Judy Hopkins' Running Amok Tablerunner Mystery

This morning I got two more DD blocks together. That makes 16 done and 44 to go. LOL! I then went to the Running Amok Tablerunner Mystery class (remember the mix up a few weeks ago?) and I was the only student. Sigh. The owner of the shop was the teacher and she decided to sew a second one with me which was nice. We gabbed some and I struggled with my machine since it is still eating fabric! At the end she was nice enough to give me her original rendition of the pattern since she didn't have a use for it..so I will add more and finish this one.

Aren't the colors awesome?

Here are my blocks which I will finish later today hopefully into a runner. I am happy with them overall, the colors went together better than I expected!
So the shop owner has redeemed herself somewhat (without even knowing it) since she can be rather nice but is funny about the credit card thing. I was sure to bring cash today...sigh. I did sign myself up for a few classes/clubs at another shop that came highly recommended to me. One is the applique club and one is the tablerunner of the month club...also had them put me down for the Baltimore Album one that starts in May...though I will have to see the quilt before I commit to it and after a few months of the applique club I may decide I am not THAT into applique. We shall see.

A Little Elephant Bag

Finally did a little sewing tonight..did four more DD blocks (so 14 out of 60 are done..LOL!) and then I sewed this little bluework elephant into a bag for my nephew. http://zuill.us/andreablog/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/trixie-the-elephant-stor.jpg

The pattern for the bluework is at this page. It reminds me of going to the zoo with Ben and the family at Christmas time. This will be the year of the elephants I guess!

I also wanted to post this equality symbol...I have this on the back of my car and sometimes people ask me what it means...I am not sure if this is the official answer, but to me it means we are all created equally and we should treat everyone equally. In other words, acceptance. I felt the need to post that because tonight I watched a show that was primarily about hate (the history of Neo-Nazism) and wanted to throw some counter action into the world...rarely do I preach, but love thy neighbor as thyself...if everyone did this our world would be a happier place! What is your favorite symbol?

I Passed the AEPA Test!

WHOOT WHOOT--I passed the AEPA test! Not really sure I will be teaching again next year anyways (today I am on the fence, last week I wasn't!) but I passed the test I needed to so I am tickled pink with that regardless! Thanks for your support and encouragement readers!

Double Delight, Tablerunner Mystery Progress, Elephant Stitchery

I got my tablerunner mystery all cut and ready for next week Saturday...didn't post a picture though so here it is!

Also finished this little elephant stitchery for Ben...to remind him always of our zoo visit to Reba the elephant this year. Not sure if I will make him a bag or put it in a frame or quilt or what at this point. Just thought it was cute and wanted to make it. I can't find the link for where I got this online pattern (and the pattern is upstairs) and google didn't find it either. I will look again later in case you want it...it really is cute!

Last weekend I visited my sister and stopped at a quilt store on the way (The Olde World Quilt Shoppe). The owners were super friendly and I found some clearance fabric for baby quilts and this star quilt rack to hang my little A is for Adaminaby quilt up. Looks good to me!

And Double Delight is finally growing..I actually have ten blocks made (some from clue 4 and some from clue 5) and I just love this one more and more. I can hardly wait to see it...I know I keep saying that, but it is true!

The gals at quiltville are now talking about doing this quilt (Jared Takes a Wife) with some green in it in March...http://quiltville.com/jaredtakesawife.shtml
It is also gorgeous, but I took one look at those small pieces in the blocks and hope I can resist doing it...and instead work on Double Delight.

Randy flew to Ohio tonight because his mom is not doing well. She was recovered from cancer and it came back and since she is 79 it didn't take long to wear her down. She is a wonderful lady and I pray that Randy gets some quality time with her before she goes...she told the family she was waiting for her Randy Joe to come home and hospice is already in place at the home. She is in God's hands.

Kathy and I are going to watch the movie Sex in the City...have never seen the show so will see if the movie stands alone I guess. Tomorrow we are going to help my sister pack up to move and meeting my brother and nephew to play at Peter Piper Pizza again...will be fun to see how Ben reacts since he knows the place now. The kid is a barrel of laughs! Smile. Hope there is lots of quilting in your life this weekend!

So Much for a Class Today....

Just felt the need to feel sorry for myself publicly. Sigh. I have the hardest time with taking quilting classes. Back in Wisconsin I signed up for a few at this one store and every time one thing or the other would go wrong (told me the wrong supplies to buy--oops that was last month--told me the wrong time of the class so when I showed up no one was there--oops, barely an apology was made for their mistakes and I boycotted them after three, etc.). Now I don't take this personally exactly, but wonder if as a whole quilt shops are run half assed!
Today I was going to try a new shop...says right on the website that the class is today from 1-4...I stopped in last Saturday because I had no supply list and the gal running the place couldn't find the mystery pattern. I had a whole conversation with her about the fact that the mystery was coming up in just a few days, etc. I wound up leaving without any more direction than I started with. She even told me see you Monday. Now this is the shop owner and teacher of the class. She told me she would call me Monday morning so that I would know what I needed. No call this morning...So today I go in an hour early to get the supplies since I still had no idea. The people at the shop were rather suprised to see me and didn't know there was any class. They opened up the book and it said the class was Sat. the 28th. Now I know the website said TODAY not the 28th for two reasons...one I normally work on Monday's and was excited the class was on a holiday so that I could go and two, I had a very important appointment scheduled in Wisconsin for the 27th and 28th so I would never had signed up since I have to be there. (Appointment has been postponed again til the end of May)...so the gals go back to ask the owner and come out and tell me I was right it was today. Then finally the owner comes out and tells me what I need for supplies. I take my time picking them out and get them cut and then go to say I am ready only to have her tell me that the class is the 28th! I re-explain to her that I am sure the website says today and that was why I was bugging her for supplies Saturday and today. She makes like I am mistaken (checked the website when I got home and it is TODAY) and grabs me some cutting instructions as I am leaving the store...so I haul the machine out and come back in and get them.
Now I know mistakes are made, but I am thinking I am done trying to sign up for classes. So far I have 38 bucks into this mystery tablerunner and I know how to sew and I am the only person signed up for the class... was hoping to meet some other sewers....sigh.
Tell me all the shops aren't this disorganized....I love this shop but not so much today. Just so this post doesn't have you as depressed as me..here are the fabrics I picked out and the inspiration picture that helped me pick the colors.

I did sew two Double Delight blocks together this morning...not happy with the seam on one of them so will be ripping it out. I also cut several different fabrics for hexagon I Spy quilts down the road. Kathy went to get me Indian food (Chicken Mahkani) to cheer me up and make my crabby go away! Borrowed this picture from someone online, but looks like my current favorite food--if you have never tried it you gotta!

An Awesome Valentine's Day Gift and a Sneak Peak at DD!

This first picture is a bench that my great grandfather Anton Walker made for my Aunt Nancy. Everyone in the family had at least one and some of them were a very funky orange color and even had decals on them. Gpa Tony died when I was eight, but I remember he was always busy with his hands. (He also made cool outside bells by bending tin can lins and stringing them together). Anyway I have always wanted my own bench like this. The ones my mother had are long gone, and only a few that Grandpa Tony made still remain. So last October when I visited my aunt I took this picture, and Kathy had previously taken measurements of my Uncle Steve's bench and viola!

Here is my very own bench! It isn't painted, and might not be quite exactly the same, but I love it! Thanks Kathy!

Tonight I played with my unsewn blocks (only one sewn so far) and put them together to see what DD might look like. I love it of course and need to buckle down and sew it!

Yesterday was an awful day at work, took a mental health day today. Hoping the awful cold will go away too. I have decided for sure that I won't be teaching high school next year. I can't deal with the passive aggressive disrespectful kids. I will miss many of the other kids and some may even miss me, but...I just got my first check for my part time job and for 24 hours of work I got paid MORE money than for 80 hours at my regular job (minus all they take out) so I think it is back to freelancing which I love anyway. If I find a college to teach at great, if not that is okay too.

We went to a late lunch today and had Cornish Pasties. They were different and good. Got to try each other's and will go again some time. Also stopped at Zoe's Trunk Quilt Shop to sign up for Monday's mystery tablerunner class. I am excited to do my first in person mystery! They didn't have the fabric info available yet so that is a mystery yet too...smile! I did splurge and buy a book I wanted....will tell you about that later on. We also went and saw Gran Torino which was a good movie, not fabulous but good. Clint Eastwood still has major talent. I enjoyed that the movie included Hmong people...in Wisconsin there are many of these people and here there aren't. My students don't even know who the Hmong are or their story...so at least that gets them some mainstream exposure. We topped off the day with a stop at Barnes and Noble Bookstore...so that was fun! I paged through some quilt magazines and am dying to make some doll quilts all of the sudden. There were two in the mags that were inspiring. One was a nine patch, and one was a Trip Around the World quilt. I bought my kids and my sister and Kathy bookmarks for Valentine's Day....will be late to the kids, but it is the thought that counts. Got Tina and I a gnome bookmark...we both love gnomes and they are supposed to bring good luck. My sister needs all the luck she can get so hoping the gnomes will help. Things are tough for her right now. Her hubby is in Texas working and she has to give up the house she is renting and move in with a friend since the owners of the house can't afford the house they are in now. Nothing seems to swing her way.

Double Delight Clue Three Done and on to Clue Four--Sneak Peak!

After taking three of our four dogs to the Bark Park (first time for all three to go and for me to go) I came home and got to work on step three of my Double Delight as promised. Kathy came up and helped me cut out the setting triangles for a future step and helped cut strips for me. She trimmed a set of ten of these nine patches too, but left me these thirty since she didn't care for the fussiness of it. So technically I have 30 trimmings left, but I already went ahead and put together one block from step four....
So here is the sneak peak at clue four blocks! I have to put together a total of 30 of these before moving on to step five. As you can see my nine patch on this one isn't quite perfect..most look better than that but overall I love it, am doing the dance of joy and really loving Bonnie K. Hunter's talent!

We are supposed to pin all the points and take care to sew them up just right so I will try to take my time and not just barrel through this step. So much has gone into this quilt so far...how I love it! How far are you on Double Delight?

An Early Valentine's Day Present and Progress on DD!

My sweetheart got me an early Valentine's Day gift! Three buttons from zazzle that show quilts I have done with the quiltville group Bonnie K. Hunter leads...I am still working on that third one, but I am loving it!

I also got the matching magnets! I am feeling like a lucky girl. Really not in the budget for these things right now, but I was gifted with them anyway...I love magnets and I used to collect buttons so YAY for me!

I put in a little work on clue three of Double Delight yesterday and again tonight. I have a total of 91 made I believe! They are slower going that I would have expected but they trim up so cute. I am going to try to push to actually finish these this weekend and start getting the clue four blocks together!

See that stack getting higher and higher?

I got another set of ten done after this picture...some of them aren't quite perfect enough for me, but overall I am liking them. The pinks are too cute! I think I need to cut some more strips tomorrow to make more, I am getting low on pieces! I loved the Orange Crush quilt and almost couldn't give it away, but I think this one tops that one and I am NOT giving it away. Can't say that I plan to do another one with so many pieces in it anytime soon (remind of that when Bonnie annouces her next mystery...and besides that I would love to make Carolina Crossroads which I have in her book) so this might be my opus quilt, lol! Usually I really prefer a quicker and more simple quilt..I like to see progress fast. Lately I have fallen in love with scrappy quilts and I don't think there is a better designer for scrappy quilts than Bonnie at Quiltville.com ...if you are not a fan check her stuff out. I know I am not even her number one fan--many wanting that title, but the only two quilters I would run (not walk, run!) to meet and take a class or watch a show with it is her and Mark Lipinski. No one else clicks with me the way they do. Oh another one I love is Ingrid Barlow though I don't think she is as well known. Her patterns are fun!

Look for a post tomorrow with me starting on clue four...I gotta, gotta!

PS I have a HORENDOUS cold....first I lost my voice, then I coughed all night long, now my throat hurts SO bad I could cry. Have been drinking tea like a fool (and spend lots of time in the bathroom peeing it out!) and now I am gargling with salt water. Seriously I know it isn't strep but can't recall my throat ever hurting like this without it!

Lady Applique Started and Babysitting Ben!

I managed to get this all set so I can sit and stitch on her. I am not sure how to applique the edges of her but will give it a shot. This may be the only one I do of these! Kind of fussy work I thought! So I added in the handstitching..no problem. Then I used my machine to do an applique stitch around the edge....it isn't bad from 100 feet on a galloping horse as they say. If you enlarge it and really look, I am not happy with it in parts but at least I tried it!

Here is Ben with the cat toy he loved at our house.

Not far from the cat toy...stacking stuff was a hit!

Still stacking! He was great fun, but I accomplished nothing but running after him! Since he hasn't spent much time here yet I wasn't sure what he would get into so barely took my eyes off him. He is pretty much non stop action. He cried for a bit once the novelty of being here wore off and he realized his Dad had left! I spent about ten minutes or so trying to distract him and luckily we found the cat and fed her then the cat toy and he was happier. Eventually we watched Nemo and played with blocks and stacking and all that. Whew...he enjoyed us but think he will be happier or more secure with us next time. I hope anyway...he is so adorable and says "I love you Angela" so sweet! Ahh little ones!

I worked on a little something for my honey for Valentine's day...not too happy with how it turned out, but I am sure it will be appreciated.

GO CARDINALS!