Following Suit...

You may notice a new button at my blog. I have decided to join the Sew Your Own Wardrobe for a Year challenge here. Well, I think I did...I left a comment but have not heard back if I am accepted officially. No worries, I would be doing it without joining a challenge, but it's much more fun to do things with your friends! Click here to watch the welcome video. I always have such a hard time finding RTW that fits right that I rarely ever bother to shop for clothes anyway. (I assure you, I am not running around naked!) Think I'll get cracking on it right now to prevent any nakedness...only a few short hours before work.

Silhouette Love

Do you all know Peggy? Oh my gosh! I just discovered her webcasts and what a wealth of information and entertainment! Go here and check them out! I may not watch normal television for weeks. Except for Duck Dynasty of course...a girl has to have her vices!
Also I made an exciting discovery at our local Barnes & Noble yesterday. While they no longer carry Burda Style anymore, they now have My Image magazine! I had been contemplating subscribing as I bought a couple earlier editions and love their styles, but was afraid like my Ottobre Woman subscription I might only like 1 or 2 of the patterns. This way I can just purchase the issues I really want and leave the rest. Have you tried My Image?
It's a short work day for me, so there may be some sewing involved. Hope so! Hope your weekend is pleasant and fun...catch you later!

Enabler Alert!

Peggy at Silhouette Patterns is having a fantastic celebration sale here.  A pattern and DVD of your choice combo for $16.00. Go help her celebrate! You're welcome...over and out!

Woody

I swear I could easily become a dog hoarder! Look at that face! Doesn't it just say "love me"? Woody was offered up free on Craigslist. I think one more would tip the scale over the edge. Good luck Woody...I hope you find a good forever home.

Exciting things brewing at our house...I'll dish when I know more. TTFN!

Hello, it's Me...

I've thought about us for a long, long time...okay, those of you old enough are singing that song now. You're welcome! It's been so long since I've checked in that I feel like a stranger in my own blog! So much has been going on, it seems a luxury to pause for a moment to reflect.

Sewing? Not so much. I did shorten a couple of pairs of fleece pants for Tom the other night. That felt good! I have some things cut out and ready to go, but time and energy to sit down at the machine? No! I found myself jittery last week and drooling in response to a FabricMart email. I had to pull the trigger and place an order! Fabric should be here by the end of the week. A Maggy London  border print started the madness and then since no piece of fabric should travel alone...well, you know how that goes..

Grandma time...a little slice of heaven! That little boy melts my heart..when he smiles it gets me every time.  It's hard not to spoil the dickens out of him!

The retirement house is coming along beautifully. Tom put the new sink in the kitchen and took over the table and chairs for the dining nook. He had an idea to redo the carpet with camo...pretty wild, huh?

Well, I best get back to business. I'll try not to stay away too long...here's a picture of our little man out enjoying a rainy Oregon day.

A Good Day...so far

A schedule change gave me an unexpected day off today. That double shift was totally worth it to be enjoying my third (or fourth) cup of coffee (but who's counting?) and telling you about my day so far. It began early (as always) with Kodi boofing downstairs telling me he needed to go out. So I rounded up the usual suspects and we all went out and did our business (I waited til I came in). Then I decided to upload a couple books to my Kindle Ipad app (Tom is now using the kindle-Kindle). I had not loaded any new books since the great crash of 2013, so it took a little techno fiddling to set that back up with Calibre, but I now have Silver Lining Playbook and Argo waiting to read! Reading has taken the lead as my leisure activity and I think I have finished 9 books already this year! Goodreads has been good to me...check out the giveaways. Publishers are happy to send you books to read. Reviewing them is not a prerequisite for the giveaways, but I feel if they are nice enough to send me a free book, I should tell you all what I think about it. The reviews have been pretty good, because I only enter giveaways for books I actually would pick up and read. After I'm done with the books I give them away, because it's good karma to share the love. I just finished Found: A Memoir by Jennifer Lauck. I really enjoyed it. Frind me at Goodreads and let's talk books!

Next came errands and a trip to my favorite thrift store. I knew it was a good day when I saw this beautiful little fold up sewing table outside where they keep the big things. I asked how much? They said $3.00 and I hauled it immediately to my vehicle! Inside I found 3 brand new 10-yard rolls of Swedish Tracing Paper. $2.00 a piece...yes please!!! I also found a beautiful silver tray for a buck to put my oil and vinegars on. Totally addicted to the Oil and Vinegar store in the mall. This way they are beautifully displayed and I can easily access them when I'm cooking. Also found some more toys for my little guy. Toys are expensive Peeps! We went shopping last week and I was kind of shocked at how much they ask for hunks of plastic! I will get these toys bleached and in Gramma's playroom for his next visit. Last week I found a little golf set that he had a blast with. The dogs seemed to enjoy fetching, um, stealing golf balls too. A good time was had by all!

The mail stop was good...some new shoes for work and a freebie book (Thank you Goodreads!) A stop at the market for some dinner stuff (and blood oranges...couldn't resist!) and a visit to the Bargain Depot for pita chips (best buy in town) and now it's time to get to work! Can you tell I'm stalling on the work part???

Anywho, since pictureless posts are boring, here's Colt and Pop on the Fire truck. I think he is telling me to get off the running board and get in the "garbage truck" (aka, the brush rig). He also tried on Pop's turnouts, but he has a ways to grow before he fills those boots!

Home Sewing

I have been a poor blogger lately! Fortunately I have been a pretty good seamstress lately and have churned out some pretty good things. For example...my window seat cushions and accent pillows,

Tom spotted this awesome wildlife tapestry at the Mill End store in Milwaukee and we knew it was the perfect fabric for the window seat. Embroidery Library had some Northwoods Silhouette designs that accented the base fabric. I'm very pleased with how this project turned out. Here are some detailed pictures of the pillows.

Our last trip over was very productive too. The kitchen and nook walls are completely painted. All I have left in there is the window trim.

We finished painting the hallway as well, so all that is left is the master suite, the main bathroom and my sewing room. I'm still undecided on the color for my sewing room. I think I am going to use a Liberty print I picked up the last time we visited the kids. What color would you choose with this fabric?

I'm leaning towards the green. The blinds are black and I don't think I could live with pink long term. Part of the master suite is painted pink, and that's gotta go, so I'm not going to lay it down in my studio. The current carpet is a forest green, but that will be changing!

Well it's a work day, so I better get off the computer and get a few chores done before I have to leave! Hope you all have a super Superbowl Sunday!