Monday, Monday, can't trust that day...

Ah what a weekend... Hubby broke a tooth late Friday night, came down with a cold, and the dentist office was closed for the weekend... Saturday we took the Janome 6600 up to Nashua, hubby was still not feeling well, so we did a very quick turn around and came back home... Went food/stuff for the house shopping on the way home and purchased the tax software to start the annual "bitch & moan" session. Oh joy, oh rapture :) Then a wonderful dinner at Mom's with friends of my sister up visiting, as well as my daughter, brother, SIL, and a niece. It was fun, company was great, and I am glad hubby took a 3 hour nap before we went over. 


Sunday I spent a bit of time going over my 2011 photos and blog posting. I got to thinking that it is a good idea to look back on past projects because then you know how much your style has improved, changed, or stayed the same. I look at this blog as one big project - a visual diary of my/our lives here and my sewing/quilting and looking for a life and work balance. As well as looking for work to support my sewing/quilting habit... I am very happy with my growth on so many fronts... hoping this translates into growth in finding a position soon. 

Now I am off to work on my table of projects... if the cat lets me get close to my hand sewing...

As you can tell... I have taken over the Dining Room with my sewing... need to take time to weed this all out... Tux  jumped up on my lap as I started to do the hand sewing, not anything new, just that hubby had the camera in hand to take a picture. As you can tell, he does this often.


Thanks for stopping by, Ciao for now :)


J :)

Thank you to a Fellow Quilter

Around the 1st week of this month I was dancing around about my 'new' sewing machine :) [Ok, I am still dancing, and it is going in to  NEVERETTS  in Nashua this weekend.] I have been fussing over a thank you card to send to M & R for the wonderful gift....


Ok, so I am 1/2 way done and here is the card for M along with a mug rug. 

Yes, that is a little quilt on the paper pieced sewing machine. I thought it a rather cute way to say thank you. The colors remind me of the National Forest as they live in Texas' Big Bend region and I thought that they would enjoy them. The mug rug can also be used as a trivet as I have the insubrite & some batting sandwiched between the fabrics. The sewing machine has a small pocket to hang it up. She does have a quilt store down there... 


As I had thought about how to say thank you, this was the 1st thought, I am glad that I did them. Now to mail them off to Texas.


Thanks for stopping by, Ciao for now!

J :)

What do you do when you are up at 2:30 am?

I end up on Pinterest... which is what I did this morning... I found this adorable quilt there that had a tutorial... Rainbow Chevron Twin Quilt Tutorial ... With a lot of thought I realize that, once again, my stash has all of the material to make one or two of these...

I am sure that I will need to make a few gifts, so I'll just add this to my "To Do" list.

My only issue with Pinterest is that I find so many items to add to my "To Do" List of late... How about you? Have you been invited to join in on the fun? Do you do a lot of pinning? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Thanks for stopping by, Ciao for now!

J:)

Pinterest Creations

This past weekend the grand kids where here and where looking on Pinterest with me. Ms E wanted a "Norah Doll" and Mr M wanted "Angry Birds" paper piecing from Fandom In Stiches Comics/Games/Tech. Talk about a little bit of pressure... I still have the Blogger BOM's to get done as well as Crafty's BOM, but the grand kids are done...

Least I forget to post this info...

Yes, everything did come form my stash!

Now it is on to the BOM's!

Thanks for stopping by! Ciao for now :)

J :)

BOM's

Ah yes, it is the 25th of the month and the Blogger's BOM has been posted! Check out Jackie's post over at CVQW to see what she has to say about the different blocks. So the new block is done by John Adams, A.K.A. Quilt Dad, just click here to see the block and get the tutorial. 
This is what his block looks like:

Too cute!


So I am off to finish the paper piecing of the Angry Birds, make a quick rag doll, do Crafty's BOM's for January, and start on the Blogger's BOM... I think that is enough to fill up the day. 


Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful day!


Ciao for now!


J :)

Use It Up...

I am working on a project for each grandchild this week and wondering if I have the fabrics... Well I know I have a lot within my stash, and I really should work on whittling it down to a much smaller space... So when I saw this pledge over on Ladyoflosttimescrafts Blog I got to thinking... It may be the end of January, I will be adding my name to the pledge. From Ladyoflosttimescrafts blog.post on December 29th, here are some very good reason for taking the UIU pledge

What UIU is all about is using up those craft supplies that you have been stashing away, hoarding or treasuring what ever you want to call it. We all have drawers and bins full of craft stuff but yet we keep saying “oh I don’t have anything to do that project” or it’s the “Look at that shiny new product” I must have it syndrome. Then we go buy more stuff, but what happens is you get it and forget it. when we just keep going in this manner we end up with another problem, NO SPACE!!! Well that’s going to stop for me this year and I invite you to join me! 

There are no hard core rules other then USE IT UP, but here are some guidelines, hints and tips:

* Take some time and go “shopping” in your stash. I know what you are going to say, “Time! I don’t have time I am to busy!!” My answer to that is, YES you do! How much time do you spend shopping in the craft stores or surfing the net for craft stuff weekly? Well replace the store or the net with your own house.

*Trading / swapping: Don’t be afraid to ask someone for help. Before you go buy that one flower you need ask someone if they have an extra one. You can arrange a swap for goods and sometimes the postage will be cheaper than going to buy it. You just need to be patient.

*Rethink it: If you realllllllly want to create a project but don’t have the products to make it, take a step back and see what you do have and work it with what you have. You may have to resize it or change the style. You will be surprised on what you can do.

*Recycling is your best friend! Don’t throw out those cereal boxes they make great chipboard or canvases. Even the smallest paper scraps can be glued down to plain copy paper and make cool backgrounds. That trick works well with fabric too.

* Resale vs. Retail: Try going to a resale shop (Salvation Army/ goodwill) instead of your craft store. You will be surprised on what you will find and not spend a lot

*Set a budget. I know we are talking about NOT spending but there are times that we will run out of basics (glue, paint, mediums) and that’s ok to replace them. AND yes it’s ok to treat yourself here and there. BUT if you do get something you MUST use it, you can’t buy it and let it sit. Just remember your goal of not spending and start using don’t make it a daily/weekly treat.

Remember this will be a pledge to yourself and only you can hold yourself accountable for it and with love and support from other UIU pledges we will be making awesome art, making room and saving money. I know that I would rather spend my money on an art retreat then on a products that will collect dust on the shelf

So I have already started "stash shopping" with the two items for the grandkids. I really need to get my fabric stash down to a reasonable size so that I don't appear to be hording...


So I am looking forward to using this button:
  
Here is the link to use on your blog <a href="http://ladyoflosttimescrafts.blogspot.com/2011/12/i-uiu.html" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1227.photobucket.com/albums/ee427/Felicia_MPD/UIUblinkies/100UIU-4.gif" title="" border="0"></a>


Ah well, thanks for stopping by, Ciao for now! J :)

Comment issues...

I have heard from a few people that you cannot comment on the blog... Upon inquiring the reply is...

We've raised this with Google Engineering. Until it is fixed I would suggest settings your comments to either Full-Screen or Pop up rather than Embed. NOTE: The problem does not happen with Google Chrome,so you should switch to using Google Chrome in the meantime Hopefully Google will announce when the issues are fixed.

It doesn't help me but it answers the question. Thank you for the comments and I'll post an email address for you all in my profile :) Ciao for now! J :)

Monday.... Already!

WOW did this weekend fly by! The grandkids where here on Friday afternoon. Miss E & I went off to sew and Mr M and hubby stayed home. Miss E had the best time at FUF, behaved wonderfully, and we stayed thru to the end of class. Saturday it snowed here in the Boston area, so there was no going out to the museum that we had hoped to do. Instead we went to my mom's and hubby shoveled the walkways and the kids and I went off to the food store with my mom. They had just got back from three weeks away and there was no food in the house. We spent the evening there and had dinner there with the kids. They love to spend time there as the games are way different than what we have and there are two sets of stairs. They run up the back and down the front and do this for a bit of time. It does tire them out :)

Sunday was packed! Woke up to Mr M asking if I would be able to finish the Angry Birds paper piecing that I was doing... I found them over at http://www.fandominstitches.com/p/video-games.html So I have completed the red bird, blue bird, and am working on the yellow bird at present. These pictures are from the Fandom In Stiches site and done by the creator of the paper pieced patterns.

So the kids left and I ran out the door for Concord... It has been a long time since I was at Open Studio in Concord. One of the many items that I had to drop due to lack of funds. I missed going, but this weekend Ms G & Ms A got together and paid for my spot. (Hubby is had already stated he was paying for next month). So it was off to Concord to sew. It was great to see Ms G, Ms A, Ms K, Ms P, Ms J, and Ms D. I missed the ladies most of all...

I took both of my jackets in process to work with Ms K (the teacher for the group) as it is so hard to fit clothing to ones self. Good thing as one of them did not fit over my hips loosely enough. I am adding some fabric to the sides and will be bringing it back with me next month to refit it and finish up both jackets. 

As we where there from noon to 5 pm the AFC Championship game was on between the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens was being broadcasted from Foxborough Stadium. We all left to head home shortly be for 5 pm to get home to watch the end of the game.

To say that it was a bit Nerve-wracking to watch is an understatement. The New England Patriots victory over Baltimore Ravens, of 23-20 was a nail bitter down to the very end. It was an AFC Championship game that had fans of both teams tensed all the way throughout. Or as my ex-husband said, Heart-attack on TV (he was with our daughter watching it at a local bar). 

So now... on to the Super Bowl. New England Patriots vs New York Giants in the Super Bowl 46. As it has already been noted, a rematch of the 2008 Super Bowl which the Giants stole it away from the Patriots.

And I wonder why the weekend flew by... 

So school is back in session and I am back to driving my daughter to the train station once again... 

Off to play taxi driver...

Ciao for now!

J :)

Friday :)

This weekend we have the grandkids visiting thru Sunday. Tonight, my granddaughter will be going to FUF with me. Typically, she will bring some art project to do while I do a little bit of sewing. Now that she has an American Girl Doll, I wonder if she will be picking fabric to have me make some more clothing.

I am not going to mention that I will be making some sweatshirt jackets for the doll. I think that I may have to make her a jacket as well. At least one that matches the doll's jacket. Should be fun.

I have spent the day cleaning up the areas that we don't use all that often except when the kids are here. I also had to clean off the dining room table... That would be where I also sew... I have posted pictures of the table with stuff on it in the past...

This is what it looks like tonight... not guaranteeing it will stay this clean... just that it is...

 I have been working on a few mug rugs... yes, I have 'caught' the mug rug bug. I think that they will make wonderful Thank you gifts. So, I need to finish binding a couple and send them on their way tomorrow.

As is typical when the grandkids come to visit, we are headed for the Children's Museum tomorrow.

This is the Boston Children's Museum.

I would like to go to the Children's Museum of New Hampshire, which we have not go to in a while. It is about 1/2 the size of Boston, but it's different. I think it is time for a change. We will see... If we go here we would get to

Meet Mouse from If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

Saturday, January 21, 10am - 2pm
Meet the mouse from If You Give a Mouse a Cookie as part of the Books Alive! literacy initiative, generously sponsored by Irving Oil. Museum staff will read the mouse's story aloud and kids can enjoy hands-on crafts, games and reading activities.  The costumed mouse character will make frequent appearances for hugs and high-fives.   

That would be different. I think the kids would enjoy doing something different.

Now it is time to get ready to go to Finish Up Friday.


Ciao for now!
J :)

Voting for Blogger's Choice

You recall that I posted about a Blogger's Choice recently... I had to choose 15 fabrics from the Fat Quarter Shop that I love and if by chance I won I would win 1/2 yard of each... Well, Quokka Quilts is giving you a chance to vote! My set is #300... so please go http://quokkaquilts.blogspot.com/ and vote on today's blog Survey Monkey.

Thanks!
Ciao for now :)
J :)