Feeling Sheepish

It was an unplanned NBS day yesterday. Earlier, I'd planned to do some canning, but then I got so involved with my sewing that I couldn't tear myself away. And then it just got too late to start canning. What a shame because you know I've barely done any canning this season. (Cough)

The fourth section for And On that Farm was awaiting me. I'd only fused the eyes, but the pieces for the nose and mouth were ready to go. In pretty short order...

The kitties were outside, but came flying in when it started raining. For them, it's a little like when I was in junior high school and our PE class would be canceled because of rain. Instead, we'd have a little dance in the gym. (This is the stuff of nightmares, if you ask me.) So, if they can't be outside playing, they come in and play in their basement clubhouse. We closed up all outdoor access, and then opened the clubhouse for them. We have to do this so we know where they are...inside or outside. Smitty thought they could do a little hunting in the clubhouse. Sometimes there be mousies in there. Somehow mice get in from the outside, but we've never been able to figure out how. Since the kitties discovered what a great indoor playground this is, mousies have ceased to be a problem.

C'mon Sadie! Let's go on mouse patrol.

Nah, Smitty...I think we already cotched all the mousies in the clubhouse. 

I'm just gonna lie down here and think on it...think, think, think...there must be mousies somewhere.

Let's hunt in mom's sewing closet. There's weird stuff in here.

Oh, good idea, Sadie...let me see...

Are you finding anything?

I'll just wait right here. If you find anything, be sure to bring it to me for, um, inspection.

Clearly, I was going to get a lot of help for my day's sewing.

One of the things that makes these McKenna Ryan patterns so difficult to work on is that the placement diagram is of little use once you start adding pieces to the design. As pieces are added, the diagram is no longer visible, and so it isn't much use for actually "placing" things. I've resorted to making wax paper templates that I could hold over the top of the design, but that's kind of a pain too. There are a lot of lines to draw in, and so it takes some time to make one.

Then yesterday, I had a stroke of genius. Or maybe it was just another "duh" moment...you'll have to tell me which side of the divide it's on. I picked up the whole thing, pattern, pressing sheet, fabric pieces and put it on my light box so that I could see the placement diagram through the fabric. In the picture below, I've moved the applique piece just a little so you can see the line.

Well...with all the McKenna Ryan stuff I've done, I don't know why I didn't think of that sooner. It sure made this process a whole lot easier.

After I'd done the eyes, nose, and mouth, it was time to make the sheep's body and her right ear.

Then I finished off the left ear, and it was time to add the eyes.

And then I added the rest of the face.

And the nose and mouth...

And the sheep was finished. I just needed to fuse it to the background...

Only first, I had to add the lines defining the wooden boards behind...

And that section was finished. Here are all the sections I have for this so far.

So here's where I could have fired up the canning kettle...nah.

Instead, I had enough time to get started on another quilt block for a different project. See, I have some rules for myself in the sewing room. At the beginning of each month, I first have to finish my monthlies, which include:

• OMG
• Tuxedo Tales (since it's a block of the month, and I happen to be on the right month...purely coincidental)
• Rainbow Scrap Challenge
• Finishing another row for the Shop Hop quilt 

And once I have my monthlies finished, I have to work on at least one UFO. There are four old ones on that list:

• Chicken Buffet
• And on that Farm
• Raining Cats and Dogs
• Mulligan Stew

And that isn't all I have going on, of course. There are still three quilts sandwiched for quilting, and a growing pile of flimsies for sandwiching. But all of that is in the "free" pile. When I finish working on at least one UFO, then I'm free with whatever time is left in the month to start something new, do another UFO, work on something from the free pile, etc. On the first day of a new month (today), I have to start back at the beginning with my monthlies. Yes, I crack the whip on myself, and I'm not kidding.

So with all of that said, I was to the place where I could work on something "free," and I decided to move to the next UFO on my list: Raining Cats and Dogs. I'm on the 8th of 10 blocks for this...this one:

The first step is to make a background...

And with that done, I was able to finish all the fusing.

Now I need to top-stitch the pieces, finish both hand and machine embroidery, and add a few little embellishments to finish it off. But today is a new month. I'll finish this block, but then I'll be back to working on my monthlies again. (Sound of whip cracking.)

With that in mind, it's time to choose a project for October's OMG.

With summer gardening and canning chores winding down, I think I can give myself a litttle more of a challenge this month. My goal is to turn the completed blocks for Bag Ladies of the Fat Quarter Club into a flimsy. The last of the blocks was finished last December, and so it's high time, I'd say. I haven't spent a lot of time thinking about the layout for this, but I do like this scrappy layout from the designer.

I like all the color, and the idea of doing away with some scraps is very appealing too. 

Today's agenda includes getting the tomato jam canned, as I'd planned to do yesterday. And then I'll finish off the block for Raining Cats and Dogs. That won't take all day, though. Maybe there will be time to get started on one of the "monthlies." 

Happy October, Everybody! Bring on the candy corn!