Up to my neck in strings

I love scrappy quilts and one of my favorites is string quilts.  Why?  Because it's mindless sewing for the soul.  String quilts can be totally scrappy, as in everything goes, or they can have a single stripe of the same fabric, or they can be controlled by color.  That is the case with this one of mine.  It is done with green and blue strings and a center strip in gold.

It reminds me of a cool pond with the sun shining through.  This quilt is being made for the latest challenge with HeartStrings Quilt Project.  For more info on their group go here.

Snow-Kissed Star quilt

When the recent McCall's Quilting magazine came in the mail I decided to make the quilt pictured on the cover, and so got to work.  It went together fairly quick, using mostly jelly roll strips and some yardage. 

Snow-Kissed Star

This shows a close-up of the quilting, a pantograph called Dragon's Breath, okay not the prettiest name, but it is a pretty design.

Getting off the fast track

When I took on a part time job in January, in addition to my longarm quilting business, I thought that I would have no problem managing both.  Just wanting a little extra money to attack some bills and have some treats now and then...then the hours got to be more and more...and I got stressed and stressed.  My longarm business was getting harder and harder to manage, especially this time of year when people want quilts finished for Christmas.  The worst part was that it left me no time at all for my own quilting, which if you are a quilter you know can be very therapeutic.  So this past Saturday was my last day.  I still find myself all revved up in the morning thinking that I have to rush as usual to fit everything in my day, and then I realize that I only need to focus on the longarm quilting.  It is wonderful.

Happy Easter!!

Over a month ago since I posted last, that is shameful.  But the truth is I am unbelievably busy these days and will be for about another 3 weeks.  I've been busy working my part time job and busy quilting full time which leaves little time for much else.  Hubby still wants an occasional dinnner on the table, then there's the laundry, grocery shopping, vet appointments and pet chores, a quick cleaning here and there, well you all know the drill.  Needless to day my own fun quilting has been a thing of the past. 

I have been dreaming and yearning as to what project I could do when all of my other committments have been fulfilled.  Hummm there are so many I want to do.  But I am going to think about it, and maybe it will help speed up the rest of my obligations until I am caught up for a bit.

With a trip to Alaska looming in the horizon I am trying to finish up a multitude of have to's.  Why am I going to Alaska?  because my son and his wife are going to have a baby, which will be my first grandchild, and it's a boy.  Do I have his quilt finished yet?  No, the fabric is still sitting in a bag just like it came from the store, last november...yes last november.  Shameful, just shameful.  This is not one of those have to's it is one for pleasure but I feel like I must get all of the other customer quilts finished before I can treat myself to get going on the baby quilt.

Desk purchased for studio

I did find a desk at Goodwill, but not the one I talked about before.  It is another desk that I found at a Goodwill store in another city.  It's white which is great because it matches the white laminated cubbies I already have.  Though I am anxious to get going on re-organizing my desk area I am going to have to put it off.  I have a whopper of a quilt I'm currently working on for a customer and it is taking up all of my time.  But it's nice to know that I have my little desk ready when I'm ready...I don't have to paint this one...yeah!

Some changes in the studio?

About 14 months ago I had a professional organizer help me with my studio and personal sewing room, 2 rooms that badly needed an overhaul.  The sewing room is not seen by my customers and I don't worry about it as much, and truthfully I spend way more time in the studio where my longarm machine is.  At the time we reorganized, I got rid of a mammoth oversized desk and went for a more streamlined look.  Lots of cubbies, but what turned out to be over time, not much surface space for my laptop and writing space.  I spent just under $200 on all the "units", but I want a real desk back.  I found one at our local Goodwill that I really like.  It's ugly, from the 60"s with tapered legs, but structurally sound.  It has 5 drawers and will fit in my space with room to spare.  I was going to paint it anyway, so surface marks didn't matter.  The cost?  $25.99, not too bad.  So I'm brainstorming in my head, doing a lot of thnking and wondering if this desk I'm considering will really meet my needs.  It's not so much the cost, but the time it will take to get it painted when I'm already pressed for time these days...and yet my current arrangement is beginning to get on my nerves as well.  Decisions, Decisions...I do have a couple more places I want to look but I keep picturing the desk in my studio...

Clipping Coupons? Menu Service?

When the kids were growing up I could never kee up with the coupons from Sunday's paper, or using the coupons for that matter, it always seemed that it was more bother than it was worth.  Our local Sunday paper leaves much to be desired and besides, I"d rather be quilting than clipping coupons.

But several years ago I became a fan of e-mealz a subscription menu service catering to just two people or an entire family.  It features not only different types of dietary considerations, but also what store you do your food shopping at.  With just my hubby and I,  we chose the meals for two, and this year I decided to go with the New Points System (Weight Watchers).  Although we have a Publix where I like to purchase meats, the general bulk of my shopping is from WalMart, and with e-mealz you have that option.  The menus are planned around the local grocery flyers so that you can take advantage of the specials.  Oh and did I mention that the grocery shopping list is already provided for you, just print it off and take it to the store....!!

It was through the e-mealz site that I discovered The Coupon Clippers a service that does the coupon clipping for you, charges a very nominal handling fee and mails your coupons out to you for the cost of a regular postage stamp.  At this site you can browse through all kinds of coupons that you might not have come across in your Sunday paper supplement.  I spend about $4.50 every 10 days or so with The Coupon Clippers, and from that collection of coupons I usually save between $25 -$50 on my grocery bill. 

What's not to love?