Chat – Page 5 – Thimbleanna

Five on Friday

14 Comments / September 16, 2016 September 16, 2016 / Chat

Happy Friday! Here are a few things happening around here this week:

1. It’s Candy Corn season again — Yipee!!! I Love Candy Corn mixed with salted peanuts. It just makes me want to sew lots of Halloween fabrics. I probably won’t this year, but I WILL eat lots of Candy Corn! ;-D

2. Fall always makes me want to knit sweaters for some reason. I pulled this stripey project out of the UFO closet last week for my lunch time knitting. I started this last year, but it is s-l-o-o-o-w going, so it ended up being shelved for spring and summer. Maybe I’ll finish it in a few years haha. The stripes are made by knitting a variegated colorful yarn and a variegated neutral yarn every-other-row. I love the pattern it’s making and the drape of the “fabric” is just wonderful!

3. I finished piecing the baby quilt for FinallyAGirl last week and started quilting it this week. I’d forgotten how much I love to hand quilt (sore fingers aside). I’m loving working on this project in the evenings.

4. Remember this quilt??? She comes home from her year-long hand-quilted spa trip tomorrow and I can’t wait to see her! Hopefully there will be some binding happening next week — if I can tear myself away from the baby quilt.

5. A few new fabrics have arrived in my little shop. A re-stock on the famous black and white binding stripe and two new little Japanese prints. The knitting print is a lightweight canvas and will make some adorable knitting bags. The little Paris Girl print is so darn cute I had to get her. She’s having a very busy day — shopping, cleaning, baking, sewing, and lots of pampering!

Have a wonderful weekend!
XOXO,
Anna

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Dog Days Baby Bonnet

26 Comments / August 21, 2016 August 21, 2016 / Chat, Sewing

Poor, poor little blog. It’s just been so neglected. I’m blaming it on the Dog Days of Summer. It’s been so slow around here with not very much happening. The days are long (work, work, work) and the weeks flash by. I have no clue where summer has gone — it seems like we were just thinking that FinallyAGirl would never get here and now she’s two months old already!

Just the girls in the family snuck off for an afternoon last weekend and we had a quick visit with our little princess. It was short and sweet and oh so fun. And we weren’t the only ones being sneaky — SweetiePie snapped this pic of us ladies oooohing and aaaahing over the baby.

I love that picture so much. It says so much about our little family. And how thrilled we are to have that sweet little girl join us!

I’ve also done a little bit of sewing here and there. I’ve barely started to work on the blocks for a quilt for FinallyAGirl. And, this afternoon, I made her a quick little bonnet for some up-coming trips she’ll be taking in the next few months (Don’t Look Pie!).

She probably already has several little sunbonnets. But you know what they say. Makers gonna make. Especially when the maker is a new Grandma. I just couldn’t help it. A few months ago, a really sweet woman started buying lots of Liberty fabrics from my little etsy shop. I finally asked her what she was making with all of her Liberty, and she told me she has a new little granddaughter too. Then she told me I really should make the sunbonnet from Purl — it’s so sweet and easy to make. I used Pheobe in pink for the print and Moda Bella 97 for the white. And the little bonnet is fully reversible, in case SweetiePie wants a mostly white bonnet with just a hint of color.

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TeddyBear decided to model the bonnet, even though his head is the wrong size. (And mostly because I can’t find my little doll model, who I hope will turn up as mysteriously as she’s disappeared — I need her modeling help!)

Hopefully I won’t be gone for so long next time, but who knows. I’m guessing it will be September by the time I post again. September! I just can’t believe it already!

XOXO,
Anna

P.S. In the event you’re in need of fabric, there have been lots of new arrivals in my little shop — some new Liberty, some of the very popular Rifle Paper Co. prints, and some Santa fabrics (’cause I’m not saying the “C” word in August!)!

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A Sewing Weekend

25 Comments / July 24, 2016 July 24, 2016 / Chat, Sewing, Store

Happy Sunday! Now that it’s over haha. And, it’s even Monday for some of you. I’m late as usual ;-D.

Oh well, I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Mine was great, even though it’s hot outside. Not much happening here — it was nice and quiet, so I escaped summer’s heat and spent a lot of time sewing in the dungeon. I finally finished piecing the second Little Red Riding Hood quilt top for my Grandma room. The pieces have been on my little portable design wall for several months, and every time I’d walk by, half of them would fall on the floor. I’m so excited to have that project finished! I’ll hand quilt this second quilt just like the last one, but I’m in no hurry — maybe I’ll put it on the frame sometime this winter.

After finishing the quilt top, I started playing with a new little quilt for FinallyAGirl. Pink!, of course. When I told TheManoftheHouse what I was working on, he said “Doesn’t she have enough quilts already?” Silly Man. Probably, but that’s not the point. Each one of MY babies will have a little hand-quilted baby quilt from their Grandma — you know, one that’s more traditional, and maybe a little keepsake. I made a few blocks to test out the pattern and then proceeded to cut lots of little pieces.

I’m really excited about it — it should be a fun little project. I’m going to take my time and enjoy the process. Here’s the scrap-pile of yumminess so far. ;-D

I also finished some of my little vinyl project bags. Some of the fun prints from the Tim Holtz Eclectic Elements collection have arrived and I couldn’t help myself. You might remember how much I love a good map fabric, and I thought these fabrics would be perfect for project bags. I cut these a little bigger than the ones in my instructions too — 11 x 14 instead of 10 x 12. It’s fun to have different sizes.

I LOVE them. I even used recycled vinyl because I couldn’t find my vinyl stash (er, one piece LOL). Of course, I found it after I had these little bags sewn together. For probably more years than some of you have been alive (!), I’ve been saving those fancy vinyl zippered bags that new mattress pads and comforters come in — do you know the kind I mean? I was thrilled to be able to cut one up and recycle it! Two of my bags have already claimed projects — a new start on some socks and a little something for a certain little baby girl which is almost done and ready to be blocked.

So, that was the weekend here. Pretty boring for most, but exciting for a quilter! Off to bed now — have a wonderful week!

XOXO,
Anna

Five on Saturday

23 Comments / June 18, 2016 June 19, 2016 / Chat, Crocheting, Knitting

Because I can’t get my act together to post Five on Friday! Ooops! Anyway …

1. No baby news yet. There’s still a little making o’ baby stuff going on while we wait. A little princess has to have a little pink crown, right? (Pattern available here.)

2. Are you a multi-tasker? Of course you are. You can walk and text right? Or cook dinner and help with the homework? Or do a million different things at the same time? BUT. Are you a Super Tasker??? Take the quiz and find out Here. It takes about 40 minutes and fair warning … it’s not easy. At least it wasn’t for me. There are three parts — audio, visual and audo + visual. I did great on the visual (confirming what I already knew about being a visual person — I even scored 100% a few times) but not so hot on the audio (I can just hear TheManoftheHouse now — “You never listen to me” LOL), so my combined scores put me just below the line to be a Super Tasker. Darn It. You’d think I wouldn’t have time for these games. But No. We’re Waiting on a Baby! Anyway, Give It A Try!!!

3. If you’ve been around for awhile you know I’m not a big fan of facebook. It REALLY honks me off that every time I comment or like something or whatever, it feels the need to inform the planet. And don’t get me started on the Ads. So, a few weeks ago, I had a new interesting facebook experience. When TheManoftheHouse was in the rehab hospital, he had an elderly roommate. The roommate had a daughter and granddaughter who are just beginning to learn the ins and outs of taking care of a parent at home. Having recently been through that experience with BigDaddy, I told the daughter to call me if they needed any references. About a month later, the granddaughter called and we had a nice conversation and I gave her some information. Then, about a month after that, facebook suggested that I friend the granddaughter. Wow! Granddaughter lives 4 hours away from here and we don’t have one. single. friend in common on facebook. How on earth would facebook know to recommend that I friend her? I’ll tell you how. Facebook is snooping around in my phonebook. WTF???? They’re snooping around in your phonebook too. #ieffinghatefacebook (Facebook and effing both start with “F” — need I say more?) (Gratuitous cat picture — #scruffhatesfacebooktoo).

4. More trying to keep busy knitting. A few little pacifier holders for baby. The pattern is in the book Itty-Bitty Nursery by Susan B. Anderson. (That’s not an affiliate link — I don’t get squat.)

5. A few beautiful Tula Pink fabrics have arrived in my little etsy shop. I LOVE this beautiful Chipper line and this colorway is even prettier in real life. I’m hoping to sew a little with it tomorrow. But, maybe the baby will come! ;-D

Hope you’re having a great weekend!
XOXO,
Anna

Six on Saturday

24 Comments / April 9, 2016 April 9, 2016 / Chat

1. Well, Hey Ho! Another week has whizzed by! I didn’t get a whole lot done, but I’ve been making lists and preparing. Does that count? The next two weekends will see baby showers for FinallyAGirl and this Grandma has got to get her rear in gear. I have lots of plans. I’ve been pre-shrinking fabric and now I’m ready to get some sewing done. Here’s proof — the piles of fabric all ready to go!

2. Have you guys seen the Rowdy Flat Library Quilt? {SWOON!} It’s a new pattern by Susan Smith and it looks like it’s going to be gorgeous! I first saw it on Nicolette’s and Emily’s blogs and it’s going to be so fun to watch their progress. I loved making The Aunts’ Quilt and I’d love to start another applique quilt. I’m SO tempted to jump in (because hello. BEES!) but I think it’s going to have to wait for awhile — waaayyyy too much to do in the near future. {And it’s all wonderful!} (Here’s a picture I found on pinterest.)

3. Anyone have the spring cleaning bug??? Nah, me neither. Haha. Just kidding. This place is a sty and I really need to get some cleaning done. Maybe after the baby showers. Just a little cleaning though — we don’t want to hurt ourselves or anything. If you can get past the sales pitch, I found a little kitchen spring cleaning list here. Maybe that would be a good place for me to start.

4. PSA: It’s time for the annual Vera Bradley Outlet sale in our little hometown. Anyone out there coming to visit during the big event? I”ll probably zip by, even though I don’t need a darn thing. If you’re a knitter, don’t miss our great little yarn shops, Simply Socks and Knitting Off Broadway. If you’re a quilter, you’re SOL. But, we do live fairly close to Shipshewana, so you could swing by Yoders and Lollys on your way back home. ;-D

5. Lots of new Liberty fabrics in my little shop this month. There are a few more from the Children’s collection that aren’t in the picture below because I haven’t added them to the shop yet. I’ll be cutting into some of those pinks soon though. Because, you know. FinallyAGirl.

6. Longtime readers know of my love for the humble Rice Krispy Cookie. There’s a new batch in the kitchen just waiting for my marathon sewing this weekend. Don’t those fabrics make them look pretty???

That’s It! I’m Outta Here! Cookies and Fabric are waiting. Have a great weekend!

XOXO,
Anna