Good Morning all... I am just stopping in for a minute before heading up to the sewing room for a little R & R. I haven't been able to do that in the last few days, and I won't be able to do it again in the next few days because our grandson is coming to stay until Saturday afternoon. He likes my undivided attention, and besides, If I were sewing, he'd want to do it also. I am afraid of his little fingers getting in the way, so I will just not take the chance. I had my treadle machine set up in the living room, for display purposes, but, he wanted to play with that... so I closed the top to prevent an accident there, too. I have never sewn my fingers yet, but I don't want him to sew his either... I have heard that it hurts a lot from those who have had the experience.
I belong to an online quilting group and a lady posted last night a tutorial on the "Bullseye Block". This looks like it would be lots of fun and easy to make. So, I am thinking that one of these quilts will be in the works very soon! I am also considering it for a guild project, as we can swap with each other to get lots of colors. I'll have to ask them about it at next meeting. But, our guild membership has decreased for various reasons, so I am not sure it would work. We'll see.
OK... I am wasting good sewing time here... so I'll sign off for now.
Happy Stitching,
Chris in PA
I went to the sewing room tonight after supper, to work on some overdue postcards that needed to be in the mail, like yesterday!! I am pleased to say, they are now finished and ready to go! I did start on some others that aren't due quite yet... but it's nice to have a head start on some of these things. I also saw a tutorial on making pinwheels recently, and thought I'd try out that technique. I am pleased to say, it works very well, and now pinwheels won't be so tedious to make anymore! Here's the link............ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekYpJzHoW6EAnd, needless to say... I started making a bunch of these for a kid's quilt, using up some fabric pieces I had laying around from Bible School. Today, the weather was a bit on the fall side, or maybe spring??? We had cooler temps with showers on & off. I don't think it made it out of the 60's. Good day to give the air conditioners a rest. I am sure we will be using them again in the not too distant future! It will warm up again, once the kiddo's go back to school. We took Cody to a baseball game on Friday night. He had a great time. He especially enjoyed the little games they played during the field/team changes. The baseball season is winding down, so there will not be another opportunity to take him again this year. But, football season is coming. The high school teams start next Friday!! That is hard to believe! I'd like to go to the first few games, but then as the weather gets cooler, I am staying at home. Saturday was our annual Corn Boil & Wiener Roast. We had a great time, as always, even though attendance was down. I think I counted 42. We usually have between 50 to 100! That's OK... for those who wasn't there... TOO BAD... SO SAD!!! You missed it!! LOL... There is always next year! Dennis has already said that he is taking vacation the week before the corn boil. It is a lot of work to get it together, but it is worth it to me. Dennis does a lot. And, trying to get ready for Sunday morning preaching is a bit tough for him. OK... it is almost 2:30 AM here... I am just now getting a little tired. Dennis went to bed 3 hours ago. I guess I should go & get ready for bed. Though, I might come back downstairs & watch a little TV for a while. I do need to sleep at some point. The ladies in the church & I are getting together again in the morning, to sew on the quilt we are making for the bazaar. This will make our 3rd sewing bee. I am having a good time, and I hope they are too. Hopefully, the quilt top will be finished tomorrow, then I'll have to go to the quilt shop for backing & batting. I'll need to get stencils, too. You know how I love going to the quilt shop!! YIPPEE!! Have a great night/day... depending on where you are in this big beautiful world in which we live. God's Blessings to all... Chris in PA
This is the time of the year where we stay inside with the air conditioner! The humidity is up over 70% in our neck of the woods, which makes it very uncomfortable outside. I am not complaining, mind you. I am just saying, these conditions make excellent sewing opportunities available to all of us. But... I had to go grocery shopping today for an upcoming church event on Saturday, and shop for picnic items we need for our Annual Corn Boil and wiener roast, which is next Saturday, and get a little groceries for our house, too. Now tomorrow and Saturday, I probably will not get any sewing done either... maybe by Sunday afternoon or Monday! I was looking at my schedule tonight at a church meeting, and, I am thinking that vacation cannot come fast enough! Wait... I thought I was 'retired'!! I guess that is what I get for thinking in the first place! LOL... This is a busy time of the year for us within the churches, and it is usually when I start looking forward to the fall and winter seasons... only for the mere fact that things start to slow down quite a bit, at least for me anyway... not for my darling hubby, the preacher! He is scheduling classes for confirmation, membership, Bible Studies, etc... and, in all seriousness, the Advent season is just around the corner! But, let's slow down a little BEFORE we think that far ahead!! Though, I did buy a Christmas present on Monday!
Well, it's getting late here... time for bed. I get to sleep under my new prize-winning bed quilt tonight... and dream about the next one I'll make!
God Bless,
Chris in PA
Here it is... almost mid-August already. The time sure is flying by at break-neck speed it seems. But, maybe I am just too busy, and not taking the time to 'smell the roses' as they say.
My canning is done for now. in the last 2 weeks, I have made blackberry jelly (1 batch), peach jelly (3 batches of that), about 56 jars of Green tomato relish, which was 2 batches, and 24 pints of beets. I think that is all. I am not complaining, mind you. I wouldn't can them if I didn't like to. But, it is work and does take time. For those who can, you know exactly what I mean. All of the above sure will taste good this winter!
At one of our churches, we have been getting together to make a quilt for our upcoming fall bazaar. At least, that is what we are shooting for. We have been together twice now and all the blocks are made, and we are now sewing the rows together. It is looking good, and I understand we are already getting interested buyers! We may have a bidding war on our hands! LOL... I hope to have it in the frame, ready to start the hand-quilting, here within the next month. The bazaar is in November... so it is entirely possible to have it done.
My red,white & blue Orion's star is still on the design wall. I think there are 9 of the 20 blocks done. Now that the canning is done... maybe I can get back to it.
I have decided to clean out my sewing things... especially since my sewing items have expanded into the spare room, Dennis' upstairs office & my bathroom closet. I have to purge!! So, I am shipping 6 boxes out in the mail to interested persons who belong to my online quilt group. They are boxed and are ready to go. I am looking forward to clearing some space. But, I know that I am not finished yet!
Well... bedtime here, so will close for now. I hope everyone has a great night. I got a new catalog for Keepsake Quilting today... I am going to go to bed and browse through it... not that I NEED anything more to do in the quilting department right now!! LOL...
I got 3 Blue Ribbons... yup, that's 3 first places! I am so excited! I'll post pictures at the bottom of this entry.
I submitted 4 items, but, the wall hanging I put in, (which I didn't think I'd win on it anyway. It looks good from a distance, though!) But, the Needlework Department entries have been down over the last few years, so I put this item in so it would just be another number.
OK... pictures below...
The first picture is a Queen/King sized Dresden Plate. This is for our bed!! And, it's big enough to avoid those backdoor drafts when you roll over through the night! It' almost reaches the floor all the way around our queen sized bed!
Second, is an embroidered table runner. The center block reads, "Families are Forever", which is hidden due to the ribbon placement.
Third, is a king-sized, knotted Scrappy Foundation-pieced String Quilt... using all leftover or stash fabric on the front & the back. I didn't buy anything except for the flannel I used for the batting. This quilt was made for my niece & her boyfriend. She can't wait to get it on her bed!!
I am happy to see the fair coming in some ways, but, I don't like it coming in others. Yes, I get to put my quilty things in for a large 'Show & Tell' and judging experience, but, on the down side, it means it is the end of summer!! I am not happy about that!
This summer has been good. The weather has been perfect! Yes, we have had some tremendous humidity & heat... but, that is what summer is all about! Our garden has done wonderfully, this year. The tomatoes are coming on, though, no red ones yet. I am patiently awaiting my first tomato sandwich! We will be picking a lot of green tomatoes this afternoon for 'Green Tomato Relish', which is a favorite with my family and the extended family, (they call it "Gold"). The recipe is the same as my grandmother used, many years ago. She passed away in 1968, so it is nice that her memory still lives on. I even passed down the recipe to my nephew a couple of years ago... so, it is on to yet another generation again!
Getting back to the fair... I entered 4 items... 2 large quilts (Both King sized), a wall hanging, (which I am not expecting any ribbons on this one. I entered it to boost their numbers), and a table runner. We are going to the fair here in a bit, to see how I did in the judging yesterday. I'll keep you posted. I have pictures of the quilts and the wall hanging, but, forgot to take a picture of the runner. So, I'll post them (pictures) all next week.
I canned beets yesterday, using my Mom's recipe, which everybody also loves! I do not mind canning them, even though it is an all-day job! I gave a paper grocery bag full of beets away to a friend, as I usually do. I still ended up canning 24 pints. That is a good number to get everyone through the winter. I still have some from last years canning, too.
So, once I do a couple batches of relish, and do tomatoes once they ripen, I guess I'll get a break from canning until it's time for apples. Come to think of it, I would like to do some peaches, too. So, I had better get on the stick and find some to can! I'll be headed to Amish farm country before they are gone!!
OK... I am going to go eat breakfast and get ready to head to the fair!!
Have a great day all!
Chris in PA
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