Saturday At The Market and Other Stuff

Oy!  So glad to be finally able to post here.  It took 2 hours to get these photos from my phone onto this blog post.  Never fear...... the glitchy Mac won't be making the trip to the new studio.  A new Mac is being built, as we speak, to fulfill it's quilty destiny.  If all goes to plan.... I'll start moving in fabric and books a week from now.  The only thing that might hold us up is some light fixtures are on order and I guess we can't get the final inspection until all light fixtures are in place.

So, this was my haul from the Farmer's Market this morning.  In about an hour I will start the pasta salad with heirloom tomatoes and bake a cherry clafoutis.  I saw this recipe a day or so ago and will try it.  Looks super simple.

Timing is everything.  I don't have the new fabric yet so all my time is spent getting the future studio in place.  That means basically I watch guys do sweaty stuff and  I order new stuff online.  I'm pretty good at the ordering stuff.  In the evenings I'm finishing up old projects and starting new ones.  I started this last night - the Star A Day quilt designed by Karen Styles of Somerset Patchwork.

  It's called Star A Day because you make one 3" star block a day for a year (that's correct - 3")  It takes 365 star blocks to make this 81" square beauty.  A slow stitching project that needs nothing but scraps?!?!?  Count me in!

I made my first one last night.  I don't have the background squares and triangles in yet.

I even made a few more.  A perfect quiet, peaceful project that lends itself quite well for travel

Just mark and cut a few ahead and you have lots of stitching to do on the road, on your commute, or on vacation.  We have the pattern and the accompanying templates HERE in our etsy store.

Now, it's time to check on Bill in the garage.  He's making shelves and there are a lot of power tools involved.

Laters,

Laurie

Friday Catch Up

Not a whole lot to report, but I'll scour through my photos on my phone and get you up to date.

This happened yesterday.... I finished the all blue - Austin Bluebird Sampler

I'm going to hand quilt this - in a big stitch.

We are working on new patterns (sorry - no peeks) and waiting for our new fabric.  Sigh.  I would have liked it yesterday - as one of our patterns is a bit... what should I say....."ambitious" and I need all the time I can get.

We've added some of Moda's wonderful Linen Mochi Dot fabrics in our Etsy store.  We now have Sand, Putty, and Orange.  These 30% linen and 70% cotton blends are wonderful for quilts, clothing or home dec.  They are a bit heavier than 100% cotton quilt fabric - but they still sew up beautifully.

I've had questions about the pending studio situation.  It's coming along.  It always takes longer than you think, but things like permits, and inspections keep things on a slower pace.

 As you can see, we have all the necessary documents.  The ceilings have been replaced (after all the new wiring).

 The tile in the walk-in shower and the bathroom walls are installed and grouted.

 We are waiting on more floor tile.  All the fixtures are in crates in the garage waiting for the floor to be finished.

All drywall is installed and taped and the painter will be next.  The flooring is ordered and we have to schedule installation.  After many, many ideas about the floor - we have decided on carpet.  This lower level can get much colder than the rest of the house in the winter, and our last 2 winters have swayed us toward carpet.

We chose the glass doors for the shower this morning and on our way home - decided to treat ourselves to a lovely lunch to start the weekend.

(You know I'm struggling for blog content when I have to show pictures of my lunch)

Have a great weekend.

Laters,

Laurie

Thursday Update

The remodeling work is ongoing.  The bathroom tile and the drywall is being finished today.  Hopefully there will be some pictures to share soon.

I am on Month 8 of the Austin Bluebird Sampler and I started this appliqué last night while watching Brokenwood - a New Zealand Murder Mystery series on Acorn tv.  The weather has been blissfully cool so far this summer and I stitched last night with sweatpants, sweatshirt, and socks on.

We received some lovely German scissors this week.  They got here a bit late for our American Summer sale, but that doesn't make them any less yummy. This is the larger pair with it's red leather sheath.  You can find them HERE.

These are the little bit smaller pair.  The finger holes are smaller and the tip is extra tapered for a very slim tip.  You can find them HERE. 

Are you on Instagram?  Oh my! So much great visual inspiration.  The last few weeks several quilt shops in Australia posted new fabrics.  I saw in several places an outrageous orange toile.  Oh how I wanted some.  Then Joanna from Fig Tree went to Paris and posted a photo of the same beautiful fabric.  I needed a piece of it.  I sent away to Australia for some coveted yardage.  What this eventually turns into is a mystery.  For now, just owning it is enough.

I don't suppose you have wanted something that was questionably useful - but you still had to have it.  It reminds me of the sets and costumes of one of my favorite Jane Austen adaptions - the 2009 version of Emma.

A few of you asked about the Log Cabin Swap I'm involved with.  

You can find out all the info HERE and organize your own swap.  

Laters, 

Laurie