Any Cheese for My Whine

Waaaaahhhh!! My sewing machine is not sounding so good. It was working perfectly fine the other day and what did I do ... I decided I should clean out all the lint inside. Now it makes a clunking sound when I sew. Off to the doctor and hopefully it just needs to be professionally cleaned ...

I did get all the squares finished up for the psychedelic Baby Blanket I am slowly working on. And I finished another dishcloth. I like the colours of this one. Cut out the pieces to work on the beehive block for Amy's Sampler so lots of projects to work on and/or finish. Just wish my sewing machine worked ... don't know how long I can go without it before I start getting major withdrawals!!

Applique and Knitting

Yesterday was a right off in the crafting department. We spent the entire day looking at travel trailers and after we bought one, shopping for some of the stuff to go in it. I was pooped by the end of the day! We will probably pick it up sometime this week and plan to try it out over the long weekend in Wenatchee, WA. The weather is supposed to be nice ... yipppeee!!!

I did finish another block for Amy's Sampler quilt. I am really loving the colours I have chosen and the blocks are simple enough that I am not getting too bored or overwhelmed yet. Onto the wreath block ... though I may do the beehive block or a bee block (9 patch with wings) instead.

Almost finished with all the knit squares for the Psychedelic Squares baby blanket I am knitting. Three more to go and then the big job of sewing them all together and weaving in the ends. I want to add an edging to the blanket, but I am not sure what yet. I really like the edging from the Queen Of Hearts baby blanket so I may use that.

Diaper Shirts

I received an email from Newborns in Need a few days ago (probably a week now ... how time flies) asking for diaper shirts and receiving blankets. They don't get many donations throughout the summer so their shelves are bare. I whipped up some 3 to 5 lb preemie diaper shirts yesterday and will mail them off today.

The pattern comes from the Newborns In Need website. Pattern set #3 has lots of really cute sewing, knitting and crocheting patterns. You have to purchase it for $6.50 but I think it is really worth it and the money goes to a worthy cause.

Camping

We went camping with our church family this past weekend near Yelm, WA. What a beautiful spot and view of Mt. Rainier. Swimming, water sliding and the blob were highlights of the trip as well as the food and company.

We only have a tent so now my husband thinks (and I would like one too) that we need to get a trailer so that we can do more camping with a bit more convenience ... like not having to sleep on the ground ... ohhh my aching back. Or wash dishes in a tub. Or use the yucky public bathrooms. Or cook on a campstove (love my microwave) ...



On the way home from camping we stopped at Wal-Mart and I checked out their yarn section. Found a few balls of Peaches'n Creme cotton yarn to make some more dishcloths. Came home and started on one. Finished it up last night. Used the pattern that is in the Mason-Dixon Knitting book but found it free on the internet ... it's called Textured Slip Stitch Dishcloth and is on the Dishcloth Boutique website. I also ordered a few balls of Sugar'n Cream cotton yarn from Herrschners and will get that on Thursday. Time to start Christmas gifts!

Dishcloths

I finally received my copy of Mason-Dixon Knitting from the library the other day and have been reading through it. It is a really great book with some knitting patterns but more fun is all the stories and interviews that Kay and Ann share.

I am intrigued with the dishcloth concept. I have never made one so I went digging in my stash and found one lonely ball of Sugar 'n Cream cotton in a mauve color. Not my first choice in color since it doesn't go with my kitchen at all, but for testing purposes it will work! I then went searching for patterns. I like the one in the Mason-Dixon Knitting book but I only have one plain color so I will wait and try it another time.

Searching I found The Dishcloth boutique. She has lots of dishcloth patterns that have been submitted to her by others and the one from the Mason-Dixon book is there too. It is called Textured Slip Stitch Dishcloth. The really cool thing about this website is if you hold your cursor over the name of the dishcloth pattern a little picture will pop up in the square in the center of the page. Pretty cool .... ok I am easily entertained!

I also found this article Putting Cotton Through the Paces by Jo Anne Tracy. She compares 5 different brands of cotton, Lion Cotton, Sugar'n Cream, Peaches'n Creme, Sand and Cottontots for shrinkage, stain release, absorbency, and softness. You will have to go to the article to find out which brand she rates the best.

I chose the pattern Bamboo Cloth Variation 1 from the Dishcloth boutique website and am about half way done. Can't wait to try it out and see how it works as well as how it washes.

Amy's Sampler

I started the blocks for Amy's Sampler and have three done so far. This is supposed to be a block of the month quilt that takes 6 months. So far I have two months done in a week. Hope I can keep it up and not get bored before the top is done. I haven't started anything else in hopes of finishing this top and then quilting it.



I sent a box of 5 hats, 2 booties, 3 burial outfits and a baby size quilt to the WA station of HAIN. I know it will go to good use in the hospitals here. A few more babies who will be warmed and parents comforted by handmade items. One day I would like to take items to a hospital in this area ... I am sure it would be a very touching delivery.

If you would like to donate baby items to HAIN you can find the information on there website.

Hats and Booties

Here are 4 of the hats I made and the two pair of booties. The hat patterns are from P2Designs. I love all her stuff. The little ruffled hats and the blue and white checked hat can be found here and the other blue and white hat can be found here. Thanks Chou Chou and Annabelle for being models!

When I was in Penticton,BC my mom and I went to the quilt shop there, Poppin's Quilt Parlour. She really has a nice store with lots of japanese fabrics and patterns. I bought some fabric to start a Brandywine pattern I bought when I was quilt retreating a few weeks ago. Nothing like a new pattern to get fired up to quilt! I've started the first block.

We went to the parade this morning. It was pretty chilly at first even though the sun was out but withing half an hour we had our sweat shirts off and sunscreen on.

Back Home

We had a wonderful vacation ... relaxing on the beach, knitting, sitting in the airconditioning when it got too hot, knitting. I managed to make 5 hats and 2 pairs of booties.

My two daughters enjoyed the beach each day we were there. They loved the water but I think it was too cold. I only swam once.

We saw this buck in my parents back yard one day and a doe another day. They have a pond so the wildlife comes to have a drink.

On Tuesday we went to a different beach to meet my sister and her family for swimming and dinner. There was a forest fire quite a long ways away but the sky had a smoke haze. My youngest daughter spotted the sun behind the haze with a very eerie red glow to it.

Now back to reality. Cleaning and making meals. My DH left this morning on a motorcycle trip with a couple of friends so my daughters and I are heading to the community parade and festivities by ourselves. The sun is out and it promises to be warm by this afternoon.

Caps to the Capital

Do you know how to knit or crochet? Here is a neat program that Save The Children non-profit is promoting right now. You can knit or crochet a baby hat and send it to the President by January 7, 2007. You can find all the information here and there are some patterns on this page as well. I hope you will join me in helping babies around the world one hat at a time!

I am going on vacation this week and am taking yarn and sticks. HAIN Washington is in need of preemie and newborn hats and blankets for the hospitals they serve. I hope to get a few done while relaxing on the beach!

Top Done

My friend Shannon came to visit today (all the way from FL) and we spent the day sewing and chatting (probably more chatting than sewing). I finished the top for the star quilt I started at the retreat a few weeks ago. I am really happy with how it turned out.

I also worked on one of the Women of the Bible quilt blocks ... Rizpah. I had never heard of her before now. David had her two sons killed because of something their father (Saul) had done. Rizpah stood vigil over their bodies day and night, protecting them from birds and beasts, until David decided to allow the boys a proper burial. She was there for nearly 6 months. Wow!! What amazing perseverance. You can find her story in 2 Samuel 21.