Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Tuesday... still here!


Winter Cabins Quilt. I gave this away as a gift and I was just thinking I may have to make another one for myself.

OK, so day two of the one week resolution is upon us and I am geared up for the challenge. In fact I was awake most of the night thinking about everything I had to do today, planning it out, making sure there were enough hours in my day. And at about 4 am, I decided, I should have made a list last night, gotten it all of my mind, so I could have slept like a baby. Wasn't that last weeks challenge?

If you have read the recent comments, you know my stepmother makes lists. Wicked woman!!!! I remember one time she told me I should make a bunch of lists of daily "CHORES" and put them in a box and everyday I could pick one and do those "CHORES" and in a week I would have all the "CHORES" done!

Well, I looked up the word chore in the dictionary and here is what I found:
1. A routine or minor duty or task.
2. Daily or routine domestic tasks, especially a farmer's routine morning and evening tasks, such as feeding livestock.
3. An unpleasant or burdensome task!!!

Now, why would you want to make a list of unpleasant or burdensome tasks, I ask you? Not me. Never tried it. Never will. BUT, I wonder if I had made that list last night, if I would have slept. Oh well, we will never know!

Day two of my own personal mini wall hanging challenge was successful. I managed to get about an hour of sewing time at it yesterday. It's starting to look a little better all the time. I am just going to show you a little of what I did yesterday... keep it a surprise for when it's finished.


Thanks for the comments yesterday. I am glad to see that 2 people read my blog... LOL.

Last night I took some time and put together a pattern for my amazingly simple tote. You can find it on my website and it's a free download. But don't tell everyone, because it's a secret!

Day Two: The Fiskars' Fingertip Rotary Cutter

Well this little gem was a real surprise to me.  I looked at it on line and thought it was smaller than it actually is. It's approximately 4" long and uses an 18mm blade (which by the way, is not replaceable...hmmmm). I had some problems cutting with it using the "as suggested" method of holding it. The instructions say, "slide your index (pointer) finger through the loop for an easy, natural way to guide the blade exactly where needed". I found my fingers a little short for it and it wasn't at all comfortable. And I was thinking that it was going to be a huge disappointment because I just couldn't get the control I needed to cut intricate patterns accurately with it, which, I thought, was the plus of this rotary cutter.
Well, pick it up wrong and don't follow any of the directions for use, and you have an amazing little tool, that does some great cutting on curved lines and fine patterns.

Believe it or not, I am doing some paper piecing. I am making a little New York Beauty block for our Guilds' Little Quilt Auction in May and cutting out those pesky curves was a breeze with the Fingertip Cutter. In fact I cut through the fabric and the paper pattern easily and made accurate cuts to boot! I placed the cutter into the palm of my hand rather than sticking my finger into it and put my "pointy" finger on the top above the blade and I had so much control going around those curves. Then I cut out my appliques for my little challenge wall hanging I am doing this week and I easily cut through the pattern, fabric and Misty Fuse and the cut outs were nicer than when I used a pair of scissors.

The Negatives: Well it has this little blade cover that I lost several times until I finally found a little bowl to leave on my cutting table to put it in. The blade is not protected at all once the cover is off, and there is a note on the packaging to use caution when removing the blade cover. That pesky blade could be an issue if you have pets or small children around, but every day common sense (if you have any) can prevent an accident!

Yeehaw!!! Day two is under my belt! See you all tomorrow. And don't forget, you can purchase any of these great new notions at my web store... (see the top of this page for the link).

3 comments:

Unknown said...

In my defence,
1) I don't obsess over lists or lay awake at night wondering if I should have made a list :-)
2) I do the jobs early in the day and the rest of the day is my own to knit sew or sit in the sun and read a book.
3) I never have to spring clean, Christmas clean etc.
Gee! Is this another list?
Love the Winter cabins quilt Gail but paper piecing? Yuk!

Heather said...

I think the only successful list I make is for groceries.

Jean said...

Nope, not a list maker at all. Well, maybe if we have company coming for a big dinner...that's about it. I DO like your daily notions. I am a notion lover, and I have gotten some great ideas from you. Thanks!