I'm Still Here!

     Wow, the time has really just whizzed past me!  In my last post I remarked how I couldn't believe the year was 6 weeks old, and now it's more than half over.  Where does it go, I wonder.

     I wish I could say I'd been busy finishing up UFOs all this time, but while I have finished some things, most of what's kept me from blogging has been the much more mundane, real life junk.

     When I was working on the two little bags in my last post, I also finished a cream silk clutch bag, which I'd started at a class one year (I don't recall which year!) at the Original Sewing and Quilt Expo.  I finished it around the same time, except that I wanted to do something on the front, to cover where I'd sewn on the square of Velcro I used as a closure.  It took me a while to find what I wanted to use, but now at long last, here's what I ended up with:



In January and February, I participated in a Knit Along (KAL) in one of the groups I belong to on Ravelry, and made this pair of socks:



Today is going to be a day full of paperwork for me, so I suppose I'd better get started on it.  But I hope to get this blog all updated soon ;-)

Thanks for stopping by to play!  Come back again any time.

Making New Friends

I can't believe we're almost six weeks into the "new" year already!  It's just been whizzing  right past me.

I've been doing a bit of knitting, though I have yet to finish anything this year.  I've been making progress on several things.  I have also been doing some sewing and quilting, though I haven't got any finished quilts to show yet, either.  The other thing I've been doing is some "smaller" sewing projects.

I finished up this little caddy intended for carrying hand-sewing tools:



Here's what it looks like on the inside:



This was probably started well over ten years ago, and all it needed was the button and the loop added so that it would close!  Yes, I may have a slight case of quilter's/knitter's/crafter's ADD.  The dark fabric in the picture is actually a pretty burgundy/barn red color. 

Then I also made this little zipper bag, which measures about 5.5" x 8.5":



And here's the other side:



The color's off in the photos of this bag, in reality they're pretty, somewhat darker than pastel colors.  This was a little kit I got somewhere, I don't even really remember where.  I'm thinking it was a door prize at a retreat or something, because while it's kinda cute, it isn't something I would have bought.  It was a fun little quick project, though.

Then, I was in the mood to make some stuffies.  First up is Frieda, the free-spirit.  She doesn't like it when I call her a Monster, so let's keep that part just between us, okay?



Frieda really likes to play hide & seek, but since her arms are permanently stitched to her torso, she can't cover her eyes.  So she ends up throwing herself onto the floor face-first so she can't see.  Then she has a hard time getting back up -- again, the arms attached to the torso make it tough for her to find a way to turn over or stand up.  So, she started dancing.  She discovered she really likes to dance, too.  She likes all kinds of dancing, but her favorite is line dancing.  She just has trouble with the clapping...

And finally, I'd love you to meet Owl-livia:



She's made from a panel.  I was at one of my LQSs in January for the Block-of-the-Month session, and they showed the panel, and they had one made up.  Well, I thought it was just too cute to not bring home with me.  And in contrast to my usual tendency, I started and got it finished in pretty short order.  The pattern didn't say to quilt her, except for her wings and feet, but hey, I'm a quilter, it's what I do.  I also thought she could use that extra touch, somehow.  I hadn't done any free-motion quilting on a regular sewing machine in quite a while, and she was a great project to "warm up" with, because I didn't really care if the quilting was wonky or less than "just so," and the uneven stitch length and the places where I lost track of where I was or where I was going just don't matter because, well, she's a stuffy.  It's nice to do those kinds of projects every once in a while, where you can just cut loose and have fun with it.

Frieda's been spending a fair bit of time keeping an eye on our DVD collection lately.  I think she wants to choose what we watch on our next "Movie Night."  Owlivia has settled down on the cutting table, and decided she likes having a front-row seat to my sewing area.  I hope you enjoyed meeting my two new friends.  I'm planning to make some more throughout this year, and I'll be sure to introduce them here, too.

Thanks for stopping by to play.  Come back again soon.