puttering around in the sewing room

 I think I'm just avoiding doing the bathroom cleaning by picking random things to work on in the sewing room.

First, I have cut the emblems from the front of a bunch of the Sasquatch's childhood tee shirts that I have held on to for roughly 30 years.  I have in mind to someday make a tee shirt quilt for him.  That's on a back burner for now...but hopefully sometime in the next 30 years.

  

Anyway,  they are taking up a lot less room like this than storing whole tee shirts.

I also have dozens of his scout patches to incorporate into the quilt as well.

The patches could be sewn to a plain square of fabric for the quilt or spaced out around the entire border...maybe sewn to denim?  I'll keep thinking about it. 

This next project went pretty quickly.  It's a repair on a small quilt that was given to me by my Aunt Velda for my firstborn son, Chopper.  It is homemade and hand quilted but I don't think she was the maker...mainly because she was busy with her own after-age-40 born  toddler and also running a beef cattle operation.  

So this little quilt has been around for about 45 years!  It has been used quite a bit so the binding was in bad shape...coming loose and splitting at the fold.

I honestly thought the whole quilt was bad and had been using it to scoot furniture around when we were moving stuff for the new flooring.  When I washed it afterwards I realized it was only the binding that was bad.

I thought it was worthy of adding a new binding but didn't want to use fabric that could be used in a nice new quilt. (I think the bible says not to attach new cloth to old, ha ha). I rummaged around and found these short strips that I had picked out of some other quilter's scraps give-away.

They were only 2" wide but that's big enough for a single fold binding. I joined the strips and sewed them on .

Done in only 3 Netflix episodes of Seinfeld.

It's a quirky little quilt. Not patchwork, just a heavyweight cotton cloth, a thin batting and a plain muslin back. An extra strip on each end to add some length. 

Hand quilted around each motif in the fabric.

The fabric is an unusual choice for a baby quilt. I'd have to say the theme is "Tattoos".

Ships, eagles, anchors, roses, and cherubs...banners with the word "mother".

But, it was skillfully stitched and made with care.  

So I did accomplish something. But I am out of excuses for not cleaning the bathroom.

Not a glamorous New Year's Eve activity for sure!

Mug Rugs

 My friend Wanda thought of a fun plan for our quilt group Christmas exchange. 

Each of us would make 4 mug rugs and bring them to our Christmas party in brown paper lunch bags. Then we would all choose 4 different bags and open up 4 surprise mug rugs.

If you haven't heard of mug rugs before, they are like a coaster or a small place mat. Just the right size for a drink and a small snack.

Here are the ones I made.   A tea pot.

A chicken.

A baby chick.

And a regular quilt block.

I quilted them by machine.

 Actually, the original plan was to have this exchange last Christmas...but our meetings were canceled because of the pandemic.

So to be truthful, I have had nearly 2 years to complete these mug rugs but I work better with an approaching deadline so I started and finished these in the past month!

The patterns all came from this book "Farm Girl Vintage".  I am planning to make the quilt shown on the cover when I get around to it.

 So, I'm ready for our party. In a few days, I'll  show you the Mug Rugs I get from the exchange!

Storm and strong winds

 Overnight storms...wind, rain, hail, then a wake-up tornado warning coming over the cell phone.

I decided to go to the basement but my husband stayed in bed, despite me telling him that the warning means a tornado has actually been reported in the area.

The cat went downstairs with me and we hung out, cold and uncomfortable, about 25 minutes until the warning was over. 

In the morning we woke up to see some large trees broken off at the trunks.

Whoa!

Two trees snapped off...both Sassafras.  This one broke just inches away from the shed but fell at such an angle that the shed wasn't touched.

This one snapped off and landed upright beside the oak tee...held standing in place by tangled branches.

Fortunately, no damage to our new-ish swing either.

A lot of limbs ripped off a cedar tree too.

A few more broken branches on near by trees.

So no real damage, just the job of getting the fallen parts cleaned up (Oh, Sasquatch?)

Later we heard the sad news that another area in Kentucky was in the path of a tornado with a lot of damage to homes and tragically...the loss of many lives.

Warm weather

December is off to a good start with some nice warm days.  High temperature around 65 degrees today. 

I did some digging and rearranging in a flower bed then sat on the back porch to sew and just enjoy the weather.

Of course Puss didn't want me to do all that relaxing alone...

Later, I planted these tulip bulbs in two flower pots that I'll move by the back door in the spring.

I see that Lonnie likes them. He has written "BEAUTIFUL" across the center of the package.

I hope they do bloom this beautifully!

Thanksgiving

 Our Thanksgiving Dinner was almost ready on time! Everything was cooked and the Sasquatch and my brother, John, helped me get it on the table. We sat down to eat just a few minutes past one.

I like to eat early so we can squeeze in a second meal before bed time.

Lonnie took a photo of us at the table. That's me on the left (eyes closed of course) then my Dad, Uncle, and younger Brother. 

The Sasquatch was next but you know how elusive they are when it comes to photos.  Lonnie not pictured since he was taking the photo. 

You can see my wrecked kitchen in the background.

Last year was the first time I cut up the turkey before bringing it to the table.  Now I won't ever do it any other way.

I sort of miss having the whole turkey in the center of the table but this way is so much easier than trying to hack chunks off the turkey at the table...with it sliding off the platter and spinning around to give everyone a view through its rear portal to all that weirdness on the inside.

I tried a different recipe for mashed potatoes that involves cream cheese (don't tell Lonnie - he somehow thinks cream cheese is fattening). It was okay but I will just go back to my regular way of doing them next time.

We also had stuffing, gravy, sweet potato casserole, creamed corn. Trader Joes cranberry orange sauce, green beans, broccoli with cheese and Pillsbury crescent rolls. 

I had made a pecan pie and a coconut pie and my Dad brought a caramel apple crumb pie.

The  next day I made a batch of turkey salad for the Sasquatch. I have found that many people haven't heard of this but it's like chicken salad. The Sasquatch likes his with chopped pickles and mayonnaise, mustard, salt and pepper.

I made another batch for Lonnie and myself but instead of pickles I added celery and apples and turmeric. Lonnie said he liked the version I made for the Sasquatch better.

Then on Saturday, I simmered the turkey legs and wing sections and put the broth and meat into the freezer to be made into soup later on.

The rest of the bones and skin was thrown out for the crows, but the black vultures showed up to help with the clean up.

I like to make a few notes after the meal each year to remind me what changes to make next time. 

For instance, I had been dividing the gravy into two aluminum gravy boats (one on each end of the table) but the Sasquatch noted that the gravy gets cold quickly in the metal...so I switched to one big bowl of gravy with a ladle - much better.

 

 My main problem is... making too large of quantities. 

I think I acquired that habit back when my sons were in high school and groceries disappeared very quickly.    

It seems to be a hard habit to break!

red maple

 Our Red Maple is hanging on to its colorful leaves for a long time this year.

I took this photo from inside the house.

And this photo outside with the sun shining on it.

Let's see...I planted this tree in 2000. First it was a bit closer to the house and I dug it up a couple of years later and moved it here. Glad I did but maybe it's too close to the driveway now But if it gets any bigger I can do a little pruning on that side.

Deer have never bothered this tree so I thought I was safe in planting 3 more small ones in the side yard.  Nope, those were chomped off by either a deer or a rabbit. 

It didn't kill them and now they're trying to develop a main stem again. I will be putting up some netting around them to discourage deer and rabbits.

fall color

 This view of the field beside our house has really changed over the last few years.

In all the time we have lived here it has been bush hogged regularly and sometimes hay rolled and collected there. 

The owners had it in some sort of conservation program and I assume one of the rules was to keep it from becoming over grown.   But that's over now.

I used to enjoy the view of the sun hitting the trees at the far end of the field. 

This photo from 2014...

Now it's pretty in a different way...with all the new growth and different colors and textures.

Especially on this day with the sun coming through under dark cloudy skies.

What will it look like in a few more years?

On a different subject...I have stepped up the pace on hand sewing this Tumbling Blocks quilt top. I have been working on it off and on for years but now I want to get 'er done.

It's a good take along project because it's sewn one block at a time then one strip at a time.

It's what I have been taking to sew on quilt group evenings. I don't have to lug my sewing machine and it makes it easier to get more talking to others done too...since I can hear better without the noise of the machine!

the answer is 33

 This is a little embarrassing but funny too.

The Sasquatch signed up for some online surveys that paid off with big discounts on certain products.

He knows I wear only "Crocs" shoes now, so he chose to do their survey then asked if I'd like to use his discount.  Well sure!

It was a heck of a deal so I picked out 3 pair (he only got one pair) and placed the order. I liked all 3 pairs when they arrived but when I put them away I noticed that I was running out of room for shoes.

I wondered how many I really did have...so got them all out to count...

So the answer is 33.

 But whoops, I forgot about a pair of boots down in the front closet plus a really old pair that I wear for yard work. Oh yeah and a pair of old flip flops.

So make that 36!

The cat and I stared at each other wide-eyed with surprise!

Actually there are some duplicates in the collection.  The ones I wear a lot get worn smooth at the heels and get relegated for only doing yard work...so I have replacements ready.

Yep, I need to lay off the shoe shopping for the next 10 or 12 years!

P.S.  Don't tell Lonnie! Shhhh!

3D Printer - impressive

 Starting with a story about my kitchen sink.  I have posted about it here before. Every couple of years it needs it's cartridge replaced and Moen sends them for free.

But this time it was something else, the aerator, that little thingy in the end of the spout that keeps the water from pouring out like an outdoor faucet.

Mine had started spraying off to the side. I unscrewed it and found some black rubber chunks inside but I also saw a crack in the plastic that was causing the problem.

I thought it would be easy to find a replacement locally...rather than waiting for Moen to mail one.

But no, I bought one at Lowes...too tall, so I looked at Ace Hardware - no, didn't have it.

The Sasquatch has been making some small items on a 3D printer so he said he'd try printing the plastic parts.  He was finished with it in just a couple of hours and brought it over.

It worked wonderfully for about a day and a half, then failed. The Sasquatch pryed it open and looked at it and found that some of the thinner plastic inside had melted, just from hot water.

The red one is the old one, the white one is the one he made.

The plastic for the printers comes in different types and grades. This particular one was a cheaper one...good to use while in the learning curve.  He said a better grade of plastic probably wouldn't have melted so easily.

Anyway, I was impressed.   

I called Moen and 8 days later I received my new free aerator, including a new metal screw on part.

He's been using the 3D printer a lot...making custom fittings and so forth for some equipment he has.

Also, several accessories for a friends HO scale train set.

Last week the Sasquatch had a surprise for me.  At first I couldn't figure out what it was.

Then he brought my laundry detergent bottle up from the basement to demonstrate.

I buy the giant size Tide with a spigot dispenser.  This gadget screws into the top opening...

After pouring the detergent from the measuring cup into the machine, you turn the cup upside down on the platform.

Any remaining detergent drains from the cup and funnels back into the bottle.

You can just leave the cup sitting there until next wash day. No build up of detergent in the bottom.

What a smart man! Although he found the pattern for this online for free. He is also learning how to use the settings and program to create patterns of his own.

Hmmm, now what else do I need?

wildlife

 No, I'm not living a wild life, I am referring to wildlife. as in the creatures that live in the wild.

I guess the dry spell we are experiencing draws animals into the yard looking for water.  Can they sense or smell the water in the pool?

Of course this hawk could see it from above.

She walked along the edge for a few minutes, trying to figure out a way to reach the water.

Finally she took off and splashed into the water and right back out again. Not sure if she was actually able to get a drink or not.

Puss was watching the action and rushed over to poolside to see if a rescue was necessary (yeah, right).

On another day I carried out a rescue....

A box turtle in the pool with no way to climb out.

I scooped her out with the net and then splashed her around in the bird bath to rinse the chlorinated water from her skin and eyes.

She wasn't too shaken up about it.  Pretty markings!

Next time, it was a deer up near the pool.  She looked at the water but didn't get too close.

It turns out she was thirsty because she went over and got a drink from the bird bath.

Then topped that off with a drink from another bird bath.

Then she thought she might as well have a snack of Phlox from the flower bed. 

That's the only flower she found appealing but the grass nearby was mighty tasty!

Earlier that day, I had noticed something that looked like a wide ribbon flapping around at the right side of the swing...moving back and forth in the breeze.

I had an idea what it was and as I got closer...yep, a snake skin.  A long one, too!

I was trying to look overhead and at the ground too, making sure the snake wasn't still around.

Can you see the skin there? Hanging between the swing and the tree?

Looks like the snake snagged the old skin on the rough wood and crawled right out of it.  That was smart - to let gravity help with the job.

Here's the other side. I took the skin down and it looked to be about 5 feet long.

That about wraps up my wildlife for now.

I'm so glad we are finally getting some rain today!