The Goode Huswife . . . Scattering Moments

Two Pinkeeps (The Goode Huswife)

Weeks Straw

NPI Silks 928 and 696

Backing Fabric Jo Morton

Stash Over Dyed Rick Rack

There are times in all our lives when we need a simple, quick stitch.  This simple pincushion by The Goode Huswife has been in my stash for a few years.  Two colors, a repetitive border and primitive lettering with a happy thought was just what I needed.  

Bridal showers, graduation, commissions, weddings, and family visits makes for a very busy time at Thistle Manor.  

During this busy time, simple designs will work best for me.  

(Looks like I need to add a couple more stitches to complete the letter "g" in scattering)

The Ladies are wearing Purple

Auntie M is coming for a visit.

Everyone will be wearing their best spring frock for her visit.

Purple seems to be a popular color for this time of year

Miss Lavender will be wearing the favored color and fragrance.

While the Ladies are choosing their frocks, I have a date with ten million weeds.

Quotes

I cannot count the day complete, 'til needle, thread and fabric meet.

Author Unknown

When life gives your scraps, make quilts

Author Unknown

Blessed are the piecemakers children . . . for they shall inherit the quilts.

Author Unknown

If I stitch fast enough, does it count as aerobic exercise?

Author Unknown

Really, I don't dislike to cook, but what you cook is eaten so quickly.  When you sew, you have something that will last to show for your efforts.

Elizabeth Travis Johnson

Friends are like fabric--you can never get enough

Author Unknown

Sewing:  A creative mess is better than tidy idleness.

Author Unknown

"May all of your ups and downs in life be with a needle and thread.

Author Unknown

Ask not what your fabric can do for you, but what you can do with your fabric

Author Unknown

The First Blooms of Spring

Tennessee Bearded Iris

Solomon's Seal

An abundance of blooms

Japanese Maple

Color so vibrant it looks like red velvet cake

Chartreuse Japanese Maple

Hmm, wonder if I could reproduce this color in a sampler?

Color

Lots of color and scrappiness in this HST (half square triangle) quilt.   Looking forward to adding borders and backing.

Selecting fabrics for the next quilt:  Crosses and Losses, a Civil War quilt

Found these depression era dishes in a junk store.  This pattern is Jadeite/Fire King.  Grandmother Rebecca had some of these dishes.  The nice fresh green color will be used for spring and Easter decorations.

BLACK and BLUE--no photo
Wish I could say I was talking about Blackberries and Blueberries for a fruit cobbler pie.  Nope, black and blue describes me.  Was doing some spring cleaning last week and took a fall.  At the sake of dating myself, does anyone remember Chevy Chase and the opening scenes from Saturday Night Live when Chevy did the fall?  Visualize those scenes in your mind,  I was that graceful.  My fall did provide some comic relief from washing windows.

Spring at Thistle Manor

Spring is life

Spring is hope

So is love and happiness

Spring renews

Without spring, life is forlorn

Spring is nostalgia

after bitter storm

Put spring in your heart

Archie Greenidge

Spring Cleaning and Quilting

Goose Tracks (Raspberry Swirl)

Jo Morton Little Women Club #11

2012

Whoo Hoo!  Add another flimsy quilt for the long armed quilter.  Started this quilt last year as part of the Jo Morton Little Women Club.  I stopped working on it because I could not find sashing fabric.  The red sashing fabric is from Jo's red favorite line.  

I found this HST (half square triangle) quilt on Pinterest and thought it would be a great way to utilize my left over HST from Jo Morton Club #11 projects.  One of the many things I find appealing about this quilt are the borders--the use of larger HST as the first border, the small solid border and then some beautiful Jo Morton fabric for the third border.  Beautiful fabrics and will add such a nice touch to fall decorating. 

This is the beginning of my HST quilt.  Spring cleaning is not a chore when it results in a quilt.



Just In Time

I finished piecing the red bow tie quilt just in time--the backing fabric arrived from Fabric.com.  After languishing in the uncompleted project pile for years, the bow tie quilt is finally pieced!

 I did wash the backing fabric.  Shout's Color Catcher is a keeper--the whites in the fabric are still white.  Yes, there has been more than one laundry disaster at Thistle Manor.  AppleJack says:  "a man has to have a strong constitution and self esteem to wear the "pink" undergarments of shame."

Next on the quilting agenda--another unfinished quilt:  Jo Morton's Goose Tracks.  The Goose Tracks quilt is one of the Jo Morton Little Women Club #11 (2012) which I did not complete.  Famous last Betty words:  should not take long to set the blocks together.   

Today I will be taking a quilting break and doing yard and garden work!  Spring has returned and the weatherman says the day time temps for the next seven days will be in the 70's!  The birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees and the weeds and the aphids are calling my name.  Next Year here I come! 

Come Together

One hundred forty three red bow ties later, it is time to start joining these 5" blocks into a quilt!
I believe I hear the choir in the background singing Handel's Hallelujah.

I am envious (in a healthy way) of those quilters who have flannel walls to arrange their quilts.  At Thistle Manor, I use the floor.  It works pretty well until my consultant aka Miss Callie Mae walks through and rearranges.

The rotary cutter, cutting board and templates are looking forward to a few days off while I join the blocks together and turn those bow ties into a flimsy quilt.

And . . .there is a teeny tiny dent in my red fabric stash.