Friday Finds November!

The end of the year approaches already!  So I gathered a few crafted items to share.

From Sparkles of Sunshine

I admit I like books.  There is something about the written word on the pages I can touch.  No ebooks for me.  I want the real thing.  So when I saw this project it was for me.
    I love these book marks!  From Sparkles of Sunshine  blog.....a good tutorial for making them.  They would be cute gifts, or stocking stuffers.  How about the ribbons we hoard from fat quarter stacks, or other precuts.....now I have a use for them.

Anoither version from Riley Blake

  I also saw another version at Riley Blake Designs.  Note---the directions have been removed now :(
Perfect for marking pages in my favorite quilt book or cook book.










Wine Cork Ornaments....from Renlymat's World blog .  I spotted several versions on Pinterest.

Got corks?  Use beads, metal charms, buttons, ribbon, wire to make some ornaments.    You will need a hole drilled through the center of the cork.













And a couple of quilting ideas.......

From Humble Quilts blog

  Humble Quilts shared photos from a quilt show in Aurora, and this one caught my eye.     Not only is the applique unique, but I loved the setting.
    I have plenty of left over 9 patch blocks that do not match.  Now this idea will put leftovers to work, to say nothing of all the leader/ender piecing I seem to do.

This post has been edited to remove possible harmful link.....Thank you, Trish for alerting me.

  Please visit the original site before pinning or linking.  I am just sharing some inspirations.

Remember to set back the clocks tomorrow night......enjoy the weekend.  Happy stitching.

Four Days before.....

  With sincere apologies to the real poets of the world......

Four days before Christmas, I had just checked my list.
 Gifts were bought and cookies were made.
Today I'll do laundry, so clean clothes will abound.
I was just sitting down, and there arose such a clatter.
I jumped from my chair to see what was the matter.
The racket was loud, vibrating, a clank.
Sir Old Man came a running, as he yelled "Shut her down".
 Out came the pliers, a screwdriver, and such.
Oh,  there's the flashlight, and the vacuum we need.
Up came the lid, off went the back.
The lint was a flying, while looking
for something  that had to be stuck.
Not the basket, nor belt, no mouse could be seen.
Not a sock, or a goblin making it scream.
Unbolt the front and what did he see.
The fan was dismounted, come loose it would seem.
A screw that was loose had created the scene.
Mrs. Claus feels exhausted, quite shaken you know.
Wet clothes on some hangers are nothing to show.
Sir Old Man is so handy, always ready to work.....
Disaster  averted, all is well...I was such a jerk!

Insight:  Before a holiday, expect an appliance to break or malfunction.  It is part of the cycle of life.  And your temper tantrums do not help.


 So on a merrier note....... my favorite little hang up for Christmas.  He always makes me smile.  And after today, a little cheer will cover me quite well.  My lists are long for the next few days, so I will return next weekend.

  May you find some peace and solace during this season with friends and family.  Hug them, and love them.  Hold on to them tightly and cherish each moment.  The gift of yourself is the one that counts.  And a little fabric never hurts :)

A Handmade Christmas Challenge

  While I haven't been very good at creating through out the year, I did make a few items to share for the Handmade Christmas Challenge at SewCalGal's blog. 
  Thanks for hosting this Challenge.  Hope everyone will visit all the entries and find some inspiration for your handmade Christmas projects.

    Recycled denim to market bags.....I couldn't bear to just trash a large piece of heavy weight denim. So in August/September, it turned into a trio of gift bags that can be used as a market bag.  I plan to fill each with homemade baked goodies for a few neighbors.
   A  folded piece of chili pepper fabric was used to finish off the top edge and canvas strip handles made these quick projects.

  I did a lot better in the decor department.....as it was time to do a little up-dating around here.  My love of cardinals is documented fact.....and the secret word is there is a cardinal hidden on each quilt I make.  (Always be sure to check the labels  :).    Anyway, this little table topper is called A Cardinal Sings.  Four string blocks create the background, fused applique, machine stitching, and more strings for the top and bottom borders.

 
  By mid-month I was still on the red kick!  I was inspired by a pin on Pinterest .  My version is appliqued instead of thread painted, and bold red for lots of zing!  The ornament shapes were found in EQ7 for this one.  Size is 12" by 24".....just right for the back of a door.











  The adventure continued  as I could not get the blue version out of my head.  Fabric selection actually took a couple of days.....and a quick trip to the LQS.    Here's my description of Winter Baubles in blue from my original post.

   Winter Baubles tells the story in the colors captured here.  There  are the  bright blues of the winter sky, the shadows of blue on snow covered paths,  the watery blues of sunlight reflected off the ice in the birdbath, and the darkest blue of night.  Like colored glass hung in a window to catch the streaming light, the baubles hang against a cloud of white. 

  This version could hang all through the holiday season and on into winter.  One or two baubles would work great on a mug rug.....a horizontal row would make a mantle banner or table runner.......a bauble or two appliqued to a tote bag....I better stop before I get that creative fever again!
Wishing you all a bright season of inspiration.....and happy stitching.

Road Trip to.....

   It was  Road Trip day  to a very secret, very hidden, very special Santa Toy Shop.   This small cabin tucked away in the mountains is actually the original toy distribution point for The Country Santa, and where  all the helper elves work hard every year.   Toys from all over the upstate area of South Carolina, and North Carolina arrive here and are sorted  by age groups, and placed on shelves for Christmas delivery.

The Country Santa began over 30 years ago to provide toys at Christmas to kids. This organization  will cover at least 5 counties in the region of the Blue Ridge mountains, meeting needs where ever they can.

   This Santa believes ........

Children don't understand that life is hard and sometimes there just isn't enough for Christmas presents. A child believes that Santa will find them Christmas morning.

And Santa will be bringing  doll quilts this year, too....the doll quilts of Get Your Mrs. Claus On will be part of that.   Doll quilts from Mrs. Claus all over the country.  It would not be possible without the help of all of the Mrs. Clauses who have stepped up to be part of this project.  Thank you.
    Oh, yes,  Rudy went along to ensure the doll quilts were delivered safely.      Notice the signs...."Toy Loading Zone".






    It was a whirlwind of activity when we opened the door, as a group of elementary students were helping Santa that day.  Each had a list of children  for whom to select toys and each carried a very large bag to fill.  This Mrs. Claus had the privilege of helping  one of the students----and promised to hide her identity.  
   One of the older elves commented, "Christmas happens here."   After viewing and visiting, I knew what he meant.  Christmas begins in the heart and becomes that outward expression.  You could see it on the children's faces as they were Santa's elves for a day.    Priceless.

Christmas Quilt Show 2012

Welcome to the Christmas Quilt Show for 2012!

    Hello, my name is Rudy.  I'm the  mascot for the Get Your Mrs. Claus On project.  My Mrs. Claus gave me life recently when she turned the little blog button (on the right sidebar) into moi!  We owe special thanks to Mrs. Techie Claus   (aka Dana at Stormy Days blog) for  the blog button idea.  

   I may be small  ( only 12" by 14")  but I have a very  important job around here.  You see I am also the guardian of the doll quilts that arrive from all over the country, and the Virgin Islands, and Canada, and France.   It is a big responsibility to oversee the arrival and make sure each doll quilt is photographed  before sharing.   On mail day when the squishy packages arrive, my nose glows redder.  I also must remind my Mrs. Claus to keep lists and write thank you emails, too.   There's a very big and special group of Mrs. Clauses at the HGTV message board that  help make the doll quilts.  My Mrs. Claus says I  am to say a big hello to them and their leader, Nicki.  Merry Christmas to each of you, too.

     I like it best when I get to take a break and rest a while outside.  I keep my eyes open and stay alert even then.  You never know who might be around and interested in the quilts.  Why just a few days ago I saw a couple of strangers who were quite interested in a recent winter scene quilt my Mrs. Claus made.  Just look at these two!  My antlers began to itch.   I was quite suspicious of the one with that funny pointed hat.  

    I managed to lure the other guy away from the quilt, so no damage was done.  I  gave him a stern warning and sent him on his way.  Guardians have to be firm.  My break is over and  I've got to go back inside now.  So you can visit a little with Mrs. Claus.
 

Mrs. Claus aka Debbie here......
   Rudy is quite the  protector and talker, I must say.  And I  love him....who could resist that face of his.
  For his construction,   I used fusing  technique and machine  applique for all the pieces.  The eyebrows and grin---which unfortunately got hidden by the binding---are machine stitched with a saddle stitch.  The ornament cording is zig zag stitched in place.  Fabric pencils were used for added highlights.  

  And as a special treat for you, I have added a new page above entitled "Patterns".  There you will find the line drawing for creating your own Rudy.  I am sure he would love to see photos of any cousins you create.

  Thanks for stopping by to meet Rudy.  He loves company.
   Enjoy the Christmas Quilt Show and be sure to check out the link above for entering for prizes.  There are a lot of them.  Voting will be found there too.
   Merry Christmas and happy stitching.

Thinking Christmas and flying geese

   For the guild quilt show, I am demoing how to do the one seam flying geese block.   I learned this technique last year and did a journal quilt with the units.
    I recently ran across a You tube video with another variation of this.  Suzanne MeNeill does a 5 minute block that is really the same thing.   So I am not going to repeat her great tutorial, and  I did use one of her projects.  (Her book  on this is due out this month....got to get one!)
    First she showed a pinwheel block.....love  those curves!   They are just stitched down---no curved seams to sew.   I used scraps that were already pieced and leftover from an earlier project, instead of the strips she used.   I have 4 more blocks that I can put together.....why that's at least half a quilt size!   I may just cut some strips and make a few more to get a whole top.
    What is really great about this----any size you want to do----the math is easy.  I found this at
Connecting Threads -----scroll down to Method 4 for the one seam flying geese.

   On to the small project.....I call it ....

 10 days to Christmas.  Growing up, I knew that when my birthday arrived on the 14th of December,  there were only 10 more days to Christmas.  And there are 10 little pockets on this tree.....that could be filled with small gifts (for me, by me) or hold Christmas cards.  There is also a larger pocket at the base  that was added after quilting the main project.  The binding finishes it off and joins the two sections.  Of course you can leave off the pocket.
   This would be very cute done with more trees....maybe  3 of different  heights, or adding  a tall skinny house between 2 trees. Or a row of pinwheels, or.....you design it!
   I used 4 inch squares for this one  and the overall length is 32" and I made it about 10" wide.  It took about 1 hour to cut, sew, press,  stitch on the star and then pin for quilting.   So I do mean this is quick and easy.
   OK, so now I am beginning to think Christmas......it's still summer, and I am jumping to December.  Maybe I should do this in fall tones, too....that sounds more reasonable.
  Happy stitching.