The Year of the Pillowcase

Sewing Epiphany

Yup! I had one of those a couple of days ago -- an absolute insight!

It all started a couple of months ago when I got my sewing machine serviced. Just about the time I was ready to pay and leave, the repair guy fixed me with an accusatory glare and asked, "You aren't using one of those plastic tables with fold-down legs for your sewing table, are you?" Well, yes, I was. Or, more to the point, Yeah! It's a nice big work surface and is a lot more stable than my card table or a t.v. tray. "Get a sturdier table," he advised me. "Otherwise, the vibration on the table will knock your machine out of adjustment in no time at all."

That is all well and good, but where did I have a sturdy table floating around that would be the right height? The sewing cabinet with fold-out leaves I had purchased several years ago has a support bar across the bottom that does not allow my task chair to get close enough to the table surface. It does not take me long to develop severe back pain when I sit leaning forward at a 45 degree angle while sewing. That cabinet was quickly converted into a storage cabinet for my fat quarters and U.F.Os (unfinished fabric objects). My office desk was not available.

I decided a handcrafted computer desk we acquired would work. Very sturdy, a large work area, and some shelving for supplies and -- more U.F.Os. It took a major reorganizing my sewing area, but Buck and I got it in place.

There I have it, my sewing area, complete with obligatory sleeping cat and everything covered to keep the fur and dander off current projects so the area only needs a minor clean, not a major clean, anytime I want to sew. The only problem is that shelf hits me in the knees when the rest of me is about six inches away from the table. Buck is going to cut four inches out the shelf on the right, but until that happens, I find myself still leaning forward while I sew.

Where is the epiphany? I realized, after hours of pain from rolling my back that one of the reasons I could not sit up straight while stitching was not because I could not get my body close enough to the table. I could not see.

I have bifocals, but could use trifocals. I prefer to use an old pair of readers for my middle "focal". I need to lean forward to get my face mere inches above the presser foot for a clear view out of the close-up part of the lens. On the other hand, if I sit up straight, I cannot not see the detail clearly with the distant part of the lens.

I shoved my bifocals on top of my head, put on the old readers I usually use for computer work, and -- instant-presto! Problem solved.

Shoulda Been September

Has it really been since July that I have posted an entry?  This news should have been in September. I told Buck at the start of the year that with all his purchases he makes, in 2011 I expect to get a new toilet for our master bath. Very indignantly, he told me that it was not as simple as that. If we get a new toilet, we also have to get the rest of the stuff to lay down a new tile floor because he is not going to set a toilet twice if he can help it. Fine with me. Here is a shot of the new toilet and floor.

We got a Jacuzzi brand that is about 2.5 inches higher than a normal toilet. Buck thought that with his weak knees, it might be easier on him as time goes on. At first when I used that toilet, I felt like I was a little girl sitting on her grandpa's potty. But, I am adapting.

I do love the look. How can I get so excited about a new toilet? There is a reason there is no "before" picture. The floor, those horrible vinyl tiles that pull apart at the seams on a wood floor, were trash. The toilet was probably about the same age as the house, circa. 1945. It was impossible to clean, even with a pumice stone.

Archie likes the new toilet, too. Air-cooled in the summer -- the soothing sound of rushing water. He claimed it right off, which means that we have to fight him to use it or give up and use the hall bath. He let us use it for a little while. Now that it is cold enough that we have fired up the wood stove, the front room is too hot for him. So, back to the toilet -- air cooled.


At least Tonka does not switch his favorite sleeping place all that often. He tends to stick to the high ground -- the top of Buck's recliner.

I Remember Why I Don't Love All Tupperware

Tupperware is a great product. I even sold it for awhile until I figured out that (1) I did not really make any money doing so, and (2) I did not like changes the company made to their marketing program about the time the national economy went downhill. While I was a consultant, I used my discount to purchase a lot of pieces I wanted for myself. But, now I remember why I do not love all Tupperware.

Take, for instance the refrigerator produce keepers. Yes, you can set the amount of humidity to preserve your produce, and things do keep a long time in them. Notice the onion I picked and put in there about two months ago. The bulb end is still edible although the green stems are beyond anything I would want in a green salad. Although the orange did not fare so well after two months, I know it was, after all, old and almost gone when I put it in there two months ago.

So, why am I just now getting to these after two months? Because I am a visual person when it comes to my refrigerator. If I cannot see it clearly, it does not exist or me. And, instead of keeping their products clear and see-throughable (Okay, I know that is not a real word.), Tupperware is always changing its color schemes. I guess they figure that if someone loves this year's color scheme better than last year's, they will throw out that piece they paid a small fortune for a year ago and buy a new one in the latest color.

Not me. Back to using the plastic bags from the grocery store produce department. Once I realize I have food spoiling because I do not see it, I vow to never spend money on Tupperware again and I start using the Tupperware I have for other things where I do not need to see what is in the box.

That is my sentiment. But, I am going to give it one last college try. I was able to shuffle things so that I could get about half of the peaches I was gifted with a few days ago into one of the keepers. A few more -- not as many because even though this keeper is longer, it is shallower (the blue one that is long enough or celery). Both -- together or individually -- take up an inordinate amount of space on my refrigerator shelves. And, the only way I will remember the peaches are there, since I cannot see them through the color, is to make appointments on my smartphone calendar every 2-3 days to remind me that I have fresh peaches in the frig .

What I really need to do is make a peach cobbler. Also, I should get some of that stuff that keeps fruit from turning brown and then prepare the peaches for the freezer. I could use my freezer containers by Tupperware.

Now, those I like. Even if I forget to label them I can pretty much see what is in them.

Double Challenge

With everything going on last week, it was a double challenge to work on my two challenges for the week.

First, there was the tail-end of the weed-out-the-garden-boxes challenge.  I intended to do it Monday, then Tuesday morning, but finally got it finished on Friday.

Now I can start all over with the first box and try to get the weeds before they are two feet high again!


I also started working on the hanging quilt I am making out of the Challenge Fabric I received at the Gateway Quilter's Guild January meeting.  The yard I received was the large leaf pattern of pink, lavender and aqua green on the black background.  Since these are not the usual colors with which I work, I spent a couple of months and trips to several fabric stores looking for coordinating colors and patterns.  If I want to finish this project by the quilt show the first weekend in October, I decided I need to get busy on it.

I used the gold metallic thread in a leaf design around the black border of the center square to bring out the gold outlining on the leaves.  I really focused on getting my points clean.

Oh, Garden --What a Mess!

A long, wet spring and a week of temperatures with highs from 101-105 degrees, and the garden got definitely out of control. These pictures were taken Thursday, July14th:

Buck built a compost box for me.  By Thursday afternoon it was full.

Part of our problems started when the irrigation water from our neighbor's land (elevation about a foot higher than our lot) broke through a gopher hole and started flooding our yard every time he irrigated.  It covered my black felt weed control between the grow boxes with about an inch of dirt which immediately sprouted weeds.  It also undermined our pump house next to the faucet.  So, Buck pulled up the felt and filled in under the pump house.  He also built berms to channel the water between the grow boxes and out to the lawn so that it would not undermine the concrete floors of the pump house or the shop.

In addition to the bermuda and crab grass getting out of control, I used some "straw" I was gifted for mulch to keep the weeds down.  Instead, I ended up with some nice stands of oats.  The good new was that because I set it on top of the soil, the roots were shallow and pulled up easily.  It was a different story with the other.....

The store-bought squash did not make it -- none of the four plants.  I got enough zucchini out of the garden to give two away and make a double batch of zucchini bread.  The volunteer second-generation "pumpkini" plants, however, is hale and hearty, and may make it if the bugs do not kill them.

As I cleaned out a grow box, Buck replaced the rotting and splitting three year-old stakes holding the sides up with two foot sections of the fiberglass poles he sells as portable ham antenna towers and garden stakes.

Buck was not my only company in the garden that day.  One was a pollinator, one was a plant chomper.

Only one grow box left to weed.  Then the weeds in the first box will probably have grown back and it will be time to start again!

Primarily Blue

I'm through with you, Primarily Blue.

I like how it turned out.  I like how the colors balanced out.  I like the block design, as well as the corner and mid-way sashing blocks.  However, the overall craftsmanship is less than excellent. 

Maybe I can't have everything?????



I designed the stencil I used on the blocks.  The jury is still out as far as my Singer being a top-notch quilting machine, although I realize a lot of the problem is with the machine operator.  In fact, it is the machine quilting part of the project that moved my quilt from excellent to so-so.





This is the backing.  I ended up putting some flowers and hearts from one of my fabrics used on front to cover some rough spots where the thread bunched up.  I like the design of this fabric when it is not giving me an eye-strain headache.

Good News - Bad News

The good news on my jacket is that I got all the pieces quilted in place. The bad news is, the quilting took up so much of the body of the jacket it is a size too small for me. Oh, well, I will finish and embellish it and put it up for sale as a "wearable art" jacket. (That may be good news, but I love the colors and the primary fabric and need to make one for me!)


The bad news is there was a snafu on my pug puppy fabric order and the sender could not figure out who to send it to. The good news is, we got it straightened out, and I ordered directly from hotdiggitydog.com. (Well, I ended up ordering more than my pug puppy fabric, but that is another story.) So, now I am ready to figure out how I am going to combine it with my pink roses for my sister's hanging/lab quilt.

One of the other fabrics I got with my order was a blue with small doggie designs. The good news is it looks cute as lattice for my "Dogs and Cats at the Beach" blocks. The bad news, it clashes something terrible with my sashing, plus when I look at the quilt as a whole, my beach design is getting overwhelmed by so many bright colors. If I use this new fabric as the sashing, it will take away too much from the blocks on which I want my focus. I am going to use a solid fabric for the lattice to off-set all the busy-ness in the other prints. I think I will save my pretty new blue doggies fabric for another dog-themed quilt -- maybe use it for the sashing since I have two yards of it.

The other bad news is I am still plugging away at my Primarily Blue quilt. The good news is, I have learned a lot with this quilt, including how to design my own quilting template. However, the quilt is definitely destined for a family member, not for sale. I figure a family member will be more forgiving about any "irregularities".

Where is my pug doggies fabric?

Ordered it April 5th. It still has not arrived. I contacted the seller, hoping that she put tracking on the package so we can figure out what happened to it. I mean, who is going to go out of their way to steal fabric with a pug doggies design?

Back - still a work in progress

Front with the left sleeve

While I have been waiting, I have been finishing my Primarily Blue quilt and my custom applique sweatshirt jacket. I decided that instead of attaching and finishing 1-2 pieces at a time, I was better off cutting all the pieces and basting them in place. That way I can see the whole effect and balance out the design -- even though my asymmetrical design is far from balanced. I think I like the look as well as the color combination. I will be able to wear it with denim, navy and brown.

Big Thumbs Down

So much for the "thumbs up, thumbs down" theme I gave my post on the gift for my sister. I called her for her birthday and learned she is not into primary colors at all.  So, this quilt for her is a BIG THUMBS DOWN!

Her "thumbs up" is still pink floral. In addition, she is thrilled over a pug puppy she received as a birthday gift. Okay, I can adapt. Out comes all my pink floral fabric -- which is not much since I am not the "pink lady" like my sister is -- plus I ordered a yard of some novelty fabric covered with pug doggies.

Her gift was going to be a little late, but now it will be just a little later. Better that and get her something she might appreciate instead of sending a "big thumbs down" gift a little sooner.

As for my Primarily Blue quilt -- well, I have someone in mind who will love the primary colors and give it a "thumbs up".

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down

I am making a quilt for my sister's birthday. She won't get it by then, because I would have had to mail it today for that to happen and the binding is not even cut yet. This project has had it ups and downs -- as in some parts I have loved, and some parts not so great.

Thumbs up - I found this beautiful navy with small yellow and red floral print on deep discount. I was not looking for anything like it, but fell in love with it. It was an end of bolt remnant - 49 inches when trimmed. So, what was I doing to do with with it? Make a quilt using it for the sashing and some of the blocks.

Thumbs down - It took longer than I thought to design the pattern and cut it out.

BIG thumbs up - Except for the backing I bought on sale, all of the rest of my fabric came from my stash!

Thumbs down - My Singer quilter machine is great except when doing free-hand stipple stitch. I tried the so-called quilt stitch that is supposed to look like hand-quilting. It looked okay on the sample I tried but looked awful on the quilt.  It took me about three feet of stitching to decide -- no way, it's got to go. That is the WORST stitch in the world to pick out. It is a wonder I did not ruin the fabric. 

Thumbs up - The cycling pant leg rings I bought from Nancy's Notions to hold the quilt roll in place while I machine-stitched in the middle worked great.

Thumbs down - Some of the fabric kept stretching and puckering while I stitched. Some of my lattice work is not the greatest, especially since I used navy blue thread instead of medium blue that would have blended better.

Thumbs up more than down - Even though I stitched two-thirds of the lattices before I remembered this trick, once I used the spray sizing and hot iron to tighten the weave of the fabric and add some body, the rest of the lattice stitched up a lot better -- not one hundred percent, but better.

Zenos and Zenock

I received some insight into two prophets mentioned in the Book of Mormon that are not mentioned in the Bible while reading 3 Nephi 10:16.:  "...because they testified particularly of us, who are a remnant of their seed."

These prophets were perhaps not recorded in the Bible, the record of the Jews, because they were of the house of Joseph. Their prophecies may only have been recorded in the Plates of Laban which was the record of the house of Joseph.

Meet Tonka

We thought we had a full house even before Archie adopted us last summer and let us know he is an indoor cat who wants to eat indoor kitty food with "the old ladies", Precious and Bootsie. Then number one son came home for a few weeks around Christmas and brought his kitten, Tonka, with him. Sonny is now gone, but Tonka remains. He came indoors with Sonny, and stayed indoors. In fact, he now sleeps at my feet and naps next to me on the loveseat.

Breakfast and dinner times have become rather regimented at our house. That is the best way to keep peace and to keep the kitties from trying to swipe another kitty's share. So, this is the chow line in our kitchen.

Everyone knows their place.

Precious and Bootsie do not think much of the new "young guys". Precious comes in to eat, then she is ready to go back outside no matter how bad the weather.

That is just fine with the guys. They have
turned the house into their private play
area. On this day, they just could not figure 
out how  they could see each other through this tote, but they could not touch.

Each kitty chooses their "spot" to nap,
with Bootsie daring the boys to come
near her. However, when the weather
is nice, she would just as soon snooze        
outside on a nice comfortable hose
reel.