What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

Just before leaving for my trip to the Houston Quilt Festival, I did the most recent installment of the BOM from Wonderfil. Now the third row is complete, and there is only one more row — two or three blocks — to go! I’m guessing that one of those will be the bottom portion of […]

Buying a new sewing machine can feel overwhelming—there are so many brands, features, and price points to consider! To make things easier, here are my top 10 tips for choosing your very first machine.

1. Buy the Best Sewing Machine You Can Afford

Cheaper machines often have plastic parts that won’t hold up over time. Also, some of them are not built very well and will fall apart after a few uses. New and inexpensive machines (I'm looking at you - Amazon) may work for a while but can be frustrating and short-lived. That said, don’t overspend ...

 It's a beautiful day in Hamilton, Missouri.  We have had breakfast and are heading off to start the Scavenger Hunt.  I've forgotten my lanyard and make a quick return to the center before catching up.  Along the walk --- these are soooo pretty.Now, back to the girls.As we make our rounds through the stores - this window of the yarn shop looks amazing.At each store, I do a

No change in the numbers.

A lot of progress happened this week. I finished as much as I plan to do on the sewing room declutter.

I replaced the binding on a second blanket.

I finished a Craftsy class, 20 Things to Know Before You Sew. I’m taking a break on classes for now.

I turned the corner on the afghan. That puts me close to the halfway point.

I chose the next sewing project, washed the fabric, and made all the pattern choices.

I have a nice little rotation going with my three projects. We’ll see if ...

No fabric in this week.

I finished sorting through fabric as part of the Declutter Challenge, but still need to organize it a bit better. A little fabric went out this week.

I don’t have a OMG for March. Little happens creatively with so much work and life going on. I decided to update the Short List because it helps me focus. I did shorten it to stay more realistic.

Project 1 (Crochet): Marled Crochet Moss Stitch Stripes Blanket. It’s too big to photograph easily. I’m almost done with the third section (out of seven).

Project 2 ...

January was some month. I finished the ATCs in January and Traffic Jam February 1^st. I started a crochet afghan kit.

About three weeks in, I realized everything in process is blue. I like blue, but more variety would make it more interesting. I’ll have to work on that.

I began the Short List many years ago to create short-term goals and a way to focus. I change things up as my interests change.

Project 1 (Original): Study in Stitches. I figured out what bothers me about this project but haven’t decided what to do about it ...

Welcome to 2025! I wish you a year full of creative fun and joy.

In spite of a busy December, the list moved forward. I also started and finished a small crocheted throw. I find I’m going back to hobbies from decades ago and enjoying them in new ways. Good chance you’ll see more variety on the Short List in 2025.

I began the Short List many years ago to create short-term goals and a way to focus. I change things up as my interests change.

Project 1 (Original): Study in Stitches. Something about this project doesn’t ...

I have two little projects to share with you today. First is a small bag I’ve made as a gift; it’s another Drop Zone bag from ByAnnie. I really like this bag, as it opens up completely flat and then zips completely and compactly closed. I added an adorable little zipper pull shaped like a […]

 Woke around 7:45 am but our classes didn't start till 9 am. I decided to shower and clean up before heading down to our meeting room. I was uncomfortable being in that room without friends close by. 

Arrived early, had a doughnut and then sat and chatted with our group. At least the ones that were there. Sandy and her sister went downstairs to the breakfast room. 

We started the day with doing Bigfoot, public market and the tulips. 

First we did the tulip. Everyone loves my tree but I didn't think it looked like a good ...

What a fabulous day we had at The Hobby Horse!!! Angie and I had never tag-teamed doing a lecture, but we worked amazingly well together! The students who came went home with their heads spinning on how to get better organized, find more time to sew, cut fabric, and much more!!! 

It always amazes me how many people feel that they have this stuff down pat. Heck, I teach it, and I'm still learning! It was a great session. We're continuing with another session and new topics in October, so check that out. 

The afternoon was devoted to ...

I see no one dared to comment on that quilt pattern! It really is in the eye of the beholder what the "correct" way to place those ribbons is. The fact that we are different is what makes the world go round, even if we don't always agree. 

The same is true for a directional print on the border of a quilt—do you turn the border upside down?

I hope you had a chance to check out the classes that I posted yesterday. You have time to think about what you want to learn, and we should always ...

 Let's start with the classes before I get lost in my thoughts!!! 

There are TWO more classes at The Hobby Horse, so I will post that link again. There are the October to June monthly one-hour lectures on finishing your quilt. There is so much to share in that! And there are FOUR in-person sessions—two of them are on machine quilting, and two of them are demos on various topics. Angie and I will be doing those two sessions as a team. It will be super fun, a chance for you to get out of the house and ...

I mentioned in a previous post that I was participating in a “Slow Along” — a slow-paced series of video steps toward making (in this case) a travel toiletries bag called Travel Essentials. We began about eight weeks ago, and the last step was released yesterday, giving everyone lots of time to stay on track […]

That’s me — I’m stuck. I have several projects in the planning stages, and I can’t work on any of them. That’s because my beautiful new (since September, 2023) Bernina 790Pro died just over a week ago. It was refusing to stitch, so I took it in for the tech to look at. That was […]

 UGH, I should have said after the title. Neither team was my favorite, but if I had to vote, I would go for the SF team. I liked the new quarterback. 

I had our class today. 

It was fun. We all worked on the leaves. There are mirrors in the leaves and the berries. We were shown how to attach the mirrors and then work the leaf around it. Then we worked on the leaves. 

You WILL not believe the email that I got yesterday! I couldn't help but laugh. Just when I thought I was on top of things. 

My Google One storage is almost full!

So here's the thing --- I have Microsoft Office on my computer. And they are desperately trying to get me to move to their web landing page -- Edge or something like that. But I'm a Google person, and so I like the Google landing page. And I have STORAGE with Google, and that's the one that is now showing 91% full!

Oh - I see that ...

This morning I slept in till 10 am. I needed it after the last 3 days of being up around 7 am. I love my sleep. lol - I would sleep better if I just didn't stay up till 11:30 pm! But, hay, I like to listen to my books and play games. 

After exercise and walking, Patrick was done with golfing. It was cold today! I don't know how he can stand golfing when it's that cold! I walked and got my relaxing in. I listen to the music on iPods. 

Came in and got lunch ...

 This morning I was working on what I needed to do. I had 2 Zoom meetings today. When I chatted with Debbie she said she could do the 6:30 pm meeting so, I decided to join her. 

After getting laundry started and working on getting blood out of my nightgown, I was able to get some laundry done. It took a good 3 washes to get the blood out. At least it's out because that's my favorite nightshirt. 

I then worked on my laptop to get my photos from the last 2 presentations. I needed to add ...