Summer is Over...

and the fun continues! Usually I lament over the end of summer...we homeschool and fall is a return to schooling which usually means much more work for me. This year, though, Lucas is reading pretty well and Ruthie is really good at keeping herself busy so I'm anticipating one of the easiest school years we've had in some time.

To the right are 4 of our kids playing in the yard. It was getting dark and we were squeezing the last bits out of a relaxing (but too hot!) day.

To the left is Ruthie, in her sundress and one winter boot.

Yesterday, in addition to food prep and cleanup, I was able to spend a pretty good amount of time quilting. I hand quilted for a while in the morning, the frame quilt is coming along now, and then I took my applique outside and finished a couple of blocks out there. I finished my day with more hand quilting.

Today will be a mix of things. I need to do some laundry and cleaning, but hope to squeeze in quite a bit of sewing time. I want to at least spend a little time on the frame quilt, but I'm wanting to try out those two new patterns I bought.

First up will be a pair of slippers for Ruthie. I found this cute flannel fabric in my stash. I don't have any jiffy grip at the moment so am making the bottoms with corduroy which I hope will be less slippery than just using regular cotton.

I've made slippers before, I did them for all my nieces and nephews one year, but this pattern is much easier and I should have no problem getting them done in short order.

Also on the agenda for today is one of the Humbug bags. Digging through my stuff, I found a handful of zippers in various colors so there is my jumping off point. I also have a nice piece of fabric left from my carpet bag so will make my first little bag with that. Unfortunately all my zippers are small except one so I can make a bunch of small bags and one large one...but I can get the pattern down and make any adjustments without having to buy anything, which I'm excited about.

I don't expect either of these projects to take too terribly long, so I'm hoping for some hand quilting and/or applique time, too. There is a Cubs game on tonight, so handwork is likely during that time.

So I'm off...to make myself a list of things I'd like to accomplish for the day. This works well for me as it keeps me on task and keeps me from forgetting anything that I wanted to accomplish.

Hopefully tomorrow's blog will bring pictures of the finished product! Happy quilting!

What a Fun Day!

I had one of my rare girls days out yesterday. I have a small quilting bee that meets at my house once a month. It used to have more people in it, but things change. Left are two wonderful women. One is my 'surrogate' mom and I also see her one other day during the month.

Yesterday we met for lunch and to go to a couple of quilt shops. We went to Crumpet's Tea Room for lunch, which was a lovely little place with a lot of antiques and delicious (albeit expensive!) food.

If you're ever near Hampshire, Illinois you must visit Judy's Quilt Shop. It's one of the nicest shops I think I've ever been in. It's in a renovated old house and it's so spacious. They have lots of merchandise but you never feel crowded. They have oodles of samples on the walls and everything is just laid out so nice. The staff is so friendly and on any given day you can find both Judy and her husband in the shop.

These little items caught my eye right away. They are hard to see because of the glare, but they are yo yo makers. One makes smaller ones, one makes larger ones, one makes heart shaped and the other flower shaped. I have all kinds of applique vines in mind with these little gems. Judy said that she has been making loads of them and can't keep the makers in her shop, they are so much fun and easy to use that word of mouth is selling them all out. There is a larger heart and a very small yo yo both available and I have in mind to get both someday if I like it doing it as much as she does! I also bought this cute little stencil. I'm always watching for stencils as I love them and any space 5 inches or over I usually put a motif in rather than just outline. The other items is a magnet closure for a purse. I'd never seen them for sale before and am so glad that I have now as I love making bags, but there are many I'd like to have some kind of closure on...I can't go back and add these, but at least now I know they are available. I have in mind to make a mini bag, like the carpet bag I made, to use as a purse and will be glad to have a closure on it.

I also bought these two patterns. One if for the cutest little bag. You can make 3 sizes and they will be just wonderful to put things in for gifts or keep sewing items separated in a larger bag. I'll quilt my own fabric, you can also use prequilted or heavy enough that it doesn't need quilting, and once that part is done there are four seams to sew and that's it. It looks so easy, I can hardly wait to try one.

The other pattern was actually found by my friend. It was in a basket with some made up ones..of course the ones she picked up to show me would fit my 3 year old daughter....who absolutely LOVES shoes of any kind. She's right now walking around the house in her brother's Spiderman flip flops. This pattern also looks quite easy to make and wouldn't it be cute embellished with yo yo's ?? I have in mind to make Ruthie a basket full of little slippers in different colors so she can change shoes as often as she likes without losing the ones we need to go out!

I got home to a sink full of dishes and a rush to get dinner on the table, but that still wasn't enough to dampen my mood. I also found out when I got home that the financing was complete for my daughter's schooling, she starts cosmetology school next week and is so excited (and nervous!) All in all, a wonderful day!

Today is a work day here...as much as I work in a day anyway. I'm baking cookings and cheesecake and doing some housecleaning so the next two days can be spend just enjoying the beautiful weather. My husband works until dinner time today, but tomorrow and Monday has only one small job in the mornings...which is a close to 'off' for the day as he usually gets. We're going to have fires in the firepit, I'm going to read and hand sew outside and just enjoy...the last month has been horribly hot and humid or raining like crazy, it will be good to spend a couple of days outside!

And, of course, I'll be able to sneak some quilting between everything today. I'll probably work on the frame quilt as I have a chance, and maybe cut some fabrics to try out those yo yo makers when I sit outside later on today.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Moving On!

I did very little quilting yesterday despite my plans to spend a good portion of my day at it. I sometimes find the day after I finish a big project, especially if I really spent a lot of time and energy finishing it, that I can't focus on a different project. Sometimes the problem is the project that I decided was next isn't inspiring me enough to spend time on it.

I told myself I'd finish piecing the strip block top when I wasn't hand quilting, but I just don't feel like machine work right now. When I realized that, I pulled out the two projects that are in the works, in addition to quilting on the frame quilt. To the right is the alternating block. This one is really fun to quilt on, the long lines with gentle curves make it relaxing and enjoyable.

The other blocks are appliqued flowers. They are scrappy and were great fun to work on. These are just outlined, with a triangle quilted in each corner. I expect this one will go rather quickly, the quilting is simple and it's not a huge quilt, it measures 60 x 60.

The other projects in the works are two applique quilts. One has considerably less applique per block and it's simpler to do. This one also has flowers and alternating blocks. It's scrappy and there are 32 of these flower blocks alternating with 32 'plain' blocks with a feathered wreath to be quilted on them.

The second applique project is more tedious and is one that I consider more of a long term project. With my Christmas quilting on the horizon, this project is more of a diversion and it will likely be some time before it gets a lot of undivided attention.

There are 13 of these blocks, alternating with 12 flower blocks which are also all white on the blue background. When set together, the idea is that the block shown will "frame" the applique blocks. We'll see if it works! This one will also have an appliqued border.

So there it is! The next few weeks of quilting and applique laid out for me. In that time I'll also be marking and basting the two quilts I need to make for Christmas (the tops have been pulled from my UFO stash.

Also in the works is another slight reorganization of my sewing room. My son wants to add a fish tank stand in his room so has hung all his clothing in his closet so as to move the dresser out and make room. I'm taking the dresser for extra storage and to put a TV on it. My Grandma passed away nearly two weeks ago, we are being given her big screen TV, which leaves one I can put in my sewing room.

Somehow this room is ever changing, it seems I just get it how I think I want it and something else comes up!

Here's to a happy, quilty day for everyone!

Another UFO finished

I'm so excited! I've been working on this one for a couple of months now and am so glad to have it done!

Here is a closeup of one of the center blocks so you can see the quilting on it. I like to have a combination of straight lines and curved motifs for the quilting on most of my quilts.

To the left is a closeup of the 1/2 square motif that I used. When viewed from even a short distance, it looks like a fancy curlique motif fills the white zig zag when in reality it's a series of 1/2 square motifs. I was too chicken to try to draw in my own design that had to make that many turns!

I was going to quilt this top for my niece's wedding present last November, but my daughter said that she was hoping this one would stay at our house because she loves it. I decided right then that this will be her wedding present some day, or perhaps her housewarming gift when she gets her own apartment.

I got this idea looking at log cabin settings...I don't particularly like to make log cabin blocks, but Amish Bar blocks also work in this setting. It's the "frame" setting so I had to find something to go in the middle. I LOVE this particular block. It's fun to make and really is striking finished, yet quite simple to do as well.

In the course of doing this, I realized how quickly we could be having weddings popping up, not only with our own children but nieces and nephews as well, so I have wedding quilts on the brain. I had Rebekah help me pick out a pattern for hers, with the caveat that should she change her mind (or her young man not like it) that I could surely make another.

Lately whenever anyone asks "who's that one for?" my answer is usually "for me!"...something it took years for me to do. Several of our friends and family don't get how I could make quilts without a designated purpose, but my purpose is clear to me. The creative outlet and sense of utter peace I get when quilting is hard to explain, but I know many reading here totally get it.

The new frame quilt will soon get some attention. The first needle is threaded and the knot popped into place, it's just waiting for me to have some time...probably later today.

After the crazy busy-ness of the past couple of weeks, I barely know what to do with myself. It's a wonderful feeling to have a day stretching in front of you and being able to choose what goes in it.

My day today includes a perm, some quilting, and practice tonight along with my regular tasks of the day. Just the kind of busy day that I like!

Happy quilting!

A Passion Revisited

I've been doing some form of needlework since I was 10 years old. It started with knitting and progressed to crocheting, stamped cross stitched, needlepoint, crewel and finally a long stint with counted cross-stitch. When I found that, I felt that I found my niche (that is, until I discovered quilting!)

As I thought about the coming school year and the idea of having more time than in years prior, I got to thinking about my cross-stitching again. I've always said that someday I would pick it back up again. I think that day has come.

I love this picture of the Chicago skyline. I found the pattern in a shop and just had to have it. I've lived all my life within about 50 miles of the city, went to many Cubs games, visited museums and the lakefront. My teens now go to the city on the train with a group of friends and go shopping or to dinner to to visit friends in school there. Though I don't get there often, the sight of the skyline as we travel through on trips makes my heart beat a little faster, there is something about it that excites me. This picture measures 27 x 13 (without the mat) and right now doesn't have a place to hang, though I'm sure will again someday.

This next picture hangs in my dining room. It used to be in our family room, but then I painted the family room for my husband in camouflage colors. Our dining room has red walls and this fit right in. It measures 27 x 32 and took me two years to complete. I did work on other smaller things while working on this one. I finished it about 20 years ago, when our oldest was small.

In thinking about cross-stitching again, I remembered the wonderful frame I'd bought. We pulled it out of our crawlspace yesterday and it even had a new project mounted on the roller bars. The threads were all pulled and the pattern still on the frame. I'm ready to roll!

While finishing the ex-frame quilt is my first priority for the next few days, I'm looking forward to adding a bit of cross-stitch to my weeks. While I probably won't do it daily, as I do quilting, a little bit each week will eventually get something finished...and as the weather sours and the sun sets earlier, I like the idea of choices as to how I'm spending my time.

Today we have a rather busy day, I'm going to visit my friend's grandma for the last time (they come home tomorrow) then I have to get ready for an anniversary party. I hope to squeeze in a bit of quilting before I leave for friend's house and after the party (we don't plan to stay too late, we have church and a funeral tomorrow, so another busy day.)

I'm longing for Monday...I told my kids after 10 days of running multiple times every day, I'm staying home all day on Monday. If I knew no one would come to our door I'd even take a jammie day...but I've learned my lesson on those!

Happy stitching!

Ramblings

I'm slowly making progress on the ex-frame quilt...it seems oh so slow now that I'm nearing the end and anxious to be finished. I haven't been working on anything else, not wanting to delay the finish any longer and not wanting to get so caught up in something else that this just sits.

So I grab what spare time I can during this busy week and dream of pulling the first needle full through the new frame quilt, mounted and waiting for me to be ready.

This one will not take long at all, it's not very big and has the advantage of me being ready to start my Christmas quilting so I'll be anxious to get it done in short order.

In and among the errands, etc, yesterday, I did a big clean on my bathroom and kitchen, it feels good that both are neat and nearly sparkly (as sparkly as things get in a nearly 22 year old house.)

My two youngest have had hefty colds. Yesterday morning I was up early in anticipation of babysitting, our 13 and 15 year olds were up as they were going fishing, my husband was about to leave for work...so of course Ruthie woke up, not being used to so much activity in our house early in the morning.

Once things settled down a couple hours later, I realized I hadn't seen or heard her for a bit so I went looking...this is what I found.

I've been thinking about my applique again and think I'll pull out the two latest applique projects and try to muster up some excitement for them. Maybe pulling them out and posting a few pics will get me going. I love to applique and have only hand quilted and done a bit of piecing over the summer. With Autumn on it's way and school about to start, I should become much more productive. We homeschool, so handwork (whether it be quilting or applique) is perfect to sit and do while I'm waiting on kids to finish their pages or come with questions.

Usually I rather dread the start of the school year and the curtailing of the freedom of summer, but this year I feel oddly energized and excited for the start of the year. Perhaps because I'm longing for an end to the humidity! Also, Ruthie is much more self sufficient and able to entertain herself this year, so I should be able to get a lot accomplished this winter. Not only quilting related, but in my house and perhaps there will even be time to pick up one of my old abandoned crafts...I used to love to do counted cross-stitch and would love to pick it up again.....hhhhmmmmm....maybe that's tomorrow's post. Stay tuned!

I'm Really Still Here!

What a crazy time we've had here! I've had a lack of time and not much to say so haven't posted in a while. I don't feel like I have a whole lot to say this time, either, but here we go anyway! I'm up early today as I was supposed to babysit, but it got cancelled. I'm short on sleep as we stayed up late to watch the Cubs game...not exactly a good combination for being productive!

Since our mall trip, I've been quilting a fair amount on the quilt that was removed from the frame to do the outer blocks. I have one side left, so 14 seven inch blocks.

Usually at this point on a quilt I'm quilting constantly to get it done, but I've had so many other things to do that I just didn't have the time. While I did manage a fair amount of time, in spite of the busy-ness, it hasn't been as much as I'd like!

A good friend of mine is on vacation, her grandma lives with her and she needed someone to check in with her to see if she needs anything and visit for a little while each day so I've been doing that as well.

We've also been working on finishing paperwork for our oldest daughter to start cosmetology school in a couple of weeks.

So today I'm hoping to squeeze in some heavy duty quilting. I need to run to the store and visit friend's grandma, but still have this morning and this evening to mostly quilt...I hope...LOL.

I'm really hoping to finish these blocks by the end of the weekend, but in addition to grandma visits I have another trip to the school with my daughter, a 25th anniversary party to go to and possibly a funeral as I found out my own grandma is doing very poorly after her stroke last week.

Next week should be much quieter and I'm planning on hiding and quilting for as much time as I can muster before our school year starts the following week!

All in all, though, it's been a wonderful summer here and it really seemed to go nice and slow...but it never quite seems slow enough come Labor Day weekend!

I think the frenzy to finish this quilt might be connected with summer ending, now that I'm thinking about it. It's about this time of year that I begin to work on my Christmas gifts. I have a quilt in the frame that I haven't touched yet, knowing enough about myself to know that if I start on it, the other might never get finished! After that one, I'm doing the two cover up quilts for my sister-in-law and brother-in-law for Christmas gifts.

It's a little hard to imagine Christmas right now, with the morning sun shining on the tree I can see from where I sit, the air fresh and clean from recent storms (though I STILL am waiting for the drop in humidity!)

So here's to a productive quilty day...and sleeping in tomorrow!