I know I’ve told you that Dave teaches music (guitar, bass, ukele, banjo, piano, drums…), but I don’t know if I’ve ever told you that he also repairs things related to music (instruments, amps, stereos…)

He especially loves anything that involves fiddling with tubes (ie, old technology). Well, way back in mid-October, he came home with this…

And RCA Victor model 88K. A coworker at his school got it with the intention of restoring it, and soon realized he was in over his head. He asked Dave if he’d like it. And of course, Dave said yes. From what we can tell, it was made between 1937 and 1940 in Montreal.

As you can see, it was in pretty rough shape. But Dave soon had it’s guts out and it’s body stripped down.

I bought him stain and clear coat, and we got some new speaker cover fabric at Lens so he could bring it back to its original beauty.  He kept it original as possible (we were even able to get new water slide decals to replace the old ones), but made a few minor modifications. He did something with the wiring so it will play stereo instead of mono, and he added an input jack so I can use it to play music from my discman or phone. We talked about changing the stereo so it was both AM and FM, but my discman has a radio in it, so we decided to keep the stereo part original.

The day after new years, it was finally ready to go. I cleaned out the corner by my couch, and moved my side table*, and she got put in her new home.

Isn’t she gorgeous. He said I’m not allowed to put any plants on her, but I did manage to sneak my air plants up there (in the gravy boat). The silver speaker is one of the rears for our TV surround, and it will get a new home eventually. The only thing it needs now is a little Nipper dog… and he’s been ordered!

Here’s a little side-by-side…

What a difference! That guy of mine has some serious talent. I may just keep him!

*I’m happy to report, that in cleaning out the corner, I  FINALLY found the missing ball of Twinkle Cat from my gloves. It was inside one of the shelves at the very back. Once the poncho is off the needles, I’ll make my cowl!

I had just four blocks to complete for Meow-lky Way, so I decided last Sunday was the day to get down to it…

They didn’t take long. Once you know what you’re doing with these blocks, they really fly. Since it was barely past noon by the time they were done, I decided to see if I could finish the whole top before dinner time.

The first task was getting the blocks laid out in a nice order.

If you’re going to make this quilt, I suggest paying attention to your lights and darks and planning their placement carefully. I did not (I was limited with the fat quarter pack I was using), and as a result, the diagonal effect of the pattern is lost a little in mine. You can see it better in the original quilt.

Just a note: Relic isn’t snoopervising… he’s giving me the stink eye for disturbing his nap. Also because it  was pouring rain outside and I couldn’t magically make it stop for him.

My layout isn’t perfect, but the blocks went together surprisingly easy!

The original quilt doesn’t have a border, but I felt mine needed one.

These little lineart cats came in a mystery bundle of fabric from Missouri Star Quilts last year, and as you can see, they were waiting for the purrfect project. They were just the thing to finish this top off.

For backing, I’ve got these cute Japanese Cats in a nice soft flannel, and the binding will be the lovely green leafy fabric on the right.

Now, with any luck, as you’re reading this, I’m up at Mom’s quilting it. It looks like it will be my first finished quilt for 2020!

“I can’t believe what you posted yesterday!!!!”

With Christmas done and dusted, I can finally show you an FO I completed ages ago. But first a warning…

If you are offended by, or just don’t like the sight of male genitalia (not real, but crafted), skip this post.

Now… let me preface this post by explaining something. I come from a family with a very … quirky…. sense of humor. My brother exemplifies this – he’s always been the joker of the family. And one of his favourite things to joke around about are penises. He draws penises on his friends dirty cars, in the snow, in the sand… wherever he can. He collects pictures of things in nature that look like penises (trees, carrots, etc).  I don’t entirely understand why… I think it all started with a small statuette my Great Grandmother had.  It was a little carved wooden dude, inside a barrel. But when you lifted the barrel, he had a giant penis. As a child, my brother thought this was the most hilarious thing ever. (In fact, I think my brother inherited said barrel man and he’s still kicking around today).

Over the years, and much to the chagrin of his wife and daughters, I’ve fanned this flame – usually in the form of gag gifts. Last year, I found a hand carved penis-shaped bottle opener, and stuck it inside the socks I made him.

Well earlier this year, I came across a very special quilt pattern, and new instantly what I was making my brother for Christmas.

Now I wasn’t about to make him a whole quilt of penises (Jenn would kill me!), but I thought just one on a pillow would do!

I knew right away that I wanted to make it pink. And my brother is a guitarist, so I thought, why not make it musical? Believe it or not, it took me ages to get pink music fabric. Not because it’s hard to find… it’s just hard to find without paying a fortune in shipping. But I prevailed and well…. you can see the results!

I did a little bit of stitching in the ditch, and a 1/4 inch around to give it just enough pop.

And I added a zipper on the bottom to so he can remove it for washing.

And for a little extra credit… I’ve also got to show you his birthday gift.

This too requires a bit of a story… my Grandfather collected clowns – especially hobo clowns. My brother inherited a few of those too. This fall, I was mucking about on the internet, and somehow (I don’t even remember how) I came across a hobo clown cactus planter… not just any planter, one my brother would love.

I couldn’t find any already finished, so I had to get a plain bisque one, and paint it myself. My hands aren’t as steady as they used to be, but I managed a decent enough job…

It was finding a tiny cactus that fit, that was the real challenge, as Mr Hobo is only about seven inches tall!

Here we are in a brand-spanking new year… and a new decade! I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be a good one.

And now it’s time to set myself some goals…

1) Spend less: This is pretty much a continuation from last year. Or maybe a do-over, because I really failed at it last year. So, to reiterate – no clothes, no candles, no shoes, no plants… fabric/yarn only allowed if I need it for a project… basically… if I don’t actually NEED it… I can’t buy it. Wish me luck!

2) Lose weight: Another one I’ve been working at and failing for a long time. But both Dave and I have joined Weight Watchers, and I think if we’re in it together, we’ll have better luck (He’s already lost about 15 lbs… I’ve got catching up to do!)

3) Knitting goal – Share the love: Last year’s knitting goal was to publish more patterns – and I failed miserably at that.  I still haven’t even gotten my On the GO patterns done… and I will do that. But I also want to set a goal of knitting for others. I’ve always been a bit of a selfish knitter. If I’m going to put that much time into something… well I want it for me. But now my closet is literally over-flowing with cardigans, shawls, hats and socks… I really don’t need much. But as you know, I’ve got one heck of a yarn stash. So this year, I’m going to knit for others. Where possible, all gifts will be knit. But I’d also like to do some charity knitting. I have plans to send a big box of things off to Natalie for her annual fundraiser in July, and I’m going to look into some local charities too.

4) Quilting goal – Shopify!: I didn’t set a quilting goal last year, but it’s clear this quilting thing isn’t a passing fancy. It’s also clear a girl can only make so many quilts for herself and her family. Sooo… this year’s goal is to open an online shop and see if we (Mom and I – we love our joint ventures!) can sell any of our quilts. We’ve done a little research, and it will most likely be another Etsy shop. I’ve got some logos to make, and marketing materials to write, but we’re hoping to have the shop open by Spring. It will mostly be baby quilts, but I’m sure a few larger ones will sneak in there, as well as some smaller items like tote bags, and pet quilts.

So… Hello New Year! Can’t wait to see what wonders you bring!

And since I don’t have any other pictures at the moment… here’s Rupert…

“If you want to lose any weight this year,
I suggest you put down that buttertart…”

Oh, he’s a saucy one! Happy New Year!

In addition to knitting, there was, of course, quilting this year.  And lots of it. I can hardly believe it, but I completed 32 quilts this year!

Not all of them were huge – more than half were baby blankets and lap quilts. But and amazing 13 of them were bed-sized quilts (of varying sizes).

Quite a few were fun and scrappy…

Others were coordinated, but just as beautiful

Cat Fancy was probably the most complicated…

But it was a great challenge to my skills.

Celitc Dreams was definitely the most expensive, with not one scrap of fabric bought on sale..

But it’s worth every penny to see Dave curl up under it every night.

Here to 2020 being another incredible year of scraps and stitches!

Although knitting is no longer my main crafting focus, it was still a pretty good knitting year for me. I completed 36 projects, which is about my average. Most of them were on the small side (no big sweaters or afghans this year), but that’s ok, it’s not the size that matters.

There were 15 pairs of socks

… including these three favourites.

Four were cardigans or sweaters for me

All cropped and cute (and mostly chunky, which is unusual for me, but fun!)

And there were hats, and shawls, baby knits and other whimsies

All in all another wonderful year, knitting with wonderful yarns, making wonderful things! I hope to do more of the same in 2020!

With Christmas more or less behind me, it’s time to get started on projects for the new year’s holidays. First up…. Valentines day.

Dave and I don’t go crazy for Valentine’s Day, but I always like to have a little something for him, usually a pair of socks… so…

It’s not much of a start, but it’s a start. It’s the men’s version of my Hamilton pattern(which I’ve really got to get my crap together on releasing!!!)

The yarn is some Alley Cat BFL I dyed up earlier in the year, just for Dave socks – colourway is Levi!

Only 46 days until Valentine’s Day, so I better get stitching on these!

 

Two more stars have been knocked out for the Royal Starts quilt. I have eight done now, but 20 total are planned

Even so, I couldn’t resist laying out the few that I have.

Burton says I better get back to sewing more stars if I want this one to become a top anytime soon.

Finishing up the year with a little early morning bird-watching.