Fabric Pennies and BIrds

I decided to try my new pattern with fabrics. Since I have a basket of scraps and spent the week sitting on my butt, it was a good lap project. I just got out fabrics and did raw edge, I wanted it to look old and scrappy. I am pleased with how it came out, and I used walnut and java stain to grunge it up more.



And then I decided the birds would make nice little ornies, so I made a couple up to try. I used homespuns on one side and prim tans on the other. I just sew scraps together and then make a template with freezer paper to cut them out. Not bad for making it up, as I go along;) This way, the person who gets them can use whatever color side, they like.

Crock Penny Rug

I realized, I never posted the Penny Rug that I made for a friend.
This was a pattern I got from Lynda Hall. She does the most wonderful primitive patterns and has a beautiful sense of color in her pieces. She is also selling instant patterns now, so great for those days when you want to make something and not wait for the pattern. You can also click on her links and enjoy beautiful photos of her home and her quilting.

This pattern was modified a bit. I reduced the size of the designs a bit to make it smaller. I did it all in wools and then antiqued it with walnut spray. I have been working on a lot of different projects and haven't finished them, so once I do, I will show you some and some will have to wait until the recipient gets them;)

Handmade gifts

Some of the gifts I made have arrived at their destination, so I can show them now.

I had a swap with my quilt group and we could only use what we had in the house, luckily, I have plenty of crafting supplies.
Unfortunately my partner lives in holland, so I had to limit what I made for her and couldn't spoil her, as I would have liked to do;) I made her a penny mat, using a design from Primitive Blessings as a start, the angels. Then I added the rest to make a fun and unique mat, just for her.



I also used the angel to make a pair of punched ornaments. I am not great at doing the lettering.
I just love using Tiffany's designs, they are so fun to do and wonderful ideas for gift giving.



The third item I made was a pair of mittens, that she can hang on the hook, door, or wherever, she would like. I used one of Tiffany's snowmen and modified it a bit. This was before I cleaned it up. Taking pictures helps me to see what I might have missed with loose strands or areas that need to be teased back in. I also made her a nativity set and some other little goodies. I love making things for fellow crafters and sharing during the holiday season.

Christmas Creations

I was able to finish the punch I started when my arm gave out, luckily there wasn't too much left to do.
It is ok, but not what I wanted, lost the detail in the lettering. It says Believe. This is a pattern from Primitive Blessings which you can get as an epattern.



Another piece I made this week, a small wool hanging from one of Tiffany's designs at Primitive Blessings. I have always loved this one and want to do it in a quilted piece, but for now, a small one was perfect as a gift. Of course I had to add my own little things, the flowers and bird.



I enjoy going to other blogs and seeing all the wonderful decorations and Christmas trees, but this year I only put up my small ones. My large tree is usually decorated with cats, yes, all cats! I have been collecting them for years, so that is my theme. Since I couldn't put the tree up, due to obnoxious kitties, I put my tree topper out, so I could at least enjoy that;) I like the cat santa, but I wanted a cat angel, so maybe next year, I will make my own.

Lots of Christmas Goodies!

Today I got two surprise boxes from my group swaps.
One was from our ebay group, USAPRIM which consists of a group of talented ladies who create primitive goods for sale on ebay.
I got lots of wonderful items, to use around my home and couldn't wait to hang them up. I am amazed at all of the beautiful work she did.



My other box was from a fellow quilter on my primitive quilt group. She made me a wonderful kitty hanging, she knows I love cats;) She also made me a cross stitched piece and little did she know, that I really wanted one, but have no time to make one, so it was the perfect present. The purse she knitted and felted, what beautiful work.



I also had a good day shopping yesterday, got lots of goodies for presents and found myself another candle holder. I can't have to many of those, lol. I stayed home today to finish up what I started, it was hard to do the punch, but it was a small amount, so I did it. Now I have to get back to the cellar to spray the last side of my nativities. I am happier with these sets, even though they are not perfect. And for those who asked, I am not selling these, they are for presents. I may do some next year and will be working more with wood and some carving, so will see what I come up with.

Another happy thing for today is, I won a contest:) I won 4 half yards of Patrick Loose's new fabric. I can't wait to come up with a design to use it in. Check out his site, he has lots of fun and whimsical patterns.

Busy with new projects

Today I finished off some new projects, one I cannot show, it is a surprise gift;)
One item was made for a customer who needed a name tag to wear to her rug hook ins.
She loves my fraktur dogs, so I made her one with them and her name. I think it came out great and would be fun to make more.



The next item is a piece I made for ebay. I wanted to try the spotted horse in a fraktur and it was fun to do. I made it all in my hand dyed wools and a couple as is wools. I used cotton floss to whip stitch and blanket stitch the pieces. The yarn is a bumpy type yarn and it made a great stem and vines. If you like this piece, you can find it on my ebay site.



I also worked on my big runner, so maybe someday I will have a finished picture of it. I also have a million other projects going and will be doing up the cat and dog pattern next, for those of you who have requested it.

Wonderful prizes

I am usually not that lucky, but today I received another wonderful prize from a recent blogging contest.
Tak, Quilt in Me, recently held a contest and decided to have two winners.
Well, I was the lucky second winner and I feel like I won the grand prize. I was overwhelmed with her generosity.

First of all she sent me a beautiful quilted mat, that I had admired on her blog. I just love it and it fits my decor and colors perfectly. She even used pennies to represent game pieces. It is a mix of fabric and wools, so wonderfully prim. Did I mention, I love it! I guess I need to decide where to put it and start an antique game theme;)



And if that was not enough, she sent me luscious fabrics and wool and a beautiful doily. And to top it off, a Japanese rug hooking book.



The book is amazing, lot of creative designs and patterns to create hooked items and some with felted wool. I am going to have fun making the items and they will make great gifts too. Besides the cat in the photo, there is a another door stopper cat to make. I guess I better get busy finishing my projects so I can start the new ones;)