In A Bind....

SO...since DH is out of town for the week, I had all these grandiose plans of how I was going to get so much SEW MUCH done, right?

I felt like yesterday was just in slow motion the whole day! But still, at the end of the day when I tallied it up, I had accomplished SOME things.

I went to Sam's club to pick up my new glasses which I love....other than the fact that the prescription is a bit stronger and the placement of the bifocal (no lines) seems to be a bit different than on my other pair. This is going to take some getting used to. And because they are completely rimless, I just see screw holes where the nose piece goes across and it's driving me a bit batty! I was told to never fear, that after a few days my brain will shut off that there are even screw holes there. I'm hoping she is right!

I made a run to the bank....

I stocked up on groceries....

I put groceries away...

I did two loads of laundry....

I took care of all the book orders that had stacked up for a week...

I ran said book orders to the post office before closing time....

And the rest of the day went by in a blur of "I'm too tired to move, I think I'll just read blogs on the computer for a while.." and then it was dinner time.

I did get out of my dead funk in the evening, put on the Law & Order channel (USA) and proceeded to do some block piecing for a quilt that's going in the next book. It's all greens/reds/burgundies/raspberry pink it's going to be pretty :c)

AND...tada....I put bindings on the two little small quilts that I finished this last trip. I took the last stitches on the leader/ender 9 patch thing on the plane between Houston and Dulles :c) That one has the gold binding to match the cornerstones. The other crazy orphan one, the one I'm calling Kindred Souls...I couldn't decide, so I did a scrappy red and threw one wild pink/red in there for good measure. I found a small strip left of the "Lucky Cow" fabric and put that in there too for fun!

Today I am on my way to the gym to work out with my trainer, and then I have a designated girls lunch date down town Winston with Karen and Lisa! Whoot! So I'll have to hurry home, shower, put on something green (don't want them pinching me) and head out again.

Do you think TONIGHT I'll get to start sewing these bindings down? Maybe...just maybe....

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Leader/Ender Nines...

I think this top was pieced at a sew-day at my friend Mary's house last year..or was it farther back than that?

I love traveling with little things that I can hand quilt. For one....they keep me warm on the plane! Second, small quilts are a faster finish than a big quilt is, and of course more portable and gives me that sense of accomplishment.

I also tease my students that having something in my hands to work on while sitting through a guild business meeting before I give my presentation helps calm my nerves. And you know what? It does. I also love how working on a hand quilting project can be a conversation starter as I sit in airports or on planes. So many people come to look and see what I'm working on, and tell me stories of quilters and quilts that have come through their lives.

I also tell the students that having a project in my hands keeps me from wrassling one of them out of their seats and hijacking their machine due to piecing envy! *LOL* It's just a good thing all around...

And really...I might get 15 minutes here or there, or maybe 1/2 hour or more...but it never comes in BIG long spurts of time, yet still..the stitches I put in STAY there, and eventually I have something to show for these little gathered bits of time.

I've quilted this little guy through the squares on the diagonal in one direction. It would be twice as much work to cross hatch it..and these are 1.5" leader/ender squares, so they finish at 1". Do I really want to do a 1" cross hatch? Only in some place that it is going to show and this is such a busy little ditty that I don't think it will be noticeable.

I've got just 2 sides left to do.....I wonder how long that will take? I'm already thinking of the next little "traveling size" top that I have on hand that is ripe for basting before I fly off to Grand Rapids Michigan on Sunday! Gotta have that on the "to do" list for this coming week.

I think with this shot you can see the diagonal quilting lines. I am using a chalk pencil to freehand mark the fans in the border...I'm using black thread on black fabric and I just can't see where I'm going without having a white line to give me some contrast, and helps me see where my stitches are.

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A Quilt Finish!

While traveling and in between teaching.....I've FINALLY finished the quilting on this orphan block quilt!

You know..I love how it feels when you are pushing to get that last stretch of border completed...oh so close...the adrenaline kicks in and....(yeah, I know that those who aren't quilters are probably wondering what the heck that is about...but...;c) )

Here it is on my bed in the hotel room in all it's untrimmed unbound glory!

There is just such a wild array of fabrics in this, and I especially love working on things when students can come and take a look. Many want to know how I hand quilt..which finger gets the thimble, why I like using a hoop, what size of needles I like, what brand, etc. What kind of thread....they even like to feel the callouses on my "under" fingers! (And yes, the best way to keep those under fingers calloused is to keep quilting at least 15 minutes a day if at all possible, just to keep them tough!)

I didn't know what to call this quilt, but as I finished that homestretch, I came up to a piece of Laurel Birch favorite fabric that had words on it. I believe the whole phrase was "Kindred Spirits, Kindred Souls" But the piece is missing the first Kindred...only part of the Spirits shows, but Kindred Souls is still visible.

AHA! So the quilt has it's name....Kindred souls. We'll get it trimmed up and get that binding on when I get it home.

Another little bitty thang only needs 2 borders finished too....I'm quilting baptist fans in that border, and we'll see how far it can get as I travel home.

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Facebook Interactive Fan Page!

I've been told I need to have a "FAN PAGE" for Quiltville on facebook!

You can get to it here!

I've really enjoyed having a facebook page, and it has been a great way to connect with family and friends, but it was getting a bit overwhelming with lots of people I didn't really know....and I made a choice to keep my own personal facebook page just for people I know in "real life".

At the same time, I want a place that is interactive where you can post photos and post and update and follow along in your own feed, so this Quiltville fan page will do the job nicely I think!

Come along, click to join as a fan.....see you there!

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