Showing posts with label Sewing for Charity. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sewing for Charity. Show all posts

Thursday, October 24, 2013

Day 967

1. Cut fabric.
2. Sew from top, down around toe, up to heel. 
3. Open stocking and sew felt cuff across top. 
4. Pull felt up out of the way and sew from heel to top. 
5. Turn stocking inside out. 
6. Sew felt edges together. 

6 steps take a very long time when you're talking about hundreds of stockings so I use the assembly line method. At first it was in groups of 25 at a time. Then it was 50 at a time. And now it has become a few hundred at a time. 

At least for steps one and two, that is...

Monday, October 21, 2013

Day 964

50 more finished up today.

Sunday, October 20, 2013

Day 963

75 is today's magic number.

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Day 962

You'd think someone who:

sews hundreds of Christmas stockings a year
is still using the same pattern since the 1st stocking made
made the how-to video for the Stockings for Soldiers organization, the video on their website and YouTube that is used every season when teaching others to make stockings

would have no problem whipping up those Christmas stockings.

You'd think. Thinking is something I obviously need to do more of when I'm sewing. Out of these 25 stockings I had to redo half of them. Why? Because I put them together incorrectly. Even had to watch my own video to see where I messed up. Let's hope I can speed things up for next few hundred!

Friday, October 18, 2013

Day 961

A thumbs up and thumbs down day.

A rheumatologist appointment, the 7th doctor's appointment in the last two weeks. Thumbs down.

The Dr. canceling my infusion today. Thumbs up.

Because they aren't working. Thumbs down.

Working at getting pre-approval from insurance for another infusion. Thumbs up.

This one lasting 4-5 hours. Thumbs down.

Start on pain pills. Thumbs down. (But if they help it'll turn into a thumbs up.)

Go on temporary disability until things get turned around. Thumbs down.

Ultrasound on hands to judge progression of disease. Shot in the rump to combat pain and inflammation. (You can decide which category that falls in.)

Some money from sales of my book + a gift card from my birthday + some cash back from hubby's credit card + an extremely small portion of my winnings from a couple weeks back = a box containing this, sitting on the doorstep when we got home from the half-day long doctor's office visit. A huge thumbs up.


Christmas stockings in various stages of completion cluttering up a sewing table so much that it'll be a while before I have room for a new machine. Thumbs down.

Sunday, October 13, 2013

Day 956

Three down and only 622 to go!

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Day 955

I've been saying this to myself all afternoon. (Click on the link to hear it.) It's a line from Chevy Chase on the Vacation movie. While I'm not about to jump into a cold swimming pool like he does, I am swimming. Swimming in felt cuffs for the stockings. I cut the exact number I needed. What kind of crazy number would that be?

625.

Yep, passed that 400 goal. Thanks to EVERYONE for making that happen. Guess I better get sewing now!

Friday, October 11, 2013

Day 954

The generosity of people who read this blog continues. Look what Deb from Illinois sent my way. Christmas fabric that will very soon be made into Christmas stockings for the Stockings for Soldiers project.

Thanks, Deb!

Monday, October 7, 2013

Day 950

25 more scrap stockings made and a heck of a bunch of scraps still left. It'll be quite some time before Santa's workshop closes.

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Day 944

Am I over 400 stockings? Well each stack is 25 and I have 23 stacks. Wow.

Sunday, September 29, 2013

Day 942

As I was cutting stockings today hubby asked me how many were already cut.

I have no clue.

Between the ones I already did, the strips I've been piecing together, the 76 from Marie's fabric (yep, Lisa you were right) and the 60 from Joan's material in today's picture I've lost count. While I've stacked them in groups of 25 those stockings have migrated from my table to boxes to baskets to the tops of boxes and baskets. I keep telling myself I'll get them all in one spot and then count them. But with fabric strips and scraps everywhere (including the floor - sorry hubby!) I haven't gotten around to it yet.

Tomorrow will be a new day.

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Day 941

The knock on the door came at the right time.

As much as I work on sucking all the marrow out of life, as much as I choose to be happy despite my health, the downward spiral continues. I thought if I was cheerful enough, hid how I'm feeling enough, it would get easier. But it hasn't.

Every time I go to the rheumatologist's office I have to fill in a form that asks about the joints bothering me and the length of time that I have symptoms in the morning. 3+ hours is my standard answer but I'm on the verge of changing that to 4+ hours. The mornings are certainly the worst. The energy, the breath, the pain, the joint movements required to get out of bed and then get dressed is beyond what I can do most days.

In my futile attempt to forget my issues on weekends I head straight from bed to the sewing machine. I may not be able to breathe or get dressed or even brush my teeth for hours (and forget about putting on my shoes anymore - I've had to go to open back shoes that I can just slip on) but I can sit in a chair and feed fabric through a sewing machine.

That's where I was when the knock on the door came this morning. Hubby returned with a box and let me know I had a new best friend.

Joan from Michigan.

Guess what Joan sent our way? Looks like there is another Christmas angel out there. Thank you, Joan!

Friday, September 27, 2013

Day 940

Today is another question for everyone.

How many stockings did I cut today using the fabric Marie from Las Vegas sent my way?
A. 47
B. 58
C. 69
D. 76

Marie already knows the answer, but what do you think? Let's just say it made a nice dent as I work my (our) way to 400 Stockings for Soldiers.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Day 939

Two mysteries. The first one is for you to solve.

Fill in the blanks.
When my daughter and I walked out of the ______ ______ she said, "A mom should never have more ______ than her 25 year old daughter."

More to reveal on that one later.

Second mystery. When I came home from Boise I had a box sitting in my sewing room. I knew I hadn't ordered anything so was curious about where it came from.

Las Vegas.

From Marie, a reader of this blog. A very, very generous reader who sent me a full box of Christmas fabric for the Stockings for Soldiers project. Did I say she was very generous? Well, she also included a sweet note. And money. Money to help buy more fabric or help with shipping. My heart couldn't be any fuller right now.

Marie, thank you for believing in this project - and in me. Hancock Fabrics has felt on sale and your funds will get a BUNCH of stockings cuffed. Fabric for stockings and felt for their cuffs. What more can a person ask for?

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Day 938

While working with scraps seem to take forever, they are sure worth the effort!

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Day 935

Do you know someone who knows someone who knows someone? If so, I may need their help.

11 fabric stacks. 25 stockings per stack. 11 x 25 = 275 stockings cut.

I'm out of fabric and I'm 125 short from my Stockings for Soldiers 400 stocking goal. Anyone know anyone who might have some Christmas fabric floating around? I could sure use it!

Let's see how creative I can get with scraps now.

Friday, September 20, 2013

Day 933

I define myself by my work. As I sit in the chair during my infusion I know determining my value by my quality of work is not a good quality to hold onto. When I see and hear those people in the same boat as me, with the same illness, who sit alongside me, it becomes abundantly clear that my future isn't so bright. Most folks no longer hold down jobs, having long ago given into the illness and live life on disability.

But from what I've seen it's not really living. It's surviving. And I don't want to just survive. I want to live and in my book living equals work. (And play, of course!) But it worries me. If I don't have work to define myself by, what do I define myself by? I'm afraid I'll wind up substituting charity work to determine my value. Actually I think I already do that. Who else is crazy enough to sew 400 Christmas stockings for soldiers? Why not 20?

Nope, my flawed character says I've gotta do it big. And thanks to one of the folks in my school district for a big fabric donation that'll help me get closer to 400. Of course the overachiever in me decided I had to stack it two different ways and still couldn't decide which way I liked best.

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Day 932

More fabric came in from hubby's school today. This bag of fabric had a note in it from the giver. A gal I worked with years and years ago who now works in hubby's school district wrote me a note and gave me some information about her special daughter-in-law who is a captain in the Air Force. She also shared where her daughter-in-law is stationed.

And here's the kicker.

In Alaska. Anchorage, to be exact. And to be even more specific at JBER. (That stands for Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.) What's significant about that military base?

That's the exact base I make all my Operation Kid Comfort quilts for. The one I just finished up quilts again last week for. The base I was able to visit two summers ago. The one where I was able to present quilts I had made to kids whose dad was deployed to Afghanistan. The visit where the three little kiddos pointed out pictures of themselves with their dad in their own individual quilts. The visit where the mom was in tears as she hugged me, thanking me for making the quilts for her kids. The visit that became one of the most memorable moments of my life.

What are the odds? Her daughter-in-law, the captain, delivers babies at the military base in Anchorage, Alaska. Babies who may be future recipients of quilts made by me here in little ole' Marsing, Idaho. Kind of makes me feel a bit more connected to the bigger world.

Saturday, September 14, 2013

Day 927

How committed am I to passing the self-imposed 400 stockings for soldiers goal? By the looks of just the past 24 hours - cut stockings, fabric strips, and scraps - it might become more of an obsession.

Friday, September 13, 2013

Day 926

I don't even have the kids' quilts in the mail yet and I'm already starting on the next project.

Last year I used up every piece of Christmas fabric I had and sent in over 200 Christmas stockings to the Stockings for Soldiers organization. (That's the group that sends stockings and goodies to soldiers in the remotest regions of Afghanistan.) This year I'm planning on surpassing it on nothing but donated fabrics. Hubby started collecting from the staff at his school (that's today's picture). Next week I'll be getting donated fabric from the staff at my school. My deadline is mid-October so I have to get moving on this.

Anyone out there want to join in and be part of an especially special project? As long as I have fabric, I'll keep a-sewing! Can you imagine if we had 400 Christmas stockings headed to the Stockings for Soldiers organization this year, all thanks to everyone's generosity? I would love to have you be part of this.

Who's in?