Samoan Stars

I haven't found my MoJo yet but I think I am getting closer. I've just been feeling a bit off lately.  Nothing serious just not feeling motivated. I have been doing a bit of sewing each day though. I think part of my problem is spending too much time on the laptop. I spend way too much time reading blogs. I use Bloglines and it tells you how many blogs you are reading...449!! Way too many to keep up on. I have been going through and deleting blogs. I found some that people haven't posted on their blogs since 2008, others since February 2010, and any time in between. Those are now gone. The rest were harder to decide whether to keep or not. I have several favorite blogs that I would never think about getting rid of. The ones I know I comment on each time they post were kept. I managed to whittle my list down to 168. I still have a bunch to go through and decide whether to keep up with them or not. I'm hoping to get my list down to 100 or less. We'll see how well that goes lol.

I'm still working on my Samoan Stars during break times at work. I bought some orange fabric yesterday and decided to put some on the design wall under the stars to see how they look. This piece is a one yard piece. As an estimate I can figure that if I do a total of 9 of these 1 yard "blocks" than I will have enough for a king size quilt. So if I make a total of  450 stars (plus the connecting diamonds) I should be OK. Yea, that's alot lol. I'm still thinking that the yellow will be the right color for the connecting diamonds. Next time I might try them out on grey though just in case they look good on grey.

Christmas time ?

This is the other handwork that I have been working on lately. Some days I get a heart sewn down and other days I spend more time on it.

I picked up two of these Advent Calendars at A.C. Moore's after Christmas sale earlier this year. I was thinking I would keep one and sell the other once they are finished. I actually enjoy working on these type of felt kits. They are very relaxing. Not as portable as some projects because of the beads and sequins so I keep it next to my spot on the couch and work on it every once in a bit.

The directions says that you can just glue the pieces down but I'm not comfortable with the glue lasting for years packed away with all the other holiday decorations. I hand stitched each set of numbers to the hearts and then to the circle. Also the Merry Christmas is hand stitched down. I use the sequins/beads to attach the beard, etc. This way if the kids are a bit rough, it will still hold up nicely over the years.

Felt kits can be a bit pricey but I try to wait until the after holiday sales and pick up a few at 50% off. I also love to make the felt stockings too. I like how the pieces are all printed on the felt and numbered. Makes it easy...

Bits and Pieces

I finally decided on a new hand sewing project to take to doctor's appointments and such.

I'm using some wonderful fabric that I bought from Barb awhile back. I was first thinking about making a Lone Star quilt but I couldn't decide on what order to use the colors and how many rows of each, etc. So instead I am making these stars. I'm leaning towards using a light grey fabric for the fill in diamonds in between the flowers. I'll know if a light grey will work after I get a bunch more stars put together.

Right now I am battling a rotten asthma attack and can't concentrate very well. Basting these little diamonds are a real no brainer so this is about all I have been working on lately.

This is the container I use to store my in progress diamonds. I think the diamonds will sew together a bit easier if I iron them first. This is the first time I have hand sewn diamonds. I usually work with hexagons but diamonds are fun if not a bit fiddly. Next month I need to order some orange, brown, and yellow. Eventually I would like this to be a king size quilt. When it is all put together I also plan on hand quilting it. I'm kind of excited about working on this project.

Squishy Balls

 

I like to keep some hand sewing in a little soft case for those times that I have to sit and wait. I also take it with me to work so I have something to do during break times. I was making lots of hexagons but then I got bored. The only surprise there is that it took much longer than I expected. Still loving the hand work, I decided to switch to pentagons instead. This way I can make a bunch of balls instead of quilts, purses, placemats, etc.

 

I joined 2 different I spy Swaps recently. One was for 4" squares and the other was for 5" squares.  I  took the 4" squares and turned them into pentagons using freezer paper. This is the same way I do my hexagons. You stitch 5 around a center pentagon. You do that twice. Then stitch the two halves together (inside out). I leave 1.5 sides unsewn, turn and stuff very well. Sew the opening closed. They make fun little balls for the little ones. My big kids (and the dog) have been having fun with them too. I think they would make great additions to a baby shower basket.