Friday, July 29, 2011

Favicon? What's That??

favicon  (ˈfævɪˌkɒn)
n

a 16 x 16-pixel icon associated with a particular website, usually displayed before the URL in a web browser
[from favorite + icon

Did you see my favicon...
up there in your address bar?  

I thought I would post a larger picture
here so that you could see what it actually is...

a brown dog with a sewing needle and thread!
Isn't he cute???

I had this drawn for me back in 1999,
when I started a little company
selling items with dog breed
headstudies on the fabric.
I didn't make much money, but I had fun!

I've had this image all this time and
thought it would make a cute little favicon.
It's Jigs, the brown boy I had before Tag.

Lori Bush is the artist...
she thought it a little strange
that I wanted a male dog drawn...
but she did it for me.
{grin}

It's Friday!  
My weekend starts at 2:00
when I am done working!!!

Have a great day!



"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Snow Days and Wonky Stars...

I've been working my fingers to the bone.


Okay, not really.
But, here's what I have been up to.

The 'Snow Days' block 5 is finally finished.
whew.
The design area measures about 10 x 18 inches,
which is much larger than any of the previous blocks.
It seemed to take forever to do.
(be sure to click to enlarge so that you are
able to see the details of this stitchery)
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~

 And, this is where I am on my doll quilt swap quilt.

Right now, it measures 12.5 inches square.
I need to add a border or two, yet.
Little wonky stars...aren't they cute?
I am very happy with how this is looking.
I sure hope my partner will be happy with it.

I'm hoping to get the doll quilt
and a few other things
finished up before next Monday
so I can begin our 
'Christmas in August'
right on time.
(mentioned previously here)
I only have 3 days left, though.
YIKES!


Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Sunshine Quilt for Doreen...

I put the border on
this over a month ago.
Then, I got distracted by other projects.

It is actually on my list
of projects to finish this month.
But, now it needs to be done before August 2.
I'll be seeing Doreen on that day!
She's coming to Madison...
to the UW Hospital
for a second opinion on her cancer.
I'm so happy that I'll be able to spend
a bit of time with her.

The quilt is now sandwiched and pinned.
Just need to decide how to quilt it.

Any thoughts?
I'd be happy to hear them.
 

Hope you had a great weekend!

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

What I Did With It...

Remember this photo from 2 weeks ago?
 Well, here's what I did with it...
Most of it, anyway.
I made a little purse/tote for Ashley.
It measures 6 x 9 x 2 inches.
It actually has straight sides and bottom...
I was in a hurry when I took the photo,
so didn't lay it out nicely at all.
Here is a closeup of the buttons
and pin tucks...
(click to enlarge)

Joyce received the package today.
Miss Ashley will see it tomorrow.
Do you know Ashley?
She is my sister's granddaughter.
She draws pictures and writes notes to me
and Joyce mails them.
I've never met her.
We chatted on the phone very briefly one day.
She reminds me of me.


Here's how/why...
Joyce was born fair-skinned,
fair-haired,
and sweet-tempered.
She grew into a tall, beautiful little girl...
with long straight blonde hair.

I was born red-faced and screaming...
with LOTS of dark hair!
I grew into a short & chubby
little toddler with dark curly hair.

Joyce's granddaughters mimic that...
Alyssa is very pretty...
tall with long dark hair.
Ashley is dang cute,
on the short side
and has LOTS of curly hair!
I can relate.
See what I'm sayin'?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am getting ready for
Christmas in August!
Here's a sneak peek of that table topper
I mentioned in a previous post.
This needs to be done before August.

It's been very hot here, but should
be cooling off after the weekend.


In the meantime, there is
no desire to be outside
which can only mean one thing...
more time for sewing/stitching.

I'm still plugging away at block 5 of
my Snow Days quilt.
I'll show a photo one day, soon.

Stay cool!



Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Coin Purses and Christmas in August...

I've done a little bit of sewing today.

Made 3 coin purses...

Started on a Christmas table topper for me Mum to give a friend.  The top is done...will show it when it's all quilted and ready to go.

Sharon, of Moosecraft, my co-conspirator in the 'snow days' quilt project, and I decided that we are going to set the month of August aside to work on Christmas gifts.  Yeah...Christmas in August!  We'll work on Christmas gifts ONLY.  We figure this might give us a good start on what all we have on our lists for Christmas gift-giving. 

What this means to me is that I need to hurry up and get a few things done and out of the way within the next 2 weeks!  For instance...the doll quilt swap quilt (thank goodness I have a plan), the sunshine quilt for Doreen, and the aforementioned Christmas table topper.  I have everything I need to finish these projects up...now to just get at them.

For the rest of today, though, I am going to sit and stitch some more on my Snow Days block 5.  Would love to finish that up this week!

Speaking of this week...it is going to be very hot & very humid...I am so thankful that we have central air.  I'll be sure to drink plenty of water to stay hydrated.

Take care and have a good week!



Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Saturday, July 16, 2011

Bees, Dolls, Strawberries and Fights...


 Not much going on today.

Gonna hurry up and get this out of the way...
I messed up.
I didn't do the 'measure twice, cut once' thing.
So...you'll notice that these plates have no centers.
Erin (the one they're for 
in my aqua and red block bee swap)
told me not to worry.
Just send them back
and she'll put the centers on.
I hate when I mess up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I finally decided on a pattern
and fabrics for the DQS11!
(see the button on my sidebar)

Some of these are civil war reproduction fabrics.
Others look good together with them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Watched this dvd today...
I really enjoy Mark Wahlberg...
not this movie so much, though.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Had one of these today...

That's two alcoholic drinks in 12 days.
I think my sister is a bad influence.
I normally don't have two drinks in 12 months!

That's all I have!
I'm going to sit quietly and stitch on my 
snow days block 5 for the rest of the evening.

Hope you're having a great weekend!
Stay cool!


Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Almost Monday...

It's early evening on Sunday.
Time to sit and relax
before the work week begins.

What have I been up to?

Well, for one...
I've been steadily working on 
block 5 of the Snow Days quilt.
It's a larger block than the previous 4, 
so it's taking longer.
But, it's getting there.
That's what I'll be working on
for the rest of the evening.

Other projects have been
started and finished.
Three in total.
Can only show two right now, though.

The first is another red tote. 
Are you getting tired of seeing red?
I kinda am.
The next one I make will not be red.
Promise!

I had this one mostly made
and decided it was too small for Sally.
So, I made her another one.
The one I gave her is shown here.
This one measures 9 x 11 x 2,
which I decided might be just
the perfect size for
taking a walk in the park.
So, I finished it
and will be gifting it soon.

 My sister, Joyce, wanted a library book bag
for her grandson, Trent.
His birthday is in a few weeks.
I put this together for him today.
Measuring about 12 1/2 x 11 inches,
it is lined...and has a small pocket
inside for his library card.

The other finish will be shown sometime soon.

I had my first grilled burger of this year!
ohman, was it good!
Last night, Julie and I were invited
next door for supper.
YUMMY!!
Hamburgers, potato salad,
chips and salsa, grilled squash,
and strawberry cake.
It was really nice to have some 
social time and to think about
something other than sewing.

August is my month in the
aqua and red block swap.
I'll be busy getting my
fabric ready to mail out.
More on that at another time.

Hope your weekend was great!




Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Monday, July 4, 2011

Bee Blocks, Paper Piecing, Next Project...

I never get as much done as I think I will.
Or, even as much as I want to.

I often make lists of things to do.
I seldom stick to the list.
There is always something that comes up.
Sometimes, I decide that I just plain
don't feel like doing what is on the list.

Ya know?

So.
I had a ton of stuff on my list
for this 3 day holiday weekend.

I accomplished about 1/3 of it.
Am I upset about that?
Nope.
I had a great weekend.
That's what counts.
Right?

I did get some sewing in for
the 'aqua and red block bee swap'.

Lynne asked for sampler-type blocks.
I made two for her
(just cuz I could).

These are both 12 1/2 inch blocks...

Then, the dreaded paper-piecing block.
I was quite hesitant about this one,
never before having done paper piecing.
However, the video found here made me 
feel more at ease...like I could actually do this!

So, I did.
Let me tell you...
talk about time-consuming!
There are 4 sections to this block.
And, 2 parts to each section.
That means...8 parts to paper piece!
But, toward the end,
I was zipping right along.
 
I'm not sure if I'll look for 
paper-pieced projects to 
work on in the future.
But, I've now had the experience,
so it won't be quite so daunting
next time I run across it.

All that being said, 
here's the kaleidoscope pattern block.
It's not perfect, but I am quite happy with it.

 What else did I do these past three days?
*Ate my pint of ice cream.
*Ate lunch at Culver's.
*Sat in the front yard with Julie...
drinking our strawberry margaritas.
*Bathed Tag.
*Cleaned sewing room windows.
*The usual laundry, dishes, etc. stuff.

What's ahead?

Here are the makings of my next project...

Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Paper Piecing...

I have never before paper-pieced a block.
Have you?
How do you like doing it?
I'm finding it a bit tedious,
definitely time-consuming...
but I do like the results!

I've been catching up on the small
projects that have been piling up.
Which does include the blocks for my bee swap.

What is taking up most of my time
is the paper-pieced kaleidoscope
pattern block that was asked for.

Tune in tomorrow for the results.

And, to see what else I accomplished
on this 3 day weekend.

Besides consuming this pint of ice cream, that is.
{grin}

Have a Happy Fourth!




Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might. - Ecclesiastes 9:10