Christmas is all packed away....

It's always sad to see all the Christmas decorations get put away; but isn't it funny how the house looks so bare, even though that's the way we live all year long? 

The holidays were really busy for us this year, so I am trying to catch up on some of the things that I accomplished.

So, I thought I would share a quilt that I had finished for a customer (Sherry) just before Christmas.  If I remember correctly, she had started this some time ago for a family member and thought that it was time to get it done and gifted. 

To soften all the hard angles, I used Bauhaus panto.  I think this panto did the trick.  I felt the quilt was a contemporary type quilt and this panto is very modern, too.  

Here are some close ups. 

Here it is completed.  The name of the quilt is Gray Square Scramble from Keepsake Quilting.  

This is the back.  It is black, but didn't show up that way in the picture.  

I used a medium gray So Fine top and bottom and I love the way the stitching showed up on the quilt.  

She got this back in plenty of time to bind it and wrap it.

Hmmm...what to report next?

Back in November

I was posting about a shawl that my sister-in-law and I were going to work on together while we were in Houston for the big quilt show.  We were to at least get it started so that we didn't have to struggle with casting on while on the plane.  

We were going to work on Passeggiata.  

I chose these wool yarns while at a Plucky Knitter extravaganza held at Wool and Honey in Cedar, MI.  The color on the left is called Twill and the one of the right is called Brume.

This is where I got mine to before we left for our trip.  

I had gotten a little further along than I planned and that was because I forgot to change thread colors, so after "tinking" (ripping out/knitting backwards), I felt the need to use up the loose threads and then quit there.  

Of course on our trip, we were so busy and so tired at the end of each day, we never picked up our knitting.  The only time I touched it was on the flight back.

Once home, it really didn't take long to complete.  This was a really easy knit.

This is it after blocking.

In looking back at all my photos to find the progression of this shawl, I was amazed at all the "living" that took place over several months.  I thought I was being a slug this year, but there was a lot of knitting, quilting for myself and others, babysitting, holidays, etc.  So I guess I shouldn't feel bad about not getting more accomplished this year.  

Anyways, here's how I am wearing this shawl.  Not the greatest of pictures, but you get the idea.  

I love it and it is so very warm on chilly days.  

Next time I will be posting about some quilting, so stay tuned.  

Happy New Year

A little yarn therapy.....

Spent a couple days at my sister-in-law (Maria)  and brother-in-law's lake house after Christmas; and Maria and I did a little retail therapy in a couple yarn shops. 

At Thistledown Shoppe in Suttons Bay, MI  I found the colors of yarn I was looking for a particular pattern that I have been wanting to do for awhile.  I want to do the hat, the cowl and the mittens.  

The green is by Dragonfly Fibers and the color is called Celery Seed.  It is 100% superwash merino wool.  The raspberry yarn is from Madelinetosh, the Pashmina line and the color is called Coquette.  It is 75% merino wool; 15% silk and 10% cashmere.  

I, also, decided on making some boot cuffs after purchasing some Sorel boots that I thought needed a little umph, so I picked up this pattern along with some yarn.   This yarn is a 100% Extrafine Superwash Merino Wool and the color is called Oleaster.  It is hand dyed and has some slight coffee and cream variations throughout.  

Then we headed over to Traverse City at KnitKnorth (love that place); and the first color I saw when I walked into the door was this luscious lavender.  I didn't know what I would make with it, but I had to find a pattern to warrant buying it.  

This yarn is a Mrs. Crosby yarn and the color is called Monkey Orchid.  It is 75% superwash merino wool, 15 % silk and 10% cashmere.  It is soooo yummy!

Maria says that I have to have matching nail polish when I wear these, so I will have to hunt some of that down, too.  

Anyways, I am home and I am in need of a couple sizes of needles to get a couple of these projects started, so I am sure you can guess where I will be tomorrow morning.  Gotta hit the stores before they are closed for the holiday.  

One and only......

I only had one Christmas gift this year to make as a gift for my dear daughter-in-law.

She asked for a Christmas tree skirt, but didn't know exactly what she wanted in the beginning.

We narrowed it down with some encouragement.

She showed me this 12" block that she found on the Internet and that at least gave me something to work towards.....but, she wanted a white snowflake on a white background with maybe some silver sparkle to it; and she knew she wanted some swirly quilting in the background.

I had to talk her into using some other color than "white" since nothing would have shown up if it were white on white.  All that work would have been for nought.  As it was, I had to quilt this in the dark with a black light just to see where I was, where I had been and where I was going.  

She wasn't too sure about an ice blue but finally relented and said to do what I thought best.  

Well, while in Houston, I found some fat quarters that were in white and light grays that had some silver designs/dots in them.  I could only find the fat quarters and 1 yard of the white with silver dots for the background. 

I got my son to enlarge the 12" block to 40" and thought I would paper piece the whole thing making it super easy to make.  Well, I was so worried about not having enough fabric from each of the fat quarters, that I cut out the designs  (6 each) from each fat quarter.  "sigh"  I didn't cut them out in reverse so that I could paper piece.  Oh well, now I was going to have to make this with templates.

In the meantime, I had to run to the quilt shop here in town to find more fabrics that would go with this.  I found some more light grays with silver running through them and one white with white snowflakes; and I ordered more of the white with silver dots for the background.  

 It was pieced in six sections.  

I pieced this in a  square to make it easy for me to load onto the long arm.  

Silver metallic thread was used in the white areas of the snowflake and white Glide thread which is a very shiny thread was used in the gray areas.  

So Fine white thread was, also, used in the background in the swirly design that she asked for to complete the quilting on this top.  

The the quilting was finished.

Hmmmm...these colors don't look as white as the fabric really is, but you get the gist of it all.  

I quilted this in a circle.and bound it just in time for Christmas.

Surrounding their Christmas tree is their Christmas Village and she was hoping that this would give the appearance of being a mountain with the village at the base of the tree.  

She was happy and said it was all she expected, but not being a sewer just didn't know how to express.  I think between the two of us, we did good.  

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Few more memories from Thelma and Louise's saga......

I am still reveling in the memories of this great trip.

Waco to see Magnolia.

This is one picture that I did not share in the "silos" where a lot of the shopping took place.

Houston to attend thee quilt show.

Here's a upwards shot of a Chihuly chandelier that I thought was great inspiration for a quilt.

Then there was the vendor mall, of course.  

I didn't get away Scott free there, although I was very conscious of having to bring things back on the plane.

I purchased long arm rulers that I have been wanting. 

Just a little fabric for a specific quilt project.

A Christmas Wee One for the stand that I already have. It's a wool project.

A few "needed" doodads.

I couldn't pass up this shawl pin.  Unusual ones are hard to find and I just loved this one. 

Another Christmas wool project.

There were more things purchased at the show (shhh....they are gifts and there were purchases in Waco....more gifts)

Both of my wool projects are now prepped and ready to stitch, but that will be another post when I finally get around to finishing them.  

Then there was the plane ride home.  My sister-in-law and I had brought along knitting projects that we "saved" for this trip, but we found that each night we were so exhausted that no knitting took place until we were on the plane ride home.  

So, now I have my memories and my pictures and longing for time to slow down  so that I can find the time to be creative.   Hopefully my next post will be of my finished wool projects and my knitted project, too.  

There is quilting to do; and the holidays are upon us already.  So time will tell just how much I can get done.