Thanksgiving weekend digest

Hello! How was everyone's Thanksgiving? We went to my sister's in North Carolina, like we did last year. It was great....all the kids played together, the food was fabulous, and it was just so nice to spend time together. We hadn't seen them since last Thanksgiving so it was wonderful to go down again. Did I take any pictures there? No. Sigh. I guess I was just otherwise occupied so I never thought to get the camera out. My sister and I did a little shopping on Black Friday...we didn't hurry, we went to Target at 11am when the crowds died down. We both got what we were looking for so it worked out great.

We drove straight through on Saturday, and were home by 5:30 p.m. I spent the day yesterday doing laundry, food shopping, and putting up the Christmas decorations (inside). If you've been reading my blog for awhile, you'll recognize this...

My "12 Days of Christmas" wall hanging that I made a couple of years ago. Those little pears were a pain to make but I love how it came out!

I realized I have a lot of tabletop items but not a lot of wall decor. So when I was at Joann's today, I snapped this cutie up...

Seriously?! How adorable can this be? And their Christmas decorations are 50% off. Nice! I also got this three-plate wall hanging...

It's from the same collection as the first one. I swear, I could have bought everything in that line. I also got some Command hooks to avoid making holes in walls (you're welcome, dear!). I'm hanging the "Seasons Greetings" picture in-between the kitchen and the living room, and the plate thingy upstairs in the hall.

By the way, I will have another Gooseberry Patch Early Bird Review in the next couple of weeks. This one will be for the upcoming book, "Fresh From the Farmstand."

Stay tuned for a chance to win your own copy! Have a great day!

♥ Jen

Rose's quilt

Hello friends! How are you? I'm finally almost done with my cold. That was a really rough one. I coughed so much that I pulled muscles in my abdomen and near my ribs. Awful! But luckily it's just about gone. I'm feeling good and I got my major project of the year done...my niece Rose's quilt! It's bound, labelled and washed...would you like to see? First, here is the pattern I used, 4OT by Miss Rosie's Quilt Company (fittingly enough!).

I love the colors in the original, but as you know I decided to use 30s reproduction fabrics for mine. I used quite an assortment, with several different designers. The white is Kona Cotton in Snow. I've never used so much white in a quilt, and I really like it! I think it showcases the busy little prints well.

Here it is with the matching pillow:

I got the embroidery pattern from Aunt Martha's Hot Iron Transfers. I love those!!

I've been hoarding this blue little girl fabric for awhile now, just waiting for the perfect project. This is the top of the pillow. I used it for the binding of the quilt as well.

Another fabric I've been hoarding...this pink toile with cottages and windmills. I know, right?! This is the back of the pillow.

The quilt is approximately 72" square...a nice size, I think. I quilted in the ditch for the main grid of the pattern, then added some diagonal lines for some extra stitching and dimension. Want to see some more pics? All righty then! This is the quilt on the guest room bed, which is a queen.

This is the back, folded up a bit. It's kind of hard to tell, but it's a beautiful soft pink with white flowers. It's a Lakehouse print, and I got it super cheap from the same place I buy most of my backings, Desperate Quilters. You can see the binding pretty well here too.

Thanks for joining me in the tour of Rose's quilt. I hope you like it! It was quite a challenge for me but I'm really happy with how it turned out.

♥ Jen

Getting there!

Hey everyone! How are you doing? I've had a cold all week, which has not been too bad except for an annoying cough. I haven't been sleeping so great because of it. Oh well, coffee is my friend! My mother-in-law is here for the weekend, and she is going to babysit the kids tonight so that Dave and I can go out to dinner. I'm looking forward to that! I got them sushi from Wegman's for dinner which is a huge treat for the kids.

I got Rose's quilt all quilted, now I'm working on the binding. Love a rolled-up strip of binding!

I sewed most of it down ~ next I'll need to hand-stitch it down to the back. Then the label, a wash and it's done! Can't wait to show you!

My dad gave me a gift certificate to Amazon for my birthday, so I ordered this cutting mat. It got really good reviews. The biggest one I had was 18" x 24", and this one is 24" x 36".

I started using it for the binding and for trimming the edges of the quilt...it's wonderful! Nice and thick, and the extra space really helps a lot. Speaking of quilting, I ordered a bundle of PKM fabrics from Sharon at Daisy Cottage yesterday...don't you just adore these fabrics?? I have no idea what I'm going to make with them but I NEED them. They are right up my alley!

Take care buds...talk to you soon!

♥ Jen