Hugs and Kisses

The idea for this quilt came thanks to Kim of Bitty Bits and Pieces. She recently shared her own design for a Valentine’s Day table topper. I really liked it but was also thinking about a soft pink and white baby quilt for my new little “on-the-way” granddaughter. Put the two together and you have a sweet little “Hugs and Kisses” baby quilt.

Rest and Relaxation

Last night I finished February’s Christmas stitchery that was beautifully designed by Gail of Gail Pan Designs.

And I have January’s stitchery for Cheryl’s "Veranda View" completed. I'm pretty sure I will have this months’s stitchery with the cute little blue bird all done tonight.

They've been a relaxing way to spend some my evenings.

Many thanks to Lynette

All done! Thank you Lynette. This was great fun!!

Little birds in a basket

My second basket for Bunny Hill Design's BOM is finished. I like the pretty little birds and enjoyed putting it all together. Thanks Anne, I'm looking forward to March to see what is in the basket next.

A Tale of Two Quilts

Last night I took some scraps from a baby quilt I'm making for my daughter and turned them into this little mini quilt. It was a fun thing to do. I was happy with how my corners matched and it will look so pretty and cheerful on my wall with the other miniature quilts when it is finished.

Then this morning as I crawled out of bed, I took a second to look at the quilt I was laying under. I made it many years ago from leftover scraps from my projects and other people's projects. Not of the finest fabrics either, but I had fun working on it. And my mother and her friends got together and hand quilted it for me. I love to study this quilt while it's keeping me cozy. It has had a lot of use. Last year I went through chemo and spent quite a bit of time with that quilt and it was a big comfort.

I notice that quite a few of the points and corners don't match up at all. Some not even close. I chuckle and wonder what I was thinking when I made it, but I know I was having a good time putting it all together and proud of it. I love that quilt. I think I am like that quilt, imperfect and made up of bits and pieces of others and their works, not bright and sparkly but hopefully a comfortable kind of person.


Maybe someday, with time and practice, I can be like the more polished and bright little quilt with better matched corners.

Amost finished

It is a good thing and a bad thing. I'm almost finished with Lynette's Noah's Ark quilt. I'm excited to be getting the last block any day now. But that also means it is soon going to be over and it has been such a fun project. I have looked forward to stitching these cute little guys every month this past year.

Beautiful Bird = Beautiful Day

I just had to show everyone this awesome crane that came in the mail for me today from Heidi. It's from her giveaway last week. I knew the origami bird was beautiful when I saw its picture but it is even more so in real life, up close. So nicely made. And she added this little wooden mushroom to the package. Isn't it just the sweetest thing?

Thank you tons Heidi. You brightened my day....and my sewing room. Its going to be hanging by my sewing machine...near the air vent where I can enjoy it moving gently from the draft.

I learned something new today

I like to crochet but haven’t done much of that lately. I used to make lots of booties to give away. Baby stuff is always fun to make. I crocheted around receiving blankets and burp cloths but always had to buy the fabric pre-hemstitched, which is more expensive. Several years ago when I bought a new Bernina, I was told that it could hemstitch. I was excited about that and kept it in mind but up till today, never tried it out. It works great! I then settled in my comfortable chair and quickly crocheted two burp cloths this evening. And I wondered what took me so long to get around to this.

Sweet little apron

Isn't this sweet? It's a very tiny apron, just 17 inches from shoulder to hem.


The other day I was thinking about all the cute aprons and apron patterns out there now, when I all of a sudden remembered a little apron I had stashed away somewhere. I climbed up into our attic space and there I found it tucked in the bottom of a box. I brought it down and while I was ironing it, I got to looking at the stitches and knew someone had handmade it. I wrote to my mom for the story and she told me that my grandmother made it for me when I was just a tiny tot. My grandmother was a very talented seamstress.

Now this apron is hanging in my sewing room for a while so that I can enjoy it. I love the simple fabric. I wonder if I am old enough to have worn vintage fabric??

My daughters never wore it when they were little. (I don’t know why I didn’t think about it) My grandmother was special to me. I want to preserve this apron now, so I think I will study it and see if I can make a duplicate for my little “on the way” granddaughter someday. One for her very own that she can stash in a box in her attic and maybe someday think about me.

Birthday jelly bags

Thanks to Terri, I have been busy. It was her birthday but I got a present. I won day four of her birthday celebration giveaway, an awesome package of beautiful fabrics and a pattern for jelly bags. When they arrived, and after I was through drooling over the fabrics, I went right to work on making jelly bags. I made all five sizes. They are designed to be used with jelly roll strips but they also were ideal for using up some of my scraps. They were so fun to make, quick and simple. Thank you, Terri. I am saving the fabric for something special. I am now on the lookout for that just right project.

Hugs for Nanette

I appreciate Nanette sharing the pattern for these potholders with us all. She comes up with such creative and fun ideas.

We are going to be painting our kitchen in February so I'll be trading my needle and thread for a paint brush. But it will be so nice to have it done. I'm saving my new potholders for the fresh new kitchen.

Building a snowman

There's a new BOM quilt designed by Anne over at Bunny Hill Designs. The theme is "baskets". I just finished January's block this evening. This cute little project fits right in with what's going on outside. We are in the middle of a snow storm. While it's freezing outdoors, I have been building my snowman indoors where it is warm and cozy. And he won't even melt.