The Kitchen Reveal

Maybe you knew; maybe you didn't. For the past 2.5 months we have been going through a pretty significant kitchen remodel. It included not just a revamped kitchen, but the addition of a utility/laundry room/mud room and a home office cubby. Today, let me just share the kitchen portion of the job; the utility room is still needing some attention, and our little office hasn't been fully equipped yet.

We built our house in 1992 and no extensive changes have been made in the kitchen since. It suited our family for all those years, but as it grew more and more 'dated' I knew I could change up some things to make it flow more smoothly.

This picture of our original kitchen is taken from in front of the fridge looking across the bar, the dining area and into the family room. That bar has become limiting for ease of access around the dining table, and I wanted it removed. Note the ceiling fan above the table; that changed, as well. You will see new flooring and new countertops, too.

This picture looks back into the kitchen from the other side of the bar. The ceiling is dropped, and we decided to keep that, but we did have that center florescent light removed. We kept the cabinets, but had them painted. We removed the scallop above the sink. We replaced the sink with a farm-style sink and added a vinyl backsplash which has the look of beadboard.

The first thing to go was the bar. Some of the cabinets under the bar were moved to become part of the island. Other parts of the bar were moved to be used next to the dishwasher where the corner unit had been.This picture also shows the newly-installed wafer lights. 

This picture shows the massive patching job needed to cover that florescent light in the ceiling. Also, this is about the only picture I took that shows those two doors. The one on the left (it's open), now goes into the utility room, and actually, there is only an opening now; no door. 

The other door - actually, there are double doors - has always been the pantry closet. This is the space that is now our home office - a place to keep track of bills, taxes, all the documents that comes with life, you know.

Here is our pretty new space! I love the island, and the lighter feel, and the farm sink, and the new counters. The lighting really makes a difference when preparing food or cleaning up. Look at that floor! That's pretty nice, too. *smile*

Stepping back even further, you can see the new ceiling fan over the kitchen table, as well as the open "flow" we get by having that bar out of the way. I had a cook book shelf built onto the end of the counter. That's a little touch I found from hours of Pinterest study.

We still have some things to do: we miscounted on how many drawer pulls and door knobs we needed, plus we need one more outlet cover. The trash will be getting a drawer built for that opening, and that will need to be installed. Small stuff, and we will get 'er done.

I will try to remember to post the utility room and the home office when those are more complete.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

 

A Bit Of Embroidery

 Every now and then it's nice to just sit down and stitch something new for a change. That was my mindset a few weeks ago when I decided to begin a project out of a new book in my collection.

Stitches from the Harvest by Kathy Schmitz is chock-full of enticing projects, and even though we are approaching the end of autumn, I still felt compelled to make something from this fall-themed book.

This will eventually be a pillow cover. Maybe I will have it finished by next fall? I certainly hope so!

Another nice feature of a project like this: it travels well. I can easily take it in the car, and if the road is smooth, I stitch while riding.

Mostly, though, I'm stitching in my comfy chair watching something on TV. With Covid getting all nasty again, some of our sports are being cancelled or postponed. If we don't have a game, we catch up on some Netfix shows, so all is not lost.

I will link up with Kathy's Quilts regular Sunday linky party. Take a look at some of the fabulous Slow Sunday Stitching featured there.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 To all my faithful readers and followers, I wish you the happiest of Thanksgiving days. 

 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Socially Distanced

 The Frankfort Girls met on Friday morning in a different place! Jan hosted us in her golf club party center where we could work on large projects and maintain acceptable social distance. Jan and her husband Bob own a golf course, so when she had the great idea of making fleece throws, she knew her party space would serve beautifully for our need of space. Then Ohio's governor re-established limits on group gatherings, and this helped us comply with those recommendations, as well. Here are some snapshots from our morning together. 

  

Here is our lovely hostess Jan explaining the basics of tying two fleece panels together. She spaced two tables for each of us and we worked and gabbed all morning. By noon, each of us had a great fleece throw to gift or to keep for ourselves.

 

My throw is this one featuring Ohio State football.

Sheryll made one for her granddaughter featuring these adorable hedge hogs.

 

You can see how spacious the room is from all these pictures, and we did such a good job of maintaining our social distance.

 

We did have one show and tell for the morning. This lovely quilt is Terry's; she was working on binding, and oh, how we all loved it! Such great colors and so much interest in the pattern. 

So, today: the day before Thanksgiving. I will make the pumpkin pie today as well as the cranberry salad. Then prepping the table, setting out the dishes - nothing too involved since only three of us will dine together tomorrow. A possible 4th is my mother, but she has 4 other offers from my siblings, so who knows where she will show up! There's always room for Mom, right?

Happy Quilting, Friends!

A Quilt For a Sister

I recently gifted a quilt to my sister, who came shopping in my closet of quilt tops. You may recall that I blogged about it here.

So here are some pics of her bedroom update with the quilt adorning the end of the bed. Looks pretty spiffy, wouldn't you agree?

This was her son Will's room, and since he's been out on his own for quite awhile now this room got an update. Nice! I am so glad one of my quilts gets to help out in the refresh effort.

The quilt was started in 2014 when Fat Quarter Shop hosted a sew-along called Wishes. I made a block a month until October, then stopped. In 2017, I finished the quilt top as one of my UFO completion efforts. Now, in 2020, it is quilted. 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Cranking Out the Churn Dashes

For many, 2020 will forever be remembered as the year of coronavirus. I have one additional thing by which to remember the year: the year of the churn dash.

 Yes, I am still cranking out churn dash blocks like a crazy lady. This time, the measurement is 6.5" unfinished. And they are looking pretty darn cute, I must say. Have I ever met a churn dash I didn't like? I think not!

 The Frankfort Girls are doing an exchange of these blocks next month, so I need to make 42 of these little sweeties to contribute to the fun. I shared the fabrics I'd pulled a couple weeks ago. I'll rerun the picture here.

I spent a good portion of Tuesday cutting out all 42 blocks. I will begin chain-piecing this weekend, but I always seem to want to see what one will look like, so I make one (or 4!) all the way through to get a visual. I love how they look!

A year ago, we did a similar exchange using 9-patch blocks. That was loads of fun, and I am so eager to see the variety of finishes that we will come up with.

Happy Quilting, Friends!

My Bonus Sampler

 Back in January, we Frankfort gals entered into a little sew-along. Each of us took turns assigning a basic quilt block month by month. There were very few rules - we could make whatever size we desired and as many as we desired. Easy. As. Pie.

Before I made my first "real" blocks, I made a practice block. I loved it. I decided that with each new block assigned, I would continue to make practice blocks and then I would, in effect, have two quilts when all was said and done. My test blocks were made from my tub of 30s prints on a creamy white background. My first block was this Ohio Star. Can you see why I love it?

As each month passed, I continued to add 30s blocks to my little collection. Just in the last week or so, I made a few extra blocks to come up with a lap sized quilt. I think it is pretty sweet. Have a look.

Since taking this picture, I have added borders. I actually plan to get this quilt loaded onto the long-arm machine in the next day or so to finish it off. Can you believe it? (I can't!)

So, that's my little update for now. I have a few other things to share; just gotta' to make time to share them. 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Hello, Old Friend

 In the hubbub of summer activities, Lake Effect has gotten lost in the list of objectives to complete. Now, with winter coming on, I find myself in need of hand stitching for long, dark evenings, and this will fill that time quite nicely.

I have completed the applique on the center panel as well as the top and bottom of the inner border. The next step is to tackle those longer sides of the inner border. (See arrows.)

A few days ago, I taped the template and fabric to the window and traced on the design. I have been using the back-basting method with a good deal of success, so I definitely will continue with this method of applique. 

The first element to go on is that long, undulating vine with the wonky branches. I have the pieces cut and ready to stitch in place. While it results in quite a bit of waste, it's the best way I can think of to get the stem element on there. And the sole reason I bought the fabric was for this purpose, so I won't think about the waste. After it's all cut away, I will take the scraps and cut salvageable squares, so not all will be lost.

Click here and here to see the finished center panel and in-progress upper/lower border.

That's all for today, peeps! Cloudy and dreary, today; more like November is supposed to be. We have had the most beautiful stretch of 70-degree days and I have done my best to appreciate them. Blessings, for sure!

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Long Arm in Action!

I am overcoming my timidness toward the long arm quilting machine. In the last week I have loaded on a quilt, begun the quilting, encountered some issues, addressed the issues, and finally -- HAVE FINISHED A QUILT!!!

Loading the machine is getting easier. I have watched a ba-zillion You-Tube videos and IG stories, and I am feeling much more confident. This quilt showed my success as there were no tucks or puckers in the backing. I'd had a few of those issues in some previous efforts, sadly.

My troubles appeared in the stitching mechanics; I don't know enough about the stitch regulator or the speeds. I do know that I was stitching uncontrollably a couple of times and it did not want to stop! I wonder if lint/dust had built up? Anyway, I stopped by unplugging and went back later to make whatever adjustments I could. The job is done, and it is my best effort yet, despite the runaway stitches.

I didn't want to leave the quilt laying around without a binding, so I went straight to work on that last night, and finished it off - I even included a label.

And today, I have taken its official picture spread out on the bed. The quilt is a sampler quilt that I started back in January of 2014. It was a sew-along sponsored by the folks at Jolly Jabber. I stayed on track with the sew-along until about the 10th block, then I stopped. I finished it in 2017, the marathon year of finishing UFOs. In checking back, I see that this was the designated UFO for July '17.

I could spend some time critiquing all sorts of things on this quilt, but I think I won't. I am so pleased to have it done, and the imperfections are not at all deterrents to its beauty.

Are you wondering why I selected this quilt out of all the dozens lined up in the closets awaiting quilting??? Well, my sister requested a quilt, and when she came to "shop" the quilt closets, this is the one she picked. Good taste! 

Hope you are having a lovely day, dear readers! The unseasonably warm, pleasant weather continues today, and I think it's time for some outdoor activity. 

Happy Quilting, Friends!

Visiting with the Frankfort Girls

 

I had the honor of hosting the Frankfort Girls on Friday morning and the whole crowd came! We sit around the kitchen table with hand stitching - we eat, we stitch and mostly we talk. And talk. And talk. This bi-weekly gathering is scheduled for 9-noon, yet we were still gabbing away at 1pm. Gracious!

My theory is that we have ceased a lot of our gathering and socializing these last 7-8 months, and when a group does get together, we have much catching up to do! Are you finding that you are missing out on a social life?

Here are some show and tell finishes from two of our group. Terry has been making churn dashes as much as I have these past few months. The pattern for the quilt below has a name, but I am totally drawing a blank on it. is called Churn Me Up. (Thanks, Terry!) The  smaller churns are 6" finished, which is the size I will next be making. I love that the four in the center are surrounded by larger churns. Adds a lot of interest.

 

Jan also had a finish to share. She had finished the Sew-Along quilt we did earlier in the year. Her version omitted a couple of blocks and repeated others. 

I always marvel at how different quilts look because of the variations in color placement. Our lack of rules for this sew-along are resulting in our quilts looking almost unrelated.  If we didn't know that we were all making the same blocks, we'd be none the wiser. 

Just to show you the difference, here are two more from the sew-along. Sharon O's is purple; mine is red and cream.

I have done more sewing this past week, but didn't take time to post anything here. Perhaps this week I will catch you up on my stitching activity.

Happy Quilting, Friends!