Playing Catchup

Well, I didn't get done what I had planned, but I did get a lot done.  Where are the slip covers?  All of the pieces are right where I left them, in a pile under the longarm.  Sigh.......I would so love to have a newly covered couch.

I took on a "small "quilting job for a former member of my Home Arts group. The challenge was figuring out a way to quilt it on the long arm without distorting it, since it had already been finished using the quick turn method. (putting top, bottom, and batting together, sewing around the edges and then turning right side out. ) It was then stitched around all of the edges.  The entire middle of the quilt was not quilted and it hadn't been "tied" -which is usually how  "quick turn" quilts are finished.  

Lots of research and doodling on my dry erase board.  More research and then it came to me!  If I avoided an all-over pattern going from side to side, I wouldn't shift the layers.  I found a cute little bird pattern in one of my books and used that for the center of the larger blocks.  I did a freehand scroll on all of the borders and in the sashing - making sure I alternated the direction of my quilting in each strip so as to even out the tension on the fabric.  Amazingly, it worked.  No puckers, no tucks, no pleats!  And a cute little quilt stabilized and ready for Grandma :)

A Bee Hive

We discovered that a whole lot of bees were going in and out of the in-ground water meter box.  Matt taped off the openings and we left it alone for a few weeks.  Monday, Matt heard no more humming of bees, so he opened the box.  This is what he found attached to the underside of the lid of the box.  The bees were all dead in a pile at the bottom of the box.  I know....we're suppose to be doing what we can to save the bees.  I called a bee keeping group and they weren't interested in moving the hive. I then did some research  and read that regular honey bees rarely build a hive underground.  Usually, the Africanized honey bees will build a hive anywhere - including in water meter boxes.  Enough said - we got rid of them before the hive got huge!  Another Wild Kingdom moment on the ranch!

Back to my projects......I did jump back onto one of my UFOs (unfinished objects).

Diane gave me this kit last  Christmas! I pieced the pack and borders - I even quilted the background and cut out all of the little appliqué pieces.  I just  never got around to putting on the basket and all of the flowers and leaves.  I had everything cut out and waiting for almost a year!  There can be a problem with having a box for everything - out of sight - out of mind.  I got distracted, moved onto something new and there it sat.  I love this little quilt!  I have stitched a blanket stitch around several of the pieces.  It's on my design wall and there it will stay until it's finished.  (hopefully next week).  Ok....it's out there and now I'm committed :)

I had a strip of the Minky left over from Amy's scarf and some white Minky left over from a pillow case, so I made myself a little scarf!  It's been cold here the last few days.  Once the sun goes down it drops into the low 40's -30's.  I wore it to church tonight and I was snuggly warm!

Bob was happy to be my model!

Tomorrow I go in to have some surgery on the outside corners of my eyes.  Some corrective work to fix two small indentations that developed after my eyelid surgery.  My surgeon told me to go out and buy a sleep mask to protect the sutures when I'm sleeping.  

Why buy something you can make?!  I found a great little pattern online and I used some more Minky scraps and some leftover elastic. Not the most glamourous - but it works!  Both of the kids want me to make them one !

Bo, my cottage kitty, taking a little catnap.