Thursday

I've been away from home and family this week helping a relative get settled in home after hip surgery. We all seem to know someone who's been through it, I think.  Takes time to manage all those daily living skills that are necessary when you live alone!

We're almost there. One day at a time.  

So happy to have little projects to keep me company in my new surroundings. Plus.....They give me a little calm between activity!

I was even able to SHARE my new knitting skill with a neighbor!

Advice: always have an extra pair of needles to share/teach with!  AND

Be prepared to give them away!  :)

I'm using iPad to blog with (learning curve!)

Photos include current projects,daily life (meds), and the little quilt I gave my relative long long ago!

Hope to make it back to my normal routine very soon!

Little bits of scrappy

I mentioned yesterday that I haven't been buying much fabric these days

I have quite a bit.

;)

Well...this week I did buy some.

Just a little.

 

I happened to be at the Post Office.

The Post office shares a parking lot with the local quilt shop.

One thing led to the other.

Isn't that the way it goes???

I went into the quilt shop to buy a charm pack.

A charm pack is NOT QUITE buying fabric....Is it?

Well...

the Quilt shop had NO charm packs!

I love beginning baby quilts with charm packs.

They always get my creative juices going!

I couldn't leave the quilt shop without buying anything.

I bought 1/2 yard of cute owl fabric

and

1/2 yard of a coordinating fabric.

 

I first cut the new fabric into 5" charms.

(1/2 yard yields twenty-four 5" charms)

 

Then I started adding scraps.....

 

Teeny tiny 2" scraps.

 

The scrap blocks are made using a 2" colored square.

TWO 2" white squares

and

TWO 2"x5" white strips.

 

Put together they fit perfectly with 5" charms.

 

SO.

I DID use a little BIT of my stash.

I DID support the quilt industry by buying some fabric.

and

I DID have FUN doing it!

I was ALSO able to MATCH my quilt

to my NEWEST quilted baby cap!!!

 

What a WIN. WIN. kind of DAY!

More Fabric??

Maybe you think you don't have enough fabric???

Maybe...

even though you DO have enough fabric, you want more???

 

I have enough.

I have lots.

I think .....I have tons.

( I haven't weighed it recently)

 

I worked all last year without buying hardly ANY!!

and..... I think I can do it again this year!!!

 

If I didn't have so much....

 I might sign up for this giveaway at keepsake fabrics.

FREE FABRIC FOR LIFE.

 

Do they really think we need MORE???

 

Yes.

They. do.

 

Sewing day

Aren't they pretty?

Half log cabin blocks with scrappy blues and greens.

I had fun sewing with the church ladies on Saturday.

The blocks ADD UP FAST when there are MULTIPLE machines going!!

In my last post I mentioned we'd be paper piecing these.

Some liked the paper piecing method...

some did not.

 

 Goes to show.....different strokes for different folks!

The old saying holds true for sewing, doesn't it?

Isn't that WHY we all like quilting???

So MANY options!!!

So MANY WAYS of doing it!!!

No hard and fast RULES!!!!

;)

Yep.

We had fun sewing together.

 

I think I need to schedule this kind of day More OFTEN!!!!

Paper piecing

I'm sewing with the "church ladies" tomorrow.

:)

Here's the sample block.

We'll be making a few quilts for High school graduates.

We do it EVERY year!

The block is simple.

Perfect for the newbie sewer.

8" square of phone book paper.

One square 2 1/2" or so placed in the corner.

I place mine slightly OFF the paper....

Just IN CASE it shifts in and doesn't cover the paper.

 

LOTS of strips of fabric.

LOTS of scraps....

added Half LOG cabin STYLE.

:)

 

I'm looking forward to a GREAT morning!!!

In OTHER  news....

One thing led to ANOTHER

and I found myself making another KNITTED cap this week.

 

I had the yarn.

My son has winter camp this weekend.

It HAD to be done!!!!

I finished it 1 hour before the kids left.

Whew!!!!

 

Things I learned while making my SECOND knitted project.

*using variegated yarn is helpful to the NEW knitter.
you can easily see the rows of stitches and figure out WHERE you ARE!

*Adult sized caps take quite a bit LONGER than baby caps.

*GOOD quality needles are SOoooo much better than the cheap ones.

They say.... QUALITY is the BEST value.

It's certainly true about knitting needles.

;)

 

Have a GREAT weekend!

 

 

 

 

 

colored glass

I saw a vase at a friend's house recently...

and couldn't SIT STILL until I had made one for myself!

Colored GLASS has always been a LOVE of mine!!

This is all you need to make your own.

 

Glass "fillers" from the floral section of hobby store

glue gun

and an OLD jar (with label removed)

 

Get your VASE ready.

Flowers might APPEAR tomorrow.

wink. wink.

slippery slope

It all began with quilting.

It's a VERY slippery SLOPE folks!

A VERY slippery slope.

 

You think the world is ALL ABOUT quilting.

You dream about quilting...

Almost every night.

;)

 

While YOU are quilting..

Your friends are knitting.

 

You admire your friends who knit.

YOU will NEVER learn to do THAT!

It looks WAY too complicated!

Oh...

Maybe when you're 70 years old..

you'll learn.

 

You can crochet.

A little.

Then....

the UNBELIEVAble happens!

 

You learn a stitch with knitting needles....

and you're OFF!!!!

 

This is my first project.

A baby hat.

 

It's not perfect.

That's O.K.

I LEARNED HOW TO KNIT!!!!!

Did you hear me yelling from the housetop???

 

The WORLD is my oyster!!!

ALL opportunities are OPEN to me NOW!

 

 

 

 

Christmas quilt along continued

My Little Christmas quilt along continues today.

So happy you're joining me on this FREE pieced JOURNEY.

:)

 

To make the house...

I used my roof as a GUIDE in cutting the first strip.

I cut a 2" wide strip an inch or so BIGGER than the bottom of my roof.

Next up I used 3/4" white strips

and 1" red strip...

To make these little 2" segments.

 

Remember friends.

I'm showing you GENERALLY how I piece

and YOU are going to PLAY around

and piece YOUR OWN!

I positioned the segments here...

and added some green between.

 

It's not LONG enough....

 

so pieced some ANGLES.

 

Piecing angles is SIMPLE.

Lay two strips together OVERLAPPING

and cut your angle.

Then sew the edges together.

I like having a FEW angles.

They add INTEREST.   ;)

 

Can you see what we're doing?

We're just making ROWS of INTEREST!!!

 

In the THIRD row I JUST made angles.

 

EACH of these rows is about 2" high.

EMPHASIS on ABOUT!

LOL!

I even cut some at the sewing machine as I went along.

Very EASY peasy.

I'm adding those thin white strips as I go along.

 

How are you doing?

IT's time to make the LAST main section!

 

First I sewed some 3/4" white strips

to a couple of 1" red strips.

 

THIS section is about 6" tall.

 

TWO red rectangles completed the house.

 

My house is JUST a little bit TOO wide.

THAT's GOOD thing.

ALL I have to do is TRIM!

I used my rooftop as my GUIDE.

Then I add WHITE background to the sides.

(sorry no photo)

JUST add white to the sides to match the WHITE you have in the rooftop.

 

These red sections need DOORS.

I drew a door on a piece of paper.

FREEHAND.

CUT it out.

Use this as your pattern.

 

Draw it TWICE on freezer paper.

CUT two out of freezer paper

and ironed them on fabric.

Cut them out leaving extra fabric

and pressed the edges IN.

Pin them on.

 

I will be stitching mine on during a viewing of Downton abbey later on.

;)

 

 

You can also use an iron on method of applique for the doors.

 

Thanks again for JOINING me on this SEWING ADVENTURE!

 

We're going to be SO READY for christmas this year!

Yahoo!!!