Anyone Can Quilt

Super sweet Christmas gifts...and a visit from the Christmas Bunny..

My sweet mama made me a beautiful gift.  The most beautiful gifts are handmade aren't they?  As soon as I held these in my hands I couldn't wait to share them with you.  These really inspired me to make kitchen-y Christmas gifts for the ladies in my family this year...which I haven't actually started sewing yet.  Of course.

Look how sweet!  Fabric adorned kitchen towels and a potholder to match.  Love it.  Mom bought a few yards of this kitchen toweling at a quilt shop last year and this is what she's done with it. 

These go perfectly in my kitchen.  Which I would show you, but it's a mess.  I will show you my sweet new gingham curtains though!  I've had the fabric for these for ages, but never got around to them.  Somehow they magically appeared on my windows when my mom was here visiting this fall.  Funny how that happens.

Unfortunately, the trim around my windows didn't get magically painted while she was here.  The trim was finished this summer, but and are still the primer white.  They look nice until you get up close, then it's quite obvious that they need to be painted. 

See above?  Totally needs paint.  Which I have and has been sitting in the kitchen for months.  I'm a loser. 

Thankfully even though I'm a loser, my sweet German friend Sabine loves me anyway.  And she surprised me with THE most lovely gift this week.  I opened this and almost fainted.

She stitched and framed this for me!!  It's hanging near the kitchen table right now, so that I can see it all day while the girls and I do school.  It's a bit dark in the kitchen, not good lighting so I haven't gotten a great picture of it yet.  I'll do a proper photo shoot soon, but couldn't help but get it up on the wall as soon as possible!  It kills me it's so cute. 

I love this so much.  Making dinner has been so much more enjoyable since I take little trips to see my new Christmas stitchery!  I can't thank you enough Sabine!!  xoxo

Now, making dinner is also pretty fun because I get to hang out with the Christmas bunny.  Charles aka Foofy is his name(s).  This month he is officially known as the Christmas bunny.  Soon he will be the New Year Bunny, then the Presidents Day bunny and let's not forget the Easter bunny. 

It's a bit difficult to get a good picture of an active Christmas bunny.  The next one is blurry, but you get a good idea why I call him Foofy.

He's a fluffy little angel.  His cage is actually in the kitchen/dining area.  It's really the best place for him.  He was in my daughter's room, but he likes being in the kitchen so much, and uses a litter box every time he has to go potty, so it made sense to move him down here.  When we're home he literally just hangs out in the kitchen.  He LOVES attention, especially head rubs. 

It's so hard to get him still for a picture!  So I asked my daughter to rub his head so he'd sit still for a minute.  As soon as she stopped,

Christmas bunny on the move!

We put this rug down on the tile floor in the kitchen.  That way he can get traction for his acrobatic jumps, since he has such fluffy feet that slide on the tile. 

Ok, time for me to get back to work.  School, then into town for the girls' dance lessons, then home to make dinner with the Christmas bunny.  Then, if I can push aside my loser-ish tendencies, I will head to the sewing room to get started on some Christmas gifts.  That or sit on the couch with a glass of wine.  x

 

 

Crisp air, chimney smoke, cozy quilts...

Fall makes me so happy.  I feel like I wait all year for the leaves to start changing.  Happiness to me means cool crisp days, smoke coming out of chimneys, fog in the mountains, apple spice candles.... you get the picture.  I could go on forever.  I always have a quilt hanging behind the couch, one for each season.  I was so excited to put up my fall/Halloween quilt this year.  Which is actually a sight to see cause I'm barely tall enough to stand on my smooshy couch and clip the thing up there.  I have to use my mind powers to finish the task.  

The border fabric is my favorite.  It's an old Thimbleberries print.  My next 'fall' quilt is actually my vintage sheet quilt.  The backing is an old floral sheet with nice fall colors.  I just fold it up with the backing out.  It's an accidental fall quilt.

It's summer on the inside!

I also have an old fall quilt on the little couch.  I think this is the second quilt that I made with an actual pattern, many moons ago.  While making this quilt, I learned about the importance of squaring up  blocks.  It was a nightmare, and I'm surprised it's swirly quilting doesn't include bad words.  Really bad ones. 

Rosie is happy that fall has come around again too, because she knows the fire will be going.  And she deserves some spoiling.  The poor thing had surgery in her mouth to remove a cracked, absessed molar.  Half of her little face was all swollen...it was sad.  But she's all better now, and content by the fire. 

Can you see the hot dog princess lounging?  She'll be there all day. 

As will this little one.  Only he likes to lay on the arm of the couch.  He's been angry with me because I've been having to give him medicine.  Poor guy has had more urinary tract problems.  :(

If you enjoy the little things, as I do, then you'll know how happy I was to find this little plate at Goodwill years ago. 

I was also happy to pull out my little crow door hanger.  Made a few years ago from a pattern in American Patchwork and Quilting.  I've had to re-attatch the bells though.  Neighborhood cats played with them and pulled them off.  I wonder if they'll find them again this year.  The little stinkers.

Happy fall, I hope you're enjoying it as much as I am.  x

 

 

 

Enjoying it while it lasts!

It's snowing!!!  And you might say that our little household is a tad excited about it.  It's not much, but we are thankful for every single flake.  The girls were out to play in it at 8 am.  I stood on the porch in my robe and tennis shoes to take pictures.  I looked awesome. 

Little Rose wasn't so sure about it at first.  But she'll follow her girls anywhere.  She doesn't like going out in the rain either.  But she has discovered a little safe spot in a corner next to the porch.  It's covered enough to keep her dry.  She always goes straight there to go potty when it's raining. 

Or when there's snow on the ground apparently.

Princesses should never have to have all four paws touching the wet cold ground. 

I love watching my girls play in the snow. 

From inside.

Where my quilt and hot tea are waiting for me.

I love the white glow coming through the windows. 

The gnome has nothing to do with this post.  He just cracks me up.  I found him at the Goodwill.  Myrtle made him.  It says so on the bottom, in 1970.  Myrtle did a real doozie on his lips.  So lucious they are.  Moving on...

The girls are out again as I type.  They're making a snow family I think.  I better get their second round of hot chocolate/apple cider ready. 

Yay snow!!!!  x

 

 

A good night.

The soft light from vintage lamps in my sewing room.

The humming of the sewing machine.

Random music playing from my iPod.  Seriously random, we have Edith Piaf, Bon Jovi and Rick Springfield among others.  Who can resist a little "Jessie's girl" I ask you?

Precious Rosie dreaming her puppy dreams.

Laverne is sitting with her Tupperware bowl.  Is she feeling nauseous?  I hope not.  This teeny Tupperware bowl is from my mom's Tupperware days.  It rocks.

Everything is cast in golden light.

Do you sew at night too?   x

goodbye summer....Mama wants some fall.

I made some beautiful strawberry jam.  I love the color!  And I looooove the quilted jam jars I found.  They scream cozy cottage kitchen to me. 

As does my mother's childhood apron.  It's was handmade by her grandma Martha.

'K' for Kirstie, rhymes with thirsty.  Now little sis wears this apron. 

I have thoroughly enjoyed summer.  Now I am anticipating fall with such excitement!  I look so forward to fall and winter, my favorite times of the year.  Crisp air, falling leaves, chimney smoke, baking and a cozy fire.  Today is cool and fall-ish as I stand on my front porch.

This is my view of downtown.  The brownish pile across the river there is made up of thousands of logs.  There is a paper mill just down the river.  I love watching the trees change on the little mountain as the year goes by.

Fall flowers on the porch.  Hey!  Where did those flies come from?  They are tainting my fall flowers moment.  How dare they.

Now I know this it's too early for Halloween decorations.  But, I was so inspired by the cutest Halloween charm pack that my friend MT got for me.  I had to make a banner. 

And I had to hang it up.  Already.

Aaaand I'm not taking it down.  

This charm pack is Haunted Mansion by Moda.  The charm pack came with 42 charms, so one on the front and back of each flag made a nice long banner of 21 flags.  This was such a quick and fun sewing project!

There is also some fall knitting going on in these parts.

Arm warmers for big sis, she requested thumb holes.  So thumb holes it is.  I love this color.

There is also lots of coffee and tea drinking from this fall mug!  I love this mug, I snatched a set of these up from a local thrift store.  These are the exact same type of Fire King mugs that my grandma Marlys and grandpa Carl  had when I was little.  They make me think of them whenever I use them.  I remember my brother and I waking up early when we would spend the night at my grandparents house when we were very little, I was about 3 or 4.  We would walk into their room in the morning and stand at the side of their bed and silently stare at them until they woke up.  Then grandma would go to the kitchen and make coffee for them both.  We would be silly and make our grandparents laugh as they drank their coffee in bed.  

Ok, back to school.  We started our home school year already.  It's so nice to be back on a schedule. 

A schedule that I've got to fit these arm warmers into.  They're almost done.

I hope you're as ready for fall as I am! x