Raindrops on Roses, Whiskers on Kittens....My Favorite Things Part 2

Thinking about my favorite things brings to mind that song from the Sound of Music.  I don't quite have the same list of favorite things but do like the ones in the song too.  So I don't hurt your ears I will not sing it for you - I am definitely not known for my singing ability!

The first item I am going to show you this time is this pair of scissors by Elan.  I love them as they have about a 2" blade length but the scissors themselves are around 6 1/2" long.  The blades have a fine serrate edge that grips the fabric as you cut it so you can be very accurate with cutting and they have wonderful big finger holes.  My hands do not get cramped using these scissors.

Next are a pair of scissors by Havel I use at the machine.  They are small being a little under 3" long.  I wrote about them here on this blog post.  Love them, love them, love them!


I really like having the small pair of hemostats to use for sewing also.  I can grab a piece of thread and they lock to really hold it.  I have also been known to take them to the bathroom mirror to grab one of those pesky hairs that want to grow on my chiny chin, chin too.  They work better than any tweezers as they lock on the the hair, er..thread, so it can be pulled out.

Before I had this brass stiletto I used the point of a seam ripper for the same jobs.  I can hold the fabric and guide it under the presser foot with the stiletto and still see where I am stitching.  I use it to hold down things that I am pressing to avoid getting burned fingers too.
The next item I have used quite a bit lately is this Dritz Ezy-Hem Guage.  I just estimated where 1/4" was and pressed the ends over this to make them nice and straight when I was making the luggage tags.  There are markings on one side to press creases starting at 1/2" up to 4".  It is a thin piece of metal and works pretty slick to get sharp, straight pressed fabric.  I have had this tool since I was first married, back when I sewed clothing where it came in handy to press in hems.  I was surprised it was still being sold when I found it online.

Of course my most favorite tool is my Bernina sewing machine.  The one I have now is a 730 but owned a 150 before that (sold it to one of my sisters), and before that had a 930 which one of my daughters has now.  I love the stitch it makes, the quietness of the machine...could go on and on about why I love my machine.

I have used the 1/4" foot especially made for stitching 1/4" seams and it works OK but my favorite foot to use is the #20 foot.  This is an open toed applique foot I got to go on the 150 and kept it to use on this machine.  There is an open toed applique foot that is made for the 730 but the space is too wide since this machine can do 9 mm wide stitches and I don't feel it holds down  the fabric as well as this one, especially when I stitch miniatures.  I use this #20 foot to piece with and to do invisible machine stitching on applique and buttonhole stitching.  I can see really well doing foundation piecing with this foot too.

When stitching seams together I move the needle to the right a couple of clicks to make the perfect 1/4" seam.  Got so used to using it on the 150 I have to force myself to use the regular 1/4" foot on this machine for seaming blocks together.  You can read more about this foot on this blog entry.

Come back again for another installment of my favorite things.  Have added a couple things to my list of sewing things I want to look for in Paducah - thanks for leaving the messages.

Happy Quilting,
Lynn

Wacky Bird Progress

As you can see I am making some progress on my Wacky Bird block. The bird is done and now I am working on the branches and leaves. I am still irritated by the lack of good value changes for the legs, tail feathers and orange face piece. I need to remember to pay closer attention and check my fabrics before I go to the work of using them. Must keep those value finders handy!

Suzanne Marshall's applique method also has us outline each piece in embroidery thread so I am hoping that will help. Will have to choose the right thread colors to make it happen though.

Here is a close up of the eye. I chose to make it from two fabrics to give it a little more dimension. I first made a circle on the purple fabric with my circle template, cut it out leaving about 1/8" seam allowance then appliqued it onto a large piece of orange fabric. When the purple circle was finished I took a my circle template and laid it over the appliqued piece and chose a circle a little larger on the template, centered it and marked it on the orange fabric. I then cut out the orange circle with a small 1/8" seam allowance and appliqued it down.

I have 3 different circle templates that I have purchased at Hobby Lobby or other places that sell drafting and art supplies. When you have to draw a circle it is much easier to find a corresponding size on one of these templates and trace inside the pre-cut hole than to draw a circle following a traced circle on a piece of paper. There are registration marks on them too so if you have to line them up vertically or horizontally you do this. Very inexpensive to buy and I would be lost without them.

I do want to point out a couple of points in my outside circle. I tried real hard to keep my curve smooth but when I was finished I noticed these points.....oh well. They are not huge points so maybe the embroidery will cover them up.

Had company over the weekend so am recovering, doing laundry, etc. to catch up. We seem to have lots of company over the summer every year. We do enjoy having people come but I never get the things done that I think I will.

Enjoying tomatoes that my friend gave us last Thursday and the 2 doz. my sister brought this weekend. Our tomatoes are so slow ripening this year, think it was the cooler than normal weather we have had plus the lateness they were planted. John and S. planted my garden for me late last spring since I couldn't do it because of the foot surgery I had.

The foot is better but not completely back to normal now. I have been wearing only flip flops with lots of cushion all summer as the arch of my foot is still swollen some and my regular shoes are too tight on my left foot. I have occasionally worn them for short periods of time though. Not sure what I will be doing when fall and cooler weather comes though.

Happy Quilting,
Lynn

Value Study

Weather Report - today it is NOT raining and the sun is peeking out!!! Now for the fields to dry out so we can get back to combining the corn. We missed the snow that came down west of us thank goodness, but did get over 2" of rain so the soil is supersaturated now. Our daughter reported it was a real mess on their county roads with the 3" of snow on top of very wet, rain soaked roads.

I have been steadily working on the first of my tessellated leaf quilts. Have all the (3/4" finished) blocks stitched for the first one and have them pinned to my flannel board. (Paper does not stick to flannel- ha, ha!) Anyway - what a disappointment. The values are too close on some of the fabrics and the design disappears. I thought I had a good value distribution but guess it was just color. I neglected to check it out with the green and red plastic value finders I have before I started stitching. Took a black and white photo this morning and you can really see what I mean by a mushy mess!

Since these are PP blocks I am not ripping them all out to get it right, but will go ahead and stitch them together like I planned. My new plan is this....the second quilt will be the better one and this will be a good example of what Not to do. Works for me if I can get the next one to turn out good. Was thinking of names and thought maybe the bad example should be called "Autumn Leaves - After a Rainstorm in the Gutter" and the good one "Autumn Leaves - Before the Fall". Another idea for a combined name might be "The Good, The Bad and the Ugly!"

This next black and white photo is of the second quilt strips pinned to the flannel board. I have used the green and red value plastic things plus taken black and white photos on my digital camera to make sure each set of 2 fabrics contrast with each other. The camera thing works better than the green and red value plastic. What do you think of this arrangement? Let me know if you see a problem somewhere - please.

Had a nice time yesterday after lunch with two quilty friends. I had John cut some smaller OSD boards and round the corners for me and we made pressing boards like Sharon Schamber shows in her free video. The boards are 16' x 20" and a nice size to sit beside the sewing machine and also if you have to take a board to a workshop sometime. I figured up the cost and the materials for each only came to $4 or a little more. Pretty cheap for a nice pressing board.

You know I told you I was cleaning house for some company this weekend in a post or two before this. Anyway, yesterday morning I was running my vacuum and it started making the most horrible noise. Shut it off and unplugged it and took the hose off. What a disaster - half of the blades just inside were completely gone and the other half were damaged. Know I didn't pick up something that broke them - just old age I think. I was thinking I only had the machine for 12 years or so but when I found the information about this Kirby in my files we have had it for 20 years. Wow that is a long time.

I decided I didn't want to get another Kirby brand of vac. even though they are really good because they are so awfully expensive - over $1300 now. John I made a trip to Grand Island last evening (1 1/2 hrs. away) to get a new vac. so I could finish getting everything cleaned up before the weekend. I had looked on line and found some reviews and so took the recommendation and got a Sears Kenmore. Sure hope it works good but probably won't last 20 years like the last vac. I had. Here is the new machine ready to go to work. I wonder...do you suppose I could get an add-on for this machine that would include a person to run it besides me?

John thought it was interesting that I am willing to pay top dollar for a sewing machine but not a vacuum. I said I sure know where my priorities are and they don't include cleaning!

Lynn