Remembering My Daddy

Monday, May 30 is National Memorial Day.  A time to reflect on those who

served our country in the military.  My father served in WWII in the Army.

He never talked about his experiences or what war was like.  I wish he had.

Recently, as I was going through more of my mother's papers, I came upon

the map to my dad's grave in Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery.

He died June 24, 1974 and it was all such a blur.

I remember the burial site was near or under a tree

on a hill.  This map pinpoints it exactly--well, almost.

About five years back, we took a trip to the region and I wanted to

see if I could find dad's grave site--it took some investigative work

through U S Government records to find the site number and section.

We finally found the section and walked through the graves to

find the location--there it was....

on top of a hill, under a tree.  This map would have made it much easier.

As we roamed through those numerous graves, our hearts were filled

with thanksgiving for these who sacrificed for us to have

freedom.

Ex-Patchers!

We hadn't been together for quite some time--

This day is our day; I'm ready to share with my dear friends--

sadness, happiness, joys, grandkid happenings,

and not the least of all--our quilts!

Annette had made this 4 patch disappearing quilt top for a friend.

What fun--great way to use up all those scraps from the stash.

She started with 5.5" squares to make the four patch and

then cut, twist and sew!

Judy M, our hostess, shared her latest creation--$29 quilt kit!

WOW!  what a popper in the camera lenses--but to the naked eye

the fabrics don't look like they work together.

We thought the main fabric was quite busy--but in this

case, it all works together.  For this accent, Judy used

raw edge applique--and it works!

And the quilt design is just perfect for the busy front.

On the quilt frame--I'd call this "Juicy" fruit or "Starburst"

such lively, powerful colors on the gradient bases.

Linda used Pat Sloan's 2015 mystery quilt pattern (Josh' quilt top pattern)

to make this lovely Christmas quilt.

Backing is super great!  

Quilting by Sandy!

Brenda was hand stitching the binding from her latest quilt festival

workshop--love this star!

and here is the quilting pattern--super great looking!

Judy M wanted to use her orphan blocks to make a manly lap robe.

We played with the pieces--this is so much fun--itching to

bet to my 'orphans' to do the same!

A super great day for me--lots of laughter, a few tears, hugs, making

it the highlight of my day when we can gather.

What To Do With Sugar & Cream Yarn?!!

If you are like me, there is a basket full of cotton yarns just waiting!

I have all this Sugar and Cream yarn aged well and ready for the needles.

I passed off several skeins to a weaver friend who weaves

baby blankets.

Well, I found perfect patterns to knit up those yarns............

Simply Notable has several patterns for wash cloths!  Great gifts!

Enjoy her website!

Cables Anyone?

This blanket is a modular design, knitted in separate strips, which are then joined together in such a way that the join resembles another cable. The design has been done in such a way, that you could make a blanket of any size you want. The design is essentially a mix and match pattern with which you can design your own masterpiece.

The yarn is MoYa Caresse, which is used in a double strand. Order your kits at 15% discount HERE.

In order to stay up to date with the latest news:
Join the FaceBook group for this KAL.
Subscribe to my YouTube channel as some of the techniques will be demonstrated there.
There is a Ravelry Group for this KAL as well.

Spinning Silk For Yarn Wednesday

Years ago, I spun the silk for my blond headed daughter's wedding dress.  I bought 3 bricks(common measurement) of silk.  At the time, I thought the price was high but now----I'm so glad I have one brick left to spin.

It's pure pleasure to spin this bombyx silk!  So far, I have two bobbins ready to be plied

My goal is to spin all the brick and two ply for the loom.

My first goal is being met.  My second goal is to weave yardage.

I would really love to have silk pillowcases with silk knitted lace edging--

that is the final goal.

we'll see if it happens!

Christmas Knitting in June

Perfect!  Just Perfect!  Small in size with the right knitting techniques to make these

12 days of Christmas mittens.

Take a look at the website to see last year's mittens

and you'll want to knit those too!

Just Crafty Enough

mittens are about 2.5″ wide (without the thumb) and 4.5″ long. You do not need to knit the mittens at my gauge or size, but I think they are just right for using as a Christmas tree decoration, on packages or, of course, as a garland.

This year you will have two weeks between mittens. That should give everyone time to keep up. If you are a quicker knitter you’ll have time to work on other projects or make multiple sets as gifts. Or if you want to turn this garland into an advent calendar, use the off weeks to knit another twelve mittens. The Mitten Garland Advent Calendar has twenty-four more designs you could use, just change the Latvian braid at the cuff to garter stitch to match these.

Some Assembly Required!

Cynthia Frenette is giving me right pattern to make the brown headed daughter

the table runner she wants for her new home.  Of course, there is some assembly required

in fashioning this improv item.  I'm using some fabrics pulled from my stash

and batik fabrics for the leaves and berries.

Ground cloth has been constructed!