Newest Addition

Through much frustration I planned out a new bag and feel pretty good about it.  This one isn't for sale it's my prototype.  But I have many ideas running through my head to change is up and be creative.  It will be a whole different and new line.

 I also made the flower.

It's late afternoon and I am emotionally exhausted from all the creative thinking I had done today but I am looking forward to tomorrow to get making more of these!

They are really nice and sturdy too!  I will be carrying this one while shopping this fall, free advertisement as well!

Hugs,

Tania

Busy, Busy

I have been busy once again filling my Etsy store with bags. The holiday season is fast approaching and people will be buying presents.  

I have made these bags and recently added them.

I have several more to add also I want to make a few baby quilts to add to the shop before Halloween.  

Last night I met up with Erica and Mickey at the bridal shop to decide on a flower girl dress for Mickey and with Candi via text a decision was made!  We purchased her dress and sash!  

Now it's my turn!  Ugh!  I have been watching what I eat since last Monday and of yesterday I am down 2.5#  I have a goal and it is reasonable.  I don't have a lot to loose I just want to feel good about how I look in a formal dress.  I did look at a few dresses last night I just don't really like the colors they offer mom's of the bride they are so drab and lifeless.  So I am on a search.

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs,
Tania

On A Roll!

A couple of weekends ago was the weekend my Sassy Stitchers group gets together.  I have been a bad member this year.  I was there in January and this month!  I usually have pretty good attendance.  But I have had issues with RA and my eyes that prevented me from going.

But like I said I was there this month and I have the sewing bug once again!  My muse has returned!

The picture above is a large type of pouch or cosmetic bag.  I bought this little kit (or I need to say Mr. Man bought me this kit) from the shop hop Mr. Man took me on for mother's day.  It came with the pattern, this ubber cute fabric, zipper, charm and ribbon to put the charm on to attach to the zipper pull.  So any who I made this bag...

And this small wall hanging quilt also a kit from that same shop hop.  The kit came with everything except the batting, now that's a good kit!  I am hanging this in my creative room to put my shop pins on.  I have all of them on my jean jacket which sadly is too small for me now.  It will be nice to display my shop pins on this cute spool quilt.  It looks like there is only purple and blue on from this picture but there is purple, blue and a mint green.  My new photo editing program isn't what I had hoped.

Anyway it is show and tell day for me today!

Since I am thinking of mom a lot lately and dreaming about her I thought I would share with you what I miss most about her.

As fall is approaching my mom and I would go to all the fall festivals and craft shows together.  We would make a day of it.  Really a whole day we would go out for breakfast, usually at some small town cafe/diner they do serve up the best food!  Fattening? YES!  But so yummy!  Then we would shop, shop and more shopping and stop for lunch usually some place she doesn't get to go to very often cuz Tony my step didn't like to frequent thos places like Red Lobster.  Then we would shop some more until dinner then we would part ways.  I do miss our long fall shopping days.

I know many of you too are shy to  leave a comment and that's OK but I hope you will leave a comment...If you're mom is no longer with you, what do you miss most about her?

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs,
Tania

P.S. I'm trying the largest font today.  I don't know about you but I have old eyes so I hope this is better.

New Journal

I started a basic journal the first of the year.  I keep track of what I am eating, I have three goals to complete each day so I write them down and check them off as they are complete.  I also keep track of my activity such as exercising and my walks.  Then the next day I go back to the previous to write about my reflections of that day.  

Oh also I write at the top of the page what I am grateful for and my feelings that day.  I use to write also how long and how well I slept the night before but some how that got dropped off.

Yesterday I ran out of pages in my journal book so I needed to make a new one and actually this one doesn't go to the end of the year but very close.

 Here is my newest journal.  I took more time creating this one than the last. 

I have my tabs in place and there is washi tape on each page.  I double up the pages with washi to make them sturdy also I use colorful pens and you could see though the single pages in my first book.

I also have pages for "To Do" for those bigger projects like painting a room, making curtains things like that.  I also have a wish list on one page and I also have a page for Christmas ideas and shopping.  

It was difficult at first to keep up daily but I would at least get in three maybe four days in a week but I am pretty much on track daily now for a while and it really has helped me be more mindful of my eating and my time.

I started this journaling because I have been in a funk since mom passed.  I have some bad eating habits that have returned and I was starting to feel depressed.  Lack of interest in my hobbies, I wasn't getting out of the house too much and I was wasting a lot of time watching TV and playing on my computer.  I needed to track my activity and such to make my self aware and it has worked!

I'm still struggling with the eating as I have most of my life but getting on track with that as well.  I am getting out and enjoying life more and I remind myself daily to smile three times a day for no reason.  I usually get out of bed and do one before anything else.  I know sounds weird right?  Well they say that if you smile you trick your mind into thinking your happy and then you are.  It does seem to help.

Talking about getting out, me and Mr. Man went out Sunday to some antique shops that I found earlier in the week and had a wonderful day, wonderful weekend.  

We also talked about if we are moving our "creative spaces" downstairs or not.  I voted I stay put he cleans out the garage and moves in there and builds the shed under the deck like he has been wanting to, put the garage stuff in there and we make the basement as a rec room!  He's on board with all of it!  Yay!  Now to get it done!

Whew I chewed your ear off enough!  My first thing to do on my to do list today is clean house so I'm off to get it done!

Hugs,
Tania

Happy Belated Birthday

                  Happy Belated Birthday Mr. Man!

Erica was in MN over Mr. Man's birthday, he wasn't forgotten on his special day, he had gifts to open and dinner of his choice but it was just me there to celebrate with him.  So we planned to get together to have a little belated birthday with him.

 Erica and Mickey arrived Saturday and after dinner we played bingo then watched a movie.

 Sunday morning Mr. Man opened some more presents, we only gave him half of his gifts on his actual birthday.

What he is holding up is a corn on the cob holder to use on the grill.  I gave him the lighthouse you see on the table.

 He is grilling burgers with his extra large spatula he received from Erica on his birthday.

Not extra large, HUGE!  Fun for him to try it out, he could flip four burgers at once.

Then he and Mickey cut up some fresh pineapple.  Well Mr. Man did.  It was delicious!

It was a really nice weekend.  Erica, Mickey and I snuck out for a bit to do some wedding shopping for Candi.

You haven't heard from me for a while because I was busy scrapbooking.  I was working on 2012 and have most of it finished, all I have left to scrapbook for the year is when Mr. Man and I went to North Carolina to follow the quilt barn trail.

Well I am off to my creative room, I am sewing today!

Hugs,
Tania

Quilt Trunk Show Last Day

Here are the last random quilts!

 This quilt was a shop hop quilt I cannot take the credit for.  All of the employees made blocks for it and I think it was Pam who put it together for us.  The next two blocks are contributions I made to two shop hop quilts one is in this one the other I am not able to find the photo for.

 The quilt above and below are kitty quilts.  The one above I made for Patches and below is Minnie's.  I still need to make Piper's quilt I do have the fabric I just need to take the time and she is worth the time!

 This is made from a Thimbleberries pattern and I put this on my coffee table at Christmas.

 Two small table runners I made one I gave away one I kept.

 I made this quilt for my friend Gale when she became a grandmother to have at her house for her grandbaby.

 This quilt I gave to my friend Robyn for her 50th birthday.

 More Valentine runners I again kept one and gave away the other.

 Valentine wall hangings I gave away.

I was a teacher's asst for a kids quilting class and we made this quilt that you can see behind my little Mickey.  Mickey received this quilt.  I sure wish I still had this pattern.

I hope you enjoyed my trunk show.  I know I have, it brought back so many memories of the time I made a quilt or project and who was in my life and circumstances.  Especially some of the Thimbleberries Club quilts, my sister in law and I would meet up for dinner and then go to the meetings.  I sure enjoyed those days.

Thanks for the visit!

Hugs,
Tania

Quilt Trunk Show 5

Quilt tops is what I am showing you today.  Some still need more work and many are just waiting to be quilted.

You will notice some are sideways and that is because they were better shown on the clothes line that way.  I suppose I could have turned them around...anyway, here we go!

 This was a civil war technique class I took.  

 This was a shop sample I did with a three-one yard pattern.  This cute flip flop/swim suit fabric came in and I needed to make something with it.  The backing is adorable. it is swimsuits on mannequin's very cute!

 A block of the month, I think it was called Aunt Gracie's Garden.  I just love this one.  It's big.

 Another block of the month.  I do have another border to add onto this one.

 This is Mr. Man's quilt.  It was going to be mine but he said he wanted it and I can't say no to him if he likes something.

 This is a jelly roll quilt.  It was a contest I participated in at one of the quilt retreats and I did place in the top three...I can't remember if 2nd or 3rd.  It was just fun to do.  Also this quilt was the first one I made after mom died, actually just a couple of months later and I wanted to do something happy because I was so sad.  It kinda makes you smile doesn't it?

 This one is a recent one I have made called Grammies Buttons.  This one is for me!

 This is my very latest I blogged about it just a few months ago.

 My friend Theresa showed us at Sassy Stitcher how to make this really neat block.  I want to make another quilt in this pattern but maybe in a brights?

 My mother in law made these blocks I put them together with the sashing and two borders I do have one more border to put on, it will be a piano border.  When my mother in law had cancer and was going through chemo she would lay on the couch and since I had issues with my chemo as well (I didn't have cancer I take chemo for other reasons) I would lay on another couch and we would visit and take naps.  Once while laying on the couches she said to me, "your 25th anniversary is coming up and I wanted to make you a quilt out of those 1930's blocks (it was from her block of the month) but I don't think I will be getting to them.  If I gave them to you would you finish it for me?"  She knew how much I liked the 30's replica and she didn't at all and I was very happy to receive this generous gift.  We are now at 30 years but I am going to get it done and it will be in our bedroom as it should be.

 I made this as a sample for the shop.  I wish I didn't agree to do this one, not liking it at all.  It will be good for a car quilt when done.

 From a far this quilt is beautiful.  It worked until I did the borders and I am not the only one with this problem I can happily say.  I am so disappointed in this quilt, I spent way too much money on it to be this disappointed.  Candi said she loves it and wants it so I will probably give it to her one day.  I recently gave this pattern away I won't be making it again.

 This quilt is my fun Christmas quilt that Mickey and I share.  I will keep this, once finished it will go on Mickey's bed at our house and one day it will be hers.

 This quilt was made from a 5 yard bundle and a free pattern came with it that I purchased at a shop hop.

 A Thimbleberries block of the month quilt

Another year of a Thimbleberries block of the month.  

Well this concludes my categories.  My next blog are quilts that I was able to find on USB drives that  I gave away or didn't have on hand and are packed away.  Not too many but they will have their own category of strays.

Thanks for your time!

Hugs,
Tania

Quilt Trunk Show 4

 Wall hanging is today's theme.  Some are small and some are large, but all of these has graced my walls at one point, some still do and some are rotated out for the month or season.

 I took a class for landscape quilting, my first and only attempt.

 This was a class I took called liberated log cabin.  Loved it that there aren't many rules.

 My first attempt on paper piecing without a class...actually I still haven't taken a formal class on it since I wasn't enjoying it too much.

 This was my first class on machine applique.  

 This is the fall of the four seasons patterns.  I have in progress winter and haven't touch the other two seasons yet.

 This is actually a panel by Thimbleberries.  I hand quilted this as well as the other panels you will see.

 Another Thimbleberries panel.

 I made this wall hanging for my mom many many years ago.

 This pattern is from a Thimbleberries book.

 This was a block of the month through Bunny Hill Studios and my first attempt at hand applique.  After a few blocks I took an applique class.  I'm not any better but know a few more tricks.

 This is another Thimbleberries panel.

 Gotta love the free patterns that come in the mail because this is one of them.  It is a Sudoku quilt.  I made one for me and Candi since we both like to play the game.

 I hand applique this sweet little number.

 My second paper piecing.

 This one is hanging in my kitchen when it's not a holiday month.

 This wall hanging is called button town.

 I made each of these month wall hangings for the quilt shop I worked for and now I change them out in my home each month.

 I think this is adorable but when I was done with it I was so over it that I gave it to my sister.

 This wall hanging it a small quilt and usually hangs in my front hall in the summer.

 This one graces a wall in my creative room to remind me to slow down and do it right.  Too many mistakes with this one.

 A cute little bugs in the jar quilt.

 Yet another Thimbleberries panel

I saved the best for last ~smiles~ I call this the ugliest quilt ever.  It is made from all the charm squares from a shop hop I went on and didn't know what to do with it so I sewed them all together and called it a day.  It really isn't a wall hanging, doesn't even have a sleeve on it so I'm not sure why I put it with this category?!  

I hope you enjoyed today's show.  I thought I had one more but I may have two more posts on this and then we can move on!

Hugs,
Tania