I pulled out my fuchsia fabrics (my substitution for Bonnie's blue) and got cutting. I absolutely love the speed and accuracy I get when cutting strip sets with the 4.5" Easy Angle Ruler . (If you want a more versatile ruler, the 6.5" Easy Angle Ruler may suit you better. I think I got a deal with a coupon at one of the big box stores when I bought mine. I'm a big ruler fan and have rulers I haven't even used yet.) I stack up two strips of light fabric with two strips of dark fabric, right sides together, and cut them so they are ready to be peeled off the stack and stitched, no matching required.
I made the proscribed number of half-square triangle units (plus a couple extra). They look great with my 4-patch units.
I trimmed the dog-ears and stacked them up in the project bin with Good Fortune clue #1. The Creative Grids 6.5" Square Ruler is great for checking the size of these units and trimming if needed. I'm looking forward to more colors next week.
Now what will I do with the rest of my week until the next clue comes out?
I often recommend products I use but don't always tell you about my experience. My recent iron purchase is something I want to share. I've never owned a fancy, quilting-specific iron. There are fancy irons that cost more than $100 and steam pressed that cost more than twice that. I don't need an iron that does tricks. Well, not many. I do have a Panasonic Cordless Iron (less than $100) because I had used a friend's and sometimes even I need a cordless iron. I also have the Steamfast Mini Travel Steam Iron for travel.
I've had the BLACK+DECKER Classic Steam Iron on my Amazon wish list for a while. I just didn't need a new iron so I kept using the BLACK+DECKER Vitessa Advanced Steam Iron. Sadly, the Vitessa had fallen on the floor (more than once) and the plastic cover for the water fill had broken off and had to be mashed into place every time I opened it to add water. It was finally time to order the Classic.
The reviews on Amazon were good, and the price point is more than reasonable (less than $30 as of publication of this post).
What I want in an iron:
heat up quickly and maintain temperature
easily add water for steam
non-coated (no non-stick coating) or chrome sole-plate
won't break the bank
longevity
sturdy
How do these two compare?
The Classic is heavier than the Vitessa by about one pound. What does that mean? Well, to me it means the iron does more of the pressing than I do. I used it on several quilt blocks the first weekend I had it and it performed as expected. Good temp and steam.
Vitessa weight: 2 lbs 5 ounces (including the cord)
Classic weight: 3 lbs 7 ounces (including the cord)
Overall, I'm pleased with the Classic (left). I'll likely put the Vitessa (right) away for when I need to lend an iron or take one to a retreat.
Home ownership comes with joy and challenges. A couple weeks ago was a challenge. The dryer (that came with the house) decided it didn't want to dry clothes any more. I could go into a long discussion about the basics of dryers and how a thermal fuse works, but if you really want to know, there is great information on Appliance Repair.net. Seriously, if you can follow directions and use a screwdriver you can fix quite a few things.
I even found this video that helped me test the operation of the dryer before I went out to buy a replacement thermal fuse.
The internet has made some things so much easier.
I know this doesn't look like much, but when you don't have the thermal fuse that goes on those two wires it's kind of a big deal.
You can pick up a thermostat and thermal fuse kit at the local appliance parts place (about $30 what we did), or you can order the kit from Amazon (about $10 but it takes a few days). Before replacing the thermostat and the thermal fuse, we cleaned the dryer ducting from the machine to outside the house. We also vacuumed inside the machine to make sure there wasn't an obstruction. In hindsight, I should have replaced the flexible section of dryer ducting, but that's easy enough to do another day.
We stopped by the local home improvement warehouse to see if they had the parts kits (they didn't) and we could have picked up this steal of a used dryer for only $450, list price only $999!
So... home ownership can be a challenge. But, if you're will to put forth a little effort cleaning out your own dryer vent, and replacing a couple small parts, you can save a couple bucks, and you might still have time to go outside and play.
It's that time of year again! When Bonnie Hunter releases her yearly mystery quilt and the internet goes crazy with crazy quilters. Today I'm sharing my color choices (show below) and the progress I've made on the first clue.
This year, the quilt is Good Fortune. Head over to Bonnie Hunter's blog to check out the Good Fortune Mystery Quilt. There you will find all the details, such as the fabric requirements and the first clue. Don't dawdle, if you want to join in. The mystery quilt is only available for free for a short time. In February it will be removed from Bonnie's blog and likely appear as a standalone pattern or will be added to another book she's working on. You can also find loads of free patterns on the blog.
I've been cutting and sewing and pressing.
I even finished the first of many 4-patch units. This clue is the perfect unit to fit in between other projects you might be working on during the lead up to the winter holidays. I haven't decided what my next project is, but you can bet these little 4-patches will be acting as my leaders and enders along the way.
