Sew, Mama, Sew Meme

I decided to join in on the fun at the Sew, Mama, Sew blog and answer some questions about my main  sewing machine. So here are the questions and my answers:

What brand and model do you have?

Husqvarna Designer 1 ESS

How long have you had it?

7 years

How much does that machine cost (approximately)?

$6000.00 when purchased

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)?

clothing, quilts, home dec projects, anything and everything

How much do you sew?

Every day

How much wear and tear does the machine get?

Sometimes a lot of wear and tear with daily use and then it will sit while I use my Juki TL98Q while working on some quilts.

Do you like/love/hate your machine?

Love, love my machine.

Are you ambivalent? Passionate?

I’d say Passionate.

Does she have a name?

No name

What features does your machine have that work well for you?

I love not having to drop the presser foot, love the threader, love the thread cutter.

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine?

I’ve not found anything other than when I used to use the embroidery module, the hoops were a little too light weight for what I was wanting to do.

Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it!

No special stories about this machine. My original Husqvarna 1+ (the machine before this one) my Dad bought for me so I could embroider.

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why?

I would highly recommend any of the Husqvarna machines. They are very good machines. Heavily made and real work horses.

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine?

Ease of use. Availability of accessories. Stability of company making the machine.  Good warranty. Good dealer support.  Good feel.

Do you have a dream machine?

I think I own my dream machine.

Happy Quilting & Sewing!

Wow, It’s Been a Long Time

Wow, I hadn’ t realized it had been so long since I had posted. Time is passing too fast and I don’t seem to be getting as much done as I would like.

I have been doing some quilting, mostly special orders. Here are a few  I have done.

I’ve also been sewing some dresses for Miss Elly although I forgot to take pictures of the last ones I made. It is so fun to make dresses for her but it sure makes it hard for me to get back to quilting. Here are a couple I have done recently.

She is growing so fast. It’s hard to believe she is already 8 month old. She is finally getting some hair but now she looks like she has a mohawk….hair in a line down the middle of her head. It won’t be long though and she’ll have a full head of hair. She’s crawling all over the place and will probably be walking by Easter. Such a sweetheart!

Well, that’s it for today. I’ll try to post more often.

Happy quilting!

Baby Toot

I lost my oldest furbaby last night, Baby Toot. I’ve watched her go downhill for months now but last night I knew it was the last.  She was my flood victim, saved from the 1993 flood in Kansas City and had been attached to me for almost 16 years.  She was a toot, her own purrson, touch me not unless I want you to, etc. but I’ll really miss her. Until the last year, she would get up on the bed each night and massage my back after having her ears scratched, then she would lie next to me and go to sleep. It became hard for her to get on the bed so that finally came to an end. But, she would lie next to the bed until I went into the sewing room each morning. There she would lie under the table next to me and if I left the room, she would wait patiently until I returned,  and ask for her ears to be scratched before she resettled into her spot.

Because I knew the end was near, we were able to spend a lot of time together last night. When I got up this morning, she was gone.  She was buried next to our other furbabies and will be waiting on the rainbow bridge for me.

Baby Toot – June 1993 – January 2009

It’s Good To Be Back

I can’t believe it has been so long since I posted.  There just wasn’t enough time to get everything done I wanted to do before Christmas, including posting to my blog.  Our family continues to grow which means more things to get done or go bankrupt at Christmas.  This year, I made as many gifts as I could after getting all my ordered quilts finished.  I always make things but with the economy the way it is, I tried to do more this year.

I have also been doing some smocking for Miss Elly and have arranged my schedule so I have time to work on little outfits for her. I  quit my quilting before dinner and spend the evenings working on things for her. Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn’t. But I am getting some things done.

I have also been working on ordered quilts and it seems when I get one done, I get another order so things have continued on.  I don’t have any pictures of any new quilts  but hopefully, things are slowing down enough for me to get back into the grove.

I can’t leave without showing a picture of Miss Elly in one of her new dresses. This was  her Thanksgiving dress. It kind of makes her look like a little pumpkin. The skirt was a little large for such a little baby. I’ve made a note of that for future use.

That’s it for today. Happy Quilting!

Wow, What a Month!

I hadn’t realized it had been so long since I had blogged. I guess my month was pretty full leaving little time for blogging.

My Mother was fussing at me the other day for not visiting with her and just out of curiosity, I decided to check and see how many quilts I had made since the 1st of August to give her an idea of why I had not had time to visit. As of the 15th of October, I had made and shipped over 20 baby quilts and one extra large full size quilt for, you guessed it, my Mother.  In addition to making quilts, through the end of October, I have made 3 trips to Kansas City to see Miss Elly, had my brother visit for a week twice, my nephew visit for for 2 weekends, spent 3 days driving my sister and my mother to doctor appointments, and then there is the every day activities and shopping trips that are necessary. So…..to say the least, I have been busy. I’ve also made and shipped 6 more quilts since the 15th and have 2 more baby quilts and a king and a queen to do as soon as I can get them made.

Unfortunately, when checking my pictures, I failed to get a picture of one of the quilts I wanted to show. Oh well, that happens when you are rushing to get things in the mail.  There’s no way to duplicate that one that’s for sure. I wasn’t really going to duplicate it though since the fabric is difficult to find even though it is really cute fabric.

Here is a quilt that went to Japan…I’m international now.

I will close though with a couple of recent pictures of Miss Elly. I’m also working on smocking some little dresses for her and have several to make that will not be smocked. I’ve decided to quilt during the day and in the evening, I’m working on things for Miss Elly. I made the blue dress and red pinafore to see about sizing. She had spit up a little but who cares and had lost her big red bow that was on the head band. Now I can get to work on all the fabric I’ve purchased for her.

Happy quilting!

Miss Elly’s Christening Quilt

I finally got the quilt bound, the label made, and rewashed it. I’ve got it packed away waiting for our trip next weekend. So, here are pictures of the finished quilt. I’ve also included a picture of the label.

Happy Quilting!

Welcome Changes!

Last night while watching the Democratic Presidential acceptance speech, I thought about how things were when I was a girl. My Mother and Dad both worked and with 5 kids, 4 at home, things tended to be more than Mother could handle. Back then, we wore dresses to school and each dress was starched and pressed to perfection. To assist Mother, she and Daddy hired an african-american woman to clean house and iron. She came in once a week. We had several before finally finding our Miss Sophie and she soon became a member of the family. I remember one Easter, I received 2 chicks from the Easter bunny that eventually grew into really ugly and dirty chickens. I kept them in a storage room in our garage and Mother finally put her foot down and said they had to go. Miss Sophie offered to take them and any time I asked her about my chickens, she would spin the most beautiful story of their lives. More than likely, they were eaten but she would never have told me that.

I remember Daddy taking Sophie down town after her days work and seeing all of the African-Americans that worked in town standing outside of the grocery store. They were waiting for their rides to their homes (we had no African-Americans living in our town).  It never occurred to me that they stood outside the grocery store because they were not allowed in. I don’t know whether they were or not, my memory fails me in remembering if I ever saw any in there.

When I was in 6th grade, we moved to a new house but Miss Sophie continued to come. One day at lunch, Daddy and I sat down at the table to eat and Miss Sophie was standing at the counter. Daddy invited her to eat with us and she fixed her plate and returned to the counter. Daddy told her if she was going to eat in our house, she would eat with the rest of us. I didn’t understand at the time why Sophie hesitated, now I know.

I guess I lived a sheltered life. I never saw the discrimination against the blacks where I grew up in Texas and never knew it existed. Maybe it was because there were so few around in our town. They came to work during the day and left at night. I never went to school with any until high school but didn’t realize they were any different than I was.

As I grew up, I began to learn of the terrible things they experienced and still didn’t understand. I still don’t understand how one human being can judge another only by the color of their skin.

I have been very fortunate to have had a lot of African-American friends in my life and I can still say, they are no different than me.

I celebrate the accomplishment of Mr. Obama and his family and celebrate the acknowledgment of the people of this country that black, white, yellow, gold, or whatever, we are all humans who have the same feelings, hopes, and dreams. Good luck Mr. Obama and Miss Sophie, I think of you often.

Another Quilting Day

I have been working on my design for the wholecloth for Miss Elly. I have it all drawn out and now need to get it on the fabric. I realized, after receiving my silk fabric, that I didn’t order enough. The quilt is 45″x45″ and I only ordered 2 yards….what was I thinking. So, now, I have to figure out what to use on the back. I had ordered some silk batiste that should arrive any day and may use that for the back. I don’t know though, it seems pretty thin. I will have to see what I think when it arrives.

As soon as I decided to do the wholecloth, I received 4 quilt orders. Never fails. I need the orders but have a lot to do for the christening. So, I’ve been frantically getting quilts ready to quilt and hope to have them all done this week so I can concentrate on the christening things.

Here is the latest ordered quilt being  put in the mail this morning. This one took a little longer since it has applique/embroidery as well as piecing. The next 3 are panels so should go fast. It’s fun to know I have quilts scattered all over the US being drooled on by babies.

Now on to the next 3. Happy Quilting!

I’m Among The Living

I haven’t had anything to show as far as quilts lately. I have been working on ordered quilts since I returned from Kansas City. I have to admit, every time I have gone to Kansas City, I had orders waiting for me when I returned. Maybe I need to make more trips.

I got to spend a few days with Miss Elly a few weeks ago. She is so sweet and I just couldn’t get enough of her. It was so hard to leave but will make the next time even better. She’ll be visiting next weekend and I can’t wait.

The heat here has been unbearable. Yesterday I think the heat index was at 105 degrees. Too hot to be outside for sure. It is supposed to cool off the rest of the week.

Well, that’s it from Wishbone Lane. I have a root canal this morning and am not looking forward to it. At least I know I won’t have a golf ball on the side of my face for the next MQS.

I can’t leave without including 2 new pictures of Miss Elly. Happy Quilting!

I forgot to publish this so will do so now. My root canal went fine and it is such a relief to get this over.

Happy Quilting!

The Arrival of Miss Elly

Well, after 9 months of waiting and working toward the birth of our new granddaughter, she finally arrived yesterday at 4:22 PM, weighing in at 7lbs.2 oz. She was 19″ long (including cone head) and came into the world letting everyone know she was not happy. Everyone feels very blessed to have this little angel join our family after 7 boys and 1 girl among our grandkids. Our only other granddaughter is 16 now so we have not had the opportunity to spoil a little girl for a long time. I’m already getting out my dress patterns, knitting patterns, and also my smocking books to get started enjoying the next 4 or 5 years sewing again for a little girl.

Here are a couple of pictures of Mom, Dad and Miss Elly. Her 2 brothers were quite enchanted by their little sister but I wasn’t able to get any good photos of them all together. Hopefully, there will be pictures coming later in the summer of the 3.

Here is Miss Elly!

Better get to work. I have some ordered quilts I need to get done this week. Happy Quilting!

Here’s another picture that shows what she actually looks like. You can see her Daddy in her little face!