QOV GOALS

I am finished with this bear of a quilting project! 

 I will be making the binding and getting it completed 

so I can hand it in on Thursday this week.

I'm well on my way to finishing this one also; 

I'm just quilting this one--someone else made it.

I am using my fun circle-in-a-circle panto.

To celebrate the end of March, Mary and I are going to do some more Shop Hopping today!

 

Ta-Da!

It's amazing what I can accomplish

 when I am home for a few days in a row!

All three of the charms-on-point tops received their borders!

I will need to pull some backing for each of them, though!

But these will make some very good donation quilts.  All finished around 38" x 42"

 

A SOCK ON SUNDAY

The heel is turned and I will work up the leg 

for about 6" in my favorite k3p1 ribbing. 

 The yarn is KnitPick's Strolls Effects in Left of the Dial colorway.  I knit on a 2.5 needle over 64 stitches. 

It's been a while since I have had a pair of socks zipping around my needles and it is pure pleasure.

 

A BIG FINISH

The QAL from Alycia is now a completed top

and ready for the quilting frame! 

It was a very enjoyable project and soon it will be quilted and donated to my QOV group!

 

DONE WITH THE RUNNING AROUND!

After the dr visit yesterday, I spent a few hours in the studio to unwind.  I have all of the border pieces cut and ready to put together today.  What a nice way to accent the stars!

I put the last of the rows together and cut the two borders to frame the charm squares!  I can stay home today and enjoy the things I love to do. What a good feeling!

 

FIT IN THE LITTLE PLEASURES!

I cut the two borders for the little charm pack on point quilt before I had to head out to the doctor's.

I was able to stitch half of the blocks on another one.

The annual March photos of the Fringe Tree in bloom!  And it smells good, too!

These flower clusters are large and feathery soft.

And the walk up the driveway is filled with azaleas!  Hot pink, 

pale pinks and 

fuschia even!!!

The appointment went well and there is no cancer in the bladder which is wonderful good news.

But that means the inflammation they see is causing the bleeding but they don't know what to do about it.

That's  ok. At least I am not ignoring something 

that I shouldn't have!

Just one more dr appointment today and then I should be done with the fun for months again! 

(this one to the rheumatologist who will try to figure out the inflammation)

 

TOO MUCH FUN

I was able to start sewing the rows together but had to interrupt my pleasant thoughts to go the doctor's office in St Augustine.  Bill was my taxi driver this time.  The verdict is that I have to go again today for a cystoscopy which sounds like too much fun.  

We are hoping to get to the source of the UTI problems.

ON POINT!

The other day, I had fun pulling out old charm packs 

and setting them up on the design wall.

Then it was a matter of pulling a solid 

from the stash to fill in the edges.

I always cut my outer triangles larger than needed so that they float the inside and it is easier to square it all up when finished!  Now to stitch them into tops!

 

PRETTY VIEW

Successfully stitched together--a fun way to display a panel. 

This is 32" x 42".

I enjoyed working with the moss stitch again but this time it is in the ripple pattern for some dishcloths.

 

FLOWERS INSIDE AND OUT

As dead as most things are in the yard's plants,

 it is encouraging to see some things that flourish!  

The wisteria is full of blooms and buds and smells delicious!  I keep working on cutting back the dead branches 

and hoping more things come back to life.

Inside, I had to rip out to fix the one block I saw, and my daughter spotted another block I had set in wrong! ( I still have nightmares about the other QAL that Alycia did and I goofed on one block and didn't spot it in time and quilted it in place in all its wrong-glory! ) 

I also made my last changes to the Dahlia bloom 

and will get it attached to its background fabric next week!  

 

WASHINGTON OAKS STATE PARK AND GARDEN

For several years, I have scheduled and rescheduled a trip to this state park for years!  A friend who has lived here for years had never seen this park--it finally worked out! 

 The azaleas were stunning!

There were several roses to sniff--

though the best month to view them is May.

Still, it was wonderful to enjoy the smell of old-fashioned roses!

Is this not the epitome of a rose?!

This Live Oak tree is hundreds of years old!  Just magnificent.

The original building on this site was in 1715--a hundred years later, one of our first President's grand daughters married a man who lived here and thus the park was so named.  

This is a view across the intercoastal waterway.

The sun was deliciously warm but not yet cooking hot!  Perfect.

This whole area has a foundation of coquina just a few feet below the surface.  Great for building upon but a bit tougher to grow crops.  An interesting history was enjoyed among the flowers!  The frost damage was evidenced here, too, but it won't take too long before the sunshine and summer rains will heal the plants and flowers accordingly!

We popped across the street to see the ocean--it was a red flag day because of the current.  Nice for walking but not so great for swimming-that and the fact the water is still only 65*! lol

 

OLD AND NEW

I was so happy to put the blocks together and then when I looked at it this morning, I saw one 4-patch was misbehaving.  

I will have some ripping to do!  

And I pulled out an old project that had gone awry and figured out how to save it--now I have to sew all of the strips together!

 

ONE DONE, ONE BEGUN

I washed and dried the baby blanket made using the Grace blanket pattern.  It is 38" square.

I am using the last two skeins of this gifted yarn to make a rectangle granny square baby blanket. This is my sanctuary from the world...a lot of creativity percolates here!

 

HELP FROM A FRIEND

I had added some March-ness to my welcome sign.

Some shamrocks and a pot o' gold!

My table runner went out on the first of the month-when I change it each month!

Mary picked me up for another short trip Shop Hopping-she does all the driving which makes it possible for me to go. 

 It has been a hard couple of days for me.

I found lots of goodies to help finish off projects.

 

BUSY TIMES

We are having a Bible Conference at church so it has been a lot of away time.  I do unwind with the paint by number time and knitting in bed when I get home!  This turtle isn't finished but almost is...just time for me to enjoy the tweaks that will make it mine now!

 

A DAHLIA

It took hours but I sewed those new pieces for a center that pops.  The other sections are more yellow than they show here...but it looks more like what I wanted.  I think this is one of those patterns that I will have to try again in all brights to make me happier!  I was trying to capture the look of the Dahlias my Dad used to grow with this one!

I have pressed the 1/4" all around the last row of petals so that I can applique them to the background color. 

 Soon it will have my attention again. 

 

MEETING GOALS

All of the blocks are made and in their general placing on the design wall!  A good feeling.

As I was looking for some UFO's that need either finishing or repurposing, I pulled out the Dahlia quilt.

I was unhappy with the center as soon as it as stitched, so I unstitched the whole thing and will try again with some new colors-

I bought these new colors when Mary and I did a half-day of 

shop hopping in St Augustine. 

I cut out the new pieces and will play with piecing them ,today to see if I can make it look like what I pictured in my brain!

Mary and I had a good time as always--it is a blessing to have an incredible friend 'who loves at all time'!