The Toy Society Slacker

I challenge you to join the Toy Society and drop a toy somewhere in the world. It doesn't have to be a perfectly made toy, just something that will bring a smile to face.

It has been a long time since I dropped but I promise to drop one during the month of May. Matter of fact I think I have one that will work perfectly. Hmmm... Now just to hire the get away driver. He can usually be paid with a Taco Bell Volcano Box.

While looking up the last toy drop I have realized it has been well over a year. I commit to two toy drops for being such a slacker.

Distracted

I was looking for something else on the internet and became distracted (not really hard to do). I found a really cool tutorial I wanted to share with all of you. I have a stash of blue jeans still hanging around my house even after I finished the denim rug. Wouldn't this make a great picnic blanket. I wouldn't quilt it. Blue jeans become very heavy really quick.

Like I need another project to distract me from the work I need to get done before graduation.

On Target

I can't wait for the kid to get his first paycheck. He sounds like he enjoyed it. Definetely a change for him.
The horizontal sashings are sewn. But not sewn to the florals yet. So please don't think my seams were that far off. I have a few more ideas for borders on this before I am done.

Then my husband sent me this link. If that doesn't break your heart I don't know what would. No we are not inquiring about them. Adopting Kim was enough work and too fresh in my mind. Give me another year when Kim and Mason are both in college and we may think about it. These kids being a sibling group of 4 would qualify for board payments from the state until they were at least 18 years old. I would guess about $3200 a month. If you have a big heart and enough room in your home it would be a rewarding experience to adopt them. I can guarantee they have issues above and beyond what you think kids would do but in the end you would really make a difference. Enough of my public service announcement.

I think a simple window pane design for the florals. While waiting for Mason's teacher this morning I was able to get the sashings cut. It might be time for another scrap quilt. Feeling like my OCD is kicking in with everything having straight lines and perfectly square lately. I need something that is free form and scrappy looking. Hope to get a little more progress done on this tonight. 

Graduation is fast approaching. Need to start working on some details for a graduation party.

Florals

When I first got my embroidery machine I bought 12 simple floral designs for 7 cents each. Big spender I know. They were good practice to learn how my machine worked. The designs have been sitting in my craft room waiting patiently for some attention. I finally took the time to remove all the little pieces of tear away stabilizer. Not a small task, the stablizer was showing through the white fabric. Hours of tweezing tiny pieces of stabilizer off the back side. Now to decide if I make a table runner or quilt out of them. I think the pink and burgundy are good color choices to go with all of the flowers.

Quilt Top Done

Ground is too wet to do yard work today. The quilt top has been half finished for quite a while. Nice to see the top finally done. Need to figure out what I want as a backing and binding. And how I want it quilted. Back to the craft room to see if I can finish anything else today.

Leftovers

This has been sitting half done on my table for a couple of weeks. The pink fabrics are left over from the aprons I made for the craft fairs. The brown polka dot is left over from the binding of the embroidered baby quilt. Nice to use up left overs to make something useful. But how many tote bags does one person actually need?

Thread Line Up

Before I start embroidering a project I get out my old thread holder and line up all the colors in order according to the color change sheet. If a thread is used more than once I leave a blank peg on the thread holder so I know to reuse a color. Once all the colors are on the thread holder I take a final look at them to make sure they all work together. Not sure how everyone else does it but this works for me.


Watching the skies today. We had hail earlier. It will be mid afternoon before the thunderstorms are out of here. Hopefully the tomatoes don't get too much damage.

Double Trouble

No Buttercup is not the double trouble. With a face like that how could she ever get in trouble.

Got a call yesterday afternoon that one of our nieces had to have an emergency appendectomy. She had doubled over in pain at school and was rushed right into surgery. A couple hours later got a call they were taking my father in law to the same hospital doubled over in pain. 7mm kidney stone was too large to pass. Niece is at home resting. Father was moved to another hospital for surgery this afternoon. He called a little while ago and is feeling better. His biggest concern is if he can travel in a couple of weeks for Mason's graduation.

SPRING

I joined a SwapBot swap to spell out SPRING. I send my partner an item for each letter in SPRING. The embroidered towel can be Spring Flowers (S) or Potted Flowers (P). Only have to figure out 5 more letters. 

Hope my swap bot partner isn't looking at my blog. Probably not too many Kurskinsky's out there. Although I did notice that I missed trimming a thread going to the dot in the I.

If you like the embroidered design it is one of the 99 cent designs at Embroidery Library. I really don't even look elsewhere for designs. I like their style, like their price and can always find something to embroider from them.

It sure has been hard to break away from the embroidery machine lately. I have a few sewing projects stacking up that need attention. Maybe it is just the fabulous spring weather we have right now that is distracting me.

Tired Yet?

Are you tired of looking at embroidered towels yet?

Not sure which is my favorite deisgn. The colors of the watermelons are fun. Let it snow... somewhere else is pretty funny and the detail on the strawberries are amazing even if it did take forever to stitch out. Doubt that I will get sewing done today. David has yard work planned which means I need to help.

I have to rat out my sister. She bought an embriodery machine a couple days ago. Can't wait to see what she comes up with.

While the embroidery machine stitches away on large colors I try to do house work, like folding a load of laundry. Mason calls it cheating, I call it being efficient.

Good News All Around

Good news all around our house.

Kim finally got a job at a local pizza place. Not sure who is happier her or me. She really needs this step in growing up. Starts tonight.

Surgeon says Mason is healing perfectly. Should be totally healed just in time for graduation. And he slept night last night. First time in two weeks. Was sleeping 3 or 4 hours every 36 hours.

David flying home from Atlanta early today. Which means I get off work a bit early to pick him up. Weather is gorgeous and I start my weekend early.

Busy Weekend

I think I have a thing for pigs. Any size, shape or color. Like I need another pair of flannel lounge pants. It is in the 80s here all week.

A few more kitchen towels for my Mother. The rooster was a free one on a website last week. Love the swirly tail.

I did get a my robe finished finally. No boring photo sorry. Made one of my shirts, which was a disaster. Just not the right style for me, turned it into a short night gown. That should tell you how terribly wrong it was. The pattern was fine, my sewing skills were fine, just not the right style for me.

Baby Jimena

The blanket is going to new home this afternoon. Little baby girl name Jimena to be born any moment. Sad to see this one leave but I know it will be well loved. I work with her Daddy, one of the nicest guys you would ever meet. I was afraid if I kept it for grand kids Mason would make that happen way too soon.

Yard work progressing. So far I like the rubber mulch. Ask me again in a year if I still like it.

To Keep or Not to Keep

I think this is one of my favorite quilts I have made. Debating if I part with it or stash it away. Left overs from many projects. I think there were 8 different flannel fabrics, some chennille, a couple pieces of pink satin and even a few scraps of minky. And to top it off (or bottom it off) I put some pink fuzzy fabric on the back. After I quilted it I put it on the embroidery machine for a few open flower designs. The texture and size is just perfect for a baby blanket. The only question is should I keep it or set it free?

Easter Mini Quilt

A couple more towels thrown into the box for my mom. It is now sealed so nothing else will be added.

I used my scraps from my scraps to make a mini 14x14 inch quilt for my swapbot partner. It looks quite Easter-ish. I will try to get a good photo of the baby quilt that these were left over from. The mini quilt turned out cute but the bigger baby quilt turned out super adorable. The butterfly flannel is what I am making my robe out of, no progress on that yet.

Sunny Saturday

One project off my table. Flannel scraps from my lounge pants turned into a litttle 18 x 18 inch doll quilt.

More flannels scraps are getting turned into a baby quilt.

Spring is here, David planted some tomato and pepper plants in the back yard.

Good Friday

David and I made a quick trip to Arlington to eat lunch at a little place called Vinegar Jim's. Nice to get away from the kids for an afternoon. Did some work on the flower beds and took down the shutters on the first floor of the house (I hated those shutters before we bought the house). David snoozing in his recliner now. More excitement than he could handle for a day. My craft room is over flowing with projects. I see eight projects on the table and chairs. Not sure which one to work on first.

April Fools Day

I like the open embroidered lettering for Noah. I may have to use that on more quilts. It was a friend from the office first attempt at a quilt. She ran out of time so I finished it for her. I also embroidered a couple hand towels for someone at David's office to give as a wedding shower gifts last night.

Mason's homebound teacher visited again this morning. He turned in some vocabulary words to her from several subjects. After a bit of discussion it dawned on both the teacher and I that writing out vocab words were not the best use of Mason's time. So we told him not to do them anymore. He looks at us very puzzled and wants to know if we are playing an April Fools joke on him. I think he got the point when I told him he could have learned more about Hitler if he made Buttercup a Nazi uniform and taught her to march around the house. I wonder how Mason's life would be different if I had home schooled him all along.

David has squashed my Friday plans. My company takes Good Friday as a holiday and his doesn't. So he went and took a day of vacation. How dare he do that to me. Doesn't he know I had a list.