The Wishing Tree -- Doing the Prep

First up is marking the 1-1/2" grid in the panel portion of the quilt top. A 6"x24" ruler and a fine line water soluble marker are great for this task.

Then I used 2" binder clips, available at office supply stores, to secure the quilt backing to the tables. I have two 30"x96" banquet style tables in my workroom, also purchased at an office supply store, giving me a 60"x96" work surface.

I'm using two battings, both from Winline. I put the cotton on first and the wool on top of it. The cotton provides stability to help this quilt hang nice and straight; the wool adds loft and gives more definition to the quilting.

I keep each batting information sheet pinned to the bolt so that I always have the manufacturers recommendation for stitching distances, care and any special considerations about a particular batting. Also has Luann's phone number when I need more!

Normally I use a walking foot to stabilize the quilt by straight stitching seams between blocks. Panels are different in that there are no blocks, no seams, just a single piece of fabric. Sometimes there are areas within a panel to do this type of stabilizing, but not this one.

Since my plan is to quilt the entire panel with free motion techniques, I'm pinning much heavier than my normal "about every 4 inches". This extra pinning will also keep everything from shifting -- I have to keep in mind that I have two battings and absolutely no stabilizing stitches.

My plan is to outline the tree first and then the leaves. I'll pick threads tomorrow morning when I have natural light in my workroom; I'm blessed with a north facing window and lots of California sunshine!

But we quilters never have enough space, do we? Here's where I cut my batting, in the guest room!

I did most of the pinning after I got home from shopping with my friend and fellow quilter Linda Petrik. That's Linda in the picture below; we were at White House Black Market and I loved this skirt, but they didn't have it in my size. Couldn't order it in the store because it was on sale, so when I got home I checked online and...

SCORE!!

Quilt is pinned, skirt on its way, life is good!

Bake Something Delicious!

We promote quilting classes on Craftsy quite often.  Their classes are amazing and we love quilting so it's a logical match.  But did you know that Craftsy offers classes on LOTS of other hobbies??

And they're having a big sale this weekend!!  ALL classes are under $20!!

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What will you make this weekend??

Mermaid Hair!

Hair day seems to take forever -- it really does take all day! So I just bring a good book and enjoy the talented and creative people who enjoy working on someone who will let them do anything they want.

First, I go to Krista, who sews in some extensions to give my hair more fullness:

Then to Tina, who adds the color and does the cut.

The mermaid hair comment came from an adorable 10 year old, who said "Nana, you have mermaid hair! I liked it better when you had unicorn hair."

I said, "Unicorn hair???"

Lauren answered, "You know! When it was pink and yellow and sparkly?"

Ummm....maybe next month?

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My Style Sunday: Stitch Fix #26

As always, I eagerly anticipated the arrival of my next Fix. Those of you who have read previous blog posts about Stitch Fix know that every few weeks a box arrives at my house with five items of clothing in it. I get to try them all on, mixing them with stuff I already own, and then decide what I want to keep and what I'll send back in the enclosed postage paid envelope.
Since spring will be here soon, new goodies for the season will be great! Between now and the arrival of my next Fix, I'm going to North Carolina for a few days and spending some time at home. North Carolina will probably be about the same temperatures as here and maybe a little rain.

The first two items out of the box were a white lace top and a pair of pink pants. I knew I liked the top, but didn't know how I was going to work it in; the fabric of the pants was a little thin and produced a visible panty line, so they were definitely a Return.

Rear view confirmed my decision -- return the pants and keep the top.

Next was the blue blouse; I grabbed a pair of my own black pants for this picture. Didn't think the blouse was particularly flattering, so it's also a Return.

The black lace pencil skirt was the next thing out of the box -- really liked the way it fit, love lace! It's a keeper. Not sure about it with the white top, though, so let's play!

First I tucked it in and belted it -- nope, not a good look!

However, the last item out of the box was a 3/4 sleeve cardigan with some great detailing in the front -- Score! Now I can keep the skirt AND the cardigan and have a great outfit for spring!

I was still determined to work the top in, so started going through some of my other skirts. This one is from White House Black Market and the ivory colors really work well together. However, I wanted more of the skirt to show. Back to the closet!

Grabbed a vest that I bought from Cache (it was such a bummer when that whole chain closed!), tucked in the top and now I have another outfit for spring.

Outcome for this fix: Pink pants, returned; blue blouse, returned; black lace pencil skirt, kept; black/white cardigan, kept; white lace top, kept. That's pretty good! Three pieces kept, two great outfits! Cost for the three pieces was about $175, but since you pay a $20 styling fee up front each time, that was subtracted from the cost as well as another credit that I had from someone else who doesn't love or have time to shop signing up through my link on the blog. So the three pieces were $130, within what I consider a reasonable price range for a skirt, cardigan and top.

Next fix will arrive April 1 -- can't wait! Hope it isn't an April Fool's Day thing!

I'm participating in a fun Stitch Fix Linky Party HERE!!  Check it out!

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Linking to Crazy Together