NewFO Quilt Challenge February 2014

Another month of New Quilting Projects!!! To join along, visit Barbara over at Cat Patches and learn what this is all about!!!

This month I decided to continue on with another small quilting project in the form of some potholders. The basic idea and instructions can be found HERE. I didn't follow this exactly, but did get the basics and the idea here, so I wanted to credit the original.

I found the cutest kitchen themed fabric in colors that I really like.

 

I also found this really cool batting to go in between the fabric layers. I have a homemade potholder that was given to me as a gift years and years ago. I love that it is homemade, but I can't use it much because the heat goes right through it. So I went looking for something that would work a little better and I found this....



 

It's the same thickness as regular batting, but it has a very thin foil layer in it that should help with the heat issue. It does have one drawback as the lady that cut my material repeated several times - it can't go into the microwave!! Apparently she had a customer that did just that and ruined her microwave. Well, I would have thought that would be a no-brainer, but it's just as well, we don't have a working microwave, and haven't for years, so it won't be a problem here. And just for curiosity sake - how many of you actually put your potholders in the microwave while you're cooking anyway? I've never heard of anyone doing that until now, so I was just wondering. :0)

 



Okay, back to the project... This was a very simple project that included cutting the fabric and batting a bit bigger than you intend the potholder to be, drawing sewing lines, quilting down the sewing lines and then cutting the fabric away at the outer edges. The original instructions said to mark lines 1 inch apart, but as I was trying to quilt them, the fabric kept bunching up, so I did mine 2 inches apart and it worked much better. You see that I got two of them quilted above.

 

And after a few failed attempts, this is where I stopped. I will cut the kitchen themed fabric into strips that will be sewn over the top of the potholder to make it cute:) and the brown will be used as the trim around the edges. I am pretty sure I already cut the kitchen themed fabric, I was just sure I had, and the fabric looks like it's been cut, but I can't find the pieces anywhere!!! I have plenty more fabric so it's not a problem, just a bit frustrating:)

 

I really need to take my machine in and have it looked at. I know there are a few problems and I'm pretty sure that is why I was having trouble with the fabric bunching up on me. Maybe I will get it in next month.

 

I already have an idea and most of the fabric for next month's project. It'll be a little bigger, but still manageable for me:) Happy sewing!!!



Back to Regular Schedule?

The past couple weeks have been a blur!! Lots of running for dd's activities, helping a friend out, and trying to get the few reminding items on our list so we can re-arrange the living room. Still not done with that last one and this week will still be a busy one for running around. By next week things should be a bit slower and maybe I can get some things done here around the house, but for now, it's just a little work here and a little work there. I haven't even sat done to stitch in a few days!! OH THE HORROR! :)

So this week's goals will mostly center around getting everyday things done and hopefully getting us back to a quieter regular schedule around here.

Here is my progress for last week...

1. Stitching - I hardly touched stitching last week. And since I also didn't blog on WIPocalypse or IHSW, I would like to at least get my 'Small Sal' project done and blog, but we'll see.

2. Exercise - I not only made it to the gym twice, but 3 times!!! I only was able to help my friend on one day, and I didn't do much as she had lots of friends and family there to help her, so that didn't count as a workout, but I'm happy I made it to the gym as much as I did:)

3. Housework - Most of the re-arranging hasn't happened yet so I didn't really get anywhere on this. We did get our laptop (used, but just barely and at a really good price) and are pretty sure we know what other furniture we are wanting to bring into the house to help with storage and then we can get the TV as well. At that point we can start moving things around, but until we have the storage situation taken care of, we don't have anywhere to put the things that are in the huge computer desk and the bookshelves that we are wanting to move out of the house. :) HOPEFULL this will be all done by this coming weekend!!!

4. Blogging/e-mails - I obviously didn't get to the blogging, but the e-mails are all caught up and the Secret Sister party went very well. We have 22 girls in all (the 'Big Sisters' and the 'Little Sisters') and I think everyone had a good time:)


For this week I would like to...

1. Stitching - Like I said above, I would like to get my Smalls Sal project done, but seeing as I haven't even started it, I'm not sure that is going to happen!!! I would also like to finish my 'Something Old' project by the end of the month and start fresh for next month. I already have my 'Something New' Project picked out and ready to go!!!

2. Exercise - So long as I stay healthy and injury free, I should get to the gym 2 times this week, maybe 3 times if hubby wants to go with me on Friday. I really want to start doing more yoga at home, but just can't get myself to do it. I look at the different workouts that you can find on Pinterest and am in awe of some of the positions that these people can get themselves into. But actually doing it is a different story!! :) I'll say that I have the goal to do yoga once this week.

3. Housework - I did get caught up on washing laundry, of course it never stays that way, but at least there isn't 5-6 loads that needs done. Dishes are pretty much caught up too. I guess my next goal would be folding/putting away that laundry!! :)

4. Blogging/e-mails/other crafts - I'm not going to have a lot of extra time on my hands this week, but I would like to blog a couple more times and I have a bit of finish up work for secret sisters and 4-H to do this week. I would like to work a bit on a crocheted child's sized blanket that I started a while back and I want to start some herbs that I bought the seeds for. I will start these indoors and am wanting to get some large planters for the front of the house to put these in once they are ready to go outdoors. I'm hoping the cats won't crush them:) And ACK!! I forgot that Friday is NewFo Day!! I have the fabric for the next quilting project I want to start, but I haven't started it yet!!! Will have to get working on that too!! Maybe planting the seeds can wait until next week:)

I think I'm expecting too much this week, but maybe it's a good idea to set more goals than I think I can achieve and push myself to get more done!! :0) We will see if that works!!

Weekly Goals 2/17/14

Wow has this past week been a busy one!!! This week will be too and then I'm hoping for a bit more home/quiet time after that - at least for a little while!!

We had lots of running last week, including a 4-H leather craft meeting and a regular 4-H meeting. My hubby and I had a goal to re-arrange the living room to make it more livable and cozy once our tax money came in, and it did, so we spent the weekend doing a little shopping. My hubby is the KING of bargain shopping and we had a strict budget. After looking at new sofas and recliners we decided to call on a couple used ones. We found a real nice hide-a-bed couch for $100 that will be perfect for when dd has her best friend here for a sleep-over (they usually take over my bed as dd's bed is a twin size), and my in-laws gave us an almost-new recliner they had in their basement!! They even match pretty well, and they both have a bit of blue in them which matches the curtains!! I don't think we've ever had matching furniture:)

Next, we started looking for a washer and dryer. Oh my goodness, those are super expensive!!! It's been somewhere around 11 years or so since we last looked and they are not cheap. SO we started looking at 'scratch and dent' stores and after that used appliance stores. The scratch and dent weren't all that much cheaper and while the used ones were, they were in pretty bad shape. So we were going to start calling on used ones by owner. But as we were waiting to look at the couch, we had a bit of time to waste, so we went into Best Buy to look at a couple other things we are wanting for the living room. We had forgot that they also sell appliances, but we knew they would be high. However, as we walked around the corner, there were a matching washer/dryer set that were 'open box' and marked down to $600 for the set!!! This was the washer that I had wanted at another store, but it was $550 for the washer alone there:) So I'm one happy mama and have been catching up on that laundry pile in my brand new washer/dryer:)

Okay, so with all that went on last week, how did I do on my goals? Well....

1. Stitching - I do have both the 'Small Sal' project picked out and the spring exchange project picked out, but haven't gotten started on either. I have worked on my 'Olympic' project quite a bit as well as my 'Something Old' project and I have a start on my Something New project. Not too bad:) I didn't post on the WIPocalypse yet, I'm thinking I'll get to that tomorrow.

2. Exercise - I did get to the gym twice, but didn't do yoga at home. Oh, and I've lost 2 more pounds!!!

3. Housework - I've made a good dent in the laundry pile, but dishes are piling up a bit again.

 4. Learning - I did get the knitting books out and learned to cast on!!! Or at least one way to cast on. It's all very unnatural to me as I'm used to crocheting, but I'll get there. I didn't get back to the German last week though.

 5. Crochet/Knitting - Got both of these done. Washcloth is made and ready to mail out and I played with the knitting, but I pulled it all out (like 4 different times), which is what I used to do with crocheting while learning.

For this upcoming week we have zoo volunteering for dd, 4-H leather craft, helping a friend move, MOPS volunteering for dd and a Secret Sisters party (through our homeschooling group). Oh, and the regular day-to-day stuff. Hubby and I are hoping to still buy a laptop to replace our out-dated desk top and that will allow us to get rid of the big computer desk that is taking up too much of our living room and to get a new TV. We are looking at getting a pretty basic laptop as all we still do on the computer is dd's German program, use Word and I blog on it as I do not like trying to blog on my iPad. Then we would like a Smart TV so we can still watch Netflix on it. We only have a 15 inch TV in our bedroom right now, so this will be a real treat for us to have a more comfortable place for us all to be. As you can see, another busy week, so I'm going to keep my goals for this week pretty basic...

1. Stitching - I want to continue on my Olympic stitching and would like to make a start in my Small Sal project.

2. Exercise - I'm pretty confident that I can make it to the gym twice and then helping my friend to move (I'll be there 2 days) should count for something, right?

3. Housework - HAHAHAHA  Oh, wait, I really do need to work on this. Okay, I guess my biggest goal will be to pick up/clean around the re-arranging. There will be lots of dusting and vacuuming to be done, I am sure!!

4. Blogging/e-mails - I need to catch up on a few things with the blogs and I have several things to organize with the Secret Sisters party (a friend and I lead this) as well as 4-H (I think I've mentioned that I lead our group).

What are you up to this week?

GYB Party Give Away Results

I'm so sorry to be late in reporting the results from the give-away!!! We ended up having a fun but busy weekend!!

But I'm back to blogging again and will now reveal the WINNER of the crocheted wash clothes I made!!!

I can't figure out how to get the randomizer to post to my blog, so I don't have a picture of the actual results, but after putting in that there were 41 comments on my GYB Party post, it came up with....

#11 - Kathy of http://kathyinozarks.blogspot.com/ !!!! Congrats!!!

Kathy I have sent you an e-mail and hope to hear from you soon as to where I should mail the washcloths off to!!!

Weekly Goals 2/10/14

I'm going to come right out here and just say it... I didn't hardly touch my goals last week!! I thought since we would mostly be home that it would be easier to get them done, but with hubby home for a couple of those days and then with dark, dreary days, I just wasn't motivated at all!! And that's okay, this is a new week and I'll just start over. :0) I'll just get over it and start new!!

So for this week here are the few things I did do...

1. Stitching - I did get this ornament done and worked on my 'Something Old' project as well. I also picked out an Olympic project even though it wasn't on my list of goals for the week;) Oh, and I did chose a new 'Small' project to work on and my spring exchange project as well.

2. Exercise -  Didn't even touch the exercise. I did however twist that ankle a bit more chasing the dog through our front pasture. Some kind of animal is digging little holes and with the snow, I didn't see it and stepped into one. I didn't fall, but the ankle wasn't ready for that. I do think I'll be good to go to the gym this week.

3. Housework - I didn't get caught up on laundry, but am in the process of it.

4. Learning - I didn't get to the knitting books, but did do some of the German, so this wasn't a complete fail:)

5. Crochet - I didn't touch this either!!!


So for this coming week I think I'll just repeat last week's goals. The only difference is that except for today (we go more snow last night) I won't be stuck at home. In fact we have a fairly busy week with dd's zoo, a 4-H Leather Craft meeting and a regular 4-H meeting. We'll see how this goes:)

1. Stitching - Get started on the 'Small' project and the spring exchange project as well as working on the others I have going. Also post on WIPocalypse.

2. Exercise - Go to the gym twice. Do yoga at home once.

3. Housework - Keep working towards getting laundry caught up.

4. Learning - Keep up with German, get those knitting books out!!!

5. Crochet/Knitting - Finish up wash cloth for GYB give away and cast on the knitting needles for the first time:)

Do you have any goals for this week?

New FOR SALE Tab

Just a quick post to alert anyone who might be interested, that I have some stitchy items for sale. After a quick, 'I'll just look through my stash to find a small project to work on', I ended up with a small pile of books, magazines and charts that I realized I just don't need or want anymore. My stash space is pretty limited, so I really only want to keep what I either really like (weather or not I will ever stitch it) or what I plan to start soon. That left me a few items that I'm going to part with. If you are interested, look through my FOR SALE tab at the top of my blog and send me an e-mail with whatever you'd like.

Thanks:0)

Olympic Stitching Project

I was able to go through my stitching basket last night to look for a stitching project to work on during the Olympics. I looked for it after we watched the Olympic opening ceremony, which is maybe a bad sign that I won't get any stitching done while actually watching the Olympics!! :0)

I ended up picking a project that I've had around for a while, I believe I started this one about 3 years ago. I think it is an appropriate project to cheering Team USA on though!!

'America' designed by Little House Needleworks

So I will TRY to stitch on this while watching the Olympics. We are not ones that watch TV so much. In fact we only have one TV and it is a 15 inch that is in our bedroom. So it's kind of fun to all crawl up on the bed and watch a little TV. :0)

Has anyone else chosen a project to work on during the Olympics?

Whoop-Whoop Friday!! 2-7-14

Another WHOOP-WHOOP Friday post!!! This has been a lot of fun and it is pushing me a bit to get at least one thing completed each week!! :)

Actually this is a finish that should have been done last week for the Smalls SAL that Stitching Lotus hosts. I posted last week with an un-finished 'Small' because I had hurt my ankle that day and didn't get back to stitching it.

This week though, I not only finished stitching it, but I made it into an ornament as well, so it is FINISHED-FINISHED :0)

This pattern is the 2010 Stamp Ornament from Jeannette Douglas Designs and can be found in the 2010 Just Cross Stitch Ornament issue. It was a quick and somewhat easy ornie to stitch. The red is stitched over 2 threads, but the 'Joy and date' is stitched over one. And I'm not sure the last time I used the lazy daisy stitch, but I found that it really wasn't bad. The chart also called for a few red beads, but I didn't have the right ones and the ones I had really clashed with the red thread I used, so I left them off.

If you want to join in and show off your crafty finishes each Friday, visit Sarah over at Confessions of a Fabric Addict.

Oh, and has anyone picked out an Olympic project to work on? You know.. a project to work on while your watching the Olympics for the next week or so? I think I want to pick something out, not sure if it'll be something new or if I'll dig something out of my basket that I want to get back to. I'll let you know:)

Brr!! It's Cold Out There!!!

Yesterday morning I decided to brave the cold for a bit and get some pictures of the snow drifts. It only took a couple min to realize why they say that -15 degree windshield is dangerous!! My hands started hurting within minutes. Also the cats weren't happy about waiting those few extra minutes to get their food!!! But I got a few pictures anyway, fed the cats and the (office) bunny and got back in quick!!

As I said, earlier on Tuesday, we had a nice even coat of snow, around 8 inches. It was really pretty and smooth and it covered over the dead winter landscape. Then the wind started. We pretty much live in the wide open, for miles there isn't much to stop the wind from building and building. So when it gets windy here, we get the full force of it. We went from the ground fully cover in snow to this...

 

 Bare spots and drifts. Still, the way the wind chisels patterns on the top has it's own beauty too...

 I'm not a cold weather person, but if we have to have this cold, miserable weather, then I'm glad we got some snow this time as well. But now I'm ready for it to all be gone and spring to arrive!! Here's to hoping that silly groundhog was WRONG about having 6 more weeks of winter!!

Winter Wonderland

We had a cold, snowy day yesterday. It's really pretty out there, though we are stuck at home at the moment:) Gee, darn, can't go anywhere. Must stay home. Hmm. :) I think I can live with that!!

Thankfully the snow started around 2:00 am Tuesday morning, so when hubby got up to check on things, it was already bad enough that he decided to stay home. He has an hour drive to work, so he likely would have had to turn around and come home shortly after he got there. Later we found out that the state nearly shut down the highway he takes to get there and back, so he may have found himself stuck at his parents' for the night (they live closer to his work).

Some pics from before the wind started and moved everything around again...

Out back toward the 'office/storage' building. This was after hubby scraped off a space so the cats had  a place to eat and I could get into the building. This is where the 2nd rabbit lives, so I had to go feed her too:)

Cars and shop/barn building

We think we got around 10 inches, which is a decent snow storm for our area. Everything looks different now. We have bare ground showing with huge drifts at this point. Our driveway is pretty much closed off and I don't know what the road looks like. We are rural enough that no one will be coming down the road to plow it for a few days if ever so hubby will likely take the tractor down to break through any bigger drifts that our vehicles can't get through. I'm glad he called in today as well so he can get some snow moved around here:) Maybe by tomorrow we will feel like we can get out of here if we need/want to. Until then, I'm thinking today will be a nice quiet day of school and stitching. Our poor, poor dd doesn't even get a snow day!! LOL Actually she didn't even ask about it, so I guess we didn't need one :)

Maybe I can get out there today and get some pictures of the snow drifts. The wind seems to chisel the tops of them and they are so pretty. Not sure I want to be out there long though, even though it's sunny and looks nice, today's high will only get to 8 degrees!! Maybe I'll just stay in:)

February 2014 YOTA

I'm having so much fun with my YOTA project this year!! It is such a cute and easy stitch, I'm not sure why I didn't finish it up a couple years ago when I started it. Anyway, I'm pretty confident that it'll get finished up this year and I can't wait to see how it turns out!!!

My progress as of last month...

 And as of today...

The fabric color is closer to the first picture than the second. Again this is Spring Snapperland from Bent Creek. The only one of the snapperland series I have completed is the Autumn Snapperland. It is actually the only piece of stitching I have hanging on my walls. I have now purchased all the charts and am hoping to get them all stitched up by the end of next year:) We will see!!

If you want to learn more about what YOTA is and how you can join, please visit Pull the Other Thread and get signed up!!

Weekly Goals Post 2/3/14

A whole month has flown by and I am just starting to feel like I am ready to really start tackling some of my 52 in 52 goals. Do you ever get like that? Spend some time planning and then throw the plans to the side because you just don't feel ready to start tackling them? While I've gotten a few things on my list started I think this month will see some real progress.

So what did I accomplish last week? I mean besides spraining my ankle and effectively killing my workout plans? :P  BTW: My dd is convinced that I threw myself down the library stairs just so I could claim that I hurt my ankle and now I can't go to the gym and workout!! Hmm, not sure where she comes up with this stuff!! :)

1. Stitching -  Got both LoveQuilt blocks done and mailed off and I have heard from them that they were received on time, so that is all finished up!!

2. Blogging - All blogging/crafting/stitching challenges and SALs were posted and accounted for. It did make for a fun week in blog land!!

3. Exercise - I did get one day of yoga in before I hurt my ankle, so that is a little something.


And for the upcoming week...

1. Stitching - I would like to get a couple small projects finished up this week. The Smalls Sal ornie that I was working on last week and the Prairie Schooler Ornie that is my 'Something Old' for this month. I also need to dig up a spring/Easter piece to work on for an exchange I'm in.

2. Exercise - My ankle is actually not as bad as I thought it was going to be and I'm getting around pretty well on it. I'm probably not going to be able to get into the gym this week (bad winter storms coming this way), but I think I can do a little yoga here at home to make up for it.

3. Housework - As we will likely be stuck at home a good deal of this week, I want to go back and focus a bit on housework. I've managed to keep up with the dishes for the past couple of weeks now. I think I'll focus on laundry now and see if I can't keep up with it as well:)

4. Learning - I got a couple books on knitting from the library last week, one came with a video, that I would like to at least start looking at this week, maybe even cast on and see how that goes:) I have also been slacking off on the German program we are working on. DD is getting way ahead of me, so I need to get back on that. Of course dd is taking it for a high school credit, I would just like to learn for the fun of it. Last night she and I played a couple games of UNO and were able to speak in German for the colors and numbers, at least 1-6. So that is showing some progress!! :0)

5. Crochet - I need to finish up the last wash cloth that will be the give-away prize for my GROW YOUR BLOG post (and it's not to late to leave a comment to be entered to win!!!). I also have a toddler blanket I started a while back that I think I'm going to get back to. It'll be one to go to my friend that does foster care/respite care. Since she knows several foster/respite families, I'll let her decide who may need it the most.

THAT should keep me busy and mostly out of trouble for the week:) What are your plans for the week?

Something Old/Something New REPEAT-REPEAT!!!

With so much stitchy and crafty fun this past month I never ended up stitching on my Something Old/Something New projects!!! Oh, well, this is just for fun anyway and so there is no stress:)

I am just going to use the same old and new projects for this month!! And since I don't have so much going on this month, or at least not yet anyway, I should have time to get to these.

Spring Ornie from Prairie Schooler and Winter Snapperland by Bent Creek

So what is this Something Old/Something New all about? I just wanted a fun challenge for me to get more of my UFOs and WIPs done (those projects started at some point in the past that are collecting dust now) and also a way of rewarding myself each month with a new project to start as well:) So each month I will pick out an 'Old' project to try and finish that month and also start on a 'New' project.

If you want to join, just link up below. Don't worry if you can't link up today, or if it needs to be next week or whenever. Like I said, this is just a fun little challenge. No stress at all:)


Tomorrow I will post on my YOTA progress, but I'm going to spend the rest of today stitching on it:)
Have a beautiful weekend!!!