Need a Creative Mind. Any takers?

We are now an official farm.  On the books for taxes as a farm.  Imagine that?  A city girl marries a old country boy and is now living in the sticks on a farm.  Never thought in my big hair, head-banging music days that I would be living on a farm in my adult life! 

Yes.  A farm.  We currently have 3 goats as "pets".  I want 2 more.  Pygmy ones but I can't find any at the moment.  We will be getting the pigs again this year.  We are adding chickens (egg laying hens and meat hens) and steer.  Goats, pigs, cows and chickens.  What did I get myself into?!  My husband is also leasing land to plant corn for grain.  There's some money to made in grain corn.  Who knew?!

We're stuck for a name for our farm.  Because I want a sign at the end of our driveway marking the farm.  Why not?  My husband's ultra creative mind came up with "C&J Farm".  Amelia is upset because her name isn't part of the farm's name and she should be upset.  It is as much hers as ours.  So I'm thinking of incorporating a block name from quilting and then having that quilt block put on our sign.  Clever, yah?

So, help me think of a name for our farm.  Please??  Just throw out anything.  Something has got to stick.  I did a little looking around online but I haven't really LOOKED.  So far my list has one possible name on it: Bright Hopes Farm.  But the quilt block is BORING.

Another name I came up with over the weekend was "My Husband Wants the Farm but I'm Reluctant" Farm.  Not catchy enough though. ;)

I appreciate the help!
Jen :)

Now What?

I posted yesterday how I was going to take time off in March from the Christmas Through the Year gift making so that I can focus on getting my Easter "baskets" done for the little girls in my family. Well guess what?  I finished them this afternoon!

Through the blog-land grapevine, I stumbled onto this tutorial and decided that is what I was going to make the girls.  Not overly huge but just enough for some candy and maybe a little trinket.

Aren't they cute?!  And truly, I made the aqua and red one first and loved how it came out so I dug in my stash for the others.  Took me 6 hours to make the additional three.  I just put the last knot and Fray Check on the ribbon 20 minutes ago.

This one is my favorite

Inside peek:

Easter is done.  Woohoo!  Bonus: these are completely out of my stash.  Ribbon too.  So no additional money spent.  My wallet is happy about that.

I think I'm still going to take on pass in March.  I REALLY want to get Swoon done so if I have any free sewing time in the next month, that's what I'm going to work on.  My goal is to get 2 more blocks done.

Well, I need to get ready.  Husband and I have a hot date tonight.  Punk is having a sleepover at Grandma's and we're headed out to a benefit dinner.  It's been a while since we spent any time away from home so it should be fun.

Enjoy the rest of your Saturday!
Jen :)

Christmas Through the Year - February

I like working in multiples.  Especially if I'm making the same thing over and over.  I decided to make these 2 handed pot-holders.  Super quick!  I made 5 so far.  I actually have some of that yellow chicken fabric in my stash so I made one out of that.  My thought is to make coordinating aprons for the pot-holders and give them out to my aunts and a few others in my family (my Mom, my Babci...).  I think that will make for very nice Christmas gifts.

But I will confess.  They aren't 100% done. I have to close the turning holes but I just haven't had the time.  But I am calling these done for now.  :)

March I am taking a pass on the Christmas gifts.  I've decided to make Easter "baskets" for the little girls in my family and I need to get those done.  My time in March is limited.  My weekends are booked.  EVERY weekend and the last week in March, I need to travel to San Fran again for work.  However, I have started my March gifts but I was waiting for zippers.  Now that they have shown up, I'm ahead of the game for April sewing.  Swoon too has been ignored.  Sigh.  Not enough time!

Enjoy your day!
Jen :)

211 more sleeps

Until we fly the friendly skies to Disney!!!  Yes, I'm insane and doing the countdown so early but I can't help it.  I am sooooo excited!

Haven't said a word yet.  Keeping my secret close.  Airfare was purchased this afternoon.  Jet Blue opened up some more scheduling so I was there, online at 12:01 pm, booking our flight.  Just another thing off my list.  Next is booking our dinner reservations but that window doesn't open up for us until mid-March.

Since I am so excited for our travels, I made myself a new bag.  I made the Mini Messenger bag by Quilts Illustrated.  But do you want to know what made me mad??  I ordered the pattern and then in my searching online, found out that the SAME pattern is in an older issue of one of my quilting mags!  GRRRRR!  Oh well.  I actually used both resources to make the bag.  The magazine gave some good step by step pictures of a few things so it came in handy.  The magazine however didn't mention the interior pockets but the paper pattern did.

fabric - Hometown by Sweetwater

I would show you the inside pockets but it's full of stuff right now

I took it out yesterday for a little test run and I need to make my handle shorter.  It's a tad too long and I'm thinking that will drive me crazy walking around Disney all day like that.  No worries.  I have plenty of time to get that done.   Another good thing?  I went to get my hair cut yesterday and the ladies there loved my bag, I need to make 3 more!  One just like mine except the red polkies need to be blue dots on gray.  I ordered the reverse though (gray dots on blue) because I didn't write it down.  DOH!  Oh well.  The other two requests all black.  I found a black tone on tone swirl online but I think my LQS has that fabric so before I order and pay shipping, I will go there first.  I did have to order more Hometown.  Placed that fabric order this morning. 

I have been working on my Christmas Through the Year gifts for February.  I'm almost ready to show those too.

Tomorrow Amelia and I both have the day off due to President's Day so we'll be spending the day with my cousin and her little boy.  Should be fun.

Enjoy your day!
Jen :)

XOXO!

Happy Valentine's Day!! 

A little sewing has been happening here.  I hope to have some completed to show you soon.

Enjoy your day!
Hugs from Jen and Punkie  :)

Accessory Bag Swap

Kris hosted an accessory bag swap and I received mine from Down Under last night.  It's a sewing/notions tote and I love it!  Helen included some nice goodies too which Amelia wanted to take as her own.  I had to stop her.  But I will probably share some of my goodies.  The koala magnet and little koala notepad will be for her.  The rest of it is mine.

isn't it COOL?!

inside of tote

My extra goodies

Thank you Helen!!  Helen even included a copy of the pattern for the sewing tote she made for me.  One of these days I will have to attempt it myself.

I don't think I showed you what I sent Helen (or did I?).  I can't remember.  If I did, here's a repeat performance.

Helen has received it and she loves it so that makes me happy.

I also received an unexpected package in the mail yesterday.  Michelle did a little giveaway and as a surprise, she sent me a Moda twill tap key chain.  Thank you Michelle!  What a nice surprise! - Another thing I had to hide from Punk.  :)

Enjoy your day!
Jen  :)

Swoonin! Swoonin'! Swoonin' down the river!

Block 5 done!  It's like a sickness.  An obsession.  I just can't stop.  I said I was going to take a break from making Swoon blocks.  And I did.  For less than 24 hours.  I got my Postage Stamp top done and then I picked block 5 right up and started in.

The only thing about making these blocks is that they are very time consuming.  At least for me.  I stepped into my sewing room around noon and got the block completed by 3:30.  And that is only ONE block and I did the prep work the night before!  Lots of seams.  Lots.  Of.  Seams.  One a week is good enough for me.  But everything is lining up so nicely and no cut off points.  I am proud and I can't wait to get these blocks done, quilted, bound and on my bed!

Enjoy your day!
Jen :)

Postage Stamp Quilt

I buckled down and got one thing marked off my list.  Took me a total of 5 hours this weekend to get the blocks set and sewn into a top.  It's a wonder why I put off doing this chore for 10 months.

Fabric line - Giddy

I did this the Jen way.  Just wing it.  So there are some repeats and blocks next to each other.  But it worked for me.  I didn't stress about the  block layout.  I just wanted to get it DONE.  I'm at a cross road though.  I have backing and binding fabrics already but now that I'm seeing it on my bed, I'm thinking of adding a border so that I can use it a bed quilt versus a lap quilt.  What do you think?  Leave it or add a border (just one)?

The next big decision is to quilt this myself really simply or send it out.  Decisions, decisions.

I hear today is the Super Bowl?  Won't be on at my house.  :)

Enjoy your day!
Jen :)

I'm swooning along

Block 4 done!

Not my favorite but I like it.  I'm working on getting block 5 cut now.  Taking a little Swoon break for a couple of days and moving on to get my Postage Stamp blocks into a top.  I have put this off far too long because one of my least favorite things is block layouts.  I don't have a design wall so I'm doing it the Jen way.  Just WING IT!  LOL!!  So far I have 3 blocks sewn together.  First postage stamp row, half way done.

Here are my 4 Swoon blocks completed so far.

I went back through my Ruby stash and swapped out the fabrics for one of the future blocks.  We'll see how it turns out.

Enjoy your day!
Jen :)

AHHHHHH.

My sewing machine is home.  My new chair was delivered.  My new sewing area was picked up and I got a chance to use it today.  Oh it feels so good.  My table doesn't shake, rattle and roll when I sew.  It's a smooooooth ride.  I'm waiting on one piece.  My custom cut machine insert so that my machine is flush with the table top.  That is to come by the end of the month. 

So?  Wanna see?

view from my doorway

Hello friend.  Happy to have you home again and playing nice.

My little pressing station

My notions table.  It will probably just hold the TV remote

what I'm working on... Swoon blocks and my postage stamp quit.

Just another view

There you have it.  My new "toy".  Of course my husband said to me that either Amelia is going to be an only child or she will have to share her bedroom because there was NO WAY he was moving that thing out of my sewing room.  HA.  Men.

Did you see the white rocker hanging around?  That is the one and only antique that I own.  I do not remember the exact circumstances as to why I asked my aunt for it but it's been with me since I was like 16.  It was my cousin's but it was living in my aunt's attic and maybe I felt I needed to rescue it??  I have no idea.  My cousin took her 1 year pictures in that rocking chair and she's going to be 42 this year.  The only thing my aunt asked of me when she gave me that chair was to not paint it.  Just leave it as is.  I cleaned it up with some soap and water when I first got it to get the grime and dust off it but that's it.  When my cousin had her little boy (who is now 14), I told her that I'm sorry but the rocker is mine and you're not getting back.  I've taken very good care of it.  Amelia has sat in it a time or two but I took it back.  I don't know why.  I have a strong connection to that little rocking chair.  Right now it's hold some fabrics for me.

Punk stayed home from school today because she was complaining of a belly ache when she awoke this morning and then she finally let it all go.  She's feeling better so I'm going to take this time to head back upstairs and finish my 4th Swoon block.

Enjoy your day!
Jen :)