Making a good start with quilting-Placemats

I was nervous about getting back into quilting and I wanted to do a little project to make myself have some more confidence in it. So, I decided to work on 4 placemats for our little table. Not that it's usually anyone more than DH and I, but oh well. So I got some fabric picked out in the colors that we decided on: red, blue and yellow. As you know I painted the rooms a soft yellow.  I've been trying to add the blue and red through accent pieces. I have more red than blue at the moment. But we use Fiesta dish ware and we have the scarlet, lapis and (a discontinued) soft yellow.

This is the way that my table looked. Also a peek at the colors of my fiesta ware on the table. I like to mix the colors up like this. It makes dinnertime fun. Also, believe it or not, having beautiful dishes makes washing them that much more enjoyable. 

Now, I am making 4 placemats total. 

Here is the pieced parts of them. I have not yet bought the backing and cut our the binding. I'm going to a group of ladies that have been ever so helpful with my questions and I will be going there next week to bind my placemats and get started on my next project. Hopefully that will be a larger quilt. We will see how things go. 

 This is the colors and patterns that I chose. I was still cutting them out here in the top picture. The next one down I had cut them all out and decided how to sew them so they would mix and match. 

It's hard to imagine what they will look like exactly.

All 4 laid out to view the colors. YAY. Progress. 

This one was placed to check that this was what I wanted to do, then sewed up and I think they look nice. 

And here they are finished

I think they look really nice. I've pieced a quilt before, but I never did the batting, backing and binding. This was a fun project. It was supposed to be a small one, but it took much longer than anticipated because I hand bound them. I have several more projects in the works, but more on those later. 

Isn't quilting fun?

Have you made anything lately?

Dahlia Sew-a-long Part 2

So in doing Christmas presents and trying to get organized for our trip and I didn't get this finished in the timeline that was set forth, but I still want to finish it. So, I'm continuing my project and documentation of it. So, thank you for looking in on it.

I made my fabric selection in the beginning of December. I made a huge mess in my sewing room trying to find it. I was gifted this fabric from someone who made a kilt from it. I've been trying to figure out what to make from it ever since. I really hope that I have enough to make this dress. If not, I'm going to be so bummed. I'm not sure who's family name is goes with, nor to I really care, but I love the colors and the feel of the wool fabric. I'm thinking it will be a nice warm dress on cool fall and colder winter days here in Minnesota. It's snowing outside today for the first time this season. I was told today that it snowed much earlier in the season last year and that was a terribly long and cold winter. I'm hoping that it is not much of the same this year. *update the first snow was November 10th and so far it has been a mild winter for Minnesota. I'm so grateful. I'm still cold though.*

I bought dark blue bias tape and zipper for this project. I really wanted the dark green, but they did not have the bias tape in stock. I blame Christmas sewers. *whomp, whomp*

I've got my muslin all cut out and I aim to put it together sometime today or tomorrow. Since we are in the middle of a snowstorm, I have plenty of time to work on it. There is still time to join me on the 

Dahlia Sewalong.(I think.) Hey, its a cute dress.

The minimalist game

So I challenged my Mom to play the minimalist game with me for October. (You can find out what that is here.) We have both done really well. I'd like to share with you what has left my house  and my life. All while not letting too much creep into the house to take it's place. (super hard!) That is really important. Although, we did get gifted a camper so...we have a bit more stuff there. I did not count anything that I took to the camper as part of the game. It is supposed to leave your house.  I did not take pictures of each day as I went along. I probably should have. But I have it all written down here and I'm feeling very proud of myself. My house looks better and I feel lighter. As I got rid of some books I took the time to organize the bookshelves. As I looked through my craft supplies furiously looking for something to get rid of, I organized my craft room  a little more. And let me tell you going from a large room that was only my craft room to a much smaller room that I share with my DH for his 'office' makes it so I need to be more organized and have less stuff in my 'craft room.'  I left a box out by the stairs in the living room and when it got full I took it away. (I know the game says out by midnight, but that's just not possible for everyone and my Mom and I both agreed that this was silly when we both live out in the country. It's not feasible for us to run to town everyday.)

Have you ever tried something like this or done project 333? I'm thinking for November I might kick it up a notch and do this challenge. Want to join me? I think it will be fun. I know a lot of people did it for October, but I had already started this game with my Mom. We had fun doing it. Since she lives in South Carolina and I'm now in Minnesota we talked on the phone about it a lot. (Miss you Mom!) 

Day 1-I sold a book. 

Day 2-2 coffee cups no one uses (ever) 

Day 3- 2 more books and 1 more book sold. 

Day 4- 4 pictures/picture frames. 

Day 5- 5 shirts (from my boxed up clothing stash) 

Day 6-2 old jewery boxes, a pair of earrings (from my jr prom!), 2 weird hair things, a sign from my wedding, and a bath scrubby that I never used.

 Day 7- a round hair brush, 2 old phones, a hair clip, an orange necklace, a cufflinks set, and another old jewelry box. 

Day 8-The boxes our kindles came in (2), 2 spanish CDs from college, a book we are never going to read, some old curtain rings (not a complete set), a duplicate book (gasp!) and a weird book(I don't know why I bought it)

Day 9-5 magazines, 2 maps,  an envelope system, and engineering paper from DH's college days.

 Day 10- 4 old textbooks, 2 books, 3 crazy straws, and a sweater. I also went through a lot of old paperwork and got rid of a bunch of that too. Didn’t count it, but it felt good to do it.

 Day 11-an fancy old ornament box, 2 headbands, some old tongue ring things, a bandana, a pair of earrings, and a broken neckacle and bracelet (broke since HS!) a drum key,  a set of banjo pickers, and a old necklace add on. 

Day 12-2 necklace and earring sets, 3 audio books, a pair of earrings, a keychain, 4 curtains from our old house, and a broken binder. Frank went through papers today and got rid of a lot of old notes and tests from college. 

Day 13-9 old college textbooks and 4 magazines.

Day 14-6 old magazines, 3 binders, , does it count if I sent some professional books to work with hubby? A whole box went. (There were 13 of them.) They are out of the house-yet he still owns them. I’m not sure about it. 

Day 15- 1 crazy straw,6 shirts, 2 skirts, a torn up book, a scarf,  a Spanish dictionary, plastic bowl, note taking pad and a pair of cheap sunglasses. 

Day 16-7 plastic hangers from stores, a sheet magnifier, several pages of paper from boxes, 2 folders,  glass pie plate, and an aluminum small bread tin. 

Day 17-vaccuum from the camper (we’re installing wood), So much crap from the camper was tossed today! Also, I let go of feeling like I wasn’t good enough to do this re-do. It is what it is and it will be ours. 

Day 18-5 pillow shams,  old old dog poop collector, a necklace, a butterfly clip, and 10 articles of clothing. (today was easy!)

Day 19-1 christmas ornament, 4 hair clips, 7 adapters, 1 body poof,  2 product booklets for things we no longer have,2 lone earring, decorative bobby pin, and a curtain clip

Day 20-a pin, 2 pair of earrings, 2 braclets, a necklace I made in HS, an old brush I never use,  1 shirt, 1 vest 1 dress, a piece of fabric I’m never going to use, a shirt from our old church, at least 9 old brochures in my sewing room. (Today was hard for me. I started resisting the changes I’ve made. I was in so many rooms looking for something to leave! Then seeing my sewing room in a state of well-clutter, made me depressed. I’ll start in there again tomorrow!)

Day 21- A box with old patterns inside. It was all a set, but they were purchased individually. All in all at least 20 here.

Day 22-1 bra that broke (While wearing it, embarrassing!), a rug the puppy tore up, a seam ripper that is not ripping, and brochures and papers in the sewing room. Old bills, recycled papers, and more papers gone.

Day 23- 23 bubble blowers left over from the wedding.

Day 24-13 bubble blowers left over from the wedding, 2 teddy bears given to me by my ex. I sold 2 more books that left the house today. (I know that's only 17, but it was a tough day for me!) 

Day 25-Lots of old files and papers. Organized the craft room a little bit here. 

Day 26-Old files and papers.

Day 27-Too many old files and papers to count. A lot of really old tax documents.

Day 28-Emails deleted and unsubscribed so I would not get them again.

Day 29-empty folders from organization.

Day 30-15 old plugs, 2 old cell phone boxes, a lunch box, old credit/bank cards, a stack of old business cards, some yogurt containers I was saving, and various other things to round out the last of it for me. 

Day 31-Last day!! I tried to relax a little today because I had so much going out of my house. I put it all together and tried to organize it to go. 

I am trying to get it ready for the garage sale next year. 

I’ve never had a garage sale before so I’m interested in seeing what I can make of it. 

Have you ever undertaken a huge project like this? Would you consider it? If you have, I'd love to know how it went for you. 

Sewalong-Dahila

I'm doing a sew-a-long. I've never been a part of one before. I tried to join one before, but I was working then and it didn't work out with my schedule. Now, I'm starting a hobby farm in Minnesota. Since it's winter(to me anyways) now, my plan is to sew, quilt and crochet a lot more. 

This is the first Collete pattern that I have purchased as well. I picked up the 'Cooper' and the 'Dahila', which is the one that I will be making this month. It seems like I have to have a 'large' project or 2 each month to keep me busy. 

I'm not sure when I will be able to wear this dress since I am going into winter here. I am deciding on a fabric some time this week. I have to get my stash out and see what I have available. I cannot afford to buy fabric this month, with Christmas so close my excess money (ha!) is being used on gifts. Also, we made a large order of meat, 1/4 of a bison and a pig. 

So come follow me as I make the 'Dahila' pattern. It looks fairly simple, yet I'm sure that using a plaid might make it harder. I'm really wanting to do plaid, but I'll see what is in the closet. I need to make sure that this is going to work with what is already in my closet too. And you can join the sew a long if you want here. It just started November 3, 2014 so you aren't behind at all. Jump in, it will be fun!!

The difference between self-sufficiency and being God-sufficient

You hear a lot these days about being self-sufficient. Especially in the thoughts of people that I talk to or read their blogs. People are worried. They are not happy with the situation in our nation. The 'recession' is over, but people are still hurting. I see it everywhere. The people that sit a few rows up from us are loosing their house to foreclosure. The lady that helps you at the bank is getting a divorce because they have grown apart while her husband has not had a job to support their family. All around us people are broken and hurting. This isn't a new thing. Long ago people were broken and hurting. It's part of being an imperfect person in a broken world. Jesus came to save us all and give us peace.
But I want to share something else with you. A lot of people think that "Money is the root of all evil." I'm not sure where this idea came from, that's like saying that a hammer is evil because it might be used to hurt someone. That's silly. The correct quote/bible verse is that "The love of Money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows."  1 Timothy 6:10
This means that loving something other than God is the real problem here.
Also in Philippians 4:10-19, Paul expresses that he has found that God is the true supplier of his needs. Elijah was fed by the ravens in the OT (1 Kings 17) morning and night. God cared about this man no more than He cares for each of us. He will supply our needs.

Fredrick K.C Price has this to say about God's sufficiency: "Let this Scripture [He means Philippians 4:12-13 here.] be a guiding light to understanding God's will on the subject of prosperity. It tells us yes (we can have riches), and no (do not trust them). With the mind of Christ (see Phil. 2:1-5), we will never become high minded if blessed with wealth. Here is the assurance that if our lives are geared to the Word of God, then, through Christ, we can experience either financial wealth or temporary setback, but we will still be steadfast in our living, all because our trust will be only in Him. If the economy should dissolve tomorrow, God's people would not be rendered inoperative, because God is our source. He can keep us through times of scarcity as well as in times of plenty. He fed Elijah by sending ravens to bring him food in the morning and evening (1 Kings 17:2-6). God can do that now. He is the same today as He was then. (1Tim. 6:17/Duet. 8:18)"

From 'God's plan for prosperity-God wills to insure our sufficiency for every good work' sectioned "Riches are not to be trusted." Red added is my clarification.

So, I aim to be dependent on Him; And not myself. He who gives us every good thing. All things are from Him. And He loves us more that we could ever know.

I realize that while I am stocking up supplies in my home for those 'just in case' things. God has given these blessings to us. I believe that God wants us to be smart about what we have been given and be good stewards of His property and gifts within us. If I use them to the best of my ability, I believe that He is pleased with me. We are to enjoy Christ's peace and purpose in life regardless of the circumstances.

None of this means that I do not plan to grow a garden this year or plan on getting chickens in the spring. What it does mean is that I acknowledge that everything is given by God to us and I remember to praise Him and thank Him for the blessings that we are given. I encourage you to do the same.

This post is meant as a stimulant toward believing in Christ's sufficiency in facing all life's circumstances. If you have any questions please feel free to email me or leave a comment here.