Off the Needles Friday

On the porch drying........  Still knitting the band........  Feel like I will be knitting that forever...........

Go to Patchwork Times (HERE) to see other great things in the making........

New shirts for Wade......

I digressed yesterday and made two new shirts for Wade.............

One for St. Patrick's Day

And one pinstripe one............

Today I am back to the smocked dresses........

She's Back

Abigail, my new machine was not working.......  Called the store in Greenville to see if they could fix it....  Thought I would have to leave it for a week or two.........

He fixed it right away.......  Seems to have grabbed a loose thread from a spool nearby and it became wrapped around the wheel.......  Completely jammed...........

Now she is home and ready to sew.........

While waiting for her repairs I did a bit of looking around.....  Got pink batiste for smocked dresses.....More bobbins for Abigail... Petite Blendables thread for embroidery.... floss for smocking... smocking needles...and a new ruler.........

Found this great fabric to make a new shirt for Wade..........

 Finished Marilyn's scarf.......

And the Seville Jacket is soaking in hopes the sun will come out this afternoon and I can block it........

Still knitting on the trim............

Yesterday was rainy and rather gray.......  The ducks, however did not mind the rain at all.......

I got the master bedroom cleaned and the riser legs taken off the bed frame......  Maybe now it will be harder for Lem to fall off when he tries to sit on the bed to put on his socks.....

We spent the morning at the grocery store and running errands..... Then at 1:00 PM Lem had a Dr's appt about his hand....  It was swollen at the base of his ring finger.......  Neither one of us remembers how he might have hurt it.......  After x-rays we found that it was not broken.........  Still hurts but will get well soon.

We spent the afternoon together while I knit the edging for my sweater.........

I ignored the house this morning and did some sewing.......

The three quick fixes are done.............. I do wonder, however just what my definition of quick is....

Then I did something I wanted for myself..........  Wade Hamilton's new shirt.......  You can find a tutorial HERE.......

All the items together........ 

And a short time later, Voila, a new shirt for Wade Hamilton..........

Doesn't he look sweet?????????

The pleating is done on dress two..........  Now I will need to finish the machine work and will then be able to add it to my basket of hand work.........

Last night I finished the sleeves for Seville Jacket..........

There is a cable border all the way around the jacket ...........

So my next task is to knit over 80 inches of an annoying 10 stitch strip........  Plan to use double pointed needles because they are shorter.............

I will put the shoulder seams together and block the large pieces as soon as we get the sun again.......  I usually put towels on the picnic table to block my sweater pieces.......  Works well and the fresh air dries the pieces quickly............

Now off to tackle the bedroom.......  I want to lower the bed a bit.........  It has small legs on it to lift it a few inches.........  Lem is having problems getting on the bed now so if I take them off it might help.......

While I am doing that I might as well do a deep clean in that room.........  Dr.'s appointment this afternoon.....  He says his finger hurts but we can't figure out why............. Since we will be in Kinston we can have lunch there and pick up a few things at the grocery........

Doesn't look like much in the way of sewing will be done today......  Perhaps tomorrow..........

The Week Ahead

 A beautiful way to start the day.........  Clouds might move off so that we can have a sunny day.....

 

Of the 11 projects listed last Monday,(HERE) only one was completed..........  Instead of making my scarf, I finished one for a last year's Christmas present........  Who knows I might even get said present mailed one day..... I'll get a picture of the scarf later........

It took longer to finish the cushions longer than I realized........

I finally began my smocked dress marathon.........  That took two days.......  Let me explain......  I only have about 3 hours each day to play in the studio....Therefore it takes me much too long to get things finished...  Lem and Wade Hamilton expect me to spend the afternoon and evening with them and I am happy to do so...  That is when I do my hand work........

I got one dress put together for pleating, pleated it, blocked the pleats and then completed the rest of the machine assembly........

Now it is safely tucked in the wee basket I got at Happy's last week.......  Hmmm.  They did have two of them, perhaps I should check and see if the other one is there....I am sure I can find a use for that one too...

I have always wanted to try this method and am so glad I finally did one this way.......  Now when the handwork is done, the dress will be complete...........

Now to prep the other three..........  Still knitting on the sweater and near the finish of the sleeves........  Maybe next week I can show a finish or two.........

On the Needles Friday

On Friday Judy at Patchwork Times host a gathering for display of what people are knitting........  Great ideas can be found there......... Go HERE to see other things being made.........

I am back to working on the Seville Jacket........  I put it down because some items with deadlines interfered and Tuesday I got back on track............

Two fronts.......  I knit them at the same time to make sure they were the same.......

One back..........

Now on to the sleeves......  This might take longer because I want long sleeves and the pattern calls for 3/4 sleeves.........  That required some thought and I did not think clearly..........  Last night I unknit six inches of each sleeve.....  No worries....  I am a process knitter so that does not bother me too much....

No, I have not done any sewing since Tuesday's trauma and those three items are still on the work table.....  Maybe today?  Time will tell.........

Quiet Day

We had a quiet day today......  Lem is doing much better and even got a good nights sleep last night.........

I spent the morning working on the National Debt..........  Bills paid and accounts balanced........  Required phone calls made and then a late lunch.........

Good mail........ Recipe from Jean, a quilt magazine to enjoy tonight and my BOM from Temecula Quilt Co.

Aha.........  Another block to add to my collection of unfinished blocks......  I will have some lovely pictures when I get these BOM blocks complete.......  This will be the third one I have subscribed to....  They are Lori Smith's designs from My Heart to Your Hand HERE...  The ones I have are 15 - 13 - and 6.....

Tonight will find me knitting on my Seville Jacket.....  I see the end of that project in the near future.........

One Done..........

Finished the pillow covers just before the movers came........ By now the furniture is on its way to Needham.

Woke up to a lovely sunrise.........  I tried to get the picture while it was lower in the sky but could not get dressed fast enough........  And it is really cold outside........

The ducks were waiting for me to finish so they could come and have breakfast.................

Here is a picture of the sofa with its new pillows........Now I will make some extra covers for the arms and head rest................

Today's project if I have time will be these three things............  They should not take long...........

I also want to get these dresses ready to smock........  If I can do that I will have hand work for the afternoon and evening.......

This Week.................

First on the list are the sofa cushions for Cassie...........  They have to be done by tomorrow afternoon so I will work on them all day..........

Little Valentine pillows I want to make..........

Four smocked dresses are cut out but need to be assembled and pleated.....

A Valentine and St. Patrick's day shirt for Wade.....

Block three of Woolen Willow Quilt a Long.......

Piece the Log Cabin block and finish the applique block that came with my Jan Patek kit..........

Run the threads in three caps for Jean and make the pom pom for Kate's hat.........

Make a scarf for ME..........

Complete step one on Garden Walk from this issue of Primitive Quilts.......

Finish the thread holder from the set I began in the year Dot..........

Fix the cuff on Marilyn's jacket and alter two doggie coats................

I wonder just what will actually get done...........Oh, I almost forgot........  Finish the cross stitch I began last Monday.............

What a Grand Week

Jean came for a visit......  How much I enjoy having someone with which to talk quilting .......

We shopped, and ate and talked and stitched the whole week.........

Several years ago a friend gave me some tiny lampshades for candle lamps made from beads ....  Jean and I finally got all the materials needed to make a few....  She got two finished......  I got one half done........

Looks sunny outside but it was really cold so we stayed in that day.........

One night I cooked Chicken Bruschetta.......  The recipe is on the back of the Stove Top Chicken Stuffing box........  We really like it and it is soooooo eaaaaasssssssy..........

The meatloaf recipe on that box is another good one.......  Nice casserole and a tossed salad and you are all set to eat..........

Left overs from my veggie plate at the luncheon on Saturday found their way to the table one lunch time......

Now she is back in Denver but another visit is promised in a few months................

Now off to make some pillow sofa covers for Cassie......  Busy times ahead this week.........

Valentine all through the house........

A touch in the guest bath.....

An arrangement in the guest room..........

On to the living room.............

and the entry.................

The front door inside............

The buffet in the entry...............

Small table in the dining room............

Also in the dining room...........

On to the living room..................

A finished cross stitch pillow for our friend here...........

Coffee Table...............

Desk............

Quilt cabinet

Breakfast room.............

Stair way...........

Even the plants got a valentine........

Best of all..........
Family to share it with............  Had a grand time yesterday......  Jane and Beck, Teresa and Mark came to have lunch with us..........

How wonderful after all those years of being away that we can once again get together............