Christmas in July!

Christmas is my favorite time of  year, so I'm always thrilled to help celebrate it early with "Christmas in July" activities.  The CEO ("completed executed objects") Club in which I'm participating at my LQS, Quilting Adventures, is kind of like that for me... with 2 exceptions, the projects I'm working on, to be finished by the end of this month, are intended to be gifts for people at the holidays.  So I'm really excited to show you the results of my very first machine applique efforts:

I've also pieced 12 blocks for a log cabin lap quilt for my mom's birthday, which is the day after Christmas.  Like the last log cabin I did, I think I need to augment this pre-cut "kit" by adding one or two more rows to make the blocks a bit larger - sounds like a trip to the LQS is in order!  Here's a sampling of the block as it is now:

Now, back to some needlework!  Hope that you're finding the time to take  up your needle and sew!

Becky

Catching Up!

I can't believe it's been nearly two months since my last post!  There's a lot to share with you, including, finally, the *finish* of the CEO Club project #2, this log cabin quilt for a very dear friend of mine.  She celebrated a big milestone birthday earlier this year, and I wanted to honor it, and our friendship, with something a little extra special.  I'm really thrilled with how it turned out, and my accomplishment is due, in large part, to the lovely ladies at my LQS, Quilting Adventures.  Joyce, the owner, and her staff are always willing and interested in exploring every option for success.

This was also my second project with batiks, which I'm really starting to love for sewing.  Here's a close-up of the block so that you can see the various patterns in the different fabrics.

Over the weekend, I spent a LOT of time pulling weeds - the biomass of material removed from the flower beds and gardens makes me wonder how anything (but weeds) was still alive in the yard!!  In amongst weeds, though, I did manage a small finish on a needlework project for the PALS stitching retreat later this fall (sorry I didn't iron before snapping a photo!).  I do need to get a button to sew in the space at the bottom, but the needlework is all finished.

Celebration: Autumn by Heart in Hand

32-ct dirty Belfast linen; called for WDW and GAST

Last for my post this evening is a special "thank you" to Nancy at the Victorian Motto Sampler Shoppe.  I won one of her charts in a give-away.  Nancy not only provided the chart; she also included the cute charm and her wonderful hand-dyed thread.  I can't wait to stitch it up!!!

So much to do!  Loving the extra hours of sunlight to enjoy nature's wonders in the outdoors.  Looking forward to sharing some more finishes with you this weekend.

'Til next time, though, let's take up our needles and sew!
Becky

Weekend Progress

Where *does* the weekend go?  Just as I'm hitting my stride today on several projects, I realize that it's time to get ready for the work week....  How about if we had 2-day work weeks and 5-day weekends?  I think I could get into that...

I started a pretty JBW Designs pattern on Friday.  I was able to finish about half of it - not a complicated design (and only one color floss!), but lots of other things competing for my time in the past two days.  One of the things I love about many of JBW Designs' French Country patterns is the little hidden shapes integrated into the larger one - do you see the squirrel, acorn, bird, and more?  I think I will finish this as a flat-fold - have just the right pumpkin fabric for it; I may make it one of my exchange pieces at Cross Stitch Pals in Myrtle Beach in South Carolina.

JBW Designs

French Country IV - Pumpkin

28-count natural linen; WDW Terra Cotta

I also worked on one of my CEO Club quilted pieces - the squares below (and 13 more like them) are the foundation for this wall hanging.  But since it's a gift, and I still have a lot of work ahead of me, you'll have to wait a little while to see the final results.  I did realize last month that I got the gist of the CEO Club a bit wrong to begin with - I had my list, from 1-6, of the projects I needed to finish, in the order in which I needed them.  When I received my first reminder e-mail of the first month's project, I realized that the LQS is randomly picking a number from 1 to 6, and that item in my list is the one I'm supposed to work on that month!  Yikes!  Well, I really wasn't ready to work on item #6 last month (these squares below), but I did finish item #1 (the baby quilt), and I've made good progress on item #4, which is this month's number.  Valuable lesson learned in seeking clarity of the rules at the beginning!!  Regardless, it's helping me get projects done early in the year, which is great!!

Time to fold laundry... and find another few minutes to take up my needle and sew!
Becky

Weekend Finishes

How exciting to be able to report on *finishes* this weekend!!  First up, I put the last stitches into "The First Day;" a tally mark in the "done" column of my 2012 ornament list!

"The First Day" by Plum Street Samplers

JCS July/August 2011

36-count Antique White Edinboro

CC Pea Pod/Bandana



Today, I was also able to finish (well, mostly) the baby quilt I started last weekend for my colleague at work.  I think that the flannel I already had and used as backing is really cute.  The baby shower is on Valentine's Day, so I'm tickled pink to be this far ahead with the completion.  I do have a few small fixes to make where I didn't catch the binding on the back, but I still call this one *done.*  This project is also the first item on my CEO Club list, so I do need to take it to Quilting Adventures and have the staff validate that I actually completed it!



Still some hours left in the day, and I started stitching a new ornament last night!  Off to take up my needle and sew!

Becky