to this little guy....dear brother #2....he lives far away but in our hearts and thoughts every day...he's a grandfather now...how did that happen??? 8 years younger than me, so now he has joined the medicare generation...
and just like popcorn, couldn't stop making those scrappy squares from 1.5" strips....
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moseying around blogland inspired me to answer the siren call of the scrappy sewists...LOL! the tote of 1.5" strips was in my face and overflowing...what's a sewist to do?
especially when a blank afternoon is on the horizon....well, thought i would try a scrappy block or two...and shazam!
here in maryland we are inching slowly toward actual cool with 30 and 40-degree mornings that require more than a sweater. back in my routine of regular exercise...and my sewing mojo has ramped up as well! last night joined in with zoom quilty peeps for a bit of socializing and reconnecting...
all busy quilters and sewists with lots of eye candy! my task for the evening was to move forward on a UFO, "wildest dreams" and now working on block 10 with only 6 to go. the patchwork parts are done, just adding the pink triangles and squares.
from the october 2009 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting, maker is unknown, a beautiful vintage quilt. This is going to be a flimsy before 2023 arrives...i hope!
a wonderful surprise arrived in my mail this week. on a whim entered a giveaway on a blog i follow, "from my carolina home," for some aurifil thread. my own supply was dwindling and it was on my list to replenish....
not anymore! 9 lovely spools--3 spools each in 3 collections of my choice--and they are most welcome. when "sunny" the vintage singer arrives can't wait to introduce her to this thread. will only have to add a couple of spools of white at some point and probably a few spools of 28 wt for hand quilting. happy additions all!
and it had to happen....summer veggie choices slowly leaving....the other day i enjoyed my last farm stand cuke...a staple of my diet all summer. it's a quick fix veggie and low cal filler upper....so long until may....
it's another beautiful autumn day and dear daughter and i are off on a day trip....that's all for now!
sure is a challenge to keep track of the days sometimes....with very few commitments for my time, a week seems like just one very long day...LOL! sewing was at a snail's pace but picked up past couple of days...the featherweight has been humming with more of those batik scrap squares...
photo taken just before sunrise but you can see she is busy....i've also been working on the 3 minis for the rest of the year. october top is done, november top in progress and fabrics pulled for december. quilting on the gift quilt continues....october finish? doubtful but close...and breakfast included some hot blues....only half gallons of milk in store, way too much for me, that needed to be used.
yes i do cook a lot....keeping to very low sodium intake demands it, but have streamlined quantity cooking and freezer is my best friend. *** farmer's market slowing down but still some choices as no killing frost quite yet...not too far away i would guess. *** october has got to be my favorite month. in new england the foliage is outstanding, crisp air nights with warm days just right for anything, autumn fairs, aroma of apples baking, cozy flannel duds, luscious orange pumpkins everywhere, quilts back on beds...a quilty peep gave me permission to use this photo she took near her home....gladi porsche is an amazing quilter with many varied interests...if you haven't seen her work, you simply must. she blows me away with her applique work and execution of beautiful quilts...thank you gladi for sending a bit of new england for me to drool over!
unlike when i was working, friday doesn't mean much anymore...without many diversions, the days just melt together punctuated only by weather changes...and whatever strikes my fancy! this week it was cross stitch....
this will be a wall piece and i've got just the french general fabric for it...those reindeer get me every time! also this week, my car had a sleepover at the garage for a few fixes. *** and thanks to mary berry for this delish chicken wing recipe. something i enjoy occasionally but forbidden until she demonstrated this recipe with almost no sodium ingredients--a bit of worcestershire that i pared down--and a few spices, maple syrup. the maple syrup makes them a bit sticky but they are so very good!
still recovering from vacation and a never-ending cold that just won't completely resolve. not cardiac related, but annoying and keeping me in the doldrums without energy or ambition. wacky see-saw weather affecting regular sleep habits not helpful either. i did work on the october mini plus pulled fabric and patterns for november and december. this weekend after chores, it's hand quilting on the christmas gift. *** off to get more caffeine to rev up the engine...it's a fitness day!
that would be the churn dash flimsy....i added the vertical row with a few squares left over...placemats anyone? thank you chooky for organizing this sew along! now to pick up a batting for it and get it finished....UFO be gone!
it looks very much like the pattern only smaller, although my colors are brighter....so i consider it a success. *** also finished is this little fall cross-stitch piece that'll be a bowl filler at some point....
next up is to finish the christmas one...both of these got started on vacation. and quilting on the gift quilt continues...that is october's focus. the sooner it gets finished, the sooner another UFO goes in the hoop. lastly, if you are not a regular reader of "quiltmania" magazine, i would encourage you to pick up the latest issue...
the chooky churn dash sew-along ends and at least flimsies must be done...happy to say that i'm at least VERY close to a flimsy and by end of day today just might make it!
as you can see, have a pretty good layout and yes, the red is a bit strong, but i'm leaving it because i like that block....designer's prerogative! i've enough blocks left of the 10" size to do a vertical row along the side, giving it a finished throw size at least. i really didn't want the full size from the pattern and goal of using up many of my odd prints was met. some are now gone for good and others have moved on to the scrap basket. have decided to designate a month in 2023 to purely scrap sewing so stay tuned...
up early as busy morning ahead....get post done before morning meds slow me down....next cardio visit possible downward adjust of dosage...expecting a weekend visit from Ian so warming soup on the menu. and since October is just a mere 18 hours away, i'll sign off with this...hoping my mom is putting up her "boo" piece too!
for good or ill, change is always present. my september mini is titled just that...."change"....once again, linking up with wendy and other monthly mini makers!
it's the chinese coins pattern done with lots of autumnal fabrics. i have a lot of them and it's difficult to choose just a few, so a perfect pattern. only 3 more minis for me as i'll be giving up the sew along when 2022 ends. my UFO list isn't dwindling as fast as it should and needs more of my time. *** fall weather is here finally! *** growing up, "putting by" for the winter was an all-consuming task. jams, pickles, veggies, fruit...all colorfully displayed on shelves promising a taste of summer all winter. i no longer preserve anything but do try and put some veggies in the freezer for later. and autumn cooking returns, firstly with these cider donut muffins.
the recipe calls for dipping tops in melted butter then sugar but i like them without. next up is pumpkin bread! *** finally, finally getting over the nasty, stubborn cold. no fever at all, but congestion that won't let go. was it covid? don't know, didn't test, wouldn't have made a difference. lots of extra rest and empiric treatment (cough remedies, vitamin c, tylenol and a bit of extra aspirin) slowly doing their job. some of it was from exercise holiday AND more dietary slips than usual, so getting back into the cardiac lifestyle groove has helped also. *** featherweight was unpacked and feeling more like sewing....the churn dash blocks are next. "sunny", my mom's 1960s era singer, will be joining us late october.
along with muffins, murder is back on the menu as well....LOL! the bookmobile stops here regularly and i've lined up enough suspense to see me thru the winter!
the brevity of time becomes more apparent in autumn. how many more years can i quilt? sew? read? travel? like the elders of my family, just keep on keeping on i guess, doing things as usual every day, ignoring the calendar and delighting in every birthday. our family reunion in august once again reminded me of the resilience and fortitude in my genetic makeup....here we are, 140+, on the Whitney family farm in jonesboro, maine.
but before that, just one last beach photo...i promise!
pesky cold has finally subsided enough for normal duties that got accomplished with energy left to pull out churn dash blocks for some work....this is the first of what will be quite a few versions, i anticipate.
because i opted out of the last size of blocks, cannot follow the pattern, so it's "design" time, scary as i am no designer, no way no how. next will try rows of same size blocks to avoid spacer strips between blocks with maybe strips between rows. it'll be colorful for sure. i've got 'til the end of the month to produce a flimsy, so brain food is definitely on the menu....i need all the help i can get...LOL!
and in the cute department, a quilty peep and her husband are traveling australia and they sent me this photo of an adult emu with chicks crossing the road....australia was never on my bucket list until i followed her blog along...it is an astounding place!
