SOME CHRISTMAS FINISHES

When I saw the "candy" canes on La Vie En Rosie I wanted to make them right away. So I got busy and all the directions are there. I had a hard time at first, but eventually, I widened the stick part a little so it was easier to stuff them. I have to say it wasn't really fun turning and stuffing them, but I really liked them when I got them finished. I decided to continue with the directions to stiffen them and dye them a little, then paint on sparkly stuff. I'm not sure I would dye or sparkle them next time - if I ever do them again. I ran out of sparkle, so some of them don't sparkle all the way down.
If you go to her web site you will see how she arranged them in a tin bucket and I really like how hers looks. I'm not finished arranging mine and I'm going to give some away, so I won't have that many in my basket. I just stuffed them in for now.
I got some berries & greenery to put in the basket, so I think it will look better after I rearrange them.
A special little GD is having her first Christmas this year! Her birthday is Dec. 29, so she will have a birthday soon too! Here she is taking her first steps.
I will be sending her stocking to her this week. I had almost a whole year to get it finished!! The stocking is a dark red - the color didn't come out real well in the picture.
Now on to another project - and I'll be finished for this year! Woo Hoo!! I'll have to post pictures after Christmas. Good luck finishing up your projects too!

MYSTERY QUILT

When Bonnie Hunter blogged about her new mystery quilt that was going to be published in "Quiltmaker" magazine over 3 issues, I decided to do it. First of all, I had never done a mystery quilt before and wanted to see what it was like. Second, I like Bonnie's style and ideas and she is generous with her ideas on her web site. I decided that I would do it and would do everything right away when the issues came out and get it done before Christmas!

I'm not sure what possessed me because I had plenty of other projects to work on. I guess I have the quilting disease like a lot of you! Hee Hee!

I got the top finished today and tomorrow I'll drop it at the quilter's. Hopefully it will get quilted soon so I can finish it before Christmas!
It is made almost all from my stash. I had to buy some gold because I ran out of that. Then I was hoping that I had something I could back it with and I remembered the fabric that I bought at a garage sale last March for about $1 per yard, and there was a piece just big enough and it looked Christmasy as well! Yeah!

SOME FUTURE SCRAPPY PROJECTS

I got this free pattern in the mail and really liked it. In the mean time, I have been working on gifts and not able to post them for fear that the recipients would see them, so I haven't posted anything for quite a while. I needed a break from those projects, so I started cutting from my stash for a few scrap quilts.
Here are a few sample blocks that I made up and below are lots of triangles and strips cut to make them. This will be a good leader/ender project.
Below are a few blocks left over from a baby quilt that I made and I decided to get some more of these made up for a potential future gift.
I am trying to get some eye spy type of fabrics for the baby quilt.
This cat quilt looks like fun too, so I decided to cut some more fabric for this one.
Another leader/ender project. I'm retiring soon, so I'm hoping to get lots of sewing done! One month from today I'll be free!!! Woo Hoo!!!!