Progress and Dreams

 I made some good progress on my Everyday Embroidery last week and plan to continue that daily.

And I figured out how to put together the rescued Card Trick blocks to make a baby quilt flimsy which I will donate.

I didn't get to the My Cozy Kitchen wall hanging at all, so that will be a goal for this week. I want to lightly hand-quilt it and hang it in my cozy kitchen.

Another goal for this week is to go through my flannel fabrics and get back to making receiving blankets, bibs, and burp cloths for our local baby pantry. I enjoy crocheting a nice border around flannel receiving blankets. February is our church's month to "love your neighbor" through various donation drives, one of which is the community baby pantry. So I'll be buying some diapers, too, to donate.

I've also started a new project, of course. 😏 It's going to be a gift for my long-time friend's birthday in March - a cross-stitched piece. Being technology-challenged, I have to do my designing with graph paper, scissors, and washi tape. 😁 It works. Tricia and I have walked some very hard roads together {still are} and I so appreciate her friendship and encouragement and her letting me try to encourage her back. Though she lives about 2.5 hours away, we try to get together monthly, sometimes here, sometimes at her place, sometimes somewhere in the middle, sometimes quite out of the way for a big adventure.

I'll also work on my RSC blocks and will get at my month's UFO. The Chookshed Stitchers say that February's UFO number is 8, so I'll excitedly be working on my experimental strip quilt. I've been wanting to do it, but felt like I needed to finish other stuff first. But now I have permission from on high 😄 to go at it.

Of course I have to share some of our great amounts of snow. That blue thing in the middle of the picture is a regular-sized metal chair {as reference for how deep the snow is}. This is not an unusual amount for us over the course of the winter; it just seems to have all come early and within a short amount of time.

One of the perks of waking up at 4:00 a.m. {not intentionally, but trying to see the silver lining}, is getting to enjoy the super-bright moonlight on the snow.

Pastor has been encouraging us with the concept of Sabbath rest, or Shalom, of living in the presence and power of God. We can rest in the knowledge of Him - His person, power, and characteristics {attributes} such as love, goodness, justice, peace, and constant presence with those who have acknowledged Him as Savior and Master. Since we're just frail humans, that peace seems to come and go as we don't always sense His presence, but He's there and so ready to envelope us again with that peace. Look in faith to Him and His Word.

May your week be a blessing to you and to those around you.

Christmas Celebrations and Continued Crafting

 

I have had the enjoyment, work, and privilege of writing, directing, and accompanying our church's Christmas musical program. I used some older Michael Card songs, some newer Keith and Kristin Getty songs, and the tried-and-true old carols. We went through Jesus' birth all the way to why he came and the hope given through his death and resurrection.

My sweet and talented husband was willing to direct the choir numbers since I certainly can't do that and I was at the piano. I was blessed by the willing and excited participation of choir members and willingness to do duets, trios, and smaller ensembles. What a joy! {And they thanked us. 🙄Sheesh! No thanks needed; it was a delight and blessing, though lots of work.}

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So, what crafting/sewing took place in between practices and after?

I got the new {gifted} sewing machine set up and organized. I was given a bunch of notions along with it. I also got the online manual printed and ready for studying.

Wondrous dehydrated apples were made and gifted. Now I need to make more for Lovey and me. 😊

I'm enjoying reading a friend's copy of Culture Care by Makoto Fujimura, an artist who speaks on the beauty and necessity of good art to the glory of God. I'm taking lots of notes in my junk journal.

In my reorganizing of my "studio" I found this wall hanging made with Joy's Christmas in July instructions and decided it was time to bind and gift it.

So, it's done and will be mailed to my daughter tomorrow when I go into town.

I crocheted this head-scarf from some sock yarn I found at the thrift store. I'm debating whether or not to try to sell it - not sure if I should re-open my Etsy store, or just put it on FB Marketplace, or Ebay, or what. I've gotten several compliments from even younger folk when I wore mine recently. 

I've also gotten my indoor salad garden going again and will be happy to use the pea, broccoli, and clover shoots in our smoothies and salads. Hmmm, maybe in our chicken burritos tonight.

As you can see in the photo above, we are pretty assured that we'll have a white Christmas. We've had a lot of snow, even for our snow-blessed{?} area. Since I am not a big fan, particularly of cold, I'm happy to stay in, keep warm, drink lots of hot tea, and catch up on sewing. 

So, on to my week's goals {trying to be moderate because I'm having a friend for homemade soup lunch on Wednesday, hosting a ladies' tea Thursday, and a craft day with another friend on Friday. Whew! and I'm an introvert. 😁}:

With Sewing Machine:

* I'd really like to put together the Sewing Room wall-hanging that Jennifer had as a BOM earlier this year because I'd like to hang it right above my sewing machine in my newly organized and beautified sewing room. 

* I also want to make four more blocks for this quilt top {hoping I can find the pattern in the here-to-fore unsorted pile. I found some fabric for the backing and am eager to get it done and on my Jenny Lind narrow guestbed.

With Needle and Thread

* Finish the arch in the Everyday Embroidery which I should have put in before I did the climbing rose and move on to doing the rest of the Elefantz Books and Roses BOM blocks for that year.

With Crochet Hook

* I might make another head-scarf since I have another skein of sock yarn and won't use it for anything else. I can always gift it to my daughter who loves them.

May your craftings and celebrations be full of joy and hope, 

knowing that God loves us!

Inspired to Blog Again

 Well, if Jennifer Reynolds can take a long hiatus from blogging and then decide to come back to it, I suppose that I may also. Now that the summer and autumn busyness is over, I'm ready for more cozy, wintry craftiness and sharing and getting to enjoy other peoples' crafting and being inspired by them and by some online challenges and blog hops.

Though I haven't been posting about my projects, I've certainly not been idle.

I dug out my "Everyday Embroidery" that I had started in 2022 and made a lot of progress on it, enjoying the fact that, because of other projects I'd been working on, I was now better at hand-applique.

I've also been crocheting a largeish "lapghan" for my mom who is always cold. It will be her New Year gift since we won't see her till then and it's made out of leftover yarns from other projects and is kinda fun and mindless. It's large enough now, but I'm going to keep at it a little longer because, having just had a cataract removed, I'm not seeing quite well enough to do embroidery.

The project that has most excited me is a fabric book I've been making using the aforementioned Jennifer Reynolds's A Year in the Garden BOM from several years ago. I'd had all 12 blocks embroidered and ready for use, but didn't really want to make a wall hanging since I'm short on wall space. So I'm turning them into a book and will show you more in future posts.

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A new and exciting development is that a friend gave me her deceased sister's cool sewing machine with hideaway cabinet. I haven't had time {or eyesight} to really play with it and get to know what it does yet, but I'm looking forward to experimenting with it. It didn't come with a manual, so I'll go looking online for that.

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Goals for 12/8-12/13:

At the sewing machine:

* Put cover and binding on Year in the Garden fabric book. Take pics to share next week.

* Explore new machine

At the handwork chair:

* Continue crocheting lapghan

* Do 3-5 embroideries on Everyday Embroidery as eyesight allows

In the craft room:

* Continue the rearranging and organizing

* Set up new machine station

* Hang some decor on the walls

I'll also be working on practicing piano daily to clean up some rough spots in my accompaniment of the church choir and small groups as we lead our church in worship through a music program this next Sunday. I'm excited and nervous. 😊 And I'm thankful my Lovey is directing the choir again as he hasn't been able to do that in quite a few years.

I'm enjoying seeing so many fun and beautiful projects again and wish you all a blessed Christmas season.

Project Progress and Goals

In the Craft Space {basically the whole house}:

I just discovered The Joyful Quilter's Tablescraps Challenge through Pinker n Punkin and I think the themed challenge is a fun idea to do in cahoots with the Rainbow Scrap Challenge, so I'm going to give it a go.

RSC - The only yellow that I worked with in March was this embroidered piece to add to my current fascination - fabric junk journaling.

My Sewing Room BOM - Finished just in the nick of time

A Quilting Life BOM - Oops. Didn't get to it. Will do two in April.

UFO - I did find a block I made quite some time ago that I decided I'd like to hang in my sewing room while leaving room for the BOM wallhanging that will be hung at the end of this year. I'm planning to handquilt this one which shouldn't take too long since it's only about 20"x20".

Fabric Junk Journal - After watching some Youtube videos, I'm off and running with my junk journal and having fun with it. In fact, I'm so into it that I set up a small craft table in front of my favorite living room chair and have been spending my afternoons there while watching the somewhat sappy, but fairly good Heartland TV show. My dear huggy is very patient with my project messes. 💖

Here's what I've accomplished so far on my "word of the year - Peace" journal:

The outer cover:

The cover's inside:

One spread made of a hand-dyed scarf by one of my daughters and dragonfly stamped on some thicker fabric, kinda canvas-like:

The back of that spread made of placemats from the Philippines where I grew up:

Another spread made from another daughter's hand-dyed scarf and my as-yet-unattached yellow embroidery:

The backside is more scarf and a placemat with a napkin insert that will be fun to use for some as yet undiscovered treasure:

My sewing machine is still skipping stitches though I've tried changing to newer thread, so I'll have to do some spelunking {cave-diving} into its innards. Meanwhile, my hand-stitching is slowly improving through all this practice.

Cross-stitching - Since I've gotten March and April done with my monthly cross-stitches, I'm going back and doing January and February now. They are simple and fairly quick, though very cute, projects that are nicely portable in these project bags from Michaels.

So, my goals for this week {late though I am at posting them} are basically to make progress on all of them, especially on the journal. I might not get to the hand-quilting since I'm obsessed with the journal and I have a little bit of a life outside the crafting zone. 😄 But since we're still having snow and ice, I'm not overly eager to get out of the house.

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On the Homestead:

The quail flock is growing well and the young hens have started laying, for which I'm very grateful. I'll be starting the incubator this morning to provide some replacements for older laying hens as well as to provide us some meat. I learned that there is a good possibility that I can sell chicks to our local Family Farm and Home later in the spring, so I'm excited about that possible income stream. I'm regularly selling eggs now, too; almost enough to pay for feed which means almost free food for us.

The rabbits are growing well. I retired one of the mamas, Doenut, but couldn't bear to put her in the stewpot, so I gave her to a family who wanted her as a pet. She'll be well cared for into her old age. Next month I'll do the first breeding of her replacement, Doerita. Meanwhile, Doedoe is due to deliver this weekend. Winston II is beginning to go gray around the ears and I dread the day when he'll have to be retired. He may have to become a pet because he's just so friendly and funny. I know I'm not supposed to become attached to the breeders even, but sometimes you just can't help it. 😏

The garden remains indoors or too snowy:

Well, I'm off to do the dirty but necessary work of providing one's own food - clean-up and filling the freezer.

Hope your week has been full of the joys of life and continues to be so. And may Spring come soon to these northern lands!!!