The One With the Crooked Eye

We are rained in today! After a glorious fall day I spent in the garden yesterday, we are now under a rainfall alert for today. I am so happy I got to muck about in the fresh air yesterday.

You know at times I've lamented finding clothes to suit/fit me?  Someone mentioned to me why not sew your own clothes.  She even gave me a link to a free pattern (thanks Marilyn who doesn't have a blog) and now I'm passing this information along to you.

The pattern is for a full gathered skirt and available from Pattern Runway.  Don't know about you but this would definitely suit my style. I wear a lot of skirts and jumpers because they accommodate my ample hip/thigh region (isn't that a nice way to write about fat thighs!).

I wonder how hard is it to sew your own clothes.  I think of words like interfacing and inset sleeves and get kind of worried.  Zippers would definitely pose a challenge. I'm the one with a crooked eye remember. I've had to unsew a seam when sewing perfectly square Block A to equally perfectly square  Block B.

Amy at  Free Motion Quilting Adventures had a Tunic Challenge with her blogging friend Leah.  I really liked her final tunic and could definitely see myself wearing it.  Amy has some lovely FMQ videos too to check out btw.
She mentioned this book- The Tunic Bible, which claims this one pattern is all you need with interchangeable pieces.  It is available Here on Amazon if you want to give it a look.

                              


And Michele at William Morris in Quilting sewed herself the most beautiful tunic type tops as well. Her April 30th post shows two she made from Ikea fabric. I was so impressed.

So do you sew clothes for yourself?  Care to share about it..

Ok enough daydreaming, back to the real world...
I've been cutting freezer paper templates for the hearts in my Scandinavian Christmas.

And ironed them onto their chosen fabrics...18 on reds and 5 on creams.

 These are honestly such relaxing jobs.  I turned the edges while watching this handsome gent last night.

                                       

Friday I got out my light box and traced a bunch of stuff.  Also relaxing.

I have the cross stitch edging on Block One traced.  A little bit fiddly.

Now have all the last three months for A Patchwork Year blocks traced and ready for stitching as well. Someone asked...I use a simple back stitch for my redwork.

Today though I will be hand stitching the sashing onto the Tweet Home block and also my Cornwall Cottage Sampler is calling out for some attention too.  So lots of stitching happening on this rainy November day. Actually a perfect slow stitching kind of day.
Hoping something perfect is happening in your day.

Happily linking this post with the very pretty Sew Can She,  BOM's Away at What a Hoot Quilts, Love, Laugh, Quilt and Crazy Mom Quilts sites.  Thank you all for hosting my favourite way to visit fellow stitchers.

Do You Know This?

I bet you know what a group of crows is called but do you know what a group of ravens is??? I thought of this because I have several check out the feeders from time to time.  Immediately all the other bird activity ceases...they are so striking and I've noticed the blackness of them even their legs.  They don't travel in any numbers particularly but even so have a swagger about them just like bad boys on the block.

New to me and I think it is something you might be interested in.  I'm rather sparse on beauty products in general but I have used moisturizer all my life and have tried so many.

 I spied this one, L'Oreal Rosy Tone Daily Moisturizer, in a magazine, and made note of it.  Because of my vitiligo, I have no melanin in my face from the neck up. The dermatologist who diagnosed me said when he first laid eyes on me, my you are very white.  I said something silly like well I am Caucasian because I had no clue at the time I had an actual condition.  So that is a long way to say that I am actually deathly pale and anything that promises to give me some rosiness is welcome.
 I found a jar at Walmart...and on a mark down so am giving it a try.

Well, I can't say it is giving me a rosy glow but it is one of the nicest moisturizers, very creamy and not greasy, that I have ever used. Also not causing any issues with my occasional bouts of rosacea. But maybe it feels good to me because I do have dry skin.   As for reducing lines, I'm a sceptic and really I've earned every line I have so they belong to me.

I took the below picture October 21.  I was so surprised to see an intact rose bloom while all the others have completely withered.  There are two bushes, one each side of the front walkway and they bloom the entire summer.  Another great perennial.

This is Rex, resting but eyes wide open.  He chose this spot because he can keep an eye on me sitting in the Pet Chair.  My Shih Tzus, while totally lovable, were never attentive like this.
Sadly I think he is slowing down and it makes me even more kind and solicitous of him.

On Facebook I've been getting the live feed from the Aurifil folks at the International Quilt Market.  Here is the link to their facebook page  Aurifil on Facebook where you can watch all of them.  It's neat to see the famous designers like Sarah Fielke and Tula Pink sharing sewing tips and chatting about their favourite tools, etc. 

Meanwhile I enjoyed watching this Moda video from a 2016 Quilt Market.  In particular, I liked seeing Anne Sutton here talking about her Sugar Plum fabrics and the new BOM she had designed for it.

Here is a look at that sweet quilt which I may have shown you before.  So Christmasy, heh.
                                 

A group of ravens???  An "unkindness" or "conspiracy".  Both certainly suit their rather intimidating demeanor. While I love learning new words such as this,  I am yet to have a conspiracy of ravens in my yard.

So happy to link this post with # 61 of Thursday Likes Posts at Not Afraid of Color , It's A Small Town Life, Willy Nilly Friday and Little Things Thursday.
 How fortunate we are to have such an array of happy things in our lives.

OMG, A Patchwork Year and Autumn Finale

Before any stitching chat, you must allow me to brag a little about the beauty of my hometown -Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.  But you don't have to take my word for it...here is a video made by my brother and sister- in- law that shows the autumn is beautiful in scenic western Newfoundland.

So a last look at Autumn 2017...

Completely new to me is this idea.  

I've been reading Wendy at The Constant Quilter talking about Potholder Quilting.  Well I just thought she was meaning "quilt as you go" so I admired her work and didn't think much else about it.  Then reading one of her posts it struck me..Potholder quilting is something different. Duh!

 You quilt and bind each block and then sew those completely finished blocks together.  Sort of like sewing potholders together.  What a neat idea!

I realized that my Kathy Schmitz A Patchwork Year Blocks would work perfectly for this technique.  So you know me, I had to give one a try.

Before I show you that...here is the October block which I'd meant to show you last week.  Yet another pumpkin; I know it has been pumpkin overload around here this past month!

I feel a little sentimental about these three little birds (this post will explain why) so this is the first one I've made into a quilt sandwich and begun to quilt.  I intend to sash half the blocks in red and the other half in the cream.

June Block

And a little close up of the hand quilting I'm attempting to do.

So I think for the first time I will link up with the pretty site Elm Street Quilts and join the challenge of meeting a stated One Monthly Goal in quilting.  I've visited the OMG list many times and dropped by some of you I've seen there; these link parties are a wonderful way to meet like-minded stitchers.

My One Monthly Goal for November is completing two of my Patchwork Year blocks the potholder way.
Happily linking with the folks at the Needle and Thread Network and Silly Mama Quilts this week.

Retro Halloween

Is Halloween celebrated in your neck of the woods?  It is traditionally celebrated here in Canada with costumed children going about the neighbourhood, knocking on doors, saying "trick or treat" and being given a treat in the form of candy. It was the highlight of  my growing up years; I think because we were never 'treated' like kids today are. 


Here is my post I wrote about what Halloween was like for me as a girl growing up in Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

Halloween

I always had a face mask like this and usually it was of an animal.

"They're just too lazy these days," said an old great uncle of mine about 35 years ago.  We were sitting around lamenting the dwindling numbers of children going from door to door trick or treating.  We thought he might have a point but the teachers in the family were hesitant to support the use of the L word.
That comment  certainly did not apply to us when we were young, I can tell you.

Strong in my memory are the Halloweens of my childhood.  Hugely anticipated, we would talk about and think about trick or treating for days leading up to it. Costumes didn't figure heavily in any of this...mostly we wore those rubber or plastic full face masks that cost 39 cents from Stedman's.  They were horrible, smelly things and by the end of the evening your face would be a wet, sweaty mess but we certainly didn't complain.

We loved planning our route beforehand, wondering how far we could get.  The longer you were out and the further you went meant more goodies.  Someone could always remember which houses gave out the best stuff; we all coveted bags of chips especially and there was always a house on Mount Bernard Avenue that gave out  the 5 cent bags of Scotties chips.  I'm sure half the kids in Corner Brook would ring their bell but they never ran out of chips.

Perhaps Halloween was so important to us because treats were rarish in those days.  We got certain things for Christmas and our birthday, but candy and such was just not plentiful around the house, or at least, not in my house.

 The Halloweens of my childhood were innocent, fun-filled affairs; I don't remember ever any talk about the sinister associations some people have made of it these days.

But then it changed.  The costume got to be more involved and important and expensive.  Rumours and stories of razors and needles (eek) in apples made the news and parents became more suspicious of the free treats from strangers' houses.  Children began to get treats more readily not just for special occasions; a few candies didn't hold the same appeal.  Supply and Demand.  Maybe for one or all these reasons the children went out in fewer and fewer numbers.

Some of the subdivisions around here still have a goodly number of trick or treaters, this many years past uncle's remark.  You can almost tell the demographics of your neighbourhood by the number of children coming to your door on Halloween night.

Hubby can't remember the last time a trick or treater came to the door here.  In fact,  for us here deep in the country and fairly isolated, I think someone ringing our doorbell on Halloween night would actually be a scary thing.  Booo  

                                  

Happily linking this post with Our World Tuesday where you can read about interesting happenings around our world.

A Christmas Start

Yes, so with the little Halloween hanging on the wall in time for the 31st, I could think of starting my Christmas project, Scandinavian Christmas, from Lynn Anderson Designs.  I am very happy to be launching into this with what I think are good allowances -time wise.

I started with something I've read a number of you are doing...namely stash shopping.  From my cupboard, I pulled out the appropriate neutral kind of shades in reds, tans and greys.  I did not go to my little box of Christmas fabrics because I know everything there is the brighter Christmasy kind of colours.   Anne, bless her heart, had included in her parcel all her leftover fabrics of the called for line designed by Lynette herself.. I had looked online to buy some of this but could not find it anywhere.  But I think I have enough including some Lynette Anderson for Thimbleberries fabric (where did that come from??) to get by.

So Block One is the one with the stacked reindeer and two chicken.  I love it and working out the freezer paper templates was easy.  A little bit of hand sewing for later in the day.

I proceeded to cutting the little churn dash blocks using the allowances written in the pattern.  It was supposed to finish at 3 inches exactly.  Mine was too big but I knew why.  I'd added seam allowance of 1/4 inch all around each piece (because I couldn't find where it mentions this) and you weren't supposed to.  But I don't care...this was good practice and I have a nice little orphan block which might fit somewhere in the piece anyway.  I suppose this is where if I was really good at measurements I would have known those dimensions would wind up being too big.

I am very pleased with the embroidery that is part of this pattern too... a bit of cross stitch and stem stitch here and there.

This is my second Lynette Anderson project.  I completed her In Full Bloom BOM back in 2013 and loved working on it.
We used it for a winter in front of the fire place at the old house to help stop draughts.  Hubby's very practical idea for the use of quilts other than on a bed. LOL
Did any of you complete this same project?

Lynette seems to enjoy using what I would call somewhat muted colours in her fabrics.

This was when I was still dyeing my hair I see. I can tell from this picture that my face is thinning as I age too, just like Mom. (If only other body parts would thin along with it !!)
 I think I looked like a different person then. LOL

Meanwhile here in 2017, I am listening to and enjoying this audiobook.  Of Jane Eryre's era and a female serial killer!  Those two points don't go together very often. 

                                        


  So this is my Sunday plan for today's Slow Stitching and Listening.
 Enjoy your stitching where ever you are and whatever you are up to!

Happily linking this post to Stitch All The Things.  Host Christine has posted her cross stitched piece...Sleepy Hallow Halloween which is beautiful plus it has the most remarkable framing I think I've ever seen.  What a keepsake!
I am also linking with The Quilting Room With Mel.  Mel has a very cute mini quilt that has been chosen for display at the current Houston Quilt Market.  Her quilt consists of 106 half square triangles each only 3/4 in. finished! I am amazed by her precision...award winning in my book!
I am linking up with the rest of the Moving It Forward group at Em's Scrapbag too.
 Em is showing the beautiful Moda fabric line for Christmas called Vintage Holiday by Bonnie and Camille.  I can't wait to see what she will make with it.

October is About Leaves

I found the title of this post under my feet.  Literally.  I had to get a photo quickly while the reds were still present as they are the first to fade.  The weather has been changing things up this very strange fall by remaining remarkably warm.  But oh so wonderful for walking which I love.

Here is the very pretty L is for Leaves block from The Prairie Schooler Alphabet design (also on my watch list).  Goes without saying I love this.


                              


Got sidetracked by this when I was hunting for a link for you...their Fall Fields to cross stitch. The only one I haven't seen here on this property is the pheasant.


                                 

Are you like me and would have to live to be 120 to stitch all the things you love!

I usually walk a couple times a day and have caught sight of a Great Blue Heron down at the pond several early mornings.  Frightens easily so no photo.  Twice I've caught its great long legs up in the sky which just looks so odd  till it straightens out.

The walking trails on this property are wonderful for us old folks to toddle around.

Love how the ornamental grasses, which I guess you could say are leaves, are so showy this time of year.
And this about leaves- here is a photo of my Painted Lady hanging with the big leaf motif on one side.  These are such joyful colours to work with.  I'm enjoying the hand stitching too.

I just love this little poem which could have been written for our Canadian autumns.

October, baptize me with leaves! Swaddle me in corduroy and nurse me with split pea soup. October, tuck tiny candy bars in my pockets and carve my smile into a thousand pumpkins. O autumn! O teakettle! O grace!

Rainbow Rowell

Hubby would second the candy bars and the teakettle! How about you??

Please check out Not Afraid of Color where LeeAnna is hosting #60 of Thursday Likes.  Where has the time gone!! Happily linking with Good and Random Fun and It's A Small Town Life.

Sew Spooky So Finished!

I waver between thinking I am useless at this to thinking there is hope for me yet.  I am pleased with my individual blocks but putting them together posed problems for me.  I won't bore you with all the second guessing that entailed but there was a lot.
 A couple of  the Sew Spooky blocks before becoming a hanging.

Here is Kitty before getting her whiskers and during the "buttons for eyes" try out.  I found this cat button in my tin.

Here is the sandwich part bristling with pins. Wound up with what looked like empty space on either side at the top and decided to put spiders' webs trailing there to fill it in.

 How to quilt it?? Decisions, decisions. I am far more comfortable with hand stitching but I know I should practise more with the machine.
That involved the darning/embroidery foot going on my machine.  And finding out that somehow I have misplaced my pressure foot holder.  How in the dickens did I do that! I'm now at the point after an exhaustive search(es) of just ordering a new one. Grrr...

I sewed trailing lines for some blocks around the appliques and went to town on circles around Kitty.

 They were fun and scary to do which sums up how I feel about free motion quilting in general.
I was surprisingly happy with the trailing lines I laid down though.
 And actually, my practice piece for pebbles was better than this; by the time I got to the actual block, my hands were tired.  FMQ is all about the hands, I've discovered.
I've deepened the shadows deliberately so you can see the circles.  Thankfully, they are not as prominent as this in normal light.

And finally taking its place in the back hallway...my rogues gallery of quilt hangings where luckily the 10 foot rule applies. lol

After this week with the machine, I am eager to return to hand work and will be embroidering on my Painted Lady piece today. I am actually working on the butterfly wings which are two shades of blue and so pretty.

Late afternoon, almost sunset...the hydrangea in front of my little (but yet not so little that things can't get lost in it!) sewing room windows.

Hope you and all your belongings, bits and bobs are all accounted for!

So happy to link this post with sewing parties at Crazy Mom Quilts, Confessions of a Fabric Addict, Love Laugh Quilt, and Lizzie Lenard Vintage Sewing. Thank you all for hosting this valuable way to get to know each other.