Vanity Plates

These friendly announcements of a lifestyle makes me almost want to go and proclaim my connection to quilts and quilting, even though our procedure for putting this on BC plates is definately a high cost for vanity.



VCQ Plates 2010

***  PS.  I did pick up this little video from another blog,  but not everybody reads every blog, and hey, maybe someone in my town will be adventurous enough to announce that they too are quilters...
Do you have an idea for a 7 letter/number combination that proclaims your particular area of interest?

Too Much of a Good Thing

I am one lucky, lucky girl...

Late Monday afternoon a huge -- I mean HUGE box arrived for me.  It came from my aunt who lives in Manitoba.  I am not even going to question how much it must have cost for her to send this huge box  to me.   I am sure glad she did, though.  Now the whole box is not full of lace, some really interesting lengths of it, but sort of dawnting or since I am not sure how to spell that -- lets just call it overwhelming!  I am not one for frilly things or girly girl things so the lace was quite the dilemna.  But, being the creative and enquiring mind that I am, I just progressed an idea that I have been playing around with using the selvedges from fabrics and instead of selvedges I translated it into laces...

So, I sewed a selection of laces onto some of the fabric that also happened to be in the box - some solid colour poly cottons.  In fact the laces are easier to sew onto the fabric than the selvedges because the lace is wider and doesn't take quite so many -- the work goes faster.

And the next step was to make something with the newly created fabric.

Easy Peasy as Jamie Oliver is known to say.  I covered a dollar store address book and doesn't it look like just the prettiest address book you can want??  A perfect place to keep all your best girlfriends names and cell phone numbers and of course email addresses...

This one, though I am mailing off to-day to my aunt in winnipeg as a bit of a thank you for her thoughtfulness when it comes to clearing out her 'stash'...

Sewing and Craft Fair

A Sewing and Craft Fair is not the place for someone like me, who is overly frugal...  But then again, maybe it is.

I went to this "fair" that has been coming to my town for a few years now -- admittedly the entrance price is high, at least to me, it seems high, til you think about it.  The admittance charge is $10 for two days and since it is fairly close to where I live, this year I took advantage of attending both days. 

Day One, Saturday, I did a bit of wandering in mid afternoon before I went to a one hour seminar that I signed up for called Serger 911.  I have attended these little demo's or talks or even sometimes they teach a hands on techniqe and to be honest these classes usually leave me wanting.  This class, Serger 911 though was very excellent. Now, even though I have been sewing for 30+ years, I bought my first serger just this year and have barely touched it -- fear?  well a bit, cause I had wanted to sew a rolled edge and changed the tension, then not having written down the 'starting' settings, I could not find my way back to those nice even stitches.  And really, What the Hell is Differential Feed??   Well, I am happy to report within a few minutes Kathy Ruddy had pretty much clearly explained what I came to the class for -- everything else was a bonus.   There was alot packed into that little seminar and even though I wrote things down, MADLY, I tell you, MADLY, I know I didn't get everything.   Now, since I am still a very basic serger user, the info that I got is an excellent start for me.  Kathy had a booth in the Vendors Mall and so today, I went back to purchase some of the "guides" she had created to help us serger learners.  Now I can sit and fiddle and try to be patient and learn about my new machine.   If you are interested check out Unique Patterns-Live Guides Inc. she is based in Mukilteo, WA

Day Two - I also saw (you'd think I was a completely new sewer) a embroidery machine, that has like ten spools of yarn all going at the same time.  I stood and talked to the lady demoing the machine -- it was facinating, but I knew that it was not a machine for me, though I did enjoy her talk and now I know how they put those cool logos and mottos and such on baseball caps!

So many great shops and products, far too many for me to absorb -- I did go to the show specifically to find some thread that my Janome particularly likes, for piecing and even for quilting.  Aurafil threads.  And I found it and bought 3 - 5000 meter spools.  Two of White and one a Dark Grey, those three should last me close to a year!

It was a fun show, got to meet up with a few other quilting buddies from my area and got to catch up of their doings.  This years 'show' included a Scrapbookers section and it is amazing what that ART has grown into!  Years ago I had a beginning interest but with teenagers and work and other things in my life, I did not add that to my crafty stuff, now I sort of wish I had, it is facinating to see the embellishments and the artistry that goes into creating a photo album.   I just looked.

The few things that I bought totalled less than $40, but I am very happy with them...

Oh and one shop, Sew Sisters Quilt Shop came all the way from Toronto, ON, (I am a fan on theirs on Facebook)  I bought the panel you see in the photo above, it is about a half meter and has 8 different dolls with their changeable clothing.  I am not sure what I will be doing with it, making a quilt? or maybe just keep it in my collection -- I have always been partial to paper dolls...

Oh, by the way, one of the things about going to these type of shows, I most like going alone... I know it seems that most of us go in pairs or trios, but the way I shop, I just greatly dislike following someone else around to the things that they like.  So going alone, at least for me, is the most satisfying...

PS.  I re read my blog and I realized that DAY ONE was actually Friday and Day TWO was Saturday -- I blame it on being a non- working person -- one day is just about the same as the next except I get to do what I want, when I want... I am thinking that, maybe it is time to find something to do to earn a few bucks...  It's just a thought though -- really "I'd rather be poor than work!"  Yes, I would make a great bum, hobo, lay-about, or whatever other interesting words there are for someone like me.... hahaha

I Do Like Free Stuff!

When I used to write the Miss Snips Notebook column for the Canadian Quilter Magazine, I also wrote a column called Check this Out! for a few years.  I aquired quite a list of interesting and most useful web pages that I wrote about in that column.  I came across a list of free patterns while searching through some of my computer files that I had luckily saved onto a USB thingy when I realized my old computer was developing little glitches.  Anyway, I thought I would pass along those links along with a few more recent ones that fit the "category".  I checked everyone this morning to make sure they were still functional and useful so, check them yourself with confidence that you are not going to end up with error pages...

Enjoy.

Free Quilt And Craft Patterns on the Internet.


You will be amazed at the number of free patterns that you can find by surfing around the different fabric manufacturing sites…

Someday You might not even have to buy a magazine or book to find the next quilt you want to make.

So here is a list of Fabric Company sites that have dozens of free patterns -- should keep you busy all summer!

http://www.andoverfabrics.com/QuiltDesigns/QuiltDesigns.asp

http://www.avlyn.com/collections/project/

http://www.blankquilting.com/freepatterns.aspx

http://www.clover-usa.com/Make+It/Project+Sheets/
Patterns for knitting and crochet, also some tote bags and other little projects

http://www.henryglassfabrics.com/
Click on Project Library at the top of the page for quilts and check out New Patterns also at the top of the page for NEW stuff for free…

http://hollyholderman.typepad.com/teatimefloral/
Click on the patterns along the side to get the instructions for the various quilts.

http://www.lazygirldesigns.com/community/freepattern.php
This company is well known for excellent variety of patterns -- the Sew Sweet Satchel was taught as a class by Therese Schwab a few years back and I have made it dozens of times now for my friends and relatives…

http://www.eeschenck.com/default.asp?SuperStore=348&s=348
Not only quilts but Christmas stocking patterns, too.

http://www.mccallsquilting.com/Block_Reference.html
A very long list of traditional blocks -- don’t have to worry about copyright here…

http://www.unitednotions.com/un_main.nsf/free_patterns!OpenPage
Lots of great patterns here, quilts, baby stuff, toys, and totes, click on the categories at the top of the page…

http://www.quiltinaday.com/eleanorandcompany/freepattern/
We all know Quilt in a Day, here are a whole stack of blocks and quilts -- all are in PDF format so you need to have acrobat reader on your computer -- if you don’t know what it is, just click on the pattern and your computer will tell you if you do or do not have it, if not, it is free to download onto your computer, just follow the prompts as they come up on your machine…

http://www.quiltingtreasures.com/quilting/projects.php %20literally    
literally dozens of patterns, just keep scrolling down…

http://www.redroosterfabrics.com/quilt/
some really nice ones here (Bread and Butter is on my to do list) from the intro page go to Current Patterns which will take you to the (obviously) current patterns. You can go also to the Retired Patterns, which simply means that the fabrics used in these are no longer available, but the pattern is, so you have to be creative and substitute your own colour combinations… and who doesn’t do that anyway?

http://www.rjrfabrics.com/patterns/patterns_search.cfm
Wonderful, Wonderful free patterns here, even organized into interesting sections, Cosmopolitan, Fat Quarters and Charms, Designers, and Collections -- click on each to discover exactly what they are…

http://www.southseaimports.com/projects.aspx
All the patterns are in PDF format, click on the link where it says “click here to download PDF” it does say, login at the top of the page, but I did not need to when I clicked on a few of the patterns…

http://www.ttfabrics.com/patterns/index.shtml
Some really nice patterns here, but read the small print as they are only free for a year and then become copyright the designers, so if you see something you are likely to make download it now, or make note of the designers name so that you can find it sometime in the future.

http://www.northcott.net/?sid=3&layout=2col&content=patterns some really nice patterns on this site, though not all are free and they all are pretty much under copyright so remember to contact the designer for permissions to display or sell…

http://www.michaelmillerfabrics.com/MMF/DownLoad.cfm?Gid=1160 This is a great fabric company with a lot of designs and quilt patterns for free. Like a couple of others on this list, they download in the PDF format…

http://www.benartex.com/page/quilt-projects-85.htm
Not so many free projects, in fact I only found one, these are changed monthly, so you need to check back regularly -- it is a relatively new site so is still growing.

http://www.hoffmanfabrics.com/content/content-folder.asp?FolderID=7
 again, Lots and Lots of designs especially created for this companys product lines, click on the title to download the pattern instructions, and again, all in PDF format.

P.S.  Let me know if you have any difficulty with these links so I can correct them.

Odd Bits

My Wall of Fabric -- it is actually a bedroom closet, now the sewing room...

When I bring new or even thrifted fabric into the STASH, I usually wash it and then tear off the selveges from both sides.  I used to leave the selveges on, but now I have a use for them (saw a skirt made of sewn together selvedges on a web page)

The stack of torn off selvedges has grown, sometimes if I have no immediate use for the long strips, I will roll them into a ball -- but the problem with a ball is that then you have to unroll it to sew them together and you don't necessarily want all the same selvedge together, and long strips with no writing on it I usually elminate and that part of the selvedge is saved to tie young plants to a stake in the garden, or other things where you need soft but strong string -- even use it as a tie for gift wrap...

So, all those strips of selvedge gets sewn together with scraps of quilt batting (warm and natural seems to work the best for me) as the backing.  Then, in this case, just as we used to do with school books that we covered with brown paper to protect them, I have made fabric covers for empty, lined or unlined small journals.  You can get the journals at the Dollar Store or as I often do, get them at the thrift shops for even less than at the dollar store.

Not only are the selvedges useful for this kind of scrappy art, but all those odd bits that are left when you are cutting squares and triangles or rectangles and trapazoids from your larger pieces of yardage.  There always seems to be a couple of inches or even less than an inch when you trim... Bits that probably should go into the bin, recycle or garbage...  But no, when I get a stack of little bits I often will iron them on to light, non-woven fusible interfacing -- leaving the raw edges exposed -- sometimes the random bits just work out to be the perfect journal cover, and sometimes I will make a small cosmetic bag or tote or whatever strikes my fancy -- the more small scrappy bits, the more fun it is to try to fit them together to make larger fabric pieces and the more interesting.

Now, I must add that these little exercises in saving tiny bits is not an everyday thing (but the savings of the bits is). I have a couple of baskets under my cutting table that collects all those bits for a someday session of sorting. When I want to sew but have nothing particular in mind except that I just want to sew I can play around with those bits.  The sewn together selvedges may sit on a shelf for months until the inclination to actually use it up strikes my fancy,  or to get out the "fused" together tiny squares, triangles and rectangles and create something just a bit off beat...  Now, to find a way to make use of these PRODUCTS -- perhaps a online outlet to sell them?  Well, I will think on it...

A Week Away. . .

Really, I wasn't too far -- definately not to far to get to my computer fairly easily -- more like, I was pretty busy...

So, since I was so busy, I should explain my week long absence from blogland, or should I?

Cats and Hats and Unicorns

One of the things that took up my time was polishing my Brass Unicorn...  Mostly I don't get attached to THINGS.  Mostly Things are just THINGS and when they have no useful function, they don't stay in my house for long.  But my Brass Unicorn was a wanted THING long before I had him.  Large Brass ornaments were a "wanted" type of thing, way back in the early 1980s...  I used to go to a department store (Eatons that no longer exists) and wish to be an owner of a large brass floor ornament.  They cost way too much!  Then about 10 years ago or so -- I found mine...  Yes, FOUND it, not bought it, though I do believe it was meant to go to a local Salvation Army store...  Early in the day, in the days when I actually went to work, I was on my way to work and glanced out my driver side window and a bright reflection caught my eye -- no traffic, so I stopped and being the garbage picker that I am, there in the ditch lay my brass unicorn...  Mine, all mine!

I guess someone was taking a pile of things to the second hand store and perhaps got lazy...  There was a bag of clothing and a box of other little do dads -- all those I picked up too and did take them over to the Salvation Army drop box, but I kept the brass unicorn!  So this past week I spent a good couple of hours, shining him up with a newly purchased bottle of brass cleaner and now he happily gleams while standing in front of the stack of cd's cabinate...

  This definately was a week of shopping.  Just for the exercise, mind you, my hubby and I decided to go over to the local flea market and bought a few things that just happened to be there just waiting for us, cause we needed them...

My hubby has been trying to keep things in a falling apart wallet for a few months now, and mentioning now and then that he needs a new wallet.   Well, at one of the first tables in the flea market the vendor had dozens and dozens of wallets, leather ones, all for $10 or $15 each.  Hubby found just the right one for him and paid the man his $10...

Next we wandered along the aisles and when my husband gets behind I know he has stopped to look at stacks of cds...  There were ALOT of cds at this weeks flea market.  I even picked up one.  I am somewhat partial to blues and folk music, and there staring at me on one rack was a Robert Johnson cd -- I had never actually heard Robert Johnson but often heard of him -- take a chance and spent $5 -- so I carried home some new to me music -- my hubby also found a Eric Clapton that he at one time had on cassette tape, and a Huey Lewis that he had been hunting for for quite some time...  We thought we found all the treasures we needed...

For the longest time, the cat - ARCHIE has been needing a new post to scratch on -- he and his companion Fossie have been tearing apart the carpet (it is old) on the basement stairs... Now a new post made by a local fellow that makes and sells these stands at a much more reasonable price than the pet supply chain stores -- and not made in China or somewhere else...  $40 bucks and my ARCHIE is totally happy as you can see...

So those couple of things don't take a whole day or even everyday of the week, but truly there were things to keep me busy...

I did some sewing...

 I went to Bellingham, WA to pick up a few things -- particularly fabric and batting...

I had the usual Dr.  appointments, that always take longer than they should...

I absolutely had to go for a walk in the rain, at the park...

I bought topsoil and soil for my dozen or so containers for flowers and herbs on my back deck...

And I nagged my husband to sort out stuff in the basement attic... (most people call it the basement rafters)

So, yep, I was busy...