Hau’oli Makahiki Hou!

Posted on January 1, 2012 by Kim

That is Hawaiian for Happy New Year!

My sewing machine is having a “spa treatment” (aka being serviced to make it to its best). A part in the bobbin area broke. The tension was WAY off and it was not sewing very well at all.

It is a Janome 6500. I want to name it. I have had it a while, but since she is going to be my travel machine only in a few months, I feel I owe it to her. She has been through a lot. She has been faithful to me. She keeps on ticking after the beating she has gotten (a cracked screen because my daughter sat on my case when she was in it). I snapped off a spool holder when I had left a cone of thread on it when I put it in the case. So she needs a name that is a strong name. Something that has character! Any ideas?

Yep, you probably guessed it, I will be getting a new machine in February. My big surprise from “Santa” was permission to buy a new machine when our tax refund gets here. I will be getting a Janome 6600. Why not a Horizon, you ask?

Well, many reasons. If I had known when I was buying my 6500 that the 6600 was coming out, I would have waited a bit. Secondly, I have all the accessories (case, sew-ezi table, etc) that fit the 6500 and the 6600 is the same size and shape as the 6500 so I don’t have to go buying more stuff to fit it. Lastly, the price difference between the 6600 and the horizon is just too much. I can’t wait until I am able to go down and get it!

Rebekah’s Fancy

Posted on October 2, 2011 by Kim

My neighbor Rebekah moved this past weekend back to the mainland. In addition to being an awesome neighbor and friend, we were blessed with some of the things they didn’t want to move with them; their grill among many other things. It is timely because we were debating buying a new grill because ours was starting to rust really bad (the salty air is not good for grills here!) but didn’t want to spend a lot of money for just under two years. While the movers will move them, the cleaning requirements is just unreal for them.

Rebekah LOVES purple. She constantly joked with me that she wanted me to make her a quilt. She never really expected it (especially when her move came very suddenly). It was always my intention to teach her to quilt. She showed interest, but with a younger daughter and then last year home-schooling her children, it wasn’t a possibility.

When I found out she was moving a few weeks ago, I really wanted to make her a quilt. I looked in my stash, naturally, for something purple. I really didn’t have anything. Then I was organizing some older projects and came across the blocks for this. They have been finished for a few years (like four) just awaiting the perfect setting for the quilt.

I never bought the finishing kit for this BOM quilt. I had bought several yards of the white fabric that is in it because I lucked upon it when I was out shopping one time when we lived in Washington. I decided it was time to finish it and give it to her. I even had the perfect backing and binding fabric that was accidentally bought a few months ago . I thought it was a different color online and bought enough for another project. It was meant to be!

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After I showed it at guild this past Monday night, I was coming home and she and her husband was in their garage finishing up last minute things before the packers came the next day. Though I had planned on giving it to her in a gift bag, the opportunity was perfect. That way if she wanted to pack it with her household goods she could.

We will miss having you as a neighbor, Rebekah!

Puzzled

Posted on September 25, 2011 by Kim

My husband recently took a trip to Japan and came back with some gifts for us. My daughter got a Barbie and my son got some Japanese Pokémon cards (which just made his day!). My husband brought me this:

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Which was a bunch of itty bitty legos.

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It took me a bit (especially since I can’t read Japanese), but I finished it.

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He also brought back these two puzzles also:

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I think I will wait a bit until I tackle these.

Super Secret Projects

Posted on May 15, 2011 by Kim

Super Secret Project #3

A while back, I mentioned I was unable to show some of the projects that I was working on… my Super Secret Projects. Tomorrow I will share Projects 2 & 3

First up, a quilt for my husband. While he was deployed this last time I wanted to make him a quilt for Fathers day. He is a HUGE Steelers fan and I saw this pattern in a magazine a while back and thought it was be a great fit for him if I could ever find the fabric for it. Well Stitchin’ Heaven shop offered kits and I just had to buy one. I didn’t like the black fairy frost with this though and really didn’t think my husband would want a kit with silver glitter on it. I substituted Jet Black Moda Bella solid for that and it turned out awesome! Here it is in flimsy stage:

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And here he is enjoying it:

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It has minkie on the back and My friend Susan quilted it for me. I had decided to give it to him early… I can’t keep a secret, plus I needed to get it out of my sewing room to make more room for something else!

Sweet 16

Posted on February 2, 2011 by Kim

sweet16 16 years ago today I married my high school sweetheart. There have been ups and downs and ins and outs, but never did I go to sleep angry at him. I hope the same is true for him.

We have spent birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays apart due to his being deployed, but I think that because we do cherish the days we do get to spend together, it makes us more connected. “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” is never more true for any two individuals as it is for us. I grow more in love with him every day – not to say that I am not angry sometimes with him, that is a marriage.

He got me (well I ordered it for him so I got exactly what I wanted) a Tutto Bag for my 6500. In Lime green… from I Have A Notion. He calls Kelly my “Dealer” because she keeps my supplied with tools for my habit. He calls her inventory “Quilter’s Crack”.

Here is a picture of a bag like I got:

teehehe – now I don’t have to lug my machine hoping it won’t get wet on rainy days when I go to my bees. It has plenty of storage, I can’t wait to try it out this weekend at my Sassy Bee! Thank you baby for the most awesome gift! I have been wanting one of these for years.