Ocean Waves Quilts

winter slowdown............

In the above pic ture is granddaughter Raelynn, now 8, and her brother Camden, who is 3.

I don't know about all of you, but I am finally starting to wind down! Every year I say I am going to slow down at Christmas, and it seems to always be a whirlwind. It is "good kind of busy" but BUSY!

I got to see the cutie patooties just before Christmas. I have made all of my grandkids quilts, but they really love these fleece tied blankets. I thought it was time for them to have new ones, and you can see by the expressions they really love them. I made these bigger, using 2 yards of fleece. Its a good time to get the fleece on sale, as 4  yards of fleece can get expensive. I think I made 8 of these throughout the year for the kids on my list.
This is cousin Kevin Junior, ( called Junior). Is he going to be a big boy! He is 5 months old!Another cutie patootie to add to the group, lol.
The newest cutie, is Cayden, my new grandson.
Here is Riley, with her new blanket, she snuggled it right away.
When Raelynn was asked what type of blanket she liked, she replied" anything with peace signs" Hmmm reminds me of my high school years!

It was a great Christmas, time for a winter slowdown, and some time to sew! Stay tuned, I hope you all are getting some time to relax now that the hustle and bustle are over!

Ladies of the evening....

no pictures yet, but I will have a few later. I just had to stop in and mention" the ladies of the Evening". as we were talking last night, there was some sadness and worry. One of our members has lost her two grandsons this year. we mentioned how difficult it must be for her family to deal with. Another member is dealing with her daughter's very serious illness, and upcoming surgery. Several of us talked about losses of loved ones, that are difficult to deal with, especially at the holidays when they are missed even more. I felt the support in that room, for each other.Even though we are all as different as night and day, and probably can all drive each other crazy. we really all care about each other, and miss greatly the " ladies of the evening" who are no longer with us.I really appreciate these friends, who have always supported each other, through good times, and bad. After the sad stories, The next thing you know, we were laughing our butts off at what " scotsmen" wear under their kilts:))) Isnt that just like women though? We deal with sadness, worry and heartbreak, but we keep on going, and laugh when we can. merry Christmas everyone!

Another family quilt....

I have  made many of these photo quilts for members of my family. The theory is...none of us ever look at the family photos, as they are in a drawer somewhere, or an album. My nephew Sean had seen some of these quilts  that I made, and his mom mentioned how much he would like one. So, i made him this hanging with his dad's side of the family. Next year I plan to make him one with his moms side too.

I could show you this one, as he doesn't read my blog. The border fabric is nautical, as we are all from nantucketT I machine quilted in waves, I thought that would be appropraite coming from an island!
Its a fun thing to do, and is a great gift for many occasions.

Going to see the "ladies of the evening" tonight, I hope everyone will have a wonderful Christmas...stay tuned............

Snap sack quilt..............

This is a cute little wall hanging that was made from a 'snap sack" they are  sold at the vac and sew quilt shop in North Conway, New Hampshire. I love these little quilt kits.  They come with everything included in a cute little 'sack" to make a small quilt.  Sometimes the kit could be for a table runner, pillow, or other small quilted item.They make great gifts made up, or, the kit itself,  as a gift for a quilting buddy.The ribbon is not wonky, I think my photographer didnt know how it  was supposed to go, lol.

I imagine eveyone is rushing around crazy trying to get all the last minute Christmas things done. I am looking forward to some dull days of January, to have more time to  sew! Right now at my sewing machine is a cute little snowman  "mug rug". What is a mug rug? You ask? It really is a bigger than usual coaster, big enough for a mug and a snack. They are really versatile, you can make them in any design. I am thinking a little gift pack could be made by filling a corresponding mug with cocoa, coffee, or a DD card! so...stay tuned for a finished "mug rug " to be shown.

Quilted advent calendar...........

I popped into a quilt shop in Salem, Ma , a couple of weeks ago, and found this panel for an advent calendar. The panel included 31 little ornaments that go on the calendatr and a matching bag to store them all in. You can either pin on one each day, or just put all of the ornaments on at the beginning of the month. The ornaments are backed with a heavy duty fusible, and then I cut them  out with pinking shears, to avoid raveling.

 

 I  only bought one panel, and now wish I had bought a couple more for gifts. The panel has the bag printed on it, and even the binding. You only had to add a backing.  In my quest to  "use up" fabrics that I already have, I used a piece of Christmas fabric. that I had on the shelf.

The biggest pain in the neck was tying 31 bows on the ornaments. I did get smart, and sewed the bows on by machine!

This is off the subject, but for many years I have always heard the query "What do scotsmen wear under their kilt" Just to make you wonder, or maybe you already know......I went to a wedding this past weekend, and I now KNOW what they wear under there, or should I say don't wear:)))) Ladies of the evening...stay tuned, I am bringing a pic for you all to see........................

 

Patrick Lose Block of the month..................

I love" kits", and I love "block of the month" programs. there is something about getting all the fabrics
, and a pattern in a neat little package, just sitting there, waiting to be made. I don't have to go searching for fabrics, and buy a whole bunch of a color I would never use again.

I signed up for the Patrick Lose block of the month. Thes 12 inch blocks can be made into a complete quilt, or they are the perfect size to put on those wire racks to change every month. I like the idea of having a monthly small quilt to change .

It is also a great way to practice machine quilting, because it is a small item, and easy to move around under the presser foot. I signed up for this one through Fons and Porter.com. They also have the wire stands to hang the blocks on.

It also makes sure that I will have something new to show you each month. So....stay tuned................

OMG..... I am losing it.....

I truly thought I had posted these pictures, but I didn't! Our new grandson was born last week, Cayden Ryan is welcomed by big sisters, Raeylnn, and Riley, and big brother Camden! Everyone is healthy and happy!  Being the mother of one son, I am so lucky to have 4 grandchildren! God bless them, I can't even imagine it, lol!!

New quilter...............

Mickey's sister in law, another Barb, has recently taken up quilting....no I am not kidding, I did say
RECENTLY. Ok, she IS retired, but still..........Above is Lisa, and Lisa's adorable granddaughter Abby. It's not a handmade quilt that Abby is sitting on, but I had to show you her cuteness!Here is Barb with one of her Christmas gifts that she made! I love the happy colors, and can just see this quilt in a little girls room!
I love the timeless simplicity of a log cabin quilt. I can see a guy snuggled up in this! Below is another classic pattern, so pretty in soft greens. Well, we all know that this new quilter has surely been bitten by the bug! I look forward to seeing many more of her creations!

Nantucket Christmas stroll 2011

We went over to  Nantucket this past weekend, both  for the Nantucket Christmas stroll, and to see  family. They always block off the main street, so everyone can stroll along, looking in the stores, and stopping to hear musicians, and carolers dressed in old-fashioned garb.

The stroll is always so pretty, and old fashioned. Each tree on main street is decorated
 by a classroom   . The  decorations  are handmade, and very inventive! Here is my brother Kelly, with his son Cayce. Cayce was particularly enamored by a "Rubber Duckie" tree.


The Nantucket Town Crier stopped often to have his picture taken with the natives!
I have always loved the big tree in front of the bank, It has been the same since I was a small child.
 It doesnt really feel like the Christmas season to me unless I go over and visit the place where I was born and grew up!

Strip-pieced stocking....................

I made this stocking for my niece's new baby. These stockings are fun to make. I strip pieced many Christmas fabrics together, to form a piece big enough to cut out an extra large stocking (front and back).

 I sandwiched this fabric with some old-fashioned Christmas fabric on the back, and some lightweight batting in between. When these steps are complete, you can cut the stocking shapes  out of the one piece of fabric you have made., and sew them together. A white cuff with the name embroidered completes the stocking.  A dark green ribbon bow with a large snowman button sewed on adds a nice finishing touch. If it is a girl's stocking, I sometimes add battenburg lace around the edges.

Christmas is getting close, I hope you all are working in your sewing rooms to complete your projects! I would love to see pics or links to what you creating!  I had  some time today to work on an advent calendar, so, stay tuned.................