Weekend Round Up

Saturday was a very creative day at our house.
Those who play instruments, played, and those who quilt (that's me!) played too!
This is a sneak peek at one option for my newest pattern - with lots of fabrics trying out for various roles.
I'm trying to add different styles/colour options right in the pattern - so you don't have to work hard to play with colour.
The tree you can see here I'm classifying as "Whimsical Joy". Would you agree?
It will be a mid-size wallhanging and ready in time for you to make before this year's holidays:) Stay tuned.



Sunday I actually got to sit down to some football, which meant my little handwork case got to stay open and active for more than 15 minutes. It looks like I need to do a thread cleanup!

{that's my friendship bag I made for me! It's holding stuff for the project I'm working on }



The results: 12 more of my Season of Grace stockings now have rickrack loops to hang them up by. Only 6 more to go! Plus I discovered some extra stockings that I can use for gifts this year.





Here's a preview of my Season of Grace quilt. I am almost done quilting the middle.
Still have to decide how/if I'm adding quilting to the borders.

Tonight I might work on adding more buttons - or getting those last 6 stockings ready.




If you got this far in my post - here's what my design wall looks like this morning!
I'm getting ready to share another pattern with you to celebrate 300 posts!!
It isn't {necessarily} a Christmas project - but it would make a great gift.
More details later in the week.


Tomorrow is Tuesday Cake Talk - come back to see my first blocks for the Layer Cake Quilt Along!


Check out what's up on the other design walls this week through the links at Judy's blog.

Thanks for visiting.
With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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Preparing for Christmas Joy

Pat Sloan and Emilie Richards are giving us
one more month to catch up on Season of Grace stockings.

There's a flickr site to see all the ones that are done so far.

I have more than enough!
I made some extras as I went along. I gave some away as gifts too.

It's not too late to join the fun and have an advent stocking quilt ready for Advent!

There's a prize involved too! (See a peek at the flickr site!)

With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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March Beginnings & Final Feb. Finishes

You can see the sun is shining here this morning. I have put up some new projects to complete by the end of March. On the left is my next Mystery Basket BOM block. The crazy quilt bunnies and carrots I put together last year.



The bunnies were inspired by many ideas colliding all at once and finally put into fabric when Pat Sloan's stocking was a crazy quilt patch. I have acquired more fabric since finishing these so now have to decide if I want to keep my original border and sashing ideas or change it.
I'd like this one done for Easter.




The "Peace Joy Love" is for a Christmas row sampler I've been working on. I finally finished stitching around the LOVE in red. I ran out of thread on my spool and ended up handstitching the last two letters. Just PEACE left to do.

Feb Finishes

I did manage to complete this block. It took some patience with a seam ripper and adding a bit more fabric on the left side of the block to get to the correct size. I'm hoping I don't lose too many points when I join it to the other blocks - scant seam allowance indeed!

I also completed the Official Last Two stockings for the Season of Grace BOM. I'm making another one this week as a birthday present - I'll share it later. I'm anxious to see how easy/complex the setting will be for these stockings.

See what's up on the other design wall's at Judy's blog.


~
With Joy
Sarah Vee

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Catch Up Tuesday - Almost

A holiday Monday made it tricky for me and my design wall:

A little bit of progress on this block. At least it looks like it's supposed to - pretty sure it's not supposed to take a month of work, though. Maybe a month of Mondays!:)

Check out the design walls of the other quilters at Judy's link.



The binding is done on my Birthday Baskets quilt! I pressed and pinned the sleeve on this morning to work on during the Olympics. I'll have a better photo when I can hang it!

I'm also working on the official last stockings of the Pat Sloan and Emilie Richards BOM Season of Grace. I thought I was done last month, but I guess I can't count very well. This month's block features handquilting stars and mittens on the blocks. I am getting these ready for - the Olympics! I think it's Handquilting Olympics month, don't you?!

Speaking of counting. . . .


My birthday is getting closer. . .



An early celebration this weekend when my parents came to visit means I have some chocolate fuel to get me through this week! Yummy. My silly husband decorated the cake with candles. Wait til he gets his next month!!



~
With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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Design Wall Monday for Feb. First

This is the December block for the mystery basket BOM. I'm pretty sure that not all the required background squares are in the directions - can you see where they go?:) This may end up having some of the smallest pieces I've ever pieced. The little triangles are 1 1/2 inches.

I"ve also started these blocks. No working title - not even enough of one to create a file to keep the picturess in on the computer! I was inspired by a tile floor I saw in the movie, "Stuart Little" over the weekend (we didn't even watch the whole movie). I'm hoping to have enough of the brown to at least make this a lap size quilt. We'll see.

I did finish my LAST Season of Grace block. This month we are to put the quilt together.

Lots of quilting plans as we head into the month.
See what other quilters are working on over at Judy's blog.

With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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Final Friday Finishes

Two January stockings for the Season of Grace BOM. I have one more to finish.



I finished the January mystery basket block from Megan's guild.
I'm really happy with it.
It's 18 1/2 inches square - the biggest basket I've ever made!


My January string blocks. This is 16 1/2 inches square. I'm looking forward to the finished quilt these monthly blocks will make.

I hope you get to spend some time with your fabrics this weekend.

With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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Getting a Handle on Monday

I've started to work on my first block for the Basket mystery quilt. I don't know what colour I want the handle to be. . . the orange is my preference.

This light blue colour is the one suggested to be used by the pattern picture - repeating the middle of the basket.

My husband likes the green - but I don't have any more of it:)


That leaves the dark blue as my last option.

I guess I could add something completely different!

What do you think? Which would you pick?

(I'm just glad I took a picture and noticed the one square going the wrong way BEFORE I sewed it!!)

Check out the designs everyone else has up through the links at Judy's blog.

This one will get pieced over the week. Plus, I'm working on my Season of Grace stockings. And putting TOGETHER my Birthday Baskets quilt panels. More pics later in the week.

With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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Three Takes and Temptations

I've been working on my final stockings for the Season of Grace BOM with Pat Sloan and Emilie Richards. (The final one is on the ironing board). The dots are fussy cut onto each stocking. I'll put them together next week.
I've also been pulling strips for this week's string block. Still need to sew them to the foundation.

TEMPTATION NUMBER ONE: Nanette's spool quilt! So tempting, my sister even emailed me about it last night. Hmmmmm



I'm managing to keep my sewing area relatively tidy. The pile on the right hand side of the table never seems to leave. It's magazines with patterns I'm looking at making, my idea journal, and notes on what I'm working on now. I just try to keep it from becoming a "Put it here so I know where it is" pile. (Like that drawer in the kitchen:))

TEMPTATION NUMBER TWO: Megan posted about her guild's BOM - Baskets! Hmmmmmm

TEMPTATION NUMBER THREE: Pat Sloan announced her new BOM that starts in February. Hmmmmm


My furry assistant checking on pin placement. This is the third and final panel of my Birthday Baskets quilt. I finished quilting the middle one this week. I found that it didn't take me as long to quilt as anticipated - hence the procrastination on getting to this one! I really want this quilt done for my Birthday so I'm keeping at it - a great deadline for a quilt project:)

Have you been tempted?

With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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Thursday 1,2,3 - Decorate

Stockings are Hung

Over the TV! Yes, we have a fireplace, but stockings hang into the reach of the little boys around here. The one on the left is for my daughter. It has been re-decorated to add a rick rack heart made out of her initials. The one on the right is made of some vintage fabric inherited from my husband's granny. I had fun picking out the buttons to make the S.

The Tree is Up

The tree has been up since the end of November as family Christmas gatherings begin then. My favourite part this year is using the new tree skirt we were given at the end of last Christmas. It's beautiful paper pieced trees. I would hang it on the wall if I could!

Pennie Pocket

This is my second pennie pocket made. I cut out all the material last year, but didn't get around to them. And they're so quick and cute! The Happy Zombie is re-projecting this year so I guess I still got mine done "on time". The sparkly little trees my daughter picked out a few weeks ago at a home decor store. They look really sweet on the new old piano.



Remember to take lots of cookie and hot drink breaks while you finish up Christmas sewing.

With Joy,
Sarah Vee

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