Monday, August 24, 2009

watch out, no pictures!

I went to JoAnn's today!!! Yes, and I stuck to the $20 that was in my pocket. OK, I took $40 out to spend but then A said "oh we need gas" OK, so I will spend $30 I told myself...then I realised he's really crabby, driving me up a wall so I handed him the $20 and said, "go get some gas and then get yourself something pretty." What did I get you ask? Nothing special! I got some binding (I know I need to learn to make it myself but it's so much quicker to just buy it) in pink (2 packs) and purple (3 packs) I got a stencil for quilting, remind me to ask you about that, and a pigma pen for one block from my 2005 shop hop quilt that needs needlework and I think it will work on a project I am going to start in the winter and will tell you all about later!

I didn't win Rachel's give away, so what does that mean? Oh I am signing up for another one!! I love the Fat Quarter Shop...but have yet to spend any money there. I want to sign up for their Pennsylvania Dutch Block of the Month, but I have not yet. This is almost incentive enough, two extra chances to win (oh check out their blog for info) but the budget isn't there right now. Possibly when I go back to work and stash some tip money for whatever I want. oh I am going to buy so much nice fabric...maybe not at first but eventually!! Moral of the story here, there's another give away.

I have some cash stashign plans...there's more to it than just setting some aside. I have a few little envelopes in a secret hiding place that I HOPE A never finds but he has a skill of sniffing out money no matter where it is. I have four envelopes, one for Christmas money, one for "fabric fun", one for the Western Washington Shop Hop for whenever I am able to go on that again, and one for Seattle. Christmas is self explanatory. Fabric fun is theoretically for everything quilting related but my goal is to set most of it aside for real quilting fabric. The Shop hop one...well who knows when I will get to go on that but there are SO many WONDERFUL quilt shops and fabrics out in the area, plus there's a fabric surplus store that I could get a bunch of fabric for backings and what not. The Seattle envelope will be for my trip(s) out there for whatever I want and no guilt! Since I get tips weekly, and usually about $2/hour, it won't be too hard to stash something but It might be hard to stash in all four. I haven't figured out how I will decide how much/which envelope to use each week.

Back to the stencil for quilting. How do you mark it? I assume with that white chalk I saw next to the stencils but there were so many options to choose from, what do you recommend or use? Thus far I have never done anything other than "stitch in the ditch" or "outline" quilting. I really am excited to try something new! This stencil is hearts and I think would be great for R's Dora quilt.

bored yet? Sorry I almost didn't post anything but I wanted to get those chances to win at FQS =)

1 comment:

a good yarn said...

If my quilt is predominantly light coloured, I use the Clover water soluble marking pen (blue). I haven't had much success marking dark coloured quilts but I've been told there's a marking chalk powder that works really well. Ann :)