Thursday, June 30, 2016

Patriotic Quilt and a BEAR!


There was lots of excitement in our little town yesterday! A bear was sighted - eek! Don't worry, it wasn't in our big neighborhood - it was about 25 minutes away from us. Anyway, all ended well. The authorities tranquilized him, iced him down, and relocated him to a better place. He is fine and away from people.

I'm determined to SEW today!!!! Yay! And what will I be working on? A small patriotic wall hanging!

At my mom's new assisted living, many of the residents have a wreath hanging on their door - decorated with artificial flowers. Not what she wants! I offered to make her some seasonal small quilts to hang on her door - she liked that idea!

So today I'll start working on the July quilt - I know it won't get to her before July 4, but I'll make sure she gets it well before the end of July. I'm not using a pattern - but I did get some inspiration on Pinterest - like THIS and THIS. All those strips I cut are coming in handy!!!

This morning I have some guys coming over to work on the Punch List - the list of little things that need to be fixed in our home. There will be touch up painting. A cabinet will be adjusted. We're getting an additional vent cut into our bedroom. And so it goes. 

Have a great day!!!


Tuesday, June 28, 2016

Tuesday!



Here's a view out my car window at one of the lakes in our new neighborhood. Lots of geese! The lake is stocked with bass for fishing. 

So yesterday's vet appointment went well. Then in the afternoon I took a long nap - much needed! Then I made hubby some strawberry ice cream - because he deserved a treat! So far I've made the following ice cream flavors this summer: banana pudding, vanilla, and strawberry. They've all been great, but the banana pudding was my favorite. 

Today is a going to be a good day. The custom Roman shades we ordered will be installed this morning!!!! We've been dealing with temporary paper shades in our bedroom - they keep falling down. Yes, I'm excited about today!

I'm hoping sewing will resume SOON! And I need to share photos of my sewing room SOON! Have a great day!

Monday, June 27, 2016

I'm Back Home


This is just a random photo - I saw this image on the screen at the end of a TV show and thought it would make a great quilt. What do you think?

I had traveled to Augusta to help move my mother to an assisted living facility on Saturday. I stayed with her at her apartment and spent Thursday afternoon and Friday packing up her clothes, etc.

Unfortunately she fell during the night Friday night. I was so tired (and under the influence of Benadryl) that I didn't even hear her fall. Nor did I hear her call me for help for 5-10 minutes. Finally she knocked on her closet door and that got me awake. I'm so glad I was there - she would have been lying there in a pool of blood all night otherwise.

I called my brother (a doctor) first though I felt she need to go to the ER. Once he got there, he was able to stop the bleeding from the back of her head and we called 911. She had a bumpy ride to the ER, where she got 8 staples. Poor thing! Luckily no bones were broken. Back home we went to sleep a few more hours.

The move on Saturday went well. My brother and two of his strong sons did all he heavy work in temperatures just over 100 - of course it had to be miserably hot!

The happy ending is -
She has a lovely place there - a living room, bedroom, large bathroom, and a kitchenette. The facility provides three meals per day. She's beginning to meet people and feel at home.

I'll be back and forth for the next month to help my brother empty her apartment - we have until the end of July. We are so glad she is settled and seems happy!

This morning the dogs have a vet appointment - they're not too excited about that...

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Bliss Section 3 Instructions are UP!



The pattern for the next section of Bliss is now available! It's under the tab at the top of the blog - Hexie Love....


I hope you have fun with it!

Some of you have been asking about the Curved Hexagon Ruler - is it still available? The answer is yes...and no. If you'd like one, send me an e-mail (juliacwood@mac.com). $25.00, which includes shipping, within the US. I shut down my shop earlier this year. I can tell you that I have plans to start selling them again in the future in a larger fashion - you'll have to wait a bit to hear more...

And so...

Today I'm juning around the house - I'm leaving tomorrow for a few days in Augusta to help my mother a bit. Hubby's holding down the fort at home. I'll be away from the blog for a few days -

Have a great rest of your week!


Tuesday, June 21, 2016

My Evening Handwork...


Okay...I know I said I was ready to start sewing again, BUT I decided to finish patterning Bliss before I get back to the fabric. But you know I can't stand to NOT have a needle and thread in my hand!

When we moved, I turned up this needlepoint kit that I had started almost 20 years ago. I completed one corner and put it aside. I think this was around the time I started quilting and well, quilting took over.

I almost donated this, but something made me keep it. About a month ago I pulled it out again. This kit is done with embroidery floss rather than wool. Everything was still there - packaged neatly together.

I was immediately hooked and have been working on it in the evenings. I have made tons of progress and I'll see this through to make a cute pillow for our screened porch.

The patterning of the third section of Bliss should be complete in the next day or so....and then I WILL SEW!

I had not been to the pool for several days, so yesterday afternoon I took care of this! 14 laps (if I counted correctly). I'm trying to keep up with my laps so that I can keep increasing them. But I think I may start keeping up with the time I swim instead - I'm not good at counting when my head is under water...

Monday, June 20, 2016

How Do You Quilt a Hexie Quilt?


I get lots of question about quilting a hexagon quilt. Today I had this quilt draped over me in my recliner - Micky, our dachshund, insists on having a quilt over him when he's in my lap - doesn't matter how hot it is. I love the way this is quilted. Click on the picture to see closer -

This was professionally quilted by Elayne Vognild, who quilted several of my book quilts years ago.


I recently ordered the ice cream maker attachment for my Kitchenaid mixer. Yesterday I fired it up and made my first batch - Banana Pudding Ice Cream. (Recipe: 2 cups heavy cream, 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 2 mashed ripe bananas, then near the end of the churning add 1 cup of Vanilla Wafer cookies, crushed). You can see my cookies in a baggie, waiting to be added.

It was delicious! And provided a nice dessert to our Father's Day dinner of lasagna.

I'm almost done patterning the next section of Bliss - stay tuned!

Friday, June 17, 2016

Do You See What I See?


It's BLISS! I've pulled it out this morning - let the patterning for the next section begin! This is my project for this morning. As soon as I'm done, I'll put it out on the blog - I know many of you have been patiently waiting for this...

This afternoon we're going to run over to the lake so hubby (who took a vacation day today) can mow the grass and we can bring the last (I hope) load of stuff back here. The load will include some pantry items, some kitchen items, a rug, and other miscellaneous stuff.

And this weekend? The plan for me is to ....wait for it... SEW!

Have a happy day!

Thursday, June 16, 2016

I. AM. DONE.


Yesterday morning I attacked (yes, I really did) the remaining sewing stuff that needed organizing. I had a few bags and piles of things I'd stuffed in the closet in my sewing room. I put it all in the floor and dug in my heels. So - above is the before....


And here is the after. Floor is clean. Closet is organized. And do you know what that means??????

It means I will now allow myself to SEW!!!!!! I'm so excited!

I've had a few friends come by to help me sort through some fabrics - and they all went home with some of my leftovers. I've loaded the rest of my discards in my car and will deliver them tomorrow night to my guild's charity quilt chairpersons. I hope a lot of charity quilts will be made from this fabric.

Don't worry - I still have PLENTY of fabric for me. And it's all organized and put away. I know there is more sewing stuff in storage that is buried in the back and when I do find it, I'll organize it. But for now....I will sew!


As for now, I'm putting my feet up and enjoying the flowers a friend brought over...

Wednesday, June 15, 2016

Fabric Out, Fabric In!



Look what Daughter 2 and her hubby brought me! They got this on their honeymoon in Alaska - beautiful batiks! I'm planning a new quilt for our bedroom and these colors are PERFECT!!!

Do you see my Kaffe Fassett designed rug in the background? Love this rug!


This is the top of the garbage can that sits behind our house - looks like we've had a visitor. Raccoon, maybe?

I'm still getting organized here - still more to go in the sewing realm. But I'm making progress! I'm also still swimming. My endurance is building. Yesterday I swam laps for about 20 minutes, followed by 10 minutes in a bubbling hot tub. Swimming beats walking on a treadmill anytime for me! It's been so hot around here lately - too hot to for a long walk outside. If fact it's been so hot that a street in our neighborhood buckled up 8 inches in the air a couple of days ago! Now that's HOT!!!!

So what's on tap today? More organizing! A friend is coming over this afternoon. And yes, I'll try to get some swimming in later. CAN NOT WAIT to get back to sewing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have a great day!!!

Monday, June 13, 2016

Succulents!


I've been away from the blog for a couple of days. We had a wonderfully busy weekend. Hubby and I traveled to Augusta Saturday to visit my mom - her birthday was yesterday. We picked up lunch to eat with her, took her some homemade cake, and a gift (a quilt, of course!)



Yesterday Daughter 2 and her hubby arrived to stay a couple of days. We hit the pool, took a long walk, and had dinner with Daughter 1 and her hubby.  Fun day!


More of the same today.

I'm sharing pics of some succulents to which I treated myself last week. Do you love succulents as much as I do? I've been drooling over them on Pinterest for some time now, planning to get some as soon as we got settled. And now we are!

I still want more - we have a pot that is calling for a succulent garden - it may be at the lake - not sure. But when I find it....

I still have more fabric sorting to do. I think I'll pull some and cut other shapes with my Accuquilt to put away for later. I'm thinking some half square triangles, nickel squares, and equilateral triangles.

Have a happy day!

Friday, June 10, 2016

Salads and Ice Cream


I've declared this summer to be the season of SALADS and ICE CREAM! I've been trolling Pinterest, collecting lots of salad recipes - it's just too hot to cook! And most days Hubby hits the driving range before dinner - he comes home too hot to eat anything hot. 

And ice cream - what's better in the summer?! I've been pinning lots of ice cream recipes, too. I'm getting an ice cream maker attachment for my Kitchenaid mixer, so I can whip up a batch whenever I want. 

I combined a couple of recipes to make this Roasted Vegetable Salad with a lemon, garlic, and olive oil dressing, along with toasted pine nuts and crumbled blue cheese. So good!!!! 



Here's a shot of Cooper taking a little nap in a spot of sunshine yesterday - both dogs have adjusted so well to this move.

Thursday, June 9, 2016

Odyssey News!!!



Did you hear my news on Facebook yesterday? Odyssey has been juried into the AQS Grand Rapids show! Yippee!

This news makes me want to dive into my fabric and sew! Bliss! I want to work on Bliss! And I will very soon! I did get some sorting done yesterday - almost done with the fabric. I still haven't turned up some of my sewing stuff. I know I have a big box of fabric buried somewhere in the storage unit. And rulers! Many of my rulers have not turned up yet - I know they're in there somewhere though.  I do have all I need to work on Bliss - that's good!

Have a happy day!!!


Wednesday, June 8, 2016

More of the Same...


The sorting continues... I have emptied three of these!

I brought more boxes and bins back to the cottage - I'll get on these today. And then I think I'll take a break, partly because I NEED a break, partly because there is no more sewing stuff that is easy to get to in the storage unit. We need to start going through the other stuff to get it out of the way. We are having low humidity for a few days, so it would be a great time to get into the HOT facility and get some stuff done.

I am enjoying turning up stuff I'd forgotten I had! Lots of fun to be had here - and I have to say that this is going faster than I'd thought it would. So all is well!

Today I do have to run to the grocery, and I hope to make time for a pool visit.

Meanwhile I'm collecting lots of jellyroll patterns on a Pinterest page - I'll be ready to sew soon!!!!


Monday, June 6, 2016

Randomness



Elizabeth sent me this pic of the wedding quilt on their bed! Looks good, doesn't it?



I made Grilled Salmon Tacos with Avocado Salsa over the weekend. And grilled corn on the cob. YUM!


I did a lot of this over the weekend...sorting and folding fabric. We made two trips to the storage unit to get more fabric - I've made a LOT of progress on this! I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and I'm so glad! And now I have LOTS of empty plastic bins! Organization is a wonderful thing.

It's going to be a rainy day - I'll stay in and fold more fabric. I hope to be sewing soon! And finishing Bliss.

Have a wonderful day!

Friday, June 3, 2016

No More Strips!


I have FOUR of these tall rolling storage bins. FOUR! And they were all full of fabric. Lots of fabric. In only FOUR days, I managed to empty them all, sort the fabric, press and cut it all into strips. Okay, so I didn't cut it ALL. I ran across some fabrics that were of poor quality - they stick out like a sore thumb, scratchy and thick. These will get donated. I ran across some fabrics that I didn't like enough to cut up. These will get donated. And then there are lots of scraps - cutting waste - also to be donated.

I now have plastic shoe boxes full of strips sorted by color! I discovered I have a love of blue and green - LOTS of these! I need more orange - my favorite color - you can tell I use this color a lot because there's not much of it. I also have a lot of graphic black and white. Now that all this fabric is organized, I can and will really use it! I promise!

However, there is more fabric in the storage unit...
My Kaffee Fassett stash is still there. And some of my more modern fabric is there. I think I remember running out of time to pack and CRAMMING fabric into a cardboard box! Oh dear... I see lots of pressing in my future. But that will happen with time. I may (or may not) grab more fabric from the storage unit this weekend - we'll see....

I hope you have a lovely weekend!!!

Thursday, June 2, 2016

More Progress!


Yesterday the Christmas fabric was up next on the Accuquilt! I have never made a Christmas quilt, but I want to.

I'm in jellyroll Heaven! I've been searching and finding lots of strip quilt patterns. What fun I'll have!


Here's my strip stash - so far.... And I must say that they take up a lot less room like this!!!

I'm going back to the storage unit this morning to pick up more fabric to sort and cut. I'm making progress faster than I expected - a very good thing.

Have a great day!!!

Wednesday, June 1, 2016

My Day (and My Neighborhood)



It was Stash Attack Day here yesterday! I kicked off the process of taming my stash. I started it out with a garbage bag full of fabric. One piece at a time, I pressed it.


Then I layered it on my 2.5" die on my Accuquilt Studio.  Once I had plenty of fabric in place, I rolled it through to cut the strips.


And then I put the strips into plastic shoe bins organized by color.

When I first began the process in the morning, I hoped to do one bag per day. I'll have more than 16 bags! Then I as got into the process I thought I was too optimistic. A. Lot. Of. Fabric.

But I stuck to it and by the end of the day I'd emptied TWO bags! Yay!

As I worked, I set aside some chunks of fabric to cut with other dies at another time. I'm thrilled with my progress. These strips will be very usable. I'm not cutting ALL my fabric like this - just the older stuff. My more modern fabric will be left in fat quarters. I'm happy! Two large garbage bags reduced to 3 small bins!

I got lots of questions yesterday about our new neighborhood! So here's the scoop:

The neighborhood is centered around a fabulous golf course (Grand National). The course is hosting a professional senior tour event next month. In addition to the award winning course, there is a par three course, and a driving range. Yes, hubby is a golfer. There's a fabulous hotel (Marriott), also. As homeowners here, we can use all the amenities of the hotel (pools, gym, tennis and pickle ball courts, billiard room, restaurants, etc.). And we get a discount at the restaurants. There are also 18 miles of trails through the woods and around the lakes on the property. And we get all our lawn care provided, too. We do pay HOA dues for all this, but they are very reasonable. The bigger the house, the more the HOA fees are. We have one of the smallest homes.  You can read more about it HERE.