• Hand sewing flannel sucks.
• leather thimbles are great!
• there are people in the world who are worse at cutting fabric than I am.
• I need sharper needles.
• rubber needle grabbers- awkward to use, but very helpful

All of these thoughts came to me while working on a new project- the Double Anchor Quilt.  Whoever cut the pieces out for this quilt makes me look like an expert cutter.  I’m not sure how the piecing is going to go, but I’m sure it will be educational!

I almost busted out the machine when it took me 30 minutes to sew a 5″ strip of flannel to another 5″ strip of cotton.  Criminy it was tough!  But it lead me to use the rubber needle grabber and the realization that my needles are not the right ones for hand-sewing.   I also broke in my leather knuckle thimble.  What a clever little gadget!  I wish that they made them in kid sizes though.  The package says that they are adjustable, but I have freakishly small fingers.  Seriously.  My engagement ring is a 4 7/8ths.  The jeweler wanted to make it a 4 1/2  but I insisted on it being a little looser.

I can tell that this quilt is going to be a little tricky with the poorly cut strips and heavy fabrics, but the point of this project is to learn new skills and to adapt what I am learning so that I can problem solve.