H1N1 or How My Brain Fried

I thought I had a normal bad cold that turned into the absolute worst sinus infection I have ever had. The headache was so horrible. Doc says it's H1N1. Anyway, I first started getting symptoms 8 days ago and I'm still sick. So, fellow crafters, make sure you have what you need because you will not want to go anywhere while you recuperate.

I finished the binding on the lap quilt I was working on and it is complete. I'll give it its own entry after I have a photo. Other than that, I've been working on swap blocks. I should have read the swap instructions more carefully. I'm virtually making an entire top worth of blocks and this is a bit more work than I was planning. The pattern is Kansas Troubles and I have most of the fabric cut now. Started sewing some HSTs already. My goal is to get these blocks done by Saturday so that I can mail on Monday.

I have done no knitting or crocheting since I got sick. Between being really miserable and now coughing all the time, I just didn't want to deal with it. Handling yarn after you've been coughing a ton is just plain icky.

Being sick is always a good time for a movie marathon, if your head isn't pounding. This time around, I chose the entire Star Wars series. I honestly don't think I saw Episode 3 before, so I'm looking forward to it. I am watching them in the order they came out (i.e. 4, 5, 6, then 1, 2, 3).

Other Projects

Alas, due to a family illness, I have completed quite a bit more of the crocheted Ladybug Afghan. Now, all 35 blocks are done as are 9 ladybug bodies and several pairs of wings. I have to do the circles for the wings at home (that black is just hard to crochet in all but bright light), so I am seeing this going along at a quick pace.

I have 4 pairs of socks that will continue to be worked on until done. As far as the From the Top Down KAL on Ravelry, I'm on hold until November and December. During those months, only a basic sock is being done, so I'm pretty confident I can get those done during the month. In fact, one will just be a redo of what I started in August (sock toe was too big so I'll just start over). I really need to find a better backdrop for sock photos though. Hmmm...

After the first of the year, I'll be hanging up the knitting needles and returning to cross-stitching until Summer. Well, yes, I'll finish the started socks, but the rest of my sock yarn will be packed away until I get one or two cross stitch projects completed.

Finally, yes, the quilting projects continue. I just finished tying and trimming a scrap quilt yesterday. Then, I need to work on the quilting for my Mom's winter wallhanging. That won't actually take that long, but because I don't have a lot of pins, it's taking longer than expected. I need to quilt one area, then repin, and it's a pain.

Train Quilt is Done!

Here's the final photo of the Train Quilt. Hard to get it all to fit in! The primary pattern is Square-in-a-Square. The final measurements are 45x96 inches, perfect for a recliner. I used 2 layers of Soft n Crafty Hi Loft and tied it using Cascade 220 wool yarn. I agree that I didn't trim the blocks correctly, but nobody seems to notice that around here (if you can't see it from the photo, it doesn't exist, right? I used 5 different train fabrics on this (still have one left over to use somewhere else) and as always, I used some solid colored fabric to give the eye some place to rest as well as frame the novelty fabrics. The backing is just a plain brown flannel from Joann's. The kitties, especially Bart, already approve of the quilt.

If you have never done square in a square, here is a link. I recommend making your squares 1/4 inch larger and trim to correct size (1/4 inch beyond edge extra for sewing line).
http://www.allthingsfrugal.com/square.in.a.square.htm

Quilting Projects This Week

First, the Train Quilt was completed last week. We've had a lot of rain, so hopefully, I can post a photo soon. This week, I'm working on 2 quilt projects. One is Big Busted and the other is Winter Fun. Here's a link my original posting of those projects.
http://waytoomuchstash.blogspot.com/2009/05/big-busted-is-busted.html

Big Busted is a finished top from a quilt-a-long at Stashbusters earlier this year. I am piecing together thick batting from tying previous quilts to make a batting for this one. Whatever batting is left over will go into a cat pad for my precious pets. I have one more strip of batting to complete my batting for the center. This part has been a comfy TV project. I have abandoned the idea of using pieced flannel for the back. I don't have enough of coordinating colors and I don't want it to look weird either since this is a lap quilt for the living room. I'll look at Joann's and see what I can find in the way of Snuggle flannel. The scraps will be used in the cat pad.

Winter Fun was a swap from QuiltingAroundTheWorld.com last winter. The top is done, I want to complete the quilt this month. Currently, it is pinned and I've done a small amount of quilting. This will be the first quilt where I'm using different quilting motifs in every block. It will be a wall quilt, so I will be adding a sleeve to the back.

I've had several requests from family members for wall quilts, so I think this winter, I can look forward to a few small projects. My sister threw out ideas such as fish, deer, loons. Her goal is to reduce the sound in her home (lots of wood floors). I do have a pattern for a large deer quilt, but honestly, I don't think that she has a wall that can accommodate it. I have a number of fish quilts I can do including realistic lake/river fish. For my bro, he HAS the wall space, but his interests are hard to gauge. I'm thinking anything forest-like that includes wild animals would work for him. When I get to him, maybe I'll show him some pattern ideas. He likes tapestries without a ton of detail.

Did a couple of other little sewing projects this week. Used some Vikings and U of M Gopher polar fleece to make a kitty pad for my dad's cat (for use while watching games) and a 16 inch square pillow for my BIL. Made a pillow case for my bro that matches the flannel on the back of his winter quilt (the Citrus Stars). The small amounts left over will go into more cat pads.

Ladybug square

Ladybug square
Originally uploaded by Tarana5

After more than a year of working on this afghan, I have finally completed one ladybug! Sorry for the washed out appearance. I guess I need to take these photos outside during the DAY! This ladybug has a very 3 dimensional look to it and is just so darn cute. There is also a 3 dimensional daisy square, but it just doesn't show up at all with a flash. After counting, I still have one more white square to do (darn it all!), but my current goal is to complete this project before the end of the year. I'll continue to treat it as a take-a-long project until December, but then finish anything remaining.

This adorable crocheted ladybug is a purchased pattern by Maggie Weldon. You can get it at www.maggiescrochet.com.