Tuesday's Tidbits

As long as I dragged my light box upstairs from the wreckage that was once my sewing room, I figured it was okay to go ahead and work on some of my applique projects.  With that in mind, I completed the October block for the Hello Sun BOM.

These blocks are so much fun to work on, and so I'm glad I was able to get it finished.  There are just two more blocks to do before they are complete.  Now I'm excited to see what November holds.

Peter, the worker, was here all day yesterday working on my sewing room.  I'm happy to say it's starting to look more like its old self.  My sewing nook is put back, except for the lighting that you see hanging toward the back.

The shelves are put back in the closet.  I'm planning to take over half of this space when I start putting things away again.

And in general, the room was looking a whole lot more put together than it has since this whole mess began. I'm pretty happy with the color.  I had in mind that I wanted the room brighter because there are no windows to let in natural light.  With that in mind, I only looked at colors that had the word "sun" in the name.  Actually, it just helped me to pare down the many, many, many yellows available.  It seemed as good a way as any.  So the color I ended up choosing is called "Sunkissed".  In general, I don't choose colors because of their name but in this case, it worked out okay.

This morning Peter was late getting here.  Mike was working from home today, and when I took off to go swimming at 10:30, no one had yet arrived to work.  I left a message with the contractor inquiring what was up, and when I came home, Peter was here working.  Today, he finished building in the cabinet where the plumbing access is.  Also, he moved the components for the burglar alarm inside the cabinet.  The whole thing looks a lot more professional now.   

I'll still hang a quilt over the cabinet to cover it, but it is so much cleaner in appearance now, and it's nice to have the components for the burglar alarm under cover with the rest of it.

So now, Peter's part of the reconstruction is finished.  The only work remaining is to come back and replace the carpet pad, restretch the carpet, and clean the carpet.  Mike vacuumed tonight to get a better look at the condition of the carpet and noted that their fans and dehumidifier left rust stains on the carpet.  If it won't come clean, I guess they'll be replacing the carpeting too.  We'll have to see what happens on that.

Since I'm very close to finishing my latest stitchery for the Love Me, Love My Cat quilt, I decided to go ahead and make the next block for the Vintage Miniature Sewing Machines quilt.  This is the 8th block (I think), and it is of the machine known as "Triumph".  

Here's a picture of the actual machine.  Unusual, no?

The information that came with the block tells me that the Triumph was manufactured in the early 1900's and was also known as the "Practical".  Typically referred to as the "doughnut" machine, it is scarce in today's world and features one of the most unusual and graphic designs ever created.  The entire body and base are made of wood, and there is a metal reinforcing frame on the back.

The body was designed with a small section of frame that could removed to allow the fabric to pass through while sewing, then replaced while not in use to keep it stable.  The machine is seldom found and rarely offered for sale.  When it can be found, machines are generally incomplete and worn because of their age, design, and material.

At varying times, machines like this were marketed as toys for children to learn and practice on, or they were marketed as travel machines to be used at a summer home or for simple mending while traveling.  The original manufacturer, H.G. Goodrich Sewing Machines, was taken over by Foley & Williams in 1896, and the machine continued in production until 1920.  The wooden "Triumph" sold for a little over $1 in the United States.

Also, today I started sewing the remaining blocks together for the White Trees quilt that I started back in July.

Two blocks were completed back in July, and I haven't worked on this quilt since.  The blocks aren't difficult, but they are a bit confusing.

When I took the project out to work on it again, I realized I didn't have the slightest idea what pieces went where or how to make them.  I had to completely re-read the instructions and figure it out again.  Then, when I started sewing them together, I did it wrong a couple of times.  Lesson learned.  I'll make all the blocks now before putting the project away again.  It's too much trouble to try to figure everything out each time to do just a few.  So that's what I'll be doing tomorrow.  I'm off to a good start already.

Our weather has been cold and rainy.  That hasn't stopped Little Mister from going outside.  He comes in soaking wet.  Usually, he's carrying a mouse that has to be liberated back to the wild.  He shakes himself off like a dog and leaves water droplets everywhere.  Then, cleanliness being next to Godliness, he takes a serious stab at eradicating the toe jam he's picked up while on his hunting excursion.  And I'll just say right here that he is a seriously good mouser.  Now if we can just convince him to keep his mice outside, everyone will be a lot happier.

Gracie, the grandma cat, has no interest in going outside.  She prefers to keep her white parts white, thank you very much.

She's not above pitching in to help corral the mice, however.  It's all in a day's work.