At Last! Sewing Chest

For years, probably most of the 21st century, I've wanted one of these.  

(I'm not sure what those white flecks are on the front--just something the old camera picked up.  There are no white spots in real life.)

No, it's not a box for a vintage sewing machine, although that too would be nice, especially if it were a chain-stitch machine.

It's a nicely finished wooden tool box.

 This one even has  [un-numbered] rulers on the inside of the fold-down "door."  I checked the measurements with a quilting ruler, and they are accurate.
The green is green felt and lines every drawer.

 It has a multitude of drawers so I can corral a lot of sewing accessories in just a little bit of space and can have separate drawers for long and short-shank sewing feet.

For a few years Lowe's had wooden tool chests on sale at Christmas time, but either I didn't have enough money or by the time I could get into town, they would all be gone.  The last few years they've not even stocked them.

So, where did I find this one?  At Costco!  Reasonably priced--so two could fit by the tree, one for tools and one for sewing stuff.  I'm quite happy with my one, but if there is someone in your house who has prized tools, a pair would be nice....

Happy quiltmaking...and knitting...,

ABQ Quilt, Craft, & Sewing Festival

As I mentioned in a previous post, from May 22-24, Albuquerque was blessed by a Quilt, Craft, & Sewing Festival. Even the  times I've gone to really big, national shows, I've come away with negligible purchases, so I'd like to encourage people to attend this show if it's within driving difference.  Their next show will be in Castle Rock, CO July 10-11, 2014, and the vendors do vary with the event. (One of my friends lives near their Puyallup show, and I've wanted to attend for a long time.)

Here are some photos of what followed me home:

Sweet Teen was shocked because she knows I love choosing fabrics for quilts, but I loved these and thought they would make a very cheery prayer quilt without my having to dig around in my stash.  (Karen does not have an online store; she just enjoys gathering fabrics and marketing at shows--and getting to travel to them.)

These batiks are from Rabbit Hole Quilt Shop from Chico, CA.  I dyed one almost like the pink a few years ago when I was still dyeing fabrics every few months.  I do not know if I'll manage to find any time to dye this summer.

These are from Desert Stitchin; Chris and John are from Goodyear, AZ and vend at shows in the Southwest. I purchased these for a "watery" baby quilt for one of my colleagues. The Bali charm pack at the bottom is the door prize I won from their shop at the show.  That has never happened to me before!  Well, at least not since I won my Charlotte doll at Mrs. Beatty's gift shop on December 18--somewhere around 60 years ago.  I guess this could mean that if I live another 60 years, I might win again? I was pretty amazed when my name was called.

I was near the Busy Bee booth when my name was called.  One of the owners exclaimed, "Dora Scheer?  And I don't hear any clapping or cheering?  We'll cheer for you!"

These are for a three year old girl who loves pink and purple and needs a quilt because she's soon going to be a big sister, so I've been pulling pink and purple batiks from my stash. Actually, I picked these up at the shop, not at the show.  The show gave the owners a chance to discover that a lot of people in our area didn't yet realize their shop was nearby.  It's a great little shop with the best service I've experienced in my 40+ years of quilt shops.  They have many ongoing block of the month quilts from some of the best designers.  I most often pop into their shop for a few fat quarters or for yardage to make a special prayer quilt.  The owners and their employees are unfailingly helpful and friendly.

As much as I love the fabrics, these are my favorite purchases from the show.  The stylus is also a set of screw drivers perfect for my sewing machines, and the other is a seam ripper (a belated Mother's Day gift from Sweet Teen).  Sweet Teen had a lovely conversation about engineering with the engineer who was acting as cashier.  Lumenaris also sells 100% wool felt.

Hopefully, this show will return to Albuquerque next year.  It would be lovely if they could piggyback onto the Albuquerque Fiber Arts Fiesta.

Happy quiltmaking...and knitting....

Travelling Bag for My Featherweight

Over the last few years I have purchased several insulated cooler bags (shoulder bags) that looked like they would be perfect for transporting my Featherweight when I take it to quiltmaking gatherings.  Each time I would bring the bag home and discover there was one tiny measurement that was inadequate.

Friday night, when I woke up in the night and was thinking about  Saturday's Victory Quilt meeting, it occurred to me that about 4.5 years ago, we purchased a rolling cooler for our long summer trips.

 It fits!

 The sewing machine, foot feed, and the base of my thread stand fit comfortably in the main compartment. (I sat the machine on a terry cloth towel to make it easier to lift in and out.)

 Beneath the top lid is an insulated compartment that perfectly holds my tools.

The little striped tin box holds scissors, needles, rotary cutter, etc., a cone of thread, my extension cord folded into an old paper towel cardboard core, a bobbin box, and a role of rubberized shelf lining to keep the sewing machine from slipping on the table and a piece to keep the foot control from slipping around on the floor.

It also has a pocket on the front that would hold more tools (I stuck in a box of green tea).

This is a wheeled cart with extendable handle, so it makes getting from the house to the car and the car into the building a much easier trek.  Of course, I did have to go back for a second trip to bring in the cutting mat and my rulers. I transport my rulers in a large see-through zippered bag that I think originally contained a duvet--so it's long enough for my 24-inch ruler as well as a variety of smaller ones.

And to think I've had the container just sitting in the utility room.  It's going to be getting a lot more use.

One more goodie: Courtesy of Fiber Obsessive, here's a link to faux piped binding http://www.52quilts.com/2012/05/tuesday-tutorial-susies-magic-binding.html 
I'm glad to see it since another post I used to refer people to was removed from the web.

Happy quiltmaking.....

Design Wall: New Baby Quilt & Ironing Board

New quilt--not baby--the baby hasn't arrived yet....

 The prints are from a set of Jane Sassaman for Free Spirit fabrics that I picked up two or three months ago--thinking about this gestating baby girl.

 This morning I picked out some solids from my stash.  Actually, the lavender solid near the top is a shot cotton that I used to make a blouse or a jumper some 20 years ago.  (Now that I've lost weight, I really need to find that box of clothing I put away so I can enjoy wearing some of it again,)

Since I stacked these on my ironing board, I also want to share about my ironing board cover.  I've seen some other bloggers making really lovely ironing board covers out of quilting cottons, but I have to admit that while I don't love ironing, my irons and ironing board covers get really heavy use.  I wanted one that would improve my ironing experience and make ironing easier.  Fifteen or twenty years ago I attended a guild show in Phoenix and met the woman who was selling Miracle Ironing Board Covers. I took the flyer home, intending to order one.  I lost the flyer.  Several years ago the covers were being demonstrated at the Fiber Arts show in Albuquerque.

The advantage of these covers is that they are woven with Owens-Corning Fiberglass yarn and guaranteed never to burn.  The fabric is used in protective clothing for astronauts, firefighters, car racers, etc. and reflects 95% of the heat, making it possible to iron on a lower setting.  It can be hand washed or sponged off right on the ironing board, whatever works best. It comes in many sizes to fit most of the ironing boards I've ever seen as well as in yardage.

My ironing board for ironing fabric is really a board!  (Actually I have two.)  My board was removed from the cabinets in my classroom at Lucie B. Tyng Elementary (opened in 1915).  I was working in my classroom during the weeks before school began when the district's carpenter came in to replace the doors on the cabinets.  I asked what they were doing with the old ones, and when I learned they were going into the trash, I asked if I could have several.  This is the only one I still have after my many moves in the intervening years.  It's about 22" X 24" and is covered with a layer of aluminum foil and several layers of towels.  The top layer is the miracle fabric with a casing sewn around the edges so I could put a drawstring in it and secure it around the board and the layers of toweling. Because I sometimes take this ironing board to sewing gatherings, I purchased yardage rather than a pre-finished cover.  I'd like the ironing experiences of my readers to be easier too, so I'm sharing this information.  (Even if I didn't quilt, I'd appreciate one of these covers to make ironing easier and cooler.)

Okay, time for me to move on to EQ7 and get this quilt layout designed.  (I expected to be back at school, but the school district is saying I will not be allowed to have a graduated return to work over the course of two weeks and will have to wait until I'm at "full capabilities".)

I'm linking to Judy Laquidara's Design Wall Monday.

If you came here looking for the "How to Quilt on a Treadle Sewing Machine" tutorial, it's here.

Happy Quiltmaking.....