a correction and my apologies

Correction to my pattern "Ten":

On the back of the pattern cover, with the yardage requirements, add 1 1/2 yards border print fabric.
On page 1 with the cutting directions for the border print, cross off 6 1/2" x 72".  Change to 8 1/2" x 54".

I am very sorry for the errors, and I apologize for any problems that result.  If you have a problem or complaint, please contact me at myemmalinedesign@gmail.com or 612-750-1085.  I will make things right for you.  These patterns have only been sold at Bear Patch, so I can backtrack most of them via our computer database.  However, there are always some that can't be tracked down, so that is why I am putting the information here.  Again, my apologies, and I feel terrible about this since I found out yesterday.  Anything printed and sold from here on out will have the corrections made.

Sometimes the old saying, "Haste makes waste" is all too true!   Working on the Quilt MN fabrics for a pattern every year brings a firm deadline.  I am sometimes printing the patterns on the night before the deadline!  This year, I thought things were good because I was ready about 3 days early!  I do the printing myself, and collating and folding and packaging, too.  Because I am on that deadline, I never have enough time from the point that the fabric is available.  I usually have the basic ideas in mind or started on the computer, but I often change direction once I have the actual fabric in hand.  So that does not leave me the time I need to have test sewers work on the quilt.  I really like coming up with new quilt designs, and I like to be able to share them, but the part about getting everything down on paper in an understandable format is the bad part.  I can only hope that this is the worst it gets!

On a much happier note:
I completed a knitting project!  Another winter scarf, this time for myself, although the hot and humid weather makes it seem strange to be working on it!  I wrote about it in a previous post.  I like it posed on the deck railing!

 That means that I get to start a new project, and this one is by request from some young moms I know (that would be Brita and Molly!).  I'm giving it a try and we'll see if it turns out to be worthy of Miss Ada.  It's the Azel Pullover and I'm using a chunky yarn and large needles, so that goes fast.  It's multi-sized, and I chose to start with the smallest size because Ada is 1 year old.  I hope she's walking, because this would not be a good thing for a crawler!

I'm enjoying a few days with my mom and sister in Iowa.  My brother, sister-in-law, nephew and friend, niece and husband have also visited or been visited, so it's been a good time.  Jan, my sister, is returning to her home in San Francisco today, so that's no fun.  But we did something special every day, and made the most of our time back in our hometown of Lake Park together.

Mom's house is on the shore of Silver Lake, with a good place to relax on the deck and watch the lake life.  And here's a picture of her very self reliant hollyhocks, too.  They always re-seed themselves and take care of themselves all summer, too!

We took a little drive to the Round Lake Winery, (on the shore of Round Lake!) about 10 miles away.  It was a great afternoon to sit outdoors and share a bottle of their 2012 Merlot.  It was a very good year!  They are making some good wine out in the middle of the corn and bean fields!  Here's a toast to you....

summer days

Hi!  I have some summertime pictures to share with you--

Last weekend I got to spend some time with my mom.  July 3rd was my dad's birthday, so it was good to be there for one of those "firsts" after his death last January.  We did some fun stuff and some work stuff.  There were some overgrown plants and weeds that we mostly worked on, so the yard is looking fine.

And we took a little excursion north into Minnesota to the little town of Round Lake.  It's maybe 10 miles (I'm guessing) and we found the Round Lake Vineyards and Winery.  I never knew this place existed before, but we think we would go back again.  We tasted some of their products, and enjoyed the beautifully landscaped area just off the lake shore.  And we brought a few souvenir bottles home, too!

We also went to see Barefoot in the Park at the Okoboji Summer Theater, and enjoyed a Sunday morning pancake breakfast Mini-Wakan State Park on Spirit Lake.

We needed to do some watering at my brother and sister-in-law's place while they were away, so we puttered around out there awhile, checking on the dog and cats, too.  The original old barn still stands, but is being overtaken by vegetation!

My mom's house looks westward over the lake, and this picture was taken in the evening before sunset.  It was much redder in person, due to the smoke from the large wildfires burning up in Alberta and a few in Manitoba.  Iowa is a long ways from either area, so this smoke really travels.

Back on the home front, check out these cute bicycle cookies!  

We went to a fundraiser for some friends who are doing the Red Ribbon Ride next week, and these cookies were part of the treats.  We wish them luck as they work to complete their fundraising and training.  If you have any inclination to make a donation, you can find Terry and Sue Robinson on the website and show your support.

And the upstairs renovation project is nearing completion, with some electrical work done to install some new lights and change some plug-ins.  These fixtures are from IKEA, and I like the sorta industrial look with all of the wood in the house.

Yesterday I spent a lot of time working on finishing woodwork.  I filled in nooks and crannies of the wood floor butting up to the logs with some wood filler, and that turned out well.  Then, I chipped out a lot of old nail hole filler that was originally done with a filler that was the wrong color, but has been ignored for years and years.  I decided this was as good a time as any to correct that problem, since we have sawdust and crap all over everything anyway!  So I chipped out the old stuff from 100 or more holes (seems like 1,000!) and sanded each to remove any traces of the old stuff.  Now I will dab on a little stain to cover the sanded area, and then polyurethane, and then refill the holes with a better color.

But aside from the woodwork stuff, I did put together this cute little pincushion.  It stands up on little legs, and looks like a tiny ottoman or Miss Muffet's Tuffet!  Read more about it on the Bear Blog.

not a lot to report

I don't have much to tell about lately it seems.  Just keeping up with the day-to-day stuff fills up my time.  Bob's surgical recovery is coming along nicely, much less pain and now he is back to work for half days, which is great!  There are still a lot of things that he is restricted from doing, but he is finding ways to pitch in and help with a lot of stuff.  Last night I had to purchase water softener salt, and carried those awful heavy bags to the basement for maybe the first time ever!  No need to lift weights when we have the joy of softener salt to deal with!  I have been working on pulling a lot of weeds from flower beds, they seem to be very healthy.  The weeds, that is!  I have been transplanting some things and moving some hostas and perennials to more suitable spaces.  But that doesn't make for very interesting pictures!

Not a whole lot of sewing or quilting or knitting going on, either.  But I do have one thing to share--

A handy dandy little tote bag, a real nice size that is bigger than a book bag but smaller than a grocery bag.  This is the picture from the pattern, Merry Berry Tote by Cut Loose Press--

This one was made from vinyl but I used decorator weight fabric.  There will probably be a vinyl one coming soon!

I did read another book, an actual paper and ink book for a change.  It is a story about an 18 year old golfer who took a year to travel with the goal of playing golf in every state (except Hawaii and Alaska).

Although I admit I did skim over some of the golfy parts about bunkers and course layout and clubs, etc., I did enjoy his account of traveling alone, sleeping in his car, and living on the cheap.  I don't know whether to credit him or his editor, but it was well-written for an 18-year-old.

I will try to put together some more pictures to share, maybe even pulled weeds and sandburs!

summer reading

Even though it's hard find much time to read, I try to keep a good book on hand most of the time.  And now, with the options available through my library and Kindle and recorded books, there is no excuse to not have a story to get caught up in.  Here are my most recent reads:

Driftless came to my attention because I was looking for a book title Jewelweed by the same author.  That title was not available at that time, but this looked intriguing and I'm glad I chose it.  It is a novel about the people in and around a small community in southwest Wisconsin.  A little intrigue, a little scandal, a little love story, and a whole lot of local flavor.  

Gone Girl was a hard one to get my hands on, I was on the waiting list for the Kindle edition for weeks.  It is a story of the disappearance of a woman.  And a tangled web of interwoven lives.  It left me wondering if the wait was worth it.

Pirate Latitudes by Michael Crichton is a big departure from his typical work.  This is historical fiction about seafaring and swashbuckling at their best.  The usual damsel in distress was involved, but not a key element of the story so I liked that.  I would rather read about the hunt for treasures and the heroics of a bunch of misfits!

Currently, I am listening to a new novel, A Wanted Man, about Jack Reacher, the hero of a series of books by Lee Child.  I'm right in the middle, so still a bit to go to know what's going to happen, but Jack is up to his old tricks.  This character is the basis for a recent movie starring Tom Cruise.  The Jack Reacher of the books is always described as a real big, forbidding kind of guy.  Kind of the opposite of Tom Cruise!

closer to the finish line

Feeling so good about getting to this stage with this quilt!  It's a small quilt, about 38" x 44", but all the blocks are hand stitched using the English Paper Piecing method.  Last night I finished all the handwork and started on the borders.  Finished up the borders this morning and took it outside for a little fresh air on this beautiful morning.  This will be a class series that I will teach at Bear Patch starting in September and I hop to have the quilting and binding done by then.  Any bets on that?

The rest of this day is going to be spent sharing quality time with my husband, Bob, since we seem to have been lacking in days off together all summer long.  We have made a list of several things that we would like to get to do before the good weather runs out, so today we will cross something off that list! What is left on your summer bucket list?