Think Christmas

Christmas in August , yes that is what it is , compliments of Madamme Samm and Lesley our hostess for the Think Christmas blog hop . It is my pleasure to share what I have prepared for this fun blog hop so lets hop to it .

 My first choice was  this snowman from a pattern by The Stitch Collection "Joys of Winter " and here it is completed and in my table topper .

Sucha sweet little guy and then of course it wouldn't be Christmas without the Jolly ol' man himself so this became my second block from the same pattern.

And here is Santa after I completed the stitching .

This pattern is such fun .

My time was rather limited with family visiting but I did manage a block ,this one is a wreath just in case you think it is an owl like my granddaughter did ;-)

 I also did this little stitchery which is not quite finished , the binding needs sewing down but for now a glue stick did the magic . This is a Gail Pan design ,a freebie a few years ago

And last but not least it wouldn't be Christmas without a present so for a chance to win this mug rug be sure to leave a comment and tell me your favorite thing about Christmas . I will draw a name on Aug 6th .so be sure to leave me a comment.

Thanks to Lesley and to Madamme Samm for being our wonderful hostesses and our cheerleaders extraordinaire  ,be sure to stop by and visit all those participating in today's hop as well as all the rest of this great hop , you won't be disappointed. Since it is also Wednesday I am linking up to the Needle and Threadnetwork for WIP Wednesday with Monika  Thanks for stopping by.

 hugs Sheila

August 1

Sheila's Quilt World
A Passion for Applique
Cherry Blossoms Quilting Studio
Jane's Quilting
Sew Me Something Good
A Stitch in Time
Aurea at That Other Blog
Quilt Times
Marcia's Crafty Sewing and Quilting
Patchouli Moon Studio
Quilting by the River

Tuesdays Treasures

It is Tuesdays Treasure time with Melody of the House on the Side of the Hill  so although it is still Monday here in Nova Scotia I thought I would share my treasures for this week , yes I have three treasures , first off my two beautiful granddaughters arrived last evening after a 16+ hour drive ,it is so wonderful to have them here , I don't have a photo of them from today but this is from last summer when they visited .

 Here are the girls helping to make some bread , Caitlin with dough hook in hand and muscles to get that bread mixed up well. Alyssa is waiting to add more flour to the mix once Caitlin stops clowning around ,oh by the way the bread was delicious and if the heat wave leaves we plan on making bread while they are here.  My third treasure came as somewhat of a surprise today in the mail , the letter was addressed to me from my younger granddaughter Nila , so I quickly opened it to find this very special letter inside , it truly filled my heart with joy , so sweet .

This is the note that Nila wrote to me , how special is this , I am wearing a ribbon and have been awarded the cup for #1 Grandma in the world . 

 My grandchildren  call me Gammie , my request as my great grandmother was called by that name and I always liked the sound of it . This little note is a real treasure and is now on my fridge so I can enjoy seeing it . Thanks for stopping by and hope you have some treasures to share today , be sure to stop by and visit with Melody to see what treasures others have to share.
 hugs Sheila

A little change of pace

I needed some play time today so created this little postcard .My raw edge applique leaves a bit to be desired but I did it by FM and it is a little difficult to do on such a small piece plus I realized the interfacing was making it harder to move the fabric along , lesson learned.
 At any rate here is Mr Owl giving you all a Hoot , Hoot !

 My granddaughters are on route to Nova Scotia so I am excited and best go tidy up the house instead of playing ;-) Enjoy your day and thanks for the visit.
hugs Sheila

Time is getting close

Time for what you ask , well my granddaughters and my daughter in law are coming for a visit in just a couple of days , to say I am excited is an understatement , can't wait to give them a big hug . That is the really sad part about living so far from your grandchildren it is too long between visits but we are grateful for those we do get .
Time is also getting close for the Think Christmas blog hop hosted by Lesley of the Cuddle Quilter and Madamme Samm our wonderful Blog host and cheerleader . I will be Thinking  Christmas on the August 1st so be sure to stop by there just may be a little giveaway for you .Want another little sneak peak ?

Can you tell I like snowmen ;-) How am I doing with my Think Christmas you might ask , well I am in the home stretch now , just  a binding or two or maybe three to sew on and I will be all set . I wanted to have this all finished up so I could enjoy my granddaughters visit . Also in August I am heading west to visit my other grandchildren , life is good , can't wait to see them too , much too long since I seen them and they are only young and of course grow so quickly .I will have the opportunity to spend time with two of my three sons while there so that is a huge plus I miss them both so much .
  I went to the Farmers Market this morning and bought a few fresh veggies and eggs and on my way back to the car spotted a really wonderful friend of mine who I have not seen in close to a year so just had to go over and visit with her. Chris had a bag in the car for me , she said it has been in there for quite a while hoping we would bump into each other . Inside the bag was a book and a quilt top she had purchased for me. I will take a photo of the quilt top later to share with you . It is an applique quilt with some of the work done but the person who had started this had obviously taken on a much more difficult task than they realized so gave up the ghost so to speak and now the task is before me. I think it will become a next winters project , perfect for sitting in the evening and stitching on and give me lots of opportunity to practice hand applique . Thanks so much Chris you are the best. Ok I decided to take those photos now while I think of it so here is the quilt top showing just some of the work that has been done and you will get to see the colors being used , I think all of the pieces are in the bag  ,hope so .

Each piece of fabric has a number and the top has been preprinted so you know where to place the pieces ,kind of like paint by number . Here is a photo of the pattern.

 As you can see this is a very complicated pattern , can I do it , well I will give it my best .
  I might as well show you the book Chris so kindly gave me as well .

Thanks for the visit I am off to enjoy this gorgeous sunny day . Hugs
Sheila

WIP Wednesday

Wednesdays sure roll around quickly don't they . I have shared some of the things I have been doing like the beach tote but behind the scenes I have been doing some Christmas sewing but can only give you a sneak peak for now but be sure to come back for the Think Christmas blog hop coming soon to many places that you love thanks to Madamme Samm and the Cuddle Quilter Lesley our friendly hostess for this event.Here is a sneak peak , don't look too close now ;-)

 This little project is complete but again I can't show you just yet just tickling your imagination .

 I received an email telling me there is  a sale at Lucy's, a fabric shop in town and what is a girl to do but go check it out . Since I am taking part in a class in the fall and was looking for fabrics for the jacket I plan on making I figured it was a perfect time to check and see what she had on hand . It was not easy to choose as there are so many gorgeous fabrics on sale ,I might even have to go back but for now this is what I picked up , the photo is really not the best as the fabrics are a much sharper color than showing here . Thanks Sherry for your help in choosing fabrics :-)

The fabrics on the bottom I bought simply because I like them and will not be used in the jacket . 

I am linking up today to the Needle and Threadnetwork be sure to stop by and see what everyone is up to .

 Before I go I wanted to tell you that I made a decision on my RWB blocks from the blog hop , 

I read on Lesleys blog about the need for quilts and quilt blocks by the Phoenix Quilts , to read the history behind this cause be sure to check out this blog and do what you can to help , I have mailed off these six blocks , not a huge contribution but I hope they can be of some use .Thanks to Julie for taking on this monumental task with the help of many more volunteers . Several hundred people lost their homes and Julie has organized the gathering and making of quilts to comfort these people who lost their homes due to fires , so sad . 

 Thanks for the visit.

hugs Sheila

And the winner is !

The Winner of the Red White and Blue blog hop giveaway is ?

I had Bill choose a name from this little fabric basket , I guarantee he mixed them up real good first and here is the name he chose .

Judy 1522 , I added this from her comment so I could distinguish her from other Judy's that commented so congratulations Judy could you please email me your address and I will send off your package asap.
I have no sewing to share with you today as I was off to quilting today but I took these photos of flowers that I just have to share with you.

 Gorgeous color huh!

Such a  soft and delicate pink :-)

A brillant orange lily.

And lastly these adorable little flowers that look similar to daisies only a soft yellow color and they will bloom for a very long time , so sweet.
Thanks for stopping by and again congrats to Judy and thanks to everyone who stopped by the RWB blog hop it sure was a lot of fun .
 Hugs Sheila

Some new treasures :-)

Do you enjoy Flea Markets ? I do but do not often get to attend , however this past Sunday I attended the new market that opened in town and wow there were a lot of people as curious as I was . Just look at what I found

This gorgeous basket , I had never seen a basket this style before ,nor this color , I just love it and thought it would look nice with some old quilts rolled up inside next to my treadle sewing machine.

 At the same table I spied this little gem and when I peaked inside I just had to have that too , you know how it is ;-)

Do you want to know what is inside ?Sure you do .

Filled right to the top with embroidery floss and look at that cross stitch piece , I will share that another time . I bought both pieces from the Pictou County Pickers  , they had some beautiful antiques and told us these baskets came from a home in Halifax , I am so pleased they are now in my home:-)
 We had a much cooler day today with some rain , I am sure my flowers are happy and you know I enjoyed a dull day for a change did some much needed cleaning but no sewing .
 Thanks for the visit and hope to see you soon.
 hugs Sheila

A finish

Only one person was correct as to my sneak peak , so what is it you say , well pictures say a thousand words so best to show you a photo of my finished project , I had a blast making this . I'm giving this old door another work out :-)

Yes Ellie it is another bag , a giant beach bag or tote  with a nautical theme. The stripe fabric is a denim , the waves of course are denim (from an old pair of jeans),the green for the sail boat from that same shirt I used earlier , the sails a fabric I used a while back for a tote and the off white is a denim or light canvas so a very sturdy bag and this one I lined , why would I do that , well I wanted to add these pockets .

 These pockets I took off a pair of overalls and simply resewed them on , I think they give it a neat addition , they are on the inside back lining which I used unbleached cotton . Want a little close up of the applique , my free style drawing of the waves and the boat , well a child could do that but it worked and I think it gave this otherwise plain  bag some life.

 I also made a sturdy bottom so it will hold treasures without sagging. The threadwork on the denim waves as well as the waves coming over the boat were achieved with some aurifil wool thread , first time using this and all I needed was to change the needle to a 16 and it worked like a charm . Wish I had that in other colors that is great stuff. I have to say I am happiest when I am creating something from my own head , it might not take a genius to think this up but for me it is looking at the pieces of fabric that I have on hand and trying to come up with a plan that will work and have enough for that plan , it just gives me a rush , crazy I know but that truly is when I am happy , the world stops for a while and all those aches and pains just disappear :-)
 I hope you enjoyed a great day , I know I did , I had a lovely day at Caribou Beach , Bill was doing an open house at a cottage he has listed and I was the lawn ornament  lol.
 Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of your day.
 hugs Sheila

FNSI Report

It was a hot Friday the 13th , whew , glad that one is behind us but it is going to be another scorcher today by the feel of things. Since I did not complete my project I will just give you a sneak peak but this is what I worked on last night for the FNSI  with Heidi  ,almost finished and loving it so far.

I am having fun , can you guess what it is ? Enjoy your day and hope the sun is shining in your neck of the woods . Thanks for the visit.
hugs  Sheila

Because I can

Strange title isn't it but hey I am in a strange mood today , must be the heat  ;-) Anyway I just wanted to share these photos of Rob ,a lady emailed him these photos that he was not aware she had taken them and I think they are kind of neat and definitely Rob! Rob loves to have fun and always wears a smile :-)

He is having fun there is no doubt about that , Love you Rob and miss you too.

I also have this little finish to share , yesterday I needed something quick to make , it was too hot to be outside so I cut out this small mug rug a pattern from Linda Stubbs of Prairie Flower Farm , just too cute to resist , the original pattern has a quote in the right hand section but I didn't want to take the time to embroider it for this one and I love this little print that my friend Linda gave me a while back and felt it was perfect . This is really a cute mug rug and easy enough to do but I think the next one , and yes there will be a next one I will make a couple of small changes .Ok enough babbling on with a picture .

I love the fact it has this little pocket for the tea and would make such a sweet gift . Off now to enjoy this beautiful day , thanks for stopping by and hope the sun is shining where ever you are.
 Hugs Sheila

WIP Wednesday

The sun is shining and the heat is rising on this Wednesday morning . I really do not do as much sewing in the summer but since I am taking part in the "Think Christmas " blog hop with Madamm Samm and Lesley of the Cuddle Quilter I have spent a little time preparing for that event later this month .I can't give you a full view but here is a sneak peak of what I have been working on , lets see if you can guess what it is :-)

That may be a pretty big clue but oh well you will see it all soon anyway .

Then there is this little piece of work ,perhaps a little more difficult to guess .

I have a couple of others in the works but this will give you enough of a tease and know I am actually working on this blog hop in between making bags , maybe I have been sewing afterall :-) 

 Along with sewing I truly love taking photos and things that fascinate me might not really interest others like this photo I took on the weekend .

 The flowers on the lily pads were just starting to come out , sure wish they had been open but I really could not get close enough without getting realllllllly wet . Then as we were driving along I spotted this very long hedge of white roses , they were the full length of the driveway , it was an incredible sight and the photo does not do it justice at all.

I am fortunate to have a husband who will even ask if I want to stop to take a picture , he knows me pretty well ;-) I always take the camera just incase !

 Since the dust bunnies are multiplying I have to spend at least some time today to clean the house before the extreme heat hits . For now I am linking up to the Needle and Thread Network with Monika , be sure to head on over to see what others have been busy with this week. Thanks for the visit and enjoy your day .
 A little addition to this post , there is a fantastic giveaway over at Connie's blog  for some really gorgeous batiks , be sure to hop on over and enter . 

 hugs Sheila

Bag Number ?

Ok so I am obsessed with bags these days , I admit it , I like making bags now and then and once you get me started my little brain sees more fabrics that scream bag , so...... this fabric which is a sort of soft canvas type fabric , not really sure what it is but it felt like a good weight for a grocery tote but it is a rather dull looking color so what is a girl to do but dress it up ,why shop with something dull when you can have a decorated bag right.

Now you might just recognize that green , yep it is the fabric from the shirt I used in the other bag . I also did this to practice my free motion sewing , a little thread painting to hold the flower on and give it a little life. I really want to learn thread painting and I figure doing it is a good start ,how can I learn if I don't try right.

Now you really might think the girl has lost it as when I was outside I took this picture of a weed , yes a weed but this weed fascinates me ,it is a dainty little flower and just look at those petals , each petal is a heart , now that is special I think.

 I just spent a lovely day quilting with the girls at the church , nice and cool in the church basement , it is a gorgeous day outside today , around 26C. with a nice breeze and not much humidity , perfect , just perfect . Time to get out and enjoy the sunshine , hope you are having a nice day and thanks so much for stopping by.
 hugs Sheila

I just had to do it !

Do you ever have a little fabric left over and just feel the need to use it then and now , well that is what happened to me , I had a little fabric left over from the tote I made last week and I just had to come up with a plan for another tote but since I rarely make the same thing twice I went through my patterns and came across this pattern by Sew Prim Kris ,sorry but I printed this off years ago and there is no web address anywhere on the pattern .I just found the web site and here is the link  If you make it be sure to cut your straps the width of your fabric not 21" .

Now to tell you a little story about the green straps , I had cut the straps the length it stated on the pattern only to find that it was wrong and you guessed it there was no more fabric to make longer straps , what to do now . Well believe it or not these straps were once a blouse ,yep , a bright green blouse that was miles too big for me so I proceeded to cut it apart , you know if you want to deal with some stress just cut a shirt apart , just rip those seams and all that stress goes with it ;-) I then pieced enough of the back to make the straps and had to come up with a pocket so pieced what was left of the pink and mauve pieces and not quite enough , ok lets see that blouse placket , perfect , cut to size stitched on to the front and then added a piece for the backing of the pocket and voila , a pocket with buttonholes premade for me , how cool is that . This pattern has inside pockets as well , here is a photo of that,

There are four pockets the width of the inside of the bag , so lots of storage space . Still the tiniest of pieces left over so I sewed them up into this little card wallet .

Whew that fabric is now gone , yeah , but hey I am on a bag making kick and have another in the works now but with different fabric :-)
 Now to change the subject a little I love taking photos of flowers so I was recently at a friends home and out came the camera to take these photos ,hope you enjoy them.

Is there anything prettier than a pansy ?

A yellow lily perhaps.Now not just flowers have great beauty just look at these leaves.

 Or how about a tree that is decaying ,doesn't sound all that pretty but I really thought it was neat.

Not the best picture of me , I was trying to ward off the mosquitoes that were eating me alive but this is at Caribou Beach and in the distance you can see the Ferry that goes to Prince Edward Island one of my favorite places on this planet.

 I hauled the sweater on to keep the bugs from chewing on me as it was really a lovely evening otherwise. And yes I had shells and rocks in my hands in case you are wondering , I am worse than a kid when I go to the beach .
Thanks for stopping by and hope your day is a special one in every way. hugs Sheila