'Tis a peek thru Santa's Workshop Window....

The magic of Santa's workshop! This is such a busy time of year for me, but I love it! Knowing so many customers come to me to have their quilts quilted for loved ones and then those loved ones will be waking up to quilts under their Christmas trees in Idaho just thrills me to my quilting fingertips!

This is a VERY short post - please stay tuned during Thanksgiving Weekend, when I will be 'decorating my blog' for the holidays........

Until then -

BLESSINGS to you and your families on Thanksgiving Day!

Shanda

P.S. Homemade is best!!!!!

~ Antiquing and Fall in Illinois! ~

Fall and Pumpkin Fest is alive and well in Illinois! I recently returned from an 'excursion' with my family, and I can honestly say that family time is always best! From antiquing with the girls, scrapbooking with my favorite cousin, and quilting with the favorite aunt, to family eating, parade watching, and all points in between, WOW, the family in Illinois know how to have a good time! I took a quilt I had been working on to my mother, and she loved it. I finished quilting it just 2 nights before the plane was to take off with me and the quilt in it - nothing like the last minute, huh?


Mother loved it, and I enjoyed making it for her.

While in northern Illinois, we girls took a day trip to Sandwich, Illinois. Small town, but FULL of antique shops. Now I don't get much in the way of antique shops out here in the west, but if you talk to my 'favorite cousin', she literally saw me sprinting across one shop in pursuit of an antique coverlet. I didn't end up buying it, but I was so overwhelmed with the 6 or so I saw that day. My first coverlets ever to lay eyes upon, so it was a ah-ha moment for me. All shapes, sizes, and conditions were they in, but I was googly-eyed at all the treasures in the antique shops we visited that day. Kept looking for firkins, some were 'fake' and others were a little out of my price range; I will keep looking.....

Visited the 'Red Geranium' in Sandwich also, and personally, I am making a prediction here that this shop will be in the Quilt Sampler Magazine in the not too distant future. She had a wonderful shop that had both primitive goods and quilting fabrics. OH, TO DIE FOR!!!!!! Wonderful shop! Highly recommended! Still, I kept looking for firkins.......


Went around the corner and there was another intrigue......

This beauty was 'Two Sisters' and since we had two sisters on the trip, my mother and favorite aunt, they got their photo taken......


Also a destination shopping experience! A cute sign met us on our entry into the store....


Bought a wool blanket here for $15, what a deal, saw a few antique coverlets, but no firkins.

Saturday dawned, and went to a few craft shows, and what would happen to be found?


A FIRKIN!!!!! Finally, wanted to find a firkin, and found my version of one, $7! I think this one is calling out for red paint...... It matches my other one perfectly.

Also went to a quilt/basket shop in Claire, Illinois. I get such a kick out of this shop's name:

She had some reasonably priced wool that I was looking for. And I can't tell you how beautiful the burning bushes were back there, along with all the fall foilage. This tree is 'multi-colored.' How does that happen?

And the crowning point of the trip was the Pumpkin Fest Parade. Time for traditional pictures on mother's buckboard wagon, and check out the 150 pound pumpkin my aunt grew:

The sisters:


And the cousins in attendance this year:


I had a good time with family and now back to my real world. Yesterday was spent in my home, where I feel comfortable and love to be domestic. Laundry, a little bit of cleaning, and in general putzing around the house was the order of the day. I did manage to bake a new recipe of glazed pumpkin pecan bread, and it was yummo!!!!

Time to end. Just like vacations, time goes by so fast. But the memories are what we have to get us through until the next 'excursion' day. I am blessed to have both wonderful family members and memories.

Live Simply ~ Simply Live!

Shanda

~ 'Tis my new laundry soap container and other makeovers.....~

Whoa! it feels so good to have a working computer back - actually it was our external modem that died. I blog on a Mac, so normally I don't have 'issues' - I can really blame it on the modem. And it is SO very blustery and wet here this evening, but oh how I love it!!! Nothing like soup in the crockpot when it is raining and cold outside.....

I have been busy! Have had my laundry soap 'bucket' done for awhile. It is kinda cute sitting on my dryer holding my laundry soap. Who wants to see a Tide box? My laundry room is right off my kitchen, so it gets a lot of foot traffic and I just had an inkling one day to do something about the Tide box that was obstructing my view - have you ever noticed how BRIGHT a Tide box is? It can cause you to loose sleep at night! Ugh - this is definitely more primitive friendly. Bright vs. Bucket - hmmmmmm.....

Also, I have been working on a shelf I bought clear back in mid summer with a 40% coupon from Michaels. It holds my woolens in my sewing room and I love the colors - the shelf is Olde Pewter from Old Century Colors and when you organize by color all that wool - it became very 'hue friendly!' I hardly use any other brand of paint these days. The colonial paint hues are just gorgeous! Anyway, here it is 'Before' - I almost forgot to take a photo and remembered as I started painting it:


And After:


And here it is in my messy (can you say "Christmas Projects") sewing room:

I am hooking a rug that is a Maggie Bononomi design, and will be looking for a few more green and blue wools. This room probably looks a little familiar from one of my posts clear back in 'March..ish'. It became my sewing room and yep, gets quite a bit of use. My kids are getting older, sad to say, so when Friday and Saturday nights come around and Sarah, my daughter, is either working at the pizza parlor or out with friends, you can find me in here. Our son David is on a two year LDS mission, so he is not living at home at the present. I have always made it my policy to wait up for my kids to come home from a late night out, and it is easier if I am working on a fun project. An added plus is that my kids know I am waiting for them, so they know not to be late! So needless to say, this is my 'hang out joint.'

Makeovers I still need to paint, including 8 wooden bowls that are next in line for a makeover - meet the laundry/makeover room:


So much to paint and so little time. No more thrift store shopping for me until I get this pile under control!!!!!

Do you ever have something you put out on the horizon so you have something to look forward to? It could be a shopping trip, or a day with the girls, or maybe you really look forward to a day trip with your husband. Once a month I drive to Kuna, Idaho and quilt from 6 until midnight with some very fun ladies:


I so look forward to my quilting nights. There is food, giggles, and things accomplished that I can't get done at home. I am also planning a trip to Sycamore, Illinois next week for Pumpkin Fest and quality family time with relatives. I will have a special post on that later. We all need to create our 'escapes'. Promise yourself one, even if it is to the bathtub for a really quiet, hot soak in the tub! In this economy, SIMPLE PLEASURES RULE!!!!

Last but certainly not the least, look at these beautiful quilt blocks my favorite aunt found for me at a garage sale this summer! Aren't they the best? Don't know how I am going to finish these yet, but there are 13 of them:

I can hardly wait to start in on these beauties after the holidays. I can see them appliqued on some really tea stained muslin or darker tan fabric, or even on a simple shirting. Can't quite decide yet. I need time to let this decision stew in my mind.

That's all for now ladies. Hope all is well in your neighborhood and you can see the blessings in your life. It is time to hunker down for the Fall and Winter - all kinds of projects await!

Wishes for a blessed day!

Shanda

~ 'Tis the ABC's of the Harvest Season!!!!~

I know I have been gone for such a long time! My computer has been down and it seems kinda touchy right now, but thought I would try to make a post. Sorry, no photos this time - can't 'upload' anything. But my favorite time of the year is here, from now until late Februaryish. I love Fall and Winter!!!

A is for Apples, those wonderful crisp signs of the harvest season.

B is for Bounty, something we all have in daily blessings. There is ALWAYS something to be thankful for! B is also for BITTERSWEET, something I can't get out here in the Pacific Northwest!

C is for Crows, Candles, and Cornstalks, the perfect decor for Fall.

D is for Days that grow shorter and shorter........

E is for Evenings, spend them with the ones you love!

F is for Firkins, those wonderful things I am in search for (that are reasonably priced!)

G is for Gathering, may nothing go to waste.

H is for a Harvest Moon, such a sight to be seen!

I is for Indian Corn, displaying beautiful fall colors.

J is for Jam, preferably my Aunt Lynn's homemade black raspberry.......

K is for Kandy Korn - nothing but sugar!

L is for Lights - one fetish I have, lots of primitive lighting!
M is for Maple Trees, someday I will get to New England in the Fall!

N is for Nutmeg - it can be used in all our Fall baking.

O is for Overhead Flying Geese - I love the sounds they make!

P is for Pumpkins, in decorating, food, and seeing in the roadside stands.

Q is for QUILTS, of course!!!!

R is for Redware, a wonderful choice to also use in Fall decorating.

S is for Simplify.

T is for Thanksgiving, may we never forget to give thanks!

U is for my Upcoming Trip to Sycamore, Illinois and PUMPKIN FEST!!!!

V is for Very good homemade soup.......

W is for Wool Sweaters, aaahhhh, pure comfort.

X is for X (Cross) Stitching, the perfect Fall hand project!

Y is for Yarrow, a great dried flower.

Z is for Boo at the Zoo, an annual event my kids looked forward to in their childhood.


That is all for now - hope this will post before the computer gives way....... photos and makeovers next time! Thanks for spending some time with me. Until next meeting....

Harvest Blessings,

Shanda