Saturday, August 17, 2013
Has Anyone?
Used the Quiltography app for IPad? Wondering if its worth the $14.99 price tag...can't tell much from the description.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Friday, August 16, 2013
A Bunny Finish
Last year...was it just last year or was it the year before?....Michelle at The Raspberry Rabbits gave away a wonderful BOM called Harrington and Hannah. It combined embroidery with wool applique, which is my absolute favorite thing in the world to do. I knew from the beginning that this was one I would make for one of my grandchildren. Not that I plan to give it to any of them now because I want to enjoy it myself for a while. :) With work sneaking up on me last year it took me forever to finish but finally it's done!
I would have a hard time choosing a favorite block but it would be one of these four - who doesn't love snowmen...but I'm a retired educator so obviously the apple ABC would be in my list, the welcome friends reflects the primitive/country decor I love and then who doesn't love to get mail? Michelle has such creative ideas that I love everything she does but this time I think she outdid even herself!
I would have a hard time choosing a favorite block but it would be one of these four - who doesn't love snowmen...but I'm a retired educator so obviously the apple ABC would be in my list, the welcome friends reflects the primitive/country decor I love and then who doesn't love to get mail? Michelle has such creative ideas that I love everything she does but this time I think she outdid even herself!
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Another Sewing Room Redo
A couple of weeks ago I went to my sister's to clean out Mother's sewing room. Our parents died 9 years ago but since the apartment they lived in is part of my sister's home we only took out the most personal things at that time. Since then she's used it for guest quarters for her family and friends who came for a visit. Now our aunt is moving into the apartment so I've made a couple of trips there to help move everything out - all the furniture, dishes, linens, etc. have gone away....some we shared, some we sent to charity, some will be part of a yard sale. The only room left was the sewing room - maybe the hardest for us to do. Mother was a pack rat and never got rid of anything; we needed to make this room a dual purpose area with a place for my sister to sew and a place for my aunt to set up her computers and desk. My aunt is blind and her computers are a special kind which talk to her so they need a bit more space than you would think.
I forgot to take the normal before pictures but here are a couple after we started dumping things in the middle of the floor and on any available area we could find as we sorted!
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Mom and Dad loved to go to auctions and if there was a box for $1 they would buy it no matter what was in it - consequently we threw away lots of rusty scissors. Lots. Did I tell you there were a lot of them? :)
It took us two days but we ended up with a pretty and usable space I think.
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Is this cabinet not to die for? Sigh. My sister bought it at auction from an old hardware store where it was used to hold seeds and tools. It was dirty. It was really dirty. Covered with spider webs and eggs. We cleaned it and scrubbed it and wiped it all down with a nice wood soap. Well mostly my sister did that part but I supervised. That's my job as the older sister and I'm pretty good at supervision if I do say so myself. :) But together we wrestled it into that corner and I'm quite sure it weighs at least 4 or 5 thousand pounds. Minimum. I would not exaggerate about that. We labeled every drawer and now she's all organized...needles, pins, rulers, tape measures, snaps, velcro, embroidery patterns, lace, ribbon, pens, pencils. I want that cabinet. Well maybe not that exact cabinet but one just exactly like it. Except already clean. :)
I think Mama would have liked it. Well, she wouldn't have liked all that we threw away but other than that.....
I forgot to take the normal before pictures but here are a couple after we started dumping things in the middle of the floor and on any available area we could find as we sorted!
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Mom and Dad loved to go to auctions and if there was a box for $1 they would buy it no matter what was in it - consequently we threw away lots of rusty scissors. Lots. Did I tell you there were a lot of them? :)
It took us two days but we ended up with a pretty and usable space I think.
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Is this cabinet not to die for? Sigh. My sister bought it at auction from an old hardware store where it was used to hold seeds and tools. It was dirty. It was really dirty. Covered with spider webs and eggs. We cleaned it and scrubbed it and wiped it all down with a nice wood soap. Well mostly my sister did that part but I supervised. That's my job as the older sister and I'm pretty good at supervision if I do say so myself. :) But together we wrestled it into that corner and I'm quite sure it weighs at least 4 or 5 thousand pounds. Minimum. I would not exaggerate about that. We labeled every drawer and now she's all organized...needles, pins, rulers, tape measures, snaps, velcro, embroidery patterns, lace, ribbon, pens, pencils. I want that cabinet. Well maybe not that exact cabinet but one just exactly like it. Except already clean. :)
I think Mama would have liked it. Well, she wouldn't have liked all that we threw away but other than that.....
Monday, August 5, 2013
It's A Ho Ho Ho Week!
August 5
August 6
August 7
August 8
August 9
Friday, August 2, 2013
Christmas in August?
Who doesn't love Christmas? I don't think I've ever met anyone who didn't....and some people must love it a lot because every once in a while I see Christmas lights still up on a house here and there, even in August! Now one part of me tends to think maybe they just "forgot" to take them down, but that's the Grinch part of me. The Christmas Spirit part of me prefers to just think they like lights as much as me. :) Wouldn't you know it though, when I wanted to take some Christmas pictures of my Ho Ho Ho projects, I couldn't find even one of those houses!
Back when I signed up for this blog hop I thought Christmas was forever away...but here we are at the first week of August and it's right around the corner. I'm going to be ready ahead of time with a couple of gifts, or at least I'm going to try! A couple of months ago I feel in love with a Kathy Schmitz BOM and just couldn't wait to stitch this one. It's entirely possible, even probable, that this will be a gift for me. :)
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I tried to get a little closer so you could see the quilting....some of it is straight line but I put stars in the brim of his cap and swirls in his beard.
Isn't this the cutest face you ever saw? Each of these 12 patterns has a small printed piece to applique on, each one is embroidered with one color (in my case I used black Finca #12), and each has a pieced border. It was total head-over-heels love for me! I'm working on a second one now that's a sunflower....too cute.
My second project is a wallhanging that I saw at a friend's house a couple of years ago - a pattern by Art to Heart. My friend loaned me her pattern and I bet she'll be glad to get it back. Actually, since it's been a couple of years she might not even remember she loaned it to me! In fairness to me, she told me to keep it as long as I wanted because she wasn't going to make it again. I doubt she thought it would be two years! Another cute face, don't you think?
This one is also a mixture of embroidery and applique. I used a bit of fake fur for the pom pom on his hat and buttons for the holly berries. I quilted a few swirls on his beard and mustache and echo stitching on the background.
And my third and last project, at least for today, is another cute Santa face. Hmmm, wonder if this could be called an obsession?
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This pattern is from Bee Tree Designs - another favorite designer of mine. I love redwork embroidery and it's usually my go-to project when I want to stitch and watch television since it doesn't require a lot of thread changes.
There are so many cute things to see on this hop...don't forget to visit the other bloggers who are posting today; their links are below:
Thanks so much to Carol, who is an incredible, organized and gracious cheerleader for our hop and Madame Samm who stirs our creative juices and gets us to thinking and stitching!
Blessings, Marlene
Back when I signed up for this blog hop I thought Christmas was forever away...but here we are at the first week of August and it's right around the corner. I'm going to be ready ahead of time with a couple of gifts, or at least I'm going to try! A couple of months ago I feel in love with a Kathy Schmitz BOM and just couldn't wait to stitch this one. It's entirely possible, even probable, that this will be a gift for me. :)
.JPG)
Isn't this the cutest face you ever saw? Each of these 12 patterns has a small printed piece to applique on, each one is embroidered with one color (in my case I used black Finca #12), and each has a pieced border. It was total head-over-heels love for me! I'm working on a second one now that's a sunflower....too cute.
My second project is a wallhanging that I saw at a friend's house a couple of years ago - a pattern by Art to Heart. My friend loaned me her pattern and I bet she'll be glad to get it back. Actually, since it's been a couple of years she might not even remember she loaned it to me! In fairness to me, she told me to keep it as long as I wanted because she wasn't going to make it again. I doubt she thought it would be two years! Another cute face, don't you think?
This one is also a mixture of embroidery and applique. I used a bit of fake fur for the pom pom on his hat and buttons for the holly berries. I quilted a few swirls on his beard and mustache and echo stitching on the background.
And my third and last project, at least for today, is another cute Santa face. Hmmm, wonder if this could be called an obsession?
.JPG)
This pattern is from Bee Tree Designs - another favorite designer of mine. I love redwork embroidery and it's usually my go-to project when I want to stitch and watch television since it doesn't require a lot of thread changes.
There are so many cute things to see on this hop...don't forget to visit the other bloggers who are posting today; their links are below:
Thanks so much to Carol, who is an incredible, organized and gracious cheerleader for our hop and Madame Samm who stirs our creative juices and gets us to thinking and stitching!
Blessings, Marlene
Thursday, August 1, 2013
Ho Ho Ho (Day Two)
August 1
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