Update on my arm & my mother's scarf

3 months ago my arm went numb from elbow to pinkie and ring finger and lots of pain in the elbow area. After several doctor appointments and tests and different opinions, it seems I have a problem with my ulnew nerve which has greatly reduced my sewing activities.

Now, it is getting better slowly and for that I am very thankful. Praise the Lord.

Friday night our air conditioning went out, and husband George flipped the whole house electrical switch in the fuse box. This caused the computers (3) to go offline.

I spent 2 hours on the phone with the cable people and talked with 3 different techs and the conclusion they reached is my computer no longer recognizes my network card which is surely damaged. So I am using the extra computer in the garage, but the garage has a window air unit!!!!!!but no printer.

My memory sticks do not fit the computer in the garage so I am using George's computer to post my blog. Where there is a will there is a way.

Last night, George got the air working. Yeah!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, the whole point of this post was to tell about my mother's scarf.

I am wearing this weird looking brace on my elbow and decided to "doctor" it up with a scarf. I was looking for a smaller one and found one of my mother's that I had never really looked at that closely. I fell in love with it and decided it would make a great pattern for a quilt.

George wants to frame it and put it on the wall-the scarf that is.

Anyway, at the bottom of the scarf, it says Margaret Cusack.

I did some googling and found her web site and all about her. She is quite an accomplished artist and designer. I wrote her and asked her if I could use the pattern to make a small quilt and she wrote back and said yes provided I endorsed her copyright.

Here is a picture of the scarf-above.

Haute Tote McCall's Quilting Magazine

When my quilting magazines arrive, I immediately look for a purse pattern. I was not disappointed in this current April issue I received a week ago.


This tote was designed by Nina McVeigh and is intermediate in skill level. It has woven handles which call for an apparatus (Diva Custom Cord Maker) you have to buy that costs $35, but I made mine from a coffee can lid.

It also calls for you to make piping out of cording and bias tape you make.


Anyway, I used all new fabric from my ebay store from Michael Miller and Exclusively Quilters.
http://stores.ebay.com/Fabric-for-quilts-and-more

It is pieced and quilted, and I am very happy with it, since it is my first attempt. I did follow the pattern, except I put in a magnetic closure and added pockets on the inside. I like a lot of pockets. I did find that the inside lining piece was too tall so I made alittle edging out of the lining which sticks up on the outside of the bag (the polka dot), and I rather like that. My husband called it a happy accident.


I used Warm and Natural batting for the outside and fusible fleece on the lining.


You have to make bias tape from the 8 fabrics you use to make the bag. If you don't know how, it is shown on the website for McCall's.
http://nccallsquilting.com/
You have to buy the magazine to get the pattern for the tote.