Lots of hand quilting progress to share this week!

 November in the USA is a time to recall all that we have to be grateful for…. even my calendar this month reminds me this is a month of Thanksgiving!

Our Christmas Cactus is busting out with gratitude and showing off these awesome bright pink double blooms all over!!!

 And I am a step closer to finishing the bag for my daughter by adding a hidden message for her to see….

 It is hard to read but in cursive it says “You look really pretty today” … I just had to buy the tags for this project 🙂

Mainly this week I have been hand quilting… beginning with a new row Monday morning.. I did slow stitch quite a bit last Sunday so I could let the area I was quilting dry from being spritzed then roll down….

 This was my first area to see…

 and by mid week I was here…

 Now today I am working on the mini medallions beside the big medallion shown here…

Linking this lovely hand quilting I am sharing with Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitchers HERE <<<  Come see what else my friends are stitching up!!!

 I did make a couple of surprise finished place mats for Jannessa…

She loved them… I washed and dried them too but forgot to get a photo of them both… each features two loving cardinal couples 🙂  These are to use at Christmas and since that is next week for decorating up the house after Thanksgiving I though I may as well gift them now.

Then after a long rainy few days… my honey got out in the rain on our back deck at sunset & got these photos!!!!

 And this one too… both from our back deck looking over our pond…

 So a shorter visit for you all for this time as I have several secret sewing projects I worked on too! ❤

For now enjoy my new closing and share what you are up to too in the comments!  See ya next Sunday!!!

Advertisement

Giddy with Progress this Week!

Ya’ll I couldn’t come up with a better label for this week’s post… I am simply GIDDY with the progress I have made around here since last Sunday’s post!

And I have also continued to give thanks for all the good in my life at this moment…

How about you?

Last week I had sooo much happening I didn’t share that I got 2 new little cutting mats.  But I did share this project I was interested in…

 Made possible by my friend Jannessa who gifted me this Winterlude fabric and pattern… but if you recall I shared how my bar in the kitchen needed a longer and skinnier table runner so I used their blocks and made up a different plan…

 First…
I decided the center would be the blue blocks with vanilla polkadotted center spots…

Now on the left or right you can see the ruby Olfa rotary cutter I won along with the pink floss and true blue Olfa cutting mats!  What better way to give them a test run but with this project!!!!

I used Julius for the piecing of the 3″ finished blocks…

 And soon I had the 12 center blocks done…

 Low time to add the outer triangles for the square in a square like the pattern called for 😀

 Soon that was done and sewn into a long strip and I cut red and green from this same Winterlude line to make all the little squares around the outside of the blue ones…

 Like this…

 Soon it was ready to get the float border done and then add these 42 squares… all have the cream portions for centers.

 Finally I got it ALL pieced this morning …

 And here is a close up of the right side of the table runner….

I love it!  Jannessa is going to fmq the center and I will add organic straight lines and a flange binding I will try to manage on my own by machine 100%!!!!!  Oh my!!! I have never done this binding… Jannessa has shared her favorite tutorial on this topic…

DO YOU HAVE A FAVE PIPED / Flange BINDING????  

Please tell me how to find it in the comments below so I can be ready!  

I have also been making stellar progress on my Swoon hand quilting…

Here I had finished the first swoon block and was working on the sashing where we had marked a medallion but it was so light it needed a re-marking… so I did!

 Soon that was done and I outlined each segment of the top of the second swoon and prepared it for the big stitch filling in…

 Finally … with all this cold weather that is way colder than usual… by Thursday morning as it was teens outside when I woke to quilt… I turned on the fireplace and enjoyed a bit of a fire to keep me warm… mmmmm

 And I made it to halfway that morning filling in the second swoon block top…

 Soon I was to the second sashing … after the second swoon and before the 3rd…

 I love how we decided to quilt these medallions … they are really gonna show off the negative space on this quilt when Connie has it displayed on her bed!!!

Finally to the 3rd Swoon top block…

 Morning… nooon… and night I hand quilt on this frame…. I really enjoy it too.. it IS my sanity…

 After going around each section with regular hand quilting thread…

 I fill in the lines about 1″ apart with big 12 wt thread… looks sew nice on these busy blocks!

 And this is where I am this morning… working on these 2 pinwheels and the outer border as well as edge basting to be done!!!

 I am linking this wonderful progress to Kathy’s Quilts HERE <<<< Go see what others are linking and check out Kathy's finish this week… ALL by hand instead of machine pieced like mine are!!!

And our Christmas cactus started to bloom this week… sew many blooms!!! ❤

 I was lamenting to Connie about being stuck on a secret project I am working on for a special Christmas something for someone …
I sent her the fabrics on the left along with some other fun things I had collected for her since our last meeting… and she is now sending me the gorgeous Hexi Flowers on the right!!!!  SCORE!!!!

Then yesterday Jannessa came over and remembered her wall hanging… so my honey snapped this shot for us…

 I am definitely Thankful, Grateful & Blessed to have her and Connie in my life.. as well as my honey of course! lol

We are almost done with our backpack purses we have been working on .  I think she is using hers herself and I am sending the one on the left ot my daughter….  it has been an arduous but interesting bag to make! lol

I let sweet Cleopatra (Singer 319w) do this heavy duty job… Jannessa used a Singer 301 for hers 🙂

How has your week been?  

My honey has mulched and vacuumed the yard again this week…The cold encouraged leaf dropping from several of our trees…along with new growth!  Hoping they hibernate well and re-bloom next year okay!!!  We also experienced difficulties with the inflow and outflow with the freezes affecting the pond … so my honey worked on that too.

Our car is running as it should and drives great since getting new front tie rods put in.  So with 2 trips to Asheville under our belt this month.. I sure hope nothing else happens 😀

Have a blessed week!

Hand Quilting Celebrations!

This week I have sooo much to celebrate related to hand work!!!

If  you are seeing my hand written label then….

 It is finished… washed and dried and ready to hang!!!

 And here it is from an angle…

 And straight on… in the quilt holder my bestie Connie gifted us when we moved into this home 🙂

I am linking this finish to Julie’s UFO & WIP Challenge…. this WIP is in the books and out to be enjoyed now YAHOOOOOO !!! >> HERE  Come see the finishes others are sharing for the chance at a prize link your own too!

I am also linking this major finish to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching post … she is asking what we use for hand pain relief… I liberally use Bag Balm as shown here…

 And rub it in really good over 2 or 3 minutes massaging it in.. then I let it soak in another 5 minutes or so before doing anything with my hands as it is a bit sticky originally … but I have terrible arthritis and this helps IMMENSELY !!!  What do you like to use after a busy hand quilting day???

This morning with fresh hands I finally got to sit down to my quilting frame and the beautiful swoon quilt I have loaded there ….

I finished the first swoon this morning and am ready for the second and third later on today …

Linking all this hand quilty goodness to Kathy’s Quilts Sunday post HERE <<<  Now go see what everyone else is linking up 🙂

My Sewing Room got a new paint job this week…

Here is the cutting in section and filling ALL THE HOLES left from removing old screws left by previous owners…

 And here you can see the color difference… the left side is all painted with 2 coats of rolling and 3 coats of cutting in !!!  Wow … the brown in that existing paint was tough to cover!!!!

 We also emptied out most everything in the room to finish the painting… Once finished and reloaded NEATLY…  It looks fabulous I think!!!

 Here is a collage of sorts … the before… during and painted walls after…

 That is what I posted on facebook 🙂  Many said my room wasn’t messy to start with … BUT IT WAS Y’ALL!!!!  I found sooo many fun things in my sewing room and organized it so I can find it next time I need it!!!

Then I laid out these fabrics as my first project to start in my renewed sewing room…

 It will be a backpack purse for my daughter 🙂

So this week I will enjoy the autumn designs in the kitchen area I made for years to come to enjoy.  I will look forward to finishing the prep on the bag for my daughter and make it with Jannessa later this week… and focus on giving the Swoon quilt some attention 🙂  How about you… on Sunday I like to plan goals for the week… do you ever do that???

Have a wonderful week y’all!! Also, keep our country in your thoughts and prayers please!  The USA needs it!!!

Welcoming June 2019 Y’all!

These beautiful flowers were given to us as a parting gift from a visiting neighbor when she left to return to Florida 🙂

We have windows open for the first time since early in May and it is soooo invigorating to feel the fresh air moving through the house AND the birds singing their late spring songs 😀

Another neighbor is brave about snakes that live in this region and braved the garden to harvest our returning strawberries and then was kind enough to share a bit of his bounty… so I have been enjoying early morning strawberries with a bit of whipped cream on them too… no sugar needed they are naturally sweet!

You can see roses from the never ending giving bush of roses outside our bedroom window my honey harvested for me when he trimmed off the dead blooms to get fresh ones a place to sprout out… and I finished and washed and we are actively using the table runner as a table runner and a place mat built for 2!!!  We love it 😀

My favorite Bonnie-ism lately…

Remember this on the tough days friends 😀  Life is short… savor every moment and the best is yet to come >>> STAY EXCITED!!!

I made this collage this Friday 🙂

I have this completed now…

And have just this little bit to go before I am ready to add the label and the binding to this quilt …

YAAAAY!

Linking this most awesome progress to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching HERE <<<  Kathy celebrates 7 years of linky party happiness this month 😀  Congrats to her!

Also linking to Wendy’s Peacock Party HERE <<< She has a chocked full post and a great tutorial shown on the following day's post too… talking about on point layout and design!

I will not show Elliana’s quilt again until it has been gifted for several reasons so just enjoy these photos and be ready for a fun reveal in a couple weeks!

I mentioned labeling her quilt…  HERE are some fun label ideas too! 

I will be using THIS pen…

 And making a label like this…

the pen I am using writes heavier and stays better wash after wash and dry after dry than the pen used in the photo above… I am very pleased with it… you may can find it local but you can also find it via Amazon 🙂

I will border with a bit of ribbon for a bit of whimsy across that diagonal top edge to avoid showing stitches… although with the ladder stitch it doesn’t show but this will be more durable I think too!

Next up I will be making a bag for my daughter…

 And a PAIR of these pillow shams I am designing this week …

once the quilt is in the binding / labeling / completing for gifting process 😀

The pillow shams will coordinate with this quilt I hand quilted for my daughter’s high school graduation a few years ago… but she left high school to experience life.

So I finished Star Light ~ Star Bright quilt before we left Florida.  I washed it and have used it on the guest bed as a “carrot” for her … she would get it when she completed her high school education or got her GED.

Well folks!!!!  SHE GOT HER GED >>>>> FRIDAY!!!!! YAY !!!!

She doesn’t want it mailed… she is coming for a visit soon… so she will get it then… I am giddy for her to receive it and the pillow shams are for all her hard work and perseverance in the “growing up” department… she is really getting the hand of adulting now 😀 lol!

Inspiration for the pillow sham design came for the left antique quilt … and the right similar basket design as well since it has a video to show how to put it together on point… however none are the size I need them to be… so I will use graph paper and Math Skills and make my own design for her and her boyfriend (who loves my handmade things)… we also have pillows for the pillow shams so they will be set!!!

Molly likes to lay on her “house” which is a crate where she stays when we leave and at night when we all sleep… we cover it with that quilt I made many moons ago with learning piecing skills and stitching skills… and as of late she has learned this is a comfy spot to chill and watch me quilt!

 She loves it and doesn’t hurt it so all is good 😀  Isn’t she cute up there watching me quilt !

So for now I will let you go check out the links I left you in this post… but please take a moment to appreciate your life… it is worth your time !

Blessed Easter Sunday Friends!

I received the sweetest card in the mail on Friday… it made me smile so big too….

This came to me and my honey from a dear friend … how nice and timely it was to receive it for us 🙂

We have had a busy week here but mainly I have been making headway on just 2 projects to share…

Here is the squirrel I was starting on after last weeks posting….

 And a hand quilting facebook group has a daily challenge going from the 15th of April to the 15th of May called #month of stitches… so of course I had to join in to keep me stitching each day 😀

This is the next block after the squirrel…

 And finally the block to the far left side of this row…

 Then the week was coming to an end so I took stock of the blue bells by the front porch looking so beautiful still… and even with rain coming down each day this weekend they stand tall… AMAZING!!!

 In the middle of the week I focused on working on a Oriole bag for a friend of my daughter that was commissioned a bit ago…

 Here is a close up of the main parts… They are drying from being Scotchguard coated to keep it clean longer 🙂

Next week I should have it done and ready to mail to the recipient… I think she will be pleased !!!
Linking this progress to Wendy’s Peacock Party HERE … Check out Wendy’s post for the most amazing quilt she is hand piecing together 🙂  And a new quilt along Jen Kingwell has planned too!

I rolled the quilt then…

 And have been working on these 2 blocks here….

I am so pleased with my quilting progress here as it is LOTS of work and it is moving along at a clip thank goodness… the next quilt will arrive this week too!!!!  Linking this cute bear and more to Kathy’s Slow Sunday Stitching Linky Party HERE … where Kathy is putting the binding on a project she will share in total tomorrow on her blog and has some scrumptious hand iced cookies too ❤

I am planning a new bag for my darling daughter Brandi… a backpack purse!!!

 Here is a look at the inside and back of this bag design but the one above is more her design likings…

 We disagree on which Tula Pink print would look best on the flap of this backpack purse… what do you all think???  Can you say Left or Right???

If it helps these are the other fabrics she has picked for this bag… all that could change but her fave print of all these are the violet purple ones  but she enjoys the yellows too…

Here is a color wheel I got last week… violet/purple is just across form the yellow colors too… so that didn’t help us much… anyone with ideas??

 So as we look at life through Easter Sunday eyes… do you dare to take a step doing the right thing or in the right direction of your life??? Sometimes the right step is scary!  Does this make sense to you??

Think about it as you stitch this week… does this apply to you??  It certainly gave me food for thought this week!

I continue to listen to books on my headphones as I quilt and do housework etc… I am really enjoying a break from videos and movies too… my mind is more active listening to a book and imagining the characters… do you find this to be true if you have read or watched the same shows and compared them???  I have watched a bit of movies available on Hallmark NOW this week though and enjoy the POstables for sure!!!  I am watching the 10th of 12 shows as they become available to me 🙂

Meanwhile… Be in love with ALL of your life friends… and have a Happy Easter Sunday!!