Iron, Cut, Sew and Repeat

This blanket was loads of fun to make. It is now home with a special little girl who live in Germany. Bright colors were a must and lots of them so I browsed around Pinterest to see what styles drew my eye and decided on a spiderweb type of quilt. I drew up a sketch, made my own pattern, and got to work.

Testing out different placements.

Oops...notice that one of these is not like the others? I fixed it before sewing it all together.

Charcoal is obsessed with me when I am trying to get things done. He loves to be nearby, or right in the middle of things, when I am working on a project.

Matching up color wheels with the outer borders.

Ready to sew together.

The background colors.

After lots of ironing, cutting, and sewing it was ready to sandwich.

Then this little trouble maker decided to come and play.

Timber....such a good old gal. Ready to quilt.

Charcoal laid on top of the quilt the whole time I worked on the binding.

I love soft backing and how the colors matched nicely.

My shoulder was on fire from all the small movements used to quilt the entire thing in one quick setting.

And finally, the finished quilt. Sorry for my crappy crop job. I finished the quilt the night before I drove out of town to deliver it, naughty me, so I didn't get any good pictures of it laid out.

This is very first time I free motion quilted an entire quilt. I dabbled with simple curvy lines between straight ones on the last quilt I made. There were definitely some errors (starting at the inside of the circle rather than the outside pushed material out  a little, yikes!) and I learned as I went along. I love my little Janome sewing machine. An oldie, with none of the special stitches the new electronic sewing machines can do, but a goodie that has been super dependable,  but it was tight squeezing this little blanket in the small arm space. Several free motion quilting books are highly recommend on the quilting sites across the inter-web, so I will have to check some of those out before my next adventure in quilting.

Clarice's First Quilt

Clarice, my sweet thirteen year old niece, had her first sewing class in junior high last school year. You know the one. A little introduction to basics where you make a little bag or maybe a skirt if you are lucky.  It perked her interest and she began to show curiosity to the fun tools/fabrics in my project room. It didn't take long for her to ask if I would help her make a quilt this summer. Her very first! I helped with the design and some of the cutting, but she did all the rest on her own (including the painful lesson or taking seams apart.)

I walked her through the quilting process beginning with buying supplies, just so she knows what damage her new addiction can do to her piggy bank. Then I let her dig into my stash, my VERY FAVORITES included. Unfortunately for me, Clarice has great taste. I'll be honest. It was a little painful when she picked a few of my lone pieces of precious fabric and she even offered not to use them, but what better home could they possible have? So I told her to get ironing and cutting.

 Once all the fabric decisions were made it was time to experiment with pairing up patterns.

Clarice had fun mixing and matching.

And played around until she found things just the way she liked it.

....while Lola supervised.

Then it was time to get to sewing.

 Followed by even more ironing and experimenting. 

Now all that is left on the front of the quilt is to add the borders.

Then sandwich the batting and back together and throw on some binding. 

Clarice has been a quick learner and I can't wait to see her finished product. Who knows, this might just be the beginning of many quilts to come!

P.S. I took this opportunity to enter her into her very first sewing contest here. There are MANY talented people entering, but I wanted Clarice to have the chance to win something fun  to start her own collection.

Puppy Love, Chickens Coming Soon, and Other Pictures

I haven't had much time to sit down at a computer lately, so here is a quick update in pictures!

 It seems like every time Tim and Grant plan to work on the Hen House a storm comes in. Despite the poor weather they have come a long way. In fact, it is almost finished! Can't wait to pick up our hens.

The escape hatch (or hen sized door.)

The cover on the vent. This will stay shut until the weather warms up enough to use it.

Gretchen got plenty of love from everyone this Thanksgiving and throughout the weekend. Luckily we have family that let us take her to their homes. Thanks Teri and Grant, LeAnn and Neil, and Bec and Dave!

She still seems so little, but is growing like a weed. I'm sure one day she'll take up most of this dog bed.

 Getting festive. The wreath is fresh cut (although now that I look closer it is missing some berries!) The holly is from our backyard. I am hoping to add a little more color to it sometime soon.

The Amy Butler Sunday Sling I made for Teri. A lovely bag for a special lady.

 The reversible side.

Tim and Gretchen having fun in the leaves.

 

Gretchen's new favorite spot. She loves to try and do whatever Timber does.

Cuddling.

Over the last two weeks I picked up the cold that seems to be going around town. You know, the one that gets in your chest and lasts anywhere from three to five weeks. Plenty of tea, a humidifier, and lots of cough drops later I am finally feeling almost normal although Tim still cringes when I cough in the morning. Yuck.

We have also been had a great time taking Gretchen to Puppy Class (where she learns manners and tricks) and Puppy Playtime (where she learns to play appropriately with other dogs.) Each lasts approximately an hour once a week, not counting the homework they give. Several people have asked me why I am taking her to class, not to mention paying for it, when I already know the basics of dog training. I figure why not do the best for my puppy when the timing is right. Socialization is key at this age, and it is just as important for her to meet other puppies and learn how to play "nice" as it is for Gretchen to learn how to behave around people. For a small investment we will have a well behaved, fully trained dog in much less time than I could do on my own. I have learned all kinds of new tricks for training and am so impressed with Calling All Dogs and their beautiful facility. Not to mention it is a fun activity to get out of the house and spend some quality time with Tim, who always impresses me with his endless patience with the puppy. He is just as smitten with her as I am, if not more. I'm sure Timber, Lady, Lola, and Charcoal all enjoy a little break from the puppy a few hours each weekend although they are adjusting incredibly well to having her around.

House Hunting or Daily Bartering

It is official. Tim and I are about to become certified grownup adults. We have spent the better part of the last several months looking at houses on the internet, driving by houses to check out the neighborhoods, talking to our agent, touring houses, and finally putting offers on houses. Yes, that is right, we put an offer in on more than one. No, it was not at the same time. Our agent, who happens to be very pregnant, was incredibly patient with us. The first was cute with a nice floor plan and a spacious backyard that was completely fenced including a dog run. If you know me well, at this point you might be wondering why I want a dog run.......more on that later. It had a great view from the east bench, easy access to the freeway but tucked away into a nice neighborhood, and near some great parks and schools. Things were cheery and bright and we put in an offer. The people rejected it and wanted the original asking price. We counter offered but they still wanted the original asking price. Their agent said they are upside down in the house but the husband is being relocated for work *we may have seen a paper saying he is a special FBI agent, but would probably deny it if anyone asked* and a relocation company is willing to give them fair market value. The problem is they owe more than the fair market value, or so they say. So we walked away and went looking at other houses. We spent several more days looking for the right fit. Finally we found what felt like home. We even spent a day walking through the first house we put an offer on and the "home" we wanted to get and both felt like we were making the right decision. Oh, by the way, the first home is now asking for less than what we first offered. We still like our "home" more. We both knew that if we were patient the right home would come along, and here it is. It has all the elements Tim and I wanted. A decent sized yard for Tim to play in, a nice floor plan, windows that let in plenty of light, not to mention friendly neighbors on both sides. And it is a two car garage, which is not very common in this area. I love the hardwood floors and the "old house" feel. Lucky for us, previous owners renovated and updated the wiring, plumbing, and air conditioning. Our inspector told us it was like we are buying what looked like an old home on the outside and a brand new home on the inside. That said, it is not perfect but perfect for us. I already have a list of projects to be done. Here is part of the back patio. Tim has plans for us to eat dinner out here nightly as long as the weather lasts. It will be great to have an "outdoor room" to enjoy. The back yard, a.k.a. Tim's space. Plenty of room for gardening, dogs, and hopefully hens. That is right, hens as in chickens. My boss has been spoiling us with fresh eggs the last year and Tim had chickens as a child, so why not give it a try. The Tour de Coops this past weekend helped further educate us on what type of coop might work for our hen house.

Let me get back on track and finish telling the story of our home. We spent several days bartering back on forth about a few things that need to be fixed. The former owner is a lawyer, so it was like going to battle each day, but we stuck we our guns and all parties came away happy in the end. In about three weeks or sooner we should close and have the keys to our new nest.


These are just a few of the ladies we saw on the tour. Can't wait to have a few of our own.