Me, Myself and Memories

Updates from March, 2014 Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts

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  Noreen 2:45 am on March 20, 2014 Permalink  

  With winter being extended I had caught up… 

  With winter being extended I had caught up on projects that I had lined up for the cold weather as well as recovery from surgery.   A trip to the walk up attic was needed to store some extra items that we decided did not need to be under foot. It was meant to be.  Just a glance at the sewing basket my Mom had given me decades ago jolted my memory.  Ah-ha! There was my busy work as I would wait to be outside in the gardens.  I am sure that project had been waiting to be re-discovered for a minimum of twenty years.

  

  Busy work to finish out the last of winter.

  The project found its way next to my favorite spot in the living room and it came with challenges.  I have no idea if I will able to find the coordinating colors to match what has been started as the stash of balls in the sewing basket is far from what will be needed.  This may need several road trips with hubby Dennis at the wheel.  What size of crochet hook had I used?  I did pick at it and I know that over the years my hands have changed with arthritis and I will need to find the correct tension of the yarn as it flows through my fingers after the correct hook is found.

  The best part is that the vibrant colors do wonders for these late winter days that can be less than sunny.  I know that finishing this will give me a lot of satisfaction.  Unfinished projects don’t play out well, especially if they are found in the future by family that has no idea what my intentions were.  Finding a home for it after it is finished will be the least of my challenges.

   
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  Noreen 2:54 am on January 2, 2014 Permalink  

  There Is No Ignoring Them 

  

  The counting is done but shaping is needed

  First off Happy New Year as we are now in 2014.  I have saved the best of 2013 and left the rest.

  We have had a lot of snow in December of 2013.  More times than not there has been snow to remove off of the driveway and patio.  Even on the days where it dribbled fine sleet, it eventually amounted to having to remove it or stand the chance of the snow hiding ice which equates to getting hurt.

  Flakes have become the normal so I could hardly ignore working with some flakes indoors.  From the days of my crochet tutor mother-in-law, Esther Schafer to my mom Lena Wendlant there have been snow flakes to crochet and then shape and starch.  Of course the finer the thread the more delicate the flake.  Number 20 is the ultimate and bed spread quality is the on the other end of the spectrum and quite coarse.  I like the middle of the road.

  

  Starch and stretching brings out the beauty.

  Once all the counting has been achieved the little pile of crumpled thread hardly seems worthwhile.  Esther used sugar water to starch and stiffen her crochet projects and Lena preferred corn starch.  I have always gone with corn starch as sugar water starch may not stay stable over time and depending on the humidity where they are stored.  No body likes finding something sticky.

  I knew if I didn’t tackle the shaping and stretching while the project was still fresh, it would be found next Christmas season as a huge disappointment.  The year of 2014 is starting off as a wonderful time to enjoy the warmth of the indoors and challenge the mind and the fingers to endure for what the year may bring.

  It has been a while since the quilting department of my basement has been visited so I am off to check out some of my patterns.  Whatever I do decide the challenge is always to use what I have in my stash.

   
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  Noreen 2:20 am on December 15, 2013 Permalink  

  Completed For Enjoyment 

  

  The Butterflies Pop With the Quilting Surrounding Them

  Over time I have posted about my Grandmother Laura’s quilt blocks featuring butterflies.   From the 1960’s to 2013 we can now honor her efforts as it is completed right down to the label on the back.  So many people had looked at the squares over time and everyone had differing opinions.  Yes, the stitching from  her treadle sewing machine may have been uneven.  Yes, there were lead pencil markings where she decided to sew the black antenna of each butterfly.  One of the blocks had a bit of nick from a way ward scissor that is now covered by an appliqued heart.   All of these suggestions plus were noted with no firm solutions added.

  When I looked at the blocks during these years all I could see was this very wonderful grandmother that maybe stood five feet tall.  Her attitude in life was one to applaud.  When I finally decided what I wanted to do to release the butterflies from the cedar chest and make Grandma proud everything after that fell into place.  Pink was indeed Grandma Laura’s favorite color. I chose a variety of colors to show case each nine patch block of the pink butterflies. Butterflies are found everywhere in nature with no limit in nature’s background.

  Old Alley Quilt Shop in Sherburn, MN is a wonderland of inspiration and assistance.  Sharon takes control of the long arm quilter and her imagination finished the king sized quilt to it’s utmost.  Sitting at the dining room table while hemming the quilt I had many hours to reminisce of the years when grade school summer vacations were spent at Grandma Laura’s elbow whether making cookies or picking just the ripest strawberries.

  The chapter on the butterflies is by no means closed.  This quilt is now ready to be enjoyed for many years to come.  Grandma Laura will not be forgotten.

   
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  Noreen 3:57 am on November 27, 2013 Permalink  

  It’s Beginning 

  

  Father Christmas Quilted Wall Hanging

  There is nothing like a trip to the walk up attic to get me thinking about doing some Christmas decorating.  I do not need snow to get in the mood.  I would have had all of the decorating done if not for the fact that Thanksgiving is late this year. How many Christmas wall hangings are needed?  If it were up to me I would clean out the stash of them and we would have to remove one to take a shower.  What really slows me down is that our home has very little wall space.  We are a home of doorways and windows.

  For right now I brought the Father Christmas wall hanging down from the attic and found a place for him. This four foot tall fellow is ten years old and was a mixture of piecing and quilting. Metallic stars and crystals adorn this hat and collar while his eyes were captured with textile paints.  Within the green background the perfect effect that represents the snow was small cotton balls that could be bought by the yard and cut individually.  Several small gold bells are hanging from his belt that was made with braided embroidery floss.  With the least amount of air movement the bells reflect an unexpected twinkle.

  For those of you that don’t dabble in fuzz, thread and stitches – you really don’t know what you are missing.  The pharmaceutical industry can’t hold a candle to the peace that passes all understanding when fabric, thread and creativity come together.

   
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  Noreen 5:41 am on November 16, 2013 Permalink  

  Needed Errands that Burn up the Highway 

  

  Megan and Nicholas with Grandpa Dennis and Grammie

  Dennis and I have had one busy week complete with supporting the petroleum companies as the Lincoln has headed east, north and south getting errands done while the weather has been accommodating.  With the completion of a quilting project it was the perfect time to get the  Model 1802 Kenmore sewing machine tuned up before the next batch of lint, fuzz and thread that would begin floating through the home.  Bird Island, MN is the home of Karen’s Quilt Shop.  In the back room Karen’s hubby Allen is a master at tuning up sewing machines.  We will be ready to wind up those bobbins and let the motor begin humming.

  That humming was put on hold as we made a trip to the Veteran’s Hospital in Minneapolis.  Did you feel the earth shake? Hubby Dennis voluntarily turned himself in for a hearing test.  Happy days!  Time will tell how this will turn out.  It was the first step of a few to address the problem.  A trip to Minneapolis is not complete without a stop to see daughter Carrie and grand kids Megan and Nicholas.  I never get tired of getting hugs.  Priceless.

  After getting a message on the phone from the Old Alley Quilt Shop Great Grandma Laura’s butterflies headed to the long arm quilter for Sharon to work her magic.  After 48 years the butterflies are going to be in their glory as a king sized quilt.  It is exciting to be able to honor all of Laura’s handiwork.  It was decided to quilt around the butterflies and allow them to be the centerpiece within each square.  I am excited to get the next phone call from Sharon.

  Dennis and I are very happy about the week’s endeavors and now we can begin pulling together ideas for the Christmas lists.  Ho-Ho-Ho!

   
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  Noreen 6:52 am on November 13, 2013 Permalink  

  A Completed Fun Project 

  

  Christmas Tree Panel

   

  When I saw this panel at the Old Alley Quilt Shop in Sherburn it just intrigued me.  To be able to cut the printed Christmas Tree panel into nine pieces and finish it as if looking through a window – I was hooked.  I don’t have the ability to do any free form quilting on my 45-year-old sewing machine.  I either have to have someone with a longarm do the quilting, do hand quilting or do the stitch in the ditch.  That last option is done by using the straight stitch on the sewing machine and sew exactly in the seam/ditch of the pieced pattern.  Any time you vary the length of one stitch it goes south and takes away from a good finished looking project.

  I began the hand quilting very slowly as I really had no plan in mind as to what design to use with the stitches.  I finally decided on working with the print and whimsically outline the printed designs.  What is a Christmas tree without a bit of bling?  I dug into my stashes and found some beads and crystals to add here and there.  No, I cannot do eight to twelve hand stitches within an inch as many talented gals can do.  My goal is to be consistent and I really am not in any competition.  The sad part is now I need to start a new project.  Having something in the quilting hoop is so handy to work at it a few minutes at a time or several times a week.  Starting anew it’s the choice of pattern, then the fabric and batting and oh yes a backing that will work.  Lots of time before the hand sewing can begin.

  I perhaps should think about rousting out a few dust bunnies that are snickering in the corners.  No longer being able to dry clothes outside means the clothes dryer is being used and that means the lint screen has lots of goodies to share. Our washer and dryer are in the main floor bathroom – like there isn’t enough lint with bath and hand towels and even bath tissue to take flight in the air.  Dennis is apt to lend a hand folding clothes but I really have to beat him to cleaning the lint filter as he pulls it out as if he were pulling out a six shooter for the last dual.  It isn’t the dust that settles from that draw, it is the cloud of lint that lets loose.   Doing the dust bunny routine will give me a chance to think through some projects and fabric choices.  There is a method to all things.

   
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  Noreen 3:16 am on September 12, 2013 Permalink  

  Things Have Come Together 

  Today is a red letter day in my book as the last of the three wedding gifts I have been working on are now completed. As I was nearing the end of the fabrication process Dennis and I did a road trip to the Old Alley Quilt Shop in Sherburn, MN.  You can’t very well give a wall hanging as a gift if you don’t include a hanger for it to be hung from.  Old Alley is 25 miles to the south of us and as we traveled it gave us a chance to check out the crops as they are beginning to show signs of the impending harvest.

  Several years ago Kevin gave me a twisted wire hanger that he had acquired when a fellow had stopped in to his shop hoping that Kevin would be able to handle and sell his wares for him.  Kevin bought one and allowed the fellow to know his print shop would not be a good fit for quilting supplies.

  I have used that hanger over and over and I knew that this light weight product would be a perfect fit for my wall hangings and also remembering Old Alley had a great supply of various sizes.

  The last of the three wall hangings got a bit of a different treatment as I found some wonderful beads and pearls that just begged to be used.  How could we have a Christmas tree featured without a gold star and a small gold cross at the top?   In a world of selling crafts, would I ever recoup my time in dollars and cents? No.  But it sure is fun to see what I can come up with to put a unique spin on items.  Once the basic items such as the top design, the batting and the backing are settled upon, all I need to do is have a cup of coffee and sit and gaze upon my shelves in the basement and wait for the ideas to pop.
  

  If the grandkids think my basement is fun to craft in they have no idea how much fun and personal satisfaction I get every time I get busy.  Dennis loves to get together with his buds every afternoon while my time is being spent stitching away, and just like today, sporting a band aid on a finger where the needle dared to puncture the skin.  Sure can’t have tell tale spots on a finished projected.  Sharing the finished projects are sometimes a tug on the heart strings, but I am truly sharing what brings me so much enjoyment.

   
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  Noreen 4:50 am on September 10, 2013 Permalink  

  Can’t Have One Without the Other 

  

  My Button Tree

  As I mentioned yesterday I was working on wedding gifts that will find their homes in good fashion later this fall. I do now have two of them completed.

  What I want to share is one of my resources when it comes to putting the finishing touches on certain projects. Wall hangings beg for a bit of extra and where else would I go but to my button tree.

  The button tree found it’s way to my home during this last late winter.  I was astounded. I was speechless. I was thrilled just like a child that found treats under the Christmas tree.  Who knew button trees were in season?  As a child might sit under the lights of the Christmas tree in awe and wonder, I sit and twirl the button tree and I feel no need to suppress the gasps of sheer delight when one unique button after another is discovered.

  The final results of my quilted wall hanging would be lacking if I could not pick and pull from the button tree.

  Thanks be for those that know this special resource will not go unused.

  

   
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  Noreen 4:46 am on September 9, 2013 Permalink  

  We are invited to three late year wedding… 

  We are invited to three, late-year weddings within Dennis’ family.  All three have already set up their homes so it’s kind of a tough call as to what they need.

  I looked into the sites where they are registered and it’s all a bit more than Dennis and I bargain for in money.  We have already attended the bridal showers so my best bet was to get busy in my sewing and craft area of the basement.

  We will have for them each a Christmas quilted project for their homes for their first Christmas as Mr. and Mrs.

   
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  Noreen 2:07 am on August 27, 2013 Permalink  

  Closer to Closure 

  Back in March of 2013 I posted in the “sewing projects” portion of my blog this entry:

  

  The original work of Grandma Laura

  

  My Grandmother: Laura Wendlandt

  “Here I am working with my Grandmother Laura Wendlandt’s (my father’s mother) handiwork from the mid 1960’s. This work of butterflies was done on grandma’s treadle sewing machine. The stitches are so small and tight. In today’s world and with today’s sewing machines when we are finished with a seam we do a back stitch to secure the tread from unraveling. In the blocks of pink butterflies the black thread is hand knotted on the back side to prevent them from becoming undone. All of the pink fabrics have been turned under so no raw material can show. I cannot imagine the hours her arthritic fingers spent securing the fabric and then sewing around each pattern. I have not quite decided how to work with it, but I do know that all of her handiwork will not be in vain. Sometime in the future there will be an update of a portion of these blocks. Just don’t hold your breath.”

  

  Colors Were Chosen

  Now as the fall of 2013 is right here at my doorstep I can let you know the breath no longer needs to be held and mostly it was my own. I left the butterflies lie on my work table and every day since March determined that they would not go back into the cedar chest. When I went downstairs they would beckon me as if to ask me to please make them useful. I thought about every color I could think of and decided on nothing. What to do with so much pink? Not knowing where the finished quilt would end up I wanted to keep as many options open as possible. I felt the butterflies should be surrounded by as much color as they would be if they were flying free. The first task was to totally cut all of Grandma’s blocks apart. Initially I thought it was a total of 82 but as I cut and stacked, lo and behold I had 99. I did have to cut them apart as the stitches were too tiny, and too many for my arthritic fingers to undo all that had been sewn.

  

  Colors to Surround the Butterflies

  I did have one night when sleep would not come as I ruminated. I wanted to lay this 50 plus year project to bed, making sure to give Grandma Laura’s work the accolades it deserved. For several days I pulled fabric out of my stashes and laid them next to the blocks to see what tripped my trigger. Putting down four different prints and picking up three of them as it just didn’t seem to be the right fit. It was harder than I had ever envisioned. Once the work table was full of chosen selected fabric I promised myself “no more second guesses.” From that point on it was cutting the fabric and setting nine blocks aside to make a larger block from the nine blocks.

  

  The Prepared Quilt Top

  August 23rd, 2013: It was time for a photo shoot on the north wall of the garage. There was just no way of getting around it. I needed proof via a photo that we were gaining on Grandma Laura’s butterflies. I have an appointment at the Old Alley Quilt Shop in Sherburn, Minnesota, to have the top joined to batting and backing and quilted with Sharon’s long arm sewing machine. Hand stitching/quilting a king sized project is just not in my capabilities. The sad news is that Sharon is booked up until December. That will work as I have waited all these years to put some closure on this project, so a few more months can’t hurt. I just can’t express how happy and relieved I feel that Grandma’s Butterflies have been released from storage and will fly for many years giving someone comfort as they snuggle under them. The king sized quilt used 81 of the 99 blocks. The remaining 18 blocks have been used in two smaller wall hangings with which to surprise someone when they least expect it to have a reminder of this grand lady.

  As I had posted on August 25th, I desperately needed to give the sewing room a clean up. Thread, scraps, lint and a couple of forgotten empty coffee cups needed to have some TLC. It looks so nice and clean down there I need to just step back and enjoy the view before the next project, aka: mayhem, takes over.