Monday, August 16, 2010

Sewing projects

I'm trying to figure out what I was sewing before I went to the States and what I want to put on my to-do list for the rest of the year... Just off the top of my head I can think of 10 projects, 5 of which are Works In Progress and 5 that are just things I want to start.

  • WIP include the Feathered Star which I'm NOT going to get back to for a couple months. It is too hot to think about hand quilting. Japan is in the middle of a heat wave and Choco is digging holes to sleep in, the cats are laid out here and there on the wood floors and I am dripping. This is NOT the season to quilt.
  • The Patches and Pinwheels quilt is almost finished and just needs some machine quilting on the border but I'm not doing that either until we get a break in the weather. All in all, anything that requires me to go up in the sewing room is out. The sun beats down on the second floor and it is unbearable during the day. I've even moved Velvet downstairs to the cat house which is shaded and may get a little breeze...
  • The Tisket a Tasket BOM August block needs to get started and I may think about that today and bring it downstairs to applique. I need to try out my new applique pressing sheet that I bought but do not know how to use. Anybody want to give me a quick lesson? I also have the neat applique set that Takumi bought me at the Long Beach quilt show and that includes Glue Baste It, curved scissors, an applique and pressing tool, freezer paper, a stiletto, an I-Denti-Pen, a stencil brush, straw needles, Thread Heaven (a thread conditioner?) and OK to Wash glue. When the lady demonstrated at the festival with all these tools she made it look so easy... Maybe I needed to have bought her DVD too because I don't remember how she used all these things now... Ah well.
  • I have to make 2-4 blocks for our group's block exchange and I have Mrs. Harada's instructions in hand. She wants blue and red pineapple blocks. I did two in the last three days that I've been back so I can work on this project or leave it for awhile. A good in front of the TV hand piecing project.
  • The Alabama Beauty blocks have been united... The 6 I'd made before leaving Japan and the 8 I made while in the States. I have no idea where I'm going with this...
So those are the 5 WIP. As for the other things that I would like to start...










  • A wonky flying geese quilt using a pattern from Julie.
  • Tessellating cats from a pattern that Mona kindly tore out of her quilt magazine for me.
  • An I SPY quilt using cat and dog fabrics from June that I know my mother would love.
  • A Wonky Word quilt, again for my mother... She repeats a certain phrase over and over and it has become a joke for my California family...
  • A landscape quilt using batiks from Jay and Sina. I think I want something with an ocean theme that I could make for Takumi.
I have my work cut out for me (not literally unfortunately). I hope to get some sewing done before school starts.

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