{Post 1,292} Nine-Patch Update

This is a little shot of my nine-patch shirt quilt in process.  I have not sewn for so long!  All the units measure five inches square.  The same blue and cream are used throughout.

{Post 1,291} Little Project Today

I asked my husband if he would please put up our baby gate brackets today.  They are going to be on the walls at "this" end of the ladder.  He agreed.  Then I got this hairbrained idea to paint the stairwell to match the living room before he put them up.  The gate is essential to my sanity.  Not only is my grandson coming later this month (and he is in the toddler/just learning to walk phase), but I can't relax when we have company with toddlers because I am sure they are going to tumble down the steps to their death.  We opted for wooden strips that are shaped on both edges like a fancy trim.  We painted them to match the walls and drilled holes for the gate bumpers to fit into to give it extra stability.

Here is a very recent picture of the pseudo intellectual.  He is only 9 months old.  He has always looked older than his age:

Wes rigged the ladder in the bottom picture and told me not to bounce around a lot while I did the cutting in along the ceiling edge and in the corners.  The piece of wood is only being held in place by the ladder.  There was not a whole lot of incline.  But the drop would only be about 12 feet.

I went out a couple ladder rungs, but then I couldn't do it.  You know how you hear people say "don't look down" when they are trying to get someone down from a height?  I looked down!  I froze.  I was the only one upstairs.  I literally could not move.  So I sweetly asked my dear husband to do the cutting in.  Here it is when he was finished.  You can see the color better here.

The back wall is two stories high.  That is NOT the same ladder as in the top pictures.  So I found our extension handle for the roller and away I went.  The top picture is the finished product.  I LOVE this color.

Now I'm off to paint the inside of my soon-to-move-in-with-us daughter's closet and wallbed cubby.

{Post 1,290} Quilt Finished ~ Buckeye Queen

Here is Buckeye Queen.  I like this sooo much.  It's a large throw size.  I made it for a friend who has been such an encouragement to me.  Hope she likes it!  It's washed and dried and ready for delivery.

In honor of the quilt, I made buckeyes this AM.  They are peanut butter, confectioner's sugar and graham cracker crumbs mixed then shaped and frozen, then dipped in milk chocolate.  What's not to like?

Since I was going to be in the kitchen so long, I made a couple batches of these as well.

{Post 1,289} Secret Project

I have a large secret project that I finished the machine quilting on tonight.  Email me for the URL if you don't have it.

{Post 1,288} Little Quilt Finished ~ Big Quilt Started

This is a pattern from a magazine.  I don't remember which one off the top of my head.  I made and quilted it for a customer.  This is the first time I did the swirly stitching you see in the snowman.  I broke 4 needles.  I think the problem was with the invisible thread, not the machine.  So frustrating.

But now the sleeve is in place, and it is finished.  Will be mailed in the AM.  It's about 16" x 20".  Just a guess.

I also started machine quilting a large quilt on my HandiQuilter.  It's going great, but it's a Christmas surprise.  I'll post some pics on my secret blog when I have them.

{Post 1,287} Mantle 2013

If you've been reading very long, you know I recently painted the bricks around my fireplace.  I could barely wait for time to decorate for Christmas.  Here is my 2013 mantle.  I just finished moving the garland up on the top of it instead of hanging down in front and ADDED WHITE LIGHTS.  I love it.

Here's last year:

{Post 1,286} Christmas Decorations...Something New

Some new outdoor decorations.  Our front door is recessed.  I have had these lighted snowflakes for years and never had a good place to put them.  Here is Rachel (who I've had even longer than the snowflakes) modeling our new front door look.  I like how the colored lights are reflected in the side lights of the front door as well.