Quiz, Part Four

Here we go again!

Can you figure out what is common about these letters, aside from their color and height?

Quiz, Part Three

What do these letters have in common, aside from their color and height?

T on Thursday

In keeping with the theme of larceny and theft for the STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST quilt, I present for your enjoyment a letter T.

This letter is about 6 inches tall and 5 inches wide, and completely free pieced. 

 Those yellow slits are 1/4 inch tall and just over one inch in length.  It was a total PITA to sew together, I can tell you!

The Letter "I"

This is a letter "I." 

"Oh," you say, "that's not an 'I', it's a stick of dynamite."

Well, you are right. It IS a stick of dynamite. It is -also- a letter I.

(Those letters T-N-T are one inch tall. Very tiny. That black wick is just there to complete the effect.)


In the  "STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST" quilt I am making, I am including some shall we say, larcenous elements.  So dynamite is right at home.

A is for...

A is for artist.  ...as in "Steal like an ..."

More Birds

You can make birds without fussy cutting fabrics, but I have more fun making them each special.

Here are some of my other wing options:

For The Birds

I've been wrestling with a lot of things lately, so this weekend I decided to have a little fun in the sewing studio.

I thought I'd make some birds. Here are two.

Here are some more "wings."

And to help get me out of the doldrums, I did a little "retail therapy."  I bought one of Wanda's quilts. I bought Sparkling Stars. WHEE!!!!


Update: Here are two more birds.

Quiz Answers

I answered the first quiz in the comments, but not everyone saw it, so I am putting the answers here.

Quiz Number One: What do these letters have in common?

Answer: These letters are all based on Diagonals.


Quiz Two: What do these have in common?

Answer: They are all constructed around a center piece of background fabric. These are among the easiest letters to make.

Quiz, Part Two

What do  these seven letters have in common, aside from their height and color?

(This one should be really easy.)




by the way....
There is an OUTSTANDING quilter making letters and the most amazing blocks I have ever seen over at Q.U.I. (Quilted Under the Influence).  Kathy hasn't been blogging long, but she's adventurous and fearless, by the look of it.  Do go over and see her work. You won't be disappointed. (Tell her Lynne sent you.)

X Q's Me

There are several ways to make an upper case Q.  These aren't particularly good examples, but you get the drift.

Quiz

What do these six letters have in common? (Aside from the fact they are all green and are the same height?)





"QUIZ"  (ooooo... that's a good four letter word...)

My Sewing Machine Had a Hairball

I was sewing merrily along yesterday, and changed the bobbin.  I made a mental note to clean the sewing machine when I ran the bobbin out, but after about 10 minutes, the machine started dropping stitches and breaking thread.

So I took it all apart and cleaned out the accumulated dust and lint, then put it back together.

Same problem.

So I changed to a new bobbin.

Same problem.

So I changed the needle.

Same problem.

So I dug out the manual to make sure I was doing it all right. I was.

I unthreaded the sewing machine and re-threaded it.

Same problem.

So I repeated the process.

Same problem.

Finally I called the machine's previous owner, my friend Yvonne. I thought she might have some insight.  We went through the whole process together, then she suggested I take the cover off the upper part of the machine and make sure it was threaded properly.

With the help of a flashlight, I could see some loose threads inside.  Fortunately I have a hemostat (long needle-nosed pliers), so I could reach in and pull the threads out.

Here is the small greasy mass that was giving me so much trouble.  I am very happy I could fix this on my own and didn't have to bring it to the sewing machine hospital.

Needless to say, my sewing machine sews like a dream once again.

I love my friends.

Millie on the Quilt

Millie is no dummy. I put a quilt down and she's all over it.

 Literally. 

I had just brought Nine x Nine back from Quilted Threads and set it on the bed while I made dinner. When I looked back, Millie was giving herself a bath.  By the time I got the camera, she'd started stretching. When dinner was over, she was napping smack dab in the middle of it, and only moved when I practically pulled it out from under her to hang it up on the wall.

I guess I'm really happy I don't have a big dog.

How-to How-to

Whenever I make a tutorial, the thing that always hangs me up is the step-by-step photos.  It's such a pain in the neck to set it down and take a picture.  Plus, the pictures are never lined up the same way, never lit the same, they're never the same distance from the camera, etc, etc.

Finally I figured it out.  Make a small design board, hold it up at a consistent angle, and mount the camera on a tripod!  After a trip to the local craft store and an investment of less than $20, I'm all set!  I wrapped a piece of foam core with white flannel, and leaned it up against one of those easel mounted picture frames. I already had a small tripod for the camera.

Now I can make something, place it easily on the design board, and take a photo.  Woo hoo! This works like a charm!