All Spit Shined and Polished

 And ready for 2021

I spent some time in the Studio yesterday, vacuuming, dusting, cleaning all the cob webs from the corners.  Generally tidying up and getting ready for a brand, spanking new year.

While 2020 has been a challenging year "The Sun'll come out tomorrow...." right? 
And when it does, the studio will be ready!

Before - just a couple days ago.

 

After - kinda hate to mess it up.

 

 

 

AS part of my end-of-year routine, every year about this time I am filled with fresh hope that all the UFO projects hanging about in cupboards and on shelves will get completed.  So every year about this time I sign up with the American Patchwork & Quilting UFO Challenge. Part of cleaning up the studio is taking inventory of all these projects.

While it looks like I have THREE pages....I don't, really.  Pages one & three are partial sheets. Projects are listed in order of importance and the main sheet are the birthday quilts I need to complete for 2021 (the first one due in early February, Storm at Sea for my son.  Started last January, but it is about three-quarters complete.)  Patterns have been decided and fabric has already been purchased....mostly.  And in most cases quilts already started so UFO projects really are, ever-so-slowly disappearing.  

Come along.  Sign up on American Patchwork and Quilting website and follow everyone's progress on FaceBook.  It is motivating and fun.

And with that, quilting friends, 2020 is a wrap!

From My Studio to Yours

 

How Many People Do YOU Love?

 

I love more than two people, but my visions of grandeur for the number of hand-made gifts I'd finish for Christmas 2020 did not quite live up to reality.  I did manage to complete a few:  gifts for the Needlers, embellished kitchen towels for the D-I-L and the cute, little Passiflora for a certain girly-girl in my life.

And, we Needlers finished our 3-D Fabric Stars.  All-in-all, not too bad I'd say.

 

An example of my gift-wrapping skills.

Merry Christmas to All!

A Star is Born

 The Needlers had a special, Saturday session.  

We are making the 3D, no-sew, fabric Christmas star.  You can find patterns and tutorials all over the internet right now. 
We chose to watch the tutorial on YouTube by Laura Ann Coia of SewVeryEasy.  Click HERE.

 

Keeping our social distance was tricky.
Miss Nancy waiting her turn at the cutting station.

The studio is a bit messy with a number of Christmas projects lying about.
Miss Nancy's "Devil's Claw" quilt is on the design wall.

The first part of this project took more time than the second part, specifically fusing the fabrics together.  I had some cheap fusible from a big box fabric store.... I guess you get what you pay for, one way or the other.  It was hard to work with; varying degrees of fusible-ness.  We were, all three, finally successful after much, much, much pressing.

 

Pay special attention to the cutting!  It is not intuitive!

 

After some practice I came up with this formula:

*Point down, toward you.
*The folded split side is always on the left.

*Measure from the point. 

*Cut from the folded side to split folded side.

*The raw edge is the NO CUT side.
(For some reason it feels like this is the side you should cut.)

 

I took Laura's advice and used a clip on the split folded side to hold it together
AND to remind me this is the back bone of the star arm--a NO CUT zone!

In the end, a beautiful star was born!

I have been taking Miss Wanda the 12 days of Christmas
(adapted for modern times, although she said she wouldn't mind five golden rings.)  

Today she receives a beautiful star to hang on her door.

P.S.  Scandinavian variety by Shabby Fabrics.   HERE

Christmas Cookies! Yum!

Back in the day when we could actually leave our homes and travel, I traveled A LOT for work (averaging 2 weeks in every month.)  Traveling between Thanksgiving and New Years was THE BEST because the offices I visited would have at least one baker who LOVED to share their Christmas creations!  

Aren't Christmas Cookies the best part of Christmas?

I have a few Suzie-Homemaker type friends (Susan, Robin and Cheryl to name a few) who like nothing better than spending hours in the kitchen whipping up culinary delights, but that is so not me.  I like the idea of spending the day making delicious Christmas treats, but truth-be-told I'd rather have a root canal. (Maybe not THAT extreme.)  I cook because I have to eat to stay alive and the microwave is my best friend.

 

 

 

The one exception when I enjoy working in the kitchen is with my g-sons. (I'll admit this picture is a couple years old.... He has grown so much he no longer needs the step stool! But, isn't he the cutest scrambling eggs in his jammies?)

 

 

 

 

 

 

So rather than whip up a fresh batch of cookies, I've whipped up a fresh batch of masks.  Because nothing says "I love you" Christmas of 2020 more then a nice, new MASK, right? 

This third batch of masks would be the third style I've tried.  First we had the flat, pleated method.  See April 19, 2020 for instructions and a link to a YouTube tutorial.  This mask has an opening in the back for a filter.  Truthfully, I have no idea what kind of filter they are referring to but, hey, who am I to question?  This was a good pattern back in the beginning when there weren't any masks to be found and not many more instruction videos.  AND, you couldn't trade your first born for elastic!  
I used pony tail elastics from the Dollar Tree.  I made more than 200 of this type for friends and family across the country.

The g-sons made their own...picking their own fabric.  Says a lot.

The second type is more fitted and has one long piece of elastic (now that elastic is plentiful) that loops through the mask.  This makes the mask more adjustable.  For this method see  July 28, 2020 with links to YouTube.  This was my favorite between the two methods until recently. 

 

This batch was for my daughter who needed one for every day.  The ear loop adjusters are from Amazon.

This third method is my new favorite as it has no seam down the center.  It is nice and fitted and a bit roomier in the front.   Here is the YouTube video.  But, this tutorial has the old style ear loop and I like the long-piece-of-elastic style.  So, this third batch is a combination of methods two and three. 

 

This is a good pattern when you don't want a seam down the middle of your fabric messing up your cute pattern.

None of these have the nose piece, but there are plenty of YouTube videos for making masks, nose piece included.  Lots of choices.  Just like Burger King's old slogan "Have it Your Way." 

A few sewing hacks:  To make the template for the mask pattern I used Dollar Tree plastic kitchen food prep chopping mats.  They are a bargain at $1 (plus tax) and there are two in a package.  Here is a YouTube video.

To thread the elastic through the mask I have this tool.

It came in a package of extra-long shoe laces purchased from Amazon.  I used these laces as an alternative to the pony tail elastics way back in the beginning, again when you could not find elastic. Amazon link. You probably wouldn't want to buy a bunch of long shoe laces just to get this tool, but you might be able to find something like it or a bodkin. 

Of course, there is always the old fashioned method, using a safety pin...a smidgen at a time.

Finally, to thread the elastic adjusters onto the ear loops click HERE.  I used all six strands of embroidery floss.  It was easier to pull it through the opening without hurting my hands.

Now, if there isn't enough YouTube in this post to get you through a Safer-At-Home evening, pour yourself a glass of wine and fire up the 'ol PC then check out the sewing videos by Just Get It Done Quilts.  She is fun to watch and has a lot of good ideas, including sewing hacks from the Dollar Tree.

 Spread the Love this Christmas Season.

 

FINALLY!

 It's Finally Here!  The final 31 days of a crazy year!  So, what did we learn? What did we accomplish?  

 

When I was young I'd say to my mom "I wish I was 10...".  Then, when I was 10, I'd say "I wish I was 16...".   "I wish...", "I wish....",
"I wish....".  My mom would say "Don't wish your life away." Meaning, live in the moment, enjoy the age you are, you can't come back and repeat this time.  

You're Gonna Miss This by Trace Atkins.

In  2020 those moments may not have been a ton-o-fun, but they are the only moments we have for this past year.  We joke that we aren't counting 2020 as a year because it was so UGLY.   Skip 2020, pretend it didn't even happen.  But, it was a year lived and I hope as UN-FUN as it may have been I've actually learned something in the process. (For those who are inclined....read the book of James in the Bible, chapter 1 verses 1-4."Count it ALL Joy when you encounter various trials...."  Continue reading to discover WHY.)  All our experiences teach us something.

So, let's dive into December.

I Love Lists.

It is so satisfying to check things off a list.  Sometimes I even write something on my list AFTER I've completed the task just so I can check it off!

Ahhhhhh.....a little sigh of contentment.

 

I've made my list of goals for December.

It should be a very satisfying month. 

Here's wishing you a satisfying, last month of 2020.