Susan's Summer Saltbox

Good morning, Sunshine and happy, happy Tuesday. 

 Let's all join in on a little sing along- 

🌞🌞I can see clearly now the rain is gone

I can see all the obstacles in my way. 

Gone are the dark clouds that had made me blind.

It's gonna be a bright  sunshiny day! 🌞🌞

Lol.  Do you remember this cheerful song "I Can See Clearly Now"  by Johnny Nash? If you do, you might find yourself humming it today as you go through your daily routine. 😀 I will take the blame for that. Lol.

My view from the front of the house. 

It is gonna be a bright sunshiny day though  well at least in my neck of the woods. 🌞No rain in the forecast . If it is not too hot, I may spend the day outside stitching away. We will see. 

 I thought it would be fun to have a themed week. This week's theme is sunflowers. It is one of my favorite flowers though I am not great at growing them. 

So what about you? Do you like sunflowers ? I have been slowly pulling out my sunflower decor and incorporating them  with my bees and chickens. 

This week I hope to share 3 sunflower freebies with you. So I hope you will pop in for a visit throughout the week. I am super excited about today's  cross stitch.

 Ok! This is officially- as of right now- my favorite saltbox that I have created! But I must admit , I might say the same thing when I stitch the next one. 😂😀  

Many of ya'll know that I name the saltboxes after family members. This is Susan's Summer Saltbox and is named after my 3rd great grandmother, Susan. 

 So let me tell you a little about Susan. Of course I never met her, but knowing my grandmother and great grandfather, I imagine her as a strong, cheerful ,determined lady.  My 3rd Great Grandma Susan and 3rd Great Grandpa Alexander lived in the cove in the mid 1800's. Grandpa Alexander was killed during the Civil War when one night a thief came to their house and stole a mule. Alexander chased the thief into the wilderness where he was shot and later found. He did not die immediately but succumbed  a few days later from gangrene. Great Grandma Susan had to raise her nine children alone. She never did marry but spent the next 40 years enjoying her days on the farm surrounded by her family. A house surrounded by blooming flowers seemed appropriate for Susan. Her children bloomed and thrived with her nurturing, and they grew up to be happy and productive. 

 

The house is surrounded by two vases filled with sunflowers reaching for the sky. Of course, I had to add a couple of quilt motifs and a big vase of flowers below. A quilt block is on the side of the house as well. 

It is a small with a design size of 69 x 74 . I stitched mine on my usual 14 count coffee/ tea dyed aida. I was quite pleased how the colors popped. If you would like to stitch Grandma Susan's house , I invite you to check out the pdfs below. 

Many of you know , but I always like to leave this little disclaimer.  

I stitch my little designs for fun and to decorate my home. I feel very blessed by this community and love sharing my little charts, but I am not a professional designer. And I do not have professional software. Thank you for understanding that I  have to put each page on separate pdf downloads because of the devices I use. I apologize for that.  And I am always grateful for your kind encouragement , your visits, and stitching my little designs. 

Click here for the instruction page.

Click here for the colored chart. 

Click here for the black and white chart.

This little house looks so lovely paired with other saltboxes that I have stitched like Aunt Bea's Summer Saltbox and Edna Viola's Saltbox. 

The village is expanding. Soon the whole family will be living in the houses. Lol. 

If you have missed any of the other saltboxes, just click on the names below and you will be whisked back to a previous posts for your reading pleasure, and you will also find links to the charts there as well. 

They include   Crow Creek Saltbox, Ophelia Manor on Punkin Holler Lane ,  Willowisp Manor of Holler Lane  ,  Turkey Creek Manor ,  Winter Saltbox  , and Dorothy Mae's Spring House   ,  Spring Green Saltbox  ,  Katie Anne's Saltbox , Sarah Jane's 1776 Saltbox , Aunt Bea's Summer Home  ,  Christmas Eve Saltbox  and Edna Viola's Saltbox  .

Well , I am off to continue stitching on a little patriotic sampler . I am delighted and honored that you took some time out of your busy day to spend it with me. That means the world to me , my dear friends. 

Have a beautiful sunshiny day!  Oh , here I go again about to break out into a song. lol. I will spare you. 😃  As always...

Happy stitching, ya'll

Melisa

Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadows. It is what sunflowers do. - Helen Keller

Hugs and Stitches

 

Junk Drunk

Good evening, ya'll!  I  have to admit that I have been a stranger on IG and my blog this past week. But I have  been on cloud nine visiting one yard sale after another on the  World's Longest Yard Sale.

 It was such a fun week especially since I did not get to go shopping last year .  I have to confess that I am junk drunk. 😀 I did find a bunch of goodies. Old, rusty, crusty and a bit dirty, but that doesn't matter to me. 

The most I spent on an item was $8.00 for this cupboard. The owner told me it came from an old country store and was a display shelf for bread. I would leave it all roughed up and prim , but my girls thinks it needs to be painted. Lol. 

                    

 One gentleman was selling his mother's McCoy and cookie jar collection. I got a few pieces for a quarter up to a couple of dollars.  

Sorry for the poor photo. 

 I was jumping for joy when I got this large sampler at a church yard sale.  Do you know who the designer is? I would love to know more about it. The frame is huge , so I am going to have to reframe it. 

                  

And a junk haul would not be complete without me finding some old tins.Eeeeh ! Look at the Charles Chips tin!!!

                   

 I am dreaming of a small fall tree in it. 

So what do you think?  I think I did pretty good this year. 

 Earlier today we had a back to school bash for the kiddos.

 I can not believe how early they are going back , but the grandkids are anxious to see their friends which is a good thing. 

Lots of good food was made by my sister and her hubby . 

                  

Shrimp, BBQ, hamburgers, stuffed peppers and lots of sides.  Yum Yum!

                 

After dinner, the kids went out to the field to help with the pick up of the square hay bales, and then off to the river where they went to fish. They rounded out the evening with a dip in the pool. Such a great day. 

Later this evening, I found myself  in a comfy chair ready to  bind a little quilt. 

                 

After more that 10 years, I finally am sitting down to bind this little wall hanging called "Family is Everything". It will be completed in no time flat- well at least I hope so. It is made from homespun and gifted fabrics. 

It will look so cute in the downstairs living room come fall time. 

It has been awhile since I have shared with you my "Hart to Hart " stitch .That is the cross stitch that I work on as I watch the 1980's television show "Hart to Hart" . I work on it Monday- Friday for about an hour which eases me along and allows me to slowly enjoy it. For the last few weeks , the stitch has been  Tree of Life Samplings "Beauty and Grace". I have made some mistakes but I love it anyway. A few more episodes and I think it will be done. 

I started a new cross stitch piece earlier this past week. It is an autumn piece that I hope to finish and share soon. 

Strips have been cut for a new small quilt. It is going to be another red, white and blue one. 

I hope to share this little quilt soon. 

Well, the big yard sale is  over, the grandkids are going back to school, and I guess it is time for me to get back into my routine. I hope more stitching and quilt time , but we will see.  Thank you my dear friends for stopping by for visit.  It is always such a joy. As always...

 Happy quilting and stitching, ya'll

Melisa

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.  

      Kathy at Kathy's Quilts for Slow Stitching Sunday

Cynthia at Quilting is More Fun Than Housework for Oh Scrap

Beth at Love Laugh Quilt  for Monday Making

Judy at Small Quilts Doll Quilts for Design Wall Monday

Lynette at What a Hoot!  for BOMs Away Monday

I've always loved the first day of school better than the last day of school. First are best because they are new beginnings.

Hugs and Stitches!

Bees and Blooms Freebie

 It is another beautiful summer day! And what a delight that you have stopped by for a visit . I am very grateful. Welcome , sweetie pies. Come on in; it is awfully hot and muggy outside. I think the high is supposed to be only in the 80's, but with that humidity, it is stifling .  

The other day I went out to the barn to check the bees. They were buzzing around quite happily. 

The buckwheat is fixing to bloom, but hubby bought some feeders and they are enjoying the extra bit of sugar water. 

Mr. M. who had helped hubby gather bees just harvested 1 gallon of honey. How exciting He said it was a bit bitter for his taste, but his family loved it.

Last night hubby tried a new biscuit recipe ,and boy, were they yuuuummmy!😋😋

               

 There were only two ingredients  2 cups of self rising flour and 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream baked in a cast iron skillet. You know that is going to be good.

 He got the recipe from the Hillbilly Kitchen on Youtube. She has a lot of good ole' southern cooking recipes if you are interested. 

 I have another quick little stitch to share with you probably the last of the bee stitches for the year.  Well, I guess I shouldn't say last, who knows. Lol. This is Bees and Blooms which I stitched last year.

            

 It has been a year, and still I have not found the perfect piece to finish it on, but at least I have it prepared into a round waiting for the next step. I also have it on display - a great reminder to search for something when I go to the thrift store or yard saling. 

It is a small with a design size of 37 x 40. Ya'll know how much I like smalls.  I stitched mine on my usual 14 count tea/coffee dyed aida using what floss supplies I had on hand at the time.  

If you would like to stitch this design, please check out the pdfs below.  Also I would love to see your stitch. You can always tag me on instagram, use #pinkernpunkinquilting, or direct message or email me. I always consider it to be such a honor to see your work whether it is my humble design or another designers. 

Many of you know , but I always like to leave this little disclaimer.  

I stitch my little designs for fun and to decorate my home. I feel very blessed by this community and love sharing my little charts, but I am not a professional designer. And I do not have professional software. Thank you for understanding that I  have to put each page on separate pdf downloads because of the devices I use. I apologize for that.  And I am always grateful for your kind encouragement , your visits, and stitching my little designs. 

Click here for instruction page. 

Click here for the colored chart. 

Click here for the black and white chart. 

Thank you again for dropping by, my friends. I think my stitchy chair is calling me along with my  needle and thread.  It is also time for my daily dose of the Andy Griffith show. I never can get enough of Andy, Barney and good ole' Goober 😀👮🚓. As always...

Happy Stitching, ya'll

Melisa

          

The flower doesn't dream of the bee. It blossoms and the bee comes.

Hugs and Stitches!

Summer House Freebie and Some Summer Time Thrifting.

Good morning, and happy Tuesday, ya'll.  Welcome!  And let me wish you a very Happy August. 

 I am so excited to report that  the email subscriber service "Follow It" seems to be working .

 I have had a devil of a time changing over since Blogger dropped Feedburner, but thankfully I have received messages from sweet subscribers that they have received emails from "Follow It" which tells you when I post. I went with the service that I saw many other stitchers and quilters were using. Fingers crossed all is well. If you are not getting an email that I have posted, I hope you will subscribe by email using the gadget on my sidebar.

I am so excited about this week! No, I am not going on another camping trip though I would like too,  but it is the World's Longest Yard Sale! 

Eeeh ! Lots of treasures to be searched for. This yard sale stretches from Michigan to Alabama. We will go out on short little treasure hunts several days this week. I am always in search for quilts or quilt tops and cheap vintage goodies. 

Monday we traveled north up the valley, and we  stopped at several yard sales after having lunch at Hardees . I am happy to report I got a few things. Spools of thread, vintage snaps, a snowman platter and some Santa ornaments are just a few of the goodies I bought. I also bought some rick rack ,  yarns and frames for finishing. 

               

But I was jumping for joy when I purchased this  child's school chair which needs to be cleaned and restained and the vintage small coffee grinder.  Oh, and I must not forget the plate rack for just a dollar!

             

The price ranged from a quarter to $5.00; the coffee grinder cost us the $5.00 bill . I am  pretty happy with my haul,  and I don't think I did too bad.   We will probably not go yard saling today , but definitely tomorrow. 

Well on to my stitching. I recently finished a larger design called "Summer House " which is currently on the header of my blog. I was so touched by all of the kind messages about my new header and this stitch. So I wanted to share it with you. 

  This design has all of the things I love-  a house, sheep, a quilt,  flags, and bee skeps.  Oh my! I can not believe that I didn't put in a chicken.  😆🐔

                   

 It  is a larger piece than what I usually post. The design size is 96 x 87 . I stitched mine on 14 count aida that I dyed with Rit lemon yellow. After I stitched it, I thought it was still a little bright so I took a tiny paint brush and brushed in a little tea/ coffee to give it a bit of age. In retrospect, I wish I had tea/coffee dyed my fabric before I stitched on it. But to be honest, I loved the fabric at first. Oh well, live and learn. 

                     

 There are 12 floss colors in this piece. Now you might look at it and say " This house has a lovely yard. lol Let me tell you, when I started stitching it , I thought "This is no yard this is a pasture!" Let's just say I was stitching green for some time.   I squeezed  by with one skein of 3364 Pine Green for the yard  I mean pasture, but I did not have one inch of floss left over. So I highly recommend 2 skeins ,and if you squeeze by like me, then you can keep the 2nd skein for another project. ( Plus that gives you an excuse to buy and extra skein of floss😃😆) 

If you are interested in this design, please check out the pdf below, but also check out my little disclaimer especially since this is a larger chart.  

Many of you know , but I always like to leave this little disclaimer.  

I stitch my little designs for fun and to decorate my home. I feel very blessed by this community and love sharing my little charts, but I am not a professional designer. And I do not have professional software. Thank you for understanding that I  have to put each page on separate pdf downloads because of the devices I use. I apologize for that.  And I am always grateful for your kind encouragement , your visits, and stitching my little designs.

Click here for the instruction page.

  Click here for the colored chart .

 Click here for the black and white chart. 

Since this is a larger chart I also enlarged the pattern but had to put it on 2 separate pdfs. ( I still can not put all of the pages in one downloadable file. I am so sorry.) 

Click here for PAGE  1 of the ENLARGED colored chart.

 Click here for the PAGE 2  of the ENLARGED  colored chart. 

  Click here for PAGE  1 of the ENLARGED  black and white chart.

 Click here for PAGE  2 of the  ENLARGED black and white chart.

  Thank you for being so kind and understanding about my lack of technology and abilities. 

              

Other bee stitches that you may have noticed in the photos are Aunt Bea's Summer Home , Bee Sampler , and the Bee Skep 1869 Crock. Bees and Blooms will hopefully be posted later this week if I do  not get lost in Yard Sale Land. 😃😄  If you haven't seen the other designs, please click on the names of the design and you will magically be transported to a previous post where you will find the pdfs. 

Well I am so glad you stopped by for a visit. If you want, I have an extra brush and towel, and you can stay to help me clean up and stain  the child's chair. Lol.  I think I could rustle us up some sweet snacks in the kitchen too.  We could make a day of it. Aah , as always my dear friends...

Happy stitching and thrifting, ya'll

Melisa

I brake for yard sales , junk on the road, flea markets and the occasional dumpster. 

Hugs and Stitches!

I had to leave my flag quilt out for a little while longer. I finished it just in the knick of time to enjoy it for the fourth.