NEW GLOVES FOR CHRISTMAS!

Not winter gloves - quilting gloves.  See them below.  My old pair was practically shredded!  I asked Santa for a new pair and he did it!

Here's a few other items I received.  Smoked salmon!  A couple books!  I even found a recipe for smoked salmon quiche in the recipe book.  I think I'll make it!

I also asked for a boot cleaner.  When I go for walks my hiking boots pick up all kinds of stuff and it's very hard to get it out of the grooves on the bottom and the sides of the boots.  This should do the trick!

Time to make some more Dear Jane blocks.  Besides these three from Row G, there are 2 more prepped.  I might be able to squeeze a couple more in before the end of the year, hopefully.

Amazingly, I am finding it easier to get these done, probably because practice makes perfect and I have been doing a lot of PPing and appliqué with the first 6 rows.  I'm thinking about setting a goal of getting a row finished each month.  There are 6 more rows after this one (which I doubt I'll finish by Thursday), so if I set that goal and meet it I would finish the center blocks by the end of June.  I haven't set the goal yet, I'm just thinking about it.

I'm going to think about some other goals for 2016 as well.  Are you going to set goals? 

CHRISTMAS TRADITION

I think I've had this wooden Christmas tree from Norway for about 50 years and it holds 9 candles - the Angel Chime size.  This year I was determined to find candles for it, because when we moved, and put all our belongings into storage in Texas, I didn't save any candles because they would have just all melted in the heat.  Therefore, I didn't have any of the candles when we came to Oregon.  So, I went looking all over town looking for Angel Chime candles - Walgreens, Walmart, Winco, Dollar Tree, Good Will, Albertsons.  I asked a girl working at Albertsons if they had a Jewish section with menorah candles (the lady at Walmart suggested that they might work).  They didn't, but she offered to check with another Albertsons store to see if they did.  Guess what!  They did!  They are a little fatter than the other candles, so we pared down the bottoms to fit in the holders.

The tradition we have is that we light all of them for our Christmas Eve supper.  I am descended from Norwegian immigrants and growing up we also enjoyed the home made lefse that my aunt or grandma made.  I made some on Saturday and put it in the freezer - after testing it to make sure it was good!  Yummy!

Notice beside the tree are my 2 Christmas S&P shakers - gingerbread houses and Mr. & Mrs. Santa.

I got the ten minute block table runner quilted and bound this weekend.

I can't show the other Christmas gifts I've made, but I can show these mug rugs that I made for the girlfriends of a couple of my DIL's nephews who will be coming by their house on Christmas Day.  One is in nursing school and the other is already an RN.  I had some of this medical fabric on hand and made these so I would have a little gift for them.

Saturday, I went to a thrift shop looking for a kitchen item and found these two porcelain dolls for a good price.  As you can see, one of them has a crocheted dress as well that needs buttons in back.  The other one needs re-stringing and some clothes.  The one in the dress can stand up.  They were made in 1980 and are in perfect condition.  I think I might make some clothes for them and might try to sell them in my Easy shop.  Don't they have sweet faces?

Thanks to all for your many comments over the year and for so many wonderful posts about quilting and other things.  I have enjoyed my blogging adventures over the last about 7 years and look forward to many more!  Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!  

TEN MINUTE BLOCK

I've made this block before and when lived in Texas my guild had a workshop to make donation quilts out of this block.  So, now that I'm in Oregon, I offered to demonstrate how to make the block in my guild here.  In February, I will be doing that, so I decided I needed to make a couple samples to show them.

The first one is a table runner made out of a charm pack.  It is super easy and with a charm pack, I didn't even need to cut any fabric!  This charm pack had been in the bottom drawer long enough, and the fabric is lovely - Hemming House by Bannock & Patek for Moda.  It took less about an hour to put this top together.

This next top will be a donation quilt, as the guild I belong to donates to a few different places, a hospital, for one.  I cut all the pieces for this to 8" and each block finishes at 15",  so it is 45" square.  

I will quilt these before the demo and have sample blocks in various degrees of progress to show how it is done.

On my daily walk, I pass this tree, which always amazes me because of its size and the covering of moss.   I wonder how old it is.

I think I have finished all my Christmas sewing and the shopping is almost done.  I have some cookies and appetizers in the freezer already and more to make.  My sister will be visiting after Christmas!  How are your preparations going?

CHRISTMAS PREPARATIONS

I know we are all busy getting ready for Christmas, but if you had the time to come over for a cup of tea and some cookies (which aren't baked yet), this is what you would see at my front door.  Under all the greenery is an old watering can that sits on an old short step ladder.  The greenery was picked up on my walks and the ice skates were obtained at a garage sale a couple years ago for 25 cents!  I love Christmas decorations and hope I don't ever get too decrepit to at least put something up.

Many years ago, my MIL made this jewel tree out of some of her old jewelry and it has been one of my favorite decorations.  It has some lights in it to make it sparkle.  I took the first picture with a flash and the second without the flash so you could see the lights better.  We have had this for at least 30 years, but I think even longer than that.

Without Flash

I finished this cross stitched piece in 1998 and made it into a quilted wall hanging.

Actually, last year I posted my Christmas decorations and they look the same this year.  You can see them HERE.

I would love to see your decorations too!  Now I better get busy finishing up some Christmas gifts.

PILLOWS!

I finished a couple more pillows, this time for 2 sweet little boys.  Jonah is 7 and Eli will turn 5 on Monday.  I made the pillows to be the size of travel pillows and the pillow covers are quilted on the front and can be removed for washing.  Their names are outlined with glow in the dark thread!

I'm just about ready to mail some Christmas boxes!  Are you ready for Christmas?