Hope to get the backing done and sandwich made for the star quilt that I need to get to next. Bought fall pillow fabric too. Here's hoping I actually get to it!

Probably no sewing for me - I'm painting my sewing room! Got the paint, stuff's off the walls, hubby's spackled all the holes, so I'm ready to start taping first thing in the morning.

Maybe I can get time to make the new valance on Sunday. :)

Donna

Ooh, ooh, working on the sewing room counts Donna! That's exciting stuff as is buying fabric.

Yesterday I finished cutting up the last of the stack of jeans for denim patches to make rag quilts with. My son and grandson save them for me. They thought of that without me even asking. It tickles me when men notice things like that.

I am just healing from a two week bout with a particularly nasty upper respiratory-turned sinus infection. The doc asks me which antibiotics work for me and I had to tell her that I haven't had to take one in the last quarter century, so wouldn't know. All the years I worked my greenhouse, I never got sick. Then I retired and I've been out of commission four times this year and it's been humbling. LOL

Calliope, have you considered setting up your quilting studio in the greenhouse??? I don't go to the doctor to get antibiotics unless I'm just about to die. I try to let my own immune system knock it out first. I did discover the netti pot for sinus problems. Most people shudder and say "no way" after describing what to do with them, but they really work. Any sewing this weekend will be on the star quilt. I'm back down to my usual one-project-at-a-time routine, I guess I have tunnel-vision.

WE'RE QUILTING!!!! At retreat, that is!

So far I think there are 5 quilt tops done, 1 quilt binding sewn on, and a whole lot of blocks & components in process!

Everyone made it here safely by about 5:00pm And we've been busy sewing and chatting and eating ever since.

2 of us 'owls' made it until 12:45a and the last two 'owls' went to bed about 2am. 1 from each of these groups is the first rise & get started today!! lol

There will be more official updates today sometime!

YES !!!!

I've another one who likes to doctor myself, but last weekend I wound up at the local walk-in clinic because I let my sinus infection go from bad to worse. Last weekend the word of the day was "delerious"...lol. I know I had a fun weekend, I just don't remember it! And you'd think I'd get a lot done with a week off from work, right? Wrong! I just haven't felt up to doing anything. I'm slowly improving though, with the help of some antibiotics. Yesterday I went out of the house for the first time in a while, and headed straight for joanns. I bought some fabric and fall decorations, all at 50% off. Hurray for me! I'm going back to work tomorrow, and I'm hoping to go thru my stash and straighten it out either Sunday or Monday. Hopefully, after that happens I'll have found my machine again. Right now it's buried beneath fabric.
To all of you retreaters: Have fun!
To anyone else who's sick: Get well soon!
To everyone: HAPPY WEEKEND!

Dan

Dan, I'm sorry you have been so sick! Glad to hear you felt well enough to go FABRIC SHOPPING! :)

Today I got 2 coats of paint on the walls in the sewing room. Tomorrow I plan to re-tape and paint the door frames and baseboards. I'm hoping to get stuff back on the walls and everything back together on Sunday.

Donna

Lol! Donna, I wanted to get out of the house and needed somewhere I could go, and make it a short trip. I was gone for an hour, and glad to be home when I got back. This sinus infection has really kicked my posterior...lol!

I am so envious of all of you at Camp Cheerio! Sounds like you are having a great time and getting lots done. My guild retreat is in Nov. and I can't wait.

Dan and Calliope, I feel for you. I have very bad allergies and this year has been the worst I can remember. I feel like I am always sick and I am tired all the time too. I can't wait for the frost to arrive!!!

I am plugging away on my Sylvia's Bridal Sampler blocks. I got 2 more done this week and hope to get some sewing done this weekend. It is Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada so have pies to make and turkey bake so will try to fit sewing in somewhere.

Have a great weekend everyone and to those of you feeling under the weather, stay warm and rested and get well soon!

Mary

Today I am working on the Mushroom block for the Mario quilt. This afternoon I had a FED-EX delivery of a quilt book from my DD for my birthday which is tomorrow. She sent me "A New Light on Storm at Sea Quilts". She has the book and I had told her I wanted to get it too. I love it!
Linda OH

Linda, that book looks really cool! Happy birthday tomorrow!

The painting is done...I'm just waiting for it to dry so I can start putting my room back together!
Donna

Dan, glad you're mending. I take a host of sprays and rinses to hold sinus troubles at bay. You're reminding me to be vigilant. Tis the season!

Linda OH Happpy Birthday and what a thoughtful daughter.

Happy Birthday Linda!

Now, dig in and enjoy!
Dan

I had a friend mention that he remembered biscuit/puff quilts from years ago and asked if I'd ever made one. I haven't, but I looked up the directions online and tried to make a few "biscuits". Too much work! I'd never make a whole quilt like that!

However, my machine started giving me fits when I was working on that little experiment... The automatic thread trimmer began cutting the thread too short and the needle was coming unthreaded every time I started stitching. It's never done that before and it is super annoying. So I took it all apart and cleaned out the bobbin area... Had an awful time trying to take the needle plate off because I couldn't find a screw driver small enough.... then I realized a nickel would work perfectly, so I tried that and it did! I cleaned it out, and couldn't get the bobbin case back in right, it rattled and wouldn't seat properly and the machine would make about 3 stitches and then lock up.... I was up until 6 this morning cussing at that stupid machine and fiddling with it.... the cussing helped more than the fiddling :o) I finally got it back to where it would make stitches, but it makes new noises now. I changed the needle, thread, and bobbin, and the thread cutter seems to work better with a different thread, though I've never had a problem before with the thread I'd been using. I guess it's time for service and I just had it in the shop a few months ago for routine maintenance. Not quilting today, I need to spend so quality time away from my machine for a while... maybe absence will make the heart grow fonder and the silly thing will behave when I try it again!

Have any of you ever had a problem with the thread trimmer cutting the thread too short and making the needle come unthreaded? I googled it, and I'm not the only one to experience this problem. Even people with Janomes and Berninas seem to have this problem sometimes, but apparently the dealer can adjust the thread trimmer. I just don't know why it would work perfectly for years and then start having a problem for no reason!

I found a perfect Kenmore machine for my grandmother on C/L for 30 bucks, and I was going to go get it today, but the lady sold it out from under me :o( The search continues...

Happy Birthday, Linda

Dan and Calliope, I'm sorry you've been ill. I can't imagine anything worse than sinus infection (though back and tooth pain come to mind as close seconds).... when I get them, I rush the walk in clinic and get amoxicillian, they aren't anything to play around with!

Calliope, get well wishes to you too! Missed that you'd been ill until I read the late posts.

Vac, when my thread cutter starts acting up, it's usually because it has thread stuck in it, but it sounds like you've cleaned it all out. Sorry your day was so frustrating! I had to have Big Brother serviced recently, too...turned out there was a nick in the bobbin case.

I got my valance made today and when DH got home from work we hung the stuff back on the walls and got the room put back together. I'll post pictures soon!

Donna

I got my fabric sorted out yesterday... whew, what a job! I found fabric cut and sorted for projects in little bundles, but now I can't remember where I was going with them...lol! Anyone else ever do that? I also found enough strips to finish a string quilt, and all sorts of blocks cut into various sizes. One of these I think I just might start sewing them all together with no pattern in mind, and see what happens...lol!
Bump lost his bed in the fabric shelves, unfortunately for him. He really does like to sleep there, but he's got more hidey-holes than I know of, so he can give me that one. We still haven't found where he goes in the afternoon for his nap, and we've searched the house high and low. Personally, I'm beginning to think he slips into another dimension for a few hours each day, then comes back here when he wakes up. (I'm I showing my nerdy Star Trek side now?)
I did manage to sew a birthday block last night and get it ready for mailing on Tuesday, so that was good. AND, I found my sewing desk!!! How cool is that??? It's been hiding beneath a huge pile of fabric for a while now, but now it's come out of hiding so I think I'll do more sewing this afternoon.

I'd say I made some progress this weekend, wouldn't you?

Talk to y'all later.
Dan

Oh, no, Dan...I've never run across a bundle of fabric and couldn't remember what it was for! Ever! LOL

Aren't cats great at disappearing? Just like the Cheshire cat. And then you turn around and they are sitting right there, looking like, "What?"

Saturday George was in the garage - fortunately I saw him getting hidden or I wouldn't have known he was still out there! He squished himself between the air handler and the wall in a space about big enough for a bug. What a goober.

Donna

Donna, I'd love to see a picture of your valance and the freshly painted sewing room! Thanks for the comment about the threader.... I a glad that I'm not the only one who has issues, not that I'm happy other people do :o) It seems fine now, but I'm thinking that the bobbin case is in need of replacement... I think it just wore out....

Would you guys believe that I had a dream that there was a quilters retreat in FL last night? It was at the hotel that I stayed in when I went to St. Pete... The Grand Plaza... I'd just gone to my room on the 2nd floor (when I went for real, I was on the 5th floor, but in the dream it was the 2nd!) and unloaded my machine... looked out the window and saw Kate coming in with her machine and I was just going down to greet her when the freaking cat woke me up to feed him! Pretty crazy to have a dream about a quilt retreat LOL I wish the cat hadn't woken me up, I wanted to meet everyone and see how it turned out :o) I think I'm going to buy an automatic feeder and see if I can resume the dream where it left off ;o)