We almost lost the other dog!

For the moment, things are fixed here at our house. I should take a picture of the door, but with a couple of layers of duct tape and a piece of cardboard, that front door opens and closes with no issues. However, it must be locked to not pop open on its own, but I'm OK with that. No word from the lock company yet on a replacement part. 

And the dishwasher? Well, guess what I found in there. First -- I had to remove the lower rack and the strainer and scoop out the dirty water. Why does the dishwasher clog whenever we cook a tomato base dish? Ugh.

Cleaning the dishwasher

When this little strainer got cleaned the last time, someone very zealous pushed that lid so far down that I couldn't pop it back out. And because it was slippery, I needed pliers, but I got it open. 

The lid was jammed shut

And I found this inside. TWO pieces of that dish that DH broke several months ago. 

A piece of ceramic caught in the strainer

So then I cleaned everything out. Couldn't find anything significant regarding obstruction -- just a lot of small bits and hair! My hair. Sigh.................

However, then I reran the dishwasher and look -- NO F11. Yeah!!

The dishwasher works! 

Then it was down to Studio B to try and get something done. 

It's hard to tell in this photo, but it's in bad shape. I did get some stuff cleared away, so that was good. And yes -- there is one bag of stuff in the middle of the floor, and I need to deal with it, but no time right now. 

Studio B

My first thing was getting the long arm going, as I needed to quilt a quilt. Let's hope that this customer didn't screw up! OK -- so the customer is ME. And in all fairness, I CANNOT blame the customer for many of the issues - especially the last one I had, which was totally my fault. 

My quilt on the long arm

Lots of threads to clear off the quilt. Which, in this case, is expected since there were a ton of seams. I wish I had pressed it well before loading it, as I found some seams that could have been pressed better. But then I'm my own worst critique. When the quilt gets washed, or even now, you can't tell. I'm just super picky!

Lots of threads to remove

And I'm happy to report that I had backing and batting to spare when I got to the bottom. Yeah!!!

Backing and batting to spare

And here it is -- my version of BOHO Heart by Jen Kingwell is quilted. I'm happy I added that bit to the top and the sides! 

My Boho Heart quilt

Some people had their version custom quilted but seriously? That quilt is so busy; who would have seen any of the quilting? And let's face it, with HUNDREDS of quilt tops to quilt, I just need to get them done! I'm thrilled with an edge-to-edge. 

The other "fun" thing I did yesterday was this. I will say only what I got it up and running with little difficulty, and well -- I've got stuff to sew! 

Pattern projection with Ditto

I also had the embroidery machine fired up -- Oh yes --- it was quite the day. And I was working on something so adorable. 

The place got even worse as the day went on. Notice my sewing machine isn't even in its usual place. It's somewhere on the floor, and I immediately took over this space. In case you wonder what's going on --- I have six weeks of those Zoom classes, some new toys, and a few samples to make, and they are all happening now. In a couple of weeks, that will all be done. 

The sewing table is NO longer a sewing table

I had a lot of fiddly stuff to do by hand, and I spied this new show on CBC Gem called Best in Miniature. I love MINIATURES of any kind, and I have three that I should share with you one day. So as I sat and fiddled, I watched three episodes. 

Making minis while watching a show on miniatures

You can see the little thing that I was fiddling with. As I worked, my pieces got progressively smaller, which was perfect to be doing while watching a show about miniatures. 

The fiddly bits got done! Yeah - but only after I had multiple pairs of scissors for trimming and hemostats for turning the pieces. I hope to get the "things" completed today. But I also have a few garments to sew, and we know everything takes longer than you think it will. 

Plus --- we have a massive amount of snow to move this morning, and I'm in denial! No -- I want to just ignore it, but that won't happen. I have a Zoom call this morning, but thankfully, it's on Zoom, so no snow date required! We start the Barn Quilt Sampler this morning, and I'm excited!

We went out for dinner last night at 5:30. No snow, but when we left the restaurant at 6:30, the "blizzard" had started. 

Of course, the dogs wanted to go out. Well, Murpphy wanted out, and Lexi lay on the sofa. Murphy must have come from Finland or Sweden. She plopped herself down in front of the fireplace, which was hot. Then she asks to go outside and plops in the snow. 

Murphy enjoying the snow

And if she had stayed out there much longer, she would have been buried. 

Still lying in the snow 15 minutes later

This picture was taken yesterday when we only had a little snow. Does that Husky look happy? I think not! 

MOM - I hate it outside!

I think she's mad because Murphy doesn't want to play with her, although they did play for a bit. 

Hey MOM -- what are you looking at? 

And this is what it looks like now. A veritable winter wonderland, except if you have to shovel. I will NOT be walking the girls this morning, but they don't know yet. I am not trudging through a foot of snow, and I'll wait for the plow to pass. 

A winter wonderland - NOT! 

Well, that's it for me. I'm off to shovel. Oh, joy! 

Have a super day, and stay safe! 

Ciao!!!

That's a LOT of lint!

What a change in the weather! We went from warm temps and clear, dry roads and sidewalks to NASTY. The temperature dropped; we had freezing rain and a bit of snow. A perfect combination for nasty walking. 

I had to go out last night to drop something off and pick something up. There was no freezing rain then, but it rained the entire way, so it was very wet on the highway. Not a fun drive, but it could have been a lot worse!! The temperature was hovering at zero. 

What did I pick up? All I can say is this. As DH says -- you got a new toy to play with, and he's right, except that I can't play with it until next month as the software part won't come live until then. OK -- so here's a clue. 

A new toy

Another presentation was completed with loads of information. I try to make my presentations clear and thorough so people won't have many questions. Or perhaps they were so stunned by all the information that they had no questions. 

But a lot of hard work goes into the preparation, and once it's done, it's done. I have to deal with two brands and two different languages, so what I thought was a complete presentation ready to go was NOT. Thankfully, I checked it in plenty of time to rejig it! 

I had to move the serger and put a sewing machine in the film area. Yep -- it's like a merry-go-round down there! But the new camera is working like a charm -- I love it! 

The sewing machine got moved

Now here's what happens when you move your sewing machine. Yikes -- that's a lot of lint and crap on the table. 

What a mess where the sewing machine sat

In case you can't see it very well -- look at all that lint!!!

That's a LOT of lint

I need to take a moment today and get that table back in tip-top shape as I have some sewing to do later today, and what a mess to have to work in. All those bits need to go back into the container! 

More writing was done, as well as the prep work for the next writing assignment, so that is good.

And seriously? It doesn't matter how much we clean the floor; the minute it's clean, a certain someone has to go outside and bring the outside in! Yep -- that would be Murphy. She is unhappy unless leaves are strewn from one end of the house to the other! 

Murphy's mess

I managed to get another quilt done yesterday, and wouldn't you know it. I'm on the last row and almost done, and the bobbin runs out!! 

The bobbin runs out

But here's the quilt. I LOVE this pattern. I've forgotten the name of it now, but a very nice pattern and is beautifully pieced, so it was super fun and easy to quilt! 

Customer quilt - DONE

I got permission to post these pictures of a reader tidying up their studio. This is the before picture. So it's a bit messy - looks like lots of tubs of stuff just thrown on top of each other. HEY -- it happens to all of us! But I LOVE that cutting table and the pictures on the wall. Did you spot that poster (far right) for the CBC quilt that was made many years ago?? I have that same poster! 

The before

So this happened. WOW!!! That's quite a transformation. I love the new cabinet - it removes the visual clutter, and it looks much more inviting to cut!!! Great job!!!!

The after

Dare I ask how the rest of you are doing with the tidy-up? It's so important to have an inviting space to work, or you're not going to feel like sewing! I know my mess is driving me crazy, but I'm working on it and trying to take a few minutes here and there to get it under control. I also have a ton of sewing today, as there are three classes tomorrow and the UFO clubs on Sunday. I'm not even going there but determined NOT to lose $10 (or, in my case, $20) since I've got a commitment in both. 

On top of all that, I did accomplish quite a bit of paperwork yesterday. It's a never-ending process, and I have no idea why. It seems that the more I do, the more I have to do. Bills to pay, invoices to write, emails to send, and the follow-up for everything would drive you mad! 

Well, I'm off to get the day started, and not looking forward to the walk this morning. 

Have a super day!!

Ciao!!!

And now for something NEW!

 Yep -- the blog is late this morning! It was a very late night- sorting stuff and playing Santa! Then I couldn't sleep, so I was late getting up, and based on the weather forecast, I went for my walk as soon as I got up. Good thing I did because when I reached the turnaround point, I felt a few sprinkles, which turned into ice accretion. Do they say that? 

Anyway -- I made my KM for the morning (not for the day, but close), and there was little rain, just those ice pellets. The roads were still in pretty good shape -- not super slippery, so I could make good time. 

I also don't have much to say. It was a work day -- lots of playing around, lots of discussions about upcoming events, and that was about it! A boring day as far as content, but exciting for us, affecting what we're doing for the entire year. Let's see how booked up my schedule is, and we can go from there. 

Here are two pictures from my walk yesterday. The moon was out when I started. 

The moon

And I caught the sun as it made a brief appearance through a slit in the clouds. Then it disappeared until the afternoon when I took a quick walk (several times) around the hotel in my sweater!! 

Sunrise

There will be no moon or sun pictures tomorrow, as we have heavy cloud coverage today. 

I need to make a list (which will be huge) of all the samples and other items that need to be made over the next while. Thankfully, I have two top-of-the-line sewing and embroidery machines (Husqvarna Viking DESIGNER EPIC 2 and PFAFF creative icon 2) and a top-of-the-line serger (Husqvarna Viking AMBER Air S600) to make that happen. And I will become a serger queen! I already feel confident with the serger, which is fantastic. But I still need to get more comfortable. 

But here's the thing about the Husqvarna Viking or the PFAFF top-of-the-line serger. In addition to serging, it does a fantastic cover stitch and is super easy to convert between serging and cover stitch. I didn't even need the manual to make that happen, and I got a beautiful cover stitch! Yep --- who knew that would ever happen from someone who hated using a serger because threading it was a pain. Not anymore!!!

And if you want to see something new (well, new to me), check out this video. It's coming, and notice the logo on the products and keep in mind that SVP -- includes Singer!!! And that's all I'll say for the moment. 

On that note, it's time to get the day started!!!

Have a super day!!!

Ciao!!!!