Friday Finish!

 

This week I have been working on finishing a pillow. It is the same design I did on a kitchen towel, but I wasn't pleased on how that came out, as a present. My sister is going through new treatments and I wanted to make her a happy present. 

When I was little, my mom would get me something when I was really sick, to cheer me up. I love keeping that tradition by giving gifts to cheer others up, when I can. 

I am also working on my quilt, the edges are all done and it is ready to quilt. Then I put together rows for another quilt for my sister, as a comfort quilt. I will be putting an angel at the top and squares on the rest. Lots of projects to sew next week. 

The pillow is a design by Bare Roots. My sister loves to bike and has done a lot of biking vacations in Europe and still uses her bike at home when she is up to it. 

I hope everyone enjoyed their week. We had a lot of heat, but cooling off now, so it is a nice relief. 

Friday Finish!

 I finally finished my stitchery. It is a pattern by Bareroots and a fun one to do. I did it on a tea towel, like the pattern, but I think this would make a fun pillow. I used an iron on cloth to cover the back stitches, but it shows through, so not sure if I like that. 

I also did another painting, my first flower. I find it hard to follow the instructions, some make no sense, so I tend to do my own thing. I really don't like copying someone else's style, but I like learning a few new things and practicing techniques.

Last week we hiked at a park, that also has a bird sanctuary area. Some paths are paved, part of the old World War II airport training camp.

Other areas are grassy and others are wooded pathways, so a nice variety of scenery.

We also spotted a few returning birds, but only caught the Eastern Towhee. On the ride home we spotted a  Merlin and a few other things along the way.

Another day we went to the island and let Bean have some fun time at the beach.

Today we went to another sanctuary. There were so many birds and critters, we barely took a few steps before seeing something. Most were shy and ran away when they saw us, but I caught a few along the paths.

A Yellow-rumped Warbler.

A Yellow Warbler.

A Tree Swallow.

And a few more things we spotted at the ponds and path. We have rain coming, but it may hold off tomorrow, so hoping to get out again. It is nice to see signs of Spring at the parks and at home. My flowers and trees are blooming, so it is a great mood pick me up, after a dreary winter. I hope you all can get out and enjoy spending time outside.

New Stitchery and Baby!

This weekend was a bust, way too hot and with the holiday, way too many people to enjoy going to the ocean. Even going for a ride was tough, the one time out we ran into a parade, so we stayed in and got things done around the yard.

I needed a project to work on since I prefer to sit inside with the air on, so I made up a piece with my new pattern. The pattern is available now and this shows you that you can use it in different ways to make matching pieces. I wanted something to put on a small wall area and this fit just right.

I changed the pattern to fit a stitchery and added a few extra items. The fireworks was something I added after I made the pattern and decided to keep it out, on the punch it didn't look right to me. On the stitchery it was a nice way to fill in some space and use it as a bit of quilting.

I took the photo outside so it turned back to light, it actually was walnut stained but it doesn't show up in the photo. I added a touch of color with my art pens and I think it turned out nicely and a fun piece to hang for summer. The finished piece is 9 1/2" x 9".

In other news, the new baby has arrived. My son got phone photos and sent them to me, so I was happy to see my new grandson. I sure wish they weren't staying in Malaysia so long, I do miss my sweet Nick and would love to spend the summer having fun with him. I am sure I will become just as, in love with Alex once I hold him in my arms but I have to admit, I am in love and wish I could just pick him up and cuddle him.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. The heat is ending today so I am going to enjoy the cooler temps this week.

Alex St. Germain: No idea what his middle name is, what day he was born or the weight, but he does look bigger than Nick at birth.

Friday Finish: New Pattern

This week I was inspired by the holiday and the upcoming Fourth of July. I wanted to make something patriotic and saw an antique piece that I just had to recreate. Well, I drew out the original idea and then decided I wanted something different from the typical Uncle Sam's and that is how Uncle Dawg came about. It is a fun piece and I hope you like it, as well.

I have started the directions with color chart and still need to redo the design but I am hoping I can get it done this weekend and have the pattern ready in a few days. On this piece I made a braided edge since I wanted a larger pillow to display on the table. I think this would be fun to do in a hooked rug.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend, we are working on the yard and Bill is making a space for my new blow up pool. I love to swim and didn't want to buy a pool right now, so trying a blow up and hoping it won't pop, lol.

Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a nice day, no matter how you celebrate the holidays. One of the things I did to celebrate was to share the love and memories on a tree for Danielle, in our beach room. I think of it as her room and now it is my room, so it is our room. 

I found a prelit tree with pinecones, simple but nice. I made christmas cards using photos of her and her friends and family and printed them card stock. I hung those on the tree and yesterday I found two hanging signs, one says Believe and one for Joy. I turned it on, on Christmas eve and it will stay lit till midnight tonight, my gift to her this Christmas. I also wrote a little poem to her, not the best literary piece, but it came from the heart.

I made a special gift for you,

a little Christmas tree,

Filled with family, friends and love

and all our memories.

May you see the bright shining light,

as you celebrate Christmas in Heaven tonight.

Love you and miss you,

and this I do pray, 

to be with us in spirit, 

especially today.

Christmas Eve was spent at our house. We made a turkey dinner and let Nick open a few presents. He loves wearing my watch, so now he has his own. 

Today we visited her grave.  It was a nice feeling to be able to see her stone in place and I knew she is smiling down on us, when the sun broke out and the beam cast it's rays on her stone, creating a rainbow of color across the angel. 

The afternoon was spent with the kids, yes I still call them kids;) My son and  wife made dinner and after we enjoyed present opening with Nicholas and playing with his new toys.

We got him a little bike so he could learn to peddle and not have to worry about falling, this was perfect for a learning bike. 

He wasn't too sure about going in his new fort, but then he drove his new firetruck into it, so he had to go in to get it. The house is nice since it pops down and fits into a small carry sack, so he can bring it to my house when he plays here.

Now it is time for me to have some me time, lots of projects to finish, new ones to start and lots of ideas for new creations.