It's A Wrap for Blooms for You

"Eeeh!" I squealed in delight when I spotted the little wooden box at the thrift store. I quickly picked it up and twirled around in joyful celebration when I saw that it only cost $1.59. "I have plans for you! ," I exclaimed as I plopped it into my cart. 

A few weeks ago I shared a little chart called Blooms for You.

 It was a simple stitch with just a few flowers blooming. Well I finished stitching it while on the camping trip, but it has been waiting in the wings to be finished. 

Once home I auditioned Blooms for You onto the box. Seeing that the stitch fit for what I had in mind, I was ready to get straight to work.  The box was painted in a wide array of colors. I pulled out several containers of brown paint and got to work. After receiving numerous coats of paint, I let the box dry for a day or two. 

Blooms for You was stitched on 14 count tea/ coffee dyed Aida. I trimmed and pressed my stitch before fully finishing it. 

STEPS FOR FINISHING BLOOMS FOR YOU

1. I used a dry brush to paint the box . After drying I gently sanded the surface.

2. Trim the stitched piece to the desired size and iron fusible webbing to the back. 

3. Cut mat board or cardboard to 4 1/2" x 5" . 

4. Cut batting and layer on top of mat board. I tacked mine down with touch of Alene's Tacky glue. 

5.  Center the stitched piece to the mat board and fold excess fabric around the edges, lace in place. 

6. Center the stitched piece to the wooden box. Using tacky glue , adhere the stitched piece to the box . Place a large book or weight on top until dry. 

7. Using tacky glue attach trim to the edge of the stitched piece.

8. Enjoy!

Oooh now don't you think this will make a great seed box? 

Have a bright and beautiful day and Happy Stitching!

As Always...

Happy  Stitching and Quilting,

 y'all

Melisa 

"Every flower blooms in its own time. "- Ken Petti 

Hugs and Stitches!!!!🤗🧵❤

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy. I love and miss you so much.. Love you , Amo. 

I spy a wonky heart rock. 

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Spinning Hearts, Four Patches, and A Pot of Gold- A St. Patrick's Day Freebie

Eeeh! It's Tiny Tuesday! Do you have a teeny weeny project in the works for today? Perhaps a quilt or a stitch? Anything will do as long as you are having fun. 🤗

Welcome,  precious friends. Please do come in and join me. May I offer you a cup of coffee? It is piping hot. Or how about a big glass of sweet iced tea?  I would love for you to join me as we sit , chat and stitch away. 

The other day, I went to the Dollar Tree. It has been a spell since I had been there so  I thought I would drop in and take a gander at their Spring decor and such.  Well my wondering eye spotted a pair of little boxes in a 2 pack which I thought would be fabulous finishing pieces. Sooooo, I snatched them up for a $1.25.  😀

When I got home , I pulled out one of the teeny stitches that I shared with you when I was camping, Spinning Hearts. I just knew I could finish it on one of the little boxes. Though I had cut my fabric small, with a wee bit of effort I was able to stretch it over a piece of cardboard and attach it to the lid of the smallest hexi paper mache box. Besides I do have another hexi box waiting in the wings. 😀

I used DMC floss colors 3011, 223 and 371. 

  I then rummaged through my scrap bin, tore some fabric and glued it to the box. Wahlah! A new finish to display with my Spring decor!  Looking back , I wish I had stitched the hearts in red.  Oh well, I may stitch another in the near future. 

Oooh ! Look at these teeny four patches. I know . I know. 😏 They are nothing fancy-, but they have possibilities of being turned into something sweet . Don't ya' think? Perhaps I will work on this project later this afternoon. 

Meanwhile, I am just itching to share just one more St. Patty's Day stitch with you, and then I am headed full force into spring stitching. 

May I introduce  a Pot of Gold Stamp ? 

It didn't take long to stitch this little stamp up. If I timed it correctly , it only took 2 shakes of a lamb's tail. Hee! Hee! 

Anywhooo,  I just used 4  DMC floss colors including DMC 783, 3345, 3364 and 3371.

Fabric scraps and a bit of lace made for a good pillow finish. 

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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. 

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Gosh, we best get to the task at hand- stitching and quilting. Thank you so much for joining me today. 

As Always, 

Happy  Stitching and Quilting, y'all

Melisa

Thank you for the sweet visit. 

"Leave a little sparkle wherever you go!  " - unknown.

Hugs and Stitches!!!!🤗🧵❤

Dedicated to my baby sister, Amy. .  Love and miss you, Amo. 

Spinning Hearts is stitched on 14 count tea/ coffee dyed fabric . 

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Peaceful Days

Good Monday Morning, Sunshine! Rise and Shine!  How are you doing on this lovely day? I do hope you the winter days are treating you well. 

Mr. Pinker and I have been enjoying some quiet , peaceful days at camp. 

Ever so often we take the side by side and head up into the hills or maybe to town in order to fetch water, but otherwise we are taking it slow and easy. 

I am slowly but surely making progress on my "Pretty in Peach" Butterfly quilt. This is the 3rd mourning quilt that I am making in memory of my sweet baby sis. 

 I thought I had a larger hoop stashed in the old truck camper, but when I pulled it out from behind the fridge, I realized it was my small one. Oh well, it will do until I get home. 😏

 

 I finished quilting the 1st butterfly.  I am moving on to the "nine patch variation "  block. 

This block is 15 " squared ( finished). 

 I am going to quilt a flower motif in these blocks. It did not take long to pull out some cracker boxes and make cardboard templates to aid in drawing the quilting lines.  I imagine that is what my Great Grandma Annie did. Do you do the same? 

 What else have I been working on? Hmmm, Well I started the border for "Winter's Welcome"  which is one of my creations. Fingers crossed the borders will meet. Hee! Hee!

The beginnings of "Winter's Welcome " using 14 count Aida which has been dyed with Rit Charcoal Gray Dye.

  And... I  dusted off "Gathering Love" and pulled it out of the long forgotten WIP basket.  Maybe it will be finished this year. We shall see.  

Working on a lovely lass in "Gathering Love" ( one of my designs).

Oooh I almost forgot! I have been on a roll crocheting little hearts. 😀❤ I am an absolute beginner so they are not perfect, but goodness, they are so much fun. 

I have been referring to 2 lovely ladies who have posted  wonderful tutorials on Youtube-  GS Crochet - How to Crochet a Heart- Beginner's Tutorial    and  Retired Happy- Valentine Ready...

Well , Sweeties.. I am off to get my morning coffee and then sit back and quilt for a spell. 

Now let's go and rock this day! 

As Always...

Happy  Stitching and Quilting,

y'all

Melisa 

"You make the world a better place. " 

Hugs and Stitches!!!!🤗🧵❤

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy. I love and miss you so much.. Love you , Amo. 

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

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Make today so awesome that yesterday is jealous.

 

Spinning Hearts - An Itty Bitty Freebie and Chocolate

 Good morning , Sweet Friends and Happy Tuesday.

I just wanted to pop in with a small freebie that I hope to begin today.  It is called Spinning Hearts- just a wee stitch to make into a pinkeep , a tag or whatever suits one's fancy.  It is a Choose Your Own colors chart- I have not figured out what floss colors I will use, but I will certainly let you know in future posts.

UPDATE: March 8, 2026. Spinning Hearts is stitched and now FFO'd. Eeeh! I am elated!  I finished it on a little paper mache box found at the Dollar Tree. I used DMC floss colors 3011, 223, and 371. 

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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. 

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OOPS/ CORRECTION: On the top heart - right side along the heart border-  a symbol has been left off for  "Y" .

 I will correct the chart when I am able. Please forgive me for the mistake. 

I just may do a bit of baking this evening- perhaps something chocolatey!  Yum! 

Old Fashioned Chocolate Cobbler/ Pudding Cake

INGREDIENTS

1 cup of all purpose flour

3/4 cup of granulated sugar

2 Tablespoons of baking cocoa

2 teaspoons of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of milk

2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/2 cup of chocolate chips

1 cup of chopped nuts (optional)

1 cup of packed brown sugar

1/4 cup of baking cocoa

1 1/2 cups of  very hot water

 Vanilla ice cream ( optional)

DIRECTIONS

✴1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 " x 9" baking dish. 

✴2. Mix flour, granulated sugar,  2 Tablespoons of baking cocoa,  baking powder and salt in a medium mixing bowl.

✴3. In a separate bowl, mix milk, oil, and  vanilla until smooth. Add nuts. Add liquid mixture to the flour/sugar mix and stir to combine . Pour into prepared baking dish.  

✴4.  In a separate bowl, combine brown sugar and 1/4 cup of baking cocoa . Sprinkle over the batter followed by adding the chocolate chips .  Pour hot water over the batter.  Do not stir. 

✴5. Bake for 40 minutes or until the top is dry.  Allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.

✴6. Spoon warm cake into the dessert dish and spoon sauce from the pan onto each serving. 

✴7. Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. 

Heart & Keys

I am off to stitch and bake. I hope your day is a delightful one! 

As Always....

Happy stitching, Y'all

Melisa

"Life is what you bake of it!  "- Unknown

Hugs and Stitches!!!!

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

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❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

"Love Mail" Doodle Freebie

 

Happy Happy Groundhog's Day!  

Brrr!  I hear Punxsutawney  Phil has predicted 6 more weeks of winter. Our nearest   prognosticators, a group of wily goats, predicted the very same thing. According to the zoo keepers, they walked out of the barn and then scampered  right back indoors- too cold for them. Oh well. 

I just wanted to pop in and share a little doodle called "Love Mail" .  It  was simply  stitched on a piece of 8 1/2"  square piece of white cotton. I will later turn this into a little wall hanging. 🤗

If you missed January's doodle , Frosty Chill , I invite you to  click on the colored link, and you will magically be transported back to that post.  

Frosty is stitched on an 8 1/2" unfinished piece of white fabric using the back stitch. 

I drew out the March doodle yesterday. I will be working on the embroidery of it later today. 

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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. 

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A little doodle just for you. 💗💗💗

UPDATE: JUNE 6, 2026:  Love Mail is completed.

The block is framed with 20-  2 1/2" squares( unfinished).  The embroidered block measures 8 1/2( unfinished) .  

After framing the embroidered block, the  roundabout measures 12 1/2" squared unfinished. 

Country Cottage Needleworks February Cottage

Alright Sweet friends, I best get off here. I wish you a lovely afternoon and ...

As Always...

Happy quilting and stitching, y'all

Melisa

No winter lasts forever , no spring skips its turn.- Hal Borland 

Hugs and Stitches and Warm Winter Wishes !!!🤗❤🧵

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy   . Love and miss you., Amo ❤❤ And dedicated to my dear Granny whose birthday is today. Granny would have been 103. I miss both Amo and Granny so much. 

Ya'll come back now, ya hear !