Monday, April 27, 2009

Sweet Treat Bag


This is a pattern that Hazel found on the internet and made. I liked it and decided it would make a great cosmetic bag. It's a free pattern from Moda:


They say to use honeybuns (1 1/2" strips) but I just cut 1 1/2" strips myself for this project cause it didn't take many. I had this button a friend gave me awhile ago that's kinda cute. The fabric was from a kit I bought about 5 years ago and changed my mind about making. It's Paris Flea Market fabric. I'm really please with the way it turned out.


Sometimes It's Destined To Be a UFO

I finally got through to myself tonight. I'm doing the Bunny Hill Designs quilt "Strawberry Hills" with an applique group at my local LQS. I kept thinking I didn't have the time to work on it. Then I thought I wanted to do needleturn and it looked stupid. Tonight I finally admitted to myself that I'm really not interested in it and that's why it's giving me so many problems. Hopefully I'll get back to it later, it will stay in my UFO pile, but it's very freeing to be able to say enough is enough and put it down. There are so many other projects I want to work on. I'm making my daughter a double wedding ring quilt. No way will it be done by the end of May, but I'm enjoying doing it and that makes all the difference in the world. I have a few other projects that I want to work on as well.

I have problems with anxiety and panic attacks. I decided I'm not going to be nervous through this wedding in Vegas and my vacation back to Ottawa. I haven't been away from home since 1998 because of them. So far so good. But I do need something for myself, like quilting, that will help me stay relaxed. I've been able to go into town for her dress fitting, go shopping in a large mall for an outfit for myself and today to her shower with no problems at all.

I started to make a simple little bag yesterday. I didn't get to finish it today because I was at my daughter's wedding shower but hopefully by tomorrow evening I will have something to post.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

It's All About the Shoes

Those of you who know me know my daughter is getting married in Vegas on May 30.

Yesterday afternoon, during rush hour, my daughter and I headed into downtown Vancouver for a wedding dress fitting. I do go into Vancouver once a year to the Kidney Clinic (whole other story) but not to the area she was going to. With the crime spree going on here I was a bit unsure but she assured me on the way down that this wasn't an area where the gangs hang out.

Yesterday morning a huge box had arrived here addressed to her. I knew it was coming. It's shoes for her fiance's birthday on May 13. But this box was way to big for one pair of shoes. She was SO excited when she saw it. She said "Oh, I can wear my shoes when they do the hem on the dress!" Huh? This box was from Baggins on Vancouver Island. They sell wedding type shoes? Well, for her they do. She pulled them out to show us:




I LOVE it! They're very "her". Then she pulled out his and they are the same shoe in a dark forest green. He'll be wearing those with his tux.

I had planned to be wearing my bicycle helmet when she arrived. She hates it when I do that. But she got here 1/2 hour earlier than I expected. It's just that she drives so fast! She said since there were two of us we could go in the car pool lane and besides she's getting really good at weaving in and out of traffic... wonderful.

Her appointment was for 6:30. We arrived at 10 to 6. Now I have to admit the traffic was light but if I was driving it would have been about 1/2 hour later even in light traffic. Anyone who could had left work early cause the Canucks were playing and the game started on TV at 5 (they were in St. Louis). Not a hockey fan but we had to listen to the game on the radio cause she is. I guess it's better than her idea of music *LOL*

She told me this area of Vancouver is more of a hippie area. Ohhh... I can do hippie, being a teen of the 1960's that makes sense. I felt very safe. The graffitti on the walls were paintings of flowers and an artists rendition of John Lennon's Imagine. Not real threatening. So we walked around. There was an antique shop I was dying to go into but she just kept walking. I guess when you consider your mom an antique you've pretty well seen it all. Did I tell you she wanted to put a sign around my neck and park me at the local antique sale one summer? *LOL*

We went for a walk around. Gorgeous old houses down there. What I wouldn't give to be able to live in one of those! And a really nice park where you wouldn't expect to find one. Land down there is an extravagant price. Nice to see that the city wants to provide green space.

Her fitting was okay. I wanted to take pictures of it but there's a big sign saying no photos allowed *sigh* I was going to snap one anyway but I was afraid I'd get caught.

I survived the drive home too, although by then there was hardly any traffic at all. Everyone was watching the game, including husband and son when I walked in the house. Son has been watching the games on his own TV and the Canucks won. This is the first one he's watched upstairs with his dad and the game was a tie. He was getting antsy cause he said when he watched them alone the Canucks won easily. Now he was watching it with his dad and they were in overtime with a 2-2 tie. In other words "Dad, you're cursed." *LOL* Our children are so kind to us.Canucks did win so they are in the finals which pleased son no end. I can't bring out the Canucks flag that I have though cause I bought one a few years ago and when they lost son was going to take it out in the yard and burn it. I hid it in the back of my closet where he can't find it.


Saturday, April 11, 2009

Easter and Spring Blocks




I joined a block swap on my old blog site. We are to each make a Spring and an Easter 1.25" block to trade with each other.

I finished the easter one a couple of weeks ago. I found a line drawing I liked and just turned it into an applique... that's all applique patterns are anyway.

I finally finished my Spring one last night. I like it. It reminds me of the first quilt I ever made back in 1970. Of course I didn't consider myself a quilter back then, I just wanted the quilt and the only way to get it was to make it. I sewed in general a lot back then, made all my own clothes, etc.

I'm teaching myself to needleturn applique and the practise has really helped. Now if I could just learn to take a non-blurry picture I'd be all set.


Thursday, April 9, 2009

About Needles

Look at what I did!! I'm all Springy looking :0)

I was in my LQS yesterday and the owner was all excited cause the new edition of Austrailian Homespun had arrived. So I got all excited too and started looking through it and there was neat stuff so I bought it. Then I got home and realized what I really was waiting for was Country Threads. *LOL* I'm so silly. But now I've looked at it and I love this magazine.

There are all kinds of pattern instructions included. One that caught my eye was for making pincushions and needlebooks. Ya, I know I have enough pincushions, but I just love them decoratively and these are so bright and so cute and made with wool!

So I start reading the article that goes along with this pattern and WOW.. food for thought! A woman came to our guild one night and was telling us how important it is to change our needle after each project. Well, yes, she did happen to sell needles and brought her store with her *LOL* She's probably right anyway, but when you're brought up as fugally as I was it's a hard rule to follow. Even though sewing machine needles don't cost that much, why waste?

I've never really thought about what pins and needles meant to our foremothers. They had to be made individually. The end of wires were ground to a fine point and then they had to either create eyes for needles or coil the top to make pins. They were an expensive investment and most women had only a few pins and one or two needles. They were considered a luxury. On top of that they had a habit of rusting.

Many women made special boxes for their pins and needles to be stored in. Some made needlebooks and decorated them. That's what this article and patterns are all about.

I get all excited when I see antique quilts.... now to think that these women were not only talented but had to work with limited resources... WOW.. again.

Friday, April 3, 2009

Yes I'm here

Hi everyone.

Shirley