Mid-week motivatioin

Today started out really rough . . . the brand new alarm clock didn't go off and we got moving 45 minutes later than usual. The only one this really stresses out is Honey Do because it starts his whole day off wrong. Me . . . I just go with the flow. I took care of the dogs, packed lunches and got Newton off to school.

It's raining and chilly today. A good day to get some chores and crafting done. So in between chores, that's what I did.

First up, one of my Christmas gifts.

Making progress, I'm on the second skein of yarn.

Next, I started the next block of Bethlehem.

This is Block 6

Next up, the Tilda quilt blocks.

I had to stop, I ran out of floss. :(

I did prepare a couple more with some modifications. 

The blocks seemed to be too big, so I added some additional appliques to them.

And finally, Quilt Doodle :)

This is Block 2. It's going together a lot faster and more precise than Block 1 did. I should be able to finish it tomorrow.

I ordered some fabric the end of last week . . . it arrived today :)

It's part of a bundle revealed here. The bundle was all fat quarters and I don't usually buy bundles because I don't know what to do with them. So I did some searching and found that I could purchase them by the yard, so I chose my two favorites and got a yard of each. You can purchase either or both here.

It's been a good day, albeit, a little soggy.

It's been raining off and on since Tuesday evening. Just steady, nothing severe. But there's a lot of water standing and draining from the back yard again.

I had to run out for bread last night and found these beauties on a clearance table at the grocery store.

I love spring bulbs.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

Show and tell

BFF and I try really hard to get together at least every other week. This was that week :) It was a good day to do it. It rained off and on all morning, so neither of us had to choose between a visit and trying to get some yard work and gardening done.

We met at our usual meeting place - McDonald's. We catch each other up on what we've been working on since our last visit. Lucky girl finished a quilt. We started them almost two years ago. Hers is done, I'm still trying to decide how to finish mine, which translates into I really don't want to work on it just yet :)

Once we finished sharing and eating and visiting, we ran to the local craft/fabric store. It's a local company but they've gotten pretty big so it's convenient but not necessarily our first or favorite choice. Today I did find a few pieces to add to my collection.

The two blacks and small grey print were only $2.50/yard, so I got a yard of each to add to my stash.

 

"He is Risen" was an Easter clearance. I hadn't seen it on any of my other trips. Convenience makes it easy to go to this store, so I go fairly frequently. Anyway, I have a project in mind for this one.

I'm going to incorporate it in this design by Jenny of Elefantz. She has very generously given this pattern to us at not cost. You are linked up, just click on her name.

 

Once I got home, I worked on this pin cushion/caddy. I'd painted this several weeks ago and have finally put it together. The black/white fabric is one I picked up today. It's made from a paper box. The lid had a raised butterfly, but I didn't like it, so this was a great way to cover it and get something very functional out of it. It's also going to be a Christmas gift and go along with a larger box that will hold basic sewing supplies. 

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

Weekend update . . Monday off and running

I love my weekends when the things I planned actually get accomplished. My plans and accomplishments lined up this weekend.

I finished the Tilda house I'd been working on for the last couple of days.

I started the snowman block, this is number two in a series that BFF and I are working on together.

I worked on my Quilt Doodle mystery quilt. Block one is finally done !!!

It's not perfect, but I'll get better as I go and get more comfortable doing the piecing.

I worked on the rag rug. I found this pattern on Pinterest as a no-sew project, but I didn't like that method so as I got time on my sewing machine I would sew the strips together and drop them in a bin.

Saturday I decided I had enough "yarn" to start crocheting on the fabric rag rug and made some good progress on it. I have to make more "yarn" before I can continue.

I'm always amazed how randomly used strips of fabrics can make something pretty. The color variation is working out perfectly.

Mom came for a visit on Sunday. She usually brings something to work on while we visit and chat. She forgot this time. I started this rug in January and have kept busy with other projects so I hadn't gotten back to it. 

Mom finished it for me except for the binding all the way around which I finished after she left :)

Mom needed some yarn for a friend who is making dish cloths and hot pads for a bridal shower and this little rug reminded her, so we ran to my favorite local craft shop and got some. I found this beautiful variegated cotton and started another bath rug. These colors will match BFF's bathroom so it will be a birthday or Christmas gift.

Mom showed me the pattern, it's called a waffle pattern. Quick, easy, pretty. Can't go wrong.

And finally, I picked up some silk flowers at the same shop.

Mom made this beauty years ago (she thought 30+) for a home-based party company that sold stitchery kits. This was one of her samples and was given to me several months ago. I washed it and have been wanting to hang it up. I'm very pleased with the arrangement and will get it up in the next day or so.

Monday morning came around extremely early - 4:30 a.m. Honey Do had a business trip planned for the day and left about 5:30 a.m. I tried to lay back down because I had a headache, but I couldn't go back to sleep. I was back up at 6 and Newton was up and getting ready for school.

Once I had the house to myself, I started laundry and hit my craft room.  I began by sewing more strips together to make yarn for the rag rug.

Then I cut out and started sewing the second block from the Quilt Doodle mystery quilt.

I am amazed at how quickly this block is going together. This is a cabin. I should be able to put the roof on and finish the sky tomorrow.

So how productive was your weekend and Monday? We are expecting rain all week, so I won't be sharing my time with the garden and yard. Looking forward to a very productive week.

Thanks so much for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

Friday Night Sewing

Another dreary, overcast day....

It rained off and on all day. Whatever weather system this was managed to give me a headache, so I wasn't as productive as I would have liked. But I did managed to get some things done.

I started out by going to the office supply store for copies to start on my One Christmas Gift a Month commitments. I've been gathering supplies for one and found a tutorial for the other. I also spent some time researching a few other gift ideas on Pinterest for future planning.

This is going to be a sewing kit and pin cushion. I painted them last weekend. They are the chipboard boxes you can pick up at any craft store.  You can find the tutorial here. 

Last night I pulled out my April goal list to make sure I concentrate on what I still want to get done before the end of the month.

I've spent quite a bit of time this week working on the Tilda quilt. 

This stack of pieces parts got cut out and ironed on today.

And now looks like this, all ready to stitch.  I need to get better at spending my days at the sewing machine and doing my hand work in the evenings when Honey Do and Newton are home. I may be able to find some time on Saturday to work at the machine, Honey Do has a project he's been working on in his shop, so I don't feel so guilty about time away from the family. Newton will go out and help him as much as he can.

I have my stash of movies from the library to keep me company. I also have several books on audio to listen to while I stitch to catch up on my reading.

One more thing before I go. . . 

While I was "shopping" Pinterest, several of the pins and blogs referred me to another website that I want to share with you.

http://www.freepatterns.com/

It does required a membership, but there is no cost involved, just your email.

Thanks so much for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative weekend.

Is it spring yet?

It didn't rain today, but it was another really cool day and more rain is in the forecast for the weekend. Time to get ready for some serious stitching.

And that's what I did today.

I cut out eight more blocks today along with all the applique pieces. I'll spend the evening cutting them out and pinning them on their backgroungs. Tomorrow, I'll iron them in place and they'll be ready for stitching. Should be another productive weekend.

Are you ready for the weekend? It's the last week of April, how are you coming on your goals for this month. Time to review and make some plans.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

Humpity Hump

It's been a very strange week for me. The weekend and Monday were so productive. Tuesday and today - not so much. It's gotten chilly again - I wonder if that is what's zapping my motivation?  Does the weather affect your creativity and productivity?

I did manage a few stitches, but not many. What I did get accomplished was making dinner.

Cheese/Bacon Breakfast Casserole

I used ham instead of bacon, since we have it leftover from Easter dinner. It was easy to put together and make ahead so all I had to do was put it in the oven just before dinner.

And I made cookies.

Brown Sugar Cookies

I called my co-teacher for Sunday School and the two of us went shopping at our favorite thrift store. We always find something and there was one final 50% off your total purchase coupon to use. That was all the incentive either of us needed. Here are the linens I found this trip:

 

a set of two appliqued napkins. They cost me $0.75 !!! for both

These were hand stitched. Look at the hems . . . aren't they gorgeous ? !!!

These are machine embroidered hankies, but they were too pretty to leave behind.

Sorry this isn't the best photo, all these buttons and beads are red. I purchased this t-shirt just for the buttons and beads. It cost me $0.75, and I can't buy the buttons and beads for that amount. I don't have a specific project in mind for them, but Christmas is coming and there will be something looking for red embellishments. The shirt is in the laundry to be washed and passed on to someone else. I was careful not to damage it.

Thanks so much for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.

How do you spend your Mondays?

After a weekend of everyone being home, and this was a three day for both my guys, I look forward to Monday for quiet "me" time. "Me" time has many definitions: time to do whatever I want; time to get caught up on chores and/or errands; time to catch up with friends and encourage each other.

I'm trying to change my routine - not that I really have a routine. I pretty much just do what my mood dictates. I want to get back to cleaning house on Mondays, throw in a load of laundry or two. Tuesdays I want to finish my laundry and start my sewing. Wednesdays and Thursdays will be reserved for Mom and BFF, but only every other week. On the "other" weeks, I will do yard work and sewing - depending on the weather. Fridays, I will do my grocery shopping and giving the house a thorough once over for the weekend.

So that's how I spent this Monday. I changed sheets, dusted, swept floors, did some laundry, took out trash. Surprisingly, things were pretty much done by 11 a.m. I started about 8 and just kept moving. It feels really good to have things clean and put away.

This is how Nina helps :)

Once my cleaning was done, I could move on to my stitching.

These are the remaining blocks for the first row of this quilt. Because we had a long, relaxing weekend, I could get alot of stitching done.

First row - done :)

 

Here are some detail shots. I've chosen to do the blanket stitch for appliquing the pieces to the backgrounds.

I'm finally making progress on the Quilt Doodles BOM. I have the first four blocks of this strip done. I have a lot of work to do on my accuracy, but to be perfectly honest, I couldn't make myself tear all this out to fix the obvious issues.

This is my very first real attempt at machine piecing so I'm plugging along and will learn as I go. Maybe I'll put snowflake buttons over the obvious problem areas. This will be a wall hanging after all, so I can embellish as much as I would like. And it might be kind of cute :)

Tuesday was less productive. I started my day by calling my cell phone provider to fix a problem with my emails. Once that was taken care of I went to the library, grocery store for dinner supplies and came home to nap. Once I got back up I still wasn't very motivated. I did some stitching on the Tilda quilt blocks.

On one of our trips outside, I checked out my blooming bulbs.

 

They look pretty good for having coming through that day of snow last week. I'm glad to see them. They make Tuesday's rain and overcast skies a little more bearable.

These grey skies are hanging over Lake Erie, about 10 miles north of my home. It was wet and chilly all day. Temperatures dropped into the low 50s, still warmer than it has been. So no complaints.

When I wasn't stitching today, I was purusing through my new Tilda book. So many projects, so little time.

Thanks for stopping by,

Wishing you a creative day.