Monday, March 9, 2020

Design Wall Monday

To see what other quilters are up to go to

On my wall is the latest Exchange block.
Mine is the large one on the bottom.

While I was working on this block I had to wind some bobbins. I found this.
I am using this cone of thread just for bobbin winding since I had run into problems with it when quilting. I kept having thread breakage and couldn't figure out why until I noticed the thread on the cone had slubs. However this is the biggest I had found. Since it is a cone it doesn't fit on the spool holder on my machine. I set it behind the machine and use my fingers to hold it up as it feeds into the thread guides. I felt this big mess so I was able to cut the thread at this point so it didn't wind onto the bobbin. I had contacted the seller (Connecting Threads) and they replaced this cone free of charge. Wasn't that nice!

I like to stand at my front door when I brush my teeth in the morning. I enjoy seeing what is going on outside. Depending on the time of year I see rabbits, hummingbirds, butterflies, lovely flowers blooming. Yesterday I saw this.
Look closely at that bright spot. That is a house three miles west of my house. It was built a few years ago. It has big windows that face east. At this time of year when the sun is just rising it reflects off those windows. The first time we noticed it we thought the house was on FIRE! Seriously. We almost called the fire department. Then we realized there was no smoke. As we watched a little longer and the sun rose higher the brightness dimmed. Thank goodness! 

But, later in the evening we noticed off to the west, but a mile north, that there was a real fire.
This is the second one in that area in the last week. The first time we heard a farmer was doing some field work. We haven't heard anything about this one yet. Hopefully, no one was hurt and damage is minimal.

I am continuing to follow along with Pat Sloan's Crazy Quilty Calendar. Yesterday her prompt was about travel. Do you travel to sewing days or retreats with friends? Or take projects to work on when traveling? She suggested duplicates and making a travel project bag/box that can quickly be grabbed knowing it is loaded with all the tools, etc. needed. I have been doing that for a few years. I hate not having all the tools I need when I am not at home. I don't like to ask others to borrow theirs, although my friends are very willing to share. I also found that it is nice to have extras to share if needed.

In my rolling bag I keep a machine, small iron, pin cushion, Sew Together bag that holds many items from scissors to machine needles, and more - all duplicates.  
The link goes to Amazon, but it can be found on other sites as well as some quilt shops.
Here's a nice tutorial that walks you through putting it together.
I am working on getting duplicates of bigger priced items - rulers, cutting mats, etc. - that will stay in this bag. Because I still have a few items that have to get packed for each Sew Day or Retreat I made an inventory list so I don't forget anything - like my lunch, snacks and beverages!
I have a small tote with compartments that I use to hold Hexies for the Grandmother's Flower Garden quilt I am working on - duplicate scissors and thimble.
I am close to getting all the blocks made for this quilt. Then I need to make the hexies and diamonds for the path.

1 comment:

A Left-Handed Quilter said...

Nice blocks! I like your "to go" bag - it's nice to have it ready when you need it without having to pack and unpack it all of the time. Interesting about your neighbor's window - I can see how you would think it was on fire - that's quite a glow - ;))