Another top done

I have finished watching the five X-Men movies I borrowed from my son-in-law.  I thoroughly enjoyed each  one, and wish I could have seen them before I saw Wolverine.  I discovered quickly that I had to watch the screen too much to allow for rotary cutting.  Safe rotary cutting.  So I started - and finished - the embroidered words on this eagle quilt top.

The designer stitched the name "Ann Hutton" on the left corner under the word "there".  I had never heard of Ann Hutton, but American history was never my best subject.   I tried to find out who she was, using "1797" as part of my Internet search string, but couldn't find anything about her at all.  So I researched the quote, and found many, many references to it.  Every one of them attributed the quote to Benjamin Franklin.  So used his name, shortening it to "Ben" Franklin as there wasn't enough room in the corner for anything longer.  I really like how this turned out.  It will definitely be finished in time to join my other patriotic decorations next Summer.

Stitchery

Seeing all the stitchery going on and getting the transfers in the mail has spurred me to get out a couple redwork towels for my kitchen. I made these days of the week towels several summers ago. They were great handwork for camping trips that summer. They aren't for show only - seems like whenever I put them out on the oven door they eventually get used. We always have a few dishes to wash as my Calphalon pots and pans aren't dishwasher proof. These look like they could use a good pressing, but I decided to take a picture of them for posting anyway. I won't do the new ones in redwork - instead I'll use lots of different thread colors, just as I did when I was a child.

I'm going to be needing some longarm thread very soon - and it looks like Checkers sells flour sack dish towels. Time to polish up my stitchery skills!

Saturday ramblings

So far it's been a busy weekend. I put the last Hotel Hope quilt top on the machine yesterday afternoon - at least the last one I have that was made by someone besides me - and started quilting it. I didn't think I'd get it done until today, but I kept plugging away. I quilted until the Mariners lost to the Astros. Then I resumed listing to "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban". I noticed it was starting to get dark, so I figured Fred would be up to say good night soon, and then I'd head to bed. I kept quilting, Fred didn't turn up, and it got later and later. By the time I finally Fred must have fallen asleep - he had - I was almost done. I reached the end of the quilt about the same time I reached the end of the book. I used a panto I've not used before - Popcorn by Jodi Beamish - and I really liked how it turned out. By the time I was done it was 10:30, so I headed to bed.

The last couple days I have hit the jackpot as far as mail and UPS deliveries go. I ordered new pantographs from three different sources - two packages arrived yesterday and one today. My second Vogart transfer arrived today. A small order from Z&S Fabrics - I know, I know, but dieting doesn't mean starving! - arrived today. Two Aunt Martha's transfers for baby quilts arrived yesterday. A back order from Checkers containing a couple new quilt books and some Mary Engelbright tins for decorating my sewing room. Packages arriving is the best thing about shopping online!

I'm always striving to be more organized, and my pantograph storage was driving me nuts. I had to pull out almost every roll every time I wanted a particular design - even though I thought I'd organized them in a logical manner. So last Monday was my evening to solve this problem. I put them all on an alphabetized spreadsheet and assigned each one a shelf location. My shelf is a very inexpensive one that we used to use at work, but it had sat unused for several years so our facilities manager said I could buy it for $5. Worked for me! I labeled the shelves to match the chart. Then I put a lot of spare ribbon to use by tying one around each design - the "rubber" bands I'd put around them kept disintegrating. This morning I added all the new ones. I didn't realize I had so many - almost 50! There are a bunch I've never used yet, so I'm hoping many are suitable for either the quilt tops I have waiting already or all the scrappy tops I've been putting together these days.

Once I finished my organization I put another quilt on the longarm. This is one made by my friend Kim - the friend whose son is in Iraq and is part of the tank platoon we did the quilts for. In August Kim is moving to Finland for a year as her husband will be working there. She's clearing out almost everything as they have put their house on the market. She brought over the roll of batting left over from the Iraq quilts - probably about 22 yards - so I'm quilting a quilt for her. It's from African fabrics, and I'm having lots of fun with the custom quilting. Unlike most longarmers I like doing stitch in the ditch, and this quilt has lots of it. Plus applique to embellish and quilt around.

My back has given out for tonight so this won't be finished until tomorrow. I'll get a better picture of it then. Fred's going to work out so I'll have a bit of quilting time. I want to fix him a nice breakfast when he gets home, and then the kids are coming over for a Father's Day celebration in the afternoon.

All weekends should be this productive!

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Gratitudes:
1. Fred cleaning up the kitchen after dinner
2. Receiving an organizational gene
3. A comfortable relationship with my longarm - I'm not so much a newbie any longer
4. Healthy Choice fudge ice cream bars
5. Rain showers for our garden

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Nostalgia - and personal indulgence

I don't have anything quilty to report. I haven't had time to stitch since Sunday. When I finish this post I plan to go upstairs to pin another quilt on the machine - it will be so nice to touch fabric again! I'm in the middle of a marathon "listening" session while I quilt - I borrowed all the Harry Potter books on CD from my kids so I could "read" them all again before the next one comes out. Just a little over a month - I can hardly wait! Is Snape really a bad guy or a good guy? Will Harry survive? Those are the burning questions we all want answered!

In the meantime my "quilty" time has consisted of browsing the Internet at work during lunch. I've been intrigued by a new blogger I found who collects vintage embroidery transfers. I've not thought of Vogart transfers for years and years. Memories came flooding back as I read the posts and perused the pictures. Memories of spending my small allowance of 25 cents a week on embroidery floss and transfers. I think floss was two or three skeins for 5 cents, and transfers were either 10 cents or 15 cents. My mother bought flour sacks at J.J. Newberry, cut them in half and hemmed them, getting two dish towels per flour sack. Then she stamped them for me, and I stitched the designs.

When my allowance increased and I started junior I started buying my own flour sacks. I loved to embroider - my mother started me stitching when I was five or six. I can remember many summer days when she'd say "Enough Patti Jo - put down that embroidery and go outside for some fresh air and exercise!" My reply was always the same - "I don't want to go outside - I don't need fresh air and exercise!" Didn't usually work, so I had to ride my bike for awhile before I could sneak back inside to go back to my stitching.

As years passed my birthday and Christmas gifts to mom expanded from one or two towels to an entire set. I laugh now when I think of that - because my sister and I did the dinner dishes and probably used the towels way more than she did. I loved the designs with days of the week the best - even though the towels were never used on the appropriate days! I stored my thread by clipping the skeins into good lengths and braiding them. I'd hook them around someones finger if one was available - otherwise I used my big toe for braiding the thread! I still have thread from my youth that I keep and use this way, though I started storing new thread differently when I became addicted to counted cross stitch.

Fast forward to last Monday. Floresita talked about buying vintage transfers on Ebay, so I took a look. What a wealth I found - including many of the very same transfers I'd stitched as a child. That's when I knew I had to have a few of them. The towels I made as a child turned to rags long ago - I never did make a set for my hope chest as I'd change my mind and give them to my mother for yet another gift. Now I will make them again - stitching to my memories of wonderful times. I will hang them in my kitchen to be pretty - not used - and will be reminded of happy times whenever I see them. I bought this set on Ebay on Monday evening, paying more than I probably should have but worth every penny for the memories. I won another set Tuesday - kittens in the kitchen - which should arrive soon. Just thinking about stitching these designs again fills me with happiness.

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Gratitudes:
1. A glass of ice cold milk
2. Treasures brought by the mail carrier
3. The colors of my world
4. Another pound lost!