May 17, 2020

May HQAL Update

I find hand work of any kind right now to be such a relaxing balm to my soul.  I have been distracted from my HQAL project, Grandmother’s Flower Garden, by some knitting, crochet, cross stitch and of course gardening.  Yesterday I knew I was going to need to update on the progress for my HQAL, so I put a little time into it and realize again how much I enjoy it.img_9490

Before SIP, I was at a Walmart in Santa Barbara (we were visiting my daughter).  Both my younger daughters were with me and they fell in love with this fabric.  Both of them said it was perfect for my garden quilt.img_9491

They also found these two.  I know I have been making this quilt out of scraps, but since the girls picked these fabrics and were so excited, I decided to use them.  They have been cut but not made into flowers yet.img_9505-1

I have been adding the green hexis around and between all the flowers.  I really like the scrappy way all the different greens look.

This Hand Quilt Along is an opportunity for hand quilters and piecers to share and motivate one another. We post every three weeks, to show our progress and encourage one another.  If you have a hand quilting project and would like to join our group contact Kathy at the link below.

Kathy, Margaret, Tracy, Deb, Susan,  Nanette,  Edith, Sharon, Karrin, Gretchen, Kathi,  Bella, Daisy, Monica and Sherrie

Also sharing with Kathy’s Quilts for Slow Stitch Sunday.

April 19, 2020

April SAL Update

A SAL is a stitch-a-long.  This particular one is super fun because everyone has a different project that they are working and post about it every three weeks.  If you’d like to join us, please contact AVIS at the link below the post.

AND a big welcome to Sherrie!  I can’t wait to hop over to her blog to see what she’s been up to.

Whew!!  That was a quick three weeks!  It is still shelter in place where we live – you are not supposed to leave your home unless you are going on an essential errand or walking the dog.  Our dog now runs away when she sees us get the leash.  There are four kids at home — walking the dog has become one of the coveted chores!

I did not get all that much done on the Candy Cane Christmas Stocking.  This is where I was last update:

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3/29/20 – SAL close up Update

And this is where I am now:

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4/19/20 – SAL Update

I’ve been scattered lately, not really able to concentrate on any one thing.  I’m like a pin ball, bouncing from one activity to another.  I have lots of unfinished things:  weeding (done in patches), gardening (also done in patches), different areas of organization in our home (lots started, nothing finished).  I read somewhere about a syndrome called IGAD – I Got All Day.  I think in some ways I am experiencing that.  Each day is open and free, one very similar to the next, it is a very strange feeling.  I have never had my days look like this.  I’ve always been working, studying, raising kids, running a business, keeping things running smoothly in the home.  I’ve never experienced long swaths of time like this.  On the plus side, we are walking as a family at least once a day, playing board and card games at every meal (we eat them all together now), do puzzles and have lots of movie nights.  The time together as a family has been really nice.  OK… now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, I just watched a YouTube video on how to grow ginger from fresh ginger you buy at the store.  I have some here and I’m off to plant it!

Please take a look at the other stitchers in this group.  There are so many fantastic things going on:

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Mary Margaret, Renee, Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, Connie, AJ, Jenny, Laura, Cathie, Linda, Sherrie

I’m also sharing with Kathy’s Quilts for Slow Stitch Sunday.

April 5, 2020

HQAL & Slow Stitch Sunday

I belong to a group called the Hand Quilt-A-Long run by Kathy.   We are to pick a project that we want to make progress and then update every three weeks.  This is my three week check-in on the Grandmother’s Flower Garden.img_9282

I finished the bee one from last week.  This still makes me so happy to look at!  As I sit here typing this up, it’s raining outside and our area is still practicing social distancing.  The flower above makes me think of spring, walking outside with friends, gathering for coffee and seeing my knitting and embroidery groups in person.  The thing I’m missing most right now… seeing my oldest daughter.  She lives in an apartment in another city.  We talk frequently, but don’t get to see each other (except on FaceTime)… I miss physically seeing her – and hugging her.  Hopefully soon!

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I sewed up another one.  This one still needs the white hexis attached.img_9284

And started this little cutie!  I had started out making these only with flower fabrics, but seem to have branched out a little bit!

Please take some time to see what the other stitchers in our group are stitching:

Kathy, Margaret, Emma, Tracy, Deb, Susan,  Nanette,  Edith, Sharon, Karrin, Gretchen, Kathi,  Bella, Daisy

I’m also linking up with Slow Stitch Sunday.

March 29, 2020

SAL and Slow Stitch Sunday

It’s time for an update on my son’s Christmas Stocking.  This is where I was last time:

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2/16/20 SAL Update-closeup

And this is where I am now:

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3/29/20 – SAL close up Update

I’m kind of shocked that I got so much done.  I’ve been really busy since we’ve been sheltering in place.  I’ve got four kids home again (so nice!), which means tons of cooking, baking, games, puzzles and walks and talks.  I’m loving being with everyone although sometimes we get on each other’s nerves!

I also started a YouTube channel of fun sewing/crafting activities for kids or kids and their parents to do to help with being home so long.  If you are interested, you can find my youtube channel here.  It’s also on my business website, Let’s Go Crafting in the blog section.

I’m sure others participating in this SAL have gotten so much more done.  If you’d like to join our group of stitchers, please contact Avis at the link below. Take a look at all the progress the wonderful stitchers in our group have done.

Avis, Claire, Gun, Carole, Sue, Constanze, Christina, Kathy, Margaret, Cindy, Heidi, Jackie, Sunny, Hayley, Megan, Deborah, Mary Margaret, Renee, Carmela, Jocelyn, Sharon, Daisy, Anne, Connie, AJ, Jenny, Laura, Cathie, Linda

I’m also linking up with Slow Stitch Sunday.

March 15, 2020

HQAL, Slow Stitch Sunday, and Scrap Happy

It’s time for my Hand Quilt A Long update.  I have been working on my Grandmother’s Flower Garden and have made quite a bit of progress.

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Left Section

It no longer fits on the table and also keeps me warm in the evenings as I work on it.

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Right section

The purple one in the upper left corner is the overlap flower in this picture.

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Last part that is growing

There are also some overlap flowers in this photo.  All in all, I’m very happy how this is progressing.  I have to prepare some more of the green hexis as I’ve run out.

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Latest flower

Here is my latest flower.  I am enjoying this SOOO much.  The bee fabric was used for dresses I made my older daughters when they were 3 and almost 1.  They are 24 and 22 now.  I still have them in a box in the attic.  I hope to have some grand daughters one day that will also wear those dresses.  The flower fabric was used for a pair of pillow cases I made for my mom no too long ago, it’s one of my most recent scraps.img_9018

Isn’t it so sweet?

This Hand Quilt Along is an opportunity for hand quilters and piecers to share and motivate one another. We post every three weeks, to show our progress and encourage one another.  If you have a hand quilting project and would like to join our group contact Kathy at the link below.

Kathy, Margaret, Emma, Tracy, Deb, Susan,  Nanette,  Edith, Sharon, Karrin, Gretchen, Kathi,  Bella, Daisy

I’m also sharing over at Kathy’s Quilts for Slow Stitching Sunday.  This is all hand stitched and I am planning on hand embroidering and hand quilting it.  I work on this in the evening after dinner and clean up.  My husband and I sit on the couch and watch one of our shows, right now we are enjoying Alone on Prime, but you can watch it on Hulu or somewhere else.  We are only on season 2 and love it!  I find that ending my day with some hand stitching really relaxes me.

This time I’m also sharing with Tales from Chiconia for Scrap Happy Day.  We share things on the 15th of every month that are made from scraps.  This project really hits the mark!

Off I go, today I’m building 5 bookshelves and I’m excited to be organizing all my craft and cooking books.  The craft books are in cabinets in my studio and freeing up those is going to enable me to organize the studio better!  I LOVE organizing – not as much as stitching, but it comes in at a close second.

March 1, 2020

The Mermaid Blanket!

I have a finish!  Actually it was done on February 7th, but I couldn’t blog or post about it anywhere because it was gift for DD#2 and she reads my blog and follows me on social media.  I find that so sweet, but sometimes I have to be super careful not to spill the beans!  Anyway, here it is in all it’s glory:

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She loves it!

It came out the perfect length.  I was a bit worried since she is at college and I am here, but I used one of my other daughters who is about the same size to get it right.  Boy am I relieved!

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She’s so happy!

She had requested this a while back and we bought the yarn together.  She knew I had started it, but not that I had finished.  Well, she has a birthday in February.  We all went to visit her and this was one of her gifts.  She was sooooo happy!

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Her little fur baby.

Even her cat loves the blanket.

All the details can be found on my ravelry page:  https://www.ravelry.com/projects/stitchingirl/mermaid-tail-afghan

I’m linking up with Kathy’s Slow Stitch Sundays.

February 23, 2020

February HQAL and Slow Stitch Sunday

I have been having great fun with my hexis in these last three weeks!  I have done lots and lots of cutting:

Hexis for flowers andimg_8796

For the green leaves/vines.  There has been lots of prep:

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Still loving this little tin for my sewing supplies!

This has been full, empty, and full again over the three weeks. And lots and lots of sewing

It is now so big that I can’t fit it all on the table for a photo!!  Remember the last update?  There were only three flowers attached to each other.  Now there are seven total and I’m working my way around with the green.   It is really fun to see this grow!  There has also been another whole flower done:img_8793

And a close up of those cats:img_8794

I know I’ve only been doing flowers for this quilt, but I couldn’t resist these cute little kittens.  I’ve been following a few hexi quilters on instagram and they do fussy cutting.  I thought I’d try my hand – not perfect, but good enough and I love them.  However, this was a slippery slope, I now have earmarked several other animal fabrics to cut for this quilt!  Then I managed to get another flower started:img_8797

I’m loving the bee pattern.  I made dresses for my girls when they were younger out of fabric very similar to this.

This Grandmother’s Flower Garden Quilt has been inspired by Kathy.  She started this HQAL (Hand Quilt-A-Long) and I am finding that I love to see what each of us who participates has done over the last three weeks.  A little more about the HQAL below.

This Hand Quilt Along is an opportunity for hand quilters and piecers to share and motivate one another. We post every three weeks, to show our progress and encourage one another.  If you have a hand quilting project and would like to join our group contact Kathy at the link below.

Kathy, Margaret, Emma, Tracy, Deb, Susan,  Nanette,  Edith, Sharon, Karrin, Gretchen, Kathi,  Bella, Daisy

As usual, I’m also linking up to Slow Stitch Sunday.  A little bit of slow stitching everyday soothes the soul!