It’s been a crazy week. Â I’ve said before that August is one of the busiest months for me and it truly is. Â We’ve been super busy working in the garage getting things ready for Antiques in the Park in Clear Lake. Â That will be next Sunday in Clear Lake. Â We’ve had so much to clean, fix, and price. Â It’s crazy. Â I hit an auction on Saturday. Â I’ll tell you more about it on Tuesday here on the blog.
Kelli was home this week. Â She had a quilt that needed to be quilted for her sister-in-laws wedding which was on Saturday. Â She had wanted me to quilt it but my shoulder has been acting up and I opted that I’d rather to take time to teach her and make her do it. Â She did and did a fine job. Â Well being she was home I told her I needed her to help me load a charity quilt. Â I think it’s the loading of the quilts onto the frame that bothers my shoulder more than the actual quilting. Â Here’s the quilt I worked on.
The top was donated by Laura in Dallas. Â It’s a simple nine patch but the colors are my favorite!
Here it is all finished.
…and a close up of the quilting. Â I’m waiting to get another one done then this one and the other will get packaged up and headed out to a volunteer binder.
I found a sheet that made the perfect backing. Â The pinks and browns are just what it needed.
I’ve learned that loading the quilt is when there is stress on my shoulder. Â The pulling and spreading is not fun. Â The actually work of machine quilting it isn’t a problem. Â So Kelli said every time she comes home, she’ll help me load.
In other news about my shoulder. Â I gave up with wondering and went in to the doctor. Â They moved me on to get an MRI. Â That happened on Friday….no results yet.
Hubby went to the doctor last Monday in Lacrosse…just routine. Â I road along and de-papered blocks. Â I’m up to 44 now. Â I have other things I should be doing…but I do need a little me time and these blocks have been my guilty pleasure.
So much so I’ve been trying to sneak in a bit more time to do them even if it’s only 15 minutes before bed time. Â This bunch is ready to de-paper and I have a few that need to be trimmed and added to the pile too.
All in all…I did get some sewing time in this week even if it really didn’t feel like much. Â Oh-my I can’t wait until things slow down a bit again. Â I long to take a day to clean my sewing room and another few days to simply sit and sew!!
I follow Vicki Welsh at Colorways but Vicki Welsh. Vicki hand dyes fabric for a living and teaches beginning long-arming at her local dealer. (She has an Innova.) Last week on her blog, she did a series of tips for beginning long-armers. Before that, Vicki did a post on using her serger to attach the zippers to her quilts (it’s not too far down), and she sometimes staples them on. I’m not sure how your system works, but it wouldn’t hurt to check out the blog. You might get some ideas that would help your shoulder.
That’s a lovely quilt even though it is a simple design. Setting it on point makes it look very special! You quilting is perfect on it! Someone will enjoy having it!
Hope your shoulder is better soon! Let’s hope it isn’t serious. So glad to hear Karl is safely out of Houston!
I hated pinning quilts onto my leaders. I put zippers on my leaders and used grosgrain ribbon for the other zippers’ leaders. I sew the backing on with my sewing machine, using long stitches and loose tension, using up bobbin thread that contrasts so I can easily pull the thread out. I float my top and batting. When I load the backing, I roll it onto the take up rail, smoothing minimally, then onto the pay out rail, smoothing as i go. I bought three sets of zippers, so if I need to take one quilt off to get another done, the extra work is minimal. I only do my own quilts; I do not have a business.
I hope your shoulder heals quickly.
I totally understand the sewing thing if I’m wanting to sew it has to be before work no time otherwise. Hate to hear your shoulder is giving you problems.
Glad to hear that Karl got out of Houston. My son is still there and was evacuated this morning. He was lucky he could go to the baseball stadium where he works to hang. The stadium is now a shelter so he is there and available to help. He lives the second floor of an apartment building. They were evacuated due to a power outage. He does live within a mile of a river that supposed to crest at 59 feet so you never know what can happen. I am just glad he is safe since I live in Indiana. Just praying that everyone stays safe.
Congrats on your latest quilt finish. I know loading by oneself can be a chalk. If you are needing to find an excellent surgeon for your shoulder let me tell you about a great surgeon in Waterloo. Dr Richard Naylor at Covenant Hospital is a great shoulder surgeon. I worked with him for 11 years before I moved out of the state. I know you are in the processes with someone. Just wanted to help if you needed more information.