A Finished Shawl.

Occasionally one has to nip outside when it's cold and it is easier to grab a shawl quickly instead of going to the coat closet.  I found some pretty yarn with alpaca in it.  I made a granny square shawl and it was a real quick make.  Took a week from start to end. 

It is fairly big and hangs down to my knees at the back.  You just have to have enough to wrap cozily around yourself.

Here is a photo of the stitch down the increase to make the "V".

I finished off the shawl with one row of double crochet and then a row of shells.  I really like edging in a shell.  It is such a pretty stitch - somewhat feminine without being overly frilly.

First snow and some Beautiful Leaves!

For the last three years that I know of, Quilters Newsletter Magazine has had a beautiful Christmas quilt to Foundation Paper Piece.   Last year's one is called First Snow!   I started it lady year and did not get very far at all.  I unearthed it and have made some real progress.   I would love to get this one finished for Christmas this year!  Here are some of the pieced trees.

I have also been busy building houses.  Such lovely variety in the style of homes.

I have enjoyed finding some fabrics from the stash to add interesting elements to the windows.  I love this house full of people.

Yesterday I went into town and just had to take a couple of pictures.  This tree is so lovely.  The camera does not do justice to the beautiful colors.

A rain cell was approaching and I so loved the colors of the leaves against the grey backdrop of clouds.  The light was awesome.  Again, not done justice by the camera.

Crumb Quilt Progress!

A while back I did a post on making a crumb quilt.  If you have never made one I highly recommend it!   The blocks are so much fun to put together!  I have put all my blocks together and stitched them into rows. The rows are attached to each other and now I am working on the borders.

I want to continue the "crumb" feel into the border.  So I cut out a border strip from muslin and am attaching the scrappy strips of fabric to it.  It is a sew, flip, iron process.  Lots of hopping up and down to the iron.  I trim after adding a few strips so that it is not a huge job at the end.  It is looking good and I am happy with the progress of the borders so far.

This picture was taken this morning of the wonderful fall colors in my little corner of New Hampshire.  I plan on driving around a lot this weekend to look at the spectacular fall foliage.  Have a great weekend and thank you for stopping by for a visit!

Live Simply!

I signed up about two years ago to do the Live Simply BOM from Buttermilk Basin! I love her simple sweet designs.   Of course I am behind with finishing the blocks. I think I have five done and they are not the ones needed to display for the next few months. I had been working on the embroidery for two and only had to quilt and bind them!   Since they are 6.5" by 8.5", that was not too much of a chore.  So I got them both done today!   I am smiling!  This sweet owl  belongs to August!  

This sweet squirrel is September's block.  I have hung it up because I think the squirrel will work from August through November!  I am furiously working on October's block so that I can hang it up for at least a few days.  I think these are so cute!  The background is flannel.  The binding is cotton and the animals are wool.  It's so much fun appliqueing wool and flannel.  

A Tunic!

Things are a changing!  There is a chill in the air and the leaves are turning bright oranges, yellows and reds!  I am thinking of the cold weather ahead!  Last year, I saw a super easy tunic to crochet on Cozy Things blog.  What you do is measure your widest part, divide by four and make 16 granny squares to that measurement.  Stitch them together and edge the ends and voila, you have a very cozy tunic.  I am amazed at how well this fits.  Of course it is made to size.  Forgive the very awkward selfie!

Well that is better.  I had some help on this one.  I like it so well I am making another one in greens.  It is like wearing your robe, just not as tacky!  

This is the view out my front door today.  It is rainy and cool.  I am so very grateful for the rain as it has been a very dry summer here in NH.  See the leaves?  They are so vibrant.  The color is lost a bit in the picture.  I am a resident peeper and go out just to see the leaves!  FABULOUS!

It is funny how your diet changes when the weather starts cooling.  You start thinking of soups and pies and stews.  This pie is so easy to make.  You make your favorite stew and then place a piece of flaky pastry on top and cook it in the oven for 25 minutes.  Heaven on a cool evening.