A slow day! 10-9-22

Nothing eventful happened today – my eye is a little blacker, I moved some more plants, had a nap while watching the Vikings win, Hazel missed a rat in the barn and supper was yummy burned hotdogs on the grill.

I finished this small quilt measuring 38” x 38” in fall colors just like the original in this book.

Copyright 1989

It’s one of the first quilt books I ever bought and all these years later I still admired this quilt called Hopscotch and Butterscotch. I checked Thrift Books online and it’s available for $4.79 in limited quantities.

I think it’s one of the hardest quilts I’ve ever made and some of my corners are not perfect

Piecing those borders of quarter square triangles was very hard to keep accurate —- I really met my match. It’s going on the longarm tomorrow, I hope. I do love it however and I’ve never made anything in these colors – I still have some fall left to enjoy it on the wall or the table.

Reader quilts –

I also completed this rug today – I only needed to weave the ends through. I have put it off for months and I love these rugs. I have several more nearly completed and I’m on a campaign to finish them for Christmas gifts. Anyone want to join me in a “rug along”?

The Rugs From Rags book is available only by mail – not online. Sadly when we recently reprinted, the price of the book had to go up. The book and DVD together will now be $24.00 including shipping. Young people who like to work with their hands would enjoy this – new fabric is not necessary – cut up some old clothes or linens into strips. Directions to make the simple frame are included in the book.

That’s all, Gals – I gotta concentrate on the baseball game.

36 thoughts on “A slow day! 10-9-22

  1. Vicki

    Your quilt does look a bit difficult, but I love the colors. Good job done.

    And Sue, your wooden duck is a great way to showcase that beautiful small quilt.

    All the quilts are nice and trigger thoughts on what to make next. I am forever behind, but shall keep plugging away.

  2. Linda in Estherville

    I wonder where oh where my book or frame is! That was in the last century for sure! The one rug I made was last seen in a camper…somewhere while he was traveling building railroad tracks someplace! Now, even the church ladies do not make rugs.

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Linda in Estherville – we just can’t let this old craft technique disappear!

  3. Sheila

    Great blog today Mary, very upbeat. Hope you are doing better and Rick is hanging in there as well. I loved your quilt, perfect colors for this time of year. Great quilt show, so many beauties’.

    Take care of your eye. You are a real inspiration.

    Sheila in MA

  4. Ann in Virginia

    I have your rug book, but not the video. Is it available separately?

    Sunday—-FedEx brought my plant hauler, I put it together, tried it out & it’s great. I have LOVE IT.
    Thanks for sharing that with us!! I am sure Amazon has sent out a few because of you!!

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Ann – I will check on the Price of just the dvd and can let you know.

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Tina – the white triangle is just hanging down – I didn’t pin it up.

  5. Barb

    Yes Mary, check the upper left corner of the top left block. Your half square triangles are rotated.

  6. LaNan

    I’d like to do a rug along but not quite sure if I’ll have time. Our daughter had identical twin boys Friday ! But maybe a rug will fit in🤪

  7. Judy from Wisconsin

    Hi Mary
    I smiled when I saw the headline-A Slow Day. You certainly deserved a slow day after the week you had.

  8. Joy in NW iowa

    Sorry about the black eye and the elbow! U two better be careful! At our age we have things 😉 that happen unintentionally! We had a really hard freeze Saturday morning. The vines on hubby’s tomatoes are all withered but the green tomatoes look ok. Will they slowly ripen if we bring them in?
    Harvesting beans is finished and corn has begun. Finding the dryer corn. It’s nice to be able to start leisurely and not have to worry about the s word!
    Take care!

    1. Melody from Wisconsin

      Mary,
      I have to agree with Sue, I absolutely love the rug you made. Something about those colors just really caught my eye. I would buy it in a heartbeat. I can’t believe Hazel is still trying to catch rats – she is earning her keep for sure. Are you still using the battery traps? Last count I think you said was over 50. How frustrating – did the exterminator help at all?

      1. Mary Etherington Post author

        Melody – Orkin lived up to all my readers’ warnings – they are horrible! We’re at number 68 – 3 last week that Keeper had outside so I don’t know who caught them, Hazel or Keeper. They were juveniles, I believe – smaller than those first ones I trapped. My original electronic traps wouldn’t work anymore but the company replaced them free. Orkin’s bait boxes are still in the barn but they either don’t come or come unannounced. I am sick about it all.

        1. Melody from Wisconsin

          Oh Mary,
          I would be livid with Orkin for the amount of money they were charging you. Hopefully you can withhold payment for services not performed. Maybe Hazel will work with Keeper and teach him to be a rat killer too and between them and the battery traps you can eliminate them. It must feel never ending for you.

  9. Sue in Oregon

    Mary…I just absolutely Love your rug. The colors are perfect. I have your book and started a rug the last time you shared your rugs with us. Alas…it is in back of the door of my sewing room approx. 1/3rd done. I can’t even remember now how to do it, but I should get everything out and finish it. I have to wait, though, until bad weather comes again. We are busy cleaning up outside gardens. Stuff like that. The only thing I like about winter is that I can sew and craft without guilt.
    Thank you Vicki, for your kind words about my little Bears Paw scrappy quilt.

  10. Beryl in Owatonna

    I just tried ordering the Quilts book…it is temporarily unavailable 11 people waiting! I ordered a couple other books instead . I have the rug book but haven’t made any yet.
    Your day didn’t sound slow to me! Hope both of you are feeling better!

    i

    i

  11. Kathy in western NY

    A slow day is a day of rest for you not pushing yourself which you need to remember with so much on your plate right now. Now if I were Connie or Jo in Wyoming coming home from a retreat I would need a whole week of slow days to catch up on unpacking and disrupted sleep. I never use to sleep good at retreats. They were always fun but now I am happy to pack and unpack my many projects making a mess home. But I always loved seeing what others were working on so I think that’s why I love that you share all that on your blog.

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Kathy – I’m with you – I don’t work well at retreats – I do so much better at home!

  12. Launa

    Like your newest quilt for Fall, Mary! Thanks for posting readers’ quilts and your rug challenge! Good to hear your eye bruise is doing better. Can’t believe Hazel missed a rat 🐀….the darn things! Maybe she was having a slow day?

    Raiders vs Chiefs on tonight football! Won’t miss it since I’ve been a RAIDER fan for so many, many years!

    40o out up here in Idaho this morning @ 8 am; sun isn’t over the mountains yet, but deer hunters are out this opening day with the huge Moose Fire over 80% contained! Am thankful for the cooler temperatures helping the firefighters who have been working since July here.

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Launa – thanks for the football reminder! I’m going to watch, too. So happy to hear that fire is under control.

  13. Lynn in Scottsdale, AZ

    I am always working on a rug so would participate in making a rug. Love the colors of your completed one.

    Praying all your injuries are better. My hip hurts this morning from sitting on the couch too much yesterday. When we are old, our bodies just hurt no matter what we do.

        1. Mary Etherington Post author

          Georgia – our address is right on the front page of the blog – you don’t have to go back to 2015.

          1. Georgia

            Lol! Was too busy looking at quilt photos & didn’t notice – my brain is used to right-side columns for advertising. I had done a Google search and the 2015 article was in the results. Was trying to keep you from having to re-post the info. E for effort 🙂

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Dianne Swanson – send cash or check to Country Threads, 2345 Palm Ave Garner,IA 50438 and tell me what you’re ordering.

  14. Sherry Whalen

    I will ‘rug along’. About a month ago I finished one and ended up donating it to a guy and his 3 daughters who had an apartment fire. Members of our quilt group made a quilt, one made 3 pillow cases for the girls and another made a pillow case and pot holders for the dad. I added in the rug. It is soft – I used long fleece trimmings, so it made it soft and squishy lol.

    I took it to our last meeting to hand off and many of our group wanted to know how I made it – so since we are having a ‘sleep at home’ retreat this Thursday and Friday – I am going to demonstrate the process and pass along your blog address. So since I have warped a rug – I will be joining in!

    I’ve made several rugs, they are fun. I’ve used left over fleece selvedges, old sheets and clothes, some fabric that wasn’t quilt worthy, and my favorite reduce, reuse, and recycle – t-shirts. I haven’t tried denim – yet….I know that will be harder to work with.

    1. Mary Etherington Post author

      Sherry – I don’t know why I don’t always have a rug in progress! The ones I have waiting now have been around for too long! It’s time to finish them! Yes, my favorite is tshirts and my least favorite is denim which is so hard on my hands. I’m not sure when we’ll start but I’ll take it slow so everybody can keep up. They’ll have to have a frame made first! Ugh – that’s always an issue. I love the small runners so much.

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