New to me

The new sewing machine foot to help with seam binding hasn't arrived yet, but I really wanted to try this new to me technique for attaching the binding. I decided to play around with my machine and see if I could come up with something that works for me, and I did!

The front looks as nice as I hoped it would.

I think the back looks pretty good, too.

Since I had success with the first block, I tried another. It still looks pretty good. The only part I'm having trouble with is joining the ends. I've been joining the ends with straight seams, which makes for a bulkier intersection. I'm sure it will click with me, but for now I am really struggling with joining with a diagonal seam. Thank goodness for both written instructions and YouTube videos!

As an experiment, I joined the first two blocks with a zig zag stitch. I'm surprised at how sturdy it is. Since I am still working with inexpensive fabrics, I don't mind taking a chance trying something new. Mom said she would never look that closely to see how the blocks are joined. Daughter Joanne said she really like the look, so I'm going to continue. 

If I like the final look, it sure will save me a lot of time and a lot of wear and tear on my hands!

I haven't gone back to my Criss Cross bookmark. All of my brain power has gone into my quilting project. However, I still need to tat, so I loaded up my shuttle with size 20 Lizbeth #180 Honey Drizzle. My friend Denise got me hooked on this color when it first came out. I love the shading!

In order to give my brain a break, I'm tatting Curds & Whey from Tatting with Visual Patterns by Mary Konior. This still remains one of my favorite tatting books!