Peace By Piece

"When life gives you scraps ... "

<3 You put them in a scrap jar <3

Fill it with random bits and pieces of fabric too small to use 

and too precious to throw away.

It is mostly used for these ... 

(1) Leaders and Enders 

This is my current "leaders and enders" project.  I am using 1.5" scrap squares to someday piece enough of these two inch 4-Patch blocks for a quilt.

This shows the "leader" at the start of a chain and the "ender" under the needle 

and the stack of small squares I have for this purpose.

For my non-quilty visitors:

"Leaders" are the little pieces of fabric you run through your machine at the start of a long string of chained piecing.  You do this so that you insure your seams will be straight and 1/4 inch and your stitching will be even.

This is the ender I left under my needle last night to start my sewing today.

"Enders" are the little pieces of fabric you leave under the needle of you machine to have everything set for starting your next chain.  I find these little pieces are invaluable aids to smooth piecing.  My sewing machine has a tendency to "cough" sometimes when I start feeding fabric under the needle and it results in a small messy knot of thread on the bobbin side of my stitches.   Sewing machines do this all the time.

For smooth sailing, leaders and enders are the way to go. 

(2)  My current quilt project ... " quilty beach balls" anyone?

(Read more HERE)

Quilty cabin fever has struck very early this winter.  

My need for warmth and sun expresses itself each winter usually in January or February by a need to only sew bright spring and summer colors. 

Guess there will be no more red and green Christmas sewing this year and no blue and white snowflake blocks. 

(3)  Katniss "sunning" herself at midnight ...

under my daylight lamp one night this past week.  

Guess my kitties are feeling shut in by the snow and cold, too.  

(More quilty Katniss pictures HERE)

(4) The Tree 

... needs lights and decorations ... 

That is my hubby's hand holding a light set as he did not look very "ho-ho-ho" when I tried to take a picture with him in it.  We are very late getting out tree up this year.  Finding the tree is a family event and my boys were away on vacation so we had to go out last Sunday after all the snow and the tree was frozen and full of ice so it has spent the last few days thawing out and opening and filling our home with its lovely fresh fir scent.

<3 My big kiddos will be back tomorrow night to deck it out. <3

:)  I need to make Christmas cookies today.  :)

(5) My Favorite Christmas Song ...

performed wonderfully in this flash mob performance
at the courtyard of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Enjoy!

"Let there be peace on earth ..."

<3 I Peace By Piece <3

Linking up today with ...


Really Random Thursday @ Live a Colorful Life

... and ...



Random 5 Friday @ A Rural Journal

... and ...



Feline Friday @ Sarah Did It


Blessings to you and yours

<3

Random 5 & Feline Friday

 

(1)  My Butterfly, Born to Be Wild

Butterfly says, " Leather, no lace, for me!"

 

My Matty left this on the table recently after he enjoyed a ride on one of our lovely fall days on his bike and

Butterfly just loves to cuddle in her humans' clothing and blankets ...  

 ... and any warm and quilty place!

 

Butterfly is looking quite domesticated in this picture. ;)

 

(3)  Fall Quity Love! <3
I have hung my fall quilts!

I love fall colors and fabrics and everything about the fall! 

More fall quilty piccies  Here.

 

 

(4) Quilty Kitties X 2

 

It is getting cool and breezy at night in my quilty corner

and I have had to close windows ...

 

Butterfly and Katniss say, "You closed our window!"

 

   This is the coveted window in the sewing room.  Usually the plaid blanket is on the sill for kitty comfort.  When I moved it, I cleared some stuff that had collected on the lower shelf with the intention of putting the blanket there so that my kitties would still have a place to perch in comfort and see out and I might be able to actually use my pressing board, which Butterfly is claiming as her spot. 

Katniss actually had the audacity to sneak in underneath and peer up at Butterfly from the window side and surprise her. 

Score 1 for Katniss.

 

Hissing and jostling occurred until Butterfly convinced her to move ...

 

Butterfly is The Cat #1 

Even after a year, 3 year old Katniss is still the "new cat in the house"

to 13 year old Butterfly who likes to give constant reminders
of this to Kat #2.

Score 1 for Butterfly.

 

 

Katniss consoled herself by claiming my new comfy new sewing chair.

Quilty Kitty Score tied 1/1.

 

(4) Score 0 for me ... I did not get much sewing and pressing done.

 

Here is a block I made awhile ago and I just found while I was looking for the picture of Butterfly on Matty's motorcycle jacket ...

 

 

( 5)  An Army Star Block

 

I love this block, but it was a bit tricky to make.

It is a paper pieced pattern designed by my friend Denise and it is going into a very special group Quilt of Valor being made

by my lovely quilty friends at The Quilt & Needle.

In a few months, I will post the quilt when it is finished.

Shhhhhh!  This quilt is a secret!

 

Linking up today with the interesting kitties at

 

Feline Friday

 

@ Sarah Did It!

 

and the interesting people at

 

 

@ A Rural Journal

 

Have a happy weekend!

 

:)

 

Random 5 / Feline Friday ~ Good Things

(1) Fall is in the wind and touching the tops of the trees

in my little corner of the world.
Fall is my favorite of all the beautiful seasons.
Fall is a good thing.

 

 

(2)  I love banana bread. 

The cooler weather means more baking. 
This is a good thing, too.
Just ask my family. This banana bread is already gone.
I need more over-ripe bananas.
 Over-ripe bananas are a good thing.

 

 

 

(3) In my bloglovin' feed this morning, I  found this new

monthly linky party starting up at the end of August. 

It is all about tidying up the blog on a regular basis.  

This is a good thing to do so I am thinking of joining in. 

It is being hosted by Amira @ Little Mushroom Cap in Australia.

 

 

(4) My grand kitty, Pepper, has been visiting

and is a big help in my sewing room. 

I am working on a new quilt for a new blog hop.

I will be posting my quilt next Friday.

 

A little Pepper in life is a good thing :)

 

 

(5) The first of the surgeries to prolong and improve my vision

has been scheduled for October 10th.

I admit that "surgery" is a scary word for me.

I am looking forward to seeing better after the surgery and recovery.

The ability to see all the beauty that life has to offer is a good thing.

Yes, life is good ... :)

Linking up today with the interesting people at



 Nancy @ A Rural Jornal

and

with the cute kitties at

Feline Friday

Thanks for stopping by The Scrapatch today.

~ <3 ~

Random 5 Feline Friday

Lovers Knot Block

(1) My Girl and Her Groom are getting married one week from today! 

I am working on the Wedding Table Quilt
for their Sweetheart Table at the reception. 
It is the last one I need to make!

The pieces to the puzzle.

 (2) All the other table quilts for their reception are done!

Flower Wedding Table Quilts

 

 

(3) Butterfly was a big help by making sure all the quilts

passed quilty kitty inspection for Our Girl.

 

The Butterfly

 

 (4) There was also the making of a Vanilla Bean Ice Cream Cheesecake

for my future son-in-law for a welcome home from LDAC training,

belated birthday for a pre-wedding gathering and pool party to celebrate The Happy Couple. 



Ingredients

 

Vanilla Bean Frozen Mousse and Ice Cream Cake 

 

(5) Katiniss has been helping by spending as much time outdoors on her leash as is humanly possible.

 

Katniss

 

Katniss loves to sit on this crumbling woodpile in our backyard.

Linking up with the interesting people at

 

A Rural Journal
 

 and

the interesting kitties at

Feline Friday
 

See you again soon ...

 

(after the wedding)

 

... just keep sewing ...

 

~ <3 ~



Random 5 Feline Friday on Saturday

 

(1) My Stamp Size Quilt

 

 

(2) Butterfly helped in my sewing room

 

 

(3) Katniss snoozed in Butterfly's favorite window basket

 

 

(4)  I am finishing The Swan Thieves
by Elizabeth Kostova
Click here for the look inside.
I have been savoring this book for some time.
I can pick it up and fall back into it right away even after a long period where I have been reading other books.  I love the way this author writes.
If you like in-depth characterization, setting descriptions that give you an almost photo image, historical fiction, good narration,
you may enjoy this author and this book.

This is the book I took with me to read ...

(5) ... one day last week when I spent the day in the town of
White River Junction, Vermont
Picture credit to their website. I forgot my camera.
I had to wait for my husband at one point, so I  had a coffee at the Tuckerbox, a local coffee shop with big old wooden tables and comfy chairs and interesting people.
Then I wandered into the White River Yarns shop.
One of the most extensive collection of beautiful yarns that I have ever seen. Also, a very friendly shop.  I bought some yarn and a crochet hook but I needed a pattern.  I found one in their lending library and spent the an hour or two sitting on one of the benches in front of their flowerboxes outside their door. The young woman in the shop told me I could take the pattern with me and would not accept payment for it, even though she knew I was just visiting and might not be back anytime soon to return it to their shelves.  As it was raining off and on, I also enjoyed the shelter of their awning, the green one visible on the left in the above photo.

A very welcoming small New England town.

I am linking up today with the interesting bloggers at



@ A Rural Journal

and

all the cute kitties at

@ Feline Friday

May you enjoy a lovely weekend.

Thanks for visiting me today.
~ <3 ~
 

Random 5 Friday - "to ponder"

(1) Pondering on a Japanese Red Maple

 

This tree looked so lovely against the blue summer sky that I had to take a picture.  It grows outside the door at the one-woman tailor shop I visited with my daughter to have her wedding gown fitted.  The tailor is a family friend whose son went to high school with my daughter.  I admired her tree and she asked me if I wanted one.  Apparently, she has them spring up like weeds in her yard and is always looking for someone to take one away.  I am negotiating with my hubby, who is not sure we need another tree in our yard.  I am reading up on the care of these trees here and here.

I am pondering.

Please share any thoughts you may have on these trees for me to further my ponderings.

 

 

(2) Word Ponder

 

When I was pondering on a word to pull these random rambles together, this word came to mind so I rambled around the search engines and found this interesting site for word lovers ...  

 

 

[ source:  ThinkMap Visual Thesaurus ]

 

Ponder:



Part of Speech:	verb
Definition:	think about seriously
Synonyms:	appraise, brood, build castles in air, cerebrate, cogitate, consider, contemplate, daydream, debate, deliberate, dwell, evaluate, examine, excogitate, figure, give thought to, meditate, mind, moon*, mull, mull over, muse, noodle around, perpend, pipe dream, put on thinking cap, puzzle over, reason, reflect, revolve, roll, ruminate, speculate, study, think out, think over, turn over, weigh, woolgather

[ source: Thesaurus.com ]

 

 

"Build castles in the air" is my favorite synonym here  :)

 

Pondering this word brought to mind, "Words," the old Bee Gee song added to my player.  This song is a old favorite.  I was happy to find that Playlist.com had this in the music stream

 



(2) fabric pondering

 

I am a quilty ponderer. 

I build quilty castles in the air. 

My "wool gathering" is more "cotton gathering."

I usually have an image of a quilt I want to make somewhere in my mind.

 I am also constantly meditating and rethinking my quilts in progress. 

This week the project On My Design Wall that has me pondering are the circle fabrics in this quilt.  The top is sewn and I am adding the applique circles, but I have two fabrics that did not make the cut in the original plan that I want to add to the top.  One of them is the lovely green on the left.  In the process of deciding if I wanted to add a circle, I decided to add another row of blocks on the outside edges that will make the quilt the wide queen size I like for a personal bed quilt.

(3) Pondering a Stamp Sized Quilt

 

I am pondering and working on a blog hop project that calls for making

a "stamp" quilt.

 

 

(4)  Pondering Teeny Tiny Strips of Fabric

 

This teeny tiny quilt called for cutting teeny tiny 3/4" strips.

The traditional quilter's seam is 1/4" wide.

Doing the math here ...

1/4" strip - two 1/4" seams = a finished 1/4 inch piece in the quilt.

Pictures of the teeny tiny quilt will appear on my blog on next Wednesday.

 

 

 

(5) Butterfly  Napping Pondering

 

My Friday post would not feel complete without at least one feline.

My Butterfly has been a constant helper and companion in my sewing room this week.  She has spent much of her time curled up in the sunny window. Both she and I are feeling better.

Thanks to all who sent well wishes last week.

 

Linking up again this week with the interesting bloggers at

 

 

Random 5 Friday @ A Rural Journal

Thanks to all who stop by and read my random ramblings.

 

May you days be filled with beauty and love.

 

~ <3 ~

 

Random 5 / Feline Friday and Friends

(1) I am Pat and I am a "Spainaholic."

 This is one of my favorite blocks.

The focus fabrics are from my favorite fabric designer, Kate Spain.

If you want to see more lovelies made by other Spainaholics

visit the Show and Tell

for the Kate Spain Blog Hop.

If you love fabric, though, you need to know that this support group is more of a step process to acquiring more fabric and projects

that you want to sew.  Just saying ... ;)

 

 

 (2)  I love quilting curves.

I have just finished quilting this table runner for my son.

I have one of my June Goals done! Woo-hoo!

 

 

(3) I love sewing curves.

I love that Katniss loves to help me sew.

This is where I found the ruler and pattern that I used for the runner.

 

Option # 1 - grey center

Option # 2 - green center

 

 (3) This is on my design wall and I need to stop dithering and decide!

There is a link to this Free Quilt Pattern HERE.

I love the colors and fabric in this top, but I am having a tough time deciding which center block to choose.
Option #1 is according to the pattern.
Option # 2 is my quilty design diva asserting herself. 
This is more to do with my choice of fabrics for the test quilt I made
than with the original pattern design, which I really love.

If you wish to help me decide, please let me know which option you like best.  You do not have to be a quilter. 
Your opinion is much appreciated.

 

 

 

(4)  These are Half-Square Triangles.

This is another "UFO" or "Unfinished Fabric Object"

in my sewing room that is still waiting to be sewn into a quilt.

I have a few ... um ... a lot of these.

I did a HST Tutorial last October when I made these blocks and

Free Quilt Patters posted a link to it on Facebook this week and

I have gotten over 2000 hits on this one post. 

I am completely amazed by this ... =)

(5) I love Butterfly.

Both Butterfly and I are feeling a little

under the weather this week

and just want to cuddle in the quilts. 

However, we want all our feline loving friends to know that

today on her blog we found that

 Kate Spain has adorable kitties!
All the more reason why I <3 Kate Spain.

 

My quilty kitties and I are linking up with ...

 

 

 

R5F @ A Rural Journal

 

Thanks for visiting my scrapatch!

 

~ <3 ~