Zucchini Sunday

I've declared today "Zucchini Sunday" and I'm determined to use up every zucchini in this house and then call it quits for the year.  If you know who I am and where I live  **PLEASE** do not bring me another zucchini!   

Zucchini Bread ....

I use applesauce in place of the vegetable oil in the recipe

Zucchini Chips .....

and a zucchini casserole is going in the oven now. 

It's been a great season and I've loved every one of these green wonders.  But, as they say, all good things must eventually come to an end. 

Good-bye zucchini. I'll be delighted to see you next summer :)

The Block That Almost Defeated Me ... or ... Why I Quit Sewing After Ten O'Clock

Whew!  Finally finished my blocks for the Sampler Quilt a Long with Amy.  I almost called it quits this week because I was busy with my summer life (see previous post with rant on why I don't like summer) and trying to fit in enough sewing to just complete these blocks.  I hate to get behind on sew a long projects because part of the reason I like to get involved is the comradery I feel with the other quilters who are working on the exact same thing.  I love that at first but then I end up feeling this self-imposed pressure when I get behind.  Crazy me.  I had all my pieces cut and sewed together this block one night while all bleary-eyed before bed.  When I got up the next morning and looked at it one piece was upside down.  That night at ten I picked the whole strip apart, flipped the upside down piece and sewed it back together.  The next morning I get up and ALL pieces are wrong.   It's like evil magic possesses me when I sew before bed. 

Actually none of these match at this point but I think you got the point without me drawing two more circles

I put it all aside for a few days but felt I couldn't be defeated with only two more blocks to go.  I picked the whole entire block apart and steamed ironed each square and then set it aside until this morning after I had three cups of coffee.  Voila!!   Here are my week six and week eight blocks and then all of them together.  What a satisfying sight :)

Notice the perfectly placed hourglasses!  

I had made two blocks of a few at the beginning so I could make mine a little longer as I'm a rectangular quilt kinda girl.  I've got a deadline project to start on quick and will get to the sashing and assembling the quilt top right after that.  I just felt that if I didn't get these squares completed I wouldn't go back and finish the final two.  Onward ....

Why can't we always be on vacation?

Back from my vacation and getting slowly back into the groove. 

My only sewing project is keeping up with the sampler quilt-a-long and here are my block from week seven.  Week six was when I was gone so I still have to work on those.  I've really learned a lot from this quilt.  I have finally mastered trimming the half square triangle and have neatened up my 1/4" seam.  But the biggest thing I've gleaned is how to chain sew my quilt blocks in a more efficient manner.  I love the way Amy gets all her pieces pinned and then sews them all at once.  Yes ... I'm sure everyone else already knew this ... but it was a revelation for me!  If only you could only have witnessed the way in which I pinned and sewed and stopped and started and clipped and clipped and clipped.  It was ridiculous and a tremendous time waster.  I'm amazed sometimes when I realize something so simple that I just.didn't.know.it before. 

Tried to mix up the background a little

This is going to be my last quilt a long for a while.  I'm anxious to see what I can do on my own now.  I've got some great ideas of what kind of quilts I'm drawn to and I'd like to really start designing and seeing what I come up with. Can I come up with anything??  I guess we'll see .....

I'll be visiting my honey in Boston this weekend and then getting my son settled in his apartment for college (gasp!).  Sewing him some curtains and doing some school shopping will be my activities for the next two weeks.  But September is coming .....

Our Favorite Walk

The assistant and I love the walk on the bank of the Erie Canal.  I sometimes take for granted that we live by this man made marvel but I never fail to notice the beauty on our walks.   The assistant even says it's lovely for a quick dip on a hot day, but I'll have to take her word on this. 

This year we started up again in early March when it was still empty.   The first day we walked I noticed a solitary white duck waaay down just floating around in the dirty puddles on the bottom.  I figured it was just a fluke and it was passing through.  It was still freezing at night and snowing many days but on and off we would walk on nice weekend days through March and April.  Every time I walked I noticed the duck all by himself.  I started calling him the solitary duck and I looked for him every time we were there.  I came to depend on seeing my little friend and I always wondered about him.  Why is he alone?  Is he a farm animal gone astray or a pet that was abandoned?  Does he like being alone? 

Two migrating geese stopped by one day this spring and he tenatively swam over to them and floated around in their company for a while.  I was so happy for him that day! 

It's the end of July now and he's still out there.  Now he has taken up with some wild brown ducks and their brood.  He looks so sleek and shiny and happy this summer.  I don't like to think of him wintering out there again ....

I'm leaving for vacation on Sunday so I'll leave you with some pictures from our favorite walk on the Erie Canal.  When I get back it will be August and my favorite time of summer will be beginning.  Ya know ... the end of summer when even though it's still hot out the nights start getting a little cooler and a little longer.  There is a slight change in the atmosphere and I keep saying, "I can smell fall in the air!"  Ahhhhh .....  pretty soon......it will be sewing weather again. 

This is my favorite picture of the solitary duck

Lots of Queen Anne's Lace out now

I'm so glad he has some friends now

Gratuitous picture of The Assistant carrying a big stick

My solitary duck in March. Doesn't he look lonely??

I've got a mule, and her name is Sal.
Fifteen miles on the Erie Canal.
She's a good old worker and a good old pal,
Fifteen miles on the Erie Canal.
We've hauled some barges in our day,
Filled with lumber, coal and hay,
And we know ev'ry inch of the way
From Albany to Buffalo.

Low bridge! Ev'rybody down!
Low bridge, 'cause we're coming to a town;
And you'll always know your neighbor,
You'll always know your pal,
If you've ever navigated on the Erie Canal.

Light Bulb Moment

I learned something MAJOR this week!  I love doing this sampler quilt a long because I'm really trying to expand my skills and neaten up my sewing.  I've made two projects with half square triangles and I have trimmed them up to the same size but my triangles were always uneven.  My pinwheels quilt came out OK just because the squares were pretty big and the uneven triangles weren't that noticeable.  But making these fussy little squares really made it obvious I wasn't trimming them evenly.  Amy was showing us how to trim but I just wasn't getting it.  I was ready to give up but decided NO, this would not defeat me.  I googled half square triangles and found this awesome video that showed someone trimming them with a square and the 45  degree line.  Wow!  I got it!!  I love learning from the Internet but sometimes I just need a person here showing me what to do.  How simple.  Now when I read Amy's instructions it all makes sense.  She explained it perfectly! 

Here are the squares from the last two weeks.  The log cabin looks huge because it came out too small so I added one more set of logs so I could trim it down later.  One challenge I'm working on is my 1/4" seam.  I got my machine all set and marked the spot where my needle should be for the perfect 1/4" and it works for a little bit but I swear the needle moves back.  The slider is in the exact same mark under my sharpie line but my seam is bigger again.  If I turned the machine off and on and move the slider down and up and reset it at the line it's 1/4" again but soon I can tell it's back to the default. Does anyone have trouble with keeping their needle in one spot?  I think I'll just learn to adjust my cuts to work with my slightly bigger seam allowance.  It really hasn't been a problem until I'm making these squares that require precise measurements.  

Sunday I'm off on a vacation with my honey for eight days.  I can't wait to get away for a while and just R.E.L.A.X.  I'll be all refreshed and ready to catch-up when I get back.

Processing process

I'm getting ready to start my next quilt and I'm super excited about it!  Months ago I found some novelty Michael Miller fabric that was just PERFECT for someone in my family.  I'd love to post a picture of it but, even though I'm pretty sure no one in my family reads this blog, I don't want to take the chance of blowing it.  My challenge was getting this fabric first and then trying to come up with a design that involved biggish blocks to show off the large prints.  Hmmmm .... I want it a little jazzier than a plain patchwork but I can't cut the fabric too small.  I finally came up with the idea of these snowball squares with some colorful borders. I find it is much easier to come up with a quilt idea and then find the perfect fabric for it than the other way around.  

As rudimentary as this drawing is it really, really helped to figure out my square sized and layout.  Designing my own quilts has been my goal since I started quilting.  Although this isn't terribly original I had to take the material pattern and colors into account.  Of course, now that I'm designing my quilts everyone in blogland is now designing their own original FABRIC!  Baby steps .... baby steps ....

I'm plugging away at the sampler quilt and this week's blocks were fun.  I love how I'm working on honing the basic skills.  This week it was all about half square triangles and strips.  Can't wait to see what we're doing next week! 

Gotta go! I'm taking the assistant down to Petco to have her portrait done.  Yes .... I'm one of THOSE people ....

Humidity kills the spirit

It's funny how my mood and my productivity are tied directly to the humidity level.  This week has been cooler and the humidity is down to normal so my mood has skyrocketed and my mind is just brimming with new project ideas.  A big change from the week before when I was wallowing around crying and contemplating getting rid of all my fabric since I was never going to sew again anyways.

I started a sampler quilt a long with Amy and am somewhat pleased with how my squares are turning out.  I have had a red and white quilt rolling around in my mind for a while.  They are just striking to me and I've been itching to make one.  Amy's sampler quilt came along at a good time too ... it's two blocks a week and I think I can handle that during the summer.  It finishes at 58 x 58 and I'd like it a little longer so I'm making two blocks of my favorite one each week so I can stretch to out a little. 

The part I'm disappointed is finding out that no matter how careful I am I am still a very imperfect quilter.  Before I started I did the tutorial on sewing a perfect 1/4" seam.  I figured out exactly where to set my needle with my new 1/4" quilting foot with the guide.  Perfect!  Well, I'm still not getting the exact size and sometimes my seams don't match.  Oh well .... this is good practice for me and it will certainly enhance my skills, even if it's a tiny enhancement.  Why wouldn't everything be perfect though?  Still puzzling to me. 

Not perfect yet ....

Perfect!!

I've got an ambitious day planned today.  Humidity stay away!  I've already got some bread rising and I've got a list of things to do:

1.  Organize my fabric and clean up my sewing area
2.  Get laundry done
3.  Make two days worth of dinners
4.  Sweep and mop the kitchen floor (it's getting crunchy again)
5.  Lose five pounds and try on that bathing suit that is still sealed in the mail order package

I'll let you know how I do!