A Cherished Life

Farmer's Wife Fridays (partial tutorial) third block

2012-01-26T19:53:00.005-06:00

If you've been following along with my blocks, you will have noticed I am trying to take pics along the way of how I do them... you may have your own way, but I hope this may help beginner's who have a desire to try it out but are having difficulties.

After discussing with my sister, I thought it might be nice for us to "rate the difficulty level" from a beginner's point of view, so I'll let you know what each of us would consider it to be. Remember, we're doing the blocks in random order, but I'll let you know which ones we aim to do for the next week.

I would welcome feedback if you find these tutorials useful.

The block we chose for this week was #50, Honey's Choice.

Rating (for beginner): Somewhat challenging

The first pic shows a partial layout of how the block will be pieced together.... note in this picture I have only shown one of the corner blocks (upper left)... there will be 4 to complete like this...

I started with the block in the upper left corner and sewed my two triangles together (half-square triangles).... (you will need a total of 4 half-square triangles for each corner block)... I pressed my seams open...

Trim off the dog ears....

Here's a pic of the 4 half-square triangles as they will look prior to being sewn together...

Sew the top two half-square triangles together where the centers meet, then the bottom two together...

Sew these two together at the center, forming your first corner block.... the trick here is to get the triangle points to meet nicely in the center...

Do this for all four of your corner blocks....

Sew one corner block to the center rectangle where centers meet, then sew the other corner block to the other side... do this for both the top and bottom sections.... then sew your middle section by sewing one rectangle to your center square and then sewing the other rectangle to the other side of the square.... you now have three sections...

Now sew the top section to the middle section, then sew the bottom strip to the other side of the middle strip... your block is complete.

We rated this as somewhat challenging based on getting your points lined up nicely.

Next week's block is #44 Gentleman's Fancy.

For information purposes here's what we gave the rating to the first two blocks we worked on....
Contrary Wife: Easy
Mother's Dream : Easy

If you remember my first block, I happened to make two of them... one of them I have used in a little project, so check back soon, as soon as I finish it, I'll show what use it went to... I'm sure it won't be how you'd expect to use it!

Live, Love & Laugh!

Hugs....Heather

Farmer's Wife Fridays (partial tutorial), second block...

2012-01-19T23:46:00.008-06:00

The second block in the Farmer's Wife blocks we chose to work on was #58, Mother's Dream... I chose this one because I had an idea in mind that I would like to do with the block...

This block uses 4 templates, a square and a rectangle....

and two triangles (only one shown here)....

... but I decided that I did not want to use the template for the rectangle, and instead chose to make a strip and cut out the blocks that would be already made using this method... using the template would involve cutting out 8 rectangles, sewing each together (4 sew lines), pressing 4 times... by creating a strip I cut 2 strips, sewed them together (one line of stitching), press one seam open, then cut out the 4 blocks...

... as mentioned in the previous block, I like to press open my seams... first I finger press the seam open, then press with a hot iron on both sides... I like the flatness is gives...

... then I squared up the strip and cut out the blocks....

... for the 2 sizes of triangles, once again, I didn't want to use the template, so I cut out the appropriate sized squares and cut the squares diagonally to give me the triangles....

.... I started by sewing the smaller triangle to the strip block....

... then added the side triangles....

... this is what it looks like so far....

... sew together the center part of the block....

... sew the top and bottom triangle to the center part... block is complete....

... I decided to do two colour ways... the top block has an intended purpose which I can't share with your right now, but eventually you will see what I make from it.... (I'll try and get a better picture, the first block looks darker here than it actually is)...

Just in case you'd like to follow along, the two blocks we have chosen to work on next will be #44 Gentleman's Fancy and #50 Honey's Choice... starting with Honey's Choice for next Friday... hope to see you join us!

Live, Love & Laugh!

Hugs....Heather

Farmer's Wife Fridays (partial tutorial)

2012-01-13T20:43:00.011-06:00

The Farmer's Wife comes with a CD containing all the templates you will need to create the blocks.

Each template is on a page of its own... this was the one downfall I found to the concept of the book and CD combo, because you have to print out 106 sheets of paper, with each piece of paper containing pretty small templates.

You can download a zip file here which has files which have all the templates listed for each block... be warned though, this will require you to print 111 pages.

I am a recycler and I hate wasting paper, so I copied all the templates and combined them into as few sheets as I could, I ended up with 13 pages containing all the templates, a big difference!

My sister and I decided that we would not do the blocks in order, but rather, each pick a block and try to do one or both for the following Friday, if we only made one, then we would make the one we missed for the following Friday.

My sister chose Block #21 Contrary Wife, so that is the one we worked on.

For new wanna be quilters, I will show the methods I use in quilting, they work for me...

So finally, you get to see the colours I have chosen for some of my Farmer's Wife blocks...

...aren't they just delicious...

...speaking of delicious....

... no, I didn't just eat a whole package of macaroons... I pulled this out from my recycling bin
from which I created a template of my own...

... I wanted to have a clear template so I could fussy cut my fabric...

...this block only uses two templates....

... I took my newly made clear template, and I taped on a small piece of paper, to which I placed my ruler from diagonal corner to diagonal corner in both directions, marking a small line and where the points met, this was the center of my template...

...which I pierced with a pin...

...then I took a red pen and made the hole slightly bigger and left a small red mark so I could easily see the center hole....

...I took the template and positioned it so that the red hole was directly in the center of the piece I wanted to fussy cut...

...then I took my water erasable pen and marked two edges of the template....

...these would be my cut lines...

...then I took my square ruler and squared up the cutting area by placing the edge of the ruler against each of the lines, and then cut out the square using the new cut lines as my "squaring" up lines...

... now, as I mentioned, this block only calls for two templates... but I didn't want to cut "all those triangles", so I cheated and used the half-square triangle method instead...

...so, I cut two squares out of one of each colour of fabric...

...on the lighter coloured fabric, I drew a line from one corner, diagonally to the corner on the opposite side using my water soluble pen, then I marked two lines, one on either side of this line, at a 1/4 inch distance from the center line. Placing one square of each of the colours right side together, I then sewed directly onto the two outside lines....

...after sewing the lines, I cut down the center line....

...creating my half square triangles...

...I usually press my seams open as opposed to the well known method of pressing to one side... I prefer that my blocks feel like they are more uniformly even - I only press to one side on odd occasions when a particular join would work better that way...

...and there we have it, two perfectly completed blocks... whew, I actually made it for Farmer's Wife Fridays!

...I just love these colours...

...two blocks you ask... well, you'll just have to wait to see what I have planned for each of them...

Live, Love & Laugh!

Hugs....Heather

Thank you... more blogging tips... no pics here, warning, long post.

2012-01-12T15:03:00.008-06:00

Yesterday I wrote a post asking for help regarding blogging... and this reply to that post is a long (with no pics), but it is intended to share knowledge... I have a few other blogging tips on the sidebar because I have had people emailing me for advice, check them out.

This was a two-fold question and I could have been more clear, but firstly it was a matter of personal interest on my part because we all want to improve on what we do, I know I certainly do, and the second reason was because over the last while I have had some discussions with two other blogging friends regarding this issue, and another had questioned the number of followers she had... and when I searched the internet I found a lot of other people have asked the same question... and so I thought with so many people asking the questions, perhaps I could find something new out and to add it to my "blogging tips" category.

I want to thank KS and G for their input (and of course, my sis)... everyone has their own reasons for blogging and their own ideas of how to "encourage" traffic, and they both had some good points.

I'd like to pass on a few of those comments as perspective tips (I hope you don't mind girls, I'm not singling you out), and I'd like to share my own ideas in hopes it well help other bloggers (new or old) out or at least, give you food for thought.

As a web designer, from my perspective, I say a blog is no different than a web site... a web site doesn't mean as soon as you put one on the internet, you'll get traffic... no sirree... the key is marketing...

KS indicated she found forums to be a good source for generating traffic, so use them to your benefit if you are a member of one. I have only ever joined two forums, one of which I am still a member, but time wise, I just can't find the time to be on the internet for too long, but if you are seriously looking at increasing your traffic, then this is a very good source... thanks K.

Both girls eluded to topic, or defining the purpose of your blog. A lot of blogs focus on one thing, many focus on several things, but in general those topics should all be related. That is, if you are a quilter only interested in quilting things, that is what you will seek out in blogs and may be the only thing you blog about, but if you have many interests and are interested in doing many things, then that is what you will seek out, whether you look for individual blogs relating to that one thing, or a blog that covers many of those different things (like mine in the form of a variety of art topics, ie. needle arts or graphic arts)... you are not alone, chances are many other bloggers do/think the same thing. The world is a big place and we are all different, so the blog is basically an extension of you, and your virtual conversation with the peoples of the world. Put on there what you feel good about.

One of the biggest things I have found whether it is a web site or on a blog, is stats. Most people want to see stats, they want to see numbers grow, they want to see how many people "clicked", which pages were visited, and how they found the site/blog. In general, I always say stats are subjective... if you want to know the exact stats for every page, then basically every page has to be tracked, so a general counter won't always give you the true results... there are a lot of stat counters out there that provide a variety of information, so find the one that you feel is right for the information you are looking for... the only thing I check once in a while is to see if I have had traffic, that tells me people are looking. Like everyone else, I think comments are wonderful to receive because they help motivate and encourage, but they are not all that matters... I love the personal emails I get because the conversation is usually a lot more indepth... but if you are lucky enough to get any comments (emails or posts), then you know your blog has reached someone and there are probably more that you don't know about.

I also had two other points, one was "what's the point of what I am doing", and when someone drops your blog... I have answered blog posts of other bloggers who have asked "what's the point" and tried to offer them encouragement, so this definitely needed to be addressed. Both girls remarked in basically the same way... . for the first part - defining what purpose your blog serves... who are you doing it for... if it becomes a chore then it's not worth doing, to me, that's the main thing, so blog when you can, your true friends will still be there when you get back... I love the siggies that say "blogging without obligation"... and regarding the second point, like K says, don't take it personal... for me, I have removed blogs from my site because either they've changed the direction of their blog, or I have become bored with seeing the same thing all the time, I like variety... so we must keep that in mind when creating our blog. And I also love what G said, "I would think it difficult to please everyone" and that is the whole key, in everything we do in life, we never will please everyone, so please yourself first.

Finally, lots of pics, regular posts and positive posts... all good points, but keep in mind who the blog is for or what reader you are trying to attract, and the purpose of your blog... lots of pics are great, but they take a long time to upload or download if you don't have high speed internet. Regular posts, very subjective, is that daily, weekly, monthly (I'm trying to get better on this)... do what you can is my motto, when I take the time to read a blog, I will go through all back posts because if they post daily, I probably don't read it until monthly. And regarding positive posts, it is something I have said since I got into computers way back in the 1980's when they were just coming out and not everyone owned one... emails and posts are very subjective and is not the same as personal conversation face to face or by telephone... you cannot convey your emotions in an email or post and sometimes what we write does not read the same way it was intended to be said... so for everyone out there, whether you are a reader, poster, blogger take some of what you read with a grain of salt and don't make assumptions of what someone meant or was thinking, it may all be innocently intended (unless it right out says "I'm mad", etc.)...

Once again, thank you to my commenters, I would welcome more comments on this subjective, so don't hesitate to leave some on this or the last post.

And if you are looking for successful blogs... try looking at the magazine Artful Blogging, they've been out for a few years, I collected a few from the start, they are indeed lovely to look at and have some very good tips!

Live, Love & Laugh!

Hugs....Heather

I need help... can you help me?

2012-01-11T11:17:00.006-06:00

Okay... I've been browsing blogs, and I am sure like every other blogger out there, I am wondering how you increase readers, obtain returning visitors, maintain regulars, get comments left, build followers, and get your blog posted on another blog, ?

I mean, sometimes, you wonder, "what's the point of what I am doing?", and it's not just me, I've read this from other bloggers and usually we try to give them encouragement to keep on going.

I'd like to see increased activity from my blog, and happy readers, what should I do?

Is it:

Giveaways
Tutorials or how to's
Topic (ie. miscellaneous, quilting, art, cooking, personal stuff, etc.,.)
Lots of pictures
Less pictures
Shorter comments
Lots of posts

And what reasons would there be that readers don't come back to your blog, or you are removed from someone else's blog and you don't know why?

Is it:

Boring content
Not enough posts
Getting too personal
Competition

What other reasons for each one can you tell me? I'd like to know because I'd like to improve... I mean, I see there's traffic, but it's nice to know who's visiting and why... please help me!

Live, Love & Laugh!

Hugs....Heather

Watcha gonna do?

2012-01-09T11:02:00.003-06:00

Okay, in my last post I mentioned what my sister and I had planned for this year...

But the whole thing has gotten me to thinking... what colours to choose, which blocks to work on, which order to work them in, what to do with the blocks, and which letter to read!

But, Yippee!!!! I think I may have chosen my colours... but you'll have to wait until the first block is made to see them!

They are not what I had intended the first time around, but I like them.... of course... that's not to say I will stick with those colours... I guess it depends on what I make with these blocks, I might end up doing a variety of colours and then using the blocks for little projects... that, or I will get ambitious and do 2 blocks at a time if I can, that way, I will have one block to make a lap quilt, and one block to make another project!!

Therefore, I might pick and choose the blocks I want to do based on the project (that is, if I have a project in mind other than a quilt)....

I'm not sure what my sis has in mind... is she just gonna make blocks and then at some point put them together in a quilt??.... or does she have other plans??

Like I said, it's gonna be fun! Grab my button and add it to the side of your blog... I'd be honoured!

Here's till the next post in the saga of the "Sisterhood of the Farmer's Wife Blocks"!

Live, Love & Laugh!

Hugs....Heather

I don't do resolutions! What do you have planned for 2012? Care to join in on some fun?!

2012-01-01T12:26:00.007-06:00

Happy 2012! Wishing all my readers all the best in health, happiness and creativity!

For 2012 I am going to try really hard to be more creative, do what I really enjoy more and participate only in what brings me true happiness! But I don't do resolutions... I gave that up years ago when I realized they are sometimes just too hard to keep... but I did start a bucket list, somehow crossing things off a list seems like a more logical and manageable way of getting things accomplished.... and I've even gone so far as to make it public (check the side of my blog). What are you gonna do for 2012?

Don't you just love the thought of cold lemonade with strawberries floating in it, a fancy glass, and some pretty dainties, wearing a straw brimmed hat, sitting on the porch, rocking in a rocking chair... or iced tea that's sugary sweet, with fresh baked scones and home made jam... perhaps stitching on a hand made quilt that you just know the person who receives it is gonna treasure and admire it and keep it as an heirloom... kind of makes a person feel like they are living a simple life... or maybe they're just old!

Well, I can tell you... there's definitely nothing simple about my life... and... I'm not old... but I do love those things!

But when it comes to quilting, I have to say.... I'm not an obsessive quilter - that is, it's not all I do, I just have too many interests and I like trying "everything"... nor am I a traditional quilter, I tend to lean towards a more "whimsy" kind of quilting, so there are only a few "traditional" blocks that I tend to make... but... I've been intrigued by the flurry of activity going on by the younger generation in regards to the Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt... and yes, finally, I have decided to jump in on the band wagon... but why go it alone.... "sis, you wanna join me"! She has a rubber arm, LOL!, not to mention, she has quite a substantial stash of her own that she needs to get used up.... (I won't even mention that she's the older best sister! VBG)

So, we are starting what we're gonna call, the "sisterhood of the farmer's wife blocks"...

We're are both very busy gals, so we are just going to do what we can - no pressure, aiming for one block a week (more if we can, and of course trying to one up each other... tee hee - nothing like a little sisterly rivalry)... so, we're inviting all "sisters" to join us (not sisters literally, (but if you are a sister even better), but anyone who cares to join us in this activity for the year), you're more than welcome, and I'll even post your pics on here if you send them to me ... we don't know how many we'll make or how far we'll go, but our goal is to have at least one finished baby or lap size quilt (size of the maker's choice and how you "design" it, is your choice too - perhaps it will give us all a little inspiration) before proceeding on to more blocks... at least that way there won't be a lot of blocks sitting around for an eternity, collecting dust and becoming a UFO... we're going to do something with them! Our goal is strictly "motivation"... help each other actually get something finished, and have a little fun along the way... there, now that it's written down, there's no going back!

So, I am going to try to make posts on Fridays... I'm calling it Farmer's Wife Fridays... doesn't matter if you're a beginner or advanced, or what you use, (new fabric, stash, scraps, sheets, whatever)... the goal is just to get going on it and motivate each other... share our joys and our oopsies along the way... at the same time, we thought we'd "analyze" the letters that inspired the blocks... that is, compare the thoughts of yesteryear (1920's), with today, and compare how they relate to today's way of thinking, similarities or differences... embrace the "simpler" life of yesteryear, while thanking our blessings for what opportunities we have today.

So, if you want to join us, you'll need to purchase "The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt Book by Laurie Aaron Hird", which includes a CD of templates.. I bought mine from Amazon.ca for $21.11... doesn't matter if you start a little late... I don't think you'll have a hard time keeping up with us!

Eek! Did I say Fridays... does that mean I have to get one made for this Friday! No, we want to give anyone interested time to get their books... so, we're starting on the 13th... but, that means, we'll be behind one block for January... you can make that up anytime you want to... I'm going to keep track of when my sis and I get behind so we can see how many blocks we need to catch up on! (This is really fun 'cause I'm making up all the rules as I go)...

So, come join us... there might just be some little incentive along the way! I'll get a button made up for you to add to your blog... soon...

Egads... I just gave my sis permission to post on my blog... let the rivalry games begin!

And while I'm at it... here's a few peeks at some of the things I've got on the go... (just to prove that I am not at all sitting idle)...

... notice the two different types of FMQ on the same project... you get a completely different look!

... you'll just have to wait and see what it is...

Now... this was an oopsie... remember this needlecase/cushion I made just before Christmas.... well, I actually started the embroidery 4 times... the first time I hated what I was doing (I was "designing on the fly" which I most always do, ie. no pattern)... the second time I hated it again (I just wasn't focussed)... the third time I got this....

...all washed and blocked and ready to be used...

... and I really liked it... but... it was way too big for the hole that I hadn't created yet... so I had to start over gain...

... so this little gem is waiting to be used... any ideas what I should do with it?? I'm thinking the cover of a needlecase?

Then I've got this sitting in the works....

....hmm... wonder what it's for!!

And finally, Liz is also having a "SewingRoom sew along"... pop on over and check it out.

Live, Love & Laugh....Heather

Unplanned and designed on the fly....

2011-12-21T16:41:00.006-06:00

Okay, so last post I said I was going to do something just for me... well, I didn't literally mean "just for me", what I meant was do something that I didn't have to do, but just what I wanted to do....

I was browsing the internet a while back and saw a cute little pincushion/needle case... sorry, don't know where I saw it... anyway, there was no pattern or instructions on how to make it.... so.... and I knew I wanted to make one for someone special... so, I fashioned my own!

This one was made for a special someone's Christmas... don't think she'll read my blog... but if she does, she won't know it's for her, tee hee!

Live, love, & laugh!

Heather

All tied up!

2011-12-03T11:18:00.007-06:00

That's the sweetest complement one can get....

One of my students, the ever joyful Loreen....

left me a "Thank You" card after taking my beginner's quilting class (sorry Loreen, I didn't notice it until just recently)... and thank you to you to...

...and doesn't it just match the project colours she chose...

Pat, the faithful homework doer...

Was very pleased with her completed project... wouldn't you be... lovely, just lovely...

After I made this Christmas apron... a friend saw the second one I was making in red....

...and asked me if I would make another because she'd like "two red please"...

...same green straps... I love that these are very adjustable for size at the neck area.. (we small breasted chicks sometimes need to be able to "snug it up")....

Ample back ties...

...and just like my last one... did you notice that I actually fussy cut my pockets so you can't tell there's a pocket there (except for the ruffle of course)...

I'm not a big fan of doing commissioned items because as soon as I know "I have to do it", then I seem to not have fun anymore... I like creating what I want, when I want, because then I can design on the fly...

... but it did turn out rather nice, very sophisticated with the fabric choice....

...and it's completely reversible, just no pockets on this side, but wrap the straps, and voila!...

But, I've been asked for the pattern, so perhaps, when I have free time and I'm not feeling "pressured" into doing it, I might write one up, but that means I'll need to make another one so I can take photos of the progress, and to tell you exactly what I do...

But for now... I'm going to be creating a couple of things just because I feel like it (not to mention that I've had it sitting designed in my computer for a year or so)...

Stay tuned...

Live, love & laugh!

Hugs....Heather

One pattern, two designs!

2011-11-16T22:24:00.009-06:00

There's only one more class to go...

Students had the choice of either place mats or a table runner from my design...

Each student was allowed to choose their own fabric colours... the first step in quilting... choosing your own fabrics...

It was a small class tonight as a few couldn't make it, but here's a few shots of some of the students, and I'm very proud of what they've accomplished so far....

Susan's kitchen is blue and yellow and she's making placemats...

Rhia is the youngest student in the class, she's making the table runner and has chosen some wild colours that have turned out wonderfully together... she's already interested in taking some other classes...

Loreen and Pat are both making table runners....

Pat's choice started as a lovely green to match her living/dining(?) room and she ended up adding raspberry... she tells me she is very happy with her project... no wonder!

And Loreen didn't want anything brown! Her colours are nice and sunny :-)

Great job all!

Have you learned anything new lately?

Live, love & laugh!

Hugs.... Heather

Plum puddin'

2011-11-09T12:13:00.012-06:00

Can you believe Christmas is just around the corner? Where does the time go?

In the spirit of the Christmas season, I'd like to show you my first Christmas themed creation...

It is fully lined...

The pocket is also lined and features lovely "double" top stitching...

Fully adjustable for a variety of sizes...

Pretty ruffle detailing adds that feminine touch...

It's up for sale at $23.99 CAD plus applicable taxes, plus shipping. And you can buy it right now using PayPal. Just click the link below and this little gem can be on its way to you.
APRON SOLD

Also up for sale is my little girl's dress, size 6...

...below are the feature details (click image to see a larger view):

Currently on sale from the regular $60.00 CAD to 30% off at $42.00 CAD, plus applicable taxes, plus shipping. Click on the link below to purchase.

On another note, just a quick announcement for Bliss... commencing November 19 until December 17, Bliss will be open Saturdays from 11am till 3pm. This is a trial period only and hours for 2012 will be decided upon in the new year. Currently I will be closing Wednesdays at 4pm because that is class day (until the end of November).

Live, love & laugh!

Hugs.....Heather

An apple for the teacher??

2011-10-20T14:43:00.005-05:00

Well....

...it's not the first class I've ever taught, but it is now official... the first "beginner's quilting class" presented by Bliss Fabrics and Thistleworks Designs (brought to you by our local Arts Council) is set to run next week...

I'm still working on the class outline, and adapting the pattern which will allow participants to make either a table runner, or a set of placemats... the choice will be theirs... the only difference, one will have less homework, tee hee!

You might say, "class has already started"... I've already had some participants in to pick out their fabric for the kits I will make up for them... I feel it is more pleasurable when students have a say in what colours they use and what fabric designs they like rather than just given a kit that I put together for them... after all, my taste may not be their taste, my colours not their colours, and my design choices not their design choices... we all have some "ugly" fabrics in our stash that we procrastinate using, so why would I subject my students to that... so, with my help, they've gone through the process of "choosing" the fabrics... class has indeed begun!!!

I'm also in the midst of making up a quick beginner's quilt, of which I will make up kits with the exact fabrics I'm using, the kits will be available for sale in the shop and online... hopefully they will appeal to someone's taste besides mine :-) ...

...here's a look at the fabrics I've chosen...

... I have such a wide variety of taste in fabrics... but I do love the brights, especially for "little ones"... bright colours attract them so much... so, why not give it to them!

This will be a very very very simple design to get beginner would will-be quilters started on a small quilt...

Till next time...

Live, love & laugh!

Heather

It's all in the product!

2011-10-12T10:55:00.006-05:00

I'm constantly washing my hands! Don't you find you wash your hands more when you are "stitchin"...? So, I am always finding myself putting hand cream on... but, many hand creams leave a greasy feel, so when I'm stitching, I don't use any... but, I end up with dry sore hands, especially during the fall/winter seasons.

But, I've recently tried this new cream and I am very pleased with it... Stitchers Lotion, it does not leave a greasy feeling on your hands, so you can go right to work without leaving a residue on your fine needleworks. I have some in the shoppe.

On another note... I have been wanting a long/mid arm machine for quite a while now, but in the last month or so as I have been working on some of my projects, I have gotten back into FMQ (free motion quilting) on my regular machine... I never really did much FMQ before, just some minor stippling, or straight lines, but now, I have to tell you, I have done a complete turn around and I no longer want to own a long arm... I am loving what I am doing, and I am very pleased that I just saved myself husband thousands of dollars by using what I already own... I've been studying some of "the masters" work out there who FMQ on their home machines, and I have been so impressed that it has motivated me to stick to what I have and know (learning more along the way mind you)...

To this vain, I have come across several blogs who are advocates of the "Super Slider", and the "Little Genie Magic Bobbin Washers", which they say make FMQ so much easier (the washers are also available for long arm machines)... and I am going to try these products for myself...

The Super Slider is said to "let your fabric slide with zero friction" the smaller size fits home machines not inside a cabinet...

while the queen size fits machines inside a cabinet (table)...

The Bobbin Washers are said to eliminate the backlash and bird's nests on the underside of free-motion quilting when changing directions at high speed.

To read more on these products, check out the "The Free Motion Quilting Project" here and you can see Leah's video abut it, or you can find testaments from other FMQ quilters who use this product like Diane Gaudynski or Wendy Sheppard, all magnificent FMQ quilters (definitely master FMQ quilters).

I will be ordering these two products to test them out, so for all the local ladies who are taking Kathy's FMQ class, if there is enough interest, I will bring some in for the shop, but would need to know within the next week (deadline Oct 21) if you are interested. For me to order the larger size, I need to have a minimum of 3 persons (plus myself) (approx. $60 each), for the smaller size I need to have a minimum of 6 persons (approx. $30 each), and for the bobbin washers (home machine), I need to have a minimum of 12 persons interested (approx. $10 each), long arm washers are a minimum of 12 (approx. $12 each), or I can order 18 small washers and 6 big washers... If anyone is interested in ordering, I require a down payment of 50% (non-refundable) prior to ordering.

Hope to have more "stitchy" things to show you soon, but until next time....

Live, Love & Laugh....

Hugs....Heather

The colours of the season???

2011-10-04T22:20:00.007-05:00

Has summer finally gone?? I guess that depends upon what corner of the world you live... here in Canada it is on its way out, but in other parts of the world, it's really only on its way in... and so, in the spirit of it always being summer somewhere, I don't believe you always have to work in the colour of the season of where you live....

...take the time to enjoy summer all year round....

...here's my summer...

Live, love, & laugh!

Hugs....Heather

Fabric, fabric, and more fabric makes for changes!

2011-09-16T13:55:00.009-05:00

What you see above has just arrived in my shoppe...

...and no one can tell me it is all pink...

... there are yummy yellows....

...gorgeous greens...

... lovely lilacs...

...precious purples...

...outstanding oranges...

...captivating corals...

...and very beary browns...

... then, not shown on the table are these two delightful kiddie garden prints that go with a multitude of colours... and... the bottom one glows in the dark!!!

... then there are some fleeces... now, these make me mad!!! This is the first time I have had something shipped from this company... and while shipping costs are very costly to have things shipped here, if I was a bird, this batch almost made me lay an egg!...

... there were five solids and four prints... one print is wolves, very manly...

... the other three are kiddie prints...

... now you are asking why do these ones makes me so mad?!? Because it cost $500 to have them shipped to me (considered freight)... that means, to cover shipping I need to add $5 per yard to the cost, before I even mark them up over and above the cost I am charged per yard... I currently have a call in to the company regarding this... I am very disgusted... this is one of the things that makes me question whether or not I should even have my shoppe... after all, I certainly cannot compete with online businesses who are able to sell their product for $4 a yard... that doesn't even cover my shipping... one of those things that gives me food for thought to add to my list of all the other why I should or should not continue with a shoppe... if you don't run a business,then you really don't know what a business is faced with to try and stay open until you actually own one...

...on the other hand... all this material has prompted me to do this....

... I have been rearranging... above is the brown/rust/orange/peach/yellow section...

... and here's a shot of the green/blue section...

... this is the blue/lavender/purple section...

...this is the cerise/pink/red/predominantly white/cream and the beige section...

... and after doing all this rearranging, my pink section does not look as huge as people think... I do have lots of different colours, and many many colours of fabric that go well with each other...

...then there is sort of a feature corner... right now I'm displaying halloween...

...one of the four placemats I designed for halloween (and that my sister worked on with me whe she was here for a visit), it has a pocket for holding cutlery or napkin... don't you think kids would love to use this at halloween?...

...a close up...

...wow! I can't believe I have put in more than one post this month...

Live, laugh and love... till next time!

Hugs....Heather

The colours of Fall!

2011-09-14T14:51:00.008-05:00

Well, here we are, it's the middle of September and by the looks and feel of things the last couple of days, Fall is on its way! Brrrr! But this past weekend, you wouldn't have thought so... on Friday and Saturday we had the most beautiful weather, 30+F... and it was so beautiful that it was warm into the evening... I took the girls out in the kayak for a moonlight ride, one last spin before summer ends....

With Fall, comes the colours of the season... lovely browns, rusts, oranges, yellows... I was asked to make a donation to one of our local organizations, and decided to make something for it in those colours...

...included in the package is a reversible half apron, a one-piece matching potholder, and a matching dish towel, along with a lip balm and a bar of soap from the shoppe...

(Not the best display I've set up, but there you go.....)

These are not colours I usually work in, but the fabric was so cute, called "Flight of Fancy"....

Hoping to be back soon with another post...

Live, love, and laugh...

Hugs....Heather

20+ years and still loved!

2011-09-03T19:56:00.004-05:00

All packaged up and ready for gift giving!!!!

It was over 20 plus years ago when I happened across a pattern to make some cute decorative clowns... I think it was a Simplicity pattern.

I found the clowns to be so cute I made tons of them for friends and family.

Back in April, one of the recipients of a clown, told me someone very special to her was having a baby and oh how she wished I would make a clown for her because she wanted to give her something unique for the baby...

As I've mentioned before, I never learned how to spell "no", and so of course I said yes... she told me the baby wasn't due until the end of August... of course, as usual, I procrastinated for quite some time... the baby was born August 26...

But alas, I completed it more or less on time (my friend wasn't in a hurry she told me) and my friend picked it up this past week... she was delighted...

I didn't have the whole pattern, over the years, many parts of it got lost, but I did my best to recreate it as best I could... but I also remembered back to when I had made the originals, and remember that I had hated how the hair was done.... so I changed it and made it much much more full...

I also made several other changes to make it more baby friendly, rather than just an ornament... so button eyes were replaced with hand embroidery just like the rest of the face... and buttons were not used on the front, pom poms were substituted instead.

After finishing it, I can't believe I made so many of them years ago... and while I have lots of patience for a lot of needleworks, I don't think I'd have as much patience with making that many clowns now, they are a bit fiddly....

I sure hope the recipient likes it! What do you think??

Anyway, just thought I'd share the completed product and give everyone something to smile about!!!

Hugs...

A peaceful existence...NOT!

2011-08-06T09:58:00.010-05:00

It seems to be the norm for me to only get in one loooong post about once a month telling you everything that's been happening in my life... time just does not seem to be on my side to post any more than that!

On the creative side, I've got a few things on the go that are keeping me occupied... firstly, it may be summer, but Christmas is right around the corner, and that's so evident in many quilt/fabric shops... the Christmas fabric is arriving... and while I didn't get everything I had ordered, I did get in a few pieces... and one design is for some adorable Christmas stockings which I've put together... there were four designs, but a visiting family member saw them and "popped" one off me, so I've only got three to show you, the one that I gave away had more yellow in it...

I love pink and yellow together... one day at the shoppe I decided to randomly cut a few pieces of fabric, and put them together with no set design nor measurements - I just needed to be stitching... I pieced together this... now I'll have to find time to quilt it...

I love the raspberry colour...

On the home front, it has been pretty crazy around here... about three weeks ago we had a storm that we've never experienced before... let me put this into perspective though... what appeared to be devastation to us, was merely more of an inconvenience, we could never imagine what people who live through tornadoes and hurricanes deal with, we are so very fortunate here...

We had a storm in the area which damaged many trees, damaged a few pieces of property and vehicles, and caused a loss of power, but it was nothing when you put it into the big picture as mentioned above.

For us, we lost power for 37 hours...

... we lit the lanterns...

...our small boat upturned on our canoe, with no damage to either...

...trees fell between most buildings without causing real damage, but several outbuildings received damage from fallen trees, and the fence in my horse's field needs to be mended in several spots.

... one of the tarped buildings with a huge tree on it, a wood structure building has a huge tree on it that smashed the roof, but I couldn't get a good picture of it...

My husband figures we have well over 100 trees (possibly up to 200) in and surrounding our property (on all our walking trails), that will need to be cut, but we will be at it for months if we ever even get it all cleaned up at all... we will have enough firewood to last for over 10 years if we can get it cut up before it rots...

At the same time, we've had a family wedding, numerous family members in for the summer and more to come (can't wait, sis, woo hoo!!!), and our daughter is heading off to college and my husband will be taking furniture to her new residence (and 11 hour drive away if you don't stop), so it's tough to get any of that kind of work done - especially with me away all day, and all of the rain we have had recently...

And for those of you who know me closely, you will know that I do wildlife rehabilitation, and this summer I've had a few calls regarding that, so when the call comes, I do my best to deal with it as soon as possible... I can't take in every animal because I don't get paid to do this, so I can only take in the ones that have a good success of survival (mostly orphans); I am only a volunteer (legally permitted by the province), and every cost comes out of my pocket, this includes, food, shelters, vet bills (unless we can get the animal to the vet college 6 hours away), cleaning materials, kennels, rescue equipment, and well, the list goes on... that's why I work, to pay for this, and it's not cheap... but to me, the animals are worth it, it is my small part in giving back to the earth... this lifestyle (it is a lifestyle and not a hobby) I have chosen, is the calming force in my hectic life, the recipe that soothes my soul, the light in my darkest days, and the activity that keeps me healthy... next to my health, my family, and my pets, this is the next most important thing in my life! In most cases with few exceptions, nothing will take precedence over these four things...

In this regard, a new enclosure I was setting up and that I desperately needed this year, was damaged... it took us a whole afternoon and evening just to de-limb the tree that fell on it, and drag the branches to the brush pile, that doesn't even include bucking up the tree which was one of the biggest we had here and it was not even rotten from ants...

It will be a while before things slow down around here, I've got a ton of ideas in my head for the shoppe... I've created a crewel work design that my Mum has nabbed off me to play with even before I've had a chance to work on it (along with a couple of designs ;-) )

I'm helping out a lady who wants to create a special gift for a special couple, I've dug in to my personal stash to help out two customers, and I'm working on a small consignment item for an old acquaintance who I had made something for over 25 years ago, she has asked me to make one as a gift to a special friend of hers who is expecting her first baby, it's been a while and challenging because I don't have everything I need, but I'm working on it... so, there's lots happening behind the scenes...

.... and on a personal uplifting note, a lady and her grown daughter visited my shoppe one day this week and then came back the next day to purchase some fabric... the mother told me that they had had to go home and think about the fabric before buying, but did return to purchase something. The daughter told me that she was very impressed with my fabric and my shoppe, and her mother piped in and said "and my daughter is from Edmonton" (ie. booming large city with many shops), but the daughter told me she had never seen any of my fabric anywhere... a small boost of encouragement that has been much needed.

On a humourous note, my hubby came to bed late one night (3 am), only to exclaim "I think there is a bat flying around the bedroom", so we closed the door and turned on the light and searched for it to no avail... I opened the door and stood in the dark to search the living room until I finally saw the bat land upon the wall and blend in like a knot in the wood... it took us until 5am when I finally caught the bat and released it outside.

If you've arrived at the end of this post, then I thank you for visiting and reading...

I'm often consumed by guilt for those blogger friends who have stuck by me and continue to visit and offer me words of encouragement, private emails to make sure I'm all right, and hanging in there between my posts.... thank you, thank you, thank you - I sure do appreciate it :-) (you all know who you are). I will have lots to show you and my posts will be more interesting on the creative side as things get back to normal and things settle into a peaceful existence, I just have to be patient and let it happen and ask you to bear with me.

Love, hope, and joy!

Heather

There's a slump in the road

2011-07-10T09:29:00.006-05:00

I am sure I am not alone, but how many of you have times when you just feel "blah", no inspiration and no desire to do anything creative, or perhaps anything at all??

That's me, I'm going through a slump... nothing excites me!

This weekend it has been raining, and while I have been trying to accomplish some things outside, I have taken the time to look at some of my favourite blogs that I haven't visited in a while... and I have to say... I MISS IT! I mean, I miss blogging and checking out what everyone is up to... I miss being creative, coming up with new ideas, testing them, flipping from art to sewing and back... and for the most part, it all has to do with my new shoppe... I just don't have the time I used to, and I am not being as creative I used to, and it is bugging me!! I have to do something to remedy that...

So, to kick start my creative juices and boost my motivation, I have picked up crochet... again... it has been over 25 years since I have crocheted anything, and it is not a past time I love, but I decided that I had some lovely yarn in the shoppe and I was motivated to use it, and perhaps a change of "venue", so to speak, would help... I love the feel of this yarn, the sheen, and how it is crocheting up! Here's hoping, it turns out to my liking!!

I also wanted to show you this... a couple of Christmases ago, I made my sister this.... she loved it so much, she thought I needed one too, and with my sample in front of her, she proceeded to make me this... isn't it absolutely gorgeous.

My sister learned how to do Hardanger, something I have not yet tried, but something I know I want to give a shot to in the future.

I told her I wanted to put it on my blog, and I just never got around to doing it, because you know how often I make posts, however, I am glad that I can show it to you now and let you know how proud I am of my sister's work and wish I could be nearer to her so we can share our common loves! No matter, every time she uses hers, and I use mine, we know we are thinking of each other.... luv u sis!! Here's a pic of the middle and back...

Thanks for visiting... wishing you all creativeness and sunshine days!

Hugs.....Heather

Stresses, woes, elation... and a little creativity!

2011-05-14T10:04:00.007-05:00

Bet you're surprised to hear from me.... the lost blogger... kindest thanks to those who have written to make sure I'm all right...

Yes, I am all right, but I have been swamped with the new shoppe... who knew that in the short time since I opened (not yet 6 weeks), that I would have gone through every emotion from elation to despair and back again...

Learning how to keep my own books, meeting with sales rep who "upsell" you, dealing with phone and internet issues, computer crashes (thankfully I did find my backups), searching for wholesalers, worrying about leaks and fire, shoveling sidewalks when the wind is bitter enough to freeze the tip of your nose off, facing a never ending stream of customers who are disappointed when you "just don't have what they want", and "are you getting....", dealing with the reality of competition that you have no hope of competing against, do you have enough funds to place another order, or should you wait and see what sells... what new products should you bring in, trying to be diplomatic when complete strangers ask you how business is, how much did you pay for your till, how much rent are you paying and if it was worth opening up....

Now you can add that I am about to move my shoppe already.... Bliss is moving in to slightly larger premises, that will hopefully allow me to offer some smaller classes, I'll have a "real office space", and a place for my sewing machine and ironing board. Currently my office and sewing area is limited to a small area 5 feet long, and when I swivel in my chair I am now sitting at my shoppe cutting table... yes, very small indeed. But, aaargh! that means I have to pack everything up, unscrew the shelves from the wall, clean the new place, reattach everything, restock and redesign, and so on....

But... it's all good... being your own boss has its merits... it doesn't matter if you put something off till tomorrow because "I just don't feel like doing it today", you decide where to put things, you decide what products you will bring in, and you decide when you are going to eat your lunch... yes, it is good!

In the midst of all this, I have had time to do some creating for the shoppe, and over time, I hope to add a lot more of my creations...

Here's a look at a couple of things I managed to squeeze in...

More bibs:

An heirloom dress in today's funky fabrics...

And fancying up an antique rocking chair for one of my customers...

I'm also in the midst of trying to get my new website up and running, but the shopping cart is causing me grief... if you see anything you're interested in buying, just email me and I'll let you know costs.

So, here's hoping the "new shoppe" will afford me more time to create as I won't be shuffling everything back and forth depending on whether I am doing "office work today", ironing or sewing!

... until next time... Hugs all..... Heather

Dispelling the myth...cotton is not just for quilters!

2011-03-10T20:01:00.005-06:00

H
ow many times have you heard people talk about cotton as "quilter's cotton".... I've been hearing that a lot lately when people come into the shoppe... "oh, you're catering to the quilters" or "the quilter's will be happy".... yes, perhaps that's true, but I really want to dispel that myth.... basically.... cotton is cotton is cotton... it's not just for quilting, it's for everything... I just prefer cotton because it is a natural fiber, breaths, wears well, is easy to sew... and comes in oh so many delicious prints!

I mean, there are many people out there who use other fabrics for quilting, not just cotton... so... well, I'm just sayin'!

...and I hope to get some things into the shoppe that will show non-quilters that they can do lots with it too... you don't need to get into polyesters to make clothes!

So, I'm starting with the young.....

Aren't they too cute!!!! Boutique baby bibs and mix/match burp cloths!

More coming soon!

Hugs....Heather

Forgot my camera!

2011-03-04T10:23:00.005-06:00

I'm working in the shoppe today... but sadly, I forgot my camera at home... sneaks coming soon...

In the meantime, Bear Essentials are here!...

...and a new shipment of cross stitch patterns/books, a couple of quilt books, and magazines!

Hugs....Heather

It's Bliss!

2011-02-15T23:35:00.004-06:00

So, as you know from my last post, I announced the opening of a new shoppe... yes, it is my new shoppe... I have opened a physical shoppe... eventually I should be able to offer some of the products on line, but that will be a while yet...

Here's a peak... it is small... but it is quaint!!

Sharing the promised news.....

2011-01-24T19:21:00.002-06:00

Ive always said I am not the best blogger... my days and nights are always so busy that I just can't seem to get anything substantial accomplished....

.... and this time is no exception...

...but I did promise you some news for the New Year...

...and seeing as January will soon be over, I thought I had better share...

opening soon!!!! :-)

Hugs...

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-24T18:42:00.006-06:00

There's a group of ladies who used to work at the Royal Bank, and we get together every couple of months to have lunch or supper...

We recently had our Christmas get together and we were asked to bring a small gift for a "chinese" auction... it was a lot of fun...

We each were given a gift and we didn't know who it was from... then, the organizer of the party read off a Christmas story, and every time she said "left" or "right", we had to pass the gift around the room in that direction... it was very funny... when the story was over, you were able to open the gift that ended up in front of you... only one person ended up with their own gift in front of them (of course, that was remedied very quickly)...

The gift could either be bought or homemade....

Here's what I gave... a box of truffles, a Christmas ball I made, and a tea towel that I designed ....

I got the cutest little makeup bag, and I absolutely love the colours... isn't it just delightful!!! Thanks Yvonne, it is the sweetest little thing!

So, here's wishing everyone a wonderful Christmas.

Hugs.

I got swapped!

2010-12-22T07:14:00.004-06:00

I promised you I'd show you what my friend Judy sent me in our Christmas card swap.

All wrapped up... I absolutely love how the deep red of the tea matches the lovely piece of red fabric, and the old fashioned Santa stamp on the card....

The sweetest little card, my favourite tea... and the absolutely cutest plum pudding complete with a robin (one of my fav birds) and holly beads...

Judy says she doesn't do satin stitch very well, but I think it's perfect, don't you?

Thank you Judy, it is all indeed lovely... I am a very lucky girl!

I'll have one more Christmas post for you and then some special news for the new year.... but, you'll have to wait till then, tee hee!

Hugs....

Dramatic moments in stitchery!

2010-12-17T22:48:00.005-06:00

For the last three years, my friend Judy has asked me to trade Christmas postcards.

This year she had a special request, and that was to make my postcard 6x6 instead of the usual 4x6. Judy is creating a stitchery journal entitled "Nature's Garden" and she has been swapping cards with other people. So, this year she asked if I would mind making my Christmas postcard in the theme of her journal so she could include it in there.

I decided to combine some ribbon embroidery with Brazilian embroidery, and some "stump work".... I say that with tongue in cheek because it is not a true stump work, but it does have a three dimensional quality to it as the wings and antennae are not attached to the background....

But, before I show you the completed project, I must tell you that it didn't exactly come together as planned... don't you just love those moments when you are down to crunch time and something goes wrong and you have to come up with a solution... and quick....

Well, this project had a couple of those moments.

Judy asked me way back in August if I would swap cards... no problem, lots of time!

I started out with my six-inch square, and attached fusible interfacing to the back for stability, transferred my design to the fabric, and proceeded to stitch...

Before I got too far I realized that the 6x6 was no longer exactly 6x6 but rather just over 5 3/4 x 5 3/4.... this would not do, so I started over with a lovely large piece of fabric 9x9 and I would cut it to 6x6 when completed.... perfect, lots of excess fabric to fit in the hoop!

When I finally started to progress, it was going along nice and smoothly, and I sort of designed as I went and I was quite satisfied with the resulting work.

Finally, when I took the project out of the hoop, it had the common signs of oils from the hands... you know how no matter how many times you wash your hands (and I had the dry skin to prove it), it was still dirty around the design.

So..... I took the project, gently rubbed soap around the design and gave it a good rinse being careful not to wet the design, then blocked it for drying.

The next day I looked at it... still some dirt... another washing, blocking and drying... by this time it was the beginning of December and I needed to get it out.

When I looked at it the next day, it was clean.... but, eeek! in the second wash, some of the dye from one of the deep pink had bled onto the background.... I was horrified!

I got out some cream comet (it has bleach in it), and rubbed it between my fingers then onto the fabric... I prayed I would not be left with a white blob on the green background. I blocked it and let it dry... it was still pink, faint pink, but I could see it and would swear everyone would.

My solution was to add two more Brazilian buds in the same colour over the offending area... problem solved. (Shown just above the butterfly, top right wing).

I carefully centered the project over the stiff double sided fusible pelon.... and gently pressed....

I flipped it over, checked it for center and it was good... I flipped it back over, a couple of last swipes of the iron then I carefully cut it out.... perfect... I flipped it over.... eeek! .... I thought the pelon was securely bonded but when I flipped it over I noticed that the design said must have somehow moved and I hadn't noticed and when I cut it, I almost cut off the stitching.... eeek!.. I had 1/4 inch from edge to start of design on one side and about 1 inch on the other, definitely not centered... eeek!

My heart sank because I did not want to have an off-centre design.... I left it for a day, then went back to it with a solution that didn't turn out too badly... and because I know Judy loves pink and roses, this turned out to be the best solution instead of having to redo the whole design... what do you think????

So, with a little ingenuity, there can be solutions... what dramatic moments have you had in your stitchery???

I'll be back next post with what Judy sent me....

Hugs....

Pretty smellies!!!

2010-11-28T23:00:00.003-06:00

I have to admit, I am not the most faithful blogger, but it is only due to a lack of time (not to mention my "less than speedy" internet service) that keeps me away.

I think the biggest compliment a blog owner can get is comments and followers.... it is such an honour, and a surprise, to know that people are actually interested in what you have to say, or what you do, and I am always surprised when I see my follower number go up. I'd like to thank all of those who do visit my blog and either follow or leave comments to my sporadic posts... they are very much appreciated... I do read all your comments and keep track of my followers and it is the comments and followers that inspires me to keep my blog going when I really feel I should just give it up.... so, thank you!

I haven't been working on a heck of a lot of stitching lately, but I am hoping things will improve and my production will increase over the next few cold months, and I'll be able to show you more...

For now, here's a little something that I did get finished from my last post....

These are rose filled sachets...

...and these are lavender filled sachets...

Is it worth creating a pattern for these? Let me know....

Peace, love and joy.... Heather XX

When you're missing in action....

2010-10-25T21:45:00.004-05:00

I haven't forgotten you all!!!

I had promised my next post would be about my recent trip to Quebec... but unfortunately, I have lost all of the pictures on my camera... and I don't know why... I am so disappointed. So, until I can get the card looked at, I can't show you anything about that lovely trip... I've bought a new memory card for the time being, so I can finally take some pics again...

I've been busy working on some "secret" projects... I just can't show you yet because inquisitive eyes might be looking... but I can show you this....

...and this...

Hopefully I'll have more to show you soon.

Peace, love and joy!

Another AccuQuilt Go!

2010-09-24T21:34:00.002-05:00

I just can't believe I am doing this again.... but.... wouldn't you want to win??? Pop over to Millie's and put your name in the draw for an AccuQuilt Go cutter!

Wishing you all luck!

Couldn't pass this one up!

2010-09-23T20:27:00.002-05:00

I'm breaking my own rules again.... but I just couldn't pass by this one!

Jane's having a giveaway of a "Go" AccuQuilt... enter here.

Long time, no blog!

2010-09-22T20:33:00.004-05:00

I can't believe how long it has been since I have made a post... I honestly thought I had at least posted in August...

I just wanted to drop in and let everyone know I am still here... but summer is just not a good time for me to make posts, and I have just returned from a holiday at my sister's ...

In the meantime, I just wanted to let you know about a little giveaway my friend Judy is having... make sure you stop by and visit her blog.

I'll be back soon with some pics of my holiday, and then hopefully soon I will be into the swing of stitching again and get something produced to show you.

Thanks for hanging in there with me.

Does anyone know?

2010-07-15T20:44:00.004-05:00

Well, as you may know, I am hoping to turn some of my designs into patterns, but with this comes a bit of administration work... so, I've been trying to find the plastic bags that you find most patterns in... the ones with a ziploc and a little hole for hanging it. I have found hanging bags at Crystal Clear in Canada, but am looking for the ziploc kind (size 9.5x6 inches)... I've spent hours trying to find them on the net, preferably in Canada, but would also buy from the States if I had to.... does anyone know where I can buy some?

Above is this summer's picture of a Canada Goose family from the nearby creek.

Proud!

2010-06-27T13:44:00.007-05:00

My it's been a while since I have made a post... does that mean I haven't been doing anything... well not really...

The only problem is, the things I've been doing haven't had much to do with stitching....

I've got some things on the go that I don't want reveal right now - more because they aren't going how I want them to go rather than being some kind of "secret project".... I'll let you in on more of that later...

Have you ever looked at a deflated balloon after it has been blown up and sat around for a couple of days and then bursts... you know how it shrivels, sticks to itself and has all kinds of bubbles and puckers.... well read on and you'll see how this fits in to the story....

In the mean time, have you ever made a tie? One of the easiest things to do... well, so I believed...

You see, it was my stepdaughter's graduation from high school this weekend, and she bought herself a lovely orange dress... but, well you know how it is, she wanted her escort to have a matching tie and she came to me with the shawl that came with the dress and said "can you make him a tie from this?"... well of course, how can you say no to that!

Problem is, my husband does not even own a tie that I could use as a guide for size and style, a tie that is of modern day age that is! LOL! So, I had planned to buy a new tie, take it apart and get a pattern from it, luckily, I checked the pattern section at Walmart and purchased a paper pattern instead, which was cheaper than buying a tie and spending the time ripping it apart and pressing it out...

So, you start with a shawl... is it cut perfectly square?... so you can find the bias... the moment of truth would only come once the tie was made... so on I went and made a tie...
I thought it turned out pretty good... a slight twist, but nothing my "perfectionist" attitude couldn't handle, right.... NOT! I tried pressing it lightly, and it seemed to get better, so I took a damp cloth and pressed it perfectly... well, at least that's what I thought I was doing... along comes the deflated balloon... well, when I lifted my pressing cloth, that's what I saw on the tie... egads! The unknown fibre of the fabric, along with the fusible interfacing should probably not have been "made wet"... shrinkage was not even. So I pressed and pressed again, dry iron and managed to get it all back to some semblance of attractiveness, but it still had that unsightly little twist, and a lovely seam impression down the middle now... yuk! I couldn't stand it!

Off I went, using up the rest of the shawl and made a second tie... much better, no twist to speak off (at least not one that would make me go through that panic for again)... I left it virtually unpressed and it looked pretty good.

When I saw it on our daughter's escort (her boyfriend), I was quite pleased, but I could have kicked myself because he was wearing a tuxedo with vest and you would never have noticed the faux pas and I could have gotten away with the first blunder... oh well!

So, here's some pics of the graduation....
Just before each student gets their diploma one of their teachers will say a little bit about the student, Faryn's was told by her coach... (Faryn almost always has a smile on her face)!

She graduated with honours, and received two bursaries...

After the ceremony there is a "grand march" which is led by a piper (who happens to be one of the school's teachers), and an RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) all dressed in his "reds"... and they walk around a couple of the streets of the town....

Ah, to be young again!

How long does a gal have to wait??

2010-05-30T23:45:00.004-05:00

C'mon Mum, let's go.... I'm not getting out of this truck till we go for a ride! (That's my girl - stubborn!)

I have been so busy lately that I haven't gotten around to showing you the finished product... not to mention the camera batteries have been dead, ugh!

Well, here it is... finished... I hope she/they like it!

This is diamond willow, a type of willow that grows in the swampy areas around where I love. You peel away the bark and whittle it down to the brown stuff which are lovely "diamond-like" shapes and indentations... this one could have been done lots more...

After I finished this, I have washed and pressed a batch of fabrics, all ready to use for some new creation... yummy... hmmmm... what will I make?

...perhaps something like what's on my design table?....

Peace, love, and joy!

Quilting part done!

2010-05-12T21:23:00.005-05:00

So... a girl can change her mind.... can't she??

Initially I had decided to quilt this little mini-quilt with white perle cotton, size 12, but once I started I changed my mind, ripped out what I had started, and changed to a lovely yellow perle cotton, size 8... I am much happier with the results.

... hearts, squares, and a few lovely little roses....

... I'll show you the completed project in my next post!

Peace, love and joy!

Hah! Fooled ya!

2010-05-06T14:04:00.006-05:00

I told you to think "sugar" when I made the previous post for this picture....

... First though, I'd like to show you my inspiration for what this turned out to be....

...yup! A "sugar baby"! (This one being an old one Mum had because I lost mine). Otherwise known by many other names (church baby, pew doll, prairie doll, plantation doll), but I kinda like "sugar baby"! These were little dolls ladies made from handkerchiefs to entertain their babies... the sugar part comes in becomes sometimes they'd put sugar cubes or candy in the head for the babies to suck on.

... and here's what the one I made for my new little niece turned out like...

...she's made out of 100% cotton, lined in the same fabric... helps to give her some body because I found the actual "hankie" dolls to be pretty flimsy...

... here's a close up of the bottom of the doll...

... I made "Richelieu" circles, cut them out, then attached a small circle with a single rose created with Brazilian Embroider threads....
... the smaller rosebuds are made with DMC floss... (check the picture at the top again)...

... here's a picture of the back... I made her a little hat and embroidered some colonial knots and another little rosebud on the back...

... here's another look before you leave...

So, did I fool you?! Was I wrong to tell you to think "sugar"? Maybe, maybe not, I'll leave that up to my loyal viewers!

Peace, love and joy!

P.S. don't forget to enter Prairie Primrose Stitches giveaway from my previous post of today!

Electric Quilt 7 Giveaway!

2010-05-06T08:47:00.003-05:00

I just couldn't pass this giveaway up....

It's for EQ7... if you're in to quilt design, then you'd better enter...

Prairie Primrose Stitches has one to give away... isn't that fantastic.

Peace, love and joy!

Think sugar!

2010-05-05T21:33:00.004-05:00

Pop in tomorrow... if the sun shines here (so I can take a decent photo), I'll show you what this is all about....

...think sugar!

Peace, love and joy,

The little princess!

2010-05-03T19:13:00.001-05:00

Do you remember this sneak???

...well, I finally used it...

....see...... it's on this...

...I just love this fabric... here's a close up... it's peach with little deeper peach and deep pink flowers... I just have to make a quilt or something with it, I love it... I have already used it in another little girl's dress (Jace's dress - see right sidebar)... and it is just lovely fabric...

I also made this...
...no, I didn't make the little lamb!

...these are for a little someone special that just arrived in April.... I don't know what I was thinking though... the dress is for 18 months... and the hat is probably for a year or so old... oh well, she'll grow into them... "big girl clothes", VBG!...newborn babies usually get lot's of "little" clothes anyway!...or maybe, just maybe... I'll have to do something about it!!!

... and I think it can be used for a few seasons... in the summer just as it is (it is fully lined), or in the fall, winter or spring with a little tee underneath.... so, that'll make it fit sooner, right?!

I didn't intentionally make the hat to go with the dress... but they do look pretty good together...

I hope to have a little something more to show you very soon...

... till then...

Peace, love and joy!

Perfection is only a word in the dictionary... nothing is perfect! Just be happy we are alive to strive for it!

2010-04-29T12:12:00.014-05:00

You do a lot of thinking in a quiet house when you are stitching.

My Sweetie is on graveyard shift and I'm trying to make as little noise as possible so he can sleep. I can't find my only audio book which I half listened to a few years ago, so I am sitting in complete silence. For some reason I can listen to audio books with earphones, but I'm not a big fan of just listening to music with earphones unless I am working in the garden... yes, I'm kinda weird that way.

You can hear the hum of my brain working... thinking... memories... ideas... techniques... etc., etc.,.

So, I'm working on the little bear I have been showing you... I was supposed to rake leaves yesterday, but it turned out to be too windy. So, I planned to rake today. But, I feel really happy bad because it has rained a bit this morning and is very cloudy and it looks like it might rain again, even though it's not supposed to rain until tomorrow. That means I may be stuck in the house most of the day and so I have nothing left to do but stitch, because I can't even clean house for fear of clattering dishes, or the sound of the vacuum waking up my DH! Boy, do I feel really ecstatic sad! So, stitching I must do! VBG!

But all this silence got me to thinking. Why do we have to strive for 10+ stitches to the inch? Why does every stitch have to be straight? Do I have to pull out every stitch that is crooked, not the right size, or not enough stitches? Absolutely not! In my opinion anyway!!!

I have been remembering back to the first time I ever "quilted" something. I think I was in my early teens and I remember making cushions for my Mum and two sisters. I don't know if I ever gave them to them, but I remember having some in my own room.

Even back then I did things differently. I remember that you were supposed to use white thread... but I didn't want to use white thread. I used embroider floss and made the stitches in colours I thought the recipients of my gifts would enjoy. I didn't do any patchwork then, just quilting. Nowadays, any colour goes! I was on to something back then! VBG!

This reminded me of how much fun it was to just create. You didn't worry about how many stitches you had to the inch... if your stitches were perfect or not... all I cared about was that I was making something for someone else and that I hoped they liked it.

So, why today do we get hung up on perfectionism? Look at primitive style... in stitching, stitches are not perfect... in primitive, country, or shabby chic art the oldest or shabbiest pieces are chosen to make an object... heck, we even bang it with a hammer, rub it with sandpaper, jab it with nails, or try to get the paint to crack... all to get that imperfect, worn look...but all this adds charm. And in folk art we see a lot of "hand" in the art too.

It has been many years since I have quilted, and I have decided that I want my pieces to have "charm"... that's my style... whimsy if you will... hey, I'm not saying that I won't try to make it perfect, I mean I hate it when the patches don't match up... but I'm not going to stress over it... and I'm definitely not going to stress over the hand quilting... not many people hand quilt any more these days, with what you can do with a sewing machine - I know quilters who have never lifted a needle to hand quilt, but they make beautiful quilts just the same... but, I kinda like the wonkiness of my hand sewn stitches....

So, I'm hand quilting my bear... I figure with all the hand embellished applique, why would I want to machine quilt?! Yes, it's not perfect, but I like it...

I'm using DMC Perle Cotton #12 in white... in a free form style for the center - that is, I am just outlining everything with two rows of stitching where possible. Any larger areas will get another row, any smaller areas may only have one.

In the depression years, it didn't matter that there weren't 10+ stitches to the inch... guaranteed, the more stitches, the more delicate and rich the piece... but there are many people who look for those old pieces with character, it tells a story, it means we are human... maybe some day, someone will cherish my imperfect pieces too.

Like my design at the top of the page says... "just create".

Hugs.

Oh, those colours!

2010-04-28T13:46:00.004-05:00

Well, the snow has almost disappeared and it's actually sunny outside today...

I guess I can't spend the whole day inside stitching (even thought that's just what I want to do), I must get out and rake leaves, otherwise, summer will be here and gone before you know it... gotta love living in the north!

But, I just couldn't let the day go by without giving you a sneak peak at what I accomplished this morning...

Next step will be to quilt this little baby!

Hugs.

What have you been up to?

2010-04-26T14:04:00.008-05:00

First, I'd like to give you an update on my last post. The day I wrote it, Andrea had contacted me to let me know she hadn't received the parcel, and thus my plea for help. Well, would you believe it, the next day she got it! I was so happy. So, for those of you with enquiring minds, it was mailed March 5 and she received it April 22 from Canada to Hungary. Now, if only Deepa (in India) will get hers, then I'd be a totally happy and satisfied camper... hang in there Deepa, there's still hope!

It's been rather odd weather here.... we've gone from beautiful days where I have helped Mum rake her yard (30 bags of leaves plus a whole pile of branches), to waking up to this...

We had just set up our summer gazebo two days before... you can see all the ice is off the lake... why would we ever think we'd get 6 inches of heavy wet snow??

yup... just when I was going to rake my yard... so instead, I was doing this...

yup, I do split my own wood when necessary, and it has been cool enough for a small fire in the stove...

... and my girl insists on carrying her own snowballs around... just in case...

So, to make the day sunnier... here's a peak at some of the new material I just got...

isn't it just yummy!...and some more from the same line that arrived a couple of days later...

And for my sister who has been letting me know, quite sweetly I might add, that she wants a sneak peak of what I have been working on... so, I have this to show you...

I have not been idle, but for some reason, my fingers have not been moving too quickly... hope to have more to show you on this real soon.

Hugs.

Please, can anyone help???

2010-04-21T18:38:00.002-05:00

I don't if anyone out there can help me, but recently I had a giveaway and had two winners, one in Hungary and one in India.

The problem is, I mailed out the parcel by Canada Post on March 5, and neither person has received their parcel yet.

Have any of you sent out parcels to these two countries, either from Canada or the States, and do you know how long it took for them to get it? I sent it by parcel post, which I knew would take longer, but wow, this is a long time.

I will be checking at the post office tomorrow, but I don't know if there is much they can tell me because we cannot put tracking on parcels sent internationally... the only consolation is that I put insurance on it.

I know my winners are disappointed they have not received their prize yet, and I am very discouraged myself that it makes me not want to offer a giveaway for fear of disappointing my bloggie friends.

If any of you can reassure me that it indeed takes this long for a parcel, and that it is worthwhile to have giveaways, please let me know.

I am very sad :-(

One step forward, three steps back!

2010-03-18T17:05:00.007-05:00

I'm not much of a chocolate fan.... don't get me wrong, I always have lots in the house, just in case I get a craving, but for the most part, I don't eat a lot of it... however, at this time of year, I just can't resist these lovely little mini-eggs, and I go through several packets, especially when I am working on something... here's some fabrics I have chosen for a new design I am working on... sneak peak to come soon.

Have you ever had days where you feel like you are taking one step forward and three steps back? I have many of those days, and lately it seems more often than not. Between working a "real" job and stealing minutes here and there for my "dream" job... I feel like I am accomplishing very little.

I have so many projects on the go right now, I don't know whether I am coming or going... I have mentioned previously that I was planning some major changes for my blog... well as you can see, I have at least accomplished that, for the most part. What do you think... bright, eh!

I have also been contemplating reviving my old blog which was initially created for "my business"... the design is done but I am not ready to add to it yet... it will showcase only items that I will have up for sale on my web site... good lead in, yes, I am also working on revising my web site too... I am sad to say I have neglected it badly, and a few weeks ago a friend said she had stopped visiting it because I have nothing new on it... so, that has also been a top priority, but right now it will only be a presence until I get some "product"... I hope to offer my patterns, finished items, and even fabric and flosses for sale at some point, but I will let you know more about that as it progresses.

Remember when I told you the sad story about my iron... well, look what I did to it:

aaack!

The good news is that I wrote to the company to say how disappointed I was in their product and they told me to cut the cord, send it in, and they will replace the iron. I did that about two weeks ago, and I am still waiting... if I don't hear from them by next week, I will be dropping them another line!!!!

On a positive note, like "Miss Potter" says... "I have pigs running amuck in my head"... in other words, I have so many design ideas flowing that I can't keep up....

Did I say design ideas... yes you heard right... I have finally taken the next step and am in the process of turning some of my art into pattern designs which I hope to offer up for sale in the future... near future I hope... but you know how that goes...

I will be designing stitcheries along with quilt designs... I am very excited! Now I have a real excuse when my DH asks me "what's up with all the material", LOL! and to top it off, this morning I came up with another idea... really, I must find the time to get them all out of my head and into production!!!

Here's a, not very good picture, sneak peak at one of the designs I am working on... I am sure you can guess what it will be, but I am still working on prototypes before I get the final pattern out... I will most likely offer up the finished prototypes for sale once finished (there are two - so far).

So, as you can see, I have been very busy, but I hope to have more to show you as time goes on....

I want to thank all of my readers and hope you will continue to follow along with me on this new journey as I venture out to expand on my business dreams, and I hope that you like what you see!

And the winner is.....

2010-02-28T15:16:00.005-06:00

Well, you didn't think I'd tell you right away, did you?? First of all, I want to thank all who entered my draw... it's tough deciding what people would like in a "giveaway"... do we measure our success by the number of people who enter, or should we just be happy that someone actually entered?...

I'm just trying to find out how much interest people find in my blog... of course, my loyal followers must enjoy it, otherwise, you wouldn't come back, would you? So, thank you....

I am in the process of updating my blog and changing up a few things, which I hope will spark a bit more interest... but more on that later... you're all probably saying, get on with it already!! LOL!!

Well, the little basket was certainly big enough to hold "all" of the entries, more than big enough, LOL!

Here it is, the dip for the first draw.... the basket and 20 FQ...

.... drum roll please.. and the winner is....

Ida13.....

...and now the dip for the second draw...

... and the winner of 12 FQ is....

...Deepa....

Congratulations ladies.... can you email your mailing addresses...

And a post just wouldn't be complete without another little sneak peak... here's a design that I have been working on, currently just in outline mode which I have colourized for effect....

Peace, love and joy,

Iron woes!

2010-02-27T15:17:00.004-06:00

It's an absolutely glorious sunny day up here in the frozen north... actually, it feels like summer in the house... seriously.... well, that's because the heat from the wood stove (even though we haven't put any wood in since this morning), lingers in the house, and with the sun streaming in.... I am absolutely sweltering. The temperature changes 20 degrees from the night to day... totally unbelievable... but I am loving it!

I've been off work for a few days, enjoying some time designing and stitching, and with the DH on "graveyard shift", I have the whole days and nights to myself.... loving it!

But not all is happy on "the ranch".... I have had iron woes... well, I've had iron woes for a long time... I used to have an old iron that absolutely burned or melted everything... even on low temp, and it just seems everything stuck to the plate.... so, in my wisdom of starting up my home business, I decided that I needed one of "the best" irons and I purchased a Rowenta.... well, did you know, that more expensive doesn't necessarily mean better??? I mean, those babies are expensive. I didn't use it much at first because I was busy working on another part of my business, so of course, it wasn't until the second year (therefore no warranty), or so, that I noticed that the thing had started to leak! Yes, leak, and bad! I'd fill it up and leave water in it overnight and by the next day there would be water everywhere - sometimes even within the hour. Then when I iron, it drips, spits and literally pours out when I tip the iron to start ironing... I have cleaned it so many times because that is what is supposed to cause spits... but nothing works. My ironing board cover always had a great big water stain on it....

Now, to get to the point of this post.... my ironing board has several covers on it... mostly because when I buy a new one, I just put it over the old one for more padding... well, you can never get an ironing board cover that fits properly... and they are usually pretty awful colours... but, well, we trudge to Wal-mart to buy one anyway.

Well, I had enough... tired of looking at this awful site, I took matters into my own hands and made a new one... apart from inserting the draw string, which seemed to take forever, the whole thing probably took me less than 45 minutes to make.... why didn't I do it before.

I intended to use a nice bright colour of some lovely fabric, but then I decided that I would prefer white because it looked nicer as a background for designs (no distracting design)... and there was no chance of colour transfer onto your work....

So, now I have a lovely new ironing board cover that fits.... should have done that ages ago.

And what's on that ironing board at the moment.... see this little design....

well, it's currently in blocking mode on it!

Oh, and just a reminder to enter your name in my draw (see previous post)... it finishes tomorrow!

Until next time....

Peace, love and joy!

There's a "giveaway" in this post!

2010-02-21T14:31:00.010-06:00

I've just finished feeding the birds that visit my feeder, and I get such pleasure from giving them a few (well, a lot) of sunflower seeds. Just knowing that they have full bellies and have made it through the winter is so rewarding to me... it doesn't matter that the mess they leave behind will have to be cleaned up in the spring (yup, me who hates housework - but then again, that's not considered housework)... if I'm lucky I'll be rewarded by seeing a few babies at the feeders come spring.

There are organizations who give food for animals based on the number of clicks they get a day, and sadly, they don't nearly get enough. So another way I like to give, and you can do it too, it doesn't cost anything and there's basically no effort required.... is to visit this link and press one button... that's it.... I've got it set up on my toolbar to remind me to do it every day... and if you're visiting my site, you can just click on the button on the left (Animal Rescue) and add your click. Please take a few seconds each day and click... it's for a good cause.

Today, I'm still in the mood for giving, but first I want to show you my "ugly little basket", LOL! I got the inspiration to make one from Jenny who got the tutorial from here. Of course, I didn't want to make it the same, so I added some pockets, but the reason I say it is "ugly" is because it didn't quite turn out the way I had planned (guess I shouldn't have rushed through it) , and after I chose the fabrics (Mum and I are clearing out our stash, and this print was from hers which is not my color choice - do you ever have fabric colours you have a hard time working with?) which initially looked good together, but in the end I just hated them... so, it has become my "ugly little basket"...

... see how the pockets don't quite line up.... that bugs me!

... but one good thing about it, it stores 20 or more fat quarters, depending upon how you want to put them in there, rolled up, flat, stacked.... of course, you can store whatever you'd like in it...

...so, would anyone like this little basket....

....filled with those 20 fat quarters???

Well, if you would, leave me a comment on this post and I'll put your name into the draw to be made one week from today, that's February 28, 2010. If you're a follower, your name will be put in a second time. If you make a post on your blog and link back to mine, that'll give you another entry.

There will be a second drawing for a set of 12 fat quarters...

(P.S. in both draws some FQ may or may not be from my vintage "stash" and therefore may measure 17x22+ - if they were on the narrow side, then I left the width full, ie. could be 30-36 - I have just grabbed a pile from my "stash" and therefore have not checked to see which are vintage and which are not... it is a "grab bag" draw, but you will get what is shown)

Here's a sneak peak at another little basket after I improved on the design... I'll save that one for another draw at a later date, but have a look anyway...

And, just so you know I have not been wasting away my time playing... here's something that is currently in "blocking" mode right now... haven't quite decided what I will do with it yet, but it is for a "new" someone special....

Well... thanks for stopping by, until next time,

Peace, love and joy!

Meet Looby Lou and Lulu Belle...

2010-02-07T22:28:00.009-06:00

I'd like to introduce you to Looby Lou and Lulu Belle! LOL!

I have been wanting a mannequin forever, but every time I looked for vintage ones on Ebay, the price went so high that I just wan't prepared to pay the price.

New ones are just as expensive... but then I came across these two, both are new, and I am really happy with the style...

They are pinnable, so they are very functional, not just for looks.

And, because the price was so good, I decided to get both and it still cost me less than just one of the many I looked at.

Did you every sing the song "Here we go Looby Lou" when you were little??? Well, that's how I came up with Looby's name... now, every time I make her something I can say... here we go Looby Lou, VBG!

And Lulu Belle was a two-fold choice. One because it was kind of a spin off from Looby "Lu", and second because it's a name my Mum always loved and she always says it, so I decided to name the little one (size 3-4 years), Lulu Belle.

Now of course, they had to have a makeover because I wasn't keen on the white covering. But, living in a small town miles from anywhere, you're lucky if you can find things you need and I couldn't get a decent jersey knit... so I searched through my stash and I came across a piece that I had from when I used to make dolls... and I had previously tried to sell it in a garage sale for $2 but nobody bought it... lucky thing,because while it is slightly darker than I would like, it served its purpose well....

And here they are making their first modelling debut...

Looby Lou is wearing a lovely pink apron...

...made from a lovely vintage looking rose design fabric...

and it has hand embroidered detail at the top bodice...

....vintage buttons in almost the exact match of pink finishes it off.

Of course, how can you cook in this lovely apron without a matching set of micro mitts...

This set makes a great gift set... I made a couple more as Christmas gifts for this past Christmas....

Lulu Belle is also wearing a pretty pink apron, in the same style...

...a purchased felt flower adorns the front bodice...

...covered buttons in fabric to match the body of the apron finishes this cutie off.

Well, I hope you enjoyed meeting Looby Lou and Lulu Belle.

Peace, love and joy!

What are little sisters for, if not for bugging big sisters!

2010-01-18T19:56:00.010-06:00

I have been anxiously waiting to show you this... but I had to wait until my sister got it before I could show you.

First of all, let me say, that there is something to be said for little sisters bugging their big sisters.... I love it, love it, love it... it is so much fun! LOL!

It certainly was a pleasure making it! I had asked if she would like something homemade for Christmas and she said yes. Let me tell you... she didn't get it for Christmas, because I wasn't done (but I did give her something small and homemade for Christmas to fill in the waiting time).... until she did get it. Tell me, do you think it was worth the wait???

When we talked at Christmas, I had Mum tell her, how gorgeous it was (not meaning to brag, but just to get her curiousity peaked!)... well, it got her curiousity peaked!

Do you know what she did, she wrote to my Mum and asked her for a hint!!!!!! Of course, I caught wind of it, because Mum asked me what she should tell her, so I said, "tell her it is big enough to carry around, but small enough to display".... then I immediately wrote to my sister when I got home and said "ahem, I hear you are asking for clues!", LOL!

And so, it went, back and forth I sent her some clues.... here they are:

Clue #2: It's got beige, brown, blue, green, peach, yellow and eggplant in it.... my sister likes beiges and greens... I am a pink/bue/green kind of person so I find her colours hard to work with, and I wanted to "confuse" her with the colours... I figured she would wonder what kind of "ugly" fabric was being used..... how do you think I did??

Clue #3: Sealed with a "string to a heart"... it dangles freely!" To which she replied "stop teasing, I am no good at all with charades! How can something dangle freely if it is sealed with a string to a heart???"

Clue #4: I responded to Clue #2 with "Oops, sorry (about the teasing)... but when it travels, all things will be contained!"... To which she replied that from Clues 1 and 2, she guessed it was on its way to her in the mail, to which I replied... "Hmmmm, could be... but then again, maybe not... however, when you do eventually see it, you will know what I meant by that clue (it had dual meaning because, yes it had been mailed).

Clue #5: When folded, it can fit in one hand, but when open it may take two.

Anyway.... I don't think she figured it out, because she never did give me any guesses... but, she got it today!

Can you figure it out??? See if you can spot the clues....

So, here's the back.... a notebook fits nicely in the pocket, and there's room for a pen too....

And this is the front with her initial on it... I created another one of my original drawings and I hand embroidered it. I usually use six-stranded cotton floss but use only one strand for the actual embroider of this type. (The embroider looks big in the picture, but probably only measures about 3x2 inches or so total).

And what is this on... well, it's a hussif of course!

See, it has a lacy thimble holder...

and see the embroidered circle, it has a magnet in it, so it is a "needle minder"... and some rings for hanging threads and ribbon. It has two pockets with zippers. Lots of little pockets that I filled with a notepad, ruler, a thread cutter/needle threader combination, a water soluble pen, a wooden cuticle stick which makes a handy little laying tool, scissors, and needle and pins... there's a flap with pieces of fabric to store theneedles and pins!

I also included a pin cushion, and a matching scissor fob:

I didn't want it to be "floppy" so, everything is lined, and some of the pieces have reinforcements which helped to give it the stiffness I was looking for.

I can't say this went without its hitches as I was designing as I went along and often changed my mind. For instance, the zippered pockets were a last minute thing and I put on the zippers but didn't like that you could see the zipper on the inside, so I ripped them off, undid the lining, then inserted the zippers properly.

Another small "blip" was when I sewed everything together and turned it inside out... well, I had so many layers that the hole I made to turn it inside out was not big enough and I struggled for an hour until I got it turned right side out, however, because I had used linen, it was so wrinkled and I couldn't get the wrinkles out that I ripped it apart again, reblocked, and used a different method for putting it together.

One last thing... I started off with a heart-shaped pocket for the scissors like I have seen on so many hussifs, but I decided it was really wasted space and I wanted to get the most out of the space that I could. So I replaced that with one big pocket that I divided into three for inserting things.

While it is not perfect, all in all I have to say it was a great learning experience and I am very happy with the design and will use this again, with a few minor alterations.

So what do you think? I am so jealous, because I haven't even made one for myself yet.... usually for all us stitchers, "myself" usually always comes last, so it will most likely be a while before I get around to making myself one. My Mum and her friend Kay already want one too.

So here's a recap of the clues:

1. Small enough to carry, but large enough to display - it measures approximately 6.25 X 9.25 inches in it's open state, 6.25 X 4+ inches when closed.
2. It's got beige, brown, blue, green, peach, yellow and eggplant in it... no, it wasn't all in the fabric!
3. Sealed with a "string to a heart"... it dangles freely! (Look closely at the closure, it is a button that you wrap with a string that just happens to have a heart on the end....)... I didn't want to use ribbon because it wrinkles and takes time to "tie a bow" and I didn't want a button loop.... so this was my solution.
4. When it travels, all things will be contained (does this only mean "it was mailed"!).
5. When folded, it can fit in one hand, but when open it may take two....

I am pleased to say this needlecase will accommodate most needlecraft techniques in that the zippered pockets are big enough to hold fair sized pieces of fabric, patterns, or tiny embellishments you don't want to get lost. You can fill the pockets with whatever suits your fancy for the craft you've chosen. And the best thing is you can take it with you anywhere because it will fit nicely in your purse!

My sister was happy with her gift and said the kindest words to me! Those words meant so much to me from my "big sister".

Luv ya Sis! XX

Peace, love and joy!

Surprises from the heart make the best gifts!

2010-01-06T18:47:00.006-06:00

T his Christmas, my sister, Theresa, and I, worked on a crazy quilt cushion for our Mum. We have both only recently started in this type of needlework, but we wanted a surprise for our Mum.

The story goes like this...

This past year I introduced my sister to Crazy Quilting, which I too had just learned. In October she asked me if I was interested in working on a cushion together for our Mum. Of course I said yes. So, she pieced together the cushion (and I believe I recognize some of the fabric being from either my Mum or myself). Then she sent it to me. I started my share of the embellishing on it, sent it back to her along with some trim for the outside. She finished her part of the embellishing, added the trim, backing and zipper and then sent it back to me. I supplied the pillow form and wrapped it up.

Of course, Mum kept wondering why she had not received a gift from my sister yet (because she usually sends her gift on time... unlike me!) ... and I continued on with my "lying ways" that I had fallen into since October when we had started this project, VBG, and said that my sister was probably busy this year with some unexpected events that always seem to happen to the best of us.

On Christmas Day, as I "bubbled" (cried) away, I told Mum the story of the journey of the cushion - and all the lies that had went along with it... and of course when Mum opened the unexpected gift, she had even bigger "bubbles"... it was a wonderful "gift" for all three of us...

Mum's favourite colour is purple/lilac, and even though this was mostly pink, we were able to slip in her favourite colour... and it sorted of ended up with a bit of a butterfly theme because of once piece of the fabric...

and so, here's the cusion....

Here are a few close up pictures of what we did... well, a lot of pictures, VBG!

This is some of the work I did on the cushion....

And here's some of the work my sister did...

If you have a sister, close friend, or other relative that enjoys the same kind of work as you... then I highly recommend that you get together and make something special for someone you love. My sister and I had fun "keeping this secret", doing something together (even with the many miles between us), and the joy of surprising our Mum!

We have plans to work on something together again this year... but I think we might just try to get an earlier start on it... VBG!

Peace, love and joy....

Did I show you this?

2009-12-31T12:21:00.008-06:00

I've been spending the last few days slowly updating bits and pieces of my blog... yes, I am getting tired of the way it looks, so it's time for a change... but it will happen slowly.

In the meantime, as I was looking through some of my pics, I came across one of a dress I had made for my great niece and I realized I had never showed it here on this blog...

So I thought I'd show you...

I decided to make a "cartoon" of Jace and her dog, and this is what I came up with....

Then I took this image and inserted it into an heirloom dress...

The dress is completely finished with french seams and the bodice is lined so you don't see the back stitching. Small floral buttons in a deep peach finish up the back. It is made from 100% cotton in a lovely floral pattern.

Peace, love and joy.

A Christmas treasure...

2009-12-05T15:17:00.011-06:00

My good friend Judy asked me to exchange sewing Christmas postcards again this year, and I said yes...

The idea is to create a post card sized piece of "sewing craft", write a greeting on the back like a regular postcard, and then send it off....

Judy and I co-ordinated it so we would both open our cards at approximately the same time.... of course, I told Judy that we had to wait until at least the month of December to open them, VBG!

This year, Judy send me a beautiful Brazilian embroidered Christmas tree, presents and all... it is lovely, and makes another wonderful treasured keepsake.

Not only did Judy send me this wonderful postcard, but she also made me a delightful dorset button - I don't know how she did it, but it is wonderful....

.... and she enclosed a whole bunch of other goodies.... a whole pile of tea because she knows I am a passionate tea drinker, beads, rings to make my own Dorset buttons (and the directions to make the buttons which I forgot to include in the picture), some lovely faerie Christmas fabric because she knows I love faeries, and some brooch backs in case I want to turn my Dorset button into a bro0ch... she spoiled me. Thank you Judy... all the goodies are just wonderful with fantastic keepsakes.

Here's a picture of the post card I made to exchange with Judy...

Peace, love and joy!

And the winner is.....

2009-11-22T20:47:00.006-06:00

First of all, I would like to say thank you to all who have entered my draw. To those of you new to my blog... welcome! If you didn't win this time... perhaps you'll be lucky next time.

Well, the consensus was that most everyone liked Birdie #3.... funny, I thought pink was a hot item.....

I asked my DH to pull the winner for me...

and the winner is.....

Kay!

Kay says the tradition for her each Christmas is to make dozens and dozens of Shortbread cookies that she gives away to many friends and family!

Enjoy your birdie Kay!

Season's Greetings!

Peace, love and joy!

Better to give than to receive.

2009-11-14T20:24:00.015-06:00

'Tis the season! Are you in the midst of Christmas preparations, or is it still too early for that?

I've been doing some Christmas stitching ... I can't show them off yet because they're pressies. I stopped stitching because I needed a break, but I made these and I can show you them... there are quite a few, similar, but all different... (click image for a larger view)...

Balls #1, #2, #3

Birds #1, #2, #3, #4, #5
Hanging #1, #2, #3, #4

What do you think??? Are any of them worth giving away... would somebody want one? Would you want one?

If you were to wait for me to reach a hundred posts... you'll probably have a long long wait, so, in the spirit of the season, I have decided to give one of these away! I'm not sure which one yet... but perhaps you can help me decide. There's a couple of things you'll need to do to get your name into the draw, and they are....

1. Leave a comment on this post.
2. Tell me which ornie you'd choose if you could (by Item # please).
3. Tell me where you're from - I'd like to learn about who's visiting my blog, and if you have any special Christmas traditions in your family or country.
4. If you've been on my follower list before this posting, or are one of my regular posters, and you leave me a comment, I'll put your name in again just for your loyalty.
5. If you post about this giveaway on your blog, let me know, I'll check it out, and you'll get your name in again.

I'll be making the draw sometime next Sunday, November 22, 2009. Yup, short draw, but really, how long can it take for you to decide if you want one or not?!

Peace, love and joy!

My friend's having a blogaversary!

2009-11-04T20:41:00.006-06:00

My dear friend Liz over at "Liz Moments" is having a giveaway... it's her 100th post. Congratulations Liz! Pop on over to see her.

All thumbs!

2009-10-26T07:25:00.005-05:00

Well, I may be back, but I can't say I've got anything new to post... actually, I have been stitching, but unlike last year where I tricked a few people by showing bits and pieces of what I was working on without them having any inkling it was for them... I think if I show anything, this year they might just catch on, VBG!

That is, I've been stitching on some Christmas pressies.... so I don't want to give it away... I'm anxious to be able to post some of my work for you to see, but you'll just have to wait.

On the other hand, I've also been busy continuing to get ready for winter around here... covering ornaments, fixing water lines, and mending fences.

But it's my mending the fence that I'll post about here... where I keep my horses, I have a natural fence of rails and posts (well the posts aren't natural, but the rails are)... I've become very good at doing the fencing, ever since I got the horses, I have done a lot of digging post holes and fashioning the rails myself... after all, you can't always wait for DH to help, you've got to be a little independent... anyway, usually I am very good and never hammer my thumb... well guess what, I hammered my thumb! Ouch! But I persevered and kept on working....

I took this picture as soon as I got home, and it doesn't look as bad as it felt, but by the end of the week, the thumb was purple all over and my nail now has a black spot....

All for the love of my boys....

It hasn't hampered my sewing abilities, thank goodness... but I hope it doesn't happen too often.

Hugs.

The absent blogger is..... back!

2009-10-18T08:07:00.003-05:00

Hello all my loyal followers!!! 'Tis the season for me to make a return to the world of blogging, not that I have abandoned it totally, I have visited my friends' blogs, I just haven't been posting myself.

I have discovered that I am definitely a "seasonal" blogger. Summer is just way too hectic for me to make any posts.... especially when you are not on high speed internet where everything takes so looooong to do, and with nothing creative or interesting to show you.... well....

But, no matter, my world is good and I am hoping to make some decent posts over these upcoming winter months when more of my time will be spent in the cozy indoors beside a nice warm fire! So here's a summary of the months I have been gone.....

I can't say I have done a lot this summer, definitely no stitching or anything creative has been accomplished, but yet, I seem to be much more busy in my so-called semi-retired life than I was when I worked full-time in the corporate world.... I just can't figure out why... perhaps it is because I can't spell the word "no" never mind pronounce it!

Over the last few years I have somehow been roped in to accepting two part-time jobs (one is for two months in the summer only) - this summer, these two jobs, due to a couple of unfortunate incidents, ended up having me working full-time for most of the summer - on the bright side - I have been able to use my earning to pay for my "hobbies" without having to convince my DH that I "need" some extra supplies, LOL!

In my part of the world, Spring came very late, and the summer has been mostly a wet one, lots and lots of rain and thunder/lightening storms... leading to power outages and fried phones! Summer finally arrived in late August and early September, only to turn very cold quickly with below freezing weather in late September to snow on the ground already here in October. This weekend has been one of our nicer fall weekends, the snow has melted, and I have been able to get some of the final outdoor winter preparation work accomplished.

I didn't work on my garden at all this summer... the flower beds suffered, and the vegetable garden is one large weed bed... but I did get a few blooms from some of my perennials. In fact, my daylilies did not even start blooming until September, and sadly, they were rewarded with some of our very lovely early cold weather.... who knows how they will fair next year after this year's shock!

We were able to spend what little nice weather we had enjoying our beautiful little lake....

One of our favourite anchoring spots....

Their favourite pasttime....

Well.... that's probably a long enough re-entrance back to blogging... next post I'll show you some of the perennials that did bloom... the only bit of colour in a rather drab summer.

Thanks to all my friends who, due to my lengthy absence, contacted me asking if everything was ok. Indeed, everything has been okay... just rather hectic as usual!

Hugs.

Breaking the rules

2009-08-29T13:43:00.002-05:00

OMG! I am breaking my own cardinal rule.... I never post on a giveaway unless I have previously posted on that person's blog... I don't want to be a "one-time poster", but seeing this on a Liz's site, I just had to check it out, and wow!, I am glad I did... so I have entered the giveaway and intend to follow Kellie ... what fantastic work!

Now could you pass up on this giveway either????.....

Yes, it has certainly been a long while since I've posted, and it will be a little while yet before I have anything worthwhile to talk about or show you.... just way too busy, but, I just couldn't get past this giveaway.....

It's been a pretty hectic summer around here - I have been working full-time for most of the summer, things are finally starting to slow down.... not fully, but starting... I've had no time for stitching or anything else creative.... hopefully just looking and drooling over this lovely quilt will get my creative juices flowing and I will be back with something soon.

Hope everyone is having a great summer - sadly our weather has been very poor - almost all rain... can you believe it is almost September - our wild roses have developed their rose hips, but in my garden, my lilies are just starting to bloom - unbelievable year this year for my garden... oh well, I guess there is always next years.

Take care everyone... I'll be back soon.

Bears, bunnies and baby boys!

2009-06-07T18:07:00.003-05:00

Well, I did promise to show you a few things I have been working on... I just can't believe that I started these things several months ago, and I finally just recently finished them.... life does not always follow our well laid out plans and time table, but seems to take on a path of its own.... but they are done and mailed out, sent to a very special little person... my sister's first grandchild and a new grand nephew for me... I only hope he gets to wear them at least once... babies grow so fast so quickly....

Okay, remember this little teddy bear????

...he became part of this...

...ribbon embroider on a blue old-fashioned romper made out of batiste.

... and this little blue bunny, seen as if you were looking at him from behind???

... well, he jumped onto this.... a sleeper...

... the bunny was an attempt at "fuzzy" created by using boucle BE threads, on flannel.

...and finally, it would not be perfect if I didn't throw in a little dress Stewart tartan (my clan tartan) into this....

... which became part of this....

...blanket, bib, sleeveless top and diaper pants....

...applique using a poly cotton blend fabric for bib and blanket with flannel; the little outfit is made from cotton poplin.

...and do you remember when I started this????

....well, it became this...

...a sweet lavender sachet, filled with lovely French Lavender. As most of you know, one of the properties of lavender is that it helps you to relax, therefore perfect for "sleepy" time.... of course, I made the back so it could be opened and the scent removed either for washing or in case it turns out that baby, like me, has allergies to scents...

...the image is one of my own drawings turned into embroider....

.... perfect for hanging on the crib...

... 100% cotton fabric with DMC embroider floos and perle cotton for the hammock.

All items were finished with french seams used in heirloom clothing.

...special gifts for a special baby! Welcome to the world Jason!

Big apologies....

2009-06-03T19:44:00.002-05:00

Hello Everyone... I bet you have been wondering where I have been....!!!???!!!

I am wondering that myself!

In my last post I had made the comment that everyone must be busy as I had seen very little blog posts from my blogging friends... well, tonight as I checked again, suddenly my many friends' blogs showed up with several posts each - I was shocked! For some reason my live feed has not been live feeding and I have missed many posts - why, I do not know.

So, since there were so many, and perhaps too many to make comments on because of my rather slow internet speed - I just want to let all of my friends know I have read all your recent posts that I have missed - lovely tatting (from Scotland), family visits and graduations, gifts from sisters, adorable aprons, student BE samplers - I have visited you all.... please accept my apologies for this technical bleep, but I have not abandoned any of you.

On another note, I have been very busy, unfortunately not so much with stitching. Our weather is still freezing a bit at night, so no gardening either. I have mostly been busy with work.

But that doesn't mean that things have not been exciting around here... we had a recent visitor....

This big guy, a cinnamon bear (member of the black bear family) had been popping back and forth between our home and one of our near neighbours. Finally the neighbour called the conservation officer to pick him up because he was getting into their shed and seemed to be hanging around very near by. It is so sad that there is very little food around because of the un-cooperative weather... nothing has really been sprouting yet... just a few grasses here and there.

I promise to show you some things I have been working on and finally completed in my next post soon - I have already given you some sneak peaks into them... so stay tuned.

Thanks for sticking with me!

Nothing surprises me!

2009-05-21T20:01:00.002-05:00

It seems that, like me, all my blogging friends must be busy... post activity appears to be less than it has been over the winter months.... hopefully that means you are all enjoying lovely spring weather.

I looked out my window the other morning and smiled as I watched a little bunny on our back lawn... trying to find some new spring growth to nibble on.... it was a delightful sight.

The next day I looked out our window, and look at what was staring me right in the face....

...yes, really, May 19 and we had over two inches of snow and the weather man had announced a weather warning for our area... and people wonder why I say working in my garden won't happen for quite a while yet... in the background you can see the ice had finally lifted off the lake - so why the snow????!!!!!

...but, the sun shone and another little bunny came out to frolic in the snow...

VBG! Happy Spring!

Brazilian Threads

2009-05-11T21:13:00.002-05:00

I hope everyone is having a lovely spring... would you believe it, we had another two days of snow a couple of days ago, luckily it has almost all gone, however, the weather man is calling for more snow within the next couple of days.... I sure hope he is wrong and it passes us by.

I have still not had time to do any stitching, however, as promised, I will show you the lovely BE threads I recently purchased after my first venture into the world of Brazilian embroidery.

Since much of the work I do falls into the pink range, most of my threads are in that colour...

... here is the "tickled pink" thread package... aren't they just delicious!!!

... and here is the "valentines" thread package... reminds me of cherry cheesecake ice cream... scrumptious!!!

... and finally, I purchased the "just peachy" thread package...

I purchased a few single skeins, but forgot to take a picture of them... periwinkle, beige, white and black.

But the best thing about all these threads is that my Mum also purchased some, along with one of my sisters... and we decided to split them three ways so we would each have a whole bunch more.

It was a tedious job separating the threads, it took my Mum 4-5 hours to do her batch, and it took me 6 hours to do mine and my sister's batch... I did not want to look at threads for a while.

But once it was all said and done, we split 100 or so skeins of thread... I can't believe it. We may each only have a few strands of each, but a little thread can go a long way.

Between the threads and fabrics in my previous post, I have "spent my allowance" for quite some time... no more shopping for me for quite a while.

Now, I just have to figure out what I am going to do with all these lovelies... that is, as soon as I can find some time to use them.

Happy spring everyone.

Lovely fabrics, but no time to sew...

2009-05-05T20:45:00.003-05:00

Okay, so I still haven't had time to get very much stitching in, however, I thought I'd show you some of the lovely fabrics I have purchased recently. Mostly lovely silky type fabrics, some very special kimono silks.

I purchased these fabrics which are mostly champagne, creams and browns, along with some green and burgundy thrown in just because I liked them. I was lucky to find these in town quite a few weeks ago (more like a couple of months)... I had been asked if there was the possibility create something in these colours, however, while I found time to search for the material, I haven't yet found time to start anything with them yet... too many other things have unexpectedly popped up... in the near future, I hope... (mostly taffetas, lighweight upholstery and curtain weights)...

The following are fabrics, trims and buttons, that I purchased on the way back from our recent trip. I have tried to separate them into the appropriate colourways....

...more champagne, cream and brown.... kimono silks...

...blacks... kimono silks...

...blues... the middle one is raw silk, the other two kimono silks...

...turquoise (sea green), and pale greens (sage) - (none of these are silks, the first one would be like light curtain weight, the others medium upholstery)...

...a lovely white, shown from both sides (bridal fabric)... I believe you could use this either way... also a lovely pale green and pink toile (cotton)....

...reds... the first is a medium weight upholstery, the second, kimono silk...

...and the trims...

...and a variety of buttons including glass, shell, and mother of pearl...

Well, I hope you have enjoyed looking at these wonderful fabrics and wondering what creations I will come up with... as of yet, I have absolutely no ideas in mind, VBG!

My next post, I will show you some of the lovely BE threads I also recently purchased.

I am so thankful

2009-04-30T12:49:00.003-05:00

Hello everyone, it has been a while since I've posted, hasn't it!

Firstly, I want to thank all my dear friends and family who sent wonderful care messages our way upon the loss of our dear nephew, they were very much appreciated.

Due to the unplanned trip, and upon our return from the funeral, I found myself swamped with work. My e-mail basket was full of clients needing things done, I received phone calls from new clients wanting work done, and I had my regular part time job to go to.... whew, have I been busy. Needless to say, I had no opportunity to work on fun stuff, no stitching, no art, no blogging.... aaargh!

Today my DH is busy installing our new dishwasher, so it is a perfect time for me to quickly get in a blog post.... (you know how it is when our DH's are doing renos... we are constantly on call, LOL, so no point in starting something needing one's utmost attention).

This blog post is dedicated to two dear friends Cathy and Judy.

Cathy sent me the most wonderful birthday present that I received a few weeks ago, and which I should have posted before now, sorry for the wait Cathy!

Look at these beautiful antique laces that she surprised me with, along with a wonderful little book on "hanky" crafts. There are bits and bobs of lace, trim, a tiny doily, and even a wonderfully trimmed hanky.

I love them... I won't be using these for a while.... I want to just enjoy them, and then, I will find some special use for them. Thank you so much Cathy, I look forward to using them in the future for special projects.

Then, Judy send me wonderful easter greetings and send me this lovely little packet of goodies....

.... a lovely hand-made rose in the sweetest pink toile, embellished along the edge with lots of pretty pink seed beads (now that would have taken a while). She also sent two of my favourite teas, English Breakfast and Lady Grey. I received this little package right before we left, so I bought a small kettle which I packed up along with the tea, and took it with us. I don't drink coffee, and it was wonderful to have delicious tea every morning after getting up before we headed down for breakfast... I thought about Judy every day as I popped a tea bag into the pot.... delicious, and just what I needed. Thank you Judy.... you certainly know what pleases me!

Both ladies also sent lovely cards which I forgot to take pictures of.

And now I also want to mention the latest book I have read... I took a break from the "Luxe" series I have been reading (mostly because I took it on the trip but never found time to read any of it). A friend actually drove my DH and I to the airport while we were in the city to catch the plane, and she mentioned this book to me, so when I got back to town I found it at Wal-mart and decided to buy it, it was an easy read and a nice change.

This is the story of a lady, who as a young girl, moved, with her parents, from her home on a Hutterite colony to live as an "English". She tells of her life on both sides and now that she is older she has reclaimed her Hutterite heritage. It is an enjoyable read and the story takes place within the province that I live.

Memories are the photographs your heart takes.

2009-04-17T20:24:00.002-05:00

I wanted to thank all my dear friends who have contacted me in concern due to my lack of posting over the last couple of weeks. I am fine, however, I have been dealing with some sad circumstances, and just recently returned from a short trip, of which I had no internet access, and of which I had no time to make a post before I left.

I am sad to say my DH's nephew recently passed away at the young age of 43, passing his recent birthday in hospital.

In an attempt to reach his nephew, who was more like a brother to him, we had booked a plane flight to try and be near him when we found out he only had days, or weeks if lucky, to live, he was dying from cancer.

Sadly, we did not make it in time and he passed before we arrived, he barely stayed alive for his mother (my S-I-L), his sister and stepdad who all managed to catch a flight and see him for a few short hours before his passing. What we had hoped would be weeks, turned out to be only 3 days.

Our trip ended up being for his funeral instead.

In memory of our dear nephew, Dennis.... now an angel among us.... sadly missed, dearly loved, never forgotten.

We love you Dennis.

A celebration of life

2009-03-31T18:28:00.002-05:00

Have you ever given any thought as to why we celebrate "special" days, and not worry about the rest of the days of the year?

I have made it a habit to try to find something special in every day that we have on this earth as cause for celebration.

Yesterday, I celebrated many things. Spring! Spring where I live doesn't follow the same calendar as spring in many parts of the world.... take a look, this is our spring....

...it is beautiful, the sun shone, the temperatures rose, it was a pleasure being outside....

...the snow is melting furiously, it still freezes as night, but we can see the piles slowly shrinking.

It was such a beautiful day my horses wouldn't even meet me at the fence at feeding time, they preferred to bask in the warm heat of the sun's rays...

My dear friend Judy says she knows spring is here because of the many robins she has seen, I don't think we'll be seeing any of them for a while yet here...

...however...

...I will share with you this little darling, created as part of an assignment for an animation course I took....my instructor said I had taken on a "rather ambitious project" since we only needed to do about 30 seconds of animation, but for some reason mine turned out a lot longer because I wrote a poem, narrated it, and then animated the whole thing.... I did end up getting an overall 97% on the course, so the extra effort in all the assignments was worth it.

I got the idea to use this as part of a children's book I wanted to make from the poem, and thought I could offer an animation along with it... we shall see where that leads, perhaps one day, in all of my spare time, LOL! Here it is.... "Happy Spring"!

Yesterday was also another day for celebration, and while it is not common for me to celebrate this day, I felt I owed it to my family and friends who asked me what I was going to do that was special... yes, yesterday was my birthday.

For me, any time I get to be at home doing what I want to do, is a celebration! So, in the morning I did a little stitchin', played a little music, and danced a little dance! I am happy to be alive.

My Mum's dear friend Kay gave me a huge tin of my favourite cookies - shortbread - and let me tell you, these cookies just melt in your mouth and are to die for... thank you Kay - they are delicious, VBG!

So, to celebrate the occasion while my DH was away at work, I decided to have a "tea party" with the girls, LOL!

Cadeau on the left, Heidi on the right... awaiting their cookies.... a little annoyed because "there goes Mum with the camera again"...

We've had company for the last little while, and she was quite impressed with the little celebration also...

...Shadow, our neighbour's dog...VBG!

So here's my lovely little tray of tea and cookies... well, the "girls" really didn't have tea, but they did have their own cookies...

After tea and cookies, I got the chance to read that wonderful book you see by my tea cup... it is another book from the youth series that I had bought... just because I liked the covers...

I've read the one on the top with the pink dress, and now I am on book 2, the one with the red dress. The story takes place in New York in the year 1899.

I didn't turn on the TV at all on this day... I really like to have the TV on when I am working, just for noise, but today I decided to choose some of my favourite music to listen to.....

Celtic Heart, Celtic Seasons (I do love my celtic music), Il Divo... OMG... have you ever heard them? Aside from the fact that they are all absolutely easy on the eyes, they all have fantastic voices.... they sing in Italian, French, English, and I am not sure what else.... I just love them! And I also enjoy Enya.

Laying back with a full tummy, and a good book, it didn't take long before we all dozed off... a refreshing 30 minute nap, after which we all....

...went for a long walk to enjoy the beautiful sunny day...

My dear friend Judy had called me the day before to wish me a Happy Birthday, we talked for an hour, it was lovely. We talked about all our interests and I had mentioned another hobby I have which is stained glass... here's a shot of the very first piece I ever made...

And still more cause for celebration is a new special little life that will be coming into this world very very soon.... my dear sis in Quebec is going to be a first time Grandma... VBG!

Of course, being the ever curious person she is, she just had to know what I was working on that morning.... so dear sis, this is just for you to satisfy your curiousity, LOL!

...aren't they just the darned cutest little things you have ever seen?.... sorry sis, that's all you get for now, LOL! That's for another post....

So, it was a wonderful day yesterday, many causes for celebration.... take time for yourself and celebrate your life.... I wish everyone health, love, and happiness... without those, everything else is meaningless!

Hugs....

Always learning....

2009-03-21T09:07:00.002-05:00

I recently joined a Yahoo Group with my friend Judy. It was a Brazilian Embroidery (BE) group, and they started over a month ago, but my Mum and I joined in a week after the class had already started and therefore we didn't get our kits for another three weeks. Well, the kit finally arrived. We also ordered a book and a DVD (both of which I haven't even looked at yet), and when I ordered the DVD, the lovely lady sent me a skein of thread and needles all laid out in their sizes and thread use....

It would be quite a few days before I would be able to start the project, but I finally was able to start on Saturday night.... I worked only on that project because I wanted both to get caught up and because I have so many upcoming projects, I wanted to try and get it finished quickly. I am proud to say I finished it Tuesday evening... unfortunately, I worked ahead of the class... but then again, that's me... VBG.... keener!!!

I have to say, most of these stitches I have used before in my other projects with regular embroider floss, so I didn't find any of them really difficult to do...

So here's the completed project....

I think I will turn this into a hussif specifically for BE work. I have to say this is the first time I have ever used BE threads, and I love them! They are so shiny and silky.... just beautiful, they really make a project glow, and they lay down just beautifully... I will be ordering some threads "tout de suite"...VBG.

Winter workings

2009-03-18T20:27:00.003-05:00

Relief finally came from the bitter cold weather we faced over the last few days, temperatures rose slightly but with it came the snow.

In all, approximately 6 inches of snow fell...

When the snow finally stopped, the sun shone making for some glorious walking weather.... this is the road we walk on which leads us to some lovely quiet trails...

...working up a sweat...

... our trails branch off in many directions, but as the winter snow builds we stick to our main route.... some of the trails remain untouched of human and pet foot traffic, but often you can see rabbit or other small critter tracks....

... just lovely to look at....

... the good news... my DH tell me the snow should return in a couple of days and last for about 4 days.... :-(

So, what do you do when it snows? Well, I've had quite a few projects on the go, so here's one... do you remember this CQ block I started?......

....well, here it is all adorned up...

...what do you do with all these blocks if you're not going to make a quilt out of it? This is what I made with it....

... a lovely lavender filled sachet for Cathy's birthday.... a surprise for her... so while she was sending me my lovely parcel, I was secretly sending her this....

Still experiencing a deep freeze....

2009-03-14T07:27:00.002-05:00

While everyone is showing off all their lovely pictures of the "signs of spring", we here are still contending with winter's cold chill. While it has warmed up slightly, this week our mornings were still a little chilly and we woke up to temperatures of -39C (-38F)... and that's without the windchill...

...but all is not so bad... I did receive this lovely parcel in the mail which helped to warm my heart.... this delicious package came from Cathy who sent it as a thank you gift for creating her blog header....first, some lovely silk ribbons and some snippets of fancy trim.....

... but now, I'm just teasing you..... this is what the rest of the package contained....

....lots of lovely bits of trim, and a multitude of pieces of fabric in a whole variety of colours to make lots of lovely crazy quilt things with.... now, aren't I spoiled again!!!!

Thank you soooo much Cathy... these lovelies will be put to good use.

Well, the snow is still falling, another 3 inches of snow fell yesterday, and we're supposed to get another couple of inches today and tomorrow..... as you can see from the picture above, and the indication of more snow, I won't be seeing spring flowers for a loooooooong time yet!

Am I spoiled or what!!!?!!!

2009-03-07T17:27:00.003-06:00

..... yes, it's true, and 'tis me.... VBG!

I received the most wonderful surprise in the mail yesterday.... three packages addressed to me... I said to the post lady.... it must be Christmas!

I looked at the return address, and the most wonderful surprise, they were from my dear friend Judy!

I was itching with anticipation to rip off all the wrappings, but alas, I decided to finish my chores before I sat down to savour whatever wonderful treasures were hidden inside.

.... package #1 - two beautiful pieces of fabric, wonderful little beads, beading thread, needles, and silk jewelry strands.... all wrapped in the most delicious tissue paper.....

... package #2 - more lovely fabric, five gorgeous lace appliques, and an assortment of yummy embroidery threads.... silky rayons, adorable hand dyed's, and a scrumptious assortment of the prettiest variegated threads, all packaged up in the same lovely tissue.... I am in heaven!.....

...BUT, la piece de resistance, was package #3 which contained a beautiful birthday card, and the most exquisite piece of fibre art I have ever seen, and now have the honour of owning.... from a selection of photos sent to her by me (unknown to me what she was up to), and some secret conversations between her and my dear Mum (ahem!), Judy created the image she had in mind about what it looks like where I live.... and she nailed it right on the head.....

.... she has the lake in front of our house, the beaver dam across the lake, a stumpwork beaver and a bear button (story about those will appear on another post) - this is the first time Judy has every done stumpwork, and it is fantastic... birch trees, dragonfly and butterfly, loons (which are hand carved, and she had brought with her from Fairbanks, Alaska), pine trees, wild flowers, blueberries, rocks, dirt path, dock, bull rushes, island, snail, land and sky, wild grass, and our tiny cabin home - all enhanced with the most beautiful embroidery in both ribbon, regular, and encrusted and using the most delicious Brazilian Embroider rayon threads.... OMG... it is incredible... words cannot describe how I feel about this... and unfortunately, the photograph does not do this incredible work of art justice... I absolutely love it and when I opened the package, I inhaled a deep breath and I was speechless! Judy has named this piece "Life in the Wilderness, Birch Lake".

Judy made this piece for me, along with the other two parcels, as a combination birthday gift and thank you for helping her with her blog.

I cannot thank Judy enough for this beautiful piece, I will treasure it... I am going to look for a shadow box frame and hang it in my living room so I can admire it every day. Never could I ever have imagined that my small part in helping her with her blog would have prompted her to make something so wonderful for me, and to think of me so fondly. Thank you, thank you, thank you dear Judy.

And this lady just doesn't stop! In amongst the packages, she had included a lovely little surprise for my Mum.... but you will have to read about that on her blog when she posts it!

Pink Frou Frou Tote

2009-03-04T20:30:00.003-06:00

Today I received a lovely phone call from a dear friend, and finally, because of that phone call, I can now show you the finished pink frou frou tote that I hard started some time ago...

...actually, I did finish it a while ago, but I was holding off posting because I really didn't want to give too much away... you see, the tote was for my dear friend Judy's birthday and I didn't want to spoil the surprise, even though I was being sneaky and posting pictures here and there... LOL!

...these are the straps... fancied up with some gingham ribbon... and some pink ruffle... you can never have too much frou frou.... VBG!

...some buttons, 3 at the bottom of each side, serves to actually hold the lining in place...

... a vintage button and some beads decorate up the closure...

... I used a swirly pink fabric for the lining and sewed in a couple of big pockets....

... here's one complete side...

Judy had sent me a lovely card at Christmas time that she told me was a picture of her favourite scene from Anne of Green Gables... I wanted to incorporate this into the tote, and so, I made a silkie from it. It turned out to be tooooooo blue and I didn't like it, but I was running out of time for her birthday, so I stitched some pink colonial knots at the bottom for flowers, and then added my beet dyed pink lace over the sky to mute it down a bit, added ribbon, flowers, and buttons... not quite what I had hoped for... but Judy loved it! So here's the other side....

...the finished measurements were approximately 15X16... a rather roomy tote!

...till my next post....

The Joy of Reading

2009-02-25T18:42:00.003-06:00

Well, it hasn't been a very exciting few days, I haven't gotten a stitch of stitchin' done!

Time was spent on some house rearranging, not planned, but a necessity.

But I wanted to mention Cathy's 100th post and her give-a-way, which she has indicated she may have a second little prize.... how wonderful is that!

In honour of Cathy, I wanted to talk about reading, because she loves to read. I love to read also.

I read quite a few different types of books, but I do have my favourites... I love Arthurian legend and fantasy the best. I will read thrillers (crime), mystery, adventure, and true stories. I'm not a big fan of science fiction, biographies (although I have found a few to read), or really serious stuff LOL! I read both adult and youth books...

...I read youth books because when I write my own things, a lot of it is geared towards children... and if you have ever read youth (young adult) books, you will realize that many times they are of an adult level anyway.

Do you ever buy a book because you like what's on the cover, even if you are not familiar with the author? I do. Case in point...

I have no clue about the author of these books... but don't the dresses look so lovely and old fashioned... just makes you want to grab a cup of tea, curl up in a comfy chair and go back in time to what "seemed" to be a more romantic era.... they are set in the 1800's, and they are youth books. I am looking forward to reading them, but I just started another book (also youth) so I won't start these just yet... the one I am reading is part of a series too and I just ordered the third one... yes, I bought these ones because I liked the covers too... and the setting is also many years ago.

I have a small library of books that I have collected over the years... I've even been told I... eh... "have a problem" when it comes to my books because I won't bend them, fold pages, and I even put covers on them if I think they may get damaged while reading them (like travelling)... most of my books look like they have never been read, even though they have. I think, no, I know, I get this from my Mum... LOL! I do love my books.

Well, Cathy, I know you like reading, I hope you are as "nuts" about your books as I am. Make sure you visit her blog and make a post... you just might win, VBG.