Quilting in Dallas

My husband had a work conference in Dallas last week, that is why I was so quiet around here!  He does not like for me to tell me people when we are not home for security reasons.  I HATE driving in Dallas, but I love to walk!  Since I only live an hour from Dallas, it really was not a big deal to me vacation wise.  So what is a girl to do staying in a ritzy hotel (paid for by his work) and 100° outside?  You take your hand crank sewing machine and quilt!  The light was not great, but it was so peaceful, no thinking "I should be cleaning or cooking, etc."!  Guilt free quilting!

I finished six of the sailboat blocks, only to realize that I did not cut enough 3 1/2 inch squares for the boat hulls!  So frustrating, I could have been finished with one of my monthly goals if I had!  I only had to finish the boat hulls and attach the top white strips, hard to see on the white comforter.

That makes seven out of twelve quilt blocks completely finished!  The other four just need the boat hulls attached, and one that still needs to be assembled.

Luckily I also brought the pinwheels, without counting I believe almost all of my half square triangles have been sewn together, they just needed to be ironed, dog ears snipped, and then sewn together as pinwheels.  Which I did a lot of in the hotel room.   I finished 16 more pinwheels, Bringing the count to 32 out of 80 finished!  These are the sashings.  I don't think the quilt will be finished before my step brother's baby comes., we'll see what happens!  If I had thought about it, I would have done a plain sashing instead of the pinwheels, then I'd already be done!

I decided that I really like this stool to sit on while sewing!  After I move to MO I am going to start looking for one.  See those water bottles in the room for the guests?  They cost $4 each!  Needless to say, they stayed there!

In the mornings I walked around the downtown district of Dallas, I just made sure I was back in the hotel before noon so I would not get too hot.

 I had already seen things like the Holocaust Museum, The Sixth Floor museum (where JFK was shot), and the Dallas Aquarium on previous visits.   Such an assortment of architecture in downtown Dallas!

Red Corner Museum, 

There was also a nice full size cattle drive etched in stone, right next to a cemetery from the 1860's.

I bought that dress on clearance from Wal-mart, I cut five inches off it before I hemmed it!  I think maybe I should have left and extra inch though?

This week I need to finish cutting out the pieces needed to finish those sailboat blocks.  I finished snipping my rag quilt, I'll take it to the laundry mat on Saturday to wash it and I'll share the finished pictures then.  I need to play with my new industrial treadles and decide which one does better FMQ so I'll know which one to keep!

What are you up to this week?
Missy

Drunkard's Path Blocks

I was visiting my friend Pat this weekend.  I bought two industrial treadles from her, I'll have to take pictures of them to share with you later.  She gave me an UFO.  It is a variation of the Drunkard's Path called the Devil's Puzzle Box.  It is a pattern that I would not have started any time soon.  She had five completed blocks done.

She used 30's reproduction fabric.  She had started the quilt before her mother became ill back around 2008, but then just lost interest in it, so she passed it on to me.  And of course I was more than happy to take her ufo, especially since she had done all of the hard work with the curved seams.  She had enough of the 4 inch blocks completed for me to make one more block.

Her Kitty Rosie helped make sure I sewed the blocks together right.  Of course I had my hand crank with me so I sewed that block up while we all sat there and visited.

Here are all six of them together.

It will be a nice throw size.  There are enough of the small blocks for me to put three in each corner of the border and use four to make the label in the back.  I'll put a four inch border around it.  She also made some yo-yo's to use as flowers, to applique on a second outside border which will be white muslin.  I'm anxious to finish it, but I have to be practical and pack it up and finish it after I move.  I have too many things going on right now to start another project.
I have a ton of her quilts to show you, she is a very talented lady!

Missy

July Goals

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I am going to try to keep my goals for this month simple, even though I have deadlines on all three of these quilts!

 I finished the last bit of the sewing on my denim quilt on my Franklin treadle.  Wow can that thing go fast and the stitches are perfect!  I had to put a staying stitch (I think that is what it is called) all the way around the edges of the quilt.  My first goal this week is to clip the edges and get it washed.  I have a 6 hour car trip coming up so this will be perfect job for the car!  The kittens like the new quilt.  You can see a full view of the quilt here.

My second goal is to finish the sailboat blocks on the baby quilt.  The baby is due August 12, so I hope to get more than that done, but with my schedule this month, I'm not sure if that will happen!  My Singer 15 is skipping stitches again and I'm not sure why!  I hope I have time today or tomorrow to take it apart and just give it a thorough cleaning!  Too bad I can't make Muffin do it, lazy cat!  To see what else I have done with this quilt go here.  http://missyscakesandaprons.blogspot.com/2013/06/pinwheels.html

 My third goal is to get this quilt, basted.  If I have time maybe I can get it quilted too!  I'm thinking of outlining all of the Gerber daisies in the sashing and then free motion quilting a giant daisy in each square.  What color of thread would you use?  I'm thinking a a very light pink?

An acquaintance from Lubbock will be in town August tenth and since my family lives in Lubbock I'm hoping to get my nephew's quilt (denim) and my niece's quilt (great granny square) completely done so that I can send them back to my mom.  They are Christmas presents but since I won't be going home for my birthday this year in September (I'll be moving), I want to send the quilts back with Ruby.  This will save a lot on shipping and I won't have to worry about them getting lost in the mail.  I also won't have to pack and move them!  LOL  I really hope I can get the quilting done, but I'm not sure I will so it is not a goal.

To sum up:

1 - clip and wash denim rag quilt

2 - finish sailboat blocks

3 - baste great granny square quilt

I should be able to meet these goals!  I'm even thinking of maybe taking the sail boats with me and work on them at the hotel when my husband has his work conference in Dallas.  I don't really want to spend any money since we are moving in two months.  I'm sure they have some nice covered tables outside I can set up in, it's a great way to meet people because everyone stops to see what I'm doing!  LOL 

Have you set any goals for July?

Missy

P.S.  Did I mention all of these quilts have been made on either a hand crank or treadle?

Design Wall Monday

 I came home from the quilt retreat yesterday and decided to make some string blocks.  There were so many gorgeous string quilts and after watching other people making there's, I finally decided to make some!  Mary Lou also shared a lot of her scraps so I finally have enough to start making blocks!

I made one last night and six today.  I'm not positive how I am going to  set the blocks, but I am probably going to sash them.

Cupcake and Oreo were my helpers.  You should see the mess they made of my strings basket today, I had quite a mess to pick up!

I got half of my rag quilt made, it was so easy sewing that denim and flannel on my hand crank.  I took a picture but I can't find it.  I'll finish it off on my treadle since it is faster.

I also made several tops of my sailboat blocks for my baby quilt.  I would have done more but for some reason my machine was skipping stitches and we finally decided that I need to give it a good cleaning when I got home.

Here is a finished block.  I can't wait to finish this quilt!  This is what I look like after staying up until 3 in the morning and only having 5 hours of sleep.

I'll show you more pictures from the retreat tomorrow and what everyone else was working on.  I had so much fun!  I met some one who actually reads my blog!  I thought that was pretty neat!
I think I am going to sew some more string blocks now, bye for now!
Missy

Design Wall Monday

 I've been busy cutting material and getting ready for a quilt retreat this weekend.  This will be my fist ever quilt retreat, I'm pretty excited.  I was cutting  my strips of material that I had sewn together for my trip around the world quilt and putting them in this picnic basket, I closed the lid to keep the kittens and Pippi out.  My husband told me to look in the basket this morning and look what I found!  Pippi had opened the lid and crawled in.  Chris said she kept looking out from under the lid and bopping the kittens as they walked by.  Sometimes I think she is just too smart.

Here are my neat piles that are not neat any longer thanks to Pippi.
 Last night she had dumped the whole basket out, twice!

Here are my strips that still need to be cut into 2 1/2 inch strips, to be  resewn back together.  This quilt will be worked on between the other two quilts that need to be finished this weekend.

This rag quilt should be easy to sew up in one day.  I cut 221 pieces of flannel and 221 pieces of denim to make this quilt.  I already put them in the order I want to sew them.  This quilt is for my nephew, so no big deal if  it gets out of order.
He won't care!  I just remembered that I still need to make a label for this quilt.

I had packed it in this tub, but I think I will take them out of here and put them in the
 picnic basket to save room in the car.

I also finished cutting out all of the pieces to the Sail Away baby quilt.  I'm hoping to get all of the blocks sewn together this weekend, but it is a lot sewing!  There are 440 2 1/2 inch squares alone in this quilt!  That is just for the sashing!

I also have a tin of blue and yellow 2 1/2 inch squares so that I can work on bow ties if I have time.

I have my portable ironing board ready to go and my matching sewing tool caddy ready!  All I need to do is finish cutting my strips and pack!

What are you working on this week?

Design Wall Monday - Pinwheels

I have one quilt on my design wall this week, the pinwheel quilt.

I had the pinwheels all laid out, but when I was sewing them, they got mixed up.  I had the girls over working on their quilts (whoops, forgot to take pictures) and since I only have two hand cranks, I sewed while one of them was ironing.  Which means I was switching back and forth between machines, so it is no wonder I got them all mixed up!

I love the border fabric that was sent to me from K. Yoakum, it does a great job of tying all of the colors together!  I think Kenzie is going to love looking at all of the different colors!
I know Tiger likes it for bath time.

Muffin thinks it is a great place to take a bath also!  (Yes, I'll wash the quilt before I send it!)

This is one of my favorite blocks!  It's also a closer view of the border.

The quilt was bigger than I expected, but I think it will be okay!
I plan on basting it at the quilt along on Wednesday since Joeann has more floor space than I do.
I'll start quilting it this week too, I'm going to FMQ loopy loops on it.  If anyone knows of a good tutorial for that pattern, please share!
Last year at the TOGA (Treadle On Gathering Academy), a lady gave me this spool pin doily

I brought my husband some yarn and asked him to tat me some more!

And one for my friend!

I think he did a great job since there was not a pattern!  He's tried to teach me to tat, but I'm not any good at it!  Bonnie Hunter has a pattern for a crocheted spool pin doily here.  If you have a pattern you wish to share, please do so in the comments for other readers, or if you sell them and have a link, feel free to share that also!
I'm also going to finish those capes this week!
What are you doing this week?
Missy

Mid-Month Update

My husband bought me some tulips and mums and Muffin and Pippi just loved them, a little too much! Pippi broke my tulips!  They(the flowers) now stay in the bathroom with the door closed unless I can keep an eye on them!  Mums are poisonous to cats!  We're moving in October so I don't want to plant them outside.

I seem to have finished more than I realized!  I finished two more scrappy trip alongs this week bringing them to a total of 18!  I'm thinking I really like this layout with the blue cornerstones!

 I have four more strips sewn together and three tubes waiting to be cut and re-pieced!  It is getting scrappier as I go along!

I finished three more great granny squares blocks!

I only have one more to finish all of my blocks!  I have cut out half of my sashing.

 Here is my layout, I'll be working on this today!

 Of course Pippi had to help!

 I got 18 more pinwheels from Plano, TX!

I'll start sewing the pinwheels together next week!

Missy

I'll be linking to:
 Design Wall Monday @ Patchwork Times
A Lovely Year of Finishes
Feline Friday at Sarah Did It!
Can I get a whoop whoop at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Design Wall Monday

I got four more scrappy trip along blocks done!  I seem to be averaging about four a week, st this rate it will be a while before I get them all made!

 16 down and 84 to go!  LOL  I'm making an oversized king size quilt.

I got more pinwheels in for the prayer quilt.  These ones came from Missouri, Texas and South Carolina!

 I got a new thimble while I was in Lubbock, I love it!

 This side has a butterfly.

 My goal this week is to make the last four great granny squares for my quilt and maybe start putting the sashing on.
I had to share this cute picture of Tiger and Boots, they love the afternoon sun.

What are ya'll working on this week?
Missy