Strawberry Jam Jar- A Spring Freebie

Happy Tuesday, yall and a berry good morning to you! 🍓🍓🍓

Yep! I am still enjoying fresh strawberries. But I have yet to put any up. Hopefully next week. Probably I will make strawberry jelly or maybe some freezer jam.  Mom always freezes berries which later are eaten in desserts or just in a bowl with whipped cream.

                                          

 A few years ago my mom gifted me a Ball Jelly & Jam Maker. It makes the process a lot easier.  

In celebration of strawberry season, it was only befitting that I created a mason jar filled to the brim with strawberries.  

                

This is my Strawberry Jam Jar. I am thrilled with how it turned out? I hope you like it. 

If you are interested in some strawberry jam for yourself, I invite you to check out the links to the jpgs 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 links because of the devices I use. I apologize for that.  These are images of the chart  or JPG s and not downloads.   I am always grateful for your kind encouragement , your visits, and for stitching my little designs. 

Click here for the Instruction page. 

Click here for the colored  chart in jpg format. 

Click here for the black/white chart in jpg format. 

I finished this jam jar just like I did the previous jars- into a simple pillow with chenille trim twisted and whip stitched down. 

                   

 If you missed any of the previous jars, just click on the names below and you will magically be transported back to a previous post. 

Autumn Jar Pinkeep

Winter  Jar and  Winter 

Sheep Jar and A Basket for Ewe

Bunny Jar 

Do you have a favorite jam or jelly? I have been watching videos on dandelion and violet jelly. I have made corn cob jelly  in the past; it is one of Mr. Pinker's favorites.  I do believe my all time favorite has to be blackberry jam . It is lick smacking good.  Right now  based on the blooms it looks like we are going to have a good blackberry harvest. 

Well, I am off to stitch and then to the last of the grandbabies' baseball games. Have a very lovely day and hope it is jam packed with sweetness. As always...

Happy quilting and stitching, ya'll

Melisa

Happiness is a jar of strawberry jam! 

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗❤🧵

                  

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy . Love and miss you, you sweet strawberry picker. 

Monday This and That

Happy Monday, ya'll! How was your weekend? I hope that you had a very lovely Mother's Day. 

 A few weeks ago I found this sweet cross stitch at the Goodwill. It is so delicate , feminine and framed perfectly.  

My daughter gave me my 1st piece of Rae Dunn -a stack of faux books. So sweet and cute. 

My  dear friend, PJ sent me this darling Bent Creek chart called "Love You Mom. " This is going to be one of my starts for the week. 

       

I think this would be so pretty displayed with pictures of family members by it. 

One of the gifts that Mr. Pinker gave me for Mother's Day was this collection of thimbles. I have a pretty good collection of thimbles which I need to share with you sometime.  He got this at a little antique shop. I still need to clean it up a bit, and then find the perfect place to display it. 

 I have red white and blue on my mind. How about you? Have you started working on patriotic crafts. 

The other night , I went down to the toy room and pulled out a lot of patriotic decor. I came out with an arm load. Mr. Pinker looked up , smiled, and then nodded. He knew I was on a patriotic decorating mission.

I could not wait to display this darling vintage hankie , gifted to me by sweet, Gwen.  Thank you so much, Gwen; I will treasure this piece. 

Isn't that Scottie so precious? This piece reminds me of my Nanny . She  appliqued a small Scottie dog quilt when she was young. I am thinking I would like to applique a Scottie dog quilt in patriotic colors to go along with the hankie. Wouldn't that be darling? 

 I pulled out my antique pug sewing pin cushion to display near the hankie.( Is this a pug? I am not sure, but it is so cute. . Lol)  

 

Last Monday, I was waiting on pins and needles for Lisa Bongean to release Clue # 2 in the Oh Say Can You Sew Quilt along.  Clue # 1 was given last month- 31 teensy weensy nine patches.

My mind whirled with possibilites - Would it be red and white nine patches, half square triangles, red and white stripes? Oh, what did she have up her sleeve?  -It was 31 super cute hourglass blocks !!! I will continue working on these today. 

 Clue #2 is available until the 1st Monday of June- that is when we will receive Clue # 3. This is a free quilt along as long as you get the clue during the given allotted time. 

What's the Plans for the Week?  Well....

🌞1. Work on my Summer Days quilt blocks. 

Sneak peek at how they are coming along. 

🌞 2. Continue working on Oh, Say Can You Sew Quilt Along. 

🌞 3. Fully finish Hinzeit's Love Bees. 

🌞 4. Ball games. This is the last week at the ball park for awhile.

🌞 5. I plan on being a Happy Camper . We are going camping later in the week. 

Well this is my ramblings for the day. Thank you, my friends for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful and blessed week and as always...

Happy quilting and stitching, ya'll

Melisa

It's Monday ! Do not forget to shine!

A farm display is not complete without a little John Deere tractor sent to me by Gwen.   Mr. Pinker can not have this John Deere. Lol.

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗❤🧵

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy. Love and miss you. 

  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.  

Kate at Life in Pieces for  Stitching Stuff ( Sunday) 

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

Beth at Love Laugh Quilt  for Monday Making

Judy at Small Quilts Doll Quilts for Design Wall Monday

Linda at Texas Quilt Gal for To Do List Tuesday - Tuesday

Summer Days Block 12- A Bowl of Tomatoes

Good morning, sweet friends. It is a beautiful Spring day. In fact, it is supposed to get up to 87 degrees today.

 The other day Mr. Pinker went to flip the switch to air on our central air and heat. All of a sudden we heard a RUMBLE and BUMBLE and then a CLICK and CLACK! 

"What  is all that racket?" I asked  .

 "Oh, no," Mr. Pinker  said with a sigh. "I think the Central air is going out."

 Mr. Pinker then made a bee line outside.  Meanwhile, I listened intently at  all of the ruckus hoping it was something else going on outside like 2 raccoons in a brawl  with a coyote or something like that . And all of  the while , I was ignoring the fact that no cool air was coming from the vent.  

A few minutes later , Mr. Pinker came back in with an exasperated look on his face. 

"What was it ? I asked excitedly . "Was it 2  crazed raccoons beating up a coyote????!!!!" 

 Mr. Pinker looked at me like I was plumb nuts. "What? What are you talking about ?" he asked." Nope it was nothing like that. It was our central air  unit going out. " 

Then Mr. Pinker pulled out his old trusty phone and made a call to  the good ole' Mr. Heating and Air  Man  and - no answer.🦗🦗 So he left a message. And........ we are still sitting here .😳😳🦗 LOL 

Two days later ,  I asked , " Where is Mr. Air Man?"  

" I have called him 3 times and have left messages, "said Mr. Pinker. "OK, I will call someone else. "    So  Mr. Pinker  called 3 other companies, talked to the secretaries  and guess what ? 🦗  Well no one has showed up.  Fingers crossed we will get a response soon . Lol. 

So today  I will be spending the majority of the day on the porch  for some good ole' porch stitching. Hopefully there will be a breeze.🌬 

            

And I just know I will be entertained by new birdies that have hatched out. 

On a good note-today is embroidery Thursday, and I have finished up the last of the Summer Days blocks. 

The last block is  a Bowl of Tomatoes. Summer is just not summer without fresh vine ripened tomatoes. I was telling Mr. Pinker just last night that I would love to have a nice BLT sandwich with fresh maters. Doesn't that sound yummy?

Click here for the doodle.

 I  believe I have decided how I am going to set my blocks. I am going to gather my fabrics today. As of right now, I am thinking reds and blues. I should have something completed by next Thursday. 

Last night I worked on a few teeny four patches. I will make a few more today. 

Well, that is what is going on in the quilt nest today. What fun projects are you working on? 

Thank you for stopping by for a visit and as always...

Happy quilting and stitching, ya'll

Melisa

 If you have missed any of the previous blocks, check out the links below to go back to the previous posts for the jpgs. 

Previous blocks include:  Little Blue Birdie  ,Time to Plant  ,   A Bowl of Berries ,  A Basket of Blooms , Buzz Buzz  ,  Red , White, and Ewe , Summertime Treat  , Lemonade  , Sunflower Basket ,A Jar of Coneflowers  and Home Tweet Home . 

There ain't nothing better in life than true love and homegrown tomatoes.

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗❤🧵

Dedicated to my sweet sister, Amy. I miss you more and more each day that passes. 

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 needleworkers to meet. 

Pat at  Life in  the Scrapatch for Stitch , Sew and Show- Wednesday

Jennifer at Inquiring Quilter for Wednesday  Wait Loss- Wednesday

Denise at For the Love of Geese for Put Your Foot Down- Thursday

Kelly at My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday- Thursday

Tuesday Truckin ' Along in the Freedom Truck - A Patriotic Stitch

  What!!! Two post in one day! Well , why not?! Lol

Happy Truckin' Tuesday!  Why Truckin' Tuesday ? Well, I am in a stitch along with my friend, Joan. We stitch anything truck related on Tuesdays. If you want to join us, just jump on the tailgate with your needle , floss and your favorite truck pattern and go to town!!!!.  

Speaking of trucks.  If you are on Instagram have you seen the Tonka Tuesday posts ?There are several creative ladies who love all things, vintage , rusty , crusty and old and they create the cutest displays with Tonka trucks or vehicles on Tuesday. I do not have that many Tonka trucks so I haven't been able to play along with that hashtag yet. Lol. 

Any whoo. Today I wanted to share with you my newest stitch. It is part of my Truckin' Along series. 

            

To be honest  I have only created  and  stitched one other truck which was the Luck Truck , but I am going to stitch more so I am calling it a series. 

Freedom Truck is being driven by Martha, the Eagle . In the back of the truck is George with Ole' Glory and some fireworks.   They are ready to celebrate. 

 Can you believe it ? The United States is going to be  celebrating 246 years this year.  I am so thankful for our founding fathers and all of those who have protected our rights and liberties since then. 

If you are interested in stitching Freedom Truck , please check out the links to the jpg's 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 links because of the devices I use. I apologize for that.  These are images of the chart and not downloads.  And I am always grateful for your kind encouragement , your visits, and stitching my little designs.

Click here for the instructions. 

  ( NOTE: I added a side note to the instruction page  . I used DMC 310 to back stitch the fuse on the firecrackers) 

Click here for the colored chart. 

Click here for the black and white chart.   ( Sorry this jpg is catty corner)

Today is a beautiful day so I believe I will enjoy some time on the porch with my needle and thread.  I am off to work on a new truck.  Thank you for stopping by for a visit. As always...

Happy quilting and stitching, ya'll

Melisa

Enjoy the journey! 

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗❤🧵

                  

Dedicated to my sweet baby sister. I miss seeing you Truckin Along on the farm, Amo. Love you. 

It's a Beeautiful Day!

Well, hello there my sweet friends!

 I just wanted to pop in to share with you my most recent finish. It is a freebie , from my dear friend, Vicki at Stitchy McFloss blogspot. This is called Be Blessed and is available in her May 3, 2022 post.

 Eeeeeh ! I mean BUZZZZZ!🐝🐝🐝 I am so excited!!!

 Are these not the cutest little bees? I mean look at those eyes!  

This is a super quick stitch . Just buzz on over to download this sweet gift and you can have it stitched up as quick as a wink. In fact. I stitched 1 bee in 30  minutes as I was a yammering away. Lol. I bet I could have stitched it even faster if I was not busy talking. 

Mr. Pinker cut out a little round hornbook out of a very rough scrap of plywood ( that's all that we had). I painted it black. 

           

  I placed my little stitch on mat board which was covered with batting and then ripped a few strips of fabric , made a ruffle and Wah Lah! I had a finish!!!  I can not wait to add it to my summer decor.  Right now I have it paired with the darling bee skep , that dear Pat sent me last year. Her sweet sister made  it .So sweet of them both.  Pat also sent me the precious crocheted doily that was her mother's - what a treasure . It stays out year round in my living room.   Aren't stitchy friends just beeeaautiful?  I sure think so. 

Now if you missed Miss Stitchy McFloss's other freebie  called Love that she posted on Feb. 9, 2022 , hop on over to get this delicate design as well. 

Thank you so much, my friends, for buzzing on by for a visit. Hope your day is as sweet as honey. And as always...

Happy stitching, ya'll

Melisa 

A day without a friend is like a pot without a single drop of honey inside. - Winnie the Pooh 

Hugs and Stitches!!!🤗🧵❤

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy who had such a kind and generous heart too. . Love and miss you. 

Happy May Day

Good morning, sweet friends and Happy May Day to you!!!! 

As a young child, I remember making posies in school for May Day,  and I  have heard of dancing around the May pole though we never did that.   Being  a Curious George that I am, I decided to look up more about May Day.

 May Day's roots date back to ancient time in celebration of the changing of the seasons and the beginning of Summer.  Over the years, it has also became a day also  to celebrate worker's rights. If you are interested in learning more about May Day and some of the traditions  the Old Farmer's Almanac has a great article on it. . 

I am Bringing in May with a look at some of the blooms in my yard. 

                              

Pear Tree Blooms

Coreopsis in bloom. 

                  
The  cherry tree looks gorgeous in her pink  blossoms. 

One of my  most recent finishes is With Thy Needle and Thread's May Day Basket . A freebie from Brenda Gervais found in her April 26, 2009 blogpost.  I stitched mine in jeweled tone colors in honor of my Nanny whose birthday is May 2nd. Oh, how I miss my Nanny.  The best words to describe my Nanny - She was  rootin, tootin fun and very loving !!!!  

In celebration of May Day and in honor of my Nanny, I am working on a new start called A May Day Sampler which is a freebie by With Thy Needle and Thread in her May 1, 2010 post. 

For my Slow Stitching Sunday work- it is time to bind my Berry Basket quilt. 

 I will also put in a few more stitches in Blackbird Designs, Spring Blessings.

So tell me - how are you Bringing in May? Thank you for the sweet visit, my friends.   May your May Day be a great day.  As always...

Happy stitching and quilting, ya'll

Melisa 

May your days be bright and joyful. May good fortune shine upon you always.  May you keep smiling. 

 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

Kate at Life in Pieces for  Stitching Stuff ( Sunday) 

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

Beth at Love Laugh Quilt  for Monday Making

Judy at Small Quilts Doll Quilts for Design Wall Monday

Linda at Texas Quilt Gal for To Do List Tuesday - Tuesday

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy. Love and miss, ya.