Janome Cover ProCP 1000

Cool machine! Check out Janome's website for the details on the latest model with new design features and included accessories (extension table, clearview foot, and wide elastic applicator foot).

Easy Peasy!

When I told DDIL that I made Kool Aid Play Dough for Experience 4-H at the farmers' market on Oct. 3rd. She said she loved playing with play dough but when her mom made it, her sister always got the purple. I just had to make her some grape Kool Aid Play Dough and a pretty vinyl lined bag to put it it in. She and her niece, (her sis's daughter) can play with it. She is visiting this weekend so it is all ready to go home with her.

Practical and Pretty

I have been meaning to do this project for a long time. This week, the little ironing board it going on a retreat with 80+ 4-H teens and I decided the job just had to be done.

My little ironing board came with a less than adequate foam pad and cover. I saved some foam padded Teflon ironing board covers when we got new covers for the ironing boards at the county extension with the idea one might recycle nicely on the little board.

I traced my ironing board on the Teflon and added 1 1/2 inches all the way around. I centered the original foam pad on the foam side and secured it with zigzag stitching. The old cover just barely fit to keep the new pad in place.

Next, I created a new cotton cover that is reversible and cinched it on tightly. Now, I have beautiful and secure cover that will have fun at camp with the kids. I just love having attractive ironing board covers. They make me smile!

Next project with be a tote bag for the ironing board. I wonder when I will get around to that?

A Quilt for the Fall Online Quilt Festival

I finished this quilt in May for my Mom and with everything going on with my parents moving and a new grandbaby this summer, I haven't finished the quilt I started in August. Since the quilt was late for Mother's Day, I was thinking about giving it to her on her birthday this month. Well, she is moving next weekend and to save her having to pack the quilt, it is now a house warming gift. I will give it to her in early November.

The quilt was a long time in the planning stages. I found two sets of 6 fat quarters a few years back when I was in grad school. The colors are my Mom's favorite and she has decorated her new house around them.

I purchased the fat quarters with the Yellow Brick Road quilt pattern. I really thought I would make that quilt but the design didn't seem to settle well with me for my Mom. The rail fence design spoke to me and I completed the top with very few scraps remaining from the fat quarters.

If you want to see the quilting details, check out my entry for May 2009. And if you want to see why I haven't didn't get a quilt made this summer, check out June and July entries on the 4-H quilting camps. The kids deserve an look for this online quilt festival.

2009 Portland TOGA

We had a great TOGA in Portland on Saturday. Mike and Mary Rust were fantastic hosts. The location at Quilting Delights in Clackamas, OR was perfect and the weather cooperated, no rain! What fun seeing everyone and their lovely machines.

Thanks to all who made lunch and all the snacks absolutely delicious. Wish I had a few more hours to spend with everyone and didn't have to leave before dinner but I had a great time visiting with my kids, too. Check out more pictures in my Flickr album.

Combined Boye Needle Charts

Kevin Pinkerton of Treadle On has just finished a wonderful resource for antique sewing machine collectors. With the help of Boye Needle Case owners, he has made a data base of the information on the the ingenious needle display. The pdf version of his charts are available for download in the right side bar of this blog and at Kevin's online album sites:

http://community.webshots.com/user/kpinkert
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kpinkert/sets/

Many thanks to Kevin and contributing Treadle On members for a wonderful resource.

Pincushions for the Sew Green Fleet

Last year, at our Sew Green activity at Walla Walla's farmers' market, I only had one pincushion among three machines. This year, each machine will have a pincushion plus one for the filling station.

The brightly colored pincushion at the top of the photo was made for me by Alyce Suzanne on the treadle owners list. She very graciously made me one when my exchange partner failed to come through. Her pincushion is bright and cheery. The pincushion is weighted nicely as it is filled with poly pellets.

The pincushion on the left is made from a Birthday Bash block. I made too many for the exchange so I have to figure out where to use them up. It's a little wimpy. I didn't stuff it enough.

The remaining two are from upholstery samples. In March, my 4-H Super Saturday class was in the home ec. room at the middle school at the end of the block. The teacher had tons of boxes of fabric swatch books. She let me and the other volunteers in my class take as many sample books as we wanted. What fun and a great reward for our busy 2 hour session.