Friday, January 31, 2014

Must Make Kits

Note  to Self:  Make More Kits.  I love them!

I pulled another kit off the shelf. I put this one together perhaps 2 years ago. I cut the strips at the time I made the kit, so I could sit down and start to sew within minutes of pulling it off the shelf.  The first step of the sewing went really fast, in spite of the two strips I sewed in the wrong order.  Can you guess what pattern I am making?

I am using the book Tradition with a Twist. The pattern is Sunshine and Shadow.  I always thought that pattern had all the squares radiating out from the center in color order. This one makes a bunch of little ones.  Boy! These squares are sure fast and easy. What a great way to use up stash fast.  Might be something I could plan on. I wanted the strips set sewn together before quilting tonight when the girls come. It's nice to have something ready to work on when the come over so I don't waste time while they are here. Tonight I will start making the rows.


And don't you love the way this fabric is manufactured in a variety of widths.  I wonder what's going on.  I have been sewing long enough to recall that it used to be either 36"/38" wide (quit making in mid 70's) or 44"/45".  I think it is rare to find it that wide anymore. The two long ones here are probably 12-15 years old. I needed a minimum of 40" for this pattern and the shortest comes in at 40 1/2". No problems yet, but one slip of the ruler could screw that up. Good thing I have enough extra if that happens.

I recall one time a fabric I preshrunk lost almost 4" in width.  That's very unusual cause it usually shrinks in length and minimally in width. And FYI, patterns are typically written  for 40" usable width of fabric. Knowing that, you might want to be sure not to trim too much off the ends when you remove the selvage.  

Has anyone else noticed how hungry the wildlife is this year? The snow is kinda deep for them to find food. In the last two days we have had eating birdseed ON  the back deck not just the birds and squirrels but also a rabbit and a deer. The deer were all over the back yard last night.  I dug the icy snow off the English Ivy yesterday.  I like the way the deer prune that in the winter and help keep it from spreading out of control. They found it. Glad we don't have bear here, though they should  be hibernating now.
I'm linking to a new linky party. Sarah Craig hosts "Can I get a Whoop Whoop" linky party on Fridays. Be sure to visit. The linky parties are like on-line magazines to me.  Thank you Sarah.

2 comments:

Cathy said...

Great idea to make up kits. We just get birds and bunnies here. The birds fly in and fill our feeders. We even have a hawk that hangs out in our backyard. Hugs

Anonymous said...

I love kitting things up too. It is so nice when I can't decide what to work on to be able to just pull something off the shelf and go for it. Love your Trip Around the World quilt.