Happy Halloween!

Halloween is supposed to look like this:

And not like this:

But a few days of Indian Summer confused my magenta Clematis into thinking that it is Spring! Poor dear, I hope she'll bloom again when it's time to do so. Last night's frost sent her to bed, that's for sure.

The Farmer's Wife group met on Tuesday right after The Sunshine Club. Here's The Sunshine Club where I taught Sue and Margorie with my best efforts on how to sew a binding onto the quilted top.

I worked along on the Bird's In The Air block for The Farmer's Wife, which is all hand sewing. It is perfect for whenever I feel too lazy to drag my machine in from the car, LOL! Maybe you can make out the tiny pieces I'm holding up for the camera.

Sue did get her binding on perfectly the very first time, and Margorie did a great job cutting 5" charms out of various blue scraps. But I had to unsew two seams! Ugh. Please pass the Hersey's milk chocolate nuggets! Later, I left for Camille's quilt shop.

Camille had some pretty decorations out for Halloween outdoors on the walkway in to her Evergreen Country Primitives Quilt Shop. We meet there once a month for The Farmer's Wife sit'n'sew group. those dahlias are real and magnificent! I know, I know; I love red.

If you haven't heard of it, The Farmer's Wife is a quilt book by Laurie Aaron Hird that engages you in a long term hand sewing project of 111 blocks with essays for each one. Here is the link. We go at our own pace and have fun meeting together to eat even more chocolate, LOL!
 

I took the picture, but from left to right, are Diane, Camille, Marie-Louise, Judy, Dawn, and Margaret, who are all sending you their best smiles.

Scrappy Jacob's Ladder

My Scrappy Jacob's Ladder quilt has been entered into the Blogger's Quilt Festival and the link is here.
There are many different catagories and it's fun to gaze upon them all. Click on any of my pictures to enlarge them.

I will appreciate your participation! Voting begins November 1st.

This quilt is 84"X84" and was quilted by me on a rented longarm at The Cat's Whiskers Studio in Laconia, New Hampshire. Here I am, just finishing up!

 
I used a traditional Baptist Fans quilting pattern. A huge "Thank you!", goes out to Mary at her, "Making Scrap Quilts From Stash," blog's instructions, link here.

 The backing was a yarn-dyed (not printed) 100% cotton flannel in the Stewart tartan pattern. You guys already know how much I love red! For the binding, I chose a Judie Rothermel Scarlet Evening by Marcus Brothers.

 The fabrics are really scrappy, with lots of my beloved Civil War reproductions tossed into the mix.

There are also lots of brights that "pop" here and there, in that I used swaps units from all over the country to help build this scrappy quilt.

In the above photo, just along the bottom edge, you can see that even the inner border was done with scrappy neutrals before I added the Four-Patches pieced borders.

The batting was Pellon's Nature's Touch 100% cotton and it is just a wee bit lighter and drapier that my usual favorite, Warm & Natural by the Warm Company. I like the weight very much for baby quilts and summer quilts. Miss Tanner says it doesn't matter to her, she's not too persnickety, LOL!

Happy Sewing!

A Few More Cocheco Quilts

My Postage Stamp 2" swap envelopes were too fat!

They would NOT fit through the slot on my postmaster's (Prudence) measuring device, so they would've had to be counted as parcels and cost over $2 each! I scooped them up and took them all back home with me and re-packaged each one as per Ms. Prudence's suggestions to make them flatter. Here is what worked perfectly:

I taped short stacks to half a sheet of copy paper and placed them into a 6"X9" manilla envelope and taped over the metal clasp. The resulting charge? It was $0.70 cents each! Some difference when you have 6 to mail out.
Here are some of the big quilts from the Cocheco Show last Sunday in Rochester, New Hampshire. They were all so lovely! Remember, you may click on any picture to enlarge it.

I so enjoyed all of these, many thanks to all the quilters!

Happy sewing!

A Whirlwind Of A Week

Here are Tuesday's photos of The Sunshine Club at the Senior Center. We were making our own sunshine in all the rain and wind this week that is quickly taking away all our pretty foliage. I was being presented with a pretty birthday card signed by all the regulars.

The addition onto the Senior Center is progressing nicely, with exterior windows all installed.

There was progress on the inside, too.

A gentleman was inside hammering up studding. Can the sheetrock be very far behind?

As for the Friday Quilter's in Concord, New Hampshire at The Golden Gese Quilt Shop, we were visited by a contingent of quilters led by Ann from Winchester, Massachusetts. They represented the local "Days For Girls" chapter. If you haven't yet heard of this very worthy charitable effort to sew feminine hygiene products for girls in third world countries, you may look in on it at the link here.
When Ann sends me photos, I will try to post them, but in the meantime, just let me say that they left with several yards of pretty new flannel scraps that I had gifted to them.
Maureen was working on some really cute snowperson blocks. And thank you Maureen, for winding a bobbin for my Featherweight when I couldn't recall how to do it, LOL!

This, below, is what I started with as I began working on a couple of pillowcases. If you'd like to view my version of pillowcases that link is here. They do make nice Christmas presents.

And a couple of hours later, they were done!

I am horrified that I didn't snap a photo of Bev and her progress today, but here is the beautiful quart jar of homemade applesauce that she gave out to everyone (and she brought Hersey's Chocolate Nuggets, too!!!).

The applesauce was made without any sugar, so my diabetic Husband Wonderful can enjoy it, too! Thank you so very much, Beverly!

Not least was coming home to pick up the mail and find this darling card from Deb in western Massachusetts. A Happy Halloween greeting card that she had hand crafted!! Thank you so very much!

Deb's blog, "Feathers In My Nest," is delightful and can be found here.


Yikes! Halloween is next Friday? I've just got time to buy some candy for the treaters!

Happy sewing!

Best Buddy!

My dear friend, Grace, went overboard to give me so many beautiful and welcome gifts for my birthday! At the Cocheco Show, she presented me with this windmill patchwork stocking just chock-a-block full of cheer!
 

Can you see the Pam Buda Primitive Gatherings 13 month calendar peeking out of the top of the stocking? Wheee!

Above is a better picture of all the magnificent quilty gifts! Red fabrics! Karen Kay Buckley perfect scissors (which I didn't have but desperately wanted, thank you! thank you!)! AND a paper pieced pumpkin that's hand quilted! Here's Peter Pumpkin, already on my wall, thank you, Grace!

I am so blessed to have such a good friend, who also stuck by me when my car would not start and got me safely home. While we were regrouping over the car troubles, we managed to wolf down some iced tea and colossal burgers at "The Revolution" at tavern and grille that was open on Sundays.

It turned out that my car's battery had been run too low to start it when I had accidentally left my lights on, so the boys got my car home the next day.

When I got home, I did a few more of the Birthday Girl blocks done for Celtic Solstice, too!

It's rainy today, so stay in and sew!

Happy sewing!