Signature Quilting Thread Fan Deck....

Well, since I have the Juki I felt I needed to get some Signature quilting thread.  It is the one I like, even though it is linty.  It is 100% cotton and the purist in me likes that....So I ordered the thread chart/fan deck from Kingsmen Quilting.  I used to have all the colors (when I was a longarmer)...but then I gave them away with the machine.  Now I only want to order the ones I need, as I need them.  ;-)...Yeah, right!!

These are the actual threads wrapped around the cards!  Yes, I am a thread junkie as well.  They are all so pretty....I want one of each!!  No....no .....no......maybe next week!  Also, the Goodwill had 50% off all clothing today.  I'll post pics later of my finds!  I am now going to sew the final seam on the fall leaf quilt and cut some small border strips to bring it to 60" wide.  More pics later  (isn't that why we like blogs???)....Happy Saturday!  Oh yeah, another great find at Wal-Mart...Hard Candy lip gloss--smells like cotton candy!

Trip to Christmas Goose

So today was 30/30 day at The Christmas Goose, a local quilt shop here in Vegas.  FYI:  30th day of the month, 30% off fabric!  So I got some cute fabrics for a bag or ????  You know, it is the 29th today but the sale is today and tomorrow....I don't know...

Then, we washed the 1930's rag quilt....

And the highlight of my shopping adventure...there was a quilt on display last fall at the Goose.  A very understated Halloween type of quilt...but not garish.  The black and orange was muted and tasteful!  I meant to buy the book, but didn't.  But then I remembered it and so I bought some vintage shirts in the right colors and today I got the book.  Let me show you...this doesn't violate copyright, does it??  I'm promoting the book "Modern Primitive Quilts"....

And here are my shirts, all cut up in a little pile.  I have more oranges in another bin, but I needed to get the gray and black ones.  In the second pic you will notice a yellowish (I think candycorn-colored shirt).  I like it, Rebecca says it has to go.  Hmmm...the jury is still out on that.

Maybe it does need to go....ON THE BACK!!! HEHEHEEHEHE....
OK, here is our couch.  You'll see Buddy featured on the left...and Rebecca. No you won't see her...she looked like crap so I had to retake the pic...But do you see the rows of the fall leaf quilt on the left??...I'm going to get it all together tonight!  I swear...

I got to get on it, people!!!  ;-)

Rag quilt, before and after for Gwen

Check it out...before the wash..

And after the wash....

 Oh, it is just so cute!  And I did go to the Goodwill today....50% off Orange Tags and 75% off Green Tags.  ;-)  More to come...

Making progress....rag quilts

So, after Alli sewed all the sandwiches, I pieced it together and Rebecca is now doing the clipping.  Check it out...and there are detailed pics for Gwen (my sister who is learning to make a rag quilt...she isn't a sewer!)...

Gwen, notice how I sewed a 1/2" from the ouside edge of the quilt...you will clip that outside edge as well.  CAUTION:  DO NOT CLIP INTO THE SEWN SEAM OR YOUR WHOLE QUILT WILL BECOME A BIG FAT MESS IN THE WASH AND DRY STAGE!!!

Anyhow, since Alli was having so much fun, I also used up some FQ we had around the house (and made a trip to the Quiltique) to buy some stuff to make a boy's version...

This should keep her busy....My new Juki arrived yesterday.  I did a little practice on it and it is pretty smooth....hopefully I'll be able to make some little baby quilts/lap quilts and stipple them at home.  Who knows...today I plan on finishing the assembly of my fall leaf quilt and adding the borders to another quilt so they are ready for quilting.  But they are also delivering the couch today so that could interrupt my sewing.  I'm tired of sitting on the floor in the living room...essentially I discovered that I'm addicted to the DVR.  Pathetic.  On the quilting front, though, tomorrow is 30/30 day at The Christmas Goose and 50% all clothing at the Goodwill.  Hmmm.....I better get some serious stuff done today or else!!

Alli's booty bag and hints on the rag quilt for Gwen

OK...this is a super duper little booty bag for Alli.  I even let her use my green "oh so 1970's and Holly Hobby-ish" fabric that I bought in Phoenix last spring.  It is made from a child's size 7 pair of Old Navy jeans.  Because the legs were short, I had to make the shoulder strap from fabric.

OK, I also made a little pouch for inside the purse....for lip gloss and money!

So now I have to give some rag quilt tips to Gwen...this is how you put the rows together..you pin with the seams to the top of quilt...

Now, a close up of the pinning...

So, I pin each row like that...then I sew the rows together.  Use the 1/2" seam...set the guide on the featherweight.  Try that...

Introducing Alli and my featherweight...

Well, I did convince Alli that she would like to sew all the sandwiches for the pink baby rag quilt.  Alli started sewing about a year ago, when she was 8 years old.  I started her on my featherweight...she pieced a Christmas quilt out of charm packs.  And she learned how to "frog" (rip out) her mistakes.  So now she is more accurate, and appropriately critical, of her sewing.  She learned that if you are off a little here and there, the whole thing won't come together!  OK, here she is at the beginning...notice all the unfinished pieces to the right.  And though she is smiling, she thought it would take forever. But she moved up to my machine...

By the next evening she was loving the sewing and had all the sandwiches finished.  See them all to the left?

Next, she arranged all of them on the floor for pinning.  I meant to get a pic of that but while I was taking a shower, Buddy decided to get Rebecca's attention by running and playing on all the squares!  So when I came out 10 minutes later, the pieces were all a bit wonky.  Hmmm.....

I thought I'd post up about my featherweight as well.  I bought it on Ebay...it is an AE model manufactured in 1937.  It was in great shape and runs beautifully.  I started Alli on that machine because I have the guide set to 1/4" and it was easier for her to align the fabric to the guide to get the right seam allowance.  It has the scroll plate and I made a nifty little bed cover for when it is in the box.

Now the box is extra special...I read online that under the black cover was an actual wood box!  So I figured I'd strip off the black paper and see what I found.  This proved to be a week long nightmare.  But in the end, I took off all the paper, outside and inside and refinished the box.

The interior panels, on the top and bottom, were remade and covered with brown corduroy.  When you open the box, it smells like a garage in the 1930's...it is the best thing about it!  Anyhow, it is super cool and well worth the time it took to make it mine....So, today I have to finish the cutest little booty bag for Alli, and piece together the pink rag quilt, and finish up some other assorted stuff.  By the way, it was 93 degrees when I walked the dog at 6:00 am ....We have been in the 110+ degree range for weeks now!  Ack....

New rag quilt and pics of Sierpinski

So, I've got the whole rag quilt thing figured out!  I cut the fabric and make the little sandwiches, then I teach some bored person in my house how to sew the "x" through the centers, then I put it all together, and then Rebecca cuts all the little rags ;-)  LOL...how perfect!  Her OCD kicked in and she got the whole other quilt cut...I'll post a finished pic after it is washed.  I'm working on convincing her that the laudromat would be a fun place to catch up on her reading while she washes and dries the quilt!  But here is a pic of Buddy enjoying the quilt...You'll be surprised to see he is sleeping.

Here is the stack of pink sandwiches for the baby rag quilt...for the charity auction.  Today, when my daughter Alli returns, she is going to get promoted from sewing on the Featherweight to my Viking machine.  She is super excited...so much that she won't realize it is a ploy to get some free sewing labor out of her!

Next, I have a pic of the finished Sierpinski triangle quilt for my room at work!  I just stitched in the ditch with mono...not bad!

Off in the corner you can see my featherweight case....I stripped it to the bare wood and refinished it.  It is super cool...my next post will be about my featherweight!  Lots of pics for you vintage sewing machine addicts ;-)

Fall leaf quilt from vintage shirts...

So this little project has been on the back burner since last fall...September, if I recall.  I rarely make any of the quilts that I see in magazines, but this one was on the cover of American Patchwork and Quilting.  I gathered up a bunch of my shirts and started cutting away!  Now for the stupid part...I opened the magazine to check the layout, and whether or not I needed borders, and I apparantly ripped out all the pages associated with this pattern and put them somewhere--somewhere I can't find!!  Duh....Anyhow, I'm working on sewing the top together and then I'll check the dimensions and add on to it if necessary.  It is going to hang behind my table during the fall.  I'm thinking I'd like to have a bunch of swirls (like wind) qulted on it.  Anyhow, that is all for today!  Tonight I need to organize a bunch of random fabric that I bought this summer.  Hopefully I can get that done...

Ryan's quilt and the "Dream On" blocks

I know I didn't post yesterday, but I've been super busy!  Let me show you Ryan's room and his new quilt that I finished binding a few hours ago (it is pieced from recycled shirts ala Bonnie Hunter).  It has been double washed and dried.  Ryan's room is a "camping" theme...compete with a moose head on the wall (a resin one...from a catalog a few years ago).  Check it out!

Rebecca is busy snipping the rag quilt and drowning in threads!

Smiling on the outside...hatin' on the inside!  LOL...

As I promised, I did some stackin' and whackin' and shufflin' on my "Dream On" layer cake!  I now have 42 blocks complete...but due to my wacky whackin, they aren't square.  Well, that just adds a bit more of a challenge for the next step!!  Stay tuned, dear readers, 'cause this is gonna rock!!

I stacked about 8 squares at a time before cutting....

Picture some white in between the blocks (ala amandajean at CrazyMom Quilts--a super blog!!).  Totally cool, huh?  Gwen, you might like this for your next project!  Easy, peasy!  OK, this was supposed to be a charity quilt, but I lovin' on it so much that I might have to buy the damn thing back at the auction!  I better start saving to get back all of my goods ;-) 

Loyalty Card Holder

Look at the cute little Loyalty Card Holder that I made using the tutorial found here.  It is made with selvages...how cute for my punchcards for the local quilt shops!!  It took about an hour...

What I need to do is put myself on an allowance...Every month I put $XX (or $XXX) in the little holder and when I run out--well, no more fabric that month!  Ack...like hell I will ;-)  LOL...

Rag quilt is pieced together

So I finally got all the rows sewn together.  Now I just need to do all the clipping..

This will show the back...a mix of 1930's yellows...

Right now I'm off to make (or try to make) a little card carrier for my quilting cards.  If it turns out OK, I'll post about it...and where I got the tutorial!  ;-)

I will not go to the Goodwill today....

OK, check it out!  What is a chronic fabric hoarder to do?  It is the bi-weekly 50% ALL CLOTHING sale at Goodwill.  But I have too much vintage shirt fabric and booty bag jean fabric.  I must not go.  This sucks.  Buddy and I are sharing an egg/English muffin breakfast.  It is hot as hell today (93 degrees at 9:00am) so I am going to stay in and sew on my rag quilt.  Maybe go to to lunch with Dad and drop off a quilt to Joyce.  Hey, I'll post a pic of that one, even though it isn't my own.  It is a "Fix It" kit/panel with additional fussy cut borders.  Check it out...quilted by Enchanted Desert Quilter....It is quilted with swirls--very nice!

Gwen, here are some pics of how I am joining the rows together.

This pic is sort of blury but it shows the open seam on both sides...be sure the back sides are touching!

I'm thinking of buying  a Juki TL-98Q to do some stippling...Crazy Mom Quilts has one and I like her stuff.  I've heard it makes all the difference if a person is thinking about quilting at home.  I'll keep you updated on that potential purchase.  The big question is "Made in Japan" vs. "Made in China"...does it matter?  According to the salesman it does...Japan rules, he claims.  But it adds $200 more dollars to the cost of the machine....Hmmmm....OK, I've got to go sew!!!

"Lucky" Brand Booty Bag for Gwen...

Well, it is 111 degrees outside at 7:00pm.  The kids are in the pool (Ryan and Rebecca).  I had a Lucky (LOL) find today at the Salvation Army.  Yes, Gwen, I know you are mortified...but consider it "recycling" and it will all be OK!  Some size 4 little thang donated her vintage pair of Lucky Brand jeans.  OMG...booty bag time!  Gwen picked out the lining fabric when I was in CA last week...I think it is called Large Fleur.  Nice print...I also made a little pouch thing for inside...big enough for a lipstick or some cards/cash.

Here is the rear view...

The inside is still pinned.  As soon as my Valium takes effect I'll start hand sewing it to the inside waistband.  Yes, I should invest in a thimble...;-)  Below is a pic of Buddy trying to get my attention.  Apparently I've been sewing too much today so he is protesting by sitting on the quilt that I'm getting ready to sew the binding on....Maybe I'll just sit down and give him some lovin'!

OK...my fingers are bleeding but here is the finished bag!  Cute as can be...

The cutest part is something that can't be seen...inside the fly of the jeans is a red tag...and if you read it vertically it says "Lucky You" with a shamrock....I figured that it was for the guy who would be unzipping the girl's pants...Rebecca thinks it means the girl is lucky if she can zip up these size 4 skinny jeans!  LOL...Either way, Lucky You Gwen!!