Three Down One to Go.....

On June 1st, I had 4 full size quilts pieced but not quilted…as of July 2nd, I’m down to one….. I’ve been pretty focused. Two and ¾ are binded and ready for use. The last quilt will hopefully go on the frame tonight. I have a three day weekend and then it will mean I’m back to work.

One of the quilts that I quilted I did some line quilting that I was coached on by Linda. The lines are not evenly spaced, nor are they straight and parallel with one another.

It was fun to quilt together though I did go through two spools of thread. I did some loops around the flowers in the corner.

I still pretty much meander most quilts but it was fun to try something a little different.

A friend sent me fabric for my journalist daughter. Newspaper pieces splashed around will make a cute desk topper or journal cover for Chelsey. The Christmas pattern came with it. I just love holly and berries so I had a wonderful day at the mailbox. Thanks Again....

Gratitudes

My pups for company

Lunch with friends twice this week

Sparklers – My favorite fireworks….

The Weekend

Saturday morning I left the guys at home and ran errands. They did the housework, laundry, and yard work. No—this is not heaven, but it kind of feels like it. They were treating me and I wasn’t going to complain. It’s cloudy now, but it’s supposed to fair off and be a beautiful day.


I made pillows for the porch last week. We had dreams of new porch furniture, but after pricing it, I made the adult decision to paint what we had. I had spent 12 bucks on Walmart fabric—cheap and durable-- to make pillows in the colors I pictured the porch being in this summer Reds and Khaki. I purchased paint –‘oops paint’ or custom paint that someone decided not to purchase. When getting ‘oops’ paint you have to recognize your color choices are extremely limited…the paint choices were a blue-gray and sand.

I already purchased the fabric. I didn’t want to waste. I refused to admit a mistake had been made. So back to Walmart I went and $3.00 later I found the blue fabric I was going to use to pull all things together---porch, paint, and fabric.

Here are the finished products. Eight pillows were made for the hammock, swing, and chairs. I had wished over a Pottery Barn ad and knew I wasn’t going to let go of any kind of money for pillows.

Somehow I think the blue fabric just fits.

I finished quilting a quilt and have binding to hand stitch this afternoon. I've got naptime waiting on me.

Have a good weekend.

The First Week of Summer

All kinds of stuff going on this week. First off, I was driving by a garage sale and saw a table that would be perfect for my daughter’s scrapbooking table in her apartment. I rolled down the window (not even getting out of the car)to asked for the selling price and the lady told me 5 bucks. “Sold!” I started digging in my purse – and while I had a fat quarter, a quilt pattern and a spool of thread, I only had 3 bucks to my name. She walked over to the car and said the garage sale was over and the table had a piece missing on the edge and she’d give it to me free of charge. What a deal!! It’s solid oak with a leaf in the middle. Don sanded it and fixed the edge. It’s already whitewashed a little and I love the spindled legs… It just goes to show you timing is everything…..

More timing… I went by our local version of a Goodwill Store. I’ve fallen in love with quilting with wool and scanned the wool blazers and got lucky. I found these. I took them all apart and washed and dried them. I now have them folded up for projects….

There was a drawing over at Shakerwood Quilts and I was the second place winner and received the most beautiful hand-dyed wool. Looks like I ready for a project.

Here are the two patterns I’m kicking around with my winnings. The photos don’t do them justice. I can just picture the stockings—9 inches long, tied to Christmas packages.

Graitudes:
Strawberries – fresh picked ones from Pellegrinis
Tomato plants from a friend
Quilting Time

Addison's Bag

I've got everything ready for the baby... the baby just has to get here.  The Birdie Scraps made a cute bag. The quilt is going to be rolled and tied with ric rac and bound over to its new home.

If the pictures have seemed a little dark lately--- it's because they are.  I love outside pictures.  Everyday for a week it's been cloudy and rainy. We've really needed the rain, but a compromise of rainy nights is definitely in order.

Chelsey and her sweetie parted ways last week.  Both are great kids-- sometimes things just don't work out.  Like I told Chelsey, "He's just not the one..." Doesn't softened the tears though.  I guess I need to be this constructive parent and point out the faults on both sides, but there is nothing to be gained from doing that. She just needs to find her smile again. Doing the right thing isn't always easy.  Her brother will be up this weekend.  He's taking a class at the hospital in the town she lives in.  They will be the dynamic duo for a month. It be good for both of them.

Gratitudes:

1. Home by Michael Buble

2. Emails from friends

3. I survived the yearly Mammogram--you gotta do it.

Birdie Baby Quilt

It became "affectionately known" as the Ugly Baby Quilt at our house. I have a wonderful friend who has a daughter expecting a baby girl any day.  I've known for 8 months. This will definitely be an "uptown" baby, so I saved my quilting  allowance for the perfect fabric.  I studied patterns and chose a schibble pattern from Rosie's Quilt Co. and  then added an extra border.  At one point in the game, my daughter even questioned on whether to give the quilt or not. But geesh-- I had followed the pattern. I had used charm packs from the Birdie line from Moda.  There was a sizeable amount of funds in the project. Somehow every thing just didn't mesh together. But there was tons of heart in the piece so I quilted it and after I sewed the last stitch of binding I decided I liked it.

I'm adding a fat quarter and scraps to make a bag to go with it.  Funny how the smaller the baby the more "junk" they need.  This will be just a small bag for a quick trip or extra diapers.

These are sale fabrics to stash away for Chelsey "just because gifts". I love fabric with words on it. I figured these could keep her inspired with her writing. These aren't even my first picks. But playing the "sale" game it's a chance you take.

Napkins I found recently to go with my yellow dishes.

A friend gave me this wonderful salad bowl for my Green Kitchen.  I'm completely in love with it.

We've been in the middle of a drought, but this week we've had daily showers.  I know we desparately need it. I just wish it would do it at night. I've been catching up on reading and sewing. I finished  "The Nest".  I just have to frame it. This has been a great summer.

Gratitudes:

Friends stopping by for visits.

Embroidery Threads

Sprinklers for the garden

Wool Quilting

A few weeks ago I took a beginners wool quilting class with Lisa Bongean at Primitive Gatherings Quilt shop. It was three hours of fun. There were four of us in the class—one lady travelling from Nebraska, a gift from her husband. Here is the penny rug that we made in the class.

I went with a friend that has only been quilting for about three years. I learned a Quilter’s Knot. She looked at me, “you didn’t know that?” No, I didn’t, everything I’d learned about quilting I had read and taught myself.

Lisa taught us about different kinds of wool, techniques on transferring your patterns to fabric pieces and showed us different kinds of perle cotton threads. The backing of the penny rug was a brush cotton.


 I’d take the class weekly if I could. I really enjoyed myself.

In addition to the lesson material, Lisa shared her plans for quilt market, her plans for the shop in the coming year, and how she picks what to put in her shop.

I came home--- finished my class project--- and prepped by first solo wool project. While the photo doesn’t do it justice, it just seemed fitting to put it on a tree branch. It’s called ‘Nest’, from Lisa’s Summer Gatherings Book. Perfect to carry along or sit outside and work on.

Memorial Day -- Twenty Ten

First and foremost--- Happy Memorial Day… someone asked what the holiday meant to me----My immediate response was thankfulness to those kids who lost fathers in wars so that my kids did not lose their father. Such a healthy price for the freedoms we so many times take for granted.


My absence from posting is marked with busyness. Never a risk taker when it comes to planting flowers, I always stuck with the old reliables---marigolds, petunias, impatients. This time last year I never thought I’d plant flowers again much less have the money to buy them. I guess I’m living proof life goes on. This year after much research I opted for new kinds of flowers in my shaded flower bed in the front of the house. The house faces north. Being trim with tons of birch trees also means very little direct sun throughout the day. Here’s what I planted

 and here’s the finished product.

I received blueberry bushes for mother’s day so I planted them in my garden. It takes roughly two years for them to produce fruit, so I’m holding onto the fact that the U.P. will be my home for a while. There won’t be tons of berries--- I just think it would be fun to grab a handful here or there for pancakes.

The garden is planted and I have an official pumpkin patch this year. The seeds have sprouted. Since I really don’t have the garden for food survival (my husband says, ‘Thank God’)—I gave the sunniest spot to the pumpkins because they are my favorites. Don asked why I didn’t give it to the tomato or cucumbers or beans—something we actually eat---I gave this very convincing story about rotating my crops (he raised one eyebrow, “crops, huh?”), I caved under pressure and told him the truth—that I just liked the pumpkins best…He just laughs. He set up really awesome sprinklers to help with the watering this summer. We’ve been under a severe drought warning. We got our first thunderstorm of the season last night.

Quilting---I’ve found a new love—quilting with wool…I’ll write about it tomorrow. Take Care. Enjoy the holiday with those you love.

Sunday Thoughts

Happy Mother’s Day  a little late– . Both my kids are came home yesterday—weather prermitted it… we were expecting 3 to 5 inches of heavy wet snow and got about 2 1/2 inches of the heavy white stuff. I knew there was a reason I hadn’t planted anything yet. We had a Southern home cooked meal, cooked as a family-- fried chicken, corn on the cob, green beans, french fries and pecan pie. No dates... no friends....just Don, the kids and I.  Sounds selfish..but it was really nice.



I’m blessed to have my Mom still with me. Though she’s 1200 miles away, we chat almost daily. When they used to travel to visit, I was always nervous for them to see my family or my home. My folks never judged. But she was always, in my mind, the world’s best mom – a tough notch to reach. I realize now—maybe not then—that I’m the judging one, not her. She sewed for me, taught me to sew, took me to Dance lessons, piano practice and church. She cried with me over boyfriend breakups and covered for me when I cut school—and tore me up later….. She’s a wonderful lady.

I have a baby shower to attend next saturday. So I have been working on a baby quilt from the schnibbles book. I've had almost nine months to make this piece and I'm waiting to the last minute to get it together-- literally. I can rationalize anything, but I should have worked on it sooner. I'm more of a traditional girl, but the family is going with peacock murals and teal painted ceilings..

I picked out the bright Moda Line called Birdie. the jury is still out on whether I like it our not. We'll keep you posted.

I had a date with cleaning out the jeep.  It's still got the "Winter Blues" but after yesterday  ready for spring.

There's nothing like sunshine at 6 am to get your morning started right.

Hope everyone had a Happy Mother’s day . Thanks for being a parent through the rocky times. It’s easy to parent when things are rosey. You earn your stripes as a mother when you stick out the rough times. I hope every one was Queen for day.

Tuesday Morning --- Early

When you get up and 4 a.m. and don’t go to work until 7 a.m.--- it’s AMAZING the stuff you can get done. Only problem is I’ll probably be hungry for lunch at 9 a.m..


Don left for work early, so the pups and I got up for a quick cinnamon toast breakfast—dog food for them—and machine quilted for an hour before work this morning. I love doing it. If I get five or six bobbins threaded I can got to town. It’s just getting down there, getting the music turned on and getting the machine purring.

I’m motivated to get this piece off the frame as I have a baby shower the 15th and want to give a baby quilt. A friend sent a gift certificate to The Fat Quarter Shop and I ordered this book.

 It’s been in my lap every night when I watch television and I’ve toted it to work every day. The quilts are beautiful and I love the different fabric choices and sizes. It’s a great read for anyone. It’s full of personality and thoughts from the designer. No layer cakes or charm packs needed. You can make your own from your stash.



Dorky Parent Moment – You want your kids to do right. A Mother goes through life hoping they are teaching the good from the bad and that kids are making the right choices. I even resort to subliminal teaching. By every faucet in our house I have books with scriptures, clichés, and famous quotes teaching right from wrong. I always justified it as a two-minute opportunity to program the kids while they brush their teeth or wash their hands…. Yeah I’m a dork…I have one set with verses and quilt sayings… Here’s tomorrows post.

"Old quilts are true family treasures because of all the love they convey

 and all the treasured memories they hold..." Roy Lessin

I like the thought of that……

Even a Florist needs Flowers….

That’s what the writing said on the back of the postcards I made for my Mom and a friend. My friend is on the homestretch for a stuff chemo battle. And I think she’s winning. She has the most beautiful green house and floral shop… I mailed them yesterday. What to you give a florist? They have all the flowers they need… the postcard seem right. They measure 6 x 8 inches and it only took a 44 cent stamp for each.

The pattern for the tulip came from A legacy of stitches. Cute design.

I’ve finally finished painting for Chelsey’s apartment. The second set of mismatched chairs I painted ‘ballet slipper pink. I thought of Stina every time I opened the can. She loves pink. At first when we saw the two chairs at the Habitat Restore, Chelsey didn’t like them. I told her she had to have a vision. I brought them home and primed and painted them. Now they are her favorites---One of the days she going to have to trust me on things…..



Here’s a photo of her little dining room. You can see the pinwheel quilt in the background. It was going to be my summer quilt, but she needed it more. I sent a cup hook with the quilt. I sewed a three-inch strap on the back and told her if she didn’t have it on the table she could drape it on the wall. It looks sweet up there.

I kind of makes me feel good that my kid is hanging quilts on the wall…. Just like her Mom.



Gratitudes:

Don coming home tonight

Opened Windows and Doors – Spring is here

Ransom at my feet—who needs socks to keep your feet warm?!?

My Weekend....

My weekend just wasn’t long enough. But I guess you worry about people say, ”Gee, I wish the weekend would hurry up and end…..” I’ve been working on my punchneedle project. It’s almost complete. Pictures coming soon.

Projects for the weekend…I’m always seeing those mismatched placemats. There’s got to be something to make with them. So I found a $2.00 bargin and made a case to keep my punch needle stuff in. I like it.

Don gave my sewing machine really well. It needed it badly. I was a nervous wreck while he worked on it, but I wouldn’t have trusted to anyone else. She’s back in service, purring like a kitten.

My birthday presents…I bought these mugs for myself. I love the birds. I got a set of four on sale.

My sister in law gave my quilt money and I purchased Summer Gatherings. There are several small projects in the book. I have no stash of wool fabrics..they’re pricey and I’ve been hesitant to commit. But I’m in love with the ease of them. I’m even kicking around taking a class to learn all the tricks using them. I got a small bag of scraps. Here’s hoping they’ll be used for pin cushions, journal covers, postcards, and a table runner or two. Honestly, I could just stack and fold and restack them and have fun doing it.

The skies have been beautiful, but the winds have been howling. Today things settled down and I worked on a project for Chelsey after church. She purchased a table and four chairs for $40.00. I finished the table—forgot to snap a photo. But I did get one of the mismatched chairs done. Should have gotten a before picture. Don added a couple of staples and a little wood glue. I found the fabric at Walmart – the only place in town to find any fabric at all. I think it turned out pretty darn cute….

My First Class...

It’s what got me through the winter. Back in November a friend and I scheduled a Punchneedle class at Primitive Gatherings in Menasha WI. It’s something we’d always wanted to learn to do and I had never taken any kind of sewing class so it was an opportunity to try something new.

On the day of the class we left early and stopped at a couple of shops on the way down. I kept remembering to pace myself because our destination was ..Primitive Gatherings. We arrived about 3 pm. We had the shop to ourselves so my friend and I thrived on being the center of attention. When we had signed up for the class they had put hoops, needles, and threaders aside for us. For the class, we could pick any needle punch design they had in stock. There must have been 30 samples to pick from. I picked the Blue canning jar. Tired of snowmen and pumpkins by February, I knew it was the right choice.

We literally knew NOTHING about needlepunch. The ladies talked to us about which patterns were easy and which were a little more challenging. There were three types of embroidery threads and we learned about each. Keep this in my this was like the “free’ class before the class.

We scooted out for a quick bite of supper and returned ten minutes before the class started There were six other ladies in the class. Everyone had a different project, so it made things really interesting.



Lisa Bongean, shop owner taught the class. She’s nothing like I thought she would be. But the real deal is even better. An Artist is the first thing that comes to mind. I tried to be quiet and poised… but about thirty minutes into the class I broke out like a TV reporter on a request for the evening news. She told us how she started. We learned how important family was to her. She has two sons and a husband that believe in her business, along with a houseful of uncles, brothers, nieces, nephews, and cousins that all help. Perfection was never a word in her vocabulary. She even talked about how lack of perfection in Primitive crafts is what gives it its charm.



She told us of her travels and the seminars she does --- and all I kept thinking was…” Wow, and I’m getting all of this for $15.00…” We learned what is involved when she creates a pattern. She let us try different kinds of hoops with our projects. She talked to us about forgiving ourselves when you make a mistake. She even talked to us about different ways to use punchneedle projects.



I have to get busy on my project now.



When the class was over she even walked us to our vehicle. It was a chilly 19 degrees that evening and she said we should have let her known how far we were coming from…. We could have stay with her. Yep, she was inviting complete strangers to stay at her home, saying she has empty rooms with her sons grown up now.





We had traveled the farthest so we got first pick at a drawing of free punch needle patterns… I couldn’t help myself… It’s probably an addiction – I picked the crow on a pumpkin piece :)

I'm Blushing Quilt

Not posting as often as I should, Busy living I guess. It’s like every quilt catalog and every quilt magazine I see something that Chelsey needs. It’s fun. It’s a chance at playing with fabrics and styles I don’t normally get to sew with. I believe it’s one of the reasons God gave me Chelsey.

Here’s the piece I just completed. I’ve never made anything with a jelly roll. I used a gift certificate and purchased the fabric line Blush on a jelly roll. I used muslin as the alternating fabric. I pieced the ’I’m Blushing’ quilt from the Moda Bake Shop line of free patterns. The instructions and photos made it easy.

My needle turn applique skills are not the best in the world. I wanted this piece to withstand years of machine washings and along with tugs and hugs from popcorn, movies, and late night study sessions. I tried a new way of stitching the applique. I used dryer sheets as a backing and stitched and flipped the pieces. It made the applique a breeze.

Maybe it’ll be on the quilting frame by this weekend.




OK---- when your son walks in wearing this:

What do you say??????? He got it at a relay for life event he worked at and raised $300.00 for the cause….I was just--- well a lot---surprised. But the shirt is eye catching and makes a point.. I think????



Kids…..

I cleaned up my garden for spring planting. I just let if fall by the wayside last fall, deeming that it would be someone else’s garden this spring. It looks like it’s still my garden. I really love that garden – weeds and all. It was a lot easier to rid the dead plants after a winter of rotting. It seemed like the Good Lord was just checking to see if I was willing to give it all up ---only to say, “Nahhhh, you don’t have to…”

I’ve got tulips, chives, oregano, and lavender coming up….. just another sign life goes on……

My Luck is Changing...

My Grandmother all told me, “If you need to change your luck playing cards… stand up and walk around your chair. Then sit back down. Your luck is about to change…”

I don’t know that the chair strategy necessarily works, but things have been pretty good lately. I won Bonnie’s drawing for treats right around my birthday. There are great fabrics for surprises for my daughter. She omitted the pattern book and emailed apologizing.

I was so thrilled with the bag, pen, and fabrics I hadn’t noticed, so getting mail this week made the gift last that much longer.

Saturday I received this pattern set from Melissa who was doing her spring cleaning getting ready for a move. I spent the afternoon on Saturday with my coffee studying each pattern like they were novels. I have some of them—I guess we like the same things—so in keeping in the spirit of giving. My favorite is on top. I’m going through my cabinet and will set up some to pass on next week.

I drove downstate to Eric’s ‘White Coat’ ceremony for Pharmacy school last weekend. Chelsey is moving into her own apartment—no roommates. She came and got her brass bed out of her room. It kind of left me with a lump in my throat. I guess I always knew the kids would move out. They have sort of moved out already. But it was one of those defining moments when you say---‘This is it’….

We’ve had a couple of hammock days (judging by the photos). Temps reached 75 degrees today. Robins are everywhere.

Thanks again Bonnie and Melissa… your friendship is pretty important.

I’ve been quilting up a storm for Chelsey’s apartment. I used a gift certificate to get a Blush Jelly Roll. Here’s the pattern to use it on. Photos coming soon.

Gratitudes:

Bonnie

Melissa

That Hammock on the Covered Porch