Sunday, March 18, 2018

Sweet Land of Liberty!

 I have made a tiny bit more progress on the Freedom quilt...Sweet Land of Liberty!  I am having a hard time photographing this one all in one big piece, so here is the right side...
 And here is the left side!  Mine is shaping up to be quite different than the original quilt, by Cheri Payne.  But, since I have no pattern and I am making it up as I go...I am just doing whatever the quilt wants me to do at the time, and going with it!!  The stars on the right side of the quilt will go all the way down that edge, and the flying geese blocks will edge the left side, all the way down.  It felt really good to at least make that decision in advance, and cut out all those blocks so they are ready to sew in spare moments.
This is Rosie Posie, my darling poodle.  Some of you know that she was a stray that came into the neighborhood, our home, and our hearts.    She is pretty sick...she is relaxing on one of her favorite quilts, here.  She has an abdominal ultrasound coming up on the 20th, to determine if she has Cushing's disease or liver cancer.  So, my goal is to love her and keep her comfortable every moment.  Each moment is a gift, with her!!!  I am pretty heart broken about this, but I know that each of us, in turn, will face death...just wish she would last forever.  (Sounds like a nursing pragmatism, right??)



One more thing on a vastly different topic:  Is it OK to clean my sewing machine with the aide of a spray can of air, or not?  Would love your opinion!!!

Have a great day!!




Julie




15 comments:

Carol said...

No no no to canned air. What does canned air do? blast whatever you are trying to get rid of further into the nooks and crannies of the machine. never! hope your fur baby gets a manageable diagnosis and gives you lots more love!

Sue SA said...

I have previously used canned air to clean the fluff out of my machine. I have never asked my machine mechanic, but I belive that they recommend you suck fluff out with the vacuum cleaner. Its just tricky to get the fluff to blow out off the nooks and crannies. Sometimes it is easier to use tweezers for the bigger bits and pick them out first, then blow clean.

Joyce Carter said...

I have a Bernina and canned air is NOT recommended. It just pushes the lint farther back into your machine and can do harm to it. It is better to use a small attachment to your vacuum and suck the lint out.
Your quilt is really looking good.

jude's page said...

I also say no to canned air, for the above reasons, a good brush usually gets into all the nooks and crannies, and does the job. In 16 years of longarming, a brush is all I have used, to clean the lint and I have done LOTS of quilts in that time.

Quilting Babcia said...

I have to agree with the previous comments - definitely no canned air,especially if your machine is a newer model, not one of the old vintage Singer models. Your version of Sweet Land of Liberty is looking great!

Karen said...

What you are making up is working well.

Tired Teacher said...

👎🏼 Thumbs down on canned air. Use a small vacuum with a piece of panty hose secured to the tube.

Poor Rosie! What a blessing that she found your loving home several years ago and that you will now lovingly be with her on her journey.

dortha said...

Pipe cleaners work well. Unplug machine, of course. Lint sticks to pipe cleaner. Hope Rosie feels better soon.

AnnieO said...

Love the plaids you added! Good to have clear ideas for parts of the design. Poor Rosie! Hope she isn’t suffering—I’m sure you won’t let that happen. We’re about to have DD’s cat for three weeks, it may be an interesting time with our cat!

Nancy said...

Oh, Julie, I'm so sorry to hear about Rosie's health problem. We love our pets just like our human family members. I hope her ultrasound shows a benign mass that can be removed and she can get back to her healthy self quickly.

Your Freedom quilt looks great!

Loris said...

O sweet Rosie. I'm so sorry to hear that she's sick. It is so heartbreaking when our fur creatures don't feel well. I hope you get answers soon and the wisdom to know how to help her best. Prayers for healing and comfort.

Lori said...

I use my my vacuum cleaner attachment to suck the lint from my machine. I also use a pipe cleaner every time I change bobbins.
Liberty is looking great!
I hope Rosie's results are not so bad as they are thinking.

Cheryl's Teapots2Quilting said...

Hoping for the best for your puppy (all dogs are puppies to me, no matter how old). NO! Use a brush to clean out the dust, etc from your machine. Only AFTER a good cleaning with a brush, can you use canned air. The air can jam the lint further into your machine, causing more problems. I use new, unused makeup brushes to clean out the lint on my machines. They work great.

dq said...

I am sorry to hear about your sweet dog. Pets are so loving.

Your freedom quilt is WONDERFUL! I love that you are doing stars down the right side instead of square in a square blocks. I have mine laid out and decided, but not really started for March.

dq said...

I love your star border. It is very striking. I am leaning toward flying geese all the way around. I think they are a cute frame. I plan too use my square in a square blocks elsewhere ad the quilt dictates.

Hexies, rainbow quilts and plaids!

Good morning to all!!!  Above is a hexagon, for English paper piecing.  My kitten Lucky has discovered them, and decided that they are great...