Next stop... August!

The summer does fly by doesn't it?  Next week will be August already and that means, RETREATS!!  I'm almost ready.  I can't show you the favors I've been making so I'll show you the applique blocks I've been working on.  But, about the retreat, I sent out the final retreat update info last night.  If you are a retreater and you have questions, please send me an email:  jdquilts123@yahoo.com.

There is 1, possibly 2 spaces available for the August 15-18 retreat so if you'd like to join in there is still time.  If you can't join us, you'll just miss a lot of fun.  I will be sure to post some of the ladies and the things we do during the two retreats once I get back home.

Other than scrappy quilts and retreat favors, I've been working on an old UFO this summer as well.  I started this quilt 5 years ago knowing that it would take me a long time to finish it.  But, I didn't realize at the time that I'd start teaching all the FW classes or that I'd start hosting the FW retreats.  Anyway, I haven't worked on this one for a couple of years.  But, if I ever get it done, I have to work on it so this summer I'm getting back to it.  I hand stitch every night while the Big Guy and I watch the Detroit Tigers lose another game or we find a good mystery movie to watch. And here are 4 blocks that I've gotten finished so far.

The quilt, The Little Brown Bird, has 40 of these blocks and I'm done with 23 of them.  It also has appliqued corner triangles.  I'm done with those.  And, the borders are full of applique, too.  I'm more than half done with the borders.  I'm looking forward to starting to put these all together to make this quilt.  No, it won't be done this year.  But I'm hoping it will be a lot closer to done.

So, you all go have a good sewing day doing whatever is on your pile of things to do.  I'll finish up my retreat stuff and keep working on the LBB.  I'll come back soon and give you yet another update on what's going on at the Dalton gang's  hideout.

Coming Soon - The Middle of Summer

Welcome to the UP, home of the monster mosquitoes and black flies that take a chunk of your hide if they get the chance.  They have been brutal this summer.  The Indian will still welcome you but he seems to remain unscathed through the whole ordeal of bugs, rain, and more bugs.  That's me and my dear great granddaughter giving you the Indian welcome sign at the top of the driveway as you get to our cabin.  Do you see those mosquito repellent contraptions hooked on our clothes?  They did help a little.  My sweet great granddaughter was here for a few days during my birthday week.  They came as a surprise and I sure was..... SURPRISED!  We were headed off to the Porcupines State Park on the morning this picture was taken.  We had to check out my favorite waterfalls.

I haven't taught any classes up here this summer but that's okay.  I've had a bit more time to work in my little flower garden and I've gotten some sewing done.  I'm working on using a bunch of scraps to make Preemie Pals baby quilts for donation and I've been doing some applique on my Little Brown Bird quilt that I've been working on for years and years.  Here's a couple of the baby quilt tops that I've gotten done so far.  I'm hoping to get more made but I'm in RETREAT mode at the moment.

Retreat time is sneaking up on us quickly.  I'm busy getting favors made and putting kits together for the FW dust covers.  There will be a few of those made at the retreats along with everything else that people do while we're together.  I do plan on checking a few things out on everyone's machines that I learned at the FW shop during my class.  These are things that you'll only get if you come to a retreat.  One item can only be done when it's dark.... okay, I bet you're all curious about that one now, right?

Speaking of the retreats, there are still 2 spots open for the August 15-18 retreat so if you were thinking you'd like to come or invite a friend and come, send me an email and I can probably still fit you in.  Those spots will be filled on a first come, first served basis so don't hesitate too long.

Are you ready to learn something new about your FW?  This is something I learned at the FW shop class and it's really a good thing to know.

We are always wanting to try and get the best looking finish on our FWs and we've talked about using the zymol cleaner and then the zymol wax to bring back the shine.  The black FWs are the only ones that have the shellac protective coat over the decals.  The white machines don't have a shellac finish.  They don't have any decals to protect.  Shellac is dissolved by so many things, like rubbing alcohol, fingernail polish, many soaps and cleaners.  So what do you use to clean off the black machines?  The FW shop told me that you should only use the zymol cleaner one time.  It takes all the wax off and cleans any scratches and such.  That's why those scratches will show up more after a zymol cleaning.  While the scratches were once full of whatever dust, dirt or gunk got collected in them, once that is cleaned off, scratches will show up more than before.  You HAVE to put a few coats of wax on your finish to shine things up and fill in those scratches after you've cleaned with zymol cleaner.

If you have a lot of scratches or even a few scratches, it's possible for things to work their way under the shellac and cause a bubble of cloudy finish.  So having that protective layer of wax or a few protective layers is really important.  Once you get those cloudy bubbles or cracks in the surface there's really not much that can be done to fix that.  A costly paint job is the only solution and you really have to be careful who you have do a paint job.  That's another story!

After you have the protective wax on the machine it's only a matter of wiping dust off with a dry cloth or perhaps a cloth with a bit of oil on it.  You'll want to wipe off any excess oil with a dry cloth but the shine will come back and last for a few days.  It would also be a good thing to cover your sweet FW when you're not using it.  Put a towel over it or make one of the FW dust covers.  Okay, I plugged the FW dust cover.  Those were fun to make.

Before I forget, the FW maintenance and Club classes have been scheduled for this fall now.  You can go over to the Class Schedule page and find that information.  Get those Club dates on your calendar so you don't forget.  I'm already thinking about what to do at our fall classes.  And, if you know someone that's been wanting to take a maintenance class or you want a refresher class, those dates are set and you can call the Quilt Patch and sign up.

Okay, the day is calling.  I need to get back to some sewing and maybe go out and catch a fish for supper.  Hope you all are having a grand summer.  Do shout out and say, hi!  I miss ya' all.

Our trip to the FW Shop and other stuff, too.

Here we are, the last week of June (and, my birthday week) so it's time for our FWs SPA day.  You can pick any day this week but lets get those precious machines all oiled, greased and lubed for the next six months of use.  Well, you need to oil them more often, every 8-10 hours of sewing to be exact, but the SPA day will help them work at their optimum. 

And what a great trip I have to tell you about.  Kathy and I drove to Idaho from the UP and I took the advanced FW sewing machine maintenance class at the FW Shop.  I have so many things to tell you all about that.  I'll have lots to post about for weeks and weeks.

I learned about motors and gears, special finish techniques and how to repair those handles.  Latch repair was covered as was special info about products to use and so much more.  There will be some fabulous new products coming soon for your sweet machines.  I'll keep you posted about those items as they become available.  At the end of the two days I got a certificate that says, I completed the class so now I really feel official.  That's Christian on the far left, then Carmon, me, and Burl, the head technician for the FW Shop.

And, the trip there and back was gorgeous.  I have to admit that driving over 3000 miles is a bit crazy but I wanted to see the countryside and experience everything along the way. Having airline personnel throw my FW cases into a cargo area was not an option. That last 3 hours before arriving at Kooskia was so beautiful.  US-12 runs along the river winding around mountains with rapids and steep curves in the road.  The Bed and Breakfast owner where we stayed told us how dangerous that road can be and while we were there an older couple drove off the road into the river in a camper and nearly died.  Beautiful and dangerous are the only words to describe that road. Needless to say, we were careful.

We were right in the middle of the Nez Perse Indian reservation so we stopped at that National Park before we returned home.  We didn't get as far as the River of No Return but we were very close.  We were surrounded by beauty and history that clearly spoke to us.  I can highly recommend a trip to see Idaho's panahndle.

Coming back, we stopped at the Teddy Roosevelt National Park and it's another beautiful area to see.  We watched prairie dogs in their little villages and Bison across the way.  You just can't see that stuff from a plane.  The rock formations in that area are so unique. Yes, I love rock formations, too.

And, we shopped at quilt shops and antique stores as well.  You really can't go on this kind of outing and not do a bit of shop hopping. Neither one of us broke the bank shopping but we did find a few things that we couldn't leave behind.

All in all, it was a great trip and, like I said, I have a lot to tell you all for weeks to come. 

How could I forget?

The FW dust cover.... how did I forget to post that one?  I finished it last week.

It's perfect to put over my FW when I'm not using it..... well, that's not too often.

Welcome to Summer

Hello, Summer with your warm days and sunshine.  Welcome to fishing on the lake and sewing in my corner overlooking the water.  I'm so happy to have the  hummingbirds, goldfinches and robins at the bird feeders.  Welcome mosquitoes and black flies.  Wait!!  I'm getting carried away here.  The mosquitoes and black flies can fly away any time.  I'm tired of them already and they've barely begun.

The UP has so much beauty but the bugs aren't one of them.  But, we do have cans of OFF in every room of the house and garage.  There's a can in each of the vehicles and the boat.  When you live in the woods, OFF is the perfume of choice.  That's just the way it is.

We've been here a little over 2 weeks and it feels like home again.  It's a lot of work getting everything unloaded, unpacked, and put away.  We got the dock put out and the boat in the water but as always, there are things that need work now that we're here.  We pulled the boat back out of the water because the onboard trickle charger isn't working correctly.  We'll have that up and running again soon because those bluegill tasted pretty good that we caught the other day.  Fish from a clear water lake are really pretty good.

And, I've been sewing like a crazy woman.  I always bring things to work on and this summer I downsized a bit.  I brought my Little Brown Bird quilt to work on.  It's number 1 on my UFO list.  And, I brought some scraps to make a few preemie quilts for donating this winter after I get them quilted.  Here's what I've accomplished so far.

This one is a scrappy quilt that I made from a bag of 2 1/2" squares that my neighbor up here gave me last summer.  There are some vintage fabrics and I used up one of the grey fabrics from the elephant quilt, too.  I am trying to use up a bunch of fabrics I have this summer to reduce my stash. I already had all those scrappy blocks put together when I came up this year.  I used them for my leaders and enders while I was making the elephant quilt last summer.

This one is a preemie, again made from a bag of scraps that my neighbor gave me last summer.  I don't remember the quilt she made using the instrument fabric but there were just enough of those pieces left to make this one.  Yup, I used up more red scraps from my own stash.

This one is a UFO that I've had on my pile for about 3 years.  I'm calling it my Easter quilt and I just needed to embroider the eggs with Easter stripes or other designs.  I just couldn't find the time to finish it up this winter even though I wanted to have it done for Easter this year.  Maybe I can get it finished for next year. It's ready for quilting now.

And, I'm getting excited to go to Idaho to the Featherweight shop for my additional training on FW repair.  I leave a week from today and when I get back, I know I'll have a ton of things to tell all of you about our precious FWs.

Yes, I'm going to take pictures and it will be time for our biannual  spa day for our FWs when I get back as well.

I hope you all are having a great summer so far.  I love to hear from you when you get a chance.  I'll report back in a couple of weeks.  Till then, quilt away!

April/May activities.... I think I'm ready for summer!

It's been such a long time since I posted.  I'm so sorry.  We had a good time at our last FW Club class but then I was so busy getting the elephant quilt done, repairing several FWs for many of you, and then, the wedding and my duties for that took the rest of my time.   Now, we're headed back to the summer house and some much needed rest.  Of course, there are FW things during the summer as well but not so often or so much.

Okay, people have been emailing me.  Did I get the elephant quilt finished in time?  Well, yes, I did.  It took me 10 days of pretty much non-stop quilting to get it done but I delivered the quilt to the bride and groom a couple of days before we left for the wedding in NC.  Here are a few pictures of the quilting.  I hadn't put the binding on when I took the pictures but that got finished with the teal blue fabric and if I do say so myself, it turned out pretty nice.  I'm really happy to have that done!

The wedding was gorgeous.  It was held in the mountains of NC and the weather was beautiful the entire week before the wedding.  Unfortunately, the rain came on the afternoon of the wedding.  It was supposed to be an outside wedding but it had to be moved inside.  Oh well!  It was still a wonderful celebration.  We're all so happy to see the grandson and his bride give their vows and become husband and wife.

Yes, I made the wedding cake.  That had me on pins and needles the days before the wedding.  I was so nervous.  I wanted it to be perfect.  Well, it come out fine.  The yellow genoise cake with  raspberry filling and white chocolate buttercreme frosting did not melt in the heat, thank goodness.  It was tasty and even though the stress caused some pretty painful neck strain, again, I was glad to get it done.

Once we got back home the business of packing for the move got underway.  That's always a big job  as well.  But the trailer got loaded and we're headed north as I type these words.  We'll be at our summer home tomorrow and the unpacking will begin.  I'm so anxious to unload my fabric and get my sweet FW oiled and ready for sewing to begin.  I don't have a wedding quilt or t-shirt quilt to make this time so maybe I can get a couple of my UFOs done this summer.

You know that the retreats will bring me back down state in August and I'm looking forward to that.  If you are one of the participants, I'll be sending out our next sheet of information this next week.  Be looking for that, okay?

And, I'm so looking forward to my trip to Idaho for my advanced FW training.  I will give you lots of updates when I get back home from that.

Do continue to email me with questions you have and/or problems you need help with.  I do enjoy hearing from each and every one of you.

Okay, I need to get some sleep so I'll be ready for tomorrow's travels and then the unpacking begins.