Tuesday Top 5

1. Hubby and I are leaving in a few minutes to go golfing today. After a long 3 day weekend, I'd love to just go back to bed, but I know we'll have fun anyway.

2. We got the pool put up this weekend. It looks good and I know the kids are excited to use it this summer!

3. I recovered my dining room chairs on Friday and Saturday. Hopefully I'll get the matching valance done tomorrow.

4. I've been working on my craft to do list and the "projects" side is whittling down. The quilt side....not so much.

5. I hand stitched the binding on the quilt for my new nephew. I absolutely love how it looks, but it did take me awhile. Not sure what I'll do next time I have a "normal" size quilt.

Have a great day!

Irons (Again!)

In less then a year, I have bought 3 irons.

You may recall a post from me last summer talking about my Rowenta ProMaster.

I had heard such good things about that brand!
I couldn't wait to own one!

So, I bought one in June. I returned it in October after it started leaking water over EVERYTHING I ironed.

But, I really liked it before then, so I exchanged it for another one, in hopes that maybe the leaking was a fluke.

That first one lasted me about 4 months.

The second one showed such promise!
Months of use and no leaking.

6 months in and it started leaking. Only occasionally and not too much water.

By the end of month 7 (this week) it was leaking everytime I got the thing horizontal.

Its now sitting in the back of my car, waiting to be returned.

(By the way, I always try to buy appliances from stores that have great return policy's.

In this case, Kohls. Love that store!)

(By the way again, the reviews on the Rowenta ProMaster are AWFUL! I really wish I had looked into it better before I bought it)

This time I did my research.

And I picked out the DeLonghi 1800-Watt Steam Iron with Ceramic and Titanium Soleplate.

It arrived from Amazon today.

The reviews are good, if you don't mind the "cord issue", which to me sounded minor.

Once I got my hands on it, I realized that, yes, its minor.

I immediately plugged it in and used it.

Its a bit heavy, like the Rowenta, but I like that when I'm using it on quilts.

It ironed smoothly. The steam is hot.

NONE of the reviews mentioned leaking.

I really hope this is the last one I'll have to buy for awhile.



Thanks Kim!

Thanks alot Kim!

Kim and I have one BIG thing in common.

We both love Halloween!

Its my absolute favorite holiday!

And look at what she posted today:

YES! Isn't it fabulous?

You can order it here.

Its a 6 month Block of the Month club.

Or you can order it in one big delivery.

Which is what I decided to do, in hopes of getting it done before Halloween.

She may be sending Mary her bill, but I'm sending her mine!



Tuesday Top 5

1. My real estate guy is coming today for my bi-annual house check up. I took this as a sign that I needed to get my sewing room cleaned up better. I worked on it off and on all day yesterday and it shows a huge improvement. It might not be done by this afternoon when Phil get's here, but it'll be better!

2. Amy's OTOW challenge is up this week...and my goal is to get everything not sewing or crafting related out of my sewing room. I'll have before and after pics for you when its done! I know there are prizes at the end of the week, but I really just try to use her as motivation to get something done that might not have gotten done.

3. I love the Fat Quarter Shop! Last week there were running a sale, free shipping with a $40 purchase. I quickly decided to get some Moda Marbles yardage that I need to finish a quilt. That arrived yesterday. And, those ladies are awesome! I tried to order a yard of something and got a popup that they only had 3/4. So, I ordered that. The next day they called to say all they had was (2) 1/2 yard cuts and would that be ok? Fortunately, it was and they sent me that at no extra charge! Yeah for great service! Last night, I placed another order, this time for backing/binding for a jelly roll I got at christmas. I've been wanting to order it before the store doesn't carry it anymore, and I'm glad I did last night, as the selection is getting slim.  I really need to keep in mind that when ordering precuts, I really need to order extra yardage to go with it, so that I don't miss out.

4. I'm having a baby! Ok, well, not really having.....but getting! My girlfriend is due the end of July and has asked me to watch the little one when she goes back to work in Sept! I'm so excited! Boy or girl, no one knows! Psst, I already bought some cloth diapers to make fancy spit up cloths, a la Natalia over at Piece and Quilt.

5. Amidst the sewing room cleaning, I've also done quite a bit some sewing this past weekend. I got double valances made for Allie's room window...those have only been on the to do list for about a year. And, I got a quilt pattern picked out, fabric bought and washed and the top COMPLETELY pieced for my new newphew due next month! Yesterday morning, I layered and pinned it, so it is now ready for quilting! In my boring Saturday afternoon time, I made a 14x14 pillow cover to match the quilt! I guess mom or dad can use that, as baby won't need it! LOL

Embroidery Hoop Wall Clock

Check this out!
My very first tutorial!

It was easy to make, so hopefully easy to explain, but let me know if I'm missing something!

Embroidery Hoop Wall Clock

Supplies:
Embroidery Hoop....I believe mine is 9 inches

Clock Mechanism....I bought a 1/4 inch and it worked fine for this thickness

2 pieces of decor weight, iron on interfacing, 12x12 each

Fabric, cut to 12x12

Buttons

Paint

Embroidery Floss

First of all, I painted my embroidery hoop.

I did 2 coats on the edges and outside and one coat on the inside

(If you lay it on wax paper, it won't stick too much, even if you put it down on a wet edge)

While that dries, iron the first piece of interfacing to the back of your fabric.

Iron the second piece onto the first piece, to create a double thickness.

Take the inner circle of the embroidery hoop and trace it onto the back of your fabric.

I used my microwave plate cover (it has a hole in the middle) and laid it on top of the circle, then marked the center of the fabric.

Take a ruler and mark the half way points on all 4 sides of the circle.

 (Paint is still drying!)

Using tiny scissors, cut a hole in the middle large enough to tightly fit the clock mechanism.

I used embroidery floss to sew on my buttons, because I thought the thickness of it would look better then regular thread. So, go ahead and sew on those buttons!

Alright, time to put it all together!

Lay your fabric on top of the inner circle, making sure to keep to the traced line.

Open your embroidery hoop ALL the way (in case you haven't already) and fit it onto the circle.

Insert the screw and tighten it down as much as you can, so that your fabric is pulled taut.

Make sure that everything is where you want it to be, lining up the top of your hoop with your "12".

Now, go ahead and cut away the excess fabric, taking care to cut as close to the back of the hoop as possible.

Put the clock mechanism on, following the directions on the package. Use your tiny scissors to make sure any stray threads (from cutting open the hole) are tucked under the bolt.

Insert the battery and voila, a new clock!

I saw this idea somewhere on the internet and couldn't wait to make it for my sewing room.

It took me awhile to get the clock mechanism, but after that, smooth sailing!
Hope you enjoy!