I Like Thursday #142

It's time for I Like Thursday. LeeAnna,from Not Afraid of Color, hosts a bunch of us bloggers to post happy and uplifting posts. Go visit for more posts to read! My brother came to visit us this past weekend. My mom was in her glory having her 2 kids home with her. My brother lives in upstate New York so we don't see him too often. Since I'm not working, I actually got to see him a lot more than usual!

 

I sewed the backing to my Redwork piece. I still have to iron it and open up those outer seams as well as sew that opening. 

I've forgotten what it's like to have a baby. Lily has been constantly crying to go out on the deck! I have this little screen house for her. I finally put her in it to shut her up! She's actually out there sleeping right now.

I have a bunch of leftover sock yarn. I thought I'd like to make scrap socks but I wasn't sure how to incorporate the different colors into one item. I found this on a website. It's a great way to make the colors look cohesive. I'm going to try it out soon and see how it works. 

Happy Memorial Day weekend!!

My First Redwork

I started this Redwork table topper last week. It was much quicker than I expected! It was such a great project to work on while watching TV. I'm not sure I embroidered everything correctly but I did my best! There are a few French knots as well as the stem stitch and backstitch. My next step is to trim the topper and sew the backing.

This is the kit I bought. When I saw the hats are from the Downton Abbey era, I knew I had the perfect  background! I just had to find it!

And here it is! I washed and ironed it. I'm so glad I kept this fat quarter. It's the perfect size for the topper and perfect for this piece! 

I Like Thursday #141

Welcome to I Like Thursday. Please visit LeeAnna over at Not Afraid of Color to link up to more like minded happy posts. My friend, Sarah, made me this wall hanging when I moved into my new house over 20 years ago. It's one of my most prized possessions. I just washed it and hung it back up. I always think of her when I see it. Quilt friends are the best friends!

It's been so windy these past few days. This tree came down at the beginning of the development I live in. That wind just wouldn't let up. The tree has been cleared since this picture was taken. Scary!

I've never done redwork before but I bought this little table topper awhile ago. It's vintage hats reminiscent of Downton Abbey. I just started working on it. It's made up of 5 hats. It's such a relaxing project. I'm not sure I'm doing everything correctly but it looks okay!

My friend knows all about my book addiction. She just sent me a Kindle. Amazon sure makes it easy to order books. My Kindle is linked to my Amazon account as well as my Goodreads account. I receive all sorts of recommendations based on the books that I've read. These companies are so smart. No wonder they make so much money!

It's a cool and dreary day today. However, we expect temperatures in the 90's over the weekend. Crazy!! Have a wonderful weekend!

Sashiko Coasters

I finished stitching my Sashiko coasters but wasn't sure how to finish them. I looked online and came up with a method. This first picture are all 5 coasters once they were finished. I'll tell you how I got there.

I cut each coaster individually along with it's backing. The backing has a sewing line but I thought it was useless. I wanted to center the sashiko design. I was afraid I would stitch into the design which would look awful. 

I layered wrong sides towards each other. I also added a square of batting. Many directions didn't include the batting but I thought just 2 layers of cotton wouldn't be very absorbent. I have plenty of leftover batting and thought it would make the coaster a little thicker too.

I chose to stitch about 1/4 inch from the edge of the design. I left one side partially open so I could turn the coaster inside out.

 And here it is! All that's left is to whipstitch that opening. I also washed them by hand to get rid of the printed design. I gave it a little pressing and I was all done! I really love how they came out. 

I Like Thursday #140

It's time for I Like Thursday! Please visit LeeAnna over at Not Afraid of Color to find links to more fun and like minded posts. Well, Spring is finally arriving in my neck of the woods. This tree is to the left of our front door but it's so tall, it's reaches my bedroom window which is on the second floor. The pink is so pretty!

I got some great gifts for Mother's Day but I think this was my favorite. My daughter knows I love Wednesday night when Chicago Med, Chicago Fire and Chicago PD are on. She made a shirt for me to wear on my favorite night of television!

I finally got a tea strainer. I haven't seen them for awhile. I have some loose tea and haven't been able to make any tea. I'm looking forward to tasting some of my loose tea. Someone actually brought some back for me from China.

This is the last book I read and I loved it. I laughed and I cried! Elizabeth Zott is a scientist in the 1950's. She's way ahead of her time. There's so much she has to endure. There's so much working women take for granted today that we forget just how tough it used to be. It's a real eye opener.

I wish you all have a great weekend. It's actually warm to today and supposed to be even warmer over the weekend! Nice change!

Color My World Quilted!

I finished quilting Color My World today! This quilt has been challenging for me. There was so much quilting in the ditch. I also tried to fill each little window and door with a quilting motif. I used rulers and free motion quilting. Some of my ideas look great, others are just okay. I'm just happy that it's done!

This is just a close up of the feathers in the border. I marked them before I even loaded the quilt top onto the longarm. Free motion quilting is so much faster than quilting in the ditch. The borders took me no time at all.

I tried to fill each little roof, windows and doors with a quilt motif. I meandered the entire background hoping that would sort of highlight each of the buildings. I'm not sure that worked but it looks good. I'm hoping I have some fabric in my stash for the binding. I was thinking of  light blue to imitate the sky.  For now, I'm just happy to look at it and know it's done!

I Like Thursday #139

It's time for I Like Thursday. Please visit LeeAnna over at Not Afraid of Color to see more fun and uplifting posts. It's finally warm today. We should be getting close to 70. I love seeing this forsythia next door. It's been a blaze of color for awhile now. 

I couldn't resist this pattern! I have plenty of cat fabrics and I know my cats would love to sit in it. This pattern needs lots of heavy stabilizer. I just hope my cats wouldn't tear it apart!

I bought this fabric for the back of  Swoon. I love the delicate little flowers making that spiral pattern. I bought it online from Keepsake Quilting.

Along with the fabric, I received this set of instructions explaining how to wash fabric. I never knew there was a proper method of washing fabric. I figured I would pass it along. Let me know what you think. 

Have a wonderful weekend and Happy Mother's Day!

Almost finished X 2!

I've been diligently working on Color My World. I've been trying to quilt 2-3 houses per day. When I can advance the quilt, I switch to my white thread and work on the borders and background. I was so surprised to see I've reached the end of the quilt! I have 5 houses left to quilt and 2 partial skyscrapers. Then I switch to white and free motion the background. I'm almost done! My quilting isn't the best but it's done. Done is better than perfect!

 This is my last sashiko coaster. Almost there! I've been stitching while watching General Hospital. (Don't tell anyone I still watch the soaps!) Now I have to figure out how to make coasters out of them! 

I have an appointment with my hairdresser tomorrow.  I have to get rid of that pesky grey stripe!