A NEW WOOL PASSION

I have been missing in action from this blog but all is well.  I just celebrated my 63rd (egad!) birthday without any major trauma.  Like Sweetie says, it is better than the alternative.  Yep it is!

In the last couple of months I developed a new passion – felted wool applique -- which proves you are never too old to learn.  Presenting my first completed project, HO, HO, HO.

My "masterpiece"

The pattern is from Sew Unique Creations.  It is supposed to have wool pennies around the outside but mine didn’t come out even so I left them off until I can figure out a solution.  My stitching is not very consistent in spacing and length but I think that will get better with practice because I've never done a blanket stitch before.

Pattern photo from Sew Unique Creations

I’m currently working on two projects.  The first is for Valentines Day,  "Hearts & Flowers"  by Granola Girls.

Pattern Cover

I’ve got the wool pieces cut out and ready for placement and stitching onto the background.

The second one is a pattern from Threads That Bind called "Gentle Breeze".  It is the sheep weather vane at the top of the pattern.

Pattern Cover for Gentle Breeze

Here it is on my design board with the plastic overlay placed.  I’m working on the tongues now.



Have no fear, I have not forsaken quilt making, but have extended my interest to this needle craft.  My Janome has been to the sewing machine hospital for an adjustment and cleaning so she is ready to hum.

We in North Central Texas are enjoying a beautiful sun shining 80 degree day so my apologies to my snow covered New England readers.  Let’s just keep on stitching snow or shine!

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CHIRPING EASTER GREETINGS FROM ME TO YOU

May your Easter be full of blessings and love, with Easter baskets and colored eggs, and a gathering with your family and friends.

Art provided by GraphicsFairy.blogspot.com

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A STITCHING IRISH LADY FOR ST. PADDY'S DAY

Image courtesy of GraphicsFairy.com

Even if I’m not Irish, I like St. Patrick’s Day.  It’s the one day that a Scottish/English gal like me can pretend for the sake of my Irish husband.

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FROM ME TO YOU

My niece and her husband had their second baby – a girl – earlier this week and we are celebrating.  So to them and all my blog readers,



Best wishes on Valentine’s Day.  From me to you.

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WELCOME 2014

The end of 2013 has been a trying time for my husband and our family.  His father was hospitalized with pneumonia the day after Thanksgiving.  Since then he has had several set backs and still is not home.  The rehab hospital will take over in the next few days so please keep us in your thoughts.
Please join these pugs and me in ringing in the new year.




May there be more sewing, good health, and good times in 2014.  Look at it this way:



Best wishes to all of you on this upcoming year from this VERY rich person,

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CLUE 3 OF #CELTIC SOLSTICE QUILT

We are working on a mystery quilt designed by Bonnie Hunter from Quiltville.  This clue contained all half-square triangles,



with part of them made into pinwheels.


I used triangle paper to make the HSTs.  I printed the 1 1-2” finished patterns from www.quiltingandwhatnot.com onto Papers For Foundation Piecing by That Patchwork Place because it tears away from the fabric so well. If you choose to use the triangle papers that I used, be sure to tell your printer to print normal pages (not shrink to fit) then measure the 1” square box to make sure it is printed accurately.  

There is a fantastic tutorial prepared by Gretchen about how to use printed triangle papers she drafted to make perfect, accurate half-square triangles.  It can be seen HERE.

Be sure to visit Bonnie’s Quiltville blog to see other quilters’ progress and fabric choices.

On the Christmas front, I am anxiously awaiting arrival of several gifts I ordered, praying that they arrive before 24th.  Apparently the ice storm we experienced in the North Texas area for several days last week has backed up the sorting and delivery of packages from the Dallas distribution center. 

OH NO!

Until next time, keep on sewing.

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ODE TO JOY FLASH MOB

Some one shared this beautiful video with me last year and I want to share it with all of you.  Just click on the web address below to watch and listen to Beethoven's  "Ode to Joy" performed Flash-Mob style at Plaza Sabadel roc, Barcelona , ESPAÑA.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbJcQYVtZMo

PECAN PIE DISASTERS

 

Just finished baking two Thanksgiving pecan pies and they smell so good.  But one of them doesn’t look as good as the other.  One looks perfect but the other one boiled over a bit onto the cookie sheet under it for protection.  That one looks like I sat on it but it’s going to Mom’s anyway. 

Best wishes for the U.S. Thanksgiving day and beyond,

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WHAT IS LABOR DAY?

Here in the States we celebrate Labor Day the first Monday each September.  I wasn’t sure exactly why so I had to research the history on the Internet.

In the 1800s, the Industrial Revolution was in full force with the average American working 12-hour days every day of the week in order to make a living. Children also worked because they were cheap labor and there were no child labor laws. [I'm glad I missed this era.  We think we have it bad now.] Because of the long hours and less-than-ideal working conditions, labor unions became more prominent and started pushing for a better way of life. Their efforts included going on strike and establishing a more public presence, which led to Labor Day.

President Grover Cleveland signed a Bill in 1894 creating this annual commemoration of the workers and their contributions to the American way of life and improvement in their working conditions.

Currently Labor Day is celebrated in cities and towns across the United States with parades, picnics, barbecues, fireworks displays and other public gatherings. For many Americans, particularly children and young adults, it represents the end of the summer and the start of the back-to-school season.

Unfortunately it is not yet goodbye to summer here in North Texas since it’s over 100 degrees still.  There will be NO outdoor activities for me on this holiday.  I'm a "wuss"when there is extremely hot weather.

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PATRIOTIC HOLIDAYS ARE FUN

Celebrating the 4th of July calls up many happy memories.  The family is almost always together.  The 4th of July rodeo in the little town where Mom grew up, the little south Texas town of Rocksprings, Texas first comes to mind.  The parade with a Rodeo Queen on her horse and on a float, an elderly lady who was proclaimed Pioneer Queen.
The rodeo was held in an outdoor arena.  That is the only type of rodeo I had ever been to until we moved to the Fort Worth area in 1967 to discover they have BIG indoor rodeos too.  I just couldn’t believe it.
Where I live now, there is a parade, fireworks, and entertainment here in the once little, but now BIG town.  I’ll forgo the fireworks and band.  It’s too hot and the mosquitoes so vicious that I’ll stay inside.
Speaking of inside, this is my patriotic quilt display used for the 4th of July and Memorial Day.

The quilt on the wall I made using Jo Morton’s star fabric.  The one on the quilt rack below is an antique that I purchased from E-bay several years ago.  I just love it.

Hope all my American readers have a happy 4th.

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A WORLD WAR I MEMORIAL DAY HONOR

Over the past year and a half, I conducted genealogy research on my family and learned about the tragic death in France during World War 1 of James (Buster) Biggs, my half-first cousin twice removed.  He was 22 years old.
o

Biggs Airfield is located on Fort Bliss, which is in El Paso County TX --- the extreme westernmost corner of Texas. " On 25 January 1925 the field was officially named "Biggs Field" in honor of Lieutenant James Berthes "Buster" Biggs, an Air Service officer from El Paso killed in World War I. Lt. Biggs was an El Paso native killed in a plane crash 27 October 1918 at Beltran, France. On June 30, 1926 the original Biggs Field was closed and Camp Owen Beirne was renamed Biggs Field" -- source: Wiki. Read more at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biggs_Army_Airfield ALSO SEE: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/biggs.htm which says, "On January 25th 1925 the War Department officially named the field for LT. James Berthes "Buster" Biggs. Biggs was a native El Paso aviator who had been killed in 1918 when his plane crashed at Belrain, France. Lt James Berthes Biggs, left an El Paso bank to enlist at Leon Springs in May, 1917. He was commissioned a short time later and sent to France with other air officers. Lt Biggs met his death on October 20, 1918, after serving meritoriously with the American troops."

Today I honor him as well as my Grandfather Eric Lomax (WWII) for their service to our country.

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THANKS MOM

Photograph taken by John R Rogers in 2008 near Ennis, Texas.   (CC BY 3.0 US)

Everybody knows that a good mother gives her children a feeling of trust and stability. She is their earth. She is the one they can count on for the things that matter most of all. She is their food and their bed and the extra blanket when it grows cold in the night; she is their warmth and their health and their shelter; she is the one they want to be near when they cry. She is the only person in the whole world in a whole lifetime who can be these things to her children. There is no substitute for her.   ~ Katharine Butler Hathaway

You did it right, Mom!

With love,

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TO ALL MY BLOGGER FRIENDS

Happy Valentine’s Day to one and all!

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GREETINGS AND GOALS FOR THE NEW YEAR

A vintage postcard

As the new year approaches, I do not plan to make resolutions.  However, I do want to set out some goals for 2013, including:

• Going through my numerous projects and catalogue as to stage of completeness.  I’ll probably do that on Excel.  Then I can see what I have and what I want to work on next or what kits or fabric I need to sell off.
•  Work on the genealogy  on my grandmother’s side of the family, both Sutherland and Buswell.
• Sew more and watch less television.  TV is my downfall.  I love watching old black and white movies on Turner Classic Movies (TCM). 
• Become more active in my guild, meet new people, take more classes.

 There are more but these are my most pressing ones.

I managed to make a few quilts during 2012 despite my weaknesses including:

12 Days of Christmas Doll Quilt

Brackman's 2012 Civil War Quilt - not yet quilted

Baby Emma's Quilt

Hurricane Sandra Relief Quilt

Sisterhood of the Traveling Triangles - not yet quilted

So all was not lost.

Here’s wishing you a healthy, happy, and productive

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THE PARTY’S OVER

Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday are over.  All the family has gone home.  No more leftovers, thank goodness.  What have I been doing?  Nothing much since I had some stomach problems for a few days, but I’ve managed to get the Hurricane Sandy charity quilt tied and ready for binding.

Since this is a flannel quilt, both top and bottom, and it clings to the wool carpet in my den, I did not do a traditional pin baste.  I used heavy books to hold the sandwich in place and it seemed to work out perfectly.  It’s a little hard on my neck and back, but I need to stretch.  Lots!!!!!
Right now I’m cooking a pot of pinto beans and a pan of Mexican Cornbread using my mother-in-law's recipe.  You know it’s an old one if it calls for a No. 303 can of creamed corn.  I had to look that up on the Internet to see what that is in today’s can sizes.  I hope all the other ingredients work alright.  We will have to just wait and see.

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FAMILY AND THANKSGIVING

“In truth a family is what you make it. It is made strong, not by number of heads counted at the dinner table, but by the rituals you help family members create, by the memories you share, by the commitment of time, caring, and love you show to one another, and by the hopes for the future you have as individuals and as a unit.”
― Marge Kennedy

Can you tell I love old stuff, i.e. the vintage postcards and especially my husband?

Here is hoping you have a truly blessed Thanksgiving with family or those who feel like family.

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HALLOWEEN, HURRICANE SANDY AND THANKSGIVING

This title is a bit crazy but I just downloaded some pictures that were on my camera which cover several weeks worth of happenings.

Halloween 2012 was celebrated at my mother’s house as usual.  Roasted wieners, chili, chips, dip, and lots of deserts.  Here is the best picture of my niece, her baby, and her niece all dressed up for trick or treating.

Trinity, Kayce, and baby Emma

Aren’t they the cutest little witches you ever saw?

Mom already had her table decorated for the Fall with a table runner I made for her a few years ago.  She collects chickens and is a retired floral designer so she set up a darling little table vignette.



Unfortunately, my dining table is never cleaned off enough to decorate it for the seasons.  There are always newspapers, mail, and “stuff” on it all the time. 

In a response to a call for quilts and blankets for the Hurricane Sandy victims in New York and New Jersey, I am making a colorful flannel quilt.  I’ve had the fabric for several years just waiting for an appropriate use.

Oops!  layout error!

My trusty helper Ranger

Top Assembled

I’m working on the backing now and will tie the quilt rather than quilt it due to the immediate need in NY and NJ.  Quicker is better in this case.

That’s all  for now.

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