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.

A bit slow

Slowly I have been getting back to threads.  But it has only been hand stitching.  I took a look into my cave, and it is a horrid mess.  My time in there has been spent cleaning, going through stuff, sorting and tossing out what is not needed or wanted.  (Tossing out means finding it a new home elsewhere.)  I have found WIPs that I barely remembered.  My list of to-finish projects has just become longer.  I can't buy anything for at least ten years.  (A bit of an exaggeration, but not by much.)

I am stitching my third piece from this pattern.  The first two have been stitched, but neither has moved to the finish stage.  I cannot start another stitch until I get some finishes done.  Will I heed my words?

This may be turned into a birth stitch.  The name of our Grand-daughter and her birthdate to be stitched across the bottom.  Hmmmm.  Then it will have to be finished.

Her first Christmas stocking is complete.  Sewing this together made me nervous.  I really didn't want to mess it up.  That was a crazy sensation as I have been sewing as long as I can remember.  The pattern is 32 years old and from Current stationary.  

May you all have a wonderful day with your threads.  My cave is calling me for a bit and then football and slow stitching.

Linking to Sunday Slow Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.

 

November, gone!

November has come and gone.  I am so glad.  I did nothing as I had a head and chest cold that had me totally unproductive.  I had all I could do to catch up with my nose, it was running so fast.  Don't feel bad for me, as a retired Nurse Practitioner, life happens.  I have felt better this last 2 weeks but have just started to get into my threads again.  Energy coming back. 

Gibbs and Ziva are enjoying their heated bed.  They would keep me company whenever I was laying down. 

I would like you to meet Margie, the cactus.  She is the Thanksgiving cactus on the right.  She belonged to the sister of my friend Cal.  After Margie, the sister, passed, she was given to me.  She is a wonderful bloomer.  That is Margie Jr. on the left.  A branch fell off and another was started.  I need to give Margie a trim, cut her back a bit.  I am told that Margie could never get her to bloom like this.  I stick her outside all summer until the cool weather begins.  (All my cacti are out for the summer with monitored neglect.)  She is a wonderful bloomer.  I have five large cactus, four different colors and six babies of different growth size and add two other colors.

This is what I have done in November, and it was done after Thanksgiving.  From Shepard's Bush, their Thankful Bag.  I need to sew on the buttons and stitch the pincushion and scissor fob.

Our first Grandbaby was born early December.  Here is her first Christmas stocking.  Today I will stitch on the lace and then put it together.  We will meet her for the first time for Christmas.  We have video spoken with her and her parents.  If I may say, she is beautiful.

I thank all of you for having your blogs.  It was so nice to visit when I had so little energy.   

May you all enjoy your threads today.

Linking to Kathy's Quilts and Slow Sunday Stitching.

 

Two Squirrels

As they say, "Winter Is Coming".  Wednesday, we had 3 inches of the wonderful white stuff land on the deck (and the yard).  It packed down to one inch by evening.  We can still see bits in the shade areas under some of the trees where the sun is not warming it.  I guess I better bring in the last of the birdbaths and that pot.  There are also two chairs on the deck that need to come in.  On the list for tomorrow.  

My blackwork squirrel has caught me.  It is 100 little squares, and each square has a different center pattern.  18 count Aida cloth and stitched with one thread of DMC Black.  Not much left to do.

Another squirrel came into my life, and it just had to get done.  But it isn't quite finished.  This is the Autumn Bag by Shepard's Bush.  The buttons need to be stitched on and then it will be done.  I love these project bags and couldn't resist.  It has a pincushion and scissor fob that go with it.  They have not been started and are being made to wait until the blackwork stitching is done.  

I wish I could show you some quilting getting done but that energy is lost at the moment.  It will come back, and it better be soon.  To be fair to myself, other stuff has limited my stitching and sewing time.

Today I hope to be close to finishing the blackwork.  Then the Autumn pincushion will be set up.  

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

 

Squirrel, NewTool

Good morning.  I don't have much to show.  This week and last, I have been a bit unsure what I should be working on.  

I found a new to me tool that I am very happy with.  The Binding Needle from Primitive Gatherings.  Somehow it jumped into my order when I was online shopping somewhere.  I have always stitched my quilt bindings with a short needle and been happy.  I tried this to stitch the binding on the Dino quilt.  I started with it and did about six inches.  Thought it was too long and switched back to my usual needle.  I was surprised that the stitches made with the longer needle were smaller and looked better.  I went back to this needle and did the entire binding with it.  I was really pleased with my stitches, and it is now my go to needle.  I just have to get used to it being longer as I would stick my left thumb every once in a while, and it eventually looked a little bit like a pincushion.

I have been following Clare Bradshaw at The Steady Thread.  She has been doing a 2023 Botanical Blackwork Stitch-a-long that is gorgeous.  I have done Blackwork once before and have always liked how it looks.  I am interested in doing her Stitch-a-long but have held myself in control.  She has this smaller Blackwork pattern that caught my eye.  It is called 100 Days of Tiny.  It will not take me 100 days.  Sorry the picture is so dark.  It has been a dark rainy day, and the light is starting to set.  Can't say sun as there hasn't been any all day.

I am back to hand quilting on my 3030 Quilt.  Don't know why I put it into timeout but maybe it is me that was in timeout.  I am so close to finishing it and I want something else on the frame.  Good thing that I took pictures in the beginning as I forgot where I was going.  Lesson learned.  Keep a written pattern or path.  I don't want to unroll it.

I have not forgotten my sheep.  I need to finish blocking and do a bit of unknitting.

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

A finish

The first Grandchild is expected to arrive at the end of November.  Our daughter is a geologist and enjoys dinosaurs.  She had seen this material back in 2022.  She goes by one of my rules: if you see a material that you think you would like to use in the future, buy it.  It won't be around forever.  (I don't have a big stash.  Just some special material.)

She picked up this dinosaur material with a purpose in mind.  A quilt for her first baby.  In July 2023 she looked at quilt patterns and picked Feathered to a T by Mary Etherington and Connie Tesene at Country Threads.  (They are no longer in business, but you can follow Mary at Country Threads Chicken Scratch.)  The quilt was stitched together by me.  We then chose a flannel sheet backing and cotton batting.

A special machine quilt pattern was desired.  Dave's Dino's by Urban Elementz.  I hope that you can see the three different dinosaurs that are the pattern.  I want to thank Stacey Gilfillan at Little Gilly Quilts for her wonderful work.  She is such a delight, and we are so pleased.

The quilt is now a finish and will be given away today.  We still have a bit of time to pass before we meet the newest member of our family.  

Now, to focus on another project to finish.  My Dirty Dozen number 11 slot has the sheep blankets (a slot for the third time).  Also, more leaves have gone on to the CWB Block.

May you enjoy your threads today.      

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

Dirty Dozen, Squirrel

I am very pleased to say that my Dirty Dozen number 4 slot is all appliqued.  Here is Block 6: Hospitality Table from the Bountiful Life Quilt (also known as the Civil War Bride).  The fringe still needs to be stitch on the bottom of the tablecloth and that will be done today while watching football.  Block completion.

Block 5: Pair of Golden Eagles has been started.  This block has many leaves, several vines and the two eagles.  Here is where two evenings of stitching has me.  Stitching will continue.

Jo at Jo's Country Junction had a stitch-a-long that began on 20 September. These are Redwork Pears by Annie Beez Folk Art.  They were stitched on a 36-count linen and with Classic Colorworks silk thread.  Once I started, I couldn't put them down.  Now they are a stitched squirrel.  Shall have to work on getting them sewn together.

The cooler weather has moved in, and it continues to rain.  My hummer feeders are put away for the fall/winter.  I won't put up the seed feeders until the middle of December.  

Linking up to Kathy's Quilts and Slow Stitching Sunday.  Enjoy your day with threads.