Blessed sunshine...

It's been unseasonably warm here in North Carolina this winter.  Today's temperatures were almost 60 degrees and we should hit 70 by Wednesday.  The pets have been taking advantage of the bright spots of sunshine in the house to do some sunbathing (aka napping).

Sam in the sun room.

Jack in the sun room.

David in the living room.
(It's hard to tell, but he's also in a spot of sunshine.)

Gabriel in the bedroom.

Moses is the only one who didn't follow along.  She'd much rather have her privacy than bask in the sun.  She loves napping behind this little pillow.

Moses in the bedroom.

I hope your enjoying some nice weather wherever you are!

Until later...

“You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” 

Psalm 16:11 (NLT)

La Maison...

Guess what?  It's done.  And just in time.  At least the top is.  I've been working hard on my Full House quilt for AYOS (Another Year of Schnibbles).  I had also hoped to have it quilted by the end of the month.  I spent a couple of hours stitching in the ditch, but the free motion work I want to do is going to take longer than a couple of days.  I'm calling mine La Maison, which means 'home' in French.  (Or at least that's what Google Translate told me.)

La Maison Quilt Top

I used 2 charm packs of Pom Pom de Paris to make the houses and gardens and a mystery background fabric I had in my stash.  I had a yard of it and figured that would be enough.  When all was said and done, I only had a few scraps left over.  It was very, very close.

Leftover background fabric

I had to result to some pretty creative cutting to make it work.  I made all of the houses just as Carrie details in the pattern.  Then I deviated from the rest of the pattern and made a bunch of 4 patches for the center.  I was picturing a garden with pathways around the different parts.

The quilt turned out to be 41" square, which I'm hoping will be perfect to hand in my sun room.  All in all, it was an easy and fun pattern to make.  I can't wait to see what they pick for February!

Until later...

“Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God.” 

1 John 4:7 (NLT)

Moving along...

After a wonderful nap today, I found a few spare cycles to spend in my sewing room.  I managed to finish my Full Houses top, but will have to share it in another post.  As usual, I had lots of company with me in there, but unfortunately, I wasn't paying them much attention.  When I turned around, I saw this...

Moses on a quilt

I keep the door shut when I'm not in there for exactly this reason.  They always seem to think a quilt on the frame makes a perfect hammock.  However, they stretch it out and misalign the leaders.  I think I'd better get busy and quilt this, so I can take it off.  No telling how wonky it might end up being now.

In other household news, we've had a bunch of squirrels come looking for food lately, so we've been putting black sunflower seeds out on the deck for them.  The cats are loving watching them from the sun room...

Jack, Moses and David

They have fun watching the squirrels and I have fun watching them!  It's a win, win.

Until later...

The Lord will work out his plans for my life - for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don't abandon me, for you made me. 

Psalm 138:8 (NLT)

Stash Report Week #2 & 3...

January 8 - 21, 2012

This will be short and sweet.  I bought the backing for Winter Wonderland about a week ago.  It's been pieced and is ready for quilting.

Backing Fabric for Winter Wonderland - 4.75 yards

I haven't finished anything, but I'm pretty close to completing the Full House top (no progress on quilting anything though).  It needs to be done by January 31st, so not much time left.

So...
Purchased-this-week: 4.75 yards
Used-this-week: 0 yards
Purchased-to-date: 4.75 yards
Used-to-date: 13.75 yards
Net used: 9 yards

I was feeling rather unproductive until I read today's Scripture.  It was a nice and necessary reminder of God's priorities.  I know the quilting will still be there whenever other things are no longer the focus of my attention.

Until later...

Our people must learn to do good by meeting the urgent needs of others; then they will not be unproductive. 

Titus 3:14 (NLT) 

Caution - Construction Work Ahead...

Construction has continued on my little village.  I've now completed 20 of these houses.  I have a layout in mind for them, but have to see if I have enough fabric left over to pull it off.

I used Pom Pom de Paris and I'm liking the flowery reds, yellows and pinks (not my usual style).  I've still got another 11 days to finish this one and hope to continue working on it tomorrow.

Until later...

But may all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, "The Lord is great!" 

Psalm 40:16 (NLT)

Catching up...

Until I started this post, I had no idea it's been so long since I last blogged.  It's been crazy busy around here lately and I've also been out of town for a few days.  I don't see it slowing down much either in the near future.

I haven't been doing a lot of quilting lately (certainly not finishing any projects), but I have made some forward progress on a few things.  Mostly making backings and basting quilts.  I've been meaning to baste 45 and Life to Go for over a month now and I finally buckled down last week to do it.  I had to move most of the furniture in my quilt room out of the way in order to have enough floor space.  I pinned the backing easily enough, but when I laid out the batting I discovered a problem...

When I purchased the batting, I thought the package said it was 120" square.  Even though I prewashed it, I didn't think it was possible for it to shrink this much.  When I looked again, I saw that it was 102" x 120".  The quilt itself is 109" square, so this just wasn't going to work.  Fortunately I had another package of batting that was the right size that I could use.  After a couple of hours, I had it together...

45 and Life to Go Quilt - now basted

You'll notice there aren't any pins in it.  That's because I used 505 basting spray instead...

This stuff is great!  I was a little nervous to use it on such a large quilt because I've never tried it on such a big project.  It took a little more than a can to baste all the layers together.  I also felt like I'd been sniffing glue when I was done and my nostrils wanted to stick together.  However, by morning, everything was back to normal.

And speaking of basting quilts, I also used the spray to baste this little Valentine's Day quilt.  I used a layer of cotton batting and a layer of wool.  I'm hoping the extra layers will give it a lot of definition once it's quilted.  I still want to finish this one and have it on the wall before February 14th.  (Just under 4 weeks to get it done.)

Here's My Heart

This past weekend, I also managed to piece the backing for Winter Wonderland using the label I made for it earlier...

Backing for Winter Wonderland

I know that I won't get around to quilting this one for at least several months (although I want to do it this year), so I've layered the backing, batting and quilt on a hanger.  Whenever I find the time to quilt it, it's all ready for me to pull out of the closet and either load it on the frame or baste it for use with my regular sewing machine.

Backing, batting and quilt - ready to be quilted

I've also finally started on my Full House quilt for the Another Year of Schnibbles challenge.  (You can read more about it here and here.)  I'm using Pom Pom de Paris for mine and changing up the pattern a little bit.  The houses are going together pretty quickly, but the only picture I have to share right now are of the roofs.

Full House Roofs

This one has to be done by January 31st, so it's high up on my to-do list.

On a non-quilting front, I caught David on the scratching post the other day.  I think it's the first time in 2 years he's paid any attention to it.

David on the scratching post

I think Jack got a little jealous though and had to hone in on the action...

David and Jack

I do have a stash report I need to do and hope to be able to show some houses as well, so hopefully I won't be gone so long this time.  Although with everything going on around here, I'm really finding it a struggle to find time to blog.  Hopefully your days are a little quieter wherever you are!

Until later...

The Lord will work out his plans for my life - for your faithful love, O Lord endures forever. Don't abandon me, for you made me. 

Psalm 138:8 (NLT)

Stash Report Week #1 - A New Beginning...

January 1 - 7, 2011

After hemming and hawing last year about continuing with my stash reports, I've decided to keep going.  I like looking at the numbers (especially when they're positive) and I think they help to restrain me from buying fabric (sometimes).  So here's to a new year!

I tried so hard to finish the Winter Wonderland top last year, but missed it by a couple of days.  On the positive side, that means I get to count the fabric used today.  It's difficult to calculate exactly, because the pattern intends for you to have leftovers, but my best guess is I used 13.75 yards for the top, label and binding...

Winter Wonderland Top and Label

I know I won't get around to quilting this for at least a few months, but I am hoping to find the backing fabric for it this week.  I like to prepare it along with the batting and hang everything together in my closet.  That way when I want to quilt it, everything is ready to go!

So...
Purchased-this-week: 0 yards
Used-this-week: 13.75 yards
Purchased-to-date: 0 yards
Used-to-date: 13.75 yards
Net used: 13.75

Not a bad start to the reporting.  I have several projects on my immediate priority list.  I'd like to finish them all in January, but realize that's completely unrealistic.  Unless I gave up sleeping and eating and everything else.

• I need to make a sewing hussif for a friend.  It's to be a surprise though, so no pictures.
• I want to quilt this JoAnn's BOM for my brother-in-law.

• I want to baste and quilt my 45 and Life to Go quilt.

• I need to quilt Here's My Heart.  I want to hang it for Valentine's Day so hope to get to this one quickly.

• I'm joining in on Another Year of Schnibbles this year.  The pattern for January is Full House.  I've got the pattern and think I'm going to use Pom Pom de Paris for it.  This quilt has to be done by the end of the month.

• Last but not least, I want to finish appliqueing blocks #11 and #12 of Ladies of the Sea.  

So those are my goals for the forseeable future.  They should keep me pretty busy I think.  Hopefully, your new year is off to a great start as well!

Until later...

Let them praise your great and awesome name. Your name is holy! 

Psalm 99:3 (NLT)