Back-ordered part...More sewing

It is really quiet in the studio with me dead in the water for longarm quilting. The part is back ordered and will not be available until July 7th. Then, they have to mail it and my dealer has to come install it. Sigh...

I have filled my time tidying up the studio and pulling out stuff for the guild yard sale this month. I am finding stuff that I forgot I had. Orphan blocks, some dull fabrics and kits I bought. Every day I have sewn something. I'm getting quite a line of tops to be quilted on my rack. Here is what I have been up to.

Not very pretty, but used up 3 yards of fabric! The green and brown fabrics are left over from the Wisconsin quilt. The acorn fabric was languishing in my stash. The basket weave fabric is one of my favorites and compleats the look.

Here's a look at the fabrics.

This is from a 10 inch squares bundle. The fabrics were a booger to work with because they are all loose weave. I did a whole lot of trimming. In the end, I like the quilt, but will not make one from this type fabric any time soon.

I found 12 orphan blocks in a bag from a project I made years ago. Put together, they were too small for a kid's quilt, but with a nice border they look fine and the size is good.

Another 10 inch squares quilt. This one was an autumnal mix and made a pretty quilt. The border is from my stash.

This is the block; two half square triangles and two squares. Easy-peasy!

Yesterday, I put this one together. There were a lot of tiny bits to cut out to make the bear's face and the birch tree bark, but worth it in the end. I need to add the leaves to the branch and two borders to finish it off. I like this! It may hang in my guest bathroom when I get it quilted.

Mr W has been busy in the yard, tweaking his garden plans and dead-heading flowering plants. Yard work keeps him happy, and gives me some alone time for sewing. It works out fine for both of us.

A dew covered spider web in the morning sun.

My porch pots are thriving.

I like the color combination in these wave petunias.

The day Lillies are putting on a show.

The juxtaposition of the Japanese maple and the hosta is wonderful.

Green variegated costa and blue leaf hosta are pretty together.

One of the allamanda flowers snuck out the back of the trellis.

Bee balm for the bees and hummingbirds.

A lone kadydid looks lost on the sidewalk.

I'll leave you with the newest member of our backyard menagerie. A one day old fawn and her mother enjoying a stroll in there back yard.

Update...still no quilting

 No word from my Handi Quilter dealer about the part for the machine. Oh well, when I can't quilt, I can sew!

I finished the top with the Jacob's ladder blocks. It has turned out to be a good sized queen and will make a splash on a bed that size. Despite the mistakes, I really like it. It is so cheerful!

The border fabric livened up the quilt even more!

It was fun to make and even better to finish!

The small inner border was just right for stopping the eye at the edge of the piecing.

Meanwhile, I made the next block in our evening guild's mystery project. I know the fabrics are starting to look like a circus, but you never know what you're going to get when pulling fabrics for a mystery. Hopefully, the finished product will be pretty.

As usual, one of the star points doesn't match up with the center of the star. The method for making the points was not what I am used to and didn't come out with the side triangles equal. I wasn't sure I had enough focus fabric to finish the quilt since we don't know what's next in the mystery, so I left it.

My brother and his wife went to the shops in the Wisconsin shop-hop last week, and he sent me this year's Wisconsin panel and fabrics. I was so excited to get them, I set to work designing and making a quilt.

Sigh...another quilt with a million half square triangles to trim.

Well worth the trimming marathon, the center of the quilt came together nicely.

I bought this fabric to use for the background and didn't get quite enough. I wanted a 3" border to enclose the patchwork, but only had one strip of the fabric left. I got the fabric in NC and sure didn't want to make that drive for 1/2 yard of goods, so I went back to the drawing board and came up with the alternative border.

All finished, with a piano keys border of the quilt's fabric scraps, as well as the end of the blue fabric. I like it! Now, if I had my machine fixed...

On the homefront, Penny finally got her Summer buzz-cut. She ran and jumped all over the yard, happy to be cooler and lighter! With this hot weather, it has to feel good.

One happy pup.

Penny lost her hair, and Grandson is losing his teeth! The tooth fairy has been busy at my son's house, and one little boy is cashing in! He can enjoy his new straw hole until the permanent tooth comes in!

 

Well, RATS!! The Handi Quilter won't go...

 I thought I would be in the clear with the Handi Quilter after getting the APQS out of the studio. Yesterday I quilted a QOV just fine, then loaded another one. I cleaned the bobbin area and changed the needle and started to baste the top. The needle went down, then lights flashed, the machine beeped wildly and a message appeared on top of a bunch of Windows screens. Yikes! The dealer isn't open on Monday, so today I called them. "You have to call Handi Quilter with this one," she said, after we tried all sorts of re-booting, unplugging and replugging and clicking buttons. Handi Quilter tech did all the same things again, and he decided he would send me a new computer part (sound familiar? Its deja vu!). My dealer will come out and fix things when the part comes. Sigh...no quilting for a few days.

First this...

then this exploded onto the screen accompanied by several beeps...

The final message.

Here is the QOV that flew under the radar and was quilted before the breakdown.

Panto: Star Streamers

Cool helicopter fabric for the back.

I finished the last three blocks for the Jacob's ladder quilt and sewed the top together today. Moral of the story? Don't use two machines to sew blocks for one quilt. Some corners don't match together like they should, but I am over it and left them alone. My new Janome does not make a 1/4 inch seam and despite my adjustments to the needle position, the blocks were just a hair too small. Tomorrow I'll add the blue inner border and the beautiful floral outer border. It won't be perfect, but not will be pretty!

Wonky but nice. I like it.

This is my border fabric. Gorgeous!

I need to put away the two giant duffles full of quilts from my talk and trunk show. The ladies loved the quilts and asked lots of questions. Then I need to clear off the Gammill table and rev up the machine for a couple of small projects for a lady who is in assisted living and can't get out enough to take them to a quilter. I'm happy to help her out. After all, it will keep my mind off the Handi Quilter elephant in the room!

Summer is in full swing, so I stay in the studio!

Wow! Everywhere in the country it has been beastly hot. Fortunately, here in the mountains it is a bit cooler, if you think 96 is cool... I don't enjoy hot weather, so I have been in the studio where it stays comfortable all year round! There is something to be said for having the studio underground. 

The highlight of my week was finishing the quilting on this beautiful customer quilt. It's the Tula Pink butterfly pattern. She said the directions were not the best, and she had to keep stopping to cut more pieces. There wasn't the usual list of what to cut at the beginning of the instructions, and she had to squeeze to get some of the bits from her yardage. Great job, though!

Judy says she needed a brighter quilt on her bed for the summer months. This should satisfy that wish!

The panto is Flight of Fancy

Swirly patterned backing.

Yesterday, I quilted a couple of Quilts of Valor, trying to get caught up with the stack of them in the studio. I also made some more blocks for the Jacob's ladder project. At the Pigeon Forge show, I bought a new Janome 6700 at a bargain price. I took the big Bernina to Chattanooga for cleaning and service, and picked up the new machine to put to work while the Bernina is gone. First thing I did was sew a sample with the 1/4 inch foot. The machine makes a 3/8" seam, so I moved the needle to the right to accommodate this discrepancy. I also tried the 1/4 inch foot with the guide on the side. Same problem! Why would they make feet for quilting that aren't the correct size? The set of blocks I made are a teensy bit off, but I will continue to tweak the needle position to get it right.

The new machine has its own table, but I have it in the Koala for convenience.

QOV #1

Starry panto

Starry backing!

QOV #2.  I didn't see the pattern the blocks made until I saw it completed. A big starburst!

Panto: Simply Stars

Soft blue fabric for the backing.

All my blocks so far, in no kind of order. I just put them up so I can admire my work. ha ha

We had our evening guild on Thursday night and the show and tell was a real treat. Here are a few of my favorites from the members.

Lauren brought this darling Lego sewing machine she got from an online purchase.The foot pedal is dangling from the side.

Here is the Lego quilter, complete with her scissors!

Remember these blocks from the retreat? Robyn finished the quilt.

Rise made this Bonnie Hunter pattern over two retreats. Too many little pieces for me, but it really is amazing.

This Nascar tee shirt quilt is very cool with its checkered flag bits scattered around it.

Bonnie made this lovely sampler. All paper pieced! Wow. Each block has the name of a place she has been embroidered below it.

I was surprised with a package in the mail from my grandson. He painted a picture of the sunflower field we visited on my last trip to Wisconsin. It now has a place of honor below our ceramic frog in the great room.

He's getting to be such a big boy...I wish I could see him in person.

Sunflowers and frog.

A nice addition to our eclectic decor.

I'll leave you with Mr Wazoo's latest garden accomplishments. He scattered wildflower seeds in a bare spot in the back garden, and they have started to come up and bloom. More to come, I'm sure. He also replanted the pot outside the back door where the pansies gave up the ghost in the hot weather.

I'm off to Dahlonega with the girls today to see what's happening at the Common Thread shop. They are having their 'Stuff the Bag' promotion, and my small purple bag is ready! I really don't  plan to get anything, but it is a nice sale and the size of the bag limits how crazy you can get. We'll see what happens...

All of this area has the wildflower seeds. Some dainty white flowers have opened as well as a few orange ones.

This plant is about to burst with dark red blooms. Sweet potato vines will cascade over the edge in time.