I wonder if your head is spinning like mine. Each day is like the blink of the eye. I'm no sooner up and starting the morning when it seems I'm closing drapes and shutting the house down again. Perhaps that is a good thing as it means I'm busy which I feel I certainly am.
Outside, the world has come alive and so quickly it seems. It's always a pleasant surprise how much colour there is this season of the year. Even the Dandelions are so welcome. I'm calling this one "Me and My Shadow".
And here are the pretty Primroses. I don't know what you would label those colours, but they sure are vibrant.
And my elderly Lilac tree is in bloom too.
I promised I would show you my latest fitness device. It is called a Rebounder and is one of those home trampolines. What's really surprising me about it is I thought I'd be able to jump forever on it- what fun!- but no, I do feel the exercise part of it as it raises my heart rate quite quickly. A mere 7 minutes is all I'm managing right now.
I'd been swimming every day too which is wonderful but rain with thunder has sidelined that exercise the last three days. I'm not heating the pool and like last year, I do believe the cold plunge part is good for me.
My stitching fingers have been busy too. I put the totally hand stitched Lone Star Medallion quilt on the wall for a photo. I'd backed it with a white fabric that was a sheet...Tommy Hillfiger actually, so a good quality. It was fun getting it all appliqued but then fiddly getting all the points and dips joined neatly to the backing. I measured and each diamond is exactly 43 inches which amazed me considering all the little hand stitches in this project and how it's been mauled with all the handling for each step along its journey too.
I'm also working on the table topper Primrose Flowers piece. More hand quilting which also involved decision making. After trying two templates I had on hand, I settled on drawing a little mod flower shape and that's what I'm using for the quilting lines. This should not take too long.
For the backing, I used an old sheet from way back in the day that is still very sturdy and perfectly suits this project. I actually remember the Mod Flower craze back in the late sixties. It wasn't my taste but I did have one align dress with flowers on it.
That black thingy there is my magnet; I wave it around my chair and in the sewing room all the time as I'm always worried about the dogs and pins.
I've been waiting a long time to get this library book below and finally it is my turn. It's material obsessiontwo by Sarah Fielke and Kathy Doughty.
I love how Sarah creates these wonderful and surprisingly large quilts with hand piecing and mostly in her lap. There are two particular quilts in this book I've admired for a very long time and would love to make and the patterns are there for me to copy. That's one of the things that gives me a little leap of joy these days. Here is Sarah talking about one of them, Jazz Hands, which is pieced with that kite shape there.
I'm continuing my summer plan to spend less of my free time on the computer. As a result, I'm definitely spending more time outside- gardening, walking, swimming, etc. and inside- stitching, reading and scribbling. So far, it is the garden that is definitely benefitting the most from this plan.
My Phoebes have fledged. I think there were three little ones this year. It's very difficult to get a good photo as this nesting spot is very tight to the overhang and hidden slightly. I thought of getting a step ladder but I didn't want to disturb them. Pretty sure there are three there. What do you think?
On that very hopeful note, I'll end this post. Oh yes, before I forget again, this is also my summer of dresses. I've had great luck at thrift stores finding a few for summer. I'll share the latest next post. I hope your summer or your winter is off to a wonderful start.
It is happening, the lengthening of the days I mean. It is already noticeable but of course, we are still under banks of snow and will be for several more months. March can be our snowiest month here so I won't be seeing buttercups any time soon. But still, the tiny steady slivers of extra light each day add up.
And I finally managed a photo to show why this fellow is called an Eastern Cottontail. Isn't it cute! I called all rabbits "bunny rabbits" growing up. Did you?
Slow stitching- I should say really slow stitching has me at this point now on What Remains is Love. This photo shows the true colour of this linen and it suits the floss colours very well. That's my butterfly mug, a gift from grandson,Jack, who I'm so happy to say is doing really well these days.
Thank you to those who mentioned to me this block below is called the Flicker block. I will call them that from now on. So here are my latest Flicker blocks using up green scraps too and my eye is drawn to more flowery fabrics... thinking of blossoms I guess. Loving linking with Angela's RSC party.
These work well with an assembly line kind of thing in the sewing room. In reality, I'm using up just scraps, but inexplicably, the bin is still just as full. I have never heard anyone say And that was the very last of my scraps. :)
I watched this episode of Red Velvet Quilts on Youtube yesterday. This was a flosstube video but Carrie is a very talented stitcher and shares her quilting too. If I haven't already mentioned, you should check out her episode where she shares her quilting kits. It's a great way to see what's available from many sites.
Carrie showed her fancy tea warming cup/thermos thingy and I thought that's neat so I looked it up on Amazon. It is a great idea but comes with a hefty price tag. I guess it would make a good gift sometime. That made me think of my old grandparents who, in my younger years, had a wood stove in the kitchen that they used for both heating and cooking. It had a shelf above with a door you lifted and where you could put food to keep warm. It also had a water tank on one end so you could always have warm water. And you could also place your teapot and cup there to keep your tea warm. It was connected to a brick chimney that went through a bedroom above the kitchen and into the roof so upstairs got one very cosy bedroom too. All this for the price of your own labour cutting wood. How far we've come from those days ( like me checking out a $139 tea warmer) and, as the old timers would say, are we any better off???
And that made me think about how I've always wanted to stitch the famous Dear Jane quilt. Whenever I think of sadly bedridden Jane, I picture her in an upstairs bedroom in a house like that of my grandparents. The Dear Jane book does not seem to be widely available, not even in a library. I really don't understand that, what with the runaway popularity of that project throughout the years and even today.
Lots of stitchers have shared their Dear Jane journey on YouTube and in fact, a number are doing so just now. Jaynes' Stitches is one who is stitching the blocks using various methods and sharing tutorials.
I just thought I wonder what that smell is. I'd completely forgotten I'm making chicken soup and put the carcass in the crock pot which is doing its thing. Oh my. What can I say. Luckily some days I still seem to be sharper than others.
I do hope you are staying alert, minding your stoves and keeping your stitchy fingers flying.
I'm feeling a little drowsy this morning sitting here by the fire. I've just mopped the whole upstairs because we've had a lot of activity here. It's been a trying week because our furnace quit working and what a time to choose to do that during these very cold days in February. I'm thankful to have Brad who helped me with getting wood up from the back basement door for our fireplace...that is quite a trek. The little heaters we also used were okay but it was really nice to be able to keep a fire burning.
We've had to go in and out for appointments too which has all kept the dogs and me off kilter. But thankfully, in the end, we just went four days without a furnace. I didn't realize putting in a new furnace would take so long. The two guys were here for five hours which drove the dogs mad- they wanted to be with them! Of course, they had to remove the old 21 year old furnace first which took up some of the time. Thankfully the new system is working fine so far, and, fingers crossed this episode is now history.
I'd found this book below and want to read it. It's a book where writers who knit or try to share their stories about knitting. I always knew Barbara Kingsolver did but I didn't know Sue Grafton did. Turns out there are a lot of writers who knit and more that would love to. Here is the Amazon link if you'd like to read more about it. It would make a great gift.
Kate at the Last Homely House still interests me and it's the perfect kind of show to have on while knitting. I don't have to follow any instructions or such and the tv room was also the perfect spot this week as I could keep it warm in there with a small heater. Isn't the winter sun on these colours pretty.
I've also been working on my Quarter Dresdens project. Now I have more of the working parts kitted up all ready to stitch together so I feel better about it. I'm still using mail flyers, the flimsy ones, for template material and an old cookie tin to keep them in.
I've decided to use more colour in the scrappy EPP blades; I know white is the colour of the year and all but so many in white got boring to me.
I'm using dark greens, the RSC February colour, for these backgrounds and one is looking lighter here than it really is and other darker. Sigh
Beth gave me three embroidery kits for Christmas. The Puffin is Newfoundland's provincial bird so it makes sense I finally embroider one. It's from Hook, Line and Tinker whose link is HERE if you'd like to check out their other cute designs.
I get so many Chickadees at my feeders and love them. I wanted it to be Canada's national bird but it lost out to the Canada Jay, formerly the Gray Jay. This is a sweet little kit from Nest Embirdery. Their link is HERE where there is a gorgeous bumblebee I'd also like to stitch.
And as well, this kit by Wendy Williams that I'd mentioned to her quite a while ago that I liked. Now I don't have to order it. I've admired this one for a long time and you can check it and others equally beautiful at Flying Fish Kits.
Stitchy gifts are the best, aren't they!
I'm feeling a bit tired but a good tired, if you know what I mean. The kind you feel when you've moved your body. We've decided to treat ourselves to a lunch out at one of the very old restaurants in a nearby town. They make good pork souvlaki there and that's what I always have. They make their own dressing for the Greek salad, something else I'm fond of. Would this appeal to you?
It seems to be all about the weather here in the winter months. Saturday,when I went out with the dogs, the temperature was this with a wind chill of -34C.
But the sun was shining and I could feel its warmth on my face. That was so nice while on the pond throwing the ball for the dogs. Then it warmed up and here in winter, that means the snow comes. We have a few more centimeters on the ground and it's still snowing. The school buses are not running this morning so another snow day for most kids. Here is my backyard winter wonderland taken through the window just now.
Yesterday's weather was a good excuse to stay cosy all day in my fleece top and polar bear fleece bottoms.
Enough about the weather, on to more important things like stitching.
When I'm watching YouTube, sometimes a video suggestion will pop up and I'm so glad this one did. That was how I found out about Becky Goldsmith's tiny baskets. I remember when some folks were stitching these in a project called A Tisket A Tasket and that would have been many years ago. I decided to give them a try mainly because I need to use up more small scraps. The pattern is free. I just love stitching these tiny baskets. And Becky's video featuring the tutorial is just wonderful.
I learned something brand new to me. And that is you can wet fabric to get it to turn/fold a little like at the top of the handles. That actually works. What a great scrappy project and I'll be matching up with the colour for the monthly RSC colour while I stitch more of them. They are 3 inches and while they stitch up quickly, they are a bit fiddly.
I have to be careful not to get obsessed with stitching them.
I have the Blackbird Designs Christmas Tablecloth almost finished. The three pieces are joined but I have some minor stitching I want to do like add more embroidery to the leaves on the right side, for instance. Then I'm going to retire it for this year with the hope and plan of quilting it next fall in time for Christmas.
LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color's prompt last week was about using planners/calendars. I always have a yearly calendar type book to write in and note appointments, etc. Here is last year's and my newest one that I bought at a thrift store. Yes, it was totally baffling to me why a 2026 book would be there. It was obviously brand new with the Winner's tag on it and one of those finds that makes me think they are there just waiting for only me to come along.
We've added The Pitt to our nighttime viewing and are enjoying getting to know the characters. I can see why it won two Golden Globes. Any of you watching?
My week is filling up with appointments including another CT scan for Tony. I am very thankful this can be done at a local hostpital so we don't have to drive into Ottawa especially with all this weather. Thank you so much for taking time out of your day to write a comment on my posts. We both read them and take encouragement from them.
Last Saturday night we had a small snowstorm that blanketed all the land including the icy paths. It was so pretty the next day in the woods. I am getting lots more enjoyment out of this winter maybe because of having Petey with us. He revels in the snow and the ball playing so much and also just romping all about on our walks. It is truly joyful to watch him. Here he is playing with his ball in the snow.
Our Ned on the other hand, moves as little as possible and is quite happy moseying along just smelling the snowflakes. You would never guess that he is the one who will run away and it is because of that wonderful nose of his. How different the two brother are!
I glanced at the turkeys at the feeder and spied the bunny ears. They seemed not to heed each other at all. Nothing is afraid of bunnies it seems. I've been making sure the feeders are full as it's been a very cold and snowy winter with a dose of freezing rain already.
Last year I worked steadily on one RSC EPP project and I want to work on a couple this year just to have more variety. I'm still looking. Meanwhile, I began another Snowman hanging which I found in this book below from my own little library. It's called Country Quilts For Friends written by Margaret Peters and Anne Sutton of Bunnyhill fame. I would love to stitch every seasonal project in this book. It seems I'm not happy unless I'm appliquing something. The pretty blues are deeper than the photo shows.
I love Snowmen and here is a photo of the project. Another great thrift store book find.
I've got the blocks cut and most of the 17 snowmen ready for stitching. I'm hoping to get in the sewing room today to choose two fabrics for the little 4 patch blocks. Funnily that will be the hardest part for me.
I laid more stitches on What Remains is Love. I'm enjoying working with this fabric. Many of you commented that you liked this sentiment and you can check out the pattern HERE at 123Stitch.
And I also finished the left side of the Blackbird Designs Christmas table cloth. I have the other side finished too but it needs measuring and trimming. I've finally learned from sad experiences to stitch everything with generous seam allowances then trim.
Joy at Days Filled with Joy (what a great name!) is hosting a SAL for a tabletopper. From her first video, I learned how to cut a square from a fat quarter. This will be a quick and easy 3 part SAL.
We are doing okay but since Christmas there seems to always be something needing attention outside the house. Being a confirmed homebody, yes, this is a nuisance. And with steady snowfalls including two storms- update, make that three, we are struggling to keep our long laneway cleared and open. Some of you may remember the only time we've needed an ambulance here, which was for Tony, they could not get down the laneway. That event has made me more aware of the importance of cleared access. Tony insists on doing the plowing himself and I do applaud him for his determination to keep moving, but I keep hoping he will change his mind and we avail of one of the many snow clearing services here.
Our outings included a round of appointments for Tony who is holding his own healthwise which is encouraging. He has an upcoming appointment for another CT scan on his lungs to check on that nodule. He thinks he is weaker but I don't see any difference except he is coughing more. He had the sad news that his longest and very like minded friend passed away last week. He was ten years younger than Tony but had struggled with lung and heart problems in recent times and it was his heart that gave out in the end. He was a brilliant fellow and, in fact, has a son who works with Google and gives Ted Talks.
Thank you all for the comments on my last post. More people have said to me how rare it is for a doctor to do that; in fact, what happened to me seems to be something fairly rare but I'm happy to hear does happen.
I hope these January days are filled with all the little things that you love because, in the end, it is lots of those little things that wind up meaning the most.
I've made the list and in my case, I've had to check it not twice but three times. I've been wrapping and making note of what's for who, etc. I'm trying not to do what Mom always did and that was to find presents tucked away in a drawer somewhere the next July. Does that happen to you?
I worked really hard to get this Peppermint Trees quilt top to this stage with all the trees appliqued and outlined in blanket stitch. The trunks are not stitched down yet. I had to take it outside to photograph; it's too dark these days inside. So here it is on the front veranda in the snowy light. HERE is the link to Helen's Etsy shop and the pdf download of her pattern if you'd like to check it out.
The little garden girl on a swing was a gift to me from Robbie.
I've made it longer to suit a spot over the long stairwell. And my plan is to sandwich this and ready it for quilting as soon as I can. In the original design, Helen used straight lines around the trees in each block which looked great and is so doable for me so I will try to do the same.
And I've also been hand stitching more quilting lines on Christmas Presents too. Some of these fabrics are so pretty and have splash of gold too.
I'm halfway down the quilt, rolling it as I go which is not ideal but semi working for me. I do love the hand quilting part but the wraggling of something this size is difficult. This experience is making me wonder if you should look into getting a quilting frame.
I'm using DMC perle 8 in a variagated mint green to stitch the quilting lines.
I've been enjoying a Youtube channel calledRowsellsEveryday Off Grid in NL. I especially love Diane's baking videos. In this one below, she made two favourite cookies/squares/slice -whatever you call them in your part of the world. I like her enthusiastic and down to earth attitude. I wonder what you think of her kitchen; it looks so eclectic and I really like it.
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The first one she makes, the Five Star cookie/ bar, is very popular in Newfoundland and is so easy to make. Perhaps there is another name for this particular treat in other places. It uses Aero bars for the topping.
LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color's prompt this week was do we like the colours red and green. They certainly are the traditional Christmas duo aren't they. Yes, I like them, especially the vintage kind of shades. And here is a welcome red I love to spot. The male Cardinal visited one of the feeders while the female stayed on the ground below. I wonder are they the same pair I'm spying all the time.
Winter chores have kicked in- shovelling snow, throwing deicer on the front steps- we had four large bags delivered, and my favourite chore, refilling the feeders. And I'm off to walk the dogs now, another favourite activity here at the wooden house. And Petey senses when that time is. He's a dog that looks you in the eye with such pleading stares. Who could resist this?
Hope this time of year on the very cusp of Christmas is going well for all of you and you don't feel rushed. That it is "the most marvelous time of year" for you.
I've been thinking about all the turkey dinners this week and put in an order to Farm Boy for our Christmas one. We've done this twice before and enjoyed it very much. Their turkeys are amazing and they even include dessert. Of course, I'll make a couple of our traditional side dishes too and a trifle.
I was switching out the mugs to start using the Christmas/winter ones and thought I'd show this one below again. I'd used Rifle Paper Co fabrics in the Christmas Present quilt I shared last post and here is one of my winter mugs from them as well in the same design. They produce a wide range of high quality items from mugs to rugs and you can check them out HERE. When I was in Winners a couple of weeks ago, I saw a teapot in this design as well.
The house on my Christmas table runner is taking up a large chunk of my stitching time lately. This one block is the largest appliqued piece I've ever stitched. Here is the photo from the book.
And here is my version. It's not quite finished but almost there. I found the leaf bits fiddly just like the windows and needed a lot of reoganizing. I had them all placed perfectly and a dog jumped up and they flew everywhere. That taught me to use a little glue to hold them in place.
I've used blanket stitch around these leaves.
We've been watching The Americans and enjoying it. They feature their bedroom quite a lot in the show and you can't miss this quilt hanging behind the bed. It is a Lone Star design in what appears to be white with greys and black. And there are interesting little pieces in deep reds here and there. I tried to find the maker but couldn't.
I like the idea that supposedly the Russians would think a quilt should be a part of American decor.
I went down a rabbit hole this morning while visiting Magpies Mumblings and I had been warned by Mary Anne too. She had included a link to the Smart Knit Crocheting site and at that link was a list of 30 sites, yes, 30 of them!, offering free knitting and crocheting patterns. I just got out of there to write this post...so many glorious wonderful patterns!
Meanwhile, I have knitted a couple of rounds on my own afghan. The pinks in this are brilliant and it feels great to be working with wool.
I'm up early most mornings and lately that means getting up in total darkness. One morning, not wanting to disturb hubby, I got dressed and felt my way out of the bedroom, down the hall to the main area without turning on a light. (I've since put a flashlight by my bed).That made me remember the line below. It's been written in many of my journals over the years right from the very young me years when I was definitely trying to figure out myself. Like so many young people, I was smart enough in school but clueless in life.
But I was lucky. The people I found myself surrounded by were all good people. I'm so sorry for any of the young women out there who do not have such luck when first venturing away from home.
You know by now that I love whimsy and I adore these creatures below and their woodland world all fashioned by the enormously talented Victoria Beata. This little video is called A Fairy Tale From the Glen/For Those Who've Forgotten How Gentle the World Can be.
Yes, we must hold fast to that knowledge too. In this world, there are many soft, safe places to fall too. I hope my family will always know I'm one of them.
Giving thanks here always! And now all the goodness that is Christmas awaits!
Below are a few early winter photos while the snow is a novelty. While walking the dogs, I'm finding the air so wonderful and bracing. But I am a little shocked with just how cold it is already in the season. It was minus 12 with strong wind gusts that took my breath away one day, but it's back to mild and kind of damp feeling today.
Here is my usual kitchen window photo; it was dark enough very early for the big garage light to stay on. That's another thing; here in the Northern Hemisphere we are now tilting further away from the sun and our daylight is noticably and suddently it seems to me, shortened. It's dark earlier in the evenings and I'm getting up in darkness already.
And here's a sewing room window shot.
Yes, winter has arrived.
Source:homeschoolfrench.com
"Little by little, the bird builds its' nest." I've watched them build nests, twig by twig, grass blade by grass blade, even in the rain, and their perseverance is amazing. A lesson is in that for me/us that something significant can be achieved by doing even just the tiniest of steps. I'm trying to keep this thought in mind with my stitching these days. Even a few stitches here and there count.
And in the sewing room I'm building my house too. I have the windows constructed and am ready to applique them down. These were small but fiddly.
There is not a good photo of this table runner in the book and I couldn't find one online. The book again is Blackbird Designs, Tending the Garden.
In an effort to put old orphan blocks to use, I pulled out these in reds and put them up on the back hallway wall. I must have been trying out star blocks. Isn't it funny how you can forget you made things. I wonder if this is enough for a Christmasy hanging. Potential maybe? I know some of these were stitched for past So Scrappy RSC parties when red came around.
I've added the Christmas embroideries I stitched along with Nanette, A Passionate Quilter, at the time, I think in 2020. I still miss her and wish her blog was still available so I could visit and look at her wonderful quilting. The free patterns are still available at this link- Holiday Stitch-a-Long, Moda. Anyway, perhaps there is a way to cobble these together that would make pretty sense. I have lots of red fabrics for borders, etc. which I'd love to use up. Any ideas??
That mention of embroidering reminds me- our pal, Melisa, at Pinker n Pumpkin Quilting, is posting sets of Country Christmas Doodles, very cute little free patterns for Christmas. Thank you, Melisa, for sharing your talent with us!
And the stars reminded me I watched Rachel on her YouTube channel, Stitch With Rachel, share step by step instrucitons on how to sew a beautiful Christmas quilt using a Tilda panel. There are lots of beautiful panels that could suit this star treatment.
For Cross Stitching friends, below is Liz Matthews' free download called Winter Celebration which is appropriate for us folks here in Ontario right now. Isn't it sweet! Love Cardinals and Houses. Link to Liz's lovely free patterns page is HERE.
We are surrounded by inspiration, wonderful ideas, and beautiful images.
Ok, back to reality. The first thing I have to do today after clicking publish is take the last of the summer stuff down to the basement closet and bring up our heavier coats and boots. Then we will be fully prepared.
