Testing It Out

Didn't do much sewing last night, but I did get to test out the 401 finally.  When I plugged her in and started to sew she was really sluggish.  My first thought was, oh no, what have I got here....  But then I realized I had the stitch knobs in the wrong position for straight stitching.  I corrected that, then took a deep breath and started to sew again.  This time, she sewed quite a bit faster.  By the time I was done playing, about half an hour of sewing, she was really booking along!  I am pleased.  I think once she gets used on a regular basis, the speed will not be an issue.

This morning, before work, I stopped at Wal Mart and hit up the school supplies aisle.  I had already been there once since they put school supplies out for the new year, but I really wanted to get a couple more pencil boxes.

These are a great size to put machine feet or bobbin in, and keep with each individual machine.

Not that I want to go back to those school days, but I do miss shopping for school supplies for the kids.  So much neat stuff to choose from!

Center of Top Finished

I know it seems like the same picture, but honest, it's not!  All of the white panels and strip set panels are sewn together for the second Jimmy John top.  Going to put a small border of the white all the way around it, then a larger border of the dark purple.

Nick and I went to Edwardsville last night and had dinner then shopped at Kohl's for some slacks and shirts for him.  We found a couple pair of slacks, but really would have liked to have found a few more.  We did make a haul on the shirts, though.  He got some bright colors, which I think he looks very good in, if I do say so myself!

I have not sewed on the 401 yet...  The suspense is killing me!  haha.  I appreciate everyone's advice and comments about the machine and her bobbins and light.  Will take all of it into consideration.  The more I read about the 401, the happier I am that I got it.  I may not need that 301 after all...

Sandy came over to my office this morning before she started work (she works in the building across the parking lot).  She told me about a yard sale happening tomorrow that advertised lots of fabric and another that advertised sewing machines.  sigh.  Going to have to pass on them this time.  I might run out to the the fabric one Saturday morning if I feel like it, but really, I do not need any more fabric.  Need and Want are two seperate things.... ahhh well.

Ev drove me to work this morning since Nick has my car while his is in the shop.  I wonder how long it will take Ev to notice that I shovelled all that rock out of the bed of his truck?  hee hee.  Johanna is going to pick me up after work and drive me home.  I hope she doesn't forget!

Retreat Follow Up - Part 2

I'm saying this is a follow up to the retreat because I put together the strip sets while there.  Last night I put a few more panels together.  I'm getting real close to having the top finished.  Still haven't decided on the final border, though.

I have this wild idea to move everything out of my sewing room and into Johanna's old room, then clean the floor real good and move stuff back in.  Want to rearrange the room.  It would be a lot of work, though.  ugh.  If I'm going to do that, I would need to have a couple quilt backs done and take them, along with the tops, downstairs.  That way I could quilt on Gemma while the rearranging and cleaning was happening upstairs.  I hold no illusions that I could do it all in one day.  My attention span sometimes rivals that of a tse tse fly... haha.   Oh, look, a squirrel....  haha.  But seriously, it would be a big job and I know it would take more than one day to do it.  If I decide to do that, I'll have to take before and after pictures.

Retreat Follow Up - Part 1

Sandy has really made progress on her quilt from the retreat!  It's a Christmas throw and is very pretty.  This was a kit that she bought on Saturday morning when she and Sheri went to the quilt shop in Shelbyville.  Not sure how Sheri is doing on her kit.  They bought the same one and both started on them during retreat.

Sandy's is almost completely quilted.  The border is all that's left to be quilted and then she will just have to bind it.  I kept teasing her to make sure the blocks were turned correctly.  One of them says "ho ho ho" and I told her to make sure it didn't come out saying "oh oh oh"!  All the blocks are perfect, of course.  I love the way this quilt is done up.  It looks like there are arrows of light shooting out from the large square in the center.

Great job, Sandy!

Victory!

A victory for me - I was able to get the last knob to break free on the 401!  Now, all the parts that are supposed to move, move.  That makes me happy.

To celebrate, I stopped at Wal Mart this morning and bought a few extra bobbins.

The 401 takes Class 66 bobbins and only had one with the machine.  There were a few class 15 bobbins thrown in the box, but I knew they weren't the right ones for it.  Most of my other machines take class 15, so I have tons of those, but I didn't have any class 66.  A dozen should be enough, don't you think?  haha.

Tonight I have plans with Nick, so I'm not sure if I will get to sew or not.  I'm ready to turn on the 401 and see how she sews.  Thinking of naming her Sissy, because she is the big sister to the 301 and featherweight.  May just go with Sis, because my daughter is being a funny girl and telling me that "Sissy" reminds her of the movie Carrie and that the machine may be possessed....  haha.  Going to wait until I sew on her to see if the name fits or not.  I know, so silly, right?  haha.

Loosey Goosey

I'm trying to loosen up the levers on the 401 that control the type of stitch it sews.  When I first tried to move them, they felt glued in place!

See the big beige knob and the red lever?  The beige knob and the cream one behind it control the stitch pattern.  One pushes in and turns and the other pulls forward and turns.  The little red lever pushes down and moves side to side.  When I got the machine, none of them moved.

I oiled the dickens out of them and wiggled them the tiniest bit.  Then I let the machine sit for a day.

The first one to break free was the little red lever.  I have the top cover off and can really get the oil right where it needs to go, so that helps, I'm sure.  The red lever is moving smoothly now, just the way it is supposed to.

I had to wait another day for the next victory.  Last night I was able to get the knob that pulls forward and turns to move.  It's all oiled up and moves really well.

Hoping that tonight the final knob will move and I can give her a test run.  Even if the knob doesn't move, I can still sew on her because the position she is stuck in is a straight stitch.

There was a nice box of accessories included with the machine.  Only one part was missing, and that was a cam/pattern disk.  I put a bid in for one on Ebay last night.  It was only .99 cents, so I really hope I get it.  There are a lot of other cams available, but I at least want the one that originally should have been with the machine.

Here's a pic from the first page of the manual.  The caption under the sketch says it all:

That cracked me up!  I'm still wanting that 301, but for now, this one makes me happy!  I am so lucky my hubby doesn't mind when the herd grows...  haha.

Loving These Colors

Some sewing got done last night.  This is the second Jimmy John quilt with batik fabrics.  I've gotten a couple of the pieced rows and neutral rows put together.  I just love the fabrics and their rich colors.  Not sure what I'll be using for the outer border, but may use the same dark purple that I used on the first Jimmy John.

I made the chicken in cream sauce pasta dish for dinner again.  It is so good!  I think it's the cream cheese that really makes the sauce special.  When I made it last night I made a couple additions.  I added about a cup of shredded zucchini I had leftover from when I made the chocolate cake and I added a little chopped celery that was leftover from the potato salad.  You couldn't taste the zucchini at all, so basically it just added a bit of moisture, and the celery was a good addition.  The dish would be fine with or without it.

Creative or Messy

My friend Marla told me about whirlsnswirlsquilting videos on you tube.  The gal is doing 100 designs in 100 days.  I have not seen all of them (don't think she is done yet) but last night I decided to start from the very beginning.  This was the design from the first video.  Correction, this was my interpretation of the design from the first video...  haha.  I believe it was called spiky grass.  When I finished the design I thought, wow, is that ever a mess.  Then I looked at it again.  It's not a mess.  In fact, I think it would be a good design to use in a border, or in a large space.

Between theinboxjaunt blog and whirlsnswirlsquilting videos, I am doodling more and getting all kinds of new ideas for quilting those tops!  whee!

Size It Up

Put a three inch border on the Paducah 2015 top.  I laid it out on our bed, but I think it needs to be a little larger, especially on the sides.  Going to put a 5 or 6 inch dark blue border on it next.

A Lot of Sewing

This was a very productive weekend for me, sewing wise.  I finished the last two tops for the nursing homes.  This is the purple one, made with the four patch strips.  I also finished the green top.  I'd like to get one of them loaded on the frame soon.  I've got some patterns for quilting in my mind that I would like to practice before using it on the Jimmy John tops.