Mostly Quilting

It's been 11 days since I posted. Not sure why I haven't felt motivated to write a post. Maybe it's because it's summer. Real life has recommenced with more people vaccinated. I've been keeping up with activities - daily devotions, ukulele, line dancing, housework here and there, and sewing.

Actually, as I was searching for an old piece of embroidery that I thought to finish, I came across too many jumbled messes of sewing-related stuff. Started projects set aside for more favorable projects. Though I've never thought of myself as a UFO collector, I have a fair share of items that have me wondering, "What will my kids do, and think, when they find this stuff after I'm gone?!" My excesses are a bit embarrassing. You know. Materials and supplies bought to make items... that never got made. The "stuff" has me feeling disappointed in myself, and a new resolve to rectify that, even a little bit at a time. 

For example, I found this box full of hexagon English paper piecing papers, and cut hexagon fabrics, along with charm packs, pieced triangles, and other random fabric pieces. I've vowed to get it sorted, and figure out a way to use it.

Some of the pieces will go into this which has reappeared on my design wall. Blocks have hand-appliquéd circles for our Central Florida MQG Chip and Charm Challenge. None of the blocks have been squared-up. I'm mulling over how many more I need to make, and how to arrange them. I have a long way to go on this one.

Since making the Mini QCR Runner (last blog post), I've been making another "Urban Abacus" quilt, a pattern by Sew Kind of Wonderful. Did you notice I said "another" Urban Abacus quilt? I gave away the first Urban Abacus quilt I made in 2014. It couldn't be with a sweeter Iowa family. 

But, I'm teaching the Urban Ababus project twice in August! So, here I go again. 

Last Saturday I completed the top; Sunday afternoon I pieced a backing with leftover fabrics from the front, and pin-basted the sandwich with Quilter's Dream Cotton Request.

This week has been about quilting, starting with ruler work. I'm quilting on my Bernina 770QE.

Each abacus was curved ruler quilted first, followed by straight line quilting using a 6" Fine Line Ruler by Accents in Design.

This video is five times the normal speed.

Lastly, I added free motion quilted circles.

This video is at four times the normal speed.

Last Friday I received my complimentary copy of Curated Quilts - "Stripes" issue #16 - that includes my 14" X 14" Dance Around quilt in the Mini Challenge section on page 78. This is the fourth time I've been fortunate enough to have a quilt selected for challenge publication, and the good feeling about it never gets old. I'm honored to be included with so many super-talented quilt designers. 

As I've been quilting, lots more book-listening happens, so I'm having a catch-up today on my last three reads that brings my year-long total to 40 books.

Book Recommendations

Though the title The Sewing Machine, by Natalie Fergie is certainly attractive to a sewist, the story didn't measure up to my expectations. It's about a young woman who helps build Singer sewing machines in a factory where wages and conditions were less than ideal. Attempts to unionize the company failed, and women made sacrifices, working had to earn a living by sewing for others.

Have you thought about being able to sew only while near a window? When the sun is still up? The story spans several generations that caused me to feel a bit of confusion about who I was learning about, what year it was, and what circumstances the characters were in. Though the story concludes with the present generation - a male descendant (though not really a descendant by blood) learning to sew on an old Singer used by an ancestor - I found the genealogy and relationships a little difficult to follow.

Also during listening, I was reminded that sewists layer different thread colors on their bobbins, a common practice on old sewing machines. Do you do that? I sure don't. But is there a reason not to? Because we can afford to buy more bobbins, perhaps? Linda's score: 3.6/5.0

 By reading Eight Hundred Grapes, by Laura Dave, I learned that it takes approximately 800 grapes to make a bottle of wine.

You might guess that this story takes place in wine country: Sonoma. The main character is 30-something Georgia, who is on the cusp of marrying a British man. When she sees him with another woman who's a famous actress, with a young girl in tow, she runs back home. There she learns about more secrets - her parents  are divided, her brothers are at odds over a woman, and the most startling news, that the family vineyard, "The Last Straw" is being sold. 

This is another book that looks into family situations and attempts to offer insight, understanding, and resolution for each character. Linda's score: 3.8/5.0

The It Girls by Karen Harper is about sisters Elinor and Lucile Sutherland, brought up on Jersey (a British island off the northwest coast of France - I looked it up), who dream about what their futures could be. Each of them wants to have "it." The "something" that makes a person special. Nellie wants to write; Lucy wants to design clothing. The girls are different, yet each experiences an unhappy marriage, liaisons, and tragic circumstances (the Great War; and a trip on the Titanic) that help them grow into the "it" girls they become. But at what cost? Famous people such as Winston Churchill, Zeigfield, Mary Pickford, and Charlie Chaplin pop up in the story.

In the end, each aging sister is led back to what's most important - family and love. Linda's score: 3.6/5.0

So are you reading FlourishingPalms blog posts via Follow It? (142 of you are.) Is Google's Feedburner gone now? Linda