Friday Night with Friends

Last night I sewed with some of my virtual friends. We come from all over -- Australia, France, Canada, USA, and more -- and love to check in on each other monthly and last night was just that. Thank you goes to Wendy who sets this up for us each and every month on Sugarlane Designs. Pop on over to meet my amazing friends!

So what did I work on? Earlier in the day I did some secret sewing. Wonder what's going on here ...

In the evening we tuned in to "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas" TV special. I just love Little Cindy Lou Who! The Minions special was a bit disappointing with only one of four minis dealing with Christmas. Then we switched channels to watch Sunday Morning on Friday Night: Pet Project. It was a really fun show all about how we affect pets, their effects on us humans, and many different pet stories. I really couldn't get into some of those folks that had their pets cloned for a mere $50K! Oh well, different strokes, right? So how did I keep my hands busy during TV time?

I finished this little wool cabin by stitching in the trees and "noel".

And then I started this angel. (Sorry about the fuzzy picture.) She needed all the parts whipped down. Then her face was added along with her wing definitions. Just need to add some hair and a halo, followed by some decorative stitching on her gown.

And that, my friends, was my evening. Have a great weekend!

I Like Thursday #15

Thursdays are always a good day to reflect on the many things we like but especially so on Thanksgiving. Please join all of us sharing our "good things" on Not Afraid of Color. I like that LeeAnna has given us a specific day to share these things. Come back every Thursday, not just on Thanksgiving!

Speaking of Thanksgiving, I like to eat! Surprised? Probably not. Haha! This week I tried the recipe that Diann shared on her blog Little Penguin Quilts. They were these Pumpkin Pancakes and I loved them! Big, fat, tasty deliciousness! I made them for my mother, Fred, and me last weekend with thick-cut bacon. Oh my!

I also like beautiful sunrises, especially in the Fall in the Midwest. We can see for miles & miles and the fields may be cut down but they're still golden.

Last Mother's Day, my kids (and yes! that includes my daughter-in-law!) got me a Nixplay photo frame. At first I thought it was the ordinary frame that "played" pictures but it's more than that. It hooks up to my wifi and each of the kids, my hubby, and I downloaded the app. Now we can all send photos directly to this marvelous gift! When other friends & family send pictures, I can also download them to the Nixplay. Recently I got these pictures so I like my Nixplay photo frame!

Happy Thanksgiving, my friends & family. I wish you all good health & full bellies today!

Checking in with Angela

 After going on vacation last weekend, my days are so mixed up! I posted my I Like Thursday post on Wednesday and I've been a mess ever since. Thank goodness I've got my sewing because any AND every day is a great day to sew! Am I right? Hahaha!

I managed one Easy Peasy block.

Mostly I've been doing the quilting using my domestic sewing machine. Snowmen & Churches is coming right along. The main part of the quilt is done. Next up -- the borders! This project counts towards my LQS's UFO Challenge and I also put it on my 2020PHD list so it is on a deadline. Here's a sneak peak.

My embroidered little woolies are coming right along too. I work on these while watching TV in the evening. I started working on the candle last night. They will be cut to finish 4".

Of course since I was on vacation, I started a pair of socks. The pattern is Chequer Socks by Very Busy Monkey. I love her patterns which are all on Ravelry. Anyway, I finished the leg portion and have just finished the heel flap.

As soon as I finish Snowmen & Churches, I'll be back on Tiny Tuesday. I am so close to finishing it and hated putting it away for S&C but the latter took priority at the moment.

Linking up with Angela at So Scrappy with all the other Rainbow Scrap Challengers even though I haven't been RSCing lately. Have a great week and enjoy your Thanksgiving dinner. We do truly have a lot to be thankful for even if this year we have to look a little harder.

I Like Thursday #14

So much to like in my world. I'm sharing some of it with LeeAnna and friends on Not Afraid of Color. Happiness abounds and we're all sharing with anyone who would like to take a peek.

My hubby,  mother, and I just returned from a quick trip to TX to visit my sister & her hubby. She moved from Colorado after 30+ years to Texas about 2 and a half years ago. This was our first trip to see her although she had made a trip up to us in Illinois about 14 months ago. My mother was the driving force to go see her, wanting to see her "baby". Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures ... not even of her cute little dog and ginormous cat!

On our way to Texas, my husband suggested we stop in Pawhuska OK. For those of you that don't know, Pawhuska OK is the home town of Ree Drummond, better known as Pioneer Woman. Mom & I really liked this suggestion!

The Mercantile is the general store with all her wares and food. Mom picked up a gluten-free lemon-blueberry pound cake to share in Texas. Fred picked up a blueberry hand pie with lemon glaze for lunch. We liked it both!

Charlie's is the candy and ice cream shop. It may be hard for you to believe but I didn't succumb to any treats here! I have to say that I liked the suggestion to make a little side here.

On our way out of town, I saw a sign that said "Drummond Home" with an arrow to the right. I like how my husband can whip off a turn when Mom & I get excited! Lol! This home was where Pioneer Woman's husband Ladd grew up, I believe. We took pictures but didn't get out since we'd already spent our free time browsing around Pawhuska.

Besides, Mom & I had already seen the inside of this home one morning on the Pioneer Woman's cooking show. They were showing off the remodeling job that day. Quite the colorful job on the outside, isn't it?

Yesterday morning was Gracie's first walk since we left and wow! was she excited! I walked about 2.5 miles but I think she ran closer to 5! Haha! While out this on the bike trail, we came to "the clearing" and spied this.

Do you see those two deer? Right in front of the field (check out the picture at the top of this post) the farmer has a No Hunting sign posted. I like how the deer are able to read signs during this time of year! Lol! There is a larger deer and a smaller deer. I'm wondering if these are the two that were in my backyard about a week ago. The trail is right behind our subdivision. So maybe?

The morning before we left on our trip, we had a good storm moving in. I like how the last of the sunshine glowed on these yellow trees against the darkening sky.

I love to travel and see sights, family, & friends. Most of all I like returning home to my own bed!

Have a great week and don't forget to stop by Not Afraid of Color to see other posts of gratitude.

1st November RSC Post

 It's November and we need to work on whatever we want. It's a good opportunity to finish current or previous Rainbow Scrap quilts. My blocks are finished for Awesome Land. Here's a reminder of the last set.

While putzing around in my sewing space, I came across the black fabric with micro whit polka dots so I decided to cut a few 2-1/2" squares for the sashing. After cutting 20, I decided Id better check how many I'd officially need. Wouldn't want to cut too many, right? UGH! I need exactly 100! Better get to work on that!

With that determined, I thought I'd better get the yellow Heartfire hexies started. and done! They may not look it but they're pretty big. I think they measure about 8-1/2" from straight side to straight side.

My Twisted Mystery group is now meeting every other week in order to get the 2020 quilt underway. I've decided to go scrappy patriotic. I thought that was appropriate for this year. First step done. Twelve square-in-a-squares done with fussy cut star centers. I freezer paper paper-pieced them. I think they would make a sweet mini at this point!

My little wool applique Christmas blocks are coming along. I finished up the next two blocks.

The Snowman Quilt is progressing. The backing just needs the final sew-together of the pieces and I finished making the binding. I got distracted halfway through the pressing though. I'm hoping to get this quilt sandwiched and pinned this weekend. No pictures yet ...

Of course I started another pair of socks. The pattern is called Chequer Socks by Very Busy Monkey. As you can see I haven't gotten very far. Most of my progress was made watching American Ninja Warriors. Love the competition in that show!

I hope you all have a good week. Enjoy your weekend. We've got wonderful weather here in the Midwest which we know won't last forever. Time to get that Fall yardwork done!

Linking up with So Scrappy!

I Like Thursday #13

I like the changing colors of the leaves in Autumn.

I like looking UP through the leaves to the blue sky. I like to count my blessings when I do this.

I finished reading "Such a Fun Age" You can find my original post on the book here. It was very much a different type of book than I usually read and it was a nice break from "normal". Do I recommend it? Yes. It talks about "racism" from all different angles and I found that thought-provoking. Next on my reading is to finish up "Walk the Wire" by Baldacci. If you recall that was the book the library snatched back before I was finished. Now where was I ....

I like to watch the deer crossing through my backyard in the Fall. The other day there were two, one adult and one juvenile, foraging in my fire pit and on the trees. I didn't get too good of pictures because II didn't want to scare them away. They're so skittish!

Have a good week!

Linking up with others that will be sharing their grateful thoughts on Not Afraid of Color. Hop on over yourself!

November PHD Report

Today I'd like to share my finishes for October. First up was the President's Challenge with my quilt guild. It was due in May, but obviously we didn't meet. Then it was set up for Zoom but due to one reason or another it was postponed from September to October to November. All participants have been asked to send a photo of our finished projects for a PowerPoint presentation at our next guild meeting, November 10th. Because the reveal is in just a few short days, I feel comfortable sharing mine here now.

Here were the rules:

I used every piece of fabric from the swap; I added the striped fabric for the base; my added fabric was the light blue (middle clam on the bottom row); and I initialed and dated my pouch on the off-white stripe on the left (not sure if you can see it but it's there!).

My 2nd finish was this sweet wall hanging. The pattern is by Sherri Falls of This 'n' That. It was the October project for a mini-of-the-month. I saw this pattern at a retreat several years ago and loved it so I ordered the pattern. Then it languished for a while and I finally brought it out at a retreat and made the kitty blocks. Then it languished again. I decided this was the year to finish it up. I gave it to my daughter during last month's visit.

     

One other finish was my needlepoint coin purse. I made one from a kit 10 years ago. Time to make another as the original morning glory one was wearing out. Found a new kit while on vacation in October and actually started & finished the turtle coin purse in the same month!

As for open-ended starts, of course I had a few of those too! I started a Wool Christmas Mini. There are twelve 4" blocks. Simple blocks with embroidery to jazz it up! I finished the wreath and Christmas tree and also made a good start on Rudolph.

       

For my LQS 2020 UFO Challenge, I'll be quilting up my Snowman Quilt which is due December 8th. I marked the quilting design the other night. The project was a kit and the top was completed YEARS AGO at a retreat. Here's a quick pic:

There's a piece of fabric marked binding and another marked backing. This quilt finishes at 71" long and it looks like I have only 4 yards for the backing. That'll only make a 72" long piece. My brains are rolling with this new dilemma. I saved the extra fabric from making the top so I'll just have to start cutting and see what I come up with. Probably get a pieced insert to extent the length.

I also made a re-start on a project offered through my guild. The group, Twisted Mystery, was scheduled to meet once a month but of course that was nixed early this year. Our leader has decided that we will meet every other Saturday on Zoom and work on getting our projects done! I'm a little behind and don't have anything to really show yet but I'll be working on it as diligently as possible.

So my list to work on over the next few weeks?

• Quilt, bind, and label the Snowman Quilt.
• Finish quilting, then bind & label Tiny Tuesday.
• Finish the blocks for the Wool Christmas Mini.
• Catch up on my blocks for Heartfire Hexies.
• Get a start on finishing up Awesome Land.
• Catch up Twisted Mystery quilt which I think I'm naming Election 2020 quilt.

Guess that ought to keep me busy, right?

Linking up with Quilting Gail for the PHD party. Wonder how much progress the others have made!