What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

For the record, I do NOT give my dogs people food. Currently, three adults live in this house, and TWO of them think it's OK to slip them the occasional tidbit of food, including veggies. I'm OK with the veggies, though some are not safe for dogs. And for this reason, those two dogs hang around those two people waiting for the tidbits. Trust me, I have repeatedly said, DO NOT FEED the dogs people food, and it falls on deaf ears. Thankfully, it's not a lot of food, but I keep repeating the message. 

Since this ...

So here's the thing about the email distribution lists. In the previous version of Outlook, you could type in a name (Elaine) and all the Elaines in my contact list would appear. I could then select the desired people and add them to the distribution list. When I reviewed the updated distribution list, I saw the person's name and their email address. 

Creating the lists was a breeze because I could use autofill and a direct link to my contact list. No chance of getting an incorrect email. 

However, whatever Microsoft did is STUPID. I'm sorry to ...

The good news is that when I looked at my Cherrywood Challenge in the morning, the chalk lines were pretty much gone, so I didn't have to do any further work on it. I trimmed the quilt top, made the two-color binding, and stitched it to the top of the piece. Then I settled in and watched some YouTube videos while hand-stitching the binding in place! 

All that's left is to touch up a few spots with markers where the lighter-colored bobbin thread peeked through during the appliqué process, take three pictures, and then submit the entry. I ...

FOCUS --- it's a tricky thing! But I have my visual list and my blue UFO bin, and I refuse to let anything get in the way of finishing those projects. Oh -- there are loads of things to do, but I know I can't do them all, so I picked a few, and that's my goal! It has taken me a very long time to get to that point, but I refuse to get sidetracked!

Just a teaser: this is the project Dede and I worked on. Wait—soon you'll get to see it yourself. Absolutely stunning ...

 Brrrrrrr!   I hope you are keeping warm during this storm.  I've been mostly indoors since Friday.  I went to two memorial visitations on Saturday (the son of a Rotary friend in the morning and a quilting friend in the afternoon) though I didn't stay for the funeral services.  I overrode the thermostat so the heat stays at daytime temperature overnight. Otherwise it would take all morning to warm up.   Snowfall was about 2", no wind.  

wrapped up in the Magpies' quilt with another quilt at my back

I appreciate all the people who braved the cold, wherever they ...

It's been too cold to walk and I miss stretching my legs.  (I could walk at the rec center but that's early morning and I prefer to walk in the afternoon.)

# # # # #  In the warm, cozy basement studio: 

 I have chosen the starter for the Stay At Home Round Robin.  

At the ALA Midwinter Meeting in 2018 I got two vendor tote bags with this Jane Austen quotation. I ...

Choosing layouts and coordinating fabrics was a great design exercise.

Each is approximately 13 x 20.

 OK -- this new computer is pretty cool and YES -- I have gone back to an English keyboard. Good grief -- that was painful to write! The little camera that recognizes me instantly is amazing! No more passwords! Well, the passwords are there, but it looks for my face first. I love it! 

However, we do have one slight issue, and right now, it's a big issue. After all the conversions, it appears my contact folder didn't get brought over properly. I'm not sure if anything came over or if it's using an older file, but my distribution ...

5-7/8 yards used in all. 

They all use units from the orphan blocks box.

(The fine points of terminology: a patch is a shape cut from fabric. A unit is composed of one or more patches sewn together. A block is composed of units sew together.) 

# # # # #  I have a fear of running ...

OH MY --- I'm at a loss on where to begin this morning! So much to say - let's just grab a picture and start! 

I called my parents and, while chatting with them, decided to tackle the next jigsaw puzzle. I know— but it was a mindless task, as all I accomplished was laying out the pieces. These pieces seem BIGGER than those in the previous puzzle, and while the shapes are NOT identical, they are much more regular than in the last puzzle. 

The pieces are laid out for the next puzzle

OK -- I did a bit more ...

As promised, here are the links to the journal cover tutorials I've written over the years. Note the date on these tutorials - July 2014. This is the SECOND set of tutorials I wrote for QUILTsocial. I'm sure my writing style and grammar have changed significantly!

This is the basic tutorial on making a journal cover. I think the method of adding the lining is clever, and there's no reason to leave an opening along one side to turn it inside out. 

Making a collage journal cover. Perfect way to use up scraps or create a personalized cover ...

Like all the quilters out there, MOST of us struggle with focus. We spot a new class, a new pattern, some shiny new gadget, and we are off in another direction before we even know what happened. After many years of following my eyes and ignoring the ever-growing mound of UFOs, a few UFOs are hanging around. 

I also had no issues buying fabric, like it was candy! It was because of that mound of fabric that several years ago (around 10, I believe), I stopped randomly buying fabric just because I liked it. I still buy fabric, but only ...

On the domestic front:  every so often a puddle appeared in the basement bathroom (adjacent to the family room, AKA my studio).  The plumber checked the toilet and the seal/collar are good.  This week I saw the puddle again--and heard drip-drip-drip. Turns out it came from the dishwasher (right above the closet that is next to the basement bathroom).  The plumber popped the panel off the dishwasher and said the pipes are fine, the problem is the spray arm/drain assembly.  I called the appliance store (we are so fortunate to have a real appliance store in our town ...

No meetings, too cold to walk + an audiobook I had to finish (see below) = a flimsy.

6-1/4 yards by weight. 

# # # # # #

Yes -- I restocked the retreat supply box with a spool of black and a spool of white thread, and I put a spool on the sewing machine. All set for the next retreat. 

My SIL finished her quilt top and the backing last night. I have realized that my space is not configured for two people to work. Yikes! But all will be good, and I did manage to piece together one thing myself, so I was happy. It's part of the weekend homework, and I took lots of pictures, so I just need to get them into the ...

It was a wild night! I hate it when you go to bed tired but can't fall asleep. The last couple of nights, I've been tired and tried to read my book. I could barely read a couple of pages, and I was fast asleep. Last night? Not happening. So I read more and more pages of the book. Let's say this is one of those psychological thrillers that well --- do you want to know what happens? This one is called Watch out for her" by Samantha J. Bailey, and it was creepy from the opening sentence ...