Prototype

Since I plan on making a bunch of these, I figured I should make one in its entirety before going hog wild. I see some things I would change already. Colors I would or would not use next time.

I put a piece of muslin behind my snowman (which is made from batting). You can still see the green through it slightly, but it's much better than without it.

I am going to use black seed beads for the eyes and mouth. The knots are too big for my liking.

A friend of our family called earlier and asked if he could take our whole family out for supper. We just got back, but now we're going to their house for some games and fellowship.

Happy new year!

~Joan

Something New

One of my blog readers is sending bricks for my Texas Braid. They won't be here for a few days, so in the mean time I am giving that project a rest.

My sister made one of these doorknob hangers for her MIL a while back. I think it is adorable. I'm going to start piecing one today. Then, if all goes well, I will be making these for Christmas presents for NEXT YEAR. Ho ho ho, ha ha ha, hee hee hee...imagine ME making presents ahead of time!!

Off to begin selecting fabric for the first. Without the hanger, it is about 4" x 10".

~Joan

View of All of the Texas Braid So Far

But first, a picture of my morning view. This is the YMCA I frequent nearly every morning (except Sundays...yeah!!). I am always glad I went...later. This AM I increased the weight on 3 of my machines. It's amazing how much of a difference five pounds makes.

Once school was underway, I had two of my boys hold up the Texas Braid so you could get a peek at the whole thing. It's 98" long, so about 1/3 of it is draped over the back of the design wall in all my other pictures. I like how the occasional really dark or light brick makes the top seem to sparkle, but the red cornerstones down the middle of each row gives the eye a place to rest.

Calling to order a Handi-Quilter now. Yippee!!

~Joan

Promised Kathie a Picture

I was reading Kathie's blog and saw that she just pieced a little snowball quilt. Hers is blue with white snowballs and so cute. I am nearly finished handquilting this little runner. I started making the blocks because I was going to make a sampler quilt, then I decided I should not take on another big time-consuming project. Aren't you proud of me? So I used the blocks to make this runner instead.

Nearly finished with the quilting. I did a double diagonal line (1/4" apart) through the center of each snowball. One line would have taken half the time, but it is so small! This has been my YMCA project for about a week. I work on it after I finish my circuit on the exercise machines and am waiting for the others in my family. No problem for me to wait! More hand quilting time.

~Joan

11/16 of The Way There, and Then Some

Here is my Texas Braid, 11 rows completely finished, and a couple partial rows in the works. This has been fun to work on. I highly recommend Bonnie Hunter's book, Adventures with Leaders and Enders. This has been one of the easiest quilts to make ever. Not one pin used in the construction, which proves that careful cutting and proper pressing ensure a nice, flat quilt top. Tomorrow I am going to machine baste around the top and bottom edges of the quilt. Every edge is bias!

In the pic above, the quilt hangs down behind my design wall about another 48" or so.

Will likely be ordering a Handi-Quilter tomorrow!! Good times!

~Joan

They've Driven Off Into The Sunset

***Both of the following pictures were taken by my daughter, Susanna. Many apologies for not giving her credit earlier.***

Actually--make that sunRISE!!


Here is the scene on Steve's car dashboard. These are their beloved Chick-fil-A mini moos, Timmy and Roxie. Susanna and Emily will be in FL for about a week. We had a grand visit while Steve was here.


Above is a picture we took just moments before they left. The travelers are in their traveling clothes (a la Sound of Music) on the bench in the front. Some of us (ahem) had just been awakened moments before the picture, but at least we're all present!!

Hoping to get back to "normal" soon.

~Joan

Eight Rows Strong...Halfway There

Half finished! I cut up a bunch of scraps instead of sewing more this afternoon. It was difficult to do what I should instead of what I wanted to do, but I'm glad now. I cut up small pieces that had to be pressed heavily first, so it was time-consuming, but they are gone for good from my scrap box now. I plan to just cut some more tomorrow if I have time.

Our Christmas Eve and Day holiday will be laid back, so there won't be a lot to do, but I want to spend time with my family while we're off school and my wonderful husband is off work.

There is a possibility that I might be getting a Handi-Quilter machine soon. I can barely stand to think about it for the excitement!! Calm down, calm down, calm down...Some have asked how the sign language interpreting went last night. I was pleasantly pleased with the ease in which it "came back". It's been a couple years since I've signed anything to a deaf person (I occasionally sign to a child across the building at church or whatever). My husband said he was proud of me, so that's all I needed to hear. The deaf man was very pleasant and expresssive. He said I was a wonderful interpreter, so I was happy.

The above picture is the sign for interpreter, by the way.

Off to practice a song my family is singing for Sunday.

~Joan