A Flock of Fabric Chickens

A couple of times a year, we do a program with our kids in church called “My Coins Count.” The kids go around and collect spare change from attendees during the service, and after several weeks, they donate what they collect to Mennonite Central Committee or another charitable organization.

For this round, the money is being used to purchase chicks through Heifer International. As a visual aid for the kids, we decided to make little stuffed chickens to represent the amount collected—for every $5 collected, they would get a stuffed chicken. One of the guys made a wooden “roost” for the chickens to sit in.

Our members are so generous, though, that we are running out of chickens! (They will need another roost, too.) I couldn’t make any before I left for Sew Expo, but yesterday, I knocked out 12. These are a few of them. I think mine are the roosters.

They need to be stuffed and sewn shut. I probably will fill mine with ground walnut shells because a 25# bag of walnut shells from Petco is cheap and lasts a long time.

I also quilted and cut out one of the sleeves of the Rosebud Coat. Here it is with one of the fronts.

I still have to make the second sleeve, the second front, and the collar. Each piece takes me about an hour to quilt. This is a good project to work on while I am waiting for dinner to cook.

This week’s podcast episode is about to drop. I received a few e-mails asking me if I had stopped producing the podcast because I took a two-week break while I was traveling. I have portable recording equipment, but honestly, things are so busy at Sew Expo that adding a podcast episode on top of what I’m doing is a bit too much. Recording is easy; the post-production is what takes the most time.

Today is my Toaster Sweater class at the quilt store.

I am very glad I am not driving to Sew Expo this week because the I-90 passes look like they may be completely IMpassable. Snoqualmie Pass is under a Winter Storm Warning from this afternoon until Friday morning. I am glad they are getting heavy mountain snow even this late in the season because that area needs the moisture. We are supposed to get snow and rain from now until Monday, but by next Wednesday, the forecast is for 60 degrees. (!?!?!) March is always such a bizarre month.