Thankful Anyway

Well, 2020 hasn't given us much to be thankful for. Between the election, hurricanes, and COVID-19, most of this year has seemed frantic and unsettling. It has definitely been a time for vision.

With my ever positive attitude, I am still thankful for a lot. My husband and I are both healthy. We have a roof over our heads, food, water, and paper products. We are retired, so we don't have to go out except for necessities. We can stay in and stay safe, wearing masks when we leave the house. I do miss eating out, but to me it isn't worth the risk.

I'm grateful that I truly enjoy being at home. I've taken advantage of extra time here to make a few small improvements. I've cleared out and reorganized cabinets, closets and drawers. Home to us is sanctuary; a cozy, peaceful place to relax and enjoy life.

Going through quarantines and shortages made me pause to think about what's really important. The extra solitude gave me the opportunity to reconsider what I want my life to be like. Simplicity and comfort are key ingredients; saying no to people and things I don't want is another.

I've turned off the news, listened to more music, read more books, explored new ideas, taken long walks, and had great conversations with my husband. I found that I don't need so many clothes, shoes, and accessories. My hair has grown out to a pretty silvery color and I just trimmed off the last of the blonde ends. I'm officially an old gal now, but still a feisty one!

Last of all, I appreciate having a lovely craft room with enough fabric and supplies to keep me sewing for at least another year or two. My sweetie has the full basement for his toys and projects.

So, we're good here. And thankful.

Wishing you all

a peaceful Thanksgiving

Country Spools

A few weeks ago I took advantage of a sale and ordered a new Accuquilt die. The day it arrived, I dropped everything and started cutting. The spool die is really cute and I can see that some of pieces will combine with other dies to create other designs. (As if I need more to do!)

Country Spools is 36” square, made up of sixteen 6” spool blocks plus sashing. I pulled red, black, white and grey prints from my remnant baskets. I liked the small center pieces but decided to switch things up by using squares and quarter squares for some of the centers. Tiny stripes for the sashing with bandana squares frame them beautifully.

I quilted across the sashing with white thread in a loopy decorative stitch. A small serpentine stitch was used across the block sections. Backing is black and white chevrons with binding in a paisley print.

Accuquilt dies used: 55180 Spool BOB, 55006 3 ½” Square, 55018 Value die (2 ½” HST)

Side note: Even though I've been sewing up a storm, I took time off over the weekend to celebrate with my husband...we've been married 46 years! Seems like yesterday that we were starting out in that little four room duplex.

It's been fun and sometimes crazy. We worked hard and learned as we went, always moving ahead together. Now we're retired and pursuing our hobbies. Of course, there's still work to do, like helping him repair fuel lines on the truck the morning of our anniversary. Yeah, I have mechanic skills as well as sewing expertise.

We are a great team and still enjoy each other's company. It's fabulous to have a loving partner to share life's adventures. I am thankful for every single day.

Love is: being Happy Together

Crimson Glory

Crimson Glory

It's time to share my latest modern replica of a Granny Rose quilt. I have made several reproductions of her work, using EQ8 to design and Accuquilt to cut.  

This interesting block was one from her box of unfinished items. It's an old one called glorified nine patch, although there are actually 13 pieces. I guess that's the glorified part. I don't know if this was a test block or if it was left over from a scrap quilt.

I decided on red and white prints with a few gray accents for a cheerful Valentine touch. Crimson Glory features the kite block combined with 2½” squares, so no curves to stitch. My modified version has 21 pieces for each block.  I'd sure hate to cut all 550+ with scissors.

The pieced bright red border frames everything nicely. Quilting was done with white thread, following the outlines and crossing the blocks diagonally. 

The back is a red and white diagonal stripe fabric, split by nine patch squares in a row. Final 48” x 58” size is just right for a throw.

In addition to her completed quilts, Jerold's granny clipped design ideas from ads in Progressive Farmer and other magazines, and I saved them all. She cut templates from paper sacks, making notes on them for color ideas and number of pieces to cut. I'm lucky to have this quilty treasure.  More inspiration for me!

Give Thanks

I am thankful for many things.  I have a happy life, a loving husband, a comfortable home, and a room full of fabric.  

And, finally, we have a new working refrigerator...plus a new dishwasher too!  


Wishing you and yours a happy Thanksgiving.

Grateful

Thoughts Of Gratitude

As we enter November, with the Christmas frenzy already in full force, I would rather focus first on being thankful. To me, this month is a time of reflection and beauty. The season is changing; the last colorful leaves are falling. Here in Tennessee the temperature can be warm one day and downright chilly the next. I'm grateful that I can enjoy all of that.

My life isn't perfect, but I'm thankful for everything I have.

Marvelous May!

Cinco de Mayo: Since I love Mexican food, you can bet I'll celebrate by enjoying chips, guacamole, a big plate of Pollo Loco and an icy cold bottle or two of Pacifico.

Mother's Day: Without my quirky and hard working mama, I wouldn't be the woman I am today. She always took good care of me, so now I'm returning the favor with love. I'm grateful that I can talk with her daily, and that she's still a feisty redhead. Thanks, Sam!

Flowers: My yard is full of spring flowers and I love them all! Pale and dark pink peonies, delicate white azaleas, violet tall phlox, purple, peach, white and yellow iris, hot pink carnations, sweet smelling lilacs and heavenly roses in yellow, orange and pink.

Strawberries: I don't grow them but Portland berries are the sweetest and best. They're beginning to come in, so I'm heading to Bradley's for a crate of these juicy delights.

“My mama taught me that I had the power to achieve my dreams, to find my own way, and to be responsible for myself.” ~ Katie Scarlett

Running Like A Sewing Machine

I had just begun to sew when my Singer XL1000 started making a horrible noise. I called my resident handyman, who dropped everything to take her downstairs to his workbench for troubleshooting. Fortunately, I have a backup machine, my trusty old Singer Athena that I haven't used in several years. I pull her out of the closet, dust her off and, well, she's making an awful noise too!

OK, fine. My mama's basic Singer Simplicity is sitting under my sewing table. She will do for what I want to sew today. I set her up, threaded bobbins, and you guessed it...more growling noises! What in the world?

I check downstairs, where Jerold had my good machine apart on his bench. This will take a while, he says. So, I head back to the sewing room and start my own mission to fix the Simplicity. I found a maintenance manual online, got my tool kit and went to work. Next thing you know, I have this machine apart on my craft table. I had the back, sides, and top off; I oiled, dusted, changed needles, made some adjustments and put her back together. VOILA! She's humming right along now.

Me upstairs and him downstairs, both of us doing sewing machine repairs. Maybe we should have taped this for submission as a new reality show. The XL had a lot of lint jammed way down inside, which threw something out of alignment. After lots of tricky and fiddly adjustments, my man saved the day and fixed her. Athena had a loose wire on her circuit board, and unfortunately a cracked gear, which may eventually cause her demise.

Thankfully for now all are up and running like sewing machines should. I'll need to blow lint out of the XL after every project, and use my backup machines more often to keep their mechanisms lubricated. Any solution that requires more sewing is just fine with me.

The experience was challenging but extremely fulfilling. I'm lucky to have a husband who's willing and more than able to work on nearly anything. I'm thankful that I'm mechanically inclined and capable enough to fix a few items on my own. The down side to fixing them is that I missed a chance to buy a fancy new machine...

“If we all did the things we are capable of doing,

we would literally astound ourselves.” 

--Thomas Edison

“Never underestimate the power

of a woman with a sewing machine.” 

--Unknown

I Am Grateful

I am grateful to be where I am needed.