January seemed like it lasted forever, but this month has flown by! I have been busy, busy, busy & I’m so excited to share the things I’ve been working on in February 2018. Grab a cup of coffee & let’s see what’s happening!
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Blog News
I finally figured out why my blog posts have been looking so funky! It was really driving me crazy & every time I tried to figure it out I ran into things about adding code somewhere. Not my thing! Eventually I figured out that it had something to do with my SSL certificate & “mixed content”. I found a plugin that fixed it all & I was so excited I jumped for joy! The link is to the basic plugin {non-affiliate}, but I upgraded to the pro so I wouldn’t have to deal with fixing anything in the code. Totally worth it!
I’d like to welcome all new subscribers – I’m glad to have you here! In case you didn’t know, there’s a page with free adult coloring printables available only to subscribers. You should have received a password with your welcome email for this month. I try to send out a new password at the first of every month, but sometimes it’s every other month. I’m working on some new drawings & hope to get them uploaded this weekend.
Standard post time is 7:00 p.m. EST. The blog hops I participate in have different post times & you can find them in the Monthly Posts list below.
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Weekly Posts:
- Mondays ~> Sewing, quilting, & crochet posts
- Wednesdays ~> DIY, gardening, & organizing posts
- Fridays ~> recipes, health, & life lived posts
Monthly Posts:
- 2nd Monday ~> QAL, SAL, CAL {Something coming up soon!}
- 3rd Monday {posts at 10 a.m. EST} ~> Craft Room De-stash Challenge from C’mon Get Crafty
- 3rd Tuesday {posts at 3 a.m. EST}~> Pinterest Challenge from My Pinterventures
- 3rd Wednesday ~> Garden update {Coming back in March!}
- 1st Friday ~> Teadoddles Talks interviews
- Last Friday ~> Monthly Roundup
Life Events
Y’all I feel like I have “season whiplash”! Last month I was posting pictures of snow here in the deep South & now it’s 80 degrees – which is unusual for this time of year! Everything is blooming & pollen is everywhere. I posted a little collection of pictures I’ve been taking when walking the dog & thought I’d share it here too.
Valentine’s day was this month & if you’re in my Facebook group you know I only asked my husband for one thing. Cupcakes! He brought home a dozen chocolate cupcakes – enough for us to share. I did ask for one more thing, which has yet to happen. I asked him to buy himself some new work pants because I’m tired of patching his! : D
One of my former students was passing out these paper roses sitting on top of a Blow Pop to his favorite teachers. I was lucky enough to receive one! Such a sweet young man!
In other news, my son made the honors list last quarter at college! He has also been offered the position of shift manager at his job & he’s only been there since October. I’m so proud of him! Even though I still miss him every day, it makes it a little easier knowing he’s happy & working towards his dreams.
Crafty News
My friend Monique from Farm House Quilts held a quilted postcard exchange for Valentine’s Day. I had two partners & these are the postcards I sent out.
These are the two postcards I received.
It’s so wonderful to exchange gifts with crafty friends! This month she is hosting a handmade gift exchange & I can’t wait to see what everyone makes. : )
Crochet ~>
Can y’all believe I haven’t crocheted a single stitch this month?!? I really think the sudden weather change just put me out of the mood. I’m sure I’ll find my stitching mojo again soon & have something great to share with y’all next month!
Quilting
It has been a big month for quilting & sewing in general. Here’s a run down of the QAL’s I’m sewing up and/or just collecting, doll quilts for charity, & a small peak at some me-made leggings.
~> Stars in the Night QAL {2016} <~ I have some of the background pieces cut, but I ran out of fabric! I’ve got to go through my stash & find something to fill in the spaces. I’m determined to only use my stash to finish this quilt top!
~> Valentine quilt <~ This is a quilt of collected heart & love blocks I’ve found around the web, so it’s not technically a QAL. I am just adding blocks as I find them until I have enough for a lap sized quilt. Here’s what I have so far:
~> Monthly Minis from Sew Can She <~ I like to leave these minis unbound because I really like the look & they don’t usually wind up in the washer. Here’s January’s mini quilted & February’s top cut & partially sewn.
~> Snow Much Fun from Quilt Doodle Doodles <~ I’m really enjoying the little snowmen in these blocks! I still need to hand-stitch on some details & cut out the appliques for this month’s block, so no new pic this month
~> Starry Bright Sky from Aida {TweLoQ} Designs <~ I wasn’t very happy with my stitching on the first two blocks, but after pulling things out & starting over – repeatedly – it will just have to do! The extra textured & scrappy blocks are so much fun to make & so much easier to do than they appear. Here’s 1 February block sewn, 1 cut, & the textured block partially made.
~> Three’s Company BOM from Patchwork Posse <~ This is definitely a scrap friendly QAL! I’m even using scraps for my background. By the way, Becky is the designer of the second mini quilt in the Monthly Minis QAL!
~> Wonderland QAL from Quilting Mod <~ I love just about anything Alice in Wonderland, so I could not say no to this QAL! Most of the blocks are FPP, but some are pieced or applique. I’m combining them with the blocks I finished for the Children’s Library QAL. I used Wonderland fabrics by Katarina Rocella for those blocks, so it’s a perfect fit! Recently I purchased more of this wonderful fabric line from Southern Stitch Fabric to finish things up.
~> Postcards from Sweden QAL from mmm! quilts! <~ I love the bright colors of this quilt & it seemed perfect for using up scraps. I cheated a little & busted up some of my charm packs since 5″ squares are needed! Purples are needed to round things out, however, & that means fabric shopping! : D
I have also been making doll quilts for the Spread the Love event happening over at Needle & Foot. I’ve got 2 & half quilted & will finish all of these {6 total} this weekend so I can mail them out Monday.
Recently, I tested another great pattern from Seamstress Erin. It was a leggings pattern, I loved it, & I can’t wait to show ya’ll more! For now, here’s a sneak peak:
If you need some more patterns to collect {ha!}, check out my Sewing ~ Quilts & Crafts ~ QAL’s & CAL’s & all my other sewing boards on Pinterest.
Coming up in March…..
I’m still working on the QAL I want to run on the blog & hope to have it ready before the end of the month – but no promises! Here’s some things that are a little more certain!
I recently acquired this fantastic set of presser feet! I’m planning on doing a post all about them & what each one is used for.
- Look for another fun DIY project with a second drawer from my old dresser!
- Chocolate cake recipe – finally! : )
- Watch, listen, read – I’m planning on starting a monthly post to share what I’m watching, listening to, & reading for the month. I wanted it to be part of this post, but not enough time! Have any to spare? ; )
Hope y’all have a great weekend!
