monday report

fall has definitely arrived here in maryland...temps in the 60s daytime, 50s at night but later in the week, 30s at night...bring on the winter menu!   and winter means quilts!  busy hand quilting the amish inspired ocean waves...just this weekend finished the first of the plain squares....a traditional feather wreath.  have always gushed over feathers and wreaths as they just satisfy my traditional muse.  

hoping to get this finished by christmas eve....to sleep under while waiting for santa!  i'm thinking a quick trip to lancaster is a must before long....

then the last row of the autumn jubilee sew along was sewn....gorgeous pumpkins, scrappy of course.  i brake for pumpkins!!!  

waiting to see how the hostess sets the rows, but i've been toying with my own ideas...

and if you see this handsome devil tomorrow, wish him a happy birthday AND congratulations....he became a brand new grandpa last week, his first...it's brother #2 and he is so very blessed...

orange you glad???

that it's autumn??....i am...because i get to play in my orange fabrics for those seasonal pumpkins of every size and style....

the last row of the autumn jubilee sew along is pumpkins!!! how wonderful!  thankfully the orange stash is healthy and available for sewing some. ****  it's a glorious warm fall day here and went out for a leisurely drive to soak up rays and see the sights....not much foliage nearby here, still plenty of green trees, but the fresh air was, well refreshing!  won't get that nip in the air that new england is already feeling until november some time....and when i arrived home, there was a squishie in my mailbox....from a quilty friend...

it's the "alaska" pattern and templates....how generous!  i am humbled by such a kind gesture...and when the stimulus check arrives, i'll venture north to lancaster to get the fabrics...i might have one of the blues on hand but generally most of my inventory is half yards or fat quarters...now off to make pumpkins!

can you say...

flimsy?  just this afternoon after a short post-exercise nap, got this wall quilt to the flimsy stage...

i have always liked this color combo from the 1980s and so this kit caught my eye right away....everything was included--fabric, batt and backing.  also worked on some charity tops for the guild too...phoebe was whirring i can tell ya!  tonight i'll be doing more hand quilting on the ocean waves....the UFO list waits for no one...LOL!  

good day as returned to fitness center after brief hiatus...it felt good!  also back on board are all regular meds so those plus some extra rest and fluid replenishment got me back in the normal groove...blessings abound make life good indeed!

happy hump day

colonoscopy is over and done and i'm off the hook for quite a while...the entire unpleasant but necessary test is a much bigger ordeal because of my cardiac meds, a nearly two-week process.  spent the day before ignoring my hunger pangs by working on this...

this was a kit purchased from a fellow guild member last summer.  it required my full attention and was a great diversion....this is how far i got with it...

two more of the beige pieces to sew in and then the border can be attached....intriguing construction, but you know me...it's the quilting i like best.  this wall quilt is on my last quarter list of things i'd like to get done before january arrives.   ***  this despicable living environment has created another health issue for me...the corneal tear is taking longer to heal than expected and will require an eventual procedure for a more permanent fix.  thanks neighbors...i could have gotten along fine without this...quilting really does keep me sane and also from becoming a felon...

saturday sewing

it was catch up day for the autumn jubilee sew along....one more week or so and this should be a flimsy....this week it was the ever popular leaves, a favorite of mine....

i didn't realize how many autumn theme fabrics i actually had until i started using them....each and every one a microcosm of vast foliage vistas....the middle leaf here is actually from fabric with butterflies on it; the one directly to its left is called "tulip time"...who knew?  looks like autumn to me.  ***  next up is to tie and bind a baby quilt for an october baby.  and with cooler temps, time for some new flannel lounge pants. ****  and do you know this lady?   it's mercy otis warren, a prominent female figure in the establishment of the republic.  the us postal service is considering her for a stamp.  you can help make that happen....simply drop a note of a few sentences to the postal service requesting same...

Stamp Services, 475 L’Enfant Plaza SW, Room 3300, Washington, D.C. 20260...and thanks!   ***  short week what with 2 days for routine colonoscopy prep and appt....yeeechh!

the whole thing!

years ago there was a tv commerical, "i can't believe i ate the whole thing!"....well, i can't believe i finally sewed the whole thing....this triple irish chain top!

all those tiny postage stamp squares...the squares were sewn in strip sets, but still took about a gazillion pieces.  i finished off 3 spools of aurifil and many full bobbins too.  best of all, a UFO drawer is now empty.  **** on another front pulled out this seaside theme toile from the stash...

as backing for this...

haven't yet decided whether machine or hand quilting tho....and another planned weekend task is this...

this piece of flannel will be fashioned into lounge pants now that cooler weather is here....mine are ancient and in need of replacement.   ****  first up are 5 leaf squares for the autumn jubilee project.  such fun using up some very pretty autumn prints in the stash!

almost....

 done with these cute little patchwork blocks for the triple irish chain...only 15 more to go!

would have had them done except for detour thanks to the antics of the gray-haired juvenile delinquents in my building....seems i just get into a good fitness and sewing routine and bam!  their selfish behaviors derail my entire life, this time affecting my vision.  but there are some positives....all the drops and ointments are making my complexion glow like a 25-year-old...LOL!  and there is that idea for a new cookbook entitled "half baked"....recipes for the one-eyed cook!  while it hasn't been a humorous situation at all (quite the opposite), thanks again to my ever-vigilant PCP and the awesome frederick health system, i'll be right as rain in no time at all...

week 2 sew along...

it's the autumn jubilee sew along as seen on this blog...week 2 is done and i've purposely made it ultra scrappy in order to incorporate as many of my delish autumn fabrics as possible...

it's a short sew along, only for october....2 more rows to go....that sewing took up saturday morning.  in the afternoon, off to fitness and then a bit of meandering on the hunt for some fleece pants at a thrift store....finally found a pair about 40 miles away....good price too at $2.99.  also found a wooden spoon, a small pyrex casserole dish for the toaster oven and this little cutie...

a lovely christmas mug from mikasa...there were several but barely have room for this one...received some holiday spice tea as a christmas gift and it's perfect for cool nights especially near the holidays ****  and i'm always on the hunt for low sodium snack things....along with the salt-free corn chips i found this yummy salsa, only 25 mg sodium per 2 tablespoons....

it's good even if you don't care about the low salt.   ****  a lazy sunday with starts on needed housework and plenty of sewing on triple irish chain....first thing, tho, appliqued this little heart square for an ailing guild member.....i chose the fabric for the colors but i see it looks like a funky kodachrome angiogram....LOL!

hope you enjoy your day as i am enjoying mine!

thursday musings

another week nearly gone and the boredom of the status quo is firmly entrenched....i love to sew and have lots i want to sew, but there are times when it just gets too much, you know?  despite the mundane am keeping up to get this to a flimsy...

ten rows done, the 2 outside just need to be sewn on....4 more to go....thinking about how to quilt as it gets constructed...lots of seams but do-able....saw this in an old fons & porter magazine and set it aside for future sewing fun...when the sewing gets blah (only infrequently), have a stack of mysteries to read now that our bookmobile is making regular stops.  first i read this...not a mystery...but being a fan of the movie, curiosity piqued my interest...

this is about mary, the plain jane, part of the woodwork sister....the first 150 pages are a synopsis of the movie, so i whizzed thru to get the rest of the story....it's an okay book, lacks the jane austen undertone of dissatisfaction with the cultural confinements, but interesting and brings closure to the family of sisters.   was happy to get back to my mysteries.....

two of 3 volumes written by adrian mckinty....this trilogy only part of the books he has written about his detective sean duffy....backdrop is the irish troubles and written in the style of raymond chandler...witty, even funny in places, but full of trials and challenges of solving murders while dodging bombs, terrorists and divisiveness of that era.  these are fine whodunits, no chainsaw-type gore or paranormal stuff that holds no interest for me.  

the weather here is just picture perfect....am thinking it's time for another road trip to nowhere special, just for a change of scenery and escape the institution.  it's either that or housework, so a no brainer!  am avoiding baking as well.  today a zoom quilt guild meeting much anticipated...so better get dressed!

special request

while visiting with my mum, she noticed my summer bag of red/white/blue that i had made to take away.....and she requested one as well...a bit smaller, longer strap, to wear while shopping....

it looks small but it's about 7x10...just big enough for her wallet, glasses, keys and cellphone....has a velcro closure.  doesn't bust much stash but all materials were on hand.  this will give her hands free ease without worrying whether she'll leave her purse somewhere...which we've all done at some point.  recall a few times when my dad had to go and retrieve it from some store....

late start this morning...no rush at all so some tidying up has been done...you know, putting this and that away, getting rid of trash/recycling and a bag of clothing to the thrift.   we're back to late summer after a brief cold snap.  a large batch of veggie soup is now in the freezer for when the cold returns.  some housework needed but not today....saving for rainy weekend....