Life just got easier

I got a package in the mail today and my life just got a little bit easier. Last Friday I spent an hour looking for my keys. I was finally convinced I lost them outside when I went back for the rest of my grocery order.  Jack found them in about 30 seconds after I quit looking. They were right in the dining room under a silicone hot pad.  Let me say, I did not put them under the hot pad but I must have moved the hot pad for some reason and placed it on top of the keys.

Searching for my keys, among other things, is a regular occurrence and I have been this way  all my life. I don't pay attention to what I am doing so of course there is nothing to remember.

After my keys were found, I went right to my computer and ordered a set of fobs and a remote. They came today and I am impressed. There was a little remote and six fobs along with 6 lithium batteries for the fobs and  6 rings  to attach them. There were also little sticky labels with pictures to put on the remote to identify which button work for which item and some sticky foam pads to attach them to other things that people might misplace, like phones and remotes.  I did have to use my own AAA batteries.

The sound is loud enough to hear if the object for which you are searching is in a purse or under something like a couch cushion.  I should have done this years ago.

Now all I have to do is keep track of the remote..

New Solids

I ordered 9 solid color fat quarters last Friday to fill in some gaps in my solid fabric stash. they arrived late yesterday; they are Moda Bella and I am quite please with them. I would usually rather choose solid fabrics in person but these are not usual times. The colors are very close
to what I expected.










I only need 10 inches x 2 inches for the Framed 9 patches so I will have a good amount left for some other kind of blocks using prints and solids.

I probably won't post each set of F9P blocks as I finish them but will wait until I get the top to the flimsy or maybe finished stage. Maybe by the time I get that finish some of the wrinkles in Blogger will be ironed out.

Blocks

    I was so frustrated with problems posting yesterday I forgot the main reason I wanted to post. I had made six new blocks.

These six blocks are made with 3 of the new fabrics.

These are the 3 blocks I finished today. The 2 with the same print are the new fabric that I had mislaid when I photographed the fat quarters. The other block is older fabric; I found it all cut and ready to sew. It was most likely misplaced when I was sewing blocks for the first Framed 9 patch.

Today I reverted to "Legacy Blogger"
because of problems I was having  setting photographs.  I am pretty sure that I won't be able to continue using the old interface and I am considering just giving up.
We'll see!

A Visit to the Quilt Shop

Thursday I actually went to a local quilt shop, live and in person. My last visit was before everything shut down.  It was a about a half hour drive and Jack came along, just to get out of the house. He didn't even ind waiting in the car for  a while. We took the long way home and enjoyed the scenery and the sunshine.

I am not buying fabric except to use for something for which I am currently working. My stash is down to a very few things that interest me and a ton of scraps and left overs. I decided that I needed light, bright and pretty fabrics for the Framed 9 Patch that is in progress. I found 10 fat quarter prints that would work and one more print half yard and a half yard of a peachy pink solid. I spotted a fabric that has 8 different strips that are just shy of 5 inches wide; a yard of that came home with me too.

These are 8 of the ten prints and the peachy solid. I found 2 more of the prints after I photographed these. I set something on top of it and I then was puzzled about why I thought I had 10 prints. One of the other prints has a light blue background and the other has a white background with multicolored flowers in a larger scale. The pattern is more dense  so the white background is not so evident. I was drawn to the light and airy floral prints and I already had some blocks made with that kind of print. I was concerned that maybe I should have given more thought to what I needed. I have some striped and geometric prints that will round out the mix of scale and density of the prints in the overall look. I think it is going to be OK, if not  I  will figure it out.                                                                              

  

This is the fabric with 8 prints that are 
in strips along the length of the fabric I ought i yard.  I don't plan to use the second from the left in the top photo. It is too anemic looking compared to all the other fabrics that i'm using.

I thought I would not use the two fabrics on the right and left ends but I think they will work out well. I am going to keep the two gray blocks with bright multicolored raindrops (that I showed in my last post)  in the quilt. 

I am not so happy with the changes in Blogger. I don't automatically resist change but when the changes involve taking away something that works and the replacement gives me problems without providing instruction..................... well! It just makes me cranky.😡

Finally, A Few More Blocks

I finally got around to making a few more Framed 9 Patch blocks. I've had these cut for a long time but never seemed to have time to get around to sewing them.

 These are the six blocks I finished today. When I have enough fabric I  make 2 blocks with the same prints and different solids.  I want to use fabrics that give the overall look of the whole quilt light and bright. Though the blocks on the right are darker the fabric is pretty and bright.

These are all of the blocks I have so far.
There are 2 blocks from each print except for the top left and the center block in the second row down. I have enough fabric for another blue one but not the other.

















The 2 gray blocks might be too dark but The raindrops are colorful and bright. The fabric is gray with no brown tones but I can't get a photo to show the true color. I will see how they look after I make more blocks.

I am not at all happy with my camera or Picassa or my Windows photo program.



 I am getting cranky from staying home and not having any social interaction with anyone except for a few short visits from family, either through the window or doorway or a few minutes outside.  When your family members are in the health care field they tend to stay away from those of us who are vulnerable. I had a chance to see the one year old and one of the 2 1/2 year old great grand kids for a short visit out in the front yard.  They change so fast a that age, if you don't see them for a while you miss all the fun of the milestones. We also got to attend a Zoom birthday party for the one year old.
I speak to my neighbor coming and going.  She asks if I need anything when she goes to the store and  I ask if she needs anything when I place a grocery order.
I spent one whole 8 hour day on the phone with a Microsoft suppport person. fixing my computer after an up date wiped out everything in Microsoft Windows. She was very nice and very patient and even did not put me on hold but the left the line open when I asked not to have to listen to the music. Everything was back and working; although it took a few more hours after her day was finished for the repair to download and finish. She called me back the next day to make sure everything was working again. Any other time I would have been frustrated with it all but it gave me something purposeful to do.

 I am really surprised that I am so busy all the time that I have little time for sewing. I am not doing any more laundry or cleaning or cooking than I used to. We don't go to the park to walk because the buildings aren't open. Until recently, the weather hasn't been nice enough for Jack to sit outside on a bench while I walk. If it is nice we try to get out for a drive to see the trees leafing out and flowers blooming. I really don't enjoy driving but Jack needs to get out  even more than I do. I am thankful that I have been able to drive again.
I  am reading more than I use to, although I have always been and avid reader. I am really thankful for my Kindle. I know I spend more time on the computer, I spend more time placing orders than I did shopping in the store. Navigating the grocery store website is frustrating; It seems to change every few days. When I get frustrated with everything I tend to play solitaire and do jigsaw puzzles and crossword puzzles online. I guess that beats crumbling at Jack about all the little picky things that don't matter. I should have more time to post on the blog but when I don't have anything  to write about I don't bother.

 We are fortunate that our church services have been available online for a few years and they have even stepped up some other things online as well during these times.

I don't see much change for us in the near future we are not ready to go out around a crowd of people. I will continue making masks but since I am caught up with requests I will make a few at a time alternating with making blocks. I may even finish the F9P quilt.

A Few Blocks

I finished the blocks I had stacked up on paper plates and put them up on the wall with the blocks that were left over from the first Framed 9 patch.
The 8 blocks on the left are the left overs. They will stay left over again as they are too dark for the way I want the next quilt to look. The second block down in the middle row is the one I found with the leftovers that needed only one strip and I thought I would use it but after looking at it on the wall for a while I decided it should stay with the left overs.









I exchanged it for the bottom lock in the second row from the left and I like this line up better.




















I am setting everything aside for now and getting ready to make masks. I gave my daughter a lot of fabric and supplies to make masks but I wasn't going to make them myself.  I didn't have elastic and anything for the bendable strip for the nose.  I wasn't so sure that homemade masks were really going to be used.  I have changed my mind and believe that it really is a worthwhile undertaking. I have been looking at patterns and instructions online and I see that I have what I need and I believe I know people who will use them.

I am not watching the all day news, just 6 and 11 o'clock.  In general I have an optimistic outlook and depression has never been a problem but I am realistic.  It certainly is a sobering thought that there are people I may never see again. I believe that all of us will lose someone that we know, someone dear to us or someone part of a large circle of more distant friends, maybe someone we don't know but see in passing and notice something about them and they become familiar to us.  I am not dwelling on the negative but looking for the joy in each socially distant encounter, each phone conversation and each text message  or email.  I am praying for my family and friends and the people I see out walking their dogs or riding their bikes.  I thank God for all the first responders and the health care  workers, for the many people behind the scenes that contribute to the fight again this virus to keep things working and I pray for their safety.

Keeping Busy

I have been keeping busy. One of the things about slowing down with age is that it takes longer to do things and you don't have so much time to be bored.

My pile of things that are being passed on doesn't look so large but those three boxes will all come back empty. the big gray shopping bag is 3/4 full and it is packed in there pretty full.


I  stopped sorting things because what I am purging is not going anywhere soon. The mess  made with sorting was overwhelming so I put some things away and moved things around so I will be able to pickup sorting where I left off without going back to square one.  I can also work at my desk without losing things in the mess.

I can do some sewing, nothing big but a little here and there.

When I started putting things away,  I found a few things to sew and cut that would probable get lost in the shuffle otherwise.
This framed 9 patch  only needed one 8 inch strip sewed on the side. It would have gone into the quilt I finished but I needed that 8 inch strip and I couldn't find it at the time.











I had some 2 inch print and solid strips put aside for Framed nine patch blocks. They were ready to cut into the lengths  needed. I cut them and put each block on a paper plate  and they are ready to sew. I copied this idea from Julie Sefton who certainly has to be well organized to accomplish all that she does.

I may cut for some more blocks and stack up a bunch  of plates and then I can work on a few at a time. I never seem to have big chunks of time anymore so that might work out well.



Jack has finished his radiation treatments and everything went well. He did not experience any of the side effects he might have. We were concerned about going down to Cleveland Clinic during this time but after the first day I felt much less concern. Everyone entering the building was screened, only one person was allowed to go with the patient, anyone with a cough was given a mask if they did not already have one, our temperatures were taken and we were given a wrist band to show we had been screened. The Taussig Cancer center is a new building and you enter and go straight to the elevator and down one floor directly to the check in area for radiation, almost no contact before the sign in. There is a very short wait time and the waiting room was large so everyone waiting was spread out.  Many of the patients coming there are  immunocompromised so they are really set up for that already. Nevertheless, we are relieved that we are finished with the every other day trips down there. In three months Jack will have a follow up CT scan. 

We have changed the way we do a lot of things because of covid 19. I had been going to the grocery store almost every day for fresh produce or bread or milk or vanilla ice cream. Then I cut back on my trips to the store and yesterday I placed a rather large order and had it delivered; it was here in about 2 hours. I didn't get everything I ordered as they were out of a few things and I got Natural peanut butter (with the oil on top) instead of Jif (jack's favorite snack with cinnamon raisin bread). I think my daughter likes that kind so she can have it. I can't say it saved me any time because it took me a long time to make out my order but maybe next time I will be faster. I think next time I will order on line and get curbside pick up. Although, I might get used to having my large orders delivered as it was pretty nice not to have to load it in the car and then unload it and bring it in. Of course I still have to put everything away.

Life goes on and we are doing all the things we are supposed to do. I am counting my blessings and there are many. I am grateful and thanking God for all the technology that makes life easier, for all the people who are in harms way working to keep us safe and cared for and supplied with necessities. I  am praying for them all. 

Cleaning Up and Cleaning Out

I have been busy since my last post but not the  progress is going slowly, especially cleaning out the things I am never going to use.  I have to move things out of my sewing room in order to make space to work and then at the end of the day I have to move them back in again so we can go to bed. However little by little the stack of things that have to go is growing. The more time I spend trying to make more usable space the more things I am willing to part with. I have a stack of quilting books that I look through from time to time but will never use again. There is fabric that I am never going to use, some old, some very recently purchased. Yesterday I went through 2 boxes of log cabin strips and thought about how labor intensive log cabin blocks can be and came to the conclusion  that I don't ever want to make another log can quilt. I think I am picking up steam as I go along. I have some other boxes on hard to reach shelves that I need to tackle. If they are up high they are hardly ever used and probably need to go. The box of "Odd Blocks" and my  "Parts Department" box is hard to let go  as is all of my scraps. After all, no one is going to appreciate them as much as I do. This is the kind of thinking that has led to my present dilemma.

In order to make letting go of things I went to the quilt shop last week and I bought 8 fat quarters. I wanted something new and pretty. I was hoping to find a bundle or a layer cake or Jellyroll but I settled for these 8 fat quarters.
I can't believe it was so hard to find something I wanted to buy.

One nice thing about the trip to the quilt shop; there was a group of several people sitting  in a half circle watching a demo. I knew every one of them and it had been many years since I had seen some of them.






Tomorrow, Jack will be starting 5 radiation treatments,every other day for 10 days, for lung cancer.  We are optimistic about the outcome but we have concern about going to the Cleveland Clinic at this time because of the Corona virus. I called and asked if they were recommending whether to postpone treatments and they said they were not. The woman I talked to listed all of the extra precautions they were taking, in addition to the the usual precautions. I felt reassured and we will be going ahead.
We are trusting Almighty God to see us through, what ever happens, Please keep us in your prayers.

As I was searching ..........

It seems as though I am always searching for something and as I am searching I find something I had forgotten.

I was searching for something in my box of odd blocks and I had a stack of large trays on top of the box. I'd  moved this stack a few time, thinking it was a stack of empty trays. This time I moved the top tray and found  3 trays of squares and rectangles that I had cut for blocks inspired by Donna Poster. Oh my! For a long time I have been cutting leftover scraps into specific sizes for future use. I was surprised to find these because I have a shoe box marked for "Donna Poster Blocks".These are sorted by shape and color so I must have been working on these and put them away, meaning t get back to them. I also came across seven 12 inch blocks that were not with these parts but hanging on a hanger in my sewing room closet. This block has been a "go to"  block for scrap quilts. With so much of the work done I should get back to it.

 I found this in a box labeled "components ans pieces and parts and .  This was from a Colorwash 9 Patch project that never got off the ground.   I thought about what I might do with it , other than cut it up for the dog bed bag.



















I moved some pieces and then cut away the triangles along the side and I have a roof for a house like the one below.

I was reminded of this house that I made a few years ago. It has a piece of foam core in the peak and a hanging loop so it can hang on the wall; I had just given it away last week. You can read about it here if you are interested.

I have some ideas about what to do for the house; I should get back to this.

 I found this hanging in the closet. These blocks are the last of the Quail's Nest block the Friendship group made for me a few years ago when It was my turn to receive blocks. I made another quilt with the rest of the blocks and these weren't a good fit color wise. I was using it for a demo on quilting in sections and had two sections put together and I added the other section. I want to make it just a little bit larger for a table topper. I Have been making piano key borders and I think they will make the perfect border to pull it all together.







This collage has the piano key border sections from the Framed 9 Patch, a quilt the is on the foot of my bed, and the "self portrait" that is on my sewing room wall.  I like the way the borders work to make the whole quilt cohesive on each of these. I have that mountain of scraps so I really should get back to this.

So......... there is a lot to do think about; I will have to see what I really want to do and what I might want to pass on to someone else. What takes precedence over working on anything is the task of  sorting out and purging all of the things in my sewing room that I am never going to use again.  I am working on my bookcase today. 

Finished!

The Framed 9 Patch quilt is officially finished.  The binding is on, turned to the back and stitched.

 This is the best photo I can get of the whole quilt. It is on my king size bed and completely covers the top. It will not be used on this bed  is only here for the photo. I can't get far enough away to get a better photo and I can't put it up on my design wall because it is too heavy for me to do it by getting up on a ladder.

This is one section of the piano key border, which was sewn to the inner border and quilted before adding to the quilt. There is stitching in the ditch along the seam where it was added.











This is that section on the back showing the machine stitched edge of the backing.  I had turned the edges under and pressed them and fused them and then stitched in the ditch from the front. I was really happy that all my machine stitched edges on the back  turned out so well.

These are 2 of the corners with Double Four Patch Blocks.  I stitched on the front, in the ditch along the binding.

This is one of those corners on the back. I caught the binding on the back along the whole quilt and all my corner miters came out well.
However, the width of the binding on the back was not even all over. The weight of the quilt at times dragged the quilt and made it hard to manage a uniform 1/4 inch seam. I did examine the edges and fixed some ares before turning the binding to the back but I missed some places and because I had already started to fuse some of the binding down, there was not going back. It is good from the front and because I use double fold binding it is not going to come loose. It probably would not pass inspection from the judges or the quilt police but I'm happy.

This is the last quilt this large I will ever make. Even quilting it in sections, it became really hard to manage after I added the third section.  I don't see how I can make my sewing space different to make quilting something this large easier. I know I will be content to make smaller quilts and I intend to make another smaller Framed 9 Patch and I have other projects in mind also. After all, I have all those scraps to use.

Framed 9 Patch Debut

The Framed 9 Patch quilt made it's debut. Well, kind of, it is almost finished. The binding is sewed on but it still needs to be turned to the back and stitched down.  I was showing it anyway. We had family over yesterday and 2 of our youngest great grand children were here.  I had spread the quilt over our bed to show their moms and grandma. The 2 year old and her 10 month old cousin wanted to get up on the bed and have a look. They spent the next 15 minutes jumping and bouncing round on the bed. It was too much fun watching them laughing having the best time and no harm done to the quilt or the kids.

These are 3 photos of the fun, terrible photography I know; photos are all manipulated for clarity. However, they captures the spirit of the moment.

I think in this one he was just landing.

I hope to sew the binding down on the back today and then I will post a photo of the real finish.

February Bulletin Board.

Here it is Monday and I have not done one bit of sewing on the piano key borders. I think I was too optimistic to think I would get anything done this week.

I did clean up my desk and cutting table and vacuumed the floor and I was amazed that I can pick up straight pins with my long handled grasping tool. I could see there were a lot of pins and I didn't want to bend over to reach for them. Age is putting limits on what is comfortable for me to do.
While I was putting away the last of the Christmas things from my design walls and bulletin boards, I came across some of my quilted hearts and put them on one of the bulletin boards.
 I like to have some of the things out that usually reside in the closet,

The heart quilt is made with uneven Log Cabin blocks from the book "Log Cabin in the Round" by Barb Schaffield and Beth Vickery.  The little house square in the center was from Beth Shibley of Love Laugh Quilt blogspot. She sent then to everyone who participated in her Neighborhood Block Party", The quilt is 22 inches W and 18 inches H. The crazy pieced hearts are valentines  leftover  from the ones I sent to friends. The black and white square is a participant patch made by Lori one of the Basement Divas for the annual Jellyroll Race. The pink square doesn't really show up well in a photo; it was an experiment using red ink to draw a zen tangle inspired heart on a pink fabric. I layered it up and quilted it with red thread on the longer lines. The photo is enhanced but the color isn't really true. It does show up more "in person". Not every experiment turns out to be something to pursue but some of them are worth keeping just  because.