Dog Bag Fronts Sewn

 Yesterday was lovely until evening when a storm blew in and we had about 1/2" rain and some tiny hail stones. The high got to 26.5C (humidex 30C). This morning it is foggy and 12C. Today we are to have sunshine with a high of 26C (humidex 28C). 

Lifestyle

Yesterday morning I cleaned the living room. That included laundering all the blankets that were full of cat hair, and vacuuming and rubbing cat hair off the couches. Elliott must have lived on the couches while I was gone. The floors were swept and mopped. They were dirty. All that needs to be done is polishing and wiping which I will do when I clean the dining area. 

I am slowly trying to get the house tidied up and cleaned. It has taken me time as I was tired from my trip and sore from hip. The living room looks nice and I know the rest of the house will get done in the coming 10 days in which I have no appointments other than a hair cut. 

The storm that came in last night started out with some very large drops falling and then the clouds opened up and it poured. The wind blew from the south pushing all the water across the street. The tiny hail stones blew against the back door and kitchen window. It was sort of spectacular to watch the storm at its worst. As fast as it blew in, it was gone. 

Sewing

I had to go up and buy thread for the dog bags. I do not use a rusty colour very often. The thread I found matched both fabrics perfectly. 

I had taken a cushion cover that I want to finish later this fall. I know that this quilt store has ginghams and I wanted to see if I could get a good match. I found this rather quickly and bought it. 

The two blues in the print match the blues in the front perfectly. I got enough for the back plus binding around the outside edge. Win-win. 

I worked on the dog bags yesterday. I top stitched the straps and the button loops first. 

Next up I sewed the rust pieces together to have enough length. From there I sewed the grey grunge strip to the right side of the rust strip. I was ready to cut the print fabric. 

The print fabric was not square and it is 1/4" short of 19". I am working with it so the bag will be 19" long. It is just a matter of fudging it. I played with ideas for the buttons and decided on using only one 2" button on each bag. 

This is the part I enjoy the most. How will the bag look. The ruler shows where the bottom of the bag is and above is the part that will be seen. I set things up to look finished and then decide on buttons. 

The point of the loop is 6.5" from the top. The button looked perfect on the loop. It will be covered with a dog head. I have 2 dog heads to use on the bags. 

Happy with my decision, I sewed the front of the bags together and gave them a good press. 

They are ready to be put onto flex foam and have some straight line quilting done on them. 

I had just an hour left to do something so I decided to hand sew the back sashing in place while watching TV. That job is done and I can now do the stitching on them.

It was a busy day in the sewing room with lots accomplished. 

Knitting

I did knit on the socks last night and have 15 of the 25 rows done on the foot. 

They should be done in two more nights. 

Thoughts

    I am recovering much faster now that I have less pain in my hip. My energy levels are up and I am doing more each day. 

    I am trying to move back towards sewing up more of the stash and buying less. But, I seem to want new fabrics. I am trying to stop the urge by focusing on the stash and planning what I want to make in the future. But the next quilt keeps popping into my head and I found the perfect light fabric for it. I decided to make it my next purchase and then try to sew up more fabric in the stash while I make the quilt. For the 3 meters I need for the quilt I will need to sew 3+ meters from the stash. That does not include the dark fabric for the quilt. I think this is going to be my mantra for the next while. It will have me digging into the stash a lot more than I have been. Start date - September 1. 

    I need to start cooking freezer meals once again. Once the house is tidy I will start on it. I am thinking of making Chinese  fried rice in the oven using this recipe I found while watching A Peek Inside on YouTube. The recipe came from her mom's cookbook and has been made before. 

I know it will freeze well and give me quite a few meals. 

    I got my journal out to start making lists of what I need to do daily. I find that it helps me not feel overwhelmed when the to do list is very long. I write what I need to do each day and tick it off when done. If not done, I move it to the next day. I find that I am more focused on the tasks I need to do rather than looking at the long list and feeling overwhelmed. Sunday is planned already.

Today

I have to be ready at 9 am as I am going to watch grandson and his team play in the provincial soccer finals. I am not sure when we will get home or what I will do other than knit on the socks tonight. 

Until the next time........................................................