A Stitching Update

Isn't this card so true!  The clothes pins are real, the quilt made out of fabric.  My bff sent to me.  And boy, that is something I say and live by...but stitching and quilting keep me sane, along with my friends!  My other favorite saying close to this is there's a fine line between collecting and hoarding...I border on that line but consider myself a collector as I can throw stuff out/donate items I no longer desire or need.

I know I haven't posted stitching update recently so thought I'd take a minute and show you what I've been doing when not quilting (or working). 

I have mentioned the sampler guild I belong to frequently - Kindred Spirits Sampler Guild.  I know I have blogged about the focus group projects in the past.  This year (until June, I think), many of us are working on various samplers by Moira Blackburn.  I chose the Keep Me Sampler because of the willow tree at the bottom - not there yet but I can't wait.  I changed up a lot of the colors, am doing it on 40 count linen I had in my stash and converted most of the dmc to sampler threads.  

I am loving this piece - even when I was doing the roof, usually too monotonous for me.  I am doing the house in "white chocolate" by Weeks Dye Works.  I love the variegation.    

Next up, Stacy Nash came out with one I just had to have, had to stitch.  I am going to make it into a pillow for my bench, I think.  Christmas at Hollyberry Farm.  Isn't she a pretty one?  My LNS had an anniversary sale for 20% off, I think, of  "kitted up" items.  Since they kitted it up, it's on the called for linen, called for threads (which I love anyway).  

Close up of Hollyberry's border - SWEET, don't you think?

Next up - another biggie I am working....why, oh, why do I have so many biggies going?  I haven't touched Ann Dale in forever!

A Maryland Inspiration by Heart's Ease....she is certainly a fun stitch!

A close up - that little motif just above the carnations is a bitch.  I think there are six colors in that bugger - and there are three different ones.  Three done/three to go.  The over one in the cartouche below wasn't as hard! 

A shot of the whole thing so far...I sure have a long way to go, but she is interesting to do with all the colors and vertical alphabet & numbers.  I am not even to house yet!

I am doing a smallish too - with no color changes.  I guess I consider it my easy stitch for nights when I need that needle and thread therapy but don't want to think too hard... Birds & Berries Antique Alphabet on a piece of sale/stash linen...with Gloriana "Topiary".  Copied the thread color from one of my friends, Paulette...she did this too and it was stunning!

I baked just a bit yesterday while preparing dinner for my peeps.  I had the last picking of rhubarb for the summer.  I decided to try a crisp (we always called it apple goodie and used either applesauce or fresh apples).  I chopped up the rhubarb and then put a brown sugar/oatmeal/butter mixture on the top - YUM!

My husband put a bit of ice cream on his last night (we only had chocolate chip - one of the few ice creams that I don't really care for that much) and I ate mine straight up....it was a bit tart, but d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!

Well, have to go get a shower and gather my stuff.  I am headed over to my friend, Robin's, to start a quilt we both purchased at the recent quilt show.  She bought the pattern and has tons of that type of fabric in her stash to kit one up for herself; I bought the kit.  We hope to get her fabrics picked out today and perhaps start the cutting.  I will show progress - and some other quilting items soon.

Have a great holiday weekend to my U.S. followers.  I know I sure am glad to have Monday as a paid day off.  Cooking out with the husband and maybe visiting with my sewing machine.  I love short weeks, but have to get payroll done in a short time (usually takes me Monday and Tuesday) and this week I only have Tuesday and I have continuing computer issues and the techs are working on my computer again Tuesday afternoon - wish me luck!

Do something fun!
Hugs,
Sherry :o)

Wow - Some Awesome Finishing & Awesome Stashing!

I have been stitching some, sewing some, reading some and writing a check for finishing...wish I could take the creative credit! 

I went on my first, ever quilt shop hop.  What a blast I had.  My friend Joan (one of that group I hang with whenever I can) and I could not go with the rest of the gals on Friday (drat that work).  So we ventured out on a misty Saturday.  Starting in Ann Arbor, we meandered until we were all shopped out! 

The first picture is of various fabrics I picked up at any one of the four shops.  I had a couple batiks in there, but mostly reproduction.

I have had my eyeballs on the quilt kit in the middle - that luscious stack of fabrics.  I can't remember the name of the quilt or the fabric line...I will give that to you when I cut into it and begin.  The book to the left had some really cool quilts that I'd love to make - SOMEDAY...I keep looking for "someday" on the calendar - haven't found it yet.  The tiny charm packs were Icicle Kisses by Kansas Troubles - Moda and were way.too.cute to pass up.  

The BBD first Loose Feathers from this year is out - my husband and I went to dinner at the Mexican place in front of my LNS - how convenient.  And guess what - they had my BBD chart, as well as, fibers and linen I needed for another project.  More on that later! 

 More shop hop fabrics - again, mostly Jo Morton.  That was the theme of the shop hop ... Journey to the Past.

These were the shop hop block kits.  I bought the finishing kit (to the left).  Each shop packaged them up a bit differently.  This will be a fun one to do, I'm thinking.

I have been stitching on quite a bit lately, in between reading, that is.  Oh yeah, and sewing.  I will post pics of the stitching next time as I really didn't have any good progress snaps. I finished the pinwheels and even put in my setting triangles with the pinwheels from the previous post.  I will be posting that soon.  I am thinking about taking it for custom quilting since it's pretty small and has 2.5 x 2.5 squares between the pinwheel squares.  I even mitered the corners, first time I did that.  May be the last!  I did that a Memory Manor during a one day quilt retreat last week.  Went there with Mary and Paulette - what a fun time that was.

I also put together a quilt I began about 10 years ago this fall.  How do I remember that, you may wonder?  I was at class on my 40th birthday.  I will be 50 this year.  I have blogged about it here and there; perhaps I will get it finished once and for all.  I have it put together with the first border.  Once I have the second border, I will try to remember to snap a pic before sending it to the quilter.

I started another of the Jo Morton Club 12 quilts the other night.  The LQS where I attend JMC 12 hosted  a sew-in Saturday.  I didn't finish anything worthy of pics; just a bunch of chained together pieces at this point.

Pictures of stitching to follow in next post, I promise!

So this weekend I received an email from Faye over at carolinastitcher telling me she had mailed me off some items I had sent to her for finishing.  It arrived tonight and let me say, I was so happy when I opened the box.  {edit - I have tried and tried tonight to get the link to work on her name http://carolinastitcher.blogspot.com with no luck} 

These are the four lovelies she made so much more than I could have imagined...!  I am bad - some of these are from a long time ago...so I don't know names or designers; but I will give it a shot.  The strawberries and birds - that wasn't so long ago I guess -  Needlework Press - freebie last year, Summer.  I did it with Belle Soie Tulip on a very random piece of linen from the depths of a drawer.  The robin was from one of the first retreats I attended probably 15 years ago.  It's a round robin by The Trilogy.  Didn't Faye just dress it up nicely, the wool leaves!

The two scissor fobs are so different but I love them both.  The strawberry came with the red scissors but check out the silver bead at the top.  And the cupcake is one of Amy Bruecken's designs.  So fun.  The scissors with that are perfect, pink case and all.  They were the gift from my sampler guild for completing this year's focus project (posted earlier - Margaret Cottam  by LaD Da).

Isn't that purple polka dot perfect!  Say that fast, five times.  The backing for the strawberry fob is so "me".

Inside the strawberry/bird is this - such a sweet wool heart with an equally sweet pin.  The backing fabric is perfect and the inside fabric - I gasped when I opened this beauty.

It doesn't show in the picture, but the gingham ribbon has a slight sheen and is quite lovely.  On the right side, where Faye's card is tucked, she stitched to have two pockets.  Perfect for the next little project.  I love, LOVE it, Faye!  Oh yeah, did you see the little silver bee on the bottom of the strawberry fob?

Tigers are on the t.v and winning {edit - so much can change while proofing...drat those Sox - now ahead by two in the bottom of the fifth - come on Tigers!!}...Cabrera hit a homer and in the fifth, they are beating the Sox.  I have to wrap this up.  I'd like to stitch tonight, but I don't think that's going to happen.  It's been a few whirlwind weeks at work and I am beat.  I finally have a handle on the insurance stuff, but now I have to catch up from all the piles that happened while dealing with open enrollment.  So far, so good on the work front.

Thanks again, Faye.  Hi to all my blog buddies - I have been keeping up with what's going on in your world, just not commenting as much lately.  Enjoy what makes you happy...until next time,

Smiles,
Sherry :o)  

Hello, Old Friend

It seems like it's been weeks that I have sat down to visit with my sewing machine.  In reality, just about two and a half weeks...but that seems like forever ago.  So after errands were run and groceries bought and put away, I had a bite of lunch.

Yep, it's that time of year for Caprese Salad!  Not my fresh tomatoes yet, but my basil.  And yummy!

Then I grabbed something cool to drink and headed up to these.  It's a Jo's Little Woman Club 12 pattern. This is where I left off when last sitting in this chair.

After a couple hours I had trimmed down my pinwheels and then started sewing them to the solid squares.   I ended up getting about eight squares put together - five pinwheels with four solids.  

I would have spent more time working on them, but my husband kept coming up to tell me what movies were on t.v. and asking what I was doing...my cue to wrap things up and spend some time with him. 

I have been stitching quite a bit but don't have a current snap.  I will get that for you next time.

Reading quite a bit too.  Right now I am reading a book called Megan's Way and although it is a good book, it is very sad. 

Work has been more than hectic.  We were bought out at the end of last year, we are moving all of our employee insurance to the new company's insurance - lots of work when you are the only H.R. person.  Now don't get me wrong; I am not complaining since I am thankful I haven't been laid off yet.  The unknown of that is nerve-wracking but I am trying not to worry about that.   Employees are going to be unhappy - new health insurance company (not as well known as the older insurance), more money out of pocket each year in deductibles and copays and of course, the cost to the employee is also rising.  I work with many people who are maybe not the healthiest and we are moving to a wellness plan which I think is awesome and maybe will motivate some...but people are people and there will be many complaints.  Anyway, could be an interesting week!

Make it a good one, everyone - and thanks for checking in!  I appreciate all my followers :0) and love that you are interested.

Stitch and do things that make you happy,

Sherry :o)

Happy 4th of July!! YeeHoo - A Few Days Off!!!

Happy Independence Day to my U.S. readers - and Happy belated Canada Day to those to the North of me!

 I've never seen the Statue of Liberty, but it's on my bucket list.  There are so many things in this good 'ole USA I wish to see...

Picked up a bit of framing.  This is Margaret Cottam by La-D-Da.  (there really isn't a crease in the upper right, it's the reflection-I didn't notice until I transferred picture). 

 Boy, this was a fun, quick stitch.  It was a focus project for the sampler guild I speak of often.  I had already decided to stitch it and had started...didn't change a thing either...quite unusual event, not changing at least one color.  Here is a close-up of her frame. 

We have had rain, rain and more rain.  I can't believe the amount we've had when so much of the nation is dry.  My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the firefighters in Arizona.  My heart just hurts watching/reading the news reports.  My Dad was a firefighter for as long as I could remember and I remember even as a small child being afraid he wouldn't come home.  I knew it was dangerous...

Remember my BEAUTIFUL roses?  This is what they looked like before the rain - only multiply the bloom clusters by about three - this year it was spectacular and like no other year...

Here are at least a third of the blooms now.  There are still lots on the bush, but they look tired and sad.  It is so waterlogged, the limbs were almost laying on the deck during the three or so days of rain.  It is still pretty, but only from a distance now.  I don't know if  it will perk back up as it drys, time will tell.

 I have shopped just a bit...picked up two pieces of linen from my LNS.  They were on sale.  One is Iced Cappuccino and the other a tan color - can't remember the name; both are overdyed.  My LNS had a "kit it up sale" during the month of their birthday sales - I had them kit Christmas at Hollyberry Farm by Stacy Nash Primitives.  I am still waiting on the linen but the fibers and pattern are gorgeous.  I also picked up a BBD and then the new Lidya book - yes, the corrected copy.  I love the snowpeople on LHN's Season of Love and the newest designer I'm loving - The Nebby Needle - that's her Heritage Sampler on the bottom right.  I am thinking on the cocoa linen in Margaret (above)...with some of the same colors - hanging them together...what do you think?

Also picked up some silk for a JBW sampler design; now I just have to find the pattern again.  The scissors in this pic were a finishing gift for the focus project - Margaret Cottam.  The little pattern is a quilt pattern I just couldn't pass up - thinking batiks, dark background with bright, popping colors!  Don't you agree?  It's called Confetti, perfect name, I think.  I am thinking I will do the Silent Night as an ornament...on small count linen.  I also picked up a quilt kit - Paris Flea Market with fabric of the same name by 3 Sisters.  It's is full of soft colors and has a country cottage feel.  I forgot to take a pic...I will be sure to post some progress as I think I will be starting that one soon.

See the rose petals - after I sat on the deck to take these pics, I had them stuck to my shorts, my legs, my feet.  My poor dog is dragging them in on his feet and his nose.  When he sniffs them, they are sticking to his nose and then he sneezes.  Hopefully with the sweeping I did this a.m. (before the humidity creeps to unbearable), some of that will stop. 

Sorry no stitching update pics.  I post next time.  I have been stitching but part of it was ripping out A - H on the Maryland Inspiration sampler, I was off by about eight threads - Grrr!

I am doing a bit of housecleaning this a.m., hitting the parade, making lunch preparations for tomorrow.  I took a much needed vacation day and a couple friends are coming over to stitch.  The group of about a dozen women get together a couple times a month at each other's houses and since my husband works nights, sleeps during the day, I usually can't host.  I decided to take advantage of his absence and invited my pals.  Unfortunately most of them are busy with traveling, family, etc. with the holiday weekend...but a couple are coming and I can't wait. 

My husband went to Virgina to visit his sister and her family for the week.  Michigan is humid, too much for me most of the time.  I elected not to go Virgina for a few reasons (work was one) but knowing it would be much more humid than home in the summer, I was not going.  He comes home Saturday, so I will be heading to the airport that afternoon.

Sent some items to Faye for finishing this past week.  I am excited to see her creativity.  I only had specifics for part of the items, the others I asked her to use her thoughts and such.

Well I have to get a cake in the oven before it's too hot and vacuum this house (rose petals and dog hair abound)  and take off to the parade.  I hope whatever you choose to do today, it makes you happy!  If you have a long weekend, enjoy!  I WILL!!  Thanks for stopping by.

Stitch lots,
Sherry :o)

checking in...

Hi there...

It's been a bit of time since I updated ... again.  Seems like I have great intentions and then by the time I do the things that have to be done (bills, housework, work, errands) and then time to cruise your blogs and check out the Internet, I run out of time.  Or I have time but don't have any photos snapped and ready to post on the blog.  Oh well, here I am now. 

I was a bit late with my Mom's present for Mother's Day.  I had the top done but wasn't sure what back she would prefer.  I then did the quilting myself - not liking doing that at all.  In this pic the top thread is a bit shiny - it's not like that in person. 

 The fabric Mom picked out for the backing and the tag...

 Have done just a wee bit of shopping.  Picked up a couple things from my LNS's birthday sale and a couple things from a not-so LNS's moving sale. 

 This one had some interesting grapes, some cool flowers - couldn't resist.

 Have done some stitching on Ann Dale (Shakespeare's Peddler).

 Close up too.   This one is beautiful but she is giving me some fits.  The flowers outlined with the darker pink, grey inside...were supposed to be grey only. 

This is how that turned out - not liking!  So had to rechart AND restitch the above after ripping them out.  It's on the called for linen, called for silk. Ugh!

Have alternated that big sampler with another big sampler - A Maryland Inspiration (Heart's Ease Examplar),  This center motif is queen stitch - one of my favorites.

Here is a full pic...ignore the q-snaps.  I did have a bit of a lag in this one - the eight and the yellow flowers along the side were too light and I had to figure out a different color.  Besides that, not much changing things up.  The blue peacock is starting to grow on me.  Jury's still out on whether he will stay.  It's a nice stitch thus far.

While outside snapping the pics tonight, I was surrounded by such a sweet, floral smell - this is what I gaze at from my stitching chair.  So pretty!  

 When I decide to cut some, I don't even have to arrange in a vase - they grow in a bouquet. 

Hope all you Dad's had a great Father's Day.  My husband wished to go out to breakfast and then requested creamed potatoes and hot dogs for dinner - boy did we get off easy. (It's something his Mom made often and I don't make often). Our son joined us for most of the day.  Watched "Identity Thief".  It was fun and lighthearted for a Sunday afternoon.

Not much else going on here...read quite a bit last month too - I read the "Dragon Tattoo" series.  Took me a bit to get into them, but once I did I went from one to another with no hesitation.

Hope you find time to do the things that make you smile and happy!  And as always, thanks for stopping by for a visit.

Hugs,

Sherry :o)