Back from Away

 Well, I have definitely been away for a while,

Here are a few hints on where I've been!

Yes, it was amazing an amazing trip.

Definitely a sampler of all" over the ocean" has to offer,

We are still a little bit jet lagged 

but back to basics and everyday life.

On with the quilting! 

Today, after finishing up the mending,

I'm starting to quilt the little "Eye spy" top and 

 the goods are waiting in the to be quilted pile.

As my walking buddy said,

That will give me the bes feeling of progress

to get me back in the flow of quilting.

Here is the pile.

And here's the quilt first quilt going under the needle.

It is already have completed . 

I ran out of time pretrip.

Lots of packing and luggage weighing was happening.

The back is pieced

and used up more of the flannel basket.  

Have a great week sewing!

( Did you figure out where we went?

The statue on the right in the fourth

picture is Amerigo Vespussi. 

I think he looks concerned?!)

Right Beside Me

Trying to clean and organize led me to a great Revelation.

 Sometimes the answer is nearby.

All of us experience experience overcrowding 

on our workspace at some time.

My issue were all the boxes of accessories

as well of all the bobbin holders.

I was drowning in supplies!

Examining the wall by  my sewing machine,

I was considering a small shelf or drawer unit hanging on the wall.

Then I realized, I sew at a desk..... 

with drawers.

The bottom drawer is the  place for 

all the sharp objects when the GKs or non-sewers come down.

 The top two drawers however,

 were just full of odds and sods.

A bit of a clean out and a perfect place for not only 

accessory boxes and bobbin holders 

but also the sewing manual.

The manual was getting tatty for being 

moved and pushed around so much.

 This stitch card can also be stored in a drawer. 

The machine storage for it is not ideal. 

Either it's too tall , or obstructing 

the throat area. 

A nice clean out and some separators

and I've got a lovely storage area and 

have reclaimed my workspace.

 Stay Safe and Sew On!

Linking up with :

Sew & Tell

Monday Musings

Design Wall Monday

SrSPS

Handmade Monday

Whupside Down I Spy

Yes, there are still loads of I Spy 

blocks kicking around my sewing room.

The first brick one is up on the wall after

a brief hiatus to make room for

the GK's 5 " block I Spy projects. 

Unfortunately, a few of the bricks are upside down.

A quick pick out with my handy mini rotary cutter

and I was back in business.

Now it's time to audition some sashing.

Putting in some lighter colors as sashing 

is always unsuccessful but

 like a bad movie plot, I try it again

and it always does not work.

Here is the second go round, 

The last one to chose from, 

and finally a pile of the winners. 

One winner turned out to be precut pieces 

for backing so they were sent down to the 

backing bin. 

The cutting was all 2 1/2" strips which

will also double as binding. 

The first top measures 42" x 58" 

but the subsequent ones will be 

a bit shorter at 42" x 52"

Nice pile of strips here and 

minimal leftovers too. 

Enough to do 4 quilts!

Have a great week sewing !

Stay Safe and Sew On!

Linking up with :

Sew & Tell

Monday Musing

Design Wall Monday

SrSPS

Handmade Monday 

To Do Tuesday

Wait Loss Wednesday

Put Your Foot Down

I Quilted This 

Finished or Not Friday

Off the Wall Friday

Sewing Machine Bonding

 Many people bond with their pets,

bond with their families,

bond  their friends.

I am bonding with my sewing machine.

It was recently updated and partially serviced, 

and we sewed happily together for one whole afternoon.

A needle broke and that was it.

The screen showed a big red X and 

a needle bearing down on on the presser foot!

I collected both portions of the needle and decided to call it

the end of the sewing day.

Then off to retreat,

accompanied by my little featherweight,

for a delightful trio stitching days.

This project UFO  was gifted to me and I finished it up. 

There's even enough scrappy goodness left 

to make another top or two baby quilts.

Influenza and I became good friends the day after retreat,

and although I asked the Bernina community for help,

I didn't check messages until well after a week.

Following their sage wisdom, 

I was able to get Big B back up and running.

It did take me awhile to find the proper keys and settings though.

Sometimes instruction manuals and 

videos are not made for the true beginner.

I am very new to Bernina machines and 

had no idea where to find the settings I needed.

Surprisingly the symbol is a yield sign with a big red "! ".

Then the process was easy and the machine sewed smoothly!  

More in touch with my machine and a bit more confident, 

my next sewing session should be productive. 

Look at all these tops just waiting for a date with Big B!

Stay Safe and Sew On!

Linking up with :

Sew & Tell

Monday Musing

Design Wall Monday

SrSPS

Handmade Monday

To Do Tuesday

Wait Loss Wednesday

Getting Tidy

 Lots of work in the sewing room 

makes for lots of mess . 

It would be nice to have it all cleaned up.

The work table is really quite a tip.

I've become quite enamored with spray basting,

but it does require washing after completion.

The adhesive is a bit fragrant and nobody wants that.

All the cutting backing and batting really loaded 

up the work table.

Some binding was made though so

deifinitely a win there. 

Big Bernina is giving me trouble 

so I think I will watch some Bernina Jeff and

 see if I can figure out why I am getting an impact error.

Then current projects will be organized and

 maybe I'll even finish up one more little I spy.

The first brick I Spy could use the

 column sashing and 

then it would be ready for layering. 

Good tidy complete.

Not a scrap in sight! 

Just a nice cup of hot vitamin C , 

still in recovery mode!

I did complete the double rows of color blocks

for my next RSC top.

They definitely look promising!

Stay Safe and Sew On!

Linking up with :

Sew & Tell

Monday Musing

Design Wall Monday

SrSPS

Handmade Monday 

To Do Tuesday

I Quilted This

Put Your Foot Down

Off the Wall Friday

Oh Scrap!

Scrap Avalanche

 Well, it seems my scraps are winning the battle.

They need a little bit more direction and guidance.

I was gifted another box of strips so I'll sort those out,

and file them so they can be used easily.

They are 2 1/2" strips so they are just my size!

The first brick patterned I Spy has made it to the design wall. 

A few of the fabrics are more directional than I 

thought so a quick edit is in order before I add the sashing.

There also be seem to be a lot of those Tweety Birds showing up!

I'll have to find a Sylvester to move in with him!

I preempted myself and made a bunch of binding

 for quilts I don't have quilted yet. 

It will make finishing up easier.

Have a great week!

I'll leave you with a little bit of inspiration.

At a recent coffee meeting, we saw a quilt by a new quilter.

She had quite a pile of scraps and bits

 so she thought she would start with the crumb quilt.

Here is the result!

She also had some more bigger bits so 

shee add those on the back.

Now this first quilt is double-sided!

Here's the inspirational part. This first time quilter,

starting with a double-sided scrap quilt,

is 94 years old!

May we all grow up to be this woman!

Have a great week sewing !

Stay Safe and Sew On

Linking up with:

Monday Musing

To Do Tuesday

Design wall Monday

Sew & Tell

SrSPS

Handmade Monday

Wait Loss Wednesday

Quilting and Patchwork 

Oh Scrap

RSC 2026

Put Your Foot Down 

I Quilted This

Finished or Not Friday

Design Wall Friday

Home Matters

I Spy with My Little Eye

 Wow, do I have a lot of I Spy  fabrics,

or should I say , " I buy fabrics!"

It doesn't really seem like a lot but 

when you're cutting 5 ", 61/2" or even 10"

blocks, you can make a lot of  projects!

I'm currently jonesing on 5" and 6 1/2"  squares. 

There's also the one quilt out of  bricks, 3 1/2" x 7 1/2"

from leftover bits I just couldn't throw away.

Add to that some short bits that were

left over from making the brick quilt,

and I've got a wealth of  I Spy projects on the go.

Once again I enlisted the help of GKs

to lay out blocks. It turned into a few games of I spy

and lots of creativity on their part.

Sharing blocks, adding little bits of blocks to the centers of others 

and adding some appliques made lots of fun for all involved.

I certainly have a lot of stitching to do!

The last thing I did before the retreat was oil

 my featherweight so it was good to go.

Here is the progress report!

The Pretty Yellow

with the floral centre was the first one stitched up.

The centre was gridded to hold down the applique.

The centre got straight stitching 

around the applique pieces anyway.

It always pays to keep your pieces in place.

Then came a 6 1/2" block I Spy. 

Lots of interesting things to see there!

It was bound in dark blue which 

also had little Santas frolicing all around it.

Then came a quilt of leftovers.

 Using up a stack of little nine patches, 

as well as some 5x5 colour blocks

created a lovely stroller quilt.

Then the 5"  squares were up.

First,  a complete quilt of nothing but squares. 

It was very cute and bound 

with some leftover beige from another project

Finally more 5" squares with an alternating 

stack of precut blue blocks came together quickly.

It was pillowcase turned so even more speedy!

Each of these quilts have flannel backing.

They certainly made a dent in the flannel bin!

Stay safe and Sew on!

Linking up with:

Monday Musings

To Do Tuesday

Weight Loss Wednesday

Design Wall Monday

Handmade Monday

Sew and Tell

SrSPS

I Quilted This

Put Your Foot Down

Finished or Not Friday

Design Wall Friday

Bolt to Beauty