Machine embroidery and buttons

Last week my friend Nancy B. came over and lent her two good hands to my embroidery project. She got my fabric and stabilizer hooped for me and I was able to get busy and stitch out a verse on a quilt square. I wrote about the project in detail yesterday.

I was so pleased that I was successful with that project I decided to try on my own and finally get a couple of tank tops done. Anyone who has spent time in my sewing room has seen them just hanging out on a hook for almost a year, waiting.

Of course the first thing I did was ponder what to stitch. Then the choice of threads has to be considered. I consulted with the hubby on the first shirt. I had a varigated thread in mind and he recommended to wait until after the first part stitched before choosing the second color. It was good advice.

What shows as background in teal is where I chose to use the varigated. The design is called Another swirly shell from OhMyCS.com.

As a 4×4 design it did well. I choose a medium brown for the shell to ensure adequate contrast. Made that $5 tank top look quite beachy. The variety of colors don’t lock me into specific colors to wear with this top.

When I got the next tank off the hangar I decided that the color of the shirt called for something pretty specific.

This design, Floral Anchor with a rope, by Oh My CS.com is an applique embroidery project. Again I did a 4×4. And it was just shy of 10,000 stitches.

It was much more work but the results pleased me. Both shirt photos were taken right away. I have washed each shirt and am satisfied with the results. They could each use a touch with the steam iron before I pack them in my suitcase this week. I like working on inexpensive t-shirts and tanks when I am practicing with the embroidery machine.

I used my new thread stand during the stitching of these 2 shirts. My Queen Bee friend Marta gifted me a stand her husband had made. It really worked like a champ . I guess I should take a better photo, but I forget before I started this post.

I spent some time on Friday with buttons. One tin of donated buttons really needed some work. They felt grimey when I handled them. I brought the tin in from the sewing room and got out my salad spinner. A little Dawn dish soap and water and 6 loads of buttons later, they were clean and pretty again. Note.. some buttons escape the confines of the salad spinner and it helps to have a strainer in the drain if the sink.

There were big wooden buttons and some that felt like stone

I set them out on cookie sheets covered with dish towels to dry and pick through. I’m glad I did because there were all kinds of stuff in the button tin besides buttons. I must have thrown away 10 thumb tacks and other weird implements I can’t even describe.

Right away I could see that there were lots of matching buttons.

This was just the beginning of the sorting and I knew I could make up some sets of six or eight matching buttons easily.

Sorting feels like therapy. I like the texture and shapes. It was tons of fun until I got to the boring white brown and black buttons.

Still contemplating how to merchandise these beautiful buttons in the 2nd Time Around booth at the quilt show. I’m considering a few ideas. I’ll let you know!😁

Do you have a collection of buttons on hand? How are they stored? Do you ever use any of them?

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Back to projects – Senior Quilts 2019

Slowly I am building up speed….like an old locomotive building up steam and chugging up the hill.  The long finger on my right hand is still splinted. A visit to my surgeon is scheduled for the end of the week, and I know he will say “3 more weeks”.

I did some sewing in the last 2 weeks.  Senior Quilts is a project at my church where we make a quilt for each of our High School graduates. The idea is to wrap the graduate in love and send them ‘off to their future endeavors’ with a reminder that the church is a place they can call home, to return as often as they can, and that they are always wrapped in the love of the members and the love of Jesus, no matter where they go.

 At my February Queen Bees gathering I used the “design floor” and laid out blocks for a quilt.  With the help of my friends Judy and Suzanne, a pleasing arrangement of the blocks came about.

There is only one graduate at church this year. I coordinate the “Senior Quilts” project.   Judy is one of our member quilters, so I was happy to have her input. I figured I could assemble the top fairly quickly and used the “webbing method” to keep the blocks in order. (The are 8.5″ square).  I got it assembled over the course of the following week, everything except the final row and the top right block.  Those blocks get a photo and a bible verse.

This Friday my friend Nancy B. came over and she “hooped” the block for me to embroider.  I didn’t think I was up for hooping with my splinted finger.  All went well and I managed to stitch out the verse.

The verse was chosen by the mother of the graduate. The source (besides the bible) of the digitizing is Designs By JuJu. If you are looking for scripture to stitch out she has many available for FREE on her page. I give the parents each year the link to her embroidery designs and ask them to choose. This was done on a 4×4 hoop.  It came out very clear for being so many lines in the small space.  I oversize the piece of fabric then cut it to 8.5″ square after the stitching is finished. I use no-show fusible mesh on the back and float a piece of cutaway under the hoop.

I also “print on fabric” a photo of the church.

I use a product available at JoAnn’s —   with great success.  I have the photo set up to print 2 per page, then I trim and stitch to a plain muslin block.  It helps to have a piece of stabilizer behind the block when stitching on the muslin this close. I used a blanket stitch and put a piece of cutaway behind it.  The cutaway is very soft and will remain in the quilt.  When printing on fabric I made certain that all the settings were at their highest quality. I also heat-set the photo with the iron from the top (with a pressing cloth) and from the backside.

The last blocks were added to the quilt and I gave it a good press and delivered yesterday to the church.  I realized that I hadn’t taken a photo of the finished top, so quickly used the “design floor” again and threw it down for a photo. It isn’t the best picture because I was in a hurry and didn’t smooth it out.

The color green was a suggestion by the grad’s mom and she mentioned he was an “EAGLES” fan.  Finding fabrics for young men can be a challenge. I have 3 containers of “church fabric” mostly donated by a church member. I was able to come up with some great prints that were “not florals”.  I got in my bin and dug out one fabric that I thought was appropriate too.  All in all it came together quickly.  The quilt will be out in the Narthex of the church (Reformation Lutheran Church Milford ) for several Sunday mornings.  Congregation members will have an opportunity to sign the quilt and offer messages of inspiration and hope for the future. Towards the end of April several of us will gather together and layer the quilt and tie it. Presentation is scheduled for Mother’s Day.

This is the 11th year I have been involved with Senior Quilts. I owe the origins of my quilting life to this project, and blame my husband for elbowing me in church telling me “You can do THAT, it’s just straight stitches”.  I also hold Pastor John, now retired, responsible for my quilting life!   I’ve been the coordinator of the project off & on for 10 years.  I took a 2 year break and let another quilter lead the charge when I was “stressed out” by too many years of too many grads.  Some years we have had as many as 15 graduates.  The last couple of years the numbers have dwindled. The future years there is an upswing in numbers of youth attending church and the project will take a lot more time. Thankfully for me this was an easy year.

 

Do you love buttons?

I can’t bring myself to get rid of all these containers of buttons that are donated to the quilt guild.  Shoe boxes, metal tins, ziplock bags, all full of buttons.  Hundreds and hundreds!    I am guessing I have over 20,000 buttons around, waiting for someone to love them!

They are HARD TO SELL at the meetings, because everyone seems to have a bin “just like it” at home. I’ve had “notion” sales at the guild meeting and the buttons sell here and there, but not a lot at a time.

And not all Quilters are crafters!  (I am the first to raise my hand and pronounce I am ‘not crafty’)

I was in Old Town Alexandria Virginia in January and saw “VINTAGE BUTTONS” for sale.

There were many on cards, and I thought hmmm…..maybe I am underpricing my carded buttons.  I can’t give them away for 50 cents for 6 buttons or 10 cents for 3 buttons. Maybe I should RAISE the price…..

I’ve sorted and bagged matching buttons. I’ve got 4 cupcake tins full of sorted buttons right now to bag up.  Talk about labor intensive.  The more I sort, the more I love the buttons!  Should I raise the price and rebrand them as “vintage”.  Surely they are!  The metal buttons are my favorite!

  What to do???

My 2nd Time Around Co-chair and I have been pondering the question!  How to get people excited about buttons and ways to use them, beyond your typical garment sewing. How to sell them?   We are getting ready for the  Ocean Waves Quilt Guild Show   on April 26 & April 27, 2019.  My 2nd Time Around committee is going to have a huge booth with lots of fabric for sale.  We are also going to SELL these buttons!  But before they sell, we have to INSPIRE people to buy them!

We’ve been looking at ideas  for crafting with buttons on Pinterest – and I have a “few pins” – Button Fun!

We made a few projects and I wrote about them here Feeling a little crafty   and here Fun with buttons and More!

Carole at  From My Carolina Home  has a great blog post today called Buttonmania Strikes Again !!  Over the years she has posted some very clever projects using buttons.  Oh, yes, she has a Pinterest board too and gives you “fair warning” about going down that rabbit hole!  (I have to set a 20 minute timer when I start on Pinterest).

So, all that said, there is no lack of creative ways to USE these buttons!

We have decided to sell the loose buttons at the show in a “fill a bag” manner.  A big bin of buttons to look through and square snack bags to load up with your treasures for $1.  We are going to display our “sewing room wreaths” to inspire others, and between now and then perhaps make a few more “button crafts”.

The other fun thing we are going to do is make “wreath kits”. Quart size bag full of assorted threads and notions, buttons and lace so you can build your “own” wreath.  We will make just a limited number and see if there is an interest.

Do you have a button box?  What do you save them for?  Have you done any button crafting?  Would you share your ideas?

Don’t forget to hop over to Carole’s blog post and when you comment, tell her I sent you there!

Happy crafting with buttons!

Be sure to check out the  OWQG SHOW  page.  Victoria Findlay Wolfe  is coming and has a special exhibit and lecture and trunk show! She is a spectacular quilter and teacher!  Check out her website –  https://vfwquilts.com/                                     

 

Busy Queen Bees

I belong to a quilt bee called the “Queen Bees”. It is a group of Ocean Waves Quilt Guild (Lewes Delaware)  members who get together once a month and work on projects. Sometimes we work on a group project, and other times we work on our own projects.

We met this month in a new location and were happy with the lighting, tables etc. We will need to remember to bring our extension cords if we are bring machines. Imagine the “buzz” as 8 to 12 women gather with projects and machines. Good thing there is a door we can close!

One of my favorite parts of our bee is the show & tell time. I often forget to grab my phone to snap a few pictures. This month at our bee I remembered in time to catch these two pictures.

The first is a wonderful applique project done by Sharon J.  She told us the name of the pattern is Jungle Walk for a Cause, by Harebrained Happenings.

This quilt will go to a new niece or nephew.  It is stunning up close and in person.

I just love the SHOES each animal is wearing.

The other stunning quilt that I took a picture of was by Joyce D.

I love all the redwork hand embroidery.  Beautiful job Joyce!

Lastly – I want to share with you the quilt that was made by the members of the Queen Bees.  We made blocks at our October bee for the Carolina Hurricane Quilt project. The block finishes at 12″ and is called the Perkiomen Valley block. This same block was used last year for the California wildfire quilts and is a great “fast sewing” block. I assembled the blocks and our member Sharon J. offered to long arm quilt the top. Marta B. is working on the label for the back, using her embroidery machine.  I will be binding it using my favorite method, “Susie’s Magic Binding”.

We had a lot of other show & tell items, as this is a very busy group!  I just failed to get more pictures!

Do you belong to a small group that quilts or sews together?   What do you like best about being in a small group?

From my standpoint, I enjoy the helpful sharing that takes place with this group. There were 8 of us at the bee this week, sometimes we really fill a room with all 12. We are starting our 4th year together and it is so fun to see the friendships grow along with the skills of the former “newbie quilters”.  They are NOT newbies anymore!

Happy stitching!

ps . for information on the Carolina Hurricane Quilt project, visit From My Carolina Home

 

 

Quilting Joy

In my last blog post – https://stitchinggrandma.wordpress.com/2019/02/25/500th-blog-post/  I alluded to the ” best eye candy of the day was a photo I got this morning of my “soon to be 3″ granddaughter”.  Her mother gave permission to share the photo.  But first, the story of that quilt she is sitting on.  My first post about her quilt was in May of 2016 – buried at the tail end of another post .  The first photos showed up the next day on this post – https://stitchinggrandma.wordpress.com/2016/05/29/cards-and-quilting/

Throughout the process of making her quilt I shared pictures and talked about it on my blog.  A look back at my blog archives in May through July of 2016 shares lots of conversation about her quilt.   Feel free to search an look back!

I finished her quilt and delivered it, only to borrow it back in 2017 for the Ocean Waves Quilt Guild Show. I was delighted to learn it had been awarded a 3rd place ribbon. My daughter brought Addison to see her quilt hanging at the show and that was an exciting time.  The quilt went back home and into the closet on the shelf, to await the day when she was “big enough” for a bed to put it on.  Last week the new mattress etc came home and her room was rearranged and the bed “dressed”.  Mommy snapped a photo and said she just LOVED sitting on her bed with her quilt and new pillowcases.

If you click on the photo it will take you to the album on Flickr where there are more photo’s of the quilt, including the back (which I think is the reason I got a ribbon).  The quilt is really “two sided” with a pieced back using some of the excess blocks and fabric.  My daughter wanted coral and grey, and I threw in the turquoise because so many of the coral pieces I found had the turquoise too.  Turned out to be a good decision and added another dimension to her quilt.

The fabric for the pillowcases came from Serendipity Quilt Shop last year, and was fun because it had the colors I wanted and the stripes to match up with the unicorns!  The purple and red in the stripe fabric added another layer of color in her gray and white and coral room.  I think they go well enough with the quilt, and the unicorns are a favorite.

You can see why I have QUILTING JOY everytime I look at the picture of her on the bed! I think this is my favorite part of being the StitchingGrandma ~!!~

What about you?  Do you have a project you have made and given away that brings you JOY a year or more later??  Do tell….

 

 

500th blog post

Wow....what a journey I have been on blogging!  This is my 500th post, and I wanted to share with you a little bit of the journey. 

First of all, WELCOME if you are a new reader. Secondly – THANK YOU to everyone who comes back to read my blog and chooses to follow.

My blog was started not to long after I retired. My first post was Nov 28, 2012, Welcome to my blog .  My daughter suggested the idea of a blog to me and said I might “have something to share”.  I was familiar with a few blogs and often came across blog posts with instructions and directions when I was searching the internet for a method to do something.  Here we are 6+ years later.

My posts have been primarily a journal of my “Random acts of Quilting”.  I’ve written about various projects over the years that I have done, along with crafting and sewing for the grandchildren.  Occasionally I have posted about travel experiences.  I hope to do a little more of that in the coming posts.  I’ve share links to some of my favorite tips and techniques, bloggers whom I enjoy reading and their special projects, and encourage participation from others in making quilts for others following disasters.

Stats – I just love to look at the statistics associated with my blog posts.  My blog has had 64,791 views, and 3,108 comments over the years. WordPress, the platform that I am using, indicates there are 358 followers.  I used to have stats on followers from Facebook, and recall there were about 200. WordPress no longer gives that info, and my Google+ followers have disappeared with platform changes. I have a few followers from Twitter and often cross post to Instagram. The post that brought the most views was done in September, 2017. I had the most traffic on my blog that day and I think it had something to do with a “link-up” on Pat Sloan’s blog.  Curious? Take a look – Grandma’s Kitchen – Block 11

Comments – I LOVE reading your comments and responses to my blog post. I’ve appreciate hearing from you and will often ask a question at the end of my post to elicit your response.  I do try to reply to your comments, tho sometimes I am slow!

Blog changes – over the years, I have learned a little about blogging, posting photo’s and adding links, how to store my photos and how to embed them in the post from other platforms. I’ve had help from other bloggers when I wasn’t sure how to do something.  My blog friend Carole  (From My Carolina Home) and I emailed each other a lot when we both found ourselves running out of “free space” on the platform and how to better manage our photos.  There have been opportunities to make changes that would “monetize” my blog, by having affiliate links and more advertising on the blog. I have chosen to not take that path. The timing wasn’t right for me and simply stated,  I don’t want the pressure to post as frequently as monetizing would make me “do it”.  Just today I learned about “hash tags” and how they work. For example – #lifecycleDE #youcanridewithus #bicyclesforall will take you to my favorite place in Milford and you can find Ben & Jenn and get help with your bicycle and encouragement to ride!  (I always wondered what those # things were about and Jenn gave a lesson just this morning on posting in social media). Thanks Jenn.

Frequency – I feel like my frequency drops off posting when I haven’t completed a project. This last year has been full of challenges for me in that regard. I continue to work in my sewing room,  out over the garage.  Sometimes I lack the motivation to get out there and “do something”. I believe that posting requires photo’s…and sometimes I just don’t take any! (Sometimes I take too many). Before I can hit the “publish” button today, I will have to get out to the garage and take a picture or 2!  Watch for the detail near the end of the post!

Favorite Posts – I really enjoyed writing about the block of the week project I did in 2017 with blocks by Pat Sloan. The project was called Grandma’s Kitchen.   It is the LAST quilt I finished, and my favorite. I wrote about that project from mid summer in 2017 until I finally quilted it in the spring of 2018.  I have to say it has been slept under in my guest room and is the first bed quilt I have kept. It has a hanging sleeve and yet I failed to enter it in our upcoming quilt show. Maybe because Grandma’s Kitchen STILL needs a label and my long arm quilting efforts are not “show worthy”.

Web Searches –  My posts pop up often when someone searches for a particular subject. The 2 topics that I find being searched regularly are Log Cabin Cross and Vintage Sewing Machines. I have made several of the Log Cabin Cross projects and here is a link to one I did a few years ago – Banner Completed .   Another post that has been visited repeatedly was written in the fall of 2013.  Old and New Sewing Machines has had a lot of activity.  I think it is time for an update to that post and might take on that task in the near future.  My machine count has changed and some of those old ones are just hanging around taking up space. I haven’t even told you about (or USED IT YET) my latest acquisition!  If you are a blog writer, be sure to use the TAGS feature.  That is what helps in searching. 

The future – Regulars know that I am recovering from hand surgery and believe it or not I have learned to type on my computer keyboard without using the splinted keyboard. that letter K along with the I and the period are still challenging me, but I am learning to type again without using the long finger on the right hand. Hoping when the splint comes off that I can resume “normal ops” with the keyboard!

PROJECTS – So many and sew much fun.  I have decided to make an effort to get some things finished. Oh the UFO’s are too many to list. On my sewing machine table right now are placemats with binding begging to be finished.  They are not the OLDEST UFO by any means, but they are achievable. I’ve gotten the binding on 4 of them. One daughter said she would like 6 of them, so I am motivated to proceed.  I cut blocks yesterday for the ONE Senior Quilt I need for church this spring. (Yes, I can cut with the splint on).   My friend Nancy is picking up one yard of a particular fabric for that quilt for me. I still need to cut some muslin blocks for the church members to sign, and get the verse embroidered and the photo printed on the fabric for the quilt.  Since this quilt has a deadline I need to get busy.  Our  Ocean Waves Quilt Guild Quilt Show is coming up on April 26 & April 27, 2019. (Check out the link to the show). Because of the show, I am working had scheduling helpers and getting fabric ready to sell at our Second Time Around booth.  I have workshops set up for once a week between now and the show.

MOTTO – When I worked we had a mission statement.  My MOTTO is in place of the mission statement.  My motto is TRY TO HAVE FUN EVERY DAY!  I am having fun with my blog, my quilting, my sewing for grandchildren, hanging out with my friends I’ve made at the quilt guild, and travel.  I even (gasp) have fun working Second Time Around !

So that’s it except for a little eye candy….Got out to the sewing room today and put the binding on 2 more placemats –

And here are the squares I cut for the Senior Quilt — Greens, golds and tans. I cut more than needed!  Tomorrow I hope to get it laid out in a fashion that will make for putting it together go quickly. Already packed in the car to take to my Queen Bees gathering.  Tomorrow I will cut the squares from the fabric Nancy picked up and add it to the pile and sort out an arrangement of these big 8.8″La

Last eye candy — went shopping online and picked out a new fit bit band….selected it because it reminded me of quilts!!!

The best eye candy of the day was a photo I got this morning of my “soon to be 3” granddaughter.  She just moved up into a “BIG” bed from her toddler bed, and her QUILT and pillowcases were on the bed that I made.  That eye candy will have to wait for another day.  Just know that it was a joy to see her enjoying the quilt I made for her 2 + years ago !

Emerging from the haze

I’ve been in a big slump since surgery on my finger last Thursday.  The long finger had joint fusion surgery (also called “arthrodesis”).  (((NOT A ROTARY CUTTER INCIDENT)))

I am hoping to shake off the anesthesia haze and get back to having fun!

On Friday, the day after surgery, I ventured out in a haze to the garage where a few guild members worked very hard on 2nd Time Around fabric prep while I looked on and cheered them on and answered questions.  I was able to work through an entire box of “bundles”, counting pieces and getting them tagged and priced.  In my post anesthesia haze I honestly had trouble with losing count, and devised a little “paper marker” for groups of 10’s.  That worked and I was able to stop recounting, and move the bundles into the box!

On Saturday one of my bee buddies came by for a visit and a cup of tea. Pam brought me 3 containers of wonderful homemade soups.  That boosted me up too.  Afterwards I wandered across the street to say hello to another guild member who had a cardio cath a few days earlier. I saw that she had her daughter and great grandson for a visit so did not stay but a minute. Since the weather was decent and I was “already across the road” I took advantage of her development’s quiet streets and had a nice long walk.  By going up and down each street in the neighborhood I was able to get a mile walk in before heading home.

On Monday my friend Nancy B. (also my co chair for 2nd Time Around) came over and she worked on organizing a bunch of the donations while I fiddled with some of the kits and got them priced up.  Nancy is a great sorter, and cleared out a bunch of donations that will be moved along to the thrift shop.  She has a good eye for things that won’t sell at the guild meeting and might do better elsewhere.    Our stack of boxes ready for the April quilt show is growing quickly with beautiful fabrics to sell.

I also had a visit from my “other friend” Nancy L, who delivered a wonderful ziti casserole on Monday afternoon.  My hubby was pleased that he wouldn’t have to figure out dinner!  We had gone to the supermarket on Sunday afternoon, and neither of us could even think of what we wanted to eat, so I grabbed a couple of “lean cuisine” style frozen meals and more fresh fruit.  Gosh I am enjoying the ziti, and the big pan has lasted us several days.  I have managed to make a b.l.t. sandwich once, so kitchen skills are coming.

Tuesday I had a mid day appointment with the physical therapist. The surgeon had sent an order for a different splint. That visit was quite something. I didn’t realize she was going to completely remove the bandage and do wound care as well as making a customized splint.  The area on my finger where the incisions were made is quite spectacular looking…..no photos as it was pretty unsettling if you aren’t used to seeing that sort of thing.  Of course, I am curious by nature so I had to inspect the surgeons fine sewing!!  My #1 complaint about the splint the surgeon put on is it did not protect the end of the finger and I had banged that end about once a day. There are stitches there where a screw was placed in my finger and it shrieks with pain if you bang it.   I banged it about 20 minutes before leaving for the therapist, so I was at a 12 on a scale of 1-10.  She offered to make a splint that would protect the end, and that made me very happy!  She did a lot of measuring and checking range of motion and swelling and assigned me home work for the next 2 days.  Thankfully, just the end joint is now immobilized, and I can bend at the knuckle.  Gone is the huge dressing and wrap, but I still have to keep it dry for another week and a half.  Apparently when I   go twice a week to see the therapist, she will remove the bandaging and clean and redress it.  I can feel that the swelling has gone down, and my new splint is much smaller.  No more banging the end of the finger on stuff which is a huge improvement!

The new splint  has a velcro closure and I can actually tighten it if needed.  My hand looks terrible with bruising down to the middle of the back of the hand, below the purple marker.  At least I can use the wet wipes and clean the orange goo off the rest of my hands and nails.  (At this point I still have to put it in a plastic bag when I shower.  This is MUCH easier though.  ) I go back in the morning for another round and hope she sees it has improved.

After the visit to the therapist, hubby and I had a nice 1 1/2 mile walk and that really got my lungs cleared out and my brain fuzz and haze cleared up.  Of course, I was invigorated by the walk and exhausted at the end.  Seems that napping is still the daily priority.

Hubby spent the day working in the garage and I hung out in the house. I really have been in a haze. We had a “snow storm” planned for the day, but it fizzled out and drizzled freezing rain for hours. When it finally stopped this evening, I was ready to get up and get moving!   After he left for the train club tonight, I put on my shoes and went out to the sewing room.  I didn’t have any plan but I was sick of hanging out in the house.

I took my cutting instructions out with me for the new From My Carolina Home mystery quilt.  Nancy B. had given me some of the pieces already cut, and I got out my basket of 2.5″ squares and pulled a bunch more out.  I reached into the scrap basket and pulled a bunch more bits of fabric out and tried my hand at the rotary cutter.  Guess what?  I CAN CUT!  I use a FISKARS loop cutter, and I was able to hold it and cut my pieces.  Because my splint is a hard molded plastic, I had no concerns about hurting my long finger, and it didn’t interfere with using the rotary cutter.  Now, I don’t think i will be doing much cutting for a while, but I was pleased with getting all the pieces cut for the throw size project!  I added to what Nancy B. had cut for me, and got the neutrals cut as well.

I am now officially “playing along” with the new Scrap Dance Minuet Mystery Quilt

It is not too late to join in.  February instructions at the above link are all cutting.  Very easy…even in my situation.  Next set of instructions comes on the 2nd Friday of March, so still plenty of time to break out the scraps.  Getting out there and just playing around a bit in my sewing room has helped me perk up.  Now I am wondering if I can do any sewing?  I have some binding made and a few placemats left to bind!

Feeling better for having done something fun!  The haze is blowing away. Now if the weather improves, maybe I can sneak out for another walk!!!  My hubby said the anesthesia haze and the pain haze are helping me to rest but honestly….I would much rather go play!  It takes me days to get that stuff out of my system. Tomorrow is a full week, and since I am not taking anything stronger than Ibuprofen, you can’t blame the drugs!  Sewing will help!!  So will more exercise!  I also have some much loved “grandma time” scheduled for tomorrow, and that has to help!  Everyday is an improvement and for that I am thankful.

Are you playing along and doing the Scrap Dance ?  How do you get out of a wintertime slump?