Whack-a-Quilter!

So here I am again, popping in for a quick update.  I feel like that carnival game, Whack-a-Mole, where the mole pops up out of a hole and you have to try to whack it before it drops back down and then up again in a different hole 😜  (Better hit me quick, 'cause I'm popping back out again in a poof of smoke LOL!!!)

I just had to take a quick break this morning to check in with you all and say Hi!  I always miss you when I'm gone too long!  First, I have to thank you all for your sweet get well wishes!  I had a couple of rough days for sure, and was happy to bid that sinus infection farewell!  It did knock me back a bit on my schedule though, so I'm still playing a bit of catch-up.

I never found time to even touch my February OMG project.... Dreaming of Planes.  You can read about my thoughts and plans HERE if you're interested.

So that will now be my March OMG project 😎. I have a wonderfully relaxing week at Mountain Quiltfest coming up this month, so I'll just have everything prepped and ready to rock and roll during our evening sewing at the cabin.

Currently, I'm up to my armpits in quilting my February UFO Challenge project for Music City guild - Fantasia.  Here's an early shot just after I finished sandwiching it - better photos will follow in the Finish post :*)

A Rainbow Scrap Challenge project from several years ago

My original thought when I put quilting this top on the UFO list was to simply pull it out of the flimsy closet, choose a backing fabric, pop it on Joanne's longarm and knock it out in one afternoon.  Weeeeeellllllll, you all know me, right?  If I can make something complicated and much more work than it should be, I will!!!

First I couldn't decide on a backing fabric - which is always a problem for me when I'm backing blocks that are all a different color.  Finally I decided on black-and-white, but because I couldn't settle on just one fabric, the quilt demanded a pieced back!  No really ... It did ... It demanded!!!  So I had to get creative with that - I designed an enlarged block - 48" for the back ...

Then it demanded that I custom quilt it on my domestic machine ....

With RULERS!!!!

Yes, I'm nuts - certifiable.... especially considering this is my first time quilting with rulers.  But I do love how this is coming along ❤️  And needless to say, I am never without eyes watching me to be sure I do everything exactly as it should be done .....

So all that to say, this "quick" UFO finish has taken waaaaayyyyy longer than I anticipated, and it has to be done by this coming Tuesday morning!  I think I'm in a good rhythm and should be able to finish without killing myself so long as I keep at it.

On the yarn front, I wanted to share a new adventure!  Mason-Dixon Knitting is starting A Year of Techniques and although time is something I don't have just now, this is something fun that I just couldn't resist joining in!

The first Technique was just announced and it is how to work Helical stripes - below is a photo of Jen Arnall-Culliford's photo of her project using the technique.

Photo courtesy of Mason-Dixon Knitting

Don't know what Helical stripes are?  Me neither!  LOL 😜. But I was intrigued of course, and although I've done quite a bit of knitting the past few years, I'm mostly self-taught and jumped on the chance to learn new techniques and refine my skills.

Basically, this is a technique that allows you to knit stripes in the round in a way that does not cause the little "jog" in the fabric where the round joins.  It's a fun technique and I'm looking forward to playing with it once I get Fantasia quilted and my life is not all-quilting-all-the-time once again.

Each month you have the option of buying the yarn they recommend for the Technique.  I probably won't do that every month since it will mostly be practice for me and I can use some of my "crappy" or leftover stash for that.  But this month they offered Zauberballs - and I LOVE Zauberballs!  This is the one I ordered - it is called Tropical Fish - wowzers!!!

Of course, I won't start out using that yummy ball of yarn just yet.  I'll have to practice a bit.  And since the project is arm warmers which I don't often wear, I may even save that spectacular Zauberball for a pair of socks - YUM!!!

There was no way I could just not start though, right?  I mean, it's a new start for crying out loud ... I had to pick up the needles and at least cast on some yarn to practice, right?  I dug out some leftover sock yarn - remember these?

Won't that pink and yellow make nice Helical stripes?  Like Juicy Fruit gum!!!!  I can't wait to get to the point where I can see those stripes coming to life.

The Year of Techniques just started on March 1, so if you're interested go on over HERE for the information about how to get signed up!  (There's no charge to join but you do have to buy the book.)  And if you do, let me know so we can play together!

Okay - the Quilt Police just found me hiding in the closet trying to get this posted before they caught me, and they say I gotta go quilt!  This was such a nice visit with you all ❤️ Hope you have a lovely weekend my friends!!!

Hugs & Blessings!

Teresa

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