A little over a year ago, the southern part of Louisiana became the target of Hurricane Ida.  We evacuated for several days along with this quilt  to finish the binding.  Returning home to no power or water, we counted our blessings to still have a home. 

The finished Bats ...

Of my Upstairs/Downstairs - Wild Things is quilted -   This row was done right to left -  And I didn't notice any difference in the quality of the stitches -  It was actually easier for me - So I might do the rest of them right to left -  It's nice to know that I can stitch the rows in either direction -  And - in case you're wondering how I can see the BLACK thread -  I'm a lot closer to it

I'm trying my best to get tops finished.  The hold up?  Borders, borders and borders.  They are easy to do, but are tedious and bulky.

First up to be finished is this top that I'm calling "candy crush".   This top is way brighter than it appears here.

 I was so tired after being out all day and got home around 7 pm blogging was out of the question. 

Now

I have been trying to get out a this post out for a while and for some unknown reason I can’t get the pictures to load and attach to the post.  

I really do feel this post is incomplete without pictures.

Yesterday was a trip to Rogers Arkansas and did a little shopping and such…… need the pics.

My finished dish cloth and the sweater I was blocking…… need pics.

Then what I want work on tonight ...

The days are shorter, the air is cooler and Fall is here. That means more time for sewing and stitching, right?

I finished two projects last month, My Sewing Treasures and a project bag. Only one new project made the October list.

Project One: The Tiny Modernist Holiday 2022 SAL. I had a slow start and am way behind. The pattern has more stitching than I anticipated. I’m about 1/3 through the first month but have the patterns for the first two.

Project Two: The pinwheel charity quilt. I’m framing the pinwheel blocks to get them all ...

Very interesting design with a lot to like about it, including the quilting motif.

I love the central part of the second design, but not really impressed with the outer corners.

As some of you may recall, I’ve been researching whether there is a regional style of chintz applique. (If you want to re-read the previous blogs, here are the links to the first, second, third, and fourth blog.) After more research, I identified 20 quilts in the style, although the whereabouts are not always known. To see these quilts, please check out our Pinterest page at this link. Wherever possible we’ve included documentation about the quilt, but a few quilts in private collections are not included. Because of some written records, we know there are still additional quilts ...

Getting started with placing the first frame is generally quite easy to figure out. Just find a spot in the middle-ish of the sandwiched quilt and get your hoop situated. You can try to be strategic and eyeball the entire width of the quilt for rough measurements. Can you quilt the entire width of the quilt using only six frames across? If you move the hoop one way or the other a few inches, does that make it so that you'll only have to move the frame four more times across instead of five? If you have an individual ...

I was on the online library that I use.  It was the one that I put books on hold with and have to wait forever.  The book I put on the list was The Gold in These Hills by Joanne Bischof. I’m going to admit it right here and now.  I selected the book simply […]

This series is for all the people who have commented and/or sent emails through the years asking for a tutorial about hand quilting 'the Quilty Folk way'. In spite of all the general misgivings this has generated, I'm also sort of relieved to get this going. After reading through parts #1-4 and perhaps watching my extremely nonexpert videos, many people will begin to understand why this has always been a very bad idea, indeed. Hey, you get what you ask for. I'm just throwing all my hand quilting quirks out into the wind here and hoping it ...

The last skillset you absolutely have to have to make garments is learning how to measure a body. We’re going to show you how in this video demonstrating the techniques on three different body types so you have the knowledge you need to get the correct measurements on yourself.

Starting with accurate measurements that were taken correctly, and in the right spot, are very important in creating a garment that fits you perfectly.

Accurate measurements also help you determine which size to make. Like pants at the department store, there is no standard sizes for garment patterns.

You need ...

Figuring out which fabric to use for your garment project is more complicated than finding a print you like. You can to make sure the fabric substrate is suitable for the pattern you want to make.

In today’s video we’ll talk about the difference between quilting and garment fabric, let you know which fabric manufacturers’ substrates, or base cotton, would work for the skirt patterns in this course and introduce you to cotton lawn, which can be used in quilts or garments.

We also cover which fabrics absolutely will not work for the Intro to Garment Sewing course ...

The first week of the month is nearly over and I still haven't posted my plans for it, maybe a sign that I won't get that much done? It is going to be another busy month for sure, we will be shuffling furniture again as most of the insulation work should be completed. I'm still hopeful to steal some sewing time here and there so I'll write a list anyway!

Quilting

1. Mini series SAL - hoping to grow my collection

2. Super Mario quilt - needs binding finished off (not even the full binding! And gazillions of ...

Hi, you may remember that I taught a Meditation Stitching course this summer. It was a great experience, and I'll be repeating it (in French!) at the end of November.

Getting Ready

I know that I have a lot of time to get ready, and that this is probably another great way of procrastinating, but I've prepared this lovely piece to show at the course.

Joyful

There isn't anything very about doing mindful stitching. It's all about taking the time to be creative, to set a few parameters around what you want to do, and then ...

Welcome to week 402 of Free Motion Mavericks. I managed to find time to get a little bit of FMQ done yesterday. Today we are celebrating birds - the cute ones, not the Hitchcock ones