October Monochromatic Challenge

I had such high hopes for the October monochromatic challenge and i disappointed myself. i had a pile of red and white fabrics and designed a cool quilt in EQ. 

I made this block and liked it a lot

Then i made this block and liked it a lot. i made 2 of these.....the pattern called for 2.

And then i made this block......and hated it.

I didn't think there was enough contrast in the block in the little 9 patches in the corners of the star.  so then i scrapped the whole project. i didn't have enough fabrics that were different. seems most of them had hearts.

So i just put these 4 blocks together and called it a table topper. LOL   it was going to be a queen size quilt in Plan A   LOL

But, you know what.....once i see the picture of it....i like it a lot better. go figure!    so, i guess the lesson learned is to step back and take photos and make more blocks before i decide i don't like it.

Anyway, at least it got quilted up. and since this is a very busy month for me, i met the monochromatic challenge once again.

The quilting in the red border was done with my Quiltazoid.

The only thing i could find in the stash for the back was this red stripe.

A very bright, wild stripe. but that's ok. more fabric out of the stash.

I have a customer quilt on the frame now and i am afraid it is going to take most of the month to finish it. i sure hope i get time to get my UFO challenge done for the month. i planned on a custom job for it....so we will see how that goes.

What season is this?

My hands are black....even with gloves on.

My back is tired

My shoulders are tired

WHY.?.....it's black walnut season, that's why.

I haven't done too much lately but dig under the trees.  we have 7 black walnut trees at the farm (that i have found so far). LOL   at least these are close to the house.  and i have 2 across the road at the studio. that's a LOT of black walnuts, folks.

Most of them fall nicely in the yard and on the driveway. but there are 3 trees that are over a gully. with sticker bushes.....and other unfriendly things. so it is a challenge to find those. i do have one of those long handle things to pick things up with. it helps me get in the poison oak and such. LOL

And, naturally, the nuts that are not yet down off the trees are the ones over this gully. dang    Oh, wear a hat while gathering....it really hurts if one falls on your head.  i know.

We gather them in 5 gallon buckets....i picked up 8 buckets tonight. then we throw them out in the driveway. after driving over them coming and going for a few days the hulls are smashed off and the sun dries them out a bit.

Then i get to take my milk crate and sit out there and pick them all up (again). even hubby helped this morning. he used the pick up thingy....no bending over for him. LOL     i think he is the smart one. although after a few hundred of them....the pick up thingy hurts my hands.

So, want some black walnuts?   i have them all hulled for you. the cracking is up to you. let me know.  i get 11-12 pounds of those babies in a large USPS priority box and they can be yours for $25.  (15 of that is shipping).  i probably have 10 boxes or more left. send me an email and let me know how many boxes you want. they make excellent cookies, breads, and cakes. and keep indefinitely in the freezer. although my freezer nuts never make it past 2 years....we like them. dh puts them in his ice cream.

The Duck is pretty...on the outside

The Duck is looking prettier on the outside. it would have been nice had i remembered to take a picture....but i didn't.

The yard guy that i hired to cut my grass during the summer is doing a fine job. this last weekend was the first time i was down there in about 2 months. it is so nice to go down and not have grass 12 inches high.

And i also spoke to him about cutting out those ugly shrubs along the front of the house. i just talked to him about those on Sunday.....and when i went down on Tuesday to take a load of furniture....he already had the bushes whacked down. fast....fast.  he still has to dig out the roots but it looks soooo much better. i filled a whole trash bag with the crap that was under those bushes. people!!

I really wasn't able to do much work when i was done there. on saturday i spent 2 hours and 3 hours on sunday. nothing exciting accomplished. just picking up trash and carrying it out to the garage. i did manage to get the vinyl off the back steps .... tacked on with about 100 upholstery tacks. and under that was green carpet....i think the indoor/outdoor stuff. it was glued to the steps so i couldn't get that off. but those steps will be replaced so it will disappear eventually.

I came home on Sunday and then turned around and did another day trip down there on Tuesday to take 4 pieces of furniture that i had stored in the barn here at the farm. i think dh was ready for me to get my stuff out of his barn. LOL

One piece was the barnwood hutch that i had gotten a few weeks back.

And i took 2 bookcases that i had gotten at a yard sale. this one is unfinished and heavy.

And this one is 7-8 feet tall with a curvy top. it is also heavy. i will paint it another color...not sure what yet.

But now i am home again for a while. i spent my morning picking up black walnuts....hundreds of them.....3 hours worth.  we throw them all in the driveway and drive over them until the hulls are smashed off. after i cleaned up the driveay of what was there....i picked up the last of them out of the yard and threw them in the driveway. i have a large trash can full of this years nuts...hulled and ready to dry out for next year.  and i am beginning to crack last years nuts for some good bread and cookies this season.

I have been working on my Dear Jane blocks some, too. i only have 1 more block to do and then rows A through E will be finished. i do have 4 or 5 of row F done, too.

I feel like i need a nap. my sleep is all disrupted lately. i go to bed too early....about 10....and then wake up at 2:30. i get up and sew for a couple hours then go back to bed for a few hours. somehow my internal clock is all messed up.

OK...gonna go be constructive.
Later

Local quilt show in Urbana, IL

My sis and i had a day trip and visited a quilt show in Urbana, IL at the Holiday Inn. it was put on by a local guild. i didn't count but there were probably about 75 quilts there. we got to vote for all the different categories. i had to go around and look 2 or 3 times. they were all great.

I started out taking some pics and then got wrapped up in just looking. this was a huge applique and was so colorful.

And i liked this sampler...mainly blue and yellow

And this one is really bright but my pic is kind of fuzzy. i really liked it.

This was by far my favorite. i went back to look at it several times. it has machine embroidery on it and it just gorgeous.

Here are a few closeups of the blocks

The machine embrodiery looks like lace

I voted for that one for best of show....i hope it won.

I have discovered it is the Latte Quilt and i have already gotten a book and CD to make one like it.

They had a boutique in the hall with all kinds of hand made crafts to buy and also had a bake sale in another room. i did get a few things in the bake sale room to take home to dh. in his words...."he likes goodies"...LOL

I spoke to several vendors there. one lady made awesome baskets with wooden divisions in the basket....giving you several places to carry fabric or yarn or whatever. and a button lady had some crocheted necklaces with buttons on them that i thought were charming. she said that she paid particular attention to having each side of the necklace be the same weight....so it sat squarely. pretty clever.

We hadn't been to a show in a while and it was nice to go for the day.  in my favor...i did not buy ANY fabric....i only came away with a magazine. that might be a first. LOL

Off on an adventure

I am off this morning to visit with my sister for a couple days. we are going to a quilt show in Urbana, Illinois on Saturday. might stay overnight if it is real exciting and we need more time to view the quilts and shop the vendors.

Then will stay in Centralia a day or two. i want to hook up with my yard guy and see about taking out those ugly bushes in the front of the house  at the Duck and a few tree stumps. we might check out more of the town and see what is happening.

I won't be able to do any demolition work while there.....i'm still rather recouperating from the gallbladder surgery. although it's been 3 weeks, strength is not all back yet.

I'll be back Tuesday or Wednesday. perhaps i'll have some cool pictures to show you.

When i get back i'll have a week to quilt up Abby's pocket quilt and get it out to her. Yikes!!

I've been picking up the black walnuts on our property and putting them in the driveway so we can drive over them and squish off the hulls. then i will have thousands of them to crack and freeze. black walnut bread and cookies are good! but it is a time consuming job to clean and crack them.

See you next week.

Dead bug in batting

I have heard of this happening...but never seen it...until yesterday. Yuck! major yuck factor!


I unrolled a packaged batting and found this....

It was spread over about an 18" area.

The spreadable parts i was able to scrape off and cut off. the main part i had to just cut a hole in the batting and fix the hole.

How does this happen...i wonder. where exactly do they roll these battings up? do they work outside? is no one watching the process?

Hope i never get another one.

Yuck!

This and that

Today i have for you a jumble of this and that .... works finished and observations.

I have 2 more pocket pets for Abby's quilt... a turtle and a tiger. i actually have a monkey finished, too...but i forgot and left it at the house. i decided to walk to the studio this morning .... and my bag is still in my truck from class yesterday....along with the monkey.  sigh!  alzheimers closing in fast. LOL

And i tangled my yellow egg gourd. 

Do you see the word "love" here?  i have the pic upside down. oops!

I finally finished piecing the Diamonds and Rails top. i wanted to put it aside...with just the last row to do....but i made myself finish it...after all...don't i have ENOUGH UFOs already!!  LOL  i put a plain black border on it and now it just needs quilting.

Technically, that is STILL a UFO, isn't it.  but at least the top is finished.

Today when i got to the studio i found this on my screen door.

A stick bug....these guys just fascinate me. it took a bit to figure out which end was the head. i believe it is the top. there are feeler like things at the very tip of the top. and the bottom...the tail?...is forked, too. fascinating.

These guys get huge out here. this one is over 4" long. i have seen one about 7".  hard to imagine what they eat.

And on the south side of the studio....i have this little lady staying busy outside a window. unfortunately, this is the bottom side of her...i think she is repairing her web.  the belly is yellow and black...pretty.

She is pretty large....a couple of inches. but as long as she stays outside...she can live. if she gets in...she's toast. LOL

I found this, too....it is not far from her web....i am thinking it is full of spider babies.

It is over an inch long.....shudder!!  how many hundreds of babies are in there?

Then....as if THAT wasn't enough....in the next window i see THIS....another one!

She better tell those babies to stay outside.

Now i need to get back to work. i almost have the quilt on the frame finished....just a few Quiltazoid flowers to go.

See ya!