From One to Four

I couldn’t help myself.  Do you remember my last post where I thought the little Mini Vintage Tulip pattern from our Minis and More project this month would make great placemats?  Well….as I was putting the pattern away to make them later, I thought to myself….”Self, if you put it away you will not pick it up again”.  I can’t count the number of times I have done just that.  So…..I started cutting and stitching.  Ta da…..




The week did not allow for a lot of sewing as we watched grandkids while three sets of parents were out of town – fortunately, not all at the same time.   It was a wee bit challenging to get seven people up and out of the house early with only one bathroom in working order, but we all managed and had a lot of good giggles over the situation.  All I can say is tankless water heaters are amazing inventions.
 
While we were in San Diego last week I popped into Rosie’s quilt shop with a dear friend.  I fell in love with their little mini quilts that they had on display so I picked up the pattern.  The little pumpkins called my name.

 
It was fun to pull out the orange scraps and it went up so quickly.  The other designs are every bit as cute – frog, witch, candy corn, etc.

Our California autumn has descended upon us with its typical heat.  The only thing we are lacking is our Santa Ana winds that bring their own dangers.  I have heard that the more winds we have, the less rain we will have.  We shall see.  With the roof all fixed and the drains cleared out we are now ready.  What is the old saying….”If you build it they will come”?????????  Bring it on!

Tuesday’s Tidbits

As we enter week #7 of construction around here, I find myself blessed to be able to retire into my own world of sewing.  I’ve had several small projects to work on this week – the first being my small quilt project for this month.  I think these would make incredible placemats and am considering making them in different colors.



Be sure to tune in at the beginning of the month for the Minis and More parade of small quilts.  They can be found at Michele’s and Sherri’s blogs.

As well, I have been doing some pattern testing for Stephanie at Loft Creations.  The pattern is called Paper Dolls and you can see hints of it on Stephanie’s IG account @sadunphy.  I have been playing paper dolls with scraps and loved the way it turned out.  No full pictures yet……



Of course, I had to use up the HSTs so I made a little pillow to go with the doll quilt.



Continuing on the blue/tan idea, I made a scrap quilt top for our quilt guild.  Love the soft colors in this one.  I may have to do another one for here.



We had a few days away on a business convention in San Diego.  Although quite hot and very humid, it was great to get away.  We even grabbed an outdoor concert by comedian Brian Reagan – hysterical!! 

We have little ones joining us for a few days starting this afternoon so my computer time may be quite limited here.  I will be back soon.

Jelly Roll Revisited

Gosh….how many years ago did I do a Jelly Roll Race quilt?  Can it really be that I started it in 2012???  I can now say it is officially finished.




The back is a cross hatch fabric in orange and white to pick up the orange in the four patches and border.



The border is done in a lime green polka dot.  Another quilt top finished – all washed and crinkled.



It’s a three day weekend for us which makes us all smile.  Have a safe one!

For the Love of Pincushions

As I said on my last post, Ida at My Sister Made Me Do It blog is having a Perfectly Pleasing Pincushion Parade starting today.  Link up a pincushion post with your favorite pincushions and you have a chance to be a winner of some lovely gifts, including a gift certificate from Green Fairy Quilts.


I have a few lot of pincushions in my creative world.  One would think that I would spend no time searching for my pins with my collection, but somehow that isn’t the way it is.  They always seem to hide themselves under piles of fabrics.  I guess they think I enjoy a good game of hide and seek while sewing.  I remember my mom and my grandmother always having pins between their lips while sewing.  Maybe they got tired of looking for their pincushions too. 

Here are most of mine in one grouping.



Of course, they all have a certain place where they belong in real life.  Over the years I have received pincushions from swaps...............



as gifts............

Made by my DIL with the grandchildren's thumbprints

Made by a  granddaughter when she was young.  It's filled with little bits of fabric and is a great pincushion.

......and pincushions made for hops.





Then there are two "oldies" in the collection.  My dad brought me the green one when he was traveling and the old red tomato is one that I remember from when I first started sewing - over 60 years ago.  These are treasured and not used.



So........do you have a special pincushion to share?