If there's snow, you might as well sew!

One winter when I was in Vermont, I saw these beautiful appliqued patterns for all of the seasons and I had to get a few of them. Last Saturday, Kenny was working on a puzzle at the dining room table, so I took this pattern out and started working on it. Applique used to be my favorite thing to work on (with my machine, of course! Even in the old days when I only had a Kenmore that did zigzag stitches!), but over the years, I have done it less than I would like. I kept to my promise and finished what I started!! It is quilted, bound and hanging already! I am in a great BOM program called Holly Lane. It is a six month program with all of these adorable houses and shops in Victorian fabrics! I have two done so far and I am pretty much up to date with them. Just to keep me in the mindset, I hang them up in my sewing room when I get them finished.

At our quilt shop in town, we are in a BOM called Calendar Girls. Each month, we will be doing a block that matches the season, so that we will have an all-seasons quilt when we are done. The cool part is that we have to use our own stashes, which will make them all so unique. I love the snowman! Of course, he will get button eyes when I have finished quilting the whole thing next year.

This is the second block of Holly Lane. The quilt really is beautiful when it's done, so I am excited when I get the kit each month.
A closer look at Winter's Song. I had a great time working on this project. I have a lovely one for Halloween, which I will make next fall.

We have so much snow outside that it seems like we are in Alaska. This week is supposed to bring more snow. It's like a blizzard a week this year. Won't that make spring more enchanting? I can't complain...I like the snowy winters. We still get outside and go for walks if there is a path at the refuge. Also, we have to bring firewood in, so Kenny and Rob make paths for us to walk outside! There is a path to my chickens, so at least I can get around. It does get slippery when it ices up at night!

Snow day..a little sewing day

We got up this morning to about 15 inches of snow. It was a nice, quiet world outside and the dogs enjoyed being the first to assault the new mountains of snow.











After Kenny and Rob went out and plowed, I let the chickens out for their daily free time. I also fed the stray cat who eats the mice by the chicken coop. I never usually feed him, but since there is nothing in the garbage to eat and there will be nothing on the ground, I owe it to him to give him a meal.

The chickens were not exactly crazy about the snow touching their butts, so they just stood in the pen for a few minutes wondering what to do next.

In the end, the girls preferred to hang out in their house and eat grains. I stayed indoors most of the day myself, cooking and cleaning. Did a little sewing on a monthly project I get at the quilt shop. Tonight if I can tear myself away from the woodstove, I will sew it all together.

Fresh spinach from the garden in January!!

This is my first winter of using the cold frame Kenny made me a while back. I planted some lettuce and spinach seeds in here back in September and October (just sort of threw them around--broadcast style) just to see what they would do. I kept checking on them and saw that they were growing, albeit slowly, and decided to see how long they would last. They have been under snow for a few weeks and we are expecting another huge storm here tomorrow, so figured I would use them in tonight's supper.

I planted onion seeds at the far end, and they never did too much. Next year, it will be all lettuce and carrots and spinach.

We still have snow on the ground and more is coming tomorrow. I am not leaving the top open, just left it open to harvest the spinach, and to remind myself that the spinach grew in the snow!

The sky this afternoon was very bright, but with clouds starting to build up. We will see what happens tomorrow. I had to cancel a night out for dinner tomorrow already, but will stay home and sew instead. At school, we are being prepared for a day off or a snow delay for Wednesday.

Funky chicken wallhanging DONE!

I was back to work this week, and Boyo was I tired every night. It was so hard to keep myself from just plopping on the couch and falling asleep, but I really wanted to make this paper-pieced chicken wallhanging. I did not put the sleeve in the back yet, so it is hanging on the rod using straight pins (that's why is looks uneven on the top). I saw this pattern at Common Threads in New Preston, CT a while back and knew I would make it someday. All of the fabric used on this project was purchased when Evelyn and I went to Washington state this past summer. It was fun to think of the time we spent together while we were there as I worked on the chickens.

The fabric under their feet is chicken wire! It came in several colors, so I got them all with this pack of fabric from Olympia, Washington.

Don't they look funny with those button eyes? These fabrics are so bright and cheerful, aren't they? I used stitch-in-the-ditch to quilt it. Very easy and very fast. Lengthened my stitch to 3 instead of 2.5 and it was a breeze and looks good too.

I like paper-piecing and this was an easy and fun project. The next one I am doing is a teacup wallhanging made from paper-piecing. That pattern is from about 5 years ago when I went to the local quilt show. See, you think you are buying too much stuff, then you realize you need it all so that when you get inspired at ten o'clock at night, you can run right up to the attic and get started!

Another busy week coming up, but I still plan to sew every night and play with my iPad! See you all soon!

Sunbonnet Sue totally done!! I amazed myself today!

I have a whole ton of projects that I want to get done this month, but I promised myself that I would not make any more tops unless I quilted the ones I am currently working on. (That does not include anything made prior to this week---that would mean I could NEVER make another new top:) I had these adorable Sunbonnet Sue embroideries and just could not wait to stitch them out with my machine. They are so cute and the way that Embroidery Library shows the colors to you, it tells you what part of the design you are stitching, so I could change their colors into ones that I wanted. This is Sue at her embroidery machine. Here is Sue with her knitting basket. I don't knit yet...maybe some day.

Sue at the regular sewing machine. She is just so busy!!
The camera I was using did not make the whole quilt come out as dark as it really is. But this is what it sort of looks like.

Rob held it up in the kitchen. Maybe if you click on it, you will see how nice the colors are. This is quilted and bound already. I did it all today since I go back to work tomorrow and wanted to start a cute paper-pieced wallhanging this week.

I will sure miss being home. It is nice to know you have all day to get your stuff done and to work on things that you enjoy doing as a hobby. At least I do love my job, so once I am there, it goes by so fast. Will miss my sewing time and my Ipad!!