Sister's Choice Quilts

Made in China

I have been a pretty loyal Rowenta customer for years.  I go through irons really fast, due to keeping them on for hours at a time, and steaming the dickens out of things.  A good iron lasts me a year, maybe two, and then I need to replace it.  My last Rowenta, gosh, I bet I have had it for three years or more now!   As were the other four or five Rowentas I have owned, my current iron was made in Germany.

It has been starting to act up, not steaming as it should anymore, and in fact, fairly frequently, the steam button gets stuck in the down position and won't come back up.  Lately, I have been complaining to anyone who will listen that it is time for me to buy a new iron.  My husband always responds, "A new iron?  Already?  Didn't you just buy one a few years ago?  An iron should last you a life time.  Why, my blessed mother used the same iron for 40 years, and it didn't even have a steam feature.  She used to sprinkle her ironing and put it in a plastic bag overnight in the refrigerator...."  etc, etc, etc.

Well, something must have sunk into his brain, and when he was shopping for new frying pans (don't ask--that is another blog post entirely) at the Macy's in Monterey, he saw they had Rowenta irons on sale.  And he bought me one.

I was pretty excited, as I would rather he pay $89 for new iron, than me have to do it.  Only this didn't cost $89.  It was only $49.  And it isn't made in Germany.  It is made in CHINA.

And it spits like crazy.  I hate it.

Added later:  My husband just sent me an order confirmation from Amazon.com.  He ordered me the Rowenta made in Germany!  Woo Hoo!  I take back all the bad things I said about him.

 

It's Spring Here Too!

Gorgeous weather here, and I am trying to surround myself with as many pretty blossoms as I can.  I ran out to the garden center (part of my local Ace Hardware store) when they opened at 7:00 AM today, and picked up a trunk full of blossoms.

These are only petunias, as we don't get the variety one might expect in a more civilized area.  I love them though.  They are cheerful, colorful and will do the spill-over-the-edge-of-the-pot thing for weeks and weeks.

And check this out!  That lilac bush I bought last year is about to bloom! It's only a foot tall, but who cares?

Spring Fever

Just a quick note to say all is well, I've just been busy.  I was away this weekend visiting family, having a lovely time.  Hope to get back in the sewing room today and work on my Blogger Girls BOM blocks for this month!

My neighbor's lilac bush has just started to bloom, and is it ever pretty.  Last year I was so blown away by it that I purchased a little bush at my local garden center and was thrilled to see that it is leafing out.  No blossoms on my little bush, but hopefully there will be some eventually.

Self Tanning

Ok.  So I haven't done a post on grooming since, I guess, my home waxing debacle.  We are not going to talk about that little incident.  But I had something so astonishing happen in regard to my self tanning product, that I just have to share.  Maybe over share.

St. Tropez is a very high quality self tanning product.  The item in the photo above is a mousse that goes on like a dream, and has a very low error margin.  The color works great for someone fair skinned, such as I am, and I have loved the results from using it.  It is VERY pricey.  $30 at Sephora for the little canister you see above.  You can get it for a bit less if you order it from QVC, but you have to pay for a weird mitt that comes with it that you don't get when you buy it at a beauty supply store.

Well, the can above is from last spring.  I barely used a third of the product, and was optimistically thinking I could keep on using it this season.

Here is what I got when I sprayed it into my palm---

No, your eyes are not playing tricks on you.  It is a nice puff of green foam.  May I say "Ick"?  And maybe "Ick" again?  Can you imagine if the lights in the bathroom were dim, I wasn't wearing my glasses, and just slathered this stuff all over?

And this is my palm fifteen seconds later, with a semi permanent olive green oval--

Just in time for St. Patrick's Day folks.  Anyone want my can of St. Tropez self tanner?

Joys of the Little Black Dress

So happy with my elegant Easter tablescape!  I finished Joy Luck (pattern by Carrie Nelson of Miss Rosie's Quilt Company), made from the beautiful Little Black Dress fabric collection by Basic Grey for Moda.  I quilted it with the wiggle stitch on my Bernina, and am pleased as can be with the results.  I had some issue with shorter side borders not fitting after I switched the pattern to a rectangle from a square, but it was an easy fix.

I just removed one strip from one of the vertical Rail Fence border blocks.  Can you spy the one with only two strips?

Here is the other side, where I did the same thing:

You don't even notice that missing strip.  A man going by on a bus would never notice, as Grandma Higgins used to say.  It sure doesn't bother me.

I keep wandering by my little table setting and pausing to admire it.  This makes me so happy.  It goes with my dishes too.

Here we are, all ready for dinner.  And just so I don't forget, I am Number One. 

Focusing

New Year's resolution posts can be boring as sin, so I hope I won't be guilty of that!  It is hard to let the new year just come and go without some reflection however, and here is what I have been thinking about.

Remember how last year at New Year's so  many people were picking a word to describe what they wanted 2012 to be about?  I never did that.  Then, in October, a friend asked me gently if I was going to be able to focus on just one project and finish it up.  Focus.  I've been thinking about that quite a lot and have decided that that is my word for the year.  I mentioned it to you all back in the fall, and haven't really done the best job due to boutique projects, house guests, and other committments and responsibilities.  Now that the new year has begun, I have decided to get with the program.

I started by cleaning house.  My little play house that is.  I swept, I vacuumed, I put things away.  Things are feeling very zen down there, and here are the results:

Sewing table tidy.  Counter cleared.  Surfaces dusted.  Floors swept.  Christmas quilts folded and put back up on the shelves.

Now this was a job.  Clearing off the sewing table that is.  The only project now on it is the basket containing my fabric for the Blogger Girls BOM.  The quilt on the quilt rack is the next one to get the bindings sewn on.  That is going to be my spring quilt, on my very own bed.

Finally, the design wall.  There you see the components of four unfinished projects.  I know, it's more than one.  It might not seem like focusing, but that is what I'm doing. These are my number one priorities for the foreseeable future.

On the right you see Shiloh.  Shiloh is a quilt that I adore, and I must get this done.  First priority.  Finish the flying geese units for the inner border and put on the outer borders.

On the left are the baskets I like that I have made for Hill Country Baskets.  I have made twice this many, but have been struggling with my fabric choices.  I believe I have it together now, and vow to complete this quilt top, as it is full of lovely memories of friendship and my summer trip to Washington. 

Bottom left are the first two blocks of the Blogger Girls BOM, an ongoing project that will continue through June.  I have actually finished my second set of blocks and  have one of the third set cut out and ready to sew.

Bottom right...hanging head in shame.  One of the borders for my Halloween 1904 quilt.  Once Halloween was over, predictably I moved on to something else, namely Christmas boutique items.  These borders are going on pronto and that quilt is being sent out for quilting so I get it back to use by next September!

So that's my plan, and I am feeling pretty good about it.  Nothing like a clean organized sewing space to allow you to get your wits together and ... focus!

Just so you know I am human and full of failings, in a future post, I am going to fess up to several projects which are unfinished and are going to remain so.  Lost that loving feeling, and am going to cut them loose.

 

 

Time is Going Too Fast

Doesn't it seem as though December just flies by?  So many things to do, and the days are over before they begin.

I have made some time to decorate, but not on the scale to which I normally aspire.  That darn baby is just into everything, and all my decorating seems to be about four feet off the ground, which is slightly odd looking, especially when it comes to a tree.

One thing she can't mess up too badly are my Christmas quilts, which I have been putting out little by little.  The one above has such wonderful memories for me.  The pattern is called Toulouse, by Miss Rosie's Quilt Company.  The block is Goose in the Pond, an old classic.  The fabrics I used are assorted Christmassy prints I had on hand, including a heavy dose of a Robin Pandolph collection from some years back.  It is super scrappy--even the green lattice is made of different one inch squares.  I love love love this quilt.

I made this quilt by sewing along with two lovely blogging friends, who you hear me talk about all the time.  Lisa of Stashmaster and Thelma of Cupcakes 'n' Daisies.  We conferred, we blogged, we encouraged each other every step of the way, and we did a big reveal on the same day.  It was such a wonderful experience of fellowship with two like minded friends.  And we each got a superb quilt out of it in the end.

Mine was quilted this past summer by the extremely talented LeAnne Olsen.  The lighting is dark and not good at all right now when I am trying to take a picture, so her quilting isn't showing up as it does in person.  If the sun comes out anytime soon, I will try again.  You have got to see her quilting.

Here are some links you might enjoy:

Lisa's Toulouse Reveal, Nicole's Toulouse Reveal, Thelma's Toulouse Reveal

Hope you are all taking time to enjoy your Christmas quilts and the magic of the season!

 

Last Minute Rush

It is a last minute rush around here the past couple of days.  Those are the last of the mug rugs in the photo above.  You know, I am thoroughly tired of making those things.  They really are too much work for what they sell for.  People like them though, so I keep producing them.  I wonder if I can come up with an easier design that would go together quicker?  Maybe do a simple machine applique in the center of a 6 1/2 inch square?  Any ideas?



Here are four completed zippy bags, inside out.  I just need to square off the bottoms, turn them right side out and sew on a yo yo decoration.  Two more prepped and ready to sew at the top of the photo.  These are always fun to make.  Just a couple of hours to go and I can drop these off at the shop.

Then, we need to get quite serious about cleaning the house.  Baby is terrified of the vacuum cleaner for some reason, and gets quite hysterical if I turn it on.  So, that needs to be done when she isn't around.  Another job I detest.  I crave one of those light weight vacuums that suck everything in sight up into a bagless canister.  What I do have is a clunky canister style vacuume that I lug around the house, whacking into the woodwork and tripping over.  Actually forget I said I want a new vacuum.  What I really want is a hunky guy to push it around the house while I watch from my chair.

More later.  Gotta get to work.  I will post a photo of my finished bags a bit later.

Thanksgiving Week

I think it rained this entire weekend, non stop.  It didn't stop us from getting out and about though.  We did all our Thanksgiving grocery shopping, saw the new James Bond movie, had the kids and Grandpa to dinner, and tweeked my display at the winetasting shop.

It was a weekend of comfort food, starting with Chicken Tortilla Soup on Friday, Chile with all the fixings on Saturday, and the world's best Lasagna on Sunday.  I now have a fridge full of leftovers to eat up before the big feast day this Thursday.  That's ok, Grandpa will help me finish things up.

This nice short week will be spent with my Baby E, and cleaning the house (with her help of course).  Oh, and all that cooking.  I actually think Thanksgiving is a super easy meal to put together.  It is a no brainer as to what to serve.  All the standard dishes are essential, and have been made so many times in the past I hardly  need a recipe.  Turkey, gravy, dressing, mashed potatoes, homemade rolls, cranberry relish, brussels sprouts (or green beans), sweet potato casserole, and pie, lots of pie.  I had to laugh last night, as we were sitting around discussing the menu.  Sara says to me in all seriousness, "Don't you think we need an appetizer?"

Oh, right.  Definitely.  And a crane to get me up out of my chair after dinner.

Halloween Preparations

How clever is this invitation?  My sister Andrea makes the Halloween Party invites each year, and this year she may have outdone herself.  I don't know how she does it.  Most of us are quite familiar with the Ouija board, having had them when we were kids.  I love the little magic triangle indicator, don't you?  Underneath it is the address of the party, which I thought wise not to include, and the instruction "Don't be caught dead without a costume".  Love it.

I am spending today getting ready for the Big Day.  Halloween in my neighborhood is very serious.  People bring their children from miles away just to roam the streets in my subdivision and collect candy.  Last year we got 286 trick or treaters.  I am serious.  I counted. 

So, preparations need to be made.  300 pieces of candy?  Check.  Decorations outside?  Check.

Yes, I have an orange lighted spider web in my front window.  I am that person.  I am telling you, we go all out around here.

Table set?  Check.

Grandpa and I are going to be on our own tomorrow to pass out the candy.  My husband is working and can't make it home during the middle of the week.  So, after a day of doctor's appointments, Grandpa and I will come home, have pumpkin soup, and position ourselves outside at a table in the driveway to greet the Halloween Hoards.  Can't have them ringing the doorbell because Ozzie goes insane each and every time.  We sit out there all bundled up, surrounded by candles and candy, and sip our tea and compliment all the children on their costumes.

So, just when am I going to finish my Halloween 1904 quilt top, you ask?  Hmmm.  Well, I guess I had better get going on that right now!