Squirrel, Snowflake,

I will begin with the squirrel that I caught.  The pattern is Seasonal Hexie from Lynn Wilder at Sew'n Wild Oaks.  Somehow it jumped into my cart when I was looking at her quilt patterns.  I grabbed some scraps and stitched it together.  It is about 20 inches across.  Machine quilted with stitch in the ditch and the heart ruler was used for the center. It was nice to have a finish so quickly.  It has already gone to a new home, but this will be a made again pattern.

I have been enjoying making the potato chip blocks.  Here they are on my wall.  They will become a quilt for the bed in one of the extra bedrooms.  I am really liking making a block without serious thinking.  It will be a wild quilt and that is really appealing to me.  Going through all those fat quarters and cutting them up is great fun.  Only one or two get cut up a day, material that I wonder why I picked it.  (The material that I can see using gets placed aside.)  The parts added to the box for this quilt, another box for the quilt that will be made with 12 inch finished blocks and then my nine-patch box.  Three scrappy quilts in my mind. 

Snowflake Tablerunner from Piecing the Past Quilts has been sandwiched.  I need to pick up some muslin to add border on the long side.  I will hand quilt this in my hoop and I need a bit more material on the sides to hold it in the hoop.  It was basted by machine, the first time that I have done that.  Shall see how that works.

Work has begun on Season and Time by Moira Blackburn. This is being worked with it on its side as it is long, and I rather work in the frame than the hoop.  Here is the center, bottom on the left, top on the right.  It will be worked toward the sides.

Won't be doing any hand work until this afternoon.  The gardens are calling me.  It is 39 degrees outside now, but the sun is shining.  

May you all have time to enjoy your threads today.  Thank you for visiting.  Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.
 

Bits

This week has been a different week.  We still have snow on the ground from the storm.  It will be gone by tomorrow as our temps are to head warmer this week.  We did not get the storm as badly as they did in Maine.  Sister and daughters all had power outages (just received notice that the last had their power come back at 0530 this morning). 

The snowflake table runner will turn into a sandwich today.  That is what is next on the list.  Shall start stitching it this week.  Now that I have told you that, I need to get cranking to be able to show something next week.

The last of the Chubby's have been finished.  Fox, Rabbit and Bird from Jeannette Douglas Designs.  I see that she has a Bee for 2024.  Need to look for that one.  These all need to be framed and I need to learn how.  This will be a good place to start as they are small.

Squirrel!

Like many people, I have scraps left over from other projects.  I had seen a video by Conquering Mount Scrapmore with Brenda on making a "potato chip block".  This looked like less thinking than the other scrap block I had made.  Just don't put the same fabric in the block.  (I already messed that up.  Didn't notice until I was pressing the finished block.  Oh well.)

I am spending time cutting out bricks, 30 minutes a day, and my scrap pile is not noticeably smaller.  Cutting two sizes: 1.75 X 3 inches (wrote the wrong measurement down, cut wrong and had to adjust vs tossing fabric) and 2.5 X 4.5.  The smaller brick blocks are what I am showing.  It makes a finished 10-inch square.  When I stich them together, I need to make sure the center start is in different directions.  That way NO matching of seams!  Totally mindless sewing.  I leave one set up next to my machine waiting for me.  (I had to think harder for a crumb block).

Since the chip is waiting for me and I don't have to think, just sew and press.  I am back on a UFO: Little Block 365 by Sentimental Stitches.  I had 217 blocks stitched and several rows put together.  The smallness was driving me crazy as it takes a bit of time to stitch them.  Longer than to stitch a potato chip block.  I wasn't seeing the progress to keep me motivated.  Now it is a pair project.  Hope that helps me.  I want to see it done.  I do like 365, a lot.

NCAA Women's Basketball final this afternoon.  My slow stitching will be work on Season and Time by Moira Blackburn will watching the game.  

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  Enjoy your threads today.

 

Flimsy

The Snowflake Table Runner from Piecing the Past Quilts has turned into a flimsy.  Not perfect but I am pleased.  The last 18 large leaves and the 18 diamonds went quickly (after stitching 72 of the little leaves).  On the diamonds I was wondering about the pointy end.  It is a bit small, narrow, and I wondered if it would survive the washing machine when its time came for a bath.  So, I used fray check on the sides and tip end of the point.  I haven't used that in a long time and don't remember if I was pleased or not.  It was easy to stitch through.  Shall wait and see.

It needs a good "brushing" before I make it a sandwich.  Between the loose threads and the cats, sigh.  It will become a sandwich this week.

Hand quilting is being thought of around the snowflake parts.  Then machine quilted straight lines following the long side of the runner (but not quilting over snowflake parts).  Shall keep thinking.

There has been other stitching done.  Here is Chubby Bunny from Jeanette Douglas Designs.  Jo from Jo's Country Junction is having a stitch-a-long with this small and two others.

Here is the beginning of Chubby Fox by Jeanette Douglas Designs.  They are being stitched on 40 count linen.  Need my magnifying glasses for this work.  

Enjoy your threads this day and Happy Easter.

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

 

Snowflakes

Inside and outside.

Here is where I was with my Snowflake Runner by Piecing the Past Quilts before the NCAA Women began their playoffs today.  All 72 of the little leaves are now in place.  Tomorrow I will trace, cut and shape the 18 bigger leaves that go on the end of the spikes.  Then all that will be left is the 18 diamond shapes. 

I will then have a flimsy.  

The runner and I have been talking as it has been stitched and I think that I have an idea on how it will be quilted.  It should not remain a flimsy very long.  

I would take another picture of the leaves finished except that this has been a very dark day.  We began with snow and ice.  It then warmed up and it has been raining all day (which began as sleet).  Now we are back to snow.  There has not been a lot of snow accumulation and the melt or water is running off the hills behind us.  It travels across the backyard and between our neighbor's house and ours and off to the road.  Thankfully (knock on wood) our cellar has stayed dry. 

Maybe tomorrow this will be a flimsy.  Shall let you know.  Enjoy your threads and may your weather be good.

Linking up to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.
 

Moving Along

The Snowflake Tablerunner appliqué from Piecing the Past Quilts is moving along.  The center snowflake has only six leaf shapes to go at the end of the spikes and then six diamond shape between the spikes.  When those are done, a snowflake will be complete.    

There is a total of 72 of the little leaves to make and stitch.  I cut out 24 for the snowflake that I am working on, shape about 8 at a time and then stitch.  Repeat.  Best Press and the mylar template are being used to make the leaf shapes.  Maybe I will get good at making these (hysterical laughing is heard here).

Stitching of one shape for all three snowflakes is being done before I move on to the next shape.  

There have been other projects worked on this week, but I am not remembering what.  (The mind, sigh.)  

Linking up to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  Thank you for the visit and enjoy your threads.

 

Appliqué

Block5: Pair of Golden Eagles from A Bountiful Life is almost done.  All that is left is to embroider the eye of each eagle.  It was fussy at the end but not as bad as I was dreading.  Should have finished this long ago.  Now to mark the next one which will be Block 7: Birds with Snacks.

But, before that is getting marked, I am stitching the "spokes" on my Snowflake Runner from Piecing the Past Quilts.  I started this by forming the "spokes" over a mylar template.  

Then they would be stitched onto the runner.  It did not go well.  They are so tiny, skinny.  They have been placed by needle turn appliqué. 

The "spokes" look much nicer to me.  They will be finished up today and then I will either begin leaf shapes or there are diamond shapes to make.  Those are large enough that I will try making the shapes over the mylar templates.

Enjoy your threads today.  Thank you for taking a look at what I am stitching.

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

 

Feet

Not what I expected to stitch on this week.  

For some reason Block 5: Pair of Golden Eagles from A Bountiful Life was screaming at me.  It had been longtime ignored but the leaves and branches were starting to get stitched.  The feet were next.  Ick.

My cousin Kathy had done her eagles' feet using a suede fabric and I really like how they looked.  She had given me a piece of the suede.  Tried it and did not like it.  Hers looked so much nicer.  (Forgot to take a picture before the feet were removed.) 

Next, I used a brown cotton and did the needle turn appliqué technique.  Still, I was not happy.  So, I pondered.

Looked through my books on appliqué hoping someone would give great directions on doing bird feet.  Nothing specific but good ideas.  I took Pellon #950 fusible nonwoven interfacing and fused it to the back of my brown material.  (That is a one sided fusible.  For some reason I did not want to fuse it to the block.  No sure what my thinking was.)  Then the feet were traced and trimmed.  The buttonhole stitch was used to attach to the material.  Happier am I.  Not perfect but done.  The body was stitched for one of the eagles and more leaves placed.  She still has to have her eye stitched on.  

A closer view of the feet.

Below are the first feet that I made with the cotton, needle turned appliqué.  They did not make me happy at all.  You can see the piece of fabric with the fusible interfacing on it.  The left feet will be removed, and the new ones stitched in place.  Then the body can be stitched on, then more leaves and branches.

 

Block 5 will be done (maybe today).  My slow stitching on a Sunday and then back to the snowflake runner.  I am thinking that a person has to use all the techniques for appliqué.  

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  Enjoy your threads and thanks for looking.

Snowflake Runner

It has been an interesting week.  Monday, we left at noon for Boston as my husband was having a knee replacement at New England Baptist the next morning.  Tuesday we were there at 0530 and his surgery began at 0800.

For the next five hours, I appliqued the ovals on my Piecing the Past Quilts: Snowflake Tablerunner.  There were several of us in the waiting area, but I was the only one doing hand work.  

At noon my husband was in his room, and they had him walking with a walker by 1500 (3pm).  We left the next day at noon for the three-hour drive home.  He is doing very well.  Physical Therapy has been in to evaluate and work with him.  This knee replacement recovery has been, knock on wood, so much easier and faster than the other knee eleven years ago.  51 hours door to door turn around.  

Faster than any hand work project that I have ever done.  Today, after a run to Dunkin for him, I will prep the three center circles and start on the snowflake spokes.  

Husband will be doing his exercises and walking in circles in the house.  It is 15 degrees out at the moment so not sure if he will make it outside.  A warmup is to happen later in the week.

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  Enjoy your threads.  I surely do.

 

Hello

Well, I was not here (the blog) for the beginning of February, and it is half over!  I have been working with my threads but have not kept a good record of what I have done.  Here is what I remember.

A Bountiful Life (Civil War Bride) block #5 has been worked on again.  This is being done as needle turn applique and it is fussy.  That is why it was sitting in its box.  There are branches under leaves, leaves over the eagles but under the branches.  It was just too fussy for me, but I have a goal and it will get done.

Another applique was started, and this one is not being done as needle turn.  This is the center of a snowflake design.  There are three snowflakes on this table runner from Piecing the Past Quilts.  Each individual shape is made and then stitched onto the fabric.  Enjoying stitching both, not sure which technique I prefer.

A new cross stitch from Moira Blackburn was also begun, Season and Time.  This 52x33cm, about 21x13 inches.  I don't have bars long enough to hold it as a horizontal shape, so I am working it sideways.  Interesting way to read the pattern.  May that have made sense.  

I am at a bit lost with no football to stitch with.  Will have to work on a new, soon to be spring, routine.  Today is grey, windy and 26 degrees out.  

May you all enjoy your threads.  Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

Squirrel, Mats

Kathy, my cousin, is one of the Tuna Quilters.  She read my post from last week and sent me a picture of her mug mat that I had made.  Two mats were made to try out the postage stamp background as postage stamp quilts are now fascinating me.  They still fascinate me and keep churning in my mind.

Another squirrel came to visit last week.  But it didn't stay long.  A package from Shabby Fabrics was delivered to our mailbox Wednesday night and I didn't know that it had arrived until the next morning.  This is from their Tea & Cookies for Two mat series.  If I see something and I like the material, I will order the kit.  I picked up the mail at 10am and the mats were almost finished by 3pm.

Friday, we had a visit to Boston, so no stitching of any type was done.  Yesterday I finished the binding and then buttonhole stitched around the inside border.  Some in the ditch stitching needs to be done.  These are tea and cookie mats as they are 9.5 X 15.5 inches.  The placemats I use are 12 X 17 inches.  I do like a larger place mat.

Two football games today.  I need to figure out what I will be doing for slow stitching.  Enjoy your threads today.

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

 

 

Squirrel and Frog

On January 3, 2024, Jo at Jo's Country Junction announced that she is starting a Stitch Along.  It is Kind Words Never Die from Heartstring Samplery.  This is a small that I really like.  So, I have joined in.  The Stitch Along begins on 1 February but I started mine on Friday.  That is the Squirrel.

The Frog.

As I said, this is a small.  Stitch Count: 74 x 73.  On Friday evening the words and five flowers were stitched.  Yesterday afternoon I stitched two more flowers and found out I was off one stitch, and it wasn't going to match up.  I had to look over the entire pattern to find out where I was off.  See the circle to the left.  The flower was one stitch to high.

So, the Frog went into action.  Thank goodness for football.

It has been restarted properly and I will keep better track of my stitches (she says as her fingers are crossed).

This was a more productive week.  I made two mug mats using a postage stamp background with a snowflake applique.  I gave them to my Tuna Quilter friends and forgot to take a picture.  Still thinking of that quilt.

My socks have been finished and have survived a wash.

 

My Slow Stitching today will be finishing my small and then I have another stitch waiting to begin.  The sun is out, a bit windy, and we are starting our day at 3 degrees.  I know other parts of the USA have it worse.  Please all be warm, safe and enjoy your threads.

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

 

Postage Stamps, Finish

Mary Etherington at Country Threads Chicken Scratch has been showing gorgeous postage stamp quilts.  Kari Schell at On Point Quilter Blog has an entry on the making of snowflake mug rugs.  The mug rug background was the postage stamp.  Postage stamps have been fascinating me since.  I decided to try it out with two mug rugs.  Yesterday I cut my strips, sewed them together, cut them apart and sewed them together again.  Here is my start.  The snowflakes will be made today, fused on, batting and backing.  A bit of machine stitching and they will be done.  

The idea of a postage stamp quilt fascinates me still.  Thinking, thinking.

This table topper from Shabby Fabrics was made last year.  The hearts were only fused on, and it needed to be finished.  So, I decided to machine buttonhole stitch around each heart.  My machine was making skipped stitches, and I didn't like it.  It was taken out and while watching the first football game of the day, I did the buttonhole stitch by hand.  

Haven't decided if I like it but it is done and done is always better.  I need to keep remembering that.  And, to remember, as my Tuna Quilter friends and I say, it is not going to Houston (as in the International Quilt Festival).

When the six hearts were done, I still had time on my hands.  I have been knitting myself a pair of socks (traveling project).  I am a toe up knitter for socks.  Back in 2020 I found an article from 1999 about the Sherman Sock.  The toe is started flat and then it turns into the toe cap.  I have it printed out and guard my copy very carefully.  Then I knit as a tube and put it waste yarn for my peasant, or depression, heel.

I knit both socks at the same time.  Here is the other one with the heel made.  

The heel was made before the leg was finished as I want to use up all this yarn and wasn't sure how far to go to not run of yarn for the heel.  The other end of the yarn ball was my start for the heel.

Knitting time was over and the second heel will be the first thing I do with football today.  

Enjoy your threads today and stay safe.  

We have been rainy, dark and gloomy but not the blizzards found out west (would like to have some snow) or the waves that were hitting the coast of Maine causing flooding and taking out buildings.  

Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

 

2024

Good morning.  We were in Maine for Christmas with two of our girls and their families.  We met our first grandchild, and she is wonderful.  (Aren't they all.)  We are all so blessed.

The edge of the Nor'easter has given us only one inch of snow.  It is snowing more now than it did all night.  They promised us 6-12 inches but, so far, not there. This will be our second measurable snowfall of this winter.  As I may have said before, the snow is the water for our well.  I love the stuff.

Hand quilting has begun again.  Don't know why I leave it for longish periods of time, but I do.  So close to the end, and I had a summer, fall pause.    

156 hours of quilting time has been done to this point.  A written record is kept on when and how much time.  (I also write notes of something I heard on a podcast.  That is an Author's name and book written on the lower left.)

My sewing machine hasn't been running since we came back from the holiday in Maine.  But I am hand stitching.  Here is a new small, Give Thanks Always by Tina Richards Herman at Shepard's Bush.  It is made to be a pincushion, but I really have enough.  Wanting to turn this into a small, framed stitch.  Thinking of doing it myself.  Shall have to watch floss tube and see how others complete their smalls.

This is also to be a pincushion, but I want to frame it.  Or turn it into some other type of small.  

The scissor fobs will become fobs.  I never knew how useful they were until I made my first.  Now I can find my scissors easier when I am stitching in my chair.  Doesn't mean one doesn't hide on me and I have to use a second pair.  But they are easier to find when I stand up.

May you all stay safe and warm wherever you are.  Enjoy your threads.  Linking to Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.