ACTION!

Ready!


Set! er..uh...Strip Sets!


SUBCUT!


Strips sets are done....ready for some subcutting ACTION! But tomorrow is back to work...so there will be occasional subcutting in the evenings. Wouldn't it be awesome if I got this all put together by the end of next weekend!? It's good to have a goal!

*Peace!

Crisp, Clean & Done!

I forced a second wind last night and finished up my version of the lattice quilt.


I'm loving that faded jade gray/green with the white.


Crisp, clean and done! This one is going in the handquilt pile. I'll have to sift thru my stencils and see if I have something that will work. It's a small twin...64x72 or there abouts. I think I can manage that one. It's the basting that sucks, but once that's done, I do enjoy the handquilting! I think I'll check around and see what a longarm quilter would charge to baste some quilts for me. Anyone have any idea on pricing for that service? I've got a stack...and I'm prepared to send them. ;o)

Next up....enough with the 2 color quilts. I'm going to go THREE color! Wooohoo! ;o)


There was yet another quilt I have been drooling over in that issue of Antique Quilts. I'm ready.

But today...I will be tidying up around the house before I can cut. The cutting of the quilt is my reward for doing some cleaning today. I better get busy with the dusting!!

Have a great Saturday!

*Peace!

Thrifty Thursday!

Just a couple finds this week...nothing major...but hang with me and there is a GIVEAWAY at the end!!! Happy Thursday!!!!

The pyrex keeps jumping in to my cart! Picked this mixing bowl up for $3


I love the pyrex mixing bowls. A lot. I would love to find the largest bowl...in red. Reminds me of fudge! Growing up...the large red pyrex mixing bowl was ALWAYS used to mix the fudge at Christmas time. Always. I don't remember it being used for anything else...but ALWAYS the fudge!! This one is the middle size bowl...which I didn't have. So a fun find!

And to satisfy my earthy pottery tic...


Isn't it lovely? Covered casserole. It's about 10" across...nary a crack or chip! And it's heavy! and signed. LOVE this! $5

And then I found this.


A Dinner Without Wine is Like a Day Without Sunshine. Wilton Armetale wine coaster! Actually...I found TWO of these...identical!! Each was a mere .75 !!! Of course I grabbed both! That's because I'm going to give one of them away!!

If you're interested in bringing the wine coaster home, just leave a comment here and let me know what you deem to be your favorite wine! This will be fun! I'll get suggestions for wines to try, and someone will win the wine coaster! Feel free to tell your friends, and then be sure and come back NEXT Thursday and I'll announce the winner!

Happy Thursday! And as always, thanks so much for stopping by!

*Peace!

Lattice Quilt Progress

Over the weekend, I worked some more on the latest quilt in progress.


The inspiration...an antique quilt pattern called Lattice. Lovely in red and white! But I have another red and white quilt in my mind, and really wanted to use one of the lovely Moda Bella Solids.

So I went with this lovely gray-green/jade color.


Paired with a crisp white, it's been fun to work on! I should have it all put together and pressed this coming weekend.


But since the work week is now in progress, the quilt must remain that way as well...in progress. Soon it will be done though!

*Peace!

Cherub MakeUnder

Remember my one dollar plaster cherub purchase from a while back?


Wooo! She was sporting the glam! Lots of pearly sheen and gold wings...a little too much bling bling for me and my home!

So this weekend it was time for a MakeUNDER! I had originally intended to use blog reader Paula's wonderful idea of distressing and painting her black. I went down and pulled out the aforementioned (prior post) old and decaying paint stash, but didn't find any black or burgundy or dark red...nor did I have any beeswax candles in the house.

But I DID find an unopened bottle of Patina Blue Antiquing Solution! EUREKA! I had an idea!

When I was at Michaels' getting the Tuscan Red paint for the Ransburg cookie jar ops, I also picked up a bottle of metallic copper paint.

I coated the lovely little cherub in copper paint, and then began the multiple layer application of the Patina Blue.


It took a while...but eventually...


the verdigris began to show!


I really like the way it turned out.


I sprayed it with a clear satin finish spray....


but that also came from the old and decaying paint stash, so not sure if it's doing it's job.


Once I got it hung up, it appeared that some of the verdigris was maybe lost in handling. So there may be one more layer of Patina Blue to be applied and perhaps I'll splurge on a new can of clear satin polyurethane spray!


I think the cherub deserves that. Don't you?

*Peace!

Operation "Restore Ransburg Pottery" Complete!

Hello and happy Sunday! Hope you're enjoying the weekend! I certainly have been! You may remember I had some 'plans'...some 'things to do' this weekend! So far so good!

I got to babysit sweet Avery for about an hour last evening! Here she is sitting in my chair...


she had just upchucked on my shoulder so I sat her down to wipe it off and then grabbed the camera. The child has GOT to get used to the paparazzi...ha! She's getting so big!

After mama & daddy came and picked her up, I got busy with the cookie jar restoration!

You may remember we are starting with this...


since I washed all the paint off while 'cleaning' the piece! EEEEK! I thought this was a piece of Mexican pottery, but have since discovered it is, in fact, a Ransburg Pottery cookie jar. DANG!

Earlier in the day I stopped at Michaels craft store and picked up a little bottle of Tuscan Red craft paint. I didn't have any red in my old, decaying paint stash, so I ponied up the $1.79 and got busy. It was still too bright...so I added in some brown, mixed it up...


yep...that's the color I'm looking for! Not quite the poppy orange/red from the original piece, but I do love me some red, so I coated the whole piece...trying (albeit in vain) to avoid the floral design on the front. Ended up getting that a little messy. But the asters were also sorta washed away in my cleaning gusto...so I whipped out the old, decaying paint stash...


Yes I know...some of those are really old bottles of fabric paint! I was making do!

I channeled my inner Bob Ross and got to mixing to try and get close to the colors of the asters.


I was okay with the touchups....and set it outside to dry. A coat of clear satin finish followed.


Once dry, I whipped out the brown shoe polish. I still wanted this to look old!


I only rubbed the section with the asters....
getting that brown shoe polish in the crevices of the aster petals. I still left some of the old peeling paint.


Back outside for another couple spray coats of clear satin finish...so that when I have to clean this sucker again the paint doesn't come off!

All in all I'm pleased with the end results! It's a little different than the original....this is what I brought home...


and THIS is what I was left with after I cleaned it...


and THIS is what I have now!


I'm calling Operation "Restore Ransburg Pottery" complete!

Come back tomorrow and see what happened with the plaster cherub dude! Still a work in progress...as is the quilt!

*Peace!

Weekend Plans

Checking in on this fine (albeit blistering HOT) Saturday. Here's part of my weekend plans!

"Fix" or "Restore" this.


I think I can do it. We shall see!

Repaint and distress this.


Paula gave me such great instructions for her technique. I hope it turns out!

Put in some time at the machine working on this.


Maybe that's where I'll be during tonight's Cowboys game...in the sewing room...game on the TV and foot to the pedal..pedal to the metal!

And of course always hope to get a glimpse of this.


She's such a cute little bugger! This pic was last weekend...mama Amber was off to the right talking to her. Surely put a glowing smile on Avery's sweet little face!

I hope you enjoy your Saturday..and your weekend, too, for that matter! Whether you have plans or not!

*Peace!

Thrifty Thursday!

This week....I found another project! YAY! Hoping to gain some great insight on this one!

Isn't it lovely??? **EDIT: It's RANSBURG POTTERY!!! Thanks everyone for the info!**


It's large...maybe a cookie jar? Not sure but I loved it the moment I saw it! Mexican perhaps?


Look at that color!!

and for a couple bucks, it came home.


Once home, it was determined that the thing was FILTHY!


with a capital F! Definitely in need of cleaning! So I got to work.


and this is when the project begins.

Look what happened.


Booohooohoooo!!!! :o(((


Honestly I am not strong...I did not put a ton of muscle in to this. I let it soak. And the color disappeared! :o(( Even the purple that was on the flowers faded.

This makes me very sad.

Very very sad.

I'm thinking of finding some of that lovely red/poppy color and trying to repaint the thing. And then I will SEAL it, because I don't think, obviously, that it was sealed. *sigh*

I hope it's not ruined. Because I *REALLLLLY* want it to look like this again...


Since Paula was so nice to comment back on my cherub find and how to do a fantastic faux finish on it(Thank you SO MUCH for that info, Paula!), I'm hopeful one of you smart readers will have some idea on how I can get this back to how it looked before. But not dirty. Just poppy red.

Anyone?

I've got two projects now! Perhaps I'll tackle both this weekend!!

*Peace!

Staying Out of Trouble

You know what they say about idle hands.......

I have no time to find trouble...or to sit idle and let trouble find me! Here's what I've been up to the past few days...

If I'm not kissing these sweet little toes...


Then I've been knitting.

On this.


It's the 3 Way Wrap....project found on Ravelry. I was going to link to it, but wouldn't ya know...Ravelry is down at the moment. Super simple...I'm enjoying the Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky and the lovely lovely ebony Lantern Moon needles. Perfect combo! And just WAIT til you see the buttons I found for it!

When I'm not knitting....I'm usually taking up space in front of the Bernina. I started another quilt this past weekend.


Another two-color quilt. Monotonous sewing...mindless too. It works for now! I'll show more as progress is made!

And then...as if I don't already have enough projects started, I couldn't stand it and last night I started this.


*SIGH* Another sampler started. This one was a kit...Abigail Brown from The Examplarery. Not toooo big...I thought it was okay to start another. And that's what I'm going to work on tonight....Abigail is calling! Not to mention after a day at the office, I really just want to sit here, needle in hand, and chill!

Hope you're finding time to chill!

*Peace!

Serious Cuteness

**We interrupt our regularly scheduled blogging to bring to you some serious cuteness.**

I did a little Grammy/Avery bonding (ahem..otherwise known as babysitting) last week.


She was so fun! And alert! Cuteness!

Then the kids came over Thursday evening....and miss Avery was fast asleep. Serious in her sleeping. But oh my gosh...they had brushed her hair, parted it, and put a barrette in it.


Serious...she was ever so serious during her slumber.


Serious cuteness. 6 weeks, over 9 lbs and gaining...love those chubby cheeks!

**This concludes our fawning over little miss Avery. I now return you to our regularly scheduled blogging.**

*Peace!