Have been keeping my promise about working on something every night before I even try to go to sleep. I had thought one one main thing but have bounced around between 2 projects. The large lab has taken to sleeping on the floor next to my bed and once I get ready for that, I have to decide to just how much I should bother him. I have some handwork close so I have been doing  that in bed when he is in the way of my exiting that area. Either way I am progressing and today found a yard of green/brown fabric I just may use for the binding of the tree/bear quilt. I have found that raising my ironing board a bit is a good heighth to lay the big one on and baste and pin, etc. The other plus is that I don't have to iron for a while longer!

Sad Tale

A White Fable

Once upon a time, there was a young English lord named Prince. He was a bit of a wastrel, and was in serious danger of losing the family fortune. While traveling in America, he noticed a White sewing machine. "This machine," he said to himself, "is magnificently designed and made, and very attractive. I believe that if I were to import these to England in large numbers, I could market them at a tidy profit."
He decided that he wanted to be in complete control of his operation, which he viewed on a very large scale. He contracted with the White company for a tremendous number of machines, and purchased his own fleet of ships to transport them to England. He even purchased land and built seven new docks in a port on the English Channel.
It is quite possible that Lord Prince's plans might have worked. Unfortunately, the ships with the first load of machines ran into a terrible storm just as they were making port, and were thrown up on the steep shores at a spot ever after known as "the White Cliffs of Dover". All were lost. All of the unfortunate entrepreneur's money had been invested in the scheme, and he lost almost everything... even the family estate. All that was left was the land and docks, and thereafter, he was known as the Prince with no Whites and the seven Wharves.

Mary Ellen's Quilt Party

 This is a full program of the Waltons...47 minutes. Once again John Boy saves the day!
Somewhere in my inventory of sheet music is the song at the end I'll be seeing Nelly Home. I was surprised to hear it but was aware of it for a while now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XokftGVz-9U



Johnny Cash's version of that song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fwc3Id-7bY

A Major Challenge

There are actually people who can turn this into a quilt but certainly not me. I do have a paper pieced deer pattern almost in the same pose that could be doable for a "kind of " like w/applique Santa for winter soltice effect. They resemble stick people only deers...haha. Maybe if I finish 6 or 8 quilts first, I can think about it. My goal these days is to do some hand quilting for an hour (or section) every night before I even try to sleep. It seems to power down my brain and I actually accomplish something instead of tossing and turning so that hour has something to show for non sleep. I am working on a large one I have been avoiding after I ripped half of it out. Should have done that 2 years ago. Anyway, I love the magazine cover ..80 years old and the color is fantastic!

And Around we go...

This seemed simple enough but it actually was impossible to get each strip the same size when it was all stitched up. I had to do some nipping and tucking and I think I ended up adding a couple of extra ones so it would lay flat. I haven't decided what to do for the center yet but I am thinking of a black background with a very delicate small doily I have
somewhere. It matches nothing and I have nowhere to put it but I guess I will figure out something when and if that time ever comes..haha. Story of my life!

Halloween Witches

Witches Scamper in the Leaves! Really cute panel that I failed to buy the companion for when I had the chance and couldn't get any when I actually started putting it together. As usual, I had plans to do a lot more work on it. Since is is a panel, I had already saved a lot of time so I was going to try to do some free motion quilting on the open spaces in the center. Plus it needed to be a little bigger. But, as you see, that didn't happen. I ended up tying discreetly with matching thread and amongst the leaves, bats and black figures. Sometimes it gets down to just using a piece that is just the right size for the backing. I pulled the edges around to the front and it worked out perfect. It actually turned out good except for my guilt of not doing more. I keep hearing "finished" is the key word and since I will have to move again, it makes more sense to try to pack up things with no pins sticking out. Also, it's good to work on something easy and successful without a lot of drama.

Bears and Trees.

TREES & BEARS
have been taken off the back burner! I finally figured out that the reason I keep ignoring it  is because I will never be happy with the too small stitches that make it pucker. So, I ripped a bunch of it out and am doing it again. I think it is just harder than I think to try to
maneuver the bulk of it thru my machine...don't why I have polyester batting in it. Cotton is so much better to work with. I often wonder where my brain has been sometimes. Anyway, I am back to finish mode on it before I pack it away again. I love the pattern and had envisioned making making some smaller single trees for a Christmas hanging. I may have even cut some of the strips so we'll see where I am at at Christmas.