Category Archives: Bonnie Hunter

So, this happened

I’ve been participating in a “photo a day” event for the past couple of months. I’ve surprised myself in that I’ve posted every single day. Next month looks hard (we’re given a word or phrase to interpret in a photo). But, the whole reason of sharing that is my subject line.  That was yesterday’s subject and I immediately thought it would be a great subject for today’s blog, because this happened!

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This year’s Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt clues have started and I attended a kickoff party yesterday.  Many old friends were there from the guild and AZ Blankets and I made some new friends.

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I feel really blessed by the amount of quilters I’ve met and the groups I’m part of.

Last year there was a much smaller group for Celtic Solstice. Here are a few of the ladies with theirs.

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Mine is still at step 3 🙁

There was a whole lot of talking, cutting, pressing, sewing, and eating.

Our cake

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My first block, with a label for each of us made by one of the ladies.

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A block from (almost) each of us

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and the 15 I managed to finish

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I have all 100 each black and yellow pieces cut, and a total of 233 pairs of HSTs cut. I got many of those HSTs sewn together yesterday, as well. I have a light schedule this week and I’m hoping to get the rest done by Friday, when the next clue comes out. I still need to cut 77 pairs of HSTs.

A huge shout out and thank you to Angela of The Modern Diary for organizing us. I tease her that she may be Bonnie Hunter’s number one fan, but I’m hers. She’s so proficient!

I’m still stitching on my SamSarah Laniappe but no updated photo. The Lizzy*Kate mystery is patiently waiting and I’ve added a couple of small new items to my to-do pile.

2014-11-30 10.55.45Looking forward to some football and stitching.  I’ll be linking up to Bonnie’s link party.

 

Happy Thanksgiving

We will be spending the afternoon with friends this year. This is the first time I have not cooked for my family, or gone to another family member’s home for Thanksgiving. I am baking apple pie and a casserole for my contribution.

My room is still torn apart.  My cutting table currently looks like this

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Piled high! I’m in a bit of a panic over it since tomorrow begins Bonnie Hunter’s 2014 mystery quilt.  I’m attending a sew together on Saturday but I’d like to at least cut my fabric tomorrow when the first clue comes out.

Since there has only been sewing away from home I have spent a lot of time stitching. I finished Sam Sarah’s mystery piece and have picked out the backing fabric.

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There was a laniappe included with the mystery so I started it.

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My design wall is sitting stagnant but I’m hoping the painting gets started this weekend so I can get back to it.

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I haven’t been a total slacker

Except for blogging 😉

Remember this post?  I finally got my Kona Color Card and have started deciding on colors for my Dear Jane.

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I have a new link in the upper left side bar. Bonnie Hunter’s new mystery starts in a couple of weeks. I decided that since I have so much going on already, I would use 1 constant colorway this year.  I’m using an off-white print and Kona black to go with these fabrics.

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No. I have not finished last year’s mystery. Don’t judge.

My guild is sponsoring a class with Bonnie after the first of the year for the Happy Scrappy Houses quilt. I also submitted a request to take  another class the next day, through another guild. We have to give 1st and 2nd choice and my first choice was Cathedral Stars.

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2nd choice is Pineapple Blossom.

I am now the very proud owner of 1/2 season Arizona Diamondback tickets. We decided that owning full season tickets would be just too many games for us to attend. We have full-season perks tho, and I’m already counting down to opening day. We took a tour of Chase Field on Halloween. It was eerily quiet, but no one being there gave us the opportunity to sneak in a few places not normally seen on in-season tours (plus I think our rep was bored and not ready to head back to his office). I did remember to take a couple of Club House photos – our “LSU” pitcher’s locker

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and one of the few remaining favorite players of mine.

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I’m holding judgment on a couple of late season rookies.  Of course, the very next week there was talk of moving our catcher. I’m a bit disgruntled.

Quilt camp was a lot of fun and very productive for me.  Meal times were announced and we pretty much did what we wanted to the rest of the time. I managed to finish (except for borders) a quilt top.

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I have fabric for the borders just need to decide how to use it. Hoping to take care of that later this month.

I also started on my Peace and Unity BOM. Despite my continuously measuring my blocks they didn’t come out right so a few need to be unstitched and redone.  I’m loving them tho.  Here’s a couple of the 20 setting blocks.

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Here’s a couple of shots of some of the works of the talented ladies in attendance

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I’m making good progress on my SamSarah Mystery Sampler.

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I started the 3rd, and last, section last night. Glad it’s going so quickly since the new Luzzie*Kate mystery started shipping today. I’ve already seen a photo of the fibers, and they’re beautiful. I’ve just about decided to go back to And They Sinned once both mysteries are finished.

We spent the majority of today running errands, which included buying paint for my room. Today marks 3 years that I arrived in Arizona and it’s taken me this long to make up my mind. I actually found an inspiration piece at IKEA a few months back but what I wanted to do was so far out of my comfort zone it took me a bit to just go with it – plus Mister Art Student said he thought it would look good 😉 So here’s what I’ll be working with.

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(I did change the satin black to glossy after that photo.)

Last, but not least, here’s my handsome son with the love of his life, out on the town on his birthday. He still has that big bright smile.

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And remember I’m not a photographer and mostly use my phone 😀

What I have been up to

It feels like very little.

I have not had a physical activity day since Labor Day.  🙁

The 3rd I woke up and my knees and back were hurting so I didn’t go to Zumba.

The 5th I didn’t go hiking because I had a walking foot quilting class that morning and I would have had to be out there in the dark.  After seeing that huge sidewinder track, I’m not dumb enough to be out there in the dark.

Here’s my little bit of progress from class

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However, the 5th did find me sweating.  A lot.  I went to an outdoor Blake Shelton/The Band Perry/Neal McCoy concert that night and man oh man!  I swear I sweated out a pound and a half.  I actually had water running down my back.  It was worth it though:

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Saturday it started raining.

Mister and I went out to eat late Saturday afternoon and just as we were leaving to head back home the huge rain drops started.  Before we could get out of the parking lot the wind started rolling in and you could see it coming.  It was rocking my Challenger around and was rather frightening.  It was also snapping tree limbs off.  We had a huge micro-burst hit us and have probably lost my beautiful Mesa Palo Verde tree in the backyard.
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Sunday was cleanup time and lots of sewing and football.

2014-09-07 06.32.43When we headed to bed Sunday night it has just started sprinkling again.  Thunder woke me up about 2:30 Monday morning and the day just got better.  Hurricane Norbert had headed our way, and with all the rain we had Saturday our state was saturated.  I sat and watched our pool fill and the rest of the yard flood and head toward our house.  Fortunately, it never made it all the way but the roads around my area were closed, so no leaving the house.  No Zumba.  Thankfully, it wasn’t a school day for Mister.

Tuesday, I was supposed to have a hair cut but got a message from my salon that they were going to have to reschedule due to water issues so I headed to the grocery store.

Wednesday, yesterday, I completely forgot about Zumba.  I had lost track of what day of the week it was, which I sometimes do.

So, now it’s Thursday and I’m sitting here in front of the computer and I really need to be sitting in front of my sewing machine instead 😉

I have been sewing on my Scrappy BOM Challenge, Wild & Goosey blocks, and Civil War tablerunner

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One last thought.

It’s very hard for me to believe it’s been 13 years since that horrific day.  I honestly don’t think about it much anymore, except for days like this.  I know that sounds terrible, but I lived in fear every single day for 10 years while my Mister spent his last 10 years in the Marine Corps.  It’s one of those things I try very hard to forget about being a Marine Corps Wife, but it is still there in the back of my mind and I fight to not let it surface or I become a wreck, and because of that I purposefully stay away from the TV and social media because unlike a lot of other people, I do not want to remember, over and over and over.

Not a very productive needle weekend

Thinking back over the past 4 days, and can’t believe how much I didn’t get done needlework wise.  I think I spent more time out of the house this weekend than in.  I did manage to finish my portion of my friend’s round robin

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and I managed to make my working copy of the SamSarah mystery piece.

The only time spent in front of my sewing machine, though, was stuffed animal repair and reattaching the carrying strap on Mister’s canvas bag he takes to school.  Jasper and Mister are ecstatic.  Mister, of course, said it was a very productive needle weekend.  Terri thinks otherwise, since this means I didn’t get a Wild & Goosey block made 🙁

A whole lot of spending going on

Yesterday Mister and I went shopping.  It’s been a long time since the 2 of us shopped like this.  I had a list and some coupons and was on a mission to replace some things and wanted his opinion.  I love to shop with him.

First stop, not on my list but his, was Sports Chalet.  He wanted me to have an easy to carry water bottle for our hikes since he’s going to start running and leaving me hiking on my own.  He normally humps a Camelback. I also needed a whistle.  Isn’t he thoughtful?

Next was Bed, Bath and Beyond and here’s where I did some major damage.  I had 20% off coupons from before September 2011 😀  I love BB&B!

Asian Fusion Wok and Spider

Asian Fusion Wok and Spider

We eat a lot of stir fried foods and even though I lived in Okinawa for 6 years I’ve never owned a wok.  It’s been on my wish list for a long time, but it seems like other things always bumped it down the list.  I also wanted a spider since they’re great for poaching eggs.

Salad spinner, dressing carafe, storage jar, Spirooli

Salad spinner, dressing carafe, storage jar, Spirooli

I bought the cheapest salad spinner I could find.  I didn’t want a fancy one, and I wanted a small one since I normally wash our greens after I’ve chopped them.  My current dressing carafe leaks so it needed replacing.  The storage jar is the first of several I’ll be buying for my non-gluten baking goods.  And the Spirooli!  I can’t wait to start using it for zucchini noodles, etc.  Huge shout out and “thank you” to Mel for all of our back and forth texting and email conversations about this lovely 😀

Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro 7" Santoku Knife and Steel

Zwilling J.A. Henckels Pro 7″ Santoku Knife and Steel

I have had Henckels knives for about 5 years. Mister bought me paring and utility knives for Christmas one year, and it was an immediate love affair. I never knew I was that capable with a kitchen knife until I had a quality one to use. Good knives, and a good cutting board (I use bamboo), are miracle makers, and while I’ve always loved to cook, those 3 items ramped up my skills. The next year I bought myself a 5 1/2″ Santoku knife and just about swooned. It was so much better than my slicing knife. I’ve had a steel for a while, but lately my knives have felt like I needed to sharpen them more often. Yesterday, I found out that the steel I have been using wasn’t hard enough for the Henckels. I went in to the store to buy myself a Chef’s knife, but ended up with a 7″ Santoku instead after my 30 minute conversation with the “knife guy.” I had to go find Mister afterward, since he got bored and wandered off. LOL I still have that chef’s knife and a peeling knife on my wish list. I also have the bread knife, but am now considering taking it off the list since, hey!, I don’t eat bread anymore. 😉

I headed over to another store to look at sheets but decided on some at BB&B and trotted back in there to snatch them.

I have 1 more purchase to make.  I want a Lodge 6-qt Enameled Dutch Oven, and a Lodge 8-9″ skillet, then I’ll be set.

Mister’s 35 mile bike ride had him dragging and he wanted lunch at Olive Garden.  Of course, by that time it was 1:30.  What I ordered was okay, and I left food there instead of bringing it home.  Since we ate so late we ended up just having a snack at 8 last night.

I guess I’ve made up my mind about which version of Dear Jane I want to do. I had posted a photo of an Amish version in this blog post, and this morning I ordered this:

Kona Swatch Card

Kona Swatch Card

303 cotton swatches.

Still haven’t sewn this weekend. I did stitch last night during the LSU game. Boy was THAT something to raise my blood pressure.

Today’s a lazy day. A little bit of laundry, and decide how to prepare some salmon for dinner tonight, are my only have-to-dos for the day.   Want to get a Wild & Goosey block stitched up and then get on my Civil War Club tablerunner.

It’s a good weekend

Friday we hiked.  It.  Was.  Rough!  My knees weren’t happy after doing Zumba on Monday and Wednesday, plus it was 87% humidity after raining the previous 2 days.  Next week I’ll be heading out on my own while Mister runs the route.

After our showers we headed over toward ASU for Mister to pick up a study pack for one class and then to the art store for his supplies for this term.  I found a white charcoal pencil for marking dark fabrics and some perma-ink pens for labels.  I love finding quilt supplies at non-quilt stores.

Then we went to find the Farmers Market.  Boy, was THAT a disappointment.  It was a store.  Granted they had items in there that were local (meats, dairy, eggs, vegetables, etc.) but still it wasn’t the actual vendors themselves.  I felt cheated since the website made me feel that’s what I would find.  I didn’t buy anything.

During our Friday lunch out, where I ate too much, I decided I was just too tired to go to the movies.  I was actually afraid I might fall asleep so we came home instead.

I spent some time upstairs.  I printed and cut out several Wild & Goosey patterns and the remaining patterns needed for my guild BOM Challenge.  Then I managed to piece together another Wild & Goosey block.

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Later that evening I finished my version of Lizzie Kate’s Cross-Stitcher in Residence.  I haven’t decided how I’m going to finish it out, yet.

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I have a round robin piece that a friend asked me to add to then I’m probably going to start Sam Sarah’s Mystery Sampler.  I’m in love with the fabrics and fiber colors.

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Saturday we headed out to see Guardians of the Galaxy and do a couple more errands.  Came home to a good mail day.  Two reams of newsprint for paper piecing (I now have 3 paper piecing projects going), Dear Jane Quilt book, and my one and only Market purchase, The Scarlett House’s Hannah’s Brownstone.

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Dinner last night was a treat.  Mister cooked omelets.  Yummy, and no cooking for me.

This morning I decided to do my July Red Scrappy BOM Challenge block.  If you look too close you can see the red smeared a bit on the white.  Bummer, but I’ll live.  There’s a faint red streak on the bottom of my iron plate that needs to be cleaned when it cools off.

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The bulletin board over my laptop is looking very pretty.

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The icing on the cake of my good weekend is dinner at some friends tonight to celebrate a birthday.

 

Back to my regularly scheduled life

Mister started back to school today.  Yippee!  This means I’ll know what day of the week it is again, and my life will be so much smoother since I’ll have a schedule of my own.

In addition to printing off 8 more patterns for my Wild & Goosey, and the remaining 8 patterns for my Guild Scrappy BOM Challenge, I made a mini-quilt this morning

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That lovely little 16 1/2″ quilt is going to quilting class with me early next month.  I’m going to learn to do quilting designs with my walking foot.  Once it’s quilted I’ll be binding it in white and hanging it on the wall.

I picked out the fabric for my July Red Scrappy BOM

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And I found another scrappy project to put scraps aside for. 6″ pineapple block

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I’m really looking forward to seeing what all I can get accomplished being back on schedule 😀

Wow, the weekend flew by

I can’t believe it’s Monday evening, already, either.  I guess time does fly when you’re having fun.

Friday we headed back out hiking. It was so much easier this time. We got there 1 1/2 hours earlier than the last time and because it was a Friday there were fewer people so we spotted more wildlife. I saw the largest jackrabbit I’ve seen since living here, a chipmunk and this guy.

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Can you see him? Right in the middle of the picture is a very well camouflaged Sonoran Horned Lizard. He was a bit camera-shy because there were some mountain bikers zooming nearby.

This weekend was my “Virtual Quilting Retreat.”  For new followers, we treat one weekend a month the same as if we were driving/flying to a retreat.  You can stay in your pj’s if you want. I tend to not. I cook easy meals, or try to use my crock pot, and tell Mister that I’m unavailable that weekend.  It doesn’t always work out that I can sew Friday – Sunday uninterrupted, but I do tend to get a lot done when I plan it out. Right now there are 8 members and we “meet” on Facebook at the beginning of the weekend to share what we plan to work on, then Sunday evening/Monday we share what we actually got done. Pictures are highly encouraged. I want to figure out how to do link-up on my blog, so I can do that for people who don’t want to join because of Facebook.

My goals for this weekend were 2 Temecula Quilt Co. 4″ BOM blocks finished; August’s Blue and July’s Red Guild Scrappy Block of the Month Challenge; and get Son’s quilt binding finished.

Friday night was sew-in at my LQS and I’ve been taking the Temecula Quilt Co. BOMs with me since they’re all together in one container and easy to tote back and forth. I was there from 6 – 11 p.m. with a stop for dinner. I managed to complete one TQC block, get started on another one, and completely cut out the 4th (I’d previously completed the first one).

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I also bought several 1/8yd cuts of neutrals to use in my Wild & Goosey blocks

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Saturday I took a sewing break to work on a cross-stitch piece and to iron and trim out some of my scraps. These are 1.5, 2, 2.5, and 3.5 strips, bricks, and squares. The blue to the side are the strips I’m setting aside for Jamestown Landing.

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Sunday I worked on my Guild Challenge and finished up the blue block

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and then I finished Son’s quilt.

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By that time, my shoulders were very tired, and it was time for HBO’s True Blood to come on so I shut it down.

I had planned on getting started on my July Red Guild Challenge block today but my vertigo problem has cleared up so I went to Zumba this morning, then it was time for lunch, then I passed out for a nap, then I went with Mister to Lowe’s for bolts for his new pull-up bar (and a new gadget for my Featherweight), then made an egg run, then home to feed the puppies, then started our dinner, did the dishes, and here I sit at 7:30 p.m. too pooped to sew! I may pick out the fabric tonight though.

I do have a couple of new recipes to share that are delicious.  Tomorrow 😀

It’s Wild & Goosey around here

I had a lot of sewing time yesterday.  I got started on my guild block not too long after I finished my name tag.  I’m happy with my color choices and will get back to working on it later today.  I actually got 2 of these units finished

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I probably would have finished the whole block except Wild & Goosey was calling my name!  I got all the paper piecing finished on it yesterday and put the sashing in this morning.  I am in love, and it was fun remembering what projects some of the scraps were from.  I did learn one thing, and that is I don’t have very many light fabrics in my stash.  I have a decent stack of non-Civil War FQs and yardage that I will be cutting into when I start the next one.  I haven’t decided how often I’m going to make one, but I need 80 total to make the quilt as shown in Quiltmaker.

1 down.  79 to go!

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It left a wild mess on my cutting table, and I’ll be ironing and cutting into usable pieces everything there before putting it away.

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I’m trying to implement Bonnie Hunter’s Scrap User’s System.  You can just make out one of my scrap bins in the above photo, and I’m digging through it a bit at a time.  I have a similar, more stuffed one for my civil war fabrics but that’s what I use for Farmer’s Wife so I won’t be going through it until  I finish those blocks.

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