Stitching on a Sunday

What a lovely weekend. 

I'm a bit laid up with my back, but sitting is not too much of a problem so on Saturday I took some binding outside to enjoy the fresher day.

We have tried to plant wildflower seeds from time to time but to no avail. This year, my husband started the seeds in the house and then planted them in pots. They have grown fabulously, except for the fact that they have kinda looked like weeds....'til the last couple of days! We are getting all kinds of colour and a few flowers I actually recognise...a couple of poppies, pinks, etc.

Well, the picture doesn't really do them justice, but they are very pretty. Not long after I took this picture a butterfly the size of a Monarch, but yellow, flitted in to check the flowers out!

This morning for my Slow Stitching I will finish the binding on my grandson's quilt. The quilt was actually ready when he was born a couple of weeks ago but I have had trouble putting the time into binding it. It may be because I'm not terribly fond of the quilt. It's ok though, it's only the first of many quilts he will receive from me, I'm sure! Here he is, quilt-less but not for long...

I couldn't resist doing a couple of hearts, too, as I try to catch up on my Quilty365/A Year in My Life....

I am linking up with Cynthia over at Quilting is More Fun than Housework for Oh, Scrap.

The next segment of the Summer Solstice quilt-along was released this week. You can check it out here at Happy Quilting. This week we do the flying geese for the quilt....and mine are done...

Not only do we get to take part in a fun project, but by showing that we have completed the step in a timely manner we get the opportunity to win prizes. Cool!

This will be a baby quilt size, ready just in time for grandbaby # 5 in the Fall. We are referring to him as Baby Mac for the time-being.

Recently I ordered myself a couple of new notions with my winnings from Quilt Canada. I'm almost out of my favourite applique needles so thought I'd try something new that I've read good reviews on....a brand of needles called Tulip. 

Also in the picture is a new needle-threader. My Clover needle-threader has almost had it so I ordered this one by Bohin. I'm not quite sure yet that I like it as much as the old one. We'll see.

Because I bought something new this week, I'm linking up with MolliSparkles for Sunday Stash.

And, like always on Sundays, I'm linking with Kathy's Quilts for Slow Sunday Stitching. Today Kathy reminds us again to take some time from our busy lives to enjoy the moment. I intend on doing that today!

Puppy update

The pups are 5.5 weeks old now, I can hardly believe it. We've had a bit of trouble settling in to a food that is just right to start them on and on Saturday we finally got it right....

This week they go to the vet for their check-up, it will be interesting to see how much they weigh. My guess is 1.5 lbs.

So adorable!

Have a great day!

Quilty365 Update

Well, it's that time again.

Time to check in with the monthly update on the Quilty365 project, or as I call mine, A Year in My Life.

It's been difficult to catch up as I've been enjoying my FlowerGarden applique, but at least I don't think I'm any further behind than last month!

I'm still determined that I won't give up on this quilt. I will perserve until November when the year of hearts will be complete!

At times it is feeling like a chore to continue, but I've stuck with it for so many days and am still enjoying it. I definitely want to see this one through!

I've had friends donating fabrics they think may be useful. This one for the last day of school for children this past week...

...and the tomatoes....

...this one I actually asked for from a friend to commemorate Canada Day this past week...

I have been sewing them together in date order and everything is looking great. I'm surprised that this has happened twice....

....after sewing the hearts into rows, there are background fabrics matching up to the row previous. I try to use so many different fabrics, it's hard to believe this has happened....twice. Oh, well.

Here is what I have so far....

There are 14 rows of 15 hearts, adding up to 210 hearts. I started on November 11th. I still have some hearts to prepare to be caught up. I think I'll take a bit of time today to do some prepping.

This past week I talked about the ironing table we were working on in this post here. It is complete and being used...

I wanted it fairly tall so we've started at around 37", approximately the same height as my cutting table. I've worked at tall ironing boards on Retreat so knew I wanted something a little taller than the average ironing board. This may be a little too tall but I'll live with it for a week to see how it feels....it will be an easy fix if I decide to lower it a couple of inches if need be. There a couple more shelves to install....I'm just not quite sure what will be stored here yet. Love it!!!

On Saturday I listened to an interview on NPR with Norman Lear (creator of shows like All in the Family, The Jeffersons, etc.). He is in his nineties and still smart and funny to listen to. He was asked what word meant most to him. I always want to remember his reply....he said two most important words in the world are "over" and "next". How nice it would be to just be able to let something go because it is "over". 

Puppy update

The pups are able to scamper around now, so cute.

I was able to get a picture this morning of our cat giving one of the pups a little grooming...

....and here's a picture just because it's adorable...

I am linking up with Kathy for some Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts, and with Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for Oh,Scrap, and with Audrey at Quilty Folk to see everyone else's monthly progress on their Quilty365.

I'm also linking with MolliSparkles for Sunday Stash to show off my new ironing table....I'm pretty sure I was inspired by a blog from there last week to check out Ikea for the cabinet!

It looks like it's going to be another glorious Summer's day and I intend on enjoying it. I hope you can, too!

Puppy Love!

First I have an update on my Quilty365/Year in My Life quilt.

Here is how it looks today...

I started this project on November 12, 2015. This shows what I've sewn together up to May 10th. 

I have more blocks completed up to May 21st...I hope to spend a half hour today prepping the rest of the blocks up to today.

Here is a heart featuring a TulaPink fabric. I just had to include it since it reminds me of the actress who plays Claire in the Outlander series!

I've put out a message to a friend to see if I can steal a bit of "dog" fabric. I'd like to use it for yesterday's heart and I don't think I have a single piece of fabric featuring dogs!

I have followed a few bloggers that are also working on the Quilty365. One of them is Cynthia over at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework. If you can, check out her Quilty365....she does a circle each day then joins them with an HST to represent one week. It sounds like she has had enough of this project now, but she is going to have a beautiful quilt from what she has done!

I am linking up with Audrey over at Quilty Folk so we can see all the Quilty365 projects that are being shown this month.

So, now an update on puppies...

We started the day with poor, little Minnie trembling all over. I cuddled with her and soothed her and wrapped her in her blankie. That seemed to help...

At 9:30 she gave birth to pup #1, a girl. The next followed at 10:00...a boy. I thought that might be it. Minnie is a small dog, so I was figuring on two or three pups.

She settled with the two...then around 10:45 another started being born, but only the head emerged and stayed like that for a while. I was getting a little worried and thought of calling the vet...but then out popped #3, a girl, with a rush........followed within minutes by #4, another boy!!!

That brought us to 11:30. Minnie did a great job cleaning them up and stimulating them. At noon I took her outside for a pee break and she had a bit of water. I took that opportunity to clean out the whelping box and line it with a nice fresh towel. Such a sweet little family!

I rested a bit (it was a very emotional morning!), then at 1:10 I figured I'd head up and do a bit of sewing. I took a quick peek at Minnie and the pups. Awww, she was lying their feeding them and looked quite at ease. It took me a minute to notice, though, that there was a fifth puppy halfway out into the world!!!

#5 had me worried a bit. I wasn't sure he'd survive. He wasn't moving much and seemed to gag once in a while. I stroked him a bit and Minnie did her thing for about 10 minutes which did the trick, thankfully. 

So we have five puppies, Momma and Papa are doing fine! Actually, poor Cooper has looked quite baffled since it all happened! He was pacing the floor all during the births!

Here you are...your first peek...

Nature is truly amazing!!!

Have a wonderful day!

Quilt show season!

What a nice few days we've had! The weather has certainly helped the plants and trees pop in the last week or so.

It was two weeks ago today that I was driving home from the Simcoe area and drove through a little snow flurry....now we're into the temperature feeling like the mid-30's!

It's so nice to go out in the garden each morning and see what's new. I think my favourite, at least this time of year, is my Snowball bush...although now that I see it in a photograph, it seems I'll need to try shaping it a bit after it's finished blooming.

I'm worried about the Limelight Hydrangea that I planted last Spring. No sign of life yet, even though when I scratch the bark there is a bit of green. I had high hopes for that one.

On Saturday we attended a quilt show in Dunnville. They certainly had a lot of quilts to show. Now I'm feeling like a bad blogger since I didn't even think to take pictures :(

I think it's the first time I've left a quilt show empty-handed! Must be because I was feeling a little under the weather, but it was nice to window shop.

I always think that it's nice to come away with one inspiration at a quilt show, be it colour or design or what-have-you.

I happened to be inspired by a quilt that is very much like one I've had on the go. My project is a neutral block exchange. The blocks are 5" unfinished and we are nearing the end of the exchange. We will have almost 400 of these when we are done!

Here are a few...

At the quilt show, there was a similar one but made of all Kaffe Fassett fabrics. It was glorious! Geez, I wish I had thought to take a picture!

I've made up a block to remind myself of the quilt...

I'll have to take care with the values of the fabrics I choose, as this one seems to be a bit too blendy between the centre and the first row. Value has been a problem for me in many of my quilts.

I don't have a huge stash of Fassett, but I think any bright will be ok for my version....especially my yummy TulaPink fabrics!

I have started with a 2" centre and added three rows that are cut 1" wide.

I remember when I first started the neutral exchange I made a few coloured ones out of speculation. I did like them, so I'm not surprised that this particular quilt caught my eye.

I'll have to think of a name for this quilt....any suggestions are most welcome!!!

I've been trying this week to catch up a bit with of my Quilty365/Year in My Life. I really like this one...

...and these, too.....

These are some pretty jolly hearts! The pink "heart" heart is actually from a fabric that I had but I don't think I have it anymore. I begged this scrap from a friend. The one with the white house was gifted from a friend...I wish I had a couple yards of that one!

I am linking up with SoScrappy for ScrapHappySaturday to see what others are doing with the scraps in their stash and with Kathy over at Kathy's Quilts  to catch up on what others are stitching on today. I'm also linking up with Cynthia over at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for Oh, Scrap!

My lawn is in dire need of mowing so I think I'll get at it after breakfast before it gets too hot again. After that, I think I may take some applique outside and take it easy. Sounds like a plan!

Have a wonderful Summer-like Spring day! 

Victoria Day

On Sunday we had beautiful weather for our Victoria Day celebrations. Not everyone could make it home for a barbeque, but we had enough to make for a good time.

I tried an easy cake recipe...all it takes is an Angel Food cake mix and a large can of crushed pineapple.

It looked and smelled so good out of the oven...

....and it was a success! The cake turned out so fluffy and light, the perfect dessert after a heavy bbq dinner. I would agree with comments online that it is probably best with just a bit of whipped cream, no frosting.

The younger generation was in charge of fireworks and they did a great job. I found myself a little melancholy as the site of the day's activities took me back 20 years to another time. 

Today is starting out a bit slow (I'm really not used to staying up after 9p.m.!). I really wanted to work on the longarm today but the sunny day is calling my name! We'll see.

I did get a couple of hearts appliqued this morning for my Quilty365/Year in My Life and I think they're quite pretty...

Maybe some peaceful time in the garden is called for.

 I was excited yesterday to see some buds on my Wisteria. At first I didn't know what I was looking at, I've never seen Wisteria buds before!  The buds are a beautiful, bright lime green colour. I can't even remember what colour the flowers are supposed to be but I guess I'm about to find out! I think I planted it five or six years ago and this will be the first time it flowers. How exciting!

I hope everyone gets to relax today and enjoy the absolutely perfect weather we are having on this Victoria Day long weekend!

Finally, Wednesday!

Today is a time to sit back and breathe.

It's been a hectic few days. I knew it would be and was set to just put one foot in front of the other and make it to Wednesday!

On Monday I prepared and did my trunk show for the Haldimand Quilters' Guild. As some of you may know, it's quite the job to gather and pack (in order) the quilts needed. 

Here we are, all packed up!

One of the best purchases we've made for doing trunk shows is the hockey bag! We came across it one day...regular $100 marked down to $25. Perfect for holding many, many quilts...it has wheels...and has never been used for smelly hockey gear. We should have bought two!

Here are the quilters of Hagersville guild, all happy and waiting to hear my story...

I've known quite a few of these women for many years, so it was a little scary and, at the same time, a lot of fun to speak to them. 

I wish I had thought to take a couple of pictures of the show-and-tell that evening. Two women are pretty well up-to-date on the 365Challenge and showed their blocks all sewn together. So beautiful! It's inspiring me to try to catch up as I'm way, way behind on this one.

The guild is good at picture-taking, so I'm sure if you look up the Facebook page for the Haldimand Quilters' Guild you will see a picture of these two women's 365Challenge.

Thanks so much, ladies, for a fun evening. It was so nice that some of my favourite quilts seemed to resonate with you, also!

It took me a bit of pushing to actually work on Monday during the day. I almost gave up, but am glad I didn't as it was a great distraction from the nervousness of the trunk show that evening. 

I worked on a real beauty....for me anyways, since TulaPink fabrics are my current favourite...

It was quilted with a "new to me" panto called Angle Play....much different from the curvy designs I'm used to. It had a degree of difficulty getting used to....and, strangely enough, was a lot of fun and stitched along surprisingly quickly.

Here's the back...more TulaPink!...

The woman's face on the backing fabric always makes me think of the actress who plays Claire in the Outlander series.

I was even able to get one of my daily hearts done in this fabric...

Have a wonderful Spring day!

Slow Stitching

How funny this quilty life is!

 I've realised that I may have taken on some quilting projects that I don't love, so it could be time to cut them loose....just to give myself a break! There are too many beautiful quilts to be made. It doesn't make sense to me to be working on some just because you happen to have started them. 

But as soon as I make that decision, another project tempts me!

I've had a pattern by Jen Kingwell for a while now and wasn't sure when I'd ever get around to it. It's called Sweet Greens and Beans.


Haven't I stumbled across a Facebook "support group" that is just starting this quilt together!!! What's a girl to do? (don't answer...rhetorical question!)

We'll see...if it's an easy-going time-frame maybe I'll take part.

It's been a first-time sleepover at Grandma's for my grandson. I'm sure I'll need a nap this afternoon! I'll just have to push on thru' though for a couple of days as there are some very busy days ahead!

I'm preparing for my trunk show at the Hagersville Guild on Monday evening. So, this afternoon will be spent packing up my quilts. It should have been done by now but the days are going by much to fast. 

Then there is the new Tai Chi classes to fit into the schedule! We've been to a couple now....and quite enjoying it! I'm a little achey, but it's a good kind of ache.

I did take some time on Friday during my lunch break to prep the next border of FlowerGarden. It was a toss-up whether this would be next to work on or AuntieGreen'sGarden. It doesn't really matter which...I've set myself a goal of having them done for the Fair in 2017, so no problem!, (she says confidently, lol!).

I've neglected my hearts for the Quilty365/Year in My Life this month. This is definitely not a project that I want to let go by the wayside!

I don't have any rows of hearts sewn on since last time I reported in...

...but I do have a stack of hearts waiting to be appliqued...

I do love the horse fabric on this one!

My goal for May will be to catch up with my hearts. I'm still loving this quilt and the process.

I'm linking up with Audrey at Quilty Folk to see how others are doing on their Quilty365 blocks.

I have a few blocks to do to get up-to-date with my Splendid Sampler, but I did manage to get an easy one done while waiting for my grandson on Saturday. This one is called Lina's Gift by Pat Sloan...

Today was not a usual day for some slow stitching with my coffee since my grandson has my attention. 

I did manage to do a wee bit on my Rowdy Flat Library Quilt, though!

I am linking up with Kathy's Quilts so we can check out what others are working on today.

I'm also linking up with Cynthia's post over at Oh Scrap!

Looking back, this post seems a bit choppy, but the best I can do while having a wee break while babysitting!

Have a great day!

Niagara, quilt shops, wineries!

We had a nice little mini-holiday this week to Niagara Falls. The weather didn't co-operate but it was nice to get away for a bit and have some fun.

I don't quite know how we packed so much activity in such a short trip. We stayed in a hotel right in the centre of Clifton Hill, where most of you probably know is all the wax museums, restaurants, touristy stuff, etc....as well as the main attraction...

We had dinner at Antica Pizzeria. I ordered what I'm pretty sure was the best lasagne I've ever had....I highly recommend it! 

Somehow we managed to squeeze in three quilt shops.

The first was The Quilting Bee in Fonthill. I wish I had remembered to take a picture with one of the knowledgeable staff there. Her name is Crowley with a "w"....so I always feel like I'm in a Dr. Seuss book when we greet each other with a "hello, Mrs. Crowley" and a "hello, Mrs. Croley". 

I did take a picture of a quilt that I hadn't seen before since I wanted to show it to one of my "horsey" friends...

Quilt shop #2 was Stitch in Jordan Village. It's such a unique shop....for quilters and knitters. The owner of the shop actually designed the quilt that I have had accepted to Quilt Canada this year. She is a bit photo-shy, so I took this picture instead...

On our way home on Friday we stopped in St. Catharine's at quilt shop #3, Kindred Spirits. It was nice to see their new location (actually in the same strip-mall as before, just a larger shop), as well as my friend's daughter, Amy, who works there. I asked if she'd strike a pose with the Farm Girl Vintage quilt that was on the wall (it's the one in the left corner of the picture)...

I am also working on my own Farm Girl Vintage with a group of friends as a support group. We are doing two blocks a month. I've been very happy with mine, so far, especially my polka-dot background fabric...

A couple of weekends ago I was in Quilt Junction and the first thing I saw was this fabric...

I thought it was perfect to throw some of this in with the red polka-dots....but I don't really think it works, after-all....

I'm not sure if it's the background "cheerio's" that don't work, or my choice of fabrics???? Any opinions are most welcome! I really think I have do re-do these blocks. 

What would a trip to Niagara be without some visits to a couple of wineries? We have some favourites in the particular area of Jordan/Beamsville/Grimsby....I think referred to as the Beamsville Bench. 

Our favourite by far is Kacaba. We didn't go there this time, we wanted to try a couple that we hadn't been to before. 

We came across Cave Spring in Jordan Village. They had a lovely Reisling (my favourite), which isn't surprising as most of the wineries on the "bench" have great Reislings...I think I've been told that it's the limestone in the area. 

We met Meg, who agreed to a photo (excuse my "hotel" hair...nice and poofy...usually from the shampoo in hotels...this time very little water pressure!)...

Then we came across quite a new winery, Redstone. They also had a nice Reisling...a little sweeter that I usually like, but still wonderful!

Of course, I did take a bit of stitching with me....my latest block from Life is Beautiful. Not much accomplished on this block since last time, but still nice to put a few stitches in while I was away!

I think I was a little optimistic, since I actually had another block ready, too. I just hate the thought of being left with nothing to work on if the opportunity arises!

Oh well, that one will be ready to take along to guild this week!

This is the time of month to check in with Audrey at Quilty Folk. She will have people linking up to see progress on Quilty365 circles. As I've shown before, my circles happen to be heart-shaped.

On Saturday I got another row of hearts sewn on...which makes 9 rows of 15, so far....135 hearts! I still have three more completed and four more to get started on to be up-to-date....not bad!

I've referred to this quilt as "A Day in My Life"....but I think more appropriate will be "A Year in My Life"....so that is now the working title.

The photo represents 4-1/2 months...so over a third of the way through! 

When you visit Audrey at her post, she mentions an interview she did with Stephie Boon at Dawn Chorus Studio. You can see the article on her at Stephie's blog HERE. The blogpost is a good one and Audrey's quilting-ways really resonated with me.

Today we celebrate our hand-stitching with Kathy over at Kathy's Quilts . I started an online BOM with Sarah Fielke of Australia this year called Happy Day. There have already been some highly challenging blocks and piecing methods. The blocks are released on the last day of each month and I was happy to see that we are just doing two applique blocks this month. So, right up my alley!

This morning I put the final stitches in the bird block....

Sarah had a different method for making the narrow legs on the bird which I was happy to try. I'm all for trying new techniques and I liked this one. As this post is seeming to get a bit lengthy, I think I explain it another time!

Since both my projects today are of a scrappy nature, I'm also linking up with Cynthia over at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for Oh, Scrap!.

It's quite snowy and frigid looking outside today...I heard a weatherman say we may have more snow in April than we had in December! So, a perfect day to hunker down with some quilting and maybe a bit of a good book later, too!

Have a good one!