Saturday, October 9, 2021

It feels like I’m having a lazy day but I’ve actually accomplished a lot – it must be because I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve been doing.

I was out early to get groceries and home before the wind and rain hit. I had a bit of a problem at the grocery store but it was “user-error” and I figured it out before embarrassing myself too much. A few months ago I stopped to get gas; when I prepaid at the pump the number pad wouldn’t accept my pin number, although I was certain I had entered it correctly. When I went to the bank to sort it out they told me that others had had problems at that particular gas station too. I changed my pin and I have been using it ever since with no problem.

When I went to pay for my groceries I put my card into the machine, entered my pin but it wasn’t accepted. I tried again but still no luck; I got a warning that I only had one more chance to get it right. The clerk suggested we cancel the transaction; she would suspend the order and I could take a minute to remember what my number was. I knew what my number was supposed to be but was afraid to try again and be locked out. I decided to pay for the groceries with my debit card and that’s when I realized what I had done wrong. I used my credit card pin with my debit card – and that isn’t ever going to work!

When the groceries were put away I decided that I’d start cutting fabric. My thought was that cutting a bit every day would be easier on my wrists and, eventually, my cutting table would be cleared again. I have a 3-Yard quilt packaged up and ready to go.

I wanted to get at some quilting today but decided my quilting machine should be cleaned and oiled before I started. And while I had everything out I thought I should do my piecing machine as well. Had you asked me I’d have said my quilting machine had seen the most use; that may be true but it was the piecing machine that needed cleaning the most. I was ready to vacuum the floors but since Pat is online with this workshop I didn’t want to be making too much noise.

By the time he took a break and I was able to get the vacuuming finished I had run out of steam. I poured myself a cup of coffee and did some reading. I’ve since come upstairs and I’m working on my Peppermint Purple project. I’ll continue with that until it is done or until it is time for me to get supper ready.

Pat’s workshop goes on for most of the evening so I might just find the energy to get started on my quilting.

Friday, October 8, 2021

The meeting last night went well; it was so nice to see everyone. We were all masked but I wasn’t happy with the distancing. I was at the membership table so only near to one person and we were at opposite ends of the table. I understand that someone else is taking over the 50-50 next month and the membership rush is pretty much done; at the next meeting I’ll be certain to spread out from everyone else. The big news, although I already knew it, was the move. Several of the ladies had already sorted out cupboards into what we were taking and what we had to get rid of. We were asked to see if there was anything on the “free” table that we wanted and that there were bundles of donated fabric for Community Quilts that we could take. I had donated our Tassimo coffee maker to the Guild when we stopped using it and I said I would take it back.

I came home without the coffee pot but with a bundle of fabrics – like I need more to do. Our first sewing weekend together will be for Community Quilts so I’ll get some cutting done and have something to work on. I have five CQ ready for sandwiching so I’ll take them along and have someone do that for me.

This morning, when I was making our coffee, I realized I had come home without the Tassimo. I contacted a couple of people who I thought might have keys and met Kathleen at the Church late in the morning. I brought the coffee maker home, along with two more fabric bundles. I am definitely crazy.

By the time I finished visiting with Kathleen, dropped a bag at the thrift shop and did a bottle return the morning was pretty much gone. And my clean cutting table from yesterday was again covered in fabric. I managed to sort out the bundles so they will work with my 3-Yard quilt patterns – for one of them I added some of my own fabrics.

It was such a nice day that I wanted to get outside to sandwich the two quilts I have ready. I was low on basting spray but I managed to get one of them sandwiched before running out; I pinned it a little more than I usually would but I’ll work on it right away so I’m pretty sure it will hold together.

Pat is involved in an online workshop tomorrow and Sunday; the instructors for the workshop are putting on a concert tonight so we’ll be watching.

Thursday, October 7, 2021

I continued with my cleaning/organizing this morning – the big job was clearing off my cutting table. In the past I have stored scraps according to their width but recently I switched to storing them by colour. Every now and again, when I’m looking for something in particular, one of the bins sorted by width gets dumped on my cutting table. That leaves quite a mess to sort out and get organized into the right bin sorted by colour. That is mostly what I had to do today.

I thought of a couple of other places my mesh bag for the laundry might have been stashed but I came up empty. When I was moving my Christmas fabric bin from the bottom of the stack to the top I had to move a few items that were in front of the dresser I have up here. That prompted me to look in the drawers of the dresser and in the third drawer I pulled open there it was. Now that I’ve found it I think it was a good spot to store it in – I just have to remember where it is the next time I need it.

I have two meetings that will take up the rest of the day. A couple of people from the Hall Board are coming to the house for a quick (I hope) meeting to sort out ticket sales for an upcoming show. I’ve done some research on what we are hoping to do so I think I’m ready.

Tonight I’ll be off to a Guild meeting – our first indoor meeting in over a year. I wrote my short report this morning. I’ll be at the membership table tonight and I may be selling 50-50 tickets as well. I swear, next year I’m not signing up for ANYTHING!

Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Not long ago I purchased a new cross stitch pattern and I knew I was going to need to buy fabric for it. I thought it was going to require either linen or a very high count of aida but when I read the pattern it was asking for 14-count aida which is what I use most often. But I decided to challenge myself and go with a higher count. To get the colour I want I’m going to have to make a purchase from one of my online shops.

And while I was thinking of ordering fabric for that project I remembered another pattern I purchased a year or so ago that needed linen. Since I now know that aida cloth can be purchased in a very high count I thought I’d buy some of it for the project.

When I went looking for the pattern it wasn’t where I thought it should be. I looked in another spot that I thought it should be in but, again, no luck. Now I’m a bit concerned as to where I might have put it and at least two other patterns that were purchased around the same time.

In my search for the patterns I was able to almost empty a drawer in a dresser. Most of it was fabric that was purchased when the girls were still around – fabric for sewing clothes for them. They all (well almost all of them) went into a bag for the thrift store as I won’t be branching back into that type of sewing.

On the bright side I found a kit that will do nicely for my Christmas cards this year. It’s never too early to get started and I plan to take them over to Texada on Retreat weekend.

I’m going to attend the Texada Retreat vicariously. My friend Moreen usually stays at the studio with me. We decided yesterday that she would go to the Retreat and I’d stay at the studio and do my own thing. She’ll catch me up an anything I need to know when she comes back to sleep every night. I was a little nervous about distancing with a group of quilters that I seldom see; distancing is okay when you are at your own table sewing but group meals and games might be tricky. And I don’t want anything to get in the way of our planned trip to Calgary. Moreen will wear a mask in the studio and, truth be told, she’ll hardly even be there as she sews early until late.

I went out to get some backing fabrics today – one backing at each of the different shops. I had good chats with friends both places so it took longer than it should have. One of the backings is a flannel; I was going to get it in the laundry right away but I’ve lost the bag I use to put the fabric in so it doesn’t tangle too bad in the laundry. I know it isn’t really lost – I’ve just put it away somewhere and I don’t remember where!

I already planned to clean up my sewing space today but all of the losses really motivated me. I think I might have done more reorganizing than I have cleaning but it is all part of the process I guess. I’ve found my lost patterns, and kitted them up with the right threads. I resorted some of my quilting bins and consolidated a few things and was able to get a few projects out of plastic bags and into bins. I’ve even started a list for my 2022 UFO Challenge.

I still haven’t found the laundry bag but I’m not in a rush and I have at least a couple more days before the room has been completely “gone through”.