Leftovers - Fabric, That Is

When I made the Strip Twist quilts there were quite a few "ends" of the strip sets that were not long enough to be used in the quilts.  And you know I hate waste!

So, since the original strips were 2 1/2 inches, I cut the leftovers into 2 1/2 inch strips.  I added two additional 2 1/2 inch squares to each strip set.

That made each strip 6 squares.

I sewed six of those together and now I have some 36-square blocks playing around on my design wall.  There may be some chickens up there, too. ;)

Some leftover backing and batting turned into these mug rugs.  Like I said, I hate waste!  I can't say my sewing is excellent on these by any means, but they will be useful and I like them.

It's a gray, overcast day here, but we need some rain so that's a good thing.

Hope you're utilizing all that life is giving you in a good way.

Hugs and kisses,

And Baby Makes Three

This is the third quilt I finished up this past week.  This one had been complete except for the quilting and binding.  I was waiting for the parents to pick a name for their little boy who is due next month.  They settled on Justin Elijah.  I like it, and I quilted it into his very own quilt.  Here it is after a trip through the washer and dryer.  I just love that crinkly, wrinkly softness!

The back is an all-over cheater print on flannel.

Now I can play with something else. 

Miss Birdy's rose is blooming again.  This was the very first of the blooms.  Gorgeous flowers and the most delightful fragrance.  I'm so glad we were able to save this rose bush.  I've rooted and given away cuttings, too!

Hope your week is starting off well and that you're having lots of fun!

Hugs and kisses,

And Now There Are Two

I have finished the second of the two quilts I made for a couple at our church.  The one on the right you've already seen, but I thought I would show the two of them together.  The pictures on the bottom are the backings for both quilts.  They are the same, but different.

Mr. Muddling and I got in a lot of yard work this morning.  Of course, there's still lots to do, but it will have to wait for later.  We are already quite warm here.  Mid-eighties for highs in March seem pretty early to me.

Hope you enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Hugs and kisses,

One Down

I finished the first of the quilts I am making for a man and wife.

I think it turned out pretty well.

This is the back from inside the chicken yard.  And no, they haven't mugged me yet.

I pieced the backing on my new plaything.  It works beautifully!

The dogwoods are in glorious bloom.  A neighbor gave me cuttings several years ago and I have them in four different spots in our yard.  They just shout SPRING!

I have so much I need to be doing outside in the yard, but it's hot already out there.  Fortunately we are having cooler weather at night, but during the day - - - I really need to go to bed at night so I can get out there earlier before it gets so hot.  Maybe tomorrow.  LOL!

Hope you have a good weekend.

Hugs and kisses,

Guess What?

There was a new toy delivered to my house on Friday.

It was manufactured in Great Britain in 1952.

Mr. Muddling built a little box for it to sit in yesterday.  I'm hoping to find a table he can adapt for it.

Isn't she a beauty!  

I'm pleased to introduce you to my new sewing machine, the Singer 99K.  She is a 3/4 machine, not as small as a Featherweight, which is a 1/2 size machine.   And no, I did not need  it.  I just wanted it, and it was a really good deal.  I was not even sure it was in real working condition, but I sewed the second row's blocks on the second quilt last night and she did a perfect job of it!  Glory to God!

Now here's where the blog world can be dangerous.  I was wandering around a while back and chanced upon Dora Quilts, and when I read her post about vintage sewing machines it renewed a want-to in me that I've had for a while to own a vintage Singer. Anyway, after reading her blog I went searching on ebay and after watching and waiting I found this one.  And now it's mine, all mine.

I'd really like a treadle machine, too - talk about something I really don't need!  I sewed on one years ago when my son was very small.  The one I used belonged to the manager of the apartments where we lived, and I had a lot of fun with it once I got used to the rhythm of it.

 Here are some pictures of the pretties I couldn't get to load yesterday.  And look at all the plums on those bushes lower right!  I do love Spring!

 This is the first row of the second quilt, sewn on the Janome, and as I said, the second row I sewed on the new/old Singer.

Here are the two quilts, though you can barely see the one on the left.  Still lots to do on them both, but at least I can see where they are going.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Hugs and kisses,

Listen!

"We want out of here."

                                                                            "Right now!"

Can I just say that the chickens are not enthusiastic about being locked in all the time.  Of course, the moment I let them out they go straight for any blade of grass and eat it, but that is beside the point.  We'll see how long my will power holds out.  And hope they don't mug me when I go in there to feed them.

I've tried and tried to post a few more pictures, but I think I'll have to be satisfied with what I've got here.  Blogger is not cooperating at all.

I've got the second quilt's layout complete and the first row of it sewn.  I'll show pics later when the stars move into the correct alignment. 

Hugs and kisses,

Intersections

When I was pressing the seams on these blocks last night I started thinking about the ways that different lives intersect.

I started blogging in the fall of 2007, after I discovered this wonderful blogging world of whose existence I had been ignorant.  I have "made things" all my life, both out of necessity and just for the plain old joy of doing it.  But it had seemed to me for some time then that making things was completely out of favor, something that only strange people did.  Reading blogs, I found that a whole LOT of talented and resourceful women (and men) were making all sorts of things.  What a blessing you have all been to me.  I've learned so much from you, and I'm still learning.  More importantly, I'm having fun, and I'm only a little strange!  (That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

     Speaking of strange, am I the only one who finds it a bit strange to see the Holy Mother guarded by two large chickens on the back window of a pickup truck?

I have finished the first of these quilts.  (I'm making two, almost alike, for a husband/wife.  I wanted them to be very similar.)  The one on the left only needs the border sewn on and it will be ready to get quilted.  The one on the right still has more blocks that are growing to be added.  It's pretty crowded here in my little sewing room with those two design walls, but I have to say that I like having them.  It's kind of neat to see two of them so alike side by side.

The fund raiser at our church last Sunday went very well for the youth group.  I did make a lemon meringue pie, but it was not as pretty as I had hoped it would be, so I sacrificed and bought it myself.  And we enjoyed it.  A lot.

My younger sister is visiting tomorrow with her youngest granddaughter, so a busy day for me.  It will be good to see them.  We don't see each other nearly often enough, though we both do live in Texas.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Hugs and kisses,

First Things First

I need to add one more vertical row to the right, but the first two vertical rows to the left are now sewn together.  Progress is good!

"Cowboy" Bruno inspecting the newly laid mulch.  We've had a good bit of rain since then, so it is nicely settled in now.

"Princess" Chloe not at all happy that she's being held captive inside.

Bush Lantana in full glorious bloom.

We bought this one last weekend.  It's a pink jasmine - very pretty and very fragrant.

Carolina Jessamine

Topsoil spread in back yard and sown with mulched grass seed.  Now if I can only manage to keep the chickens off it we might actually get some grass out there.  One hopes.

The bees are loving all the flowers.  

We've been having some rain the past few days and it's been cooler, but that won't last for long.  Summer will soon be here, so I'll enjoy the mild weather while it lasts!

I need to go and bake a lemon meringue pie now.  Have a great rest-of-the-weekend!

Hugs and kisses,

Things Move Pretty Fast

Not me, so much, you do understand that, but the turning of the season - that is what is moving really fast this year.  We had a very mild winter and now everything that can is blooming its little heart out.  You can see a bit of the azaleas there and next to them is a rather large pile of topsoil and aged cedar mulch we had dropped off today.

I spent a large part of the afternoon spreading mulch in some of the flower beds around the house.  Not nearly done, but I did make a start.

They do look so much happier with a layer of nice mulch.

I took this picture before this pretty azalea got its mulch, but it has a nice covering over the dirt now, too.  That's Carolina Jessamine on the lattice above it.  Pretty flowers and very nice fragrance, too.

My Meyer lemon is blooming all over itself.  We had a nice harvest last year.  I'm hoping for more of the same.

Our church youth group is raising money for a trip they are taking later in the year and one of our members, a young man, harvested 200 (yes, that's right two hundred) lemons from his Meyer lemon tree.  Those who chose took lemons home with them and froze the juice.  We'll have a bake sale with the products of those lemons this Sunday.  That's a pretty unique idea, isn't it?  It should be interesting to see what everyone brings.  I'm planning on lemon meringue pie myself.

These are still on my design wall.  We have rain forecast for later in the week, so I'm sure I'll get some sewing in then.  Until then, I'm playing outside!

Hugs and kisses,