WIP and STOCKING MY SHOP FOR CHRISTMAS...

If you read my post from a few days ago, you know that I began an "experimental" dresden as a way to prepare myself for making my mom's quilt...which will contain quite a few dresdens.  Since I had NEVER made a dresden I thought using some of my scraps to see if I could accomplish the block at all made sense.  The dresden went together quickly and easily.  I wasn't quite sure about the center circle, but finally decided what made it seem "off" to me was the size.  Smaller looked better!

I immediately fell in love with this block and was going to turn my scrappy dresden into a mini quilt.  But with Christmas rolling around I decided to turn it into a 16" pillow cover and list it in my shop.  

Today I attached the smaller circle center and attached the dresden to the center of a beautiful piece of white linen (using my favorite stitch, of course, lol).  "Ellie" behaved herself today and didn't skip any stitches!  I think I put the fear of a visit to the sewing machine hospital into her!  I have sandwiched the dresden and will begin quilting the front part of the pillow when I have the next open block of time.  Stay tuned for the continuing progress on this happy little pillow cover!

Today I also listed a few scissor fobs in my shop.  Feel free to check them out and let me know if you have any questions.  I am REALLY on the Christmas binge here...both gift making and shop stocking.  Maybe it has something to do with the "burning bush" planted right outside of my sewing room window that has ALREADY started to burn!  Fall can't be too far away!

In other news...my plans for my Expanded Sewing Room and Guest Room have changed, and I am really, REALLY excited with our new plan.  I'm getting even MORE sewing/crafting/storage space!  

Take care and have fun crafting!

JUST A QUICK CHECK-IN...

Well, I'm FINALLY starting to work on some Christmas gifts!

Today I began work on a set of holiday mug rugs for my mom, dad and aunt...and one extra for when they have a visitor....one for each place at their kitchen table.  They no longer decorate the house for the holidays, it is just too much effort for them with all of their health issues...and DH and I are lucky if we get anything decorated at OUR house (we have reduced our decorations to just a table-top tree and 4 stockings), so we really aren't able to help them much.  I thought maybe having just a few mug rugs in a holiday theme would give them a little bit of the "holiday" feeling without having to run down to the basement and pull out boxes of decorations.  They can slide these little pretties into a drawer for storage.  

The golden text fabric is The 12 Days of Christmas, which has special meaning in our family.  Every Christmas Eve when J was little we would sing the song...with each member of the family taking two days.  My aunt even bought a set of 12 ornaments and we would randomly pick two in order to be assigned our days!  The funniest part?  My husband HATES to sing in front of people and especially hates The 12 Days of Christmas.  But, MOST Christmas Eves he would give in and mumble his two days, lol.  I'm sure the back of the mug rugs will ring some bells for the folks and my aunt! 

I have had both the green fabric and golden fabric for a few years now.  They were part of a bundle of fat quarters I purchased on Ebay when I first shut down my business.  The burgundy stripe is a material that I got for free yesterday.  What did they used to say on A-Team?  I just LOVE it when a plan comes together!  I plan to attach the little block with some decorative stitching and then stitch something on the empty side (in a matching burgundy thread).  I think I have a plain Christmas tree outline in my machine embroidery patterns. 

The green fabric included these cute little blocks along the bottom selvage.  The piece I received had 2 of the Season's Greetings block...

...one Happy Holidays...

and one Merry & Bright.  I will give a different one to each and wrap the second Season's Greetings separately for the last place setting at their table.  I only got as far as pinning on the blocks today...dang tremor!  But I will continue work on them the next chance I get. 

In the mail today I received this GORGEOUS necklace from my Best Friend (...me waving wildly...) who lives in Florida.  She picks out the BEST birthday presents!  They are always something beautiful, super unique, and usually purchased from talented local crafters.  She knows me so well!!!  I can't wait to call her tonight and thank her!

All in all this has been a great day!  I have managed to chip away a bit at my LONG "ToDo" List and received a beautiful gift from a special friend.  Can't do much better than that!  I'm off to "rock and read" for a while...

Take care, everyone!

MY FIRST CHRISTMAS 2013 GIFT IS DONE!

My mom's sewing box is one of those padded boxes, with a handle on each side, that can be used as a footstool.  My Dear Hubby had given it to me years ago and, although I loved it, it was just too bulky for me.  When my grandmother's sewing box finally fell apart last year I offered the footstool type sewing box to my mom.  She loved it and the cute apple pattern it was covered in.  

The day I finished my prototype Collapsible Craft Container my mom and dad happened to be over the house.  They both loved it.  I told my mom that I was going to use it as a thread catcher in my EPP box.  We commiserated on the problem of the tiny pieces of thread never staying where you put them until you eventually tossed only half the amount of threads in the trash...and then spent the rest of the day picking up the tiny runaways!  A light bulb went on above my head (good thing they didn't see it, lol)...I could make one for my mom to match her sewing box!  

About a year ago I received some material from a fellow Freecycler.  I knew I had some scraps of apple material in the mix and was pretty certain the scraps were big enough to cover 1" hexies.   I had just enough of the apple pattern to cover 14 hexies and my mom's Christmas gift started to develop.  

It took quite a few days to complete, but I can now chalk one gift off my list.  Now to find a place to hide it so mom doesn't accidentally see it when she comes into my sewing room, but it is a logical enough location that I can remember my hiding place, lol. 

Five months to go and Christmas planning has finally begun!

I'M FINISHED DAD'S PILLOW!

Shortly after Christmas my mom mentioned that my dad could really use a pillow to support his head while resting under his new quilt.  It has taken me since then to finally finish it, but I am happy with the results.  I can't wait until I see him to give him his gift!  Now I just have to finish my Aunt's pillow and all of my "promised" sewing will be caught up.  

DAD'S QUILT IS DONE!

Hi everyone!

I did it!  I finally finished my dad's quilt.  No more worries of wrapping an IOU as his Christmas gift!  Now I can fully relax and enjoy what little time is left before the holidays, lol. Here it is, in all of its glory!  Please excuse the faded out beige pinwheels on the bottom row.  They show up much more distinctly in person than they do in the picture. 

Dad's quilt is made of flannel and faux suede.  The faux suede matches the beige of his leather recliner, while the other colors (the flannel) are pulled from elements in my parents' home.  I wanted something "masculine" for dad, yet pretty enough that it would look okay lying out in the family room. 

This quilt reminds me of flannel shirts and argyle socks.  Since flannel shirts have a placket down the front, I used a double line of stitching in the sashes to pick up the same feel.  And, of course, all flannel shirts have to have buttons on the plackets...which I centered on the intersections of the sashing.  The rectangles of flannel on the border reminded me of argyle socks...so I stitched an "X" of quilting into each rectangle.

For the center of each block I wanted a quilting detail that would mimic the round button shape...but it had to be angular enough to pick up all of the other straight lines in the quilt.  I think the quilting pattern I found is just perfect.  Thanks again to my wonderful hubby who bought me a Baby Lock Embroidery Machine for my retirement!  My quilts can still have beautiful stitching, just sewn by machine now that I can no longer sew by hand!

The last detail to be added to the quilt was my label.  I didn't want just a "normal" quilt label showing my name and date, etc.  I wanted something that would communicate to my dad just a bit of the love that went into his gift.  A few months ago he came down with a bug that was making the rounds in our area.  Suffering from a relatively high fever, my father, the man who is NEVER cold, borrowed a quilt I had made 20 years ago...so he would have something warm to snuggle into while he watched TV!  I knew then what he was getting for Christmas.

Now he will have his own special "hug" from me... to keep him warm and cozy, always.  

I can't wait to give it to him!

LONG TIME, NO SEE!

I walked into my sewing room this morning, "blurry eyed" and miles away from "bushy tailed"...in desperate need of a steaming cup of coffee.  After a few sips the room began to take shape around me and my monitor jumped to life in front of me.  OMG, can it REALLY be December 6th?!?  I rubbed my eyes to make sure that the number on my desktop wasn't a 3 masquerading as a 6 just to see me squirm.  No, definitely a 6.  What?  When?  Where did all that TIME go?!?!?  It wasn't even Thanksgiving yet when we left for sunny South Carolina!

My dear sweet hubby and I returned from vacation a mere five days ago.  We knew when we made the reservations that we were "cutting it close" with Christmas preps, but it was the best time for him to be out of the office given the project workload.  But THIS close to the big day already? My palms are getting sweaty just thinking about the things that still need to be done before the big day.  Making my schedule even more difficult,  I have four medical appointments to go to by the end of next week and a Social Security court hearing on Monday! What was I thinking, or drinking, when I made that many appointments in the small window of time between our return from vacation and the holiday?  Somehow I will have to muddle through and try to get the absolute necessities done...and maybe fall very short of my usual Christmas verve.  But Christmas will come, whether I am ready or not. 

However, on a good note, today is the first day since our return that I can honestly say I feel like I have settled back into my home and routine.  I have been extremely fatigued since we have been back, taking several hour naps in the middle of the day...just to survive until I can drop into bed sometime after 6:00 PM.  My pain level has ramped a bit higher now that I am not spending my days sitting on a balcony staring at the ocean.  In the past five days I have accomplished ONLY the absolute necessities. 

But, my steaming cuppa jo' this morning chased away the cobwebs and primed my engine to accomplish as much as possible between now and then!  Time to get the lead out and move my bum!  I still have two handmade Christmas presents to finish (I have pared down my list a bit), a Christmas menu to plan and order, a house to straighten/clean and gifts to buy.  I sure hope my guys are up for a challenge as I will be dragging them kicking and screaming into my whirlwind, taking advantage of any and all help I can get, lol.  Christmas is a time of sharing and caring...and believe me I intend to SHARE the load, and don't really CARE if they like it, lol. In all honesty, though, my guys are really GREAT about helping me around here when I need it.  I just hope there is enough time for all THREE of us to get it all done.

Before I head off to work on my dad's quilt I want to give you a quick update on the things I HAVE accomplished since my last check-in.

A scarf for my aunt (completed):

Dad's quilt (in-progress):

I promise a "completed" picture of dad's quilt will be forthcoming in the next couple of days.  Then I have to turn a pile of miscellaneous parts into a scarf for my mom...I hope...

Off to work on the quilt!

A HANDMADE CHRISTMAS...

Okay, today is September 7th...which means I have less than four months to plan for, save for,  purchase, or make Christmas gifts this year!   Eeeeekkkk!!!!  WAY less time than I would like to have.  I am seriously unprepared for this holiday season.  But, as I am still learning to pace myself and my life, I guess I will have to "make do".  In fact, the "making" part of "make do" is what I hope to accomplish in the next 3+ months. 

In my family we have all reached an age and wisdom where we really have everything we need or can justify wanting.  When something breaks or wears out throughout the year we find a way to fill that need at the time, because it is, well, a need...and we can't wait until a future holiday to receive it as a gift.  Now that we are in our twenties, fifties, seventies and eighties...short of the extravagant "dream" purchases that we still talk about at every multimillion lottery drawing, there is very little within a reasonable budget that we want.

So, I have begun to think about gifts I can make for my loved ones that will show a level of thought and caring that comes close to matching the love and gratitude I feel for the most important people in my world.

This summer my dear aunt mentioned in passing that the small cosmetic pouch I had previously made for her wasn't big enough to take on vacation with her.    I am hoping this tapestry toiletry bag and matching zippered pouch will hold all of her beauty supplies.  It was my first attempt at sewing a boxy type bag and I am happy with the results!

My dear mom has been complaining about how quickly the washcloths she uses to wash her face are wearing out.  I have taught myself to knit and have completed 2 washcloths so far.  I want to do one more for my mom, a stripe of the white and beige colors.  If she likes them I will make more for her as I can throughout the year.  I am still deciding if I want to knit up a few to give to my aunt also.  I guess it all depends on how much knitting my body will allow me to complete between now and December 25th, lol.

My mom likes to drink iced tea with her meals as opposed to tons of diet soda.  She likes her iced tea (and hot tea, too, come to think of it)...sweet, SWEET, SWEET.  Ick!  Through trial and error she has found a combination of Sweet'N Low and Equal that satisfies her sweet teeth (yes, TEETH - too much for one tooth!).  Unfortunately a lot of restaurants carry only one type of sweetener.  Soooo....I made my mom a sweetener wallet to carry in her purse so she always has her drinks just the way she likes them. 

My daddy dear has had some health issues recently and "the man who is never cold" now finds himself chilly when sitting still watching TV.   I have just started working on a masculine looking quilt in Wool & Needle Flannels by Primitive Gatherings for Moda and a poly faux suede to match his recliner.  This is going to be the biggest challenge for Christmas this year!  Quilts take a LONG TIME to complete and given my limited endurance for doing any one thing for more than a few minutes, I really worry I won't be able to get it finished in time.  If not, I guess I will be wrapping up the pieces along with an IOU for delivery some time in 2013!  I am using 5" charms to make half square triangles.  Today I managed to sew 8 half square triangles using (4) 5"charms and (4) 5" pieces of faux suede.  Eight machine sewn seams...40" total in one whole day.  Gosh, I'm SLOW!

Here is the list as it stands today (and I have been working on this for MONTHS!):

• Toiletry bag and zippered pouch for Aunt
• Sweetener Wallet for Mom
• 3 Washcloths for Mom (2 done)
• 3 Washcloths for Aunt 
• Quilt for Dad (1/10000th done, lol)
• Embroidered scarf for Mom 
• Knitted scarf for Aunt

• Dear Hubby...He will be easy this year as he wants his car detailed, but I am thinking of also  embroidering something patriotic onto one of his golf shirts.  He is a PROUD American!
• Dear Son...NO CLUE!
• Dear Son's Girlfriend...NO CLUE!
• Best Friend...NO CLUE!
• Best Friend Birthday (right near Christmas)...NO CLUE!

So...Where do you stand on your Holiday Happenings???