Orca Bay -- Done!!!

I am so excited to finally have the top done for Orca Bay. Added extra borders to get the top up to a small queen size - 87 1/2" x 97".  Showed it to my hubby and his only reaction was to say, "lot of little pieces!"  You can tell he is extremely thrilled!! LOL  He is also a man of few words (most of the time).

Since the top is so full of threads, I will be spending some time clipping threads and getting it ready to go on the quilting machine. Yaaaaa!!!!  Done!!!!  No longer a turtle ---

This also completes my February 2012 UFO Challenge project.

Beth

Summer in March

The weather in Minnesota is awesome!!! We are having summer in March and it is expected that we will break high temperature records for five days in a row, if not more.

Last weekend my daughters, Brenda and Natalie, and Natalie's husband came home for my Birthday. It was such a nice weekend. They both have dogs and the dogs love coming to our place because we live in the country and they can go in and out as they please. Only issue is that they were getting a little muddy. Brenda brought me a beautiful flower arrangement that she had put together. Natalie gave me some more Silpada jewelry which I can wear without breaking out from. Hubby gave me cash. What more could a person wish for???  Flowers, jewelry, cash!!!  Grin------

My son, Byron, has been in St. Louis working on the lock and dam project and just arrived back home yesterday. He has been living with us for the last year and a half, so it was nice to have the house to ourselves for the last six weeks. He is going to take me up to the casino for the "Seafood Buffet" for my birthday. Another favorite item for me ----    Now I can add food to the list of good things!!  Does my family know me or what??? LOL

While Byron was in St. Louis he found a good deal on a Featherweight. It needs a little TLC but I think I will keep this one and sell my other Featherweight. I will get a lot more from that one then the one my son bought for me. I spent some time cleaning and oiling it. It sews with a nice stitch but needs to be cleaned some more and the gears and motor need to be lubed. The finish is in good condition (shows normal wear and tear) but nicked around the bottom, probably from in and out of the case. There is a case but it is in such bad condition that I will not be using it. No extra accessories with it either. It is a Centenial model but built in 1950 instead of 1951. Will have the husband of  the "featherweight lady" check it all over.

Still working on Orca Bay. Slow but sure!! I'm building all the rows right now and have put some together. Guess I am being a very slow speed turtle but it is nice to take my time and also take time to enjoy the nice weather.

Natalie and her husband live in West Fargo, ND. They have made an offer on a house in Fargo, ND. It has been a big decision. West Fargo has a diversion so that they do not have to worry about the spring flooding. The house in Fargo is in the flood plain, all though the house has not been flooded. If Fargo gets in gear and builds the diversion that is in planning, then they will not need to be concerned about flooding.  Until the diversion is built flooding will always be a concern. The Red River flows north and some years the ice is not out of the river up in Canada and that can cause the water to build up. They still have to counter offer and wait for what happens. What a process!!

If you have time this weekend, The Quilt Show with Ricky Timms and Alex Anderson will have free shows all weekend for International Quilting Weekend.  There should be something for everyone to watch. I know I will be sewing and watching shows since my computer is in the sewing room and I can wheel it right up next to me.

Time to get off the computer.  I need to remember to set the timer!  LOL

Beth

Quiet Week

It has been a quiet week. We did have a snowstorm on Tuesday evening into Wednesday. Quit snowing around noon with about 10 - 12 inches of snow. At least I no longer have to worry about snow days, I can sew in between road trips.  Hubby did take me out for Leap Year dinner.  The casino had the buffet for $2.29 each.  I sure can say he is the last of the big spenders!!!  LOL

I am still working on my Orca Bay between activities but did get a set of dish towels machine embroidered.  They are redwork designs but I did them in colors that I thought my daughter Natalie would like.

Guess I'll get back to Orca Bay and keep my nose to the grindstone.  I want to finish the top in the next few days so I can start on the March UFO.  The March UFO number selected is number 8 which is a blue and yellow log cabin. Also, I downloaded two audiobooks from the Library to listen to. I do adore a good mystery.

Beth

Off to Retreat We Go

Well, I have been packing since last night!! I still am not sure I have enough "stuff" and that I have everything that I need. This retreat is a machine embroidery retreat. That means two sets of projects - one set for machine embroidery and one set for quilting. Of course two machines are going with me. I will be bringing my Bernina 640 with embroidery module (Queen Bess the Bernina 830 has to stay home) and my little Featherweight.  Since this retreat is only 30 miles away, I can always zip home to get something or have hubby bring it to me. The retreat is at the Mille Lacs Grand Casino, so he will not mind making the trip. LOL  Now that I have taken a picture, it doesn't look like much in the picture but I still have more to add. No, I am not taking the whole sewing room with my like my DH thinks!!

For the OB turtles, I am still making progress but I am not taking Orca Bay with me to work on at retreat. When I get to layout stage I like to work at home. Instead I am starting Blue Ridge Beauty from "Leaders and Enders" by Bonnie K Hunter. Blue Ridge Beauty is a super simple pattern with just a lot of sewing that will be a great project for being able to socialize, eat, socialize, sew, and socialize. 

Well, better finish packing and getting ready. The computer needs to be packed up yet.

Beth

Orca Bay Progress

Well, it is a slow process, but I am progressing with OB little by little. Glad I made the UFO Challenge committment because it would be so easy to start something that is a little less intense.

Over the years of making easy, fast to piece quilts, I had forgotten to just enjoy the process of making a quilt that takes a little time and effort. It will be well worth it when I get it done!!!!

Even though most of the fabrics I used are from my stash (only bought two FQ's of black with white and three FQ's of white with black), no dent was made in the stash. The stash must just keep having babies while I am not looking.

Beth

Quiet Week in the Sewing Room

Had one of those weeks where I was busy all week but not a lot accomplished in the sewing room. On Tuesday I went bowling (bowled much better then the last two weeks) and after bowling I attended Machine Embroidery Club. Since we will be having a retreat February 20 - 24 for machine embroidery, I wanted to make sure to attend so I could see the projects we will be working on. On Thursday, I attended Featherweight Club (must have a Featherweight machine to attend) and sewed on a binding. On Friday, my Hubby wanted me to go bumming with him. Guess I can't sew all the time and neglect the poor boy!!!   LOL

I did do some sewing on the 38 cancer bags that I have in progress. Have to admit after I do a certain amount on them, I get bored and want to sew on something else. The cancer bags are made out of a variety of fabrics, but decorator weight is the nicest for these bags.

 I took a break from sewing the Cancer Bags and started working on Orca Bay quilt again.  Almost done with all of Part 4, which is red string piecing. I have been cutting up one of the physcian directories that the insurance company sends out each year. The pages are wonderful for the foundation piecing. Tears off very easy. Great way to recycle!!

After the string piecing is done, the block gets squared up.

 I then tear the paper off the back, spritz lightly with water and press flat. After pressing the front and back so it lies good and flat, the square is cut across the strips on the diagonal.

Now I lay my ruler (it is just like the companion angle ruler) on one piece, lining up the 3 1/2" line with the cut diagonal edge and trim off the excess fabric.

For Part 7, I added the pieces from Part 5 (black wing pieces) to the pieces from Part 4. I skipped Part 6 at this time (do have the pieces cut).

Are you confused yet??  Can you tell I tend to work in the order I want to work??  Oh, well!! Makes life interesting. I will get back to Part 6, but I wanted to check that the above units are going to be the correct size. I can understand why Bonnie sets out the steps to the mystery the way she does. She is only trying to keep us from guessing what it was going to look like.  I am so wanting to get this top done.  It also means another UFO quilt top done (some call these flimsies). Love the name "flimsies". 

Beth

Home Again in Hillman

It was fun to stay in Fargo and have a private retreat for a week, but it is sure nice to be home. I came home a day early because the driving conditions didn't sound very nice for Sunday.  Hubby was pleasantly surprised and happy when I arrived home a day early. My daughter and her husband arrived home from their trip on Saturday evening, so Chipper only had to be on his own for a few hours between when I left and they arrived home. Needless to say, he went absolutely wild when they walked in. Here is Chipper resting up for their arrival!!! 

On Friday, I went to "Fun & Finish" at Rae-Bon in Fargo. Arrived at 10:00 am and went home at 9:30 pm.  I did go home at 5:00 pm to feed, water, and let Chipper out. Met many nice ladies while I was there and, of course, there was a lot of good food to eat since everyone brought a dish to share. Since I was working on parts 3 & 5 of Orca Bay (which is a lot of repetitive sewing), it was great to have ladies to talk to and see what they were working on.  If I am at home, I listen to audio books when I have a lot repetitive sewing or piecing to do.

The shop is very nice. They carry a nice selection of fabrics, sewing machines, and machine embroidery supplies.  Two of the employees (Claudia on the left, and Kathy on the right) let me take their picture. I am still a little bashful about asking people to be in pictures for my blog, so that is all I have.

Claudia & Kathy

On Monday, friends are coming for open sewing. When I arrived home, most all the quilting supplies I had with me were just dumped into the quilt studio. Now I need to clean it up a little before anyone comes.

Since I have put pictures of my daughter Natalie's sewing/craft room on the blog, I will need to get my studio cleaned up and put some pictures on for you all to see.



Beth



More Fargo Stay

I am still in Fargo and Chipper (the sad dog) has cheered up and is back to his normal mischievous self. He likes to head over to the neighbors to see what they have put out for the birds. Right now he is resting after his hard day at the office!!  Yawn!

 The weather in Fargo is very cold right now and I am only too glad to stay inside and sew (and be on the computer).

In preparation for my stay, my daughter Natalie very nicely cleaned up her sewing craft room for me to use (now there is a picture record of what it looks like cleaned up --). Last year I did sew there, but this year I am doing a lot of cutting and her cutting surface is just too high for me. She is almost 6 inches taller than I am. The kitchen is working great because the counters are the right height for a cutting surface and the floor is laminate which is easier to clean up all the threads.

Here are some pictures of her sewing/craft room (her husband has a different name!!!  HeeHee). She has fixed it up cute and it is very functional for her. She likes to do mixed media, but she does do some quilting.

This is the view as you come down the hallway.

 

She found the desk for her sewing machine and the comfortable wing chair at rummage sales. The spice cabinet up on the wall, is a cabinet my mother made years ago.  The shelving units were originally taller units which Natalie cut down to her height for cutting/working surfaces and she put counter tops on the units.  While the guys are watching the football games, she can curl up in her chair and watch her own TV. It is a very nice cozy space to work in.

The rest of the pictures are working around the room clockwise. 



 

This shelf was from a place that does a lot of funky junk type of furnishing. It was originally meant to stand upright, but it works better to hang it side ways. That way it fit a lot of her stamps and supplies better. 

 

I am still working on my Orca Bay mystery quilt. Have completed all the cutting for parts 3 & 5. Skipped over part 4 for right now.  I wanted to have all the pieces cut and ready to go because I am going to a "Fun & Finsh" sewing at Rae-Bon quilt shop in Fargo on Friday. Did a sample of part 3 & 5. They have to fit together. 

Part 3 (only 350 of these units)



 

Part 5 (Adding wings to Part 3) - need 350 of the finished units.  They are all cut and ready to sew on tomorrow at the sew-in. 

 

This has been a productive week so far. Haven't had to worry about cleaning up after myself or cooking (weight loss TV dinners work just great).

Lunch on Wednesday with my daughter's sister-in-law was very enjoyable. We went to the Old Broadway in downtown Fargo. The food is great.

Received some text messages from my daughter and it sounds like the weather on the cruise has not been very enjoyable but they are having a good time with people they have met.

Well, back to sewing ----

Beth



Fargo Stay

I arrived in West Fargo, ND, on Friday evening and had a good visit with my daughter. We all went to bed early because they had to get up at 3:00 am and leave for the airport in Fargo by 4:00 am. They will be gone until next Saturday evening. Chipper, their dog that I am watching, started pouting as soon as the suitcases came into view on Friday evening and he has been one "sad dog" ever since. He does such a good job of being the sad doggy!!

Saturday was a lost day for sewing. Chipper cried after my daughter Natalie and her husband, Norm, left. That meant no sleep for me. I am such a sucker for the "sad Chipper". He really is adorable. On Sunday, I was finally able to get down to work. I have been sewing on part two of the Orca Bay Mystery quilt.  Good thing Norm can't see what his kitchen looks like right now. He "loves" to give his mother-in-law a tough time (all in good humor). Actually, I think I kept it pretty neat.

It is Monday morning and I am finishing the last of the string blocks. I have only six more of the blue string pieced blocks left to do. There are 72 of these for part two.

This afternoon I am going to see the movie "The Girl With The Dragon Tatoo."  I have read all three of the books in the series and seen the Swedish version of the movie. It will be nice to see this movie and compare.

It is so nice to be only a few minutes from all the amenities instead of a minimum of 20 miles to anything. I intend to take advantage of everything being so close by.

Beth