Free Patterns, Quilt Pros, Cross Stitch Foxy Finish

Well, there is no doubt fall is coming and it's set in a little early here. Single digits overnight for the last week but everyone is saying how welcome this is. I don't think there's ever been such gladness to have summer over. 

Meanwhile, Tony calls this little guy below my trained squirrel or my very smart squirrel that has trained me. He appears on the back deck most days and, of course, I give him a handful of sunflower seeds. When he first appeared here, he was skinny and ragged looking. Now he appears to be quite healthy. Two of his seeds made it into the planters there and now we have two tall Sunflower plants which the bees have enjoyed. 

That also reminded me of good memories of intentionally growing Sunflowers back at the farm.

Reading around the quilting net...

Many of you have shared your finishes at Michelle Cain's From Bolt to Beauty linky party over the years. Michelle has published a book called Not-Your-Typical Jelly Roll quilts...Amazon link. I checked it out from the library and I liked it so much. I've just a couple jelly rolls...have always bought fat quarters or yardage. I learned just how convenient it is to use them, not just for a border (which honestly is what I've used them for a couple times), but in block making too. Great patterns and even ones I could sew with Michelle's wonderful directions. 

Btw, Michelle has been featured on Alex Anderson's t.v. show The Quilt Show, a program I love. We won't get to see her segment till 2026 but I will be watching out for it. 

Nina Marie at Creations...Art...Quilts is also the host of a wonderful linky party. Nina's post I linked there is about quilters and called "The Do Not Care Club- Quilters' Edition". Great points! Ones I need to take in and follow!

At Quilt Fabrications, Susan hosts monthly Quilt Block Mania. September's theme is technology and a group of quilters provide their interpretation in free blocks you can download too. You can find all their links at Susan's post. It's always interesting to see old patterns reconfigured for modern times. 

And our quilting friend, Jennifer, the Inquiring Quilter, who hosts the weekly Wednesday Wait Loss Linky party is taking part in this Quilt Block Mania too. You can check out the block Jennifer designed HERE.

I've had this cute little cross stitched fox below waiting around for a finish. This was stitched two strands over two on Aida cloth many years ago. It was a free pattern from the Snowflower Diaries and you can check out their very cute new Raccoon on the Loose pattern (not free but a convenient PDF) for this Halloween. HERE is their Etsy shop and oh my, what cute designs to cross stitch including a BOM called Under the Autumn Skies with the first block featuring an appliqued owl. Oh my, I should not have looked!! Anyway, back to my fox...

The first try with finishing was to use these scraps of fabric I'd had for an old Halloween project.

I had enough to make borders and backing so figured I would use that...it was white, black and orange like the fox. Moving some things around in a drawer last Wednesday, I found this tiny piece of fox faces fabric that I knew was more perfect for my little pin cushion. It's surprising what I've forgotten and coming across this struck me as a little bit of fate. Has that ever happened to you?

That's another little fox pin cushion there featuring Tula Pink's pretty resting fox. 

Anyway here is the back with those cute faces...

and I decided to give her a name...so here is Foxy. I guess she could be a bowlie too. 

The September RSC is pastel blues and greens...interesting colours. I probably have some of those lurking somewhere too so I'll be getting out my Starry Hexagons box this month to try to continue that rainbow project. 

My lunch a lot of days...rice cakes with toppings of peanut butter, banana, cranberries, chia or sunflower seeds. I'm pretty much low fodmaps most days, trying to get the most nutrition into my daily diet. 

Birthday cake doesn't count...I hope I will always be able to eat birthday cake. 

We went to a house showing yesterday in a small town I've always liked. The home was so beautiful and I loved everything about it. It even had a separate staircase to an attic room the owner used to produce her art illustrations. Yes, potential sewing nook for sure. But everything was so polished and beautiful I found it hard to imagine myself there. The wooden house is beautiful in its own way but a bit rugged...it was easy to envision the dogs and our unfancy selves living here. I think you've got to be able to imagine yourself living in a house. Or maybe such a house would make me smarten myself up a bit too. Does any of what I'm thinking make any sense...at all?

Again I feel I've rambled on too long... Hope your week is off to a great start and will be filled with good things!

Happily sharing with Creations Quilts Art, The Quiltery, My Quilt Infatuation, Kathy's Quilts, Melva Loves Scraps, Good and Random Fun, From Bolt to Beauty and Alycia Quilts.