christmas list

for the benefit of any and all, i have taken the proactive step of posting my christmas list on the left side of the blog. any (and all) these items would be most welcome. i know times are tough economically for many so i've tried to keep the costs down. in truth, i don't get many gifts at christmas since my immediate family is small and not all swap gifts. regardless, i love christmas and try to get at least something for all my siblings and other immediate family members. christmas, after all, is the season of giving. if the unemployment check materializes, i'll be able to include some of my favorite charities as well.

i'm ready.....

for old man winter. mom advanced me some cash so i could get this down parka on sale. i look like an eggplant on steroids in it, but this is maine and maine winters have a way of disguising everyone like inuits, which plenty of people enjoy but i'm not one of them. we're having a nor'easter today, rain only, but it won't be long before it's white stuff. ***** today's agenda? well, it's monday so laundry, vacuuming, some sewing....that's about it.

scenes from nashua

These two were showstoppers for sure, both made by ronda beyer. there are ribbons on the black/cream as well, they just didn't get photographed (can't get good help these days...). as previously said, the black/cream also had tiny rhinestones that made it sparkle; this could be my fave though there are others equally beautiful. this is sue garman's pattern "washington medallion" which i've been drooling over but no way do i have the time to make one of these as my "want to make" list is already overflowing.

just like midnight

at 5:30 pm, which is awful but that's DST for you. from now until mid-january we'll be in semi-hibernation mode which is not my fave but it's one of those things way beyond my powers completely. an exhausting day doing the regular grocery shopping but fortunately it's only a few times monthly. we did however, spring across the border for some delish papa gino's pizza, a fave of mine. as they say....it was worth the trip!

road trip!!!!

today was my jaunt to the quilter's gathering in nashua, nh. i try and go every year. they have a terrific show (by invitation) and always a great selection of classes and fun things. this year i took a half-day workshop with kathy kansier on crazy quilting with batiks AND beading! now, i have avoided the embellishment road up until now, but i have to say after today, it does interest me. but, since i focus mainly on quilting, i am going to be very careful NOT to jump in with both feet up to my armpits; meaning, i am not going to get addicted to this area of quilting simply because i don't have time. my primary goal is to make the quilts i want to make and use up as much fabric as i can. speaking of fabric, this christmas lights half yard followed me home, i swear, it jumped into my tote and came back to maine with me. this is the type of christmas light i have on my tree and i love them. yes, i know they are not "efficient" or "green" and even give off heat and i do have to watch them carefully, but i don't care. i love them all the same. the little twinkle lights just don't have the glow. i love to turn off all the lights and put on the tree and just sit there feeling their warmth, smelling the pine needles and loving the colors.

just plain

rain in maine. no problem, it isn't SNOW! seriously, any kind of weather that does not confine me to an artificially-cooled space or prevent transportation is ok with me. that being said, since it's friday i've a few unimportant things to do. sew, of course, the library and maybe vacuum my room. other than that and job hunting, my life is pretty boring. once i have some kind of income, i will probably head to the local pool and see if i can get in better shape which might go a long way to enticing employers to hire me, even at my "advanced" (? what) age. fortunately, my brain still lives and my memory is sufficient to work and i can still pass those important neuro test markers to indicate such.

as maine goes.....

so goes the nation, is the phrase. our (probably) new governor is the general manager of marden's, the astounding store that sells fabric for ridiculously low prices. he ran on a platform of jobs. he is a self-made man and i'm only hoping that the jobs he intends to create are not AT marden's, because i don't think you can run a household on salaries at marden's. i could be wrong, though. at any rate, let's wait and see exactly WHAT jobs come to maine and for how long. at this point, maine is nearly economically dead. in the 9 years i've been here, i've only worked for about 4, so maine has not been good for me in hardly any respect.

yesterday's finish

it's awaiting a dunk in the washer to remove the chalk lines, but i can post it here for you to see. it's a mini-Amish quilt, log cabin pattern, barn raising style. i have PLENTY of solid strips to make a dozen of these if i wanted. i do have more mini-Amish quilts planned, as well as a couple bed size in progress. hmm, now if i could just get harrison ford here....

one block done

so now that it's started, i am hoping to do at least a block a day, which will get this finished way before the end of the year. it's getting the 30s-style cross-hatch design, plus each of the butterflies is outlined. it doesn't currently have a border but i am going to add a 2" black border around the entire thing and then bind in black. i don't really like sewing on black fabric, but this will finish it off nicely i think....

got pins?

this is what happens when UFOs get finished, the pins that are holding them together get put back into the pin cushion. see that chunky one in the lower left corner? those are all the pins i took out of HALF the hawaiian when it got basted last weekend (not counting those still on the floor). yep, and i have another half to go yet. and, i confess, i have another little box of those yellow flower pins in the sewing table. i couldn't find many of them, you see, and so i (gulp) bought another box. so, at the joann notions sale next week, guess what i won't be buying....