Monday, December 10, 2018

Weekend Stitching: Mystery Stitching

This was one of those weekends where I'm glad to go back to work so I can rest.  We discovered mice in the house the Sunday after Thanksgiving. They were all caught in pretty short order, but not till after they had made a nest in the recyclables.  We pitched all that, but we kept catching whiffs of mouse all over the kitchen, living room and library.  So we did some deep cleaning this weekend.  We moved furniture, Mr. Cleaned the wood floor and baseboards in the kitchen, then steam cleaned the carpets in the living room and library.  I think we got all the smelling residues they left.  

The deep cleaning didn't leave a lot of time and energy for stitching this weekend but I got a bit done.  The last two borders were added to the Christmas Mystery quilt.


Christmas Mystery designed by Carrie Randall (Quilter's Hideaway)


This was such a fun project.   I plan to hand embroider eyes and a mustache on the nutcracker before the quilt gets sent out for quilting.  I'm not going to get that done before Christmas unfortunately.  But I'm planning to get this one ready to go to out for quilting before the end of the year.  

The only other stitching that got done this weekend was on Bonnie Hunter's Good Fortune mystery.  I worked out a procedure to get both the half chevron block and the HSTs from the green rectangle and neutral squares using one of my rulers and Bonnie's instructions.  



I didn't get very far, but at least all the neutral squares are cut, so all that's left is to stitch up my quota.  

Holiday preparations are going to suck up a lot of my evening time this week.  So I'm not sure how much I'll get done.  I need to bind one quilt that's intended as a Christmas gift, so my plan is to spend my 15 minutes each evening getting that done. That may be all the sewing I can fit in this week.  

Linking up with

Bonnie Hunter's Clue 3 linky party
Monday Making
Design Wall Monday

13 comments:

Preeti said...

The reindeer is so cute, I can almost take him home :-) Gosh, that nutcracker block seems like a lot of work with all the little pieces. Overall, a joyful quilt perfect for the season!!!

Alison V. said...

Oh goodness, mice! We had one mouse that we fought early in October so I totally understand! I love your Clue #3 units so far -- I didn't finish this weekend either but I'm hoping to finish during the evenings the next couple days.

Ramona said...

Your mystery quilt turned out so cute. It will be a fun one to display at Christmas time. Mice...ugh!!

Meloney said...

That is an adorable quilt. I hope your deep cleaning did the job and you can go back to life as normal.

Barbara said...

It turned out great! Very pretty fabric in the border.

LIttle Penguin Quilts said...

What a weekend - yikes! At least you're probably relieved to be de-moused. I love your Christmas mystery quilt - so many fun blocks!

Marti said...

Oh no! Mice are such a pain to deal with and clean up with. At least you didn't have one die inside the wall. Knock on wood (or cat), we haven't had any mice or rats here that got farther than the garage door.

Congratulations on your finish! Or two finishes, if the one you are binding hasn't been shown yet.

gayle said...

Your Christmas mystery is adorable!
I hope your mouse problem is finally under control. Mice make me growly...

cozykoza32a@gmail.com said...

Well done on your Christmas quilt.

Marly said...

I like your festive quilt; you could always hang just the top somewhere, even if it isn't a finished quilt. Your green fabrics in Good Fortune are very pretty.

Sandra Walker said...

Oh how I just LOVE that adorable Christmas quilt! I am amazed that you got as much done as you did after wrestling with the mice and working full time... Love that rich green fabric you're using in Bonnie Hunter's mystery.

Louise said...

Ew, stinky mice! Cleaning that up takes precedence over stitching, unfortunately. They are smelly little buggers, and that's why you don't see them as pets. Rats, while bigger and uglier, are actually quite fastidious and sweet smelling. Not that you want a rat infestation, either!! Anyway, I hope you have more time for sewing this week :)

Emily said...

Love that Christmas quilt every time you show it! I'm so glad Mr. Nutcracker will get eyes and a mustache. Fun, fun!