Well I bought the Fiskars Momentum Reel Mower and I have it set to about 2 notches below the lowest which I believe is about 1.75" or so. I bought it about three weeks ago and we've mowed every 3 days since we got it. I haven't noticed a huge difference in the way the lawn looks yet other than it is nicely manicured all the time. I trim every two weeks. The grass doesn't look anything like the above pictured lawns which are really nice looking. I mean it's green but it's got a fair amount of brown to it as well. I'm watering once a week for an hour in each zone but haven't done the tuna can test yet. I stagger that once a week watering into 4 different runs of 15 minutes each to try to avoid run-off. I am going to put more fertilizer down next weekend. I'm very much enjoying the Fiskars mower. It takes me about 30 minutes to mow and I calculated out the lawn square footage to right at about 2000 square feet. My wife is helping me out with some of the mowing and she will get up and mow at 6am during the week and it doesn't wake our neighbors. I was hoping to see the grass thicken up more now that I'm watering properly and mowing lower and more frequently. I'm not giving up hope yet. I'm staring out at my lawn a couple times per day and trying to see if it's looking better yet while continuing to read these forums. I'll definitely scalp it to 1" next year and try to maintain that height all season.

My first ratary cutter was an Olfa...very small blade. I bought a 45 Fiskars and love it. I also have a Fiskars 65 and use it quite often as well. The only problem with it is, I can not find the blades at too many places. I look for them when I am in Illinois for my family reunion each August. I have never found them here in Canada although I purchase it at WalMart on clearance. Speaking of WalMart, I was into the closest store today and they are closing the fabric dept. I was very surprised at that because they are putting an addition on the store and turning it into a Super Walmart. I spoke to the saleslady and she didn't think that they were going to put fabric in the new store. I got some great deals but will certainly miss it. I went to the next closest store later on in the afternoon and asked if they were closing the dept and the saleslady said she didn't think so since they were always busy. I guess I will just have to wait and see. Mary

Well, I posed the question earlier but had to wait awhile before I could come back to list my rulers. You will see that I like rulers! It seems if I have a coupon or they are on sale and I don't see anything else I need, I get a ruler! LOL Those that I use all the time are a 6" square, 12 1/2" square, and one that is 8 1/2 x 24". I could not do without those. I have a 4 1/2 x 4 1/2" and a 1 x 6" and almost never use those. My new favorite is the X-Block Ruler. I have 2 so far and I love them to the point that I am starting to teach a workshop using them. I also like the Square in a Square but haven't used it in quite awhile. I just found out that two of my rulers are still sealed in the package. I'll have to try them out: Easy Circle Cut and Clearview Triangle. I bought Kaye Wood's 5, 6, and 8 Starmaker Rulers years ago and am still very interested in them but must admit I haven't made an entire project using them yet. I'll put it on my "to do" list now that I thought of it. I have what is called an Handi-Square and Is it Square Tool. I find those confusing and don't use them. I have a Fons & Porter 60 degree diamonds and Half & Quater Ruler, a Mini Quilters Rule, and a Quilt in a Day Ruler, 8 inch Bias Square, Easy Six, and what I call a slit ruler where you can drop your rotary cutter into the ruler and cut stips. I never seem to be able to cut well in the size the slit is - otherwise I would use that one more often because the idea is good. Isn't it amazing all the cutting/ruler tools that are out there? I don't know that I need any more though until I manage to use those that I have. LOL I like the sandpaper dots, too, so the ruler doesn't slide. I have tried those, felt dots, and even velcro. I hate it when ruler slides while you are cutting fabric. Sharon, I love your idea of checking out the condition of your rulers on National Quilting Day! Thanks for you ideas, everyone. Jeanne

Hmmmm. I love cutting out. I have a long ruler for cutting, and a nine inch square one for measuring. I don't use the lines on the mat at all, and I don't move the fabric between cuts. I place the long ruler about right, and lay the square one in front over the piece I'm about to cut off. My measurement comes from the square one on top, and I use it to nudge the long ruler to the exact right spot. Slide the square one up and down your strip, butting it against the long ruler and you can see your measure mark go over the entire fabric edge so it's true at the bottom and top. Once you get used to it, it takes about two seconds. It's good to have one of those Gypsy Gripper handles on your long ruler. I have an old straight ruler with plastic gripping film applied to the back so it still slides but grips under pressure. Sandpaper dots are too grippy, and then you can't adjust the long one without pulling the fabric. If you are trying to place the fabric just right using the mat lines as the guide, you have to constantly readjust the fabric along lines that are actually under the fabric for the most part. That's a pain! Does that help any?