Sew Cal Gal's Christmas Quilt Show.....

See the button on my side bar mentioning Sew Cal Gal's Christmas Quilt Show? Click on it to see a list of blogs with great quilts (and also to get you to SewCalGals's blog for details if you wish to join...there is still time!) Here are some Christmas things I've made that I am entering in her show: (click or double click to see them in greater detail, if you wish and IF that works today). This post has been giving me problems and seemed to look very SMALL when I first tested it. If it remains that way, I apologize and have NO idea what is going on with Blogger for me today.

I love this little Patch-Abilities pattern for a skinny Christmas tree...nice to tuck away into a small spot over the holidays.
I was playing around trying to do some little wall-hanging with an attic window effect and came up with this. I like that this can be left up all winter, too, as it's not totally Christmas!This is one of very few needle-turn applique projects I have done. It was done as a challenge project in a quilt guild to which I belonged at the time. I believe we were given the light fabric and had to design something incorporating that. This is a wall-hanging I made a few years back when I was new to quilting. It was made using the "snippets" technique. I put an actual bow on it. There isn't much quilting on the piece as I was not then (nor am I now) very good at machine quilting!!!

Busy weekend.......

Not much sewing going on......busy weekend (with two more even busier weekends to follow) since hubby and I are part of two current groups of volunteers at our church whose jobs are looming very large right now. At any rate, I did get these two blocks done to send to Karen for a comfort quilt she is putting together for her friend.



Then...I did scoot into a store on the way home from church today and got myself the only Jim Shore St. Patrick's themed figurine they had. It's really an ornament and if I get a good table-top ornament hanger, I will use it that way, BUT.....for now I used a couple of pieces of St. Patrick's fabric kindly sent to me by Lola with her package of baggies during our recent no-sew block swap and made a tiny mat for my Irish Angel to stand upon. I think she is sweet!

Am I the only one.......?

*sigh* Am I the only one who feels sad when the Christmas tree is taken down? Please tell me I'm not! I know it's a lot of work to put it up and also to take it down and pack the ornaments away (and some might feel good when the job is done), but Iwe am not happy when it's gone. Aside from the space looking "bare", I miss the prettiness of the tree at night...when the house is quiet and I can sit and hand-sew or read and enjoy the fireplace and the tree. We took ours down last night (we leave it up through Epiphany and take it down as soon as we can after that). I'm a bit melancholy about it now....but I'll recover by tomorrow! Here is a photo of part of the tree and the fireplace. Isn't it pretty? Okay.......I'll get over it now and do some sewing today and show you a sewing photo tomorrow. (Thanks for letting me whine a bit here today.)

BULLETIN....SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT....

THIS JUST IN......I was one of the winners in the Fat Quarter Shop's "Dear Santa" giveaway!!! Yippee.....LOTS of entries and I was one of the lucky ones (along with 20+ others). If you want to see the list of who else won, click HERE.

Okay......now I'll just put a few more decorated houses on here and then, tomorrow, will move on to some photos of the visit with the grandkids on the weekend. (Don't expect any sewing photos for a bit yet......just too much going on right now with church music to do any real sewing.) I thank all of you for the kind comments about the house photos so far. First of all....can you see the apples on the tops of the fence posts? There are nails put in the fence posts so the apples can be placed on there...must be an "old" way of decorating as I saw a few houses that did this. (I think an apple may have been visible in one of the past photos I showed yesterday or the day before) Of course.......you then run the risk that the squirrels will eat your decorations......see.......!!!You might not be able to see it very well, but above the green doors on this next building, it tells you this is a lifesaving station. It WAS one many years ago in Rehoboth Beach but it has been moved to Lewes and is now a private home.This cottage belongs to friends of ours. It is so charming and the interior decorations were featured in a Delaware magazine this month!And here is an old school that is now a private home...no decorations on it, but I thought it was worth showing. I hope you enjoyed this little holiday "tour" of Lewes, Delaware.

Anyone remember these bags???

IfAnyone remember these? Mary of Mary on Lake Pulaski makes them and was kind enough to have a drawing to give two of them to one of her blogging friends and I was the lucky one!!! I love them. She uses carpenter's metal tape as the closure and it works really well. The bags look so professionally made....thanks, Mary!

If you are interested in an Irish giveaway, click HERE to go to Micki's blog and tell her Pat sent you, okay? (Of course, as usual, I hope to win, but I promised I'd let you know about it.) And now.....some more of the pretty decorations on some of the houses in Lewes. So many enjoyed seeing some in yesterday's post, so here are more....Still more to come.....will sort through more and post a few more tomorrow. I just love so many of these houses! NOTE: We got home safely from NJ yesterday afternoon...after staying overnight due to a huge storm and bad roads. I'll post a couple of photos of "grandkids opening gifts", etc. for tomorrow. Thanks for all the prayers for us to have safe travels. (I'm glad for the blogger option to pre-schedule posts....so I had a Sunday AND a Monday post all ready for here before I left for NJ on Saturday morning!)

Lovely decorations on home exteriors....

We have lots of outside decorations but ours is a "light show" set to music and you drive up and tune your car radio to a certain frequency and watch the lights going in time to the music. (We are still trying to get a video online somehow so you can see part of that.) BUT......the nearby town of Lewes has many very old homes with a lot of charm. I've shown a bit of the town in prior posts and also our church, which is in that town. Each year, I say we must take photos of the home exteriors with their beautiful wreaths and garlands. THIS year, we did (on Friday). I am going to start putting a few of those photos on the next several posts. (Since we took 54 photos and most of them are good, I don't want to bore you with too many at once.....LOL) Hope you enjoy looking at them! I found many of these homes' decorations to be simply elegant because of their very simplicity.....sound confusing but I think you will agree when you see the photos. Hubby and I enjoyed doing this and then walked in some of the stores on the charming main street of town and then ate a nice lunch at a restaurant on the canalfront downtown. FUN day.......More to come tomorrow!

A fun poem....and a "nearly finished"........

Do you ever visit Tango's Blog? It's called "Trash and Treasures" and she blogs about a lot of things....quilting and cooking among them. Click HERE to see her blog. She posted this poem and said it was okay for me to put it here for you to enjoy, too. I found it very cute!

Waiting for Santa

Twas the night before Christmas, I'm glued to the tree.
I'm wondering what Santa brought just for me.
Could it be fat quarters or a pattern or lace?
Or a quilt kit, I said, with a smile on my face.
And that's when I heard him, "Hi Santa," I said
"You know....good little girls should be in their beds ".
"I know I should Santa, and now I've got caught.
But I was just so excited To see what you brought."
"Well, let's take a look in this room where you work.
He shook his head quickly, And left with a jerk.
I heard him exclaim as he put it in gear,
"You've got enough crap, I'll see you next year!" ~Author Unknown

And here is a photo of the disappearing 9-patch runner (made with penguin fabric) at an ALMOST-finished stage. It should enlarge if you click on it. I last showed it when it was just one 9-patch block...now it's up to waiting for its batting and backing and quilting. I think I am just going to "birth" this and not use binding...it's for me and I don't have time to work on bindings right now, so I'll take the easy way out. The backing fabric is the same as the outer border, so it will turn and finish up easily with no backing fabric "peeking" out to the front and spoiling the look!

Some decorations and more......

We had a bad night Wednesday into Thursday....woke up at 3 a.m. in the midst of a terrible wind and rainstorm...power was out AND we had 3 leaks in our ceilings....2 in the kitchen and 1 in the guest bathroom. We never went back to sleep after that. We had to get in touch AGAIN with the company that did the repair work after the tree came down on the house in the summer...the company that did a totally new roof....a roof that leaks! Today someone is to come out and fix it again. I pointed out that we have been patient but this is getting OLD now...and I need it fixed. I told them I will report them to the insurance company if it's not taken care of properly. (They don't want that as we have a big company for our insurance...Liberty Mutual...and they remove poor contractors from their "preferred" list and that would be a big blow to this contractor.) So...keep your fingers crossed they get it fixed this time...it's pretty upsetting. We have a two-year warranty on workmanship and this is the second time we've had them out in less than a month for leaks!

Okay...now for a couple of fun photos. One is of a chicken wishbone that my grandkids decorated with me a few years back. We did several of them and used gold craft paint (can't tell that in the photo very well) and painted the wishbones...let them dry....wrapped twist ties around them so we could attach ornament hangers and hang them easily...and put bows on them. Some have red bows and some have green. When one of the grands hangs them on the tree, I tell them they need to make a secret wish...it's kind of fun...and an EASY project. Just make sure your wishbones are washed well and let to air dry for quite awhile.Next is a photo of 6 of a set of 12 dolls I made years back with a friend. We started with a cardstock base and glued wooden beads on for heads and used felt, sequins, etc. for dresses. They are all "international" dolls and I enjoy seeing them every year. (The photo should enlarge if you click on it.) They were made at a time in our lives when money was tight...our kids were very small...and there wasn't a lot of money for tree decorations. They are about 30 years old now. They were made with a lot of love. They have a special place in my heart and I hope my daughter and grandkids will value them when I am gone. I hang them with pride on my tree each year!I feel like I am getting a nasty cold and I hope I'm wrong. I have a handbell concert to play in on Saturday afternoon and a folk group practice that evening and folk group on Sunday morning at church. I don't have TIME to be sick!!! Hopefully, the rest of the stitches come out of my forehead today and there is no further trouble with this area.

a great idea for scraps.....

Do you ever have scraps that you don't WANT to cut up into strips or squares for other projects? Sometimes I have fabrics that I'm tired of seeing and while they are really too big to just toss away, they aren't big enough pieces to give to anyone else to use for much of a project. Another blogger, Myra, had a nice idea on her blog recently of how to use them and HERE is the link to read about it. I feel guilty if I throw "usable" sized pieces of fabric out....so this would make me feel like they aren't being wasted! Thanks for the good idea, Myra! (Oh, yes...forgot to add that I'd get a pillowcase from a local thrift shop really cheap... something like 50 cents....so the cost for the whole project would really be minimal!)

Below are a few photos of the village my hubby puts out each year....it's not a large village, but he has some cute little accessories for it and we enjoy it. I hope to get the family room tree done tomorrow. The wall is actually beige but is showing nearly white in the photo....weird!Same shot as above but with no flash used....which is how it looks at night and I love it!And this one is the "flash" version of the above photo...sorry it's a bit blurry.

Tomorrow is a special day.......

Tomorrow is a special day. Tomorrow it will be one year since I began this blog. Tomorrow will also be 400 posts for me on this blog. When I began, I challenged myself to try to blog every day....and I have actually exceeded that goal (because once in awhile, there was more than one post a day). I didn't know if anyone would be interested in what I had to say, but you were....and I thank all of you for sticking with me on this journey so far. My posts were not always about quilting.....but you were supportive of me at all times...sharing in my happy moments and caring about me when I was upset or sick or worried about something. I treasure the friends I have made here. I am not certain I will continue to post EVERY day once I reach my goal tomorrow, but I will post frequently....I am sure of that....because I have enjoyed posting and reading all of your blogs, too.

For the past two weeks, I have been keeping very close tabs on the comments on my blog.....and each of you who have commented have been given entries in my anniversary giveaway. (The more you commented, the more entries you got.) I will explain it all in greater detail tomorrow and reveal the prize and the winner before the weekend is over.

For now, I leave you with this photo of a very primitive-looking, folksy turkey wall-hanging using homespun fabric for the background (so it would look rustic). I am not sure if I showed this last year.....but if I did, I'm hoping anyone who remembers won't mind seeing it again. It's not a fancy, complicated piece, but I like the way it looks hanging in my kitchen at this time of year.

Fall decorations......

I decided to post photos of some of the fall decorations I've made in the past few years. It's fun to put them out each year! Some were pretty simple as I'd not been quilting long....but I still enjoy them each fall.

This was a runner that was in the Fons & Porter magazine awhile back. The backing fabric is the fabric shown in the placemat the next photo...and I use that side of the runner and those placemats through Thanksgiving.A too-simple placemat but I made it before I trusted myself to do much quilting. It is reversible and the other side is Christmas fabric....no quilting on it...just "pillowcased". They have lasted now, though, for about 4 years! I love this fabric!!!
Various other table mats and runners......these pumpkins are BAD....they turned themselves sideways and won't go back to the right way....sorry you have to turn your head to see them!!!GOSH...another sideways photo. I HATE it when Blogger does that!!!Okay...Blogger is behaving now for the last two photos......The diagonal quilted lines on this last one were done by hand...and I was pleased with the look I got on this one. It was from a Pat Sloan book, as I recall, although I think I changed something a tiny bit from the pattern.

A patriotic project....

A year or so back (at a guild class taught by one of the members), I made this patriotic wall-hanging. I was going to make another one as a gift and can't find my directions. I know it wasn't difficult, though...as it's made from squares and half-square triangles as well as some rectangles....so I guess if I look at it closely, I can figure it out on my own. I know it was a fun little project to make.

Long may she wave.....

A very talented blogging buddy, Mel, has a great tutorial to step you through making this great flag that you can then applique on something. This is great timing for both Flag Day (June 14) and for the 4th of July. Mel gives great directions and the project seems quite easy to do. Click HERE for her tutorial. I asked her if I could share it with you. Also check out the rest of her blog while you are there.....she posts some great stuff. Thanks, Mel!

OH, yes...go HERE for a really nice giveaway by Tonya!!! (And be sure to tell her I sent you!)

Isn't this cute?

This is a little wall-hanging (the kind that goes on a tiny quilt hanger) that I made for the gal who babysits for my granddaughter. For Christmas, I made her 3 mini's for the little star quilt hanger I gave her...one was an evergreen tree...the second was a snowman..the third was Valentine hearts...and the fourth was shamrocks. I told her I'd make more for her so she could change them with the holidays and seasons. This flower will be mailed to her on Monday. You might recall I made her one for Easter and blogged about it. (The photo is below.) I figured this sunflower could be used from now through the summer, but I do have a cute watermelon pattern and a cute lighthouse pattern, so I may try to make her another one for summer. Then I'll start on fall mini's for her. I love to make these...they are quick and cute!

Happy Valentine's Day.......

NOTE: If you are reading this and it's still Feb. 14, please excuse that the background has already changed from Valentine's Day to St. Patrick's Day!
I wish everyone a happy day today.....whatever you do...whether it be going out or staying home and relaxing. I hope it's a day for you to do what makes YOU happy.....a day to do things you love and to be with those you love. I know sometimes we are a distance from loved ones, but if they are close to your heart, that is special, too.Yesterday I saw a ROBIN...the first this year and I do believe they signal that spring will soon be here. I saw this when arriving at our church for handbell choir practice and it made the bells sound a little prettier to me to have met Mr. (Mrs.??) Robin on the way into church.Today we will go into that same town...Lewes, Delaware. (Google it to find out more about it...a really charming town.) They will have a big hospitality day with their merchants and restaurants and there will also be a huge craft fair inside the ferry terminal on the bay there. It should be a pleasant day and I'll try to remember to take some pictures.I have had some nice Valentine surprises this week......a card made by my good quilting buddy, Denny, in PA (Miss No Blog!!!). She is a special friend and we have shared many thoughts in recent months. Thanks, Denny. I love this card and will treasure it.The second Valentine surprise was a nice package sent by Sandi (Legacy of Stitches)... the owner of the Wooly Buddies Yahoo group I mentioned here a few days back. Look what she sent....and I made the pincushion from her pattern since she sent it and I love it. (Stop by her WoolyBuddies board by clicking here if you are at all interested in working with wool and wool felt.) She had a wonderful Valentine's swap that I talked about a few days back and you may recall I showed my wonderful package from Jane P. in Maine. (And around that time, I also showed my Valentine swap package from Sandra that was done in Pat Sloan's Yahoo group.) This package below from Sandi contains a really great card she made, too. She is super-talented AND generous. Thanks, Sandi.So...HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY....oh....gee, wait a minute...does that mean I have to wrestle with blogger now and get rid of the hearts and pink here and change my background? UGH....... funny how each month/holiday rolls by so quickly and it's already time to do that again!!!

You wondered.....and now....

Some of you wondered about the fact that I made candle mats for St. Patrick's Day and Easter but hadn't shown one for Valentine's Day. I didn't have a pattern for one, but I knew even I (the one with little artistic talent) could handle making a few hearts! So....Ta-Da......here it is...my candle mat for Valentine's Day.

My last January finish....

Some of you laughed that I already had St. Patrick's day handled before January was over. Well...here is Easter! It is my Easter candle mat...done in wool, wool/felt. I'm really happy with all the little beadwork and small leaves stitched on it. I'll work on a summer one next....but probably won't have that done right away. I need to get back on track with a couple of things that need to be done within the next several days.

Another January 2009 finish.....

This, as you can probably plainly see, is a little candle mat for St. Patrick's Day. It was a kit I got at a quilt show in September. I am now working on another candle mat and should finish that before the end of January. WOW...I'll have completed 5 things this month.....the mini heart picture, the zippered tote bag, the mini-monthly sampler (all previously shown here), this candle mat, and the one in progress. I'm impressed...aren't you?? hahahaha....not too hard, though, to complete this many when they are TINY projects!! (But it still makes me feel good to finish things...small though they may be.)