I Really Can Finish A Project!

Wow!  It really is possible!  Sometimes I feel like I'm drowning in UFOs.  Lately I have been quite a little bit reluctant to start something new because of all my UFOs.  I was recently reminded of this by way of a fun Disney Cruise we took to Alaska with SonStitches, Dear Daughter-in-LawStitches, BabyStitches, and DaughterStitches, Dear Son-in-LawStitches, and GranddaughterStitches.

Our first port stop was Skagway, a cute little town.  Rushin' Tailor is a quilt shop in Skagway.  I think it was three years ago when we last visited Alaska and I found this shop.  So last week I walked from the ship to the downtown area and browsed around in this very nice quilt shop.  And I found a really nice kit that was a depiction of a whale tale (complete with beads) just before it returns to the water.  Yup, I had bought that kit three years ago and  yes, you guessed it--I haven't completed (or even started) the kit yet.   :-(

 This time I found another cute little kit and it looked kind of fun for hand sewing.  It included everything I needed, including two kinds of thread, a needle, hexie papers, felt, and ten squares of fabric, so that I could have a choice of which seven to use.  They even gave me two straight pins to use! I had to supply a scissors, but that was it!

It didn't take me very long to baste the hexies, hand sew them together, sew them onto the felt, trim the felt, and finish it off with blanket stitch.  And now I have a nice little mug mat, or whatever it wants to be called!

Birkenstocks (NQR)

I'm curious.

I bought a pair of Birkenstock sandals within the last year.  DaughterStitches told me I could only wear them if I promised to not wear socks with them.

So I'm curious to know where you "stand" on the issue.  I certainly get the whole "dad-wearing-socks-and-sandals-usually-along-with-shorts" look and the objections thereto.  But if one has nice socks to wear, maybe they're "statement socks," wouldn't it be ok to wear Birkenstocks with socks?

Let me know what you think!

Marble Maze

DaughterStitches sent me a link to a blog, and said, Please Mom, make me some of these!  This is the blog, called Serving Pink Lemonade.  (Isn't that a cute name!?!)  She gives a tutorial to make these very simple marble games.

I won't give you the directions, as you can visit the site, but I basically took two rectangles, and sewed them right sides together.

Then I turned them right side out, and sewed some lines throughout the little "pouch" to create the maze.  I backspaced at both the beginnings and endings of these lines to lock the stitches so they would not unravel.

 I popped in a marble before I sewed the opening closed.  

The child (or adult!) spends time moving the marble around the maze.  A great way to keep young fingers busy in a safe way.  I think DaughterStitches might have a few students who need this maze toy!

I honestly had trouble stopping making these!  They are so fun to make and just take scraps.  So I made several and I will give them to people for their young kids or grandkids.

The Halloween Costume

Our GranddaughterStitches was a cougar for Halloween this year.  I made this costume from McCalls pattern #MP375.

I was a little apprehensive sewing the costume because I was worried about the fit, not having GranddaughterStitches here to fit it on her.  I had taken pretty detailed measurements of her in August when she visited us.  Given those measurements, I cut it a little longer in a few places.

It turned out to fit her very well.  I think the pattern was great--pretty easy to sew.  It has a zipper up the front of the "jumpsuit."  The hood with cat ears is a separate piece, as are the little mitts, and the spats to cover up her tennis shoes.

With some whiskers and a blackened nose (at least until it got rubbed off!), she was a perfect big cat.  I think she liked the tail the most.

I was fortunate to get to visit GranddaughterStitches at Halloween this year.  I went to school with her and DaughterStitches (aka 2nd grade teacher).  I helped out in DaughterStitches's class most of the day, on the day of the Halloween party.  I also visited GranddaughterStitches's classroom, and ate lunch with her.  It was really fun to see all the kids and teachers in their costumes.  DaughterStitches lent me her witch's cape and large hat so I had a costume to wear, too.

We all went out for trick-or-treating together, along with some other neighbors/friends.  It was a very fun night, even if it was sprinkling a little.

More Crocheting

Here is another baby afghan I just finished crocheting.  They go so fast that I'm afraid I've probably forgotten to show you a few!

This one was destined to go home with DaughterStitches after Thanksgiving.  She's going to give it to a friend who is having a baby.

The thing that is a little different about this afghan is that it is very heavy yarn.  (I ordered it on-line and was surprised when I opened the box.  Had no idea the yarn was like this!)  It is called "Baby Blanket" by Bernat and is actually quite soft and cuddly.

Here is a close-up of the afghan.  Since the yarn is so fluffy, it really fills in and feels almost like minky fabric when it is crocheted.  I like the yarn.  It is a little harder to crochet, though, as it's a heavier yarn to pull with the hook.

GranddaughterStitches was on hand, so I had her model the afghan for me.  It's a big-size baby afghan.

Another close-up of the yarn next to a regular pen.  See how big and thick it is!  It all makes for a nice comfy afghan.

A Butterfly Shirt for GranddaughterStitches

We were excited to go visit GranddaughterStitches (and her parents) over Halloween.  It was fun to spend Halloween in her kindergarten classroom with her, seeing all the kids in their cute costumes, and to witness the excitement in the whole school.  It was also great to be able to assist in DaughterStitches's 2nd grade classroom.  The whole school was decked out in costumes!

Anticipating our visit there, I embroidered a little pink t-shirt for GranddaughterStitches.  I found a pattern on the internet (can't recall where I found it) for a redwork butterfly embroidery.  So I used that pattern, but added my own colors to the butterfly.

Here is a close-up of the butterfly.  I used blue, light green, and light blue for the colors.  Everything was sewn with backstitch except for the dots, for which I used satin stitch.  I backed the embroidery area with a nice soft fusible web to stabilize the embroidery.

It actually went quite fast, and I soon finished the embroidery.  Then I thought, "That was too easy.  I need to do something more."  

So I moved on to the bottom of the t-shirt and proceeded to make little embroidered flower and leaf motifs.  I added some colors to my palette for the flowers!

And here is GranddaughterStitches wearing her new pink butterfly shirt.  

I think it suits her just fine.

1982 Baby Quilt Made by My Grandmother

This is a baby quilt that my dear Grandma Irvine made for me when DaughterStitches was born, back in 1982.  A wonderful quilt, with some appliqued hearts and some quilted hearts sewn into one large piece of fabric.  

Well, DaughterStitches used it for my GranddaughterStitches when she was born in 2008.  (Such a wonderful day that was!)  And recently DaughterStitches brought it back when they came for a visit.  It had gotten dirty, and she wasn't sure how to clean it, since it is an older quilt.  Not an antique!  But just not a new one.

I just threw it into the washing machine, and it came out clean as can be!  The above photo shows the binding, which was also the backing of the quilt.  Grandma turned it over to the front and sewed it down for the binding.  She also used a higher loft batting, probably a polyester, which makes it nice and fluffy.

It really makes me feel good to see this baby quilt get used again.

Box Tops For Education

I have saved my share of "Box Tops for Education" in my tenure as a school mom. It seemed we were always saving some kind of label or clipping a coupon for the kids to take to school. I'm not even sure what all those things were used for!

So I thought I was finished with all that when my kids graduated from school.

Not so!

With DaughterStitches teaching elementary school, I once again find myself cutting these little squares from my food packages. Now I'm even mailing them away to her!

Not that I mind of course. Glad to help, DaughterStitches.

Summer Traveling

This summer DaughterStitches, BabyStitches, and I went to the Midwest to visit some of our relatives. We had one fun night staying with SisterStitches and her family, then spent the remainder of our time with my parents. BabyStitches needed to see where her

great-grandparents live.

We had fun playing outside in the grass, visiting a nature center, playing with my "vintage" toddler toys, and seeing fireflies in the evening.

One of the highlights of the trip was getting to ride in Uncle Jarry's tractor. Doesn't BabyStitches look tiny up in that big tractor!?!

Here is BabyStitches with my brother Jarry and her mom, getting ready to drive out of the tractor shed.

BabyStitches thoroughly loved the tractor, as well as her time spent with Great-Uncle Jarry.

Here's a shot of a quilt my mom has on her hand quilting stand at the moment. Isn't it beautiful! And her stitching is so small and even. I hope my quilting can be that good some day.

Some Sewing by DaughterStitches

Some time ago I came across this little stuffed being that DaughterStitches made when she was a little girl. I don't remember how old she was at the time. I suppose she drew the outline and I sewed around it to form the little doll(?). I think it's incredibly cute, with the little lace ruffles sewn around the neck, arms, and legs.

If you look closely, you can still see some faint remains of the smiling face which was drawn on the doll. Guess I didn't have a permanent marker handy!

It reminded me a little bit of the "Summer Traveler" that I made a couple years ago for BabyStitches. See that blog post here.

Disneyland

We've had a great trip to Disneyland! We went with BabyStitches, her parents (DaughterStitches and

S-I-LStitches), and SonStitches and MrsStitchesJr.

It was BabyStitches' first time there, and as she is just over 2 years old, it was a good time for her. She was very brave and had a lot of fun on the rides, eating snacks, and getting to know the characters.

The first photo shows BabyStitches with her Daddy and her Papa.

Here is BabyStitches trying to pull the sword out of the stone with her proud uncle. Come on--pull a little harder!

BabyStitches with her mom on the Dumbo ride--she really had a lot of fun on that one!

Here are SonStitches and MrsStitchesJr. Since they got married within the past year, MrsStitchesJr chose to wear a Mickey Mouse style wedding veil.

I can't wait to go back to Disneyland again!

No sewing to speak about here, except that I did get a lot of hand sewing done on my tumbling blocks quilt on the drive there and back. Keeps me out of trouble in the car!

I Love My "Tom's Shoes!"

Aren't these shoes great!!! I do have to admit that the awesome socks help adorn the photo somewhat.

When DaughterStitches (et al) was visiting last weekend, she and I had a very nice shopping day, just the two of us. We spent most of our time at Nordstrom, one of my favorite stores. DaughterStitches needed a pair of shoes, and pretty soon we both were in our stocking feet surrounded by stacks of shoe boxes.

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They had a lot of Tom's Shoes on display, and eventually I tried on a pair. Very comfortable! They are very thin-soled, though, which made me think they would be perfect for "house shoes," which I wear instead of slippers when I'm at home.

Tom's Shoes are cool because they are made from recycled materials, and for every pair they sell, they give a pair to a needy child. Apparently this company is doing very well, even with such a "creative" business model.

Check out their interesting web site.

* * * * *

The shoes are somewhat unconventional in their style and design; maybe it's a style that one needs to get used to. It took me a few minutes.

As a bonus, the day were at Nordstrom, Tom's Shoes sent some artists to custom decorate the shoes just as we specified. So I got some pretty little daisies and leaves and vines. (The shoes started out as solid green.) Even my initials appear on my shoes, though it may be hard for you to find them!

* * * * *

My shopping expedition also brought me a few pairs of needed socks (see top photo), and some blue jeans. We had a delicious lunch at Nordstrom, too!

Birthday and Amish Quilts

MissesStitches has turned another year older! (Or should that be 'another year stitchier'?) To me that means, I'd better get to work on all those quilts I want to make "someday."

My birthday was this last Monday, and it was a treat to have both kids, their spouses, and BabyStitches here for a long weekend.

As part of my continued birthday celebration, today MisterStitches took me to a real nice place for lunch called Spruce. And that was on the way to the deYoung Museum to see the Amish Quilt Display. I've been wanting to see this for quite a while now, and was worried that I would put it off till it closes in June.

As luck would have it, we arrived just a few minutes before a docent tour was starting, so that was a special treat.

This first quilt is, to me, the epitome of an Amish quilt. Very simple, straight lines, solid colors, nothing too bright. It is typical of the Lancaster County, Pennsylvania Amish quilts, with a center medallion.

This may not look like the most interesting quilt in the world, but it is one of my favorites, just for its simplicity. It is called, simply, Center Diamond.

Most of the quilts we saw were machine-sewn on old-fashioned treadle machines and then hand quilted. They dated from around the 1930's, some older. Boy, were those hand-quilting stitches tiny! And oh, so even! The stitches looked similar to these dashed lines. - - - - - - - - -

This quilt shows the style typical to the Ohio Amish, which uses a smaller quilt block and repeats it over and over. It is called Roman Stripes.

The next quilt is the Ohio style, too....

One of everyone's favorites is this Tumbling Block quilt. This variation of it is called Stairway to Heaven, as the blocks are arranged in rows to emphasize the pyramidal shape. I've been working on a tumbling block quilt for a few years now. Mine, however, will not have a particular arrangement to the blocks; it will be more of a scrappy quilt. But tumbling blocks are dazzling when put in an intentional arrangement. Who knows, maybe when the time comes for me to actually arrange my blocks into a quilt, I'll try to separate all the bright reds together, all the purples, etc, and see if I can make some sort of pattern with my blocks.

This quilt is called Center Diamond, also, and you can easily see that it has some slight differences in it (from the first Center Diamond quilt). This would be due to the different choices that the individual quilters made.

I will leave you with this last quilt, known as the Bars pattern. Isn't it just lovely, with its stark vertical lines, and then the beautiful circular quilting? I just love it.

Is it even necessary to say that I am now (again) ready to make an Amish-style quilt?!?

All of the quilt pictures you've seen here are from the Faith and Stephen Brown website.

The wedding, September 5, 2009

Here is a photo (finally) from the wedding. It was taken on the steps in front of the cathedral. Oh look! I just noticed that you can see part of Katie's train behind everyone on the right side of the photo! Her train was nice and long--very beautiful, and her veil was the same length.

Anyway, on the left is beautiful DaughterStitches, then me (MissesStitches) and MisterStitches, then the bride and groom, SonStitches and DILStitches, DIL's wonderful parents, and DIL's beautiful twin sisters.

The ceremony in the Episcopal cathedral was beautiful, with so many good friends attending, as well as most of our families. (Poor NieceStitches was busy saving lives as a nurse, so she couldn't come, sadly.) It means so much to me when friends and family come together for a celebration like this. People really do go to a lot of trouble and expense to attend, and I appreciate that.

And the reception was so much fun! I didn't know that I still had enough energy to dance so much! (My body complained loudly the next two days.) Dancing is so much fun, though. We had a big group of people on the dance floor, all dancing together. Little BabyStitches did her share of dancing, too. She was the flower girl, and enjoyed herself quite a bit that night.

More photos to come.....