Jun 30, 2017
Well here we go again another two weeks goes by and no post. Last post I mentioned maybe quilting one of my own quilts before my schedule got crazy. I should have known better, life got really crazy and still is. I can see a light at the end of the tunnel though so that is good.
I was just sitting at my computer with a brownie in the oven that I was making for the church Canada Day picnic. I don’t like to leave the room when I have things in the oven. I tend to forget them and not hear the timer, this never turns out well. I received an email from Craftsy regarding a sale they had on this weekend, I haven’t looked at Craftsy lately so with 20 minutes to kill I thought I would take a look and see what was new.
There was one class that I hadn’t seen before on machine quilting so I watched the trailer and then went down to the reviews. Sometimes I don’t know whether to shake my head or just laugh. I actually do a bit of both. This particular class got mostly rave reviews but there were a few 1 and 2 star reviews so I read them.
This is where the head shaking comes in, after reading the reviews it is quite obvious that the writers reading compression is not very good. The few bad reviews all complained about how disappointed they were etc etc re whatever it was but here’s the deal, the class wasn’t about those things, in fact it clearly says it in the description of the class and in the trailer!!! These people are leaving bad reviews not because the teacher can’t teach but because these people can’t READ!
Oh well, I feel sorry for the class instructor though as these people who obviously have issues are bringing down the overall score of the class which is a shame. Hopefully the instructor realizes this and doesn’t take these comments personally.
On Sunday there was a silent auction for Dee’s Orphan Kitten Fund. It was fun catching up with an old work friend and seeing all of the items up for action. Kevin and I adopted our Mia through Dee’s and my friend had asked me to make a quilt for the auction. I heard it went for $180.00 which is below it’s value but still better than it could have been. I had taken a bigger picture of this from my phone but when I moved it over to the larger screen realized it was fuzzy. This was a small lap size although I put a hanging sleeve on it in case someone wanted to hang it.
The other quilt I finished was a custom made quilt.
This was a graduation present and it was made of fabrics that all had meaning for my client. Some of the fabrics she picked out at the Cloth Castle and some were from old duvet covers she had growing up. The pattern was one she saw on pinterest and wanted me to make. It is just 2.5 inch strips cut at different lengths and made into 12.5 inch blocks. I cut some of the panels of the duvets apart and used them on the back of the quilt. I used the Bora Bora pantograph from Urban Elementz which you can purchase at the Cloth Castle. I love the way this turned out and hope she gets many more years from her memories.
So Happy Canada 150 to all.
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Jun 17, 2017
Well the days are whizzing by, or at least it seems like that. I remember being told that time moves faster the older you get. I could never figure that one out when I was younger but I am beginning to see how that saying came into being. Of course being busy helps with time appearing to move faster.
The weather here in Victoria continues to be unusual or at least it seems that way. It appeared to jump from winter to summer overnight, a few wonderful days and then back to winter overnight again. So far we appear to have missed spring altogether this year.
Here are a couple of random photos taken while Cocoa and I were on one of our daily walks. We ran across this turtle behind the pond near where we live. He/she had come out to enjoy the sun that had finally shown itself that day. Don’t worry Cocoa didn’t harm it. I picked Cocoa up and we carefully stepped over the turtle and left it in peace to enjoy the day.
My crazy work schedule has slowed down a bit and that is both good and bad. Good as I finally have time to relax and do some planning and maybe actually quilt one of my own quilts (we’ll see how that goes), and bad because slower work means less money coming in. Oh well, I am enjoying having a little time to sit back and actually think about what I want re the future. Besides come July 10 the schedule will go back into crazy mode again so I need to just enjoy the time I have while I have it.
Recently I got the chance to work on this wonderful quilt. This was really fun to work on, the only drawback I had is that the silver Superior Sew Fine 50 thread I used as the background colour for a large part of the quilt ended up being back ordered. I had one small spool of the thread so I ordered a cone the same day I started working on this quilt and I didn’t receive the thread in the mail until 10 days later. Not great however it all turned out well and I love how this quilt turned out.
Even though I previously posted that I am not a huge fan of doing pantographs there are quilts that call for just an all over edge to edge design. I am very good at doing simple edge to edge for kids and baby quilts and I really enjoy those however I thought it would be nice to have a couple more sophisticated edge to edge designs available for people who want them. The Cloth Castle where I work recently brought some pantographs in so I purchased two that I liked. Both are by Urban Elementz, one is Deja Vu and the other is Bora Bora.
I have used the Deja Vu on a client king size quilt (which I forgot to take pictures of) and it turned out great and I have also used it on a smaller quilt for a client that needed a quick wedding present.
I did like the way these turned out. I just finished a custom quilt (one I completed from start to finish) with the Bora Bora pantograph which also turned out really well, however I am still sewing down the binding on that one so the client hasn’t seen it yet other than in pictures I have sent so that will have to be posted later.
Good friends are like quilts they never lose their warmth
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Jun 8, 2017
Well here is the last part of the trip, then we can move on to more quilting. It has been fun to relive the trip through these posts though as usually you take the pictures and then just file them away somewhere.
Our next port of call was Puerto Chiapas, Mexico. I had been to this port before and knew that Mexico had done a great job of fixing the port up and so Mom and I decided not to do an excursion but just take it easy.
The above are photos of the scenery as the ship headed into dock at the port of Puerto Chiapas. At the port they have shops and a central sunken dance floor (sorry I only have videos of the dances and I still need to move my WordPress account before I can do video). The dance floor showcases local entertainment. I feel sorry for the entertainers they go for a long time and there is no air conditioning in the building so it is very HOT. The port has also included a bar/restaurant and a swimming pool which can be used by the ship passengers. Mom and I toured the shops and watched the dancing for awhile before Mom went back to the ship and I joined up with my friends I had met on board the ship. We walked around the grounds, then went for a drink and a swim in the bar and pool provided. It was a nice relaxing day.
The next stop was Huatulco Mexico. I love this place! I have been there several times now and have even stayed and toured in the area. This is a truly beautiful spot with shops, restaurants, a market and beach great for swimming, all steps from the pier where the cruise ships tie up. Mom and I elected to just walk around and visit the market in the morning. We went back on board the ship for lunch and then back out to the beach for an afternoon swim.
Here is the beach, the photo was taken as we were docking.
The area is known for its weaving. This loom is set up outside of a shop but they lost out on a sale as they don’t take credit cards. I realize that there is a commission but how short sighted, tourists aren’t going to be walking around with wads of cash on them to purchase expensive hand woven rugs. It turns out the store doesn’t have a web site even, just think of the sales they could generate if they started doing social media, online sales and accepting credit cards. They lost $100.00 for a 4% commission.
A look back at the ships tied up.
Mom enjoying a swim. The water was exactly the right temperature for a refreshing dip too.
The next two days were sea days and the ship welcomed a group of Mexican entertainers on board. This was actually really fun, they gave Spanish lessons, lunchtime performances and also gave dance lessons in the afternoon. They stayed on board until we docked in San Diego.
Our next port of call was Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Views of Puerto Vallarta from the ship as we docked.
Mom and I have both been to Puerto Vallarta a few times so we decided to just check out the market within walking distance of where we were docked and then went back on board ship and enjoyed spending time by the pool and in the spa. That evening I had an unexpected opportunity to go to the Rhythms of the Night show. My friends had tickets however one couldn’t make it so offered me the opportunity. At the time we didn’t realize that the reason this person couldn’t make it was quite serious or otherwise neither Tom or I would have gone. The show was excellent though and I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance and our in Puerto Vallarta.
You are taken on a boat ride to an island and are greeted my a mermaid.
They also host day trips here hence the hammocks set up for relaxing.
Characters dressed up as you walk to the open air theater.
Some of the before show performers.
Little islands you can swim out to when you are there in the daytime.
The show included a buffet dinner after the performance.
The sunset on the way back to the pier. It turns out I had to say an early goodbye to my new friend Tom and I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to his sister. There is a story here however it is not my story to tell.
The next two days were at sea where we just lazed around in the spa and by the pool catching up on more reading. The last port of call for this leg of the journey was San Diego. Here we were saying goodbye to 800 passengers and hello to 900 new ones while a good many of us stayed on to sail back to Victoria.
Holland America did a really, really bad job of this transition. I won’t go into details however the lack of communication and organization at this port was really horrible.
Mom was not feeling well so she decided to stay on board. I was getting cabin fever so decided to venture out on my own. I was told I didn’t need a passport so got all the way off and ran into some friends on the way out but didn’t get far before being told I did indeed need my passport. The only port in the whole trip I needed it! Anyway I went back on got it and my friends (from our table at dinner) had waited for me so I didn’t have to go touring on my own. I thought that was wonderful.
I have been to San Diego numerous times but had never toured the USS Midway which is now a museum so the three of us wandered over that way. Wow we were there for hours and still did not see the whole thing.
I took this from the flight deck on the USS Midway, you can see the Nieuw Amsterdam just across the way.
San Diego as we are leaving port.
Sea lions basking in the sun.
The lighting is bad here but here is Mom and I dressed for dinner on our last night on board ship.
We had another two days at sea and then home to Victoria!!
Just clearing the breakwater on our very last leg of our journey.
It was a great trip and Mom and I really enjoyed ourselves but I have to admit I was so glad to see our familiar coastline and know we were home.
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