Happy New Year!!

Out with the old and in with the new! That could apply to years and quilting projects!
Some of us make a list of the projects we hope to get finished in a year....and that can be successful but what about a  new thought. What if someone else would want your project? Let's face it...I feel like my quilts are like my babies! I have them(buy the fabric) raise them(cut and sew the pieces)prepare them for life(make the top and quilt it). Then it is time to send them out into the world(giving them away as a gift or whatever other  reason). So for me giving away an unfinished quilt isn't an option but how I would love to finish all those tops in my sewing room.

fall coloured desdan plate, beige with pink backing whole cloth,
scrappy with navy background mystery quilt.

top left-right
blocks ready need one more fabric, log cabin star,
pastel sampler, redwork I am doing in blue

So...for this new year, I am continuing with the decluttering of my life.Letting go of these projects. I would love to hand quilt them all but that is not realistic so I will be finishing them however I can. This is a pic of the ones I have to finish...I am hoping by posting this it will help me to forge ahead and get them finished. You will be seeing lots of pics of these in the future....fingers crossed!! Now with all these to finish...these don't include the new projects that might come along or those programs at guild...yikes!!! FOCUS FOCUS  no squirreling allowed!!! This is my mission this year. Stay tuned and see how well I do!!
These are seven projects I would like to see done. Plus two quilts from Bonnie Hunter. A string one that is in too many pieces to find and her latest mystery.
Wishing you all a Happy New Year and a new beginning to a promising year ahead!!

Deanna

Quiet Holidays

Yes that is what it has been a quiet one. My DD has been home and DH has two weeks off...so we have had lots of family time. We are looking forward to New Year's eve as we have a wedding to attend and that should both end and start the year off great!

My baby girl and our two fur babies(who are waiting for cookies)

With family dinners and the rush of Christmas behind us...I am looking to the new year with all it possibilities! oh and endless projects that I have on the go!!

Today is about getting to sit at my sewing machine and get caught up on my clues for Bonnie Hunter's Mystery. Okay maybe a little laundry too!!! Tonight I am thinking might be family movie night but I will have to see how the day goes if that will happen or not! Regardless there will be some slow stitching with Kathy of some kind so I can sit and relax.Enjoy your Sunday and whatever you chose to do!!

Christmas Eve linky party!!

my favorite wallhanging

Well only one more sleep to go and the morning of ohhhs and ahhhs. I already received a Christmas surprise. My baby girl came home a day early and only told her father about it. I wasn't expecting her till Christmas eve. I am all set and ready for the holiday. I even have time to sew today. Working on Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt. Need to get caught up on the clues before the next one comes out on boxing day.I scaled way back this year and I am not rushing or working on last minute things although I have lots of projects on the go.

snowflakes galore

Speaking of Bonnie Hunter...she is hosting a linky party  today with all things Christmas.In the middle of a holiday she is dong more!!! So I am linking up with pics of projects I have completed that are wintery or Christmasy!!

wallhanging

tablerunner

top-delectable mountains,bottom-Christmas lights

Mr.Splat(door draft dodger)

 Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and new projects and completed UFOs in 2015!!

Only 4 more sleeps!!

left-right clue 1,2 &3 in progress!

As I sit typing away and having a coffee...it is definitely a slow stitching day. I am all ready for Christmas except for one trip to the grocery store tomorrow. Today is all about me and spending some time with my sewing machine and getting more clues done on Bonnie Hunter's mystery. Not slow stitching with Kathy but some relaxing time for me all the same. Okay so I will also be doing laundry too!!! My day started with being able to sleep in until the puppy jumped up on the bed and needed some attention...no sleeping now! Then as I was getting dressed I looked out my window to see this deer crossing our bridge in the backyard. He has been showing up on my DH trailcam but this is the first time I have gotten to see him in person. He still has his rack which he should be losing soon.

8 point buck regular visitor to our yard

I can't wait for the new year to start when all the decorations are put away and life gets back to a routine. Don't get me wrong I love the holidays but I love my sewing and quilting too and they seem to take a backseat during the holidays! I am hoping to set up a quilt to hand quilt in the new year. I have really missed quilting. I usually have one up in the fall but didn't do that this year. Things just seemed to fly by and there was no time!Speaking of time flying...DH will retire in March. Wonder how that will effect my sewing time. 2015 is definitely going to be an exciting year!!!

I would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas, and all the best in the New Year!

Our puppy Belle waiting for Santa

Another Slow Sunday!

Another week has past and we are getting closer to Christmas!My friends hosted a open house where they sold their gooodies..everything from jewellery to baking, tshirts, cards, sauce both sweet and savory, jams and jellies. The best part was there was lots of samples. I managed to check a few more gifts off the Christmas list and even bought myself a beautiful necklace!I can't seem to get to the mall to shop...not crazy about all the crowds this year! I am trying something different this year and shopping in smaller locales where crowds aren't as big. So yesterday was great!!
Today I am doing some baking while the laundry is going. DH is playing guitar for a Christmas pageant this afternoon so I have to get my work done this morning. My sewing machine is just out of eye shot and I am hoping to get some time to finish up clue 2 of Bonnie Hunter's mystery. Clue 3 came out friday but it might have to wait till later this week.

This picture is for Kathy, I hope to be slow stitching along with her today at some point!! She posted pics of Tim Horton's coffee cups for the winter in different patterns. Well  I think this one matches my colour choices for the mystery nicely, don't you!?!

We have snow on the ground again which makes it at least feel like winter is here! Snowflakes are gently falling today and I have a Christmas music channel playing on the radio!!Might even get the tree decorated today. The bare tree has been up for a couple of days to see what the puppy would do but she seems to be ignoring it except for the occasional nap under it!!
Happy slow stitching Sunday to you all!!Enjoy the calm before the chaos!!

Who turned that calendar page over?

plus two pans of fudge!

So it is December and just to make sure I remember Christmas is around the corner...today I am baking with hopefully a chance to do some slow stitching later tonight.I took advantage of having DH home today, while I was baking away and lost track of time.he got supper ready. A great help!!!
So now to put dishes in the dishwasher and clean things up. I also want to put up the tree tonight but not decorate it. My thinking is it will give the puppy a chance to get use to it before the decorations go on. She sure is growing, almost the size of our older retriever. This photo is a rare shot of them laying quietly beside each other!!

Add caption

This week I had some time to get started on Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt. I have clue one done and  the second clue cut out. I have changed up some of the colours too! So this week it is going to be getting more Christmas present finished and the house decorated. Check in later this week and see how I did!?!?!

clue 1 on left, clue2 to do on right

      Also this week it became official....I am the wife of the deputy mayor of our town. He was sworn into office this past Monday. I take a little good-natured ribbing from my friends, so on Wednesday I hosted lunch with them. I broke out the good china and dishes. We had homemade soup and goodies followed by an afternoon of knitting! And I polished up my tiara so they had lunch with a princess!! haha Only wished I had remembered to take pictures.

Dessert is all gone

table ready for company

November WHAT!!!

table runners

endless ways to lay them out

Hard to believe it is the last day, tomorrow is December 1!!! Well this week has been a productive one for me. I have a single bed quilt to the binding stage and that is what I will be doing for slow stitching today with Kathy. The quilt is headed to a wing of our hospital for young mental health patients. This one is sure to brighten up a room. I also completed two table runners that were a workshop at guild this month, using the 60 degree rulers and border prints.I have also finished a small scarf and started a second longer one!

may need to make myself one

laying on my cutting table, brightest spot in the house today

This morning after the housework is done, I am headed to the sewing room to search and look for the perfect fabric to do Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt. The first clue came out on Friday and I am going to do half the units, just have to find some fabric. My problem is...if I like the quilt I will make it bigger SOOOO I have to make sure I have enough fabric to make it larger. Oh the problems we quilters create for ourselves.
Enjoy your Sunday and I hope you find time to sit and stitch awhile!!

Viva la difference!

Last week

This morning

Our roaring creek

Pardon my French but what a difference a day or two makes.Just last week I was spending my mornings shovelling and today there is hardly any snow left after two days of rain. Although the temperature is dropping, it feels and looks  more like Springtime. Our creek is higher now than it was in the Spring.Whitewater rafting anyone!!!The water is so strong it is actually rolling rocks in the creek. Sounds like someone is bowling! Along with the rains and heavy winds, last night there was a power outage. So what is a girl to do ...too early for bed so I stitched a binding by lantern and candlelight.Good thing it was a small quilt. I don't know how those early settlers did all that work by candlelight only!

stitching in the almost dark

All day yesterday it rained so it was a good sewing day. I finished all 15 blocks. Today I am sashing them and getting them ready to be a top.The peach/salmon colour underneath is the sashing.
It was the best option for making those stars pop. I have another full day of sewing so by the end of it I am hoping it will be finished.
Then I have to search my stash for options for Bonnie Hunter's mystery. Only 3 more days to wait till it starts. Are you joining in on the fun too?

Snow snow everywhere

It snowed every day for 5 or 6 days

Although I don't live in Buffalo we have gotten a large amount of snow over the past week but today it is very mild and a little rainy here in Ontario Canada. Inbetween shovelling and keeping a few driveways open, I have been knitting and trying to get some Christmas presents made. I have had an awful time with a pattern I was knitting but it is done and ready to be wrapped. I was so busy knitting that I didn't get much sewing done to those bright orange blocks from last week are still sitting on my sewing table waiting for me.

loves running in the snow but is tuckered out

There is quiltcam this afternoon so I will start a new knitting project and see what Bonnie is up to. I am also linking up with kathy today and that will be my slow stitching. Enjoy your Sunday!!

Let it begin....

So hunting season is over and I start to get back into a routine again. And so begins the start of Christmas shopping and sewing!! Have any of you started yet? I have friends who are done their shopping already. I figure that they are just gonna miss out on some great deals!! haha
As my daughter says...she has four weeks till she has to start shopping!

done with these

This week I have been taking a page out of Bonnie Hunter's purging book. I have been cleaning and decluttering in small quantities. I have hit a few different rooms but the biggest dent was made in my sewing room, in the magazine section. This box full of books will be heading to guild to be rehomed. This is only about half of the ones I want to go through. I have gone through them and taken out any favorite quilts or ones that I think I might make. I took to our local library some pocket novels and computer games. Even cleaned and defrosted two deep freezer.
Yesterday along with laundry.. A pumpkin got roasted and will make muffins and a pumpkin cheesecake.  I cooked up some spaghetti squash for supper(still have a couple more of those left).

roasted pumpkin and yummy seeds too

ready to chain piece

The day was not an entire loss...I did get to sew. I found this block called "Diamond in the Rough" and liked it so I wanted to make the quilt. I found a picture on the internet but no FREE pattern. So with the picture and some precutting instructions from a teacher who taught the class, I was able to come up with some cutting instructions of my own. To make sure everything was correct (you never know) I made a practice block using old fabric. A few modifications were made and yesterday I cut out the pieces needed. Using the right fabric for the project, I made one block today.WHAT!! ARG!! RIP, RIP,RIP!!!! and so the afternoon went. How could there be a mistake.It was only a matter of less than 1/4" - 1/8" but it did matter. After supper I sat down and started fresh and decided after sewing another block I could trim off the excess and live with the rest. Once that was done, the block went together easily. As you can see it is not for the faint of heart. Some of those angles (although only 45 degrees) are tricky to sew. But the finished product is so sweet!!! Only 14 more to make. Another note here, I am using up some fat 1/4s that I have been collecting as a monthly group member.
Today I am hoping to finish sewing the blocks together, now that I know how!?! And join Kathy in some slow stitching. I have a small baby quilt that needs binding and my knitting needles are calling ....get these Christmas presents done!!!
So my title "let it begin" could be the start of cleaning house, decluttering and or getting my Christmas gift list started! Hope you have a great day with whatever you are up to!!

Second week of deer camp!

It might be quilting season but it is the second week of deer camp at my house. DH is gone and he took the puppy so it is very quiet around here.Zoe(my older dog) and I are enjoying the peace and quiet!! Although I intended to sew all day as Kathy says on her blog today, I am multi-tasking a bit. First strike was I slept in to 7! Then a few phone calls from my darling daughter, who moved into her first.house this weekend. Hope that I helped considering how far away I am.

those squares are 3/4" finished,whole quilt 24" square

Laundry is being done as I try to finish a baby quilt so I can slow stitch tonight while watching movies by myself....sweet bliss!!! It really is a perfect day for sewing cause this is what it is doing outside my window. Snowing yes and at times the flakes are huge and softly floating to the ground. Very relaxing to watch!

I think winter might be here to stay!

I am also in Christmas gift making mode! YIKES!! That's right...so I had to drive to a friend's house for a pattern and some knitting advice. So that will also be on the agenda for tonight. Every year I say I will start early and never do but this year I am trying to!!!

So I have my evening planned and after this post is finished...it is supper and relaxing!! Hope you are enjoying your weekend no matter what you are doing!

oops!!

So I linked up to kathy  and slow stitching Sunday and when you try to access my blog...it is a no show! Well maybe some explaination is in order. I will start by saying I am NOT a techie person!!! So this weekend my daughter and I bought me a tablet. We played with it and set it up and then she LEFT!!! I mean she went back to her home and left me with this piece of technology that I know very little about.
I tried doing a blog post on it.Typed everything and even took pictures but couldn't link up and as you can see other things went wrong too! So I have decided I like my big computer and sitting at a table to type, no lounging on the couch for me and the new piece of hardware will be going back to the store. I only hope I can get a full refund.

So I am sticking with what I know computer wise and sewing too. So I finally finished these socks for myself. I say finally because I think I knit the second one three times so that it would match the first one. It isn't exact but I am happy with it. Just in time too as we received 8" or more of snow on this past friday!!

This sunday afternoon and evening was relaxing and I got some slow stitching done on my embroidery. Another block done only 6 or 8 to go!!

Home again!!

retreat sweat shop

Well what a weekend!! So much happening! Our retreat was this weekend actually Thursday to Sunday! I got a lot accomplished. Two small quilts machine quilted, one small top sewn together, some blocks made for my embroidery quilt and a top started.So much sewing done and now to get the projects to completion. The bindings I will work on tonight during quiltcam and the others will come along in the next few weeks. We were so well taken care of too. The food was to die for and not having to cook was great!!So good some of us took pictures before diving in! And falling into our down filled duvet covered beds at night and listening to the water hitting the shore....oh and the giggling from the room above us!!!We were 27 ladies chattering and laughing for 3 1/2 days!!

Dinner one night

Desserts so yummy

fair quilt

Also on the weekend my winning quilt from the local fair went to the district meeting and won. So now it goes onto the provincial meeting in February. Very exciting for me cause it won in the machine quilting category. Not one of my favorite things!!

Kay's stars quilt

Another surprise this weekend came from a friend who attended a quilt show in southwestern Ontario. She saw a quilt I had made (and given another friend) hanging in the show. It was great to see it hanging and knowing my friend liked it so much to put it in the show. My friend had given me the scraps and I made the quilt for her.

So with such a fun-filled weekend and so many things happening, is it any wonder that I am having a hard time getting anything done this week. DH is away hunting and I should be sewing up a storm but I need a little motivation so I am headed off to guild today. Maybe that will help get my butt in gear. Have a great week!!!

Quilt Retreat

It should fit in the car!

Well I am packed and patiently waiting for departure time. That will be tomorrow morning early. We are headed out to do some quilt shopping and then to the retreat destination. This is the 7th year we have gotten together. Each year there have been new faces joining us and some that have not returned. I will always remember a dear sweet lady Madeline, she was quite a character, 80 years or more and there she was having the time of her life with us crazies. She was a very accomplished quilter and story teller.Especially the story of her husband who asked her to make him a quilt. She had made lots of afghans for him but not a quilt. His reply was those afghans are full of holes, he wanted a quilt!!!She hand pieced and hand quilted most of her quilts too! Sadly she had a stroke and past away. I will always be glad for our retreat where we get to meet such amazing people like her!

Belle sitting still-3 month old

Now that my things are packed all I want to do today is sew. I have only machine quilted in my sewing room so things will be very different at the retreat...no cabinet and smaller space. Maybe today I should set up on a table and see if it works for me. Otherwise I need to pack more projects to work on! YIKES

I am hoping for a productive weekend and that I will have lots to show you next week.

All Stuffed and now for leftovers!!

jars of beet pickle and soup broth

Yes filled with turkey and stuffing and now leftovers. Well I won't have that much, most of it went home with other family members but I got the turkey remains. And this is what happened to half of it today...boiled it down to make soup later. Also today I pickled beets. I can't seem to grow them in my garden so bought them from a friend who has a green thumb and has a huge garden...well okay a farm!!
DH is gone guitar playing for the evening so it is just me and the dogs to sit and relax and get some slow stitching in with Kathy and the rest of the ladies!
Are you sick of puppy stories yet? Well here is one that is not so funny but I am sure will be in a few days. I have been knitting this pair of socks for myself. The other day I came to the realization that I had done something wrong and had to take out all of the knitting to the cuff. So I did and left it on the couch. Next day I thought the dogs were sleeping and I was doing housework. I came out into the family room to find the knitting on the floor and 3 or the 4 bamboo needles and a piece of yarn  chewed. ARGGG!!!! I just keep saying "she's cute...good thing she is cute!"
So tonight I am knitting from scratch...it is a kind of stitching and believe me...it is definitely slow stitching!!!

will need new knitting needles

 Hope you're enjoying your weekend!