SHE IS ALIVE!!

Well yes I am still here... alive and hope well past all the mess that attacked my body!!
I still feel like I need to keep an eye out for all the germs lurking out there looking to attack me AGAIN!
I will not win any speed contests but I am doing more each day.
Thanks for all the kind get well wishes! Nice to be remembered. Hugs ♥ to each of you!

Easter is almost here which is also my DH's birthday !!
We will be celebrating both with our son and his wife at their home in Portsmouth.
We are to have BEAUTIFUL weather for the weekend!
Really starting tomorrow, talking temps in the high 70's and maybe 80's inland!
Just hope the wind will settle down some.

I am going out today to pick some tulips that are blooming!
I have hyacinths and still jonquils.
Try to keep some in the house.
Love fresh flowers sitting all around.
Also the bushes are all bloomed out well not the azaleas, they come on later.
DH did till up his small garden plot and planted some spinach and radishes in his little raised bed. So he is in Spring mode for sure!;-)

I felt like sewing some so trying to finish up some gifts I had started back before I was sick first round! Will share them after they are given.

I promised some pics of my sewing room..still in progress.
Here it is after I had cleaned up from a messy project....humm well really most of mine are messy! Ha!! Ha!!
This is looking in from the door.
As I said before not a huge room but hey it is ALL MINE!!!
Shhhh shhhuuu.. now don't say anything about the dust bunnies you may see...they get upset when they hear talk of dusting!

First my room is a 'working' room...not just to look pretty.
What I call working pretty..like me! Ha snort Ha snort Ha!!!!
My window treatments are old vintage lace table clothes.
I have them clipped on a spring tension rod inside the window trim.
Used some Pottery Barn ribbon I had saved to pull them up to swag them.


These have some worn spots/holes but you don't see them .
They just add whimsy character to my room I think.
Lets light in too without me being exposed (gasp) to every one coming up the road!
Sure hope to finish painting the other pieces to go in here with this pretty weather coming up.


Last is my trusty assistant or the INSPECTOR!
Miss Cocoa Kitty!
She likes to snuggle behind me or jump up to inspect what I am sewing!
Silly cutie girl....;-)

More later..I hope!
I am out today to the post office!
Wishing every one a wonderful day!!!

Not well...yet.

Hello.
Sorry for dropping off the face of the earth or so it may seem.
Just under the weather and sort of knocked on my tosh somewhat with this round.
Nothing serious. Not dying just feels like it .
This too shall pass.
Please hang in with me.
I will be back as soon as I can.

Spring is here at our house.
Well the flowers think so .

This, That and the Other.

Around here there always seems a lot of the OTHER!
Between my horrid cold, gone but allergy crap moving in and other ills I did get some of the painting done!;-)
We have had internet issues so have not been able to blog or blog visit too much.

Here are two old style frames I painted black.
I want a couple of old looking samplers for these.


A shelf for one in my kitchen that has wrapped.
Painted it black also .
I sand edges as well to give that worn look I love.

These are candle holders I broke the glass hurricanes so will have to get a couple more.
All these plus a few more projects are for the living, dining rooms and kitchen.

This one I painted to match my sewing room cabinets.
Was my Mama's.
It is to be mounted on wall. There is a drawer, still have to put on the handle.
I have an old dresser, Mama's as well, yet to sand and paint.
This will hang over it .
Will hang a quilt on it for display.

This was an old spice rack I picked up for less than a buck.
It got the creamy white paint treatment too.

Works great for small stuff in jars and strips hanging on the dowel.
Not sure if it will remain here but for now it will.
I am still tweaking my sewing room set up.
Had to clean it up so I can cut and sew on new projects.
Had a mess yet again!
Will share some of it in another post.
Blogger may not let all these pics load as it is!
I did get a tiny bit of sewing done but more on my list to do.
If only I could just sit and sew or blog or well whatever my fancy was instead of all the OTHER stuff that HAS to be done in a days time!!
DH did get the small garden plot cleaned out and tilled also his small raised veggie bed.
He planted some seeds in peat pots to hopefully have some plant starts in time for setting out after our last frost date.
He cleaned out a couple flower beds as well.
So I reckon you could say we are in Spring mode here for sure!
Well until the next cold snap!;-)

Aaaahhhh yes...finally

Finally true signs that the season is changing, if a bit slowly.

Maple tree in bloom.
It hums as you pass under it as it is FULL of honey bees!!

A small clump of jonquils trying to bloom too.
Yes that shadow is me..ain't I cute...;-)

My border mania continues!!!
These two are my kinda/sorta humble homage to the 'Irish Chain' quilts.
You can't see the white strip between them and the pinwheels but it is there.
So stay tuned who knows what is next!

Today DH is taking a 'mental' health day... yeah right...;-)
Anyway we will be outside working.
DH gardening.. me painting or I hope so anyway!
We are warming up here but with it is coming rain.
So got to make hay while the sun shines don'tcha know!!

Saturday & Sunday 'Irish' Sewing

Well some pressing, cutting, sewing, pressing, cutting...yada..yada..yada!

Using this simple clover print bright green and white fabric.

To get several piles of these.

To make three like this!
My Irish Pinwheel!;-)
Now to decide how to border it and bind.
I am thinking will add a white 1.5" or 2." strips around then I do not know.
May just bind no other border.
Will have to pull some stash fabrics to play with.
More green maybe... plaids maybe... bright colors maybe...yellows, blues.... siiigggh!
What would you do/use color wise?
I did not think beyond the cute pinwheel idea so no planning!
Just went with it, now to figure out the rest.
Do you do this too??
I just wanted a fresh new runner for St.Patrick's Day ...that is all!!!.;-)

Cute Lil Racer top plus two..

Okay this one was done first.
Tonya named it, Cute Lil Racer, and won the Deb Strain Love U charm pack!!

This one was next , Teddy Bear Friends.
It is 36 X 36 and for NICU.

Another one for NICU.
I call this one Peek- a-Boo.
I did not have enough focus fabrics to do them like the bigger one.
I did have a bit of these cute prints left over from other charity quilts.
Managed to find enough brights in my stash to coordinate.
Whew! Thankful for my stash!
Now I hope to get them sandwiched Monday, quilted and mailed out this week!
I have to use my dining room table to do the sandwich part so could not do it over weekend.
I do hope every one who choose to do one or more has had a good time!
♥
So hummm... temps still cold... wind still blowing out of the NNW.
Oh well early yet will see how day goes!
Did some Saturday Sewing too...more on that tomorrow...;-)

Sunday Best

I have been seeing some wonderful quilts around blog land done with this pattern.
Borrowed this pic and link from the Fat Quarter Shop where you can buy it.
It kept nagging at me that it was familiar.
Well I have never made it or even bought the pattern.
Then it hit me as I was doing some things in living room!
I have one but a very old one done by hand!!!!

This is a piece of a larger quilt I was given.
See that pattern!!!
How cool is that!!
I use it on an antique child's desk.
Just yet another spin on Everything Old is New Again!!

We have sunshine ..again!!
I am just giddy I tell ya!!
Giddy on so much Vit D!!
Temps to rise into the low 60's for some of weekend!
OH. MY. GOODNESS.
Be still my stiff creaky joints!!
Will just have to grab my trusty box of tissues and head on outside for a bit!!


I wish each of you a sunny day spent doing something you find wonderful!!
Happy Weekend All!!

ADDED:
Go to see sweet Ms Marydon for a wonderful Quilter's Giveaway before Sunday 3-7 at midnight!

The Real Stuff!

Above is my snow ball top.
I need to maybe send it out to be quilted or it soon will be vintage!!
Was made from a Blue Squares Swap I was in.
You may have seen it already but thought snowballs were appropriate today.
Okay so on to the REAL STUFF!!

YES we got snow! This is looking out a back window!
No I did not go out to make snowballs.
DH let me sleep in so a lot had melted before these pics.

Was heavy wet flakes coating every thing.
Clothes line is coated.
Falling out of trees also.

Melting off the 'beach cottage' too.
Oh my sweet beach cottage take me away to the land of warm sunshine!!
Has to be some SOMEWHERE!!!!
To be more snow later but mixed with rain from yet another Nor'easter!
Whine... Whine... Whine....yes think I will have some cheese with it!;-)

Retail Therapy

So here is my goodies.
Thread, charm packs , fat quarter bundles and some wool to do my pear runner.
I had looked and looked for wool in thrifts, even some I could dye myself.. nothing.
Not as many snow birds coming here and donating that wool as it used to be!
Course it could be a lot of woolies and hookers around these days scooping it up first!! ;-)

I am in love with Moda's Glace by 3 Sisters so had to have the fat bundle to go with what I have already.
The others, well we know I am a vintage red gal too!!

Trying out some Marathon Thread but also added to my Superior Thread supply as well.

Diana bought some patterns, which are at her house now til they come here to be worked up.
Yes my sweet cross stitcher gal is going to assist in the making of her gotta haves! Haha!!!
One is BEAUTIFUL done up with black toile called Midnight Garden!
She also got a beautiful red bird toile table cloth from French Connection booth. Fits her antique table perfectly in her red dining room! I almost bought a charm pack of fabbies but was too many purples in them for my taste. They did not have the blue and yellow I had ♥ last year. I do adore the red toile though. Sadly my table is long and narrow not a big square...boo hoo!!

Anyway I have enough projects on the go as it is!!
My word for the year was 'DO' so best get to it!!!

Thanks for your kind get well wishes.
I appreciate them so much!
I am still on the puny side. This cold is kick'n my rear!!
Will be a week of it tomorrow!!!
Glad the sore throat part is over( hope) that just is the pits!!
My head and chest are giving me a fit now.
I am thinking 2010 is so far not starting off good for this old body!!
Another reason to see the last of Old Man Winter( hum reason they call it that...old cranky man)!! Ha Ha!
Speaking of WINTER yes, yet again we are looking at the white stuff tomorrow late evening through Thursday!
Yo Old Man W it is March here !!!! We don't do white now okay... just say'n!!!!

Show Favs of Mid Atlantic Quilt Show 2010

This was my fav! Called Prairie Braid.
Loved the colors , the fabrics and design.

Here is a close up.

This was Diana's fav called Sew is Life.
The hand turn applique detail on this one was amazing.

Well if you have to have an arty quilt it may as well have a pretty rooster in it!
Ya know I love me some roosters!!
This one is called Shannon's Bantom.
Looks like an old photo in a 60's album.
Sorry did not get any makers names!
At least we got titles this time!


Next was a pretty red work quilt of ladies.
This was my fav block...yes she is quilting!
This show is becoming pretty much an 'Art Quilt' show so it is hard to find too may I really like.
Not that art quilts are bad just not all my cuppa tea...;-)
Did not do the walk around and look at everything, just few main ribbon winners.
We checked these out when we first arrived.
Then we had our shopping lists to attend to before I 'expired' for the day....;-)