*Posts may contain affiliate links.

Sunday, September 29, 2019

National Coffee Day

Coffee is my "jam", so in honor of this auspicious day...
My banner/quilt is flying high!
My day isn't complete without a pot, of that glorious brown gold!
Yah, I probably drink way too much coffee!
Let me share a little story with you...
Many many years ago, my husband told me I really needed to switch to decaf.
(I hate decaf)
He thought I was acting a little "bitchy".
So I played the game...bought decaf, opened the can,
and continued to use my regular coffee, and show him what a real
B.... could be like.  About a month later, he tells me I really probably should
go back to drinking regular coffee again.
I threw out that brand new can of decaf and no one was ever
 the wiser!
Moral to the story...some days it's just easier to agree with em!
HAHAHAHA
HAPPY COFFEE DAY TO YA!
til next time...
Keep on Stitchin'



Friday, September 27, 2019

Rubber Ducky...


Rubber Ducky, your the one...
...this doesn't look like those sweet little rubber duckies!
Nope, but that's what happens when your youngest asks you to make a quilt
 for a banquet for a new  chapter of 
While I didn't know a thing about the organization, I did know
there were a lot of hunters that supported it. 
That's when the idea for a hunting ducky theme quilt came up.
I knew the guys wanted a "real" quilt, but once us quilt club girls
 put our heads together, we decided to make this fun little baby quilt, as a joke!
I did also make a "real" quilt for them.
It took a little searching through Pinterest, to find this way
to use a panel.
I've used very few panels before and was at a loss...
but WOW, there are some amazing ideas online.
I used a plushy polar fleece for the backing and skipped the batting.
It provides a nice lightweight cuddly blanket/quilt.
Not that guys want to talk about "cuddly" but babies would love it!
LOL!
This was the "inaugural" banquet for this new chapter,
 and I thought they needed to do some things to make it really stand out. 
"Sew", I went to work and made table toppers for all the tables.
I know the guys thought I was crazy, but they really did add a lot.
Next year these toppers will have the Ducks Unlimited logo on them all.
I promise!
;-)
I'm not sure just where the time went, but I never got any other photos taken yesterday.
:-(
The place looked great, the silent auction was incredible, over 200 people came...
And I've got no photos.
There's always next year, I guess!

Where was I the weekend before?
Missouri Star Quilt Company
Myself and 55 other crazy quilters boarded a bus...
Well, after a call at 11:30pm the night before we were supposed to leave,
 that the bus was broke down and the trip was off.
And another call about 8am the next morning, that they found another bus, 
and we would be heading out at 10am.
After 3-4 more delays, we finally were on the road about 4:30pm.
That put us into Lincoln Nebraska at 1:30am. We had more than a 2 hr drive to Hamilton Missouri the next day, but the driver had to have
his mandated rest time, so we missed a good part of Jenny Doan's trunk show.
What I can say is, she is an awesome motivational speaker, and what we did see was 
well worth all the chaos we went through to get there.
Afterwards, Jenny took all the time she needed for everyone to get photos and autographs with her.
She even signed all our name tags!
I think I can safely say, we all came back a little more enlightened,
and carrying a lot more weight in our luggage!
As for me and my gang...well lets just say our credit cards were smokin' and
I'm guessing washing dishes, isn't going to help us pay off this debt!
til next time
...Keep on Stitchin'

Monday, September 16, 2019

Having a bit of fun...

This is "Sue the Squirrel"
She is one of the "Funky Friends Factory" adorable stuffed animal patterns,
that I made in someone's favorite color!

You see a few weeks ago on my way to quilt club, I saw a squirrel
that had been run over in the street.
When I got there, I went into my "ewwwwwwe...there's a dead squirrel" story, 
only to find out that one of our own was telling her story
 of hitting the poor little guy!
 She was visibly upset!

So what would all good quilt club folks do?

Your absolutely right, we went shopping for squirrel yard ornaments
and decorated her yard while she was on vacation!

This one's "nuts" light up at night.
LOL!!

We even added a little note before we left them.

As soon as she got home the texts started to fly.
We didn't admit to anything for 3 days.
She asked her neighbors who were taking care of her yard about it, and
when they claimed the squirrels weren't there the last time they were over,
 that comment was met with a response of 
"how well do you know these neighbors" and "do you trust them"?
We were dying laughing behind those texts!

But the best was when someone, who shall remain nameless drove by after work
one night and reported back that, yes, indeed the "nuts" were glowing in the dark!
Oh my goodness the joy it brought everyone.
Can you believe she even brought the little note off the squirrel 
to quilt club last week to compare handwriting?
hahhhhha

Yes Joi...Deb and I had a blast with this prank!
I hope you and your new friends live long and prosper.
And you keep all those words of wisdom headed our way...
cause we are enjoying that last one...
It' really is OK to be a little nuts!

til next time...
Keep on Stitchin'

Sunday, September 15, 2019

Aftermath...From a long day cleaning

After my long day cleaning yesterday...
I  really needed to just sit down and stitch something.
"Sew"...I finally turned in this old t-shirt into a pillow.
It too, has been on the shelf for years, just waiting.
I loved this shirt and just couldn't bear to part with it.
It's from our very first trip to Alaska in 1995,
and holds a very special place in my heart.
Heck I had to use the label from inside too.
After all, it's got moose on it!
:-)
I cut the front of the shirt out, and then was able to use the back of the shirt
to create the backing of the pillow. It was wide enough, to be able to get two pieces
that I could overlap and secure with a Velcro strip.
Boom...it was done in less than 20 minutes.
LOL!!
And that's why it sat on my shelf for so many years????
A perfect match for my couch, that I recovered a few years back.

Still not ready to quit stitching, I took a few minutes to play...
If you followed the "My Favorite Quilt Block" hop last week, you likely saw 
Susan's post over at "Quilt Fabrication".
She showed us lots of fun ways to use a 9-patch block, and
included a chart of sizes for cutting, unfinished and finished sizes.
It got as small as a 1" block cutting.
I laughed with Susan over stitching anything that small...
With some scraps I had laying on my sewing table, I decided to give it a try!
Not too bad, I'd say, but this will likely be the last one I do.
LOL!!!!
Here's my hint...
if your going to make anything this small use lots and lots of starch.
Are you at all wondering about these fabrics?
Could it be that it's because Carol is having a blog hop next month?
I guess you are going to have to check back and see!
It looks like Google is having some issues today.
I see comments on my post yesterday, but I didn't get any emails to respond to.
Just know I read them.  They really do make my day!
Hopefully they can work it out soon.

til next time...
Keep on Stitchin'

Saturday, September 14, 2019

A Blast to the Past in the Sewing Room

I certainly hope you spent your Saturday doing something more fun,
than I did.
I've put off cleaning out the little room off my sewing room, 
and under the stairs for entirely too long.
Today was clean it up, day.
While most of it was boring boxes of stuff that ended up in the trash,
I did stumble on my Mother in law's sewing box that I've had, 
since she passed away over 10 years ago.
I was really like looking through a treasure trove, of sorts.
It's amazing what we collect, and sadly I'm no exception!
LOL!!
I had to laugh, when I saw that she had rolled up ribbon
 and kept it nice in neat with a Christmas Card she had cut up.
She carefully marked what she was going to use things on.
I'm not sure if I'm more shocked at the sticker price of the machine needles 
or the fact that she kept one with a burr on it!
:-O
Here's a blast to the past. Montgomery Wards needles for 65 cents!
I really needed needle threaders recently.
Who knew I had 3 packs of them here.
These were a quarter from Woolworth's. I loved that store, 
and it's long been gone, too.
:-(
This puzzled me. A one size fits all embroidery guide.
I can't imagine if or how it works, but it was only a buck, which 
was probably a lot of money in those days.
I have a jar that I keep some of the classics in.
Check out this "Advance" sewing pattern, that was 35 cents.
And how about the white fabric from Penneys...
Did you catch that price tag?
I found these not only fascinating but too funny!
Who better to have "witch" pins that myself?
Yep, if you've followed me for long, you've likely seen my witchy photo.
hahahaha
These are more JC Penny treasurers.
I'm not sure exactly what the price is. 
Could it really be 4 cents?
I had to save the best for the last...
War time package!
WOW!
 Here's the"vault" to not only store, but show off these treasurers, 
in my sewing room.
After today, it's getting pretty full.
Full of love and yester-years sewing supplies!
til next time...
Keep on Stitchin'

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

My Favorite Quilt Block Blog Hop

When Carla asked me to join in on her "My Favorite Quilt Block" blog hop...
I jumped right in, cause my favorite quilt block was the "Bear Paw"
NO..."Churn Dash"
No...
oh, that list goes on and on!
LOL!!
Actually I wasn't quite sure just what block I was going to share, until my quilting 
buddy "Joi" gave me a new book for my birthday.
It all became very clear what my favorite block was then...
Not just because he's a moose...well, maybe because he's a moose!
I am sure your thinking, that's not a block.
But he is, he really is!
LOL!!
And he's right from the pages of this fun book!
And, when he joins all his buddies, he becomes part of the herd with a message to
"Make the "Moost" out of life!
And, that's a motto, I can get onboard with!
:-)

This is a new to me, technique. If I had to describe it,
 I'd say it's paper piecing. for those who hate to paper piece.
LOL!! 
There is paper involved, but only freezer paper that you use to trace and cut the pattern with.
You cut multiple layers at one time.
Once that's done, you just start stitching pieces together.
This is what you end up with.
Kinda crazy I know, but once it's squared up...
...you have this guy!
:-)
If you noticed above,  there are numbers on each piece. It's really important that you keep organized when stitching these blocks. Those numbers are as crucial as keeping your fabrics stacked correctly.
And when you try to move your mat and trip over your feet, you end up with this mess!
Lets just say, that after a few hours of frustration, I managed to
sort and re-stack everything, so I could continue on!
LOL!!
There's just something about these guys!
These bright and fun fabrics are my hand dyes...
...and, I chose the QAYG method to put it all together.




With so many holidays covered...
you'll likely see these guys around sometime again!
(winky winky)
I'm wrapping this up with a photo of my trash can.
:-)
There's just something about looking into my trash can!

Thanks Carla for another fabulous hop.
You'll want to make sure, you don't miss a day of the fun,
so the schedule is posted below
Monday, September 9th

Tuesday, September 10th

Wednesday, September 11th

Thursday, September 12th


Friday, September 13th

On a completely unrelated note...
Keep in mind, today is 9-11, a day we will always remember.
 Please say a little prayer for those we lost,
 as well the first responders we continue to loose.
I received this pin a week after it happened,
from an FBI agent, I helped at the airport.
It's always held a very special place in my heart,
as I was working while it was happening that terrible day.
It's feels strange to say...
this is the first time since the 9-11, that I am no longer an airline employee.

til next time...
Keep on Stitchin'