I Like Thursday #79

 Happy Thanksgiving! I'm so happy to be off. The turkey is cooking and all the sides are in the process of getting done. We'll have a very small gathering this year. Just my mom and immediate family will be here. My husband brought N95 masks from work. I don't want my mom getting sick. We won't all be eating at the table together. We're splitting up to keep exposure low. 

This was sort of a quiet week. I did take the cats to the vet. Here they are in the back seat of my car. I wish you could hear them! They were none too happy and loved letting me know about it! They were much quieter on the way home. I think they were tuckered out!

Since I'm on a Brioche knitting kick, I found this gorgeous shawl pattern. Isn't it so pretty?? This just might be my next project after a pair of socks I promised to someone. Too many nice projects out there! 

This seems to be the talk of the neighborhood! Our neighbor had this delivered to his house yesterday. We received multiple texts asking what might our neighbor be up to!! Especially the day before Thanksgiving! I'm keeping an eye out to see what's going on!

That's my week! Nothing exciting and I'm fine with that! Please visit LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color to read more happy and inspiring posts. Enjoy your Thanksgiving but stay safe!!

Pineapples and Brioche

The first row of my Pineapple Quilt is done! It didn't take too long to actually sew but there are many biased edges to be careful with. I've been using lots of pins and clips. I'm trying not to sew the same fabrics near each other and that will just get more difficult as I continue to sew rows together. I'll just have to take my time and be careful.

Look at my Brioche Scarf! It's getting so long! I'm almost at the other end where I will knit another X just like the beginning of the scarf. Knitting all these rows is great practice to learn the brioche knit. I don't need to read the directions anymore. I really love this look. 

These are close ups of the back and front. I love this pattern. I found some great patterns for brioche shawls. A brioche shawl might just be my next knit project!

I Like Thursday #78

 

Happy Thursday! It's time to join fellow bloggers with a positive post. Please visit LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color to read more fun and uplifting posts. We really need them this year! We had to get rid of our pumpkins. As you can see, the squirrels found themselves a great food source. We actually just moved them into the woods behind our house. They were leaving all sorts of seeds and scraps all over our front steps. They're welcome to make the mess in the woods where I won't have to clean them!

I got a new design wall. I tacked it to the wall behind my longarm. Unfortunately, my Pineapple quilt is going to be much larger than the design wall. I decided to separate the row so I could see the blocks together. Each row should measure about 90 inches but I think the design wall is closer to 70 inches. Oh, well, I can still use it but I won't be able to get the whole row up there. I'll figure something out. I already like how the first row looks!

I'm almost done with the tote bags for my friend's daughters. I just have to top stitch the top edge and close up the opening at the bottom. I really love how they came out! I wanted to finish them before I get started on the Pineapple quilt. I can't wait to give them to the girls!

I received this book as an Advanced Reader's Copy. I enter my name for all sorts of book offers but rarely win. I was so surprised when I got this in the mail. It's to be published in 2021. I'll let you know if it's good. I'm reading the Book Woman of Troublesome Creek right now and it's excellent! I'm dying to keep reading but the Nook needs to charge.

That's my week! It's been colder here and Covid has been increasing. I'm staying home and sewing as much as I can. Have a great week!

More Christmas Gifts

 I'm machine quilting another Christmas gift so I can only show a little bit of this project. This isn't the best picture but it gives you an idea of what I'm doing. I love to combine ruler work with free motion quilting which you can see in this picture. I like it so far!

 

 I made the pockets for the two tote bags I'm making for my friend's daughters. The directions show a tote bag using directional fabric however the directions make no distinction so I have to change things around as I sew. So far, so good. I'm still paranoid I'm going to screw it up! I just have to make a couple of pin cushions and then I'm all done with my handmade gifts. I'm usually never done this early. I guess that's the silver lining of the pandemic. If there is a silver lining!!

I Like Thursday #77

 

It's Thursday and time for an uplifting post. Please join LeeAnna and other bloggers for more happy posts at Not Afraid of Color. Lots of fun stuff there! This is the view outside in my back yard. It's been warm but all the leaves are gone. It's been windy and those leaves have been floating past the windows. The cats have been watching the leaves flying. I think it's fun for them to see! Unfortunately, winter is on the way.

Speaking of the cats, I think I shared a picture of my husband's new leather chair. Well, the cats have been very interested in this new piece of furniture. My husband bought a very soft blanket to throw over the chair so the cats would ignore it. Wrong move! The cats love that soft throw and have been sleeping on it together! They rarely sleep this closely but this chair has brought them together!

We had a little party at work for one of my closest work friends. She turned 40 (so young!) so we brought in all sorts of goodies. It made the day so much nicer. That strawberry log is the best! It's made up of fresh strawberries, cake and lots of whipped cream. It's her favorite and we loved getting it for her since we could eat some too!!

I'm making 2 tote bags for Christmas gifts. My friend has 2 little girls. I just love these fabrics! I'm going to make the tote bags but also include a few books for each girl. They are 4 years old and 9 years old. I make them gifts every year. They're 2 fun little girls. I love making them gifts and they appreciate everything I've made for them.

That's it for me this week. It's been a quiet week. Covid is getting worse so I'm spending more time home. Stay safe and stay healthy!!

Fun Projects

I had quite a busy day at work today. To top it off, I had a headache for most of the day. I came home and tried to rest a little. Unfortunately, I had laundry and housework to do but I do feel better. I thought I'd show you what I've been working on. I started machine quilting a Christmas gift. I can only show a small portion of it since it's a gift.  It's coming out good so far. It feels good to be using rulers again with some free motion quilting. 

I'm really getting the hang of Brioche Knitting. I'm working on the body of the scarf now which is pretty easy. It's great practice with the basic Brioche stitch. I love the i-cord edge at the bottom as well as the edges. It's a really nice finished look. Susanne Sommer wrote this pattern. She has many video tutorials and patterns available if you're interested. This pattern is a freebie on Ravelry.

 

I Like Thursday #76

 It's Thursday so it's time to join a group of bloggers that will have posts that are positive and upbeat. Please visit LeeAnna at Not Afraid of Color to read these posts. This picture is my 81 Pineapple Blocks that I finished yesterday! I'm relieved to be done. They were fun at first but I felt they were more of a chore towards the end. I'll be fooling around with placement but I need a little break from them for now!

I made my first Paleo Pumpkin Bread of the season! I usually make banana bread but thought I should change it up. My whole house smells so good!

I'll be quilting this vintage quilt top soon. My friend buys vintage  quilt tops and I quilt them for her. It works out nicely for both of us! I wanted to make a secondary quilt design between the Dresden Plates but the space is sort of uneven. I'm going to have to come up with something. If anyone has any ideas, let me know!

I'm almost done sewing down this binding. I don't think I could do it without these binding clips. I just love them. I use them for piecing too. Do you all use them too? I don't know of anyone who doesn't like them. They're so helpful!

That's my week! We had snow last week but it's close to 70 today. I guess the weather can't make up it's mind! I actually have windows open and getting some fresh air into the house. 

Election Day

It's Election Day. I voted early this time. I'm nervous but I'm keeping myself busy! These are the last 5 Pineapple Blocks I'll be making for my quilt. They will finish at 10 inches square. I just have one more dark round as well as the corners. 81 blocks will be finished! I plan on making a quilt made up of 9 blocks across and 9 blocks down. That should be a good size! I love small quilts but I never know what to with them. I usually opt for larger quilts that I can actually put on a bed. That's just my personal preference, everyone is different.

Here's my Brioche Scarf so far. The X is complete. I just continue the pattern until I reach the other end. Then, it will be time to make another X to finish off the scarf. I wish you could feel it to see how cushy and thick it is. I guess I can block it and make it thinner but I think I prefer to keep it thick. I think it will be warmer that way. 

I'll be making a quick dinner and then watching the returns come in from each state. I'm not sure we'll have the final results tonight but maybe we'll have an idea of what's to come. Fingers crossed!