Thursday, August 30, 2007

And They're Off!

First day of school! I saw my children off to school today and then rattled around the house most of the day. Weird, to be alone all day... I did some organizing/cleaning of my sewing room which always seems to be needed. I thought about what projects I need to get started on; I've a rather long list...

Anyway, I did take the time to clean and oil my precious Featherweight today. It was once my mother's. My father found it at a garage sale and brought it home. Yes, it was one of those once in a lifetime finds. It was a bit neglected and smelly, but my mother loved it. Since you don't get to take your Featherweight to heaven, it lives with me now. All the pieces are there, in the original case. Some of the accessories are pitted and rusty. It runs fine, after a bit of tinkering and oiling and sews a beautiful stitch. The machine smells faintly of mildew even after a couple of cleanings, which puts me off using it much. I'm not sure what to do about that. The case is not usable, the smell of mildew is overpowering. I've not put the machine back in the case for years, but the machine is still a bit stinky...



The fabrics in the photo are the ones I plan to use in my Four Season Swap quilt. I need to get them washed and pressed and ready to go. Tomorrow morning, I suppose. I've got the pieced design ready to go, I just have to decide on the applique part of it. I can get it all pieced first though. I've wandered around the other swappers' blogs a bit. Looks like there will be a lot of great doll quilts flying around the world!

Until next time,

Wendy

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Decisions, Decisions...

I really have to decide on a design for my Four Seasons Doll Quilt Swap quilt. There are just too many choices! I've been playing with EQ5 and can't make up my mind. I've always wanted to try a sunburst block, or something else with curves. But I really like needle turn applique, and could see something featuring that in the center block, maybe with oak leaves and acorns... I have given myself until Friday morning to decide as I'll have a child-free opportunity to pop into the fabric shop to pick up what I need. My last swap quilt was almost entirely made from stash fabrics - actually leftover from another project. This time, I don't think I'll have the right colors to pull it off. Given the size, I won't need much of anything and I'm always looking for a good excuse to add to the stash. As though it's not big enough already...

We finally had a bit of rain last night and this morning. Yippee! Everything green has been suffering through a drought and it is just not possible to water everything enough as the heat just sucks the water up. I guess our rain was the leftovers from Tropical Storm Erin. We could have used a bit more rain, but given the flooding others suffered, I think I'll be content with what we got.


I had the opportunity to see some excellent tennis on Saturday afternoon. Every August, a town about 1/2 hour away hosts a Master's tournament that all the top men come to play. My tickets were for the afternoon semi-final, which happened to be
Roger Federer and Leyton Hewitt. The weather was good, the tennis was excellent and Roger won at the end of a long, close match. What a joy to watch him play!

Til next time,

Wendy

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Two Weeks to Go...

My children return to school 2 weeks from today. The big yellow bus pulls up in front of the house at 6:38 am and takes them away! The only positive aspect of that horribly early start time is that I am up and busy and can have much accomplished by noon! I will be very sad to see them off to school. They are starting 7th and 8th grade this year. Not that many more years before I'll be taking them off to college. So we have a list of things to do in the next 2 weeks that we haven't managed to accomplish yet this summer. It will be a busy time!

I made some cute little zipper pouches for my Etsy store. I will be listing these over the next day or so. My plan is to try to list something every day or two -- and I'm trying to have a wider assortment of items. We'll see how well I stick to it...


I'm also excited to report that I have signed up for the Four Seasons Quilt Swap. I've added the link in the sidebar. I got my partner's name. She lives in a place I've always wanted to visit. So I'll get to send my little quilt along to a wonderful place! I have been thinking about what sort of quilt I'd like to make this time. The theme is Fall; typical fall colors aren't my usual palette. But I've seen some beautiful batiks in rich colors that might be just the ticket. And the greatest thing about these little swap quilts (other than the deadline!) is the opportunity to try a new technique in a small format. Lots of fun!

Until next time!

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

August Already?

It can't be. Summer always flies by so quickly. A few more weeks and my kids will be off to school again. I know some districts have already started. Unbelievable! I never like to see them go back to school, but then I can get back on a schedule that allows time to sew.

We have been having a horrible heatwave this week. The forecast calls for one more hideously hot day, then just regular hot days after that. We've either been at the pool (up to our necks in the water), or hiding out somewhere with A/C. The A/C at home can't keep the second floor cool enough and that's where I have my studio. It's been too stuffy to spend much time up there lately. Hopefully it will cool down a bit soon.

I've been thinking alot lately about what items I'd like to make for my Etsy shop in the fall. I've got some ideas, but need some creative time to play with them. I have lots of fabrics to play with, and a few new ones on the way! And I have a few quilt ideas in mind, too. It seems I never lack for things to do, just time to do them....

Until next time,

Wendy