Fruits and Veges

Really love how my corn and tomatoes 2 block came out.  Cold watermelon is cute too.  

I had a partially cut Simple Gifts quilt and decided to just cut a few more strips and sew up.  Nothing super cute but now I have an empty bin.  

I was planning on doing GE Designs Hey June QAL today but my mom (who just got into Eau Claire for the summer last Saturday) is really sick in critical care.  She has cancer and diabetes and heart issues, but she apparently got a UTI which turned septic before she went in.  She had a mild heart attack the first night there.  Hopefully she is strong enough to recover from this but a lousy start to her visit.  She has not met Hazel yet, so hoping that will happen next weekend when they travel home for the 4th of July.  Not sure it can happen if she is still in the hospital then, so crossing fingers she recovers well and is out.  Anyway, Kathy is working mandatory overtime this morning so I decided to keep busy sewing and such and then when she is done we have a few things we have to do and then we will head out of town.  It is a four hour drive home so we will go today, spend the night with my best friend, see Mom and Dad and head home tomorrow.  Not what we would plan for our first trip but I have not seen mom in a year and with her health it is worth the hassle.  

 

Farm Girl Vintage is Growing!

Read the latest Once Upon a Book Club box and put it up for sale when I was done.  I have enjoyed all but one of the books I have read in the past year.  Thinking I may cancel after my birthday as it is not cheap, but I wind up selling almost all of them so basically it costs me postage for the fun each month.  

I started working on more towels since I need new ones (and I gave away all the ones I made last year) and they make great gifts.  I had to reacquaint myself with the buttonholer I bought which took only a few minutes with the help of a youtube video.  I sewed all the tops on to the towels (forgot to put batting in the top before I sewed, going with it) and now all that is left is to sew the buttons on.  Great thing to do in front of the TV this week. 

I also laid out one set of the Lori Holt blocks for fun.  Pretty happy with these and enjoying making most of them!

I then picked out an easy block to make (to help me recover from the tractor!).  This is the Mixing it Up block.  I also found an "All Things Lori Holt" facebook group and joined that.  Love seeing all the projects there.  My blocks are from Farm Girl Vintage 1 and 2 with the puppy from the Christmas book.  I need to buy Spelling Bee too!  Rather addicting, and I love that I am using my modern fabrics which do not see enough love now that my Tula Pink quilt is done.

 

Daddy's Tractor Challenge!

I ordered this turquoise grunge fabric to use on my Pine Tree Rainbow Scrap Challenge sashing.  I do not have enough of the other and am happy to say that this matches pretty good considering I picked it online.

I have slowed down on the Farm Girl Vintage blocks since I was busy paper piecing on Wild and Goosey.  Now that that is cleaned up, I decided to make a pair of Daddy's Tractor blocks.  I cut things over two days and messed up all over the place.  I actually cut the background out of the tractor green!  It took way too long to sew this due to all my errors and my pause to make pins with letters on them to put with each cut set.  In the beginning I used post it notes, then I just put them in order on the board...this one has A to Z in cutting and it was a hot mess.

I made the pins and that helped SO much.  They will get much use!

My triangle dyslexia also came out and my steering wheel was jacked up.  I almost left it, but after all I had been through with these blocks...well what is a bit more cutting and sewing?  I tried to fix and fudge it first and eventually went with starting that part again.  Much faster.

If you look carefully, the steering wheel on the left is short and the tractor on the right is missing a background.  They also both need a button on the smaller tire.  The Daddy's Tractor challenge is over!  I think I will eventually make a large one of these if I wind up with a grandson, hopefully it will go better for me!

I wish I would have made pins (or bought them) at the start of these blocks!  Live and learn!

 

Christmas in June and More

Finally got outside early one morning (to avoid the heat--which has now finally left us) to get a good picture of Wild and Goosey.  Thinking it might be big enough but...

I got started on some Christmas presents and made a tool belt for Bear, Hazel and some other little one.

Made several fun frogs and gave one to Jay since he admired it.  Will be giving one to Colton and one to Lily and one to who knows who.

On Monday my best friend Monica and her hubby came to visit (they went to a Brewer game Sunday and spent the night in town).  It was so good to see her!  It has been two years.  We have a standing weekly FB Video chat but still was good to see her in person!  I gave her Bachelor Button Blue little mini quilt and she loved it!  (Also the pillows I made her for Christmas two years ago).

Hazel found my stash!  She is so ready to walk though she is not even nine months yet!

Her daddy plays guitar so we used her foot to make a guitar for Father's Day.

I joined Kathleen Tracy's Schoolgirl Sampler group and this was the first quilt chosen for June.  I quilted it with Baptist fans.  I am fairly happy with the way things look doing that pattern myself.  I love the little quilt!

Yesterday and today I made two doll buntings from the Moda Bakeshop pattern.  I made tons of these several years ago.  I had issues with the first one and it is folded the wrong way so it is longer and thinner.  These are for Lily and Hazel I think...unless I decide to make more, haha!

 

June is for Purple!

I finally had an easy time with this block now that I am on number six and have written tips on the pattern (start at the bottom for example).  I ordered another aqua fabric which hopefully works with this one since I do not have anything of similar shade in my entire stash.  I never knew there were so many aquas!  I do not have enough for framing each block so I thought if I did half in another aqua and put it all together it would look decent.  Linking up with SoScrappy!

I organize my strings each month too.  I have a bag of all colors which is where new strings go since I am not digging out all the bags and sorting each time a string appears.  I pull all the color of the month out of it and add it to the current color so I feel like that is organizing a bit.  The huge drawer I keep the strings in is overflowing...no matter how many blocks I make!

I made and added another row to Wild and Goosey...it is now 9 x 10.  I need to lay it out outside for a photo but it is HOT!  I seem to overheat super easily and am just trying to stay cool.  I am not sure if I will add more, but for now I put all the paper piecing stuff away.  I can only tolerate the mess for so long!

Yesterday I made a bunch of hand warmers/bean bags for Christmas gifts for Coleman's crew.  Jay gifted me a HUGE bag of rice (plus I had bought one not too long ago) so I need to be creative and use it.  I found a frog pattern and am planning to make a few frogs for gifts too.  Anyone have any great gift ideas for things stuffed with rice?

 

A Patriotic Mini!

I joined Kathleen Tracy's Schoolgirl Sampler FB group and she picked this sweet top for our June sew.  It was fun to put together though I looked at it and made four of each block instead of three!  I figured out I was doing that after the first one, but figured I may as well do it for all of them and put those together too.

My roses made it through winter and are looking so good!  I went out and did some weeding a few weeks ago (not that you would know now) and so happy with these!  The green one of the left has buds and it is a different kind if I remember right so it will be blooming soon.  Love roses this way instead of in a vase!

Hazel's third sign is PLAY.  She is working on making the handshapes 'y' but she signs this one a lot while playing now!  

 Have two more Wild and Goosey blocks to go for another row.  

Honk Honk! Wild and Goosey Rides Again!

I finally dug out my Wild and Goosey paper pieced quilt two weeks or so ago and started making the blocks again. I always knew I wanted to make my top bigger, but I was just tired of making the blocks.  After waiting a few years, I am loving it again!  

All nine of these blocks made it into the next row and my top is now nine by nine blocks.  Still not big enough....

I did manage to make a pair of hand mixer blocks.

And I won on Alycia Quilts blog!  There was some flannel and cotton fabric!  Loving all that purple and pink and happy to put it to good use.  Thanks Alycia!

I thought I would show you what a mess it is when I paper piece.  I have a drawer of lights...overflowing despite how much I am using and a drawer and basket of darks.

It seems to breed while I sleep!  I have made five more blocks so far this week...sorry for the bad picture, I took it quick this morning!

Not sure if my videos will work, but Hazel started signing!  She can sign DOG and MILK/BOTTLE!

This one is how crazy she is for her mama when she comes!