Would you believe?

I’ll be getting to this:

But first, would you believe I have had to do another operating system reinstall, the second time in less than a month?  Grrrr . . .  so, there it is, the advantages of my literature degree: I know exactly in which circle of hell Dante would put the pond scum that create computer viruses.  (Circle 8).  I like to imagine every once in a while, given the world we live in, what Dante might do if he added a circle or two. 

I must admit though, these reflections are hardly in the Christmas spirit.  Which is as good a reason as any to remind myself that most of the people I deal with in my life are really quite lovely, thank you very much.

And family will be here to celebrate Christmas in just a few days.  Oh, yes.  Much better to think about that.  Also think about the fact that (YE-ESSS!) grades are in.  Whew!  I was a little too brain dead to do much with my tree table runner today.  I kept trying out sashing fabrics.  This?  Or how about this?  Or perhaps this?   

By the time I’m done with grading, I don’t really have much mind left, to speak of.  I do know that this will be the case, though every semester I try to pretend that this time it will be different (it never is).  Hope springs eternal.

Still.  Grades were in.  The sewing room was singing its siren lure.  I had to do something.  Particularly I had to so something with that AccuQuilt Go that has been begging me to play with it.  (Really.  It was very distracting while I was finishing up grading, listening to that little voice calling me, singing, “Come play with me . . .  you know you want to!”  And “Yes,” I’d say.  “I do.  I do.”)

So.  Here it is.  The Quilting Arts gifts issue had ideas for making an ornament using the Holiday die.  I decided to use the Snippets technique I used making bookmarks a year ago.  (See here for the tutorial).  I still had a bunch of little cut up fused pieces so I just pulled them out.  I wasn’t sure how this would work with the Accuquilt, so I just worked up enough for a single ornament.  I cut out a 5 1/2" square of batiste.

It’s super easy: just start adding little pieces.

Keep adding until the background piece is completely covered.  Fuse in place.  (It’s a good idea to use a pressing sheet or cloth, just in case you got it wrong and some of those snippets are fused side up rather than down).

I fused that to some stiff fusible interfacing I had lying about.  Décor Bond, I think. 

And then I randomly stitched with some pretty decorative thread. 

Then I fused some Lite Steam-a-Seam 2 to a backing piece.

And fused those onto the back of the snippets piece.  Time to run it through the AccuQuilt Go.  It went through like a dream.  Add an eyelet and some cord and it’s good to go.  Cute, cute, cute.

And tomorrow I should be back to myself enough to make some decisions with that table runner and get it all put together.  I’m hoping  1) to have it done in time for Christmas and to show all you all and 2) to have working on something so sweet and pretty put me right into the holiday spirit.  Meanwhile, wishing all of you and yours the very best.