PUMPKIN PROGRESS

Pumpkins galore at my house! My goal this past week was to finish preparing blocks for "The Great Pumpkin Quilt" and I have had success. I decided that I had too much fabric out of the shelves and needed to get things back in order. That means I had to get all those pumpkin block part fused and ready for stitching. It was fun deciding what fabrics to use for each pumpkin. Some of the oranges I purchased on vacation earlier this month did not get used but most did. I found some more oranges in an unfinished project box, so I had way more than I needed. I like to hand applique but decided this pumpkin quilt would never get finished if I did it that way. Fusing for machine stitching was the way to go. The fusing method I use does not make the quilt blocks really stiff. Here is a picture of my progress. Remember that the blocks will have sashings between them....probably a brown. The humongous block across the top was a lot of work and is a bit more free form than the pattern but I am satisfied.

Another thing I am working on is a jig saw puzzle. It is something that both myself & husband like to do. We kind of fizzled out on the current puzzle. I suppose that working three of them during Tropical Storm Fay was enough for a while. I decided to get busy on the current puzzle so it can be worked and put back in the box. Our favorite puzzles to work are the Charles Wysocki type or a similar looking puzzle. Folk art with lots of unique buildings, horse drawn carts, etc.

We are now watching to see what Tropical Storm Hanna does. It has taken a turn towards the east coast of Florida where we live. We hope it stays out on the ocean but we will probably get some rain from it. Just what we need. We are getting rain showers now from Hurricane Gustav even though it is heading towards Louisiana. That is a monster storm and the Gulf Coast certainly doesn't want it. Time for those people to get out of Dodge as fast as they can! I heard on the news earlier today that the bus companies that contracted with New Orleans to bus people out before a hurricane are not all coming through.

Stay tuned to my blog as my 50th post is almost here!

Thanks for stopping by!

Karen

THE SUN IS SHINING!

Hey, Mr. Sunshine! It sure is good to see you after all those days of rain and gloom. Tropical Storm Fay sure did a number on Florida. Our neighborhood got about 20 inches of rain. One area about 5 miles down the road got between 25 to 30 inches. The lake level behind our house is going down though it has a ways to go yet. We had minor wind damage to our pool screen enclosure. Got lots of tree debris in the yard but nothing else. We were fortunate that the winds were not any higher along with that rain. I do feel sorry for the people who lost their homes in the tornado that hit at the southern end of our county and for those with flood damage. Now I see there is a tropical disturbance brewing way down. It can just skip us by please!

Thank you fellow bloggers, friends and family for all the concern, comments, e-mails, and phone calls. We have survived just fine. My fabric, quilts, patterns, and books are all safe.

I have finished one of the autumn table runners. The twin to this one is almost done. I just need to do the hand stitching part of the binding and add a label to the back. The first is for my own use and the second will be going to another home sometime very soon. The magic number is getting closer.

I am working on The Great Pumpkin Quilt. The pattern set is by Jeanne Davis of Briar Rose Designs. You have probably seen parts of the quilt on some of the other blogger sites as there are several people making the quilt. For some reason, I thought there were nine 15 inch blocks and then one long block that goes all across the top. Now sitting here with the pattern picture in front of me, I see there are 12 blocks instead of the 9. So much for thinking! This block is finished. I have four more blocks prepared for stitching. That means I have seven more of this size block to do and the one humongous one that goes the width of the quilt. I am on a roll doing the prep work on the blocks. I was going to prepare one at a time and do all the stitching before going on. Now I think it is best to prepare all the blocks and get the fabric and prep supplies put away. I told you in a previous post that I can no longer stand up to work at a cutting table. I work at a lower small table. My fabrics that I think I might use on a project are on the floor beside me. After a while of pulling & poking around in the fabrics on the floor, I end up with a mess. And I have to step over the mess each time I come in and out of that work area. Best that I get it cleaned up. So for the next couple days, I will be working in the sewing room most of the day.

I like that the backgrounds are pieced for each block. The more fabrics I use, the merrier I am. And I don't have to worry if my fat quarters already have a hunk out of them because I only need a smaller section of each one. I have way more oranges than I am going to need. I purchased some on vacation in our travels. I think some are too bright for my use. Also, I had forgotten that I had some oranges & rusts in a crate for another fall project that is waiting for the applique.

Now some bad & good news. I got a phone call last week from our bank asking me if I had attempted to purchase an airline ticket with my debit card that day online to some foreign country I never heard of. I said no to that. I was asked if my debit card was in my possession which it was. The lady calling said not to worry. The purchase was denied. She asked if I had made a $28 plus some change purchase online earlier that day and I had not. She said that someone had the debit card number and she would cancel the card. She said she would have the $28 amount put back in our account. She is sending paperwork for me to sign so they can prosecute if the thief is ever caught. I asked her again about the airline ticket. It was on some airline I have never heard of and was to a country over by Dubai. The thief made the small online purchase about 10 minutes before the attempt to purchase the airline ticket. Thank goodness the bank's computer system recognized that this is not something I would be doing. I am left wondering how the card number was compromised. Guess there is always going to be bad people who want something for nothing.

Thanks for stopping by.

Karen

SEEING DOUBLE?

Are you seeing double? Don't worry because your eyes are not playing games with you. I am working on two table runners at the same time and both from the same pattern. I don't usually make two of the same thing. I have too many projects I want to make to do that. This time is for a special reason. What could the reason be? Could it be a special number coming up? More on this to come.


I purchased the book "A People and Their Quilts" by John Rice Irwin in the Smokey Mountain National Park. My husband came across the book in one of the gift shops and pointed it out to me. He thought it would interest me. I enjoyed reading part of it on our trip and have more to go. It is about quilters in the Appalachian Mountains. There are many stories to read and lots of pictures. Many of the pictures are in color and I wish they all were. I know the cost of doing that would make the book much more expensive. And many were black & white photos provided by family members of the quilters. It is a very interesting read and may provide inspiration for those of you that like to re-create antique quilts in one form or another. There is a picture of a quilt called "The Hanging Elephant Quilt". It was made by senior citizens of a club. There are twenty blocks and each was to represent a memorable event in that person's life. Evidently there was a circus elephant named Mary who killed her second human being in a town in Tennessee. She was condemned to die. The author says there was no guns big enough to do the job safely and effectively. The elephant was brought to a large railroad derrick which was used to publicly hang the elephant. The block shows a crane like affair on wheels like a railroad car and the elephant hanging from the end. The block was made in 1916.
Another photo is of a quilt the author refers to as "The Bedsheet & Washtowel Quilt". It was made by a woman confined to a mental institution for over 60 years. She unraveled towels, wash cloths and rags for the colored thread she used to create her designs. The quilt is very folk art looking. Very interesting.
The book was $21.95 at the park and well worth the price for me.
I was to the dentist this morning and left them a check for almost $800. I had decay under a crown. I wish they could come up with a way to reuse the crown they take off instead of having to make a new one. I had an explanation one time of why that is not possible. I hope this takes care of the discomfort I have been having. The dentist says she can't guarantee that it will cure my discomfort with hot and cold stuff. I may still need a root canal done. I have been going to this dentist for a year. I had dental insurance last year and she accepted that plan. Now I no longer have the dental insurance but I am sticking with her. She says she is from a family of 8 children and understands why a person can't afford to have every dental procedure done that can be done. She says she won't push her patients to have expensive things done that aren't absolutely needed. Today I only had to have one injection of novacaine and even that didn't hurt. I think almost all of us hate to get in the dentist's chair! Once in the chair, I wonder why I chose to submit myself to the torture.
Time for me to get busy on something creative. Thanks for stopping by.
Karen