Friday Finish and Finds!

This week I enjoyed some rest time and worked on some little pillows. The pattern is by Cheri Payne and in her older Christmas book and also available as a download on Quilts By Cheri, on Facebook.

It was a fun project to do and worked up quickly. I did one in a simple prim style and the other with some brighter bells and buttons. I did add a bit of walnut stain to tone down the lighter colors.

We also got a chance to shop last weekend. We took a ride to the upper area of Connecticut to see if we could find any foliage. No real foliage but some great shops to stop at. One is a Christmas shop, they have lots of different items, along with antiques. I got some grubby candles and I found this wonderful bottle. It is an old, Cod liver oil, bottle, with a fishermen carrying a cod. Perfect for my beach room. There was no price on it, so the lady sold it to me for 4.50, great deal.

I decided to stop at a local shop, that I haven't been to in awhile and found a new black cat door stop, for my collection. I am always on the lookout and only ones that I like and for good prices, so it won't be a big collection, but fun to look for and I still have one more step to fill.

I am still working on glass ideas and an angel ornament. The weather has been cool and windy, not good weather for outdoor spraying, so I may have to buy a cheap tent to use outside, to do work like that.

We did get some beach time in and we didn't find a lot of glass, since it was later in the day. Sometimes I find something that seems different but doesn't look like glass. This is what I found and I decided to keep it and check it at home.

And this is what it looks like, when you concentrate the light under it. The light makes it more yellow, but it is a green piece of glass. You would never know when you see something like this on the beach, so always worth carrying a light with you. The thicker, dark pieces don't always show the light through them, unless it is concentrated.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend. We are going to try and find some foliage this weekend. We will head into Connecticut, or maybe Massachusetts, but I am happy if we just get out and get some hiking in. I think I need to do more activity that doesn't include constant bending.

Monday Finish and Find Giveaway!

This weekend I decided to make another small piece to put in my Christmas box. I love Cheri's designs and this one came from one of her old books, 301 Country Christmas Quilt Blocks. You can still find old copies online, but it seems everyone is wanting them now, so getting harder to find. I was lucky and found my copy at a thrift store.

I really enjoyed making this one, it is happy and meaningful. I added extra stars to fill in the empty spaces at the bottom and I left it, as is. I am not sure who will get it, so I didn't want to stain it and think that may darken the design too much, I like keeping this one bright and happy.

The little quilt is 6 1/2" x 7 1/2". Mini quilts are fun to do, great for small spaces and a great way to use up scraps.

Yesterday was a nice day but windy and cool still so we decided to go the the antique barn. It is a nice ride and you never know what you will find. One thing I always look for is cast iron, cat door stops. When you are hunting in a shop full of booths, you have to look carefully, sometimes items are hidden behind other items and guess what I found, a cat door stop.  I thought it would be fun to line them on the stairway.

Can you guess which one is the newest one? Make a guess and I will pick a name from the guesses. I will pick a name on friday night and the winner can pick any pattern or booklet from my ecrater shop.

Friday's Finds and a Surprise

I thought I needed to get out and have a fun shopping day, so I hit the local stores and consignments.
You just never know what you will find in a home store and sometimes I get lucky. I got my first wire basket at a primitive store in Mystic, and was so happy to find this one at our local store. It is large and has two compartments, perfect for small pieces of wool. I hung it next to my cutting table, so I can snag a piece whenever I need a small piece of wool in a project.



Then I hit the TJ's in the same plaza and found this rustic wooden box. Not sure what I will use it for yet, but I will think of something, any ideas? Hey, it was in the sale aisle, can't pass up a good bargain;)



Today I had to hit the library, so thought, since I was out, why not hit the consignment nearby. I actually found a cast iron cat doorstop. They are hard to find, especially good fake ones;) It may not be a Hubley, but good enough for me. Both consignments had loads of new antiques in, but most were musty, I do not do musty or moldy.



Now, the Surprise? Well it is a secret, at least until Sunday night. So if you come back Sunday night, you will see a new blog featuring a free punch needle pattern that I made from a certain quilt designer's patterns. I will be working with her in the coming months, working on samples for a new line of punched patterns, so don't forget to come back on Sunday.