Into the Home Stretch -

I am SO CLOSE (How close?  THIS CLOSE!) to finishing this knife edge binding on the 22 year old Hexie quilt, just before it turns 23!

And with as many different techniques as there are out there for finishing the uneven edge of a hexie quilt, I know I chose the right one for me.

I'm thrilled with how nice this looks!

I treated myself and brought home a new pair of  Karen Kay Buckley blue handled scissors (the medium size) from the Quiltville Store as my old pair was old enough that they weren't cutting clear to the tip anymore, and I needed a new pair to get clean snips into the backing fabric to turn those corners.

As is often heard while changing a rotary blade - Why did I wait so long!?

The older pair is now by the sewing machine and is still good for use there - for cutting strips for my current string quilt progress.

This was before I started last night's stitching -

I spent about 3 hours and left all that remains in the top photo because my eyes were too bleary and tired to go any further.  I'll finish it tonight.  I can't wait.

This was going on UNDER the quilt.

ZZZZZZZZ

Christmas Day!

My dad's gift to the Hubster for Christmas was some drone accessories including this landing pad.⁣

⁣

I guess it works for Kelpies too. LOL!

Nailed it.  LOL!

This little cutie!

We got to watch Casden and present opening by video chat on Christmas morning before he went to spend Christmas at his dad's house.

And Jeff and Ashlyn came up on Christmas evening for dinner and brought me Casden's kindergarten school picture.  

Nana needs to get it framed! 

We enjoyed a simple Christmas dinner of steaks on the grill, baked potatoes with all the fixings, a salad - Ashlyn brought a delicious sweet potato casserole, and we topped it off with pumpkin pie for dessert.

It was a very simple Christmas, made all the better by its simplicity.

Christmas day was spent with this!

I am sewing down that over stuffed string bucket at the cabin.  It's got to be put to some good use, and I'll confess I've thought of putting the leftover strings in a big bag in the free basket at the inn and just letting the retreaters go for it come February -

The string bin just looks like an impossible mess.

But once I start sewing and pressing and trimming up - something magical happens.

(Yes, I am sewing these on to phone book paper foundations.)

I'm doing some slicing and dicing.

I'm doing some sewing back together.

And I'm doing a whole lot of squaring up.

The only thing that is consistent is that my strings are light/dark/light/dark on my foundations.  Some blocks end up with more strings than others.  Some end with a light or dark at each end. Some end with 2 darks or 2 lights at each end.

There is ZERO consistency and I am letting scraps fall how they may in an abstract fashion.

And when I have enough blocks made, I'll start playing with layouts.  That's where the fun will really come in.

Yesterday's vet check visit and "pawdicure"

My dream of having a week to just work on this string project has been interrupted by daily things - this appointment included.  

But honestly - the weather has been so incredible (and so wrongly so) that being out and about for a long drive over to the vet in Sparta was lovely.

This morning - 55 degrees at 7am?!  At nearly January?

Jeff is on his way up and today is a full on paver setting day for the back walkway at Quiltville Inn.

My only job is to provide lunch for these hard-working menfolk, so I'm going to throw together another batch of potato soup - easy.

Whether I'll stay and putter around at the QPO or come home to the string project remains to be determined. 

I could move the string project TO the QPO, but that wasn't the point either.  LOL!

Yesterday I saw so many of you digging in to Rhododendron Trail Part Five - units are already coming together and they are looking SO GOOD!

Today is Tuesday - which means that Part Six is right around the corner on Friday, so I could just put myself into that frame of mind and get it ready to go.

But that takes time away from the string project - I could live on the edge and push that post writing to Thursday.  I'm liking that idea!

How about you?  We are in that "coasting" zone between Christmas and New Years.  Are you packing up the Christmas decorations yet?  Are you marking the end of this year with the finish of a project?  The last one of 2021 before the ball drops?

And if it doesn't get finished - it can always be the first finish of 2022, right?

Quiltville Quote of the Day -

It’s the LAST Tuesday of 2021.

What will you do with yours?

Make it a good one!