Ah Boxing Day…

Okay… so it’s not quite a Burton presents it…

For our friends south of the border, if you’ve never heard of Boxing Day… here’s a little history.

In more recent time, it’s become much more commercialized, with Boxing Day sales (Like a slightly less insane Black Friday). Taking part in that aspect has never been a tradition in our family. When I was a kid, there was never any money leftover after Christmas, no matter how good the sale. As a teenager, I work retail, and spent many-a Boxing Day in the mall (and that’s enough to turn you off of it for life).

When we were kids, we usually gathered with my Dad’s extended family. Most of them still do that, but for Dave and I, we prefer to spend it quietly at home together, unwinding from the go-go-go of the days before.

It won’t be a complete veg day though, as I want to use the days between Christmas and New Year’s to go over the house, top to bottom and get rid of everything and anything we no longer need. And what better day to start then Boxing Day?

But I’ll start later in the afternoon. This morning is for reflecting on another lovely holiday! I’m happy to say Dave loved his quilt. The first words out of his mouth were “Wow! It’s a long one!” He was so happy to have some extra blanket to tuck under his feet last night. And of course, he was over the moon with the Celtic fabric.

The matchy matchy socks were also a hit too…

Or at least he pretended they were, in indulged me when I asked him to put them on so I could take a picture of our feet together.

From him I received more candles with more shiny things inside!

Opals and Emeralds and Snowflakes! Oh my!

Mom and Dad spoiled me with rainbow socks and a pair of toasty moccasins! My feet are always cold, but no longer!

There’s more gifting days ahead for us (My brother’s family on New Year’s Day, and Samantha and Co. sometime in the New Year), but I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Wishing you and yours all the best this holiday season, with more wonderfulness to come in the new year!

Burton opened his present a little early, and has been enjoying it ever since!

And all through the house, not a creature was stirring…

Not even this one, because from the looks of it, he ate all the mice! (And everything else!)

Today is a day of baking pies (mincemeat and pumpkin) and then we’re off to church tonight with Dave’s Grandma. Tomorrow its my parents’ house for turkey and all the fixings! (I fully expect to look like Relic by the time its over!) We  won’t see my brother’s family until the New Year, so that just gives us one more day to look forward to!

However you’re celebrating, we hope it’s wonderful and warm!

Well – the missing ball of Spice Twinkle Cat still hasn’t turned up, but I did finish the second glove from the second skein, yesterday.

The second skein is a touch darker and more variegated than the first – such is the nature of hand-dyed yarns – but not enough so that I’m bothered by it. Part of the reason that I chose this yarn is because it would look nice, not only with my light camel-coloured wool coat…

… but also a couple of my favourite hats.

I love hats almost as much as I love shoes. The above pretty wool and silk cloche was bought on a work trip in Niagara-on-the-Lake a few years ago.

And this more fanciful one was a birthday gift from Mom a couple years ago. It was made by a local artisan, and I think my humble stitchwork is a fitting compliment.

And these gloves are also my last knit of 2019. (We all know I won’t be finishing the poncho before the end off the year!). I can’t wait to see what knits 2020 brings.

I know…. I know… two days of cats and quilts… but hey, it’s what I’ve got on the go right now.

Pins and Paws is coming together with half the blocks completed. There will be 30 in total (two of each print). These blocks are super easy, and once all the pieces are cut, I can put together one block in under 10 minutes.

As you can see, some cats are facing left,  some right. I’m doing this completely random as I’m sewing them – so in the final layout, they will be random as well.

I may be pushing it, but I’m hoping I can turn this one into a completed top by the end of the year, and ready for quilting in January.

Of course, Relic doesn’t understand why I want to spend my time with fabric cats instead of furry ones….

It was time to turn attention back to Meow-lky Way. Since I was feeling pretty clear-headed, I decided to tackle the trickiest one first – the last block I had that included dreaded stripe fabric.

I’m happy to say, I took my time, double and triple-checked before I cut, and the pair went off without a hitch.

It went so well, I decided to whip up a few more. Because I didn’t have to worry about direction, they went much faster.

These six (there’s two of each), bring my finished total to 12. That means there’s only four blocks left before I start assembling the top.

Here’s where the rest of my projects are at:

• Spring Blossom – I’ve got all my pieces cut, so these blocks are ready to assemble
• Meow-lky Way – 12 blocks down, 4 to go!
• Royal Stars – Still buildings stars, two at a time
• Pins and Paws – Kitty by kitty, this one is  still growing
• Leader and Ender quilt – Making geese, lots and lots of geese!

 

I don’t know about you – but this just looks like trouble brewing to me…

While November seemed to be a month of stress and chaos, December seems to be the month for losing/misplacing things.

It feels like every time I turn around, I’m looking for something, even though I was sure I knew where I put it.

Case in point…

As you know, with all the December Birthdays on top of Christmas presents, I start gathering things throughout the year to keep the cost and stress down. To keep things organized, all collected/finished presents go in one spot in my studio (top of the bookshelves), and get entered into a spreadsheet (the spread sheet is so I don’t forget that I already have a gift for someone, and go out and get/make something new).

It’s a good process, and it works… most of the time.  Over the last week, I’ve been slowly wrapping things. I did all the stuff for my side of the family first, and took it all up to Mom’s to get it out of the way (she has more storage space than I do). Then a day later, I did all the stuff for friends, and set it in piles, so when we are ready to see them, it’s easy to grab and go.

Monday, all I had left were the things for Dave and his family. His family stuff was easy enough, and even the presents for him weren’t bad – his quilt, a pair of pajama pants… and something else I couldn’t remember…. so I consulted the spreadsheet.

Of course…. our matching skull socks… how could I forget. I climbed back up to the top of the shelf to get them…. but they weren’t there.  How were they not there???? I double checked the shelf, but there wasn’t a present left up there.

I then checked my sock drawer, thinking since I made a pair for myself, maybe I’d tucked both pairs in there. Nope… not a skull in sight!

I then literally spent the next two hours ripping apart every shelf in the studio. Still no skulls (but hey – I got a head start on the cleaning I’d planned to do over the Christmas holidays…)

Defeated, I slumped down at my computer, and was complaining to Mom over messenger, that I couldn’t find the socks anywhere… and all of a sudden it came to me! The last time I remembered seeing them was on their blockers when I took pictures for the pattern! And I don’t think I ever took them off those blockers!!!

Sure enough, both pairs were hanging on their blockers in the coat closet downstairs! Phew! They are now safely wrapped up for Christmas day.

The same can not be said for our next lost item. After finishing the first Knotty glove last week, I set the leftover ball of yarn aside and did some work on the poncho. I’m sure I set the ball in my crafting corner by my couch.

But when I went to cast on the next day, it wasn’t there.

Now, I have searched high and low for it. Like the shelves, my crafting corner got a complete makeover. Not there. Not under the couch or the futon, not under the computer, the fish tank, or the dining room table.

I have a very clear suspect with means, motive and opportunity…

…but so far, he’s not talking.

I was hoping he’d do the right thing, and bring it out of wherever he’s hidden it… or at least I’d stumble across it… but no such luck.

As you may recall, I do at least, have another skein of the same yarn, but I didn’t really want to crack into it yet (saving it for a matching cowl).

But damn…. it’s cold outside and having just one glove isn’t doing me any good.  Last night I cracked and wound up up the new skein…

This was all I could get done before bedtime (at which time, this ball was safely tucked away from fluffy paws). As long as I don’t lose it, I should be able to get the set done in time for Christmas Eve travels.

 

 

 

I know winter has barely started yet (in fact, we haven’t even hit the first official day), but I’m already missing my gardens. My indoor plants do help, but I don’t have much that flowers – and that which does, has stopped already.

But if I can’t grow flowers…. I can sew them! Remember I told you had some fabric picked out for my next project, but wasn’t set on a pattern…? Well I finally found it!

That fabric was these two pieces.

I bought a yard of each of them a couple years ago (when I first started making quilts). There was just something about them – I had no plans, but I just had to have them. I even paid full price!

They’ve been languishing in the stash ever since, and it was past time to do something with them.

And then I came across this block on Pinterest…

It didn’t take long for me to figure out how it all went together. And that centre was the perfect use for the birds (if fussy cut), and pussywillow branches. It would also give me a chance to test out using geese for the star points instead of two HSTs.

Another dive into the stash came up with so many beautiful batiks to use for the flower fabrics – all in shades of early spring.

Soon I was cutting, and not long after, sewing. I’m happy to report that the geese worked great for the star points, and saved me some dreaded trimming down of the HSTs. (I still had eight to do on the petals, but it wasn’t bad.) In fact, it all went off without a hitch…

Isn’t that a beautiful block – nice and big too at about 16″ (just the way I like them.) This one is going to be so much fun!

 

I did it! No… it’s not done… but it is half done, which to me, is huge!!!!

See that tiny turquoise line at the top of the knitting?

That’s my halfway line. It’s also my neckline, or will be when the poncho knitting is complete. The pattern knits the poncho in two pieces (one of with is just ridge knitting, no lace – it’s the back). Those two pieces are then seamed, and stitches are picked up and knit for the neckline. But I’m doing it a little different. Instead, I’m just going to keep knitting. When I’m done, that turquoise yarn will come out and I’ll pick up the stitches for the neck from there. Easy peasy and no seaming!