So, this is part of what I've been up to....

Hmmm....pieces of this and pieces of that....oh what will it be?   Stay tuned for the series final...  :)

This is a quilt top that I've made for my daughter.   She loves purple and many, many years ago - like 10 or more - I bought this fabric with her in mind and began searching for a pattern that would look good with the variety of greens and purples and had no luck.   Then last December or January I got one of my McCall's magazines and it had a six part series of a quilt called Cottage Romance.   It used lots of floral fabrics but in reds and pinks.   Then I had an "Aha!" moment and realized I could make it using the above fabric.   But I knew I didn't want to make the whole quilt - I just wanted to make a lap size so I did the first three parts of the pattern and added a border.   The size is about 55 x 55.   Now I just need to hand quilt it, bind it, wash it and give it to my daughter.   I really struggled with those pinwheel blocks but after much ripping and cutting new fabric and re sewing and ripping and cutting new fabric I finally am satisfied with them.   The sad news...I still have a ton of the purple floral fabric and some of the greens left so I'm going to make a rag wreath for their bedroom wall.

Couldn't remember if I'd posted a picture of my spring rag wreath.   I have butterflies to glue on the lighter part.   But meanwhile I have a patriotic rag wreath hanging where this one was.  But just realized I don't have a picture of it so I'll need to take one and post the picture of that.   I plan to make one for the fall and then a Christmasy one.

I've also finished a Lorain Lighthouse just need to frame it and am working on another small cross stitch that I've almost finished.   I can't show pics of that because it's a gift.   And I'm working on a punchneedle project and of course, can't forget my slow, painful progress on the Jane Harris sampler.

And last but not least....   I bought a new car today.   I've been researching and pricing and checking Kelley Blue Book for the value of my old car (2008 Mercury Sable with 114,000 miles on it).   Then decided how much I could afford for a monthly payment and then went to the dealership.   I hate buying cars and always get so tense.   Well, this was effortless and I ended up paying $8.00 more per month than I had originally planned but I can live with that.  I bought a 2016 Ford Fusion in Ruby Red.   Here it is....

Thanks for stopping by!   I'm going to try to get better about posting pictures and just updates on what I've been up to....  Hahahahaha!   Like I said - I'll try!   It just takes so darn long to upload these pictures and it seems I'm always in a hurry.   LOL!

Char

Where oh where has the time gone!?!?

My goodness!  I can't believe I haven't posted since February!!!!!!    I thought when I retired I'd have more time to get my crafting done.   Well, I probably do have more time but I also seem to procrastinate more!  LOL!    I have been busy and will post pictures but thought I'd better pop in here and let you all know that I'm still around!

Thanks for stopping by!   Stay tuned for pictures!

Ta Da! I'm able to post pictures! Yay!

 This is a view from the breezeway door to the East of my house from the snow we got about 1 1/2 weeks ago!!!  Brrr!

 Icicles hanging from the gutter.  Sooo cold here in Ohio!  (again from 1 1/2 weeks ago)

How high the snow was!  Thank goodness my son-in-law and grandson came over and finished shoveling our snow!!!

 This is going to be Dominic's quilt.  I had already cut the homespun and the border into 6 inch squares to make a rag quilt.  However, when I did the older boys quilts (rag quilts) they turned out horrible so I opted to sew the 6 inch squares together and was going to add a border.  Then realized that I could just sew the green six inch squares to the sides, top, and bottoms of the rows and come up with this border.

 This is just another view of Dominic's quilt top.

 This is the Lizzie Kate cross stitch that I finished.  I had posted this on facebook and one of the group suggested turning it into a bell pull and I think I just might do that!  Whichever way I decide to finish - I'll post the finished product!

 This is a free punch needle pattern I got off the Good Housekeeping website.  I had to redo the face a couple of times because I just didn't like the look.  I am satisfied with this.  Back in the fall I was at Pat Catan's (one of our local craft stores) and saw a cute little metal sled.  At the time I had just started this and thought to myself that it would be a good way to mount this punch needle.  For some reason I put it back down and did not buy it.  I'm regretting it now!  I'm hoping that when or IF our weather ever breaks and we can take a ride to Amish county I can go to the Christmas store (it's open year round) to see if I can find something there - like maybe another sled to mount this on.  If not, I'll wait until this fall when all the Christmas decorations come out to see if I can find something then.

This is Liam's quilt top which I did the same  way as Dominic's above.  Both of these have been put away until I finish the two older boy's (Andrew's and Ryan's) quilts.  Andrew's top is almost done - will probably get that done today.  Then I'll start on Ryan's.  I'm not using homespun just using fabric that I had in my stash in colors that they like.

A big THANK YOU to Julia of   Of Petals and Wool for suggesting that I update to Google Chrome so I could download pictures!

Thank you for stopping by!  Hope you're having a good day and staying warm!

Char

I've been busy - honest!

I was all prepared to show pictures of the things I've been working on, but whenever I try to upload a picture onto my blog I'm getting a message that asks if I want to open or save resumable (1.58) from www.blogger.com.  I've tried clicking on open, I've tried clicking on save and still nothing so....until I can figure out the problem or if I even can I'll just have to tell you what I've been doing!  :)

After the debacle of Christmas crafts gone bad I re-did two of the boys quilts.  I used the same blocks I had already cut from homespun and sewed them into blocks like a regular quilt.  I will sandwich them with batting and backing and hand quilt them.  Since they go to the two youngest grandchildren, they have been put away so I can make and finish the older boys quilts.  For theirs I managed to get their embroidered names out of the "rag" quilt and then decided I was done with that homespun.  So I looked through my stash and found just about enough fat quarters to do a scrappy quilt for both of them in their favorite colors.  I cut the squares in 5 1/2 blocks and sewed 11 blocks across and 12 blocks down.  I will add a 1 inch inner border and then about a 3 inch outer border to complete the quilt top.  Then I will get some flannel for the back.  I just plan to hand quilt circles or arches so those will need to be traced on the top.  Then I'll sandwich them and work on them in the evening while watching tv.

I also finished a small Lizzie Kate cross stitch.  I also got a free punch needle project from Good Housekeeping - a Santa and finished that.  I just need to figure out how to display both of them.  The cross stitch I had originally thought of mounting on a flat pail/wall hanging but someone suggested that I make a small bell pull out of it which I think I'm leaning more towards that.  The Santa will probably have to wait until I can either get down to Amish country to the Christmas store and see if there is something there that I can mount it on - like a small sleigh or hope that Pat Catan's has small sleighs in October/November when they put their Christmas stuff out.  I saw one this past Christmas that would have been perfect for it but did not buy it.  Why?  I don't know but I'm kicking myself now!  LOL!

We have gotten tons of snow.   I think I'm not alone in feeling like this winter is never going to end!  My husband keeps saying we're probably going to have a really hot summer.  I have my doubts.  I don't think they snow will melt until July!  LOL!

Well, I'll keep trying to figure out what's up with my blog or why I can't post pictures.  If any of you out there have any ideas I'm open for suggestions.  A friend suggested I unplug the modem and then replug it back in - I did that and still can't post pictures.  Urgh!

Take care!  Stay warm if you're somewhere that's getting all this cold.  If you in a warm/nice climate - I'm jealous! but enjoy yourself!

Thanks for stopping by!

Char

Christmas has come and gone.... Happy New Year!

Christmas has come and gone, the decorations are down, my house is in some semblance of normalcy...  Craft room needs to be straightened back up or at least finished so I can start on projects.

My Christmas crafting turned into major disasters!  Gulp!  I had sewn homespun to make rag quilts for my grandsons...I washed and washed and washed and washed and dried and dried and dried and dried....  It was a twisted ugly mess with strings all over the place little rats nests here and there - a total disaster.  A friend suggested I do fray check so two small bottles later - still the same thing.  Then when I said I was going to salvage the embroidered names and then just throw the rest of it away she suggested that I try cutting it apart with my pinking rotary cutter.  So I tried that with just two pieces, washed and dried - still the same affect...  :(  So I decided ENOUGH!  I've put way too many hours into this to have them look so bad it and it was ruining my creative mind (hahahaha!)  So I salvaged the embroidred names, found fat quarters but needed to buy just about 3 more of each color and some border fabric to make two Crazy Eight quilts.  That's my plan and I'm stickin' to it!

My next craft disaster was these darling punch needle snowman faces ornaments.  I punched and punched (I made 15 all together), I added beeds for eyes and mouth....  Then I don't know why, I gues I had a major brain freeze, but I cut them all out really close to the edge of the punch needle without ever using glue or fray check or any thing.  I decided to make little pillows, cut some nice flannel to make little pillows that I was going to fill with my pine needle stuffing...  I sewed them onto the flannel - too cute.  Then I sewed the back flannel to the front.  When I was turning them inside out....they unraveled!!!!  So, okay deep breaths...   I threw them away as well.  Then I decided to try to make these little snowmen ornaments out of felt.  Cute but not what I wanted to make.  Those only went to a few people.  So this was the Christmas that my crafts went out the door - literally!

Next - my fudge.  My dad loves my peanut butter fudge and my chocolate fudge (he lives in Tennesseee - I live in Ohio).  Although he did tell me I needed to add pecans to the chocolate fudge!  I made the chocolate fudge - it was too dry.  Then I made the peanut butter fudge...  it was too soft.  So I made another batch of each.  I knew my dad would like the chocolate fudge - it was dry but melted in your mouth so he still got that.  The second batch I did not add pecans because those were for here and I knew some of the kids and grandkids wouldn't like the nuts in them.  Again too soft but at least hardened enough to be able to eat as candy instead of frosting for a cake!

I did have a nice Christmas.  Had some nice gifts made for me that mean the world to me and are my treasures.  So I'm sharing those with you!

 

This my granddaughter, Skylar who is 8, made at "Artist for a Day".  Love it!

 

Skylar also made this at Artist for a Day.  Too cute!

 

My friend, Gail, made this.  She's always telling my friend Sharon and I that she's just not good at crafting or sewing or cross stitch!  I think this is just adorable!  We'll make a crafter out of her yet!  LOL!

My friend, Sharon of Serendipity In Quilting & Other Stuff! , made this cute little mug rug!  I just love it!  But as I look at it I am envious of her stitching.  I know that I need work at my skills.  I want to make things that turn out this good!

 

My grandson, Liam aka Handsome Schmandsome, who is 6 made this in Kindergarten!  How sweet!

 

Liam also made this - this is it closed and....

...this is it opened!  I love it!

My daughter, Ginger, put my gifts in this bag.  So what's the big deal you ask?

Well, if you push on the red circle it has twinkling lights.  I loved the gifts in the bag but I really, really like the bag!  It's hanging in my craft room and when I need something to make me smile I just push the button.  My granddaughter, Karley, said she picked the bag out.  It's silly maybe but like I said - they got me bottles of wonderfully scented foam soap for my bathroom and kitchen but the bag sent it over the top!

 

So with all that said - I'm glad the holidays are over.  I'm not liking the bitter cold we're having here in Ohio right now but in a way I'm glad.  Hopefully in the next day or so I'll finish putting my craft room back together and get the boys quilt tops sewn.  My plan (and notice I didn't say resolution) this year is to slow down when I'm being creative, take the time to do it right so that I'm making things I can be proud of.  It's time for my annual - "Projects to finish or to make" list so that I can cross them off as I complete them. 

 

In addition to my list - my friend, Sharon, and I are going to start work on a "Loyal Union Sampler" quilt for Elm Creek Quilts by Jennifer Chiaverini.  We know it's not going to get finished in a year.  We're not making it as the big quilt.  I'm making mine to fit a space I have in my living room.  So we'll do a block here, a block there and maybe by the end of the year all the blocks we have chosen will be completed.  Then next year they'll get sewn together.  Or maybe we won't get all our block sewn in one year.  The point is we're taking our time and enjoying the process.

 

I've also started doing a lot of punch needle and want to get a couple of those finished.  I also hope to finish my Jane Harris sampler this year!  Hopefully by June!  HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  I can dream can't I!

 

I wish you all a Happy New Year full of crafting, relaxing, and taking time to smell the roses!

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Char

 

 

Thanks for stopping by! 

Life is good!

I've been a tad busy lately.  I was fast and furious working on this:

 

for my granddaughter who is due December 8.  We had her baby shower the first of November so I had to get it done.  Then I gave it to her at the baby shower.  But I took it away from her to take to my quilt guild (Lorain County Piecemakers) meeting and to take to a lunch we were having with friends.  I gave it back to her last week. 

 

Well, it's a good thing I did because yesterday she did this:

 

 

Mariah Marie was born December 6 at 1:33 p.m. after 13 hours of labor on my granddaughter's part (this was her first one).  The last picture is of me and Mariah.  My daughter and I were Karley's coaches and helped her push at the end.  So I was very tired in this picture but very happy!  Mariah weighs 7 lbs. 1 oz and is 19 inches long.  She is just precious and looks just like her mom did when she was born (I helped my daughter with Karley's birth as well).

 

 

So, life is swell.  I've been busy making Christmas gifts including quilts for my grandsons!  Yikes!  So I had a little bit of a reprieve.  But boy was I tired when I got home.  I hadn't had more than 2 hours of sleep since I got up Friday morning at 5:00 a.m.!!!  So when I got home after being at the hospital most of the night Friday/Saturday and all day Saturday I put my jammies on, ate some dinner and went to bed at 6:30 p.m. and slept straight through until this morning (Sunday) at 8:30 a.m.!!!!  Then today I went to my grandson's 6th birthday party so I am one tired camper.  Back to crafting tomorrow!

 

 

 

 

And here is a picture of my Christmas cactus - it bloomed right after Halloween!  But this is the most blooms I've had on it since I first bought it!

 

 

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

Merry Christmas!

 

Char





Happy Fall...er...almost Winter!

It's been a while since I've been on here.  I have been one busy bee!  Since my last post we went to Tennessee to visit family.  Then came home and started working in the yard until hubby's back went out.  Then road trips with my friends.  Found a wonderful new quilt shop in Sandusky Ohio called Mabel and Ethel's.  They sell a lot of civil war fabric and some wool!  Yay!

I've also been working on my Jane Harris sampler.  Then when other projects come up that gets put to the side.  So tiny progress being made until after Christmas.  The Halloween cross stitch on my blog is one that I finished in a weekend.  I framed it and gave it to my daughter.

I've been working on a baby quilt for my granddaughter and it needs to be completed by this Sunday for her baby shower.  I am almost done.  It turned out bigger than I anticipated so I've been hand quilting a little each day.  Now I'm quilting the sashing and the border and it will be done!  Whew!  But my hands are not liking me!  It done and baby shower over because I need to start my Christmas gifts.  Gulp!  But at least I have everything I need for what I'm going to make.  Thank goodness I'm retired or I'd be in big trouble.

Speaking of Christmas gifts...  In July I cut fabric for what I had planned the Christmas gifts to be, then had to finish some quilts for our guild's quilt show in October.  So the original Christmas gifts got put to the side.  So, they will now be for next year.

Here are some of the quilts that I entered in the show:

Our guild doesn't award ribbons which I am thankful for.  I need to sharpen my skills on hand quilting.  There were some really nice quilts and, of course, I didn't take my camera.

So, I've been retired for a year and two months now.  The first year was the hardest.  Too many things came up that I wasn't aware would happen once retired - such as my "retired" prescription plan sucked!  I pay more for my prescriptions now - especially at the beginning of the year when there are all those deductibles.  Sigh...  Then my hubby qualified for Medicare so that was fun trying to figure all of that out and which supplemental plan to purchase and which rx plan to use and so on.  And now here we are back to that time of year of open enrollment.  Also, I didn't plan for my sister to die and that was totally unexpected (she is younger than me but has had several strokes and a 5 by-pass heart surgery).  Then after we got home from the memorial my brother ended up having a 5 by-pass heart surgery - he is also younger than me.  After he got home from the hospital by dad ended up having a slight heart attack!  Too much at one time.  I started feeling like maybe I should go back to work...but I quickly talked myself out of it!  LOL!  Then the holidays came and went and for some reason - even though I had more time to prepare - I was not as prepared as I usually am for the holidays.

I have come to the conclusion that I need a routine.  I'm too out of sorts, off track, out of sync - whatever way you want to describe it.  I didn't routinely clean my house each week, I didn't routinely pull weeds in my gardens - I was just kind of out of it.  So my plan this year is to get back on track, come up with a plan to clean my house room by room and then keep up with it.  My craft will always be a work in progress - I clean it, then I start a new project and then it's a mess again so I clean it again and - you get the picture.  I'm sure you all have that problem. Ok, maybe not all but a good majority of you do.

I have always been wanting to get back to rug hooking.  I had sincerely thought that maybe it just wasn't for me.  And then what would I do with all that I make?  Then I realized that the reason I've been dragging my feet rug hooking is that the patterns I picked out were not really what I was aiming for.  I realized this when I went to my friend's son's graduation party and saw how she had incorporated her rugs, mats, etc into her decor and that's when I knew I had been picking the wrong patterns.  So I will attempt to finish those that I've started, get help with the binding, and then move on to the things I want to decorate my home with.

Well, enough about me... what's up with you!?!

Thanks for stopping by!

Char