are you ready?

with no firm end in sight to "blursday", am fully prepared to know at a glance what day of the week it is that i'm repeating over and over...LOL!  you might recall my mom gifted me this in august at my birthday....

how did she know i had been ogling this online?  and then this arrived in the mail with autumn......

a really nice calendar with historical photos....last year it was portraits and this year highlights architectural details of this beautiful building in DC....this beltway chicken has yet to visit only 40 minutes away....and here's another i get every year with a gift subscription to my brother and SIL.....

this brings glorious photos of home and many places i've lived or visited.....then i get one of these every year.....

the delicately beautiful watercolors of this talented artist make me positively swoon....when the year is over, i repurpose many of the drawings for my scrapbook....i have 4 rooms counting the bathroom and each one gets a calendar....but the one i rely on most is this beauty, a gift from my daughter and SIL this Christmas....

this one gets my appointments and other useful info to keep at hand every day....last year's, of course, was nearly totally blank but feeling confident that this year's will be used more.  

i've been working on the new england sampler and it's getting closer to baste ready....

no other plans for the holiday other than relax and enjoy and my jane austen marathon, so take a cup o' kindness yet for auld lang syne!

finally together!

that would be ALL my fabric stash....not the precuts in shoeboxes or fabrics with UFOs....but everything else, including big (over 2 yards) pieces.  all it took was extending the shelving by 5 inches on one side....here is the before....

an inexpensive bookcase purchased when i moved here nearly five years ago....has served me well despite its precarious structural issues....yes it DID lean a bit now and then!  see the canvas tote?  yep, stash in there, as well as an underbed storage container that holds big pieces...plus the shoeboxes on the floor holding more fabric....but here it is now....

still six feet tall, but the space on the right has now been utilized with a slightly wider shelf width.  the shelves themselves are deeper as well, not required but easier when pulling and returning fabric. the shoeboxes came in handy to keep stacks from falling out.  big pieces and backings on the bottom.  the price was nearly the same as the shaky bookcase and is my christmas gift to me.  the underbed storage container is empty.  the white and muslin scraps have now rejoined their cotton kinfolk and the big canvas tote?  well, it WAS empty for a bit.....

pulled everything that was smaller than a FQ or quarter yard to cut up into strips and squares.  many are large enough to cut into squares for the guild's charity project quilts too...was nice to revisit each and every piece recalling places purchased and confess did toss a couple of pieces just too heinous to keep.  

as far as sewing, working on the new england sampler and all those needleturn flowers.  doubt it will be ready to baste by the new year but not long after, which is ok with me.  the pandemic rolls on and anticipate lots of sewing time well into the new year.  no word yet on vaccine for at risk folks.

when i turned 65, thought i would wake up that day being old but i wasn't any different at all...and anticipating the new year is much the same situation....dreaming that on january 1st life would be miraculously normal but knowing it won't happen.  even so, life is good, very very good!

scrappy sewing blitz

good thing phoebe had a tune-up...it was a busy weekend for her!  pulled out the tote with the 2.5" strips and removed lid gingerly....it was stuffed to the brim!  and there were more in another shoebox....time to thin the herd!

when the dust settled, 31 blocks had been assembled....these join the ones i removed from the design wall....

and another stack is waiting to be sewn....

i'll need 143 blocks in all for a decent size tied quilt for donation and i'm just about halfway there...sewing these up is like eating M&Ms....lickety split and there is a pile of them  (just the reverse with the M&Ms tho...LOL)....best part is the tote really shows a significant deficit.  i also pulled all the pieces that were 6" long or less and cut them into squares....then separated lights/darks to make it much easier to get back to cutting more blocks. 

this is my re-org week, one where put off tasks get done, some culling of no-longer-wants, getting out the winter quilts, attacking the budget and roughing out a sewing list for the first quarter,  the ocean waves didn't get finished yet due to time out of quilting because of my eye procedure.  

so thankful that another Christmas has come and gone and no family members lost due to pandemic.  that alone is a huge blessing.  despite concerns regarding family and friends that keep my prayers at the forefront, it was still a wonderful holiday!

right on time!

 even tho santa couldn't fill my stocking this year, no problem next year!

i've long admired vintage samplers and always had the desire to make one....until i found this pattern!  so very long ago i cannot even recall where or by who.....i started it but quilting inched it off my "to do" list....dear daughter stepped in and got it done.  now to finish and hang up, all year long as it is soo beautiful and not specifically holiday-ish....she is a superb cross stitcher and always has interesting projects in the works....

christmas nearly over for another year....some very nice gifts and precious time with my daughter and son-in-law, who got his covid vaccine shot just this week....so very grateful to God for all His blessings, the safety He has provided thus far for all my family....wind up week ahead!

just one thing (or two)....

to say.....

no matter how you celebrate this year....despite the pandemic...with or without snow....on zoom or in person....it is a Blessed Christmas, for the true meaning is never overshadowed by anything else...joy is found in every day....God bless us everyone!

weekend wrap-up

busy sewing weekend....finally got the scrappy plaid triangles to the flimsy stage....this was on my goal list.....

it seemed to take forever, probably as it was paper pieced...you know, print papers, sew on papers, rip out papers....then pulled out another UFO with speedier piecing technique...

from this book....filled with glossy, bright color photos....every quilt is done in batik fabrics....sensation describes it perfectly!  author is katherine guerrier....

and a surprise visit from one of santa's elves....that would be amazon....LOL

gosh i do miss "prairie home companion" on saturday nights....

short week this will be....quick bathroom tidy, some laundry and gift wrapping, plus groceries and a lab appointment and the always needed gym visits... how did the holidays get here so darn fast???  it's been a crazy, challenging and blessed year!

snow day - sew day

awoke to gray but dry skies that didn't stay dry long...as expected, heavy snow and wind arrived making this a snow day according to my new england criteria....i know the drill well!   this (so far) is the most snow i've seen in maryland since moving here in 2016....with more coming overnight.  despite several UFOs waiting in the wings, instead sewed up another small civil war repro quilt.  

saw the design in an old fons & porter book....the original was made with 1.5" squares but since i have plenty of repro stash, upped the size to 2" to use some precut scraps....took an hour and all 10 digits to figure out correct math measurements, but by end of day had this little flimsy.  so instead of busting UFOs, added another to the pile....it is a sickness i have....LOL!  did, however, bust most of that neutral used for sashing...the remainder went into the scrap basket.  so you see, i don't so much use up stash, rather move it around...LOL!

no room?

at this time of the year that phrase is heard often, but today it means no room for more 2.5" strips in the shoebox....it is JAMMED and then some!

spent part of the weekend tackling the scrap basket....overflowing don't you know...all the cut scraps got put away except these...looks like another shoebox will be called into service.  january's project is to whittle this down with a bunch of scrappy wishing ring blocks for a flimsy to donate someplace.  so that means the scrappy triangle top HAS to be done before month's end.  still quilting on the ocean waves but iffy for a december finish...so many triangles still to go.  

holiday prep is nearly complete.  just a few gifts to wrap and a roast to order.  my charlie brown tree is up and all decorated with lights and ornaments that have so many memories.

it's  a very rainy day here...a few degrees cooler and it would be snow, but that is predicted for wednesday, like 8-14 inches....huh?  haven't seen that much since moving to maryland....a snow day?  first one here for me, but i know the drill....plenty of food, meds and TP on hand and of course, plenty of sewing projects too.  ***  the covid vaccine is en route and i'm in the high risk group so that'll be the most important and welcome gift of the season....

monday design wall

have been thinking about some sewing goals for going into 2021 and one that kept popping out of the gray matter was the dutch tree of life panel...it's been on the back burner for far too long...so pulled out the fabrics that were set aside to at least make a start and formulate a beginning plan for a few of the borders....

most of the fabrics set aside are half yard or less so others will need to be found in the stash....the narrow pink is a di ford fabric....the second pieced border (blue squares) will be followed with another narrow pink border....after that it's a border of pinwheels....have also cut some designs for broderie perse to be incorporated at some point...

decided to donate the autumn jubilee top to free up space on the 2021 UFO list for the dutch tree of life (TOL) panel medallion....better for it to be finished and benefit someone rather than languish in the unfinished pile here.  

this little piece finally got finished....it's the nordic christmas mini sew along....nice and festive!

holiday tasks move forward on schedule despite a mini detour for fixing an eye issue...it's just one more of the constellation of medical problems i've had since moving into this apartment....not as bad as the pigsty where i briefly lived in dorchester, massachusetts....but leaves a lot to be desired and not anything like what i consider home...

another cross off

from the end of the year list!  the scrappy trees top is done....titled "in a quarantine forest" where things are not as they appear....just right don't you think?

not the best photo....it's pretty good size being about 65 wide and about 85 long, bigger than a lot of the things i make.  but it'll hang over the end of the bed nicely.  should be ready for next christmas i'm guessing....

not too christmas-y weather here--40s daytime hovering around 30s at night.  my new england family is getting a nor'easter with snow but that's expected in december.  my tree is up and covered with pretty lights, ornaments on today.  i've some gifts to wrap and mail so that's on for the weekend...

hope your holiday festivities are in full swing!

another crazy week

well here we are at november 31st.....i mean DECEMBER 1st...and christmas decorating and planning is on the front burner.   enjoyed a quiet thanksgiving with dear daughter and some yummy leftovers...where has this year gone???  seemed to fly by even with all the craziness going on...plenty of sewing still happening....

something's missing from the design wall.....

remember these?  i had an idea for a bed size quilt using these (and lots more) little blocks...but after a glance at the big quilts waiting to be quilted, decided to go small instead.   pulled out a perfect paisley to pair them with and it's a flimsy!  the binding was also prepped and the remainder of this half yard went into the scrap basket.  it's a 2021 UFO but it'll be a quick hand-quilted finish.  ***  also in the works is to finish the scrappy trees flimsy--trees done, just need to become rows, and a top for the guild.  the nordic mini is ready to baste and finish.....did end up taking out one of the tiny seams and made it a tad more mini so the top row would fit better....and glad of it...

today is decorating day, tho....moved furniture around yesterday to make room for holiday stuff.  started off with a maine-inspired breakfast, delish blueberry muffins!

made with tiny and sweet maine blueberries....

somewhere in my whitney genealogy a wyman married a whitney so you could say it's sort of a family business...but they really are the best!  and can't finish without promoting another maine family business...

 Whitney Wreath - Maine Balsam Wreaths

beautiful christmas decorations from the crown of maine...let the aroma of christmas fill your home!

don't let the craziness of this ultra-crazy year rob your christmas joy!

a sewing week?

well, they all are actually....especially during a pandemic.  but even with a major holiday looming, sewing is on the front burner.  today i'll be cooking my two donations to dinner thursday but sewing is the primary task.  first, though, i wanted to show you this....

the top is done and ready to baste and machine quilt, just in time for christmas decorating.  the top row is a skosh narrower than the others but there is NO WAY i am going to take out any of those teeny tiny seams..first i'll try some magic sizing and then baste real quick...LOL...this was a fun little project and i've the perfect backing for it too...

perfect don't you think?  along with this, i finished 2 tops for the guild and got all my remaining 45 trees cut out and ready to sew.....

had sorta decided to postpone this task but the huge pile of christmas stash was taking up half my ironing station.  did manage to use up lots of small pieces, so am thinking maybe one more christmas quilt will use up most of them...with the leftovers planning on some strippie christmas stockings to donate or sell at some point.  might call it "in a quarantine forest"....an unreal place where trees don't look like they should and there is no rhyme or reason to the norm.  

will be spending the holiday with my daughter and son-in-law--he has to work (hospital) but she and i have some fun things planned.  holidays are especially tough for her...long dreamed-for children never happened and missing her extended family, plus midlife and this crazy pandemic make for a disappointing situation.  we have our strong faith for comfort and still plenty of blessings for any day, not just thanksgiving....

a new project?

 while perusing quilty blogs, saw this posted and immediately had to check it out...

not sure if it's a new pattern or not, but jen kingwell has once again triggered my quilty muse!  even though i am still working on "midnight at the oasis" am seriously tempted by this.  common sense prevailed and i did NOT order the pattern....have been taking stock of my own UFO list and the realities of passing time. (see header photo)....last week these trees were full of their beautiful leaves and in less than a week they are nearly skeletal....even though our lives are stuck in suspended animation, the days pass quickly into weeks etc....

with the year nearly over, 2 projects saw zero attention and will be held over on the UFO list yet again...the first is this....

the reproduction 1861 Healy quilt hexie project....showed it recently to a guild gathering and ever since has been nagging at me....i seriously don't think it's practical to get this finished....and then there's this project....

the dutch chintz tree of life panel begging to be a medallion of some sort.  have fabrics set aside--some dutch chintz and some not--and a few border ideas i've settled on but stymied by a small piece with a border print that wasn't enough to go around the entire panel....so a merger of sorts is being pondered...

may have to make those hexie units one row smaller to match the scale of the border print....thought about 3 vertical rows of hexies on one of those backgrounds and the 2 vertical rows of the border print...which will solve the hexie UFO issue AND the border print issue as well...

finally, row 3 of the nordic christmas mini is done....one row to go and will hopefully be done by the time the tree goes up!

no big bird on the table this year but no matter....would much rather have hugs and kisses and spend the day with family that's close by....my son-in-law has to work (hospital) so only his chair will be vacant....and he will be missed along with the maine contingent....regardless, thankful for overflowing blessings!

monday report

awoke sunday morning in a blue mood so rather than pull the covers over my head, started a mental gratitude list and got up to find some caffeine...LOL!  even though my family is healthy and safe, still have other concerns....what to do?  pull out the christmas fabric!

and before long this flimsy got to the halfway stage....so many pretty christmas fabrics to use, it was easy to find pairs for the trees....another list item nearly history....course then had to tidy up the sewing corner as today it's back to plaid triangles....

thought about getting a basket for these but really needed refolding to put back in the stash until the mood strikes to do the other 5 rows....there doesn't that look better? there are quite a few small pieces that'll get used up with the rest of the trees...after that a couple of ideas swirling around to use up most if not all...(she says hopefully...LOL!)

and the second row of the nordic christmas mini got finished also....

those red centers are half inch finished....yes HALF INCH!  this week's row is mini flying geese....really liking this little festive project.  

sunday morning's melancholy lifted despite lemons that tried to bog me down....what to do?  

make lemon poppy scones!  recipe calls for a glaze but prefer them on the savory side rather than sweet.....another week with a nearly empty to-do list, predict lots of sewing to happen...and maybe time to work on that scrapbook....

double dipping

another flimsy-in-progress has joined the scrappy plaid triangles!   the triangles are labor intensive and i love making them, but the gratification just isn't instant enough for me in this easily-bored covid environment....so what better than a christmas project!

had a stack of these waiting in the wings and so pulled out all the christmas fabrics to make more and hopefully finish.....aren't they cute?   these are 7" finished and so need 90 altogether...i think about 30 are all done, but they do work up fast and so fun to make.  this is also on my list for 2020, so it'll be a busy 2 months (minus 12 days)....

some in the stashbuster online group are doing a mini wall quilt called "nordic christmas"...it's only 4 rows, 14" wide...i've got row 1 done and row 2 is on the weekend list....i plan on machine quilting this and get it completely done...there are lots of tiny pieces but i've pulled out my big girl panties to get this little project done....

lots of talk about thanksgiving dos and don'ts with covid now running rampant...maryland is no exception...i am hoping the gyms don't close again....and my holiday plans are very low key...dear son-in-law has to work (hospital) so DD and i will celebrate/enjoy each other's company and we can watch 'downton abbey' to our heart's content...LOL!  the bottom line is to stay safe and well, even if the holidays are nearly unrecognizable.  i wish the same for you too!

ready for christmas yet?

last week while driving to lancaster, a radio station was already playing christmas music 24/7....today in walmart the music was also christmas and on tv the hershey kiss commercial that plays 'we wish you a merry christmas' came on...all driven by retailer desperation no doubt...but i digress.  *** this weekend a whole lot of sewing was going on....another row went on the scrappy triangle flimsy...not quite half ....8 rows done, 12 rows to go...

it should be done and tied before year's end but being foundation pieced, it's a tad more labor intensive than other flimsies....

star spin got basted.  the kit contained a muslin backing but it was a skosh too small for my comfort for hand quilting, so pulled out a pretty green toile...

it was narrow and had to piece but even so makes a nice backing....now it's ready for the hoop...

the quilting design is on a water soluble material...i do have a washable pencil and could have traced them on but went this route instead.....and today this is on the list....

marking more wreaths on the ocean waves....i guesstimate this is nearly half done.  binding is a turquoise solid and all ready....all these made possible as the week-long puzzle diversion got finished and did the trick in refueling my sewing muse...

true to murphy's law, one piece was missing....this came out of a sealed box so attribute it to ???  not on floor, didn't vacuum....mice?  rats more likely around here....

another shorts day but they are numbered of course...got my exercise in first thing--a great way to start the week!