Category Archives: summer

Happy Independence Day!

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This year will be very different than years past for sure but I hope you have a safe and happy 4th of July.   I spent a little time working on this flag wallhanging that has been sitting in my “kits” bin for a few years.  wp-1593878617259.jpg   I talked about doing it in this post a few years ago and had it in my  to do basket but somehow it jumped back into the kits bin.   But now the fabric has been cut and two rows are done with seven more to go.  While it won’t be on the wall for today’s celebration, it will be up there later this week and will be there for the rest of the summer.

While I was sewing, hubby got the grill  going and the ribs are smoking. Most of the rest of the day will be spent enjoying the flowers in our garden while listening to music and the sounds coming from our neighbors yards as they are home celebrating too.

Whatever you are doing today,  make it the best day you can.    Happy 4th everyone.

Bye for now.   See you soon.

Ginny

Summer has arrived!

And along with that, our first trip to the beach.

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We headed down there early and it was wonderful to sit there and listen to the sound of the waves breaking on the shore and breath in the scent of the salt water.  It was so peaceful.   I have been waiting so long to be able to enjoy “our” beach again.

There are other signs of summer too.  One of them being my petunias just exploding with color in their tub.  wp-1593035558279.jpg

They certainly  are loving the warmer days and the sunshine. Summer sun  The lightning bugs have arrived and they are putting  on a beautiful twinkling show for us in the evening after dinner as we are doing some porch sitting.   They are just too quick for me to get a picture of them.  I love when I first start seeing them appear.  Then I know that summer is really here.

Another thing that said “summertime” to me was hearing that there actually may be baseball played this year.   Hopefully next month.   I have missed watching the Yankees.  Let’s hope that all the talks and plans that are happening keep moving forward and we get to spend some time cheering on our teams and yelling at the umps…. and the managers too when they don’t make the moves we think would be the way to go.  Here’s hoping that soon I will be saying “Let’s Go Yankees!”  NY Yankees

As far as activity in my sewing room goes,  I have still been working on masks and think I will be for a while.   I can foresee the demand for them going back up as we get into fall and schools open.  I have also gotten back to work on the log cabin quilt and the borders have been added.  Just need to get the binding on now.

I also did get to a project I had been wanting to get to.   I got this quilt rack a couple years ago on one of our trips to Connecticut at an antique store.  Not sure how antique it actually is but it was what I needed.  However, it was not the nicest color.   It was sort of a mustardy brown.   Not anymore…….  wp-1593035521440.jpg  I like it so much more now that it is painted white.   The colors of whatever quilts I put on it will show up much better.  Right now it is holding a Double Irish Chain quilt that I made back in the 90’s.  I was pretty new at quilt making so I tied it.  I guess I did OK because it is still together and it has had quite a bit of use in its’ 20+ years.  The blue quilt is actually a signature quilt that was made for me by my fellow teachers, teachers aides and administrative staff when I left California.   Whenever I sit and snuggle under it,  so many great memories of my preschool teaching years run through my mind.   I was so lucky to have had the opportunity to work with so many great people there.    I also sit and wonder what all those little people that I had the privilege of having in my classes have done in their lives.   I treasure all those memories.

What has been keeping you all busy?   What keeps you from going stir crazy in the “stay at home” period of our lives.

I hope you are enjoying your summer.   And just in case you need a reminder……. my snowmen pals are telling me that we’ve got six months ’til Christmas. 

Be well.  Bye for now.  See you soon.

Ginny

Sunday Snippit – Cabin Fever Heat Wave Style

Usually when I am planning out what we need from the store and what needs to be taken care of in preparation for a couple days spent in the house, it is because we are expecting a blizzard.   But not this weekend.   It is going to be hot, hot, hot!   We did head to the beach Friday morning for a few hours.  The big heat hadn’t arrived yet so we decided to take advantage of the opportunity to relax and enjoy the sound of the sea gulls and the ocean waves hitting the shore.   And those waves sure were crashing.  20190719_092422.jpg

So what do you do to prepare to spend a couple days indoors because of heat?  Well, I don’t know about others, but for one thing,   get up real early to water the flowers and veggies outside to help them get through the day. I actually didn’t do that but my sweet hubby did.   And then we did a very small bit of weeding that really couldn’t wait, went out to run some errands and then, we were home and settled in with the a/c.

My sewing room is upstairs and just way too hot to spend time there.  What?  No sewing until Monday!  Ha,  think again.  It’s a different type of sewing but well suited to a day spent inside.  I printed out my pattern pieces and picked my fabric for three more blocks from The Farmer’s Wife sampler.

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And then there is always reading.  Nice summertime beach reading  …. just not at the beach.    20190720_221629.jpg

The difference between winter and summer cabin fever : watering instead of shoveling, salads and sandwiches instead of simmering soups or chili  and drinking lots of water instead of hot chocolate.

So we are ready for another day spent inside.  It’s looking like we could get a break in the heat on Monday.   What do you do when you are spending a few days in your “cabin”?  If you are dealing with this heat wave, keep cool, hydrate and take advantage of a bit of downtime to do some reading, slow stitching,  or watch a good movie.   Hmmmm, maybe I’ll watch a few episodes of Downton Abbey.  I can do my hand stitching while visiting with the Crawley family.

Be well.  Keep cool.

Bye for now.

Ginny

Sunday Snippit on Monday

It sure has been a busy couple of weeks.  I missed posting last Sunday.  We had a quick visit with family and returned home on Monday.  I almost missed this week too but it’s  just one day later.

It has been pretty busy in the sewing room.  I made 5 sets of placemats.  Haven’t made them in quite a while.   I enjoyed putting them together.

I really like the wine bottle fabric and I can see some wine bottle gift bags made out of it.  The other four fabrics were very cheerful and summery.

While spending my time in the sewing room I was listening to a podcast of Leah Day’s.  (her podcast is called Hello My Quilting Friends if you want to give it a listen). Her guest was Stephanie Socha and the topic was organizing and decorating your quilting space.  (Stephanie also has a podcast: Make and Decorate with Stephanie Socha Design)  As I was listening I started looking around the sewing room to see if the way I organized my room was in a purely functional way or did it add to the decor of the room.  It made me think, what does the decor of my sewing room say?   So when I was finished sewing, I took some pictures of my space to see what vibes the different areas gave off.  Did they say utilitarian and functional or was there an element of fun and smile-evoking spots?

As I looked at the pictures,  I saw that there are things that bring a smile to my face in all corners of the room.   Yes, there are the functional parts like the two spaces that store my books and patterns and the pegboards that hold my scissors, rotary cutters and acrylic templates.  But mixed into those areas are items that are purely there just because they are “me”….. like the quilted Yankee wall hanging,  the “Officially Retired” sign and hat and the Charlie Brown clock that plays Christmas songs on the hour (ok, not ALL year;  I remove the batteries for that function in January).   And, while most of my fabric is either in the closet or in drawers,  I love seeing my Jelly Rolls displayed in a re-purposed cd tower.  Of course, the three machines in the room make me smile by just being there. Having pictures of my 4 boys when they were little hanging over my Featherweight, a stuffed puppy by my embroidery machine that reminds me of a very special grand-dog and a jar full of  thread on wooden spools that were from my grandmother and my aunt makes those areas even more special.

My conclusion was that yes, I try to keep my tools and supplies neat and organized and handy but I also see things in that room that definitely say  “This is Ginny’s sewing room”.    Do you have a room or a space somewhere that speaks to your likes, interests and  passions?   If you do,  I’d love to hear about it.  Leave a comment below and tell us about it.

I hope you have a good week.  I’ll be in my sewing room a bit each day enjoying all the special things in there.  Keep cool.   See you soon.

Bye for now.

Ginny

 

 

Sunday Snippit Time

It has been a busy week for sure culminating with a day spent in the city with my sis ending with a Hugh Jackman concert.   Absolutely phenomenal!  Words cannot aptly describe what an amazing performer he is.

With the 4th of July on the horizon, I did  have some time in the sewing room to work on some red, white and blue things.   First there was this paper pieced star made with Fabri–flair.  It was a lot of fun to make.

It looks cute on my mantel with a tin barn star, some seashells and little lights.

I also got a new pair of scissors that fit right into my red, white and blue theme for the day.  (do you love them BFF?)  I have designated them to be my batting and stabilizer scissors.  Now they will stand out and I won’t grab the  fabric scissors by accident.

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I also pulled this kit out of the closet and put it in my basket.

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It’s a Missouri Star Quilt Company kit that I got a few years ago.   Will it be completed by the 4th of July?  Heck no!  But at least it isn’t in the dark confines of the closet any longer.

I dressed up a couple tables in the house with some patriotic  decor.

The temperatures have gotten themselves up to summertime thresholds, the vegetable  plants are flowering, the herbs are growing beautifully and adding nice fresh flavor to our summertime dishes, there is red, white and blue gracing various surfaces around the house and the beach has become a destination on our weekly calendar.   Welcome summer.Summer sun

And let’s not forget our friends to our north who will be celebrating Canada Day on Monday, July 1.   Canadian flag clip art    Why don’t we just declare this week  one big holiday and have one full week of celebrating the two very special days with each other.

Have a good week everyone.  Talk to you soon.

Bye for now.

Ginny

 

 

 

Sunny Sunday Snippet

Well the sun finally reappeared on Friday afternoon!!   It was a wonderful thing.  People slowly came out of their houses and looked in amazement at the bright, shiny object in the sky.    Hubby and I got to spend an evening sitting outside on our front porch for the first time in ages.  OK, maybe not  actually ages, but it sure felt like it.

My tiger lilies were happy to see the sun too and showed their joy but opening up and bringing more smiles to our faces to see their wonderful,  graceful blooms.20190623_101437.jpg

The following day, we got to plant the last few flowers we bought for our garden but had been unable to get into their proper places because of the weather.  We are now enjoying these lovelies

And then to bring a bit of summer into my sewing room, I had a request for two sets of placemats.   I spent Saturday evening sewing up these cheerful sets

Sunflowers and beach pails…. yup summer is here.   I know some of us were wondering if it ever would arrive but it did indeed.  A bit later than usual but hopefully it will stay around for a while.

Have a wonderful week all.  We are off to the beach tomorrow.

Bye for now.  See you soon.

Ginny

 

Sunday Snippit

I decided to have a bit of “yard sitting” time this morning.   I took my tea and my tablet and headed outside.  It is going to be a bit of a challenging week ahead so there probably won’t be much time for enjoying our gardens and the fruits of our early spring labors.

I took the seat facing my Knock out roses so I could enjoy their lovely blooms while listening to the latest Create and Thrive podcast.  20190609_105524.jpg

I decided that I needed to bring some of those happy flowers inside with me when I was done with my “sitting” time so I could continue to enjoy their beauty and lovely fragrance.

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Of course, as I transported these delicate beauties inside they dropped some of their petals.  Rather than discarding them, I decided that they would add a nice touch to a small dish of seashells sitting in front of the vase of flowers.

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Seashells, rose petals and a red, white and blue table topper.   Yes, summer has arrived.

On a side note, I think I might be a bit obsessed with these freestanding lace bookmarks.   I ran 5 more of them on Friday on my embroidery machine while I was working on a different project on my sewing machine.  20190609_131638.jpg

I have a list of other colors and designs I want to make.  But, one of those red ones is mine so Ceil, your green one is safe.

Enjoy the rest of your Sunday everyone.

Bye for now.

Ginny

5 Senses of Summer – Sound

What are the sounds of summer that delight you?    I love the sound of the crickets singing their lovely song in the evening.  Now they don’t sound quite like I imagined the Cricket in Times Square sounded as I read that book to my boys but it is quite delightful nonetheless.

Another sound I enjoy is the hum of a fan. fan Not a squealy, squeaky sound or a rattling sound.   It has to be a fan that actually makes a nice, deep,  solid humming sound like the ones I remember from long, lazy days when I was young.   I was in my sewing room a few mornings ago and I only had the fan on while sewing.  No radio, no tv,  no podcast from my i-pod.  Just the combined humming of the fan in the window and my sewing machine.   It was beautiful music.

A visit to the beach has a myriad of sounds that make me smile.  The waves breaking as they reach the shore, the call of the sea gulls,

20170721_181925    the squeals of the children as they play their games of tag with the breaking waves.

And  there is the wonderful sound of the bat on the ball at a baseball game.  Now, of course, I am happiest when that sound is made by one of the members of the NY Yankees.     NY Yankees

Those are  some of the sounds of summer that bring a smile to my face.  What are some of yours?

I hope you are having a good week.   See you soon.

Ginny

 

 

5 Senses of Summer – Sight

All four seasons leave their own distinct impressions on our senses.  Here a few things that are pleasing my sense of sight this summer:

My black-eyed Susan’s.  They are such happy flowers.  They will share their cheerfulness through the summer and then they will step back and take a nap until next year and let the Montauk Daisies and mums bring delight to our eyes in the fall.

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And then there is the sight of heavily laden tomato plants promising some delicious, sweet additions to salads, sandwiches and pasta dishes.

20170730_165732                    Ripe tomatoes

A batch of canned bread and butter pickles certainly brings a twinkle to my eye.  We will be enjoying the taste of our harvested kirby’s all through the winter.   Yum.

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Catching a glimpse of a rainbow after a rainstorm rolls through is always a thrill.

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And last but certainly not least is the sight of a summer evening settling in from the vantage point of your front porch.  20170722_204010

Watching the street lights and the solar lights come on as the sun slips below the horizon and being witness to the show that the lightning bugs put on is such a peaceful sight.

Those are some of the things that are delighting my eyes this fine summer.  There are many, many more wonderful things to behold.  What are some of your favorite sights of summer?

Hope you are having a good summer.  See you soon.

Bye for now.

Ginny

Gardening and My craft basket

Memorial Day weekend was a bit of mixed bag as far as the weather was concerned.   It was definitely too chilly to head to the beach for the Air Show so we opted to stay home and plant, mow, trim etc.  Made some good progress and we are almost at the point of just needing to “maintain”.   Hubby doesn’t necessarily believe that I am finished buying new plants yet though.  🙂

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But I think we are almost there…..  until it’s time to think about adding stuff for the fall.  A few more plants left to get into the ground once it gets to be a little nicer again out there.

So Saturday and Sunday was spent outside and then Monday I was able to spend some time in my sewing room.   And here is what is in my Craft Basket this week:

20170529_140859  It being Memorial Day and all, I decided to take out this American Flag wall hanging kit that I bought a couple years ago.   I am no Betsy Ross, but I am going to try and get a good start on this by 4th of July.  Dare I hope to finish it?  We’ll see.    I have something else in my Craft Basket that I will be working on this week too.   20170529_141202

I will be making a small quilt with these solids and the stripe material.  Loved the bright colors in the stripes and so I just pulled the solids to go along with it and started cutting this morning.    I think it will make a very happy little quilt.  I’ll post some pics when it’s done.  Well, actually after it is delivered to it’s destination.  Wouldn’t want to give it away before it arrives at it’s new home.

Hope you had a good weekend.   See you soon.

Ginny