The Dog Days of August Have Arrived

   Now that the Summer Twist stitch-a-long has wrapped up, things have really quieted down on the business side! It is pointless to tempt people to sew when the outdoors are beckoning... so this is the time we start to think about fall and Christmas sets.

    This week, I got three-fourths of the way through this fabulous Christmas ABCs cross stitch set-- with four 5x7 hoopings, you get a fabulous 12" block!

     It has been sew much fun thinking of a "thing" for each letter-- so proud of the way the "Kings" and "Jesus" work together-- and how about that cute "Village?" I bought a pretty piece of Lugana fabric from EverythingCrossStitch.com. It is 28 count, which means if you were handstitching a14ct design, you'd do it over two threads. What it means to a machine embroiderer-- none of the big holes that Aida has-- it's a very fine weave, so even under very close inspection now, you won't see that the holes aren't aligned.

    I posted some peeks on Facebook-- this beauty won't be for sale until October, so you have to wait! I have ton of Christmas wall decor, so I'm thinking of a pillow-- I love to work in a series, so should I do a Halloween version?

    So while we're talking cross stitch, here's my two week progress on this pretty handstitched thing:

    Not bad, huh! I think I am about 1/4 done-- that's two months of work-- so I could be finished by the end of February. Unfortunately, the gray block behind "Back to School" was two-plus hours of work, and it killed my enthusiasm. Also, I figured out those acorns were supposed to be green-- they're staying brown-- so it might be time to move on for a bit. Apple Lady still needs her backstitch.

     For quilty goals-- I'd love to have my Coriander Christmas Block of the Month done by the end of August! Here's Block 11 finished last night: 

     Block Twelve is such soft, lovely colors-- I'm hoping to cut Block 12 tonight and get as far as I can before Monday. 

    After that, it's the part I strongly dislike-- wrangling with rows and increasingly sized pieces! I have the sashing kit already-- it came with Block 12. Could be on my bed in time for Christmas!

   You know I've promised to never dive into cooking or housecleaning tips, or God forbid, beauty. But I can't resist showing off my garden from time to time!

You know how you're supposed to do your plantings so that you have successive blooming all through the year-- well, I did not plan this garden, and whoever did, went for broke in July!

Absolutely everything comes out at once, and it is beautiful!

We are also lucky to have some pretty stone walls-- do not be tempted to go up that charming stair, though-- always go around-- or you will get a face full of spider webs!

In the front gardens-- I have to report a tragedy. 

I thought we had one of these:

But it turned out to be this:

Or rather, two of them. So absolutely ALL of my annuals-- including marigolds, salvia, impatiens, coleus-- were eaten in one night.

Gosh, I'd love to just be able to bill them for the "salad!"

So the quandary is-- replant, or just mulch? I will mull that over from the safety of my sewing room, and until I decide I guess we'll just have to say,

xox

Carol

One stitch leads to another...

      Now that birthday season is over at SFOXCO, I'm offering this picture taken last week as a metaphor for my life right now...

     Take a Rorshach test now and think about how you see it... Quiet? Restful? Lazy? Unproductive? Boring? Beautiful? Read on to see which of these describes my week!

     This cross stitch project has turned into my morning obsession... I LOVE IT! The original plan was to just finish the apple lady and "Autumn" before moving on to my handstitched Baltimore Album quilt borders, but then I couldn't resist framing her with the grapes, the red gingham--sew cute, the squirrel--fast and easy, and would it hurt to just stitch the leaf? So here's a month worth of progress:

    I've roughly calculated that if I turn this into a religion (we may be past that already) and devote an hour a day, I could finish it in about eight months. On the other hand-- if it ends up in a drawer, it may take twenty years-- we've seen that behaviour before. Let's see what happens! It's not a vice-- it doesn't interfere with my everyday life, and I've read these types of activities keep your brain sharp and your mindset relaxed. It is a lovely way to start the day. (It is Sandy Orton's "Autumn Sampler" and you can see it finished here:)

AUTUMN SAMPLER

    After congratulating myself on figuring out how to even up my odd-size snickerdoodle blocks, that has just not gone well... and the math is killing me. Sure, you can add a sashing to each side and bottom and resquare them up-- to what measurement though? Also, most of the blocks need at least one other side stitched on for my layout. So here we are:

    It's a 5x5 block layout, and I think if I stopped dabbling and just sat down for 2-3 hours, I could figure it out and polish it off. It's my July table-runner-of-the-month challenge, even though it's really a lap size.

    At the beginning of the year, I made the goal to do a table runner each month (up to speed on this), but also four quilts. So the first quarter of the year, I did the Editya Sitar Alaska quilt, but for the second quarter NADA quilt. I'm still hoping to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat here-- and my Coriander Christmas BOM is going to help me do it. For this project I have nine finished blocks, but I got stuck on ten-- I did that yesterday.

So I was only behind by one block, which I hoped to complete before the last one arrived-- then I could say I kept up! Block 11 is a killer though, lots of pieces and I haven't started yet.

Then today, this came in-- Block 12 AND the finishing kit, which I assumed would be mailed in Month 13? So I am officially underwater two blocks and a finishing kit. (Isn't that red stripe fabric cute, though? I think it's the binding?)

Then today, this came in-- Block 12 AND the finishing kit, which I assumed would be mailed in Month 13. So I am officially underwater two blocks and a finishing kit. That being said, the finishing kit is super simple-- you just make a bunch of these arrow looking things and it fabulously works out that you have a star between each block. I may just dive right into this-- maybe spending a whole day or two in August, and BAM! I will have my second quilt of the year done, and the whole month of September to finish a third. This could easily be accomplished by simply finishing one of many UFOs I have in various stages. So very hopeful on that.

     I'd just like to say that I have really enjoyed this stitch-a-long-- the fabrics are just simple and pretty. Corey Yoder is making another one with her apricot and ash fabrics-- buy the book and make it with your favorite line of fabric. The big 18" blocks really make for a nice size quilt. The blocks are are very unique, and the sewing is pretty straighforward. This is about the best I have ever done with keeping up to a BOM-- just the right amount of work each week.

  The Summer Twist finishing kit is stitching as I type! 

    With the new website, I have now discovered how many people are downloading free stitch-a-longs, without being tempted in the slightest to spend a dime. I guess it's a characteristic that I don't understand--LOL.

    But it's been a bit of a wake up call. Now this is not a complaint, because a mentor long ago warned me, if you don't want to give something away for free, then don't give it away for free. But this may be the end of free stitch-a-longs-- or I may just give a coupon to paying customers to get it free. The new website has so much functionality to accomplish these things.

     I'm also looking forward to starting customer rewards and other goodies for all of my frequent fliers! I appreciate you so much, especially at this time of year, when it becomes apparent that no one is sewing, except me-- heehee.

xoxo
Carol

Hyannis Country Garden Quilt Show

We have arrived... the age of real, live quilt shows has returned! My guild, the Bayberry Quilters of Cape Cod, put on a mini show last weekend at the Hyannis Country Garden-- a nursery. Now I must be getting very skeptical and cranky as I age, because when told it was in a "greenhouse," I immediately assumed DIRTY and HOT, but sent my quilt in anyway to support the effort.

Let that be a lesson to me-- it was LIGHT, breezy, and gorgeous...  and my piece was not needed to supplement the array of quilty eye candy inside. I have never been to Hyannis Country Garden and would have to admit to buying my annuals at Home Depot more often than not-- but I will frequently be visiting this wonderful, huge nursery and store in the future. 

I went on Sunday, and the weather was just perfect-- cool and sunny. I was immediately greeted by a gorgeous eagle, flapping his wings up and down in the breeze. After wandering through more aisles of plants than I can even remember, I arrived at the show-sixty quilts hanging in a beautiful windowed space-- I've never seen a quilt show so brighly lit than when Mother Nature is in charge.

Best of all, I saw people that I hadn't in about a year and a half-- I have to admit, I was very distracted from the quilts with all of smiles and hugs I received. And then my phone ran out of battery-- of course, so I nowhere near took the all of the photos I wanted to.

Without further comment, here is a fraction of what I saw... and there is something for everyone, with the talent on exhibit that day.

"Happy Garden"

Noreen Couture

"Dogwood Blooms"

Laurie LaConte

"Nature's Bounty"

Holly Santangelo

"Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary"

Tere D'Amato

"Blooms Against a Summer Sky"

Carol Burton

"Night Owls on Cape Cod"

Shari Sears

"Iris"

Charlotte Toia

"Florilequim: A Gathering of Flowers"

Marilyn Swensen

"Clematis Against the Sky"

Carol Salerno

"Wildflowers"

Ruth Wilcox

"Cardinal Pair"

Laurie LaConte

"Cape Cod Summer"

Noreen Couture

After the show, I went with my friends for lunch at a fabulous Mexican restaurant in the heart of town, "Anejo." We sat outside under a huge beech tree and ate delicious food.

I am not a writer, but words could not express the happiness I felt inside for this entire day, anyway.

Oops... forgot this piece!

"Beaucoup de Bouquets"

Carol Duffy

All tucked into a neat corner-- the center part of my flower quilt is complete! The earlier, cranky version of myself would have seen a metaphor in that watering can over my quilt as pouring out dirty water all over my hard work. But after this beautiful day, it seems now like my little machine embroidered efforts will be loved, well-watered, and growing fast this summer.

xox

Carol

The Courage to Quilt

Happy Fourth of July! It's after dinner here, and we're waiting for the fireworks to begin. There are plenty to see over the lake just down the road from our house. Private displays-- the Commonwealth of Massachusetts frowns on this activity, but they don't seem to do much to stop it. And New Hampshire is just a short drive for all the fireworks you can dream of!

We had a great family get together-- we have birthdays to celebrate, too. Our son's birthday is tomorrow and we made him a custom corn hole set-- Mr. SFO is a woodworker-- I was responsible for the paint job. Pretty nice present, huh!

I didn't know what cornhole was until recently-- and it is addictive. (Yes, another addictive pastime, yay!) My throwing arm and my hip are slightly out of whack tonight-- but I won my round!

You are probably seeing those new Cricut machines all over Michaels-- so I bought a roll of permanent sticky vinyl for the stars. I cut my stars by hand-- but I'm seriously thinking of finally jumping in and buying one for the fabric cutting capabilites. Does anyone out there have one? I know you can make appliques, but could you cut a ton of triangles if you needed?  I have Adobe Illustrator and I know I can draw and save shapes to that SVG file you need. It could be life changing, if it works-- I am skeptical!

This week started and ended with my "Beacoup de Bouquets" piece-- it's in a show next weekend, so I had to get moving. What held me up? Well, I had to trim off about 3/4" of excess around the edges. Taking a rotary cutter to a piece I have been working on for four years just about killed me. It takes guts to quilt, ladies! If anyone ever needs me to scoot under a moving train, run through fire, then leap off a cliff to save a drowning kitten, after trimming this piece, I believe I would able to do it.

Then, I made a beautiful label for the back. Just have a little more binding to stitch down, and one hanging sleeve, and it's major progress for this piece. Would you like a set of generic embroidered labels for your quilts? I have long thought, every quilt deserves one!

If you are in New England, and want to see a real quilt show instead of the virtual ones we've settled for, come to the show! It is a small show the Bayberry Quilters of Cape Cod are putting on in a greenhouse in Hyannis, MA, and the theme is flowers. (We have now missed our big annual show twice.)
There is some information here:

Hydrangea Festival Quilt Show

It's only fair to warn you that braving Cape Cod traffic is another activity that requires a bit of courage-- so map it out first! I will try to get some pictures to share, if you'd still rather the virtual experience.

While the label stitched, I cut the sashings for the Snickerdoodle quilt. I really liked this pattern, from the charm pack book, Perfect Five Quilts, only I used jelly rolls-- all of the pieces were 2-1/2" wide. I'm proud to say, this entire thing was out of my stash.

A jelly roll is not a pre-cut I'm partial to-- but I subscribe to Fat Quarter Shop's subscription box, and they love to include them! Both the colorful fabric and the whites were from various boxes. I struggle with the zigzaggy edges, and the blocks here range from 8-1/4" to 8-1/2." My solution is just to cut oversized sashing, and then just trim the resulting bigger block right down to size.

I'm sure I'm not the only person to think of this, but it solves another problem, too-- I despise sewing together long rows, and this way, I only have 4 long seams instead of eight.

Next week is going to be "Shark Week" here-- just kidding, but we have the next seaside installment of Summer Twist, plus, "Stitches of the Sea" is going to start getting assembled. It's a great month for it!

So a bit of entertaining this week, but enough sewing to keep me happy, too. It's dark now, and the booms are starting in earnest!

I'll be heading outside.

Hope you are having a wonderful weekend!

xox

Carol