All Puffed Up

 

Don’t tell my guests but I removed some stuffing from one of the guest room pillows to finish stuffing all 291 puffs. Some may be under stuffed and some may be too plump. It is tempting to make them nice and fat but then they are impossible to join together. I suppose if I was going to be exact I would have to use some “drug dealer” scales but I went for what size of fluff ball could fit into my closed fist. The next thing will be to put them together in blocks of 9 to distribute the prints randomly.

I had another busy work week not longarm quilting. I taught a 2 day ruler class which went down very well - one participant went as far as saying it was the best class she had ever attended. There is already a waiting list for the next one which will take place in September. My next teaching session is looming fast - Longarm Mastery, a day getting to know the Q-Series then a creative day to follow. Because I am so versatile, I spent the whole next day packing more than 80 parcels in the warehouse. It is easy when the goods will fit into a Jiffy bag but when you have to repurpose an old box it becomes a bit more challenging. My last work day of the week was spent checking the inventory of all of the display model sewing machines. Despite my best efforts to make sure all of the bits and pieces for each model were present and correct before Christmas, several items had been “borrowed” and not been put back in the right place.

I was secretly glad that it continued to be wet over the weekend as my cottage is like a little fortress once I am inside. After Nessie has been for her daily walks I try not to go anywhere since I am happy pottering around, doing insignificant little jobs like touching up the black paint on the door handles and screwing in some more hooks for damp dog jackets in my tiny lobby. When my sister phoned I was whining about having to go out and get milk from the garage that is literally across the road.

The remaining tasks on my weekend list include brushing Nessie and putting out the recycling. After that I am free to sew / read / cook or come up with some other pointless activity;)

Some of What I Do Best

Some of the 2 day classes at QD do not have the serve-yourself tea and coffee table so I become a high-speed waitress, running about with cups of tea and plates of cake. I suppose it is good practise for the day when I open a beach cafe with a very limited menu. 

Later in the week I got some of my video equipment charged up and made a wee movie of my colleague, Karen, doing an Accuquilt demo for Ellen’s quilt group in Glasgow. I had great fun doing that and editing out the bit where she got in a muddle and might have said a rude word;)

I have my own 2 day class on Ruler Quilting this coming week and I have assembled all of the materials but have kept on putting off writing the lesson plan. I have taught it before but it is good to make it slightly better each time. I will do it on Sunday, just like last minute homework. I will try not to make coleslaw, celeriac mash, another 30 pockets for the puff quilt, and take Nessie for a walk before I have done my planning…

As per usual, I have spent my weekend making bread and fruit cake, trashing the kitchen juicing all of my manky fruit and veg, having a peek at the leaky shed roof, and trying not to be tempted to cut the grass just because the sun came out. I am going to pretend that I have not seen the damp patch in the back bedroom. I have put Zinsser primer/stain blocking paint on my shopping list for when it eventually dries out. 

Life's Minutiae

 

Considering that I am a person who owns more than just a few cameras and a smart phone that can take photos, I have absolutely no pictures to document my week. It was a busy one too. I had class prep to do at work and a DIY quilter. 

Matt Wilding came to run one of his heart-shaped bag making workshops and he stayed with me. He was a model guest - we even went out for posh fish and chips. Nessie  loved having someone else in the house but I have become very used to my own space so even though he was a fantastic guest it was quite nice to have the place to myself again and watch rubbish on YouTube. 

I managed to get about 50 pockets done on the puffy Quilt. I suppose it’s going to take ages to stuff them all the pockets, but it’s not as if I’m in a hurry unless I think I’m not going to do any sewing projects once I get back into the garden. 

On one of my days off I was amazed at how easy it is that one small job leads to another. Perhaps I’ll just wipe the dust off the mirror or deal with that little patch of mould in the bathroom and before I know it the whole day has gone by in a whirl of little chores. Like dealing with the recycling, which I dread but probably takes me all of five minutes. 

I must actually do some serious preparation for my own forthcoming classes at Quilt Direct in ruler quilting, free motion quilting and Longarm master classes. I’ve done it all before but it’s just as well to be prepared and to make the odd tweak here and there.

February Unlocked

 

I have survived a long, wet January. I am thankful that I did not have several feet of Scottish snow, icy temperatures and probably power cuts but it seemed like every time I stepped out of my door I got very wet. It made a lovely change to wander into town on Nessie’s 6th birthday to see a spring-like display of crocuses. 

I had a different week at work - due to a last minute cancellation, I was able to be a pupil in the 4-day intensive B990 training course. There are interesting crossovers between the B990 and the computerised side of the Q24 longarm machines. As long as I practise what I learned by using the machine regularly, I will be able to do all sorts of projects and more importantly, explain how the machine works to other members of staff and customers.

I am hosting Matt Wilding again this week so I spent a whole day doing chores, even washing the floors by hand. I stuck some Hama bead shapes to the wall and framed up some prints in IKEA frames. I must be aware that there is a fine line between Cottagification and Hoarding. I was not responsible for cleaning the old house so I never noticed how much black fluff Nessie produces. The idea is that I can sew all day on Sunday, guilt free although now that the sun is out I should probably be outside pressure washing the green, slimy back yard. 

I visited Mel in Looe but it was blowing a hoodie so we stayed away from the sea. I showed her my French seam method of making puffs and she is now inspired to use her Liberty charm squares that she had been “saving”. I sewed a few puffs during the week which made me feel quite productive although I have realised that they end up smaller than the 4” that I was hoping for so I made need to make more puffs than I bargained for. 

I spotted a handy IKEA pegboard hack online - Bernina feet fit very nicely into the Skadis key hanger. Apparently, some people attach the pegboard onto the Raskog trolleys so everything is at hand. I was up in my craft / spare room the other night using my old iron when I was plunged into darkness as it tripped the electrics. Maybe it is finally time to admit that it has reached its sell-by date.