not too soon

now that pumpkins and halloween candy/costumes are everywhere, not too early to think about christmas....took a tiny sewing detour and made this sunburst tabletopper for guild raffle basket.

and thanks to free craftsy videos yesterday, just might tackle machine quilting this one.  matchstick machine quilting has always intrigued/tempted me, and so meandered over to craftsy and watched a terrific how-to video.  am thinking this might be quilted in a spiral to echo the starlight mints on the fabric.  practice will come first, and a walking foot of course, but could be just right for this piece.  ***  gorgeous late summer day here but cooler for the rest of the week.  spaghetti sauce is on the stove for the freezer and maybe a clam chowder for later in the week.  otherwise back to the machine and more orange piecing!  the tumbler top has found another home and thinking my next one will be kaffe reds/magentas with a pale pink alternate....to keep for me!

sorted greens

while at the dollar store yesterday, picked up a few clear shoeboxes to get my greens/reds finally put away.  knew that the 3 i bought wouldn't be enough, but would be a start.   quite happy today to see that the 3 are just enough for my pile of greens!  now just the reds pile is left and pretty sure 3 will be enough for them as well.

now they are in plain sight and easy to access....with the demise of the bookcase earlier this year, happy to find a more thrifty solution than replacing it...takes up less room as well....

and this very nice birthday surprise was in my mailbox yesterday.. many who blog are familiar with janet in utah, an expert at miniquilts and known for her kindness and generosity too.  vic from NH and i met janet years ago  (that long....really?) at keepsake quilting when she was visiting her daughter...we had already been friends online and meeting in person kicked that friendship up several notches...  she makes this lovely and fragrant soap and those dots????   i love them!  she is a gem of a friend for sure who handles her many cares mostly privately while flitting about the blogging world.

the dots are grunge dots and i had never seen them before, but oooh i'd love to have some yardage of the tan and gray to start with...thank you so much, janet!  you are definitely on santa's nice list this year!

down to the wire

it's the eve of the 31st and my summer UFO blitz is winding down....just today, though, finished this tumbler top and although i had planned a border, have decided not to as it's just big enough to hand quilt and finish.  i have a nice red print that i might use for binding....might, that is.

i love these scrappy tumblers and after it's final press, it goes in the finish pile with the others waiting on me...course, it hasn't diminished the stash pile much but that was a given before started.  *** looking back, pretty happy with what got accomplished these 3 short months, actually 2.5 due to my vacation.  even so, there are 4 empty drawers in the UFO cabinet, a few less plastic baggie UFOs and a few less cross-stitch UFOs.  not to mention the few small finishes that are no longer in THAT pile.  two flimsies were sold and found new homes and didn't even make it to the finish pile.  pretty good progress overall, but can't slack off.  the orange mod top didn't get done so that is up next.  plus some selvedge potholders.  plus finish the senior center QOV......etc. etc. etc.!  meanwhile, planning to ease into september and autumn's arrival.....and forgive me for veering off quilting, but this photo came to us a few days ago and am completely gobsmacked by how beautiful my mom was...this was 1945 and she is still beautiful at 90, but wow, she coulda been a pinup gal...

sewing prezzie

yep, today marks another year in existence for me...my mom is astounded to realize she has a child who is 68 years old!  in our family we don't think much about years, just keep on keeping on, and so far it has worked out pretty well....among other things, this arrived as a gift...

so the place is packed with aurifil thread now and the machine gals will be purring and whirring with delight!  i was really bowled over with this generous gift, but have promised to pay it forward as i've always done anyway.  and yesterday, this also arrived in my mailbox....not a gift but a harbinger!

was surprised as here in the northern south, we are still in summer mode. i did read that the new england foliage was predicted to be over the top this year...i just love autumn!  and even tho i'm not venturing back to school, some old habits die very slowly so indulged in these, feeling very rich indeed to have 2 boxes!

actually i thought the new blue would be included, but it wasn't yet.  opened them up and inhaled that heady wax aroma that only brand new crayons have.  packed away i have the box of 64 and a commemorative tin too...even as a youngster, color tantalized me so the segue to fabric was a given from early days...finally, this project progresses on with the hopes of finish by end of august september, possible presentation on veterans' day. 

with the summer UFO blitz, the finish pile is, well, piling up and time marches on...now, though, time to bake a small chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting and some pretty sprinkles on top...no candles are allowed here but not needed as i'm only as old as i feel....how about you???

the day's fun

before heading off to dreamland, wanted to post a wednesday report....first up, a small finish...bonnie hunter's wild and goosey pattern, the mini version...

at some point, she posted a photo of a large antique done like this but i opted for a smaller version for a quick (don't laugh) finish....i really love this and if i were 30 instead of ??? i am pretty sure i'd do a bed size...and this also got finished today....

found a home on the antique sled where some small quilts are displayed...really happy to see this finished....and continued working on the tumblers which work up super fast...this top is now just about half finished...and was able to avoid drooling on it while "witness" was on...one of my fave movies....harrison ford and amish quilts?  what's NOT to like????

actually pulled FQs and cut more pieces for this....always good feeling to shop the stash!   i do like this a lot and itching to get to the fun part, the quilting!  ***  can't believe labor day is around the corner and my very favorite season....autumn!  but first, a birthday cake to make for you-know-who!

summer UFO train....

chugging along emptying more drawers before autumn arrives...with 12 more days hoping to end up with the orange mod as a flimsy....today's progress is the scrappy 9-patch with reconfigured border...

still not perfect but improved over the previous 2 borders.....glad i made the effort for the unsewing and resewing....was going to donate to the thrift store but i kinda like it so maybe i'll just tie and finish and use it for charity.   waiting in the wings and already in the machine is the repro tumbler scrappy....

four rows were already done and have lots of tumblers already cut in the UFO drawer.  again, destination uncertain but i have envisioned hand quilting this one.  it'll need a border of some sort, not very wide, but a neutral and then a dark print to bind.  i could definitely snuggle under this one.   and unearthed a couple of cross stitch pieces needing finishing.  framing is too pricey, but decided to make a decorative pillow of this one.  it was done back in the 1980s and was sad to see some discoloration that didn't come out with washing.  i really like this piece and sorry i left it unfinished so long.  when i made it, i had the house and lots of

decorating dreams, but have found the perfect place for it here in my new home....so the time seems right.  the other piece is a serenity prayer that will also become a pillow after some eyelet trim is purchased.  it, too, was made in the 1980s during the ex's first go-round with AA. we split not long after, so lost interest in finishing.  lastly, DD came for a visit last week and drooled over this wallhanging, even offering to BUY it, but mom had a light bulb moment....

remember the sampler christmas stocking?  half done at this point, so made a deal with her and she will finish the cross-stitch, and i will quilt the basket wallhanging and give to her. she is a perfectionist with her cross stitch....synapses really firing that day!   now back to that moving train!

[new header photo is marsha mccloskey's north wind from her book "quick classic quilts"....i loved making this and love the result and love that book as well...flimsy was donated to vermont flood relief a few years back]

wednesday finish

finally, have gotten back on the sewing track and finished up this little christmas baubles piece...it's a moda bakeshop pattern and although i like it, the original was done with green baubles and a more neutral background....but it's done and not totally disagreeable looking...it'll look more festive in december i'm guessing....

and the other day was fashioning a chair cover for a friend....it needed lots of bias binding, which i made from stash.  and if you know me, you KNOW i didn't measure how much i'd need beforehand, just cut a stack of bias strips guesstimating how much was needed....well 'shiver me timbers' but when i got to the end, it looked like this....

now, there HAD to be at least 5-6 yards of the binding in all...but like the eclipse, this could never happen again in 45-50 years at least....true binding karma!  ***  a gorgeous late summer day here in mid-atlantia with temps rising incrementally as week progresses....boy do i feel blessed today!

monday scraps

this post contains a variety of photos....first up, went to a local quilt show yesterday and snapped these few that caught my eye...there were plenty more but these were a few of my faves...

don't see stained glass quilting around much, but this one and a couple others were quite nice....

this was a panel but sure didn't look like one....the colors appealed to me....

i liked the silhouettes on this little piece.....and managed to sew a bit myself before venturing out.  the senior center is having a placemat workshop in september, which is shockingly just around the corner.  first attempt while doing some baking resulted in a block the wrong size, but the do-over came out just right...

the leaf fabric in the top one is a hoffman, naturally....their designers always turn out gorgeous prints...and a couple of vacation memories...was it really two weeks ago??

the famous ken's seafoods in scarborough, maine, and my own selection of yummy fried clams in batter....a decadent and delicious choice!   last but not least, a couple of local flora pix....the first is of these floral bushes that are everywhere in an array of colors from pink to lavender to fuchsia....when in full bloom they are gorgeous!  they look like a lilac variation of some sort...

and a look to the future with a photo snapped last year at a local state park.....i know i couldn't live anywhere that didn't have an autumn....

now off to start the week....on my list?  hope to finish a couple of small pieces, plus the scrappy 9-patch border and tackle the QOV to see if that can be an august finish....

small space decorating

the adorable doll quilt made by vic has found a home!

my vintage sled sits in a corner adorned with several little quilts....the sled had once belonged to my grandmother grace, my mother's mother, who died at age 21....leaving behind a long-grieving family and her only little girl just a toddler.  i cannot fathom such a loss being so very blessed to have my mom still hale and hearty.   ***  finally got some sewing time in still plugging away at the revamped border of the scrappy 9-patch, vowing to "git er done" before tackling something else.  now that groceries are in, my days are free to sew....more blessings!

home again!

after 12+ hours on various transportation, arrived home last night to a huge stack of mail and my own bed.  so very glad gave the apartment a thorough clean before i left....first thing this AM, went right to my stash and pulled some nice magentas and reds for snapdragons!

next task is the pattern and i might just have one in abook someplace...that's the next step.  *** meanwhile, here at the ranch it's grocery and unpack day....and probably a nap?  could be....