later the same day....

this is a "good" from today.....loving these batiks and playing with all these colors....anxious to continue tomorrow when the silence curfew is lifted....about 8 am....but there was a bad....while i was out today at fitness or bookmobile, my only spool of aurifil black quilting thread grew legs...almost full too....the bug man was here--he always leaves a calling card--but someone had to let him in.  nobody told me he was coming today.  so a $12 spool of thread has evaporated....other evaporations have happened here before.  and it will turn out that "nobody" took it.  so my person and place continue to be violated here almost since the day i moved in...wish i knew why...and wish it would stop.  for good.

monthly mini

my monthly mini was a UFO so doubly glad to finish it...

it's probably a smidge larger than what others make as mini, but it's a mini by my fuzzy math! just needs a wash to remove chalk marks.  and i've been playing in my quilty crayon box!

a box full of batik pieces that are positively swoon-worthy....such bright colors that are morphing into these...

four done and only 60 to go....winter will NOT be drab around here....and caved to one more new start, my last of 2021....a kaffe fassett pattern for that charm pack recently gifted....the accent fabric arrived and couldn't wait to audition....

pattern called "shuttles" by kaffe....the black/white is a timeless treasures called 'wild camo' and is zebras on swirly stripes...the unit measures 3x5 and tantalizing expectation is making me giddy... now back to that fuzzy math to decide how many to make....bought 1.5 yards of the zebra so will see how far it goes...

and just like that another week is on the wane...my melancholy has also diminished tho not entirely.  keeping busy, exercise and autumnal weather are a great tonic!

starting the week...

with two finishes....the monthly mini is done but will keep under wraps for another week.  the One Monthly Goal is finished and here's the photo finish.

it's the joseph's coat repro....i love this quilt...it isn't perfect but i don't care.  started years ago when piecing skills still needed work, but it just epitomizes "quilt" to me...about twin size, it's colorful, cozy, evocative of simpler times....i just love it!  i'll be linking up with OMG and document my goal reached.  what's next?

this is throw size and should be able to finish in november.  perhaps squeak in a small one or two besides.  attacking the UFO list with fervor!   my hand work project is the "midnight at the oasis"....the vine is basted and now to applique and add flowers.  hoping this will be a flimsy and maybe basted by new year's.  that leaves the next machine project...one wheelchair top and then this.....

called "splashes of color" by katherine guerrier from her book "scrap quilt sensations"....so many beauties in this book, all done with color crazy batiks.  difficult to choose and there is a scrappy blue snail's trail that is whispering to me as well...

this week will find out if guild meetings can resume...oh i surely hope so...has been a too-long hiatus and tho thankful for zoom, nowhere near the same.  and have you seen this?

it's a jigsaw puzzle designed by--you know who--kaffe fassett!  a biggie 1000 pieces and i'm pretty sure i need one...LOL!  it just might be the christmas present to myself this year.  available from C&T Publishing....no conflict just my personal advert...speaking of christmas, my kiddos are both working christmas day so declaring it a day-long pj retreat with a few allowed munchies and white christmas on tv...no snow needed, thank you very much!

hump day

that phrase has almost no meaning at all now that i don't work...LOL...not to say i haven't been busy sewing tho....first up, joseph's coat quilting is done and i've pulled the binding fabric...

a stripey fabric that's been in the stash and will work nicely.  that's on today's agenda.  the next UFO is already in the hoop.  then, i've been sewing lanyards for the new local vet center...a project called platoon22....every day 22 vets commit suicide and the new center will provide support to help ameliorate the suffering...our DAR chapter made lanyards for nametags.

my guild has a challenge linked to our biannual quilt show.  this year it's color theme and my choice was blue...naturally!  a bag with assorted fabrics came my way and this is the start...

shouldn't take long to applique this center block and the others are pieced....january deadline for this.  last, a dear friend and enabler of the finest kind sent this my way....

a kaffe fassett charm pack!  swoon worthy as usual....i've already started a new project with these and other kaffe scraps in my collection.  this is start #5 for the year, not too bad....with 11 knock offs from the UFO list it's progress in the right direction.  hoping to cross off a few more before january rolls around.

summer has finally left the building!  yesterday swapped seasonal clothing and flannel pants already in use.  hoping guild meetings in person will resume soon.  since returning from maine, have been mired in doldrums and bogged down with concern relating to friends' illnesses, my own economic situation and ongoing housing problems.  really in need of some honest-to-goodness fun and diversion...so thankful family, online pals and my ample fabric stash have kept me going...

summer or fall?

today it'll be half and half...but it's been summer for this week anyway.  first i put quilts on the bed, then i took them off...going back on today tho...i am so ready for fall!  this little hanger got finished yesterday...

another free chart off the internet that i've finished for my mom's door...now all the aida cloth scraps are gone!  one cross stitch UFO remains....it's been my focus this year to get them finished.  other than this, working on the monthly mini and One Monthly Goal, which is to finish the joseph's coat quilt and with half a month to go, could very well make it.  the monthly mini is a UFO also so two more done is very good.  another UFO, my version of bonnie hunter's 'narragansett blues' is a top and will be flung to the guild's charity project.  

i am not a huge pumpkin foods fan but there is one scrumptious recipe i make....yankee magazine's Publick House Pumpkin Muffin.  The recipe comes from Publick House tavern at Old Sturbridge Village in Sturbridge, Massachusetts...a re-creation of a new england 1840s village.  i've visited several times and it is definitely worth a trip if you are in the area.  i've included a photo of the muffin and the recipe...

every bit as good as they look....

Ingredients

    2 cups granulated sugar
    1/2 cup vegetable oil, plus extra for pan
    3 large eggs
    1-1/2 cups canned pumpkin purée (not pumpkin-pie filling), such as One-Pie brand
    1/2 cup water
    3 cups all-purpose flour
    1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
    1 teaspoon baking soda
    1 teaspoon table salt
    3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
    1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
    11/2 cups raisins
    1 cup chopped walnuts

Instructions:
Grease cups of two standard muffin tins or use paper liners. Set oven rack to the middle position.  In a large bowl, stir together sugar, oil, eggs, pumpkin, and 1/2 cup water.  In a medium-size bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices.  Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir until moistened. Add raisins and walnuts and stir.  Let stand 20 minutes at room temperature. Preheat oven to 400°.  Pour batter into prepared muffin cups, each two-thirds full. Bake until golden brown and domed, about 15 minutes.  

Useless tidbit...if you saw the movie "Hawaii" with Julie Andrews and Max Von Sydow, parts were filmed at Sturbridge Village...enjoy!

monday report

a busy weekend but not much to show...did quilt on the joseph's coat and sewed up more red/white/blue blocks for the donation top.  both should be off the list very soon.  to stave off boredom, decided to try this...

first block of the 'alaska' quilt by edyta sitar.  carefully prepared pieces and checked 1/4" seam allowance...all went well until finished...the dreaded center points were off...and so was the block size too.....what?????   supposed to be 9.5" but mine came out 9.75"....but oh the center...a total disaster!  so unsewed a total of FOUR times until ended up with this result, which i'm calling good enough.  there are 48 more blocks all with equally annoying center points which have decided to machine piece the block halves but then hand sew the seam joining the two halves.  i'll try the next block and see if it also measures 9.75"....if so will just go with it and resize the borders.   

it's a dreary monday morning with promise of summer heat this week.  then maybe fall weather?  aside from exercise and house chores, another blank calendar week...

rain dear?

 nope....reindeer!

finished applique and found a suitable border fabric for him in the stash...just baste and quilt and he'll be ready for that all-important job christmas eve!  and look who's back....

it's just joy....had a brief encounter with technician....seems "somebody" was putting the bobbin in wrong oh, and left a full bobbin on the spindle and the tail got sucked into the machine.....lessons learned here...while in maine got to sew on sunny, my mother's 60s era singer and it was a dream!  heavy all metal machine runs like most vintage singers...and this guy's back as well...

my 70s jack-o-lantern guy....i've packed away all the wall quilts and other decorating stuff along with most everything i can but just had to unearth jack...we've been together so long.  

my fitness center posted this on their page and i've copied it for inspiration...

now 6 days with NO medical appointments at all!  been catching up on lots of little tasks that got sidelined plus some much-needed cooking for the freezer.  walking around apartment more and more and even a bit on sidewalks...eager to send candy cane to the storage closet with her fellow aids....and 80s weather continues despite the calendar....so still in shorts here for at least another week...where's fall y'all???

PS header photo taken in damariscotta, maine, a few (?7) years ago when the entire town was festooned with huge decorated pumpkins...

october's first monday

what?  october already?  while i was preoccupied with the hip thing, months flew by without even realizing...but at 85 degrees, sure doesn't feel like october to me.  both my daughter and i long for crisp, cool fall weather...thankfully sewing knows no season!  here's my monday report...

giving credit to bonnie hunter for this project, although not exactly like her 'narragansett blues'....it's a donation for the guild and a special request from a veterans' organization....

and my last scrap cross-stitch project is nearly finished...it'll get the same fabric treatment as 'autumn' and be sent along to my mum...

and this was the big event of the weekend that i enjoyed from afar....

cousins who haven't seen each other in 81 years got to meet and catch up....impromptu photo of my mum and her cousin dwight, last together at their grandmother's funeral 81 years ago.  omigosh you can sure tell they are related...both nearly 95 and mentally sharp, living independently.  they are the last 2 surviving grandchildren....my lucky siblings got to enjoy the moment in person.   

a whole week ahead with plenty of sewing time and NO medical appointments whatsoever!  now to catch up on household chores and ramp up exercise....can't slack off on that!

monthly mini and monthly goal

what's this?  another post this week?  finally getting back into pre-vacation groove...well, sort of.  started the monthly mini before i left, inspiration from jo morton's last little women's club....

and one monthly goal?  it was to make progress on the folk art nativity and did just that...

didn't expect any finishes but moving along snail's pace, fine with me.....and next month's goal?

finish quilting this repro joseph's coat....more than half done now and will add another little finish to the month as well...

that'll knock 2 off the UFO list....plus another UFO is being donated to the guild as a top so whittling down the waiting projects to make room for more of course...LOL!  linking up with elm street quilts to join others in their monthly quest...

and just this week finished my birthday book...

was a devotee of prairie home companion for many years....and this book the definitive PHC history but also insight into the often sad and poignant life of its creator.  some funny limericks and behind-the-scenes stories but at times overwhelmingly depressive and sad....keillor's life was besot by many tragedies, the final straw being falsely accused by a former employee seeking a big payoff that made him a media outcast.  his health struggles and family origins detailed, warts and all, overshadowed the humor and enjoyment the show portrayed.  will recommend with these caveats, as there are also many funny anecdotes and those bawdy limericks.  

and in my own personal lake woebegone it's been a positive week....weather balmy and breezy, discharged from PT and orthoman both declaring me fully healed and strong.  cane remains part time but that's to be expected.  resume cardiac fitness to rebuild endurance, also back to dietary restrictions after more than a few slips, autumnal household tasks listed, stocking up at farmer's market....vacation over but not at all forgotten, manage to slip back to the beach in my heart and mind still. 

new temptations

fall must be the reason to start new projects....plus the constant enabling of computer photos and like-minded enthusiasts...surfing blogs doesn't help either!  this is definitely getting started first, just need 1.5 yards of a dark indigo repro print and ready to go...pattern by edyta sitar

then these 2 came across my screen....a new jen kingwell pattern....wensleydale...just right for all my repro scraps don't you think?

and this by natalie bird, a new-to-me designer from zoom pals down under...plenty of blue scraps on hand for this....the photo doesn't do it justice at all...

will be fun to sew this along with others and watch the progress i think....plus some sewing for the guild, the DAR and my own UFO list should chase those other blues away and keep them at bay....i hope

before and after

 

escapades with the command hangers have been mentioned previously....but after a challenging summer, the last time was really the last.  put the little gray cells to work to see how i could circumvent the pesky things....the above is the "before" picture...the shelving unit directly behind me when i sit at the machine....but this is the "after"....

the design wall is now up on a wall that is drywall, not concrete, as the walk-in closet behind was fashioned when the apartments were renovated.  the shelving unit now just a few steps to the left.  the management touts the closet as a big feature...but unfortunately it doesn't begin to offset the dope addicts and thieves who live here....it's really like a homeless shelter with more room.  the locked doors are meaningless...woke up again in the night with stench of pot, a headache, stuffed nose and chest pain.  pot is also legal in maine and my mother has the same difficulty....smoking rules go unenforced, management couldn't care less, the other tenants have to suffer....being half stoned all the time only contributes to depression, lack of energy and listlessness among those who need every bit of strength.  it just isn't right at all, but there is no one to fix the problem....

so long summer...

too many good-byes for my liking this month.....leaving the beach, now summer and my dear family members too...made this little door deco from one of the scraps....a freebie off the internet...now hangs on my mom's door....back to late summer and my somewhat regular routine....hoping re-bonding with my daughter and sewing machine will quell some of the sadness of leaving new england....

bye bye beach....

beautiful sunrise photo taken the other day....today cloudy and cool in the 60s but even so, never a bad day at the beach.  few more days then back to maryland.  aside from my daughter/son-in-law and my sewing machine, not a thing i miss there...continue to do some stitchery and applique but not quite the same. also good-bye to my immediate family and the comfort they provide.  it'll be back to PT for the remainder of my visits and ramp up my exercise to shed the cane...will still have lots of free time but alas, no sand or surf to enjoy.  anything more and i'd sink into melancholy.....

vacation update

 

my son-in-law took this beautiful sunrise photo the other day....a perfect example of our serene and pure enjoyment during our sojourn here at the coast.  very good weather--yes, few rainy bits--but not enough to spoil our beach time.  and what have i been doing besides lounging on the sand?  a few examples:

finished another crab for pin cushion to sell at guild's show next year...

another nativity block just about done....only head and tiny halo remain....

a thanksgiving cross-stitch piece to use up the last scrap of aida cloth i have....

started on the second angel for the nativity piece....

and lastly.....although i'll be returning to maryland next week....my soles (ouch, pun intended!) always at the beach!

quick housekeeping post

not much quilty going on due to vacay....but have to show my september OMG....i brought the folk art nativity blocks with me to see how far i could get...linking up with elm street quilts!

check back the end of the month to see my progress!

OMG and MM

it's that time...one monthly goal report...happy to say reached mine with this finish...linking up with elm street quilts to document my finish....

all done and delivered to daughter and SIL yesterday....they love it so i'm happy....when she was growing up, my working robbed her of much valuable nurturing, so anything i can do now before it's too late makes me happy.  and the monthly mini?

it's the christmas elves topper....glad to see those elves finally used and not stuck in the scrap basket...just so darn cute with a lot of fussy cutting and fudging required...

and this morning finished this....wonky and imperfect?  no way!! rustic and primitive i'd say...LOL...but definitely an autumn feel....

best of all, the beginning of the end for the plaid scraps in this particular drawer...and had just the right gold for the binding too...

to-do list is getting shorter with only a few things remaining before vacation...sounds improbable, but even without regular work, a break in the routine is sorely needed, especially with this pandemic hanging around, the surgery and so much disheartening news in the media.  for the first time in a very long time, experienced profound loneliness that not even sewing could remedy...short-lived but very real nonetheless...thankfully passed and looking forward to a life recharge!

getting serious about UFOs

like most quilters, i love starting new projects with new and/or pretty fabric or designs....leads to a cache of unfinished things.  this year have vowed not to start too many new things--only 3 thus far i think--and concentrate on the unfinished...here is one that has been quietly waiting for some action....

a drawer full of plaid scraps for a planned project, abandoned long ago due to far too many tiny pieces...but some blocks got done...what to do?

well only one completed block and a few others halfway....now to be a small table topper for fall...there are 4 more partial blocks that'll make 2 nice potholders...leaving me with those plaid strips...what to do?  thanks to bonnie hunter, the pied piper of scraps, decided on this...

this block will be about 8 inches finished and if i run out of navy (2 yards) will switch to another compatible solid...the idea is to empty the drawer.  about half my UFOs fit in the drawers, most of the others are flimsies waiting to be basted and/or quilted...so that is my quest.  there will no doubt be a few side small projects, but the main objective is to bust UFOs...and bonus effect is playing in my stash keeps the fabric buying siren at bay...LOL!

just for the record

 

so everyone who reads this will know....today is my birthday, one i would not have had without the expertise, knowledge, compassion and guidance from so many healthcare providers at Johns Hopkins and Frederick Health....life is indeed a precious thing...and most of all to the Great Physician, Jesus Christ, who bestowed those attributes on all those people...the day after my cardiac surgery, i promised the surgeon i would not squander the gift he gave, and a stellar report from cardioman yesterday confirmed that...i am blessed beyond measure.... thank you each and every one!

PS photo is of alma mater mascots, university of southern maine....go huskies!