This Little Piggy Floated Down the River...

I would have said that I didn't want any pigs in my quilt. Then I saw this guy drifting on his inner tube. I've got  childhood memories filled with sun-baked black rubber inner tubes and cool river water...

Well, that and he looked way faster to stitch than the squirrels.

Sixty-Three Bottles of Polish!

I was so excited to get my nail polish blocks sashed and assembled into a top so that I could show them off to you this morning. And see for myself what this quilt is going to look like, since I haven't laid them all out together yet. 

Bright and early, before we had to leave for our weekly classes and errands, I was sewing on sashing. And this is as far as I got because just as we finished our errands, I started to think I might be coming down with something. 

For most of the weekend, I was keeping track of four fevers, including my own. It didn't seem like a good idea to let my fingers anywhere near a fast moving needle. I think I'm more concerned about the quilt than myself, but whatever logic keeps us both safe works for me.

As a reminder, here's what I had last week. I've added another seventeen bottles, most of them not red or pink, because my daughter thinks there's too much red already and it is supposed to be  for her.

Looks like there's just enough of the light grey background fabric to make this work. How perfect is that? 

This post is linked to Patchwork Times. 

Country Girl Modern

It seems like every time I see what Jo and Kelli from Jo's Country Junction are working on, I want to abandon my own projects and get started on one for myself.  I raided the brown and red scraps from my other projects last December to make Chocolate Covered Cherries. 

And I love her Sunbonnet Sue Dish Towel, especially after doing it in blacks and tweaking the hat a bit to make her a witch. 

Now they've got a book out and I'm waiting on pins and needles for the USPS to deliver my copy. 

Puddle Duck is my absolute favorite...

Followed very, very closely by May Flowers.

You can see all of the quilts in the book and order an autographed copy directly from Jo and Kelli by clicking here.

All this week, Jo and Kelli are having a blog hop, giving away a copy of the book at each stop. To enter mine, just leave a comment on this post.

Edited to add -- my winner is Sharon from Vroomans' Quilts who wrote:

Vroomans' Quilts said...

I just love all the quilts in this book and have been a long time follower of Jo's - so happy for her in her publication.

March 7th Country Threads
March 8th Michelle's Romantic Tangle
March 9th Quiltville
March 10th Patchwork Times
March 11th Quilt Hollow
March 12th Moda's Cutting Table
March 12th Confessions of a Fabric Addict
March 13th Julie K Quilts
March 14th Sweet P Quilting and Creations

Let's Make Baby Quilts! {3/6/15}

Let's Make Baby Quilts Linky Party Rules: 
Link directly to your post or specific Flickr photo. Your post can be about a baby quilt that's finished, or in progress, or you can be writing about what you have planned,  as long as it's about baby quilts. You're welcome to link to baby quilt posts that aren't brand new, but please don't submit the same post or picture more than once. I'd love it if you linked back to my site, either with a text link or the Let's Make Baby Quilts! button.

Can anyone tell me what this is?

It was in with Grandma's jewelry and my first thought was "lipstick holder" but it's way too wide for one tube and way too skinny for more than one.

So what does that leave? It's only an inch deep, which rules out holding most things I can think of. It's monogrammed, and her initials are unusual enough that I'm sure it was originally hers.

This post is linked to Thrifter Share, Ivy & Elephants, Knick of Time, Thriftasaurus,

{Yarn Along} Just a Little Bit of Texture

The sock knitting continues. I wanted something just a bit more interesting than my plain stockinette socks, something that I could still keep track of while spending time with the family.

Double Garter Rib is just what I needed. The first round is k2, p2, then the second round is knit. The look is a little bland, but it keeps my fingers happy and this yarn is pretty enough on its own.



After a blind date ends in public embarrassment, an acquaintance from her school days come to Jo's rescue. Claudio hadn't interested her at all when they were teens, but now she thinks she might feel differently about him. After a few dates, she realizes that there's still no chemistry and makes the decision to tactfully let him know.... then she wakes up chained to her bed, his prisoner. He's planned it all out carefully, making sure that no one will miss her for more than a week. If Jo isn't in love with him by then, he will kill her.

The Venus Trap kept me turning pages. As Claudio forces  Jo to read him diary entries she wrote as a teenager, the story of her life unfolds. Jo is a likable heroine in an awful situation, determined to free herself before Claudio's deadline.

For more pretty knitting projects to drool over, check out On the Needles at Patchwork Times.


Disclosure - The publishers provided me with a review copy. 

Squirrels!

It's no wonder I keep buying more hot iron transfers. As soon as I saw these in Walmart,  I knew I needed squirrels in my quilt.  They're cute. And they fit in with the whole romantic cute-couples thing I've got going...

But they take forever to stitch. I spent a couple of hours just doing those leaves...

At some point, I think it would be fun to do all of the different images from this one in a little wall quilt. Even if that does mean a lot more leaves to stitch.

Still Not Enough Nail Polish Bottles

When I first started quilting, nine blocks for a little wall quilt seemed like a lot. I never ever added more blocks, or made the pieces smaller. Since then, I've obviously lost my mind. 

The original pattern for this quilt calls for one block. The one I'm following calls for six blocks, made from smaller pieces. So far, I've got forty-six and now I'm aiming for sixty-three. I'm not sure I'd stop there, but by the time I add sashing, it'll be about as big as I can quilt on my Janome.

That's the only thing stopping me  from going even bigger with this one.

This post is linked to Patchwork Times.

Weekly Stash Report

Last week, I replaced the blades in my rotary cutters with brand new ones. I resharpen and resharpen, but I can't find the little blue sharpener and it's been a long time since I bought brand new blades, because those just aren't a fun thing to spend the quilting budget on.

Cutting is suddenly much, much easier.  Now I'm trying to avoid Joanns because I need a bit of solid yardage and some fusible interfacing for a project I've been planning for years. Why couldn't I have decided that I needed those last week?

Or that I needed pieces for a new tote bag?

I have lots and lots of random bits of stuff in my sewing room, but I'm pretty sure I don't have any swivel hooks or D rings. That's a shame, because I'd really love to make this Foldover Tote. It looks like it would be perfect for running errands. Maybe I could do as much as possible without the rings and finish it after my next trip to town? (This kind of reminds me of my hunt for lucite rings so I could make a dumpling bag. I never did find those rings, but I did make three or four of the bags...maybe I've got something around here I can steal swivel hooks from...)

I don't have time for another trip to the store. And, even if I did, the odds are that if I ran out and bought supplies right now, something else would catch my eye before I started either of the projects.

It's slightly more likely that I've got the right colors of felt to make an embroidered felt squirrel jigsaw puzzle.

And I absolutely must, must, must make myself a typewriter quilt when Heidi from Fabric Mutt posts the tutorial. Not sure what fabric I'll use, but something in the sewing room is bound to work.

Weekly Stash Report 

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 2 1/2 yards
Added this Week: 0 yards
Added Year to Date: 34 yards
Net Added for 2015: 31 1/2 yards

Yarn Used this Week:  400 yards
Yarn Used year to Date: 2000 yards
Yarn Added this Week: 0 yards
Yarn Added Year to Date: 0 yards
Net Used for 2015: 2000 yards

This post is linked to Patchwork Times.

Be Braver! -- Durian

Last spring, I posted about how Hubby and the kids and I shop at the local Asian markets and wind up daring each other to try things.  Over the years, we've become steadily more adventurous. 

After last week, though, I'm not sure we have anyplace else to go. (Without getting into scary animals and parts of animals that I don't think are meant to be eaten. I drew that line even before my boys found frog legs at a buffet and tried to convince me that they were good.) 

Hubby called and told me to bring home an interesting fruit we hadn't tried before. So, after consulting with my three boys, I did.  

If you're not familiar with Durian, it's got a nasty reputation for its smell and flavor. The nice young man in the produce department told us that it wasn't nearly as bad as the Food Channel had led us to believe, that it tasted "like banana pudding and garlic powder had a baby."

And no, I can't tell you why bringing one home to try sounded like a good idea. Probably because I knew it was going to happen sooner or later and wanted to get it over with. One of my sons, the one who should definitely be old enough to know not to poke the sharp fruit, was bleeding by the time we got to the checkout line.

It was two days before we worked up the nerve to cut the thing open.

I took my bite before anyone else had a chance to make a face or tell me how awful it was. I think the banana pudding and garlic description came pretty close. Hubby says that it smells and tastes like natural gas. There's a definite touch of sulfur. And the taste lingers in your mouth for a very long time.

Let's Make Baby Quilts! {2/27/15}

I absolutely love this little quilt that Kathy from Kathy's Quilting Blog shared last week. It's so pretty and sparkly -- and that snowy background makes it look even prettier! 

Let's Make Baby Quilts Linky Party Rules: 
Link directly to your post or specific Flickr photo. Your post can be about a baby quilt that's finished, or in progress, or you can be writing about what you have planned,  as long as it's about baby quilts. You're welcome to link to baby quilt posts that aren't brand new, but please don't submit the same post or picture more than once. I'd love it if you linked back to my site, either with a text link or the Let's Make Baby Quilts! button.

Regia Sylt Surf Socks

 I love this yarn, Regia Sylt Surf. The colors are pretty, it's nice to knit with, and I love the way that the stripe are differing widths instead of perfectly uniform.

For more finishes, check out  Finish it Up Friday, Can I get a Whoop Whoop?, and Freedom Fridays.

Very Old Baby Pictures

Remember that baby picture I fell in love with at the antique store? I'm still tempted to go back and see if she's still hanging there above the doorway...and maybe actually look at the price tag this time.

But this one, of my Great Grandma Walter and her twin,  is better because this one is family. Real ancestors always beat instant ancestors brought home from antique stores.

{Yarn Along} Slower Knitting

I haven't been able to carve out much time to work on my owl socks, mainly because I'm having so much fun piecing bottles for the Nail Polish Quilt.  I still love this project, and it'll be here once the quilt is done. 

I have found time for reading. Quit a bit of it, since it's easier to put down a book than stop knitting mid-cable twist.

Through NetGalley, I was given the chance to read an advance look at Those Girls, the upcoming thriller from Chevy Stevens. In an effort to stay safe and together, three teenage sisters plunge out of the frying pan and into the fire and it gets worse from there.Wow! This is the darkest of her books, a brutal roller coaster of a read. If the kids hadn't needed dinner, I would've read it straight through in one sitting.  If you're looking for a dark thriller, I recommend this one. But don't say I didn't warn you.

Skeletal by Katherine Hayton just confused me. Ten years after her death, Daina Harrow's bones are unearthed and the circumstances of her death are revealed through a coroner's inquest, with Daina explaining details for the reader. I enjoyed the read, but even after it was all tied up at the end, I couldn't entirely figure out what was going on.

The Boardwalk Antiques Shop contains stories by Julie Wright, Melanie Jacobson, and Heather B. Moore, all tied together by the antique shop of the title. Every piece in the Boardwalk Antique Shop comes with a detailed history, and the stories of the men and woman who buy them are even better. These three romances left me smiling -- especially the last one, where a couple does battle over a treadle sewing machine that really should belong to the both of them.

For more pretty knitting projects to drool over, check out On the Needles at Patchwork Times.


Disclosure - The publishers provided me with review copies. 

{Kindle Freebie} The Murder Pit

Last spring, I recommended this cozy mystery by Jeff Shelby. Today, I saw that it's being offered as a Kindle freebie, so I'm reposting my original review. I don't know how long that offer is good for, so remember to check the price before you order.

When I decided to read The Murder Pit by Jeff Shelby, it was because the heroine, Daisy Savage, finds a corpse in the coal chute of her hundred-year-old home. Old houses with bodies hidden in the walls, as long as they're the fictional kind, always intrigue me. I didn't realize until I got into the book that Daisy is a homeschooling mom of four. She's not a detective, even if she did do a unit study on forensics with her kids a while back, but she's being snubbed by the members of their local homeschooling co-op because no one wants their kids in her classes. Everyone in town knows that she dated the victim before marrying her husband and most of her neighbors seem to think there was a lot more to that one date and that she must've had something to do with his presence in her house.

Goblin Gardeners

We must not look at goblin men,

We must not buy their fruits:

Who knows upon what soil they fed

Their hungry thirsty roots?

      -- from Goblin Market by Christina Rosetti

This is one of the transfers I found at Knitten Kitten a while back-- it was so old that the ink was no good. I had to trace it, but it's a little goblin (or something) hauling a carrot on his shoulder.

And he came with friends!

Because my girl can never have enough nail polish....

I thought this was going to be a long term project, but once I started cutting prints for the bottles, I kept finding good ones. Without even trying, I had the 48 bottles I needed for my original plan...and there was still fabric I hadn't sorted through.

So the quilt is going to be bigger than originally planned.

This post is linked to Patchwork Times and Needle and Thread Thursday.

I did need that after all!

Last spring, I bought yardage for a specific quilt. I was going to work on that one while Hubby healed from his surgery.  The challenge was going to help distract me from all of the other stuff that was going on.

It was a great plan, until I actually read the pattern. The block construction was tricky and I couldn't work out how to cut pieces for just a trial block. I'm not naming that quilt here, because I still plan to tackle it someday. Lots of other quilters have made it successfully. The pattern wasn't the problem. It was me and the mood I was in.

I regretted that fabric purchase, even though I knew I'd  wind up using it for something else sooner or later. It added to my fabric bought for the year and just bugged me.

Turns out that fabric is exactly what I needed for Teenage Daughter's nail polish quilt. Two different greys, black, white... It's allowing me to make that quilt from stash.

My reaction to fabric and yarn is usually that I can use it for something sooner or later. It sure feels good when that's actually true!

Weekly Stash Report 

Fabric Used this Week: 0 yards
Fabric Used year to Date: 2 1/2 yards
Added this Week: 0 yards
Added Year to Date: 34 yards
Net Added for 2014: 31 1/2 yards

Yarn Used this Week:   0 yards
Yarn Used year to Date: 1600 yards
Yarn Added this Week: 0 yards
Yarn Added Year to Date: 0 yards
Net Used for 2014: 1600 yards

This post is linked to Patchwork Times.

Because I Needed a Ballerina

When I was looking at my Great-Grandma's applique and embroidery sampler quilt last month, a ballerina block caught my eye. I'd never noticed that one before, not after years of snuggling under it as a kid, or when Grandma and I pulled it out three years ago so I could take pictures. 

Her tutu was so delicate and pretty that I decided I needed a ballerina for my Garden Party Quilt. The ones I'd already stumbled across were children, but then I stumbled across this pattern at Average Jane Crafter. She's perfect.  Different from the one on Great-Grandma's quilt, but with all of the details I loved about that one. 

Let's Make Baby Quilts! {2/20/15}

Let's Make Baby Quilts Linky Party Rules: 
Link directly to your post or specific Flickr photo. Your post can be about a baby quilt that's finished, or in progress, or you can be writing about what you have planned,  as long as it's about baby quilts. You're welcome to link to baby quilt posts that aren't brand new, but please don't submit the same post or picture more than once. I'd love it if you linked back to my site, either with a text link or the Let's Make Baby Quilts! button.