...........................................................

...........................................................
Blessed by everyday blessings

these are a few of my favorite things

~smiling faces~

~hugs and kisses from grandchildren
and hearing the name Nanny from far away places~

~mostly old sometimes new~

~quilts with love stitched through and through

~Babies and butterflys and all things created~

~To know you are loved makes life sweet with grace traces ~























recipes

Tuesday, November 22, 2016

Log cabin lovely.... love made me do it : )



I love old fashioned quilt blocks. I fell in love with the log cabin block a few years ago after making some little 6" blocks HERE and have been wanting to make a whole quilt using the block since. Wow that was 4 years ago!  Wish no more...  I'm happy to say I have done just that!    Though I love small 6'' blocks my reaction to this quilt is ....  Big time log cabin Love. These blocks are 14"!


Recently I decided that I am going to try and put something old in every quilt I make. Something about that makes my heart happy.  So this quilt includes a thrifted shirt.  Love recycled!



This quilt was inspired by and will be used by my granddaughters.  Lots of girly things here.... Pink and more pink, polk-a-dots, gingham and because once upon a summer day while sitting in a tree, my granddaughter told me her favorite flower was the rose....  I added some roses.   Love me some Tanya Whelan roses.




You can find the free pattern link here.   Apple Bloom Quilt.   http://www.tildasworld.com/blog/

With a little bit of chain sewing it goes together really quickly.

Allow me to overload you with photos. : ) while you Sing along with me......



I Love you, a bushel and a peck,







a bushel and a peck


and a hug around your neck





a hug around your neck,


a barrel and a heap,


a barrel and a heap,



and I'm talking in my sleep




(Click any picture to enlarge)


about you ! 






Doodle de do ! 

Little by little make a list.  I told myself to just "cut the fabrics"... One step girlfriends, before that it was "finalize the fabrics" ... Putting "Make a quilt" on the list looks too daunting. 
break it down into little steps now I have a quilt!
It took me 2 weeks to make 16 blocks.... not 2 years! 
Though actually finishing it might be a different story.  That is where I struggle.
But I'm going to keep the pedal to the middle and commit to finish this soon.  
My little peeps are growing up tooooo quickly.  


I wouldn't call myself a sewing whiz quite yet because the life of projects in my sewing room seem to linger for far too long before finishing, but Making a " Month list" of  6-7 things (5-6 things is probably more realistic)  to work on in my sewing room rather than a daily to do list has seen some encouraging progress over the last 2 months. If I finish ONE thing a month and move a few things forward I will be over the moon happy! And I am allowing myself to work on one new thing each month.... even though I have plenty of guilty old projects lurking trying their best to steal my joy and make me feel bad like I have a ball and chain around my neck. Some say I have to finish those before I can start something new. I say HOG WASH.  Creative expression needs room for new ideas!  Yes I am still working on being a better finisher but there is a fine line of motivating factors that either keeps me stuck or moving forward. This quilt was my October "New" project and the flimsy was finished rather quickly.  Giving myself a WHOOP WHOOP for that fact.

So What are YOU waiting for.... Sew something today! You can find lots of free patterns on line.

Homemade makes the world Happy!

If you need a pumpkin pie recipe for your Thanksgiving festivities we'll be eating this!  http://thegirlfriendgap.blogspot.com/2015/11/considering-all-things-pumpkin-lets-be.html

BYE- BYE  Pumpkin Pie  :  )

 Janita




















Friday, October 7, 2016

A little pumpkin YUM YUM.


If there ever was a pumpkin heaven..... I'd want to go there!

Just can't get enough PUMPKINS.



I'm trying to savor each season but
Life is still clicking along lickity-split here.  

I spent many days of summer with my little pumpkin peeps.
They bring JOY to my days.


so THANKFUL to be present in their lives weekly.



We had many chats... her in the tree me in my lawn chair...


talking about favorite things and playing Would You Rather... 



 This little bug in a rug is now 8 mos. and crawling. 


Outside is our favorite place to be.






We have created memories ... pretended we were pioneer women.
making do with what we have. 


 We didn't plan to do this we just did it !
Now fire baked and ready to eat !  
 Finding out an oven is a blessing : ) 
It would have been so much easier to bake it.



Life at home .... is where I want to be. 


Here and there I've cozied up the nest taking trash .....


..... turning it into TREASURE !


I've wished I had a barn.... 


I've thought about the past 


Lived in the present.... 


 Not knowing really where to start,
  I decided one day to just take the first step 
to make this flea market treasure into something.....
this has been patiently waiting for sometime in my sewing room.
Years upon Years actually.

Each day I'm learning that in life...
one step leads to the next, be patient, take it step by step.
Hurrying only leads to worrying.  It all works out in the end.
Everything is falling into place.


Once I got the front figured out
 the back of a thrifted shirt became the perfect back.
In one day it all came together beautifully
because it was the right time!! 
I love Adding JOY to the world in little ways.
When it all comes together.... you can't believe how
Homemade makes me giddy with excitement !!


Life seems to go round and round but much stays the same. 

If you want life to be different you have to do things differently.


I have been wanting
 to make this little wall hanging for a long time.
I don't know why it took me so long ....
 just could never find the time.
but last month I decided to do life a little differently.
I made time.... 

And it finally happened!!!
A little happy birthday present to me! 

Pattern " Be Thankful"  Pam Puyleart
Backdoor Quilt series 

It is not a fancy life but it is a good life 
And for that I am THANKFUL !!

Hope your fall days are filled with pumpkins !!

Janita










Saturday, May 7, 2016

Mama Said Sew




Some things  amaze me....  one of those things is how quickly weeks and months fly by.    Goodness!

Life has been busy....  It is a steady rhythm everyday of things that need to be done.   I have been working.... taking care of grandchildren...  enjoying grandchildren growing up... Dance recitals, ball games...  and in-between trying to focus on matters of the home front that have been neglected for a while.  I have a new strategy for life this year.... Instead choosing one word I have chosen three...

LIVE WITH LESS.    Less Mess... Less things that don't bring joy to my life....  Less things to manage.... Less projects undone.... Less unhealthy food... Less extra weight....You get the idea.

I have parted ways with a few things.... HURRAY!

I have rearranged my dinning room so we can all fit around the table without feeling like sardines....JOY, JOY, JOY.   Everyone is coming for supper on Mother's day.... can't wait to try it out.

I have lost some extra weight....Now that is a Great big Hurray!  I went on a green smoothie cleanse for one week with my daughter....  Interesting.....  But so good for me.  
And can I just say that eating Pink Grapefruit like you would eat an orange has done me  so much good.  I have been eating them since January and I think that is what finally helped me get off the weight plateau that I have been at for years. I have been doing more walking because of work.... but rest assured sweating workouts have not been a part of my days.  Go figure.  So thankful since I hate to workout.  

On the home front I have divided the house up so that each day of the week has a certain room to focus on.  So what ever day it is,  that room gets a little extra attention to clear the clutter or focus on a project for that room.  Then I spend a hour or two focusing on that room's task.   I wouldn't give myself an A+ for effort (hard to teach an old dog new tricks)  as I haven't followed through everyday but I can say it has made me a little more accountable and a little more intentional with my days.  We'll see how much progress I make through the year.  I've been known to start with a lot of gusto and then fizzle soon after.  I love clean but I hate to clean.  Anybody get that???

So that's my itty bitty life story....  now here is what I have been working on in the sewing room.


My "Mama Said Sew" quilt.  Fabric designed by Sweetwater.
Made using a layer cake plus a little extra yardage.
 Started in 2014.....  It is time to finish!
Ideas for this quilt began here.


Fun quilt blocks in each corner...
Churn dash block .... Favorite 


I have been pondering what this block needs.
 I don't know that it has a name. I just made it up.


I can be so indecisive at times...
Finally took the plunge and decided
to appliqué a heart in the center of this block
reflecting my love for gingham. 



Broken dishes or pinwheels.... Love


Flying dutchman ... or Dutchman's Puzzle ???
Always wish I were a little more Dutch in the month of May.



I made some pieced stars using leftover HSTs from the front corner blocks.





  These stars with be part of the backing.


Using the selvage  edge  : ) brings JOY! 

And that my friends is the End of my story....
Well besides a lot of dreaming about all the quilts I want to make someday...

Busy or not I must always squeeze in a little sewing time.
I had hoped to finish this quilt in April.
Sad that it is still not finished but
Finding Joy in Moving it Forward...  


 Less Guilt...More Joy in the Journey.

May your May days be Happy days. 

Janita






 






Sunday, March 20, 2016

Strings and things



Got fabric???
Waste not want not they say. 
It is so hard to throw fabric away.
My quilt guild receives an abundance
of unwanted fabric. 

And it multiplies in the night!

This was my challenge.
Using one bag of unlovely scraps...
 could I make something lovely???

After inspiration here http://sotakhandmade.blogspot.com
 I began to sew......

Grab a strip out of the bag...Don't think about it too much,
  just sew it onto another piece.

Keep sewing randomly until you have a block of fabric
Square it up to the size you want ... Mine are 12 1/2''
Keep sewing !!!  Learn as you go what you like.

Don't be afraid to experiment.


Perhaps it is not as lovely as the inspiration
 maybe even bit more quirky than lovely 
but it is what it is and
it is now a finished top!

Somebody will find it cozy. 



I would take it on a picnic : )  

Every handmade thing has love sewn into it
whether you like the fabric or not. 



It  makes me happy in an unusual way.
I have made something useful out of nothing.
I looks like a grandma quilt.... I am a grandma.
Perhaps it is the Stripes around the edge adding calm to the chaos.
Perhaps I'm happy because it is simply finished! 


Several of the blocks have little bears as the center.

So I will call this my "Sending you a Bear Hug"  quilt.

It will be a Charity quilt given to someone who needs a hug. 

If quilts could talk each piece of fabric would tell me 
about the person who once loved the fabric enough to buy it.



The best part of the creative process was making these little houses.
 I left the light on in the attic of one little house
 because that is where I sew : )  


This will be the label on the back.

This is not a precise process.... proving anyone ,
YES anyone
 can sew 2 pieces of fabric together

 and MAKE A QUILT!!!

Make it happen.   

Fabric makes me happy!

TaTa

Janita








Tuesday, March 1, 2016

2015 Little by Little - Bit by Bit MAKE A LIST

Somethings are quick, somethings are slow..... The years are quick to pass... I am slow to grow.   I have not been a good finisher in the past.  My journey to become a better finisher began last year.  You can read more about it here.  Change starts with the way you think so  I thought maybe making a list would help me.

January 2015 my list making was off to a great start!  I made a list for the month of 8 things I could  work on during the month.  These are Baby step things mind you.  Steps to move a project forward to a finish.   I didn't cross off everything on my list, matter of fact I  only tackled 3 things.  I am SLOW.... it's one of the reasons I don't do lists, but not discouraged I just moved on,  rearranged the contents and made a February list.   I worked on a few more things .  March came.... New list and surprise, surprise,  it was the last list I made for the year : (  .   I can't tell you exactly why I didn't make any more lists for the year.  Maybe because I still had things on the old lists to work on. Perhaps more than anything  I think life just kicked into overdrive. Spring and summer came with less time to sew and work on desired projects.... regardless once again I am  a list maker drop out.   However despite every effort to join the rank of list makers I did finish 15 things last year so I'm giving myself a little WHOOOP- WHOOP!  Most of these things were not even on my list because that is how life rolls. Life's little interruptions often call.  I  do wonder what my children will do when I die.  They won't have anyone to fix their things. I am their fixer upper.  I can't blame them completely, I am so easily side tracked !!  It is a wonder that I finish anything.  Now if I could just finish a few quilts this year... I'll be singing Dixie!  I do find a list of Finished projects brings me much joy because sometimes I forget so easily what the year holds.  Often I feel like I'm stringing beads on a string with no knot at the end.

It is good to remember the times I brought JOY to the world!

So here we go.  Drum Roll Please...........  MY FINISHED PROJECTS of 2015

                                 # 1   A little trash to treasure project .


 Spray Paint wonder with a denim star added.





#2 Long over due Christmas present for Daughter #1



#3  Long over due Christmas wall hanging for Daughter #3
same pattern different border.
Actually.........
I have to put the binding on yet but since I want it to be finished...
I'm calling it finished.  
I know that is probably cheating but it is what it is.
I'm not putting this project on one more list.

My little grand daughter Vivian was in the hospital last week, 
life took an unexpected twist.
A lot didn't get done last week.


#4  Sewing project with my grand daughter.




#5  Mini quilt sew along with Pam Buda 

My little 10" "Tucker"
You can find more quilts in the sew along here
Sew- Along details here

Enjoyed it in my Christmas decorating.



#6   Cross stitch Pillow finally finished!!!


LOVE the Pillow back from a thrifted shirt!


#8 Armed Services flag for a Birthday Swap




#9 Stitched a towel for a Birthday swap
Free stitchery pattern by Kathy Schmitz here 
"Americana Tea Towel" 




#10 Finished 2 pincushions  
One for Birthday Swap
One for me.
Pam Buda's Tutorial here



#11Thrilled with another trash to treasure 

Painted Amperstand on an old basket lid.



#12   More sewing with my grand daughter
We made a pillow with fabric strings for her mom. 



# 13 put a new zipper on a loved back pack for my grand daughter

 #14  Made a new curtain for my kitchen


#15  Fixed a blouse for my Daughter. 

#16 Bonus    Made a one block Star candle mat for a loved friend. 

YEAH ME!!!! 
and now it is March.... YIKES  
My how time flies!


Janita






AddThis

Share |
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...