Sunday, November 27, 2016

Stitch Along Check-in

When last I showed you this small needlepoint Stitch & Zip case I'd only put in some of the background.


Since then I have begun to make the color changes I kept seeing in my mind's eye when I considered this project.


This is labeled as an English crown but I guess my Irish is coming through! Every time I looked at the design I saw an emerald green velvet cap surrounded by a framework of gold. I'm not quite sure what I'll do about the gem stones indicated. Since the background is white, pearls may be out of the running.

There are stitchers  around the world participating in this SAL. We check in every three weeks. It's amazing how helpful a deadline can be. If you'd like to get motivated in this way drop Avis an email. We're welcoming Helen to the group this time - welcome Helen!


See you in December!

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Thursday, November 24, 2016

Thursday Happiness

It's Thanksgiving Thursday here in the States. Our small turkey will be ready in a couple of hours. On Thanksgiving - and Christmas - I'm particularly grateful for my husband's willingness to roast a turkey for me because this panel pretty much says it all:


I'm very fortunate to have a husband who cares enough to go the extra mile for me. Even better, he makes me laugh. Like Elizabeth Bennet, I dearly love to laugh. He appreciates and supports my artistic endeavors too. Yup, I'm a lucky woman. ;- )

Another thing that makes me happy is completing a quilt top (bet you didn't see that coming!). Remember those pink Patience Corner blocks I started a little while ago? And then they took over and became a whole set for a twin size quilt? I played around with the traditional setting for those blocks but was never happy with the results.


So then I decided to throw caution to the winds and turn some of the blocks ninety degrees.


That didn't thrill me either. I kept moving them around and eventually stumbled on this layout:


And after some tweaking of block placements this was the result:


Yes, there's a narrow black border all the way around. The dots are tiny white flowers with pink centers. It couldn't be more perfect! I love a happy ending. That goes for the books and movies I most enjoy too. I'll have to be sure to cover those topics on another Happy Thursday.

To continue your journey on the happy train hop over to LeeAnn's blog to see what's making her happy this week. Oh, and have a warm and cozy Thanksgiving Day wherever you are!
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Thursday, November 17, 2016

Thursday Happiness

LeeAnn over at Not Afraid of Color recently began a series of posts on Thursdays in which she celebrates the things that make her happy. I've enjoyed her posts and thought it would be beneficial to follow her good example. I don't get out as much as everyone else so it might be a bit more challenging but let's start with...

Fabric for a new project!


This pile (or most of it) was recently acquired for a quilt for my daughter's father-in-law. This is going to be a fun quilt to make as it caters to my natural inclination to fussy-cut novelty prints. The prints reflect Tom's tastes and experiences in life. My plan is to feature them in more sawtooth stars. Part of the fun of this  project will be the fact that our tastes often run along the same lines. :- ) I'll have to show you some of the blocks next Thursday!

We've had a ton of rain and cloud cover lately. So it was a particular happiness when the skies cleared and the sun shone brightly. And then I heard the swans commuting overhead.


You might be able to see them better by double-clicking on the picture. That morning there was flock after flock after flock of them. They spend winters here, gleaning food from the fields around us where potatoes and peas and tulips and other good things are grown.


There are a couple of other bloggers who've responded to LeeAnn's invitation. Pop over to her blog to see who else is playing along and to see what's making her happy this week.

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Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Scrap Happy in November

I'm slowly recovering from the shock of the results of the Presidential election here in the States. In an effort to come out of the darkness I went to my LQS for some retail therapy. These are the building blocks I'd use if I were going to build any kind of wall!


My goal was to stick to the clearance department unfortunately. I did pretty well but didn't think to get any pictures for you.

Some scrap cutting and sewing has been taking place although not as much as I'd like.


Specifically for Scrap Happy Day I dug into my narrow strips. I've foundation pieced them onto batting scraps. The plan is to use them as pot holder backs. I'll quilt 8" blocks from my Parts Dept. to more batting scraps for the fronts.


Or maybe I'll just sew them together in pairs, right sides together, and have double-sided strings!

With any kind of luck I'll be able to show you the pink Patience Corner blocks all set together soon. In the meantime, to see more scrappy goodness pop over to Tall Tales from Chiconia or Rutigt for the full list of participants.
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Sunday, November 6, 2016

SAL Update

Sorry, folks, I've got nothing to show you. No progress on any of my handwork projects. Nada. Zip. Zero. Rien. But undoubtedly there are others who have accomplished lovely things in the last three weeks. Take a quick trip around the world to see what the others in the group have been up to!

Maybe by the time of our next check-in, 27 November, I'll have something to share. :- )
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