Sewing with a Twist

No, I have not developed a new sewing technique. "Sewing with a Twist" is just the name I have given to this quilt because all of the fabrics used are sewing-themed and I used the Twister ruler to make it. 

It measures 40" x 48" and I plan to use it as a wallhanging in my sewing studio. However, it's not one of my favourite quilts. While I like a lot of the individual fabrics, over all, it's a rather ho-hum quilt. It lacks panache. It doesn't have that "wow" factor that I strive for in my quilts. It's certainly not as pretty as the Evening Snowfall quilt that currently hangs on the wall in my sewing studio.

Perhaps if I'd chosen a different fabric than the thimble fabric with the beige background as the first border, I might have been able to give it a little more zing. Unfortunately, I chose what was availabe at a price I was willing to pay. Later on, the fabric I used in the backing and binding was on sale 

and fabric from that line would have spiced it up considerably. Regardless, it's done. 

I actually started this quilt a few years ago. I don't exactly remember when. I bought the half layer cake of sewing-themed fabrics from Keepsake Quilting. It's the second one I purchased from them that I wasn't really pleased with the final quilt. The previous one was the Sweet Dreams quilt. It's certainly not Keepsake Quilting's fault. It's mine for how I chose to use them. I was aiming for smaller quilts, and so I didn't add much in the way of extra fabrics in either. If I had, I could have done something totally different and likely ended up with quilts with a lot more pizzazz. Note to self for future reference...

When I finished the quilt top, I decided to add a second border. Otherwise, it would have had all bias edges and that's not something I like to deal with if I can avoid. That's where the button fabric came in. I'm not sure where I picked this one up and I think it was only a fat quarter that I managed to squeeze enough fabric from for a narrow border. 

I've been having a Staycation the past couple of weeks, so I had time to get into the longarm studio to finally get this one quilted. I used a pantograph called Sewing Time, which features needles and spools of thread. 

It was actually a much less intense pantograph than the last few I've used. It took me just under 2 hours to do the quilting, but, of course, that was for a fairly small quilt. I knew I wanted to use black thread for the bobbin, but wasn't sure what to use for the top. I made a bold choice and quilted it in black. I've never done that before, but I think it worked.

After finishing up at the Longarm Studio and having lunch, I headed to Johnson's Sewing Centre to determine what to about my sewing machine situation. I still have the Janome Memory Craft 6000, which I inherited from my mother. 

It's a good, solid machine that will probably last me the rest of my life. I'll use it as my back-up sewing machine and maybe I'll set it up for my garment sewing machine. While I do little of that, it's nice to not have to fiddle with changing threads, needles, pressure feet, etc. when switching from piecing quilts to garment sewing. Besides, I hate being without a sewing machine when I take mine in for servicing. In my current situation, it can be a month before I get a chance to pick it up again. If I have two, I never have to do without. I took the Memory Craft 8000

in to Johnson's as the touchscreen was not responding consistently, if at all. This machine was given to me by a friend in late 1998 or early 1999. She had both this Janome and a Pfaff and decided she didn't need both. I tried to tell her that I already had the 6000, but she basically just said, "When are you coming to pick it up?" So I did. This machine came out in 1990 and was the first home computerized embroidery machine. Unfortunately, being that old, the part it requires is no longer available. The machine itself still works fine, but without a working touchscreen, I couldn't even switch to the ¼" stitch I need for piecing. What to do? Sadly, I surrendered it to the repairman to use for parts. I feel rather melancholy about it. It moved from Ontario to Alberta with me and has seen a lot of sewing and quilting in the nearly 20 years I've owned it. It saw me through my divorce, restarting my career and pursuing my degree. It saw my daughter go from a little girl to an adult and a mother. And the friend who gave it to me has passed away. Is it foolish to grieve over a sewing machine? Actually, I think I'm grieving over what it represents - a big period of my life, all the lives it's touched through my quilting and the life passages I've gone through during the time I owned it. And I miss my friend that gave it to me. She was such a sweet, thoughtful person and I am thankful for the privilege of having her in my life.
Having said all of that, somehow I'm having a hard time warming up to my brand new machine.

It's a Janome Horizon Memory Craft 8200 QCP Special Edition. It's a beautiful machine, but perhaps I should have allowed myself a grieving period before purchasing a new one. 😉 I think I'm just going through too many transitions in my life and having to learn a new sewing machine was probably one of the last things I needed right now. However, it's bought and I actually did the binding on the above quilt with this machine. It also came with a table, but I need to tidy up the sewing room a lot before I can set that up.
Down to 6 quilt tops that need to be quilted, but still lots of WIPs and UFOs as well.

Antique Mall Field Trip

I was checking something on my blog the other day, and realized that it's been quite some time since I posted anything. So, first an update: the sciatica is much better, thank the Lord, but not totally healed. That will just take time. My leg still aches, sometimes worse than others. And the pain continues to migrate: sometimes the knee, sometimes the shin, sometimes, the thigh, the hip, the whole leg. I continue to exercise. I don't think that I've mentioned before that sometimes when I lie flat on my back, I get dizzy/nauseated (I assume due to Meniere's). And a lot of exercises for sciatica are done lying flat on your back. Earlier in this whole sciatica thing, I was limited in how much exercise I could do, not just because of the pain, but also because of the dizziness and nausea. Then not only did the pain improve, but so did the dizziness and nausea, so I was able to complete my whole regimen of exercises (given to me by 4 different physiotherapists). Recently however, nausea has returned with a vengeance. So, I took my sister's advice and took a half tablet of Gravol (she actually takes a quarter when her Meniere's flares up), which might have provided some relief. Another thing I noticed is that the nausea is worse if I don't use a pillow. This morning, I did some of my exercises while still in bed without any noticeable nausea. Okay, must use a pillow, at the very least...
So today I took my hearing aids in for servicing, had lunch and then went on a field trip to Rocky Mountain Antique Mall. I have been looking for a ladder to display my quilts and afghans in my living room. And the antique mall had several in the parking lot, but none that was really what I was looking for. Most of them were much too long. There was one that was 7 feet, but the rungs were only 13" across. I considered a wider one, but it was about 10 feet long. I would have had to have caution flags on it as it would have hung over the end of my truck. I thought about sawing off the excess right there and then (and one of the staff offered to let me use a vintage handsaw), but I really wanted any trimming to be done where I could measure and do it properly. <sigh> So I'm still considering. 
While I was there, I figured I might as well peruse the entire mall - an ambitious undertaking for someone who still has some challenges walking without pain. But I did it (not without pain, however). The first items I noticed in the parking lot were these: 

Two khaki - and therefore I assume military - stretchers. Now these are in good shape - much too good for them to have harkened back to the Second World War. Nevertheless, they are military stretchers, and my father was a stretcher bearer during WWII. And I got a catch in my throat and it nearly brought tears to my eyes. Miss you, Dad.

In addition to the ladders and stretchers, I found this in the parking lot: 

Isn't that a terrible thing to do with a vintage quilt - use it to line the back of an old shelf (or whatever this is)? That shelf doesn't look like it was worth salvaging, let alone waste a vintage quilt on.
Just inside the door, I found this: 

A whole box of intact button cards - from when? The 30s? I'm not sure, and didn't notice if the tag said. Look at those colours! I actually have some of the same buttons in my button tin that came from my mother or grandmother. 

Here's a vintage blanket (quilt) rack: 

An adorable sewing box: 

Wouldn't this be a great chair to "stage"  your favourite quilt in?

I could hardly believe when I saw these pot menders were from my hometown! Unfortunately the flash made it difficult to read the words: "Assembled at Friendco Sheltered Workshop, St. Thomas, Ont." I remember Friendco, or the Friendship School as it was also known. It was for the developmentally disabled.

I don't remember the story behind it (if I ever knew), but in my family a dressform like this was referred to as "Dumb Dora." 

It was cheaper than the new one I bought for my daughter, and she probably would have liked the vintage one better. 

A yarn winder:

Another vintage quilt, only this one is being sold as a quilt and not being used as the backing for a shelving unit:

One of those built-in ironing boards - I guess you could fit it between the studs. Kind of a cool idea, actually. 

I had one of these orange tractors when I was a child, and I remember it with great fondness. But I didn't scribble on mine. And I highly doubt that my parents paid the amount this vendor is asking.

For the John Deere fans in the family, specifically my grandson and my great nephew, Jake. 

I can't remember the price on this baby. I think it was under $100.

I also saw a Featherweight for $280, but it didn't get its picture taken. 

And finally, what I kept going back to:

Yes, two 1920s black walnut twin beds, going for an amazing price. These interested me far more than the ladders in the parking lot. If I'd known that they would both fit into one of my spare bedrooms, they likely would have come home with me. And think of how well they would show off any quilt placed upon them. Would they look ridiculous in a 1970s house? Never mind - my dream home is one of those big old brick farmhouses in southwestern Ontario. 

I'm going upstairs to measure. 

A Nativity Set for Damian

Most nativity sets are not very child-friendly, easily broken or damaged. And I suppose there are some people who might consider it irreverent to allow a child to play with a nativity set. But I have a 3-year-old grandson and I want him to experience the joy and reality of salvation, including Jesus' willingness to be born in a stable for you and me. So, when I saw this Nativity Scene to sew and stuff at Fabricland a couple of years ago, I decided to purchase it for my grandson. I have to admit that I don't always get things done as soon as I would like to, but this year I decided to haul this out and stitch it up. 

I made it totally kid-friendly and as indestructible as possible. The instructions said to put cardboard in the base of the figures, but you just never know when there might be a flood and the cardboard would end up mushy (especially with a 3-year-old in the house, or even a sometimes klutzy grandma). So I used plastic canvas instead. The stable background is lined with 2 layers of polyester fleece with plastic canvas sandwiched in between. This was made according to the instructions, however, if I had to do it over again, I would use polyester fibrefil batting instead of the fleece. Fleece stretches too much. Besides, no one said that the stable was insulated. :-) 

If you're interested in making a set like this, it's the Nativity Scene, one of the "Keepsake Crafts," VIP by Cranston, copyright 2006. I've seen it on ebay, but it's a lot more expensive than what I paid at Fabricland. 

I also have a couple more Christmas projects in my fabric stash: another one for Damian,

a soft quilted book on the Nativity. I just want to point something out that is a pet peeve of mine. Note that this panel says, "He was born in a manger." No, Mary did not climb into the manger to give birth. He was born in a stable (or some version thereof appropriate to the place and time) and she "wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger." Luke 2:7. End of rant.
The other is a full panel of the nativity scene to use as a wall hanging.

These last two are not likely to get stitched up in time for this Christmas, however. Too many other projects on the go. Perhaps next year. 

Wishing everyone the peace and joy that comes from serving the Saviour who was born on that long ago night in Bethlehem. Merry Christmas.

Order Restored

 I chose my smallest bedroom for my sewing room. It's the one with the only south-facing window on the main floor. It actually faces the end wall of my neighbour's house. Nice view... Since I really hadn't done any sewing for the first three years of living here, it sort of became a catch-all room and accumulated all kinds of odds and sods, much of it unrelated to sewing, quilting or crocheting. I finally decided I'd had enough of trying to work in such cluttered and messy quarters and gave my sewing room an overhaul...

Facing south. I really want to get different curtains on these windows. These ones go down to the floor and prevent me from pushing furniture tighter to the wall, so less floor space. On the left, the brown cabinet is for my Janome Memory Craft 6000, which I inherited from my mother. It's currently in the shop. After not being used regularly for several years, I figured it could use a tune-up. In the foreground is my butterfly cutting table. Against the wall where it sits used to be a bookcase housing all of my cookbooks and crafting books. The cutting table then had to sit in the middle of the room, which is not a very big room as you can see, and so it was a pretty tight squeeze. And I'm just not that skinny... That's my little cutting mat. I used to have a bigger one, but lost it when I split with a boyfriend and he kept some of the stuff I had stored at his place. Actually, a lot of stuff, but we won't go there. That was while I was living in a motel. On my wish list is a full-sized cutting mat that will cover the whole cutting table when it's fully open.

 

This is actually an older typing table, probably could qualify as an antique, that I use for my serger, which I also inherited from my mother. Replacing this with a decent cabinet is another item on my wishlist. I have both of my irons currently in my sewing room (one usually resides in my laundry room) because I need a dry iron for a paper piecing quilt and a steam iron for another quilt I'm working on.

The east wall. This is my first design wall made from a flannel-backed vinyl tablecloth with the flannel side facing out. These are blocks from the Craftsy 2013 BOM. On the wall on the right is the pegboard I hung for my quilting rulers, rotary cutters, etc. Spray-painted one of my favourite colours. The paint didn't go on very evenly, so it looks sort of like a tonal fabric. If you've been following my blog for long, you've seen my pegboard before. 

On the desk is my Janome Memory Craft 8000, given to me by a friend, who had a Pfaff and decided she didn't need the Janome as well. I tried to deny her generous gift, but she insisted. And how hard was I going to fight to keep her from giving me a Janome? It sits on a tiny writing desk, which is very impractical for sewing and especially for quilting. Now you know why a new cabinet is on my wishlist. I intend to sell the desk in a yard sale.

This is one of my treasures: an antique notion cabinet. I believe it came from my grandmother's house. I plan on getting it refinished and repaired (it fell over during my last move and broke a hinge loose on the lid) in the not too distant future. I used to use it as a night table when I was in my teens and had painted my furniture green and white, including an antique dresser along with this cabinet.

The north wall, with the door shut, displaying my over the door ironing board.

When I left my marriage, I took these shelves with me. They make great storage in the sewing room. Unfortunately, when I hung them, I don't think I mounted them into studs, so have to be careful how much weight I put on them. When I was organizing the room, I had put a bunch of bins of fabric on the shelves. Fabric can be pretty heavy and the bottom shelf was making some protesting noises, so I opted to store batting, which is much lighter, on the shelves instead. There are also sewing notions and patterns in the various containers. 

Fabric storage. Right now the dresser on the right is empty as I intend for it to be sold in the yard sale as well. The basket came from my mom. She used to have it in her sewing room. It holds the fabrics for a couple of the quilts I'm currently working on.

This is the west wall and my second design wall. That's a queen-sized flannel sheet that I found on clearance at WalMart for $5. These are the blocks for the Craftsy 2012 BOM plus extras. Out of this picture to the left is the closet door. That's where I keep the bins of fabric that were making the shelves protest. My serger's also in there along with some other supplies. I don't see any sense in bringing the serger out to collect dust until I'm ready to use it. Right now I'm focusing on quilting not dressmaking, so don't need it at the moment. I also want to get it serviced before I use it as it's been sitting idle for several years as well. 
I would like to get a computer in here. My laptop is set up as a desktop and the battery on it is dead, so it wouldn't be practical to unhook it to bring it in here every time I want to view some online tutorials or other quilting info. And it is rather tedious running back and forth between rooms to access the computer while sewing. 
But hey, I'm not complaining. Even if I never get any of the items on my wish list, I still love my little sewing room and will be able to work even more efficiently in here not that it's more organized.

New Fabric for a New Quilt

Look at this incredible fabric:

"Space" by Avlyn Inc.

 Isn't it gorgeous? It's exactly what I wanted for a background for a quilt for my daughter. I've collected some orange fabric (her favourite colour) and will combine it with purple to make the stars in the Dreamweaver Quilt from the Craftsy Quick Strip Paper Piecing Class that I've enrolled in. And this fabric will be the background for the stars. I can hardly wait to get started. I bought it at my local quilt shop and, as I said, it was just what I was looking for - a great "environment" to put stars in. 
By the way, here are the newest classes launching tomorrow on Craftsy:

Sandra Betzina - Sewing on the Bias (Sewing)

Janet Pray - Sew Better, Sew Faster: Garment Industry Secrets (Sewing)

Frieda Anderson - Machine Quilting the Home Sweet Home Quilt (Quilting)

Maggie Austin - Sugar Berries, Leaves, and Blossoms (Cake Decorating)  

I have to admit these classes sound tempting, especially the sewing ones. I think I've enrolled in enough quilting ones for now, but once I get this "quilting bug" under control, I wouldn't mind refreshing and updating my sewing skills as well. I have bought several vintage patterns that I'd like to use. But, I'll be frank: if I'm going to go to the work of sewing my own clothing, I want to wait until I'm down to the size I want to be.

You'll be seeing more of my Dreamweaver quilt in future posts. 

Hiatus from Quilting

Yesterday, Aaron (my niece's husband) and I brought our trailers home. We had them stored in a the yard of a local trucking company that he used to work for, and we had to get them when the gate to the yard was not locked. Ah, it feels good to have my trailer home again. Now, I can get back to working on the interior. 

It's a 1985 trailer and the window treatments were kind of gross: rust-coloured velvet valances, and these two strips of the same fabric on the front window, above the bed, pretending to be drapes. And mini-blinds, dirty, yukky mini-blinds. And some ugly beige curtains to separate the bedroom area from the rest of the trailer. 

I like to sleep with it as dark as possible, and mini-blinds and those ugly beige curtains didn't block much light, so that was my first project. I sewed new dividing curtains in a white fabric with a purple pattern (butterflies), lined with black-out fabric. I replaced the mini-blinds in the bedroom area with sage green room-darkening roller shades on both sides of the trailer. At the front of the trailer, I would have had to special order a roller shade for that window, so I just went with room-darkening fabric, in a darker sage green, that can be tied up with ribbons when I want to open it. Now I want to put some sheer white curtains on those three windows, plus valances in a purple patterned poly-cotton fabric. There was not quite enough of the fabric I used for the dividing curtains to make pillow shams for the bed, so I will do the borders of the shams in the same fabric that I am doing the valances in. I already have a purple comforter on the bed. 
In the kitchen area, I still have the mini-blinds up and I expect they will stay up for now. They are fine for privacy when I want it and I don't need the room darkening qualities that I require in the sleeping area. I have some orange poly-cotton fabric and some orange lace fabric, so I will probably do the valances and curtains in the kitchen area in orange. It's not a loud, bilious orange, more of a softer, medium colour. I'll have to post pictures when I get it done. 

So, I think I will be taking a hiatus from my quilting and crocheting projects in order to get my trailer in shape. All of these pictures were taken before I made any changes. Don't get me wrong - I love my trailer. I just wanted to fix up the decor a bit. The upholstery on the benches could really use some help as well, but I don't think I'm ready for reupholstering yet. I think the covers zip off, but I might just leave them on and maybe make some slip covers to go over them. Haven't figured out how I can change the wallpaper. That might be too much work. This year I think I'll stick with the window coverings and pillow shams. If I just get the windows in the "bedroom" done, I'll be happy.
I've already made some changes in the bathroom, though more of a functional nature, rather than decor. First I trimmed this shower curtain as it was too long for the short space in a trailer shower and too much of it was laying on the bottom of the tub, trapping water and grunge. I hung a towel bar at the end of the tub and another towel ring or two on another wall. I believe there was only one towel ring when I "moved in," which was fine for a hand towel, but where do I hang my bath towel? I also installed a hook for a shower caddy on the wall above the tub. That way I have a convenient place for soap, shampoo, etc. Of course, I've added bath mat, soap dispenser, toothbrush holder, etc.
I was really hoping to take my trailer to a seasonal site this year. I'm not really fond of towing it, so if I just had to do it at the beginning and end of the season, I'd be much happier (except I'd still need it for campmeeting). That way, I could take off every weekend if I wanted to, without having to worry about hooking, towing and unhooking my trailer. Plus backing it into my driveway. So far I have always gotten Aaron to do that. He's a truck driver and does it like the pro he is. Me, on the other hand - I don't much like backing up at the best of times. Doing it with a trailer and not knocking my garage down is a challenge I'm not quite prepared for. But Aaron's not always available and I'm not supposed to leave the trailer in the street, so it would be much easier if it could just stay on a site for the season. However, that's not in my budget for this year. 
Meanwhile I need it in my laneway so that I can work on the curtains. And last year, I wanted to make a list of staples I need to stock in the trailer, plus a cookbook of "easy to manage in a trailer" recipes, but I never got a chance to do this. Hopefully I will this year before I take it out. It's hard to get everything done, but I'll have fun trying.