tatting and a broken leg...

 

 Been working on tatting doilies lately... A nice, relaxing hobby, I've discovered! :o) These two doilies are both available in my Etsy shop. :o) They'd make great gifts, this Holiday season!

 Part of the reason I've needed some stress relief, is that Lizzie broke her leg! On the FIRST NIGHT of basketball practice! Tripped up with another girl, going after the ball. (Lizzie always gives 110%!) Broke her tibia, down by the ankle, thru her growth plate and into the joint! The "athletic trainer" at school told her it was just a sprain. Luckily, I didn't go off of her opinion...!

So, a cast for 6 weeks. Has already had xrays twice, to make sure nothing is shifting as it heals. If it shifts, she would need surgery! She is miserable in the cast, the poor dear! She is so independent and really hates to have to ask anyone to do anything for her! I told her, enjoy it while you can! :o)

I also went a few weeks ago and got my "Paraprofessional Certificate" so I can apply for Teacher's Aide jobs. Hopefully something will open up in our school district soon. AND, I'm going to start my first semester of college (online) this coming spring! Ah, nothing to be stressed about at all... Back to my tatting! :o)

knitting bag

My new knitting bag! Notice the knitting needles for the top row! :o)
I used some chunky yarn that I had on hand, just randomly making the stripes. I had seen a pattern that used knitting needles for the top row, so I copied that... :o) This would also make a good purse, since I used chunky yarn, it's really makes it have firm sides...  Now I can carry my knitting projects around in style! :o)

Operation Red Kitchen...

 



Our kitchen is going to get some re-modeling in the future, but I wanted to show my RED display... :o) This is in the pass-through between the kitchen and our living room. (It's supposed to be the dining room, but we are using it as the living room.) I saw one of these old kitchen scales on Pinterest, and decided "I can do that".... So I searched Etsy and found a reasonable priced old kitchen scale, and painted my own flag on it. I LOVE the way it turned out!

So here's my little red area, so far... An enamelware pot, rolling pin with red handles, nut grinder, small sifter... A wooden star that Lizzie painted for me... My scale, and my "pie"... I made this ceramic piece of pie back in Jr High (I think) Art... I don't like pie, and I guess it's cherry cheesecake, but it goes perfectly with my red display... :o)

in-between-everything-else project :o)

This "Rainbow Stars" quilt was a free pattern from McCall's Quilting, and with my love of star quilts, and that pink background, I was hooked!

I chose a soft Kona pink for the background (similar to quilt pattern) and then these fabrics will be my stars! The solids are Kona cottons, the prints are from the "Barefoot Roses" by Tanya Whelan line! :o) This is my "in-between-everything-else" project... :o)

sewing!

Finished up this customer quilt - I used the "Pow Wow" pattern, in just two colors, Kona Wine and Kona Willow, with Kona Sand for the background. I really love working with Kona solids!

My customer is giving this quilt to her future daughter-in-law's parents, as a wedding gift... :o) 

I like the way the hand-quilting turned out! :o) She's picking it up tonight, I hope she does too! :o)  

I wanted a little quick-easy project after that hand-quilting, so I made this little bunting... I've seen them all over the web, and have wanted one for awhile! Goes perfectly on the new quilt rack that Jim made me! :o) This hangs in my sewing room! :o)

lots and lots going on in August....!

First off, we finally MOVED! Hooray! It's been a *long* road (I won't bore you) but we are finally in our new house! I showed pics of it in the late spring, that shows how long it's taken... Couldn't be happier tho, now that we're here! :o) It's been less than 3 weeks since we moved in, but it really already feels like home! :o)
Oh, Jmmy in this picture -- this picture is right after we signed the papers, and Jimmy wanted to go play in his room immediately, but I told him that I wanted this picture taken "first", so we'll always have this moment... So yeah, he was mad.... At least we'll always have this cute story to tell... :o) 

Here is my old window, that I re-did with the chicken wire -- my new inspiration board. This is hanging right above my sewing machine... I've already added more things to it, since this pic was taken a couple of days ago! :o)  

This is an old dresser that Jim re-finished for me, that I'm using for storage in my sewing room. Laurie made me that wonderful red train case - I have all my trims and ribbons in it. And an old colander for some of my yarn... :o)  

Also this month, David got his braces off! SO handsome, even if I do say so myself! He'll have to wear a retainer for quite awhile, but that's ok with him... :o)

And I've already been sewing in my new sewing room! This is a custom quilt for a friend of my sister's. It is throw size, and will be hand quilted... :o)

And last but not least, school started today! Anna, Elizabeth and David are Freshmen this year! (And even in Drivers Ed! UGH!) and Jimmy starts all-day Kindergarten tomorrow! Oh, where did my babies go!?!
So hopefully, now that we're getting settled in, I'll be back to sewing and crafting, and be able to post more... Thanks for hanging in there with me! :o)

One old window frame... :o)

A little project that will go in my sewing room at the new house... An old wooden window frame, minus the glass. Put chicken wire behind it and then add a little "frame" to the back to make the chicken wire be away from the wall a little bit. I have an assortment of mini clothespins, and this will be my "tack board" in my sewing room, for ideas, fabric scraps, kids drawings and notes, etc... :o) I love it! :o)

P.S. In this pic, it is sitting upside down, and the original hardware hasn't been put back on it yet... :o)

still waiting...

Still waiting to move, our closing date has been changed to probably mid-July... It's ours, it's just that the darn paperwork takes so long... So today I did a little retail therapy. :o) Found this amazing PINK enamel bowl! It's quite large, about 16" across by 5" deep! LOVE! :o)

Father's Day 2012

This is my post from Father's Day 2009, but it is just as true on Father's Day 2012, so I just thought I would re-post it. Everything is the same, just a few years later. It's now been 4-1/2 years since Dad passed away.

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Father's Day is an emotional day for me. On the one hand, I am a lucky lady, for my children have a wonderful Dad. I couldn't ask for anything more for my kids. Jim came into our lives when the trio were about 5 years old and anyone that didn't know, would never know that he isn't their *real* dad. (The trio are 11 now, so he has been here for most of their lives at this point.) And what is a real dad anyways? I think Jim is more of a real dad to the trio than anyone else. And then Jimmy came along... Which just added to the joy of our family!

And on the other hand, Father's Day makes me sad. I lost my Dad to a heart attack, a little over a year and half ago. I still miss him desperately. It has been harder than I ever could have imagined, and I am still not sure that *it gets better*. I was the youngest girl of three, and Dad was the one person I could always count on. He never judged, he just loved me. Jim is alot like my Dad. :o)

So Happy Father's Day to my dear husband, Jim, and Happy Father's Day to my Dad.

new purse

Finished up my new purse this afternoon! I'd made one of these for myself before, with pretty much the same print but with a cream background. Of course, now it is very dirty, so I decided to make myself another one with a dark background... LOVE this rose fabric! The pattern was purchased from HERE. Thanks for visiting! Back to packing... :o)

inside pics... :o)

I thought I'd share some "inside" pictures of the house we are buying. The closing date should be June 15th and as you could tell from the previous post, we are SO excited. These pictures are from the realtor's site, and still has some of the previous owners furniture in them... This house was built around 1900, and still has all the hardwood trim (UNpainted) and beautiful hardwood floors!

This first picture is of the living room. I think it's supposed to be the dining room, but it's the "central" room on the first floor, and we want it to be the living room... :o) The doorway with the red curtains - that's the "cigar room", which will be my SEWING ROOM! WOO HOO! On the very left of the picture, you can see some of the built-in, from the living room side...



This is the built-in, from the kitchen side! LOVE!

This is upstairs, this will be the boys room. Right now they have it set up as an office... It's an aqua/teal kind of color, that actually grows on you... :o)

This is the largest bedroom, which will be the girls room. Two 14-year-old girls, really need alot of "space"... :o)

Back downstairs, this is another view of the living room. Notice the light fixture, that's part of why I think it's supposed to be the dining room. I'm 5'2", and just barely can walk under the light fixture... :o) The "red" is the foyer, a lovely deep red color, and the big open door-way features pocket doors which lead into what we will have as the dining room... :o) The living room (and the girls room directly above it, upstairs) have the bay wall, with 3 large windows... :o)

This is "the other way" in the living room. Pocket doors to the left, open staircase, perfect for displaying quilts and family photos! And the kitchen door to the left there... :o)

Back upstairs, this is the front bedroom, which will be our room.

And back downstairs, this will be our dining room. Nice large room, with lots of windows... :o)

There ya have it, a virtual tour! I've been studying all the photos, deciding what will go where... Speaking of that, look what Jim bought me! It's going in the sewing room! Yeah! :o)

Ours!

This is one of the things that has been occupying my time lately, we've been trying to get a home loan. (We currently rent.) And today, we got a YES! This is OUR house, next month! Hooray! :o)

Nervous knitting... :o)

Nothing "bad" but alot of nervous knitting going on around here lately... This uses fabric scraps, knit into a rug! :o) I found the instructions here. It looks kinda funny in the pic, since it's all on one knitting needle, it's scrunched up. I think it will be about 24-26" wide when laid out flat... :o)

When I was a kid, my mom crocheted an "outside rug" made out of bread bags... Think that will be one of my next projects, when I've collected up enough bread bags! Recycling at it's best! :o)

Mother's Day

This was our Mother's Day present to my mom... She has a cat that she loves, but is truly a dog lover at heart... This is a miniature beagle... She doesn't have a name for her yet... :o)

Roses...

Not much sewing going on around here, so I thought I'd show my rose bush that is out front of the house... I do NOT have a green thumb at all, but this rose bush seems to like the alternating rain and sun that we've been getting lately... :o)

Romantic Floral Spools Quilt and Pillow Set

So much going on around here, no time to blog... Doctors, house hunting (that didn't work out! Very disappointing!) and school and life... But I made this "Romantic Floral Spools" quilt and pillow set to put up for sale in my Etsy shop... Love the colors in this - my mom calls it Victorian... :o)Thanks for sticking with me... :o)

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to all my blogging friends! He Is Risen!

hectic...

It's been pretty hectic around here lately... Jim was off work for 3 weeks, with sinus surgery. And the kids were off last week for Spring Break... :o)
I started knitting on this shawl this afternoon. It's "reclaimed" sweater yarn that I found on Etsy. LOVE it! I think it will be for my mom. She broke her shoulder last fall and I was thinking this would be nice to "throw over her shoulders" rather than trying to put on a jacket... While I'm knitting, I'm trying to decide whether she would want fringe on it or not... :o)

Row Swap

This is my starter row for this year's Row Swap, scrappy red/white/blue is my theme! I purposely left things a little wonky and not necessarily the same size, to use up bits and pieces of fabrics that I had... :o) I can't wait to see what the other gals come up with for their rows! :o) 

Flimsy Friday...

Here's what I finished up for this week's "Flimsy Friday"... :o) It's a rag quilt using the girl-y fabrics from the "Wanna Be a Cowboy 2" collection... I just love making rag quilts! Such snuggly goodness!

I also made this little bear "pillow" this week, using a piece of a Lone Star cutter quilt. Love, love, love this! :o) Both of these are in my Etsy shop... :o)

zippered pouches

I saw some zippered pouches like these in a magazine recently, and thought I'd try my hand at them. Just made up my own pattern... They're fully lined, and measure about 5" x 6". I made 5, and put these three in my Etsy shop... :o)

Heart Quilt

Just finished up this Heart Quilt for mom. Another kit she bought, and asked me to put together for her. I love the colors in this one, of course. Had to do a few modifications, because some of the pieces didn't "add up" but all in all, I love how it turned out. A bit of hand quilting on this one... :o)

tube socks for Jimmy

I decided for Jimmy, that I would make "tube socks" rather than socks with a heel, so they're quicker to make, and easier for him to put on! :o) So I got out one of his socks and went to work... A couple attempts later, success! :o) The only thing I did NOT take into consideration, was I laid out his sock flat, well, that didn't account for the heel that was on the original sock, so the ribbing goes down way to far onto his ankles... But he LOVES them! That's all that matters! And now I know exactly how to make them for next time! :o)  

Not bad, for only starting to learn to make socks about a month ago... :o)

socks....

Been busy with a different sort of project lately.... Knitting socks! :o) Anna's pair is done, it's the pink and purple pair. I made one "test sock" because all I've done is knitted a "regular" scarf before, and then these socks of Anna's are my very first pair! :o) Not bad, if I do say so myself! :o)   

And this is the first sock for Lizzie - gonna start on sock #2 today... :o)
Life's been pretty hectic the last couple of weeks -- dr appts, etc., so socks have been a nice take-along project... :o)

not perfect, but done!

It's not perfect, but it's done! :o) This quilt is what's been taking up my time for the last couple of months.... LONG story, but basically, it was a precut quilt that my Mom bought and asked me to put together. I actually started with a green colored kit (same pattern) but unfortunately, it was a poorly cut kit, and even after carefuly piecing there was no way those diamonds were going to fit together! So this pink/purple version is actually kit number 2! It went together better, but certainly not perfectly. I ended up making the center star and center ring and then applique-ing it to a large white sheet. Then some hand quilting. It's about 82" square. I like it, pretty much, but boy am I glad it's done! :o)

butterflies

Even tho they are calling for a couple of inches of snow here in Central Illinois tomorrow (we can't complain, we have only had one dusting of snow so far this winter!), there are Spring butterflies in my sewing room! :o)
I made these cute butterfly ornaments with vintage chenille and vintage quilt pieces, to sell on Etsy. They have a clothespin for the body. I love how they turned out! Hopefully it won't be too cold for them, now that it's supposed to snow! :o)

you shouldn't be surprised...

You shouldn't be surprised that I chose "ROSEBUD" pink to paint a few pieces for my sewing room.... Any die-hard Singer fans (like me, even tho I don't have any old Singers), before you cuss me out for painting a Singer cabinet... I only painted it because it was in really rough shape. It was given to me, missing the machine, and already painted... So, what's a girl to do?! Have the kids paint it Rosebud pink for her! :o)  

We also painted my fabric cabinet to match. It used to be an old stereo (the top opens up for the record player) but it's missing all that stuff, so it's been my sewing cabinet for years... Love, love, love the color! 

And look at these SEW CUTE knobs I found to match! I'm a happy girl... :o)