Have a Memorable Holiday

Here's hoping that my American blogging friends will enjoy Memorial Day with family and friends. I know it's the first holiday of Summer, time for picnics and fun. But don't forget the reason for the holiday and take time to remember and honor those gone before us.

New Pincushion

After months away from swap-bot, I was checking my messages and found a swap I couldn't resist. It was for a quick 'tomato' style pincushion. I really enjoy getting creative with something as small and simple as this. So, I picked out a bit of fabric from my scraps, a little bit of embroidery, a little bit of crazy quilt, and here it is. I started with a 6" circle and it turned out larger than I intended. I'll use a 5" circle and see how that works. I've already embroidered a little Scottie dog and started on a kitten for my next ones. I've got lovely bits of '30s repro fabric to use for these. I hope to show more soon and maybe get some things into my Etsy shop. Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Mother's Day!

Enjoy your special day.

Happy Easter!

Wishing each of you a blessed Easter and a joyous Spring.

Sandy's Easter Tag Swap

I had such fun making a special Easter swap for my partner Lisa. I fell in love with the little girl image I used for the front of my tag. But it was the chicks hatching out of Easter eggs that became the theme for this swap. I highlighted the doily, chicks, eggs and girl's hair with Twinkling H2O's. Click to enlarge the picture and see how it sparkles. I added detail to each layer as I went. The bottom layer is stitched with yarn tied in a bitty bow. The next layer is embellished with tiny buttons. I hadn't put away my paper doilies since I had them out for Valentine's Day crafting. It worked out to be the perfect element to set off the sweet girl image. And lastly I added the wonderful chunky glitter that looks like Easter grass.















The scrapbook paper I used on the tag back is something I've had since I first began scrap booking. I just couldn't believe how it matched the chicks on the front. More Twinkling H2O's here and a repeat of the chicks from the front image added at the bottom to cover the bulk of tying off the yarn. Added my swap info and a blue gingham ribbon to finish it off.















Now onto the Easter goodies. I had the idea that I wanted to make a Spring/Easter potholder since my partner likes to bake. I was undecided about what fabric to use until I spotted a yard of new fabric at the Flea Market for a great price. It had similar colors to the papers used for the tag and it had Easter eggs on it! Now I had a theme. It seemed a shame to me to cut into a yard of fabric just for a potholder or two. I have quite a few apron patterns that only take a yard and you know I love to make aprons, so.....















I hope my partner will post a pic on her blog modeling her apron. The potholder is backed with the apron fabric and I used four colors of gingham for the front.










I found this adorable felt chick basket at Target and filled it up with goodies. I wrapped everything in Easter egg tissue paper I found at K-Mart and mailed it off to Lisa.









And here's the wonderful swap I received from Lisa.




This adorable, glittery pail was a perfect Easter basket. And it was filled to overflowing with so many goodies.


This pink chick inside the music note egg is just the cutest little bit of Easter joy.
For inspiring my paper crafts, Lisa sent cute Spring stickers, itty-bitty alphabet stamps and a stamp pad, and pink flower glitter, so fun!


My boys were quick to get their hands on the chocolate. I had to get the carrot bag of Reese's Pieces from my hubby to take this picture. My son did share a chocolate bunny with me. Yum!














And Lisa crafted this adorable tag for me. The 'Happy Easter' is on shrink plastic and adds great dimension and shine. I love the chick in her Easter bonnet. She hand painted the scalloped border. Just perfect! Lisa topped it off with Spring green cheesecloth. So sweet!





Thank you Lisa @ A Peaceful Place To Be for sending such a lovely Easter swap. And thanks again to Sandy @ 521 Lake Street for hostessing such a fun swap.

What's New

Just thought I'd catch up a bit on what I've been up to since my last post on Valentine's Day. It seemed like February was the month for appointments. We all visited the dentist and got haircuts plus hubby had 3 doctor appointments and I took care of the two visits to the accountant doing our taxes this year. I've been doing our taxes for years (we don't have anything complicated to deal with.) but since we rented my MIL's house for 3 months and it belongs to my husband and his brothers, I didn't want to mess it up.
So in March we had time for more fun things. We took a day trip to Hartford, CT to tour the Mark Twain house and museum. I've wanted to do that for such a long time. For someone like me who loves a lot of detail, this house sure made me happy. All of my photos are of the outside because they don't allow photography, gum, throat drops, lip balm, ink pens, food or drink inside the house. I was surprised that they didn't have us remove our shoes!

Also in February, my oldest nephew announced that he had signed up for 6 years in the Army and was getting married! So I made a cute pink cupcake apron and potholders (Sorry, I forgot to take pictures.)for the bridal shower on March 12th and here's the happy couple a week later. They're so young!

The couple next door to us just had their first baby so I made some bibs. This pair is my own pattern. Is there anything girlier than gingham ruffles?

When I saw this new Simplicity pattern I knew I had to make this pea pod bib. I love those yo-yo peas.

Such a cute pattern!

I wanted to share this photo of my pink violets. My white, purple and yellow violets are still a few weeks away. Can you guess my favorite flower?

Now I need to work on my post showing what I sent to my partner for Sandy's Easter Tag Swap. That way I'll be ready to link up with everyone on the 22nd.

Dolly Dingle Valentines

I'm linking up today to share the Valentine's I received in Elizabeth's Dolly Dingle Valentine Exchange.
This first one is from Nancy at My Crafty Little Page. I love the colors and the little girl is so sweet. Nancy used a BINGO card for the base, then layered a paper lace heart. She added some sparkle with a gold Cupid and some little gems. Thank you again Nancy, for this wonderful Valentine.













My second Valentine is from Sue at It's A Very Cherry World! Sue strung her sweet Valentine images onto pretty red ribbon. The red-roofed house makes me smile every time I see it. Sue's Valentine is so delicate and looks very pretty hanging from my sewing room window. Thank you Sue for sending me such a lovely Valentine.












To see the Valentine's I sent, click on the link at the beginning of this post and you will find yourself over at Bluebird Papercrafts where we are having a Valentine's Day Party. Enjoy!

Vintage Valentines

I just wanted to share a few Valentines I picked up while out 'junking' at the antique market.

This one reminded me of Elizabeth (Creative Breathing) over at Bluebird Papercrafts.















How could I resist this cutie?















This one certainly caught my eye with its orange heart.















Adorable skaters















I couldn't leave this one behind. Too cute!















Wishing each of you a love-filled Valentine's Day!

Progress

Yes, I'm happy to report that I have made progress in these first few days of 2011.
First up is this quilt strip. This is the 10th and final quilt strip I needed to send out for a swap. We began last Spring and sent one per month. This one flew all the way to Australia. Now one of my projects for this year is to use the quilt strips sent to me for a cozy comforter for my living room.


Next up is this cute Bow-knot Scarf. While looking online for slipper patterns (my hubby LOVES his slippers!) I came upon this pattern and printed it off to try sometime. A trip to the yarn at Walmart for more black worsted weight and I find this lovely Monet varigated yarn. Well, I couldn't wait to use it and the scarf was just the perfect quick project for instant gratification, so sometime became now and I finished it up in just a few days. I've already started another in a Lion Chenille yarn.








When I tidied up part of my sewing/craft room this past fall, so that I could actually make something in there, I left one spot untouched. And that was my overflowing scrap box. It just was too overwhelming at the time and could easily be ignored if I tried. But for many of the quilt strips I made for the swap, I went looking for scraps in this mess.










So my first project in here for 2011 was to clean up that mess. I spent three days folding, stacking, and tossing out bits of fabric. Now there is no 'yardage' in this box, just pieces big enough for small projects like pincushions, appliques, checkbook covers, etc. I had also been throwing my fat quarters into this pile.
So here they are now, all color sorted, folded and in a 3-drawer container. The small drawer on top holds very small scraps, most left over cuts from patchwork. The medium drawer in the middle holds my fat quarters. And the large drawer on the bottom holds the larger scraps in ziplock bags. And the container fits under my cutting table!







As soon as I had it all organized I was inspired to make something with some of those scraps. I pulled out my pattern for this Coffee Cozy and went to work. It was so easy to see what I had to work with and easy to put it all away when I was done. I quickly cut 10 coffee cozies, pulled rick rack from my trim scraps, and buttons from my button jar. All ready to sit and sew.







I did make a few changes to the tutorial. I added rick-rack along the top edge before stitching the layers together. I continued the rick-rack around one side on this first one but decided to omit it for the rest. Also, using the pattern as is, I stitched a 1/4" seam instead of 1/2" and I used Insul-Bright Insulated Lining instead of quilt batting. Trimming the Insul-Bright close to the stitching helps the seams lie flatter.








I'll keep this one for myself.











I made a few each day and here they are, all 10, complete. Yeah!!!









So, what's next? See my pincushion a few photos back? I think I'll make a few with my favorite bits of fabric.

Happy New Year!

As we ring in the new year, I'm looking ahead. I don't make resolutions, but for the past couple of years I have made a short mental list of things I'd like to spend more time on. I'd like to share this year's list with you in hopes that in the coming months, you may pop in and leave a comment asking me how I'm doing with one thing or another that I'm working on. That way, you help me to remember what I wanted to accomplish.

OK here we go:
1. Leave more blog comments when I visit. I've already been working on this one for a week or so. I know how much your comments mean to me and yet, I visit so many wonderful blogs without taking the time to leave a comment. Now I don't mean to comment on each post of each blog I visit, but when something touches me, I want to let the blogger know.

2. Practice crochet. Learning to crochet was on last year's list and I did make one wonky looking dishcloth and a few granny squares that were actually square. But I don't really know how to crochet. I need lots of practice. If you crochet and have any tips or easy patterns to share, I'd appreciate any help. I want to make adorable things like these.


















3. Follow Fly Lady. If you are not familiar with the

Fly Lady site, she helps you get your house clean and organized. I need to spend time on this. I've started this program a couple of times and always fall off the wagon. But each time I also come away with a new good habit and less clutter in my house. Most important to me right now is to reduce the amount of paper clutter in my house. Things like owners manuals for things we don't own any more, receipt for the pizza we ate in 2008, notes with phone numbers but no name, etc. It's paper shredding time!



4. Reduce my fabric stash. This also was on my list last year and I did pretty well with it. Since May, I have purchased very little new fabric and sewed from my stash. I hope to spend more time sewing this year and reduce my fabric piles even more.














5. Pray. Each night after turning out the light, I thank God for the many blessings of the day and ask for his help for myself, and my family and friends. So many nights, I fall asleep counting my blessings. I would like to find another time during each day when I have a few minutes of peace and quiet to pray for God's help for those in need. I just need to decide on the best time and make it a habit.

Each day I receive an inspirational quote from this site. This is one of my favorites.

"Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending."

---Maria Robinson

Wishing each of you, all the best in 2011.