Thursday 24 October 2019

Soap Aprons,Free Owl Pattern, Maple Leaves Blocks

As I was boiling Hubby's eggs this morning, I thought of all the things I could write about for today's post. I always have a lot of ideas in my head; in fact, deciding which to use in which post is more of the issue.
For instance, I've been meaning to mention to those of you who have hydrangea bushes, the flowers keep well indoors for a bouquet. Allow them to dry out.  I have a very large bunch that is two years old now and looks exactly the same as when picked.
 Up close the little flowers are so pretty.
I love my light box. I inherited this from first wife who used it to make stained glass ornaments. It has been so useful in so many ways... it's been hauled out for just about every project.  Big and awkward but does the job.
In this post at Not Afraid of Color, LeeAnna shared her colourful owls and that got me thinking about owls, which many of you know I love.  I found these two free patterns at Elsa Mora's site and thought do I need them for the autumn project. You'll have to hop over to Elsa's to take a look. Would they suit? The owl sure would.  I could embroider it or work out a way to applique the parts.  Or maybe best left for another project.  What do you think?  There is no shortage of inspiration for an autumn/Halloween project!

                                                    New to Me
Have any of you heard of this? I hadn't....soap aprons.  They are adorable little aprons to put on your dish detergent bottles when they sit beside the sink.  I guess. When mentioned on one of my facebook groups, many folks chimed in with stories of mothers or aunts who always made and used them. And apparently you could buy them too. Someone wants to make them and was wondering was it too much of a grandma thing to do. (This fabric is very cute.)
                                      Image result for dish soap apron
Recently during one of our outings we had this...because sometimes a good burger with sweet potato fries is just what you want. I don't make burgers at home so especially enjoy them when made by someone else. And I eat them with a fork and knife. Anyone else do that very weird thing?   
I'm working on maple leaves in the sewing room this week.  Here is the first one... still have to figure out how to get a stem on it.
And with pumpkin and mask embroidered and this little happy cat, I think there is just one more, the haunted house, to finish.
Anyone remember the woodpecker that was pecking on the side of the house and actually made holes? ( A hazard of living in a log wood house, I guess.) He was back last week but fortunately after just a few hammers at the wall, moved to the railing and eventually gave up and left. He had me a bit worried though.
Only one more Thursday in October and that is Halloween!
Happy to link with Not Afraid of Color, Paying Ready AttentionQuilt FabricationIt's A Small Town LifeNeedle and Thread Network, The Inquiring QuilterSugarlane DesignsFloral Friday Foto and My Quilt Infatuation.


31 comments :

NADINE said...

LOVE that owl ! Thank you :)
Oh, your mapple leaf i adorable. I once pieced a mapple leaves quilt, and just appliques the stems…
ENJOY your sewing !

In stitches,
Nadine

Mary in Boulder said...

I think the owl is perfect and is well suited for fall or any time of year. Funny thing about woodpeckers; they are so handsome but they can also be a big pain to have around!

Home Sewn By Us said...

Hi Jocelyn! Fabulous photo of the woodpecker. We had one at our school building for a bit. I could hear him going at it before 6am for a few weeks. Then he moved on - or maybe our custodian made it unpleasant for him. I have never seen the soap aprons, but they are very cute! I put my soap under the sink and pull it out when I need it, but that doesn't look old fashioned to me. Or, maybe I'm old!! Love the hydrangea bouquet - I have always dried mine upside down until they're no longer green. Is that what you do as well? ~smile~ Roseanne

Quilting Babcia said...

That owl is perfect for stitching as a stand-alone piece, and so seasonless. It might be a great candidate for some subtle crayon coloring. We had flickers attacking our house in the woods of Oregon, the ones around here don't seem interested in beating on the vinyl siding covering our little old farmhouse here in WNY, though they're often seen out in the side yard scouring for bugs or grubs.

Libby in TN said...

Yes, stitch the owl! On the stems, cut a background square bigger than needed. Slice it in half diagonally, then piece in a skinny (less than 1") piece of stem fabric and square up to the size needed.

Libby in TN said...

PS: Soap aprons are frequently found at church bazaars.

Jenn Jilks said...

I think our house is cedar shingles. We get the same thing...
Then, the yellow-bellied sapsucker bangs on the TV antenna!
Great projects.

Jenny said...

I agree, the owl needs to be embroidered, stitched. Just think how much fun you will have working on it. As for the stems on your blocks, when I did mine I machine applique a stem strip onto the square before assembling the pieces, hope this makes sense.

Karen - Quilts...etc. said...

sometimes if my jaw problems are giving me a hard time opening wide enough I will cut bit off of my burger to eat - I have a very stiff jaw and have to concentrate on opening wide :) I love sweet potato fries.
I have an old light box - it does the job but I don't care for it all that much! love your dried arrangement

LIttle Penguin Quilts said...

I love that owl design - it would make a lovely embroidery piece, I think! When I make maple leaf blocks, that bottom square is made a bit bigger, cut in half diagonally, and then a 1 inch strip of stem material is sewn in between those two halves. A lot like those lattice blocks that LeeAnna is making, just made for the size of your leaf stem square. Is that clear as mud?! :) Those pieced blocks are going to be pretty mixed in with your Halloween embroidery!

Michelle said...

I am hands on with a burger :) My mom always had an apron on her dish soap bottle. I think they are cute. Thanks for linking up and have a great weekend.

Brian's Home Blog said...

That's a cool owl. That cheeseburger looks great and sweet potato fries are very popular here in the South.

PaintedThread said...

That cheeseburger looks delicious. Dish soap aprons - how unnecessary, but how adorable. I love hand-me-downs hand-me-overs that are useful. Bad woodpecker!

MissPat said...

The burgers at our local pub are so high I can't get my mouth around them, so I resort to a knife and fork. And I love sweet potato fries. Our neighbor's house has cedar shingles and the woodpeckers occasionally hammer away at the siding. I think an embroidered owl would be perfect and you stitch so well.
Pat

Siouxzq64@gmail.com said...

I thought I was the only one that went out for cheeseburgers. I think the embroidered owl would be awesome. The dish soap apron made me smile.

Magpie's Mumblings said...

The use of knife and fork with burgers depends on the thickness of the burger....if my mouth won't fit, then I use tools. The owl pattern would look great embroidered (but then again, that could be because I have a weakness for embroidery!). Not sure a dish soap apron would be very practical, but it does look rather cute. Would be fun to make one to look like Mrs. S. Claus would wear and display it at Christmas.

Nana said...

Such a lovely post and I surely love your apron and food.

Nana

Lynn said...

Thanks for the hydrangea tip, apron for dish washing soap very cute and love the shot of the woodpecker - hope he's not a real bother for you though.

Sandra said...

Living in a Log Cabin house sounds wonderful; been somewhat on a wish list for my hubby and I. Your hydrangea flowers are so pretty. How nice to be able to bring them inside and enjoy them even longer. Those little aprons for the dishwashing soap containers are cute; and you could match your kitchen decor with specialty fabrics! I've made Maple Leaf blocks before. I tucked the edge under the seams and then appliquéd down the rest of the stem. Your quilt blocks are looking great together. Love the hand embroidery! Yes, I agree with you sometimes a burger eaten out is just what one is craving and tastes extra special. We have woodpeckers too; luckily our house siding is metal/steel. So no damage there. I see them pecking on the trees; but haven't seen any damage as of yet.

Michele McLaughlin said...

So much inspiration in this post! I've seen the soap aprons and I might even have some from the 30s or 40s in my textile collection somewhere. I'll look once I clean up the sewing room!Love the embroidered block. Vintage and antique quilts usually appliqued the stem on. I'll have to look through my photos to see if I can find one to send you.
Have a great day!

Carol- Beads and Birds said...

Oh gee. I think I belong to that same FB group that discussed soap aprons. I think that's too frau frau for me, lol. i had no idea hydrangea kept so long! We have two dying trees in the back yard that the woodpeckers love. I suspect they find a lot to eat in them. I love them all, especially the Downy Woodpeckers who love the suet I put out for them at the feeders. I love my lightbox. Terry made one for me years ago that I used. But last year I actually bought one because the one he made was too bulky for storage. Prices have certainly come down on them since Terry made my old one 40 years ago, lol.
Happy Halloween!!
xx, Carol

Mary in Peoria Handmade said...

First of all- I have difficulty remembering all the likes each week. Haha. I don't make burgers at home either but like to order them out-just no buns. Love those juicy good burgers. And, sweet potato fries. I purchased a cute,clear,push -top dish soap container from Target and just refill it every month or so. I would get those cute little aprons dirty, I'm afraid.

Shannon said...

I love your halloween fall embroideries coupled with the orange blocks! how fun! And I don't eat burgers with a fork and knife but I always cut them in half. And sweet potato fries are the best....

Susan said...

Adorable little apron to dress up a so-so bottle

Powell River Books said...

I don't have a light box, but I still have something called a Magnajector. I got it from my mom who used it as a teacher. She bought it in the 60s. It was sold mostly as a child's toy, but was a magnifying device you could put over a small picture and project it onto a large paper to trace. With it we both made many interesting bulletin boards. - Margy

Nancy said...

I have never seen soap aprons. They're a little much for me. (I try to keep things simple.) I just use a nice-looking pump bottle and pour the soap into it and use the pump to add soap to the dish water.
Your hydrangea flowers are just gorgeous! Beautiful color.
Your bright maple leaf block will be great with the other blocks in the quilt. For the stems I cut 2 extra triangles and a narrow stem (7/8" or so), stitch a triangle to each side of the stem, then square it up after it's pressed.

Chopin - A Passionate Quilter said...

Soap Aprons are so cute and flowers are pretty! What pattern is the Halloween embroidery pattern? I think you had said in previous posts. I really like what you are doing with it!

Rosemary Dickinson said...

I love your embroidery! I suppose you can embroider a small stem. I usually piece it. I have a light box and love it! So useful. I like the little soap aprons. So cute! I love hydrangea but have never brought them indoors as a centerpiece. I'll have to try that now that I know how well they keep!

Celine said...

Beautiful work! Visiting from Midweek Makers 😊

Jennifer Fulton Inquiring Quilter said...

Loving your Halloween embroideries! Thanks for sharing on Wednesday Wait Loss.

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