2023 Ending! And a new Beginning!

As the year draws  to a close, I’m finally back in my sewing room. Not a lot was accomplished, but furniture was rearranged, wall items moved, like ruler rack and a bulletin board and everything , well almost everything, has been put away! It’s the end of the month and I sewed crumb blocks in multi colors. Four varied blocks were made to renew these worn hot pads! 

They don’t look too bad here, but trust me, they are stained and worn. Could  I have tossed them in the trash, made a trip to Walmart or scrolled on Amazon and just replaced them? Yes, of course, but then there would still be 3 boxes of scraps. 

Now, they look like this! Not necessarily prettier, but at least useful! 

So I’ll be using these two smalls to fulfill the ABC Table Scraps Challenge. I didn’t complete the challenge in November! I didn’t get punished, but both Diann and Joy, suggested, that I complete 2 finishes in December. So I did. 

November = Dark Neutrals and K and W.

December = Rainbow and S, H, and E. 

Mostly darks and Kitchen Worthy!⤴️

Rainbow= lots of red, orange,yellow, some green, blue & indigo and and zero violet! But six out of seven isn’t bad and they are definitely Scrappy Ecletic Hotpads! ⤵️

See you next year! There will be snowflakes, but what color! ROYGBIV !

Linking up at Rainbow Scrap Challenge and. ABC Table Scraps challenge 

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful! 

ABC Table Scraps Challenge for November 2023

I considered just leaving this post blank! I’m sad! This is the first time since Joy began the Table Scraps Challenge that I haven’t had an entry!  My month was busy, stressful and very unproductive. A month filled with medical appointments that had us fearing a cancer diagnosis. There was a wonderful outcome from that, no throat or mouth cancer for Mr. Busy. ❤️

During all this we had all the carpet and linoleum taken out of our basement level and replaced with vinyl plank waterproof flooring. We love it. But the area included my sewing room and it was a huge undertaking to move my stuff! Thank goodness for our granddaughter and her partners. They did all the carpet removal. I am slowly moving my stash and paraphernalia back into my room. Trying to sort and downsize as I go. Also trying a new arrangement of cutting table and machine. And  there is cleaning and dusting happening too! 😀

I am sad I didn’t get ANY sewing done, but pleased and joyful for the result of the medical issues and the home improvement that happened. 

To quote Arnold….”I’ll be back!”

I’ll link this post with The Joyful Quilter and her Table Scraps Challenge post.

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

 

Starting November- Midweek Makers #001!

Though some of you have seen my recent makes……this is just a recap for me..

My October OMG was to get this too-Long-in-the-UFO-closet to a flimsy. And therefore on the road to a finish. 

Depending on who I hire to do the quilting, I will need either a backing that is 8” more than the front or 12” bigger than the front. I have to decide. 

Then I made this little mug mat for my chair side table. It’s just the right size for a coffee mug and a cookie!

I’m sharing for the very first time with Midweek Makers at Quilt Fabrication. I’ve long admires Susan’s designs and tutorials.

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

ABC Table Scraps Challenge October. “Q” and/ or “T”!

Joining Joyful and friends over at The Joyful Quilter for this month’s ABC Table Scraps Challenge 

I got a rather late start on my challenge. October has been a pretty non productive month for me. Our local quilt show was the first week end! That was fun. 

The I needed to work on my OMG (One Monthly Goal) for October. You can read my goal setting link up post Here.

It was slow going. End of the calendar year brings annual Medicare appointments for both me and Mr Busy. Both of our providers had left the practices where we are patients. That meant new Drs each! A pain! 

These annual check -ups led to bloodwork, labs, X-rays and appts for an upper GI for Mr Busy. It got complicated after that. I won’t share details here, but know that many days were filled with appointments and errands and visits to various facilities. I did not spend any time in my sewing room for almost 2 weeks. I finally stole an hour and a half to make a light neutral string block. 7.5 inches square because telephone book pages are already cut to that size! 

Then it sat! No photos were taken! Finally, last night, I chose a backing fabric. 

And then, because I was thinking about my OMG, I had my appliqué hat on! I was rummaging in my drawer of stuff and found 6 artificial leaves from somewhere? I added some iron on  fusible to 3 of them and voila! I had a small mug rug for the table next to my living room chair. A small zigzag stitch using variegated fall colored thread on the leaves and a buttonhole stitch all around the edge and it is done. 

There you have it! A Quietly colored, Tiny, Timely decorated mug rug. 😊

And I leave you with this timely photo of this year’s littles. One quiet Master Chief from HALO and a vivaciously cunning ballerina witch! 🧡🧡😍😍

TRICK OR TREAT! HAPPY HALLOWEEN! ! 

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

ABC Table Scraps Challenge. September '23

What to do?  What to do?  How about you finally make a dresser topper for your dresser, Judy!  It needs it!

So I found a baggies of scraps from the quilt on our bed. 

I was going to make a cushion for a recycled piano bench that sits at the foot of our bed. I might still do that, 

but I found lots of HST using the dark teal. 

And for now they have come together in an improve fashion!

Not quite big enough yet!

Strips were added , all three colors plus some extra HSTS! Finally it’s 19”X34”.  I dug in a hamper that had some batting scraps, so I could make a pieced batting. The goal is to use up scraps, right? 

 Egads, this is what I unearthed, plus some larger more square pieces. 

I’m leaving them in the big basket as a reminder to sew some slabs together, every day! 

A piece of light brown leaf print was constructed, and Tuesday it was nice enough to spray baste out on the deck. I did some serpentine stitching with teal thread on top and 3 different partial bobbins of aqua/turquoise for the bottom thread. A different dark teal for binding was attached Thursday during stitching group! It’s ready to put into use!

I’m linking up with The Joyful Quilter at ABC Table Scraps Challenge!  The challenge was to use Aqua or some variation and interpret the letter P and Z. I see Zig Zagging mountain Peaks, don’t you? 

And because it is a finish, I’m linking to Finished or Not Finished Friday hosted by Alycia Quilts. 

Amended—- in use,

And I love it! In the reflection ,in the mirror made by my late BIL, is the quilt on our bed. 

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

TO-DO Tuesday # 158.

Last week, 9-12-23 to 9-18-23 , my list looked like this:

1. If the quilter finishes Rainbow Neighbourhood, get the binding attached to the front and ready for hand stitching.✅

 The binding is started just before the first corner and as of this morning I am nearly finished with the  left side!

2. Make a label and hanging corners for Rainbow Neighbourhood!✅

Because this lap quilt is 60” square, I added two hanging triangles across the top in addition to the corners. 

The quilting shows nicely from the back!

The label is in the bottom right hand corner. 

3. Finish bottom border for spool quilt. PARTIAL

  Yesterday it was under my needle, I should finish it today! Lots of threads to take to the back and tie off! 

4. Stitch on Winter/Christmas Penguin. ✅

It’s hard to tell, but white stitches were placed in his face and tummy area!

5. Start thinking about ABC Table Scraps Challenge in Aqua with “P” or “Z”! ie. Sew some aqua!✅

This is as far as I got. As soon as I get the appliqué done, I’ll get started on these HSTs!

Next Week

9-19-23 to 9-25-23

1. Keep stitching  binding on Rainbow Neighbourhood  

2. Christmas Penguin 

3. Attach borders to Spool Quilt

4. Sew Aqua HST to match Americana Modern border?  

Sharing at Quilt Schmilt! Thanks Carole! 

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

TO-DO Tuesday #157. 9-12-23

Joining Carol at Quilt Schmilt for To-Do Tuesday #37 as soon as her post is live. I’ll pop back later to fix the link.  It's fixed. I hope. 

Last week:

Sept 5-Sept 11

1. Get binding attached to One Happy Girl. ✅.  

2. Make progress on appliqué borders for September OMG!✅

3. Stitch on Winter Penguin ✅ 

I got a bit farther along. Did you guess it was a penguin? I even found my Christmas holly needle minder. Seemed appropriate!

4. ABC Table Scraps Challenge post!✅ Read about it here!

5. Sew some AQUA!❌

Next week

9-12-23 to 9-18-23

1. If the quilter finishes Rainbow Neighbourhood, get the binding attached to the front and ready for hand stitching.

2. Make a label and hanging corners for Rainbow Neighbourhood!

3. Finish bottom border for spool quilt.

4. Stitch on Winter/Christmas Penguin. 

5. Start thinking about ABC Table Scraps Challenge in Aqua with “P” or “Z”!  ie. Sew some aqua!

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

ABC Table Scraps Post ~ Just Under the Wire!!

I'm linking up with The Joyful Quilter's ABC Table Scraps Challenge for August. Luckily, Joyful, kept the linky party open this Sept 6th.  Phew!

Not much yellow was cut or sewn in August. Some crumb blocks and one or two Bright Birches blocks. So not many scraps on my cutting table. Joyful's prompt for this months was X's and O's.  Well, immediately on my head was XXXXOOOO, like I sign most of the cards to my grands and great grands. So.... I perused the the internet for  a X and O quilt that I thought for sure I had seen. I found one at Sew Much More in Store that Nicole offered for free  if I would sign up for her newsletter. So that is exactly what I did. I printed the pattern , she calls it Hugs and Kisses Block! I needed the blocks to be smaller than Nicole's pattern.  Her finished blocks are 12". I  used her directions and cut my main color blocks at 2.5 inches. Tried a snowball flip corner at 1.25" but that was too small. So I tried the corners at 1.5". Much better. 

I pulled 16  yellow or yellowish squares from my 2.5" square drawer and then cut 32+ white on white squares at 1.5" and got stitching.  It worked. Sixteen blocks is enough for 2 Hug blocks and 2 Kisses blocks. 

Pressing to the main square as Nicole suggested and I was ready to lay out the X's and the O's. I shuffled a bit and then sewed the blocks togethers. Took two crumb blocks that were on my table and added that ever present smiley face fabric , cut a scrap of batting. Pinned quickly and serpentine quilted on the seam lines.

 I bound it with the black and yellow scrap that I use with the yellow placemat from 2022. A set!!! 

So yellow and X's for Hugs and O's Kisses or is it O's for Hugs and X's for Kisses?? Doesn't matter. The Challenge is met.  

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

TO-Do Tuesday #156

Joining Carol and friends at Quilt Schmilt for To-Do Tuesday!





August 29- September 4


1. Complete ABC Table Scraps Challenge for August ❌

It’s not complete, but I’m working on sewing up scraps!


2. Check out what UFOs are attached to AQUA. The RSC Color for September.  ✅. I can't believe I did not assign a project to Aqua. So I am going to just make some aqua string or crumb blocks as leaders and enders and work at finishing some of the still unfinished tops that remain. 


3. Write FAIL post for August OMG and a new LINK UP post for September OMG ✅


4. Get ready for Great Grandson’s birthday party. Sat Sept 2. His actual birthday is the 5th but weekends work better. Tuesday he'll be back in school. ✅

We had a great time celebrating! Pizza, wings, and ice cream cake! I think there will be cupcakes at school in a certain 4th grade home room.

5. Start new Slow Stitching project.✅ 

It’s kind of hard to tell what it might be! I’ll give you a hint….the chart was recommended by Diann. 

Next Week
Sept 5-Sept 11


1. Get binding attached to One Happy Girl.
2. Make progress on appliqué borders for September OMG!
3. Stitch on Winter Penguin
4. ABC Table Scraps Challenge post!
5. Sew some AQUA!

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!

TO-DO Tuesday # 155

Joining friends over at Quilt Schmilt For the Love of Fabric. Carol provides us this place to list our goals and projects! (If we remember to list them!)

I’ll bet you wondered if I was losing my mind. My post last Tuesday, the 22nd did not include a list for 8-22 to 8-28. My bad!  So I guess I’ll just tell you what I did and didn’t accomplish!

1. I didn’t get any more Bright Birches blocks done. 

My design wall still looks like this:👆

2. I didn’t get binding sewn onto the One Happy Girl quilts that I got back from the quilter. 

The front and the quilting. 👆

The pieced backing! 👉

3. 1 did not even begin, let alone finish, my August OMG! 

 Still looks just like this! 👆

4. I did not get Full Stop rows sewn together!  

  I did take it up off the floor. So it's back in the project box! 😞

5. I did get 2 batches of jelly made. Or should I say 6 jars of jelly and 6 jars of “syrup “. I’ve been researching how to save and reprocess the “not set”jelly. 

6. I finished stitching the mini sunflower sampler. It’s an FO, but not an FFO( Fully Finished Object) More about that another time. 

Sorry for my shadow. You get the idea!

I'll try to do better this next time....but no promises!

 Next Week 

August 29- September 4

1. Complete ABC Table Scraps Challenge for August

2. Check out what UFOs are attached to AQUA. The RSC Color for September. 

3. Write  FAIL post for August OMG and a new LINK UP post for September OMG

4. Get ready for Great Grandson’s birthday party. Sat Sept 2. His actual birthday is the 5th but weekends work better. Tuesday he'll be back in school. 

5. Start new  Slow Stitching project.

Stay Busy and Stay Happy and Healthy and Hopeful!