 15 min a few times a day adds up. Now if I can just apply that theory to getting my scraps cut. Thank you for your inspiration.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I love this challenge! It'll give me ample excuse to work on my Nana's Flower Garden quilt. I keep getting side tracked with other projects and this will help me to focus. I hope you do a video chat one day while your hand sewing. That would be kewl!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anonymous2:03 PM EDT

    I don't Blog (although I did sign up to do it) and don't have a quilt ready to handstitch anything, so I've been doing the 1 hour a day with my embroidery. I missed one night but have gotten quite a bit done. Thanks for the nudge! sscarlett@stny.rr.com

    ReplyDelete
  13. Anonymous5:11 PM EDT

    Bonnie, you are SUCH AN INSPIRATION to us procrasinators. And you are correct that the time does add up when you keep a record on paper and with your blog. Thank you for giving me a 'kick in the butt' to get that hand sewing back out of the closet to finish!!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thanks for keeping this distracted quilter in line! SQUIRREL!!! (reference to the movie UP!)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Anonymous10:18 PM EDT

    Where could I find the pattern for Baptist Fan, thanks, Cindy

    ReplyDelete
  16. Anonymous10:59 PM EDT

    Bonnie! I finally finished the hand quilting on the wall quilt I was working on. Thanks for the inspiration! I paid it forward and did dozens of hours of hand quilting over the first week (or so) of the challenge. I don't have a blog, and I'm not likely to get one, and I don't see any other way to upload a photo, but suffice it to say... It's DONE!!! And it looks fantastic, by the way. Tan stitching on almost-black fabric ends up looking like sashiko! My first hand quilted quilt; next up - a BIGGER quilt!
    Beth in BC

    ReplyDelete
  17. Anonymous12:13 AM EDT

    I put in 6 hours this week appliquing funky chickens for long-ago BOM kit. Wings, wattles, beaks, then bodies. Combs are just basted onto the last 6 blocks ready for them. 2 more blocks to go for over 20 blocks to then figure out how to sash and quilt.
    I'd forgotten about these blocks and this was a great excuse to get the blocks done so the quilt can be moved along to the next step. I LOVE to hand applique or hand quilt while watching tv in the evening.
    Karen

    ReplyDelete
  18. I almost always get 1-2 hours of hexie hand stitching time each evening. Hubby likes his TV time, and I can't just sit in "Zombie Couch Potato" mode. Ha! I have a harder time getting to my quilt room! After the granddaughter goes to bed (DD and DGD are temporarily living with us), this "Nana" is ready to chill in the recliner!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Hi Bonnie - thanks for this daily hand sewing challenge. I am new to blogging and when I stumbled across this I thought it was 'right up my alley' as I try and sew on the bus each week day when I am commuting to and from work. It's also a great way to 'meet' other sewing bloggers. I love your NCI quilt, especially the way you have limited it to 3 colours, just gorgeous!
    Cheers, Carole.

    ReplyDelete

If you are commenting as "anonymous" please leave your name at the end of your comment.

Did you know that ad space on this blog provides for all of the free patterns and free mysteries and challenges at no cost to you? Without ads, this blog would not be possible.

Thank you for understanding the many hours that go into this blog 6 days a week, 52 weeks a year. :)