A Day of Quilting

"What ya' want to do today?" asked Mr. Pinker. 

"I want to spend the whole day sewing," I said with a sigh as I slumped on the couch. 

                              

"Well get up and get going,"  said Mr. Pinker  with a grin. "What's stopping you? "

"Aaaah, I sure do wish my sewing room was cleaned up. I am a Messy Missy in my quilt room." 

"I know, I know, " said Mr. Pinker as he shook his head. 

"I sure could us a big strong man to help me clean it. "I said with a sly grin.  Hee ! Hee! 

Mr. Pinker stared  intently at the TV. I could clearly see he was pretending he did not hear that statement.  😳😀📺

           

"Alrighty,"   I said as I jumped from the couch. "Off I go." And with that I hip hopped to the quilt room in search for fabrics for a little quilt. 

"Hmmm  what color fabrics should I use ?" I  said, as I rummaged through piles upon piles of fabric and scraps. "Eureka I found it ! "I shouted as I spotted a stack of country fabrics. 

Fabrics waiting to be cut. 

"What dear ?" asked Mr. Pinker as he sat in the living room.

More country fabrics. 

 Hmmm  he heard me.

 "  Aaww ,  I found a broom, dear.  Do you want to come help me clean? "I asked jokingly.  Hee! Hee ( Can you see the devil in me?😀😜😂) 

All I heard was crickets in response. 

                                                   

Oh well, who wants to clean when I can play with fabric. The cleaning detail will have to wait until I get a better plan on how to lure him into the quilt room. Hee! Hee!  

                                 

With a swish and a swoosh, soon my rotary cutter was cutting away on red and neutral fabrics. 

1 1/2" squares cut. 

And then with a  "Hum Ho Hum" the sewing machine began to sing as I pieced little friendly stars. 

Wee  half square triangles. 

Soon Mr. Pinker peeked ever so quietly around the corner of the doorway. 

Wonky stars and four patches

"Whatcha doing, dear? Cleaning?"  asked Mr. Pinker

"Nope that train has left the station. I am working on 

 a darling freebie from Bunny Hill Designs called A Merry  Little Christmas,"  I said as I concentrated on getting the perfect 1/4' seams.  ( That rarely happens. ) 

"That's going to be cute, "Mr. Pinker said . "You need any help? 

This time he heard crickets.  "Chirp Chirp! "

 I stared at my sewing machine like I didn't hear him. Hee Hee! 

Then I said , "No, I will get you to help the next go around." 

The background is pieced. 

 Lol. Mr. Pinker has never operated a sewing machine in his life. Hmmm , on 2nd thought , I could have got him to press the quilt squares though.  

Oh Darn it - a missed opportunity! 😝😅

Anywhoo, I got a day of working  quietly in the quilt room. Then Mr. Pinker and I went out to eat.  I say it was a good day for us both. 

I will needle turn applique my pieces. 

No, the quilt room did not get tidied, but there is always tomorrow unless I find a squirrel to chase. 

TO DO LIST

1. Finish appliqueing A Merry Little Christmas

2. Quilt on Scrapberries

3. Work on a cross stitch project or 2. 

So tell me are you enjoying any time in your sewing / craft room?  

Thank you for stopping by to visit me today. 

Oh by the way , I  really did find a broom if you want to help me tidy. Any takers? Hee Hee!  

Have an awesome day, Sweeties.

As always,

Happy Stitching and Quilting, y'all

Melisa

A good day is a day spent quilting.  

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗🧵

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy . I miss and love you so much. .   ❤👼

I am joining these lovely ladies' link parties. I hope you check them out; they always have so many wonderful projects going on and provide the opportunity for other needle workers to meet.

Carol at Quilt Schmilt  for To Do List Tuesday 

Images from Pinterest. 

Finish It Sunday

It has escaped! It has escaped! It has escaped the WIP basket!

            

 The No Name Sampler  finally made a break from the WIP basket after being exiled there for weeks.  😁😀😅

Good evening, y'all and Happy Sunday. 

 It all happened when I sauntered by the old basket and then that sampler just attached  itself to my hip and made its way to the couch. 

"Stitch me! Stitch me! " It pleaded!

 " Aaah you are back," I said to the sampler as I eyed it lovingly. "Why of course I can add a few more stitches into you as long as I do not have to frog any. Hmmm now where is my bag of flosses," I inquired as I looked around the room. 

Can you guess what has happened? Yep, I misplaced my trusty ziploc bag of "No Name Sampler flosses". Oh well, since I am flying by the seat of my pants  , I looked through my stash to find the house color( DMC 3072)  and began to stitch again.  This will be a project that I will work on today as well.   

🎄🎄🎄  CHRISTMAS SAL ALERT   🎄🎄🎄

Joy at Days Filled With Joy is hosting her free annual Christmas SAL. This year she is sharing a beautiful Advent  embroidery design. Her stitches are always so sweet and relaxing to work on . At the top of her blog is Freebie tab to click on and visit. 

                        

Friday was a fine day to work on finishing several projects one of which was Mistletoe Kisses . After much thought, I   decided to turn it into a little bag. After finishing it, I ran downstairs in glee. 

"Honey Pie," I said to Mr. Pinker. "Can you brave the cold weather tomorrow and go down to the river and shoot down some mistletoe for me? Pretty please. " I asked as I batted my eyes innocently. Hee! Hee!   

"Why sure, " replied Mr. Pinker  . " Are you going to hang it in the doorway?"  

"Nope. I have a finish !" And with that I whipped out  Mistletoe Kisses to show Mr. Pinker.

 " Quite nice , " he said . " I think I can do my part in finishing your project. "

 Sooo on Saturday Mr. Pinker braved the temps of 20 something degrees on a mission for mistletoe. Fortunately, it is easily found in our area and in 2 shakes of a lamb's tale Mr. Pinker had a large bunch of mistletoe for my enjoyment for the season. 

 Mistletoe Kisses is a freebie from Silver Creek Sampler  and is available on their website with several other darling freebies. 

 

Being on a "Finishing High" , I went to my basket of Finishes to see what else I could finish into an ornament. 

" Aaah yes! " JBW Designs Christmas Sampler, I want that on my
tree today, " I said to no one in particular.  

Dear Karen , sent me this darling chart earlier this year, and I stitched it while camping this summer at a tractor pull. ( Thank you , Karen, I just love it! )   As I looked it over, I  bit my  lower lip as I remembered cutting the fabric short ( that's the quilter in me  or maybe that is Miss Cheapskate coming out in me-  wanting to be thrifty and not waste fabric.😏😐 )

 " Not much fabric to play with, " I said to myself. " A Christmas tree it will be !" 

Soon I wrapped the fabric around a triangle . It was a tight fit but I got it. By this time it was 10:00 at night and Mr. Pinker came  sauntering into the room. 

"Uuh ,  dear. I have another mission for you. " I said with a smile. 

"Can you go outside and snap off a little branch for a tree trunk?' 

"Sure . " said Mr. Pinker.

 After explaining the size. He ran outside in the bitter cold and got a little stick.  

"Now what would I do without you," I said to Mr. Pinker.  As quick as a whip,  the ornament was done. 

And by the night's end it was on the tree. 

Scrapberries is still in the hoop.   I have been  quilting on it every day this week. 

I have most of the top and bottom borders completed. 

I will continue quilting on the side borders this week. 

Well, Sweeties, I  have certainly been a chatterbox this afternoon. I do appreciate you taking the time to visit me and listen to my old tales. 

Have a blessed and beautiful day and ...

As always,

Happy Stitching and Quilting, y'all

Melisa

Christmas isn't a season. It's a feeling- Edna Ferber 

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗🧵

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy . I miss and love you so much.  I   ❤👼

I am joining these lovely ladies' link parties. I hope you check them out; they always have so many wonderful projects going on and provide the opportunity for other needle workers to meet.

Frederique at   Quilting Patchwork Applique for Patchwork & Quilts - Saturday

Kathy at Kathy's Quilts for Slow Stitching Sunday

Kate at Life in Pieces for  Stitching Stuff ( Sunday) 

Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for Oh Scrap - Sunday 

Melva at Melva Loves Scraps for Sew & Tell- Sunday

Brenda at Songbird Designs for Monday Musings

Judy at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts for Design Wall Monday

Carol at Quilt Schmilt  for To Do List Tuesday 

And The Snow Fell ... House Freebie

Have you got snow yet?  We had a few flurries earlier in the week , but nothing to write home about. It sure has been downright cold though. Brrrrr!  Thankfully, by Monday we will back into the mid 60's. Now  I do think I can handle that. 

A new addition has been added to my ever growing neighborhood. I call this piece "And the Snow Fell... Or The Cardinal House". 

 

A sweet vine of blooms encircles this grand red house.  A darling cardinal is making its way home.  

Up on the housetop is a deer. Hmmm perhaps it is Rudolph or maybe it is Dasher. 

 With all of the flakes, it looks like a cold day at The Cardinal House.  

So what do you think? Do you think this would be a good home to get cozy in? I sure do.

The design size of And the Snow Fell is 88 x 83 and on 14 count aida that measures about 6 1/4"x 5 7/8". I stitched mine on 14 count aida that I coffee/ tea dyed myself. 

There are 17 DMC floss colors in this piece which includes: 301, 317, 318, 355, 420, 610, 646, 730, 731, 815, 830, 838, 934, 936, 3371, 3858 and Blanc. 

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If you are interested in stitching this piece,  just grab , the images. For printing tips, refer to the post Tips for Printing which has loads of tips from my sweet friends. 

🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵 

Well, I am off to see what mischief I can get into. I wish you a lovely day . 

As always,

Happy Stitching and Quilting, y'all

Melisa

Friends are good for the soul. 

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗🧵

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy . I miss and love you so much. .   ❤👼

Peace, Joy,  Love  is a freebie from Lizzie Kate designs. 

Thank you for the sweet visit! 😘🤗

Dec. 25, 1865 Prim Christmas Freebie

Hello , sweet friends. Welcome. 

The other day Mr. Pinker was out and about running some errands . It was a perfect time for me to sit back ,prop up my feet and work on a little stitch. 

"I think I am in the mood for a simple prim stitch , " I said to no one in particular. In 2 shakes of a lamb tail , I had created  Dec. 25, 1865 which I quickly stitched up. 

Hmmm how should I finish this piece I wondered. I thought about a mini quilt, but then an idea came to mind. Quickly, I grabbed my cell phone and "ring- a- linged " Mr. Pinker.  "Are you still in town?" I sweetly asked Mr. Pinker . 

"Yep, he replied, "What can I do for you?"

"Can you run down to Ace Hardware and pick me up a little whisk broom? Stat! It is an emergency!!!!"  Hee Hee.

"Can do , " Mr. Pinker replied. 

With that I waited on pins and needles until Mr. Pinker returned home. As soon as he drove up , I rushed to the door and grabbed the Ace Hardware bag.  "Wheww, you must have a cleaning emergency . Where are you working? Do you need any help?" 

"Cleaning? ! Have you gone mad?" I asked with a grin. " I have a full fledged finishing emergency going on here. I have a cross stitch that needs to be finished. " With a skip and a jump , I went to my finishing table.   I swear through the eyes in the back of my head I could see Mr. Pinker roll his eyes as he strolled out of the room. " Thank you, dear,  You made this ole' gal as happy as a clam,  " I yelled over my shoulder.  

Mr. Pinker then went downstairs and I got to work. 

 I hope you do not mind if I share a short tutorial on what I did. It was super  simple and so relaxing because there were no rules.  Since I may turn this into a mini quilt later, I left my edges raw and cut my fabrics to a certain size.  

I stitched my Dec. 25, 1865 on 14 count coffee/ tea dyed aida that I dyed myself. This is a CHOOSE YOUR OWN color chart, but if you are interested, I used DMC 898. 

🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵

If you are interested in stitching this piece,  just grab , the images. For printing tips, refer to the post Tips for Printing which has loads of tips from my sweet friends. 

🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵🧵

Now onto the tutorial. 😀❤🧹

RECIPE FOR FINISHING DEC. 25, 1865

* Note: If you finish your piece on a whisk broom, use the  measurements that make you happy especially if you want your broom wrap to go all the way around . 

NEEDFULS:

🧵 stitched piece

🧵 chenille candy cane. I made mine from 1/2 of 2 long chenille sticks. I then twisted them and tea dyed them. Super simple.

🧵 5" wool fabric

🧵7 1/2" finishing fabric or larger if  you want it to wrap completely around. Mine does not because I will remake mine into a little quilt later.

🧵 DMC 3371 

🧵 needle

🧵whisk broom

🧵pins

🧵 scissors or rotary cutter

🧵 ruler

DIRECTIONS:

🧵 1. Cut stitched piece to the measurements of 4 " x 4 1/2" . 

🧵2. Lay stitched piece  diagonally  on 5" wool brown piece. 

🧵 3. Layer stitched piece , 5" wool onto 7 1/2" fabric. Center. Pin. 

🧵 4. Using 2 strands of  DMC 3371 , make large uneven wonky "X's" unevenly spaced along the edges of the stitched piece. 

🧵 5. Using the same floss stitch large uneven running stitches along the edge of the wool fabric. 

Lots of wonky stitches. You may want to fuse your fabrics together. I did not. 

🧵 6. Place the coffee dyed chenille candy cane diagonally on stitched piece . Tack in place using large wonky "X's" . I tacked mine in 3 places.  (   I had made the chenille candy cane a few years ago from 1/2 of 2  chenille stems. I also tea dyed the candy cane. )

Wonky "X's" secure the candy cane. 

🧵 7. Since down the road , I will make this into a little quilt. I just wrapped the piece around the dust broom and pinned it in place. 

Just pinned the corner n the back- nothing fancy here. 

The wrap does not go all the way around. 

                

Finish however you like - This would be darling to put in a frame. Tack to a piece of wood  or whatever your sweet heart dreams up. 

So what do you think? Dec. 25, 1865 made for a quick stitch for the day that is for sure. And thanks to Mr. Pinker , I was able to get it finished in a short time rather than let it linger too. 

Now today, I plan to finish working on this darling design called "All is Calm" by  sweet Darlene Deon of Darlene Deon Designs. ( Click here to visit Darlene's Esty) . Anywhoo, a finish has come to mind so my  nimble fingers need to get to stitching, and then just maybe I will entice Mr. Pinker to brave the cold and go down to the garage to sift through my totes for a finishing piece.🥶🥶🧊😀 Hee! Hee! 

Have a beautiful day, sweet friends and thank you for taking them time to see my little finish. 

As always...

Happy  Stitching and Quilting, y'all

Melisa

Always work hard and have fun in what you do ...- Simone Biles

Hugs and Stitches!!!  And Snowman Kisses. 

Dedicated to my sweet Baby sister, Amy . I love you, Amo.  . ❤