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!

friday progress

yesterday was a beautiful late summer day and it was ideal for some catch up sewing....

the autumn jubilee mystery sew along top got assembled....

since i had my helen keller moment epiphany (w-a-t-e-r) years ago about color value, it's always uppermost in my mind with any project.  this was done row by row and i used several of my pretty fall fabrics...but how to unify them?  found a green in my stash and added the narrow horizontal sashing and made binding from it as well.  am hoping this will pull everything together and not look too chaotic...plus it tones down some of the strong oranges too....

and this got done as well...

baby quilt for my niece, which seems totally improbable as just last week or so she was a toddler....at least that is how it seems....

since summer is lingering on, plan to catch some rays this weekend and tackle more UFOs!