I mentioned on Saturday that this weekend was a little bit of a girls getaway. I was about an hour from home with these lovely silly ladies…

We spent the day and night at Sam’s trailer in a lovely little park called Willow Lake.

There was a fire

With marshmallows of course!

There was a beautiful sunset of the lake

And just wonderful time spent with great friends!

I know I said I’m trying to curb my spending… and for the most part, I’m doing ok. But Samantha has commissioned me to make another quilt for the trailer, so I had to order some fabric special from Missouri Star Quilts (and technically, it doesn’t count because she’s paying for it.)

Aren’t they cute? Sam gave me free reign on which pattern to do, and I think I’ve got an awesome one picked out. Details will follow.

Now I should have left it there, but I really like to get the most out of their flat rate shipping, and the Daily Deal that day was hard to beat….

A killer price on 20 mystery fat quarters from Free Spirit – a company who offers designs from Kaffe Fassett, Tula Pink, and Amy Butler to name a few.

I love a good mystery, and I was not disappointed!

Look at that chipmunk and that fox…. so cute!

And check out this crazy frog!

No plans for these yet, but I’m sure they will find the right project eventually.

And last… by spending a certain amount, I also go a free mystery charm pack!

And once again, it was a great surprise – a cute little pack of ditsy florals. I recently picked up a nice piece of  flannel with similar colours, so I think this charm pack will become a baby blanket with the flannel as the back!

I guess I better get sewing!

I’m off  to a girls’ weekend today, so I leave you in the paws of Burton for this week’s garden tour.

Of course, if the sun is out Burton’s usually taking cover – all that black fur isn’t great for warm temps.

My little Lilac is in full bloom. The bush is only four years old now, so  it’s still pretty slim, but the blooms this year are amazing.

My irises are  really showing off…

I think it’s all the rain – the irises love to be wet.

The Columbine are all starting to bloom and I added two new colours this year (the pink and the burgundy).

Like the irises, the Chives only bloom for a limited time, but they are spectacular this year.  They are almost always covered in bees.

Soon enough, we’ll be on to Lilies and Roses. I can’t wait!

 

Not at all sure what’s going on here…

With Paisley’s quilt top done, I was full of energy and decided to bang out another top.

Of course, Bear Mountain is a baby quilt, so it came together pretty quickly. I had the paws already done, it just needed sashing and borders.

And since you can’t be a Bear Mountain without some bears…

I fussy cut a few of these little bears for the corner stones between the paws.

For borders: The blue grid was a fat quarter I had in my stash, and the green was leftover from Aliza in Wonderland.

But it’s the grey I’m really excited about… it was a remnant at Lens, and when I first bought it, I thought maybe it was duck prints, or little tulip flowers. But turned upside down… it kind of looks like little snow-capped mountain tops!

For the back, I’ve got a snuggly chunk of  blue-grey flannel, and lots of the green left for binding. Look for an FO post on this one soon!

With Paisley’s quilt top done, and a project box open, I’ve started something new. Sadly, I can’t show you. It’s also a Christmas present, but I think the recipient reads this blog. And if I showed what it was, it would be blatantly obvious who it was for.

I can show you the fabrics though…

It took me a while to hunt them all down from different sources, but I’m so glad I did. When you see the finished project (sadly, you’ll have to wait until after Christmas), you’ll understand why.

But for now, all the fun has to remain under wraps!

With Dave’s socks off the needles, I needed to get something else on. And as I told the cashier at Lens on the weekend… it’s never to early to start on Christmas presents!

I haven’t made Sam’s kids socks in quite a while, so I figure this is the year to rectify that.

I had some Kroy socks leftover from a cardigan I made Wren. I’m hoping it’s enough for a pair of ankle socks for Miss Lily.  I am pairing a it with some leftover yellow Barn Cat on heels and toes, but I’m still playing yarn chicken!

For her brothers, I found these awesome colours on sale at Lens.

They will be on the needles as soon as the ankle socks are off. And after they are done, I’m going to dive into this pile

A few of you have raved about Scrubby, so I thought I’d give it a try and make Dave’s grandma a nice pile of handmade dish cloths for Christmas!

 

I don’t know about you, but if I’ve got a deadline, I much prefer to finish well in advance, instead of down to the wire.

My job is deadline driven. Unfortunately, I have to rely on input from several others to meet those deadlines. It irks me to no end when those others wait until the absolute last minute to give me that input (regardless of how much lead time we’ve had).

But at least with my crafting, I have full control. So… I give you Dave’s birthday socks. Completed almost two months in advance of his birthday!

Nothing fancy – just a simple 3-1 rib and some basic sock math. The yarn is Knit Picks Felici, and with the exception of the dyeing (it’s like the dark blue bled over the other colours leaving them dingy), it’s a pretty nice sock yarn, especially for the price. The blue-grey heels was just some random leftover I had in my sock yarn bin – it’s nice and rustic so it should hold up well on the heel.

And with these complete, I have nothing left on the needles.  I better rectify that, STAT!

My garden isn’t the only thing in bloom…

Yep. It’s a completed Fleurs en Noir top! Last week Bluprint put the remaining fabrics in the collection on clearance, so I grab enough for borders, binding and backing.

They arrived super quick, and I was able to whip together the rest of the top in an afternoon. Hopefully we’ll be see this one quilted in a week or two!

And with this top complete… I’ve got an empty project box!

It’s another fine Saturday, and while I’m busy sewing, Relic would like to take you on a tour of his gardens.

It’s been a mostly rainy week, but that hasn’t stopped things from blooming.

The Lilac is in all her glory, and when the wind blows the right way, her perfume fills the yard!

Same with the Lily-of-the-Valley down the side of the house. It’s just heavenly!

The Irises are putting on a wonderful show. I wish they bloomed longer. In a week or so they will all be done!

My purple globe Alium has bloomed and it’s amazing. The chives are from the same family, but are a little more subdued – though there are lots of blooms!

I realized I’ve neglected to share pictures of this years front baskets. Like last year, I used Fuschia (though a slightly more subdued colour this time) because it does so well in that shady spot. Also like last year, there’s some ivy, but also mini hanging petunias and some white lobelia for more colour. They will be really nice when everything starts to  drape over the sides.

And last, but definitely not least… my last little project for this year is a sunflower garden. It’s going to be on the outside of the new fence, facing the common area between me and my neighbour. It means I won’t be able to hang quilts there for pictures, but it will be worth it if all my sunflowers take.

I’ve started them in pots under a little plastic tent to keep Mr. Squirrel from eating all the sprouts. There’s a good mix of colours and sizes, so I’m hoping it turns into a really spectacular show by August!