Did anyone think that this would go this long??

We may have talked about it, but, down in our hearts, we expected to be surprised by how fast we would solve it.  WELL, Surprise!  We didn't, and we're still here at home.  Is anyone else dreaming they have COVID 19?

How do you feel about all the protest and reopening of states without following the 14 days of slowdown?   And where in the world did those protesters come up with "it's my constitutional right?"  I don't remember the part that says: "I can do whatever I want, anytime I want, and I don't have to be concerned with what happens to other people when I do!!"

We're all alittle stir-crazy and way ready for this to be over.  But forcing it is not going to shorten it!

I am worried about the food processing plants.  I'd be a little more confident if the people making the decision took a shift on the line.  Portlandia series is a little less ridiculous with the food issues now!  Name that chicken!!

Well, time for some distraction - mostly for me, probably.  I've been busy in the sewing room.  '6' face masks a day really does add up.  I've made over 100 masks this month!  And I owe it all to JOT!  "Just One Thing"



  Kid masks!

I divide up the tasks to work sessions:

• Zig-zag the twist tie into the seam allowance at the top.  Sew top seam and bottom seam, leaving that opening at the bottom
• Put in elastic or ties
• Hand over to DH to turn!
• Press and pin tucks.
• Press and top stitch all the way around, tacking down tucks.
• Press, take photo, put in 'finished' box!
• Repeat!

The #100dayproject is going well.  Granted there are days that I'm making the Plus/X block out of habit.  But there are other days that I'm excited about looking thru the scraps to find a great combo!  I was really excited last night when I hung up the latest block and saw that I'm just 1 block (today's) away from finishing the 4th of 6 rows!!  Time flies in captivity!  Here's the latest blocks:

 

Reds!                                       Sewing!

  

Bikes!                                                  Healthy Foods!

Books I've been reading:

The Lost Man  Jane Harper

The Last Child  John Hart

American By Day  Derek B Miller

The Lola Quartet  Emily St John Mandel

The Keeper of Lost Things  Ruth Hogan

Photo Contest:  We're down to 2 players and I don't send the same photo on the same day!  So there are repeats.

Reveals will be tomorrow!!  Not enough space between!!

Stay Safe and QUILT ON!

Suspended in Quarantine ... still

Sunset from our deck last week!

I don't know if you can see this - but yesterday, the St George lighthouse looked like it was levitating!!  Make the photo larger - look on the horizon about 3/4 across from the left side.  That lighthouse can look closer, farther, bigger, smaller and now flying!!!  Always entertaining to spot it's shenanigans!

My DS and his family is living in Central America, DDIL teaches for the American School there.  Quarantine in the United States and Quarantine in a Martial Law country are quite different!!

We have suggestions and they have strictly enforced rules.   No children outside.  Women can be out for 1 hour if shopping MWF.  Men out for 1 hour if shopping TTS.  No one can be out on Sundays!  They have 3 children  9, 7, and 3!  That's a lot of energy in a 12th floor apartment!!  But they are doing fine.  And have less chance of contracting the virus than we have.

I had big plans for my free time this month!  I was going to finish an UFO each week!  Clean the sewing room - again!  Walk and exercise every day ... And, well, insert your favorite unreachable goal here!

I joined Edyta's Mystery, and then there were calls for face masks!  So, I'm out of elastic; and 8 1/2 blocks behind on the mystery!  My sports loving husband tells me he's watching football games all weekend(?)  Apparently they are showing old championships ... since it's due to start raining again this weekend, at least reliving the victories will keep him busy.

Last week I was up early one day and he was watching Sports Center.  I kid you not ... they were doing the play by play of 2 Labradors eating!  DH was rooting for the Yellow Lab??  LOL!

Face masks:  The call went out and I opened up the stash and cut an 8 inch pile of 9 x 6.5 cottons.  Went to meet someone with QOVs to have quilted and pick up some group-ordered elastic.  We were early, and the gal asked if I had any masks ready.  Yes, I did!  I got them out of the car and she took them ALL!! Okay - that's sub-contracting at it's best!!

Then I picked up elastic for 30 masks and 60 fabrics that were scissor cut by our HS Leadership group. OYE!  They were every size!  Instead of putting them together, and sizing them way down,  I cut 60 9 x 6.5 of my light fabrics and sized each pair as big as I could.  33 masks were done, then I got a little more elastic and made 10 more.  I'm out again - and I'm taking it as a sign I should sew other things ... see list!

Jenny Doan has a good tutorial on Missouri Stars.  I adjusted it, of course, from hearing different ideas.  I cut the fabrics 9 x 6.5 because that's the size of my ruler.  I cut a twist tie, from the produce section of the grocery store, in half and zig-zag stitched it in the middle along the top seam allowance for mask.  It has just enough staying power to hug the bridge of your nose and keep your glasses from fogging over!!

I don't top stitch all the way around until I have my pleats in place.  I iron my pleats down after pinning, before sewing.

 

By the way, our little guild made over 400 masks in a week!!  Whoo-hoo!

We've binge watched NewsRoom on HBO, all three seasons.
We finished watching The Kominsky Method on Netflix, both seasons.
Got Yellowstone series from Netflix DVDs, awaiting the last disk for Season One.
What do you recommend?

I have also been reading. Thank goodness I was able to pick up 7 books at the library before they had to close.

My favorites have been:
The Pull of the Moon by Elizabeth Berg
The Lost Man by Jane Harper
Atomic Habits by James Clear
The Last Child by John Hart

Stay Safe and QUILT ON!

If we must, we must

Self Quarantine is so much easier without children and home schooling!  Although DH is wandering around because there are NO SPORTS!  But still time to get a LOT done.  But first I had to ‘find’ my sewing space.  I was in Japan in January, then went to two retreats in February.  Our Guild retreat and Finishing School (which I head).  I hadn’t really unpacked sewing stuff from ANY of them!

AND I collected all 2019 ModSquad projects for the Library display, which didn’t happen!  I still have all those projects neatly piled on the twin bed.

I am chair of our QOV group.  So I have 4 tops and backs registered for Longarming but that’s been suspended for the time being.  So they are still here, plus my own QOVs in different stages of finishing.

I couldn’t resist - I took a picture when the room was at it’s rock-bottom worst ever.  It was when I was adding a binding to the QOV.  There was no room, it keep pulling away from me - so I had to empty the ironing board and place it to hold the Quilt.

View from the door

View from the design board

Top of the single bed!!

I can actually hear my Mom turning in her grave!!  She always told us our house should be clean enough to be featured in a magazine.  Is there a Hoarders publication???  LOL!

But of course, I worked on it today, between 3 loads of wash!  Stay tuned to tomorrow, see what my WORKING space looks like!!!  Still an over abundance of supplies, but at least room to move about!