Oldies but goodies

I have become enamored with Vintage sheets. I had a few sheets, but after seeing some quilts made up in blog land, I've been more on the hunt for them.

This quilt sent me over the edge and gave me a goal -

Anyone Can Quilt 

And vintage sheets reign on this blog -

The Vintage Sheet Blog 

So take a look. You may fall in love. As for me, I found these two pillowcases recently.Vintage sheets are getting harder and harder to find in our area. Maybe everyone else is falling in love with these soft lovely oldies.

Have a happy quilting day!

Old Sewing Machines

Don't you just love old sewing machines??

The Sewing Machine Man had a display at a recent Quilt show.

He takes old sewing machines and refurbishes them.

He had quite a nice collection of old sewing machines and toy sewing machines.

This one was my favorite.

It sometimes makes me wish these machines could talk :-)

Happy Quilting!

With Every Breath - a book review

Memorable! That would be my first comment on reviewing Elizabeth Camden's book "With Every Breath". This is my first time reading any of Ms Camden's books and it was well worth reading. I often read a fiction book but in the end have been left with little to ruminate on. Not so with this book. I loved the story, I loved the characters, I loved the way Ms Camden worked her plot from the beginning when Kate and Trevor are classmates in school. Their diligence, competitiveness and academic excellence pave the way to showcase how difficult it was treating chronic and critical illnesses in the 1800's.I found it interesting that Ms Camden was inspired to write this book after reading about a doctor who had contracted tuberculosis while treating his dying brother. A quote by Dr Trudeau in the historical notes - "I have learned that the conquest of Fate is not by struggling against it, but by acquiescence; that it is often through men that we come to know God; that spiritual courage is of a higher type than physical courage; and that it take s a higher type of courage to fight a losing rather than a winning fight" 

Although this story is fiction, I was captivated with the extent of Trevor's dedication to finding a cure for this disease. Trevor and Kate are a perfect match in their determination and fire. He in holding his emotions close, and Kate in holding onto her fears.

This book was provided for review by Bethany House for my honest review. I plan to read Elizabeth Camden's other books. If they are anything like"With Every Breath", I have found an author that has the ability to capture my attention and draw me into the lives of her characters. I don't think you would be disappointed.

Flea Market pattern

 Several years ago, my sister in love finished two Flea Market Fancy quilts. We found this scrappy pattern on crazy mom quilts blog site Crazy Mom Quilts. I love Amanda Jean's quilts. She is so creative and always has an interesting blog. Plue she has lots of great patterns and tutorials posted.  I read her posts every day.

Look at how pretty my SIL's pink quilt turned out!



















I made the blocks and they sat in my ufo pile for a long time.  But I finally got around to putting it together and finished for my niece.

I decided not to add the sashing, and sewed all the blocks together.  

I like how it turned out.  And so did my niece :-)

Happy Quilting!

Bread for the Journey

A Name

You know that sometimes a name will conjure up pictures in your mind. Past experience will start the mind computer and run the video.

A rose will conjure up this -


For sewers the name Bernina brings something like this to mind -

Summertime

Summertime, and the living is easy............
Or so the song goes. Summertime. What does it bring to mind? Sunshine, gardens, mowing lawns, corn on the cob, watermelon, beaches, vacations. There's so much to enjoy in the summertime.

At the beginning of every summer, our family would trot up to the mountains. 

We attended an annual homeschooling conference and then would spend a few days in the cool mountains near Bryson City. My in laws had a very tiny trailer parked between Bryson City and Cherokee. The children always enjoyed our time at the trailer. There was a creek that ran close by, so the boys would bounce down in search of any kind of critter or special rock. We would rent those great big tires and float down Deep Creek! One year we rode the Smoky Mountain train. We'd watch the rafters as they would bob down the rough Nantahalla River. Of course we'd drive over to Dillard and Franklin to take in the shops. Such sweet summer memories. Do you have any special summer memories??

Bread for the Journey

A few weeks ago my hubby and I were on a short trip.  While we drove we talked about days past, when things were tight and our budget was small. In all of our struggling days there is one thing that was ever constant. The Lord always provided us with food on the table and a dollar for our bills. My fondest memory is when the children (who were quite small at the time) prayed and prayed for a truck for their Daddy.

A relative lent us a truck so dh could drive to a job. One day dh decided that he needed to return the borrowed truck and use our car. After dropping off the truck, we all climbed into my car and drove home. Dh packed his tools into the car and took off. Less then 10 minutes later I heard the doorbell ring. My first thought was that dh had forgotten something and came back to pick it up. By the time I got to the door there was no one there, but I saw an old truck in the driveway. And there was an envelope stuck in the Christmas wreath on the front door. Inside the envelope was a note, a key, and a car title. The note said "From some folks who love you. Merry Christmas". My children were jumping for joy as they saw that their little prayers had been answered. Now this old truck was by no means a luxury. It had holes in the floorboard, no A/C and lots of rust. But this little truck was such a blessing to my dh and myself, as he was able to use it for work for several years.

I share this little story because  have friends who are missionaries in the Ukraine. A young family with five little children. Scott called us once to give us an update on how things are going there (thanks Skype). He is such an expressive young man. He shared how his little children had been praying that the Lord would meet their needs. He shared with me that he only had about $4.00 in his pocket on a particular day. And on that particular day, their needs were met! God answered their heartfelt prayers. Scott has a big job ahead of him. There are so many needs for the people in the Ukraine. They are a people without hope, and Scott's little family has given up their life here in America to help those in need. If you have a minute, I think you would enjoy taking a look at their website.

Quilt shop finds

Sometimes you don't buy fabric when you go to a quilt shop. Sometimes there are other things that draw you in.

Like -

and -

Happy Quilting!

Organizing

Organization is something that I really have to work at. It just isn't one of my gifts. But I would like to share a few things that helps me to be a little more organized in my sewing area.

I think we all collect a healthy assortment of patterns as we make our way through this quilting adventure. Not only do I have patterns that I've purchased at the LQS, but I have also downloaded patterns from my computer. So what to do with all of these dreams in the making.

I came across this file folder which has worked really well for my collection. Comes in very handy for paper patterns.

Of course it is fun to use pretty folders.

Who said we had to use plain old office manila folders?

Perfect for storing individual patterns as well.

Another great tool for organizing. I like going vertical as it frees up work space.

I found this storage unit at Target on clearance. It's also handy to carry if you need certain notions for a class.

My collection of scissors grows. And everyone in my household knows that if they use my fabric scissors......... well, they might walk the plank! I try to keep my craft scissors and fabric scissors separated. I found the little green garden holder and the jumbo pencil cup at the office supply store.

Whenever I find these magazine organizers at the thrift stores, I swoop them up.  It's a great way to have them organized. These plastic magazine holders can be pretty dirty, but I've found that I can put them in the bottom rack of the dishwasher, and they come out good as new :-)

For years I have cut out patterns from magazines, or downloaded and printed them off of the computer. I like putting them in a clear sleeve and into a notebook which is a wonderful way to store them. It's fun to take out the notebook and browse through for creative ideas.

A slotted wooden ruler holder is a great idea, but I really did not have a good place to set one up. So instead I just put a nice long nail (thanks dear hubby) into the wall and hang my acrylic rulers in an out of the way place. Most rulers have a hole to accommodate such a feat.

I'd love to hear your organizing tips as well!

Have a great quilting day!

Sew Darn Crafty

One little project

I've been working on a big project lately and have not had much time for sewing or quilting.  But I found these little pieces of fabric that were left over from a quilt I made.  I love to make pincushions, so I thought, hey, why not!!

You can never have enough pincushions, right?

Enjoy a Happy Quilting day!

Can I Get a Whoop Whoop!