Lately my time has been spent sewing some small items. I've needed to make a few gifts and some canvas bags for DD. This past weekend I made a journal cover for a 13 year old niece.

I made up my own pattern and used one of the composition books that you can buy at an office supply store or at WalMart. I put a divided pocket on the front with a place for a pen on one side. Here's what it looks like opened up.

There are somethings I could do to improve my pattern. I'm planning to make more of them, so I will try the improvements on the next one.

This last photo is of the backside. I chose to have the flap closure fold around to the back and fasten with Velcro. This was fun to make!

Tulips and daffodils

I've done so much complaining about weather through the winter. Now it's time for me to lighten up and share the wonderful part of spring!


I worked hard last weekend cleaning out the debris from my flowerbeds and putting down fresh cypress mulch. I also planted some yellow pansies. I love the bright yellow daffodils and the red tulips in the first picture. Those are my favorites.

Where's your fish from?

Over the past few weeks I've been doing lots of label reading as I shop for food for my family. I've done that for many years now because I am a diabetic. My label reading has been for nutritional content so I know what is in an item and how it will work in my diet. Recently I have begun to read labels to find where the food is grown and/or processed. Sometimes this information is microscopic and very hard to find, but I was able to find it on every item I picked up. Somehow food processed in China doesn't have a lot of appeal to me especially in light of all the issues with lead and children's toys. I would rather buy food that I know has been grown and processed in the US or a country who tries to have cleanliness standards to protect people.

As I shopped this last week, I was going to buy some frozen fish fillets to fix for dinner. DH and I had watched a program on an American fishing boat in the Bering Sea. Baked fish with lemon pepper and a little butter just sounded so good. I picked up a bag of frozen cod. Product of China! Each bag or each variety of fish I picked up was either a product of China or product of China and processed in the US. I don't want a product of China. Is there no longer a product of the USA available?? If not, then I'm not going to eat fish. Are my supermarkets in the Midwest the only ones that are this way? If you buy frozen fish....do you look at where at comes from? Or does that matter to you?

I have not had much time for sewing lately. Spring has sprung at my house. I have been putting out mulch, planting flowers, moving perennials and even mowing a little. I am itching to get back to my sewing machine and make something. Unfortunately, today isn't the day for that to happen because I have a mountain of ironing to work on. But....maybe tomorrow will find me with a little time for stitching. I certainly hope so!

Another Bag

It was a quiet weekend in our little "empty nest". DH cleaned flower beds for me so they are ready for planting spring and summer flowers. I noticed yesterday that I have one daffodil bloom. After a long, hard winter....spring really is on the way!

I managed to do a little sewing this weekend. I made another one of the bucket bags. I used Andrea's instructions, but this time I used a 3 1/2 inch square making the bag a little larger. I also shortened the handles and changed the shaping at the top a little. Here's the bag I made.
And for comparison, here's a picture of the first bag I made a few weeks ago using Andrea's exact instructions.

Maybe you can see the changes I made where the handles join the bag. I am planning to make another one of these and I am going to use much smaller squares to make a much smaller bag. Thanks to Andrea for sharing her tutorial in June 2007.

I also knitted 3 dish clothes as DH and I were watching tv in the evening.

This is my favorite pattern. I don't like a real thick cloth and with the holes in this one, it doesn't seem as thick as some of the others I have knitted. I plan to knit these throughout the year so I will have them on hand to give as small Christmas gifts. As you can see, I still need to weave in those little yarn tails!

Happy Birthday!!

Twenty six years ago today, I was at the hospital getting this!
Yes, that's right...DS was born 26 years ago today. Wish I could have cooked dinner for him and made him a cake, but he is living and working on the east coast. I had to be content to talk to him on the phone this evening.

This afternoon I sewed a little. My project was not quilting, but I can use it when I quilt. I have been wanting to make an apron to keep my scissors, small rulers, pencils, etc. when I sew. I found a pattern for a gardening apron and with a few minor changes, here's what my apron looks like.
I can now put my tools in the pockets as I work and not lose them!

Another finish!!!!

In my post on Feb. 19, 2008, I showed some pillowcases that I had just finished. They were an old UFO that I found when I was cleaning in Jan. When I was cleaning I also found a tablecloth that I had started LONG ago. When I say long.....I mean real long. I know it had to have been sometime around 1983 when I started this. How do I know this? I know the tablecloth was given to me by my neighbor, Mrs. Thornton, and we moved from that house in 1983. I have worked on it off and on through the years and when I found it in January, all I needed to do was the centers of all the flowers. After I finished the pillowcases, I started work on this tablecloth. I worked a little each night.......and it is now finished! I'm sharing pictures of it before I iron it as I am getting ready to put it in the wash.
This tablecloth was a kit from Lee Wards. I remember Mrs. Thorton telling me she had gotten it in a grab bag she had ordered from them. She told me she would never do it as she only enjoyed quilting and had no use for a tablecloth.

It is so hard to believe that it took me 25 years to finish this. I should be ashamed of myself. But at least it is finished. Now I can move on to another completing another project.

Last week was a busy week for me. I was dealing with the dreaded income tax stuff. Several of the blogs I visit said their owners were doing the same, so I know that most likely I was not alone in being stressed and in a not so good mood. Stitching didn't happen for me this past week. Hopefully this week will be a better one.

I've visited several blogs this past week that were sharing their pin cushions. Since I have nothing else to share, I thought I would snap a picture of some of my pin cushions.