Easter is a time for renewal, hope, and new beginnings!
Spent the afternoon with family at my aunt and uncle’s in Missouri. It was a beautiful afternoon for taking a few pitctures.
Mystery Quilt (Week 5 Update)
Finally caught up on the MSQC mystery quilt for a cause during week 5, but after being away this weekend and next, I’m sure I’ll be behind again in no time.
Week 5:
Strips ready to be pieced
And waiting to be pressed.
Loving these colors. Having second thought about the darker orange (not pictured here, see below), but am already committed at this point. Nor do I have the patience to rip apart and repiece 24 9-patch blocks at the moment.
Here’s where we stand at the moment, anxiously waiting to see the final layout! Oh the possibilities 🙂
Have a good week.
Dora
Mystery Quilt in Progress (Weeks 1 through 4)
I’m participating in the Missouri Star Quilt Company‘s Mystery Quilt for a Cause this year, which is a quilt-along fundraiser for CancerCare.org.
Picked out my fabrics Valentine’s Day weekend and finished all of my cutting the following weekend. Then I went home to Illinois during Week 1 and have been behind ever since. Finally got caught up last week (Week 4). Had hoped to post these as I went, but that didn’t happen. Although, seeing them all together gives a nice overview of the piecing process. Enjoy!
Fabric Selection:
Initial cuts:
Week 1:
Weeks 2, 3, and 4 (ended up doing these all at the same time):
In other news, my apartment is beginning to look like an elementary school science project.
And here’s my low budget alternative to warming mats…it works, almost all of my pepper seeds have now germinated!
Excited to be gearing up for spring!
DW
Upcycled Denim Potholders
Made these denim potholders as a housewarming present for a farmer friend using the back pockets of his old jeans (the rest of them are slatted to become a quilt), some awesome left over chicken fabric and quilt batting. Also made a pan handle potholder (perfect for cast iron) and painted the wood spoons to match. It was hit, and didn’t cost anything to make!
Valentine’s Day
Hope you had a nice Valentine’s Day. Just thought I’d share a few things from Saturday, we ended up getting even more snow here over the weekend, along with frigid temperatures – which meant lots of time inside at home.
The library up the street held a “Blind Date with a Book” for Valentine’s Day…what a cool idea! I ended up with The Dress Shop of Dreams, by Menna Van Praag. Right up my alley so far…
Also made the BEST cookies in the world – Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies! It’s my mom’s recipe and will always be my favorite.
Even went all out and glazed a few.
Love,
Dora
Plaid Flannel Infinity Scarf
Absolutely loving the fact that plaid flannel seems to be back in style. I’ve been looking for a more modern looking red plaid scarf but haven’t had much luck finding one that’s reasonably priced…so I just made one!
I made this one a few years ago – like the pattern and still wear it occasionally, but wish it had more bulk.
So I made another this year, but with twice as much fabric to give it more volume. Here it is!
Really easy to make, very cozy, and goes with a lot in my winter wardrobe. Wore it last weekend on a trip up to Vermont. It kept me warm and windproof while shopping and sightseeing around Manchester.
Here are a few more pictures from my Vermont Trip.
Stayed at The Equinox in Manchester again. Love this place, lots of old Vermont charm, great spa, and a nice place to get snowed in (again).
And some really cool ice along Route 8 on the way back home.
33 days until spring! Hope you enjoy this last month of winter.
DW
Snowy Day Snood
It’s only mid-February, and we’ve already had quite a few snow days this year, not to mention a few snowed in weekends. Love getting to stay in and watch the snow fall, and it’s given me a lot of time to finish up a few projects that have been sitting here for a while.
Started making this cowl while I was home over Thanksgiving Break, but then got busy in December and never finished it. It’s made from 2 skeins of Lion Brand Heartland (100% acrylic, Made in the USA), color is Grand Canyon.
A Canadian friend taught me the word snood my first winter in Connecticut. This is more of a half-snood, but I thought it sounded good with snowy day, so Snowy Day Snood it is.
Stay warm!
DW
Vintage Bud Vases
So I’ve been stopping in Goodwill lately whenever I am near by, mostly to look for old Pyrex, but my latest finds have been bud vases. The smaller and daintier, the better.
Turns out they are perfect for displaying herbs and smaller flowers from the garden and they fit just about anywhere. I love having flowers in every room, even if they are miniature.
Enjoy these last few days of Spring! Summer will soon be upon us.
Dora
Black & White Baby Quilt
Made this baby quilt as a surprise for a dear friend earlier this spring. She and her husband wanted the gender to be a surprise, so I tried to keep it gender neutral. I’ve been playing with a few designs that are a bit more modern, and this project seemed to fit perfectly. The black and white stripes were totally inspired by an Ikea Stockholm rug that I’ve been coveting for my living room for months, but am too cheap to buy. I also found a Marimekko black and white onesie on a Vermont Trip this past winter that coordinates very nicely.
Without further ado, I give you loads of pictures!
I was home for Easter when these pictures were taken, so I had some help. Thanks Mom! Had a lot of fun taking these around my family’s house.
Oh, and his big brother also got this really cool super hero cape:
The tutorial can be found at The Pleated Poppy.
And finally, congrats to Krista and Bob, who were blessed with a sweet baby boy, Arden, this past weekend! He is adorable, hope he looks good in black and white!
Love,
Dora
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Week 3 Garden Update
Here are the first 3 weekends of working on the garden.
Week 1 – cleared a space at the end of the woods, made the keyhole garden foundation with rocks from the yard.
Week 2 – Made the center compost basket out of hardware cloth, topped with a plastic kitchen colander and filled the bed in with layers of brush, cardboard and composted soil from the town compost following these instructions. Will likely only be composting garden clippings as we’ve already had a bear spotted in the neighborhood this year. Also started planted perennials around the perimeter.
Week 3 – Earthboxes and keyhole garden planted with tomatoes and peppers. Planted a few more perennials from seeds around the perimeter (keeping my fingers crossed). Also put in a mulch path around the keyhole garden. Now just waiting for it all to grow!
Happy Gardening!
Dora
a.dora.bly stitched 