Bits & Pieces, This & That

Deadheading and Watering

2011-07-20T20:54:00.000-05:00

Deadheading = snipping the dead blossoms off of your blooming plants. After your plants have blossomed, they think their work is done. They have created their seed pods.

You need to trick them by cutting off the dead blossoms. A scissors will do the trick or you can pinch them off with your fingernails. If you use the latter method, you will see what they mean by having a "green thumb."

You will be rewarded with continuously blooming plants.

Be sure to use fertilizer too or your nutrients will be drained out of the soil and your plant will get spindly and the green will fade out. And water them, lots and lots. It's been hot and dry here, so they need all the help they can get. They like the hot, but not so much the dry.

Recent visitors shown below.

Mama Turkey and her three adorable little pipsqueaks. They made their appearance a few weeks ago. I haven't seen them in the last few days so I hope they are ok.

Mr. Toad, living by my chives. He's cute, warts and all.

We have been blessed with many a gorgeous sunset recently.

Never two alike, as you can see by the photos below.

Exact same piece of my sky, at different times.

Stay cool and enjoy your summer!

Furoshiki gift wrapping AND a no-sew bag

2011-06-23T20:28:00.001-05:00

I know. I know. We like to sew. But this technique looks like so much fun!

I haven't tried it yet. Let me know if you do. Enjoy!

What have I been up to?

2011-06-04T14:54:00.000-05:00

Summer has arrived. Well, not technically, calendar-wise. But it is hot, buggy, and very green in our neck of the woods.

Recently, we had the pleasure of spending a *very* relaxing week on Anna Maria Island, Florida, with our Atlanta kids. This one ranked right up there on my list of all-time favorite vacations.

The guys went fishing. This is a tarpon (about 120 lbs). Dylan is just a little excited about it. Capt. Josh there in the background runs a fishing expedition boat. We highly recommend him if you are in the area and are up for some excitement.

This is a manatee. We were in chest-deep water and were only about 15 feet away from them.

Relaxed vacationers.

These delicious stalks have been coming on steadily. We pick about this much every other day.

Hope you are finding joy in your days!

Random, unrelated stuff to share with you

2011-05-02T22:19:00.000-05:00

First! A delicious cookie recipe that is made with healthy ingredients AND is gluten free.

Yum! (click here for recipe)

My mom grew tired of using her Christmas mug rugs, so we bought this fabric and I put everything on hold and whipped these up for her. She loves them!

I splurged on a new ironing board cover. From TJ Maxx. I love it!

Finally, enjoy this sunset photo. Nights are still cold around here. Perennials (and grass and dandelions!) are thriving, but it's too early to put in more tender plants. Soon, though, soon enough.

If you're travelin' in the north country fair...

2011-04-20T21:24:00.000-05:00

...where the winds hit heavy on the borderline....

Last week, I found myself on a road trip for work. Driving by one's self is not all bad. Music you like to listen to, with no concessions for a travel mate. Stop when you want to.

For no reason at all besides desire, I designated my trip a Bob Dylan trip and took my CD collection of his music. Very nice.

You need to eat at these restaurants. I did! Photo evidence below.

Norske Nook, Osseo, Wisconsin

Pannekoeken Huis, St. Louis Park, Minnesota (on Excelsior)

Triple Berry Pannekoeken

Two thumbs up for both of these establishments. Worth your while to visit, if you get the chance.

Signs of Spring

2011-04-06T20:08:00.000-05:00

In my neck of the woods, we get very excited to see these signs of rebirth. Every year they look pretty much the same, but it never gets boring.

Crocus, crocuses, or croci. Yes, all three are correct.

What are these? I think I asked last year, but I forgot.

Rhubarb. Yum!

I have never before checked out the rhubarb this early. I can see it from my kitchen window and when it is tall enough to cook with, that's when I notice it. I love how ripply the new leaves are.

Grape hyacinths. Sorry this one is a bit blurry but they are just so adorable I couldn't leave them out.

Chives. Grow some. Really, you should. They grow like weeds, or even better than weeds. And they are really delicious chopped and mixed in with cottage cheese.

Yarrow. Cut the flowers, hang them upside down for a while and you have some beautiful golden-colored dried flowers to use in wreaths or vases.

Bee balm. Good thing I left the identifying stick near it or I would have never remembered what it was.

A bed of tulips.

That will soon look like this!

SkyWatch Friday

2011-03-31T21:00:00.001-05:00

Door County, Wisconsin

Knitting Lessons

2011-03-24T21:48:00.002-05:00

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

2011-03-20T13:48:00.001-05:00

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

2011-03-13T11:06:00.002-05:00

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

2011-03-10T21:47:00.000-06:00

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!

Quite a Treasure!

2011-02-28T21:17:00.000-06:00

A long FUN day of thrift store shopping on Saturday in Madison.

We visited: 3 Goodwill stores, 2 Hospice stores, one Savers, one St. Vinnie's, and an upscale consignment shop. Whew!

When I was a little girl, my grandma had a covered platter like this on top of her refrigerator. It always had cookies under it. Like magic. My favorite cookies were Stuff in the Middle Cookies. That's what we called them anyway. They were date-filled cookies and I have yet to find a recipe that comes anywhere close to hers. And, alas, none of us knows what recipe she used.

Imagine a small child liking date cookies? I can still see them and taste them.

I love the history behind objects like this one. Look closely and you will see the marks made when a dessert was sliced. So fun to think of a long ago birthday cake being grandly presented to a group of family and friends.

And the sweet acorn decor embossed in the metal. Love it.

$3.99 bought me something priceless.

Enjoy your week. I'm ready for winter to be over in this part of the world!

Ramblings...and hail!

2011-02-20T17:27:00.000-06:00

What? It's not normal to put your valentine flowers on top of your fridge?

With this one, it is necessary.

Who me? I nap. All the time. Flowers? What flowers.

Zoomed, through a window. Still an impressive sight.

This was deafeningly loud coming down!

Sweet man ran out quickly to get a sample for a pic. Gotta love 'im.

Hope your weekend was fun-filled!

Dangerous Road

2011-02-12T19:33:00.000-06:00

Not sure if you've noticed as you've read my blog, but we have two married sons, formerly referred to as the Minneapolis kids (son and wife in Mpls.) and the Atlanta kids (son and wife in Atlanta).

Now, with a leap to another continent, we have Bolivian kids and Atlanta kids. Yes that's Bolivia the country, in case there is a city somewhere in the US named Bolivia. Did not want any confusion.

The Bolivian son (sounds strange even to me, will I ever get used to it?) just got certification in ESL and wanted to go somewhere to be immersed in another language. He had church contacts in La Paz, so they chose Bolivia. I remember being thankful when they discarded Juarez, Mexico from their consideration. Adventurous, they are. And living their dream.

Just a few days ago, they traveled by bus to a remote town to attend a language school and hopefully volunteer at an orphanage. They went by the only route available, via the MOST dangerous road in the world.

Really. Google "most dangerous road" and this is the response you get.

And it's the rainy season. So the road is muddy. Not a good road in good weather. Rainy season.

This is totally beyond my comprehension. Ask my husband about driving with me as a passenger in the Black Hills. Not even mountains. There are guardrails and plenty of room for two lanes and pavement with lines painted on them. Still I freaked out a few times and asked him to slow down.

Just thought I'd share. Your prayers are coveted.

Go Pack Go!

2011-02-06T16:02:00.000-06:00

Yellow cupcakes (from a cake mix) with (green tinted) cream cheese frosting.

Gorgeous, no. Delicious, yes!

Beat together: 8 oz. cream cheese, 5 Tbl. butter flavored Crisco (I buy the sticks), 2 tsp. vanilla. Add powdered sugar until desired consistency. Takes about 3.5 - 4 cups powdered sugar for you measurers out there.

My oldest, living in Atlanta, is wearing his Packer pants that I made for him. He didn't tell me he is wearing them, I just know. In that Mom instinct kinda way.

My youngest and his wife just arrived in Bolivia in the wee hours of the morning on this fine Sunday. They will be watching the Super Bowl with some folks who are originally from Idaho.

My day was made when we heard that they arrived safe and sound.

He asked what we are doing for the Super Bowl, and I said we are having nachos!

I do live a wild and crazy exciting life.

Enjoy your Sunday!

Snow!!

2011-02-02T10:11:00.000-06:00

Didja get some?

Stay warm and safe!

Denim Jeans Quilt

2011-01-15T17:30:00.000-06:00

This is the first quilt I ever made. I knew no quilting "rules" at the time. I had many years of garment sewing and doll clothes-making under my belt, so I had all the basic skills I needed to make this quilt.

It was created using my husband's worn work jeans. And it was made for him. It is the heaviest and warmest blanket I have ever encountered.

My friend Chris asked about it, since she is making a denim quilt. So I thought the best way to get the information to her was to post it and thereby share it with the rest of you.

I cut scraps 5" wide x different lengths, depending on the usable portions of the jeans. This way there weren't any intersections of four patches. Just long strips to join together.

I backed it with a double-sided flannel which was extra thick. And I brought the back around to the front and zigzagged the binding down to the front.

I tied it with embroidery floss and buttons at the center of each rectangle.

A great way to make use of all those discarded jeans!

A Bloomin' Good Year

2011-01-10T20:30:00.000-06:00

Quite a few blooms on my Christmas Cactus this year. The secret is 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness. I don't put any effort into that schedule, but the location where this plant sits provides just about the right amount of light and dark.

This gorgeous specimen is a century old, give or take a few decades.

An elderly gentleman gave it to my dad, probably 30-40 years ago. This man was 90-something at that time and this plant belonged to his mother. My dad gave it to me about 20 or so years ago.

The center stalks are sturdy, like tree trunks, and covered with bark.

It sits upon a blue, drop-leaf table that my grandfather made for me when I was very young. That makes the table 45-50 years old. It is painted blue and has cute little decals applied to the surface. Remember those decals on furniture? The matching chairs are buried under the plant. This little table and chairs lived for too many years in a pole shed, but now exist cozily in our living room.

A place of honor for a geriatric plant. Perfect.

Mug Rugs

2011-01-09T12:10:00.000-06:00

Ooooh, I think I caught the mug rug bug. I see more of these in my future.

Made these to match this table topper. Now my mom can be all fancy serving coffee.

Disappearing 4-Patch Table Topper

2011-01-09T12:01:00.000-06:00

We have been celebrating Christmas for weeks now, which is a very good thing and has been very much enjoyed. Now it's time to share some of the projects that were given as gifts.

This table topper, for instance, was so much fun to make!

Stitch four 10-inch squares (layer cake) into a four-patch.

Center a 5 or 6-inch ruler on the seam line in one direction. Cut on both sides of the ruler. Rotate entirely to align ruler the other direction and cut on both sides again. Do not move fabric as you cut, rotate the entire cutting board.

Turn the center pieces, moving them to the next spot -- kind of like musical chairs -- until you like the layout. I think you can see in the photo where my pieces ended up.

Sew everything back together.

Pretty!

Layer quilt top, batting, backing. Pin. Quilt. Bind.

I did some free-motion feathers (if you really use your imagination, you'll see them). I like how they turned out. They remind me of Christmas trees.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T16:49:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas!

I will share a few projects with you after Christmas is over.

You all know how that goes, keeping secrets and all.

My wish for you is a Christmas season full of family, friends, and cheer.

May God bless you in the coming year!

Feed the Birds

2010-12-13T20:32:00.000-06:00

The view from our kitchen window.

We feed our birds three types of food: black oiled sunflower seeds, niger (thistle) seed, and suet. Left to right above: a suet feeder, two sunflower feeders (one wood, one red metal), and then a mesh sack and two cylinder feeders, the latter three holding thistle seed.

This set-up brings a nice variety of pretty birds, while at the same time is not attractive to other birds. These "other" birds might be hungry and in need of food but they tend to scare away some of the more skittish birds. Our regulars include four types of woodpeckers, cardinals, purple house finches, goldfinches, juncos, chickadees, white-crowned sparrows, red-breasted nuthatches, mourning doves. . . and these are just our winter birds.

Here's one of our frequent flyers. So fun to watch!

Learn from my fail

2010-12-13T20:10:00.000-06:00

A couple ideas for dressing up some glass jars I have around the house.

Pieces of driftwood? Yes.

Rocks? No.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-02T21:30:00.001-06:00

Traditional Damask Red Christmas

Shop Shutterfly for elegant custom Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Vintage Travel Case

2010-12-02T07:54:00.001-06:00

This beauty was on the bottom shelf at Goodwill. A little dusty, but no scuffs or scratches. Either it wasn't used much or it was treated with lots of TLC.

In my imagination, the sophisticated lady who owned this piece of luggage traveled the countryside on exciting adventures. Weekends in the city for the nightlife, or meandering through the countryside for the tranquil scenery and fresh air.

She carefully applied her ruby red lipstick before rushing out the door for cocktails before dinner.

I hope it is content to spend its golden years in my sewing room, holding some of my supplies!

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

Mother Goose Baby Quilt

2010-12-01T20:20:00.002-06:00

One of my dear family members is expecting having twins. Can you imagine? So exciting! A girl and a boy.

For her shower gift, I put together a Mother Goose themed quilt. The center is a panel and I added a red and a yellow border.

I use these nifty plastic clamps, purchased at one of our local home improvement stores. I clamp the edges of my quilt backing fabric, placed right side down, to my table. Then I layer the batting, then the quilt top, right side up.

I pin the layers together with those special curved pins, leaving all the pins open.

A regular spoon works just great to close all the pins. No need for a fancy gadget for this purpose.

One of my favorite parts of the process = trimming the quilt edges.

That's when it starts looking like a nearly-finished project.

The binding is actually the outer part of the panel that needed trimming up.

And the backing is adorable -- sweet little prints of all the Mother Goose characters.

I hope the sweet new babies enjoy looking at the pictures on their quilt!

Click on the link below to visit Sew & Tell Fridays!

Let's Play!

2010-11-15T19:32:00.001-06:00

Copy and paste the following into your blog and answer the questions.

Let me know if you do, so I can see what you write!

Sweet or Savoury?
Dresses or Jeans?
House or Apartment?
Shop Online or Offline?
DVDs or Downloads?
Cocktails or Juice?
Chocolate or Strawberry?
Laptop or PC?
Magazines or Newspapers?
Facebook or Twitter?
CDs or MP3s?
Kids or Pets?
Cookies or Cupcakes?
Walk or Run?
Breakfast in Bed or Breakfast Out?
Market or Supermarket?
Sourdough or Grainy?
Heels or Flats?
Late nights or Not?
Coffee or Tea?

Sweet or Savoury? Sweet. Definitely sweet.
Dresses or Jeans? Jeans, at work, at home, everywhere.
House or Apartment? House. On an acre in the country.
Shop Online or Offline? Online. LOVE online shopping.
DVDs or Downloads? DVDs. Internet connection too slow. (see #3)
Cocktails or Juice? Depends on the occasion. Both have their place in my life.
Chocolate or Strawberry? Chocolate. But I do love strawberry too.
Laptop or PC? Laptop. Don't know how I got by in the old days with a computer that couldn't be toted around.
Magazines or Newspapers? Magazines. But I am trying to let some of my subscriptions expire. Trying to, anyway.
Facebook or Twitter? Facebook. I have a Twitter account but never go there.
CDs or MP3s? CDs
Kids or Pets? Both. But the kids are grown and kitty is still here.
Cookies or Cupcakes? Cookies. So many kinds, so little time.
Walk or Run? Walk. These knees don't appreciate running.
Breakfast in Bed or Breakfast Out? Breakfast out. Pancakes, please.
Market or Supermarket? Farmer's market is best.
Sourdough or Grainy? Grainy.
Heels or Flats? Flats.
Late nights or Not? I have to say "not." Sigh.
Coffee or Tea? Tea is my preference, but I drink both.

These photos have nothing to do with this post, in case you were wondering.

Two Renewed Bathrooms

2010-11-09T21:10:00.000-06:00

All of this happened during the summer and I am just getting around to blogging about it.

BEFORE: We have lived here since 1994. For the first 10 years, or so, this bathroom was our Packer bathroom. In recent years I put away the Packer decor (got a little tired of it) but it was still Packer colors and still ugly with really dated plastic tiles. Who ever thought plastic tiles were a good idea?

AFTER: Finally this year we bit the bullet and stretched the budget to remodel both of our bathrooms. Below, behold Bathroom #1 in all it's glory. These two rooms are very small, but I absolutely love how they turned out. They look fresh and new but still in the style of a mid-century ranch/cottage style house in the country.

Beautiful tile job, wainscoting.

On to Bathroom #2 . . .

I failed to get before shots, but picture, if you will, a teeny tiny claustrophobic closet-sized bathroom with a leaky mildew-prone shower stall with a glass door. Hate glass doors and those tracks that get full of crud.

The bathroom is still the same size but seems larger since the shower area is now open and beautifully tiled.

Two shower curtains, purchased from Kohl's. I then shortened one of them into a window curtain.

Nice tile detail on the floor.

Very happy with how these two rooms turned out. Bathrooms are a pricey remodel (yikes!) but totally worth it. Makes life easier and much more pleasant when you have two new bathrooms.

Painted Pumpkin Faces

2010-10-19T21:12:00.000-05:00

We're getting to the stage around here where some of the local growth is turning brown and dried-up looking. But it's still quite beautiful.

Every year I paint pumpkins for my dear mother-in-law. This has been going on for quite some time now. You'd think she'd be sick of these, but no, she loves them and enjoys using them to decorate her doorway. Pretty sure her neighbors get a kick out of them too.

Simple project: use a Sharpie pen to outline your design. Eyes, eyebrows, nose, mouth.

Fill in with acrylic paints. Use basic colors or not-so-basic. It's your pumpkin, be creative!

Important: don't forget the white accents. Apply these after the first layer of paint is completely dry. The white highlights really make these cuties come alive. Have fun!

A Bit of Progress

2010-10-17T20:59:00.000-05:00

I whipped up this simple project, using two fat quarters. Right sides together, stitch along sides leaving space to turn right side out. Press and topstitch close to edge. I placed it on a side table, but it would make a cute basket liner too.

I think those are bittersweet blossoms.

My mom embroidered these squares and I finally got them sewn together with sashing.

Still need to add one, or maybe two, borders.

Then I will machine quilt along the sashings. After that, I plan to hand-quilt around the motifs themselves. Or, I should say my mom and I will quilt them, having our own little quilting bee. She sounded a little hesitant, since she's never hand-quilted before, but we'll manage just fine. And end up with a precious heirloom as a result. I'll keep you posted!

In the meantime, enjoy your week!

Fall is in the air

2010-10-11T20:14:00.001-05:00

A dilemma. Fresh air through the open windows (and I do mean "country fresh") or closed windows and stuffy house but minus those certain scents that go with country living.

Easy! Open windows! It's worth it, really, this time of year.

This year's pumpkin count: 57

Pumpkins just glow with fun. No matter what their age, kids LOVE pumpkins. We enjoy this time of year and having family and friends come out to pick out their own special pumpkin.

Some choose a big pumpkin and some like little ones.

Milkweed pods fully open, spreading their seeds on the wind. Yay butterflies!

I hope you find a pumpkin that makes you smile as you celebrate fall in your corner of the world.

Make a Garland of Indian Corn

2010-09-20T22:00:00.001-05:00

This is the third year we have displayed these garlands of Indian Corn. For most of the year, they hang from the rafters in the garage. We hang them in the center of the garage and somehow they have remained safe from mice.

This was an easy project, but might be cost-prohibitive unless you grow your own corn. But, as I said, it will last for years if stored properly. And I really love the look of it on our house.

Bundle three ears of corn and bind tightly around the husks with florist's wire. Use the ends of the same wire to attach each bunch securely to heavy jute twine, leaving some space between bunches. Make loops on the end of each swag and hang from hooks or nails. We leave the nails there and use them to hang our Christmas greenery.

Below is my absolutely favorite perennial: Gaillardia aristata. As you see below, all stages of blooms are attractive: buds, full blooms, and spent blooms. It blooms for most of the summer. I have never deadheaded it, but an online search recommends it. It also recommends dividing every 2-3 years, but I've never done so. I do notice that it spreads up and down my flower bed, which I love (nothing better than free plants!).

Enjoy your week!

Kitchen Curtains

2010-08-28T17:18:00.000-05:00

Found some curtains I liked at WalMart, of all places.

(Sorry, I guess I can be a bit snobbish about my home decor.)

To be fair, though, their Better Homes & Gardens collection of housewares has some nice things.

I liked the fabrics, but. . . printed rickrack?? ick, I don't think so.

So I went about cutting that section out and inserting some yellow piping.

My grandma bought me a package of piping for this project in the 60s, or thereabouts. I have a hodgepodge of trims from both of my grandmothers. I can't tell you how many times I have found just what I need in one of those boxes.

Thanks Grandma!

Much better without that printed rickrack.

Fresh and pretty just in time for apple season!

Road Trip

2010-08-09T21:46:00.000-05:00

Just back from a trip west. A large portion of Nebraska and South Dakota looks like this:

We combined a sightseeing expedition to the Black Hills with a family reunion in Valentine, Nebraska.

Absolutely gorgeous animals. Pretty sure we saw about 1,000 buffalo. And I did not need to zoom for this shot. They are very close to our vehicle.

Made a new friend at Wall Drug.

Food out of the cooler tastes great when you are taking a break from driving.

Visited a very nice quilt shop in Custer, South Dakota. It's fun to chat with the local folks. Bought a couple of cute panels there. They had a very nice selection.

Restaurant recommendation: Firehouse Brewing Co. in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Hope you all are enjoying your summer!

Summertime! and I am a slacker

2010-06-27T23:04:00.000-05:00

Is summertime one word? See? I'm too lazy to look it up! Ahhhh, summer.

I got an email from Quilts for Kids reminding me that I need to send in my quilt. I feel bad that I even needed a reminder!

You can see the front of the quilt below.

Hubby is holding it. "Will you be able to see my orange shorts?"

"Why, what's wrong with orange shorts?"

"Well, they won't match the quilt."

"Actually, they do match very well."

And below is the back of the quilt. They send the fabrics, the quilter puts the quilt together. This particular grouping of fabrics was very cute!

They include a special label on which you are supposed to write your first name and a name for the quilt. Well, I don't name quilts. Not that I am against it or anything, I just never have.

So, I'm looking at the quilt front and see turtles and birds and mice. Hmmm. Well, they all live in the woods, so I called it "Woodland Creatures." Unfortunately I wrote that on the label before including the back of the quilt in my inspiration. So, the back of the quilt has elephants, and monkeys. A lion. Yeah.

I think I'll stick to not naming quilts. I don't seem to be very good at it.

Hey, do you collect selvages? Because, I don't. If you would like these, be the first to ask me in a comment and I will mail them to you. I just couldn't throw them away.

Bookmark

2010-06-04T21:23:00.000-05:00

Wow, summer has arrived (well maybe not officially on the calendar) and blogging has kind of fallen by the wayside. Projects, too.

The weekend is here and I do need to plant some flowers that are very tired of sitting in their tiny seedling pots. Maybe I can carve out a little time for indoor fun this weekend, though. Like sewing. Imagine that!

Lately I've been making bread from frozen bread dough. Quick -- and a homemade touch without the work! Yay!

Recently, I sent a card to one of my nearest and dearest.

I felt like it needed a little something more than a card, so I made this bookmark.

I first sewed the center strip to the two side (striped) strips. Then I cut horizontally across the upper portion and stitched in the horizontal part of the cross. Layered it with flannel in the middle for "batting" and a cotton piece for the back. The backing was pieced but I didn't get a photo of it.

Then I did some quilting through all the layers, topstitched along each edge about 1/4-1/2 inch from the edge, and then pinked the edges.

That was it. It slipped nicely inside the card and I sent it off in the mail.

Something to do with your scraps!

Super cute project -- from four fat eighths!

2010-05-21T16:54:00.000-05:00

It's a table mat. It's a basket liner. It's a fun and quick project!

You will need four fat eighths plus coordinating rickrack trim.

Sew the fabric pieces together in pairs along the longest side, with rickrack in between.

No pics of the rickrack insertion but here's how I did it: 1) Place rickrack on right side of fabric, along the longest side. Stitch right down the middle of the rickrack. 2) Sandwich rickrack between the two pieces of fabric, right sides together. Stitch through all layers carefully using the seam you already stitched as a guide. Press from right side, pressing all seams to one side. Topstitch through all layers of fabric. (See photo below.)

Place sewn together pairs of fabric right sides together. Line up and trim edges to match neatly. I waited until now to trim the selvage.

Sew a 3/8 inch seam on all 4 sides, leaving about 4-5 inches open for turning. Clip corners and turn to right side. Press.

Top stitch 1/8 inch along all sides. Press again.

Enjoy your bowl liner...basket liner...table mat...whatever!

Be sure to visit Sew & Tell Fridays. Lots of eye candy this week!

Door County Weekend

2010-05-20T22:26:00.000-05:00

Oooh, this week has been busy.

Here it is Thursday and I am just getting around to telling you about last weekend!

That was some kind of fancy-schmancy carbonated pink lemonade that was out of this world delicious. I wish I could remember the name, it was soooo good.

I seem to be incapable of taking one of those hold-the-camera-at-arms-length type shots.

How do those kids take those pics anyway? They're all over Facebook, you'd think I could figure it out.

Girls' weekend in Door County, that's what last weekend was all about. We had such a good time.

Food, shopping, sightseeing, it was perfect.

If you want to visit a popular tourist destination, time it right. In the case of Door County, May and September are perfect. You get beautiful weather without the crowds.

Oh, oh, stop the car! I need to take a picture of this sunset!

We visited a winery, spent 3 hours in a huge antique store, shopped at a market where we bought fudge and enjoyed free samples of cherry strudel and cherry doughnuts (yum!).

And roamed through a bunch of other fun, touristy shops.

Another "Quilt for Kids"

2010-05-18T19:54:00.001-05:00

Look at the adorable fabric for my next Quilt for Kids! Just arrived in my mailbox today. So fun! Robert Kaufman offers this collection, designed by Amy Schimler, specially for Quilts for Kids.

The panel will actually be the backing, so how cute will that be? I'm really excited to get started on it.

In other news -- deadheading is your friend.

I am always hesitant to be too aggressive in snipping off the spent blossoms from my annuals.

This year, I put pansies in my window box because they will withstand our Wisconsin frosts that occur this time of year. I love them because you can plant them very early with no worries.

Just a week or so ago, they were not much more than greenery since I had deadheaded a bunch of expired blossoms. I could see lots of buds coming, but only one or two blooms.

And now look at them! They are solid blooms and the colors are so very bright!

I wish I had taken a picture of my window box full of greenery so you could see the progress.

As soon as the danger of frost has passed,

I will repot the window box with an assortment of other annuals.

Shown above is a viola hanging basket that I bought at the same time.

They don't seem to need any pruning.

I plan to plant them directly in the ground eventually, but I'm not sure how long they will continue blooming. They love the cool temps right now, but can't stand the heat.

Tulip Table Toppers

2010-05-11T22:11:00.000-05:00

In the last week before Mother's Day, I decided I needed to make something for my mom and mother-in-law, as opposed to giving them the usual flowering hanging basket.

So, what follows is my labor of love, which was completed at about midnight on the night before the holiday, as is standard form with me and my crazy last-minute ideas. I always think to myself "self, you are never making gifts right before a holiday again!" but I don't listen very well.

I used the Field of Tulips Quilt Pattern at Moda Bake Shop. I made four blocks from the pattern and sashed them together and used a solid yellow for the border. The two toppers are not exactly alike; the light pinks are two different fabrics.

I used a squiggly quilting pattern on one and kind of a scallop on the other. Maybe these quilting methods have other, more technical names?

I really like how they turned out, nice and bright for spring/summer.

What's Happening?

2010-04-27T20:37:00.000-05:00

I need to get back in the blogging groove. Spring fever has been beckoning me outdoors. I have been trying to keep up on my favorite blogs and see that you guys have been busy busy busy!

I finished the table runner that I rescued from Goodwill. Bound it, quilted it and washed it into crinkly old-fashioned goodness.

Do you see that Currier & Ives print on the wall there? (if you're like me, you do -- I love looking in the background of blogger's photos!) Well, it is one of three seasons. What? There are more than three seasons? Oh yeah. I am missing Winter. I have found it available for sale as a print but how would I ever match the other three frames? I'll have to figure that out someday.

Ooooh, look below. Spring time is arriving in a glorious burst of color!

And, tonight! Our first picking from the asparagus patch.

Mmmm, we are in for about two months of deliciousness.

Did you know that you can pick asparagus up until the 4th of July and then should let it go to seed?

Hope you all are enjoying the weather and the special treats that each season brings!

There is art in all of us

2010-04-08T21:33:00.000-05:00

In the absence of a current project to share (unless you want to see my nice clean laundry) I thought I would tell you about a sunshiny day last April.

My youngest son and his wife life in Minneapolis, so I don't get to see him as often as I would like. Well, even if he lived within a few miles of my house I probably would like to see him more often, you moms know how that goes. Anyway. . .

His lovely wife had plans one day, so my son called and said he wanted to spend the day with his mom doing something fun. Be still, my heart! We brainstormed a bit and thought about visiting thrift stores, maybe a museum, but nothing quite fit the bill. Then. . .

Jamie decided he wanted to paint a picture. Well, I was a high school artist (a few decades ago) and Jamie's last forays into the art world were probably in middle school. But hey, neither of us are the type to let minor details stop us.

So after buying a set of acrylic paints and a couple of canvases, we were all set.

As you can see, we set up professional-type easels. Since it was a bit windy that day, we used a couple of rocks to keep our canvases upright. Plastic plates served as palettes. Our subject matter was the field across the road -- a view we had seen day after day and never really looked at or appreciated.

For a couple of untrained painters with nothing but heart, we were pretty proud of the results. Both of our paintings hang in our homes and serve as a sweet reminder of a special mommy/son day.

Incommunicado

2010-04-06T16:42:00.000-05:00

Hope you all had a joyous AND enjoyable Easter!

We took a wonderful trip last week with our nearest and dearest. . .

We took a $2 bus to Mahahual/Costa Maya and swam, ate the best Mexican food ever, and had a massage on the beach. . .

Costa Maya

We wandered these streets and came home with a few treasures. . .

Cozumel

We traveled via. . .

A couple of us won a contest. I am not allowed to share the specifics, but it was a well-deserved win.

We ate way too much and way too often. . .

Now we're trying to catch up on work and laundry and all that stuff. We had even more fun than we expected (and we had very high expectations!) but it's nice to be home!

Signs of Spring

2010-03-23T19:27:00.000-05:00

I have been working on this table runner, which hasn't taken much work at all. It was part of a huge bag of partially completed projects that I bought at Goodwill. In this case, the entire top was already pieced, so I just made a sandwich and quilted it. Next comes the binding and it will be done!

Do you see that dark object in the background? It's a knitted scarf of mine that my cat made into a nest. I just leave it like that because it concentrates all the cat hair into one area. A great tip that I thought I'd pass on to you all. It isn't easy to trick a cat.

The woman (or man) that pieced this top really had some talent. Her corners are perfect.

Here is the bag of scraps. Only after I purchased it ($6.99!) and got it home did I discover that all the scraps are either cut into shapes or sewn into blocks. They aren't true (messy) scraps like I have that are all random sized pieces.

Whoah, what's this? Looks like somebody is anxious to plant his onion sets!

He will also plant radishes (I'm not a huge fan, but he is) and this year we are trying spinach. Last year we grew leaf lettuce and just kept cutting it and cutting it and it kept coming back for a long time. We ate it for quite a while until it started getting bitter.

Crocus. Is the plural crocuses, croci, crocus? Googling produces differing opinions on this matter. I'll go with crocus.

Nice shadow; somebody needs photography lessons.

Don't know what these are (below).

They bloom early with the crocus and they are much tinier than they look in this photo.

That's all for now.

Wisconsinites get pretty excited about springtime, hence the post full of signs of spring!

If the fleece fits, wear it!

2010-03-18T22:09:00.001-05:00

Just had to share. Jamie loves his fleece. Remember, he threw out all his other shirts, so he better love it. Ha, just kidding.

Doesn't he look cute?

Look here for details of the construction process. Make a Pattern from a Readymade Shirt

Ohhh, I had some fun today!

2010-03-13T22:45:00.000-06:00

First I started with some mending. Then I shortened the sleeves on a couple of blouses.

Ho hum. When does the fun start.

Well, I began with the dress that you see above. It was from Goodwill, just a simple back zip dress.

I bought it with a plan in mind.

I cut off the bottom of the dress to make it into a top.

Then I cut that bottom piece into two long strips and narrow-hemmed the long edges and gathered them into ruffles.

I like how it turned out, but it just needed a little bit of something. I scavenged through my trim box and came up with this beautiful trim. I hesitated, thinking the trim was too good for this blouse. Then, I told myself that I've had this trim stuffed away for years, bring it out and use it! (you all talk to yourselves too, right?) Anyway, it really added a nice touch and I'm glad I put it on this garment.

Funny thing is, I'm not a pink girl and I'm not really a ruffles kinda girl. But hey, this blouse will spruce up my spring wardrobe for cheap, and I'm looking forward to wearing it.

Make a Pattern from a Readymade Shirt: The Reveal!

2010-03-12T08:17:00.001-06:00

My baby boy (not really a baby, but MY baby) received his package which contained this shirt, so now I can show it to you! According to him, this is the best fleece ever created and he's going to throw out all his other fleeces (believe me, he has lots and lots of them). We know he won't do that but it's nice to know he is happy with this one.

Remember this post in which I went through the process of tracing a readymade shirt and making a pattern? It was fun and educational and I would highly recommend you try it on a favorite garment.

Jamie had ordered some fancy schmancy fleece online. Polartec, I think it's called. That made me all the more nervous. I didn't want to mess up. The price was good, though. I think it was about $7.99/yard and it was very high quality fleece.

Because of what you see below, I would highly recommend making a practice zipper. I searched and searched online and could not find instructions on inserting a half-zip in the front of a garment. I'm sure I've done this before in a sewing project years ago and it seemed to come back to me. But I didn't want to just cut a slit in the front and slap a zipper in.

So, fortunately, ugly zipper ended up being inserted in a scrap. Whew! I won't lie to you. This process is not for the fainthearted and you need a basic knowledge of garment construction.

Ugly zipper above.

Pretty zipper below.

Raggedy Ann looks fetching in the fleece. She's always excited to model.

Use your sewing machine's stretch overcast stitches to finish the inside seams and hems to make a more professional looking garment. I used stitches I had never tried before. Again, practice the stitches on fabric scraps first. Do some topstitching on the outside to get away from that homemade look. Look at a readymade garment to see where to topstitch.

Use a stretch knit needle in your machine. I used Schmetz Jersey Ballpoint.

If you'd like more details, email me. I didn't take any construction photos, but I could explain parts of the process if you would like to make your own shirt.

Be sure to visit Sew & Tell Fridays. Lots of fun finishes this week!

Pyrex and Fire-King

2010-03-11T17:13:00.000-06:00

Recently, I found some cute Pyrex and Fire-King at my local thrift shops.

I love the practicality and durability of these dishes, but it's always fun to notice that simple baking dishes have been dressed up with designs. Let's make cooking pretty and fun! A great way for a cook to get through the monotony of everyday meal preparation.

When I first saw the yellow dish on the bottom there, I thought it had cooking residue buildup until I looked it up online and saw that it is supposed to have a brownish speckle finish.

I like the divided dish above. How handy! You don't have to mix your peas and carrots!

Until I browsed the internet to find out more about these items, I had no idea there were so many different styles and patterns! I don't have the room to keep on collecting them, but I enjoy what I have and plan to use them for cooking.

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

Winner!

2010-03-10T21:04:00.000-06:00

The winner of my giveaway is . . .

thasnifty said...

what a lovely giveaway! Thanks for sharing it.
A book organizer would come in handy in a big way at my house :)

I love the Teamson Design Magic Garden Toy Chest. The graphics on it are lovely!

Send me an email with your mailing address and your choice of natural or pastel for the bookshelf, and I will order it for you!

Thanks, all, for entering!

Bearded Iris, Springtime, and Patience

2010-03-09T19:25:00.000-06:00

Here is what they look like today. . .

and what they will look like soon. . .

Ahhh, patience.

*******************

I have a great project in the works and can't wait to show it to you.

As soon as it is finished and has arrived at its wearer's house, I will tell you about it.

Hope you are enjoying your week!

Vintage Winter Fun

2010-03-04T17:04:00.002-06:00

Click here to sign up for my giveaway!

It's time to take this down but I wanted to get a photo to show you before we store it away. We put this up every year, a vintage sled (ca. mid-1950s) and my skates from about 1970. It doesn't help the condition of the sled for it to be out every winter, all winter, but I really like it as a decoration.

I see that it is time for me to clean out last year's perennials. I like to leave the dead growth as protection from the cold.

Here is the info from the back of the sled:

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

Spring Cleaning . . . and a Giveaway!

2010-03-03T21:31:00.000-06:00

One subject that I find fun and informative in my little blogging network is the weather. We all seem to have a slight variation on whatever storm is passing through, or perhaps we are enjoying blue skies that day.

Around these parts, it's beginning to look like Spring! For a girl who has always lived in the northern U.S., Spring is both welcome and fickle. I know that March is not going to stay like this, and we most likely will be in for another few (or more!) inches of snow.

BUT, no matter where you live, springtime seems to ask you to throw open your windows and clean out the winter sludge and ORGANIZE!

I received an email from CSN Stores asking me to host a sponsored giveaway. After perusing their extensive selection of products (just about anything you can think of!), I decided to look at their kids furniture. So . . .

In the spirit of Spring cleaning and ORGANIZATION, the product I chose for the giveaway is this cute and sturdy bookshelf.

From day one, my kids were into books. How much more fun would it be to display your books like this and have your child be able to make a selection and bring it over and crawl up in your lap and read? Ah, sweet memories!

The winner of the giveaway will be able to choose from the bookshelf above in natural or the same bookshelf in pastel (item number 14225 on their kids furniture site).

How to enter the giveaway:
(open to USA and Canada ONLY)

1. Click the link above and then return to leave a comment on this post, sharing something you like from the site. (Required)

2. Follow and/or subscribe to this blog (Optional, for an extra entry. Comment again to let me know.)

3. Share this giveaway in a post on your blog, linking back to this post. (Optional, for an extra entry. Comment again to let me know.)

Don't forget to leave an additional comment each for extra entries #2 and #3. Entries will be accepted until Wednesday, March 10th, 9 p.m. CST. Good luck!

My Lucky Day (thanks, Suzanne!)

2010-03-02T20:12:00.000-06:00

You guys are going to be so jealous. This box arrived in my mail. I knew I had won a giveaway but somehow all the stuff looks so much cuter in person!

I have been following the Coloradolady and have even linked up some of my posts to her fun weekly link party called Vintage Thingies Thursdays. She gets quite a long list of links every Thursday. So many fun vintage items to view, plus some really great stories behind the items.

So imagine my excitement when I won her giveaway! Just look at this loot!

An adorable vintage tin with a sweet flower magnet inside, pretty pastel colored pens, file folders with roses (how fancy!), a quilt case pattern, and fat quarters. Not just any fat quarters, look at these:

Cute!!!!

Look at the rickrack! And the vintage aprons!

Paper dolls. What could be sweeter??

Be sure to bookmark and/or follow Coloradolady. She has a beautiful web site. Thanks, Suzanne!

Tote Bag Tutorial

2010-02-28T17:28:00.003-06:00

This might be a good time to state that all of my patterns are for personal use only. You may make a purse for your own personal use or to give as a gift. You may not use my patterns or tutorials to make items for sale.

This tote bag is the perfect size for a gym bag, a diaper bag, a tote between work and home, a carry-on for air travel, and so much more. You can take the basic instructions and adjust the size down to a smaller bag if you use a smaller zipper. If you use a lighter weight fabric, you will need to interface your purse.

Please let me know if anything in the tutorial is unclear or if you have questions!

Cut from home dec or outdoor weight fabrics:

2 pieces of purse fabric, 23" x 20" (for purse)

2 pieces of purse fabric, 23" x 11" (for pockets)

2 pieces of lining fabric, 23" x 20" (for purse lining)

2 pieces of lining fabric, 23" x 11" (for pocket lining)

2 lengths of webbing for the handles, 56" each piece (purchase 112" webbing)

22" heavy duty sport-weight zipper

Using any kind of marking pen (it won't show), mark a 4" square in the bottom corners of the wrong side of the two purse pieces and the two purse lining pieces.

Make a zipper sandwich: purse outside piece right side up, zipper facing down, purse lining wrong side up. (see photo below) Using your zipper foot, stitch close to zipper through all layers.

Finger press these layers away from the zipper and make the same zipper sandwich on the other side of the zipper and stitch (see below). I don't recommend pressing with a hot iron near a plastic zipper.

As you sew along, you will have to pay attention to where the zipper is because zippers and needles do not mix.

You should now have something that looks like the photo below.

Sew an outer pocket piece to a lining pocket piece along the 23" sides, right sides together. Repeat with the other pocket pieces. Turn right side out. Press seams flat on right side.

Move the layers slightly off so that you end up with what you see below. Press.

Stitch two parallel topstitching lines along the faux edge trim you made by pressing the pockets off center. (see below)

On top of only one layer of the outer purse fabric, pin a pocket piece as you see below, 5 inches from the bottom of the purse. See where the striped "trim" side of the pocket is toward the top of the purse?

Pin down one of the webbing pieces on top of the pocket, tucking the ends under the pocket piece bottom. Center the webbing vertically on the purse, with 7 inches of space in the center between the webbing.

Stitch the sides and bottom of pocket to purse, making sure the edges of the webbing are tucked under the pocket piece.

Stitch close to the sides and bottom of the webbing, anchoring it to the purse, and stopping about an inch from the top (zipper) edge. Stitch at the top across the webbing a few times and back and forth across the bottom of the webbing a few times to strengthen the handle.

Follow the same process to attach the pocket to one layer of the lining fabric. Stitch sides and bottom of pocket to the lining.

Divide the inside pocket however you would like (I made a 7-inch center pocket the same as the outside) and stitch the pocket divider sections.

Stitch the webbing to the other side of the purse fabric in the same manner, but you will not have a pocket piece on this side. Measure and space the webbing handle and stitch down to match the side that you already did (the pocket side).

Unzip the zipper. Lay out the purse and pin all around the outside, purse fabric to purse fabric and lining fabric to lining fabric, right sides of fabric together. Stitch all the way around, leaving a 6-inch opening at the bottom edge of the lining. Get as close as you can to the ends of the zipper. Clip the four corners.

Box your corners by matching up the lines that you made when you drew the 4 inch boxes at the beginning. Stitch along the drawn lines. Trim seam.

Turn purse right side out through the opening in the lining. Turn the lower edges of the lining under and stitch opening closed, close to the edge. This closes up the opening you used to turn the purse right side out.

Push lining of purse down inside of purse itself. Hand stitch any gaps that exist where you couldn't get close enough to the zipper. If you used a separating zipper, slip stitch the bottom of the zipper closed so it can't separate.

Enjoy your new tote!

Make a Corsage

2010-02-27T21:08:00.000-06:00

You might be thinking: "Huh, where did this come from?"

In my past life, I was a florist. I mean in this life, but in earlier years. I enjoyed those 20-some years. My favorite part was the fact that my coworker was my mom!

Anyway, I haven't made a corsage as part of a job for over 12 years, but now and then an occasion will present itself and ask that I make up a corsage. Well, a person will ask, or suggest. In this case, I made a corsage for my lovely mother-in-law's birthday celebration.

So, I better quit with this talk of years or someone will do some math and come up with a pretty good sized number. Let's get down to business here.

Buy some pretty flowers. Smaller blossoms are nice for corsages. Leaving a 1/2 inch or so stem, cut or pinch off each flower.

Buy some size 24 gauge green florist wire. Cut lengths of about 6 inches or so, one for each of your flowers that you are using. Push a wire through the fat part of the upper stem. I'm sure it has a name, it escapes me right now and I don't feel like interrupting this to research it.

See those petals in the photo up there? Those were on the outside and were a little ragged so I plucked them off. Do the same if you need to.

Bend the wire down on both sides so they become an extension of the cut-off stem. Using florist tape, wrap the stem beginning at the top, stretching the tape as you go. It's naturally sticky this way.

Repeat until you have a nice pile of wrapped stem flowers.

Don't dismiss the flower buds; they are an adorable splash of color in your corsage. The purple stuff is statice, if you'd like to purchase some. It even dries up nicely, but that's another story.

Ok! So now make a bow with a wire stem. I am not going to include instructions for making the bow because I'm pretty sure there is a good selection of bow-making tutorials in blogland. See the pretty puffy cream colored bow in the bottom left of the photo up there? That's the size and style bow you need. Also, cut some sprigs of baby's breath, leaving their natural stems attached.

With the bow in the center, nestle some flowers up around it. And some baby's breath. Press about 3 stems together and then tape. No need to tape each flower as you add it. It can get too bulky with too much tape.

Continue adding stems, taping after every 3 stems. No need to twist the wires, they will stick on their own if you take your thumb and forefinger and press them together.

Can you see the design taking shape? You began with the round cluster of flowers in the middle around the bow and then, as you add flowers, you are elongating the corsage shape. Don't just make one big round blob. Also! Don't overdo the baby's breath. It should accent, not overwhelm, your corsage.

Pretty, huh? I have taped in some salal leaves on the back. You can use any greenery, or none at all. Even artificial greenery works with fresh flowers. I particularly like to use artificial ivy.

Then, using a wire cutters, cut off all the stems evenly, leaving a stem for pinning the corsage on. Tape up the stem well, we don't want wires poking your lucky corsage wearer.

Spritz your corsage lightly with water, and store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. You can make it up to 2 days ahead of time.

Most important tip --------- buy extra flowers so you have enough left over to make yourself a beautiful bouquet!

A Penchant for Bags

2010-02-22T20:46:00.003-06:00

Making bags is so addicting.

There is no fitting involved, so it's a very forgiving construction process. If you can measure and sew squares and rectangles together, you can make a nice bag. The color and fabric selection that is available to create a bag seems endless. You can choose a fabric that you wouldn't necessarily wear or use to decorate your home.

Also, they are so quick to make and require such little yardage that if you get tired of your bag you can just make a new one!

I made a few this past weekend. I would have sewn more, but a cold virus weaseled its way in and sapped a bit of my energy.

The grid on my cutting board gives you an idea of the size of these bags. I used a 22" zipper for the top opening on the large one. Next in size is the lunch bag like I made here. And finally a small pouch that uses a 7" zipper. The small pouch is made with the same fabric as the bag lining.

I have enough photos to put together a tutorial for the large bag. It is the perfect size for many uses: gym tote, diaper bag, carryon flight bag.

Tutorial to be posted soon!

Be sure to visit Sew & Tell Fridays. I'm not the only one making bags!

Vintage Bowls

2010-02-18T20:23:00.000-06:00

For this week's Vintage Thingies Thursday, I would like to show you my weakness: vintage bowls. I have a nice collection and actually use most of them. The one shown above is my favorite. The photo doesn't do it justice, it is actually a butter yellow color. I don't use this one, it just sits there and looks pretty.

This one holds some of my vintage utensils that belonged to my grandma. You can also see a little bit of a covered casserole dish, not vintage, but still cute.

Two more, sitting on a tea spoon holder, embroidered by my grandma. To the right is a glimpse of the largest of a set of four brown vintage mixing bowls, glazed in various shades of brown. Oh yeah, and a spider plant to the left that isn't happy with dry indoor air and the lack of sunlight.

And! an update on my "new" sewing machine. I found the manual online. The manual is for the treadle model that is built the same as my electric machine. So, at least I can see the oiling points and basic instructions.

I need the manual to figure out how to use the extra presser feet that the technician found for me. I was really excited about these since my machine did not have any accessories with it when I bought it!

The largest one in the back is a ruffler. Very intriguing and a bit intimidating.

Click on the Vintage Thingie Thursday logo to visit more fun vintage postings!

Weekends go by Quickly

2010-02-15T21:10:00.002-06:00

Our weekend was all over the place. Saturday featured our local fire department's pancake feed. Can't beat those thin spongy pancakes.

I managed to get some projects done. I made up some aprons from the dimensions of one that my grandma made. However, I made tucks instead of gathers at the waist. I think I like that look.

I made another hat like this one, this time for my husband. Apparently, it was the hit of the workday for him today. He had lots of positive comments from his coworkers.

On Sunday, we saw the movie Valentines Day and went to our favorite Mexican restaurant (El Jardin if you are ever in the South-Central Wisconsin area). Couldn't have imagined a more fun and romantic Valentines Day!

In progress: the bag in this photo. And I have enough pics to write a tutorial, so watch for that soon. It's a great bag -- zippered top and pockets inside and out!

Hope your weekend was a nice blend of accomplishment AND relaxation!

An Addition to the Family

2010-02-11T20:25:00.001-06:00

I found her in the hospice thrift shop in Madison. She was awfully cute and looked to be in good shape. She even had her key that works to keep her case together. So she came home with me.

Ok, let's quit calling her "she" because it's getting annoying.

I took my new-to-me Singer to the shop to get tuned up and cleaned and I was told that it was manufactured between 1947 and 1949. No fancy stitches, just a straight stitch.

What I find intriguing is imagining the previous owner sewing and thinking of some of the projects that were constructed on this machine.

I plan to load it up with white or off-white thread and use it to piece quilts.

Oh! and I called it an addition to the family because this is my sixth sewing machine. Yikes, does that make it a collection?

Click on the Vintage Thingie Thursday logo to visit more fun vintage postings!

Make a Pattern from a Readymade Shirt

2010-02-10T21:51:00.000-06:00

My son asked that I make a pattern from his favorite and best-fitting shirt. It is a bit hard to see using a black shirt, but I hope you can get the gist of it and use the technique to duplicate one of your favorite wardrobe items.

Lay the shirt out flat. Run a line of pins down the center front, measuring across the front to be sure you are centered.

Using wax paper (the traditional kitchen type), line up the edge of the wax paper with the pin line you made down the center of the shirt. Pin the wax paper to anchor it to the shirt.

Using a Sharpie pen, trace the front of the shirt as shown. For the shoulder area, I found it helpful to press and feel the seam with my finger so that I knew where to place the line. Mark the front center as a fold line.

For the sleeve piece, I traced the front and back sleeve portions separately and then taped them together, as shown in the pic below.

Use your sewing measuring tape as a guide to add 5/8 inch seam allowances where necessary. (The standard width of a measuring tape is 5/8 inch.) Be sure not to add seam allowances to center front and back fold lines. Add about 1 inch to the sleeve and body bottom hem line. There is no photo, but I also traced the stand up collar piece and marked where the zipper bottom would be on the front of the shirt.

I hope this is helpful. As always, be sure to ask if you have any questions!

Felted Wool Purse Tutorial

2010-02-07T20:58:00.000-06:00

Note: This pattern will have to be adjusted to whatever materials you use. If you have any questions about any of the steps, please be sure to ask in the comments or send me an e-mail. I hope you enjoy this tutorial!

This project started with a felted wool vest. You could make the same bag with fabric but you would have to insert the zipper. I used the zipper that was already in the vest.

I removed the pockets with a seam ripper and repositioned them, orienting them correctly for the purse.

Fold the vest wrong sides together, with the zipper at the top. Pin through the layers and mark straight cutting lines for the size of your bag. Cut along the lines. The side seam of the vest worked fine in the style of the purse, no need to worry about that.

Cut two pieces of lining fabric the same size as your bag, plus 1/2 at the top zipper edge. Cut pocket for lining 16 inches x the width of your purse.

On the wrong sides of purse and lining fabric, mark 2-inch squares at both bottom corners. Do not cut out the squares.

Press under 1/2 inch on top edge of both pieces of lining. Pin to edges of zipper on wrong side of purse fabric.

Flip over to right side and pin next to zipper, through all layers.

Leaving pins in right side of purse, remove pins that you put in lining fabric. Flip back over and stitch through all layers, next to zipper.

Fold your pocket fabric right sides together and stitch along width. Turn tube right side out and press. Stitch pocket sides and bottom to right side of one of your lining pieces, with bottom of pocket positioned 3 inches from the bottom of lining piece. Sew a seam dividing the pocket into two pockets (these can be any size you'd like).

Unzip zipper (very important step). With ride sides together, stitch sides and bottom of purse together and sides and bottom of lining, leaving a 4-inch opening in the side of the lining for turning.

On wrong sides, pull out corners on the bottom of the purse and the bottom of the lining. Pin and stitch along the lines you drew for the 2-inch squares. Trim this seam as shown in the lining photo below.

Turn right side out through the opening you left in the side of the lining. Fold lining opening under and stitch together close to the edge.

Push lining down into the inside of the purse. You should have something that looks like the photo below!

The vest had a separating zipper, so I put a few stitches across the zipper (see below) to make it unable to separate. I also stitched up the edges of the purse by the zipper area by hand that were too thick to sew by machine.

I used a woven belt for the strap. I cut a rectangle of purse fabric and folded it to encase the ends of the belt and stitched it on all sides, through all thicknesses including the lining. I sewed through the belt by hand since it was too thick for machine stitching. I made the stitches go through the weaving on the belt so I didn't have to go through the leather.

I cut a 1/2 inch strip of purse fabric and pieced it to make it long enough. Using a crochet hook, I wove it through the belt strap.

Thrifting, Recycling, Vintage

2010-02-02T20:57:00.001-06:00

Three of my favorite words. Thrifting, recycling, vintage.

When you look at food photos, do you also study the dishes? Me too.

I picked this bowl up at Goodwill for $1.99.

This book was my paternal grandmother's. "The Complete Book of Sewing: Dressmaking and Sewing For the Home Made Easy," by Constance Talbot. Copyright 1943. (Related to THE Talbots? Does anyone know? I'll have to research that.)

Look at these pages! Beautiful illustrations. Believe it or not, there are some great ideas in here, some 67 years later.

There is an entire chapter devoted to "Restyling--Remodeling--Remaking." Nothing went to waste in those days. We're coming around full circle.

"Choosing Clothes According to Personality" -- Are you the Tailored Type, Feminine Type, or the Sophisticated Dramatic Type?

From a discussion about sewing machine care: "After using the machine for a long stretch, while sewing for your local Red Cross Unit perhaps, it will be necessary to clean your machine once a week to remove lint."

I'll leave you with this. Every year my husband's mother makes me a German Chocolate Cake for my birthday. Yes, an entire cake just for me. There is one piece left which will serve as a tasty breakfast tomorrow morning. Mmmm!

Sweet dreams!

Click on the Vintage Thingie Thursday logo to visit more fun vintage postings!

A Fondness for January

2010-01-27T20:34:00.000-06:00

I love January. I like being cozy, inside our house. Working on projects and dreaming of new ones.

Plus, my birthday is in January. Tomorrow, in fact. Shhhh! It isn't one of the BIG ONES, but I am certainly no spring chicken.

I'll tell you a secret though. I love being this age. I think my 50s (again, shhhh!) is probably my favorite decade so far, believe it or not. If you are in the same age group, you'll know what I mean. If you are younger, you'll find out soon enough.

After putting away Christmas pretties, it's fun to put out something fresh. If only I had the stitching talents to produce such loveliness as this.

My son's favorite shirt. He would like me to trace it and make one that is similar. Hey, I'm game! I think it will be fun and he's all excited about it! Fortunately, he is not insisting on the chest pocket.

Stay tuned for lots of pictures of the tracing process.

If you live in a cold climate, enjoy your winter hibernation. It has its redeeming qualities. Really, it does.

More Than Enough

2010-01-21T18:23:00.002-06:00

Haiti.

It's been all over the blog world. It has been on my mind, but I try to keep my blog lighthearted and comfortable, a lot like my life.

I wasn't born rich. I am not rich now. But I have far far more than the citizens of Haiti. And simply because of where I was born. There, but for the grace of God, go I.

When you listen to the evening news, substitute the name of your city or state for the name Haiti. You might get a tiny glimmer of empathy for what is happening over there. But then you can turn around and get a glass of water, give a family member a hug, nudge the thermostat because you might be a little cold. Sleep in your comfy bed at night. We have so much more than we need.

My stomach turned as I watched a news clip in which a gash in a small boy's leg was being stitched up, without anesthetic. He was being comforted by his mother. I remember holding my son and reassuring him when he had a few stitches in his chin. Does not even begin to compare.

Open your heart. Do what you can. Be thankful for what you have.

Never forget that others have so much less.

Fisherman's Quilt

2010-01-19T17:54:00.018-06:00

These photos feature a quilt that I made for our family cottage in northern Wisconsin. I used a simple pattern that I adapted from a baby quilt pattern in a magazine. This quilt is lap size.

I used an assortment of vintage-looking fishing themed fabric. The outer border and backing is a soft green flannel.

I quilted half of the inner pieces with a simple fish shape. Actually, the Christian fish or Ichthys. I cut a few body shapes out of freezer paper. I pressed the shape on to the quilt and quilted around it. After a few presses with the iron, the pieces lost their "stickiness" so I just pinned them on and stitched around, with good results. Then, in the border, I quilted continuous loops of the body shape. I used a meandering looping design in the rest of the inner pieces. The binding is pieced.

Speaking of fishing, I caught this guy on camera just after he had a successful fishing expedition. An amazing sight!

Large Tote and Matching Lunch Bag

2010-01-18T20:27:00.005-06:00

I made this lunch bag from an online tutorial. Google "lunch bags" to find one; there are millions of them out there. Some are lined, some are not. I put a lining in this one. And used a hair elastic for the button loop.

The bag is resting on my elderly Christmas cactus plant. The plant was given to my father about 20 years ago by a man who was in his 90s and the plant had belonged to the man's mother! It has a thick trunk and gets lots of new shoots almost continuously. I have given it a haircut occasionally but not very often. It had about a dozen blooms this Christmas.

I made it to go with this bag.

And gave both to this adorable daughter-in-law for her birthday.

They should get a lot of use since she needs to be quite mobile in her job.

Hope you are having fun with post-Christmas creating!

Fleece Hat and Flannel Pants

2010-01-17T11:59:00.007-06:00

I had forgotten how fun it is to sew with fleece; it had been a while.

This balaclava hat was made using Green Pepper F893 pattern, purchased at Jo-Ann Fabrics.

It looks kind of creepy on the iron. A little bit sci-fi-ish.

It looks better on Raggedy Ann.

It looks best on its intended owner, the birthday boy himself. We have a group of family members with birthdays in January and February, so this weekend we all converged on our family cottage in Tomahawk, Wisconsin.

I also made him some flannel pants from New Look 6321 pattern. Matched the plaid, of course. Have you ever noticed how ready-to-wear items have unmatched plaids? I guess this puts me in the snobbish group "people obsessed with matching plaid and scorning the cheap stuff that doesn't match."

The pockets were cut from an old shirt of my dad's, to put a little piece of history into the new garment.

We had tiramisu for our birthday cake. Check out this video. Tried a new recipe and it turned out pretty yummy.

Be sure to visit Sew & Tell Fridays. You might get some inspiration for your next project!

Seeking Teapot Advice and More Aprons

2010-01-07T19:47:00.016-06:00

Well, I'm not really seeking more aprons so maybe I worded that wrongly.

I bought this teapot at Goodwill for $1.99. I have been scouring the interwebs for a pot that can be put on top of a wood stove to add moisture to the air. They have plenty to choose from but they are quite a bit more money than $1.99. So....

Does anyone know how much heat a teapot will take? I mean, when you use a teapot you pour boiling water into it but that isn't nearly as hot as the top of a wood stove. I'm just afraid it will crack or, worse yet, explode and I would like to avoid bodily injury or property damage.

Also, our SC kidlets received their Christmas box so now I can show you their aprons. They were away from home for the holidays so they just now were able to open their presents. They opened them over Google video chat so we could see each other which was really really really fun.

Fuzzy rickrack, have you seen it or used it? It's cute stuff. I buy odds and ends from Home-Sew, where you can buy bags of assorted trims for super cheap.

How's the New Year treating you? Snow snow snow here, but I still think it's pretty. Ask me again in a month or two and I might feel differently about the snow.

New Tote

2010-01-02T15:37:00.005-06:00

I had been using this $4.99 Ikea tote bag to go back and forth to work. It says Ikea Food on it and is pretty utilitarian and ugly, but functional. It held my lunch, workout clothes, water bottle, etc. The zipper broke, plus it had a few worn spots.

It was the PERFECT size for my stuff with the PERFECT sized pockets, so I measured and made one just like it. I put water bottles in the pockets to show you the size.

The fabric I used was from the remnant table at Hancock Fabrics. It is some kind of outdoor fabric, very heavy. I lined it with a cotton I had in my stash. I bought a 22" zipper for the top and the webbing for the handles. Of course, I could not find my most recent JoAnn Fabrics coupon for the webbing. Isn't that always the way it is.

Anyway, it was super simple to make and went together a lot quicker than I expected. Maybe the drudgery of having to go back to work Monday (after 11 days off!) will be made lighter by having a new bag. Let's hope so.

Toasty Variation

2009-12-30T14:34:00.007-06:00

My mom made these for the kidlets.

She used the Toasty pattern, but used smaller needles and made them with a cuff/border on the top and bottom, which is simply two inches of knit 1, purl 1. I say "simply" in regard to her, not me, since the knit projects that I've done are super simple. No counting, nothing complicated, and certainly no double-pointed needles! I am always impressed by the knitted items that others make.

Oh! Big news! We have a record number of cardinals at our feeder.

Six pairs!

Aprons

2009-12-26T12:04:00.005-06:00

These were fun to make and very well received. These two sweeties love to cook together so I'm sure the aprons will be put to good use.

I used McCall's 5825 for Diedra's and traced a basic butcher's apron for Jamie's. I did my own thing with the pocket trim and did not line the top of the apron as was called for in the pattern. I did a flat felled seam on the seam that joins the top and skirt so there are no raw edges.

I hope your Christmas was full of fun and laughter and the enjoyment of being with people you love!

Christmas is Almost Here!

2009-12-22T21:26:00.003-06:00

I made some accessories to go with the purse that I made last night. A tissue cozy from this tutorial. A simple zippered pouch.

As an aside, I am reading Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. Have you read it? Written in 1953, but timeless. I'm not a SciFi reader but I am really enjoying this one. Well, I should say I'm enjoying reading it, the story can be unsettling and not particularly enjoyable. I actually felt like I could smell burning while I was reading it. Now that's the mark of a well-written book.

Aren't these fun? This is a set of Hallmark ornaments, a series. I hope you can see the detail. The cookies in the oven, the Santa and his Mrs. salt-and-pepper shakers, the set of mixing bowls, the cute utensils. Even a faux marble top on that table. This stays out all year in my kitchen so I had to blow the dust off of it.

Please take the time in the next few days to read the second chapter of Luke. A description of the miracle that brings hope to all mankind.

Have a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

This Purse Again

2009-12-21T21:27:00.005-06:00

The purse is reclining on my Eddie Bauer down throw. I love that thing! So cozy!

I just love this pattern! This is the 5th purse I've made using it, and I have fabric to make another one for myself.

This is the thickest fabric that I've used so far with this pattern and in some cases I was sewing through six layers plus the batting that I used to line the handle. I held my breath as I sewed toward the thick parts and my Bernina went through them like nothing! Up until now I hadn't worked on a project with thick fabrics, so my machine hadn't been put to that test. I was very very pleased, since I have memories of other machines jamming and groaning.

I have a couple of Christmas projects to finish up yet, are you all ready for Christmas?

Felt Food and Drink

2009-12-16T22:07:00.008-06:00

Our sweet little niece had her birthday party, so now I can reveal her gift.

I googled "felt food" and looked over the images from the search results. I picked and chose which ones I was interested in making and made a grocery list so I would have the necessary colors to create the food.

I didn't make any patterns for the food, I just kind of worked my way through it, thinking about what certain foods look like. I used a machine blanket stitch to join layers and stuffed in leftover batting scraps as I went along.

I did, however, make a pattern for the felt drinks. I used very small plastic cups -- you can see the size when compared to my iron.

I slid a paper cone into the glass and trimmed until I had a pattern. Don't make the felt drinks fit too snugly inside the glass; you want to be able to slip them in and out easily. I didn't feel the need to make a top to the drink liquid (if this makes any sense) but I don't think it would be too difficult to make a circle and stitch it to the top.

I told my husband that it seems like many times I make toys that I would have enjoyed playing with when I was little. Not sure that criteria translates well to the current generation with the flashy plastic toys that are marketed to the little ones on TV. But I really did enjoy making this and it's fun to give something that isn't available in a store.

Be sure to visit Sew & Tell Fridays. Always some cute projects there on display!

Cardinal Pillow Pattern/Tutorial

2009-12-14T20:04:00.010-06:00

Cardinal Pillow Pattern/Tutorial

Begin by using waxed paper (the kitchen/cooking type) to trace the cardinal body, wings, and black shaded portion of face. Use these waxed paper pattern pieces to cut the body and wings out of red felt and the face portion out of black felt. The wing pieces and the black face portion lie on top of the red cardinal body piece.

TIP FOR CUTTING OUT FELT PIECES: The best advice I ever got for cutting out small pattern pieces: Turn the piece you are cutting, don't turn your scissors. In other words, your right hand holding the scissors does not turn, your left hand turns the piece that you are cutting. Or vice versa if you are left-handed.

You should be able to print out the following picture and enlarge it on a photocopier to get the cardinal image to trace. I used a calendar photo.

Cut your branches out of strips of brown felt. Don't make perfectly cut strips -- bumpy-edged strips look more like real branches. You can cut straight strips out of the felt and still make some bends in the branches when you place it on your background fabric. Use a background fabric that is at least 13 inches square. I used a fat quarter and placed my felt pieces in the bottom left corner of the fat quarter so as not to waste any fabric.

Pin the branch pieces to your background fabric, curving the branches a bit as you go to give them a realistic look.

I usually match my thread to the applique pieces, but in this case I used a dark grayish tan thread on all to make it look more natural, like bark on the branches and feather edges on the bird.

TIPS FOR APPLIQUE USING BLANKET STITCH: 1. Go slow. In the tricky areas like the black face section, I actually used needle up/needle down to go very very slowly. 2. When you are stitching along outer curves, put your needle down on the outer edge of the applique and then lift your presser foot and turn your fabric. When you are stitching within an inner curve, leave your needle down on the inside of the applique (when the blanket stitched jumps to the left) and then lift your presser foot and turn your fabric.

Stitch the branches down using a machine or hand blanket stitch. Stitch the two off-shoot branches down first and nestle them under the main branch, as shown in the photo. Stitch the main branch down last. I found that the felt "stuck" to the fabric enough, but if you need to you can use a bit of fabric glue. Try first without glue, I think you'll find it works just fine.

Pin down the main body piece and the wings and the black face area.

First stitch the cardinal body down, using blanket stitch. Next stitch the wings down. Next stitch the black face portion. Stitch all the way through all layers, since this gives a more layered and dimensional look.

Sew a small black button on for the eye. Trim your composition down to 12 1/2 inches square.

Now, at this point you'll need to do some math. I was covering a 20-inch pillow. I just added borders until I had a 20.5-inch square. OR if you wish, you can add borders, quilt, and bind to make a wall-hanging.

Layer your backing (I used a muslin for backing), batting, and top, pin and quilt as desired. I used an echo-quilting pattern around the cardinal and just straight line quilting in the borders. For the echo-quilting, I used the edge of my walking foot following my previous stitching line as a guide.

Trim your quilt sandwich down to the size of your pillow form, plus 1/2 inch. Don't worry about trimming it too small, it's better to overstuff a pillow than to understuff it.

To make the overlapping envelope back, cut two pieces of fabric, the width of your pillow front (in my case 20.5 inches) by 1/2 the width plus 3 inches. If you use the unprinted selvage edge for one of the overlapping edges, you only have to finish off one opening edge with a rolled edge hem. Then overlap the two pieces as shown, with right sides facing the right side of the pillow front. Stitch all four sides together. Trim corners and turn right sides out.

This is my very first attempt at a tutorial, so feedback is very much appreciated. Please let me know if you have questions or if anything is confusing. Thanks!

Sew & Tell Friday: Cardinal Pillow Cover

2009-12-11T17:32:00.005-06:00

It's time again for Sew & Tell Fridays. The days are flying by!

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Tutorial now added here: Cardinal Pillow Cover

My inspiration. A calendar photo:

I traced the cardinal and appliqued it down with machine-stitched blanket stitch.

A glimpse of the process. I shadow-quilted around the cardinal and branches. Is that what it's called? Or echo-quilting?

There was a period of time during construction that I considered making this into a wall-hanging, but the pillow won out in the end.

The finished product! It didn't take too long. It is an overlapping envelope style pillow cover. I love to change my pillow covers from season to season.

I took lots of pictures. I could put together a tutorial if there is enough interest. Just let me know!

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Sew Cal Gal is having a Virtual Christmas Quilt Show. Go over to her blog and scroll down to find the links to other Christmas quilts.

Twenty

2009-12-10T17:22:00.005-06:00

20 roses. One per year.

Poor guy set a precedent long ago and it gets more expensive as each year goes by.

We celebrated yesterday in our quiet snow-covered house just enjoying being together. The weather did not permit going out for a fancy dinner, so I whipped up a stir-fry. It couldn't have been a nicer anniversary celebration.

When I count my blessings, my husband is at the top of the list. I get to spend my life with this man.

I do.

Snow Day

2009-12-09T11:09:00.011-06:00

No electricity, no sewing. It's very very quiet here. And beautiful. The wind is picking up and beginning to blow the snow into drifts. I'm thankful for our wood burner.

Birds, all fluffed out and huddling in the branches, venturing out occasionally to get some seed.

The view out our front door. Are you staying snug and warm today?

Weekend Fun

2009-12-06T19:05:00.005-06:00

We went here yesterday. We kind of stumbled upon it during our Saturday wanderings in Minneapolis with our younger son and his wife.

Beautiful displays and some great handmade products were offered by vendors. The place was packed!

If you can, keep an eye out for next year's dates for this fair. I know I will!

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Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband! Our daughter-in-law, Diedra, made his favorite cake and we all tried to spoil him on his special weekend.

A great time was had by all.

I sincerely hope that you can reflect upon your weekend and smile.

Christmas Wall-Hanging

2009-12-03T20:14:00.006-06:00

Visit Sew & Tell Fridays to view lots of beautiful projects! Sew & Tell Fridays is hosted by amylouwho.

Also, SewCalGal is hosting a Virtual Christmas Quilt Show. Be sure to visit and look at all the lovely entries!

This can now be revealed. I mailed it out early so that my son and daughter-in-law could enjoy it for the Christmas season. It arrived today.

For God So Loved the World . . .

They are having such fun decorating for their first Christmas, and I hope this wall-hanging brings coziness to their home.

Busy-ness

2009-12-02T20:43:00.005-06:00

Well, I've been busy. As I am sure many of you have been, as well.

We have December birthdays on hubby's side of our family, so that adds to the December fun -- and flurry -- of activity!

I made the cutest b-day gift for someone special. You'll see it after the party is past and the recipient is enjoying their gift.

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Apparently I like table runners/scarves with scenes on them. This first one was my paternal grandmother's. I actually have two matching ones.

Any ideas on whether there is any symbolism behind these pictures? Or is it purely decorative?My hunch is that it is a German design, but I don't know for sure.

Hmmm, I think that's cat hair up on the top. No surprise there.

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I love this next one. I bought it at the Norway area at Epcot in Walt Disney World in Florida. That was a few years ago, can't remember how long exactly, but when we went back they no longer carried them. I had hoped to find some for gifts.

I hope you are enjoying your decorating. It's always fun to get out all your favorites and admire them year after year!

Time out from Christmas Sewing: A New Bag!

2009-11-27T23:03:00.005-06:00

I started with this thrift store find.

Lovely, isn't it? You can't tell by the flash photo, but it is a nice wool and the red is truly red, not pink. And the blue is a teal. Anyway. . .

I used the Buttercup Bag pattern and ended up with a cute bag. I didn't have a magnetic closer, so I rigged up a ponytail elastic and a button. I actually like it because you can fit more inside closing it that way.

It's a little smaller than the size purse I usually carry, but it's a new purse and that's all good as far as I'm concerned. Nice and wintery made out of that wool, too.