~A Wee Sampler Finish and Coverlet Finds~

 I picked up my Sampler from the framer today - Love it!  It was worth finishing after 3 years!  Don't know where I am going to hang it yet - my daughter was teasing me and said I would probably take another 3 years to decide :-)!  The red and white coverlet behind the Sampler was a recent find at Heritage Reflections Sidewalk Sale - a very favorite store of mine. 

And I stumbled on an amazing find at JoAnn Fabrics, of all places.  I am not a huge JoAnn fan for fabrics but do get DMC floss, notions, and such there.  But my last trip in I found coverlet fabric!  It is woven like a tapestry/coverlet and had the weight of a coverlet.  The only sad thing was there was only one pattern/color to choose from.  It was 12.99/yd, but with a 50% coupon, made a great deal for a coverlet.  It has a selvage on one side of course, and the other sides I am just going to take a small hem.  Love it!  It would make a perfect lap throw or light weight summer coverup.

Baked potatoes for dinner this evening and going to do some Christmas present stitching as I listen to the debate.  It is a cold, rainy, and leaf blowing afternoon, just the right kind to be cozy in the house and watch the rain fall along with the leaves this afternoon.  I feel the movie John Adams coming on though.  Such a favorite of mine, especially the first two segments up until the signing of the Declaration.  Maybe this weekend.  

Blessings on your Fall Evening!

~Shanda~

My ABC Sampler..........

by Birds of a Feather is finished!!!!!  Ummm, yep.  You see 2009 stitched there.  That is when it was started.  Four years...... WHAHOO!  But working with Weeks Dye Works colors Putty, Onyx, and Caper on 32 count hand-dyed linen - yummy!  It made it all worth it. 

And now, off to the framer I go......... 

HAPPY FALL FRIDAY,  EVERYONE!

Blessing on your day ~ Shanda

~It Just came in the Mail!~

 It was just delivered!  Maggie Bonanomi, rug hooking extraordinaire, recommended I get a Hartman Hook and I am so glad I did!  I ordered it last week and it just arrived!  Now I can finish up some hooked rugs.  I am so very blessed to have a community of great women around me. I admire Maggie's work, talent, and designs!

And I harvested some lavender this morning...



And these colors are for my next unfinished treasure - I know it is gonna rock...... but can't say much other than that 'cause it is a Christmas present. (Shhhhhh....... she reads my blog.)


How is your Fall day going?  Make it a good one!

Blessings ~

Shanda

~Tis a Wee Halloween Finish to Celebrate the Beginning of Fall!~

I have to admit a fault I have.......shhh.  I have MANY unfinished projects.  I know I am the only one of my kind.  No one else starts something and then lets it sit for days, months, even YEARS, on end.  There is not one other person on this planet that has this claim to fame - I have so many unfinished projects, that when I get one old project out, my kids think I started and finished something new!  Anyway, uhmm, this one was started in 2005.  Seven years ago.  Shhhh..... Yep no one else can say they are my equal!  The pattern is 'Jack Be Nimble' from Lori Brechlin at Notforgotten Farm.  I LOVE IT!   I should have finished it 7 years ago!

Now on to something I started in 2007.......

Blessings,

Shanda

~Tis a Time to Be Diligent~

Diligence: constant and earnest effort to accomplish what is undertaken; persistent exertion of body or mind.

I have so many things, BIG THINGS, going on in my life right now, that I am afraid to make decisions, for fear I will make a wrong one.  I don't have the luxury of taking my time with any particular one.  Some times life for each of us happens slow, and that makes us impatient.  Other times, life happens so fast, that we can't take time to make sure it is the right path to take.  The things I have happening are not necessarily self-inflicted, but I want to make them a happy ending.  

I can't control how fast things happen, but I can show diligence in making decisions.  I want to be an example of good decision making under pressure.  Just as piecing all the tiny pieces of fabric together in a planned pattern to make the top of a quilt, so to does life happen as we make good decisions.  It may have taken me years to piece a quilt of only working on it once a month or every Friday Night when my kids were out on a date and I stayed up to wait for them to come home, but I have the memory of making that quilt and I put thought into its design.  Plus, fabric pieces can be arranged in a multitude of patterns to make different quilt tops.  Five-inch squares are all 5 inches square, but if you put all the dark colors in the middle and light colors on the outside, you can create a bouquet of wildflowers!  

~Sweet Remembrances~

 I know it has been quite some time since my last post, but due to the fact that I just want to rock my sweet little  granddaughter Emma, I am sure you all can not fault me.  This post includes some things I have been working on and projects I recently finished.  I hardly start anything new anymore as I have sooooooo many unfinished projects to complete, or better yet, projects that I have all the materials purchased and just need time to complete them.  I recently read that if you want to lower your stress level, you need to "follow things through to the end."  I took that to heart and am doing just that.  So here goes:


My mother recently visited from Illinois and she brought me this sweet cement planter that I am sure is old - it has a star imprinted on each side and I planted some thyme in it.  The other morning after a gentle spring rain, it particularly caught my eye.  

Emma and I were going to take a nap - and, well, grandma had to snap her sweet photo first.  She loves taking a snooze with me......  that is one project that gets finished in a heartbeat - naps with grandma!

 
But her big event was a couple of weeks ago - we had her blessed here at home and what a beauty she was.  I made her blessing gown and amazing enough, no spit ups and no blow outs!  She was the perfect mannered little lady showing great etiquette! There was only 18 yards of lace..... :-) And the rocking chair Emma is sitting in came from my mother in Illinois also as a gift to Emma.  It was not our family heirloom, but I do know the old friend it came from that it did belong to - it was his as a child and he was born in the early 1900's!

 After three hours of wearing the dress to church and then a blessing at home, she sure was glad to get that dress off!
 

 
I do find a smidgen of time to work on a few unfinished projects- this is the quilt top I taught this last spring for my civil war living history class at the local quilt store - Battle of Fredricksburg.....

 

 My take along project of counted cross-stitching - Miriam Dowd........

I found this quilt rack/shelf at the thrift store and stressed painted it in black....

 

And finished my Christmas 1830 pattern from NotForgotten Farms.

Time flies quickly and there has never been any sentiment that I know of that says we should spend more time away from family.  Both of our children will be spending the summer with us before resuming college and other responsibilities later on this fall.    This may be the last time I get to have everyone home for the summer, so I am going to make everyday moments count.  I am going to say 'I Love You' more often, use paper plates to the fullest, and try not to stress out if the bathrooms don't get cleaned every Tuesday morning.  We have several family outings planned, picnics to go on, and parades to watch.  There are night skies to enjoy from the porch, fireworks to watch, and Emma's smiles and other milestones to photograph.  These things don't come every day, but you can bet that the dirty bathroom will still be there Wednesday morning.  Take the summer to enjoy the little moments!

Blessings to you and yours,

Shanda