Wip Zipper Pouch

I embroidered this little bluebird yesterday on a scrap of white on white fabric. I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do with him,  but he worked perfectly when trimmed down to a 2 1/2 inch square.

After thinking about it this morning, I dumped all my crumbs in a big basket. There are a lot of them!

Then I put the little bird down on a piece of 9 x 11 inch piece of batting, and started adding pieces from the crumb basket. Once it was trimmed it looked like this: 

Then I went ahead and made and trimmed a second piece the same size as the first.

Now all I have to do is add a lining and zipper, sew it all together and it will be a cute little zipper pouch!

Linking up to Quilting is More Fun Than Housework Lily's Quilts

Embroidery and Scraps

Seems the embroidery bug has bitten me pretty hard lately. In addition to the red rose Valentines Day pillow, I also finished this one:

I did the hearts in stem (or outline) stitch, and then did the sections of red ribbon in backstitch. I didn't particularly like the backstitch once I had about half of it done, but I didn't want to take it out and do something else so I just left it. 

I did this cute little butterfly for a zipper pouch. I pieced the back and front from pink scraps using quilt as you go, and then went back and quilted in the ditch because I like the way it looks. I haven't got a matching zipper, so this will be put on the side til I get one. I think I'm going to order some on Etsy, it's so much cheaper than buying them at Jo Ann.

Here's a close up of the butterfly:

His little body is a bit crooked, but I don't think he cares!  I'm also thinking of doing a flower of the month embroidered quilt from Martha's Q is for Quilter blog. If I embroidered a block every month, I could get it done and quilted in time for next Christmas. I'll have to play catch up for January's block, but that would be ok. 

Feeling Pretty Good

Well, I did a good job of meeting goals this last week. I'm almost finished with scrap-a-palooza, I should finish that up by Friday. I also finished the rice packs up, got some string blocks finished, and managed to use up some Valentines Day fabric. I really love the little rose embroidered pillow, I blogged about it here. I also started embroidering another vintage Valentines Day motif yesterday that I found on Q is For Quilter. This blog is just amazing, Martha has posted so many vintage embroidery and quilt patterns. Here's my embroidery so far, and the fabric I am planning on using with it. The embroidered ribbons will be red. I'm not sure if it will be a pillow or something else yet.

Oh, I finished the hand quilted pillow top too, this week I'll get a back on it and post a picture of it, too.

Now for the upcoming week: 

Finish scrap-a-palooza. That's the biggest goal.

Pick out fabrics for a half dozen zipper pouches and get them quilted. I won't assemble the pouches til later, I'll need to go to Jo Ann for zippers.

Start a machine quilted sampler. I need the practice!

Finish the pink Valentines embroidery

Holiday Pillows

I finished the little Valentines Day pillow. The embroidered rose is very nice, I'm really glad I found this pattern.

And as long as I was finishing up pillows last night, I finally put a back on this one: 

The pattern is from Sunday Morning Quilts and I call it Christmas Gumdrops. I like it a lot and am kind of sad it's going straight from the couch to the closet to wait for next Christmas. I'm thinking of  making a throw to go with it; if I do a couple rows here and there throughout the next few months it should be ready to quilt and go on the couch by next Christmas.

Linking up on this fabulous Friday to Crazy Mom Quilts and Can I Get A Whoop Whoop!

Progress!

Got the red floss and got the little rose embroidered last night. It's been awhile since I embroidered anything, and I'm very pleased with this. Sorry the pictures a bit blurry, my cell phone isn't the greatest.

I just love the vintage embroidery patterns! 

Valentine's Day Wip and a Little Spinning

I sewed this 9 patch block together this morning out of Valentine's Day fabric, and transferred  this vintage rose embroidery pattern that I got at Q is For Quilter's blog ,  then realized I have no red embroidery floss! Being a one car family, I can't run out and get any til John gets home. I'm not sure if this will end up being  a pillow or a small table topper.

In the meantime, I finally got a start on this:

This roving is just so nice and soft, and I really like this shade of green. There is a bit of gold and copper in it, but it doesn't show up in the picture. I was thinking socks originally when I bought this roving, but now I'm thinking it's so soft I might knit a scarf. 

Sunday Stash Some New and Some Old

I mentioned in an earlier post how I don't have many orange fabrics. I made a trip to Jo Ann yesterday to remedy that. I wasn't really impressed with the selection, but I did get these four pieces, an eighth yd of each:

 I also got an eighth of this leaf print:

Then I was only going to get an eighth on this one too, just for a little more green for the string quilt, but there was only a yard left on the bolt, so it all came home with me:

And just because I liked it there was this piece that was a yard. I really like this one a lot. I have no idea what I'm going to do with it, but maybe a drawstring knitting bag would be nice.

I also went into my stash and pulled these Valentine's Day prints. I don't usually buy or make Valentines Day stuff, but these were given to me several years ago, and since I'm trying to work through some of my stash I'm going to make some throw pillows, and maybe a table runner.

I pulled the St Patrick's Day fabrics out, too. Those I did buy, but I'll post pictures later.

Could Have Done Better

Well I sincerely thought I would meet last weeks goals , but I actually didn't get much done at all. While I managed to get a lot more of scrap-a-palooza finished, and I got most of the sewing table cleaned up, I only got two rice packs done, and I did not finish hand quilting the patchwork pillow, although I'd have to say I'm about 80% done. I did, however, get some string blocks made for a rainbow string quilt, and I got a pillow for the back of the rocking chair almost done. I'll finish it tonight and tomorrow post pictures of it. In my defense, my arthritis has been pretty bad the last few days.

Anyway, goals for the coming week are:

1. rice packs, at least 4

2. continue working on scrap-a-palooza

3. get another half dozen string blocks done

4. finish the little hand quilted pillow

5. make something involving the pile of valentines fabric currently on the love seat.

The Deepest Blues Are Black Tote

I actually finished this tote as a Christmas present but I didn't get a picture of it til yesterday. I actually began to see it as a quilt top which will be called The Deepest Blues are Black, and yes it was inspired by a song title by the Foo Fighters. I really like it, it gave me a chance to use some of the Kona that I had dyed for a quilted wall hanging many years ago. I didn't use the blues in the hanging, and while I have cut a few chunks off of them here and there, there were three sizable pieces left. I mixed them with some other blue scraps I had, and threw in a few bits of black. Once it gets warm I'm going to dye some more blues and start on a quilt.  

I also made a little eyeglass case. I needed one, and it was so quick to make!

Linking up to Amanda Jeans Crazy Mom Quilts

Rainbow String Blocks

I've been wanting to make a string quilt for awhile now and here's the beginning of it.

I've got the strings ironed for the purple block already, I just don't have it made yet. I'm thinking of making this one a "summer quilt", with no batting, just a back. I have a patchwork summer quilt already but it's a bit small for our bed, I made it for a full sized bed . This one will be a bit thicker  because I'm using muslin squares for a foundation, and if I back it in flannel it will be just right for late spring and early fall. One thing for sure is that I have to get more orange fabrics. Depending upon how I put it together I'll need 5-7 orange string blocks and I just don't have that much orange. Jo Ann has all their cotton prints on sale thru Saturday for 40% off, I guess I'll be making a trip over there.

I've been working on scrap-a-palooza too. I'll take a couple of pictures of it once it's finished.

Some Lovely Fabrics

I had a bit of Christmas money and I just couldn't resist buying this fabric. It's from the Low Tide Collection by Andover and I really like it. There are a couple of other prints in the collection I might buy later. I bought half yards, and for now they will sit in my stash while I try and figure out what I should do with them.

I also bought these two prints. I couldn't resist the bunnies, and both of these fabrics can go into the low volume fabrics I'm starting to amass. In looking at my stash, I realize I don't have a lot of low volume fabrics. I'm also short on oranges and purples. I just don't buy orange much, and I guess I don't buy purples either. From now on when I add to the stash I'm going to try and pick at least one fabric that will fall into one of those categories. I also am running low on white on white prints, but that's because I use them all the time.

I sorted through some stuff yesterday and got rid of some fabrics I will never use. I'm going to try and work through or give away some of the fabrics I just don't like anymore. I'm lucky to have moved into a house that has so much storage space, but we won't be here forever, maybe just another year and there's no guarantee that there will be an attic and garage in the future. Actually, I would trade some of the storage space for a dedicated sewing room. This sewing on the dining room table is just a pain.

Laid Back Saturday

Not much going on today, it's really cold still, just a great day to stay inside and work on projects. I have a small pillow top I'm hand quilting, plus I'm working on scrap-a-palooza. I got almost a quarter of it tied in the past week and I think I'm going to put in a marathon session this afternoon while I rewatch Sherlock. This is the little pillow:

I also may start spinning this roving I picked up at the New York State Sheep and Wool Festival. It's  a lot greener than it looks in the picture:

I will spin it on my Schacht hi-low spindle. It's my favorite for spinning lighter weight yarns. This is BFL roving, and I've earmarked it for sock yarn.

I did a pretty good job of meeting my goals for the last week. I got the Misty Mountain Hop yarn finished, the small bookcase runner made, got a good start on scrap-a-palooza, and got these 4 rice packs finished. I know I was going for 6, so I fell a bit short. I also made John a large hand quilted coaster for his desk.

Goals for the coming week are:

1. Continue to work on scrap-a-palooza. I want to get that done and on the bed

2. Finish hand quilting the little patchwork pillow.

3.Make another half dozen rice packs. Siobhan and I are talking about some spring craft shows, and while I have a nice supply of knitted/crocheted items, they won't sell well when the warm weather comes! I need some other things, and the rice packs are popular and pretty inexpensive to make.

4. Clean my sewing table off. It hasn't been cleaned right down to the wood since Thanksgiving, and I need to get that done and organized.

Not too crazy of a list, I think I should get it all done by next Saturday!

Misty Mountain Hop

I finally finished this yarn that, according to the date I entered on the projects page on Ravelry, I started on Nov. 8th. I finished plying it yesterday and called it Misty Mountain Hop because that song was playing when I was trying to think of a name and the colors are kind of misty. Anyway, it's fitting that I post this finish today because it's Jimmy Page's birthday! Kind of a celebration/birthday gift, although the real celebration will be tonight when I settle in with some Angry Orchards, Fireball and an evening of Led Zeppelin music. I find I like this yarn now that it's plied, it ended up a light worsted and there are 180 yds of it. I usually do a 2 or 4 ply, this is only the second 3 ply I've spun.
I'm thinking a hat, although I like knitting fingerless gloves.

I have a couple of other finishes for the week. I finally got a small runner made for the top of the craft books bookcase. I like it, although the binding could have been a bit better. That's my collection of drop spindles, notice that two of them have projects on them. 

And then I made this for my husbands desk. He was using a dirty piece of paper that he taped to his desk for a coaster. He never changed it, so now he has this oversized coaster instead that I can wash! The rest of his desk is a mess, but whatever. 

Happy Friday! I'm linking up to finish it up Friday.

Spinning WIP an Oversized Coaster and a Finished Runner.

I woke up this morning and started working on this spinning project that I started in the beginning of November. I should have had it done by the end of November, it's only 4 oz. of roving, but once I started it I wasn't really excited about the colors. I dyed it in the crockpot and there's so little control over what actually happens in there once the dyes are squirted on. The colors are going to mix how they are going to mix, and there's not a lot that can be done, especially underneath where you can't see. I actually dyed it in the early summer, and it looked like this:

I'm more than 2/3rd's of the way done with the spinning, and a single ply looks like this once it's spun:

My plan was to make a 3 ply which I have tentatively named Misty Mountain Hop. I have 2 bobbins spun already so really there's not that much to go. I'm going to keep going and if I decide I don't like the finished yarn I'll see if I can find it a good home. With so many knitters among friends and family that shouldn't be too hard! 

I also made this little oversized coaster for my husbands computer desk. He puts his coffee cup on a piece of folded up paper that he taped to the desk and it's just dirty and nasty. I sewed this together late yesterday afternoon and then hand quilted it after dinner while I was watching tv. I'll put the borders on and get it on his desk before he comes home from work today.

Then there is this little finished runner for the top of the bookcase that I keep my craft books in. It's a narrow little bookcase, the top measured 8"x 25", so I made the runner just a bit smaller. The drop spindle vase was made by my very talented daughter who is a potter.

I managed to get 4 rice packs done too, but no pictures of those yet. I hope to get a couple more done before Saturday.

Goals and What Are You Listening To?

So I've been thinking that maybe on the weekend it might help if I set some goals for the upcoming week. I have an Etsy store but I haven't put anything in it in a long time. I took out some stuff I sold over the Christmas season, so there's not much in there. I'd like to add to it, and I'd like to have enough stuff made to do some craft shows with my daughter in the spring. I think maybe I'll really concentrate on that. So for this coming week I'd like to:
   
    1. Finish the Misty Mountain Hop yarn that's been on my wheel since before Thanksgiving. I'm  2/3rd's of the way finished, and a couple of afternoons would get it finished, plied and washed.

    2. Make half a dozen rice packs for the Etsy store. Again, a morning or two and that should be accomplished.

    3. Get scrap-a-palooza ready for tieing. It's not going to be quilted, at least not now.

    4. Make a small mat for the top of the crafting bookcase. That's my practice piece for better quilting this week.

Wow, that looks like quite a bit, but with no one home during the day but me, and having such a teeny house with so little work to keep it clean, I think I should be able to get most, if not all, of this done.

On another subject, I got new music this week! I love getting new music! I texted my son yesterday after plunking my money down (so to speak)  on Amazon and told him that I loved getting new music so much that probably the only thing I love better are some actual people. And sometimes I would rather stay home listening to new music rather than hanging out with those people. He just laughed, being a musician he understood the pleasure I get. Anyway, new to me in my media player are: The Decemberists: Make You Better and The Calamity Song; Cage The Elephant: Shake Me Down; Arctic Monkeys: Do I Wanna Know: and last T Rex: Jeepster an oldie but incredibly goodie that I can't believe I didn't already have.
So what is anyone else out there listening to? I'd love to know what music gets you inspired!

 

Some Little and One Big Finish

I usually don't make New Years resolutions and this year is no different, but I do have a couple of goals. The first is to just keep working through my scraps, I have so many! The second is to become a better quilter, both hand and machine. My quilting is just not that good. So with those 2 things in mind, I made a few projects this week, as well as finally getting a picture of one I got finished right before Christmas. First up is my own rice pack. I made some for presents but I really wanted one too. I also made a pincushion while delving into a charm pack I've had for over a year. The fabric line is Chirp Chirp.

Then I made a couple of snack mats. This one is 30's scraps and white on white. I quilted it in straight lines. 

This one is made from the same charm pack as the rice pack and pin cushion. The bowl is hand thrown by my very talented daughter. She has an Etsy store. you can see more of her stuff here. She works with local clays that she digs and processes herself, and most of her stuff is wood fired. Ok enough bragging about her!

I had this little cheerful duck square left from another project so I made it the middle of a little pillow, and put more duck fabric on the back. I don't have a pillow form for it. It will probably end up as a gift for someone, since there are no babies in our family.

And finally, right before Christmas I made the last couple of blocks and put the last row on this. I  know a lot of people have things called scrap-a-palooza, and I'm adding one more. If the name fits, right? This is queen sized, and the next task is to get it finished and on my bed. 

I'm linking my finishes to Crazy Mom Quilts