Sister's Choice Quilts

Some Things I've Been Enjoying

There is no sewing going on around here this week, so I thought I would share with you some other things I have been enjoying lately.  First up is a nice hot cup of tea in the afternoon.  I have a very pretty little Wedgwood tea pot and matching cup that I so enjoy using.   It has been chilly here in my area of California and that cup of tea really warms me up and makes me feel so cozy.  I mostly reach for my Fortnam and Mason teas, but the Winter White Earl Grey by Harney and Sons is very nice as well.

My husband has been very active on the Harry and David website lately.  After I complained so bitterly about him buying the Moose Munch popcorn that I could not keep from eating, he switched it up and ordered something healthier.  He ordered the Box of Fruit of the Month. Since he just signed up for this, we got January's pears and February's "Honeyballs" in the same week.  I have had a pear and it was wonderful.  I have not tried the Honeyball yet, but it is supposed to be a delicious cross between a grapefruit and a tangerine.  I will let you know how they taste.  They sure are pretty in the box, aren't they?

Now, don't laugh at this.  It is the No Side Effects bra by Warner's.  Style 01056.  For the past several decades I have always bought pricey "high end" bras made by Wacoal or Chantecaille etc.  I thought you had to pay a lot to get a good fit.   I have been looking for a bra with higher sides, to minimize that icky bulge that sometimes happens under your arm.  Warner's calls it "Sleevage" and has designed this very reasonably priced bra to take care of the problem.  What I like about it, is that is has a very thin foam lining (not padding) in the cups to prevent any sort of see through.  And the higher sides work like a charm to hold in that annoying bulge under the arm.  Oh, and it is wireless for great comfort.  It truly is extremely "smoothing". It is on sale right now at both Kohl's and JC Penny's.  It is regularly only $40, but Penny's has it for $28.  Honestly, you should look into this bra, it is really great.

I've grouped these cosmetics items together for the photo.  The tallest item is a make up remover/facial cleanser called Peaches and Clean by Soap and Glory.  This product is available at both Target and Ulta.  It removes make up like a dream, has a delicious light peachy fragrance, and is very moisturizing to the skin.  And did I mention it only costs $12?  And if you want to stock up, Ulta has it buy one at $12 and you can buy a second one for $6.  It is a very generous amount, 11.8 ounces and lasts for a really long time.

Next is a new makeup foundation I have been using.  It is a new one by Bobbi Brown called Skin Long-Wear Weightless Foundation SPF15.  They say it is full cover, but I'd say it's medium coverage.  It does last over 10 hours (they claim longer, but I haven't tested it longer than 10 hours).  It has an almost matte finish, but your skin still looks like skin under it.  It is not cakey in the slightest.  You can get this at all the better department stores that have a Bobbi Brown counter, and it sells for $46.  It also comes in a color suitable for any skin. Seriously, Nordstrom has it in 30 colors.  I like to apply it with a damp Beauty Blender for the most sheer, natural, and even coverage.

Then I have a powder I have really been loving.   It is It Cosmetics Bye Bye Pores Illumination powder.  It is super light weight and looks transparent in the compact.  When you use it, however, it gives your skin the most subtle glow that is so flattering.  It also does seem to minimize pores.  I got mine through QVC, but it is available at Ulta as well.  It is $38 on QVC and comes with a great brush, which you won't get at Ulta.

Lastly, I have a drugstore lip gloss.  I have never really been a big fan of drugstore products, snobbishly preferring to buy more high end cosmetics.  When I heard that this lip gloss, Neutrogena's Hydro Boost, was as good or better than many high end brands costing three or four times as much, I had to try it.  I picked mine up at my local CVS for around $8.50  It is sold everywhere, Walgreens, Walmart, Ulta.  And check out the colors it comes in!  It is very emollient, stays on a long time, isn't sticky and just feels really nice on the lips.  It has an oversized sponge applicator.

That is all I have for now.  Hope this nice long blog post will tide you over for awhile, because as I said I sure am not doing much sewing this week!  I may not post again until Monday when I have something quilty to share.  Hope you are all having a great week! 

Great Mail Day

Yesterday was a great mail day.  I had ordered several items and wouldn't you know, they all showed up on the same day.  

I am excited to share with you my new notebook (above), which I ordered from Erin Condren.  This company is best known for their great planners/calendars, which I have enjoyed the past few years.  I had a coupon which helped me decide to take the plunge and order the notebook.  It has the high quality paper I have come to expect from Erin Condren.  I also love the care in which they package things.  You know me, presentation is everything.  This is what the box looked like when I opened it:

Who wouldn't get excited to see what was under that purple tissue paper.  You can personalize your notebook anyway you like.  There are loads of cover designs from which to select, and you can even make up your own if you choose.  I have a million ideas for quilts rattling around in my head, and I need to start writing them down before I forget them.  Hopefully this notebook will hold my thoughts better than my brain does!

I also finally received my fat quarter bundle of New Hope by Jo Morton.  Gosh, this is even more beautiful in person than in pictures!

Reds, golds, blacks, sage greens--all my favorites in one collection.

In other news, I have been working away on my Courthouse Steps blocks, and have decided I need 81 blocks for a 9 x 9 setting.  So far, I have made 55.  Wow, only 26 to go.  The end is in sight.  I am just making the blocks and slapping them up on the design wall, so there will be some major rearranging when it comes time to sew the blocks together.  This is a fun scrap busting project.  I bought nothing for it, and am just using scraps from my stash.  Use It Up, that's my plan for 2018!

In other mail related news, a week or so ago, some nice girl from Harry and David's called and got my husband on the phone.  She managed to talk him into making a purchase, and he ordered so much of their Moose Munch Popcorn, it had to be dropped off on the porch in a special USPS box.  I tell you, if you want to sell something or need a contribution, just talk to my husband. He can't say no.

Double Nine Patch

I have really enjoyed the two sew alongs in which I participated in 2017.  Triangle Gatherings by Lisa Bongean and Moda BlockHeads by Moda.   The nature of both these sew alongs is that one would make one block a week for the BlockHeads, and one or more blocks per week for Triangle Gatherings.  My Triangle Gatherings quilt top is sewn together and the BlockHeads group just has one more block to go.  I am going to miss these sew alongs, so I've been scouting around for ideas for the next one in which to participate.

I didn't have to look long.  The Quilted Moose in Nebraska is hosting a Double Nine Patch sew along, where the idea is to make one nine inch block each week for a year.  I have had a box of blue, brown and cream fabrics sitting in my stash closet for going on seven years, and whenever I see it, I feel guilty.  The fabrics were a kit that I bought while traveling with friends.  Gosh that was a fun trip.  I bought the kit from Pieceful Heart Quilt Shop in Illinois.  The kit was based on a Bonnie Blue pattern called James River Blues, and had loads of Judie Rothermel Civil War Repro blue fabrics in it.  I am not sure why I never made the quilt, probably because I keep telling myself I "am not a blue person".  Well, that is something that is about to change.

Just look at those pretty fabrics.  Do they deserve to languish in a tub in my closet?  No I don't think so.

This is my year to Use It Up, and I got busy cutting out 1 1/2 inch strips to make Double Nine Patch blocks.  I cut out about half the fabric, but I have a feeling this quilt is going to be gigantic.  If I am wrong, I have plenty left over to cut some more.  I am pretty sure the idea behind The Quilted Moose's sew along is to just use 1 1/2 inch squares to make the blocks, but I just can't see doing that.  I think it is much more efficient to do strip piecing.

I got out my Bloc Loc strip piecing ruler and made short work of cutting out sections for the nine patch blocks, which finish at 3 inches.   Each of my strip sets produces three nine patch blocks.

   

I am pretty sure I will not be dragging this project out for an entire year, but I am happy to have gotten the inspiration to use up these pretty blue and brown fabrics.

How about you?  Have you heard of any new Sew Alongs for 2018 that sound intriguing?  Lisa Bongean said on her blog yesterday that she has something in the works, and will tell us more soon.  I've done three sew alongs with her, (Christmas Gatherings, Triangle Gatherings and Moda BlockHeads)  and can tell you it really helped my piecing become more accurate.  If you know of any local shops or quilt designers who are hosting sew alongs, do share with us! 

Is This How It Works?

I read a review of this Sewline fabric marking pencil recently, and the reviewer just loved it.  She went on and on about how easy it was to use and how when she has to draw diagonal lines on fabric there is nothing better etc etc.  It wasn't very expensive, so I added one to my Fatquartershop shopping cart the last time I placed an order and was excited to start using it.

I use various methods of making half square triangles, but sometimes if you just need a few, you end up drawing the diagonal line for stitching, right?   So, the pen arrived, and I took it out of the package.  It came with a little container of extra "leads" like you get with mechanical pencils.  The reviewer even mentioned that the pencil markings were very easy to remove with a damp cloth if it bothered you to have them on the wrong side of your fabric after stitching.

I scribbled a bit on a piece of white paper to "get it started".  Nothing.  It was as if I used invisible ink--or morel likely, as if the pencil didn't work.  Then I tried it on fabric.  It did not make any sort of visible line that I could see.  I was pretty sure I had gotten a defective one, because I tried it on every color fabric I could think of and it never made a mark.  Oh, there  may have been a little depression if I pressed really hard, but no mark like a pencil would make.

Finally I went to town with that pencil and scribbled like mad on the wrong side of a piece of fabric.  This is what I ended up with:

I mean, can you even see those lines?  And I was pressing as hard as I could.  Seriously?  Am I doing something wrong?  Is that how it is supposed to look?  If so, this is the dumbest product I have ever purchased.  Why not just use a plain old pencil, chalk, a Frixion pen,  or even a Bic pen to draw your line?  At least you could see the blasted mark.  And the idea of using a damp cloth to "easily remove the marks" from the fabric makes me laugh.  I needed all the overhead lights on, the window blinds pulled up and a magnifying glass to even see those marks.

I must be using it wrong.  Do you dip it in lemon juice or put it in the freezer to make the marks show?  Like invisible ink?  If any of you have used this pen, and particularly if you like it, please leave a comment and tell us all why.

Tiny Town

I've been working on this cute little table topper for Valentine's Day.  The fabric is Love You! by Sandy Gervais for Moda (I used two charm packs), and believe it or not, the pattern is actually three patterns.  All patterns are by Miss Rosie's Quilt Company:  Full House (a Schnibbles pattern), Tiny Town and In the Pink Hood (two free patterns).  All I have to say about the pattern is that it is super confusing, flip flopping between all three directions.  Somehow I have made this twice and it has come out properly much to my surprise.  With much muttering and head scratching.  It measures about 23 inches square.  Click on the links for the free patterns.  Full House may be harder to find, but I believe it is still available.

Maybe I will get this quilted today so I can put it to use.  After all Valentine's Day is three weeks away!

If you have a kid in your life, you may be interested in my little purchase from Bath and Body Works.  Eva needs to use hand sanitizer, (she calls it "Hanitizer"), so I picked up these little bottles on sale, 5 for $6.  And you have to carry it in something, right?  So I picked up this little zippered Lip pouch that she can clip onto her backpack.  How cute would that be for a little Valentine's treat for a special someone?  The whole collection was under $12.

Courthouse Steps Progress

Still working on Courthouse Steps blocks here.  I have made 49 out of 80, so I am more than half way there.  I am enjoying the mix of fabrics and the interplay of the lights and darks.  And since it really is a quilt made from leftovers, there are lots of memories to revisit from other quilt projects from the past.

On Saturday, I was going stir crazy, not having been out of my town since Christmas.  I begged my husband to drive me an hour away to the nearest mall, where we wandered around doing absolutely nothing.  He was a good sport about traipsing around after me, even though we had no specific purpose in mind.  I did have it in the back of my mind to go to Macy's, where I was pretty sure the January "white" sale would be going on.  I need new towels, and definitely do not want to pay full price.  

When we got to Macy's there were sale signs everywhere in the towel department.  Great sale, about half price off the regular cost of most towels. However, on closer inspection, all the signs said  "Reserve", which meant you could pick out your towels, have them rung up at the sale price, and not be able to have them until you returned after January 31 to pick them up.  I am sorry, I drove an hour each way to go to your store, I am not coming back on January 31.  So Macy's gets my money two weeks before I get my stuff?  Is that supposed to be some kind of incentive to get folks in the department store two times so maybe they will end up buying more goods?  Sorry, that didn't work for me.

Hope you all have a splendid week.  I have a little Valentine's project I am going to work on today, so with any luck I will have something fun to show you tomorrow.

Courthouse Steps and Giveaway Winner

I did the random number generator thing and Pat Seidle is the winner of the three Jo Morton/Kim Diehl books.  I am sure she will be able to keep track of them better than I was!  Enjoy them Pat, and happy sewing.

Now that my design wall is all cleared off, I have brought out my Courthouse Steps blocks and recall how fun they were to make.  I spent some hours in the sewing room yesterday and made a half dozen or so more.  This project definitely is a scrap buster, and goes through tons of fabric as you make your "rounds" and trim down the blocks.  I just have to restrain myself from dipping into my stash and pulling out one more gold or the perfect black.

I've got a total of 32 blocks made so far, and think I will need 80.  I am envisioning a setting that is eight blocks wide by ten long.

It is nice semi-mindless sewing, and I am enjoying listening to audio books while I stitch.  It sure is bringing back memories, as the fabrics I am using truly are all leftovers from past projects.  There is quite a bit of Shiloh in this project, although I have added in more gold.   Shiloh is definitely of my all time favorite quilts.  It was a Bonnie Blue/Red Crinoline pattern.

I got the outer border on Loose Change/False Economy.  I wanted to emphasize the quilt center, so I made it "float" using the same light fabric for the setting triangles and the border.  I don't know why the border looks so rumpled.  I hate it when it does that.  I promise, it is straight and flat. My quilter will fix that right up.

Hope you all have a terrific weekend.  Don't come down with the flu whatever you do.

Barn Stars Finished

Here is sweet little Barn Stars, a Kim Diehl Simple Whatnots offering from a couple of years ago.  I had subscribed to the bi monthly kits, but quit the club when I realized the kits were piling up and I wasn't making them.  I have recently dipped back into that bin of kits and have been trying to make one or two every now and then.  I am a big fan of Kim's and love how she can't resist throwing in a bit of teal or aqua to most of her projects for some "zing".

I love this pattern, with the stars made up of 'negative space" and the backgrounds being colorful.  It is different, and so pretty.  I don't have the measurements right in front of me, but I am guessing it is 16 or 18" square.  A nice size for a candle mat, or something on which to place a vase of flowers.  

If you missed out on the Simple Whatnots band wagon, or like the patterns, but didn't want to commit to making them in Kim's more primitive style fabrics, this might interest you:  She is coming out with a book this spring that features patterns from her first three or so years of the Simple Whatnots Club.  So if you get the book, you can make up the little table topper sized patterns with what ever fabric you enjoy most.  I am hoping to get the book and will let you know when I hear that it has been published.

Hope your week got off to a good start!

Loose Change

This scrappy nine patch quilt was inspired by a plastic bag full of 2 inch squares left over from another project, and the pattern "Loose Change" by Miss Rosie's Quilt Co.  The pattern is in a book called Miss Rosie's Quilt Collection.  The Miss Rosie quilt is made from 2 1/4" strip sets.  Since I had nothing but 2 inch squares, I made my nine patches the slow way and ended up with 5 inch unfinished blocks, which of course produced a much smaller quilt.  I compensated for that by making lots more blocks.  I made 154 blocks and the pattern calls for 128.  When you are using such a simple block such as the nine patch, there is all kinds of wiggle room as to size of the finished block and number of blocks you can use to make your quilt top.  I didn't follow the pattern at all, except to think "that's cool, I should use my scraps and make something like that". I am keeping the name "Loose Change" though, as it seems to fit.

I am planning to add an outer border, probably more of the tan colored fabric used in the setting squares.  My quilt will be a good sized lap quilt, probably 66x72 or thereabouts.  I like the cozy look of the quilt top and think it will be great over the back of my reading chair.  And just the right size to cuddle up in while I read and enjoy a glass of wine.

So here's the thing.  This was supposed to be a scrap busting quilt, and ended up anything but.  I started out with what I thought was a ton of two inch scrap squares.

As I worked, I kept thinking things like "I need a bit more blue" or "I have too much of that one red, I need more variety" or "I can't just use that little bit of pink, I need more to have it make sense".  So, I would go to the stash and cut a strip of this and a strip of that.  And of course I needed tons of background strips for a good mix of different tones and fabric prints.  I ended up with a box of scraps leftover that was three or four times the amount of scraps that I started out with.  That was a false economy if I ever saw one.  This was a fabric user project all right, but definitely not what I would call a "scrap buster".  I generated way more scraps than I used! I think I am hopeless.  

The quilt ended up really nice though, so I won't complain!  I'll show you all the finished version once I get the borders on.

Hope you all had a great long weekend.  I think I am over the worst of the flu and am itching to get back into a routine.  Ear is doing ok, but due to the perforated eardrum, my hearing is shot.  I can't hear anything, most notably my husband, who has kind of a hoarse whispery voice and can't seem to project.  So every time he speaks to me I say, "Sorry, what was that?"  TV is out of the question, unless I watch on my laptop with earbuds and volume turned up all the way.  This will pass, I've been through it before, it just takes a month or so.

 

Chat from the Sick Room

Well, this has sure been a wasted week.  I came down with the flu on Sunday night and have spent the week in bed, each day with a new horror of a symptom.  Laryngitis on Monday, faucet nose on Tuesday, fever and chills on Wednesday, and a ruptured eardrum on Thursday.  I took myself to Urgent Care with that latest issue and was told I had the flu, an ear infection and a sinus infection.  I got my antibiotics and some steroids for my asthma and believe, as I write this, that I am beginning to feel a bit better.  And I was so ready to get some good sewing done this week.  I am under strict orders to rest and drink liquids.

The quilt pictured above has been a great comfort to me all week.  We have had lots of time to bond.  I have it on my bed and have not only enjoyed its warmth, but those cute little baskets are so adorable.

In between naps I was able to read these books.  It is amazing what you can accomplish if you read for 8 hours a day.  The only one of these books that I totally loved was Peace Like a River, by Leif Enger, which I would give 4 1/2 stars out of 5.  I tend to love books that are from a "coming of age" point of view, and also books about family.  Twelve year old Rueben lives in Minnesota with his older brother Davy, younger sister Swede and his janitor father Jerimiah.  The story is about a family who encounters some big trouble, but handles it with grace and stoicism.  A few miracles may happen along the way.  If you enjoy books about decent people who have strong values and love of family, this one's for you.

Since I have been down for the count this week, I have not been so good at responding to comments, but thanks to all of you who said nice things about my Triangle Gatherings finish, and also who gave encouragement about the Diva Bernina coming home after her trip to Bernina's Illinois Health Spa.  I wanted to emphasize that I truly have no complaints about Bernina or my dealer in this situation.  I did agree to pay for shipping, and there was a misunderstanding about the warranty date (they originally wanted to bill me for labor which is not covered after the first year).  The dealer stepped up and dealt with Bernina about the date of my machine warranty, so I did not pay any labor charges.  The machine is working great and I appreciated the California technician being honest about not feeling he was up to the complexity of the repair, which caused Diva to make the cross country trip to Illinois to Bernina USA.  I am happy with how it all turned out and am grateful to my dealer here in California and also to Bernina for fixing Diva up and getting her back home safe and sound.  All's well that ends well, right?  It is all good.  I have a niggling worry at the back of my mind that some similar fluke thing could happen again, but as many of you suggested, I need to just get back in there and use her and enjoy her.

Oh, I don't think I shared this with you--Do you recall that my husband had his right knee replaced in July?  He had been troubled for at least ten years with a bad knee and had put off the surgery for a number of (silly) reasons.  The surgery was a great success and he keeps saying he wishes he had not waited so long to get it done. (Do you hear a chorus of voices singing "We told you so...?)  Well, a week or so before Christmas, he was walking in San Francisco and his other knee suddenly went out on him with no warning.  He has been in awful pain ever since, back to using his cane and limping and being miserable.  His doctor says he must have surgery asap to have his left knee replaced!  It turns out he has some kind of hereditary condition that causes knees to wear out. His paternal grandfather spent the last years of his life in a wheel chair, and his dad (Grandpa Larry) had to have both his knees replaced.  He has a surgery date for March, which we hope will be moved up to February.  The orthopedist's office is backed up because one of the doctors broke his leg.  I am serious.

Any of you have big plans for the long Martin Luther King weekend?  Not me.  I plan to get back up to the sewing room and try to make up for lost time this week!