Easter weekend started off as normal. Each year we dye eggs on Good Friday, and outside! About 6 years ago, we started using kool aid to color the eggs, and I love the colors. It also smells good. Then the kids go crazy and we end up with speckled eggs and funky eggs. This year we learned that we can remove some of the dye, and re dye it to make lines and polka dots.
Of course, we filled baskets, and did an egg hunt. Ever since living in Japan, the kids have received a bottle of ramune, pocky, koala snacks, and hi-chew. Then we do some of the American favorites. This year each child received a pool toy from the dollar store. I figured if it popped, it was only a dollar. Well one broke, and that child was unhappy for a bit. I was actually shocked that it was a favorite among all 3 kids.
I decided a few weeks ago that we were not going to have a traditional Easter dinner. My husband really wasn't wanting to eat ham, neither was I, and the kids....they just don't like it. I decided I was going to keep my sanity and make dinner enjoyable. So...
Yep. We had fish: fried grouper, grilled swordfish, macaroni and cheese, hush puppies, and deviled eggs.
Meanwhile, it the quilting world:
I finished 26 sixteen patches all from my scraps. I am aiming for 36 or 42, but I still need to find a backing fabric for this quilt to finish the stars.
I also pieced more string blocks. Sorry, no pics.
Finally, I battled the new treadle. I have oiled, cleaned, googled,oiled, googled, cleaned, Googled, WD40 (I read this is a last resort type of deal), Googled, Googled, Googled, clean, oil, and clean, every single day for a week, and could not get the stop motion disc off the machine. The countless resortation treadle videos I watched and tutorial showed that this was a simple task, and sometimes you just needed to wiggle the disc to loosen it up. This thing was practically glued on. I Googled tips. Someone surely knew something, and surely someone had been in this same boat before. I mean, the machine is 107 years old! I need this thing to rotate, in order to wind a bobbin, so it is necessary.
So, on Easter Sunday, I finally find a tip about using a block of wood. Fine, I decided to give it a try. I put the wood under the needle bar. I read that this could mess up the timing, and to be very gentle. Please note, there is no needle in the machine! I prayed for no damage. I was at my wit's end, and I had so much oil in this machine, that it should just come off. I turned the disc, and it stopped at the wood. I took another deep breath, I gave another gentle twist, and something moved. I looked and couldn't believe that it was actually unscrewing. Looks like I just needed something to help stop the needle bar from moving. I got it all assembled again, and decided to attempt winding a bobbin. Then immediately remembered that I needed a belt. So now, I need to order a belt and metal polish.
I still cannot get the presser foot lever to go up and down. I am thinking I can do without it for now, but it is unstuck.
Of course, we filled baskets, and did an egg hunt. Ever since living in Japan, the kids have received a bottle of ramune, pocky, koala snacks, and hi-chew. Then we do some of the American favorites. This year each child received a pool toy from the dollar store. I figured if it popped, it was only a dollar. Well one broke, and that child was unhappy for a bit. I was actually shocked that it was a favorite among all 3 kids.
I decided a few weeks ago that we were not going to have a traditional Easter dinner. My husband really wasn't wanting to eat ham, neither was I, and the kids....they just don't like it. I decided I was going to keep my sanity and make dinner enjoyable. So...
Yep. We had fish: fried grouper, grilled swordfish, macaroni and cheese, hush puppies, and deviled eggs.
Meanwhile, it the quilting world:
I finished 26 sixteen patches all from my scraps. I am aiming for 36 or 42, but I still need to find a backing fabric for this quilt to finish the stars.
I also pieced more string blocks. Sorry, no pics.
Finally, I battled the new treadle. I have oiled, cleaned, googled,oiled, googled, cleaned, Googled, WD40 (I read this is a last resort type of deal), Googled, Googled, Googled, clean, oil, and clean, every single day for a week, and could not get the stop motion disc off the machine. The countless resortation treadle videos I watched and tutorial showed that this was a simple task, and sometimes you just needed to wiggle the disc to loosen it up. This thing was practically glued on. I Googled tips. Someone surely knew something, and surely someone had been in this same boat before. I mean, the machine is 107 years old! I need this thing to rotate, in order to wind a bobbin, so it is necessary. So, on Easter Sunday, I finally find a tip about using a block of wood. Fine, I decided to give it a try. I put the wood under the needle bar. I read that this could mess up the timing, and to be very gentle. Please note, there is no needle in the machine! I prayed for no damage. I was at my wit's end, and I had so much oil in this machine, that it should just come off. I turned the disc, and it stopped at the wood. I took another deep breath, I gave another gentle twist, and something moved. I looked and couldn't believe that it was actually unscrewing. Looks like I just needed something to help stop the needle bar from moving. I got it all assembled again, and decided to attempt winding a bobbin. Then immediately remembered that I needed a belt. So now, I need to order a belt and metal polish.
I still cannot get the presser foot lever to go up and down. I am thinking I can do without it for now, but it is unstuck.
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