Some Easy Hand Quilting

As I have been unpacking and organizing my stash, I am really finding some goodies. I have lots of empty walls in our new house that need something on them. My stash is really going to help me out with that problem. I found this Rooster cheater panel and a matching Sunflower panel that will look perfect on my kitchen all. I decided to hand quilt them. Hand quilting is so relaxing. I love hand work. Since I didn't have to spend time piecing them, I am doing a little extra quilting. It has been sew fun.

I only have about 6 more boxes to unpack to have my studio put together. I can't wait to show you. It is just gorgeous.I have a girl friend coming to town this weekend and I am going to help her make a doggie bag...a bag to carry her tiny dog in. Lori, helped us pack for our move and I really want to spoil her when she comes. I am getting the studio all ready and we are going to sew to our heart's content. She is bringing her youngest son and I have alreay recruited my daughter's to keep him busy playing so his mom and I can sew. While she works on her doggie bag, I need to get busy with Christmas gifts. I will try to make all the girls and George a new pair of flanel pjs. I found lots of flannel in my stash. I just love being able to 'shop' from my own studio.




My mail is finally getting transerred from the old house and I received the newest issue of Quick Quilts today. I am so excited to have some eye candy to look at tonight.

Good night and Happy sewing!
Susan

My Christmas List is Growing!

This is the time of the year, we are telling our girls to make Christmas lists. Things are going to be tight and I am hoping that I can make them a lot of things from my stash. George and I have had a lot of expenses with moving and such, so we will be worrying about the kids and not ourselves. However, I am starting to wish there was a Santa. I really want a Accuquilt Go Cutter.

My next obsession is the Australian embroidery/quilting patterns that I see on so many quilting blogs.I especially like Homespun magazine. I love it.


There are certainly lots of great 'toys' for us sewing/quilting fans. My list is growing everyday. What's on your list?

Happy Sewing and Christmas planning, my friends!
Susan

What a Cool Day

I am almost finished unpacking and setting up my new studio. While going through my fabric, I have found lots of projects that I can't wait to start. I found two small cheater quilt panels, one with a Rooster and one with Sunflowers. They will fit perfectly on an empty wall in my kitchen. So, I decided to take a break and I began quilting the Rooster quilt. I also found some pre-printed cross stitch squares that I had gotten for my daughters to work on. I got Rachel, Rebecca and Hannah, my 12 year old twins and my eleven year old daughters started cross stitching their squares. It was really cool watching the three of them sit at the table and cross stitch. I also gave my 8 year old a new big box of fabric and it is now her private stash and she can use it whenever she wants. While the three girls were cross stitching and I was quilting, the eight year old was hand sewing Barbie clothes. In case you are counting, that is four daughters and I have five. Number five, the oldest daughter was in her room working on her novel. She is participating in a novel writing month 'thing'. I am very proud of all my girls.

A Sneak Peak of My New Studio

As I mentioned in an earlier post. We have moved into our new house, in our new town. We decided that I should set up my studio in the front formal dining room. It just made sense because we don't have furniture for that room and we didn't think the room would get used much as a living room. We had planned to use the back porch that was glassed in with all windows, until we found out that the 'glass' was actually 'plastic'. Now we will use that room as overflow entertaining space (that is when I unpack all the boxes that are out there).

I have been folding fabric all weekend. I decided to store my favorite fabric out where I can see it so that I will be inspired. Each piece of fabric on this particular shelf was purchased with a certain project in mind. I have loved seeing it all again. I can't wait to finish the room and get back to sewing. I was amazed at how much fabric I got on this shelf. I wish I knew how many yards it is. And of course, this is not all of it. My new husband is freaking out about it all, so I need to get to making it all into something as soon as possible. Well, enjoy the sneak peak. I will be back with more progress reports soon.

P.S. I did finish reading the "Quilter's Apprentice" and I loved it. I went to the library today and checked out "The Christmas Quilt". I am going to do my best to find time to read it.

Goodbye for now, my dear friends and Happy Sewing!!
Susan

You'll Never Guess....

You'll never guess what I did today? I read! I read for enjoyment! I read without interuption! To some of you this may seem like no big deal but to this homeschooling mom of 6, this is huge!! I'm hardly ever alone and I am the kind of reader who needs complete quiet or I cannot concentrate. Well, when the kids are home, there is no guiet, so I don't read. I think that's why I like sewing and quilting, because I don't have to have complete silence for that. Not that I would mind...but you get the picture.

My four younger kids went to visit my exhusband/their father for the weekend. My oldest daugther stayed with me and we went to get our new library cards, since moving to our new town. I browsed the shelves, not planning on getting anything for myself. I did find and cross stitch pattern book, that I got for some ornament ideas. Then I walked past the Elm Creek Quilts novels and I grabbed the first in the series, The Quilter's Apprentice. I have checked this book out numerous times but never had time to start it. I began reading it last night and I am more than halfway done. I will probably go check out the second one tomorrow. My girls will probably come home early, so I am not sure what kind of progress I will make on #2, but we'll see. I really like this book and it makes me want to get my sewing studio set up so I can quilt. I hope to get it set up this weekend. I will let you know.

Happy Sewing!
Susan

Planning my Christmas Sewing

Hi Friends,
My new hubby, my girls and I are moved into our new home and new town. Are we unpacked yet? No way! Is my new studio set up? Not a chance. However, we are on our way to getting settled. Our original plan had been for me to put my sewing studio in the "glassed in" back porch. When we got moved in, I realized the porch windows were not glass but plastic. I just thought it would be too humid to keep my expensive machines and such out there. I was very panicky for a while, wondering where I would be able to sew or put my stuff. Almost half of the moving truck was sewing or craft related. (Instead of using newspaper to wrap breakables and fill in boxes, we used fabric. It worked great.) I think my husband could sense my concerns and he suggested I turn the formal living room into my studio. We have a family room and a living room, but we only have one set of living furniture, anyway. It took a little while to wrap my mind around the idea, but now agree it is a good idea. Basically, it would have been wasted space because new furiture is not in the budget and then, how often would we really use a formal living room anyway.

I have been working a little at a temporary job and have been really busy. Now, I need to start my Christmas sewing. I need to make pj bottoms for my girls, a few quilts and some purses for the girls also. I hope to have my studio set up and unpacked by the end of the weekend. I will let you know what I plan to sew first. I have missed my blogging friends so much and I am looking forward to getting back in the groove.
Blessings,
Susan

Packing and Purging

Well, moving day is less than two weeks away. We have found a house to rent in Orange Park, Florida. My husband has a job waiting and I have several opportunities to pursue. We just need to get there. The last couple of weeks we have been having yard sales and now we are packing and purging. I have accumulated so much stuff in the last 9 years of living in this house. A lot of this stuff is pretty easy to part with and I am constantly quoting my new mantra, "less is more". However, as a sewer....I have accumulated SEW much stuff and that is not as easy to let go of. I am sure many of you can relate. I look at patterns, notions and fabric and see future projects and works of art. Thankfully, there is a room in the new house that I can use as a studio. I have been very spoiled to have such a large studio in this house and I was just sick at the thought of losing it.

Today, I am going to begin to tackle my studio. I have plastic drawers labeled with notions and sewing tools. I have found boxes and boxes of loose sewing items to put in the drawers. I pray at the end of the day, I will see a lot of progress. The kids are at their dad's for a few days and I am trying to get as much done as I can before they come home.

Back to packing and purging.
Happy Sewing!!
Susan