• Blog - Crafts - Creativity

    T Tuesday: two month update

    My goal is to do a post for T stands for Tuesday monthly… I’m moving in the right direction at least.

    I’m not going chronological this time. I’m starting with a project that I’m thrilled to have finished…and in record time as far as I’m concerned.

    I made a flannel rag quilt. It’s not the first one I’ve made but I think the quickest.

    It wasn’t without some choice words at a couple of times…like when I accidently cut well over half of the flannel squares 1/2 inch larger in two directions than I should have. Better than too small though!!

    I even remembered to add a quilt label to this one. It’s something that I want to do with all my quilts. I hate doing hand embroidery, I don’t have a fancy machine that can do it either so I decided to draw 2026 on a piece of flannel and roughly stitch the year with various stitches and colors. Not ideal but it works.

    I usually leave the Marvin photo for the end of my post but he fits here this time around. He thinks that anytime I lay out quilt blocks to audition a layout that its exclusively for him. Those are 9 inch squares. 🙂

    This is another quilt I’m working on. I’ve actually gotten the entire top joined together now. I’m waiting for the motivation to put the entire quilt sandwich together and start the quilting process. That part is always daunting to me. I actually have another quilt in at the same stage laying on the spare room bed awaiting inspiration.

    All the quilting was somewhat inspired by a cold snap we endured.

    It was so cold that the wildlife were trying to take shelter next to the house.  We had a couple of whitetail deer right off the deck. The doe was shivering…it made me sad to see. The buck stood at the sliding glass door looking longingly at the indoors. He scared Mini-me who was recovering from her knee surgery on the couch. Her surgery went well and was able to return to her place and work right on schedule.

    The cold days made for beautiful sunrises.

    As usual I worked at our districts archery tournament this year. You may notice my obligatory beverage on the table per T stands for Tuesday rules. 🙂

     Shifting back to crafting…I used some itty bitty scraps to embellish a few cards and make some clusters. I love making something out of virtually nothing.

    My last thought for the day is brought to you by some bunnies.

    Today (Monday) was an unexpected day off. We had a blizzard over the weekend but only half the snow that was expected. I was super surprised when I got the text that school was closed. The weather played a part but it was mostly a district-wide phone outage. I’m not complaining, it was a nice bonus day!

    What are you doing today?
  • Blog - Crafts - Creativity

    T Tuesday: worst quilt ever edition

    You know what that means…I’m linking up with Elizabeth and the gang to share a bit about my week…or weeks as the case may be.

    Worst quilt ever

    I’ll just rip the bandage off quickly…this is the worst quilt I have ever made. At first glance it’s not terrible but if you keep looking you begin to see all the issues. And boy are there a lot of them.

    The one thing that I do love is the no holds barred scrappiness of the quilt. No negative space or even plain solid to let your eye rest.  That was my intention. It’s the back that set the multitude of issues into play.

    Oh it’s like a trainwreck…so many things went wrong. But I just wanted to finish this dang thing. I was like Dory from Finding Nemo…

    Except it was just keep sewing, just keep sewing…

    It’s not beautiful but it will still keep me warm and snuggly on the couch so it does have a bit of a redeeming quality.

    I had to share the clever display case at school welcoming the kids back. So fun. There are signs all over the school letting the kids know how happy we are to have them back. I think they are really happy too! Today we welcomed back the second group of students as we are still in a hybrid learning model. So fun to see all those kids!  We did not get to go snowshoeing yet but I am still hopeful

    My COVID vaccine that was scheduled for Saturday was delayed until next weekend due to weather affecting the supply chain. The weather has been absolutely insane everywhere it seems.

    I leave you with my Bulldog mom mug. My bulldog is not coming home for Spring break. They only have two days off instead of a week. I’m not sure I’ll see him until he moves back home. *sniff*

    I just realized I’m going to need a new mug next fall… That one will make me a cougar mom. Hmmm…that sounds a little funny. LOL

    What are you doing today?
  • Blog - Crafts - Creativity

    T Tuesday: many things edition

    This post will be a jumble…so many things in so many directions. That’s my life right now. Some days I feel a little more scattered than others. When I’m having a scattered day I am trying to be mindful and prioritize, slow down when possible and forgive myself for not vacuuming.

    I finally set up my sewing machine in J’s room. Not really sure what took me so long to get back to it… perhaps lost creative mojo.

    Quilting

    marvin being helpful

    Now that my machine is in a usable space I got out the scrappy quilt top I made before Christmas. I settled on a tie-dye fabric from my stash for the backing. As soon as I laid the quilt on the floor for basting, my helper showed up.

    marvin being helpful

    Making the bed is pretty much his favorite activity…well maybe eating and sleeping are tied for first then making the bed.  Of course, he doesn’t understand that laying the quilt out nice and flat and smooth, keeping it all inline are an integral part of the process.

    Teaset pincushion

    Since this desk overlooks the front yard, it’s a perfect spot for Marvin to do a bit of bird watching. With that in mind, I decided that the standard tomato pincushion wasn’t the right choice…looks a little too much like a ball.

    teacup pin cushion

    I made this teacup pincushion a while back and have finally put it to use. I love that the cup sits slightly off-center on the saucer. When I first noticed this mistake I was upset but now I realize that this is a good thing. The off-center placement allows for more useful space for sewing tools at the ready.

    Week of appreciation

    para appreciation week

    Last week was declared Paraprofessional appreciation week by Governer Walz. Our school went all out making us feel appreciated in so many ways. Puny gifts, signs on our lockers, cards, and breakfast but honestly, the most meaningful one was drawing and note from a student that I wasn’t sure I was making an impact with.

    Archery

    Archery season is upon us. I love this season even with the distance we travel most Saturdays. It gives Mini-me and I some quality time in the car.

    Birthday Boy

    reading to friends

    J turned 20 years old today!! TWENTY!! So crazy. It was hard not to be with him today. I was very distracted with thoughts of him throughout the day. I just wanted to hop in the van and drive to Duluth. I’ll be calling him shortly when his class is over…but it’s just not the same.

    What else…oh yeah…I dyed my hair…mostly the underside…purple. Well…technically eggplant. Yep…totally went for it. It’s really fun and I love it. The family had a bit of a hard time getting used to it but I think they have now. If you take a peek at my about me page, you will see the new look.

    What are you doing today?