A Completed Gift

One small handmade gift was completed in time for gift giving. Per the previous posting, this is a wool ornament in a mitten shape which was perfect for holding a gift card. It was given to a young skating instructor.

There may be more wool in future projects as I enjoyed working with with this material.

Happy New Year!

Jill

Linking with Finish It up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

A Completed Gift

One small handmade gift was completed in time for gift giving. Per the previous posting, this is a wool ornament in a mitten shape which was perfect for holding a gift card. It was given to a young skating instructor.

There may be more wool in future projects as I enjoyed working with with this material.

Happy New Year!

Jill

Linking with Finish It up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

Last Minute Gift Giving

This weekend I am sewing a cute little wool project for gift giving.

A wool mitten with a skate applique. It is part of a kit that was purchased at the Fall Paducah AQS Quilt Show. It can be an ornament, gift tag or decoration. The small wool project is working up rather quickly (a good thing this week).

This particular wool mitten will be a gift card holder as a thank you to my granddaughter's skating instructor. 

It is a small goal accomplished to finish a project purchased at a quilt show.  If you have time, see what others are making with Kathy at another great Slow Sunday Stitching. 

Jill 

Should you be interested in similar kits for next year, they are available at Rachel's of Greenfield. I have no connection with Rachel.

Last Minute Gift Giving

This weekend I am sewing a cute little wool project for gift giving.

A wool mitten with a skate applique. It is part of a kit that was purchased at the Fall Paducah AQS Quilt Show. It can be an ornament, gift tag or decoration. The small wool project is working up rather quickly (a good thing this week).

This particular wool mitten will be a gift card holder as a thank you to my granddaughter's skating instructor. 

It is a small goal accomplished to finish a project purchased at a quilt show.  If you have time, see what others are making with Kathy at another great Slow Sunday Stitching. 

Jill 

Should you be interested in similar kits for next year, they are available at Rachel's of Greenfield. I have no connection with Rachel.

Slow Santa Stitching

The needlepoint Santa that I am stitching for a gift is going way too slow.... I filled in some spots today and plan to stitch the red dots on the white gift.

With only two weeks to go, I am becoming realistic on my inability to finish before Christmas. I forgive myself as other holiday family doings have come along that are also a priority. In the past week, I hosted our family's annual gingerbread house decorating party. Hint: teens will continue to attend as long as you feed them ;-)

We toured the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House with its Christmas decorations welcoming holiday visitors. It is open to the public year round and is a place I highly recommend touring should you be in the Metro Detroit area.

Edsel & Eleanor Ford House

2017 Holiday Tree at the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House

Hopefully, others are making better progress with Kathy on Slow Sunday Stitching.

Jill

Slow Santa Stitching

The needlepoint Santa that I am stitching for a gift is going way too slow.... I filled in some spots today and plan to stitch the red dots on the white gift.

With only two weeks to go, I am becoming realistic on my inability to finish before Christmas. I forgive myself as other holiday family doings have come along that are also a priority. In the past week, I hosted our family's annual gingerbread house decorating party. Hint: teens will continue to attend as long as you feed them ;-)

We toured the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House with its Christmas decorations welcoming holiday visitors. It is open to the public year round and is a place I highly recommend touring should you be in the Metro Detroit area.

Edsel & Eleanor Ford House

2017 Holiday Tree at the Edsel & Eleanor Ford House

Hopefully, others are making better progress with Kathy on Slow Sunday Stitching.

Jill

Santa Stitching

Today stitching will continue on the needlepoint Santa ornament. Some progress was made this past week.

Work has begun on his hat and beard, fur trim, and gift. As each section is completed, Santa is coming to life.

The past few days I was sidetracked by going to an estate sale and antique show. Coincidentally, I "found" other Santas that just had to come home with me. 😊

Another found treasurer was a hand stitched needlepoint eyeglass case which will hold my drug store "readers / magnifiers" nicely.  The lady made clever use of her leftover persain wool.  I don't have to make a case and the colorful scrappy fibers make it easy to find.

Therefore, today I will join Kathy and others at Slow Sunday Stitching to finish in time for Christmas gift giving.

Enjoy your Sunday,

Jill

Santa Stitching

Today stitching will continue on the needlepoint Santa ornament. Some progress was made this past week.

Work has begun on his hat and beard, fur trim, and gift. As each section is completed, Santa is coming to life.

The past few days I was sidetracked by going to an estate sale and antique show. Coincidentally, I "found" other Santas that just had to come home with me. 😊

Another found treasurer was a hand stitched needlepoint eyeglass case which will hold my drug store "readers / magnifiers" nicely.  The lady made clever use of her leftover persain wool.  I don't have to make a case and the colorful scrappy fibers make it easy to find.

Therefore, today I will join Kathy and others at Slow Sunday Stitching to finish in time for Christmas gift giving.

Enjoy your Sunday,

Jill

Santa Stitching and Fall Paducah

I am happy to join Kathy at Slow Sunday Stitching and others today after a posting absence. In the meantime, I have been sidetracked from quilting by needlepoint. Today I will be adding stitches to a small hand painted Santa canvas which will be a gift for my DIL.

It's an ornament size measuring five inches tall.  Santa's suit is stitched with red Very Velvet needlepoint thread. If I work on a section a day, it will be done in time for Christmas.....

Since my last post, I was fortunate to have been able to go on my first bus tour group to Paducah for AQS's first Fall Show. It was a wonderful show and well worth a full day of travel.  A highlight was seeing Teresa Rawson and her award winning quilt, Contentment.  A bonus was that I happened to be there when she was interviewed by Bonnie Browning.

The people of Paducah are some of the friendliest people I have meet in one town. Our tour director made it possible to meet none other than The Quilt Man himself.

So many stunning and intricate quilts. There were plenty of vendors to purchase items that are not always available in the LQS. A variety of fat quarters, modern to repros, came home with me. I am favoring the repro cheddars as they are hard to find.

Enjoy your Slow Sunday Stitching,

Jill

P.S. Today I learned about Stitchery Link Party hosted by Super Mom No Cape. I shall be hand stitching over there also.

Santa Stitching and Fall Paducah

I am happy to join Kathy at Slow Sunday Stitching and others today after a posting absence. In the meantime, I have been sidetracked from quilting by needlepoint. Today I will be adding stitches to a small hand painted Santa canvas which will be a gift for my DIL.

It's an ornament size measuring five inches tall.  Santa's suit is stitched with red Very Velvet needlepoint thread. If I work on a section a day, it will be done in time for Christmas.....

Since my last post, I was fortunate to have been able to go on my first bus tour group to Paducah for AQS's first Fall Show. It was a wonderful show and well worth a full day of travel.  A highlight was seeing Teresa Rawson and her award winning quilt, Contentment.  A bonus was that I happened to be there when she was interviewed by Bonnie Browning.

The people of Paducah are some of the friendliest people I have meet in one town. Our tour director made it possible to meet none other than The Quilt Man himself.

So many stunning and intricate quilts. There were plenty of vendors to purchase items that are not always available in the LQS. A variety of fat quarters, modern to repros, came home with me. I am favoring the repro cheddars as they are hard to find.

Enjoy your Slow Sunday Stitching,

Jill

P.S. Today I learned about Stitchery Link Party hosted by Super Mom No Cape. I shall be hand stitching over there also.

Knitting Goal Met

This afternoon I slowly knitted the crown of a pink newborn hat that I have been working on the past several weeks. It has been my Slow Stitching Sunday goal. The slow part was switching from a circular needle to DPNs. I found it to be a personal challenge.

With a satisfactory result after several previous not-so-good hat attempts, I'm going to take a hat knitting break and find another needlework project. Knitting in the round on a circular needle is relaxing; the DPNs are cumbersome. Next time I will try the magic loop method for decreasing.

Happy Labor Day to us in the States and our Canadian neighbors.

Jill

Knitting Goal Met

This afternoon I slowly knitted the crown of a pink newborn hat that I have been working on the past several weeks. It has been my Slow Stitching Sunday goal. The slow part was switching from a circular needle to DPNs. I found it to be a personal challenge.

With a satisfactory result after several previous not-so-good hat attempts, I'm going to take a hat knitting break and find another needlework project. Knitting in the round on a circular needle is relaxing; the DPNs are cumbersome. Next time I will try the magic loop method for decreasing.

Happy Labor Day to us in the States and our Canadian neighbors.

Jill

Still Knitting

Making a knitted newborn hat has become a ongoing challenge for me. The light pink hat per last week's Slow Sunday Stitching got messed up somewhere along a row while switching to DPNs from a circular. Lol.

Instead of trying to fix it and become frustrated, I chose a darker pink yarn to make a new hat. Psychological, it did not feel like I was knitting a redo ;-)  This hat had a better result, but some of my decreases had a mind of their own.  Oh, and those holes along the crown is enough for baby to loose heat.

More consistent tension is another goal. Knitting on circulars is relaxing and makes for a convenient, easy portable project. I am not going to give up nor am I ready for stripes.

Third attempt will start today on the patio while I watch our hummingbird before he/she migrates south. May you enjoy your slow stitching.

Jill

Still Knitting

Making a knitted newborn hat has become a ongoing challenge for me. The light pink hat per last week's Slow Sunday Stitching got messed up somewhere along a row while switching to DPNs from a circular. Lol.

Instead of trying to fix it and become frustrated, I chose a darker pink yarn to make a new hat. Psychological, it did not feel like I was knitting a redo ;-)  This hat had a better result, but some of my decreases had a mind of their own.  Oh, and those holes along the crown is enough for baby to loose heat.

More consistent tension is another goal. Knitting on circulars is relaxing and makes for a convenient, easy portable project. I am not going to give up nor am I ready for stripes.

Third attempt will start today on the patio while I watch our hummingbird before he/she migrates south. May you enjoy your slow stitching.

Jill

Relaxed Knitting

I am delighted to be able to share my simple knitting project today with Slow Stitching Sunday hosted by Kathy. Since she is up to hosting her popular weekly link up, she may be on the road to recovery. If she can host, the least I can do is write a post. Thanks, Kathy, for your motivation.

It is enjoyable to be knitting a pink newborn hat for charity. It is especially rewarding and relaxing after several failed attempts. I will spare you the frustrating details, however, they included DPNs, straight needles (required a seam), too-long circular needles, magic loop, and incorrect needle size for specific yarn. Did I mention knitting up a gauge swatch was beneath me. Tsk, tsk. Soon I became obsessed in mastering a baby hat.

Therefore, back to knitting basics such as following the pattern with the correct yarn and needle size.  A gauge swatch was made. Success. Next a trip to my LYS with hopes of finding a shorter length circular needle. Another success. Bonus was the moral support and advice provided by LYS (somethings you can't get online). I am using ChiaoGoo circular needles bamboo size 6 with a 16-inch length. Initially, the cast-on (64 stitches) and first two rows seemed a bit tight, however, the stitches soon relaxed as I did also. It has been smooth knitting ever since.

The simple easy-to-follow pattern is written by Heather Wells. Click HERE for pattern. As you can see, I am making a solid color version. Knitting two-color stripes can wait for the second hat. Lol. Yarn is Cascade Superwash 220 which is quality yarn and soft for my knitting fingers, but more importantly, soft for baby's head.

Stay tuned on when the results when I am forced to use DPNs for crown shaping. Since I won't be starting the pattern with them, I think I shall be okay. Any suggestions and/or advice is appreciated.

Smooth stitches,

Jill

Relaxed Knitting

I am delighted to be able to share my simple knitting project today with Slow Stitching Sunday hosted by Kathy. Since she is up to hosting her popular weekly link up, she may be on the road to recovery. If she can host, the least I can do is write a post. Thanks, Kathy, for your motivation.

It is enjoyable to be knitting a pink newborn hat for charity. It is especially rewarding and relaxing after several failed attempts. I will spare you the frustrating details, however, they included DPNs, straight needles (required a seam), too-long circular needles, magic loop, and incorrect needle size for specific yarn. Did I mention knitting up a gauge swatch was beneath me. Tsk, tsk. Soon I became obsessed in mastering a baby hat.

Therefore, back to knitting basics such as following the pattern with the correct yarn and needle size.  A gauge swatch was made. Success. Next a trip to my LYS with hopes of finding a shorter length circular needle. Another success. Bonus was the moral support and advice provided by LYS (somethings you can't get online). I am using ChiaoGoo circular needles bamboo size 6 with a 16-inch length. Initially, the cast-on (64 stitches) and first two rows seemed a bit tight, however, the stitches soon relaxed as I did also. It has been smooth knitting ever since.

The simple easy-to-follow pattern is written by Heather Wells. Click HERE for pattern. As you can see, I am making a solid color version. Knitting two-color stripes can wait for the second hat. Lol. Yarn is Cascade Superwash 220 which is quality yarn and soft for my knitting fingers, but more importantly, soft for baby's head.

Stay tuned on when the results when I am forced to use DPNs for crown shaping. Since I won't be starting the pattern with them, I think I shall be okay. Any suggestions and/or advice is appreciated.

Smooth stitches,

Jill

Disappearing 4 Patch

A new quilt has begun and is up on the design wall.

Four blocks done and so far so good. A collection of reds and whites are going to be used for a unified scrappy look. Originally, the lights were going to be low-volume red and whites; however, they were difficult to find.

After "auditioning" different ones, I decided that I preferred white for clear contrast and continuity. Think of Minnie's white spots on red. :-)

I had to use self-discipline on starting this quilt (or any other that are on my bucket list-LOL) until I completed my previous quilt (see previous post).

Linking With
Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts

Design Wall Monday with Judy at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Scraptastic Tuesday with Mrs. Sew & Sow

Works in Progress at Esther's Blog

Jill

Disappearing 4 Patch

A new quilt has begun and is up on the design wall.

Four blocks done and so far so good. A collection of reds and whites are going to be used for a unified scrappy look. Originally, the lights were going to be low-volume red and whites; however, they were difficult to find.

After "auditioning" different ones, I decided that I preferred white for clear contrast and continuity. Think of Minnie's white spots on red. :-)

I had to use self-discipline on starting this quilt (or any other that are on my bucket list-LOL) until I completed my previous quilt (see previous post).

Linking With
Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts

Design Wall Monday with Judy at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts
Scraptastic Tuesday with Mrs. Sew & Sow

Works in Progress at Esther's Blog

Jill