DESIGN WALL MONDAY -
Check out all of us who link up with Judy L. -
At Patchwork Times on Mondays.
We have some awesome stuff on our walls!
Well, THEY do - ME - not so much sometimes - ;))
===
On my wall today -
It's called "Capital T" -
And is a "public domain" block found in EQ7 -
I used it as Block #96 - in my LHQSQ -
Left-Handed Quilter Sampler Quilt -
See the page/tab at the top of my blog for details and a photo of the quilt top - ;))
For the last few weeks - I have been dealing with "business ducks" and decided that I wanted to take a break to play with my new toy. So I looked through all of the blocks that I had made for my LHQ Sampler Quilt - looking for one with squares - HST - AND Flying Geese. This block fit the bill - and I re-made it using my new LEFT-EZE™ Rule - ;))
I took three 2-1/2" wide strips -
Cut some sections down to 1-1/2" wide -
Used the LEFT-EZE™ Rule to cut out the pieces -
Stitched them up -
And it came out at 6-1/2" - like it was supposed to - ;))
Only problem was that the center square should have been BLUE -
So my brain apparently wasn't working very well -
But the LEFT-EZE™ Rule worked just fine - ;))
Am I going to "fix" it? - Nope - I was just playing - and it will do for now.
I'll do it correctly if/when I do a tutorial on how to work up this block - ;))
Then - I decided to see if I could use the LEFT-EZE™ Rule to make a "Flying Star" using Gene Black's video - HERE - and my handy-dandy Size Chart (that I can't show you yet) - to convert the dimensions he used to "Pre-Cut Strip Widths" -
First - I used a Green Stripe for the corner blocks - and decided that there wasn't enough contrast between the Green Stripe and the Beige star points -
So - Plan B - I switched out the Green Stripe for some Blue -
Stitched it up - and it came out to 8-1/2" square - like it was supposed to - ;))
I should re-phrase that - it's a teeny bit short in that top left corner - but that's MY fault - not the fault of the ruler - THAT works just fine - MY accuracy could use some improvement - ;))
So - there you go - two different blocks - two different sizes - using the same ruler - what's not to like? - ;))
And for any of you who might be wondering about the "business ducks" - I think that I have taken care of most of them. There are City/County/State/Federal "ducks" - Design/Beta-Testing/Manufacturing "ducks" - Banking/Accounting/PayPal "ducks" - Shipping/Postage "ducks" - Blog/Tutorials/Demos/Size Charts "ducks" - and others. Those are the basic ones - but then they all have several "cousins". And they seem to multiply in the dark when I'm not looking - like scraps - ;))
The Beta-Testers have helped me decide on the design modifications/changes that I want/need to make - so - since I don't like to try to "conduct business" on Mondays (some people still seem to be in "weekend" mode) - I'll deal with that tomorrow. I don't know the manufacturer's timeline or whether or not they are backlogged - so I have no idea and can't tell you yet how soon I will have any in my hot little hands to sell.
I have already set up another blog (private for now) and did several tutorials for the Beta-Testers - but they are much too long and need to be condensed - so I need to work on those. I will also have to re-do ALL of the photos - since they used the prototype and the final version of the LEFT-EZE™ Rule will look a bit different.
And I still need to set up PayPal and figure out the Shipping/Postage part - so those are this week's "ducks".
Like I told one of my friends -
It's like -
Deal with a "duck" -
Relax -
Breathe -
Repeat - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
Santa tried really hard to get me one last goodie in time for Christmas -
But it got hung up at a UPS distribution center in Oregon -
And sat there ALL Christmas weekend -
From the Friday night before Christmas -
Until the Tuesday morning after -
When it began to move again -
And it finally got delivered to me last Thursday night - December 29 -
Just in time for me to play with it before the New Year began - so -
Better late than never - ;))
And it's been a long time coming -
What is "it"? -
"It" is a prototype for a brand-new specialty ruler -
A LEFT-HANDED Ruler -
Designed for US -
To use to cut HST units and QST units -
LEFT-HANDED - ; ))
A LEFT-HANDED Right Triangle Ruler -
Or a LEFT-Triangle - as some would call it -
Designed by me -
A Left-Handed Quilter™ -
And Made in the U.S.A. -
I call it LEFT-EZE™ Rule -
Because we do - ;))
I used it to make the stuff that I showed on my design wall yesterday -
Some HST units -
And some Hourglass Blocks made using QST units -
And some Flying Geese made using both HST units & QST units -
A new project for the New Year - ;))
I'm not going to show you a photo of the ruler yet - because it's only a prototype - and it's not available for sale yet - but it will be soon - ;))
I played with it a little - and want to play with it a bit more - and take photos as I go along - for future posts. I also have some beta-testers lined up who have agreed to test it for me. I want their feedback in case I need to make any modifications to the design before I actually order some to sell to you guys - ;))
Some of you have listened to me complain about rulers for years - well, I finally decided to quit complaining and to design my own. Most of the rulers I have come across in my 40 years of quilting (since 1976) are designed for Right-Handed quilters - and that's great - but I am NOT Right-Handed -
I am A Left-Handed Quilter - and I'm just plain sick and tired of having to compensate for that - of having to "just reverse it" - of having to "flip" rulers in order to use it Left-Handed - and of having the lines and/or numbers go the wrong way and/or be upside-down and/or backwards -
So No More Flippin' Rulers! -
This new ruler is LEFT-HANDED - and designed for US!! -
LEFT-EZE™ Rule -
And if you're Right-Handed - you can "just reverse it" - LOL - ;))
I started with a Triangle because that's the one that gives me the most trouble -
Better late than never - ;))
I have a whole lot of work to do yet - right now I'm just a quilter with an idea and a prototype. I don't even have a business set up yet - so I need to do all of that - set up another blog for my "shop" - so this one can still be about my "quilting" life - and I don't bore you with "buy me" crap - write up some instructions - work up some tutorials - and maybe a couple of patterns - and a bunch of other stuff - and all of that takes time - so please be patient. It's coming - I'm working on it - ;))
I am SOOOOOO excited that I couldn't keep it a secret any longer -
It's my very special project -
And I hope you like it - when you finally see it -
And that you will want to buy one - ;))
I know I'm probably crazy for wanting to start a new business at my age - I'll be 70 next summer - but then I think back to what my Dad said when I told him that I wanted to go back to college -
"But, Dad, I'll be 40 before I graduate!" -
He said -
"Honey, you're going to be 40 anyway - whether you go back to school or not." -
I went back to school - got my degree at 39 -
Turned 40 that summer and got my CPA license at 43 -
SO - I'm going to be 70 anyway - whether I do this or not - haha - ;))
I figure I'll either sell a gazillion or I'll sell two -
Either way - this New Year is going to be a FUN one!! - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
DESIGN WALL MONDAY -
Check out all of us who link up with Judy L. -
At Patchwork Times on Mondays.
We have some awesome stuff on our walls!
Well, THEY do - ME - not so much sometimes - ;))
===
On my wall today -
Some HST units -
And some Hourglass Blocks made using QST units -
And some Flying Geese made using both HST units & QST units -
A new project for the New Year - ;))
Before the end of the year -
I got the backing made for the Christmas Table Mat - and did the stitch-in-the-ditch part - it still needs FMQ and binding -
I got the backing made for the matching Christmas Table Topper -
And I got it fuse/basted and stabilized last night -
It still needs to be quilted -
And I was able to quilt and bind ONE more for 2016 -
My Watercolor Heart -
Now it's DONE - and it matches the Watercolor Wreath on the wall in my fabric room - the one I used for the photo at the top of my right sidebar. The lighting isn't as good in the photo below - so the colors look faded - but the fabrics are the same in both quilts -
It had been sitting in the pile waiting to be quilted since I made its twin in 1996 -
Yeah - I know - that's 20 years! - I think I told you guys that I have some REALLY OLD UFOs/Projects/Squirrels - so don't feel bad if you have some that have been sitting around for two/three/four years - several of mine are much older than that -
It was partially hand-quilted but since my hand-quilting/sewing days are long gone - I had to finish it by machine. I used my walking foot to do some straight stitching down the middle of the squares - redrew the stencil markings in the corners - then tried to FMQ along the lines. I made some booboos - but they don't show that much - and since the blue marking pencil lines all washed out - you can't really tell where I missed the line - and I'm fine with that.
I think that makes 16 finishes for 2016 - so that's not too bad -
The rest of the pile of "practice pieces" will have to wait until I get to it -
Because for the next couple of months - I will be spending most of my time on a very special project -
And I'll tell you all about that tomorrow - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
HAPPY NEW YEAR!! - ;))
No resolutions -
No pressure -
All I want/need to do is -
Maintain my Slow Poke Quilter status -
Maybe run the Leisurely Turtle Race to Christmas With Squirrels Allowed -
Also known as the RACE or LTRTCWSA -
With Linda - HERE -
Maybe continue to post my TUSAL photos -
Also known as Daffycat's - Totally Useless Stitch-A-Long - HERE -
Maybe try to finish up some more of my quilt tops -
You know - actually QUILT them -
Maybe make a new Left-Handed Quilter's Sampler Quilt - LHQSQ for short -
Like this one - but in different colors - or maybe a smaller version -
And deal with whatever Squirrels cross my path - ;))
So again this year -
What will be - will be - ;))
NEW YEAR -
NEW PROJECTS -
What's not to like?? - ;))
HAVE A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR!! - ;))
Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -
