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