Show Time!

The end of June I entered my quilt "Easy Street" in the Machine Quilting Today show in Oconomowac, WI.  I received a letter of acceptance on the Fourth of July.

Really, after getting the email announcements from Machine Quilting Today, I just didn't think much about going this year.  I just need to stay home and practice, practice and practice.   There was one email that caught my attention about entering quilts and the limited space.  SO I thought what the heck, just give it a shot and enter.  Boy, what a surprise I got!  My quilt was accepted.

OK, so now there's another issue with all this.  My quilt was entered in the Marshall Putnam County Fair in Henry, IL.  It would not be released for pick up until 5pm, July 14th.  The quilt had to arrive in Waterford, WI the next day for the judging process.  Arggggh!  So I drove it up to Waterford, WI first thing Monday morning.    I met Patricia the manager at Quilter's Rule and her lovely collies welcomed my arrival.

Dropping off  my Easy Street quilt was just part of my journey.  You will have to tune back in for the rest of the story.  Keeping you hanging on by a thread....

Yours in quilting,
Terry

New Bakery

Flour House Bakery will be opening at the north end of Princeton next to Radio Shack.  Visit them on Facebook to get a "taste" of what is to come!  :)'

Another quality store on our unique Princeton's Main St.

Yes, I have a sweet tooth.

Yours in quilting,
Terry

Fabric Sale Continued

Today I will be busy with the Fabric Sale.
Today's hours are 8am to 12 noon.

We have panels, yardage for backings, fat quarters, and other various sizes of fabric cuts.  There are books, patterns, kits, rulers, old quilt blocks, limited feed sack fabric, and a hand quilting frame.  There is too much mention but hope this wets your appetite to come shop.

Today we will need to be finished as close to noon as possible.  The guild is auditing the books at 1pm and as the outgoing Co-Coordinator, I need to be present. 

Have a wonderful weekend.  Sounds like the weather will be cooler and enjoyable.

Yours in quilting,
Terry

Blackberry Pie Bars

This morning I got up early to get a jump on things.  Trying to clean and bake. Hahaha!
Fluffing flour and dusting furniture probably aren't a good mix.

Please, if you are coming to the fabric sale, forgive me as I would rather quilt than clean. :)

My mini food processor making the crust.

TaDah! we have crumbly crust mixture.

 

Blackberries folded into egg, sour cream, sugar, and flour filling.

 

Oven Ready!  45-55 minutes at 350.......

 

This will be our energy bars today during the sale and dessert for dinner tonight.

I think we will order out pizza after the sale and prop up our feet to relax.

Here is the finished product.  Might even make Julia Childs proud.

Have a great day, visit my fabric sale, and enjoy this beautiful weather we are having.

Yours in quilting,
Terry

Fabric Sale Update

The sale is set up.  Yikes, there are tubs and tubs of stuff.  Irons, totes, rulers, kits, kits, grab bags, scissors, quilt fabric, African fabric, oriental style fabric, doilies, towels, batting, patterns, books...etc.
Please come check it out.  Its hard to take pictures to show it all.

Yours in quilting,
Terry

Fabric SALE

Today I will be busy with the Fabric Sale.
Today's hours are 3pm - 6pm.

We have panels, yardage for backings, fat quarters, and other various sizes of fabric cuts.  There are books, patterns, kits, rulers, old quilt blocks, limited feed sack fabric, and a hand quilting frame.  There is too much mention but hope this wets your appetite to come shop.

Yours in quilting,
Terry

In the Heat of the Moment

Last Friday morning, I took off and headed to a local auction.  Since it was Friday morning at 10 am I didn't expect to see too many people out.  I was wrong.  There was a nice size crowd and only 95 degrees in the shade.  Their pocket books were not melting as people were bidding fair prices.  It was one of the nicer auctions I had been to lately.  The furniture was clean and in good shape. 

In the heat, I was starting to get quite warm but had enjoyed visiting with friends I had not seen in a while.  Working in my basement studio, that is what I miss the most is socialization.   So taking a break and going to the auction was fun.  I didn't win any bids until it came to this sewing machine.  In the heat of the moment I bid on it and won it for $2.50.  Was this a good or bad thing, was yet to been seen.  I paid my bill and put the lid back on the machine and was shocked when I went to pick it up.  It must weigh 40 lbs.  The owner asked if I would like help to the car, but being tough I stated I could handle it.  Hahaha!  I only made it to the end of the driveway and the handle was cutting into my hand.  So I set it down at the edge of the driveway, walked to the car and drove up to load it.

Does anyone know anything about this cutie?  Haines....Rod and I plugged it in.  It runs.  I tried to wind a bobbin, which works.  The motor smoked a little, so it needs a good cleaning and oiling.  The guild's sewing machine cleaning day is coming up Sept. 13th, so I will have it cleaned then.

Also, I couldn't figure out how to thread it.  This will be a work in progress.  I think it will be fun to have my own vintage sewing machine to sew along with Bonnie Hunter and her quilt cam sessions.  This also means I will have to name the machine?  Any ideas?

Here is a view of the side plate.  She's a beauty with a little cleaning.  The decals on the bed of  the machine are in good condition, also.

A Toast:  Here's to keeping each other in stitches!

Yours in quilting,
Terry

Chuck Roast for Dinner

I am married to a farmer-at-heart.  He likes his meat and potatoes.  This morning Rod called and stated it would be a 12 hour day for him.  My plan for dinner is a chuck roast with carrots and mashed potatoes.  There is a method to my planning.  This meal takes a little prep time and it cooks while I quilt.  When the hubbie gets home, I take the roast out and make the gravy.  I have a hot meal on the table as soon as hubbie is done getting cleaned up. 

My favorite marinade for cooking a roast is as follows:

2 Tbls. Soy Sauce
1 Tbl. Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 tsp. garlic salt or powder (I use powder as there is enough salt already)
1 tsp. Lawry's Seasoning Salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 cups water

I add all the listed ingredients to the water, stir and pour over roast.  I cut up a 2lb bag of carrots and put in with the roast in grandma's granite ware roaster and cook in the oven.  Make sure to check occasionally and not let the roast cook dry.  You may also add potatoes, but my roaster isn't big enough.  When done, remove the roast and let it rest before carving.  I use the roast juice to make wonderful gravy.  If there are leftovers, make beef and noodles or vegetable beef soup.

Bon Appetite!

Yours in quilting,
Terry

Thank You to My Help and Here Comes the Fabric Sale!

Over the last week, Kathy Olson and I have spent three days sorting, marking, and measuring tubs of  fabric.  We sorted through numerous notions, i.e. machine needles, hand needles, ribbon, pens, pencils, rulers, etc.  So a big shout of THANK YOU, Kathy!!  You are a trooper. :)  I couldn't have made it through without your hands, wisdom and hard work. 

I am happy to say we are ready for a big sale on Thurs., July 25th from 3-6pm and Friday, July 26th from 8am-12 noon. If I have anything left I will be taking it to the August 1st Covered Bridge Quilter's Guild meeting. 

If you ever have a chance to help in a situation like this beware there are a few pit falls.  This sale is due to a member of our guild, Julia Carpenter, who passed away a few years ago.  I offered to help her husband clean out her sewing room when he was ready.   He contacted me the first of May and wanted to know if I was still interested.  What I did not realize was how this would affect me.  After the first load of tubs was delivered and I sat alone sorting through the items, I was overcome with grief and sadness.  I did not realize the emotions that I would feel.  This has not been an easy task and without having Kathy pitch-in to share this emotional load, I am not sure I would be done yet preparing for the sale.

My living room has been crowded since the first of May when the tubs of goodies started to arrive.  So here we are at the end of July and we are ready to roll.  Ads have been placed in the local paper, on two radio stations, an email blast to guild members and my personal email list. Just have to pick up change at the bank and complete the final layout of sale goods Thursday morning.  Wish us luck and come shop!

Yours in quilting,
Terry

 

Back in the Studio Again

Yes, its been a long time since I posted.  I hope this means that I have my priorities straight. :)
Family and friends come first, then quilting and blogging.

Tomorrow's post will be about the upcoming Fabric Sale.  It is part of what has been keeping me busy.  Getting ready for a sale is WORK.  It reminds me why I usually just donate my used items to Good Will, The Closet or Lily Pads, resale shops in our area.  Its easy to itemize it and haul the boxes to one of the mentioned locations and take a small tax deductions.  I like knowing that these resale shops work with people who need a hand-up in a difficult situations.  Since I worked in vocational rehabilitation for 34 years, I understand the important part these organizations play in our communities. 

My quilting studio is the basement.  So first I started the laundry. Then fired up the computer to get back to blogging. 

Can't show you a picture of my studio as it is a mess.  But I can show you one of my finishes for the month of July.

Here are my two blocks for July, Country Threads Block of the Month. I am mostly using Thimbleberries fabrics for this scrap quilt.  I have a whole draw of these fabrics that need to gone as I am tired of them.  I supplement with other fabrics to finish the blocks.  I have already bought the backing fabric for this quilt at Quilter's Garden. 



Have a great week and stay in touch.  Looking for follower's and comments.  Leave one for me today!
Yours in quilting,
Terry