I Like Thursday #213

Welcome to I Like Thursday! Please visit LeeAnna over at Not Afraid of Color to link up to more happy posts. It's been a quiet week for me. My house is still being painted so I'm sort of stuck here. I've done a good amount of online shopping so I'm doing fine with my Christmas list. I like staying home but hate that I can't leave when I feel like it. Anyways, my mother received these gorgeous flowers from my brother for her birthday. They're too pretty to not share!

My mother's 84th birthday was one week before Thanksgiving so we had a cake and party for her on the holiday. I don't think she expected it! It was fun to surprise her. She loved all her gifts. I made her a chocolate cake using a recipe from Ina Garten. It was so rich!  

My cats get along okay but they're not the best of friends. I think this is the closest I've ever seen them sleep near each other. It was a Thanksgiving miracle! They did eat some turkey so maybe the tryptophan got to them!

Due to being home, I'm making great progress on my last cross stitch ornament. This pattern is considered intermediate and I'm doing okay with it. Once this one is done, I'll have to make all 5 of them into real ornaments. I've read a few tutorials and think I know what to do.

That's my week! I think the painters will be here another week. We decided to have our kitchen cabinets painted so that will take longer than we expected. We might as well get it done now and get it over with.

Have a great weekend!

Half Done!

 I have half of the State Fair Sampler Quilt all sewn together! It's a little slow so I just do a few pieces at a time. There are so many seams to match up and points to keep intact. I do love how it looks so far. I can't measure how long it is right now. The final measurement should by 96" X 92".

My house is an absolute mess! The painters are making great progress but this is how my kitchen looks right now. I think it will be worth it in the end but it's not easy to get through. I can't reach certain parts of my house if they've been painting. It does dry fast so that's good. I'm just trying to not get into their way, They should be done sometime next week. I can't wait!

Panel and Cross Stitch

I had planned to post on Thanksgiving Day but cooking and company got in the way! I haven't been sewing too much around the holiday so I tried to make some progress today. I did manage to sew together the first section of the State Fair Sampler Quilt. This section measures approximately 69" X 48.5".  It's a bit slow sewing these sections together. There are seams to line up as well as points to try to keep intact! I love the look of this. So far, so good!

I started the last counted cross stitch ornament. This one is for me! It's called Festive Ball and it looks like a round Christmas ornament. I hope to work on it over the weekend. The painters have been here everyday including this morning. I find it difficult to get anything done with work people in the house. I'm trying to go about my own business but it's not easy! I get called away quite often. My family room is done and most of the first floor is finished. We still have a ways to go but the painted rooms look so much nicer. It's definitely worth the discomfort!

 

24 Seams

 I'm so happy to say I have finished making all the blocks for my son's wedding quilt, State Fair Sampler Quilt. Some of these blocks were very difficult. I probably won't forget this one. It's called Cedar County and measures 8.5" square. It was paper pieced. The problem is there are 24 seams that meet in the middle of the block. My block isn't perfect but I felt it was close enough! It looks pretty good to me. I'll start sewing the blocks together after Thanksgiving. 

We found a great painter over the summer to paint the interior of our house. They started this past Monday. This is my family room. They'll probably be here for a few more weeks. I think I'll be doing quite a bit of online shopping for Christmas this year! They just finished our family room and it looks great! I can't wait for them to work on the rest of the house. It's long overdue. 

I Like Thursday #212

 It's time for happy posts! Welcome to I Like Thursday!! Make sure you visit LeeAnna over at Not Afraid of Color to link up to more blogs. This drink was so delicious! My husband and I went out to eat and I ordered a pomegranate sangria. I had never had one before. Such a great fall drink!

I haven't put up any decorations for Christmas yet but I did bring up the Christmas bus for the cats. As you can see, the cats are enjoying driving that bus! I always think it's so funny to see the cats enjoy their little toys. I always wonder how they know they're supposed to sit in it! Haha! They're fun to watch. 

There's a fox sitting at the tree across the street. I was about to go out when I noticed this fox enjoying a little bit of sunshine. He walked around and got himself quite comfortable. He ran away when a neighbor came by walking his dog. I enjoyed watching him for awhile.

I have a bunch of half yard cuts and am not quite sure what to do with them. I saw this book and grabbed it. I'm hoping to make a few quilts and use up those fabrics. This book is from Fat Quarter Shop. I love shopping there! I found this book at JoAnn's and on sale! 

That's my week. Enjoy your weekend! Can you believe it's Thanksgiving one week from today?? Time just flies!

Two More Cross Stitch Ornaments

 

I've been having so much fun making these cross stitch ornaments. I finished this one over the weekend. It's called Christmas Chaos and measures about 4.5" square. Those kitties are so fresh!

I haven't finished this one yet. This is Poinsettia Fairy. I still have to add her green wings. These ornaments are such fun to work on! I'm going to try to make one for myself. I plan on finishing them all at the same time. I'd like to add some trim to each one but not sure I'll be able to figure that out!! More pictures to follow!

I Like Thursday #211

It's that time of the week! It's time for a happy post. LeeAnna over at Not Afraid of Color hosts a bunch of us bloggers each week to post uplifting content. I will start with my latest block for the State Fair Sampler. This is block 21 that is called Scott County. This one was paper pieced and very quick to make. It measures 12.5" square. I have decided to make all the blocks for this quilt before I start machine quilting my applique quilt. I just don't have the time to do both at the same time.

One reason I don't have the time is because we're having the interior of our house painted. It's been awhile and each room needs it a nice fresh coat! I have too many decisions to make. Do I keep the colors the same or should I change them?? The painter is dropping off the charts tomorrow. He'll get samples of 5 colors that are all close and paint them on the wall, wait for them to dry, and then let us decide what we like best. This painter sounds so nice. So glad we found him. 

Since it's Fall, I've been craving pumpkin. I decided to make this pumpkin walnut bundt cake. It came out so good! I just made a quick confectioners sugar icing for the top. I'll have to decide what to make next! I can't believe it's Thanksgiving in 2 short weeks. Where does the time go??

For those of you readers, I started this book and cannot put it down. It reminds me of the old gothic mysteries. It follows 3 different women in 3 different time zones. I think they're all related but can't say for sure. I'm really enjoying this and thought I'd pass it along.

We had a little wintry mix this morning. It was a little sleet mixed with rain. We all know that winter will be here soon. Today was that reminder! Have a great weekend!!

Cross Stitch and 2 Blocks

I'm still trying to catch up on showing you all the blocks I've made for the State Fair Sampler Quilt. But before I get to that, I wanted to show you this adorable cross stitch ornament I've been working on. This is only the lower half of the ornament. I'll be cross stitching another cat and stocking in the upper half. This one is so cute and so fun to make! Those silly kitties are so funny!

This is Pocahontas County and measure 12.5" square. This one is made up of half square triangles and flying geese as well as a square in a square in the middle.

This one looks so fun! This is Polk County and also measures 12.5" square. This one was pretty fast to make. It looks like a double spiral to me.  Only 16 blocks to go!! I'm getting there. I'm getting a little faster making these blocks now.

More Blocks from State Fair Sampler

I haven't been on line too much lately. I made the mistake of getting the Covid vaccine, flu vaccine and pneumonia vaccine all at once. It was nice to get it over with but I didn't feel good for a few days. I had a 101 temperature the next night. I was also busy with hair appointment, tutoring and bringing my mother for her own Covid and flu vaccine. I'm fine now but not sure I'll do that again! I have been working on the blocks for my son's wedding quilt. I thought we'd have a little catch up! This one is called Dubuque County. They all measure 12.5" square in this post. I made the 4-patch units by sewing strips together so this block was quick.

This one is called Emmet County. I used paper piecing to make this block. There were 2 units that were made 4 times each and then put together. I use freezer paper so I don't have to rip out any paper. I prefer this method over all other paper piecing.

This one is called Hancock County. There were lots of seams and points to match up. I'm lucky it came out this good!

This is Monona County. This one is made up of half square triangles as well as quarter square triangles. Once I made the units, it was quick to put together. 

I'll be cutting another block this afternoon. I need to get used to the time change. I was so hungry but I couldn't figure out why! That hour can make a huge difference! Enjoy the rest of your weekend!