Vintage Love!

I hit up a few tag sales Friday and discovered these pretty vintage sheets! They were $0.50 each and pillowcases were $0.25. I was so happy to get them because I have been wanting to make a quilt entirely from vintage sheets but I really didn't have a good variety. Now I do!

Just look at those colors! I love the green.

The orange and yellow daises are my favorite in this bunch. It looks like someone cut the sheet and sewed it back together for some unknown reason, but it is still good for my purposes.

I love the butterfly pillowcases I found. I don't think I'm ready to cut those up. Those will be going on my bed!

My trees are blooming! They are so pretty now. It has been so nice outside all week and that makes it hard for me to sit at the sewing machine. I love being outside and will probably be working in my flower beds and garden soon and spending less and less time in my sewing studio.

Promise of Spring Part II

After I made the quilt I posted last, I had to use it because it got really cold outside but recently it has proved that yes, in fact, Spring is on its way! Yesterday we had highs in the lower 60s and today we have highs in the mid 60's. 

While looking at the computer I looked up to find Cricket staring at me:

He seems to do this quite often. I think it is a part of him going senile.


 During the beautiful days I got to do some yard work that desperately needed attending to. Edith is always ready to help outside. She was talking to me in the photo but it looks like she has bitten the twig in half! Ha!

Bud are starting to appear! Some of my buttercups and iris are shooting up through the ground too. 

I love this tree in our front yard. It is huge and will look so lovely when all the leaves are green. 

Yes, it seems the promise of Spring really is coming soon!

Promise of Spring





The pattern comes from February 2011 issue of American Patchwork and Quilting and is the featured quilt for the front cover. It is called "Row by Row" but I call my quilt Promise of Spring because of the warm week we had. It also looks kinda Easter-y. I varied from the original pattern only slightly by adding two more borders to make it bigger so it would be a generous throw size for curling up on the colder winter nights while waiting for spring.

Some of the fabrics are vintage like the blue flowers and daisy stripes. I threw in some solids to break up the print and to have places to rest the eye. The binding is pieced from the scraps left after finishing the top. The back is a vintage sheet. The batting is an 80/20 blend. It is perfect weight and has already been approved by the cat and husband who said it is his favorite quilt thus far!

My brother is back!

And he has a lot to catch up on! I should have a finished quilt to show you soon!



The bad news is that he has a terminal illness. The sewing machine doctor said that he could last a week and he could last a year. The motor is just getting worn out from usage. He suggested a higher end machine because of how much sewing I do. I'm saving my money and eyeing some beautiful Janome machines.

On pause

My sewing is on pause. Mr. machine went to the shop this morning. It was sad leaving him there but there seemed to be plenty of other machines to keep him company. It will take two weeks and $70 to get him all oiled and cleaned so he can run good as new. Sigh. I miss him terribly. Maybe I can get some of that cleaning and organizing done I have been putting off.

I'll leave you with a picture of a hawk that slammed into my deck door and ate his prey on the deck. He didn't remember his manners because I had to get husband to clean up his leftovers.

Under the Weather

My machine is under the weather. ::insert sad and depressed face:: 



(Ignore the out of date calender)

He has lots of work to do too and I had wanted to get this top finished by Monday. That isn't going to happen now. 

I have to find someone to fix him now. He makes a loud noise while sewing that almost sounds like grinding. Also, he kinda freaked out a little yesterday mid-sew on top speed. I think he may have said a few choice words at me when I tried to keep going so he's quietly resting now until I can find somewhere to take him. Until then, there will be no more sewing. ::insert saddest face you ever saw::

Feedsack Fun and a Sack Sack!

I had purchased a couple feed sacks at an estate sale last summer and wasn't sure what to do with them at the time I bought them, so I just got a few.

The other day I was thinking about I didn't like the curtains in my laundry room. They are just some that were left here when we bought the house. Lacey curtains really aren't me. I got to thinking that I could make some new ones out of the feedsacks I had bought. So, I went to work!

Here is the before photo:

And, here is the after:

I think they are just too cute! I really like how it changes the look. I wish I bought more of them now so I could have enough to make some more curtains for the dining room. They would be adorable in a kitchen but I don't have any windows in there!

I also needed a new grocery bag holder or a sack sack as I like to call them. I used this tutorial. I didn't use the charm pack (I cut my own squares) and I left out the elastic from the top so it would be easier to load the sacks inside. I also used a cute piece of trim for the loop instead of the elastic.

The quilting made it really sturdy so this one is sure to last a lot longer than my previous one I made.I really like the look of it too.

My new year sewing to do list is growing by the day and I can't possibly keep up. I find myself getting distracted by other tasks that need to be done like cleaning and the ever important task of surfing the internet for new tutorials and watching Little Hose on the Prairie!