Well, here I am with no sewing machine or stash. I am in Austria for the winter. Actually, this is my second winter here and last year I learned my lesson - hard to come by quilting fabric and the price of a sewing machine is out of this world. So, this year I am better prepared, I just have to be a bit patient. I packed a large rotary cutting mat and ruler in my luggage and arranged to ship the rest. Enroute is over 30 yards of fabric, plus a new mechanical Janomie sewing machine, rotary cutters, seam ripper (sigh), threads, etc. all that good stuff.
I went with a mechanical Janome because I think it will fare better than my computerized models, plus hopefully less troubles with the electrical differences (I brought electrical converters with me). I already have 2 computerized Janomes with all the fancy stitches at home and don't want to risk shipping even one of them. For my stays over here I just need a work horse machine that will give me a nice 1/4 seam. I love my Janomes!
And now, I am just slightly beginning to worry about those 30 plus yards of fabric... I was a bit daring and went with lots of different styles of fabrics and colors that I usually wouldn't buy; all 1 yard cuts. But, I am trying to change my style a bit. No looking back now, although I am thinking maybe I should have tried to at least buy all the same time period, style or designer or something so that it will all go together. Oh well, my style is scrappy, and I guess these resulting quilts will be scrappy! Who knows, maybe 100 years down the road someone will be wondering at my fabric choices.
In the meantime, since I can not sew at night (my time to sew) I have been having fun enjoying high speed internet. There are so many wonderful quilting sites out there and I have printed off several patterns that I would like to try. In one fit of homesickness (and a bit of stash envy, I confess!) I fired off an e-mail to a quilter I highly admire over the internet, Judy L. She promptly responded which really lifted my spirits. Quilters are such a caring bunch. She had one great suggestion for me in my travels: pre-cut several quilts once I get back to my main stash, bag them up and then they will be ready to go with me next year. What a plan!
Well, I do not have any quilty photos to share, so instead I am sharing photos I took last week of this church (and the view looking down from the church) which is way on top of a mountain in Germany. We took a train to the top - I love trains! This was a neat train because most of the track was the cog system - where little spokes like gears on a watch grip part of the track to hold the train in place - it helps the train climb and also helps prevent the train from running away down the steep grade. There are tons of climbing and walking trails, but with a little guy in tow (2 years, 5 months), hiking wasn't really an option. We did have lunch outside at that restaurant you can see in the photo. The weather was perfect, we had good company in our friends, and it was really a wonderful day.
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