Potpourri

 Yesterday was spent cleaning up the quilting room, doing a little here and there.  I took the time to clean my machine which now hums (or should I say "purrs"?).  I used the Sue Pelland Leaves Galore template to make some lemon peels and ended up making a few blocks in various colors.  I may use it as one of the borders of Daylesford eventually.  

This was my first time using the template/ruler, and I can see that it will take some practice to insure that all the pieces cut are uniform.  I used Misty Fuse as recommended and like it better than Steam-a-Seam, but each really has its uses.  I want to try to get better at machine applique because my aging hands are a bit less cooperative than they used to be.  

I used invisible thread to sew the pieces down using a small blanket stitch, and it worked very well.  I think I bought the thread from David Taylor when I took a class in his machine applique method a few years ago.  (I found his method very fiddly and messy - haven't used it since.)

I put this little tree block in a box of miscellaneous blocks, too.  Years ago I made a bunch of these after reading a blog by Amy Smart.  I put the resulting table runner in a craft fair where a friend, Suzy, bought it.  She even brought it to guild to show and tell.  I'd like to make more of these blocks sometime, but not now.  

Next up I'll be working on some flowering snowballs today, I hope.  I have aerobic walking in the morning and a Friends of the Library meeting in the afternoon.  In between I should be able to tackle a few of those blocks.  On my way home from walking, I'll stop at the Restore to drop off some leftover balls of yarn.  It does feel good to clear my yarn stash a bit.