Let Freedom Ring!

Happy Independence Day!

 I hope you all get to spend time doing what you love with those you love as we celebrate 4th of July.

Saving Selvages

I have been saving fabric selvages and have started making some blocks….nothing fancy, just sewing one strip on at a time.  I cut 8 inch blocks from muslin for the foundation fabric and this is a quick, fun little project for when I only have 5 or 10 minutes to sit down at my machine.  I think I am going to do a rail fence pattern, like this ….

By the way, my "design wall" is the backside of a $4 plastic disposable tablecloth from Wal-Mart.  It works perfectly!   The largest rectangle size is hanging on a sewing room wall with 3 push pins and pieced blocks stay up like a charm.  I am just going to keep adding strips to blocks until it is big enough for a quilt.  I have not really decided on a size yet.  I cringe when I think of all the selvages I have tossed in the trash can over the years.  I could have probably made at least a queen size quilt by now.   

Hugs from the Beautiful Bluegrass!

I am sure we have one of the moodiest cats in the world.  We have learned to give her space because she has been known to take a swat at anyone passing by her.  You have heard of cats who purr themselves to sleep?  Ours hisses herself to sleep, not joking at all.  The only family member that she seems to be fond of is our son.  She is a calico and one of the prettiest cats we have ever had, but her beauty belies her temperament.

 She likes to sleep on top of a big chest where I store my quilting fabric and this is the look I got from her a month or so ago.

But, her unwillingness to retreat got her into trouble recently, we are assuming by a Copperhead.  We never saw it happen, but she obviously had 2 snakebites because we could clearly see fang marks.  The other bite is on her hip but I could not get a clear picture of it.  Kentucky also has rattlesnakes, but they are a little more elusive than Copperheads, which unfortunately are fairly common.  We killed one earlier in the summer in our driveway.

I cannot even believe she survived 2 snakebites, but she did.  It slowed her down for a few days, but she is fine now and is even a little calmer than she has ever been.

On a totally unrelated subject, as much as I HATE spiders, I walked outside early one morning last week when we had a heavy fog and I found this pretty scene.

Best wishes from the Beautiful Bluegrass --

I am back, catching up

Wow, it has been so long since I have been in touch that I do not even know where to begin.  I should start by saying I have missed keeping in touch with you.  I do pop over to the blogs once in a while to spend a few minutes.  I will start with quilting, although there is sadly very little for show and tell.  I miss it dearly but most days my machine barely gets a passing glance.  I did finally get this table runner quilted.  It is different from most of the earth tones that I usually pick, but I do love it for spring.  I considered a stitch-in-the-ditch but decided on all-over stippling and I really love it.

I have taken an interest in apple core quilts and decided to give it a try.  I have several projects that I am finishing for other people, but I just wanted to try one block to see if it was something I could even do.  I got Marti Michell's 6 inch template and gave it a try.  I have been collecting mens' plaid shirts from Goodwill for several months now, just picking up one here and there if I see one I like, and have been cutting those apart in 6 inch and 4 inch blocks, strips for a log cabin, and smaller strips for a pioneer braid.  I guess it is safe to say I love plaids.  I decided to use some of the shirt fabric for the apple cores, perhaps throwing in a nearly solid blender fabric here and there.  Here is my first attempt.  Let's just say that piecing curves is not for the faint at heart.  I am actually pretty happy with the way my first set turned out.  I am going to put it aside until I finish with my other obligations and then get back to it.

 

Next is my baby girl.  She has had type 1 diabetes for a little over 2 years now with no major issues, and all of a sudden the last week of March called me and said she needed me.  She had worked an overnight shift and had been up since 3 a.m. with vomiting and abdominal pain.  I picked her up and knew immediately that she was in diabetic ketoacidosis.  We went to the emergency room and she spent 3 days in the intensive care unit on an insulin drip.  Her blood glucose was not even extremely high, but her ketones had built up and she was one very sick young woman.  We have seen an endocrinologist that we both love and they got the ball rolling for her to be placed on an insulin pump.  Hopefully this will help control some of the fluctuations in glucose and eliminate a lot of finger sticks and insulin shots.  Any prayers for her would be greatly appreciated.  

On a bright note, my flowers are stunning this year.  We have had a perfect spring, a great balance of cool and warm and a good amount of rain. 

This last picture is a begonia potted in my Dad's old minnow bucket.  He sure did love to fish and it is hard to say how old this minnow bucket is.

I did try something new that I have been wanting to do for a long time.  I first had chow-chow when my husband and I visited his grandma in Mississippi years ago when we were dating.  I had never heard of it.  I think there are several varieties, but this one is basically a green tomato relish.  It has green tomatoes, cabbage, onions, bell peppers, and spices.  This is the best side flavor ever for black-eyed peas, pinto beans, cornbread, lots of things.  A local fruit and vegetable market here in town got in a load of green tomatoes from Georgia and I canned chow-chow for the very first time and it is delicious.  I am going to make at least 1 more batch soon.  

A few weeks ago, I caught a glimpse of heaven in one of the most beautiful rainbows I have ever had the privilege to see.  I was totally in awe and knew I was in the presence of something wonderful.  The brilliance of the colors was amazing and it lasted longer than most.  It was actually a double rainbow but the top one was much more faint.  

The last time I went to Goodwill to look for plaid shirts, I found this awesome pitcher.  I have no idea how old it is or anything about it, just that I love the way it looks.  

Lastly, we are still keeping my mother-in-law with us.  She has mixed Alzheimer's and vascular dementia and has now been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and related dementia. As hard as it was in the beginning, I only wish it were that easy again.  She has been nursing home ready for a while now, but we are going to hang in there a little longer.  Despite our giving her the very best of care, she deteriorates right before our eyes on a daily basis.  Here is a visual of what 20 months with Alzheimer's will do to you….the first picture was the week she came to stay with us in late September of 2012, the second picture is Mother's Day of 2013, and the third picture is Mother's Day of 2014. 

We feed her 3 very nutritious meals every day and even supplementing with Boost shakes.  We are trying to look into some respite care for a few days just to be able to take a long weekend away this summer.  My husband and I went to a wedding 2 weekends ago and that was only the second time in nearly 2 years that we have been out of our house together. Both of our kids were working but a niece came and stayed with her for a few hours. The first time we were out together was to grab a milkshake from a mom-and-pop burger place about 5 miles down the road.  Here is me and my honey at the wedding.  

I am going to do my best to be faithful about keeping in touch.  I miss hanging out with you guys. 

Sending much love from the Beautiful Bluegrass state ….

Quilting thread suggestions?

To all my quilting buddies, do you have a preference as to what brand, type, or weight of thread you use for machine quilting?  I use 100% cotton Gutterman for piecing and recently bought some Signature cotton for quilting but I am not really happy with it.  It is 40 weight.  The price is definitely right but the quality seems to be lacking.  Has anyone tried King Tut?  I have always used all cotton because that seems to make sense to me since the fabric and batting are 100% cotton, but a lot of people use a poly blend and are happy with it. 

Rhonda