Stupid camera is stupid

I LOVE to take pictures. Before I started quilting I had really wanted to get into photography. Once upon a time I wanted to be a photojournalist and travel the world. Now? Not so much. But my love of taking and editing pictures remains. Small problems though. 1 - my camera crapped out on me and 2 - so did my photoshop.

I am lazy as a cat when it comes to uploading. I try to break out my real camera when it comes to my finishes because they are worth the extra effort. (Not that its THAT much effort, I'm just THAT lazy.) For whatever reason all my pictures kept coming out soft. I finally reset the stupid thing and it shoots much better. Did I mention I did this AFTER I had already begged and pleaded with my husband to hold these? I love the natural light outside but my neighbors already think we are weird.

With out further ado, and decent pictures, I give you my recent finishes!

This is the first quilt I have labeled. I was going to put it on before the quilting, but something shiny distracted me. I used some heat n bond and then hand sewed around the edges. Not sure if that's the way to do it, but I think it looks quite spiffy. What's that you hear? Me tooting my own horn? Ya daaaaaaaaamn right.

When do I start packing?

Our offer was accepted, we got it inspected and we're on our way with all the other mortgage paper work crap! Woop woop! After signing so many papers I was starting to spell my name wrong. Hubs dared me to put a smiley face in with it. A tiny one is on the bottom of a page about hazard insurance.

Meow what?! (Just a little Super Trooper humor)

Do I have good pictures of things I've finished? Nope. Some stupid battlefield game came out and my husband's inner 13 yr old boy played that non stop. 0_o I've become a Playstation widow.

I am also an official member of the Ft Worth Modern Quilt Guild! It was a pretty small group. I actually got up for show and tell. I can talk to people all day but when I get in front of a group? Fear strikes! I didn't go with the intent of show and tell. I had a finished quilt with me because I knew I would need to do this.

All the ladies were super nice and I didn't throw up on my shoes, so I consider it a success.

I also went to a Halloween party last weekend. I go out about once a year and party pretty hard. I don't know how people do that every weekend. I'm getting too old for that crap.

I wasn't super drunk here, I just blinked. I had to make the hat and the sign. The sign was printed out and taped to the cardboard that comes in the bottom of a bottled water case. The dowel is left over from the ghetto clothes wrack I used a few months back. The hat came together pretty quick. If anyone is interested, email me and I'll tell you how I did it. All in all, I thought it pretty darn cute. I'll wear it again on Halloween at work.

After finishing 2 projects I started 2 new ones. A whirligig and another fat quarterly one.

Here is the template I made so I could plan it out instead of hit or miss with fabrics. I some how miss calculated and need something to go around the edges. I'm not sure if I should cut more out of the fabric I'm using or try to do a border.

I had pulled a whole different set of fabrics. After reading the Art of Choosing I changed my mind and am MUCH happier with this set. Its some Darjeeling, I think a Tula Pink, Alexander Miller, a couple of Joann's prints, and I have no idea what the others are. (I don't keep track of all of that. I only remember those because it was printed on the selvage)

I bought a jelly roll of Terrain from Missouri Quilt Co deal a day. I'd never bought one and I am in LOVE with this line. Especially the purples. Honestly, I'm not diggin the jelly roll. I love that you get the whole line, but it felt like I had a lot of issues with it not being cut with the grain.

I will admit I jacked this up hard core when cutting strip length. I think because I tried to cut too many together at once. All the finished blocks are supposed to be 6.5" square. I went back and trimmed them all down to 6.25" squares. Each block with be sashed in white. Immediately after looking at this picture I switched around a few blocks. Standing back and taking a picture helps me so much. Maybe the change of perspective?

Wow, this seems really wordy. Thanks for listening? reading my rambling. Word vomit is good for the soul :)

WWP - Wine While Posting

Great googly moogly!

Might I start off with a bit of annoyance at HGTV. After watching House Hunters for years I was led to believe that looking at houses would be fun.

Nope. Not at all.

It's time consuming and frustrating and some people must have no idea their houses stink.

We have been a bit crazy. We have lived a year somewhere and then moved for the last 5 years. It sounds crazy, and it kind of is. In all fairness, there were valid reasons for each move. When looking for a rental its no big deal. Stay there a year or two and something always comes up and we move. Once we buy we are there for a good long while. Not going to lie, kind of freaking out a little. Housing commitment issues?! BUT we drew up papers to put an offer in on a house, our 3rd house to try, so hopefully we hear back soon.

I think my son is also finally getting the last of his teeth in. Or he is a cranky cannibal trying to eat his own hands. See title above.

Amidst this chaos I have finally buckled down and finished two quilts! One is Oh Franson's New Wave and the other is FITF Rectangle Squared.

There it is in all its crinkly glory! Once its not windy I'll take a good picture outside with something other than my phone. Here it is draped across my kitchen chairs to make a tunnel. It's a great size for a toddler bed. Or tunnels/caves/houses/hiding.

This is the fabric I finally went with for the binding. I was going to do a lighter gray Kona but I stumbled across this in my stash. It has all the colors and a few extras. Its wobbly as all get out on the back. I don't know what is going on that I can NOT get a straight machine binding. Well, I know part of the reason...

I took apart the feed dog/bobbin area of my machine. This is what came out. I swear it wasn't that long ago that I did that! It was so bad under the plate around the feed dogs. I think that is why I've been having so many issues with it pulling to one side. Maybe now I can free motion quilt with out all the asshattery.

Tomorrow is the first time I'll be going to a quilt guild meeting! Ft Worth Modern Quilt Guild is super new. There's been one in Dallas for a bit, but that's too far for me to drive. The Ft Worth one meets about 3 miles from my mom's house and is much easier to get to. I stumbled across a Sewing Saturday while I was on vacation. Saw a girl with the logo on her shirt so I asked her about it. I'm kind of nervous. Do I bring something?? What goes on? Does everyone bring a show and tell??

Since it is Wednesday, I will link up with the ever sweet Lee of Freshly Pieced. Show some comment love on the lovelies being made :)

WIP Wednesday actually ON a Wednesday

I actually managed to find time in the craziness of today to find time to blog! Suuhweeet!

The house I was lusting after got a bid in and accepted a day before our. I wish them a plague of pubic crabs nothing but the best. I will be optimistic and think that the universe has something better in store. There is one house we looked at today that has lots of potential. It needs a good bit of work on it, but the question would be how much and the cost efficiency of buying and fixing vs getting something in better shape. We shall see...

Ever since I saw the Rectangle Squared pattern on FITF I wanted to make it. This week I got out a FQ set and went to it! I took out most of the pinks and all the animal prints. I think they would be perfect for a baby quilt later on. For me? Not much of a Pink Lady in that sense. More like Frenchie but I didn't drop out of beauty school.

I draped this on my ironing board while I was working on the back. My son promptly crawled under and declared it his cave. Of course I had to allow it. Everything I make he says" OOOO! I like it. You make one for me??" I knew this one would be for me so I wasn't super precise about everything. Ok, maybe not precise at all. You could say this quilt top is half ass chic.

This was the first time I had ever tried spray basting. Shit works! Smells to high heaven and god knows what is stuck to the bottom of my feet, but it was so quick! I think I am sold. The main reason I tried it was because I had every intention of doing the free motion thing. I've never really done it. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

This was the front. My plans were to do loopy doos in all the gray areas. Though not perfect, I thought it looked pretty nifty.

WTF!? See those dots? Yea, that is the thread from the top. This is with the tension all the way up. I have tweaked and fiddled with all kinds of stuff on the damn machine and this keeps happening. I want to use 2 color threads! You hear me?!!Looks like I will have to send this off to the machine doctor to find out what is happening. Or I go all Office Space a la copier on it.

Might I just say that free motion is THE hardest stuff to rip out. Lesson learned: free motion quilting is like tattooing your quilts.

The lovely Laura of Needles, Pins and Baking Tins received her goodies! She was the one who got the rainbow mug rug. I was sooooo relieved she liked it.

Since this is actually on the right day, I'll be linking up with the linky ladies at Freshly Pieced. Check 'em out and show some love :)