Frogger gets a makeover...and new table!

Thanks to Lisa E, who sold her Millennium with 14' table (which I have been wanting) to Lisa C who preferred a 12' table (which I just happened to have). See the beauty of this yet? 


Well, last Saturday, the two Lisa's drove 3 hours one-way to make the switch! We unloaded my new-to-me table and then re-loaded my old table in the truck. I wasn't sad to see it go, although I have to admit I was a little nervous that the table would be wobbly and maybe I wouldn't be pleased with myself for the change. Us girls then went out to lunch together at my favorite Chinese restaurant. What a great visit we had! 


Then the work began...re-assembling the new table...and performing maintenance on Frogger. I have owned my Millennium for 2 years...so it was time to repack the grease, check the motor brushes, check under the hood for any problems AND change the wheels out to the new M&M wheels, which feel so smooth. I really do like them! This was a great upgrade from the Edgeriders I had on the machine.  

Doesn't it look great in my studio! I have plenty of room to get around the new table and definitely enough room for larger quilts on the frame! I love it! 
Thanks again to the two Lisa's. No more nervousness here...the table is very stable and I made a great choice upgrading to the 14'. What a huge difference 2' makes! 

Frogger Gets a New Look!

I became really frustrated a while back while trying to raise my hopping foot...then again to lower it back down! I couldn't get any light into the side of the machine head to see the screw in which to turn.

I decided I was going to change the left side plate out to a clear plexiglass panel.

Well, today was the day!

The local glass guy...as I like to call him...cut me out an 1/8" plexiglass plate and drilled the necessary holes and the spot for the flywheel...and now I have plenty of light to see the spots I need to get to for adjustments. I even inserted a 1/4" copper tubing into it to hold the oil wick.

I love the new makeover Frogger got!

Playtime with Frogger..and New Threads!

Just couldn't resist using some new threads I got for Frogger. These are by Metro Embroidery and are a 40wt 100% polyester thread. Shiny too! I really like them.

I squared off three 15" sections of black fabric and started stitching.

With dark blue/purple thread I did a variation of Nicole Webb's flowers.

In the yellow thread, I did my variation of her Banana Man.

And in the copper thread, I quilted my very own Toad Song meander. I love this and use it alot as a background filler.

Frogger gets a Lift!

I like my vehicles lifted...so when the opportunity arrived for me to purchase a Hydraulic Lift for Frogger...I jumped!

Sometimes I sit to quilt...most times I stand. And, because my tadpoles like to quilt too, purchasing the lift just made sense.

Taylor is only 3" shorter than I am, and may very well pass me up in another year or so.

Madeline is short and seems to have a natural talent for quilting...but has a difficult time using Frogger when it is set at the height that I need. In fact, when the lift arrived the other day, she was more excited than I was!

I can't wait to see her reaction when she sees Frogger tomorrow! 

SO...now we ALL can be happy...ALL the time. Well, except for when one of us is quilting and the others want to quilt.  Fortunatley for me, I have more tops done than the tadpoles do...so I get more time on MY Frogger. ;0)

We even mounted the switch in a better spot so it would be easier to access. How cool is that! 

Now, the challenge to keep Kirt from messing with the new switch! That should be interesting...he will most certainly notice it as it is next to his 'other' favorite switch...the fabric advance control.

Life is full of challenges...isn't it? But so worth it in the end.

Meet Frogger!!

Frogger is my APQS Green Millennium that I 'gave a home to' in November of 2008. It is a longarm quilting machine with a 26" throat that allows me to quilt up to 18" in a single pass. I just love it. You will be seeing lots of Frogger and what we are capable of together.


I have been longarm quilting now for just over 1 year. I have a wonderful family on the APQS forum and have learned so much there.


Thanks everyone for sharing what you know and letting me be a part of a great group!