Catching Up, Stitching and Vintage Sewing Machines

I've been busy, even though I haven't been blogging.  I'll play quick catch-up for you.

My son loves to give out the candy on Halloween.  He always dresses up.  We even dress up the dogs for the kids to see.  Despite the snow, we had lots of kids come by.

my son and the dogs on Halloween

I taught Curved Piecing at my little quilt guild last Monday.  I demonstrated on Radiant Sun blocks and Drunkard's Path blocks.  I even taught faux curved piecing (applique a circle onto a square, then cut the square into 4 pieces).

16 Drunkard's Path blocks

I've been stitching those orphan Drunkard Path blocks into something.  I'll show you soon.

Between stitching those things, I've been working on a wedding quilt for my niece.  I'll show pictures of it soon.  It's almost a quilt top.

I did get some of my leaders & enders blocks made.  I've made another 50  9 patch blocks.  Only 350 more to make ; )

50 more tiny 9 patch blocks made

On Friday, I drove to Rockford, IL to meet up with Anne & Bob.  They are helping with taking vintage sewing machines to new owners (Pony Express).  I handed over 3 machines to them.  One is headed to Florida, another to Texas and the last one to New Mexico.  (sorry, I didn't get a photo of the one headed to Florida).  All three of these machines were given to me in the last few months to find new homes for them.

heading to Texas

heading to New Mexico

Yipee!  I can now see my fireplace again!  Now to clean up and re-home some of my own machines.

Of course, we met up at a quilt store to exchange the sewing machines.  We stopped at Quilter's General Store in Rockford.  I've been there many times, but it was a new shop for Anne.  I didn't know that they had a basement, and I found a few things down there.  Then we toured the first and 2nd floors and we both found some fabrics.  I found a pattern for an upcoming Round Robin, but they only had a kit, and I just wanted the pattern (I found it online and ordered it).  When I got near home, I stopped at Sewing, Etc. in Yorkville, IL, and found more fabrics for pillowcases.  Kelly, the owner is a friend of mine.  I found even more fabric at the Caring Hands Thrift Store in Yorkville.  A fun, fabric and sewing machine day!  That evening, my son and I attended a book signing event for Christopher Paolini, for his newest book, Murtagh.  We've been to every book signing for Christopher Paolini at the Anderson's Book Shop except his first (discovered him after his first book).  If you click on his link, you will see the exact event we attended.  We were way up front, on the far right side, just out of the photo.

Meanwhile, I finished hand stitching the binding down on 12 of the 16 Turkey placemats.  I'll pack up the 12 later today and get them in the mail to Alaska, for my grandkids.  Hopefully they will arrive before Thanksgiving.  The other 4 are for me, so I'm not worried about finishing the binding on them yet.  If I'd thought about it (before I'd cut the binding strips) I'd have made faux piping binding and stitched them on the machine on both sides.  Oh well...

Turkey placemats

Now to get back to stitching.....

Trunk or Treat and Some Stitching

I have been stitching.  I guess I finally got some sewing Mojo back.  

Last February, when I was in Anchorage, my granddaughter was given some fabric at a local quilt store.  I promised my granddaughter that I'd make something with her fabric.  

Gwendolynn's fabric

Well, I'd bought a used Accuquilt Studio in January, and I'd seen a cute pattern on their website.  I ordered the Go! Dresden Plate die.  

I finally started pulling fabrics to go with Gwendolynn's fabric.

Cutting most of it out on the Accuquilt was quick and fun.  Stitching the Dresden plate pieces was quick.

Dresden plate parts

That is enough parts for 16 placemats.  I'm making 12 placemats for my son's family (they already have 5 kids, so they need more than 8 placemats) and 4 placemats for us.

I made the bases of the placemats first, then quilted them.  I stitched the binding onto the front of the placemats before I started adding the 'turkey' parts.  I added the turkey tail feathers, and stitched them down.

Then I added the turkey legs and stitched them down.  That was harder to do, since they are such skinny legs.  It's hard to see under the walking foot.  Stitching the turkey's tummy down was pretty fast.

I stitched the turkey's nose and eyes to the head before I fused it down and then stitched around the head.  Now I'm stitching the binding down on the back of the placemats.  I've only finished the binding on 2 so far.  

Saturday, our church had Trunk or Treat again.  We had about 100 children attend (not counting parents, etc.).  It was a good turnout.  We decided to do a covered wagon this year.  I got to wear my pioneer dress and bonnet that Thelma (Missouri TOGA) made me.  

hubby & I in our costumes (well, I'm in costume, his are his regular clothes)

our covered wagon

Here are some of the other decorated cars.

Gru & Minions

Jurassic Park/Trunk

inside Jurassic Park

Cousin It (Addam's Family) and Waldo

scarecrow & 1950's poodle skirt

carnival

Candyland

Christmas, they had ornaments that could be decorated

Super Mario 

Cookie Monster

I'm glad the weather on Saturday was nice.  We're expecting snow on Halloween and windy conditions (Brrr!).  Poor kids.  I hope we still have lots of Trick or Treaters, since I still have tons of candy (I don't want to keep it around, or I'll eat all the candy).

Happy Halloween!

Friendship Star block exchange

I love to participate in the Treadle On Block Exchanges (TOBE's).  Blocks for these exchanges must be made on a 'people powered' sewing machine (either a hand crank or a treadle).  This is the last exchange I'll be participating in this year.

For this exchange, we are making 9 inch Friendship Star blocks. This block comes in 3 sizes and is a free block online. 

Our blocks are using bright white, either solid or white on white as the background, and brights, either solid or tiny prints for the 'star' parts, with the centers white so that we can sign the center blocks.  (I still need to sign my blocks).

Each set of blocks was made on a different machine.  Having the booth at the Faithful Circle quilt show really helped, since I had to pull all the machines out.  I worked on 3 sets at the quilt show, and made the 4th set on the machine that is always set up in my sewing room.

1921 Singer 66-1 Red Eye decal hand crank

1923 Singer 128 La Vincedora decals

made on machine below

1914 Singer 66 Lotus decals

1927 Singer 15 Tiffany/Gingerbread decals

Sorry, I put the 1914 Singer 66 away before I remembered to take photos.  

Now to sign these and mail them off.  

Not much sewing, but busy

I haven't done much sewing lately.  Instead, I've been helping families find charitable homes for their loved one's stashes.  I was contacted by another lady about her sister's stash.  I was told it was a quilter, but when I picked everything up, it was almost all garment fabrics.  Hmmm....what do I do with garment fabrics (lovely fabrics, but I don't sew clothing, and don't know anyone who sews clothes).  Well, after asking two different groups of quilters, I found a home for everything.  This afternoon, I took buttons to one lady, that will be used for children's sweaters that one of her groups makes and donates.  Then I took 2 sewing machines and all the rest (notions, fabrics, TONS of buttons, etc.) to a church that works with refugee's.  These things will be given to refugee's who can sew, so that they can make clothing either for their families, or to sell so that they can support themselves.  Woohoo!  (now I can get back into my family room again ;).

Back on September 16th, hubby took our kitchen sink out, to replace it with a new one.  Oops!  3 of the 4 corners of the new sink were cracked.  Too late to put the old sink back in.  

no kitchen sink

Well, the new sink arrived after it was shipped from another state (no cracks) but, the pipes didn't fit in the same places as the old sink.  Hubby & our son finally figured everything out, and our new sink works.  It took 2 weeks to get everything hooked up, and a few days longer to finally get the little leak fixed.  Meanwhile, no cooking happened at our house for over 2 weeks.  

new kitchen sink

Now I have to cook again :(  I didn't miss cooking much.

I have gotten some stitching done (not much).  I finished the last block for the Angels Among Us quilt.

December block

I've cut most of the sashing strips and border strips for this quilt.  Now to get them stitched together. 

I've also stitched over 300 HST's for 4 different projects (Angels Among Us, Family Reunion quilt, Quilt Guild raffle quilt and last set of Friendship Star TOBE blocks).  I still have more HST's to make for the Family Reunion quilt.  

Last summer I started a Leaders & Enders project, the Omigosh! quilt. I've been slowly making 9 patch blocks for this quilt.  I've made over 150 9 patch blocks so far (I need 550 total 9 patch blocks).  

150 teeny tiny 9 patch blocks

These 9 patch blocks are 2" unfinished. I do have lots of parts of this quilt cut out, waiting for their turn to be stitched.  This will NOT be a quick project!

Another reason I haven't been sewing much is that I seem to have lost my sewing mojo.  I'm hoping that it comes back soon.  It's been a busy year for me (LOTS of family travel and issues).  Those issues just seem to keep happening (no more travel lately, thank goodness).  I don't mind travel, but it would be nice to travel for a vacation instead of all family needs/emergencies.  Since I finally got home in late July, I sit in my sewing room and just watch movies, with little sewing getting done.  All of my energy has gone into finding homes for 'other' peoples stashes, not using my own. 

Faithful Circle Quilt Show Part 2

What a LARGE amount of quilts at this show.  I wish they had more room to show off the quilts, but then there wouldn't be nearly as many quilts to see.  These quilts were packed in the larger gym and down one hallway.  

I got to the quilt show early (before it opened) so I got to see the quilts and take photos without lots of people blocking the quilts.  

There were several quilts all by the same lady, down one hall.  I only took photos of a few of those quilts.

who doesn't love Sylvester & Tweety???

look at all that lovely applique in the borders

more lovely applique and great rounded borders

Now to the large gym crammed FULL of quilts!

There were several large quilts with teeny tiny pieces.

This is an OhMyGosh (OMG) quilt.  I'm currently making this quilt as a leaders and enders quilt.  I stitched on mine at the show, between making exchange blocks.  It also has teeny tiny pieces.

They had several 365 block quilts.  Everyone received 7  3" patterns a week for a year in 2021.  

There were 2 Wedding Ring quilts. One was a Golden Wedding Ring quilt.

Quite a few different applique quilts.  

my friend Sharon made this quilt

up close of her trapunto

A lovely embroidery quilt of all the State flowers.

A Harry Potter quilt (I can't resist a Harry Potter quilt ;)

I love how she 'made' fabric for the centers of this quilt. And the circular quilting just set this quilt off.

There were several paper pieced quilts in the show.

New York Beauty

there were 3 of these, almost identical, next to each other

the quilting in this one really set it off

I'm not a fan of pink, but this was so pretty

There were a couple of shirt and tie quilts.

A cute black and white Sunbonnet Sue & Sam quilt.

3D pinwheel

This quilt was made while she battled breast cancer.

A lady that is also in my little quilt guild, Wego Quiltin', made this Onion Peal quilt.

Congrats Jackie for 2 ribbons

A few 'fun' quilts.

this one won 2 ribbons 

there were 2 of these

This one has a different theme for each border.  It has 9 borders around the center block.

And the remaining few quilts I took photos of.

This was just a fraction of the quilts in the show.  There are 200 members of this quilt guild, with a 'waiting list' to get in.  Many ladies have been in the guild for 20+ years.

I finished a set of Friendship Star exchange blocks during the quilt show.

1 set of Friendship Star blocks made on this 1921 Singer 66 hand crank

I started another set, on a different machine, but didn't get any photos.  I'll take photos when the blocks are done.  There wasn't much time to stitch either day, since my booth was full most of the time with people chatting about vintage machines and asking questions.

I found out Saturday morning that the vendor next to me (Lisa K) has been a member of Treadle On longer than I have, and because of her love of vintage sewing machines, she is now one of the sewing machine repair people at a local quilt store near me.  I sent a few people her way for machines with 'motors'.  It's always fun to meet another member of Treadle On.  I even got to see some photos of a couple of her machines.

I did buy some fabric on Sunday (half off).  Some of it will be used for pillowcases for Christmas presents this year.