Thursday, September 16, 2010

My elbow's fixed, my elbow's fixed!

So hollered (to everyone he passed) our 3-1/2 year old grandson on his way out of the hospital emergency room this afternoon. The emergency care "doc in the box" sent grampa to the ER after saying "I don't have the capability of fixing this." Good grief, poor Grampa. (Oops, and maybe I'm grinning a little too much ....... it appears to be slightly harder for him to babysit without me. Turns out maybe I do most of the work??? Hmmmmm.) ;>

Anyway - grandson has developed a tendency for his elbow to pull out of joint - it has some technical term that I can't remember, but basically the description is caretaker's elbow. How can a 3 year old have caretaker's elbow ???? Grampa said the nurse was really slick about it - played with his fingers and his wrist, and surreptitiously got a grip on his forearm and behind his upper arm, rolled him over and popped it right back into place in one move. After a few minutes, Michael decided he was thrilled and announced to everyone on the way out the door that his elbow was fixed. Grampa said he was pretty cute.

No sewing news.......except that I've drawn a basic design for the pillow cases for my last quilt - haven't had much time to devote to sewing this week, but I hold out hope for soon. We'll see.

Lisa

Monday, September 13, 2010

It's done....

So, the "Summer 2010" huge quilt is finished. Well, nearly. Still have the label to put on - design, figure out what I want to say, figure out what I'm printing it on, print, hope it works, sew on, etc. Ya know, that.

The longarmer said a couple of weeks - well, it was actually just a couple of days. I was thrilled! Dropped it off one Saturday and picked it up the next. How cool is that? Even cooler? I still have 8 weeks before the giftee's birthday arrives.

We did a variegated pink-purple-red thread for both top & bottom threads, and an edge-to-edge feather meander pattern. Simple pattern that I really liked. I was a little unsure of how the colored thread would look on the black back, but I like that too. I like the idea that it's reversible too, 2 quilts in one. I just like it all! ;)

This was a fun project for me .... kinda long, but that's ok. I'm getting better at enjoying the process and not necessarily finishing now. Patience. I've heard it's a virtue. The challenge for me is to keep focusing on each section while I'm working it and doing the best job I can. NOT rushing through to get to the end. This is a recent achievement ..... well, not quite a completely learned skill yet, but I'm workin' on it.

I got the binding made and sewed on yesterday. I was very careful to keep it lined up and my seam a consistent 3/8". That was a l-o-n-g day at the sewing machine ....... nearly 33 feet of binding when I did the math in the morning (or 2/3 yard - 33 feet sounded horrible!!). Like a good little New England born and bred saver, I was able to use the black that I trimmed off the back when I squared it up after quilting. I still have 4 or so feet left. Maybe I can use that on the pillowcases!

And finally, here's some pics of the finished project. I think if you click on them they should open up in a larger window so you can see the detail.









Have a great week!

Lisa