Lazy Days and Freedom - A Small Patriotic Free

Happy Saturday, ya'll . Mr. Pinker and I decided to hitch up the camper and head on down the road for a day  or so; we will spend lazy days on the river . 

 We arrived at our camping spot Thursday evening. We were just 1 site down from where we camped a few months ago.

 There are more campers here than there were in March , but it is still fairly quiet.  Friday we drove into town.  You know I had to hit the thrift stores; I found a few treasures ,but  did not make a grand haul. I was merrily walking down the aisle in one of the thift stores and I thought oooh! I bet I can find something for Amy for her birthday . And then reality hit me and a small tear formed. But I composed myself and continued looking . I still feel like my sweet sis is still here; it is such a strange feeling.❤ 

 Later in the evening , we lounged by the river , and I  stitched the evening away. 

                     

A sneak peek at a new design . 

The wild and wooly vine is all stitched. Have any ideas what will go in next? Oh, you will have to wait. 😀

 Now tell me .Do you save those teeny scraps of cross stitching fabric?  Being the hoarder , I mean,  thrifty person that I am, I save ever inch. So I decided to start a new series called Patriotic Wordies Bowl Fillers.  If you are interested in joining me,  grab some scraps, a needle,  your favorite red, whites and blue flosses, and  don't forget the bowl .

 These are teeny  simple quick to stitch pieces that will not take more than a few minutes to stitch and can be made into teensy bowl fillers.   

Freedom paired with one of Blackbird Design's Emily Strawberry. 

           

 The first one is called Freedom. I stitched this while sitting in the school pick up line. 

Click here for the jpg chart. 

This is how I finished my pin pillow. I trimmed my cross stitch to 4 1/2" W x  2 1/2" H . 

I rummaged through my red  , whites and blues and chose 4 strips. I cut them to 1 1/2" x 3 1/2" . 

 I sewed the strips together and then added the cross stitch.

 After finding some backing fabric, I whipped it into a little pillow, but..... as an after thought, I decided to add a bit of lace to the seam.  Sweet Pat, to the rescue. Some of you may remember that Pat sent me a bit of lace last year, and I can not tell you how many times I have added a tad here and a tad there  to my projects. Thank you so much, Pat. I am still enjoying every bit of the vintage lace. So I tacked the lace in place, and then I did a little happy dance to seal the deal that I had a finish! 🧵💃💃🎇Whoo Hoo!

Last year I shared a couple of small word stitches.  

Here is Liberty along with Sarah Jane's 1776 Saltbox that I shared last year. 

Click here for Old Glory.

Red , White and Blue was a little bigger piece. 

That's my ramblings for the weekend. I truly appreciate the sweet visit. Have a beautiful day and a fantabulous weekend. 

Happy quilting and stitching, ya'll

Melisa

Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it on to our children in the  bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected and handed on  for  them to do the same. - Ronald Reagan

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗❤🧵

Dedicated to my dear sister, Amy . 

Piecing Away on Summer Days

Happy , happy Thursday, ya'll and welcome.  Please, grab a cup of ice tea and let's chat.

 

All 12 blocks are embroidered on my Summer Days quilt . Any spare minute that I could sneak into the quilt nest and piece, I certainly took that opportunity.  I gave a sneak peek of one of the blocks  on Monday.  

I decided to set my embroidered pieces into the Churn Dash block. I originally thought about using Depression era fabrics, but in the end,  summery reds and blues won out. You know me and the color red! 

 My plan is to have 6 red blocks and 6 blue. I have not decided if I am going to add sashing or a different type of block between the embroidered blocks.  I am a fly by the seat kinda of girl if you haven't already figured that out. 

So let me show you how I pieced my block.  

The unfinished size of the Churn Dash Block is  12 1/2" . Finished size : 12". 

The embroidered blocks measured 6 1 /2" unfinished and 6 " finished. 

I decided to use the Magic 8 Method to create 8 half square triangle blocks at once. Coral + Co.  has a great tutorial on how to use this method.  Please check them out . They do a lot better job at explaining than I do though I will attempt it. Lol.  

The FORMULA is finished square size + 7/8" ( or  .875) and then multiply by 2. 

✴Since I know that my finished HST blocks need to measure 3". I cut out a 7 3/4" square of blue and  a 7 3/4" square of white.  This is going to give me 8 HST in the end. 

✴ I placed them right sides together, and I drew diagonal dotted lines from corner to corner. A quarter of an inch from each side of the diagonal lines, I drew a solid line to indicate the sewing lines. I then drew a  dotted line halving the whole 7 3/4" block in each direction. 

✴The dotted lines will be the cutting lines after the sewing has taken place. Sew a scant 1/4" down the solid lines. 

✴Cut on the dotted lines creating 8 HST.  You will need 4 to piece one Churn Dash.  Trim the blocks to 3 1/2" 

✴From blue fabric #2  , I cut a strip measuring 2" x WOF. I did the same for a  white fabric #2. 

✴I placed right sides together and pieced  the strips using a 1/4" seam allowance . Press . I then subcut this unit into 6 1/2" strips.  You need 4 for one Churn Dash. 

✴Using the 4 HST , the Blue/ White strips and embroidered block, I laid out my pieces. 

             

✴Sew them in rows and then sew the rows together. Press and  Wah Lah!

 EEHH! I did not buy any new fabric for this project . I just rummaged through the quilt nest to find what I needed.   I guesstimate that I had about a 1 yard of each of the red, blue and white fabrics.  Of course,  I did not use  all of that amount of fabric  to piece the blocks, but I am just giving you an idea of where I started at .( REMEMBER FLY BY THE SEAT OF MY PANTS! Lol)  

As far as all of the Churn Dash Blocks,  I have figured out the  fabric and cutting requirements: 

                                FOR 12 CHURN DASH BLOCKS

 BLUE FLORAL  FABRIC #1 : Cut 1 strip of fabric 7 3/4" x WOF. Subcut into 7 3/4" squares . (You will only  need 3 squares to piece 6 blocks if you are using the Magic Eight Method). 

WHITE  PRINT FABRIC #1 : Cut 2 strips of fabric 7 3/4" x WOF. Subcut into 7 3/4" squares. (You will need 6 - 3 for the red blocks and 3 for the blue blocks)

RED FLORAL  FABRIC #1:  Cut 1 strip of fabric 7 3/4" x WOF. Subcut into 7 3/4" squares . (You will only  need 3 squares to piece 6 blocks if you are using the Magic Eight Method).

BLUE PRINT FABRIC # 2- Cut 4 strips of fabric 2" x WOF 

RED PRINT  FABRIC # 2- Cut 4 strips of fabric 2" x WOF

WHITE PRINT FABRIC #2- Cut 8 strips of fabric 2" x WOF 

And of course you need your 6 1/2" embroidered blocks. 

I hope you stay tuned to see what I decide to do once the blocks are completed. Will it be sashing or another block? Hmmmm ! Inquiring minds want to know. lol. 

I truly appreciate ya'll visiting me on Embroidery Thursdays and  for all of the kind words of encouragement. I hope some of ya'll have joined in whether on this embroidery project or one of your own. It is sometimes nice to reserve a day for something a little different in crafting. 

                        

Well, the grandbabies will be here soon, but in the meantime. I have more blocks to piece. I wish you were here in person so we could chat the day away while playing with fabric and thread. Have a beautiful day, my friends . 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  , Home Tweet Home  , Bowl of Tomatoes.

A Little bit of Summer is what the whole year is all about! 

Hugs and Stitches!!! 🤗❤🧵 

Dedicated to my sweet sister, Amy. I will forever miss our Summer time fun - cookouts , gatherings , swimming and whatever else we could get into. 

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

 

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