Sewasaurus

 

How are you doing today?

There will be very little gardening this week.  It rained a lot again and there is still standing water outside.  Around here, we don't garden in mud so I'm getting some sewing done.

I'm in the middle of a lot of sewing projects.  I'm focusing on finishing mug rugs and table toppers and that fits fine with next week's weather.   My main goal is to have enough handwork prepared for next week when the first heatwave begins.  Most of you know that my sewing room is in the attic so it's important to have  handwork that I can do on the first floor of my house. 

I'm also thinking about a quilt to honor Paula.  She was killed in late 2023 when a young man smashed into her car.  

Paula's youngest and only daughter has asked numerous times that I make a quilt from her mother's clothes for her 1 year old daughter.

I know it must have been hard for Jenny to go through her mom's clothes.  But she finally sent some of Paula's shirts over.  The thing is that the fabric is REALLY varied.  So I'm reviewing options and designs.  

What are you working on right now?

Two days until Flower Friday--and the first day of summer--so if you have photos to share please email me!

Have a safe and happy day!

Scrap Happy

There's a saying, "You know you're a quilter when the only scraps under your table are fabric..."

Unless you have a dog.

Family and friends refer to Lucky as "the hoover" because the first thing he does when he visits is check out the floor for crumbs on the floor.

Today is another day of rain and I'll be working most of the day in the sewing room.  Here are some scrap quilts you may enjoy:

Have a safe and happy day!

 

The World In One Family

 

Many people my age were not alive during World War II.  Still the war was very much a part of our childhood; many of our family members had served.  The war was featured in our books, movies, television shows, and even in the games (or scenarios) we made up as children.  We knew of the war time events, heroism, and horrors so well that it somehow became embedded in our memory of childhood. 

During these sorrowful times, I concentrate on what I believe to be good and compassionate.  Recently, I stumbled upon a story that occurred during World War II that was new to me.

When Nazi Germany invaded Poland in 1939, it had a collaborator:  the Soviet Union.  The Soviets took many of the Polish Jews to Siberia; most of the children ended up orphanages where often they were only fed one slice of bread per day.

These children had an unlikely hero who saved them:  Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja, the  Maharaja of Jamnagar in Gujarat, India. 

 

The Maharaja "adopted" hundreds of the Polish children and provided them with safe housing, food, and even provided for their education.  He told them they were his children now and treated them with dignity and kindness.

Soon other countries like Mexico and New Zealand offered sanctuary to Polish refugees.

Here are some online stories you can read: here and here and here.  There are also many touching videos on the internet.

"Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" is an Hindu phrase.  I've read this considered one of the most important philosophical and moral values.  It translates as "the world is one family."

Certainly the Maharaja illustrated this value with his kindness.  He was never listed as hero of World War II when I was growing up--but he certainly needs to be included with the other heroes of that war.

Have a safe and happy day.

Flower Friday: June 13, 2025

 

Happy Flower Friday!

Hoping you have a lovely holiday!  We will be having rain again but that's okay, I'll sew.

Joanne's lovely hibiscus with a pink center.  I've never seen this kind before!

Pete's lovely clematis!

Beth's stunning Mountain Laurel!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Lucky

 

Woof!

He's a beautiful boy!

Lucky is doing well despite having some seasonal allergies.  We've been inside a lot during this rainy season but we still walk throughout the day.

I was cleaning out the sewing room one day and was surprised that Lucky is still afraid of this doll.  The doll has been sitting there for months; he just noticed it that day.

Anyway, he is fine and doing well!

Tomorrow is Flower Friday and if you like, you can share of your photos!  Email me at allentownquilter@gmail.com.

 

Tuesday This and That: June 10, 2025

 

Welcome to another edition of This and That!

On Sunday, Lucky and I passed a grazing deer as we walked the park.  The deer didn't care about us and Lucky (still) isn't sure what to make of the deer.

***

The Salem witch trials have nothing compared to Scotland.  Between 1563 and 1736, an estimated 2,500 people were executed in Scotland for witchcraft.  Since 2020, two women have been campaigning for an official apology and some kind of national memorial.  

And below is a special tartan plaid made in honor of those who perished.

You can read about this at the Smithsonian website here or listen to a podcast at Haptic and Hue about here.  It's a fascinating subject and one I had no idea about until recently.

***

Friday's session of giving away plants to neighbors was cancelled.  It's been raining off and on since then.  Not sure when we will get the plants out and transplanted!  How's the weather where you are?

***

Wishing you a safe and happy day!

Pins and Needles

 

So just out of curiosity, what are your favorite kind of pins to use?  I've tried a variety but I love Dritz button flat head buttons.

I love how sturdy these pins are and that I can use them for foundation paper piecing as well.  I did try the new silicone pins for a while.

It's great that they can withstand heat but I'm pretty careful with my iron.  The main reason I discarded them was because I found them more difficult to pick up off a smooth surface.

I've been going through my (hand sewing)  needles more and I really need to create a needle book.  I now use a variety of them for different projects.  What is your favorite needle?  Do you have a needle book?

Have a safe and happy day!

Flower Friday: June 6, 2025

 

I'm still trying to create my piece of heaven in my backyard.  I've moved more plants and pulled 5 garbage cans of weeds last week.  

Later today, some of my neighbors are coming in to take some plants from the front yard garden (that I'm still trying to empty).  Saturday and Sunday look cooler so I'll probably get some more work done.  I can't work when it is really hot and humid.

Here's what is blooming in my garden:

Feverfew:

Sundrops:

Astrantia:

The Lavender is beginning to bloom:

On our walk, we saw Red Hot Poker flowers.  I always thought it was a weird name since the flowers are orange and yellow:

Wishing you a safe and happy weekend!

Ocean

I'm a big supporter of The Schwenkfelder Library and Heritage Center.  This month, they are featuring an international traveling quilt exhibit entitled "Ocean".  It begins June 6 and ends August 3.  My understanding about this is it features an international array of current quilters and the only place the entire collection will be featured is at the Schwenkfelder.

I don't make it out often to attend shows but I'm hoping to get there to see the exhibit.  Summer is jammed already with doctor appointments for family members but I'll do my best to get there.

For more information, see here.

Have a safe and happy day!

 

Sewday 1

 

I would love to have a Sewday and stay home all day in the sewing room.  With caregiving and other chores, that rarely happens.  

I'm still doing a lot of handwork.  I continue to do quilt as you go hexagons in the evening.  I'm using an assembly line method.  First I cut them all out, then I hand sew them pulling the back to the front.  I'm at the hand sewing stage now.  After that I will piece the table toppers together.  I've been making cans of them:

I'm also making some mug rugs for my guild's craft show in the fall.  I tried to use 2.5 inch binding again but it was too hard on my hands.  I'm back to 3 inch strips.

All these projects are scrapbusting and that is wonderful.  

I won't be taking on anything new this week.  It looks like it's not going to rain for the rest of the week and I HAVE to do more in the garden.  That will take up most of this week.

Have a safe and happy day!

Flower Friday: May 30, 2025

 

It hardly seems possible that it is the end of May already.  I know that time goes by faster for me as I get older but this month seemed like only 2 weeks.  I think it was because that the beneficial rain meant little gardening this month.  

Today we have some lovely flowers to feature!

From Nancy who doesn't have a lot of space for gardening but who does have this lovely clematis.  Just look at the amount of flowers on there!

Sue sent some lovely photos as well. 

The following photos are all from her garden!

Here are her irises:

Poppy!

Weigela: 

Climbing Hydrangea:

Have a safe and happy weekend!

Market on Thursday

 

I think I'm going to have to embroider the above motif.  Thursday is indeed our market day because our local Farmer's Market is open Thursday through Saturday.  Do you have a local Farmer's Market?

Also...Although Lucky's behavior is much improved, he still has tantrums.  These occur when I won't let him jump on people, when we are leaving the park, or he has to leave a dog friend.  His tantrums very much resemble the dog above.  I'll have to change the ears and make one to look like Lucky 😁

Tomorrow is Flower Friday so if you want to share anything, email me!

Have a safe and happy day!

Walt Disney?

 

Who knew that there were Disney feedsacks?

Alice with yellow background:

Cinderella Feedsack:

There's a blog site with Mickey Mouse feedsack here.

Ever see any of these?

Have a safe and happy day!