On to the borders! Finally.

 I finished the last mouse and spacer last night. It is time to move onto the borders. This one started on the frame, so the bottom borders are done. I made a plastic template of the butterfly and 'triangle of cheese' and then just used chalk to mark them and did a line to connect them freehand. The white is just outlining the edges. 

I decided to switch gears and did 4 of these prepped hexagons in grey. These are making the hexagon QAYG bigger.

The girl complains my spot is messy. So I'll try and tackle that today and bring back my little container to have on the floor by my chair to hold things. I also need to prep more hexagons. I have 8 ready to be folded and clipped. I use paper clips! I think I can move the blue hand quilting thread back to the sewing room as I will be using the cream for the borders.

It has been a lazy morning for me after walking the dog and checking on the chickens. A nice hour to just play on the internet checking things out. Time to shower and get dressed so we can go visit my FIL. Then I hope to do a bunch of prepping in the sewing room. Something about parts for 17 potato chip blocks and a purple Arkansas Traveller block.

 

FALL 2024 UFO Club

 Let's see how the Summer 2024 UFO Club quarter finished shall we? The goal was to have 3 finishes. 

The reality - 1 finish! The Christmas Quilt got finished. 

The list of UFO's - The same as last time minus the finish.

 1.) I know I have at least one more cut somewhere to fill that open spot for a 7x6 setting. *** found the parts in a baggie!  These are hand pieced.... and might need a little fixing along the way on some of those middle joins. Just ordered some kona solids for an alternate block for these to become a quilt. From Inklingo lemoyne stars. Might need to order more since I am using that bolt for a few things!

 2.) Hexagon flowers on a black background. These are a stack of blocks I hand pieced a few years ago then hand appliqued to the black background a couple years after that!  I also have the black hexagons I cut out of the block when I appliqued them on.... those might come out to play this quarter! Unfinished block size is 6.5 inches. Right now with 12x14 setting it will be 72x84. If I add a border - 5 inches all around it would be 82x94. Fit a double bed. Have a pretty butterfly border that needs to get added. 

3.) Midget Applique quilt from Sentimental Stitches. I need to add more flowers and leaves and the vines... and the bottom yellow border. This one is completely hand pieced.

4.) Ella Maria Deacon blocks - make a few more and finish them off into a top. I believe I was making these by hand. Patterns from Sentimental Stitches.

Sewn into a top. I need to measure and see if it is happy with it's size or now. All my quilts seem to have a mind of their own!

5.) triangle pyramids. started June 2024.

6.) 2024 RSC - Arkansas Traveller Quilt.

This needs one more block and then setting triangles.  68x68 for a finish I think.

7.) Midget block collection - I started these in Vermont in 2010! I have a light blue for sashing.

8.) Birds in the Air block collection

9.) Potato chip blocks - started april 5 and boy are they addicting! As of Oct 1 - it is a 5x5 setting... but the quilt thinks it needs 17 more blocks to make it a 6x7 setting. Stubborn quilt.

Finished 11/26.

10.) Erin's Butterfly - I made the wings in 2021.  Need to add one more set of wings... thinking 9 is a nice number?

11.) Full Stop Sew along.... 2021 . Re thinking this one - might eliminate some of the white space and make a few more of some.....???? Or add some Alphabet or numbers to the mix?

This became the backing with extra blocks for the Potato Chip Block. Finished 11/26.

12.) mostly cut out and some 9 patches are made. Hehe... from the first quilting book I had and made a quilt from. Introduction to Quilting 101 - the basics by Sharon Hultgren. I think this was Sunrise Surprise! The four patch from this book is at my Mom's hanging over a crib still!

13.) I forgot I had this. It is a cute birdhouse wall hanging but is foundation pieced, which I dislike. Maybe I can deal with it enough to get this done? Or rework it?

14,) This is a kit I purchased mid-90s - butterfly's. I think all the parts are there and I did start arranging them.

15.) Quilters Patch. A sew along that I completely did not meet my goals on in 2022. One block is done.

16.) Scrappy Flowering Snowball - I started cutting these with my accuquilt from scraps with the color of the month in 2020. I think it is time to start stitching them together. I see I need some orange added and purple and lots of lights!

 

17.) Bittersweet Briar - pattern in Kim Deihl's book and kit of fabric.

18) Brimfield Awakening EPP. I did start this and have the first fabric thread basted in purple!

19.) Bonnie Hunter Mystery - On Ringo Lake - maybe step #2?

20) Bonnie Hunter Mystery - Grassy Creek (2020) Think I am on step #4.

21.) 30's log cabin tulip quilt.

Quilt Tops: 

22) Cat and mouse is Finished Nov 1 2024.

23) Vermont Quilt Festival Booth Hop from either 2008 or 2009.  it is 71x71.

24.) Trip around the World - 2 inches hand pieced. 60x60. Machine quilted 11/7. Finished 11/10.

25.) Y2K Joann's BOM - quilt top

26.) 1857 Quilt Along Top

27.) Spring Hexagons - not sure if this wants to be bigger or not.... 

28.) Triple Irish Chain - green. 80x80 I think. I did find both fabrics extra with it... Might need a green or cream border first or both... Made in the early 2000's. circular feathers in open spaces.

29.) Harmony - hand pieced project started March 2021-

2/5/24 it is a top!

30.) Adding these blocks because you never know what will get worked on! I think it's a 6.5 inch cut center and 2.5 inch strips. Finishes 10 inches. 

Progress

 I've been making progress on hand quilting the cat and mouse quilt. I just need to outline this mouse in white, do two of the spacers in blue and one last mouse to go! The three borders will be a nice change of pace. 

Greg is at his Dad's house for day 3 of the tree removal. They should finish today. Half of the 100 year old oak tree split and fell last Thursday night with Helene. Most of the fallen tree was in his neighbors yard but managed to damage nothing. It left the other half like this with tons of branches hanging over 2 fences into 2 of his neighbors lots in the back. It should be all taken care of later today. They did 5 truck loads of debris yesterday and will have quite a few more to do today. It was a very big tree with lots of branches. This was how they left it yesterday.

Aidan was to have his first Academic club meet today after school. Alas, it is cancelled since the person in charge of the questions for this area, lives in the Big Bend and has not been heard from since last Thursday. I do hope she is ok. On a positive note, Aidan was chosen as one of the 4 lead Varsity team players for the meet. Not bad for his first year. That photographic memory and his interest in lots of things really helped him out.

Both kids will be home at 'normal' time today. The dog will be so happy. He is pouting a bit with just me in the house yesterday and today. 

RSC

 I was playing catch up this month with my Arkansas Traveller blocks. I added 3 each of teal, blue and orange and then laid them out in a diagonal setting. I need one more to round it out. If I did my calculations correctly, with the setting triangles it will be around 68 inches square. 

The potato chip blocks are being stubborn and insist on being made into a bigger quilt. Sigh. I calculate I need to make 17 more 12 inch blocks to make it happy. I have unpicked the boo boo row but have yet to turn it around and sew it back on.  This is a photo of before the un picking. It thinks it wants to be a 6x7 row quilt and it is currently a 5x5. 

Don't you just hate ornery quilts?

I think I'm done for the day. I was up early to take the girl to school for a practice and then they headed off to a marching band competition in Melbourne, FL for the day. I continued on to my FIL's house and did some much needed cleaning while he is in rehab. The initial bit is done after 3-4 hours. I still need to tackle his bathroom and the fridge. We had a maid service come in a year ago, but he fires everyone! Thinks they are too expensive. He can't see well, so thinks it is clean. I'm glad I brought cleaning supplies with me, since there were not any there! After a few loads of laundry and a pick up of the magnolia cones on the front lawn, I'm done for the day. He had a huge water oak in his back yard split and half came down with the storm and landed into his neighbors yard. She called and got someone to come look at it this morning and they are handling that tree and removal and will take down the rest of the tree in the next day or two. Greg came over around noon when the crew arrived to work on the tree as he is the keeper of his Dad's money. His Dad asked us to handle this for him and they gave us a reasonable rate. 

 I'm going to sit with my feet up and add some stitches to my spool and mice while watching another Harry Potter movie. I was so sad to see that Dame Maggie Smith passed away yesterday. She was such a wonderful actress, and my favorites of her are as Professor McGonagle in the Harry Potter series, Wendy in the movie Hook, The Sister Act movies and of course in Downtown Abby. I need to go watch some of her earlier movies. She has had quite the career. 

Linking up with the RSC.

All good here

 Got some good winds but no damage at my place and only an inch of rain. Still need to check on my in-laws places today.

I hope all in the path are ok - looks like it moved through Georgia and is hitting the Carolina's. 

Table Scrap Challenge for September

I had plans and ideas. Alas, it is Thursday before the link up and none of those ideas materialized. I pivoted, and saw this scrap of leaf print on the shelf. My potholders are falling apart so I need some new ones. I remember I got a package of oven mitt batting in the Christmas Box from Missouri Quilt Company last December. I guess making some potholders while waiting on a hurricane it is!

The directions said to use 2 layers of this with a layer of cotton batting in between them with the heat part facing out. I think I layered it correctly. I forgot about the little loop handle on the first one, so that one got sewn on after I did the turn and finished the top stitching. I tucked it in between the 2 layers facing right sides together (well, I had it on the outside, stitched over it and remembered that is wrong. Unpicked it and tucked it into the two fabrics!) and got it stitched in before I turned it. These are just for our use, so they don't need to be perfect! The potholders we had were 9x7 so I cut the inside stuff to that size and did 9.5x7.5 for the fabric.  Dark leaves, check. Useful project, check.

I think I need to go bake something to test them out! I'll link up on Friday with Joy and the Table Scrap Challenge - assuming we have power and internet after the storm. We have yet to lose it in the 13 years we have been here but are prepared if we do. The kids are off school Thursday and Friday. I think I'm calling in being off on Friday as well, since I assume I'll have to visit both in-laws and assess and assist as needed with pick up at their places. So, a nice long weekend. Let's hope the power stays on... since the temps are still around 90 with humidity feels like 100. I do like my AC!

Hurricane Helene....

 Well, it would not be September without a hurricane in Florida. We are inland in SW Ocala, so other than a rain storm with some good winds..... not too much to worry about for my area. They just announced the schools are closed on Thursday and Friday is TBD. They do have a half day on Wednesday that was already on the books, so get out at 1PM for my kids. The latest is that we will start feeling the rain and winds Thursday afternoon to evening. It really depends on where it tracks. We are prepped for emergencies, so not too concerned. I'll fill up containers with water tomorrow afternoon and if it looks dicey, I'll make a carafe of coffee Thursday night. I do have a Coleman camp stove and little propane tanks though, so I could easily boil water for the French press if we lose power =). You know, priorities..... must have coffee in the morning! Here is a Florida map of the counties. I'm in the blue Marion county in the north center of the state (south west area). My FIL is in Lake county and my MIL is in Citrus county.

My FIL is doing better but is still in the hospital. They are just waiting for a bed to open up at the rehab facility. Greg pulled things inside at his house today. If it tracks to the east more... we'll go shut his hurricane shutters, but he is inland as well. 

A little progress has been made on the mice. I got another one completed and the spacer done as well. 

I spent a bunch of time in the car on Sunday. Greg and I went over to The Villages to visit his Dad in the hospital. Then when we got home, Emily wanted to bring the kids car to gas it up. Her first foray onto 'real' roads. I had her Dad go with her. She took the back neighborhood roads there then the 35 MPH road past the elementary school for a mile to the 7-11. She tried the busy SW49th 2 lane road by our house to get home. Once she did that...... I don't think I will be driving much now!

I was taking my car through the car wash and then to Aldi. She grabbed the keys and drove - even did the 6 lane divided highway for about a mile from the car wash to Aldi. Then took the 4 lane divided highway home. She also remembered she needed sneakers after dinner that night- so drove 15 minutes to Bealls, practiced parking in that empty parking lot and drove home on a 55 MPH road in the dusk/dark. When she decides to do something, she goes all in!

Meals.... the never ending battle. I had made stock with the chicken carcass last Thursday and needed to use it so made some Chicken Chili and corn bread on Sunday night. Monday, I pulled brats from the freezer and had those with potato salad. Today, I have pulled pork chops and will be making schnitzel, mashed potato and corn for dinner. I was thinking salmon/cod for dinner, but if it is raining then we'll do Berber chicken kievs. I have not thought further... but there is plenty in the fridge, freezer and pantry for meals.