Tropical Ukulele Case...

Just finished another ukulele case. HAVE to love the tropical fabric! Again, this fabric was a gift, and it was so well suited to a ukulele case! I cut some double-sided cotton quilted fabric (another remnant from Joann's I had around) in brown for a lining, and I used a hearty 22" separating zipper for a jacket that I also had around for the zipper. I first of course closed off the zipper ends with some whip stitching so it wouldn't actually separate on the case..:) I used the same pattern and method of assembly as in this post about a year or so ago. I don't need a strap as I never seem to carry the ukulele anywhere but around the house! The pocket is a nice touch in a coordinating stripe - also a gift. :) You know who you are, so THANKS! :) I added a picture of Luna sticking out of the case so you could see she actually DOES live in there. :) And now of course there is a choice of gig bag. Unless I decided to get another ukulele to put in the other case, or in the new case. It would have to be a Concert size with a low-G tuning though. Something different. Something fun!

Lunch and a Little Pillow....

Just today I made my new lunch sack. I used a medium sized smallish brown paper sack, and cut it down the middle of the sides and across the middle of the bottom...self-made pattern appears in the photos. This was a fun project. I used instructions from two sources, one is a lunch bag pattern from Sew News and one a tutorial that is just great - I wanted to make the bag like the tutorial but finish the top like the lunch bag pattern! However, I wanted it reversible, so I didn't assemble it quite like the tutorial either. It was FUN! I don't like the ones with plastic inside....bbbrrr...who knows what that stuff does or what fumes it releases. I had a purchased lunch tote and it had begun to stink after the first couple of weeks, and that is with me washing it out with detergent and letting it air another week. Needless to say I tossed that thing, and prepared to make my own. The outer print fabric was a gift from a good PR friend. The lining is double-sided quilted cotton from JAs and the bag reverses. I do love that double-sided stuff. I always pick up the remnants when I see them because double-sided fabric is so darn useful for so many projects! I think I can toss this lunch bag into the wash on cold with some towels or the like and clean it thoroughly, an idea which makes sense with something which has food in it on a daily basis. You could make this smaller or larger, depending on the bag or just make your own pattern - with the shape of a brown paper sack!

Meanwhile, I did finish a free motion quilting project on my Pfaff. I had done two small quilt sandwichs with which to make a nice quilted pillow case for my small travel pillow. I used Masterpiece thread on the bobbin and a variegated cotton on top. After finishing it I preferred the back side to the front - because the variegated stitching wasn't really good on this fabric. I am so happy to report that the bobbin side looks better than the top because the even stitching the Pfaff 1222E did and the Masterpiece thread - well - it's a winning combination. In future I am going to be using my Janome MC6300P for FMQ, and I hope it has the same lovely stitching as the Pfaff. I know the Janome 8050 has a nice stitch, and I have been able to try the new J6300 on FMQ too, just to set it up and give a whirl and she preformed extremely well even without the special bobbin case which I do have. Then I assembled the pillow case with my J6300, and sewed it like you would any pillowcase, which made a fairly thick seam in places, but the J6300 treats that like nothing is different! Sews right on through. Nice machine - quiet and smooth. I am very much enjoying the flatbed aspect as well.

Festival Notes...

 Vermont Quilt Festival 2012 was a resounding success from the point of view of the visitors! We had, as usual a good time, and we all left nice and tired! That's how it should be. Previously I recounted the shopping coups and didn't mention too much about the quilts themselves.  The quilts were, as they always are, quite lovely. So much work goes into each show quilt. More work than I can imagine ever doing. Artisans all, the quilters who compete are all winners to me because of the effort and the care they put into making and showing their creations.  I took a class in free motion purporting to free me from too much tension and letting myself get comfy with the medium. The class was fine. A bit too touchy-feely, but there were people there who really benefitted from a more free approach to free motion. The pictures I am using are from the show - they were my favorites and if I had the names of the creators I would add those. The pictures are small enough to preclude using them as patterns, as I want to at least try to meet expectations when I post the work of others.
Some of the class practice techniques were interesting - such as tracing designs with your finger several times to train the brain in a pattern of your choice. Then there was some emphasis on pencil drawings of the designs you were interested in. Some benefit can surely be gotten from this sort of thing, especially for people who haven't previously done much drawing or had art training.  Books were being promoted both in the class and in the Zentangle class and the booths which were selling the Zentangle products. Zentangle is very attractive, and the fact that I love paper and pencils and art items of all sorts makes the Zentangle sets alluring! I did, however, resist because I wanted to buy Lead Day's book instead of falling for the gimmick and over pricing of Zentangle. BUT, O really did think the books are of help to those who just cannot think easily of designs.

All told we had a good day, and it was made extra special because two friends from Maine, and one from Southern Vermont came up and we were able to network, which is what I like to call lunch at the Peking Duck! No, really - we did a lot of talking about the show, quilting, each others machines and works-in-progress and in general had a really good time! It is so good to see friends and to shop with them as well...and to shop with those who understand our thread and fabric manias!

Quilt Quilted....New Toy for Cat....

Wondering where I have been? I finished some projects that had been laying around, mostly mending, and then I spent time for the last several weeks working on my quilt - and now I can tell you the first free motion quilt I have done, in fact the first quilt I have made at all, is finished except for binding. I will put the project of the binding on hold until after Summer much loved family visits and after a few weeks practice again.  There may be room to sew a skirt and maybe even a shirt in that time period.  In other news, the Vermont Quilt Festival came around again, and the two days were a whirl of fun, class and spending,oh dear, I mean judiciously choosing of necessities. I did purchase the Quilter's tool called the Fabulous Fabric Guide  and instead of buying thread at the Superior Threads booth, I bought the thread cards for Masterpiece and King Tut. Who knows what color thread I will want next project, so this lets me hold actual thread next to fabric - I love the cards.

As you may know I have been looking at sewing machines for some time now because the two things I wanted if I ever spent on another machine were more harp space and faster speed, and a knee lift. The knee lift is just so handy. 

I had been following the dropping price on the Brother 1500S at AMAZON, and it had dropped pretty low when I found a really good price on a Janome MC6300.  I am so glad I bought the MC6300 Professional from Janome. The accessories are plentiful, and the fact that it comes with a large acrylic extension table is frosting on the cake. I have it in a Gidget II Arrow table. I don't need more stitches than the 6300 has, and I don't need the other additions of the other machines in the line. My Viking more than has all the extras I need for any type of garment or utility sewing. The 6300 is going to take some time to totally test out and sewing several projects is for the next several months. After all that I'll review it on PatternReview. Meanwhile, here is an excellent review from another site! Janome MC6300P Review