House Quilt

Wall-hanging House Top QUILTED with Stars & Loops (freehand)

My quilting machine has actually been down for a little over a week, but as I mentioned before, I'm woefully behind in posting.

During my forced "stay-cation", I did get to do some things that typically get ignored & I got to do some fun stuff. We picked apples, carved pumpkins, got the kitties in for an overdue appointment, got significant work done on a queen-sized Christmas gift, set up a mailing station, moved around & reorganized my sewing/quilting room, stacked a load of firewood on the back porch, switched my closet & bureaus out for the current fall season, prepped inventory for a month-long Christmas crafting event, and canned apple pie filling! Whew!! I get a lot done when I don't have to work & make money :-P

My machine was fixed earlier today, and I managed to get one small quilt finished before the rain & thunder moved in.

AQS Lancaster Quilt Show

Had to share pictures of my goodies & some of my favorite quilts seen at the show: 

These two items are unrelated. Some cute snowman fabric & fabric dye, which I'm going to play around with to try to perfect THE PERFECT "tea-stain" effect. So far my efforts have been lack-luster.

I actually bought two kits! I typically avoid kits since I have so much stash; however my felted wool stash is nowhere near my cotton stash, AND that the moment I felt it'd be nice if I could just start now or whenever the whim strikes my fancy!

Oop... three kits (the felted snowman pillow on the left!) & a preprinted stitchery project I picked up for my 17 year old daughter.

On the left is a contender for the yearly Christmas ornament & more lovely stitchery patterns on the right.

Necessities... 

Inspiration for back home...

More ornies on the left... and below is a woolen/stitchery combination! HELLO?!??! Stitchery is popping up everywhere!

Now for the eye candy of the completed kind:

The gold coloring of this quilt shows up better in the close up which comes next. Truly spectacular.

The detail is amazing!

I particularly liked the use of crystals in this top.

Have I mentioned how much I love stitchery? Some in these parts would call it embroidery, and I'll acknowledge it IS simple embroidery. In my mind's eye, however, I picture embroidery as more filling, whereas stitchery is more of outlining a picture. 

T-shirt Memory & Mickey Mouse Quilts

T-shirt memory quilt top; QUILTED with a large meander (freehand)

Mickey Mouse top; QUILTED with Single Reverse Loop (freehand)

These were pretty small finishes for yesterday, and truthfully I'd been hoping to get at least one more small quilt done. However my neck strain was acting up & so I spent a lot of time heating it with my home-made rice bag! (getting older is a pain in the neck~ heehee)

Butterfly Bed Runner & Stitchery Challenge 6, 7, & 8

Butterfly Bed Runner Top; QUILTED with Large Meander ~ Freehand

Day #6: Swirling Wind

Day #7: Coral Stitch

Day #8: Stork Scissors

I hear-tell that Old Man Winter will be blowing his frigid breath down our necks again tonight, bringing in some freezing rain. I sure wish he'd do this on a day or two when I had nowhere to go! 

Stay warm & safe!

Quilts & Homecoming

Somebody best tell Old Man Winter to stay away a little longer! I hear-tell that on Thursday we here in Lancaster, PA will dip down to a high of 49 with a low of 33F!! Excuse me?? No I'd like a little more Autumn please. 

In preparation, I will be digging out the electric blanket as our bedroom isn't attached to our heating ducts (gotta love a 221 year old home!) Then again, it IS becoming the perfect weather to burrow under a quilt!

A little boy's Tool Top; QUILTED Straight-Line Meander Freehand

I don't know what the pattern of this top is, but I thought the colors were so vibrant & I love how it melds together. QUILTED with Paisley Meander Freehand.

Scrappy Paths has the most magnificent amount of fabrics. I was tickled as I kept noticing fabric I, too, own, and so I had to wonder which shop(s) we both are frequenting!

QUILTED Puzzle Piece Meander Freehand.

The back of Scrappy Paths is also scrappy!! 

A self-indulgent picture of my younger daughter looking absolutely beautiful, standing next to her dashing date, ready to head out to their Homecoming Dance!

Until next time... keep warm under a quilt :-)

Autumn Update & Ornies

We're still having a fairly proper fall season here in Lancaster, PA, for which I'm exceedingly thankful for. We had a hot spell for a couple days which produced a new population of fleas (we're constantly combatting this one here along the Susquehanna River) & a scrambling for those comfy shorts again.

I love October the most. There are no big holidays to prep & stress over; colorful combinations fly past windows on autumn air; soft sweatshirts; SWEATPANTS; pumpkin anything; cold toes close to warm fires; and snuggling up with my manly BFF under the covers after a long day (and yes I'm talking about Marshall & not one of the "manly" dogs!!)

OMGosh I'll have to post pics of our HUGE pumpkins! I'm not kidding when I tell you at least one had to be rolled out from the backyard! Next post...

Onto the quilts...

A Yellow & Green Batik Top; QUILTED with a Freehand Leafy Swirl

And this Bear Claw Top; QUILTED with an Oak Leaf Panto

I'm thrilled to have this Halloween ornament set finished. It's difficult to get the full effect, but I sprayed them with Instant Antique by Primitive Gatherings. I love working with felt! Not having to turn edges or use a fusible interface takes out extra steps, so you can just start stitching already!

Does it feel unreal that it's time to start thinking about Thanksgiving plans? Or that I'm READY TO START CHRISTMAS SHOPPING?? Or that some have already started shopping??? 

Bring. It. On.

I'm feeling "ready" this year.

Holidays are rough from a stress perspective to begin with ~ trying to get everything "just so", finding those perfect gifts, and trying to fit in all the fun stuff. 

Our family has struggled much with holidays these four years since losing Montie. Every year I feel we've made small steps toward a more joyful season as we become more accustomed to being without him.  Last year I could listen to some Christmas music. And last year I enjoyed wrapping presents again.  But there's still some of "Montie's" wrapping paper in the bin I'll see but won't use & I haven't been able to unpack his ornaments yet much less hang them. In fact, the first Christmas after Montie passed, we bought an artificial tree (which we'd never had) & Maegan braved the stores with a friend and bought for us several sets of coordinated balls, so that we've not unpacked what we used to use. Do you all attach such meaning & remembrances with ornaments? We have so many that we and/or the kids have had since little. I don't know what little baby step(s) we'll take this year, but I feel READY & not just "bracing for it". 

Until then, I'm going to enjoy some more calm of Autumn in October :)

Autumn Arrives

I'm exceedingly happy Fall seems to be happening this year, with a proper cooling down period & not this hot-to-cold stuff we've done the past couple years. The sweatshirts have been needed for most of the early morning dog walks, and I'm thrilled to be wearing Pink sweats today! I love my bummy clothes!!

In other news, we seem to have found our homeschool rhythm, which has me a bit calmer about how to combine working from home while also effectively homeschooling. It's still quite the juggle with many days leaving me wanting more hours in the day & more energy in this middle-aged body! I've been utilizing my crock pot a bunch... so helpful when we're all starving but left with depleted energy to deal with cooking.

Here's what I've had to work on in the Quilting Realm: 

 Green Rail Top; QUILTED with Branchy Spirals (freehand) 

 Garden Twist Top; QUILTED with Leafy Swirl (freehand)

Patriotic Star Top; QUILTED with Stars & Loops (freehand)

I hope you're all enjoying a Slow Sunday! Reading, writing, sewing, sitting, Mountain Men, and football are on the agenda for today...

Summer Update

I've been totally remiss in updating here lately! So many quilts, so little time!! School will starting up soon, and although that means more busy-ness, it also means a more regimented schedule. Maybe THEN I'll visit here more often!

Here's a Double Wedding Ring I did for Stitch & Craft with freehand Custom Quilting.  Although the quilt itself is beautiful, I love the back more to see all that quilting :)

The pastel hand-dyed fabrics in this quilt are BEAUTIFUL. The photos don't do them justice. 

It's quilted with a freehand Heart Meander.

This half-square triangle quilt was quilted with freehand S-Curls.

Here in Pennsylvania autumn seems to be falling on us early. As I walked the dog the other morning, I could hear the season changing in the rustling leaves that had already fallen. I needed a sweatshirt! And there's already talk of when to close the pool. 

As always I see the close of summer in a bi-polar manner. Part of me still feels the panic from my much younger years, thinking of summer vacation ending. But part of me is giddy anticipating cooler days, soft sweats, cozy fires, and snuggling under a warm quilt!