getting ready for Thanksgiving ~

It was a hard decision to make, but I decided to rip out the machine quilting I had sewn on the large brown portion of my quilt. The machine quilting I did a few weeks ago didn’t turn out to my liking, the backside was all jargled up and so today I took my seam ripper and worked and worked until it was quilted no more.



I spent most of what I could today hand quilting what I had ripped out. In these photos I tried to reveal the softness hand quilting has given this quilt. I gave the thread a little tug every once in a while to make the soft puckers. I am so super thrilled with it so far. It was all worth the pain-staking decision and time it took to rip out the machine stitches.





I soon found that hand quilting was going to give it just the look and feel I was after, though it will take much more time to complete it, I know I’ll be happier in the end. {I already have one little girl making claims to it!!} The shadows and bumps reveal how incredible soft this quilt will be once its finished. I can’t stop running my hands over it. I have only quilted one row of width, lots more to go.

We’re leaving tomorrow for our Thanksgiving road trip. I have three road projects that I’m bringing along, this quilt, yarn for knitting a pair of child size legwarmers, and this project yet to be completed from the end of summer.



We went to the park this morning to burn off some energy and when we came back home I thought it would be a great time for a mock Christmas card photo session outside of our house. Judging by this photo, it isn’t going to be as easy as I thought, I see now what I'm up against - getting three little people to be happy, look at the camera, and smile at the same time!!!

I do wish everyone a safe, thoughtful, thankful, Thanksgiving Day tomorrow.