Hellbow

Good morning, my friends. It's Moanday. Let me get the day started off right by moaning about my elbow. I might have seen this coming, but then...I probably need to clean my glasses more often. 

As you know, we've been attempting to stay fit by walking on the treadmill and doing some resistance work on a Bowflex. For as long as I've been using the Bowflex, my right elbow has been whining and complaining. It never got any worse, and so I just kept going. Until last night. My elbow was giving me enough grief that it woke me up. It's my right elbow, and I can barely bend my arm today. 

So...bummer. I'll lay off the Bowflex for a few days. I'm convinced it's the Bowflex rather than the quilting. Elbow pain has never been a problem for quilting in the past, and I have no reason to think that's the issue now. I tried using one of those "tennis elbow straps" this morning, and it didn't help at all. So I've taken some naproxen, and I'm hoping that will give me some relief. Time will tell.

As for yesterday's efforts, I added radiating lines for the hours on the clock, and I quilted around the inner-most circle on the clock face.

Except for some open areas, that completed this embroidered block. In the open areas, I quilted a witch's hat...

And another bat.

The rest of the embroidery in the block was outlined for texture and functionality.

Above that block was a row of half square triangles and spacer squares. I did some dot-to-dot quilting there.

And then I finished off the upper portion of this next block. It was mostly just outlined, but I did a little pebbling there at the top. I'm not sure what that's supposed to be, but it looked like bubbles to me.

That completed what remained of this embroidered block.

And that took me to the left edge of the quilt where I did some dot-to-dot quilting in these two pieced blocks.

So I'm more than halfway with this now. The parts below the green line are finished. It seemed like a good time to rotate the quilt 180° in order to keep the bulk of the quilt on the table, rather than in my lap. It's easier to maneuver that way. 

I can do most everything I want to do even with the quilt upside down. If I want to draw something like a bat or a ghost, I'll have to turn it back to right. I can't draw anything upside down.

So, my hour was up, and I left the needle down on what is now the left side. (On the right in the image above.) I'm having to listen to my elbow today. If the naproxen loosens it up some, I'll continue on with this. And if not...well, I guess I'll take a forced day off.

Downstairs, I found the kitties practicing their synchronized napping. They want to enter the next Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. This is their "Comma Cat" routine.

Sadie probably needs to work on her foot positioning.

In the sewing room, I needed one more of the second template.

To finish the block, I needed four of the third template. Here's how that looks. 

These will fit into the four corners of the block.

It took longer than you might think, but eventually, I was ready to sew it all together.

And there it is. I give you "Summer's Sun."

Next, I'll work on the Maple Leaf. I've decided to use this fabric for the leaf. Probably I could have started on this yesterday, but it seemed too late in the day to start anything new.

With my elbow bothering me, it might be a good day to trace and color the next block for the Girls' Getaway quilt. This time around, I'll be doing the bicycles. This is the picture from the Crabapple Hill website. The block extends almost the full width of the quilt. 

Without looking at the pattern, I can't remember if I do the "lace" above the bicycles as a part of this block, or whether I do it separately. I know at least some of it will be stitched next time around. So it's a fairly large block. The tracing and coloring will take some time. As long as my elbow is going to be bothering me, it might be a good day to do something a little different for today.

Happily, there are no housekeeping chores on the calendar for today, and tonight's dinner will be easy. That means it'll be a mostly sewing day for me. I'll probably still get in a walk on the treadmill. Right now, my slow-stitching awaits. Given that my elbow kept me awake last night, I might snuggle up with a cat and take a morning nap. Sounds like a good way to start the week, doesn't it?