Thank Goodness for Sewing Therapy!

OK, my burning question of the week (politics aside), is - has anyone else been experiencing issues with Blogger? Every comment has all of a sudden been coming across as No-Reply. Every single one, even those of you who have been reading and commenting for years. And that means I can’t reply. Have you had that issue on your blog (if you have one)?  How do we get it fixed? I’ve searched everywhere on my Blogger dashboard, inquired of Blogger and Google, and have gotten no answer. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!!

Getting back to sewing. . . .  Again, thank goodness for sewing. It’s been one hell of a week in American politics, as you are all no doubt aware. Being of the blue persuasion myself, the results have been a gut punch, a kick in the butt, a head-scratcher and whatever other body part cliches you want to throw in. All I can say is that if Trump does what he’s threatened to do, the red voters will be suffering along with everyone else. No, that’s not a good thing, but at least we’ll be able to say “I told you so” smugly while we all shake our heads and wring our hands together (more body part cliches). 

Now let’s REALLY get back to sewing. This week I finished all the remaining blocks - I needed 78 - for this Quilts for Kids scrappy quilt top started last Saturday at the workshop. Here is the finished top.

You can see in the photo above that the white pieces form a pattern, a sort of stair step, when they come together in the correct way. That’s the pattern you get when you’ve sewn every block in the same orientation. But we didn’t do that, so it’s a free-for-all in this top. And by “we” I mean most of us who didn’t get that part of the instruction in our workshop. But in the end, who is really going to care? I’ll sew the next one the correct way.

And there will be next ones. I took a couple days and went through all my bins and bags of novelty or multi-colored scraps and chunks and cut them up. If the scraps were large enough to cut 2.5x8.5” strips from, I did that (top right in the picture below). The shorter lengths were cut into 2.5x 4.5” pieces (top left). If those shorter pieces contained four or more of the same print (which came from different scrap pieces), I separated out the fours to make windmill blocks (bottom left). Chunkier or odd-sized scraps were cut into 3.5” or 2.5” squares. All of those together take up less than one shoebox-ful of space and are ready to go for future use. 

As a reward for all that work, I ordered 2 yards of four different bright solid colors. I’ll be able to use the solids with these cuts and wherever needed as I work through the large box of quilt “kits” and scraps I’ve set as my 2025 goal. I’ve also narrowed down my selection of potential 2025 Rainbow Scrap Challenge blocks to about 6, but I’d like to cut it down to 4-ish so I can concentrate more on finishes. Have you made any 2025 sewing plans? I’d love to hear about them. 

Oh, and I have finished trimming the quilted It’s Jungle Out There quilt and have made binding. But my friend Ruby, who is the tallest among us and is my quilt holder-upper, is gone for a couple weeks visiting family, so I won’t finish it or get glamour shots until later in the month. 

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We had the electrician in this week to prep the fireplace (install electrical) so that the insert can be installed on Tuesday. It will be the same manufacturer (Chaska) as our unit in the old house, which we loved. It can actually heat up a room (the remote control has lots of settings) instead of the heat going up the chimney. We never really noticed much of a bump in our gas bills, either. 

From manufacturer’s website

The kitties are anxiously awaiting its snuggly warmth! Have a good week!

This and That

It was another great week full of friends, family, sewing fun and weather - from rain to sunshine to cold temperatures and stiff breezes. Autumn colors, the crisp air and falling leaves remind me how much I really do love the coming cozy months. I wouldn’t want it to stretch out longer than the season typically lasts, but as a respite from the stifling heat of the summer, it’s an invigorating change. The only thing that could have made it better was lots of chocolate. Enough said!

Last Saturday when I left you, I was headed out to a Quilts for Kids workshop. It was more sparsely attended than usual, but fun nevertheless. We were at The Quilters Lodge in Sandy, and it was good to see some friends (hi Sandy and Patty!) that I haven’t seen for a few workshops.  It was a scrappy, kit and tutorial workshop, and I was able to sew all 78 of the kit blocks that measure 4.5”x10.5”, unfinished. I have yet to sew them into a top, which will measure approximately 52x60 when complete.

Does anyone know if there’s an official name for this block? It’s really ideal for kid quilts because it can be made with interesting novelty prints and the solid constant can be varied from quilt to quilt (blue? red?) as a unifying element.  These blocks will go in line to be sewn up, but my goal is to have it made up as a quilt, along with a half dozen others, in time for our first meeting in January.

Some quilting was done on the It’s a Jungle Out There quilt; endless crosshatching this week. It’s larger than my usual quilt size, so to avoid wrestling it through the harp of my Bernina 570QE, I’ve been trying to quilt it in creative ways that keep the bulk of the quilt sandwich to my left. I hope to have it finished by next week, but I may be glued to the TV more than usual next week, so we’ll see what the quilting and political gods have in store. I’m sure I’ll be on pins and needles in more ways than one.

I got a wild hair to sew some string blocks, which was *not* on my dance card for the week. But nevertheless, when the (metaphorical) dust cleared, I had 62 string blocks (6.5”) sewn, and a deeper appreciation for the music of Billy Joel and the late Hilary Stagg (check him out on YouTube, especially Dream Spiral and Sweet Return).  

Half of the string blocks still need their papers removed. I only got half done while watching The Los Angeles Dodgers clobber the NY Yankees in Game 5 of the World Series, clinching the title. Apparently, I still bleed Dodger Blue! But anyway, this finishes my block sewing of dark/neutral scraps for October’s Rainbow Scrap Challenge. For the rest of the year I’ll be concentrating on turning blocks into quilt tops and quilt tops into kid quilts. 

Alfie and Darla got some new toys this week. Their particular favorite is a stuffie, Lambchop (“the Legend” according to its tag). They had no respect for The Legend, batting it around, carrying it around in their mouths and tossing her up into the air. And then looking so innocent. HA! 

But even these ferocious creatures eventually succumb to warm sunbeams. Here they are, recharging their batteries. 

And that’s it for this week! Keep your fingers crossed that The Orange Menace is sent packing come Tuesday, and that he can be a man and accept his defeat gracefully peacefully. 

Sewing and Remembering What I Forgot

I’m confessing. Last week I forgot to post some blocks that I’d sewn. My whole post last week revolved around working on things “behind the scenes” and not having much to show for it. But I DID have some blocks to show. I just forgot about them! The four blocks were right up on my design wall, waiting for a photo op that never came - until this week. 

So, may I introduce you to three Color Sticks blocks, the last of these necessary to finish a 35-block quilt top when they’re sewn together. 

It would be nice if I pinned the blocks up uniformly, wouldn’t it? That bottom one really is even, I promise. Maybe I messed up the pressing? I was taking pictures hurriedly during commercial breaks in the World Series Game 1. Yay Dodgers!! Anyway, the quilt will be sent to Cynthia Brunz at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for her charity when I get them sewn together.

And the final Scrappy Stars block was completed (fourth block done last week). I’m really looking forward to getting some of my Rainbow Scrap Challenge (RSC) blocks sewn into tops beginning in November. 

I’ve also been working on those black-and-bright scraps. This little quilt top was the result of pairing the rail blocks with solids. I’m not enamored with it, but I used colors I had sufficient amounts of, so it’s good enough.

I’ll take it to Quilts for Kids today - we have a workshop this morning - and probably baste, quilt and bind it there for donation. I’d love to just start donating tops, but I’m one of the few members in our chapter who is willing to quilt their own quilts. So even though it’s tougher for me to do that in my cramped sewing room, I can make do - or quilt it at a workshop.  This top is 40x50”.

The colorful four-patches are all sewn, and I’ll use all 40 of them in a top with some solid purple alternating blocks. Here are the first four (of ten) rows pinned up on the design board. 

I’ll be working on this one too later this morning at our workshop. 

Bruce and I have begun taking daily walks around the condo community and even venturing farther afield in the neighboring streets and general area. The weather has been lovely, although it has become much cooler. The colors are glorious and the skies have been deep crystal blue. I keep forgetting to whip out my phone to take pictures, being more interested in getting my step count with the phone in my back pocket! It’s been a wonderful week with lots of free time to spend - a nice change. Next week promises more of the same, so I may even do some batch cooking to stockpile some pre-cooked meals for winter. But then, I may decide not to ruin a perfectly good week with too much cooking, ya know? 🤣

Life is good. 

Behind the Scenes

Most of my creative work this week - and I use the term “creative” loosely - was behind the scenes. Or maybe I should just call it not picture worthy.

Last Saturday afternoon I basted two quilts. The first was It’s a Jungle Out there, and the second was a rescued quilt top from the grandmother of a friend of Ruby’s (Julia). Ruby, at the request of Julia, had cut out the good part of an old worn quilt into a top about 45x55”. It contained pieces of fabric (most likely clothing) ranging from the 1940s through the 1970’s and was haphazardly pieced with random seam widths. Ruby trimmed it, added a white 5” border and made a red gingham backing. On Sunday I quilted the newly-basted vintage quilt (no pictures) and Ruby took it to Julia to trim and bind, which was going to be a basic teaching moment for Julia to learn to do those tasks. 

I also quilted the inner panel of Jungle; the checkerboard blocks will be done this week. I’ll have pictures next week. The final uninteresting thing I did was to hem two pairs of palazzo (wide leg) pants for my daughter-in-law. I still have one pair of my own to do. These are a royal pain in the posterior.

But I did get to some fun sewing only just yesterday. Here are some of these blocks on the design board. I’m working with my black scraps this month in keeping with our October challenge of dark neutrals for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge. 

I had to re-work the sizes of the strips and blocks to accommodate the scraps I had. The center black-and-bright strip is 2.5”x5.5” and is bordered by two solid strips of blue cut at 2”x5.5”. Sewn together they yield a block that is 5.5” unfinished or 5” finished. I’d like to get an entire kid-sized quilt top, but I don’t think I have enough of these fabrics to do that. So I’ll probably alternate them with brightly colored solid squares. We’ll see how it pans out. I saved my wider cuts of black-and-bright fabrics to make 4–patches from 3” squares, which should also measure 5.5” unfinished or 5” finished. Who knows, maybe they’ll end up in the same quilt (some ideas are noodling around) or maybe not.

Other than that, it was just mostly mundane stuff this week. I had a dental appointment to have a crown replaced, played cards with friends, did some HOA presentation planning, and assorted other Suzy Homemaker tasks. It rained for two days, which was lovely. It’s supposed to be sunny today, though. I will probably get out in the courtyard and pull the remaining annuals and bring in the flower pots and patio furniture. Bruce had a mostly good week too, and even Zoom’ed with some old Army buddies. So, that’s it from here. Short and sweet, just like me! :-)

Life is good! 

Quiet(er) Week

It wasn’t a quiet week, just a quiet-er week. We still had friends visit, two appointments to get each of the cars new sets of tires, a contractor visit to measure for a gas fireplace insert, my Weight Watchers workshop, cards with friends, a meeting (actually two) to plan for the upcoming annual HOA community meeting and getting the grocery shopping done. When I had downtime, I was sewing.

This week I finished all my brown string scraps into blocks. I know this picture looks suspiciously similar to last week’s picture of the brown string blocks, but this time, they are stacked in piles of 15. Fifteen is the quantity most useful to our Quilts for Kids chapter to pair with a fun solid fabric and make into a 30-patch top with two borders. There are a lot of cute fabrics with dinosaurs and animals that have browns in them, and I imagine these will be well received for boys’ quilts. 

So, here are my 92 brown string blocks. They still have their papers on…

When these were complete, I put away the brown scrap drawer and took out the gray and the black scrap drawers. I spent several great hours fondling and sorting each drawer. 

My scraps typically come from several sources: my own sewing leftovers, generous friends, the giveaway tables at the annual Worldwide Quilting Day event we attend in March, and from my local Quilts for Kids group. Our chapter is always getting fabric donations, and the scrappy bits aren’t usually suited for kit-making for the members. There are a few of us who take the scraps and turn them into blocks and tops. 

So this month for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, we’re working again on dark neutral colors, or light neutrals if that’s how your stash leans. Personally, I’m tackling black and gray in October. I decided to postpone string sewing of those colors until next year so I can work on other ideas. 

Over the years I’ve saved Black + Bright scraps, and have several small yardage cuts as well. Within the scraps were these two blocks (the four-patch needs its center seam sewn) that inspired me to make more of the same. So, the first step will be to measure and cut the black fabrics and solids to see if I can eke out a couple quilt tops from what I have. Should be a fun change from the strings! I’m not sure yet what I’ll focus on for the gray scraps, but that’s for later in the month. 

Today I’ll be basting several - hopefully between 2 and 4 - quilts for quilting over the next couple weeks. It feels soooo good to have the time and sewing mojo to be creating again!

Also, it occurs to me that I need to snap some photos of the season here in our courtyard and the condo community here as autumn advances (awesome alliteration). Were due to have beautiful weather, more akin to September, for at least another week. I probably ought to get the garden cleaned up and some bulbs planted as well, but there’s always next week!

And a gratuitous feline picture for you - Alfalfa living his best life in the morning sunshine.

Darla is more camera shy. She’ll usually yield the morning sun to her brother, but she gets her share on my side of the bed in the afternoon. Here’s an oldie but goodie of Herself. 

Have a happy and healthy week!

Autumn Leaves, Sewing String Blocks, Kitchen Remodel Before & After

It’s going to be a picture-heavy post. It was such a beautiful and busy week and we took lots of photos along the way, so let’s get started. 

This week I was able to sew about 32 string blocks from my brown scrap strips. The top pic is from last week, the bottom one was taken after the 32 blocks were sewn. I think there’s at least another 30 blocks’ worth in there to sew up, what do you think??

Here are the string blocks I finished, shown in piles of five with the foundation papers still on. The two on the right side are singles. 

The It’s a Jungle Out There quilt top is done and I’ve snapped a picture. But I had to hang it sideways on the design board to get it all in the frame. So it looks a little wonky on the right side because that’s really the part that was hanging below the design board before I turned the picture. 

I doubt if I’ll be able to start quilting it this week, but maybe I can get it pin basted. The backing is mostly sewn and ready. But I want to finish off those brown string blocks first and then figure out what other things I want to sew in October in the way of black and gray scraps. I’m linking up to Scrappy Saturday at Angela’s blog. 

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So that’s it for my sewing for this week, folks! So if you’re not interested in the remodel pics or those of our mountain day trip, I won’t be offended if you take your leave at this point. 

BEFORE

Let’s look at some “Before” pictures first. We bought this condo, built in 1980, and moved in at the end of March of this year. It was very clean but very dated, with virtually everything original to the build. These before shots were taken on a whim just to have them, and I did no staging or picking up (obviously) first. And there was much still to unpack. 

Above you can see that the kitchen had a layout with a peninsula. Behind the peninsula (below) it was too small an area for more than one person to comfortably move without bumping into each other. The work area lighting was recessed fluorescents behind a now-yellowed plastic grid. 

The cabinets were dated, but well-made and solid, and were likely pricey in their day. Our remodel contractors all marveled at the quality construction of them. We did save one upper set (above the desk area in the last “before” picture below) and had them mounted in the garage for more storage. 

The corner cabinet above the appliance garage in the photo below (click to enlarge) had a spice cabinet built into the door. The larger knob on the bottom right opened the entire door to the corner storage area behind, but the little knob on the bottom left of the front panel opened to reveal spice racks built into the door itself. I hated to see that go - it was so cute and clever. 

There was no lighting over the sink or the area beyond the peninsula that functioned as the eating area. It was so odd! 

Standing in kitchen vinyl floor area, you look out into the dining or family room or gathering area. The entry hall is the area with the welcome sign on the wall over Bruce’s cool old upright radio. The carpet was a mess by the time the movers had unloaded (even with the runners they used). There was an electrical outlet in the middle of the floor (no longer to code), and this high traffic area carpet always looked dirty. We knew right off that its days were numbered!

Finally, you can see the inoperative trash compactor at the end of the peninsula below, taking up valuable storage space. The pantry, which you can barely see on the right side, we kept as is. It just got a fresh coat of paint with everything else. 

AFTER

Well, this first picture isn’t *quite* “after”, because the painting had yet to be done and the fan over the range hadn’t been installed. But you get the idea. 

In the pic below you can see the fan hood installed and the painting complete. I realized a couple days ago that we never got hardware for the pantry doors to match the cabinets. We will remedy that very soon! And we absolutely love the breakfast area under the microwave. The doors open to reveal a toaster, coffee grinder and all the necessities for breakfast-making. Everything is hidden just by closing the doors. And see how the coffee pot (which does fit in the cabinet but can’t be filled if stored there) is plugged in to the underside of the cabinet? There is an electrical strip behind all the under-counter lighting. 

Between the breakfast bar and around the corner (below), there are nine hidden electrical outlets! The backsplash tile is allowed to just shine. 

The window covering for the kitchen window (that has a deep plant ledge), is a duette roman-style shade.

I wanted some open shelving here for my cookie jars and other pottery, below. I’ve finally found some baskets on Amazon to fill the space under the countertop there to hide the clutter. It’s where I throw mail, coupons and other things. All I have to do now is order them!

Same area, different angle, looking out into the family room area. The room is bright, and the sun sometimes makes the sage wall appear greener than it is. Hopefully some of the other pictures will be more true. As you can see, there is nothing up yet on the accent wall. I’ll probably move our big round clock (currently in living room) there and add smaller framed pictures or art around it. 

One last picture of the island, showing the dishwasher and refrigerator along the outer wall.

We had plantation shutters installed in the other three windows of this area. 

Moving on to the (unfinished) family room/sitting area/ gathering place…..

Why yes, that’s Alfie, our tour guide showing up late, as usual. ;-). 

The standing lamp is just a placeholder until I find a more decorative floor lamp. And I need to add seasonally appropriate cushions and another side table, and, and…. But these things don’t happen overnight. It has potential…

The following three photos are not part of the remodel per se, but the entry did get a new plant shelf and light fixture. It will likely be painted in the same sage green as on the family room accent wall. 

The old radio faces the front door. As you enter, you You go left into the living room or right into the kitchen/dining area. The entry wall and hall got new light fixtures to match the kitchen’s pendant lighting. The entry landing is flagstone which I love, and it matches the fireplace which I don’t love. 

Bruce and I have spent some time scraping lichens off some of the fireplace stones. Lichens aren’t at all harmful, and some would argue they’re lovely and natural. But I wouldn’t be among those!  I’m considering giving the six black stones a color wash to tone them down and more closely blend their color with the other warmer-toned rocks. And when all the year-end seasonal decor is put away, I’ll be searching for a proper mantel clock! 

We are going to replace the (original) fireplace insert with a new one this fall. Which means I’d better get busy figuring that out so our feline overlords won’t miss their winter evenings in front of the fireplace!

So that’s it for the house pictures. As we begin working on other areas of the home next year (master bedroom and both bathrooms), I’ll bring you along. 

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There are years in the mountains of Utah that the colors rival that of New England. While this year was not one of those years, the trees were spectacular nevertheless. I’m just going to upload a few without much commentary of our day. I’ll be getting more pictures (of Bruce, Ruby and me) when Ruby’s daughter sends them. If there’s anything worth sharing, I’ll do it. But for now, here’s a sampling of some of the lovely sights we saw as we traveled around the canyons of the Salt Lake Valley and east to Park City. It’s Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid territory! 

Rock face at Timpanogos Cave area, Alpine, UT

Guardsman Pass, Heber Valley

Trailhead at Cascade Springs

Underground springs bubble up to the surface and form the headwaters of Cascade Springs, above. The springs feed into Deer Creek Reservoir and are some of the 82,000 miles of streams and rivers that that provide Utah’s drinking water. 

Coming down Big Cottonwood Canyon, almost ready to drop down into the Salt Lake Valley

Backlit aspen trees. Is there anything more beautiful?

This was our view as we sat in our camping chairs and feasted on sandwiches and fruit. It’s looking down on the Heber Valley.

I think that just about wraps it up from here. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!