Quilt in the Making

 

Here I am again at last. I will show you a little of Gloria's quilt I've been working on this long time.

 

I have cut so many 6 1/2 inch half square triangles! Thank you Accuquilt Studio 2!

 

 

And I kept adding them to the design wall.

 

 

And soon that design wall was full.

 

 

So I added the other design wall and kept adding half square triangles.

 

 

At last! Now to sew it all together.

 

 

All sewn together and ready to load on the quilt frame!

 

 

The quilting is started!

 

 

Many hours later the quilting is finished and I am congratulating myself that the quilting is done, when I notice that I have sewn one of the blocks in upside down. I seriously thought about just ignoring it, but I couldn't.

 

 

And once you see it, you can't UN-see it!

 

 

More time ripping out the quilting stitches and removing the offending block.

 

 

New block sewn (since I had torn the old block) pinned and hand stitched into place. Quilt was reloaded and re-quilted in the spots I had to rip out.

 

 

All quilted now and trimmed. Binding is cut, so maybe soon it will actually be finished. 

I hope I haven't bored you too much with all this "how the quilt was made" stuff, but sometimes I think we need to share the truth that these quilts don't just happen. And sometimes we make mistakes and have to fix them.

It is like life, isn't it? None of us is perfect, and we all make mistakes. I try to admit it when I do and I try to make it right. I'm so thankful that I am not in this life alone. The Lord has promised never to leave us and never to forsake us. I'm glad, because I need His help all the time.

I hope your life is good and that your mistakes are few and easily remedied!

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Moving Along

Greetings from Houston in the very hot summertime!

 

 

First of all I'd like to show you this baby quilt. It is made from the generously provided instructions of Mary Johnson. I have learned so much from her over the years, and I really appreciate how she shares with others. I left off the outer borders to give it a more modern look. It is made primarily from half square triangles which I cut with my Studio Cutter.

 

This one goes to our great niece who has a little boy due the end of this month. The green backing is a very soft flannel. These are the colors she wanted and I hear she likes it a lot!

 

 

 

Little glimpses of what is happening at Muddle Manor. Slowly but surely we are getting things repaired and all the mess cleared. It is a big job! In the meantime, there are always pretty things to see and quilts to be made. The one on the lower left is on the quilt frame now, and I should finish it soon. The wooden fence on the east side of the house has been replaced and the chickens are enjoying its shade. Their house is a long way from where we want it, but they can be closed in safely at night and they have the back yard to roam in for now.

 

I haven't shown Buddy lately, but here he is, smiling to say hello! I do love this big ole dog! He is a blessing to me.

 

I hope there are blessings aplenty where you are living! God is still on His throne, and He is still good!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

Quilts 2023

 

I do like to record the quilts I make each year. As you can see, it was not a particularly prolific year for quilt making at Casa Muddling! But. I am happy with the ones that I completed. The first five I made for the USO Lounge at the local airport. The next four were for friends and family, and the last three are minis - a Christmas panel and two from Sheryl Johnson of Temecula Quilt Company, and those three stay here!

 

Another thing staying here is this cute little pincushion I made for my handwork basket. I had been struggling with one that pins and needles did NOT want to go into. Why I put up with it so long I do not know, but finally I put together some bits and pieces left from other projects, stuffed it and we have have lived happily ever after! 

We had LOTS of rain here last night, but that's all right, we needed it. Today is a pretty day, but chilly. Mr. Muddling and I did a little shopping and errands earlier today and now we are peacefully at home, the best place in the world for us!

 

I was saddened to learn that one of my blog friends, Susie Swanson of Country Side Poet passed away two years ago. I had once again sent her a Christmas card and her husband sent me the sweetest note letting me know that she had left us.

Susie had struggled with serious health issues for several years before she left, but she always posted such positive and hopeful posts, and some really good poetry. Her memories of her childhood and simple life were so touching to me. I am glad I took the opportunity to purchase a book of her poetry from her.

I hope you are in the best place for you!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

Autumn at Last!

 

I have been absent for far too long. Frankly, I just didn't have it in me to blog. This has been the most brutal summer I can remember, or maybe I'm just getting older! At any rate it WAS a tough one. 

Thankfully it is over now and we are enjoying (SO MUCH!) cooler temperatures and a rain shower now and then. 

I've got autumnal decor out, and we have some new baby chicks! That always makes me happy. Mr. Muddling has succumbed to their charms as well. LOL! They are just so cute!

We have a lot of mustard greens in the garden both for the older chickens and the littles. They love them!

The feed store gave Mr. Muddling that Wizard of Eggs sign the last time he bought chick starter feed. They eat a LOT! 

 

In my last post, I told about a quilt I had made for the USO. Well, they are not getting it. My friend Sandy's son wondered if we might have one to give to an employee of his who was being deployed to Israel. Of course! We gave him that one and promised to pray for him. Sandy and I were both so glad to have one to send with him.

 

 

I finished this one, called Leftovers, a strip club pattern from Cozy Quilt. It was quite easy once I got my brain synced with the instructions!  Honestly, sometimes it takes a while. Plus, my quilting machine decided to misbehave resulting in my having to unstitch a large row of quilting and redo it. Always interesting, isn't it?

Anyway, I got it boxed up and Mr. Muddling took it to the post office. It is on its way to Wisconsin to a pastor there. I hope she likes it!

 

I had a surprise package recently. A blog friend send me a lot of fabric she will not be able to use. I will have to live a long time, but I'm surely going to try to use it all up!

I hope you're having a wonderful day and that things you are working on do NOT misbehave! In the midst of all our challenges, God is still and always faithful. Thank God, we can count on HIM!

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

Hello Again!

I know. I've been absent again. I'm sorry. I'll try to catch up a little. I don't know what those birds are, maybe geese? I had never seen any here before. Lots of cucumbers! And flowers everywhere! I love it!

The cucumbers are transforming into pickles. I'm using my grandmother's sweet pickle recipe, but the dill ones I'm making up as I go along. You know - muddling!

I made this sweet little table topper for Mr. Muddling's chair side table. Isn't it pretty!

Mr. Muddling and I got the old disintegrating greenhouse disassembled and out of the way and put together our new one. It is almost the same. I have the top covered with several layers in an attempt to keep the sun from destroying this one, too. They are not the most long lasting, but the price is right!

I have already got all the pretty plants into the new greenhouse. It helps so much to have a place that is not so sunny for the baby plants to get a good start.

Ruthie's garden is looking good!

And of course I have a new project in the works! This one is from the June issue of American Patchwork and Quilting. Easy and fun. Two of my favorite words!

Hope you are having a good start to your week and that the rest of it will be wonderful! There is always so much for which to be thankful. And I am!

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

Happy Days

Lest you think I always use vintage sewing machines, here is my Janome I've had for years and years. It still has a beautiful blanket stitch and I used it to sew all those string pieced circles to the black background squares.

 

And the really good news is.......my longarm is fixed!!! I am so happy. What a relief.

Ammon Floyd in West Jordan, Utah is my hero! He did troubleshooting over the phone, and took care of getting parts repaired when I sent them to him. Also the wonderful Mr. Muddling who reassembled it when the repaired parts came back home.

God is good!!!

 

You may have heard we had a little rain here last week. This is in front of our house after the rainwater had gone down quite a bit. That dry stuff on the lawn is what had washed up from the street. The really good news is we had no flood damage. Lots of people did though, and it will take time for them to recover.

 

Here in the Land of Muddle there are lots of pretty things to see, including a really tasty doughnut.

 

I hope there are only good things where you live and that you are having lots of fun!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

 

Two More Finishes

Mr. Muddling and I took SIX!!! quilts to the USO Lounge last week. This is the last of that bunch.

My friend Sandy pieced the top. I added the borders and quilted it.

 

The backing and the binding are this same brown print.

 

And here it is - all cuddly and crinkly! I think someone will surely enjoy cuddling under this one.

I made this one for our granddaughter. I've sent pictures to her and she is in a hurry to get here to get it!

 

It was a fun and easy quilt to make and I had a lot of fun doing it. The backing is this same gray print from the front and it is bound with Moda Bella Black. (Thank you Thimbleanna!) I have plans to use a lot more of that black, which is a good thing since I bought a bolt!

 

It looks pretty comfortable out on the swing on the patio!

 

The pattern is in this book. Pretty sure there will be more made from this book!

 

In a burst of organization a couple of weeks ago I cut lots of leftover fabrics into 2 inch strips with my Accuquilt Studio 2, a Christmas gift from the wonderful Mr. Muddling. I do love that man!

 

I think I may make a table topper with some of the blues.

 

We had to send off some parts of my longarm for a visit to Utah this morning. It seems that there is no one in the Houston area who services the Tin Lizzie machines. Fortunately the former owners of the quilt shop where we bought it gave us the contact information for a man who can and will work with us.  I  hope I don't go into withdrawal while it's away from home. Meanwhile, I can still make quilt tops and have more ready when it gets back!

 

How's your week going? With all its challenges and opportunities life is still good. I am thankful for mine! And thankful I was able to finish that quilt for our granddaughter before Lizzie quit on me!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

Patriotic Rail Fence and Nine Patch

This one is complete and will also go to the local airport USO Lounge. I had some leftover nine patch and rail fence blocks in a project box and those "quilt seeds" as Wanda calls them inspired me to make this one. I had no idea until I looked just now that the original I made was in 2015!

Those of you who have been with me for a while know of our daughter, Miss Ru. Or Ruthie. She had a lot of online friends, one special one Dawn, who lives in London. Dawn has become a very good friend of Mr. Muddling and me, and for Ruthie's birthday this year she sent this stone for Ruthie's Garden. Oh,  how we love it!

I really loved seeing that bee in the pure white Althea, too! 

I finished quilting this queen size quilt last night. It will live here. I'll post more about it later. I am NOT happy that the block in the lower left inside the first inside border is turned the wrong way. Not changing it.

I've made a lot of mistakes in my life. Those I can, I have fixed, but there are some that cannot be fixed. This one could, but it's just not that important to me.

Isn't it good that we don't have to rectify every mistake we've made or to continually beat ourselves up about them? I am so thankful for Romans 8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend with lots of things to make you happy!

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

Winter Is Finally Arriving

We had a cold front blow in early this morning. Temperatures have been steadily dropping all day. The weatherman says it will freeze tonight, and we've got strong winds as well. I guess we've escaped it for long enough for one year, but I cannot say I'm looking forward to waking up in the morning and seeing all the pretty things out there today looking not nearly so pretty tomorrow! But such is life. Nothing is forever!

Do you see my beautiful Buddy? I do love that dog. What a gift he has been to me.  And speaking of gifts, look what Mr. Muddling did. He laid a little extension to our patio of bricks. That will help a lot with the mud usually there from our darling chickens wreaking havoc! We have a bird feeder right outside that door and enjoy seeing the birds there every day. Of course when the chickens come out they have to "clean up" any seed left behind by the birds.

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend and lots of fun!

Hugs and kisses,

Adventures in Muddle Land

I worked on this very old quilt top, made by a friend's mother, grandmother, or maybe both. We're not sure. 

It is a big quilt. My friend Tracey had done the washing and some of the prep work on the quilts, and I found a backing and got this one quilted. I had to return the others. With knee surgery looming and lots slower movement on my part, I'm just not "there" for that kind of project right now. The mutual friend we're doing this for was unaware I had planned to quilt them, and Tracey was very understanding about my failure to complete the mission.

I had loaded a piece of men's shirting for her to try out the quilt machine when she came over, and though she was a little hesitant to play with it much, she did manage to spell her name! I thought she might enjoy a mug rug made from it, so I played with it a little and will get it in the mail to her this week.

We may have some slight freezing weather this week, but for now I'm really enjoying these beautiful hibiscus outside the office window. I also enjoy that bird feeder. We have quite a parade of them some days.

I found this little mug warmer on Amazon and ordered it. I have to say, I love it! It is so nice not to have my coffee or tea get cold before I finish it. You just plug it in and it keeps the hot drink hot!

I've been making lots of 4-patches from two inch strips. So far I have over 300 of them. It's a nice little game for me to play and I can take my time. 

Sewing has been a real blessing to me for a lot of years now. It has helped me process many things that happened that I had absolutely no control over. Somehow it helps to work on something that will behave pretty well if you do it as you should!

I hope you've had a really good weekend and that you have a wonderful week ahead. With all its many and varied challenges, life is still good, and God is till on the throne.

Hugs and kisses,