Design Wall Monday

Finally we got to put all the flowers on the floor and play. Mae was so excited as she and Elliot played with the flowers. Leland was "too busy". Meaning he was cuddled up with me on the couch explaining his game to me. He is so funny!  It wasn't long before Elliot found something else to do too.

Mae was very excited. We twisted and turned and exchanged things around. I see the bottom row needs more twisting. I laughed at myself as we got to the end. I was so careful with counting and guess who counted wrong. Looks like I need to make one more.  Good thing I have lots of fabric.

The top two rows-the rows on the left-are about half stitched together now. I've clipped each row with it's number so I don't confuse myself. I will probably sew each row of blocks together and then stitch it to the top before doing the next row. Another exciting step taken in Mae's Flower Garden.

See other great design walls at Patchwork Times. I love Monday in Blogland!

Slow Stitching Sunday

I thought about titling this post The Dangers in Blogland because I have stumbled upon another BOM. This is 3 new projects for me this month! Julia at The HEXIE Blog has started a new BOM.

I'm straying a bit from the instructions and using 3/4" hexagon papers because that is the punch I have and since this is a scrap/stash quilt, I figured everything including the supplies should come from stash. You can find January's block here. It really didn't take too long to stitch the 30 hexies together. I machine blind stitched them to the background. Since my hexies are smaller, I cut my background square 14". It worked out perfect for the amount of fabric I had. I cut all 12 pieces and had 1" leftover for the Pineapple Crazy bin.

See where it's puckering a bit. I need to go back and fix that. That is going to drive me crazy!  I'll put some tissue paper behind for stabilizer.

Today Kathy talks about taking care of your hands. I noticed the other day that whenever I use olive oil or coconut oil, I spread it with my hands. Then I rub my hands together using the oil for hand lotion. I have nice soft hands. If you do this, be careful what you touch until it is all soaked in or you wash it off.

Today I'm linking up with other Slow Stitchers at Kathy's Quilts. Tomorrow I will show you great progress on my Grandmother's Flower Garden.

On The Needles

Sometimes I think the Rival Cardigan will never be finished! I had such good intentions last Friday and had planned to have these sleeves ready to sew in. Nope, did not happen. I got caught up stitching on my Grandmother's Flower Garden instead and only spent a couple evenings knitting.

These are the longest short sleeves. I've only knit a couple rows past the decrease for the cap, these will go right at the elbow. My plan for this morning is to stay in my jammies and watch a couple of my DVR'd shows and knit. That's all I'm planning for this sweater this week. Just this morning....... Maybe that will cause some magic to happen. With my luck all that will happen is someone will show up in an hour or two and catch me in my jammies.  LOL

See other great On The Needles projects at Patchwork Times.

Reminder

I found this on Pinterest. I am going to print it and put it on my refrigerator for days like today. Sometimes I need an in my face reminder.

Wishes Quilt Along

Do you read the Jolly Jabber, the blog at the Fat Quarter Shop? So many ideas and great projects! I spotted their Wishes Quilt Along yesterday and couldn't resist participating. Make A Wish is a fabulous organization and I want to do my small part to help.

I am using stash fabrics and just happened to have a bin ready to go from a different project I just couldn't get in to. Not having enough of any one white fabric, my blocks will be be made with a variety of whites.

It really took very little time to make the first 14" block. I followed their basic instructions. Instead of cutting 8 different fabrics, I chose to use 4. After step 2, I had 4 extra half square triangle halves and couldn't toss them into the scrap bin!  So I cut the pieces to make another block. If nothing else, it will live on the back of the quilt. Or I can make an extra block each month and have 2 really cute quilts to donate.

January Scrappy Challenge

Judy L at Patchwork Times is doing a Scrappy Challenge this year--you can read about it here. I have no problem being scrappy or using scraps so this will be fun for me. She first talked about it here.  When I read hot pads, I thought that would be a good idea for me. I need new ones. I need a  large one for the table.

Today I had planned to finish the borders on Celtic Solstice but I just wasn't in the border mood. I needed something quick and easy. That's when I spotted my print out of the block for January. Perfect! All of the sudden, I had my scraps cut and ready to sew!

A new 12 inch hot pad was born. Chopped off points and all!  I love the vintage green and yellow fabrics. I might be a little sad when they are all gone. I quilted it with a squiggle stitch-it's fun to play with the stitches on the machine. Then I narrowed the stitch and used it to stitch down the binding. Not fancy just fun and functional.

Design Wall Monday

 Very little time has been spent in the sewing room this week. Instead I have either been working on these hexies or knitting. I am so close to getting everything ready to lay into rows.  The half hexies on the right side need greens on the bottom. There are 2 of these. The left half hexies are done.

 I layed these out this morning to see how many more greens I needed on the whole right side flowers. I'll just pick 3 more flowers and finish them off. Then we can be ready to do the final lay out. When this is all sewn together, I will decide what to do with the edges. I just don't see myself binding all those little angles. What I do see is a nice border.....maybe pink. Something more to think about.

When I did sit down at the machine this week, I worked on my Chevron border for Celtic Solstice. My goal for the week is to get this top finished and get the backing made. The other day Jo shared a link to a really cool way to make a backing. I've already pulled some hunks of blue to use and I'll make the center a star block and use it for my label. My back will be more scrappy than the instructions since most of my pieces are less than a yard. 

See other fabulous design walls around Blogland at Patchwork Times.

I've also linked up at sarah did it!: HeLp for Hexie-aholics.

On The Needles

Off the needles this week are the fronts for the Rivel Cardigan! 

WhooHoo!!

This proves what a slow knitter I am.

I thought it would take just a little bit to get these finished,

it took 2 evenings of about 2 hours each night.

The cables take me so long.

I am done with cables for a while.

Wednesday night I cast on for the sleeves,

knit a few rows then went to bed.

Last night I started the body of the sleeve.

With these being short sleeves, 

I'm hoping to show you the front band progress next week.

Again, wish me luck.

I spent the weekend with 4 Grandkiddos 

and needed to take something to work on.

I wanted to mark the second skein with where I started on the first,

I pulled and pulled and pulled and still have not found this section.

I guess if I don't find it soon (before I forget what it is),

I'll just unwind it and start at the beginning and have fun, unmatched socks.

The coloring reminds me of Easter eggs.

See other great On The Needles projects at Patchwork Times.

I love Judy L's sweater!

Design Wall Monday

(another old pic)

I spent the weekend with 4 Grandkiddos. I took along my hexie box  to work on the last 2 hexagon flowers for Mae's Grandmother's Flower Garden. I had white and green hexies to glue baste so I worked on those for a while then I wanted to stitch while they watched a movie.  I hadn't been stitching long when Mae came to sit by me and talk about her quilt. She is quite excited about laying it out this week.

Then she wanted to play with the basted hexies. So I gave her the last baggie kit for the half flower and told her to make it just like the one I had with me. Pretty soon she was adding whites and then I gave her the printed hexies I was working with. She made up her own designs and was having lots of fun. I asked if she wanted sew a little but she passed on that. Maybe next time. I was to hurry and get this done! Because she is so excited to look at it!

So hopefully some time during the week, we will get this all layed out and the rows will start being sewn together. I have one row already sewn so that should speed things along. :)

See other fabulous design walls at Patchwork Times.

On The Needles

 My first knitting finish of 2014! Celebrate!!  I started these socks in June to take to my Wednesday group. They were knit on here and there but mostly not. When Ernie had his surgery in November and I grabbed these to work on while I waited. Then I put them away again. The other day I pulled out the Rivel Cardigan to focus on and absolutely could not concentrate on it. So out come the socks.

This yarn is Patons Kroy Sock--color is Fern Rose Jacquard.

Last week, one of the On The Needles posts was from Dora Quilts. She mentioned Norwegian Purl. I had never heard of that so I Googled it and spent some time Friday learning how to do it. It come in handy on the socks. You really can teach an old dog........

Now I need to cast on another pair of socks. My To Go bag is empty.  Which yarn will I pick???

Next I decided to focus on the Rivel Cardigan and get busy! This is an overdue birthday present and I feel bad about that. Especially since she picked the pattern and the yarn!  I just need to sit down with some quiet and concentrate. In no time it all came back. The bust has been shaped and I'm now working toward the shoulder. I moved the lifeline up yesterday morning so I made some progress last night.  Cross your fingers and wish me luck. I'd love to be able to show you the sleeves next Friday or at least the progress on the sleeves.

See other great projects at Patchwork Times.

Design Wall Monday

My blocks for the Quiltville mystery, Celtic Solstice, are finished. They are now in nice clipped together row stacks waiting for me to start sewing rows. The border pieces from clue 1 are all sewn together.

When we first found out about clue 2, I told my friends doing the mystery I thought these would be for the border. I was wrong. Not paying close enough attention, I made all left side parts. So I had to make enough right side parts to make my chevron blocks.  I put all the "extra" left side parts away thinking I might go ahead an use them for a border, depending on Bonnie's design.

Sunday I sat down and played in EQ7 to see what my quilt would like like with a few extra borders. Still not sure how to use the border section of EQ7, this is not accurate for the amount of pieces I need. I'll just to the math and figure that part out.  I like it so much that I am going to do it. Today is a good stay home and sew day.  That is after I cruise around Blogland for a while.

Today I'm linking up with Patchwork Times-Design Wall Monday and Quiltville's Mystery Monday Link-Up.

On The Needles

I have finished Hitchhiker!

(old photo) 

Finally.

It just needs blocking.

Next project to complete is the Rivel Cardigan.

These are my completed knitting projects for 2013.

Thanks Doodlebugs and Rosebuds Quilts for this idea.

My favorite project was Mae's colorful sweater.

My proudest accomplishment was Ernie's vest.

He wears it all the time.

See other great On The Needles projects at Patchwork Times.

Hello 2014

While everyone else is putting together their Celtic Solstice quilts, I focused on finishing up my Back To Square One Mystery. Isn't if fabulous! After our water woes of the last 4 days, I needed to celebrate (my word of the year) with sewing and laundry--sew until the dryer beeps, switch things around, fold, repeat.  And oh did I celebrate getting the water fixed. Happy New Year to us. New water pump and holding tank and some other parts.

Judy L designs the best quilts and she kept us guessing on this one. I need to get some backing for this and hope to quilt it soon.

Tell It To The Stars is her 2014 Mystery and I have my fabric for this already. I am not starting it quite yet. I have one more UFO to finish before I start anything new. It will be the final project I had for December's Getting It Done Challenge. And when that is finished, I will write my post with my January goals.

Now I have to put away a whole bunch of clean clothes.  And smile as I pet my pretty quilt top.

Design Wall Monday

I bet you thought I'm was going to tell you I did all 100 units like this one, but I'm not. I only did this one.  I made my Ultimate Scrap Quilt Like Julie's with just this block so making these was easy peasy. I had lots of practice and this little unit was deep into the chain piecing.

All little blocks are finished, only 30 have been pressed and trimmed of their dog ears. I'll get the rest finished sometime today.

I've been doing some scrap management instead of sewing. I have several bins of "scraps" and decided the real estate these bins were taking up was ridiculous and it's time to see what I have. On Monday I babysat the kiddos so I brought out a bin a, iron and ironing board and Go! to the kitchen table and started in. With willing help, we cut lots of 1 1/2" strips for my Scrappy Pineapple Quilt and there are 2" and 2 1/2" strips, a pile of shiny that will go into it's own bin, the bag on the left is for string and crumb blocks and the thin fabric in front of the bag will be foundation for the string blocks.  I have a pile of novelty 3" tumblers and 5" blocks for kid quilts, piano key border pieces left from the last string quilt and small block parts that will be fun to play with. There is also another 2 piles of pieces to big to cut up yet and a larger pile of pressed pieces that need to be cut. Scrap management is a never ending job but when I'm finished with this projects, I think it will be easier to keep up with.

I hope to have the remaining fabric from this bin cut today and all of it put away.  It's a fabric play day around here.  That is after I spend some time visiting around Blogland. I'm linking up with Patchwork Times and Quiltville.

**Note to self:  Must set the timer.

My Word For 2014

Celebrate!

This morning I started thinking about my word for 2014. I thought about Extravaganza because I will have my 60th birthday this year. Then I though no, that's not quite right. I want to make it more about happiness all year instead of just the month of May which will be my Extravaganza month! I do love my month long birthday celebration that I started doing during my 50th year. 

Celebrate! I will celebrate my accomplishments. I love simple pleasures. Silly little things that make me smile, small accomplishments, big accomplishments, feel good moments. So I will celebrate them, whatever they are. 

Do you have a word for your year? 

Slow Stitching Sunday

I am sooooo close to being finished with the hexi flowers! I have 1 more full flower and 2 more half flowers. Then the real fun begins! I'm going to have Mae come over and we will decide on a lay out. And then I will explain how these all have to be sewn together. And I will explain that it will still take a long time.

Remember this sweet child wants this before she turns 7 because that is a long time to wait for a quilt. She turned 6 twelve days ago.  I started this quilt in August and right after was ordered to rest my knee for 6-8 weeks. I spent some quality time with the needle, thread, fabric, ice bag and recliner. I became obsessed with these hexies. I still am.

My wish for 2014 is to see Mae's Flower Garden wrapped around Mae before she turns 7. I can do it!

I am linking up to Kathy's Quilts: Last Slow Sunday Stitching for 2013. I am so looking forward to Slow Stitching 2014!!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

We love a good chuckle around here and when I suggested we put the deer antlers on top of the Christmas tree like the Kilcher Family did with the moose antlers on the TV show Alaska: The Last Frontier, Ernie jumped at the chance to show them off. 

I think my favorite part of the tree is the zip tie.......my husband loves his zip ties! He said he'd cut it off if it bothered me but it doesn't, it makes me smile.

Today we will spend the day with family. I sure miss the ones that won't be here. Merry Christmas.

Design Wall Monday on Sunday

After finishing all the Christmas gifts and finishing Clue 4 of Celtic Solstice, I dove into a new project. I wasn't going to do it, honest. I was going to wait until I had a couple other things wrapped up but darn it, the book has been right there in plain sight all month long!  

Mickey Depre showed her pineapple blocks here so I did a search to find Gyleen X Fitzgerald's book and ruler and ordered it that day! In just a few days it was in the mailbox.  Then last week, Mickey showed her progress. Since then the book has taunted me......you know that feeling, right?!?!  

So this morning I decided to make 2 blocks. I got out my 1 1/2" strip bin and started to play.  

I don't like all the waste and knew that I had read a size chart. So after I trimmed both block, I found the chart and now I will sort pieces so I don't have so much waste.

I have now put everything away and will wait until after the holidays are over and I can dive in without guilt.

Until then, I will reread the book and make myself a cutting chart. I have a bunch of scrap fabrics that need to be cut into strips and then maybe do some prep work so that when the time is right, nothing will stop me.

Monday I will link up with Patchwork Times-Design Wall Monday.  Until then, I have company coming in a few days and I have some things get done and none of them include starting a new quilt.

Celtic Solstice Part 4

My goal is to stay current with the Quiltville Mystery Celtic Solstice. I'm glad Bonnie gave us the mighty 4 patch for this weeks clue.

I love making scrappy 4 patches and in no time at all I had 137 scrappy, happy blocks. It's easy to get carried away.

It's time to find a bigger container for my parts. This one is full.

Now that these are finished, I probably should get to making my house ready for Christmas.

On The Needles

Getting little boys to be hat models is a tough job!  I made Elliot's Bun Hat using Bernet Softee Chunky yarn. Look how nice it covers his neck. I bought this same yarn in green to make this hat for Ernie-he likes how it covers the neck. And then I probably won't ever make another one using this pattern.  4 is enough for me.

 

I bought 2 skeins of this yarn and needed to use part of the second one for Elliot's hat which is the smaller size on the pattern.  With the remaining yarn, I down sized the pattern to make another hat for Corbin. It fits and will probably only fit this winter.  

I'm working on an Easy Lacy Headband in pink for sister Mae. I need to sit down and get that finished. She will model it proudly for me.

See other fabulous On The Needles projects at Patchwork Times.