Leather Rooster #itsbetterinleather

The leather I used came from a jacket I found at a thrift store. I used the 'fuzzy' side of the leather instead of the smooth side. I had to sew a couple pieces together to get square corners but it wasn't a problem.

The pattern I used came from a magazine called Fur, Fin and Feathers by Georgia Feazle Vol III , 1978.  This is the pattern

And this is the colored picture they had in the magazine.

It was pretty easy to do...i got it quilted in a couple days...and painted. It is 14.5" x 20.5"

Here are a few close ups.

I woke up this morning wondering if I could cut leather with the AccuCut machine...the answer is yes...haha...the butterfly is from a red leather jacket I found at a thrift store.  I cut out a few more butterflies, so you will be seeing them in something else, too. 

The back is a piece from the stash, as well as the binding. 

The threads are:  

   For the rooster:  outline .. Glide chocolate

                              Fill... Glide Jade, Gold and Dark Red; Bottom Line, Copper

                              Butterfly .. Glide Bark

    Bobbin .. Bottom Line medium brown

This was fun...just like painting by numbers. you all should try some leather...at least once.  

I painted the lions

I took my friend, Jean Shute's, advice and painted the lions.  I like them better....Jean knows best. haha

Lions on Leather #itsbetterinleather

I finished my leather lions today. It is 17" x 29" The pattern came from an Uncle Johnny magazine, Make it with Leather, April-May, 1976. It is on a piece of goatskin. It is a pinkish brown and hard to photograph. I wanted to use the other side of the leather, which was a perfect brown color for the lions, but it wouldn't hold a chalk line. 

A few close ups

The backing is a piece from the stash...nothing shows much

Threads were Glide jade, light olive, bark and sand; So Fine med. brown. Bobbin was Bottom Line medium brown.

Now...what shall I do next.

Some fun and some work

My sister and I went to a quilt show in Springfield, IL, for longarm quilters. I saw some amazing quilts....and lots of quilters' name that I knew. And ribbons on friends' quilts. A great trip.

Then I went to the Duck for a couple days. Last week, my son tore down a part of a roof for me... over the cubby hole. And I was left with this.... It took me a whole day to take off all those shingles and get them in the trash...and then take the boards apart and get them in the garage for future use. That was a job.

The cubby hole looked pretty sad without a roof....somehow it looked worse...

So, I spent some time painting that back garage wall. At least it is cleaner looking. haha    I am considering covering that with legos. Not sure what those bright spots are...perhaps something on the lens of the camera?

And I spread out the pile of rocks that was in there.

It's not wonderful....but it looks better than it did. And I hope it is less appealing for some wino to spend time in there...without a roof...and rocks on the ground.

And I have another graffiti plan....for a bedroom wall....it involves pictures frames. 

Stay tuned.

Sweet Potatoes

Yesterday, Aaron and I....well, OK....mostly Aaron...dug up 157 sweet potatoes. some are monsters. there was a bucket full of little bitty ones that go to my sister for her squirrels.

That is a 6' table.

Here is the large side

And the smaller side

I even cut one up for the squirrels...my sister would be so proud. haha

I had already dug up 110 of them before this. And there are at least this many still out in the garden....to be dug another day. 

I'm wondering if I'll make 500 this year. I wish you all lived closer.....you could come and get some...I wouldn't even make you dig them up. hahahaha

Brown and friends

The oldest quilt tops in the to-be-quilted cabinet are now less than 3 years old. I finished piecing this one on March 9, 2014. It got a pantograph called Ruffles by Michelle Wyman. It is about 90x98".

I framed squares with selvages. 

You can't really tell that they are selvages on most of the blocks.

The border is a print from the stash...brown, black, tan and beige

The back is a fatback that was waiting for the right quilt....black, brown and tan print. Binding is the same fabric as the back.

Top thread was Glide Sienna and bobbin was So Fine beige

Now I can go play with leather for a while. 

Some roof destruction at the Duck

The last time I was at the Duck.....I found an empty quart whiskey bottle in the little cubby hole between my house and the garage. It was sitting there all pretty...on a napkin.  So, did some wino come by and decide this was a nice place to get out of the weather for the evening. Who knows. this is what it looked like before.

The junk is long gone....but it was a nice space...with a roof....out of the rain, wind, and eyes of the neighbors.

I want to dissuade any of that foolishness in the future, so my son and I took off the roof. I figured that will make the space much less desirable. So, now it looks like this. No roof....open to the elements. I have some rocks in there...I believe I will spread those out and plant some cactus in there. Should prevent any further malingering. I think I better put a coat of paint on that plywood on the garage before winter to prevent further rotting. might need a new gutter, too. hahahaha

We cut the roof in 4 sections and took it down. I will have to cut that up and get rid of it later.

Always something going on.

Thrift store leather

I made a quick trip to the Duck so my son could help me with some roof work. that only took about an hour.  So, my sister and I did a few thrift store runs. I was specifically going to see if i could find anything in leather to use for quilting.

I think I did all right.

First stop.....little store downtown

Had to spend $30 for the red jacket and skirt

2nd stop ....  a couple of pieces for $4.50 each

A cool gray jacket

And a brown vest that I love....it looks like it is pieced. That will make a cool background piece

3rd Stop.....all jackets were $4.99

I got a beige one...

And a brown one...

And this awesome coat...with a hood....and an yoke like piece in the back

And an orange shirt for $2.99

Next stop was a new shop we had never been in. it looked kind of expensive, but right inside the door was this nice yellow jacket for $4

And if that wasn't enough....we stopped one more place and I scored a purple coat for $4.  I like the white stitching in the back, although that will probably disappear in the de-construction.

So, I got lots of colors....10 pieces...for about $70. and i think i will have lots of leather fun in the next few weeks. I am tempted to just take the current quilt off the frame and get on with the leather.....but i guess i really should finish quilting it. sigh!!!!

1600 Inches; black, white and lime

This one marinated less than 3 years waiting to be quilted...from March, 2014.  I like putting the little square between the strips...more interest. 

It is 64" x 84" ... nice couch size

Back is fabrics from stash...still some of that lime green dots left. haha

Pantograph is Fuschia by Keryn Emmerson. this is the first panto I believe i have seen that takes 3 passes to complete one row.

Thread was Glide Key Lime for the top and So Fine dark green for the bottom.

Got one more planned to be quilted this month. We'll see how that goes, since i have 2 trips planned.