Happy Scrappy Mug Rug

I got to sew a little on my Bernina this morning. It's been a while because I've been focused on quilting my magic stars quilt on my Brother machine. Our power was out again Sunday and Monday due to a predicted high wind event in our area. And the same fire that sent us running a couple of weeks ago made another approach from a different direction on Sunday night. This time it was a closer community that got the evacuation order. When we got that notice we started packing, once again by flashlight. We had the car loaded and pretty much ready to go when we got the evacuation warning for our location. So we decided to leave and were relieved that the cats were easier to catch and get into their carriers this time. Just about the time we left we heard from a friend who lives on another nearby ridge but who was not in the danger zone. When she found out we were evacuating she made over night arrangements for us so we didn't have to spend the night in the church parking lot again. Once we were settled and had the cats in a room to themselves I let them out of their carriers so they could access food, water, and the litter box. When I opened their carriers they came out cautiously and then, to my surprise, went immediately back in to the opposite carrier from the one in which they had just arrived.We had put them in the closest carrier to them in the moment - but they knew whose carrier was whose and we had it wrong! 

Early yesterday morning we took them back to the vet clinic and left them to be boarded. We got some breakfast in town and then headed home to check up on the situation. We were still under the evacuation warning but as long as there was no update to an order we decided to stay. I spent a little time in the sewing room pulling scraps for a project I want to begin when I'm done with my Magic Stars quilt. But pulling and sorting them was as much as I could do since I couldn't use the iron to press them with the power still out. 

Around 3:00 pm our power came back on, but by then I was too worn out to do much of anything but enjoy the AC. In the evening we went back to Chico and got dinner at one of our favorite burger joints and ate outside on the patio along the main street of town. The smoke had lightened down there significantly by then and there was only a breeze instead of a high wind like there had been all day at our house. It was very pleasant and a much needed break from the stress all the wind, smoke, and fire danger has had us in for weeks now. We spent the night at home and got a very good night's sleep, which we both really needed. We are still under an evacuation warning, but the fire is 95% contained now and the wind has died down to just a mild breeze, so we are feeling reasonably confident that we won't get an evacuation order and have to leave again. We are hoping that the warning will be lifted later today so we can pick up the cats and bring them home too. We don't want to risk having to put them through that trauma again so soon. Though unless we get a nice dousing of unexpected rain we know that we could have to run through this scenario again within the coming weeks. This picture of them was taken in December of 2019 - all peaceful and no idea of what lay ahead for any of us in 2020.  

My magic stars quilt got packed with a churn dash quilt I made for us years ago and they are still in the car, which is still packed and ready to go, just in case. So this morning I started pressing some of the scraps and pulled a few out to make a mug rug for a little table that was Dan's mom's. It's unfinished and needs a little protection. I had fun working with the pink and green scraps and pulling the little piece together without a pattern. I've not done any piecing in that way before and think I could do more of it. I've made a few mug rugs for around the sewing room and one for Dan's study table. I don't bind them. I trimmed this one to size and then used a fancy zig-zag stitch around the outer edge. I've used pinking sheers on the others to help prevent fraying, but the little green strip on this one is so thin it would disappear if I did.

I'm very close to finishing quilting the magic stars quilt, but won't be getting it done by month's end as I had hoped. Losing power and evacuating twice this month kept me from getting it completed as was my One Monthly Goal for September. Another thing that slowed down my progress was my incomplete planning on the quilting itself. Once I got a number of the large square areas quilted as planned I realized that there was too much space left unquilted between them. The empty space is pictured here on the right. I had to add quilting to all those spaces and that extended the amount of quilting time. The motif I used, shown in the photo below can be used for different sizes of areas, instead of four layers of petals I used two layers for these small in between areas. 

Also, when I reached the outside edge I found that I had large triangles between the quilted squares that I hadn't planned any quilting for, so had to come up with a way to get that quilted too. It took me quite a while to figure something out that would work with the quilting I had already done. The picture on the left shows the sunflower quilting pattern I'm using. I marked it using white taylor's chalk, something I've not used before. It's worked out quite well showing up on the light and dark fabrics. I'm hoping it will come completely out of those dark fabrics once I wash the quilt. I've been using a stiff bristled paint brush to wipe it off after quilting the motif, and the darkest of the fabrics are still showing some of the chalk. The outer triangles are the last of the quilting that needs to be done, but I have not started them yet. 

One other issue has slowed down my quilting on the magic stars quilt. Suzette has claimed it for her own and thinks that she is entitled to possession of it while I am working on it. She can get very feisty if I try to pick her up off of it too, but going into the pantry and pulling out one of her kitty treats works every time. She knows that sound and hops down and comes to meet me as soon as she hears it. Then she gets closed out of the sewing room so I can work. The quilt is queen size and heavy enough without her extra 10 pounds. She must be confused about the "queen" designation of the quilt and think it's hers because she's the Queen. 

Well the day is getting on and I should attend to a little housework. No word yet about the evacuation warning for our area being lifted. I hope it comes soon. 

I'm linking up with Cynthia of Quilting is More fun than Housework for Oh Scrap!

I'm linking up Patty at Elm Street Quilts for One Monthly Goal.

Stay safe and be well - Happy Quilting!