New puppy!

This is Miss Penny Lane, or Penny for short. She is an 8 week old Mini Goldendoodle. Mr Wazoo and I drove to North Carolina and picked her up, and then she was a perfect puppy on the ride home. We have watched many Youtube training videos to prepare, so (of course) the first thing she did was poop in her pen, walk through it, and then sit on it. First partial bath came next. She cried a bit when I put her back in the pen after playtime, but is laying down quietly now and watching a spot of TV. Good girl! I think she is going to be a fairly big dog, but we're okay with that. She was the largest of the litter and nobody else wanted her. We are suckers for such a sad story. Plus, we really wanted a puppy.

Back to work tomorrow. It should be interesting since I will also be watching Penny in the studio. We have a pen there, too. She goes to the vet in the afternoon, so we'll find out if she is healthy and ready for her new adventure here at Wazoo.

Penny's official portrait

The breeder's kennel

Resting on my lap on the way home

Awwww...

Wide awake and happy.

I hand fed her and she liked that.

All smiles

Eating supper in her new playpen. Later, she sat in the water dish and got everything wet!

Conked out after the play session.

I did some work yesterday trying to prepare for the chaos that will come tomorrow. I finished one customer panto quilt, almost finished the embroidered quilt, and finished the big repair!! Yippee!

I really admire the job done here. This is the customer's first quilt! She has a wonderful eye for color.

She requested a leafy pattern. This is Maple Wind in a variegated King Tut thread.

The backing fabric is perfect for the quilt.

I am working the sashing and borders on the custom quilt, and hope to finish it tomorrow. There is one more in the group, done in pastel colors.

The big repair is done! I washed it and had to replace almost all the fabrics in one of the blocks that disintegrated . I think the dirt was the only thing holding the fabric together!

Here is the block I replaced and re-quilted after washing.

The backing is this beautiful red. fabric. It was also in another quilt I repaired for the same customer! The quilter really used her scraps.

ha ha

 

Gray and raining ...again

 Today was that kind of spitting rain that messes up your glasses and makes your hair damp. I didn't work because Mr Wazoo and I had business out of town and spent a good part of it on the road. I did get some work done on the weekend, in fact, I worked really hard and feel good about where I am today despite the lost quilting hours.

A big finish!!

And here it is with the binding on.

The quilting is simple, but effective.

A look at the quilting on the back

Can't stop the flow!! Here is the next one, loaded up and the blocks about half quilted.

I'm on a roll!

This one is also finished. It is made from an ombre jelly roll. Very clever use of the colors!

Panto: Frolic. The customer chose variegated thread for the quilting.

The backing is fuchsia! 

Have you heard of Nightmare Before Christmas? I had heard of it, but never watched it. I took in a quilt made for the maker's daughter who is a huge fan of the movie.

The fabric looked familiar, but I couldn't place it. One of my kids knew the answer and said it was a cute movie. So, I went to the Disney channel and watched. A lot of singing and fun characters, but not for children!   At least not small children. Parts of it are really creepy and one of the characters is super scary.(Mr Boogedy)

Anyhoo, here is the quilt!

I used a variegated thread and the panto, Malachite. It fits the spooky vibe.

The backing is all sorts of plaid flannel! I love it!!

I wonder if you recognize the next quilt... it should look familiar to you.

The customer asks for no trim, so I apologize for the unfinished look. Recognize the table cloth? Yup, this is the fourth of seven.

Deja vu for the panto, as well. Bush Berries. This time in green variegated thread

The only switch is the backing. The others had the blue and yellow plates on the back. This one has a lovely sunflower print in Autumn colors. Nice!

I snuck in my quilt and got it quilted and bound, too.

Another charity quilt for the pile.

This next quilt has a retro vibe to it. I love the use of the new starry Grunge fabric with the green fabric that looks like fir tree fronds. I think it is a wonderful example of how modern fabrics can make traditional holiday quilts.

The pattern she chose is very simple and showcases the fabrics.

Very hard to make out the panto, Modern Christmas Trees, but it works well with the theme.

More Grunge on the back.

I'll be at work tomorrow, but Thursday Mr W and I will be on a secret mission. If everything turns out well, I'll have news on Saturday. Back to the repair, and a goodnight's sleep.

I have a lot in common with this gal.

The Old Quilt, by Arthur Langley

A Pause

I have paused my work to contemplate what has just happened. My hopes and prayers are that our country will again be the shining city on the hill, revered and respected by the world.

I am so proud to be a Democrat and an American. 

Waiting and working

No decision yet on the presidential race, but I haven't been watching...I've been working. Some people have asked why I took down my election day post. It was for my own safety.and mental well being A  couple of die hard Trump supporters wrote threatening and vile emails, voicing 45s lies and Fox News corruption theories in defense of their candidate. Ending with the hopes that my candidate, his running mate, and I would all die horrible deaths for our choice.These aren't  the run of the mill nut cases. These are quilters I have known and laughed with for years. Quilters!! I'm sorry for stirring the pot, but I am also an American citizen, entitled to my opinion. No more mention of it here. Thank you.

I worked on the embroidered quilt yesterday, and I am ready for the sashing and borders! Yippee!!

Rolled back to the beginning and ready for the last tour to the finish.

On the opposite side of the room, it is a race to the finish on this beauty! As you can see, 6:00 came and I quit for the day. Mr Wazoo was preparing a steak dinner, and I'm never late for steak.

Customers came and went all day, filling up the rack to the point where I had to leave a couple of them in their bags until there is a space open to hang them up! Yikes!! I figure if I just move along at the same pace I am at right now, everything will get done and Christmas will be full of happy recipients of home made quilts.

Customer batting and a couple of quilts are stored in bags beneath the rack.

What an awesome display of color and talent!

Oh dear...

Another very busy day!

 I hit the ground running this morning before ten o'clock because I knew customers were coming and I still had quilts piling up on the rack. This isn't a new thing. Every year about this time the Christmas gift quilts start coming in and I speed up the process by quilting longer each day and working seven days a week on only customer quilts. I have 26 pantograph quilts in the line right now, and at two a day (if I'm lucky) I figure I am a bit over two weeks out on my turn around time. Closer to Christmas, I tell people not to count on getting their quilt before the 25th, but usually get the job done. Everyone is happy. I am being extraordinarily picky with any custom work I take on. With the repairs and tee shirt quilts, I just don't have the time I need to devote to doing it anymore. I did take on the eight embroidered quilts, though, and am working along as time permits. I did another row today! Eight more blocks to go before the sashing and border home stretch.

I'm making steady progress. I think two more days will do it.

Mr Wazoo spent some time with me in the studio today, moving all the quilts out of the bathroom and replacing the small mismatched shelves with one sturdy unit. He also hung a hand towel ring instead of the bar type next to the sink.

Behind Mr W is the new towel ring. Now, I won't drip water all over turning around to grab the towel!

He put the unit together in the tiny space while sitting on my new soft-close toilet seat! I'm getting a pretty swanky update in there.

We moved out all the quilts to the studio, where I sorted them into piles that belong together on a shelf. 

Vintage, utility, show, modern, ethnic and wall size. 

The quilts on the table are going to  charity. Family Connection in Blue Ridge and our guild's Heart to Heart nursing home and hospice outreach. I certainly don't need to hang on to all these quilts! I hope they will bring someone joy.

A few stayed in the bathroom while Mr W worked.

I worked on quilting while he drilled and pounded.

My customer made this quilt from a block of the month program in the 1970s. 

I remember fabric like this. It seems every doctor's office and lawyer's waiting room was done in these colors back then. The vintage look of it is rather pleasing.

Panto: Fresco feathers

Calico backing

Meanwhile...

Whoa!! We almost saw a bit too much of Mr Wazoo.

Say NO to crack...

That's better.

I refolded and moved all the quilts back to the new shelves. So tidy!

A big box of quilts for the Family Connection,

and a big pile for Heart to Heart! It feels good to spread some love.

Once again, it was 6:00 and I have one last row...

Unit tomorrow!