We are still in the middle of a snowstorm this morning, which seems to make for perfect hand-stitching weather. I see so many people on social media that are in agreement, be it stitching, knitting, etc.
My slow stitching today consists of a bit of this and a bit of that.
First up....actually on Saturday...was finishing the binding on my Queen's Garden....
I'm happy with it, and I am even happier it's now a completed project :)
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I have completed two stars for my Temperature quilt for 2020...
My goal is to kind of keep up, and then sew a star together once a week.
I'm starting to second-guess this one, actually. It's easy enough to do, but for both stars I have a bit of a bump in the middle. Not sure whether to continue, or hope that it will "quilt out" in the end. I'm hoping it's from the bulk and maybe it will be a little better once the papers are removed. Or could it be that my template is a bit off?
I think if I had recorded the "low" temperatures this month I'd probably be switching this up for another design :(
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I've always liked the idea of making a mug rug, but never got around to doing any. At Christmas a friend gifted me with two cute Christmas-themed mug rugs, and it turns out that I really enjoyed using them...thanks TA!
So, I thought, I'll have to make one for everyday use.
On another note....I was never one to save selvedges, until lately when I noticed some of them are quite cute and some have cute sayings on them. So, I started saving them for "one day".
Yesterday I sewed some of these selvedges into a mug run and this morning I quickly sewed up the binding...
I really like it! I will take note for next time to use a 2-1/4" binding strip instead of 2-1/2"...I think it will be much more tailored looking.
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I didn't work on my Over The Hill today, but I did work on it this week.
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Now for my PSA....a cautionary tale....
When our guests were here from Alberta last week we took them to the Hamilton Farmers' Market....I don't think I've been for at least 40 years!
It's wonderful and we will definitely not wait 40 years to go back again!
I came across a booth selling turmeric root and had to buy some. I'd never seen it before, I usually just use the powdered stuff from the bulk store. (Can you tell where this is going yet?)
I used it a couple of days ago, and here's what happened...
I don't know why it's not showing in the picture, but a lot of the skin on my fingers is bright gold, too!
So, next time I will use gloves...or just stick to the powdered version!!!
I have a manicure booked for Tuesday....not sure whether to keep the appointment or not, lol.
Have a cozy Sunday!...hopefully your's will include a bit of stitching, too.
I am linking up with Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching, and with Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for Oh Scrap.
So, it's another "winter wonderland" out my window this morning. I wonder if we will skip Spring all-together and go right into Summer weather?
I've been stitching away at my Down the Rabbit Hole. Another couple of days should see this border completed....
I was glad to have the applique class going on on Saturday at Quilt Junction because this happened...
Luckily my friend, Lana, had one more spool of the colour I needed in the shop! I'm using YLI Quilting Thread...it has always been my favourite.
It was nice to spend some time appliqueing with the ladies on Saturday, as hand-quilting has been a priority at home for the last while.
Here is the block I'm working on at the class...
Not much to see yet, but I'll get more done soon. The blocks in this quilt are huge, I think 24"? This is from the book Fresh Picked by Blackbird Designs.
There are a lot of vines in the pattern. What I like to do is to get them all placed on the block, then baste them with a high-contrast thread (so I don't forget to remove the basting later!). This way I'm not having to worry about a lot of pinning.
I did take three days "off" of hand-quilting this week as my underneath thumb was a bit tender after being stabbed by the needle a couple of times. I took the couple of days to get a couple of sleeves sewn onto two quilts that need to be ready for the quilt show.
These are the quilts waiting to be prepped for the show...
I'm not sure what's going on with Minnie this week.....she really seems to be in a nesting, cuddly mood. She's been asking to sit with me during my stitching time, so I finally gave in for the last couple of days....
.....and I found her one morning nestled under a couple of quilts in the quilt cabinet....can you see her?....
Somehow she got behind and under the top quilt.
I hope to have another hour to do some hand-quilting today. I'd really like this border completed soon. My goal was to have the quilting done in 65 days....today is Day 56.
I've just discovered the world of podcasts and have listened to a couple the last two mornings of quilting-time. If anyone can recommend some good ones, I'd appreciate it.
I am linking up with Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching. Hopefully you can visit with her and see what others are stitching at today!
I have made some blog-friends in the last couple of years....many I have yet to meet in person.
One of these is Sandra who writes Musings of a Menopausal Melon. We should have met this past year at a longarm class being offered down Niagara-way, but that was unfortunately cancelled.
The other day, I read that Sandra is starting a once-a-month linky party called Throwback Thursday. Today is the first installment.
When I read that she was doing this, I was literally within an hour of gifting a quilt to a friend. I think it was "meant to be" that I share a picture of this quilt before it made it's way out the door.
I know that all three pictures are basically showing the same image, but I think it's cute that Minnie and Cooper think the picture-taking is all about them!
This quilt is called Shadow of the Bear...since the bear paws are kind of shadowed. A group of us made these quilts in a workshop given by my friend, Deb Allan, in 2001 (we think).
I'm pretty sure this was a mystery class. It was a lot of sewing and used up a lot of scraps and is probably one of the nicest mystery quilts I have seen. I hand-quilted it and it is gently used, but still in remarkable shape.
What I love most about this quilt is the staggered nature of the log cabin blocks, which adds so much interest and motion to the quilt.
Looking at the pictures, I'm getting flashbacks on trimming up all of those half-square triangles....there was so much work to this quilt...but worth it!
I hope you can visit with Sandra for Throwback Thursday and show her some quilty-love on starting the new linky party.
Well, I'm not even close to having my goal for this month completed.
The goal was to be caught up on my Down The Rabbit Hole.
I have, though, taken a little break from my hand-quilting so I could have the applique portion of DTRH done.
So this morning's slow stitching was working on these sunflowers...
They're so nice and bright....I hope not too bright!
Our little Miss Minnie should be a couple of weeks pregnant now...one subtle sign is that she is becoming a bit more affectionate...
She still has her attitude though....she is the boss and she knows it!
This will be her second and last pregnancy. Last year she had five pups....I hope she only has three this year. Five seemed a lot for her in the last couple weeks before she had the pups last time...she's just a tiny thing herself so it was difficult for her to move around.
I am linking up with Kathy today for Slow Sunday Stitching.
So....my FlowerGarden is nearing completion....as far as the applique goes, anyways.
On Wednesday I saw a friend's FlowerGarden quilt....completed and having Prairie Points attached to the outer edge. It was beautiful! Her rendition was done using all sorts of scraps from her stash, and it really worked. Another friend of mine had done the longarm quilting and treated each block with a different quilting technique...it really complemented the quilt perfectly!
I have had an idea all along on how I'd like to quilt mine....and now that the time is drawing nearer, I'm getting a bad case of nerves! I showed my husband an idea of what I had in mind and he said "go for it". Why not, right? After at least two years of applique I may as well "go for it".
Here is a flower I completed this morning (the pink one). It's the second of it's kind in the quilt and it's one of my favourites. I kind wish it would show up for a third time....hmm, maybe I could take a bit of creative license???
I have to admit...I fall into the lure of online shopping....sometimes! I placed another order this week and am feeling a little guilty....but to counteract that feeling I am letting go of something that's been in the stash for a while. I wasn't sure whether to post it here, but what the heck!
These are 14 pieces of hand-dyed fabrics totalling 7.9 yards. I bought them a while back from Starr Design Fabrics. If you are interested in buying them from me you can send me an email...sandra(dot)croley(at)gmail.com.
I have no problem popping them in the mail!
This will be my first time taking part in Pets on Quilts, which you can see here, or by way of the button to the right.
As many of you know, we had the "Summer of Puppies" here. For the first few weeks Cooper was leery of his brood and let Minnie be the primary caregiver.
Once the pups could somewhat walk, that changed. Cooper became a paws-on dad, making sure none strayed too far, etc.
Here is a picture of Cooper and the pups enjoying some quilty time...
I am linking with Pets on Quilts. Have a visit and see all the pictures. I will enter the category of Dogs on Quilts. After ten days there will be a chance to vote for your favourites in each category. Sounds like fun!
Today feels like the perfect Summer day. Utter relaxation this morning with a bit of sewing. A family BBQ to go to this afternoon followed by settling in to watch tv for what is sure to be an emotional last Tragically Hip concert.
After a hectic couple of weeks I plan to savour the day!
Have a good one!
