Always Sew Love

I'm Alive!

2012-02-24T11:09:00.002-05:00

I can not believe it's been almost a month since my last post! On the first day of school one of my teachers told us that if we miss a class we have to get ourselves to the college library, write a paper on what ever topic we missed and hand it in by the next class! So I jokingly said I guess I'll be dragging my butt to school even if I'm deathly ill and what do you think happens? I have not been that sick in years... I wound up with a bad sinus infection which then turned into a diagnosis of asthma... Not the best way to start off the school year. With being sick and school work I have been so bad at keeping up with reading new posts from all the blogs I follow. Here is what my inbox looks like. 775!! Yikes. I have got to sit down and start reading!

I did make a cute project for a birthday gift exchange with my quilting friends. We were given a name and their birthday month and then it was up to us to come up with a gift. My friend Chris' birthday is in April so when I saw this fabric it made me think of spring. I made this weighted pincushion organizer that I found here. I changed it up a bit. I found emery on Etsy and used it in the small blue section of the pincushion for sharpening pins. I also didn't sew the pocketed section into the pincushion, but used velcro to make it more versatile. I used sand inside the pincushion instead of rice because of the possibility for bugs. I like how it turned out and Chris liked it too!

Yeah for getting something accomplished! I hope you are enjoying this crazy winter weather we've been having.

Blessings!

Ground Control to Major Tom

2012-01-26T07:10:00.001-05:00

This is how I feel this morning as I get ready to leave for my first two classes at our community college. I took a class last semester but that was online. This time around I am actually going, so I feel a little like that astronaut stepping into the unknown.

David Bowie's song is in my head:
Ground control to major Tom
Commencing countdown
Engines on
Check ignition
And may Gods love be with you.

Blessings friends,

More Evidence that I'm Nuts...

2012-01-14T15:37:00.000-05:00

We are Raven's fans over here. Tomorrow we are getting together with our good friends to watch the game. You know Flacco's Fu Manchu? I decided to make some mustaches just for fun. I went to JoAnn's for stiff purple felt but they were out so I bought regular purple felt and a stiff white felt that I used for the back. I also stopped at Michaels just to see if they had any stiff purple felt and they actually had a mustache candy mold!!! How fun is that? I bought purple candy melts and then spent the whole afternoon and evening yesterday making purple mustache pops. I only had one mold so I literally made one at a time, waited for it to harden, and then repeat, again... and again... I only made 16 and by then it was midnight- no lie. I used a paint brush and just used the purple to coat the mold and filled the rest with milk chocolate.

Today I made purple felt mustaches and glued them onto wood sticks. I found a couple of different styles of fu- manchu mustaches on google images and made a few of each. Here is a scary picture of me sporting my 'stache'.

Next on the to-do list for tomorrows game is Cream of Crab soup! Enjoy your weekend!

Blessings,

My Mantle Fix and Other News....

2012-01-06T13:45:00.000-05:00

I know Christmas is over but as I was taking down my decorations today I remembered that I wanted to blog about my quick fix mantle. My husband took a 6 foot long 1" by 8", stained it, and screwed cup hooks in the edge. Then we just laid it on top of the mantle and used clamps on the ends. You couldn't see the clamps because the greenery with lights hid it. I love it! My kids have these adorable Christmas stocking holders from when they were small and they have fallen so many times Santa's head is scuffed, Mrs. Claus has lost a knitting needle, and Barbie has lost an arm a few times and this year she lost her head! :) Now they can sit up there and pretend they are holding the stockings. The mantle stays in tack and I can just take it off and store it for next year.

Yesterday was my Dad's 79th birthday. We celebrated with a trip to the audiologist to get his hearing aids checked and a nice lunch at Red Lobster. He's a pip. After the waitress' delivered his birthday sundae and sang to him he said to me "Should I tell them the one I got yesterday at Bob Evans was bigger?" He has such a good sense of humor.

This is the third block I've made so far for our Wild Thread groups, block exchange. I had a bye this month so I only had to make this one. I like the way it turned out. Hopefully it's owner will too!

My daughter made it to the Big Apple Monday evening. She is enjoying the city. Her internship is with a company called STUDY NY. She got to use their industrial sewing machine yesterday. She has been going on adventures and finding good gluten free restaurants and good coffee!

I best get back to taking down the decorations. I hope you are all having a good week!

Blessings,

Do, or Do Not. There is no 'try'.

2012-01-02T10:06:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, the first day of the new year greeted us with a call from my son that he totaled his car. He was fine, thank God but that was not how I had envisioned the new year to start. To say that I struggle with stress and worry is an understatement. On top of that, our 22 year old daughter won an internship in New York city for the month of January. This is a huge opportunity and I am so excited for her. She is on her way via the Megabus from Pittsburgh to the big Apple this morning. She will be staying with my nephew in Manhattan and will have to get herself to Brooklyn each day by subway! She is so much braver than I am!

With that said here are my 'goals'. And even though Yoda says there is no 'try', try I will.

Trust God more and worry less.... that is a BIG one.
Read the Bible every day. My husband and I are going to do Our Daily Bread.
Drink more water. Actually my 'goal' is to drink 8 glasses of water a day before I get to have a Coke!
Exercise. I have a 2 centimeter kidney stone which needs to come out by surgery. It is painful and I haven't been doing any exercising at all and now I am squeezing into my pants. I don't like it so I am at the very least I am going to walk each day.
This one is more fun. I am going to make one of everything I pin that is craft or recipe related this year. Maybe I will have to call it my Pinterquest.
Clean on a more consistent schedule. For example, clean my refrigerator once a month, etc.
Declutter our house and donate it. We have too much stuff that others can use.

Ok, seven is good. Let's not get crazy.
I pray your new year will be filled with many blessings,

A Year in Review

2011-12-31T11:45:00.001-05:00

Well, it's been a wonderful year in many respects. I started a new job in January, which brought new friendships into my life. We went to Aruba for a wedding. I started going to college. I joined a local quilt guild and made more new friends. We refinished some of the hard wood floors in the house. Had a few good weekend trips to see my daughter at college. Went camping. We played lots of card games and made lots of memories with my family. God has been and is very good to us!

1. Wine Cork Chess Set

2. Cupcake Pincushion Tutorial

3. Cheat Silk Screen T-Shirts Tutorial

4. Sewing Machine Silhouette

5. Sandwich Wrapper

6. State=Love Pillow

7. Rainbow Mug Rug

8. Valentines Day Table Runner

9. Easy Damask Picture Frames Tutorial

10. From the 1930's to 2011

11. Penguin Mug Rug

12. Reindeer Mug Rug

Here are some posts from the year that got a lot of views. Thanks to my friends and followers who take the time to read my posts. I appreciate you all so much. May God richly bless you throughout the new year with much happiness, peace, love, joy, and laughter!

Blessings,

Merry Christmas with Love

2011-12-25T09:26:00.001-05:00

When love came down to earth 

And made His home with men,

 The hopeless found a hope, 

The sinner found a friend. 

Not to the powerful 

But to the poor He came, 

And humble, hungry hearts 

Were satisfied again.

What joy, what peace

Has come to us! 

What hope, what help, what love!

Thankful today for the gift of Jesus and foryou! Blessings!

Personalized Laundry Bag Tutorial

2011-12-23T19:33:00.001-05:00

Last minute stocker stuffers!

I saw this idea here awhile ago and thought they would make cute and functional stocking stuffers. I bought the laundry bags at the Dollar store. I found white ones that were 3 for $1.00 and then I found blue ones that were 2 in a box for $1.00. I used scrap fabric and my daughters accent machine to embroider the initials. You could applique an initial or hand embroider one. I was pressed for time since I started today so I used the machine.

Here are the steps.
1. Cut the piece of fabric 5" by 12.5". Fold in half and press.
2. Turn so right side of fabric is facing each other and sew the short ends.
3. Turn right side out and turn down (to the inside) a 1/4 " all around.
4. Pin it in place and sew along all the edges.
5. If you want you can add a piece of co-ordinating ribbon to the zipper pull.
*If you are going to embroider I would suggest adding some interfacing where the letter will be to make the fabric stronger and less likely to pucker.

My daughter is home for Winter break and brought with her an exchange student, Kris, from Taiwan. Last night she made for us a traditional dish they eat at home. It's called

蕃茄炒蛋/西红柿炒蛋.

Which translates to tomatoes and eggs. Kris is cute. She took pictures of the Chicken Marsala I made for dinner, and eggplants at the food store, and the bulk isle at Wegmans. Her scrap book will be very interesting.

Blessings friends,

Superman Beer Mug

2011-12-21T14:00:00.000-05:00

When Will I Learn?

I saw these adorable glass etched glasses SOMEWHERE and after looking through all of my 94 RSS feeds, my trash, and then thanks to my awesome daughter my internet history I finally found the site so I can give credit where credit is due. Wowsers! I MUST remember to 1. flag the post or 2. Pin it. :) I am Momma Hear Me Roar made these awesome glasses and gave me an idea for the hubby.

Now, I don't have a Silhouette (yet) so I took some of my vinyl for my cricut, found a Superman logo on google images and used my exacto knife to make my stencil.

If you want to try your own make sure to keep your eyes out for Michaels coupons because the large bottle of Etching cream was something like $34.97. I bought a small bottle with my coupon and it was under $10.00. I bought the beer mug at Kitchen and Company for $1.99.

It's not perfect but I think he will like it!

Blessings to you all,

A Reindeer Mug Rug

2011-12-19T21:51:00.000-05:00

This is what I made for our work gift exchange this year. I had the idea to find a nice pottery mug and then make a mug rug to match it. The more I thought about it, while I love pottery mugs, for the most part they are sort of plain so I found this mug at a local coffee shop.

I participated in a Christmas charm swap recently and used some of the fabrics for the top. I used fusible fleece for each side and then did diagonal stitching across to keep them together except where the reindeer was on the back.

This is the back. I traced the reindeer onto tracing paper and made an applique. I wound up putting two pieces of fabric together, sewing it around and turning it right side out. I did it this way because when I tried the applique with one piece of fabric I could see the backing fabric through the white and didn't like the way it looked. I used a solid lime green that matched the ornament on the mug for my binding.

I bought a bag of Raisinets, put them in one of those plastic bags you can buy in the candy making isle of JoAnns and made a 'Reindeer Droppings' label for it out of card stock. I found a cute reindeer graphic on google and typed up the serving size and calorie count on the back.

Our gift exchange was done by rolling dice. It wound up that my gift was the last one opened so no one fought over it but I think the lady who got it really liked it!

Blessings friends!

Please check out my Linky Party button to see where I am linking up!

Notebook Covers

2011-12-15T10:00:00.000-05:00

I saw these adorable mini memo book covers here and decided I would make a few for Christmas gifts. Twenty books later I am finished! Of course I started wrapping them and then remembered I needed to take a picture! The tutorial was awesome and they were pretty easy to make.

A closer look.

I made each one different. Some of the scrapbook paper had a coordinating color on the back so that worked out nice. I coordinated the embroidery thread to match. I bought the brads at Michaels. The notebooks were 4 for $3.99 at Staples. I think they will make nice stocking stuffers.

Blessings,

The Stockings Were Hung...

2011-12-14T10:05:00.001-05:00

Me and my big ideas! I had bought this fabric at JoAnn's after Christmas last year with the idea to make new stockings. Why I waited until December to start, I have no idea. I was going to make them all the same with the maroon on the bottom but then thought the green might look more masculine. I used my daughter Jocelyn's Accent machine to embroider the names. I made 11 in all. My parents get a new one, our family including a boyfriend and a girlfriend. I even made one for the new friend from Taiwan that Jocelyn is bringing home from college for Christmas break.

I sort of followed this tutorial after seeing these stockings here.

Now my problem is how do I hang 11 stockings on my mantel! I only have 8 stocking holders. I hung the last three up by paper clips just to take the picture! I don't think that is going to work once I fill them! :)

Blessings to you and yours,

A Message from Santa

2011-12-13T09:58:00.003-05:00

Have you seen this? I am such a nerd. I am all about celebrating the birth of Jesus but I just love this silly Santa message you can send to people.
I made one for you! Check it out. To watch the one I made you need to use my email address and the pin below.

www.portablenorthpole.tv
Username:	fkmtj@comcast.net
PIN:	78zs

Blessings,

Gotta Love Pinterest

2011-12-11T20:59:00.001-05:00

Pretty funny.
I don't know how many of you know the song Home by Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zero's but my husband LOVES that song. Our daughter used it as the music for her first fashion show two years ago at college and he's been crazy about it ever since. So I was checking out Pinterest tonight and besides finding that cute saying above I was inspired to make this for my husband for Christmas. The words are from the song.

I am going to put it in a nice frame. I think he will really like it! :)

Blessings,

The Vanilla Adventure part 2

2011-12-09T09:43:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I took my Vanilla that's been brewing since the middle of May and bottled it all up. This year I decided to buy 4 ounce bottles so I would have more to give away. You can go here to read about where I buy my beans and bottles. My one gallon jar of Vanilla made 20, 4 ounce bottles and 3, 8 ounce bottles. After I made my last batch I read about using the left over vanilla beans to make vanilla sugar. I decided to try that this time around. I laid the wet beans out on a cooling rack so they could dry out for a day or so. Then I divided them up between four containers and filled them with sugar. I used about a 5 pound bag of sugar. You can use this sugar for baking or add it to your coffee! Yum!

Here is a different kind of sweet. Our Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Sadie. She is the most faithful dog and takes her protection 'job' very seriously. She never leaves my side.

On a side note I was featured over on Measured by the Heart. Take a look at Connie's blog. I found it recently and just love it!

Blessings friends,

A Penguin for Pat

2011-12-02T08:30:00.001-05:00

Last year I became cyber friends (and then real friends!) with Heather through a flickr swap. Through Heather I met a group of super nice and talented ladies who have a quilting group called the Wild Threads. Then they invited me to join their group! Did I mention these ladies are really talented? I am not sure if I really belong in this group but I am glad I am. We laugh alot and I am learning alot too. So... on to the Penguin. The group decided to have a Christmas mug rug exchange. I vacillated but decided to be brave and join in. Here is what I came up with.

The information I received about my partner: "I like winter brights...pinks, teals, purples, & yes, I am a fan of lime green...not into the country/homespun look...and I am a collector of anything "penguin". I found the backing fabric first. I thought the pattern was busy enough that my stitching wouldn't be so obvious! It had small hints of orange so I added orange even though she didn't mention it. A penguin needs an orange beak and feet, right? I am not very good at FMQ so I hope she likes it in spite of my learning curve. Here is the back. This is my very first label, which is obvious. :)

The other part of the gift exchange was to come up with a spoon. They said to be creative. Here is what I came up with. A spoon necklace with her initial on it.

Tomorrow is the big day when we'll be exchanging with our partners. The anticipation is killing me! It's like an early Christmas! :)

Blessings friends,

Tom the Turkey Tutorial

2011-11-30T10:00:00.001-05:00

Better late than never right? I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to be with family and friends. Our daughter Jocelyn came home from school for a week and it was so great having her here!

Ok, on to the Turkey. The director at my school showed me a photo and asked me if I could make something like it. This is what I came up with. I made two, one for each classroom. It helps children with their matching skills and with fine motor skills.

SUPPLIES:

Felt - I used tan and primary colors
Buttons to match the feathers
Interfacing - I used interfacing in the body and the feathers to make them a bit more sturdy.
Googly eye buttons

DIRECTIONS:

1. Take a dinner plate, trace the shape onto the felt, and cut them out. Do the same for the interfacing.

2. Use paper to figure out the size you want for your feathers. I was able to get two of the same color feathers from one 8x10 piece of felt. If you are using interfacing, cut that a little bit smaller than the feathers and sew the feathers together making a sandwich of felt, interfacing, felt. Make a button hole in each feather according to the size button you chose. I also stitched one line up the feather.

3. Next make the 'head'. Two options here. I cut an additional piece of tan and sewed it on with a zig-zag stitch. After the fact I looked at it and saw that I could of just zig-zagged the lines on the circle of tan.. Then my husband suggested adding some fiberfill so his head 'popped' up. Cool! Then I made his waddle and beak. I did all this with out the back on.

4. Cut out his little feet and pin in place.

5. Pin the back on and sew around the whole thing.

6. Sew the buttons on and you're done!

Here is a picture of one of the students using Tom the Turkey!

Blessings,

My Bucket List...

2011-11-01T09:43:00.000-04:00

These might be strange 'bucket list' items as some of them are things I can't do on my own but here goes!

1. Be a grandma. (When my kids are ready for it...)
2. Pass all my college classes especially algebra.
3. Go to Ireland with my family.
4. Remodel my kitchen and pay someone to finish the walls.
5. Learn to quilt well including free motion stitching!
6. Learn to paint with watercolors.
7. Take a decent vacation every year that doesn't include camping in the rain.
8. Be able to run a 5K the whole way - no walking!
9. See the Grand Canyon.
10. Go on mission trips with my husband.
11. See each of my children have a relationship with the Lord.
12. See each of my children happily married.
13. Learn how to use my treadle machine.
14. Learn how to bake/cook decent gluten free foods.
15. Learn how to take decent pictures for my blog.
16. I would like to be kidney stone free.

Thanks for reading. If you want to play along and enter this contest, please do!

Blessings,

Be Still my Heart..

2011-10-28T23:06:00.000-04:00

My husband worked from home today which meant I didn't have access to my the computer until this evening and I just saw that I was featured on two separate blogs! How much fun is that! :)
Here: (Jocelyn don't look!)

And Here!

I spent the whole day sewing a project for school/work which felt good but took forever. I will post about it tomorrow. And I took my mid-term and think I did really well! They are calling for snow here tomorrow which is crazy. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Blessings,

Some Font Fun...

2011-10-26T10:39:00.000-04:00

I know I am a nerd but I'm ok with that. I do like fonts. When I was teaching kindergarten I used them a lot more than I do now but I still like them! Here is a neat game/activity to test your font knowledge. Go here Kerntype!

Have a great day!

Blessings,

Crayon Painting: A Haiku Mug Rug

2011-10-20T09:53:00.000-04:00

Last week I blogged about painting fabric with crayons. Here is the finished product! This is the mug rug I made for the Haiku Mug Rug Swap on flickr. My partner Marjory aka PecksPieces is a very talented quilter who happens to love frogs. I am happy to report that she really liked it! Marjory blogged about it here. What was also really neat is that I sent a picture of the finished mug rug to Suzy at Suzy's Artsy Craftsy Sitcom and she blogged about it too!

This is a picture of how it looked in progress.

I made the mug rug reversible. I did a log cabin on the back with a cute frog in the center.

Here is my haiku:

A hoppy green frog

Sits dreaming of her next snack

Unsuspecting fly...

Not much sewing going on over here right now. I am stressing about my mid-term next week. At 51 my brain just doesn't remember things the way it used to! :)

Blessings friends,

Some Sunshine for You!

2011-10-14T16:38:00.000-04:00

Isn't it pretty! These arrived in my mailbox and with all the rain we've had here lately I thought a rainbow of a different kind would be nice!

I participated in a Rainbow Charm Swap over at Ellison Lane Quilts along with 55 others. Jennifer assigned everyone a color. Mine was purple! (Go Ravens!) Whoops, sorry about that. We had to purchase one yard of two different pieces of fabric in our color. We had to cut each yard into 5 inch charm squares which amounted to 56 of each. Then we mailed them all off to Jennifer who sorted all the fabrics and sent them back to us in self addressed stamped envelopes. I have no idea what I am going to do with them yet but just looking at them makes me happy.

Here's hoping you are dry and enjoying this fall weather!

Blessings,

Painting with Crayons: A Tutorial

2011-10-12T09:29:00.000-04:00

Hey friends! Hope you are all enjoying this beautiful fall weather. I have been spending most of my time reading, taking quizzes, writing video responses, and pretty much freaking out about the mid-term coming up instead of crafting and sewing as I should be. Especially with Christmas fast approaching in 73 days!

Alright, onto painting with crayons! I spotted a tutorial about painting with crayons here and thought the technique would work well for a project I was working on. I actually emailed Suzy some questions and she got right back to me. I wanted to make my fabric look like a swamp for a mug rug I was making.

SUPPLIES:

Crayons.
A divided dish. You could use a muffin tin or an egg plate as long as it can go in the oven.
Cheap paint brushes.
100% cotton fabric to paint on.
Cardboard.
Newspapers and paper towels.
Iron.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Tape your fabric to a piece of cardboard to protect your work space and to stabilize the fabric.

2. Take the paper off the crayon and place in your container. To make clean up easier you could use tin foil to line each but the melted crayon washed out just fine with the glass.

3. Set your oven to 275. Place dish in oven and check at 5 minute intervals to make sure the crayons are melted.

4. Paint away! :) Before I started painting I lightly traced my design. I also used the crayon as a crayon and 'colored' the background a light blue. The melted crayons do cool off and you will have to keep putting it back in the oven to remelt. Maybe sitting it on the base of a crockpot or some kind of warming blanket might work. Your paint brush will also begin to clump up as the crayon cools. I just ran the brush under hot water and used soap as needed the brushes were fine.

5. When you are all finished lay your fabric on newspapers and cover it with newspaper or paper towels and using your iron press over the crayon to absorb all the excess wax.

I will blog about the finished project soon!

Blessings,

A Gift from my Daughter

2011-10-01T14:46:00.000-04:00

Back in May my daughter sent me a text about a treadle machine she found on Craig's list in Pittsburgh. After that we didn't talk about it again but I remembered that one of the ladies I work with also sells antiques. I called my co-worker and asked her if she ever finds treadle machines and she told me she had a beautiful one in working condition and told me I could stop over to see it. Then Jocelyn came home for a weekend. She got in late and my husband told her to come wake me up. She jumped into bed and proceeded to tell me she bought me the treadle machine! I could not believe it she did that! I was just blown away and so excited until I remembered the one my co-worker had..... what to do, what to do.

The one Jocelyn bought me didn't work and was missing the front plate. I showed my friend at work a picture of it and she told me they call them 'Plain Janes'. She also told me she would be willing to trade it in for the other machine for an additional $50.00. I talked to Joc to see how she felt about it and she was fine with trading it. And so we did. My hope is that one day when Jocelyn has her own boutique she can have it in her shop! Here it is.

This one actually has a chain hinge that automatically lifts the machine up from the cabinet. It's in beautiful shape. Now I just have to figure out how to use it. Hopefully the next time the power goes out I'll still be able to sew!

Blessings friends,

I'm a Winner :)

2011-09-26T08:38:00.000-04:00

I entered a giveaway over at Just Sew Sassy for mixedbag designs and I WON! I get to choose $75.00 worth of products. How exciting is that?! They have some really nice bags and are very reasonable. Now I just have to make my decision...

Hope you all have a super week!

Blessings,

Christmas Gift #1 (Joc don't read!)

2011-09-23T10:52:00.001-04:00

Sorry about that friends.

It's the only way I can blog about gifts without my daughter seeing what she's getting! :)

State Pillow

I saw this adorable pillow over here at In Between Laundry and thought it would be a cute idea for my daughter who meet her 'friend' in Pennsylvania at school. He's from PA, she's from MD.

Supplies:

Fabric - I bought a 1/2 yard of off white fabric and 1/4 yard of the print.
Embroidery thread
Poly Fill
Wonder Under or Heat and Bond
Cord if you want to do a piping. You could just do a ruffle.

Directions:

Find your state on the web. It took me a couple of tries printing to get the size I wanted. Print out. Trace the outline on the paper side of the Wonder Under. Iron the Wonder Under onto the fabric. I had a hard time with this. I think I did Maryland 4 times. UGH. So many stinking tributaries! Finally I did a google search for tips. The trick is to only press for the time indicated on your Wonder Under. Then let it sit and cool for a while before cutting and peeling the paper off. I use a pin somewhere in the center and pull a little section up to get it going.

2. Place your states where you want them. This pillow is about 18" by 12". Also, keep in mind the shapes of your states because as you can see I put PA on the left and MD on the right THEN after I was all done realized I didn't like it that way because the lines from the heart weren't even... I took them both off and redid them!

3. Embroider a heart in the center. I embroidered the red lines after I quilted the top.

4. I free motion quilted lines all over the open area except in the states and heart.

5. I decided it needed a big piping so I bought cording and gathered the fabric on it to make my own piping. PS. Not fun. I would do a ruffle next time.

6. I made an envelope closure for the back.

7. I couldn't buy a pillow form the size I needed so I had to make my own. My trick is to use batting and make it the same size as the pillow form fabric, put it inside and then put the poly fill inside that. It makes the form smooth on the outside. I stitched close the batting and then stitched the fabric closed by hand.

I think she is really going to like it! Now onto the next project.

Blessings friends,

Hoo are you?

2011-09-13T08:46:00.000-04:00

Good morning friends. I hope your morning started out better than mine! I'd tell you about it but in the words of my son Michael, age 28, he would say TMI! So I will spare you! :) Today I am participating in Night Owl crafting's Hoo are you? post.
1. Do you prefer sweet or salty foods?

I don't think I prefer one over the other. I like them both! I LOVE chocolate and Swedish fish but I also love pretzels. I was one happy girl when they started making gluten free pretzels!

2. Name your 3 BEST personality traits!

Responsible, trustworthy, friendly. PS. It is pretty bad when you have to do a google search for a list of personality traits. :)

3. Name your 3 worst personality traits!

Insecure, Undisciplined, and Selfish with my time.

4. Do you collect anything?

I used to collect Precious Moment figurines when I first got married. Now I am collecting fabric and sewing books!

5. What is your favorite season of the year?

I love the spring time. I love watching my perennials start to come up in the garden. Knowing that winter is over and you can open up the windows is wonderful!

Well, that was a lot of introspection for one day! :) Do you want to play along? I'm linking up here.

Blessings,

Another Mug Rug Adventure

2011-09-08T12:19:00.000-04:00

I decided to join another mug rug swap through a blog I follow SewHappyGeek. This was my second swap but this time it was not secret. All the participants were partnered up and once I knew who my partner was I sent an introduction email to touch base. When I didn't hear back for over two weeks I started to get nervous. Then I got a reply. She wrote in her email what she liked and I told her what I liked. In the previous swap I did through flickr all the participants had a flickr account filled with their own projects plus a favorites link so you can see what types of quilts they like. My partner...nothing. This was really hard. She did tell me she liked butterflies, owls, birds, and teacher themed things. I had a crazy idea to use chalkboard fabric and my flickr friend Jeannie was so kind to help me when I asked for her thoughts. She even mailed me a piece of chalkboard fabric from Florida! Thanks Jeannie! :)

Here is what I came up with.

I didn't wind up using the chalkboard fabric because it was a bit thick and I wasn't sure how the appliques would work on it. I happened to have a piece of black fabric that had a bit of a shine so I used that. I hand stitched the words to look like writing. My partners name began with an 'S' so I put a large S on the back.

Now's here the fun part. She bailed on me. Now what?! I contacted Jenna when there was no more contact from my partner because I wasn't sure what to do. Do I still send it? It was made specifically for her. I was kind of bummed but then Jenna asked me if it would be ok if I swapped with her. Her daughters name just so happens to start with an 'S'! So I packed up my goodies and mailed them off to England. This is the package I received from Jenna.

I just love it! I've been seeing so many cute mug rugs made with Hexies and now I own one! I am using it in my sewing room. She also sent a nice piece of fabric, chocolate, and two pdf files of patterns she created and sells in her Etsy shop!! Wasn't that so sweet of her to swap with me?

I think I am going to go make myself a cup of tea and use my new mug rug!

Blessings friends,

I've Been Featured!

2011-09-07T10:37:00.000-04:00

I've been featured at So Very Creative! How fun is that! Go check out Heather's blog. She is very talented!

In other news, I got my syllabus and am wondering why I was crazy enough to go to college at my age!!!! Hope you are all enjoying the cooler weather!

Blessings,

Cheat Silk Screened T-shirts - a tut

2011-08-29T17:09:00.000-04:00

This summer was my first time working the two week camp our Montessori school has for 4 to 8 year olds. Each year the kids make a shirt as a keepsake. My daughter Jocelyn showed me this technique.

SUPPLIES:

T-Shirt
Embroidery hoop
Sheer fabric
Hard coat Modge Podge
Fabric Screen Printing Paint
A squeegee like you would use in the shower. Make sure it will fit within the hoop.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Decide on your design. I used the words 'Discover, Observe, Explore in a circle using Word. Print out your design.

2. Place the fabric in the hoop and pull the fabric tight!

3. Place the design under the fabric in the hoop and using a pen trace the design on the fabric.

4. Now take a paint brush and paint all the areas except the parts where you want the paint to come through. You can hold it up to the light to see if you've missed any area. Go all the way to the edges and you'll have to do a couple of coats.

5. Place a piece of cardboard inside the shirt to protect the back. Place the hoop down where you want it on the shirt. Spread some paint along the top of the project area and take the squeegee and pull the paint straight down over the fabric. You only need to do this one time. Carefully remove the fabric/hoop. Sorry I don't have a picture of that. I took them but apparently I lost them in cyberspace. It took me a couple of tries so practice on paper first. You can wash the hoop when done and reuse it.

6. Once the paint dries iron the back of the front to set the paint.

I made almost 30 shirts. The kids and parents really liked them. We had the kids put their handprint in the center and then they used their fingerprints to make a few bee's flying around.

Thanks for stopping by. I appreciate you and your comments!

Blessings,

Quilt Covered Composition Book, a tutorial

2011-08-23T11:32:00.001-04:00

I saw these covered compositions book here and thought they would make great gifts.

Front

Back

SUPPLIES:

Fusible batting - mine was 11" by 25" Composition book - I found mine at Target for 40 cents each.
Fabric - this is a good project for using up your scraps.
Lining/backing fabric - 11" by 25"
Optional - Embroidery thread, wonder under if you want to use an applique

DIRECTIONS:

1. First measure your book.

2. Add a 5" overlap on each side and make sure you have 3/8" added to the top and bottom. Cut your fusible batting and backing fabric.

2. Lay out your fabric to your liking. Sew together and then iron onto the fusible batting. I used spray adhesive to attach the backing fabric to the batting but you can use pins.

3. Stitch as you would like. I did some free motion stitching and hand stitching. Now is when you would do applique or embroidery if you want.

4. Take two strips of fabric and bind the short edges on each side. Then finish the long edges with a serger or a zig-zag stitch. Turn over the 5" overlap, right sides together and stitch a 3/8" seam. Trim the corners and turn right side out. Hand or machine stitch the center area between the two flaps.

I made this one for my partner in the Scrappy Haiku Mug Rug Swap.

The front.

And the back.

It's a quick, fun project that can be reused when the book is filled. You could even add a button and hair tie or ribbons so it would stay closed. If you make one I'd love to see a photo! Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

Check out my linky parties to see where I'm linking up!

I HATE TO SAY IT....

2011-08-18T07:00:00.000-04:00

BUT THERE ARE ONLY 128 MORE DAYS TILL CHRISTMAS!

So with that said I think I am going to actually start making some of the things I've been pinning over on Pinterest. Like this cute bird nest necklace.

Blessings friends,

PURPLE DOOR 2011

2011-08-17T13:40:00.000-04:00

We just returned from our ninth year at Purple Door. The first year we went was for my daughters birthday and I guess we are either hooked or crazy because we keep going back. This year was the first time we didn't have any of our own kids with us! And it has probably rained 7 out of the 9 years we've gone. We go with great friends, Matt & Jennie and their kids. We volunteer and work a 4 1/2 hour shift on Saturday and then we all go back on Sunday morning and clean the grounds. You get to hear lots of good music, see some interesting people and make new friends. Here are some photo's from this year's trip.

Our campsite before the rain...

I couldn't resist asking this guy if I could take his picture!

I am not sure what organization this guy was with but it had to be hot in there.

This year the concert was at a new venue so there were lots of indoor stages and seats. Here is our 'gang'.

A new band SisterBrother my daughter Jocelyn blogged about here. They were awesome!

This was Sons & Daughters. Great harmonies and a cello!

Check out their music!

Blessings,

My First Baby Quilt

2011-08-05T17:52:00.000-04:00

I just made my first baby quilt for the daughter of a good friend. This mom to be went through Kindergarten to Twelfth grade with my oldest son Michael. I wanted to make something special for her first child, a daughter. The baby's room is purple and lime green.

Here is the back. I added a strip using all the different fabrics from the front just for a little interest on the back and I machine quilted it with a zig zag pattern.

I did a meandering pattern around the boarder.

I actually used my portable design wall for the first time with this quilt. My friend Lisa over at 9patchnurse told me about it! I bought a cheap table cloth from Walmart. I picked up some of those 3M hanging hooks and woo-la! It was a HUGE help to be able to look at it from afar and see where I needed to move things around.

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings,

It's Official

2011-08-04T18:40:00.000-04:00

I just got my picture id for school.

And my first textbook!

I must be crazy! :)

Blessings,

Knock off Twix Bars

2011-07-28T17:33:00.000-04:00

I found this recipe over at thesweetdeal and thought I would give it a try except make it gluten free.

Ingredients for Base:

1 Cup of Gluten free flour (mine was just brown and white rice flour mixed together)
1/2 Teaspoon of Xanthan gum (I always throw some in. I am not sure it really needs it.
1 stick of Butter, softened
1/4 Cup of Sugar

Preheat oven to 325.
Mix base ingredients together with a fork.

Spray the bottom of a 8 by 8 or 7 by 9 dish with Pam or Mazola.
Spread mix on bottom and bake for 20 minutes.

Filling Ingredients:

1 stick of Butter
1/2 Cup of Condensed Milk. * One small can makes 2 recipes. You can freeze the leftovers and thaw in the refrigerator to use for your next batch. And yes, there will be more than one batch! :)
1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar. I used light but I think the dark would make the caramel look better.
2 Tablespoons of Corn Syrup

Combine all filling ingredients in a saucepan and stirring constantly bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes. I think it's a soft ball stage on a candy thermometer. You just have to be careful not to let it burn. It will be the longest 5 minutes of your life. This is my third batch and I still have trouble not letting the bottom burn even though I never stop stirring. When done, pour on top of base.

Topping:

Chocolate! I used those candy making wafers but you can use what ever you have on hand. Today I am using both light and dark chocolate.

Gently place chocolate on top of filling while it is still hot. It will melt from the heat of the filling. Spread gently. Cool in refrigerator before cutting. I couldn't get a good picture of the finished product because my camera wouldn't focus so close... three tries and then I had to eat it!

Enjoy! Just don't eat them all in one sitting! :)

From the 1930's to 2011

2011-07-26T10:28:00.000-04:00

A wonderful young women from church asked me if I could alter her grandmothers gown for her May wedding. Above is a picture of the gown, circa 1930's. Below is a picture of her on her wedding day.

This was very nerve wracking for me. I mean this is an antique! I kept asking her "are you sure you want me to cut it?" Before I did anything I took specific pictures of the areas I needed to alter so I could remember how it was put together once I took things apart. Since the new bride was a bit more busty and taller than her grandmother I needed to do quite a bit of altering. The dress did not have a lot of extra fabric in the seam allowances so I actually had to make the train shorter to have extra fabric. I used that fabric to remake the piece that ran around the top of the bodice. I used the old piece that I removed to add material to both sides of the back. I purchased new button tape and replaced the old and put the 34 buttons back on. I also had to add inches to the bottom so I bought an off white satin and cut a 5 inch strip on the bias, folded it in half and sewed that on the bottom of the gown.

The biggest problem I had was that the 'bride to be' moved to California where her fiance, now husband lives. I only had a few fittings and had to do quite a bit of the altering without an actual body! I seriously did a lot of praying when I was working on that dress. Especially while I was sewing all those buttons on and hoping it would fit!

The dress turned out great and she was a beautiful bride. All the while I was working on this gown my daughter away at college was also making a wedding gown for a friend although she made hers from scratch. She did an amazing job. I am so proud of her! You can take a look here.

Blessings!

22 Years Ago Today....

2011-07-10T16:45:00.000-04:00

We were blessed with a beautiful little girl....

Who's become a beautiful woman.

We love you Jocelyn Grace. Happy birthday!

Blessings,

Staycation 2011

2011-06-24T07:55:00.000-04:00

We have a big 'to-do' list. We live in a nice, older rancher home that needs alot of updating. We still have the original 1978 kitchen! It seems that one projects balloons into another. For years (no kidding) we couldn't decide on what to do in the hallway. Carpet or wood? Carpet or wood? So we did nothing. Then we began to talk about remodeling the bathroom. I had a crazy idea to move the bathroom from one part of the hallway to another, creating an extra huge closet. That was two years ago. Doing the bathroom made us decide on flooring for the hallway! Yeah! We put hardwood down and married it into the hardwood floor in the family room which has been hidden under carpet probably since the house was built. So for at least a year we had unfinished wood in the hallway that needed to be finished.

Enter Staycation 2011...

New wood meets old wood. You can see how dirty the 'new' wood was compared to what was under the rug.

This was after the rug, padding, staples, and tack strips were removed and before the plastic went up. Once we started we couldn't get to our bedroom or bathroom except by climbing through a window on the deck!

Don't be fooled. My husband did ALL the sanding. I tried it and lasted about 5 minutes before I thought my arms were going to shake right off. He sanded from 2:00 in the afternoon to 11:00 and then had to keep sanding the next morning. He literally had to use the hand sander for most of the old wood to get rid of dots from the padding.

All sanded, vacuumed, and given a mineral spirits bath.

This was the scary part, actually starting to stain. We used Minwax Provincial. It looks darker in the picture than it really is. The wood is Red Oak and the old finish had a yellow/gold color to it. I love the darker brown! The fireplace didn't look so bad with beige carpet but now I am thinking about painting the fireplace a light tan/beige color using glazes. Any input?? :)

We were supposed to put the polyurethane down yesterday but the humidity was working against us so that will happen today. We still have a dining room and a living room to do. I think that will be staycation 2012 and 13! I'll need some time to recover.

Here's hoping your vacations or staycations are more relaxing than ours!

Blessings!

Love in Unexpected Places...

2011-06-16T09:17:00.000-04:00

In 1988 we moved from Long Island and most of our family to Maryland. I guess on one of the visits from my parents my mom hid little notes around my house. I would find them in unexpected places and the funny thing is I would just leave them where I found them. You can see one she wrote in 1995 that is still in my kitchen cabinet. Another one is in my Bible.

I just love those notes from my mom. I love that she took the time and thought to do that for me when I was far away from family.

Last weekend I went out to Indiana, PA to visit my daughter. I had an idea to do the same thing my mom did for me and leave some 'love' for her. She shares a house with three other students so I could only hide them in her bedroom. I got a text from her yesterday saying "So how many lovely little notecards did you hide? I have been rearranging and cleaning." I've been found out... :) At least I can blog about it now!

For her notes I found Bible verses that I thought would encourage her and found silly graphics for the backs. I am hoping that as my daughter finds more notes she will feel the love that went into them. Maybe if you are visiting loved ones this summer you might leave behind some 'love' too.

Blessings friends,

Fishing Anyone?

2011-06-10T16:02:00.000-04:00

I work part time at a Montessori school. One of the teachers retired this year and I was asked to help in her retirement party by decorating a tool box to look like a girlie 'tackle' box! Of course I didn't take a before picture but the box was all primary colors. The handle was yellow, the bottom half was blue, the top part was red and the closing tab was green! I bought Krylon clear for the plastic. They didn't have too many fun colors in the plastic paint so I then spray painted over the clear with the Watermelon. I used a white boa and bought rhinestones letters to spell out her name. I used stick on rhinestones to decorate the top and clasp and then made a flower out of fabric and made a leaf out of green felt.

Here is a picture of Linda when she first opened it! She got a big kick out of it! Another co-worker decorated a fishing pole for her.

We had a nice lunch and celebrated the 21 years she worked at the school. I wonder what her husband thought of her gifts! :)

Blessings,

A Sandwich Wrapper

2011-05-31T15:28:00.000-04:00

I've seen these sandwich wrappers being used by some of the students at the school where I work. One of the students let me trace the shape onto a napkin awhile ago and today I finally got around to trying one out.

I had a pretty good idea of how to make it but I found this site through Pinterest that had a tutorial which I used for clarification. Elizabeth at To be Charmed also has a pattern you can print out.

Supplies:

2 - 14" square pieces of fabric
1 - 14" square piece of plastic
1 - 2" piece of Velcro (both parts!)

Directions:

1. Cut your fabric and plastic using the pattern.

2. Take the rough side of the velcro and sew it to the outside fabric, centered in the middle of the fabric and 1 1/2" up from the bottom, adding the 1/4" seam allowance.

3. Place right side of fabric, plastic, then wrong side of fabric, making a sandwich and sew all around leaving top open. Be careful not to use pins except for around where you are going to stitch!

4. Turn right side out.

5. Fold in open end and add soft piece of Velcro. Sew opening closed.

So easy! I just might have to make one for my husband to take to work since I don't have any kids at home anymore! :) Hmm, what fabric should I use??? :)

Blessings,

Kathleen

I Remember...

2011-05-30T07:33:00.000-04:00

Land of the Free

Because of the Brave

"My country tis of thee

Sweet Land of Liberty"

A nation that does not honor it's heros, will not long endure. ~President Abraham Lincoln

Today I am grateful to God that I am an American.

I am grateful to the men and women who give their lives to protect mine.

I hope you take a moment today to remember...

Blessings,

Today is my favorite day!

2011-05-26T17:28:00.000-04:00

I just can not stop looking at this mug rug I received in the Scrappy Mug Rug 4 swap on flickr. OH MY GOODNESS. It is unbelievable. There should be an award for this kind of work.

Karen, also known as Sewgentle, got me as her partner. Since this was my very first swap I wasn't sure what I was supposed to write on my flickr profile that would help someone know what I would like. I actually read through a bunch of other swappers profiles to get an idea of what to write! Well, Karen did a little snooping and found out I am a big Survivor fan. This is what she made for me. It is obviously too beautiful to actually use but I will treasure it for sure.

I noticed a hand drawn campfire on the outside of the box but I did not have a clue until I read the letter Karen wrote. When I opened the box the first thing I saw was a package wrapped in a bandana/buff! It was tied with strings with lots of knots just like the challenges! The letter (my Tree Mail!) had burnt edges and was rolled up and tied on top of the bandana with a stick that Karen said I could use as a toothbrush if I wanted!

When I saw the mug rug I just could NOT believe it and there was still more in the box! There was a burlap bag, tied with more string! :) Inside that bag was tea, RICE - seriously you need rice. (Get back Philip!) There was another package that was Sea Salt wrapped in a piece of beautiful fabric. THEN, there was one more package.... a Hidden Immunity Idol!!!

I wish Karen could of seen me. I called my husband (Survivor is our 'date' night!) before I had even opened everything because I was SO excited! All I can say is WOW. Today really is my favorite day!

Blessings!

"I set my Rainbow in the cloud..

2011-05-25T12:06:00.000-04:00

"and it shall be a token or sign of a covenant or solemn pledge between Me and the earth. Genesis 9:13.

I always think of rainbows as God's promise to us to never send another flood. But it also reminds me that God is faithful and He keeps ALL His promises. The fact that I even wanted to make this mug rug for my neighbor is a testament to God's work in my life. Since the day we moved into our house 11 years ago she made our lives very difficult. I really struggled with hating her (just being real here..) My husband would continually tell me I needed to forgive her. I knew that, but it was hard.... I slowly began praying for her. It wasn't until our dog died 4 years ago that something began to change. We are now friends. That is a miracle.

Well, my neighbor had to put her dog down a few weeks ago. I know how painful that is. I really wanted to do something to bless her and to remember her dog Omar. So I came up with this Rainbow Bridge Mug Rug.

I used this tutorial to print the Rainbow Bridge poem onto the backing fabric. It took a couple of tries to finally get it but I think it turned out great. I also want to say thanks to my fellow mug rug friend Stephanie at Spontaneousthreads, who really helped me with those curves!

Blessings,

Swap Fun

2011-05-19T16:45:00.000-04:00

Since the beginning of the year I've joined three swaps. The first was for potholders. I feel bad because I don't think my partner liked what I made very much but I guess it didn't bother me too much because I wound up signing up for a second round. This time it was for potholders (they had to be anything but square) and/or a grocery bag. I did both. Pictures here. Here is what I received from my partner, Liz of Living my Sweet life!

A cute bag, two potholders made with adorable kitchen fabric, a keychain, little notebook, and a bookmark!

That brings me to my next swap!!! Mug Rugs

When I say that I've never made a mug rug, or even seen one in person I am not kidding. But I signed up anyway! :) I haven't mailed my package out to my partner yet but here is the mug rug I made for her.

Here is the front. She gave me a few different color choices to pick from. One was orange, white, and aqua. I am praying that my aqua and her aqua are the same!! She also said she likes owls.

This is the back. It seems that a lot of the ladies on the mug rug flickr group do something on the back rather than leaving it plain so this is what I came up with. Since the quilting wouldn't work for both sides I did each side separately using fusible fleece then lined up the border and hand stitched them together before putting the binding on. I sure hope she likes it!

Blessings!

It's That Time Again...

2011-05-17T10:16:00.000-04:00

Vanilla making time that is!

Vanilla Beans and Vodka = Really awesome Vanilla!

If you've never tried it, you should! They make great Christmas gifts. Go here for directions.

Blessings,

A Good Read..

2011-05-10T19:44:00.000-04:00

This is what I've been reading lately. I have to apologize to my friends in Harford County if you haven't been able to find any quilting books at the library! I am almost done with them so you can get a turn! :)

1. Sugar sack quilts, 2. Simple Contemporary Quilts, 3. Pretty Little Patchwork, 4. Patchwork Style, 5. Innovative Piecing, 6. 250 Continuous Line Quilting Designs, 7. Dare to be Square, 8. Liberaed Quiltmaking II, 9. Material Obession 2, 10. Home Comings, 11. freemotion quilting, 12. Make it Simpler

I'll give you my two cents, for what it's worth. I found all these on Amazon but check out your local library. And remember I am fairly new to this!

1. This book actually showed a piecing technique I hadn't seen where you layer your two squares on top of each other, draw a line down diagonally, sew on each side of your line and then cut along the line and press open. Duh. I cut each triangle out and sew them together....

2. Nice book but a bit too modern for me.

3. This book had some cute projects in it.

4. Loved this one. Adorable little purses and cute tote bags. 5. I really loved this one. I didn't even get far into it before I went on Amazon and bought myself one! Straight forward and very detailed for a beginner like me.

6. Crazy designs done with free motion. Since I've barely mastered the simplest of designs this was fun to look at and get ideas of the possibilities.

7. Awesome book. All the quilts were made just using squares or rectangles and the owl on the cover is adorable!

8. There were lots of beautiful bright and cheerful quilts in this book.

9. This big book was filled with awesome quilts and had alot of quilting basics to help in the back.

10. The projects in this book were mostly for Fall, Halloween and Christmas.

11. This one was way too advanced for me. Crazy free motion quilting. The workmanship is amazing.

12. This book about paper piecing says 'Easy as 1, 2, 3' but I think not. I think I need to spend more time reading this book and not just flipping through the pages if I am going to figure it out.

Have you read any good quilting books? Any recommendations for me?

Blessings,

Three Things...

2011-04-28T14:47:00.000-04:00

1. My wonderful daughter is really sick away at school and it STINKS being so far away. She is having serious pain in her joints, but has been sick with a upper respiratory infection. She just came home from the school infirmary for the second time. They are saying it is a virus and have put her on another dose of antibiotics. Send some prayers her way if you don't mind.

2. I just got this in the mail which means... I AM REALLY DOING THIS THING CALLED COLLEGE!!!!! :)

3. I just got THIS in the mail from my Potholder Pass/Grocery Bag swap! I am SO excited I haven't even opened it yet!!!! I'll post pictures after I do.

I guess that is life ~ ups and downs. Thanks for sharing in the joys and sorrows.

Blessings,

Re-Calculating....

2011-04-26T10:26:00.000-04:00

Have you seen that Mayhem commercial where the guy is literally sitting between the front two seats where your gps would normally be? My husband and I crack up every time we see it.

Here is a comic I found in the Parade magazine last week.

It made me think of my relationship with God and how often I think my way is better, forgetting that He knows all and always is FOR me. Sometimes I wish it were as easy as the Mayhem commercial with God sitting right there and hearing him tell me "don't go there Kathleen.... this way is better."

I am thankful that He has given us a roadmap, if you will, in the Bible. Guidance and direction are always right there for me if I just look in the right place.

Blessings friends,

What About Bob?

2011-04-20T11:24:00.000-04:00

Bob Wiley [to himself] ...

baby steps get on the bus, baby steps down the aisle, baby steps...

That is about how I feel about my adventures back into quilting... I am really enjoying it but feel like I am just taking baby steps. I am fine with that though, because half of the fun is in the journey. Here is my latest (and late) table runner for April/Spring.

I used 17 different pieces of fabric cut into 3 1/2 inch squares. I used a Kona green for the strip and back. I rolled the back forwards for my binding which I don't particularly care for but it worked for this. I was able to do diagonal top stitching even though the outside squares didn't line up. I guess adding the 1 1/2 inch green strips between the two sets made that work. Neat! Now I am trying to figure out if I going to get tired of looking at that for whats left of April, May, and June??? We'll see.

Blessings,

This is what I've been up to...

2011-04-18T17:53:00.000-04:00

I'm going to COLLEGE!!!!!!!

HOW CRAZY IS THAT? I can't even saying going 'back' because I don't think the one accounting class I took back in 1982 really counts. I am 50 for goodness sake! :) I am going to take classes towards an Early Education degree but I might be 70 by the time I am done. I still need to test for Math and English, which after 35 years of being out of school is not going to be pretty.

Sooo.... that's what I've been up to. How about you?

Blessings,

Potholder Pass 7

2011-04-11T12:45:00.000-04:00

This round of Potholder Pass you could choose to do either two potholders, anything but square and/or a grocery bag tote. I decided to do both. Of course it's a secret who my partner is but I am hoping she likes them as much as I enjoyed making them. Here is the grocery bag.

I made it using this pattern that I purchased from Keyka Lou. It's reversible. I also added a felt flower pin that I made using this tutorial.

Now for the potholders... My partner asked for reds, yellows, and oranges. Here they are. I added loops that can be easily removed since I wasn't sure if she wanted them or not.

I am excited that I am done being that my March St. Patrick's Day runner is still on my kitchen table! Now I can start a spring runner!

Blessings friends,

I STILL DO....

2011-04-10T06:15:00.001-04:00

This day 29 years ago, TWO became ONE.

Who knew that when we stood in front of our family and friends and spoke our vows to each other all those years ago the different paths this journey would take? But God has been so good to us! Our faith in a God who cares about every detail of our lives has and does carry us through this wonderful adventure called marriage.

And to quote Tom Cruise in Jerry Maguire,

Frank, " I love you. You... you complete me." Happy Anniversary!

Blessings,

De-Tox

2011-04-03T18:22:00.000-04:00

You wouldn't think I needed to detox after my trip but the day I got home I was bombarded with phone calls and emails from my family. It is (maybe was?) my husbands and my year to plan the family reunion. I've been in contact with a guy from PA about renting houses literally since last July for this July. Unfortunately the cost he originally told us was not what the contracts stated. UGH. Long story short - Lake Harmony, PA will not have the pleasure of my family for the weekend this July. Now we are trying for a plan B. We will see.

Soo... I decided to take a road trip to Lancaster for fabric because I signed up for another swap. I really don't know what I am thinking but it can't be as hard as planning a reunion, right? So now that I have some new eye candy I have to decide which fabrics to use for potholders and grocery bag. This time around it's any shape but square for the potholders and a choice of four specific patterns for the grocery bag.

This pile I just bought because I could~ ha! Moda's coffee line is just too cute!

This is the fabric for my potholders. My partner requested reds, yellows, and oranges...

Grocery bag choice 1 -

Choice 2 - The chickens were just too cute with the vegetables.

Choice 3 - Roosters and polka dots.

AND... I also ordered 6 more pieces of fabric online. I can't wait for them to get here!

What do think about the bag fabrics? I am trying not to stress over it, after all it is just a grocery bag... :)

Blessings!

I wish I couldn't of taken you!

2011-04-02T14:40:00.000-04:00

I am back from a wonderful week in Aruba. We were two of fifty six people who flew there to attend a wedding. Our very close friends son got married there on Saturday, the 26th. This is definitely not the norm for us. Our vacations are usually camping. We are saying this trip covers anniversary, birthdays, and Christmas this year! :)

My husband and I shared a villa with the grooms family. I will say that although it was beautiful there we did have issues with septic backing up in our bathroom the last three days of our stay so that was not cool. It's good to be home. My goodness the dogs were SO happy to see us. The pup kept crying and the older one kept peeing. Even though it's cold here at least our bathroom works! :)

I am still working my way through all blog posts I missed reading while away. Only 134 more to go!:)

Blessings,

My To Do List

2011-03-20T13:03:00.003-04:00

I made this chalkboard picture frame back in November for a 'Give Thanks' board for Thanksgiving.... It's still not done. As I was snapping this picture I thought maybe I should write on there Make the words TO DO with your cricut! :) For now this sits in my guest/sewing room.

So.... my list.

Number 1 - Iron. I always have clothes to iron so that will always be on the list. I also always have laundry and cleaning to do but I don't write that on there.

Number 2 - Sew Sacha's Gown! YES! I am finished! I re-made a wedding gown from 1945 for a friend of mines May 7th wedding. I will post pictures after the wedding.

Number 3 - Dress a Girl Around the World. I started talking to a lady in the cutting line at JoAnn's about 6 weeks ago and she invited me to a sew-in they were hosting at her church. I got all my fabrics out, got them ready to be sewn into little dresses and then got sick and didn't go. But I have a pile of dresses to make and send away...

Number 4 - Did you read that? My husband and I are going to Aruba for our very close friends sons wedding. Very exciting.

Number 5 - Done!

I know that I am strange in the way I love 'To Do' lists. I usually erase what's been completed but I sort of like seeing that yes, I've got something accomplished.

UGH, I just remembered I need to write Make a new table runner for April!!!

AND I just signed up for another round of Potholder Pass so that will go on there too!

I hope you are all getting your projects completed! Have a wonderful week!

Blessings,

Butterfly Pillows

2011-03-15T22:42:00.000-04:00

I work at a local Montessori school called Monarch Montessori. We needed pillows for our soft/library area so I volunteered. :) I used fabric that I had on hand and only had to purchase the pillow forms. I thought butterflies would be appropriate so I googled butterfly quilts and found something I thought would work. I fooled around in pages, basically making a butterfly puzzle that I used that as my pattern.

I literally cut out the pieces, adding a 1/4" around and then once I had cut all the fabric out had to re-tape the 'puzzle' back together again so I could figure it out. I am sure there must be an easier way but since I am just getting back into quilting it was the only way I could think of!

I stitched around the border of the butterfly and free motion machine stitched around the border. I added hand embroidered antenna.

I was pleased with the results and the children loved them!

Thanks for stopping by.

Blessings!

St. Paddy's Teacher Gift

2011-03-14T14:37:00.000-04:00

Here is a cute little gift that I had made for my kids teachers when they were in school. I decided to make them this year for the teachers at the Montessori school where I work. Here is the one I made in the past. It says 'You are worth your weight in gold!'

I was a little unsure if that would be offensive so I went and made two new ones. I found free pot of gold graphics on google images. One has the old saying and the other says 'You are a Treasure.' Here is that document if you care to use it.

Supplies:

Little bags of Chocolate coins- I found some at Joann's, $1.49 for 9 coins and at Walgreen's, $1.59 for 2 bags but each bag had only 5.
Plastic goodie bags that you find in the chocolate making isle at Michael's or Joann's.
Print out of document.

Directions:
1. Cut out the print and fold in half.
2. Trim the plastic bag down a bit.
3. Staple the print out over the open end of the bag.

Wa-la! Cute gift that lets the receiver know you appreciate them!

Blessings,

When Irish Eyes are Smilin'

2011-03-07T17:37:00.000-05:00

Just sending out some love today. Feel free to use. :)

Blessings!

St. Patrick's Day Runner

2011-03-01T10:40:00.000-05:00

HAPPY FIRST DAY OF MARCH!

Last month I made a Valentine's Day Table Runner with strips that was super easy. I thought I would do the same for this months runner but I was encouraged at my first sew in to try new things so I thought I would try a wonky one this time around. I normally like things to match up so this was totally new for me. When I showed my husband some of the squares I made at the sew in he said "I don't think I can handle that. The lines don't match up." :) Well... To be honest I wasn't sure I was going to like it either but I decided it's only going to be on the table for one month so I was going for it. Plus there is usually so many papers on the table he won't see it anyway! :)

Here is how I made my St. Patrick's Day table runner.

I started with 16 different pieces of fabric. I only bought a 1/4 yard of each, except for the fabric I also used for the binding. I bought a 1/2 yard of that. I decided on greens, orange, and white to match Ireland's flag, and added some black. I figured out my runner would be 18" wide and 54" long. That meant I needed 12, 9" blocks. Each 9" block is made up of 4, 4 1/2" blocks. That meant that each of my blocks had to be 5" square. I took a piece of paper and cut it to a 5" square to use as a visual.

1. I cut strips of fabric all different sizes. The laid them out so that the greens weren't next to each other and sewed the strips together.

2. Using my paper pattern I laid it on top of my strips and using my plastic ruler and rotary knife I cut out my squares.

This picture shows that I was able to get three squares out of one set of strips. Then I had the 'top' and the 'bottom' sections. I then took another piece of fabric, placing it between them and made new squares so I wasn't wasting a lot of fabric.

I kept doing that until I had all my squares. I made 6 squares from each pattern and then I made 12 out of one set that I thought looked like the flag and placed one of each of those squares in each of the 12 blocks.

3. I took all my squares and laid them out on a table to decide how I wanted the layout. I tried to spread out each different pattern and not have them too close to each other. Then I sewed them together.

4. Once the top was sewn together I used spray adhesive and put the batting and backing together. This time I also used safety pins to keep it together as I stitched the top. Which will come back to haunt you if you don't remember to take them out BEFORE you place the paper over them....

5. I decided I was going to do free motion shamrocks so I found a shamrock I liked on google images. I played around with it in pages to get it to the size and placing that I needed and printed it out. THEN I took plain paper and with the copy on top sewed through the layers of paper on my machine, minus thread. I did 6 at a time. I placed the paper on the quilt, pinned it in each corner and then stitched right through the paper. After I was done I just tore the paper away. This is BRILLIANT. Thank you Lisa!

A close up of my stitching. I am just learning so don't look too closely.

Can I tell you that I just LOVE this one!!! I think I will be sad to see it go when the month is over. I guess I need to start thinking about April's...

Blessings!

My First Sew In

2011-02-28T09:24:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday I went to my very first 'sew in'. I was invited to go through a fellow Potholder Pass participant, Heather, who started the Baltimore Modern Quilt Guild. I was excited and nervous too. I hadn't made a quilt or did anything 'quilty' in a very long time. Prior to the sew in I decided that I was going to make runners for my kitchen table for either a season, or for specific holidays. So I packed up all my 'Irish' fabric, and machine, and some snacks and went!

I met some really nice women who are incredibly talented. AND totally forgot to bring my camera..... UGH. They women have serious stamina too. I arrived at 9:00 left around 3:00 and was exhausted and they were still going strong.

I had many questions and they were very gracious answering all of them. Here are a few of the things I learned.

Number 1. You don't have to wash all your fabric before you cut out your pieces. Wish I knew that before!

I told them that the last time I was quilting I only hand quilted the tops. That's when I learned

Number 2. HAND is a four letter word! :)

Number 3. When free motion quilting make your pattern on paper. Run it through your machine without thread, then pin it on your quilt and stitch right on the paper. GENIUS!

Number 4. Experiment, try new things.

I went with Wonky for my St. Patrick's Day runner which is a bit out of my comfort zone. My runner's almost finished. I just need to put the binding on. I will post pictures soon!

Happy Quilting!

This is The Stuff You Use

2011-02-26T11:14:00.001-05:00

I had a really rough time of it in 2010. Lots of situations and circumstances that sort of set me up for the perfect storm. I found out 2 days before Christmas 2009 that the school where I had spent the last 15 years teaching kindergarten was closing. To say this was hard for me personally, is an understatement. I mean I understood the economy is bad etc, it was just that I had to continue to teach the rest of the school year and it was just so sad. I was grieving the death of something I loved deeply. My husband was good to remind me again and again that this was minor in comparison to what some people have to walk through. Still it was hard.

In January 2010, I emailed my older brother John who lives in Ireland about how I was struggling. Here is his response to me.

"I understand at least in part, your feelings about the school's closing. You've invested a significant part of your adult life into the kids and school. Yet there is a time to move on, even as the Book of Ecclesiastes suggests "There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven." Change, however difficult, is a key to growth and for some odd reason we seem to resist it with every fiber in our being. What I have gleaned from my journey is that I can trust God to lead me through and to new things/changes in my life that I would not have thought possible. We see in part and know in part--however, He holds all of the parts. When I retired from the Air Force, I knew it was time although I was not at all enthused about working in a Christian school and church. In fact, I enjoyed the military and sometimes working with Christians is more difficult than fighting Communism. I needed the changes, notwithstanding my deep affection for Newton's First Law of Motion, a body at rest tends to remain at rest. Movement meant much change--and in my mind, pain. Interestingly enough, recently Joseph (my nephew) sent me an e-mail in which he stated, "It is amazing how the things in my past have prepared me for the future." Pretty powerful stuff there! Anyway, I believe the Lord has something better, more challenging and rewarding for you. But the underlying principle in the Kingdom is that the just should live by faith--trusting God in the dark as well as light and believing that He who began a good work in us will complete it. This could be a very good time to ratchet up the prayer life several notches and begin to cry out for something bigger and better."

Good stuff, right? So now a year has passed. A year filled with let's see... Kidney stones and lithotripsies. A surprise Golden Retriever puppy for my 50th birthday. My very first car accident when I rear-ended a Lexus. And losing my job.

BUT..... I can say now, even though I knew it in my heart all along, that God is good. And I do see His hand on my life and His faithfulness to me every day. And I am now working part-time at a small Montessori school and loving it.

This song by Francesca Battistelli keeps playing in my head. Give it a listen. And be encouraged because

"This is the stuff that gets under my skin

But I've got to trust You know exactly what You're doing

It might not be what I might choose but this is the stuff You use"

Francesca Battistelli

Blessings,

A New Look!

2011-02-21T13:36:00.001-05:00

Isn't it great?!

It's not my birthday but I feel like celebrating!!

A while back I entered a giveaway Somewhat Simple was having and I WON! I was so excited. I won a free blog makeover from Jessica over at So Stylilized. Jessica did an awesome job for me! I LOVE it! She was great to work with, and especially patient with me when I would ask her to tweek this or that. Please go check out her site out and leave a comment if you like my new look. Thanks so much!

Blessings!

A Fashion Night Out

2011-02-18T17:47:00.000-05:00

This past weekend my husband and I went to Indiana University of PA to attend our daughters second annual fashion show. Here is a picture from last year's event.

I can tell you that Jocelyn really put a lot of effort into this show. All Christmas vacation there was a constant roar of sewing machine coming from her room. :)

The name of her line was 'Back to Our Roots'. Here is the description from the program. "Inspired by the song, "Home," by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, this collection is about going back to our roots. The earth tones and skulls are meant to help put things into perspective: "All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return. (Ecclesiastes 3:20)." With many pieces made from recycled clothing, this collection is semi eco-friendly. So strap on your boots, it's going to be a wild show."

These are a few of the pieces she made. She had 13 models and made everything they wore! She did an outstanding job and we were/are so proud of her! If you care to see the show to can see it here. I should tell you that it is just a mom and her sony camera so it's not the best quality.

Thanks for letting me brag on my daughter!

Blessings!

Valentines Ideas for the Hubby

2011-02-10T09:00:00.000-05:00

A few years ago I decided to do a "10 Things I Love About You" for my husband. While I know he knows I love him, I think putting it into words like this meant a lot to him. It was also a good exercise for me because it seems that we live our lives on auto pilot and sitting down and actually listing some of the things I love about him was good for me too. Now, some things might seem silly like number 10 on my list but it's the little things like him letting me shower first so I don't have to wipe the shower down that really blesses me!

I did mine in Publisher. I added a background and then added a text box and typed out the title and then numbers 1 to 10 and filled them in. Once printed out, I rolled it up and tied it with a red ribbon and had it on the table for dinner.

Here are a few pdf files I found on the internet that you could use.
1. Notebook
2. Hearts
3. Pink and Red

I would love to know if you do this for your special someone!

Blessings!

I'm guest posting today!

2011-02-09T15:01:00.000-05:00

I am guest posting over at Twelve Crafts till Christmas today. Hop on over and show some love!

Blessings!

Valentines Table Runner

2011-02-09T09:33:00.000-05:00

I saw this tutorial for a table runner over at Diary of a Quilter and went right out to buy fabric to make one. I am not going to go into detail because Amy's tutorial is awesome. I will tell you that I bought a 1/4 yard of 16 different pieces of fabric. Originally I was going to go with a red, pink, and white theme but the reds weren't thrilling me so I stuck with shades of pinks and white. Here's my fabric!

This was very easy to make. I used my rotary cutter and mat and cut 2 or 3 pieces out of each piece of fabric, varying the sizes. I would up with 36 strips total and at the end I had one strip left over. I have no idea how I managed that! I made my runner 16" wide and 48" long.

I used a temporary basting spray to keep the backing and the batting together while I sewed the strips on. After all the strips were sewed on I used a silver quilt marking pencil to free hand hearts on the back and then free motion quilted hearts all over it. I used purchased double fold bias tape to bind it. Then I threw it in the washer to get all the marks off the back.

I just LOVE it! I am going to make one for March with greens and free motion shamrocks on it! I think I will round the edges since my table is an oval. Oh the possibilities.

Blessings!

Another reason to Celebrate!

2011-02-08T13:40:00.000-05:00

I am so happy to be celebrating along with some fantastic ladies today who are celebrating their blogging anniversaries!

Please go check out Night Owl Crafting and take a look at her awesome blog. She is having a giveaway every hour for the next couple of days. Be sure to enter the giveaway to win one of my Cupcake pincushions!

Blessings!

It's a Celebration!

2011-02-08T10:21:00.000-05:00

Today I am guest posting over at Momma's Kinda Crafty for her 1 year blogging anniversary. Please hop on over and check out Joy's awesome blog and show her some love!

PS. There is a giveaway too!

Blessings,

I have a Serious Problem...

2011-02-02T14:43:00.000-05:00

Well, I have more than one but today I will post about this one....

I TALK TO STRANGERS.....

ALL THE TIME.....

WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?

I am not kidding. On the line in the Post Office, at the food store. It really doesn't matter. I do have limits. I mean, I don't just walk up to random people in a parking lot and start conversations. That would just be weird. But, really, why do I do that? Better question is, do any of you do that too?

I went to JoAnn's today for bias tape for a project I got myself into from a conversation with a very nice lady on Monday. More to follow...

Today's visit to JoAnn's found me chatting it up with Norma who needed a zipper replaced on her son? grandson? 's sweatshirt. Apparently he has Autism and chewed some of the teeth off his brand new sweatshirt. So what do I do? I offer to put the zipper in for her. For say, $10.00. We exchange telephone numbers, and I take the sweatshirt and zipper home. Best part, I am also delivering it TO her. Yeah :)

I either have to learn to keep my mouth shut OR just possibly God might use this mouth of mine to bless others. Hmm... I'll have to think about that till my next JoAnn's trip!

Blessings friends!

She meant well

2011-02-01T13:16:00.000-05:00

My mom, that is. I love her to death. She gave me this piece of Irish lace for Christmas. I thought it would be pretty in my newly renovated bathroom but it needed a little something...

I went to Michaels (with my coupon, since I always forget them at home, grrrr) and bought a frame. It was $10.00 but it was on sale so I couldn't even use the coupon I finally remembered to bring! The frame came in only black or a light wood color so I spray painted it a Oiled rubbed Bronze color.

Then I bought a piece of scrap book paper with browns and blues, used a temporary Spray Adhesive, put it all together and wala!

So pretty, I just love it!

Blessings!

A Love Hate Relationship

2011-01-31T09:38:00.000-05:00

With this....

I decided the year before I turned 50 that I was going to get in shape. I had had a couple of bad years struggling with kidney stones and was very inactive. My goal was not necessarily to look better, although if that happened I would be fine with it, but mainly to get heart healthy. At the time I was working at a small private school and the gym teacher for the high school allowed me to take the class along with the kids. When I say I am not athletic that is no joke. However, I did learn how to play basketball, shoot arrows in archery, play volleyball, and my absolute favorite, to play soccer. Doing that really helped me get into better shape but my goal was to run a 5K.

I started running in April 2010 and ran my first 5K in May just a few days before I turned 50. I ran two more 5K's that summer and then spent alot of time walking my dogs so I wasn't running. I am planning to run that same race again this year so I figured I better get at it.

I have figured out I am visual learner and for me I need to see progress. I have a Nike+ which is a little gadget that plugs into the bottom of my ipod and it tracks your runs. Then you link it to the Nike+ website and you can see your progress on a page that looks like this. You can set up goals and even make a little mini you! So fun!

Another tool that is useful is the site Sparkpeople. One of the blogs I follow Me Making Do posted about it recently and I decided to start using that tool too. Check it out. It is totally free. They have both a food plan if you want to lose a few pounds or an exercise plan. There are alot of options within the program so you can make changes if you want.

So yes, a love hate relationship. Right now I'm not loving it so much but I am hopeful that will change as I keep plugging along.

Let me know what you are doing to get in a more healthy place!

Blessings!

Bacon Cheddar Meatloaves

2011-01-27T11:56:00.000-05:00

Who doesn't love bacon and cheese? These are super easy and taste delicious.

Ingredients -

Ground Beef, thawed - (I used 2 lbs and made 7 large individual size loaves)
1 Egg - slightly beaten
6 ounces of Tomato Sauce (I didn't have any so I used Hunts Four Cheese)
1 Tablespoon Minced Onion (you could use fresh if you want)
1 Tablespoon Dried Celery (I didn't have any, so didn't use)
1 1/2 Teaspoons Italian Seasoning
1/3 cup Quaker Instant Oatmeal ( I used one pack- didn't even measure it)
6-8 slices of Bacon
6-8 slices of Cheddar Cheese

Directions -

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix all ingredients together, except the cheese and bacon.
3. Form into patties and place on baking pan.
4. Bake for 30 minutes, take out and let cool. Drain any grease off of pan.
5. 15 minutes before you are ready to serve, place cheddar cheese on top of each loaf and then wrap a slice of bacon around and place back on pan.
6. Bake for an additional 15 minutes, broiling for a couple of minutes at the end to crisp the bacon.

Here they are after the first 30 minutes.

With cheese and bacon ready for second baking. Don't mind my nasty baking sheet!

Plated up on my 'vintage' Corel! Delicious!

NOTE - Some people with gluten allergies can't tolerate oatmeal so be aware. :)

True Confessions

2011-01-25T17:56:00.000-05:00

Not exactly what you might think I mean but I have to tell you what I got myself into.

One of the blogs I follow, During Quiet Time hosts a potholder swap. I saw the post after Christmas and since I had just been making a lot of crafts I thought I would be 'brave' and sign up. I mean how hard is it to make a potholder? I can sew, I've made quilts (a long time ago), heck I've even done some embroidery in my day. HA!

When I say I am way out of my league I am not kidding. The best part (or the worst part, depending how you look at it is) when I first signed up I was turned down. And that was ok. I mean I was a little disappointed but I am all about rules and was fine with it. Then I had a thought. One of the problems that come up in a swap is sometimes the potholders don't get made or sent, leaving someone without.

SO... I emailed Amy and asked her if it would be ok with her if I made two potholders on my own that she could have in the event someone couldn't get theirs done. That way I could 'participate' without the pressure! :) And what do you think she did... She let me in the group!!!!!!! YIKES... And the 'theme' this time around is monotone. Your partner picks a color and you make two potholders and mail them by a certain date.

I am now learning how to free motion stitch and reading quilting books from the library and praying that my partner likes what I have come up with. Here they are. I still need to add the binding. And practice some more for the other back.

I was inspired to do sort of a Subway art feel.

Sometimes we need to be stretched a bit and get out of our comfort zone.

Blessings!