Yesterday was spent driving through the mountains to the Husqvarna dealer that is about an hour away. I had made an appointment to have two of my machines checked. One just needed to be checked and cleaned, and the other I thought had a huge issue which fortunately turned out not to be a huge issue but I had it checked and cleaned while it was there.
The technician allowed me to watch what he was doing so I got to see guts of both of my machines. Since I'm so far away, the technician also spent some time showing me different things that I can check on my machine without causing an issue with my warranty. Believe me when I say that it isn't going to an issue because with the computerized machines there are just too many wires. Curiosity is one thing and I certain got to check my machine out well today but if taking a cover off requires unplugging several electronic components you had been know what was unplugged from where.
So Behemoth is safely home and ready to go to work. Now, I just need to figure out a project or two to check it all out. My older machine actually did come up with a slight issue. It was decided to not worry with it at this time. The one stitch that the tech pick to stitch wouldn't stitch. Since it was a stitch I never use, I decided to leave it as it is until something else that is used fails.
Now, you know going into the dealer means that you get to look at a lot of great stuff - fabric, notions, patterns, and accessories for your machine. I'll have more at that one another day.
Happy Stitching!
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Friday, June 19, 2015
Books! Books! Books! and More Books!....
Oh, yeah, I've been shopping again. I hope I enjoy each and every one of these titles:
I have been wanting to get The Couture Skirt book ever since it came out. I already have the corresponding jacket book. Maybe this will be one of my winter projects -- a skirt and a jacket. We'll see. I always seem to plan big.
The Quilter's Reference Tool. This book is packed with information which I'm hoping will be useful for me. Information contained within bed/quilt sizes, handy little charts for the number of blocks needed for different size quilts, yardage requirements, conversion charts, cutting information, supplies, piecing information, and 20 quilt blocks. Can you ever really have too many reference books?
Think Big. I can't remember what drew me to this book. It has several nice projects.
Quick Column Quilts. I'm sure I got this one because Nancy Zieman is the author. I enjoy reading/doing her shortcuts and this book is packed with them. The designs seam like they lean more to the model side of quilting.
Kitchen Stitches. I haven't had a chance to really look at this book yet. There were a couple of projects that I really wanted to do. I hope I get this finished.
Quiltmaking Essentials 2 is all about settings and borders, along with backings and bindings. I'm hoping that this book has a many interesting tips as the first one book did.
Well, it looks like I have plenty to read and do with these books. Hopefully, they will keep be busy over the summer and through the fall. I also pre-ordered another book that should arrive sometime in August. If your interested in any of these books, I may be able to order them for you.
Happy Stitching!
Thursday, June 18, 2015
Fear of the Unknown....
I can't remember if I mentioned it or not but the Behemoth (my fancy sewing machine) broke down in March when I was sewing the knit dress. I haven't gotten the courage yet to take it to a dealer to see if it can be repaired. Now, I'm sure you're wondering why I say "if". I have had Husqvarna Viking machines for the past fifteen years. I have 3 machines. When I had a dealer nearby, these machines were taken in on a regular basis to be serviced. Unfortunately, there isn't a nearby dealer anymore and haven't been since about a week after I purchased Behemoth. The nearest dealer is about 35 miles away and I have no idea if they are willing to work on my machine since I didn't purchase it from them. I suppose I should give them a call and see what they have to say. It would be nice if I could drive and have the machined serviced right then but I doubt that will be an option.
So, what is the problem with Behemoth that makes me wonder if it can be fixed. It's black grease. Oh, yeah. I was having an issue with it sewing and decided to clean it good and see if the issue was just needing to be cleaned a bit. Instead during the cleaning process a found black grease. I turned the machine off and haven't touch it since. I've never seen grease on any of the other machines and I strongly suspect that I shouldn't be seeing any grease on this one.
So, what is my fear? That this machine has something broken that will prevent repair and it's not part of the warranty. My machine has very low hours on it. I think there is less than 40 hours of use on it. This makes me very sad to think that you can spend so much money on a machine and get so little use out of it. My only hope that this is part of a long-term warranty.
One of my friends has been harassing about getting the machine fixed. So,, I am going to try to call the dealer tomorrow and see about taking it in. I'm hoping that I can talk my son into going with me so I won't be such a lonely trip there and back. So, the question that I have been struggling with is if it can't be fixed, do I replace it? One of the features that I wanted on this machine outside of the large embroidery field was the lighting and this is something I do not have on any of my other machines. My old age eyes tell me that I really need this feature. Granted there are a lot of other features that I wanted and got with this machine.
I'm sure I'm not the first person to have an issue like this but I sure wish it wasn't me having it.
So, what is the problem with Behemoth that makes me wonder if it can be fixed. It's black grease. Oh, yeah. I was having an issue with it sewing and decided to clean it good and see if the issue was just needing to be cleaned a bit. Instead during the cleaning process a found black grease. I turned the machine off and haven't touch it since. I've never seen grease on any of the other machines and I strongly suspect that I shouldn't be seeing any grease on this one.
So, what is my fear? That this machine has something broken that will prevent repair and it's not part of the warranty. My machine has very low hours on it. I think there is less than 40 hours of use on it. This makes me very sad to think that you can spend so much money on a machine and get so little use out of it. My only hope that this is part of a long-term warranty.
One of my friends has been harassing about getting the machine fixed. So,, I am going to try to call the dealer tomorrow and see about taking it in. I'm hoping that I can talk my son into going with me so I won't be such a lonely trip there and back. So, the question that I have been struggling with is if it can't be fixed, do I replace it? One of the features that I wanted on this machine outside of the large embroidery field was the lighting and this is something I do not have on any of my other machines. My old age eyes tell me that I really need this feature. Granted there are a lot of other features that I wanted and got with this machine.
I'm sure I'm not the first person to have an issue like this but I sure wish it wasn't me having it.
Monday, June 8, 2015
Cooking....Butternut Squash Noodles with Spinach and Mushrooms
I recently received a Spiralizer and I've been trying new recipes every week. We tried this butternut squash recipe this past week:
This is Butternut Squash Noodles with Spinach and Mushrooms. We ate it as a meal but it would make a very nice side. My version wasn't as pretty as the one pictured but it was very good. I didn't follow the recipe exactly as I don't normally have shallots available so I substituted 1/2 an onion with some garlic. Now for the good part, this takes about 30 minutes to make. If you're looking for ways to either add more veggies to your diet or add an interesting side, this is a good one. This is so quick to make that it will leave you lots of creating time.
Happy Sewing!
This is Butternut Squash Noodles with Spinach and Mushrooms. We ate it as a meal but it would make a very nice side. My version wasn't as pretty as the one pictured but it was very good. I didn't follow the recipe exactly as I don't normally have shallots available so I substituted 1/2 an onion with some garlic. Now for the good part, this takes about 30 minutes to make. If you're looking for ways to either add more veggies to your diet or add an interesting side, this is a good one. This is so quick to make that it will leave you lots of creating time.
Happy Sewing!
Monday, June 1, 2015
May's Garden....
May was a busy month in the garden. We planted lots of flowers and vegetables. The perennials were/are beautiful. Unfortunately, the weather did get hot before I took a lot of pictures but I did get a few. Here are the totals for May:
Asparagus - unknown. I forgot to weigh it but we had fresh asparagus a couple of times a week for 4 or 5 weeks .
Lettuce - 2 lbs 3/8oz - there is nothing better than fresh lettuce.
Parsley - 3/8 oz - I strongly suspect that I missed weighing and/or writing this down.
Sage - 3/8 oz - this is only picked as needed. Harvest is actually in the fall.
Chive Flowers - 1 1/2 lbs - yum, yum
Chives - unknown, I missed weighing and/or writing it down.
Spinach was available also but I decided not to harvest as the leaf miners attacked before I was able to pick it and I didn't really want to eat the larvae.
I have also been working on restocking the jelly. So far, I have made 15 half pints of strawberry jam and 6 pints of blueberry. I think the next round of jelly making will be at the end of June when the apples are ready.
Here's a few pics:
The 1 1/2 lbs of chive blossoms are marinating in white vinegar. In a couple of weeks, I should have some beautiful chive vinegar. Flowers from around the garden:
Two of the three iris varieties bloomed. We're not sure why the 3rd type didn't bloom. We made the assumption that it was something to do with the severe winter we had. If you happen to know why irises quite blooming I would like to hear about it. These flowers are in various places around the house.
Love the poppies. These are also in various places around the house. We had attempted to move the poppies only to find out that we would get poppies in the spot we wanted them and where they were originally located. They are beautiful though when they bloom even it is only lasts for a couple of days.
I do love the peonies. This is another plant that we attempted to move and ended up with them everywhere. I do enjoy using these for cut flowers. The buds have opened since this picture was taken and it rained before I could make any bouquets.
Hope you making more time for sewing than me.
Happy Stitching!
Asparagus - unknown. I forgot to weigh it but we had fresh asparagus a couple of times a week for 4 or 5 weeks .
Lettuce - 2 lbs 3/8oz - there is nothing better than fresh lettuce.
Parsley - 3/8 oz - I strongly suspect that I missed weighing and/or writing this down.
Sage - 3/8 oz - this is only picked as needed. Harvest is actually in the fall.
Chive Flowers - 1 1/2 lbs - yum, yum
Chives - unknown, I missed weighing and/or writing it down.
Spinach was available also but I decided not to harvest as the leaf miners attacked before I was able to pick it and I didn't really want to eat the larvae.
I have also been working on restocking the jelly. So far, I have made 15 half pints of strawberry jam and 6 pints of blueberry. I think the next round of jelly making will be at the end of June when the apples are ready.
Here's a few pics:
Two of the three iris varieties bloomed. We're not sure why the 3rd type didn't bloom. We made the assumption that it was something to do with the severe winter we had. If you happen to know why irises quite blooming I would like to hear about it. These flowers are in various places around the house.
Love the poppies. These are also in various places around the house. We had attempted to move the poppies only to find out that we would get poppies in the spot we wanted them and where they were originally located. They are beautiful though when they bloom even it is only lasts for a couple of days.
I do love the peonies. This is another plant that we attempted to move and ended up with them everywhere. I do enjoy using these for cut flowers. The buds have opened since this picture was taken and it rained before I could make any bouquets.
Hope you making more time for sewing than me.
Happy Stitching!
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