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Saturday, June 29, 2013

Claimin' bloglovin' today

A few months ago, I became aware that Google Reader would be no more as of July 1, 2013. I initially wanted to cry because I have numemrous blogs that I follow through Google and I also amassed quite a few followers through Google  so I wasn't sure how I wanted to follow at that time.   After the initial shock wore off, I started looking for solutions and found several!  Since I've been experimenting with several and watching what other bloggers were going to do I decided my bestmode of action is to claim


I've really enjoyed google reader for the several months that I've used it and was so glad it made my life easier to manage electronically, so I am ever hopeful that my choice of Bloglovin will be similiar.   If you have a few minutes today make sure you make the switch!  
 
Bloglovin even has a way for you to import the blogs currently in your reader into your new account!!  How exciting is that? That means no huge time investment to just move everything over. Totally simple, stress free and convenient. It literally took me less than 3 minutes to transfer all my  info and it's done by the experts!! 
 
Enjoy your Sunday,

Follow">http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/5368945/?claim=wv4h4m35y9k">Follow my blog with Bloglovin

Friday, June 14, 2013

Daybook June - Flag Day

I'm feeling ... contentment for finishing my Tammy Project with plenty of time to spare. (I'd love to make several more of these since the Tammy pattern Madamme Samm shared is so easy and really makes a beautiful finish.)
I'm seeing ... My gardens blooming wonderfully
I'm hearing ... the ticking of the Living Room Clock
I'm thinking ... of how I'll fit all I need to get done finished before picking up my Mom in Albany on Tuesday
I'm cooking ... breakfast
I'm planning ... to attend a class on Kumihimo beading with my friend Trudy
I'm reading ... The Friday Night Knitting Club by Kate Jacobs
I'm wearing ... pajamas
I'm creating ... just finished the Tammy bag now onto an Ironing Caddy in my Get It done for June list
I'm enjoying ... my grandchildren and spouse
I'm sharing ... My country's flag, I am proud  to be American.


God Bless America!
Jane

My TAMMY!

First of all, thank you so much Madamme Samm for the wonderful pattern and organizing another FUN blog hop!  Also thanks to the sponsors who so generously donated some terrific prizes, would you believe not one but two Dovo scissors {I heart them- such quality!} and the gingham fabric, old fashioned  appeal with a new twist goodness, {love}. 

When Mdm. Samm did a call out for bloggers who wanted to participate, I didn't waste any time and jumped on board.  Getting to test out her pattern I only had to commit to sharing it with you all on the 14th of June,  Flag Day, how easy is that I thought, so I said YES.
When I received the pattern it was very detailed. Would you believe 71 pages of detail or something so close to that, "YIKES"  I thought to myself, what did I get myself into?!@#!!!    But she had a terrific tutorial actually contained within the confines of the pattern illustrating each step so there could be no misunderstanding what was to be done next.
 Thanks it helped!

But after reading the pattern and gathering my materials together, I became more confident.  The hardest part was finding a hinged bag closure which I couldn't get the correct size in despite several shopping attempts here and out of state.  What to do?  ..... I had a smaller width frame and another that was a bit larger.   I ended up modifying my pattern to accommodate the larger and best frame I had in.   Well, before I get ahead of myself, let me show you the finished bag. 

Would you believe I didn't take any photos of my finished bag empty except for the following two.


The interior of the bag during construction.  Matched up the seams really well on the bottom inside and out,  I was super happy about that!


Okay, who is playing tricks and inserted my Mother's hand in the photo, it can't be mine, whenever did that happen?!

The finished TAMMY's interior showing the side pockets on both front and back sections of the TAMMY.
On the bottom left of the above shot, you'll see where I inserted a loop of MODA twill tape in the outer seam just above the pocket.  This could securely hold keys, a ring of shopping cards, another wallet/coin purse,  etc...


Here's a shot of one side of the TAMMY while it is closed and STUFFED.  



I did assemble this a little differently than the instructions.
I used a hand dyed cluny lace for trim on this side and then sewed the lining across the top incorporating the cluny trim then pressed the seams up.
When I flipped it down towards the inside, I left a small slip of that striped fabric showing for my faux piping, then top stitched the seam line with my favorite #10 Bernina foot.
Voila the Piping look without all the extra work.

After getting the upper portion of this pocket sewn, I lifted the exterior fabric and the fleece and stitched it onto the main purse part so I had the divisions that were in the pattern but also so they couldn't be seen on the exterior of the bag.  LOVE it!! 
The Sunbonnet Sue side with the 3" scissors behind her is the shallowest pocket.  Items can't fall into the bottom crevices of this baby!  The left side also was stabilized so it's not as deep as the actual purse and holds the needle case and the slap it pincushion bracelet. 

The photo below it shows what was held in that one pocket only.

The sunbonnet Sue doll is a needle minder that my grandmother made either a couple of or several decades ago.
While visiting my Mom this past winter in Florida she was using it.  I ooohhh'd and ahhh'd over it because my Grandma made it and Mom kindly gave it to me saying she had another one she could use.  Thanks Mom and (posthumously, Thanks Grandma too), I LOVE YOU BOTH.


  
This pocket also held my slap on pincushion bracelet I made last year.
What's in the bag you might ask? 
Yes, it's sewing paraphernalia but this TAMMY is large enough for an 7.5" hoop plus some other things!





Want to see what it held in the main compartment?



All of this and a Canon Camera and there was still a bit more room.
Magic Eyes, a 7.5" Clover embroidery hoop loaded with my latest embroidery focus, a ring bundling bobbins filled with DMC floss, a DMC 5, white perle cotton in a perle Bubble, a plastic bag for some bits of thread that could be used up and a Madeira silver floss package besides my camera,  but it took the shot and wasn't in it! 


The other exterior pocket also was ample enough to hold some more necessities.  Here I used another ribbon trim I had in,  Made two loops on each end of the trim after tacking it down in to three sections.  The loops could hold the ear pieces to glasses and sunglasses, pens, stylists, keys, smaller purses, flash drive,  etc.... and I tacked that center part down too so it wouldn't gap and flip flop.  Of course a Velcro closure on this more open side was called for.






All of these items were contained on this exterior circled printed pocket. 

I'm thrilled with the outcome on this project.  I know I have this chartreuse aqua thingy going on and have been having it going on long before Bonnie Hunter's Easy Street QAL happened last winter.  I've loved chartreuse ever since I was 5 or six years old.  The only difference now is that I love aqua with it.  Back when I was young. I  loved it with purple- J'ADORE chartreuse!!  



 





While snapping photos I thought another Tammy  would be great for this ..................................

My attempt at an unorthodox exclamation point.   I know, I need help!  giggles.

Look at all the crochet items this TAMMY can hold!  You could easily feed your yarn through the openings just under the frame and it could contain your ball of yarn without it rolling all over the place while crocheting from it too. 




Another photo of the contents with the magnetic needle minder pulled off the bag,
just in case you missed it while attached in the above photo.   ;)

 

As I mentioned, I had to make mine larger because of the ball frame I purchased at Joanns.  The mouth of the frame is 8" wide and when fully opened is 3.5" wide.  (I wish that side of the opening was larger, I can't open this bad boy up large enough.)    I was able to use teh width of a legla sheet of paper (8.5") and just angled the top towards the outer edges of my paper pattern, keeping the integrity of the rest of the pattern and it worked.  Phew!!  I was worried for a while. 

The worst part with the construction was finding the cording then sewing it to the frame.  Thankfully the local bead store had this lime green cording  in with their Kumihimo supplies, (which happens to be a class a friend and I'll be taking tomorrow).  VBG





Also I got to thinking that this pattern lengthened could be fantastic for knitting items too. 

I pulled out my knitting needle organizer that I made almost 40 years ago to share with you. 

See how old that fabric is?   I used felt for the wording and did a simplistic drawstring bag back when I was making layettes for my babies.  I had a Montgomery Ward sewing machine (White)  that worked like a tank.  It had drop in Cams for decorative stitching and I used one of them for the top of this casing.  Crocheting yarn for the drawstrings.  Simple project making without a pattern but effective. 












It's not that pretty now, but it has been very serviceable and has helped me through the years.    Now wouldn't a Large mouthed tall skinny Tammy be perfect for this?     





I surely  can see more Tammy's being made in my future. 




Thanks Madamme Samm!
It's been a blast though I do have bruises on not one, but two thumbs!  Got those by  sewing that heft of fabric thickness onto the frame,
 but I must admit,
It was so totally worth it. 
Check out these other bloggers who also are sharing their creations of Tammy.

BenteJane  you are here! , WendyGeta , , Julia , JanLoralynn , Selina , Joan ,  Mara , Jan

Enjoy your Flag Day
and TTFN,

Jane

PS:  I also couldn't remiss from admitting that also while younger I loved watching Tammy on the TV screen.  How idyllic a life she seemed to have living with her Grandpapi and I personally loved her freshness and goodness.  Now I'm signing off while humming to the tune of:  Tammy, Tammy, Tammy's in love...  
a

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

New Blog Hop - TAMMY


Madamme Samm has done it again!  
She's rallied up a few bloggers to create and share the Tammy.  
Here's the lineup for those 5 days:

June 12th ( Wednesday):  Tina / Melinda / Mary / Frederika / Thearica / Liz / Grethe / Daryl / Patty / Inga
June 13th ( Thursday):
Les / Marlene / Lisa / Anjeanette / Kristen / Marica / Lynn / Gingini / Linda.J / Nicole / Judith 
June 14th ( Friday):
Bente / Jane (you're here) / Wendy / Geta / Julia / Jan / Loralynn /  Selina / Joan / Mara / Jan
June 17th (Monday):
Rosemary / Pauline / Kris / Karen / Pauline / Roxanne / Vickie / Cherry / Martina / Jane / Marga 
June 18th (Tuesday):
Felicia / Dawn / Carol / Britt-Inger / Kiera / Sharon / Jeanie / Mandy / Theresa / Mdm Samm
Be ready to check out all the goodness coming out of this hop!

Thursday, June 6, 2013

Two done so far this Month and gardens..

It's seems really difficult for me to make up titles for these postings and sometimes seems like the simplest phrase works best.  But I'd be interested in how you would title this post.  Any and all ideas are welcome, just leave a comment with your suggestion or if you think this is good enough.

Anywhoo, I was able to get 2 items off my get it done for June list.   The first is the Tea Wallet. 



I used the free pattern available from Free Spirit called Break Buddy and only changed the placement of the upper folded piece to rest higher when the wallet is closed and am very happy with the results. 
That being said though, if I did make another one, I think two skinny  flaps sewn into the top edge to cover the opened pockets would be a huge plus since the tea bags I use do not come in their own foiled pouch. 




There are four pockets and about 8 of my regular tea bags fit nicely or 6  of my regular bags and these 3 ice tea mixers, NICE!  I've had this project on my horizon since I went to quilt camp back in April.  It was so easy and quick!   Note to self, this will make a great little gift so I should make several up and have them ready when someone needs a pick me up or I need a little personalized gift. 

Finally I re found the site where the pattern is, it can be found here it's no longer available at Free Spirit but at the designer's blog, http://100billionstars.com, Melissa Peda.





















The other finish is another Lil' Miss Shabby BOM that I started I'm not even sure when!   Perhaps it was February while I was still visiting my Mom in Florida perhaps.  This one is so longggggg overdue.   (Notice the whine!)  Now I only have 2   more blocks to go then I can start cutting into the fat quarters I've had in for this and do some assembling. 

I finally was up yesterday after another bout with a viral /sinus/ stress overload.  I went for help and the Doc placed me on antibiotics and this bug knocked me off my feet for 2 days.  I slept around the clock and slept most of the next day too.  It's good to be feeling better again.  So yesterday I actually had the energy to stroll around the yard taking some photos of the landscape before the predicted rains came. 

Glad I did.  Here's a gander:





 



Taken from the side.










 















Taken from the front of the house. 
See how they are cascading over the landscaping curbs.




Here's what those same bushes looked like on Sunday, 
just getting ready to show their colors.

 
 
 
Lucky for me I had the camera ready when our pool guys showed up. :)

DH and PGS#3 getting the pool ready for the season.

                    

This one is so easy on the eyes and what a worker.
PGS#3, age 4
Pool actually doesn't look too bad for surviving an Adirondack Winter. 
 

See what I mean, look at that concentration. 
 
In the back yard the snowball bush is looking the best it has since well for evah!  Every year those schaeffer beetles forage anything white and I think they think this bush is an all you can eat buffet planted just for them.

 
 

Nice to see it in it's glory this year and those deep fuchsia rhododendrons.  I hope all the forecasted rain doesn't damage them like they did the dark pink tree peonies. 

The little pink Rhodes that are in front and on the side of the house are gone and just the skeletal remains are evident, thanks to the last week of rain we had that beat them and all the blooms off the flowering crab tree out front.   

How they look now, versus how they were on the 18th of May.
 
 


 



 There are also some white Rhodes I planted on the path to the river, but they are nowhere near blooming yet.   I share more garden pics at another time.  It is looking so pleasant outside with all our efforts but there are several more areas that need some TLC whenever I find the time that is.



Now it's time to get this house back under control.  Anytime I am down, I swear this place just implodes without my care.  Now however does that happen?  lol   As if I wasn't aware.  At least when I am up, people are more conscientious of the messes and clutter. 




One last bit I'd like to share is about Martingale has a link which shares 52 tips and tutorials.   Help yourself to check it out and earmark it for your own convenience.  A lot of good information is freely shared.  

TTFN and Good Night,
Jane
 

Thanks Sharon!!





What a wonderful surprise in the mail even though I knew I won, I had completely forgotten about it until a sweet little squishy package arrived today.  It's from Sharon from Vroomans quilts.  I was one of the lucky winners of her May for Me Giveaway.  I had selected and loved the charm pack of PB&J from Basic Grey by Moda.   I received two of them today from Sharon!  SQUEAL!!!  Thanks you so much!!!!  

Now to find the perfect way to sew them up.  I am a dreamer and already I have 2  make that 4 different ways to play with them. 
  1. Perhaps this tutorial from 100billion stars for a Garden Geometry Picnic Quilt.
  2. Hat Trick a Schnibbles pattern that calls for 2 charm packs- what a very handy coincidence!
  3. Moda Bake Shop Pattern called Home Sweet Home created by Jera Brandvig of Quilting in the Rain 
  4. Another Moda Bake Shop called Jiggity Quilt by  Cindy @ Tops to Treasures
I also am joining up on The Lovely Year of Finishes game.  Hopefully I can get to that camper quilt that I shared with you here since I received 2 yards of that brown dimple dot fabric needed designed by Gail Kessler was a match!  

Yippee Kie Yie YAH! 
Oh am I one lucky girl!

Jane

 

Saturday, June 1, 2013

Get it DONE- May Report/June Goals

Looking back so I could link what I had planned on finishing for May and I now see that I never even posted it on my blog.  Now how did that happen?  Being spread way too thin, that's how!  After DH's procedure was over and he was better, I became sick for several days.  Seasonal allergies, stress, etc..so I took it easy and chilled.  My throat is raw and so sore still and the fluid in my ears so I've been popping Benadryl besides the Claritin D that's already prescribed and have been sleeping like  a baby.   Dh and I was able to put the portabel ACs in and that seems to be helping.  Anyway, thank goodness I note my Get It Done lists in my sewing journal calendar it helps keep me on track.    Anyways, here's the MAY list which was way too much for me to even contemplate working on  anything last month. 

May's List to Get It Done was:

1- Superman capes- 2 - DONE in April and were happily received by the youngest grandchildren.
2-Lil' Miss Shabby block- worked on it but still not done, will be moving this onto June's list.
3-Tea Wallet Caddy- Not Done
4-Iron Caddy- Started at a Retreat in April actually but still not done
5-Assemble the 10 minute block into a top, Not Done
6-For the Birds Challenge- DONE by the 13th
7-A Little Something Jacket- Butterfly print, cut out but no stitches yet.
8- Convergence Wall hanging- Still needs quilting, etc..
9-Kindle Bag/Organizer, Not Done
10- Straight Baby Quilt cut out- Not Done

So only 2 were achieved this past month, one totally finished and the other a start on the camper quilt. 

 June's  Getting It Done Challenge is:

1-Lil' Miss Shabby Block (carryover from May)  DONE
2-The Tammy Project Challenge- due on the 14th  DONE
3-Tea Wallet Caddy,  (carryover from May)  DONE
4-Iron Caddy,  (carryover from May)
5-Assemble the 10 minute block into a top, (carryover from May)
6-Magic Eyes Organizer Bag
7-A Little Something Jacket- Butterfly print, (carryover from May)
8- Convergence Wall hanging- (carryover from May)
9-Kindle Bag/Organizer, (carryover from May)
10- Straight Baby Quilt cut out- (carryover from April/May)
11-Also want to get the BORDERS on my Camper-For the Birds Quilt when I receive that dimple dot brown I ordered I can only hope it matches with what already has been used.

My first priorities are #1,#2 and #3 just to keep me sane and not so overwhelmed.  Hopefully this first week of June,  all of these will be done!!  Now if I can only knock out 3 projects a week, I'll be ahead of the game come July.
Now that DH is feeling somewhat better with the procedure done on the 23rd, I really believe I can find some time to sew.
 

Hear yea,

Hear yea....

FIFTEEN minutes a day is hereby enacted and planned for June. 

Can you hear the bells tolling while this announcement is read, I can.  (So formal like too, lol) 
Once I schedule 15 minutes to actually get into my sewing room, I tend to stay longer.  The time escapes me yet  so much seems to get accomplished that way.  
 
Anyways THAT'S my plan and I will be giving it my all.   Check out Judy Laquidera's blog to see other bloggers links. 
 
Stay cool,
Jane