Madame Purl » Menagerie

RIP Faygo 1-8-2012

Madame Purl — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 01:11:27 +0000

Ascension
And if I go,
while you’re still here…
Know that I live on,
vibrating to a different measure
–behind a thin veil you cannot see through.
You will not see me,
so you must have faith.
I wait for the time when we can soar together again,
–both aware of each other.
Until then, live your life to its fullest.
And when you need me,
Just whisper my name in your heart,
…I will be there.

The Lily Bath Chronicles

Madame Purl — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 02:44:08 +0000

Poor girl needed yet another bath. She is having issues and isn’t feeling very well right now, so not just a bath, but a dose of icky banana flavored medicine (2x a day for a week…little does she know right now).

Really? I can't believe you went and got the camera.

I'm ignoring you and that camera...

"oh the humility"

I am so going to get you for this.

Les Chats

Madame Purl — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:00:18 +0000

I haven’t done a Whisker’s On Wednesday in a while, so I thought it was about time.

The sleeper. Violet at 6 months. The new chief pillow tester.

The Diva. Got off her perch for this shot. Loves the camera even with a big mounted flash.

The angel. Hardy har har. The other one’s I took have a mug shot quality – his true nature.

Chief biscuit maker.

and bird watcher…

The sisters…

The sweetest little sis on the left…

The dignified older sis on the right….

HRH… At least she thinks so…

Yes. She couldn’t decide which shot she liked better.

And of course the Ancient…

The others were sleeping in spots unseen by the camera that day. I’m thinking these were all shot with my big 85mm f1.4 lens. Beautiful for portraits.

Yum Yum

Madame Purl — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:33:28 +0000

Violet has earned the nickname Yum, Yum…

She’s a big fan of soft food and soft laps.

Lily Eyes

Madame Purl — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 04:13:52 +0000

So Lily is the Silver Shaded Persian, who thankfully is no longer pink. Well, the girl’s eyes are a bit on the runny side and it’s really noticeable on her white fur. I must have been wiping her eyes 3x a day a least. No one liked that… and I found I didn’t even take too many photos of her because I was worried people would think I didn’t take good care of her and really nothing could be further from the truth.

Well, I found this product and bought a trial size for both her and Coco. It’s called Eye Envy and let’s just say it works. It worked like a charm on Lily and she’s looking fabulous! Coco’s hair is a bit more stained, so no new staining, but it will take a few haircuts to get rid of all the stained fur.

Anyway here’s the before…

Here’s the after….

Huge difference all around the eyes and in the area around the nose, plus it lasted for a good 3 days before I felt the need to reapply. You may not notice on these smaller size photos, but really it’s huge. She wasn’t feeling very cooperative on second picture day. Oh well… anyway, no affiliation, but just wanted to share a great project and we’ll be seeing more of Lily now on the blog.

Welcome Violet!

Madame Purl — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 12:52:06 +0000

Welcome Violet! She’s a 4.5 month old Tortoiseshell Persian.

She’s already taken over the house. Normally I set up the bathroom for them to acclimate. Well after dinner she wasn’t having any of that. She pounded on the door and wanted out now! She slept right in bed cuddling up to us the very first night. So she’s sleeping well, eating well, and gotten a clean bill of health from our vet.

All in all – she’s moved in and we all seem to be adjusting well. Right now she’s on top of the tallest cat tree having a good play.

DIY – Quilter’s Ironing Board

Madame Purl — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 13:08:20 +0000

Have you ever wanted more space to iron on? A nice sturdy space that doesn’t wobble and that you can really press those blocks without the ironing board flexing everywhere? Well after going to a Quilt to You Wilt and the big quilting ironing board was talked about by the ladies and apparently all the rage. I decided it’s time to DIY and make an ironing board. I did look at buying one they mentioned, but this DIY ended up being only about $25 and that was way cheaper than buying one. Translation – more money to spend on fabric. Yeah! Maybe a little more if you need to invest in the stapler and spray adhesive. Plus hey – I have the space to make my own.

This is a super easy project and if you Google quilter’s ironing boards, quilting ironing board or big board you’ll find about a zillion instructions and video. I used this lady’s video as my go to, but I read through a ton of entries. I had seen the Big Board – the ones the ladies raved over, which you can put right on top of your current ironing board, but since I had this spare table that was just being used for storage in my room, I decided it was time to put it to use. I would love to use an old farm table, but haven’t found one yet. You can also use this method for a tray table.

Now if I can do this – anyone can. I’m probably the least handy person.

Here’s what you need -

Heavy Duty Staple Gun
3/4″ heavy duty staples
Adhesive Spray
Water Spray bottle
A good pair of scissors
A board or surface – I used a birch board that I got at Home Depot 1/4 inch thick 2 ft x 4 ft. Less than $10.
Duck Cloth – Use a coupon – around $5 and I used a yard.
Warm and Natural – Use a coupon – around $8 – I bought a yard and have some left over.
Felt – Again coupon – about $2 and I bought a yard and have a lot left over.
Hammer – just to pound down the staples if necessary.

So first thing I had to do was flatten the board and give it a new memory. It was just a little bendy – so keep this in mind when picking out a board.

I used a old wet towel that I then applied heat to by way of the iron. This warmed the board up and then I applied clamps and heavy things to make it flat.

The next night I laid out some paper to protect my table. I then made the sandwich. Now the board will have a smooth side and a not sanded side. Put your Warm and Natural on the not sanded side. I cut it – about 3″ over on the sides I then peeled it back and put a little spray adhesive. Then I layered the Duck Cloth. Once I had the duck cloth on then I flipped it over and re-centered it. Then I started to pull as tight as I could and put the staples in. I pulled and stapled, pulled and stapled tucking the corners in. I put some muscle = the little I have – into this part. Next time I recover this I will trim some off the corners so that it folds a bit better.

Finally after that portion is done it’s time for the felt. I cut the felt to size and then did the same thing as the Warm and Natural applying a little more spray adhesive. Finally I flipped it over.

Now can you see the wrinkles and how it’s not quite as tight as you or I would like. Well get your spray bottle. Next spray a good layer of water on it and watch the magic happen. Right before your eyes it will shrink up. I then used the iron to speed things along a bit and voilà- nice and smooth.

Now I can iron a whole fat quarter at a time and have space to lay them out while cutting.

My helper wasn’t impressed.

The Top

Madame Purl — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 04:13:12 +0000

The table runner is now a quilt top complete with borders. This has been a really fun project. Tuesday we sandwich and start quilting.

I can’t believe it’s Sunday night. I would like another day just to recuperate. This weekend was not ideal to say the least. I found our poor Charlie kitty convulsing on Friday morning. I rushed him over to the vet. We’re hoping for a diagnosis of vestibular inner ear disease. However, the vet believes it could be a tumor. The problem is we have to just wait it out and see if he recovers. It’s like he’s had a stroke, but from what the vet’s tell me cats and dogs don’t get strokes. Anyway the MRI that would maybe give us a diagnoses maybe… if they find something…is prohibitively expensive. We’re talking a couple house payments worth folks that unfortunatley we’re just going to have to wait it out. He has improved over the past 48 hours or so, but still is very unstable. He know us and wants attention. He really wants to get on with his life, but we don’t think he can navigate the stairs or should be jumping – oh he wants too… so he has to stay in the kitty condo for now.

Here’s a picture of him before all this happened. I was playing with macro lens… he has gorgeous blue/green eyes.

We also going through a small case of ringworm. 3 of them have it and unfortunately my poor Sweet Pea is having a heck of a time fighting it. I’ve had her to dermatology specialist and now we’re versed in Lyme-sulphur baths… let me just say what a mess that is! It’s like a million rotten eggs all in one. At least there are only 3 that have it and with the specialists help – we’re crossing our fingers here – it has stopped in it’s tracks. We haven’t been able to segregate as I only have one big kitty condo (6ft x 6ft x 8ft – so a separate room with a view), so hopefully no one else will get it. At least it’s summer and warm, they can dry on the screened in porch and not stink up the entire house. It’s a lot better once it’s dry.

I’ve been knitting… so there are ends to weave and progress there to show… just haven’t had the stamina to get the camera out. Oh and I never did get a finished pic up of the parrots did I?

Farmer’s Wife

Madame Purl — Sat, 09 Jul 2011 04:40:42 +0000

I signed up at one of my LQS to do a Farmer’s Wife quilt along. I had a chance to pop over to the store today to pick up supplies. I want to do this in reproduction fabric, but alas I had none in my stash. Poor me… it required stash enhancement. I wanted to get this done early since I have another class that day that I will be running late to – talk about a little over scheduling. It’s hard to be in two places at once.

I was told we would be doing 6-8 blocks a session. I somehow managed to grab 42 different prints. I’m thinking this will give me good start and I can post my progress in a few weeks here. I am thinking I may need a few more greens, reds and golds as I go. I seem to be fine in the lights, blues, browns and purples.

I stopped to pick up a tote to keep all these supplies together. Daisy thought it was for her and was really not pleased when I told her she would relinquish it to the fabric.

If you like the Farmer’s Wife – did you know a new book is coming out this fall. The Farmer’s Wife Pony Club. I was reading through the website and this one looks like a pre-order. I’ll be making this one next. I *heart* samplers.

The Helpers

Madame Purl — Wed, 25 May 2011 11:00:00 +0000

I have lots of helpers that like to sew… well sew and spin, but lately there’s been a lot of sewing and quilting.

Anyway… here is how they like to help.

Notice that tongue… mmmm… tastes good.

Here is how I like them to help.

I’m ignoring you… blissed out in the softest bed ever.

Happy Cat’s On Wednesday!