A Bit Less Doomy

The most recent pile of acoustical drapes are migrating from behind the couch towards the front door.  This is a good thing, because each army-green duffel bag moved is one drape done.

I can now add grommet removal to my list of skills.  The bowl of little brass colored rings has filled steadily over the last week.  Once I removed the grommets, I patched the spot with denim, so they're ready to be re-grommeted.  I also added iron-on patches to any holes I found and fixed a couple of hems.  Two headers had more torn or weak grommets than good one.  I deemed them unpatchable, ripped out the headers to replace them.  The very last drape is prepped for a new header tonight.  Yay.

I Like Thursday: Snow Ball

My head has kind of been all over the place lately.  However, last weekend I really went somewhere - to Peterborough for the Snow Ball dance.  Loved the place we stayed; it was a cheery place.  Danced my tootsies off with lots of wonderful people.  It was just what I needed.


We stayed at an Airbnb.  I liked the way the house was decorated.  Every corner had something interesting to see.  I really liked this set of paintings on the wall.  Oh, if I could only make a quilt like that.  Hmm... may have to add that to my project list.

Frankensteined Batting

Top:  cutting interfacing.  Bottom:  ironed together batting

Years ago, I learned how to piece scrap batting by hand:  cut the abutting scraps straight with a ruler, then whip-stitch them together.  Years later I found out I could replace the whip-stitch with a machine zig-zag stitch.  Much faster with a flatter, stronger seam.  When I trimmed Sunshine I had more batting to frankenstein, but really didn't want to pull out the Graduate to stitch it together.

The last time I was at Ryco, I commented that I didn't want to switch machines to zig-zag the batting.  I was told:  why do that?  You can use lightweight iron-on interfacing to bond them together.

Really?  How cool is that?!?

I have a bunch of iron-on interfacing that has been tucked in a drawer for decades.  Goodness, I think I lived in Dedham the last time I used it.  Couldn't throw it out; it just takes up space.  No longer!  I cut it into strips about 1½" wide, pieced together my batting, placed the interfacing over it and ironed it together.

I was told to iron the interfacing to both sides of the seam, which I tried first.  I'm not sure I like how it feels.  The batting is smooth where the interfacing is, instead of the soft fuzziness I'm accustomed to for batting.  These scraps are long and narrow, so the batting is mostly covered by the interfacing.

I Like Thursday: Ups, Downs, Arounds

It's been a flaky week.  Work has been strenuous.  I've spent time straightening up the sewing room.  It's the thing I do as I move from one project to another.  Prepping for a busy weekend and another busy week.  Whew.  But for now, it's time to relax and enjoy the things I like.

Before and after patches on the Drapes of Doom

I like that my rogue missing order of tea finally arrived!  Yay!

I liked taking photographs at the library (in case you didn't see the final photos of Mom's quilt).

I like that I have a home for Lighthearted Love.  I decided to give it to the library for fundraising.

I like progress on the Drapes.  Work has left me wiped out each evening, so I haven't made as much headway as planned.  But one down, twelve to go.  First drape was a learning curve with a new way of patching, but I think I've got the hang of it.

I like trying out new things - like ironing together my batting scraps.  Doesn't require pulling out my other machine to do zig-zag (just need to finish writing the post).

I like that I've started walking again.  It's been a very blobby few weeks.  The weather hasn't helped.  But I need to get moving again!

I'm heading over to Not Afraid of Color to see what good things other's have seen/done this week.  Check it out!

Sunshine

Officially done; all photographed, too.  Huzzah!  Between the weather, the time of year (my favorite photo spot is shaded) and the size of the quilt, I could not photograph it at home.  I brought it to the library to take pictures.  Looks like the library may be a nice outdoor setting, too.  I need to remember that for future shoots.

The Solo Wedgwood Dilemma

Trying to keep her busy with hay and toys

Losing Boadicea was hard.  I mean, losing every pig has been hard, but in Boadi's case, she screwed up The Plan.  I am allergic to hay; I suspect that allergy is contributing to some health issues.  If one has guinea pigs, one has hay (everywhere) and working at home increases my exposure.  Orchard grass seems to be causing the least trouble, but I'd really like to give my body a break.  Wedgwood is supposed to be my last guinea pig.

Both Boadicea and Wedgwood had been selected because they were close in age to the guinea pig they were being paired with.  The idea was that they'd age out together, leaving no pig alone for months on end.  However, I managed to lose Cannoli and Boadicea far too young, which leaves a somewhat socialized Wedgwood by herself.  She had been a solo pig for years when I had adopted her.  From her shelter notes and what I witnessed with Boadi, it was clear she hadn't lived in the same cage as other guinea pigs.  

Guinea pigs are a herd animal.  I advocate they are happiest when they live with other guinea pigs.  Keeping a lone pig does not sit well with me for all sorts of reasons.  Wedgwood is doing pretty well, keeping her weight up, acting normally.  There are times, though, that she seems bored.  She hides a bit more.  She gets needy and extra whiny (this from a guinea pig that does not like a lot of human contact).  She sometimes gets destructive (chews her cozy).  Wedg wasn't the nicest to Boadi, but life is more fun with another guinea pig to pick on.  She certainly can't pick on me.

I Like Thursday: Snow

It's been a quiet week, therefore not a lot of likes for me.  But be sure to head to Not Afraid of Color - I'm sure others have longer lists of good stuff.

I am thankful that it stayed cold last Thursday as it snowed all day.  We got over a foot of snow, but it was not heavy, wet snow to dig out of.  Yay!  Added bonus:  the electricity stayed on.  Everyone I spoke to in town had been worried about losing power.  A storm a few months ago had knocked people out for days.  None of us wanted to face that in the cold.

I like that the snow brought out the birds.  They flocked to the feeders as the snow came down and the wind blew.  I had to refill the window feeders at least twice during the day.



I like that I tried to take pretty photos of Mom's quilt on the snow... right up until it attempted to take off like a magic carpet.  That killed the photo session pretty quick.  Still waiting for some good weather.  Soon!

Doomsday

My living room was a minefield yesterday.  I finally unstacked the pile of drapes to assess what repairs I'm doing.

I Like Thursday: A New Year

Happy New Year!

I had so much going on last week, I skipped I Like Thursday.  This week things are a little calmer.  I guess that's my first like!  Ha!

I like the annual Cookie Party.  At one point we were all packed in the kitchen, cousins all decorating gingerbread houses and the aunts all laughing.

It was mayhem.  Happy, loud mayhem.  A good way to spend the afternoon.

The Gnashing of Teeth and the Uttering of Oaths

"What is that?!?" I exclaimed at 9pm last night.  Rob chuckled.

I am three-quarters done binding Mom's quilt.  I had taken a break from the binding to bury and snip the last six threads from my final rip-and-repair work on the quilting (skipped stitches and an empty bobbin).  As I threaded the needle I saw the spot next to it:  pristine fabric untouched by the quilting needle.  Obviously, I stopped quilting this block too early.  How the hell could I have missed that?!?

I know how it happened.  I developed a rhythm to quilt each star and a consistent point to start and stop the quilting.  This was an early block; it started in a different spot.  By the time I came back to fix it, I was on autopilot.  Regardless, I am amazed I totally missed the unquilted area.