Thursday, September 12, 2013

Pin It With Me

Hi hi!  Welcome to my day on the Pin It! blog hop!!!  Thanks for visiting :o)  I also want to say THANK YOU!!! to Kristen over at Meadowbrook and Madame Samm at Sew We Quilt for hosting and creating this hop - you ladies ROCK!
 
Here is the list of the lovely bloggers I am sharing my day with, go visit them and show them some bloggy love!!!
 
AnnieOak Designs  woof woof meow!
 
When I saw there was going to be a pin cushion hop, I knew I wanted to do it.  I've been wanting to make my own "pin and bin" for a while and this was the opportunity to do it!  I made a two-piece unit and will definitely be making some more!
 
 
The top portion I filled with rice and need to sew some non-slip shelf liner to the bottom, it slips and slides all over the place! 
 
 
I attached some velcro to the tongue piece on the pin cushion and on the inside of the scrap bin.  The tongue is just long enough to hang down and be convenient, but not too long to get lost under my table.
 
 
I love the fabric too - I've been hoarding the texty fabric and it is perfect for my projects - woof woof meow!
 
 
Now, thanks for visiting!  I hope you enjoyed my little pincushion project, I know I do!  Visit the rest of the bloggers and don't forget to spread the bloggy love!
 
Here's some O love, she says - go check out the rest of the pins!!!
 
 
woof woof meow!
 

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

It's A Sister Thing Swap - Mine Arrived!

It came!  It came!  My It's A Sister Thing Swap from my partner came!  Woo hoo!  Two packages in a week, happy days (more on the other package in another post)!!
 
Michele of Quilts From My Crayon Box is hosting a swap called It's A Sister Thing Swap and I have had a blast so far.  Once I got my partner's name I immediately started stalking her.  So fun to be able to say I was stalking someone without getting weird looks! ;o)  I posted a sneak here and have her box all ready to go, just waiting for the weekend so her package doesn't sit on her porch all weekend long.
 
Now my partner that made me something was a real treat!  I love her blog and her cute little Sonja too (her sewing room antics crack me up).  Can you guess who it is yet?  Well, it was Bea!!!  hee hee.  Bea blogs over at Beaquilter (love the play on her name) and has a bunch of fun stuff - I am a fan of her EQ tutorials which is what drew me to her in the first place.  Now I just know her as a fearless quilter who does her thing and makes learning not look so hard.  She's even managed to pique my interest in those AHHHHs from Hillbilly Handiworks and I don't do hand sewing.
 
So, onto the package.  It was STUFFED.  Didn't think there was that much in the envelope until I pulled it all out and it got a chance to breathe - puffed right up it did!  Here's what she sent my way:
Fun little portfolio made from dog and paw print fabrics - love it!  It is my new idea book for projects.  I usually send myself an email with an idea when I have one on the fly - this way I can write them all in one place and actually see them instead of a list of emails.
She sent along the scraps from the portfolio and four fat quarters - I think my favorite fat quarter is the one on top with the birdies on it.  That is currently being lovingly patted when I walk by my sewing table.  The scraps I am going to make a mug rug with to sit by my machine methinks.
 
This Lazy Girl handbag pattern looks fun!  SewSweetness has one similar to it that I have been eyeballing - now I can try this one out!  She also sent three AHHHHs along - I think I might be hooked.  Grrrrr is what I say to another addiction!
 
Ignore the things in the basket - they were already here.  The basket is one of her that she made out of wrapped laundry line and zig-zagged the edges together.  It fits my notions perfectly next to my machine.  She has one with Sonja in it here - I told her the package could only have been better in Sonja was in it!  ;o)
 
This owl block is too cute no?  It is going to be made into a market bag I have a pattern for.  Those little owls are too funny!
 
Some labels she tried out on her embroidery machine - not too shabby!  One is actually on one of my projects I am sending my partner already :o)
 
I love these fabrics - they are perfect, especially the flowery fabric.  These are both going into my hand sewing kit so I have a mug rug wherever I go and a pin cushion that stays in my kit!
Aren't they all fun?!?!  Some of it is already in use, some has projects already planned for it and the rest is in the wings, waiting for just the right time.  I have to say this swap has been a total blast and I am really glad I participated - it has been a great way to stretch myself and give stuff away (I really like to give things away).
 
I'll post up what I've sent off when my swap partner receives it - next week!  I hope she likes it because I had fun looking for all the right stuff!
 
Here is what I see every once in a while - O can really creep me out!
 
woof woof meow

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Sister Sneak Peak

I can't keep this in - I AM HAVING SO MUCH FUN!  

Michele over at Quilts From My Crayon is hosting a swap called "It's a Sister Thing Swap".  I am having so much fun!  Did I say that already?  

I can't resist posting a peak of what I am working on right now.  Enjoy!


I can't wait for the reveal day!  I can't wait!  I can't wait!  

Happy dance :o)

woof woof meow

Saturday, August 17, 2013

A Velocity Finish!

Hee hee!  Look what I did - a new finish!
 
 
A while back I won one of Sara's giveaways at her blog Sew Sweetness and finally got the nerve to try a bag.  She recommended Velocity Girl as a very beginner friendly pattern so I jumped in.  After the first couple of steps and finishing the front panel, I was hooked -- too. much. fun.
 
 
Aren't the little matryoska dolls cute?  It has eight pockets and a zipper pocket too - my first zipper wasn't scary at all!  hee hee - happy dance :o)
 
And here is some puppy luv with the Velocity Girl - a couple of little dolls who can't keep out of a photo shoot to save their lives!
 
 
 
 
woof woof meow

Thursday, August 8, 2013

Ho Ho Ho with Me Me Me!

Hi hi!  Happy Ho Ho Ho Blog Hop!!!  Thank you so much for hopping with us :o)  First off, thank you to Carol, our Cheery Cheerleader and our Fearless Leader, Madame Samm.  Have you been checking out the other blogs?  Today is the last day and everyone's posts have been fabulous!  Here are the links to the last of us hoppers:
 
Now, on to my little piece.  I drink a lot of water at night - a lot.  The cat loves to get on my nightstand, with her tail straight up in the air and rub up against the lamp, hitting the light pull with her tail and clanking it in the middle of the night.  If I leave my water bottle where it is handy, she knocks it down, usually in the direction of my face, usually early in the wee hours of the morning.  Sweet, sweet child.
 
So, to help me find a place out of the precious pet's way, I needed something to tell me I had put the water bottle down in the right place in the dark.  So, a mug rug was called for.  If I don't hear a clunk when I put the bottle down, I know I've placed it in the right place and can go back to sleep without worrying the little evil elf will try to give me a bath in the dark.
 
This is what happened when I sat down with my scrap bin and embroidery floss.
 
 
Fun huh?  Here's another shot of it under my favorite mug from work (the water bottle is ugly ;) so the mug was brought home for a prettier picture).
 
 
And what is that little glass orb you see?  This one here?
 
 
It is a paperweight I made over at the coast in Lincoln City a few weeks ago when my Mom came up for a visit.  It is all glass and I made it!  There are instructors at the gallery and you can work the glass under their supervision - too fun!  Here is another shot of my mug rug and the paperweight:
 
 
I hope you enjoyed hopping here, I love my mug rug - it is already back in its place :o)  Here is some Molly Cat love.
 
 
woof woof meow

Thursday, July 25, 2013

What I've Been Up To...

Hi hi!  When it gets hot outside, it gets hot in my sewing room - no matter that the AC is on.  Plus, when it is hot, it isn't raining so in Oregon, you don't stay in much.  I know I haven't.  I dumped my iPhone pictures and have a picture heavy post for you to catch you up on what I have been up to (mostly).  Warning: these are phone photos so they aren't the clearest.
 
Put in the irrigation for 9 raised beds and 4 half barrels.
 
Put together two Lifetime Adirondack chairs for the patio.
 
Molly helped.
 
Put together an applique I found at Marbled Arts.
 
Finished piecing the center for Little A's quilt - borders to come.
 
Made vegan samosa filling from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen.
 
Made beefless stew from Fat Free Vegan Kitchen.
 
Ran into Kat VonD at PDX on my way to visit my Mom.
 
Waited in line at the Cheese Board Collective in Berkeley.
 
That line was for this.
 
And this was 5 minutes later.
This was dinner from the Cheese Board - 6 hours in traffic there and back, totally worth it.
 
Made an apple tart.
 
Had some Two Towns Ciderhouse "Rhubarbarian" while watching Game of Thrones - You know nothing Jon Snow!
 
Had a layover in Baltimore.
 
On our way to here.  Emerald Isle, North Carolina.
 
Played in the surf with the kiddos the first night.
 
Ate breakfast like this every day - for a week (ignore the beer cans the boys have).
 
Went to bed with this every night.
 
Made a retirement gift - messenger bag of my own design with the pony pattern from Regina.
 
Went to the beach (in Oregon) with Josh and the girls - they're waaaaaay back there.
 
Here they come.
 
Almost here!
 
Here we come Mom!
 
Oh wait, the water!
 
Ok, cold enough.
 
Throw the bumper Dad!
 
Sat while the dogs watched us eat lunch.
 
Ate ice cream while O passed out in our laps.
 
Made Veggie Ramen.
 
Picked 33 pounds of blueberries at Springbank Farm here in Lebanon.
 
Dug up a ton of roots and bark dust.
 
To put down sand and lay stone.
 
Shamed Annie - not even ripe yet!!!
 
Made a blueberry pie.
 
Made a glass paperweight at Jennifer L Sears Glass Art Studio in Lincoln City.
And more.  Just gonna have to find the pictures.  Here's a little bit of what Molly does when I work in the yard.
You'd think I put these chairs together for her.  She did help I guess...
woof woof meow!