Back in Time and another CoVid casualty

So the date is somewhere in 2014.

I have proudly turned Pennies from Heaven into a flimsy.

Forward to 2020,

and the flimsy is quilted, bound and on the guest bed 

until the magnetic quilt hanger I have ordered arrives.

Nothing like a pandemic to help your finish up your UFOs.

Next on my list is Le Jardin.

It will be perfect for my granddaughter, Evelyn.

As far as casualties go,

the latest is my LQS, The Olde World Quilt Shoppe.

The new owner announced last week that she will be going on-line only mid June.

I dyed wool for her, but alas, no more.

She hopes to open a physical location in the future,

but I am not hopeful.

Lots of time to finish all those UFOs!

I continue to stitch circles for my Sue Spargo toned down (as in not 90!!)

sampler project. Here are a few of my latest.

After the quilt for my granddaughter is a flimsy,

I hope to work on my daughter's wedding quilt. 

Don't judge me.....her 8 year anniversary is soon.

1

Mother Nature

She never fails to entertain.

A hummingbird built a nest outside my laundry room window.

First there were 2 eggs, which I understand is always the case.

The twins started to get bigger.

As the nest got more and more crowded, 

one flew away.

Now there is just one fellow left.

Tried to show a video of him trying out his wings, but could not get it to download.

So here is a link to my Instagram video.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CADho5tnd2FKRTvT7XPLLB742rFbrN_jUCWgKA0/

Hopefully, that will work.

A few new circles done on my Sue Spargo Toned Down Sampler.

Hope you enjoyed the hummers!

A little smile perhaps during this time of uncertainty.

Eat, Stitch, Sleep, Repeat!

Oh, this whole stay at home business is getting old!

And yet, as businesses start to open up,

I am concerned about what will happen in the next few months. 

I consider myself lucky in that both my children can either work from home 

or have been furloughed.

My daughter works at the Mayo Clinic 

and has been told she will return to work no earlier than August.

She has found, however, that the economic impact is rather negligible. 

No childcare to pay for, 

no after school activities like gymnastics and swimming lessons, 

no fast food lunches for her husband since he now works from home.

The moral of this story is that since we are all so isolated,

we feel perfectly safe gathering as a family on a regular basis.

I cherish those gatherings!

But those don't happen everyday,

sew I stitch!

 This is my first block of Sue Spargo's quilt,
Fresh Cut.
I am doing mine on a taupe background
 and dyeing all my own wool for it.

This is my second block in progress.
Boy, am I going out of my box on this one.

I continue to do the Instastitch with Sue sampler.

My attempt to design a circle on my own.

Two of my favorites designed by Sue Spargo.

Although most of my work has been with wool,
I did manage to bind a panel quilt for my son and his wife.

Simple, but she loves it.

Back to my stitching!

Another UFO bites the dust!

Solstice Dreams by Kerry Green

This quilt will be my daughter's once the quilter has worked her magic. 

I dyed all the wool for this project except for one piece.

Some of my favorite circles from Sue Spargo's

Toned Down Sampler Stitch Along. 

I am not doing them all. 

Kind of picking and choosing the ones where I will learn something new  

or practice a stitch I need to improve upon.

Love this thought:

Month and a half of self isolation and it's like Vegas in my house.

We're losing money by the minute, cocktails are acceptable at any hour,

and nobody knows what time it is.

This quote I snagged from Ali Strebel is a little more uplifting:

Happy Easter

Thought I would share these 2 small quilts, 

designed by Edyta Sitar.

I finished them a while back,

but love the spring colors in them.

I am following Sue Spargo's Toned Down Circle Sampler on Instagram 

and I am finding such peace stitching each circle while I drink my coffee early in the morning.

Beats reading the highly disturbing news!

Her video tutorials are so helpful! 

And I can save them to refer back to anytime.

I keep busy by dyeing wool for The Olde World Quilt Shoppe.

You can see most of my wool if you click on the link above.

Sometimes it is just work when I am dyeing colors I have dyed a hundred times before, 

but when I can experiment, that is when I enjoy it.

This has been such a sad week with so many lives lost.

I hope all is well with you and your loved ones.

Stay healthy and stay safe!

Isewlation

...and another project is a flimsy!

Holiday Table Runner by Norma Whaley

I purchased this kit from Norma quite a while ago, 

but Isewlation motivated me to get her done.

One thing that helps my sanity is hiking in the desert.

Right now the wildflowers are amazing.

This one is new to me...

a desert paintbrush, but with a new color.

And mother nature never fails to entertain...

a hummingbird has been building her nest outside my laundry room window.

Cannot wait to see the eggs!

Have you all seen the new sew-along coming out of Australia?

Love and Hugs from Australia stitch-a-long

I joined hoping to do something different for a change.

Staying at Home means...

...lots of sewing is going on!

Like most of you, 

my husband and I are social distancing,

which means no gatherings at my LQS!

So, I will do my show and sharing here.

Picking Poppies by Shawn Williams

My Clothesline Bunny and 

Seashore Clothesline project,

both designed by Heart to Hand.

Little White Pumpkins, another design by Heart to Hand.

Blooming Poppies by Crane Designs. 

Love this one because I dyed the wools for it.

We recently traveled to Patagonia.

What a fabulous trip it was!

The first portion included a cruise on an expedition boat 

along the Chilean side of the Darwin Ice Field.

There were only 95 passengers and the seas were calm enough to land on Cape Horn.

The second portion was spent hiking for 8 days on the Argentinian side.
We were blessed with gorgeous weather
and no wind (a rarity in Patagonia!)

We saw everything from icebergs, penguins, Darwin's ostriches, 

condors, fossils, and even 3 Pumas (a very rare sighting, indeed.)

I must say it was one of my favorite, all-time trips.
However, we had to fly through JFK in NY on our way home,
hence the self imposed 14 day isolation we are under.

So far, we are well and hope all of you are healthy too!
Thank you for stopping by to read my blog
and stay home, stay healthy and stay sane!
This, too, will pass.