daytripping to.....

steeplebush herb farm in limington, maine...about an hour NW of our coastal location.  it was another stellar friday weather wise, and we had a casual, meandering ride through rural areas to find this picture perfect place.  the owner was in the garden, and she and her two dogs welcomed us to wander and browse.  there were also some katahdin sheep grazing nearby, sheep that shed and do not required shearing...interesting!

the tiny shop was jam packed with all varieties of dried herbs, potpourris, herb mixes, hand made soaps and gifts.  i always enter shops like this gingerly (no pun) due to my sensitivity to certain fragrances, but here it wasn't overpowering.  the scent of a couple of her mixes didn't agree with me, but overall a short visit was tolerated.  the shop was surrounded by blooming, well-manicured gardens and potted plants for sale.  alas, we have no growing space at all, so we just admired.  after leaving the shop, we ventured to a new mexican restaurant for lunch, then off to the beach.  it was a jam-packed day away and oh-so enjoyable.  we like to take advantage of good days as much as possible as jan/feb are so very long and confining.  **** this morning i am tweaking the baby quilt top.  i had used a striped print and thought it didn't matter if all the striped squares faced the same way...wrong!  last night the hawaiian got more attention too.  once the baby quilt top is fixed, it's back to cabana daydreams, for a hopeful sunday flimsy.  **** FLASH!  minick & simpson's "lexington" is now in stores.   i smell an early birthday present for meeeeee!

my block's done!

on a roll!  first block of first day of the marcus bros. sew-a-long with pam buda and friends....pulled my fabrics out (they were close by) and got this little block all assembled.  i didn't get the kit, rather pulled from my stash, so fabrics are from designers jo morton, judie rothermel, paula barnes and pam buda.  so far so good!  ****  mom and i celebrated the beginning of august in style with a day trip...photos tomorrow...some beach time, a delish lunch out at a new mexican place nearby.  now in my jammies and the hawaiian is next!   a wonderful day all around....

a giveaway!

hop on over to sew and sow farm for a delicious HUGE giveaway!

later same day.....

ok so here it is nearly full....with only 10 drawers knew it wouldn't take long.  there are other WIPs in shoeboxes but they are packed, i know of at least 1 more, which  can't be all.  this is a great visual to remind me not to start anything new PLUS my leaders/enders projects will be at hand.....inchie blocks, scrappy log cabins, scrappy shenandoah log cabin...i had seen these units many times in joann's but walked by because i thought it was too small.  but for this purpose it works well.  oops, just thought of another and that is the indigo basket project, which will fit nicely too.  and there you have it....10 drawers full!  excuse me while i return to sewing.....

christmas present for UFOs....

before july is gone, thought i should open and assemble a christmas gift that has been hanging around, partly because i knew the drawers weren't THAT big and wanted to make the best use of the space.  have now decided this will be my UFO cabinet...so hopefully that will encourage me to LIMIT the number of UFOs i have; actually it's more like a WIP cabinet, for those that are currently stored in shoeboxes.  when i have a bit more space, it can reside next to the sewing table for quick access and, ahem, hopefully quick finishes.  it is smaller than i had thought, like who reads box info?  it will be easy to move when THAT happens, which is still the plan and i'm still more than half packed up for same.  anyway, thanks sis, for gifting me with this.  i know it will be used a lot.  **** been mostly working on the 2 machine projects, a baby quilt and the cabana daydreams.  ****  cool here for late july, actually been a cooler than normal summer, but sun is shining and temps are high 70s all week.  a taste of fall and delightful for doing just about anything.   

monday playtime

inspired by victoria findlay wolfe, spent time today playing in the daydreams scraps.  while it took considerably more than 15 minutes to assemble this piece for a little project in progress, i am satisfied with the result.  and i did use up a significant number of the little pieces of leftovers.  there are plenty left of course--that is how it goes with scraps--some did get used.  these colors are simply eye popping and i might just make more daydreams fabrics to use for other things.  ****  hard to believe this is the last week of july, summer 2/3 over, and so quickly.  now back to the machine and more play!

buying time

this is a quilt i made for my dad back in the 1980s......a hand pieced and hand quilted drunkard's path variation.  it has seen better days and plenty of use.  are the patches fraying? not at all, but the binding, which i did by turning the back to the front, has frayed.  with still some useful years left, my task now is to add a new, sturdier binding until it breathes its last.  repairing old quilts is not nearly as much fun as making new ones, but can't quite part with this one yet.  ****  all the baby quilt squares are cut and ready to assemble.  first, though, must finish the cabana daydreams flimsy.  ****  summer continues with plenty of fun inside and outside left to enjoy! 

eye candy male, er mail

yesterday's post included this....the calendar from sisters' quilt show!  it had been ordered some time ago and has been anticipated ever since.  well worth the wait too i can tell you.  aside from the "scenery" the quilts are gorgeous, inspirational and downright beautiful.  now i need a nice new sewing space fit for these hunks....LOL

2nd july finish

another UFO has bitten the dust, albeit a small one with hardly any stash busted.  adding this to my collection of little quilts that will be displayed at some point.  and guess what, victoria....you can't even see that ugly fabric she pawned off on me because it really isn't ugly....so thank you!  *** the just takes 2 has been washed and need to go back and repair a couple of spots, which i expected might happen.  no biggie....and the deck is cleared for cabana daydreams flimsy finish, my next project focus.  first up is to finish a little swap project, then the baby quilt for august machine project, the hawaiian for handwork.  before any of this can get tackled, the sewing table must be cleared off.  ****  hard to believe summer is 2/3 gone because even though we get wonderful summer weather in september, our minds tell us it's really fall.  for now, going to try enjoy every summer day possible.  now time to play!

looks who's here!

today the old viking came out to play!  recently i had read on the vintage machine site about the problems with this model and recalled my repairman telling me to be sure and turn the dials every day to prevent them from seizing up....a broken camstack was fixed for that very reason.  while i was homeless, the machine was in cold storage, the most likely cause of the broken part.  so, today i pulled it out and did some mending with the zig-zag and promptly cut up some fabric for a baby boy quilt, threaded 'er up and she is ready to roll.  though she isn't in pristine condition, for 35 years old she still runs like new and has traveled many miles, not the least of which was the horrid time in storage.   my magnetic poetry adorns her for inspiration.   if you can't read it, it says (from top to bottom)...my still sweet friend and gorgeous apparatus always"  and then "winter sings as tiny bitter diamonds".   **** had to make a marden's run for an upcoming block swap and was sorely tempted but was able to limit myself to 4.5 yards total, some of which is for some swaps and a piece for this baby quilt, so actual accumulation is very minor.  but oh the fun i could have there....so much beautiful fabric that i scooted in and out quickly.  **** a gray and dreary day here so not a beach day, which is good.  many other little things that needed to be done.  now off to play!