SkyWatch Friday

Door County, Wisconsin

Knitting Lessons

Not too many generations ago, "domestic skills" were passed down by the women of the family.  Everything had to be learned: sewing, knitting, cooking, you name it. 

If you needed a pair of mittens, you made them. A new dress? You sewed it. And not too long before that (in the big scheme of things), you wove the very fabric you needed to make the garment.

My mom hosted myself and my cousins for a knitting course. All of us had learned to knit at some time in our lives, so we just needed a refresher. Some of us needed more refreshing than others. I won't name any names.

So much fun. And soooooo many laughs! A little frustration here and there, but enough accomplishment to make it worth our while.

We need to experience more of this, the intergenerational give and take, teach and learn, laugh until you cry moments.

Well into our afternoon, my cousin looked at me. "You know who's getting a big kick out of this, don't you?" And I know, and remember, and miss, and love...those of whom she was speaking. Those who have gone on before us. 

Mom, Sister, Grandma, Aunt: We miss you! And we had a blast AND you would have loved it!

Treasure Box

I am linking this post to Vintage Thingie Thursday. Click on the icon below to see many beautiful vintage items!

Mom gave me a box of sewing supplies that belonged to my grandma (paternal grandmother for those family members who read here).

I don't remember Grandma ever helping me with my spelling homework. ;)

Fun! Like Christmas!

Grandma sure stocked up here. Multiples of lots of stuff and a ton of hem facing and bias tape. And school pictures of my sons -- Grandma knew who was meant to get this box.

I plan to make up a fun package of some of these treasures for a giveaway in the near future. 'Twill be for my followers only (love you guys!) so if you read my blog and are not a follower you might want to sign up in anticipation of this exciting giveaway. 

I know the package will include a tatting shuttle since there are two here, never used in original packaging, and chances are pretty slim that I will ever use even one of them. 

A handy "rolling seamer" to add 1/4" to your templates. Why would you not just cut the template at the size you want it? including the 1/4" seam allowance? 

Oh, and in a box full of sewing supplies we find a product that brags "no more sewing!" They actually do look handy to have in a pinch. Tiny pins that hold on your button until you can get home to sew it on properly.

What are these? (below) They are wooden, with two holes in each and the black thing looks like some kind of shuttle. I know my Grandma did weaving so these might be her weaving supplies.

In other domestic news, I put a whole chicken on to boil and it is smelling yummy in our cozy house on this blustery day. Recipe found here: Boiled Chicken at allrecipes.com

Easy pinwheels plus a finished project

This pinwheel technique is not my creation, but it bears repeating. It's fun and quick and works for any size pinwheel.

Put two squares right sides together. Any size. Stitch 1/4" on all sides.

(I used 5" squares for the mug rugs.)

Slice with a rotary cutter corner to corner. Don't move the square, move your ruler, and slice from other corner to other corner.

Like this.

Press seams to the dark side.

Sew squares together by twos. See layout above.

When you stitch your seam that joins the doubled up squares, use this awesome matching technique: poke a pin through the intersection of the seams as shown above. Continue on poking the pin through the intersection of the seams on the other side. Line up the pin vertically and those points should be perfectly lined up.

Stitch your seam right through that intersection and they should be perfectly matched. Or at the worst a teeny bit off, which is close enough for me.

I sewed a rectangle of focus fabric to the pinwheel. Size doesn't matter.

Sandwich your top, batting, and backing. Baste with pins. Quilt as desired. I quilted a wavy line pattern. Cut the backing about 1/2" larger on all sides and double-fold it to the front. Top-stitch close to the edge.

I stitched up a table mat to match. 

This collection was shipped off to my sweet kids in Atlanta. They match their aprons. The package was opened and produced much excitement. Success! 

Sprouts of hope

A few brave plants are poking their heads out into our still chilly air. 

Hey, in Wisconsin, this is a reason to party!

Hardy mums (with a few remaining clumps of snow!)

Tulips

Iris

Don't judge my mess. I leave last year's dead stuff as a cover and so far, so good. Helps to protect the plants during the winter.

I'm working on these. A table center mat and four matching mug rugs. Something to bring my kitchen out of winter and into spring. I'll share the finished project, hopefully within the next few days. Where do those days go so quickly? 

I hope your week is going fabulously!