Petting Zoo & Christmas Donation

This darling quilt is constructed with animal themed fabrics, most given to me by a friend, some picked up at estate sales. Cats, dogs, lions, owls, rabbits, llamas and other critters frolic with coordinating prints.

I used the snowball block, with black weave on the corners. Piecing was done on Elizabeth, my vintage Singer 404. Petting Zoo is 48” square. I quilted with white thread, adding straight and serpentine stitches across the center of the blocks.

Petting Zoo

Accuquilt dies used:
55330 Snowball 6” finished
55017 Strip 2½”

🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄 🎄

Christmas donation 

This was one of a group of quilts that I donated to a local senior living facility. The ladies were so surprised when this Santa's helper dropped by. It was lovely to see those smiles as they unwrapped their gifts.

Spread some

J O Y

this Christmas

 

Granny's Wash Day

Memories of sheets and housedresses hanging on the line at granny's house prompted me to design this adorable quilt. Some of the fabrics are 1950's vintage, from Granny Rose's collection of sugar and flour sack remnants. I added new pieces that would complement them, along with white muslin. 

Each four patch block is made up of chisel sections and triangles turned to create the design. This one didn't take long at all, since most of the colored triangles were already cut. I think it looks a bit like the dasher in an old time washing machine. 

A simple quilting pattern of even squares finishes off the vintage look. I used light yellow thread for the straight stitches. The backing is an old sheet of pale yellow with pink, blue, and yellow flowers.

I am lucky to have sweet childhood memories of summer days on the Tennessee farms of both sets of grandparents. And, luckier still to have Jerold's grandmother's fabric to use in my quilts. For more of my posts about Granny Rose, Granny Hill, and sugar sack fabric, click on those labels below.

Accuquilt dies used:
55735 Chisel 2¼” x 4½” finished
55147 Half square triangle 2¼” finished

Remember when

life was simpler,

and we didn't have a

care in the world?

Granny's Garden Walk

Granny's Garden Walk

Are you ready for another Granny Rose block? She had two completed samples of this one in different sizes. The nine patch block is based on 54-40 or Fight design, but has been known by several names over the years. In 1939, it was published as Garden Walk; in 1969 it went by Bird of Paradise; some call it Grandmother's Star when colors are arranged to emphasize the star points.

Mine is a 12” finished block, and as usual, I used Electric Quilt 8 to design and Accuquilt dies to cut the pieces. The 2 ½” square value die for center and corner four patches and the 4” finished triangle in square die went together perfectly. 

Lydia Rose's Garden Walk blocks

I chose four 1930's era colors in two shades each: sunny yellow, luscious lavender, true blue, and grass green, with white for all the triangles.

Granny's Garden Walk is 48” square. I arranged the colors diagonally and decided not to use sashing between the squares. I like the secondary design where the corners come together. 

Quilting was done with white thread, using a walking foot to stitch lines in a lightly flowing wave pattern. Backing is a tiny lattice print in light lavender and white; binding is white.

Start to finish, this took me seven days, working on it several hours every day. I still had time for walks, housework (basics only), and errands.  

A week of sewing = one happy quilter!

A day without quilting

probably won't kill me,

but why take the risk?

Bittersweet Victory

Last night I had tears rolling down my cheeks when Austin Dillon took the checkered flag at Charlotte. The last time we saw the 3 car in Cup Series victory lane, Dale Earnhardt was behind the wheel. I still miss that mustached grin and hard driving style. The Intimidator was my driver, and I was rabidly passionate about NASCAR racing. Now I casually watch, and cheer mostly for Dale Jr., but it's not the same.

I guess I am happy for Richard Childress to finally get another win with that car, but I secretly hoped that would never happen. Life goes on, things change, but to me the 3 car will always belong to Dale Earnhardt. 

Sixty Is Sensational

I'm celebrating my sixtieth birthday this week. WOW. That's an age I once thought of as ancient. Now that I'm here, sixty doesn't seem so old after all.   I'm not too fat and I'm still very sassy.   I'm healthy and have a reasonable number of brain cells left. 

 

I'm enjoying my life, my home, and my sweet husband. We're happily retired. Every morning is the start of a new adventure, whether it's  cleaning house or going camping. 
 
I'm lucky to have the power to choose how I want to experience life. I've learned to slow down and savor every moment. And that the feeling of having enough is liberating. 
 

What's not to like about all that? Here's to my magical and sensational sixties!

"You aren't really 60. Just 21 with 39 years experience!" - Anonymous 

 

Sentimental Christmas Decorations

Sentimental decorations are the best, don't you think? They bring back fond memories of Christmas past, especially friends and family we've lost. I added two items to my Christmas decorating this year, both inherited from my mother-in-law. Her Norfolk Island pine is now a Christmas tree for my sewing room. We gave her the little tree one year for her December birthday. The tiny lightweight ornaments include a thimble and thread spool painted with Santa faces.

Her adorable lighted Christmas Village, which was displayed on their hearth every year, now resides on the sideboard in our dining room. There's a church, station, hotel, school, shops, house, barn, and lots of little people, animals, cars, fences and trees. I love the handmade accessories crafted by my father-in-law: twigs painted with white to simulate snow covered trees, a mailbox, and a sleigh.

I'm still keeping my simple decorating rule, using only my favorite things like my cute ceramic Santa bears, the iron tabletop tree, and quilted accents. It doesn't take long to put up or take down our Christmas decorations, but there's something festive in every room.

The freezing rain and ice that accumulated on our pine trees early Sunday morning brought down a dozen fairly large limbs. We'll have to get out the tractor today to drag them down to the burn pile, but not before I cut lots of pine branches. Nature provided easy access for me to create fresh arrangements for the house.

"Remember, if Christmas isn't found in your heart, you won't find it under a tree."  ~ Charlotte Carpenter