Halloween! (#'s 7 & 8)

Two more UFO/WIP projects finished a couple of weeks ago, and with plenty of time to spare since they are both for Halloween.

I thoroughly enjoyed making this Which Witches Boot (a Crabapple Hill pattern) quilt. I tried embroidering with perle cotton for the first time and I'm sold... it's so easy and is such a nice finish. It didn't take long at all to complete the embroidery panel. And, since orange peels are one of my favorite blocks to make, this border was a joy to make and it also went together pretty quickly. One of my goals with this little quilt/wall-hanging was to make it look like Halloween without using any obviously Halloween fabrics and I think I succeeded. However, for the backing I did use a great black with white Halloween print (see below) which was perfect! This is my seventh finish for the year!

The wonderful backing fabric...

The Halloween pillow that follows (number eight - yippee!!) was made from a length of fabric, purchased at Material Girl Fabrics in Redmond, Oregon, that contained two different panels. What a great little shop that is, and with a wonderful selection of fabrics! I loved spending time (and $$) there!

I started by quilting both panels - the usual way - using a lightweight cotton fabric (I use older quilting fabrics that I'm not in love with anymore since they won't show anyway) as a backing, then batting and the panel. That creates a nice, quilted texture that's not too flimsy for a pillow. The finished pillow ended up at 20" and I put a zipper on the bottom seam so it won't be visible when it's on a sofa or chair.

Since we don't have children and we don't see our niece and nephew very often (and miss them terribly), we sometimes feel that we miss out on the fun/spirit of the holidays. I'm trying to remedy that with this quilt top and pillow. Hopefully, it will feel a lot more like Halloween this year!

Take care,

Which Witch's Boot embroidery done!

I've finished this Which Witch's Boot embroidery (pattern by Crabapple Hill) and I'm extremely happy with it. I was taking a big chance on the white embroidery showing up enough on the black background, but it worked out really well, I think. I was also afraid that the black fabric might run (since I forgot to wash it first) in the soaking, but the perle cotton stayed nice and white. Yippee!

I've also got all of my orange peel blocks (I'm not following the pattern in this regard) done for the border, so it's just a matter now of assembling the whole thing and getting it quilted. And... it will be done waaaaaaay before Halloween. That's the best part! :)

My inspiration came from a finished panel I saw when I was visiting In Between Stitches in Livermore year before last. They had done the crayon-colored version on a white/light background, and I loved it the moment I saw it even though I knew I wanted it on a dark background.

Take care,

More... but these have "treat" pockets!

Yep... there are more!

DH keeps coming into my sewing room to see my progress. He's my biggest fan, I think. The "treats" that you see in the photos are now gone... I practically had to hide them until I was done using them for props. :)) But I'm also glad they didn't go to waste and that I wasn't the one who had to eat them!

Happy Saturday!

Take care,

Yes, I know it's a bit early...

It is a bit early to be working on Halloween items I know, but I felt the urge this year, and thought to myself, "go for it." For the first time in a very long time, I'll be ready for the holiday when it arrives.

I've been making mug rugs. They're so much fun to make... they're quick and easy!

They are in the shop, along with a couple more!

Working on these reminded me of the quilt I made for my niece and nephew back in September 2010. I enjoyed making it and was going to make one for myself too, but just ran out of steam. I still haven't gotten around to it, but it's in the plans for one of these days...

I'm thinking of joining in Bonnie Hunter's Labor Day Yard Sale on Monday, so be sure and check back with me then. She sells some wonderful things and has quite a number of participants so you'll want to check her blog on Monday for the links!

Take care,

My weekend spent sewing...

I worked on these over the weekend. As you can see, there are a lot of pins holding all of the bindings in place. Now to hand stitch them down and then I'll show them to you!

I'm having such fun working on these. Even my husband notices the difference in my mood (and thinks it's wonderful) since I've had more time to sew/quilt.

Take care,

Halloween ideas...final post!

Country Living had some wonderful Halloween ideas I just had to share. This first one is especially spooky...

and I love black and white plates, I just never thought of using them as Halloween decorationgs. What a great idea!

This is a wonderful idea too! LOVE the orange feathers!!

This is not necessarily a new idea, but I always love using vintage postcards for decorations. 

And these ghosts are made from white tissue paper wedding bells with cheesecloth draped over them. How cute!!

I think this is the most clever idea of them all! Florescent eyeballs made into a wreath. Wonderful!

We can always use more cancleholder and pumpkin ideas, right?

I like this costume because it reminds me of my little nephew. I'm going to send this picture to him in case he wants to be a Lego for Halloween! :))

Hope you have a very Happy Halloween!

Do you want to be an Evil Jester?

I'm selling an adult (size XL) Evil Jester halloween costume for $15 (+ shipping, if required). I've got it listed on Craigslist (and you can check it out there for the details) but thought someone here might be interested in it.

If you think you might want it, just email me and we'll figure out the shipping and payment (via Paypal) information. Of course, if you live near my "neck of the woods" you're welcome to pick it up.

Halloween, Part III...

Not sure I would make this a serving "tray", but I do like the idea...

What about this? Looks spooky doesn't it? Think I'm gonna try this one.

More spooky candles to try...

Oh....I love this carved pumpkin vase. Isn't it beautiful?

These are gorgeous. Cut-out pumpkins (to carve yourself or to purchase online)...

Hope you find these ideas helpful!

Time for more Halloween ideas...

I found some more wonderful Halloween ideas and thought I would share them with you:

This is from Good Housekeeping. Isn't it a wonderful entryway idea?

Cute, but creepy (also from Good Housekeeping)...

Check out this luxurious vampire's table setting...

Here's a place to get pumpkin carving stencils...

This table is hauntingly elegant, don't you think?

That's a whole lotta great ideas so if you choose to do any of them, will you let me know? I would love to see how you interpret them.



Halloween already?

I was at Michael's today and although I do think it's a bit early, they had some of their Halloween decorations out for sale. It kind of got me in the mood and I ended up purchasing a skeleton skull. I saw a great witch the other day at one of the other decorating stores in town and it was priced at $120. No way am I going to pay that kind of money for a Halloween decoration in this economic climate. But, I think I can make it for a whole lot less. My skull, which was only $5.99 was a great start.

Anyway, I thought I would search for some other good ideas and here are a few I found:

I love the ideas here and they are really quite simple to do.

If you're having a party, these table setting/decorations would be lots of fun.

These cookies look like they would fun to make. I love doing this kind of stuff but I always run out of time before I get to it. Maybe this year, since I'm starting pretty early, I'll get it all done. Any bets?

I love decorated mantles, and even though mine is a very shallow one, I could definitely do something like this. I love the black ivy!

Hope these few ideas help you get excited about Halloween early enough to get your decorating done! :))