Summer Doll Quilt

Summer Doll Quilt
Originally uploaded by On a Whim | LittleWhimsies

Well, the quilt is in the mail. I had a heart stopping moment when I went to my saved email to get my partner's mailing address and the email WASN'T THERE!!! Somehow a file of saved emails has disappeared. My partner info for the Doll Quilt Swap 4 was also missing. But both swap mamas were kind enough to forward it again and all is right with my world. At least as far as quilt swaps go... I hope my partner likes her new quilt; it will take awhile to arrive as it does have to cross an ocean. I'm not saying which one.

It was a fun quilt to make. It is really bright, I was tempted to send my partner some new sunglasses along with the quilt. I've always liked blue and yellow together. And of course, daisies are my favorite summertime flower. I had been wanting to make a quilt with this block pattern. It was fun to make the 54-40 or Fight blocks. I got to buy a new tool! I love new toys, er tools. I got the Tri-Recs rulers and the block went together like a dream. Yay for new tools!!

My next sewing endeavor is to put together the supplies I need for a hand applique project that I started about a year ago. I had everything together at one point but over time, I've pulled out this and that for other projects. We'll have about 20 hours in the car, each way, plus some quiet time in the condo in the evenings. I should be able to make some progress.

Busy, Busy, Busy!!

That's what happens when you try to pack a whole summer's worth of activities into two weeks! We've been to the zoo, the aquarium and the fair. We've shopped a bit and cleaned house a bit. Tomorrow we have haircuts, a doctor's appointment, a trip to the library and other assorted errands. One of which is to run by the post office to send my Four Seasons Swap Quilt off to its new home. I'll get a picture up tomorrow after it's all done; just a few finishing touches left! We still have a number of things to do before the end of the week when we leave for our much-anticipated trip to Florida: laundry, packing, cleaning, etc. And we have a birthday to celebrate on Thursday -- my son will be 13(!!!!!)

Here are a couple of cute photos I managed to capture on our recent adventures.

Taken at the Cincinnati Zoo last week; wouldn't you love to know what the big gorilla is trying to tell the little one? Love the head scratching!


Taken today at the Newport Aquarium Frog Bog Exhibit. This little froggie is trying hard to win at hide and seek.

Quilt pictures tomorrow!!

First Day of Summer?

Well, not really but it felt like it. Swim season has finally ended and it feels like summer has just begun. We had no swim practice and nowhere else we had to be which was a very strange feeling. I've been shuttling kids between pools and waiting endlessly for them so we can run off to the next swim-related activity. But now it has ended.


This weekend was the Ohio Junior Olympics which my son qualified to compete in. It was an enormous accomplishment to make it. He was a bit overwhelmed by the event and did not swim his best. But his goal was to qualify, which he did and he got a very cool shirt that he will be quite proud to wear. And so, swimming is over and we go on vacation the end of next week and shortly afterwards, it is back to school. How time flies.

I have managed to squeeze in a bit of sewing time. I'm on schedule to have my Four Seasons Summer quilt in the mail before July 30. My DQS4 is in the planning stages but will probably not get made until after we return from vacation. Here's a quick peek at one of the blocks for the summer quilt.

Blue and yellow are very summer-y, aren't they? It makes me think of summer skies...

Happy quilting!!

Another busy weekend!

And not a bit of sewing got done! I do have a picture of my accomplishments today.

See! I baked a pie and made jam. My husband and children went up to Grandma and Grandpa's house and picked black raspberries yesterday. A lot of black raspberries!! About 5 quarts, I think. And so I had to use them up before they spoiled. So, I baked a pie and froze 2 quarts for future pies and made jam with all that was left. The pie crust looks a little funny, but it actually tastes quite good. Especially considering it is made with no wheat flour and no dairy products. My son has allergies and he loves pie. This crust works very well; it is just the tiniest bit grainy from the rice flour. The jam was an experiment. I've never made it before. It tastes very good but is very seed-y. I doubt I'll repeat the recipe. It was a lot of work for 5 half-pints of jam (plus one half jar). So the berries are gone from the fridge, the dishes are washed and my feet are a bit sore. But the pie was a hit and we've got jam for breakfast. And I did all that in about six hours in the kitchen! It will be awhile before I do it again...

Yesterday was my wedding anniversary. Twenty-two years! Oh my!! That is half my life. DH brought me some lovely roses:

Pretty, aren't they? I love roses and I haven't spent as much time as I should on the ones in my garden so I haven't had many to cut and bring inside. So I will enjoy these very much.

My summer swim team commitment is just about over and not a moment too soon! I cannot believe how much time I have spent working on swim team activities both at the pool and at home. Many, many more hours than a full-time job. But the season has gone well and the kids have had fun. I'll just be glad when it's over and my schedule gets back to some sort of normal. My house and garden need some serious tending and I would love to spend some time sewing. I've got ideas for my swap quilts and need to get started on the Four Seasons summer quilt soon. I should have some time later this week and next weekend.

Hopefully I'll have some quilt progress pictures next time I post. Until then...Happy quilting!

I'm Still Here...

Oh my, that was an unexpected break. Funny how time can get away from you. With the end of school, beginning of summer and all the summer activities, I have really neglected my blog. I can't believe it's been a whole month since my last post. Hopefully things will slow down a bit so I can get back to normal.

I haven't had any quilting or sewing time lately, so nothing new to post there. I did make my daughter a dress to wear to a wedding because we couldn't find anything suitable. The dresses in the stores were just a bit too revealing for my 14 year old. Just not ready for that yet... A quick stop at Joanns for a pattern and I actually had a piece of fabric in my stash that was perfect so that worked out very well.

I'm eager to get started on my swap quilt projects; I'm in two swaps at the moment. Maybe tomorrow I'll find myself in the sewing room. I'm sure it will be dusty and I may even find a cobweb or two.

Spring Quilt from Alice

Spring Quilt from Alice
Originally uploaded by On a Whim | LittleWhimsies

The mail lady was kind enough to deliver this lovely quilt in my mailbox. I was so excited to see what someone made for me. Pink and green is one of my very favorite color combo and what a fun little quilt this is! See the pink flowers embroidered in the corner? Very pretty!! It came all the way from Alice in Texas and I like it very much. Thanks Alice!

Here's a close up of the flowers:


I found some more pink flowers blooming in my garden to go with my new quilt.



We are having a lovely spring in Ohio. Quite different from the last few years when we had a late freeze to nip all the flowers. This year the flowers have been able to bloom their little heads off and it has been lovely to see. I haven't been able to spend much time outside and am very behind in my gardening chores, but it looks pretty through the windows. My azalea in particular is covered in beautiful blossoms. I have to remember to stop and enjoy the flowers before they're gone. Summer heat will be here soon!

And a belated Happy Mother's Day wish to all moms everywhere, especially to my mom who is no longer here but who is with me everyday in many small ways. Miss you Mom...

And it's off!

Doll Quilt Swap III by Wendy
Originally uploaded by On a Whim | LittleWhimsies

Well, I did it. I finished my second little swap quilt in a month and just in time for the deadline! I'm off to mail it, far, far away. I hope it flies quickly so my partner doesn't have to wait too long. And I hope she likes it. It is very pastel-ish. It was fun to make. I bought a stack of Kaffe Fassett squares from Ebay awhile ago and have been afraid to use them. The large patterns and strong colors scare me a bit. Anyway, I thought they would work well in the Disappearing Nine Patch pattern, with a couple solids and a stripe. It went together very quickly. Quilting by hand took a little longer, but I'm pleased with the result. And I still have an enormous stack of those charms left, so I think I'll be experimenting some more to see how I can use them up!

Now I have to get busy sewing for Etsy. And I've been commissioned to make a T-shirt quilt. School will be over in no time and I'm beginning to panic (like I always do) that I will never get all my projects finished before school's out for the summer. So I'm off to sort out my sewing space right after I get back from the post office.

Bye Bye little quilt! Have a safe and speedy journey!