9/30/16

Peace and Quiet

Mike and Matthew have taken off on their weekend ATV trip, and I have the weekend to myself. Bliss! They went off with a refrigerator full of food, and I baked their favorite cookies this morning. At the very least, they'll eat well.

After they left, I did a little organizing in the sewing room. My quilts from the show were still sitting around in bags. The Quilting Snowladies are hanging in the sewing room now, having replaced the Psycatdelic quilt. Here's what the judges had to say about the Quilting Snowladies:


The "very well done" on the embroidery stitches made me happy. I was a little confused with the "outside borders" comment. It's hard to tell from the picture below because it was lying on the floor with me standing on a barstool trying to take a picture from above. This requires that I hold the camera with one hand while simultaneously holding on to the ceiling with the other hand while leaning precariously forward and trying not to fall. (Stop laughing.) And all of that to say that the picture probably isn't a true measure of whether the "outside borders" are straight.


And besides...technically, there is no outside border since the blocks are sashed on all four sides and then bound. But now we're probably arguing semantics. In any case, I asked Mike what he thought they meant. He thought potentially the quilt had been trimmed unevenly (certainly possible) or that the sashings bowed a little because of the piecing (also a possibility). I'm only belaboring this because I want to understand the criticism so that I can improve next time. Anyway...I still love the Quilting Snowladies, not-straight borders and all.

As for Seating for Two, this is what they had to say:


So I like that, and I plead guilty to all "tension issues" comments. My tension issues are improving, and so that's something. 


And then this morning I was reminded via Facebook that the deadline for entering Road to California is Monday. Until then, I had no plans to enter Road to California, but then I thought, why not? If I get in, I'll be thrilled. If I don't get in, it's no big deal. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. On the other hand, I figure I can greatly improve my odds by entering, right? So I coughed up the $15 entry fee (for online entries) and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. They're supposed to notify entrants by November 28th.

After that, I went downstairs to continue with And On that Farm. The farm cat likes this because it's an excellent time to catch up on her beauty sleep.


The other cat is annoyed because he can't go outside when I'm downstairs. He was being extremely helpful throughout.


Is my tail in your way? Oh sorry. You could solve that purroblem by letting meowt. Just sayin'...


When I came upstairs to write this post, I'd finished Barn H and its associated field. This section won't be finished until I add a fence and some sheep. I'm hoping to do a little more today, and maybe this part will be finished. 


My weekend is my own, but tomorrow I'm going to can some more tomatoes. I have another 12 lbs. that are going to be turned into plain old diced tomatoes. 


There are still more coming, but they are small. If I decide to can them, I'll probably make another batch of tomato jam. It doesn't require seeding or peeling, and I think I can muster enough energy to do one more batch.

For now, I think I'll bask in the peace and quiet for a bit and then head back into the sewing room for a while. I'll be announcing a giveaway on the blog tomorrow. Be sure to check back.

10 comments:

WilmaNC1 said...

I give your quilts a ribbon!! Love them both. Keep entering and learning what they want.

Debbie said...

You are brave to enter judged shows!!! Don't understand the issue with Snowladies either. But they use a tape measure technique---measure in 3 places and all should match....squaring up is vital. And always remember...each judge is human and looks for certain things. So go for it and learn from the experience.

gpc said...

I think Debbie's comments about the borders makes sense -- a tape measure is an easy way to check. Of course, my solution would be to write back to the judges and suggest they get a life. But that's why my sewing looks like it does and why yours looks fabulous.

Kate said...

Maybe they have special rulers to measure skewness or such? You should have the resident engineer check on that, I bet he could find out. Still, as you say it's all about learning and getting better. I love your barns for this next project. They do look a little "out in space" when you have them on the cutting mat. It's like they've been green screened. (It's Friday, so it's my eyes and not the photos. Too much Excel this week).

Quilting Babcia said...

Oh, I like the word "skewness" and need to add that to my quilt vocabulary! You're moving right along with the new farm quilt, this one seems to be going much easier than the first one. I vote for tomato jam, makes the house smell wonderful. Enjoy your sewing weekend!

Quilting Babcia said...

Oh, I like the word "skewness" and need to add that to my quilt vocabulary! You're moving right along with the new farm quilt, this one seems to be going much easier than the first one. I vote for tomato jam, makes the house smell wonderful. Enjoy your sewing weekend!

Vroomans' Quilts said...

Entering judged shows has to be taken as a learning process. Yes, a sashed outside, but still a border - a pieced border that with every seam can take a change in measurement. Judges don't measure - but they have been doing their process for a long time and can take easy note of little things out of place. Sometimes it has to be that tiniest of things that means a ribbon or not.

beaquilter said...

your quilts are great and I get baffled too at judges comments, then other times I'm blown away that I get a ribbon because whatever quilt I did I didn't think was SUPER great....you just never know. Did you get a ribbon?

quiltzyx said...

Overall good comments on your quilts! Congrats, even if no ribbons this time. What are you entering in Road to CA?

Brown Family said...

I am glad they give you comments on your quilts. I am not sure about that straight borders comment. I see that a lot from other friends quilts!