New Blog and Website

Hi Everyone -

I've been stitching but can't post any pics as the recipients might read and the Christmas surprise would be ruined!

I found a wonderful new blog www.primitivequiltsandprojects.com
hop on over there and check out the new magazine, Primitive Quilts and Projects, that will be for all primitive lovers! You can see a preview on the right hand column - first issue is in April 2011.

Happy Stitching

I'm Back!

Hi Everyone!

Well, I'm finally getting back in the loop - FIL is recovering nicely from his open heart/valve surgery and my Mom is settling into assisted living. October and November disappeared quickly but I'm just thankful we are close to family.

Now here is a quick peak at what I've been working on:



This pattern is available from Kalico Kreations I'm almost done with the hand applique then I can quilt it and get it up for the winter! We've had a few days of snow flurries but no accumulation - sigh, I do love the snow :)

Below is a snowman I made many years ago:


A friend asked if she could make it in a miniature version, so we gave it a try. I had my oldest sis pick out the fabric she wanted for the hatband and scarf - a real prim plaid:



He is a bit small but next to the big one they make a cute pair. Now I just need to do a "mom."

That is about all that is in the works here - not much, but things are moving along. I'm still working on the wool wall hanging and Santa cross stitch I pictured in a previous post - I'll keep you posted as things progress!

Happy Stitching!

Snow Men and Reflections

Hi Everyone!

Well, my FIL had a bit of a set back - his surgery was postponed until Monday Oct 11 - that is why I am posting! I would normally been off the web for a few weeks but wanted to say "hi" to all.

I'm working on a wall hanging that I found at Kalico Kreations. http://www.kalico.com/proddetail.php?prod=KA-83&cat=6 (Click on the second link to see it - I tried to copy a picture here but no go) Kathy has so many fun wall hanging designs - do take time to check out the website. She has a wonderful feature called e-patterns. This is the first site I've seen these on and you can instantly download your pattern once you've purchased it. Very convenient but you all have to watch out the feature could be a problem for quilt-a-holics :)

Take time to stop and smell the roses - life is short! Have you thought about dropping a note to someone who means a lot to you but you never get around to saying that? Or a phone call to an old friend or mentor that helped you along the way in life? Just some food for thought. Happy Stitching!

Time To Start Christmas Projects

Hi Everyone!

WOW! How the time does fly! Here it is September and I'm already behind on Christmas projects. Here are two items that I'm working on for my oldest sister. Each year we go on a shopping trip in July to Amish country and pick out what we want the other one to make. It is great fun and of course lunch out is included :)

This is a pattern sold at the Country Craft Cupboard and is by Backyard Friends. Click on Country Craft Cupboard above to see their wonderful selection of patterns


This is from a well-known series by Prairie Schooler - this is Santa 1991. I've done three other ones for her and she wants to make them into a pillow. To see all the other great patterns they have just click on Prairie Schooler above for the link.

I'll be "checked out" of Blogland for at least next week and maybe two - my FIL is having open heart and valve replacement surgery. He had open heart surgery 19 yrs but as we all know nothing stays the same. I'll be staying with my MIL while he is in the hospital - we get along so well and enjoy each other's company - I only hope I can be of some help!

You all take care and keep on stitching!

Tomatoes, Quilts and a Website!

Hi Everyone!

Strange title? Well, I am so thankful to say that I recently got enough Roma tomatoes to can 14 pints of salsa! Our garden this summer has not been super productive. Next on my list is stewed tomatoes if the plants continue to produce. So that is my little garden story :)



Next is the "quilts" part. My college roommate, Joy, came for a weekend visit and we had a delightful time! I've taken some pictures of quilts she recently made and brought for show and tell. Sadly, my camera does not do her work justice! The first two quilts are ones she made for her daughters and the last one is a "crazy" baby quilt.



Here is a close up - she has utilized chenille along with some fantastic floral prints - it will be so warm and snuggly this winter!





Of course we visited two quilt shops, had a Mexican dinner and chatted about everything and anything. Seems like with roommates that you just pick up where you left off no matter how old you are!

Last of all, I stumbled across this great blog I thought you all might like www.freebiesforcrafters.blogspot.com There are numerous entries so stop by and see what grabs your fancy!

Happy Stitching!

Snow in the Summer!

Hi Everyone -

I just discovered this wonderful snowflake block of the month by Dawn Hays! See my side bar and click on the button that says "Frosty Flakes." Once you are on the blog, there is information on the left hand side - click the icon and you are on your way! Be sure to check out all of Dawn's work at www.dawnhaydesigns.blogspot.com She has a plethora of wonderful posts and patterns. I'm sorry, but I can't get a direct link to her blog to work :(

For all of you who have known me for awhile, it shouldn't surprise you that I'm head over heels in love with this new project - snow and I go together like milk and Oreos! Tom and Jerry! Peanut Butter and Jelly! O.K. so you get the picture :)

Happy Stitching

Handwork

Hello Friends!

I hope this finds all of you well! Below is Lynette Anderson's Summer stitchery - she has one for each season. I haven't done embroidery is a very long time and am enjoying it. Hopefully I'll have Summer done for next summer :)


My Wool Crazy Spring has been patiently waiting for me - so I've added some more appliques.



There is lots of decorative stitching still to be done but I'm enjoying the relaxing time of handwork. In our society today everything is hurry, hurry, hurry so why not pick up a hand project and enjoy the relaxing pace.

Happy Stitching!

Especially for Me!

Hi Everyone!

Well, the windows are in! Yea!!!!! We are so thankful that it didn't rain last week - the temps were our hottest yet - in the 90's! We were extremely tired by Thursday night but the siding was back up and all the outside work was done - and no rain!!! Now we will begin the inside work as well as work on the sewing room. One thing at a time :)

Now I must brag about my niece Abbey - she lives in New South Wales, Australia and came home with her boyfriend to celebrate my Mom's 80th birthday! She had a delighful little gift bag for me and guess what was in it?





Yes, a sewing organizer! Do you recognize Rosie the Riveter? Abbey is getting into sewing and embroidery and did this especially for me - isn't it lovely??? I was so surprised and so thrilled - I'll have it forever and her kindness is so appreciated - thank you Abbey and keep up the good work!

No sewing in the near future for me but I plan to post weekly of handwork - do drop by again and tell me what you are working on this summer/winter. Happy Stitching no matter what continent you live on!

This & That

Hi Everyone -

Lots of different things have been keeping me busy lately - a dear friend's daughter graduated and I helped with the party - loads of fun! And then my nephew John graduated and we traveled to Indiana for his party - again, lots of fun and hard to believe two little tots are now on their way to college! Best wishes to them both!

We have been dealing with a gardening headache - maybe I should say nightmare - beside and behind our garage for a few years now. The former owners had beautiful gardens with pathways etc. there but for me - with allergies - I just couldn't keep it up. SO this year we had a landscaper come in and scrape and grade the land and then seed it to grass, as well as leave me space for the veggie garden and raspberry bushes. Here are some before photos:





and after - big difference huh?? I am so thankful we are done with it!!!





I purchased a hosta this year called Abba Dabba Do - it is reported to grow to 5' in diameter! Can't wait to see how it does.

Well that was "this" and now I'll tackle "that!" We are replacing three windows this summer in our house - we kid the Home Depot people that we are on the three year plan for replacing all our windows - they are so expensive! But one will be in my sewing room so that means anything I wanted to do in there should be done before the window gets replaced (by the way, my wonderful husband does the work himself, and I am the grunt worker/helper). So my job now is to remove the wall paper border (yes, I am a Cleveland Indians fan - just not in the sewing room!) and then sand the walls. The previous owners did some kind of funky drywall plaster texture something or other - all that to say it needs to be sanded so I can paint it and have it look nice. Here are the before pics and I'll keep you posted on the after ones!





And a messy closet soon to be filled with shelves for fabric storage - yea!!!!




So between those two projects, I haven't done much sewing and now with the sewing room packed up - well, it will have to been handwork for quite awhile - which I enjoy so that is no problem.

I hope that all of you are having a good summer or winter - depending upon your address :) Take care and I'll try to post again soon! Happy Stitching!

Plugging Away!

Hi Everyone!

Well, the last two weeks brought work on my favorite pattern - the star! I tend to lean towards patterns that either feature a spectacular star or have stars incorporated in some manner.

Here is BOM #2, the second star:


Below is a kit that I received as a gift for Christmas - I had to do a bit of
fiddling to get it all worked out but I plan to use it as a table mat:



I haven't done much on the Wool Crazy block lately - here is my center block - need to get back to stitching!



Hope you all have a great weekend! Happy Stitching!

B.O.M. #2

Hi!

Hope this finds all of you well - whether it be spring, summer, fall, or winter where you are!

I'm working on another BOM with a friend - a free one she found on Block Central It is from the 2008 series called Somewhere in Time. As you can see here and probably know from past posts - I'm a Kansas Troubles girl :) I keep looking for the old fabric and am tickled pink when I find it!


I would highly recommend this site as the quilts are beautiful, the patterns are well written, and you can find something for just about everyone's taste. So check it out and let me know what you think!

Happy Sewing!

His Hands at Work

Hi Everyone -

Yesterday was His Hands and with 6 of us we really accomplished a lot! Hang onto your hat because I have oodles of pictures - I was feeling "snap happy" yesterday. I've posted some of the quilts that are finished as well as the industrious women at work. They certainly earned the delightful German Chocolate Cake provided by Becky!



















We are blessed to have work for our hands - it is always a joyful time together - encouraging one another and getting caught up from month to month. Thanks for viewing our work and happy sewing!

A Wonderful Way To Learn!

Hi To All!

I have to tell you that through the years I have learned to quilt through books and friends and odd and ends but as a perfectionist ( I know, I know - I just am!) I wanted my blocks to be straighter, my points sharper, etc. you get my drift. Well, I stumbled across this fantastic book I just had to share with you!


It is by Harriet Hargrave who is a wonderfully talented quilter who has been teaching her art for over 30 years. She and her daughter Carrie are working on a series of books called Quilter's Academy. Volume 1 starts at the very beginning - a very good place to start (are any of you Sound of Music fans? If so, then you probably know the rest of the song) Sigh, I digress.

ANYWAY, this book is perfect if you are a beginner or a seasoned quilter - as for me I'm using it to go back to square one and unlearn my bad habits and re-learn so that I'm happier with my quilting!

Volume 2 is due out in a few weeks - can't wait to see what it tackles!


So check it out on Harriet's website www.harriethargrave.com and see all that she has to offer. One of Harriet's most popular books (and I highly recommend it) is Heirloom Machine Quilting.


If you ever get the chance to take a class by her, go for it! And let me know how it goes! Happy Sewing!

Another Pinwheel and Stitching Progress

Hi Everyone!

I hope this finds you all well and enjoying whatever you are working on! I just finished another pinwheel for my BOM "Pinwheels in My Garden" by Kansas Troubles
I am just using two colors for contrast in each pinwheel - last month burgundy, this month navy. I really want the stars to steal the show when the quilt is finished.

I've done a bit of stitching on my Wool Crazy block - but not much! I've decided to do this 24" block with the theme of spring - I'm aiming to have it done for 2011 :) Here is my center block - still in need of more embellishments.


Last but not least, I was given a gift certificate to a near by quilt shop back in September but was waiting for just the right thing to purchase. As you all know, I've gone head-over-heels with the Australian stichery/quilting combo so here is what I found by Lynette Anderson - Spring and then Summer:



There is actually four patterns - one for each season - and it can be made into a quilt as seen below:


Do visit Lynnette's blog and take in all that she has to offer.

Take care and happy sewing!

Wool Fix

Greetings to All!

Yesterday I went with a very dear friend to a wonderful quilt shop in Louisville, Ohio. It is called AnnaLouisas Needlearts and is a delightful shop! Barb Stevens is the owner and she has the shop full of irrestible items. There is a Civil War room, complete with reproduction fabrics as well as a Civil War uniform and pictures.





Then you can travel into the wool room - actually the needlearts room - as it has oodles of wool - both hand dyed (gorgeous!) and on the bolt as well as wool for knitting and also items for embroidery. She has a wonderful 1930's era display and so much more - great pattern selection and extensive wall of notions.

So you are probably wondering - what did Kelli buy? Well........... wool of course! The great thing about this shop is that they bowls and baskets of wool scraps you can sort through and they sell it by the ounce. I plopped down on the floor and went at it. I'm still gathering wool for my Wool Crazy block so it was fun to sort through the scraps and then I purchased pieces of hand dyed wool as well. The pictures don't do it justice! Go online and view them for yourself!


Do click on AnnaLouisa's link above and take a tour of the store. And if you are ever in the area - make sure you stop in as Barb and her staff are so warm and welcoming - you'll feel like you are in your own home! Thanks Barb and Staff for making it such a special place to come and "let your hair down!"

Happy Sewing!

A Special Find!

Greetings to All!

I hope your weekend was a relaxing one and that you had sometime to stitch! A dear friend of mine sent me a link to a stitching blog that is delightful. Val Laird, an Australian designer, has generously designed a free BOM called Gifts of Grace. You can see all of her beautiful work on her blog as well as her patterns. Hand work is so relaxing so take time to stop over to see all that she has to offer. If you click on the "Gifts of Grace" button on my left side bar, you can see the BOM's.

Happy Sewing!

Block of the Month

Hi Everyone -

Don't faint - I actually cut out and pieced the first BOM that I'm doing with my friend Joy! It is the Kansas Troubles "Pinwheels in My Garden" (you can see it on the previous posting). Our quilts will be different so I'm looking forward to watching mine as well as hers "grow." I'm only a few months behind :) but I was pleased with the results.

I'm still plugging along on the Wool Crazy block - I have been pretty picky with my stitches - taking some out since I didn't like how they looked from a distance - too bright for me. SO I'll probably be working on this for months to come but the handwork is relaxing.


Whatever you are doing, take a break, grab a cup of coffee or tea, and pick up your stitching - even for a short while - it will relax your soul. Happy Sewing!

Can It Be March 1???

Greetings Everyone -

I can hardly believe that March is here - where did February go? Time marches on - more quickly that my projects do :) Seems like I have good intentions of working on something but then "something" gets in the way - oh well, what would quilting and stitching be without UFO's?

I'm slowly working on the Wool Crazy Sew Along quilt - it will be a continuous work in progress. Now I need to start cutting out my first on the list 2010 quilt. My college roommate and I live about 4 hours apart and decided to do this as a BOM together. I can't wait to see how each of ours turns out as I'm always changing things (that can be good and bad!) so for now will post the quilt picture and as time progresses will post the results. This pattern is from Kansas Troubles and we are both using a line of Kansas Troubles fabric.




Happy Stitching!

The Wool Bug Has Bitten Me!

Hi Everyone -

I've been out of town for two weeks - my mother-in-law had surgery on both feet - she is such a wonderful "patient" and I enjoyed my time with both my MIL and FIL. I had some "down" time so was able to finish the top of my wool wall hanging. Yes, I know it is an autumn theme - I never got it finished for this past year so I'm telling myself "I'm way ahead of the game - I've got my fall wall hanging done and it is only February" - have you ever done that? I have really enjoyed the handwork and find it relaxing. In this day and age when everyone and everything is on over drive, I'm thankful to have a craft that requires time and is relaxing. So here it is:

If any of you have clicked on the button for Wool Crazy Sew Along to the left, you will have seen all the lovely work that everyone has been doing that has been bitten by the wool bug. I'm a bit behind as I haven't had much time to collect my wool, but I thought I'd at least show you my foundation. If you had any interest in wool at all, this is a great group - sponsered by Pumpkin Patch Primitives
.

So visit the Wool Crazy Sew Along - see what we are all up to and then go to Pumpkin Patch Primitives and see all that Brenda has to offer!

Happy Sewing Friends!