Bird Tree Blog Hop - My Day!

appliqued and embroidered pillow case border

The sun finally came out, but shadows couldn't be avoided!

Welcome to the Bird Tree Blog Hop! I really like birds, so I was very attracted this beautiful fabric by Tracy Lizotte for Elizabeth's Studio! It's called "Beautiful Birds". I decided to make a bedding set for a twin bed with fabrics from this line.

appliqued nest

I chose to cut the fabric into squares and sew a simple patchwork quilt with an appliqued border. This quilt fits a twin sized bed.

 I made pillow cases from some of the fabric and embroidered and appliqued a purchased sheet and pillow case to coordinate. I added a ruffle to the border of the sheet along with a verse and coordinating flange.

 I made throw pillows of the tree panel and a bolster pillow from the lining. When the top sheet is turned down over the top of the quilt, the ruffle and verse show.

Sugarplum was suddenly on "hunter alert" and was very fascinated with the birds! (That's how well they're illustrated!)

She finally settled down and relaxed.

Because of all the rain we've had lately, the days have been a little gloomy and dark. I found the sewing machine LED lighting kit by Inspired LED made my sewing a de-LIGHT!!! You can't imagine just how much easier it is to sew when the lighting is really good. This kit is easy to add to your machine and you won't believe the difference it will make to your sewing. You will be able to see so much better!!! You can read about them on their website here. For about $30 you can actually see to sew! I strongly recommend it!

photo from the Inspired LED website showing how bright the light can be!

Before you go, be sure to visit my friends on the hop today!

Monday, March 16

Sew Peace To Peace

Moose Stash Quilting

Buzzing and Bumbling

I Piece 2 Mary

Quilt Doodles

Just Let Me Quilt

Les Quilts

A Stitch In Time

 
 

 

We Support You Blog Hop! My Day!

Thanks for joining me today on the We Support You Blog Hop!

I have a dear friend who has just finished a round of chemo after surgery for breast cancer. She didn't want anyone making a big deal of it and has gone through her ordeal with quiet grace and dignity. We love you, Betty! My project is for you!

Betty is a sweet, sweet lady with a tiger of a spirit! She is very active in several ministries serving others.

This bag is for hanging in a laundry room to hold clothespins or plastic bags, or hanging in a closet to hold socks, "unmentionables", fabric, shoes, bras (of course!)....anything that will fit! I lined it with the same tiger stripe that the bra is made from. 
The pattern for the applique and embroidery is available from Mdm. Samm. 

This little doll*is to remind all of you that there are "angels" among us thinking of those of you going through your own ordeals. Mdm. Samm of Sew We Quilt and  Pat from Life in the Scrapatch are two of those and have thought of this hop to honor you! You are not alone! 

Be sure to visit my fellow bloggers today!

Feb 11^th  

Buzzing and Bumbling

In Stitches and Seams

All thingz sewn

The Slow Quilter

Crayon Box Quilt Studio

Sew We Quilt

*Doll is from the Tilda pattern by Tone Finnanger

Tammy 4 All Seasons - My Day!

By now you've seen so many pretty Tammy bags adorned with the wonderful cross stitch patterns from Brooke Nolan! The idea was to go VINTAGE! So I thought of long ago days spent at my family's lake house, getting sunburns and hoping our swim caps didn't leak. (We hated sitting under that old bonnet hair dryer, hooked up to a cap and hose!) So...I chose Summer!

I did my cross stitch twice, the first time I had to relearn everything I barely knew 34 years ago! I made quite a few mistakes and ended up with my purse panel not quite exactly right. I think it looks pretty regardless! I tried it again on larger Aida cloth just to be sure I could do it. I purchased a Q-Snap frame this time. It was much easier the second time! I made a large pin cushion from that. I also found that good readers and a good light made all the difference! My readers are from http://www.readers.com/ and I chose the Clover in orange! Great choices for great glasses! Give them a try!   

And, although I don't have one, a Beam N Read light would have helped immensely!!! I need to get one soon!

My "pinny" (I wasn't familiar with that term. It's like a needle case that holds thread, needles, and can even hold small scissors.) was designed by Cori Blunt and is also the Summer design. It was designed to be made in applique, but I wanted it to match my cross stitch, so I traced it off on the canvas and just cross stitched it. (Remember, I had done TWO already, so I was a master at it now! - I wish!) Anyway, my little pinny has a magnet so it snaps on the back of the little bag.

On the back of the pinny is my little pocket and needle holder.

My "Stick With Me" magnet held my pattern in place so I could more easily follow along! You can find them here! Believe me, this is a STRONG magnet! The back actually jumped out of one hand into the other (where the other side was held). It will hold your pattern pages securely!

When I think "vintage" I get all nostalgic! The pictures above are some of the only ones we have now of my husband's family. The little boy is him! He's still cute, I think! 

So are you ready to add cross stitch to your skill set? Or how about a cute little pinny to give as a Valentine gift? You can purchase these patterns too! 

My thanks to Mdm. Samm and Mary Winegar  for all their hard work on this hop!

Don't stop here though! Check out the other blogs posting today, the last day of the hop! You won't be disappointed!

January 20, 2015

Buzzing and Bumbling - You are here!

Karamino's handmade
Quiltscapes

Sitch and Quilt

Quilt N Queen

Sew We Quilt

Black Cat Crossing - My Day!

Trick or Treat

Smell my feet, 

Give me something good to eat!

I have certainly heard that line at least a thousand times through the years from little"trick or treaters" at my door! My version is:

Trick or Treat, 

Take a seat,

My Halloween project is now complete!

Maywood Studios came out with this great fabric called Black Cat Crossing. I ordered a fat quarter bundle from the Fat Quarter Shop and made this large wall hanging and the clothing for a doll. 

I used a few scraps along with the feature fabric.  The cat, birds, and spider (did you see him down there in the lower right hand corner?) are wool applique. 

Catrina is my Halloween witch with clothing made from the same line. She's there to keep peace among the cats and birds and to keep those pesky pumpkin smashers away! 

Here's wishing you a safe holiday! 

Be sure to visit my fellow bloggers today and go to Sew We Quilt to see the top picks. Thank you to Mdm. Samm and to Wendy, at Why Knot Kwilt. They are our wickedly wonderful cheerleaders and are not really wicked at all!

Friday, October 24

Just Let Me Quilt

Buzzing and Bumbling  (that's me!)

Thimblemouse & Spouse

krislovesfabric

Quilt Doodle Doodles

(YIKES! I am on a day with some pretty tough competition!!! Be sure to check them out! I don't think you'll be disappointed!)

Rush Hour Blog Hop - My Day!

It's poor Rushing Rosie.

Her deadline is near

and rush Hour is coming too soon

she does fear!

Her stockings are snagged

and her hair is a mess!

She needs a good shower 

and she slept in her dress!

But here she is now

all finished. Work's done!

It's time to relax 

and to have some good fun!

by Linda Winters

(My little doll was truly a rush hour project! I wanted to add something to what I did below, but I've been gone so much lately I wasn't finding time. Then I decided on Rosie! Do you sometimes feel like she looks? I know I do!)

Rush Hour! What do you think of? Honking, swerving, speeding cars? Bumper to bumper? Nerves frazzled? Maybe it's finishing a sewing project before a deadline like Rosie above? 

I invite you to think of a slower, simpler time. A time when taking a nap was a dreaded event in the day! (Can you imagine that?) A time when rush hour was finishing your dinner so you could have dessert! (And you stayed skinny!)

I was unable to buy the wonderful Rush Hour fabric by Studio E, so I enlisted the help of my niece and nephew to create some of our own! 

I gave them a Sharpie and a rectangle of fabric and asked them to draw a picture of something they liked to do. 

Tristan drew his family playing with the family dog, Bear.

Emilee drew her family playing with a doll. 

(Rush hour is trying to get an unblurred photo of these twins posing! You have to be FAST!)

Each child chose a border fabric and backing fabric, keeping with the red, black, and white theme of the hop.  I let them sit on my lap and guide the fabric while I controlled the machine. 

We sewed our borders on, pressed the top, and cut the back to fit. 

                                           

I showed them how to pin the layers together.... 

...and we sewed each picture into a naptime pillow. Here is Emilee sitting in my lap and sewing. 

Tristan had his turn, too! 

I gave them the stuffing and let them "have at it!"

"Add a little more, Emilee, so it feels good when you use it!"

"Woo-hoo! Time for a nap!"

Rush Hour? Not for these two!

Be sure to check out my fellow "hoppers" today! 

Wednesday, September 24

Stitchin’ By The Lake

Buzzing and Bumbling - you're here!

Lixie Makes It

Everyone Deserves a Quilt

Living With Purpose

Madly Mid Mod

Coral Canyon Quilting

Our thanks to Mdm. Samm of Sew We Quilt and Carol of Just Let Me Quilt who have brought us this hop! 

Rush Hour is Coming!! And a Hill Country Update

                                                       

Yes, Rush Hour is coming and my day will be Wednesday! Please join us! 

In the meantime, my rush has lasted much longer than an hour! This is an extremely busy time at the hill country house. After being on a three and a half week waiting list for our countertops, we spent last Monday at the house while they were put in. 

I know it's hard to tell what the kitchen will be like at this point, but my countertops are almost in. (More on that in a moment!)

We chose quartz over granite because this seems to be the upcoming trend. Quartz needs no resealing and doesn't "etch" like granite. I want something that I can enjoy without worries. The plastic wrap is still on these countertops at this point. They are a bronze color. The half wall you see above and all the walls without wall board will have limestone.

Here is the prep sink. We chose a trough style sink because it is under the window and seemed to fill the space better. 

After 7 hours of installation, there was a seam that just didn't lay flush. It will have to be fixed and it seems that the countertop has to go back to the shop for that! It also appears we are back on the waiting list! The shop has not returned our calls and the counters have not been removed to be repaired. This is a highly recommended business.   (I may mention their name if they don't do something soon!) We are beginning to think we may have done better to just have one of the big box stores do our countertops! (I am more than a little distressed by this.) Businesses in the hill country have more business than they can handle!

The stone people have had us on a list too and are supposed to come next week. If the countertops are not in they will not come and we will be back to square one with them, too! In the meantime, the flooring will be delivered on Wednesday and the stone has to be in before it can be installed! (Another waiting list!)

I did get a lot of painting done! I painted last week, but when the countertops were put in my gray looked more olive green! (I do have a little color blindness unfortunately. I have to have help with subtle greens because they look gray to me.) I finally chose a great soft gray called Gray Mist. I love Behr paint and it didn't disappoint! (I'm not an affiliate.) I spent Saturday and a couple of hours on Sunday getting everything repainted! Unfortunately, we were so RUSHED I didn't get a photo! 

I did manage to get this quick, but grainy, photo with my phone!  It is a blackbuck antelope. We have been seeing them roaming free near our hill country house. They have long corkscrew horns (not antlers) and seem to keep themselves in the open grazing areas. It is strange to see an exotic animal, native to India, wild in Texas! My brother in law used to raise them for exotic game farms and restaurants that served exotic meats. I'm assuming that since many of the hunting ranches around this area often have blackbuck, some of them have escaped into the wild. I've been seeing them since last winter here. It could also be that someone has released them into the wild.

 These are very skittish animals and they can run 50 mph!

Well, I hope to see you Wednesday! I will probably be in the hill country accepting the shipment of flooring. I also hope to have a photo of the completed countertops and stonework SOON! 

It's September! See What I Did!

Thank you for joining me today on the See You in September Blog Hop! We are to show three projects we made this summer. 

Project #1

Remember these? I found them in a thrift shop and they started a search for souvenir plates to decorate a wall! 

Then I decided I needed a quilt to go with it!  I made a "Memories of Our Travels" quilt for my husband. We have done a lot of traveling in our 44 years of marriage. Since we lost all our souvenirs, I decided to make a quilt that would remind him of those happy memories every time he cuddles up in it to watch television or to read. 

 On the quilt I appliqued fabric "souvenir plates" with the names of some of the places we've been.  I used my Riley Blake gingham in the background along with a few other fabrics I had on hand.

Here is a close up along with a few of the real plates I have.  (I gave up on a photo without Sugarplum in the middle. She loves this quilt for some reason and searches it out to sit or lay on it!)

I asked Doug to choose 12 photos that brought him really nice memories and then my sister, Darla,  printed them off on fabric with special washable dyes. I used them  among the plates and other  applique souvenirs such as sea shells.

Projects #2 and  #3

I also had a lot of fun learning to reupholster. Many of you saw my Pinto Pony covered chair here (the one that many thought was "cow"! ) I also did this one, but saved it for this hop.

Here is the ottoman "before":

Here is the chair "before":

(Do you see the horsehair on the floor around it? It was falling out of the bottom!) I know my gray and bright serape stripes are daring, but I love it for the hill country! (I actually used a real Mexican serape for the upholstery!) It makes me feel happy. If I get tired of it, it will be easy to make a new bolster pillow and recover the top of the ottoman. Does a chair and ottoman count as two things?

Project #4

Well, in case it doesn't, here are some throw pillows I made earlier in the summer. I have never posted them, but Debby Kratovil did last month on her blog. (Thank you, Debby!)

I was really hoping to show you a finished kitchen at the hill country house, but it looks like you'll have to wait a few more weeks. That has taken up most of my summer!!!

My thanks to Mdm. Samm (Sew We Quilt)  and Shari (Living with Purpose) for hosting our fun "show and tell" from the summer!

 Be sure you visit the other blogs on the hop! Here is today's schedule!

Wednesday,September 10

Secretly Stitching
ME! - Buzzing and Bumbling
Quilt n Queen
Quilted Delights

Grandmama's Stories