Two for the USO

I finished this patriotic quilt for the USO Lounge at our local airport. It makes me happy to give our soldiers a little comfort on their journey from here to there.

 

Lots of red, white and blue in this one. But notice that the sixteen patches are a little bit of everything. I love that!

 

Here it is all crinkly and cuddly after its run through the washer and dryer.

This little red and white one will be going, too. It should be nice for a child.

 

Doesn't it make you think of cupcakes?

 

Still lots of pretty things outside! As you can see, we have not had the brutal cold this year.

I bought one of the amaryllis bulbs to force inside. That's it in the top center. That is the second stalk of four blooms! Mr. Muddling and I bought the little anthurium, the red heart shaped flower lower second from left.  It was sort of a Valentine's gift from us to us. 

 

I do love seeing all the pretty things God has put in this world for us to enjoy!

 

I hope there are lots of those in your world.

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

Happy Valentine's Day!

I decided I wanted a little Valentine wall hanging and made this one to hang in our hallway. I like that little galvanized house, too. I found it online at Walmart. There is a jar candle in it and it's a very pretty little bit of warmth when it is lighted.

 

I do know that you are not supposed to touch the quilt art, but I do it all the time. Mr. Muddling has confessed to the same fault. It just cries out to be touched, there is so much texture to it!

 

I made this quilt as an experiment.

 

I used this pattern from Kim Diehl's book, Simple Whatnots. I liked the cuteness of it in the small size she made and wondered what it would look like if I made it bigger.

I did not like it at all when I first laid it out and began sewing it all together, but after it was done I liked it a lot!

 

Here is another shot of it outside. The colors are very saturated.

 

This is a closer look at the binding and the backing I used was this brown print from Mary Fons.

The quilt has been gifted to a friend of ours and he seemed to like it.

 

This is the design wall behind my sewing machine. I have plans to expand on all these thoughts hanging there. When?  Who knows?

Right now I have a red, white and blue quilt to get loaded and quilted. It will be going to the USO Lounge at our local airport. There always seem to be so many things I want to get done. But at least I am not bored!

 

I hope you have lots of pleasant and enjoyable plans for yourself today.  There are so many possibilities in this world of ours to explore!  God is good. All the time!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

Happy Rainy Day

It is a gloomy, rainy, cold day outside, but in here it is warm and dry and pleasant!

I finished another quilt for the USO Lounge at our local airport. I bought this panel from Connecting Threads and looked at it for a long time. Finally I decided what to do.

 

The backing makes me happy - blue and red stars! Seems fitting.

 

And here it is cuddly and crinkly after washing and drying.

 

I also completed this table runner for a precious lady we love. I could not bear to cut up this pretty Valentine fabric, so just quilted it whole.

 

I've had to temporarily retire my little green Japanese machine until it decides to act right. Fortunately I had this one waiting for its turn to work.. Isn't it pretty! I love these old machines. They are such beautifully made creations.

 

This is a sweet little present I bought for myself. I bought it from maileg.com

 

I was so agreeably surprised at the quality and workmanship of this little mouse. And I love her matchbox bed, which is very sturdy.

Yes, I know I am far too old for toys. I do not care. I like things that make me happy, and things like this do!

 

I am working on a little Valentine's wall hanging now and hope to finish it soon. No pictures yet.

 

These pictures were taken on Monday when the sun was shining. As you can tell, we have had no major freeze yet this year. See the chickens there on the top? After this I let them into that garden they are gazing at so longingly. They pretty well demolished it, and that is okay. Bugs and worms had beat them to a lot of it and the chickens thoroughly enjoyed cleaning it all up for me!

On the top, second from left, is something I saw online. I cut holes I the bottoms of egg carton cups and put that on the top, which was solid. I put the root portion of a green onion in each egg cup and water in the bottom tray. As the article said, green onion sprouts are now growing! How neat is that!

 

I hope there are things in your world today that are making you happy! God is so good to us all, and I am thankful.

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

It's A Maze

Isn't this a fun quilt?  I had so much fun making it. The simple rail fence blocks look like a maze to me, and the fabrics are so bright and cheerful.

 

I had this piece of flannel in the stash which is just perfect for the backing.

 

Mr. Muddling tried very hard to convince me that he should keep it, but I was strong.

It will be going to the USO Lounge in the next batch.

 

I saw this spray paint art on our friend Cass's post and told her I wanted to buy it. She refused payment, but sent it to me just in time for Christmas. Mr. Muddling hung it for me in the sewing room. Now I get to look at it every day!

 

AND.............I finally finished this king size quilt for our son and daughter in law. It is too big for even Mr. Muddling and son Larry to hold up in all its fullness!

But they were kind enough to send me this photo of it in its rightful place. The layout is a little different from the one I used for our queen size and I added an extra set of borders all around, which made it the perfect size.

 

Now I have to get another one made for baby girl, our daughter. But that will have to wait until I recuperate from this one!

 

Isn't it a blessing to finally accomplish a big goal? I am so thankful!

 

Hope you are accomplishing lots in your world.

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

 

 

Happy 2020

First of all I want to document what I made or helped to make this year. Of these twenty projects, ten quilts went to the USO Lounge at the local airport! That makes me happy.

 

I promised both our children quilts for Christmas (you know - last week).I may have been over-ambitious.  The first one is almost done. The second has many miles to go yet!

Today I've been making candied orange peel. I've been buying it on Amazon, but the homemade is so much better, and the only ingredients are orange peel, water and sugar.

 

That candied orange peel along with dried cranberries goes into these Cranberry Orange Scones.

 

Along with a nice hot cuppa tea - life is good!

 

I hope your New Year has started off with only good things, and that you have lots to look forward to in the coming year.

 

With all its challenges, I'm thankful for this life God has given me!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine

 

 

 

Catching Up Now

Our niece was expecting a Christmas baby boy, so I got this little panel quilt ready for him.

 

The backing is this sweet all over print of antique toys.

 

These guys wanted to go along to wish them Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday, so into the box they went.

In typical first baby fashion, young Sebastian has still not made his appearance. But he has lots of goodies and love waiting for him when he arrives!

 

 

I made a couple of these tortilla warmers, one each for our son and our daughter. They are made from leftover string circles from this quilt.

 

I think they're pretty, and so did they. Best thing is - they work well!

 

I cannot even tell you how good this Cranberry Layer Cake was. My friend Kathleen posted the recipe here. Instead of a white cake mix, I used my tried and true yellow cake recipe. Otherwise the recipe is the same as hers. Delicious!!!

 

This is Moosie, who visited us all the way from New York State, by way of Charleston, South Carolina. She belongs to our daughter Mary and Matt. Matt stopped by Charleston to pick up our Mary, who is currently in school there, and they drove the rest of the way together. It was wonderful to see them all and to finally get to meet Moosie. She is the sweetest!

They left yesterday to begin the long drive back. We miss them. It is SO quiet here now.

 

Dawn is a long time friend of our Miss Ru, and now she is our friend as well. She sent us this beautiful Christmas arrangement. It arrived well before Christmas, and it is still gorgeous. Friends make life so much more precious!

 

You, my blog friends, are so precious to me. Thank you for being my friends all these years!

 

Hugs and love,

Elaine

 

 

Busy busy busy

I have another quilt ready for the USO Lounge at our local airport. I really like it. It's made of three inch strips, and I used the Go!Cutter to die cut the stars. Mr. Muddling has stepped up to take Miss Ru's post of Design Consultant, and I used his suggestion for the placement of the stars.

 

Free Patriotic Quilt from Make All Things New is the pattern I used. Really fast and easy. Thank you!

 

Since I had some backing left on the quilt frame, I also quilted this little wall hanging and hung it on the hanger I bought recently from Connecting Threads. I love cardinals!

 

This is chicken posole we had for lunch yesterday. Posole, in case you didn't know,  is Spanish for hominy. It is also a traditional soup from Mexican cuisine. The one most of Mr. Muddling's family eat and  I won't touch is made with beef tripe. This one is much better!

 

And here is Mr. Muddling putting the last touches on my Christmas present with the help of his design consultants. I am hoping I can put pot plants from the yard into this little greenhouse and save them through the cold. We've been closing in the patio every year, but this will be a much better option.

That mass of green to the right of it is my mustard greens. Don't they look happy? We've got cold weather coming in later today. Hoping they survive!

 

I'm still working on my second Sew Many Strips quilt top. This one is going to our son and his darling wife and will be king size. I've added another set of borders to make it the right size. Still have two more sides to get attached and then the quilting. 

 

A little peek at some of what's going on around here. I am enjoying all the pretty while I can! And I have two Christmas cacti blooming and another in bud!!! I love it!

 

Still lots to do before Christmas, but we are so excited that our baby girl is coming home for Christmas with her true love! Having both our children here will make it so much better.

 

I am also so thankful that this year, knee surgeries and eye surgeries are behind me. I feel wonderful and it is so good to be feeling strong and able again. God is good!

 

I hope all is going well for you and this season of joy is invading your heart and your home!

 

Hugs and kisses,

Elaine