Leafing out

     No, not the branches on the trees here. The daffodils finally are opening and the hellebores have, but little else. The quilt's leaves are rustling.
     I have been absent here, not because of the weather, but between Easter prep, guests and making dinner, and then I had cataract surgery combined with glaucoma surgery. I am unable to see in one eye. My right eye is fogged out. It is supposed to last 3-5 days and I am going, frankly, nuts. The eyes are fighting for supremacy, I have no vision but fog in one eye, and I can do little. I am trying hard to do this post. I can't sew or cut or drive or read. The doctor says it is fine. I supposedly have the left eye in less than 2 weeks to do. Might have to be put off. Eyesight is a gift I highly treasure.

Just before eye surgery. Big Purple's first quilt. Rosie thinks it is a hammock.

The leaves done with swirls around them, straight lines in the corners.

Back detail

Backing blown by wind

     Thank you to Quiltdiva Julie for the quilt pieces, backing and awesome binding! I hope you enjoy seeing it. No recipient yet.

Thread Mess

     It was a one in a million shot. Letting the Nolting warm up, unthreaded from the tension disc forward with me sitting one foot away winding bobbins, and disaster struck.
     Unsuspecting, the thread got sucked into the tiny crack next to the handwheel, and for 5 minutes of warm up, wound itself around the shaft. When I turned the machine off after warmup, I noticed the thread going next to the handwheel. It was stuck, and when I probed it with a long pin, I could tell it was really wound thick. Nothing thinner than a pin fits in there. I tried unwinding it going in reverse with the handwheel, and got 40 minutes of unwinding done and then the thread frayed and broke. 
    After a trip to the hardware store and $30 later, I got an American set of allen wrenches (had metric) and found it was a 9/32 wrench that got off the side panel to see things better. It gave no more clearance for the handwheel, but I could get all the thread pieces picked up plus the pin I had dropped into the slot. I had to make a hook with a very long pin held with pliers and pry and break all the thread and remove. Total time: 4 1/2 hours.
     Moral of the story, I am clipping the thread to the machine when warming up. I had clipped it to the velcro strip, but am now clipping it to the CD under the thread cone. One for the books. My hair was already white.

A large portion of the thread removed. Brand new spool, too. 

Thread was stuck in narrow slot to left of handwheel 

Arrow points to clip securing thread

Absolutely new!

     The hard thing about being a quilter is that is a lone profession most times. Thanks for reading, it makes a difference to me. 
      I made a hard decision to spend more money and upgrade my used Nolting inside the 6 month allowable window because I was struggling with the frame and the new Pro has adjustable handles that can come out in front of the machine. The new Nolting 20" Pro, in purple, came on Thursday. My dealer, Delightful Quilting and Sewing, dismantled the used one I bought and left a sparkling new machine in its place.
      I wanted to celebrate after sewing on it as it moves like melted butter and the handles take all the strain off my shoulders. However, no one I know even cares that I bought a new machine to show off what it can do. The cat did jump on the practice piece as I was working, but I don't think he was doing it out of excitement. I know I will be able to make lots of comfort quilts and hopefully some art  quilts. I am pretty excited.

The quilt, Little Boxes is first on the machine

It is all about those handles!

First off the Nolting!

      A lap quilt of exploding squares is the first quilt off the Nolting longarm. I used Glide on the top and So Fine 50 on the bottom. I found I could not do diagonal lines without big wobbles. Surprise, I did not know that you could not. I found out from the dealer that I need to purchase a ruler base and rulers to do diagonals. Who knew? I wonder what else I don't know that will surprise me. 
     A good surprise was that when I removed the quilt to photo on the design wall, it laid absolutely flat. Without being stretched and pulled through a domestic machine, but moved on roller bars, it stayed in a true shape. 

The eagle, er Nolting, has landed

     I took the big plunge. I bought a true longarm. No computerization, just me moving it. I happen to have an extraordinary dealer, Delightful Quilting and Sewing, about 1 1/2 hours from me. I met Joyce at a NYS Quilt Consortium meeting and tried out machines in her business. I was able to purchase a used, reconditioned machine from Nolting. Joyce and her husband set it up for me and continue to answer my myriad of questions.
     I hesitated to put up a post because it is such a huge decision, expense, takes so much space and I am afraid people will think I am extravagant. I could no longer push quilts through  a domestic machine with my neck/shoulder issues. 
    So it is here and I have 12" left of a comfort quilt until I get it off and see how much I have to learn. I had to put in the basement and move a lot of stuff, but it is here and hopefully, soon, I will be more proficient.

Hate the knotty pine panels, so dark

Takes a whole wall up