Thankful

I know it has been a month or more since I wrote here on my blog, but I have been very busy looking after myself. I have been at the hospital in their three week ReCHARGE programme, designed to help people in chronic pain to cope with life and hassles. I am very thankful for the gym time, pool time, education classes, and comradery I felt there. It was a long three weeks, but well worth the time and hassle of being separated from my sweet love.This is so me!! I am thankful for my time there.

Since being home this week, I have designed another quilt. This one is a medallion type (center design with multiple borders). I have never done one like this before and I LOVE IT! I will be making this one available as a quilt along. It is a three color quilt and I have worked out all the sizes from a wall hanging to a king. When Shane saw my pattern, he asked me to make it big enough for our bed, so I did!! I am really loving how it is working up. I am on the last border and I ran out of one of my fabrics...poor me, I have to go fabric shopping.....hehehehehe! I am thankful for a week at home to play!!

Tuesday, the first "real" clue comes out for the mystery I have been working on. I am taking pictures and working hard on all the instructions. It is so much fun doing this. I believe I have found a niche that I really enjoy. It seems a lot of quilters enjoy my patterns as well, many are making my mystery patterns. I guess I need to get busy and design another one for the quick quilters sewing my designs. This mystery quilt is called Desert Pinwheels. Spoiler alert: we will be making the pinwheels first, but that's the only given. It is a beautiful pattern as well. I'll show you in about six or seven weeks when the reveal is public. I have everything ready to sandwich and quilt it. I will be quilting it this next week. Thankful for another quilt for our bed.

Next week, I also hope to design another mystery, finish a teddy bear I am working on, and quilt this mystery. I also want to get the last border on the medallion. I'll show you the medallion when it is finished, hopefully Monday or Tuesday. Shopping tomorrow, church Sunday, and hoping to walk and workout on Monday...all morning things (except church!), so I get my afternoons to play. Looking forward to a great and productive week.

Thanks for listening!

Debi 

Seems Forever!

 

Seems I have been under the weather for ages. I finally did have to get antibiotics, but I have been down for a month. This crazy cough just won't go away. It has been nice slowing down though, I have had more time to pray, read, and relax. One doesn't realize just how much we let slide when we feel we are "too busy". I have gotten back into the habit of that daily quiet time. I am truly thankful I am on the mend now and for the time out God gave me to refocus.

 

While down, I didn't sew much. I am still working hard on the next mystery, I am almost there. Taking pics and finishing the blocks today will just about get me there. I will be busy this afternoon while Shane is gone doing kids club at church. I have part of the instructions written, just need to get these pics put in and I'll be about ready to go. I made a huge one for myself, I had to reduce it for the quilters as most don't want a king size quilt!

I did finish a teddy bear and designed another one. I can't wait to finish this one, he has a different kind of muzzle. Even accomplishing a few things, I still feel it has been forever since I actually completed a project. I guess I should get busy about the completion process now that I am finally up again.

Time to get busy! Have a great day!

Debi

Done and Dusted

Well, it seems a long time since I posted, but for the past two and a half weeks I have been pretty sick with sinuses and lung junk! I am on antibiotics now, so all should be right and I should have this sickness done and dusted!

Mystery quilt 14 is finished on the Quilters Club of America site, it was a huge success. We enjoyed sewing together and made beautiful quilts in the process. I love helping others learn new things. Now that this one is done and dusted, I am excited to start something new! I will be posting a mystery quilt on my blog for you to enjoy. I love designing and this gives me the opportunity to design and help others.

This weekend we have our annual Bible Revival at our church. The churches around the country come together at our church for good preaching, lunch, fellowship, and encouragement. It is a big day for us. We tend to work for a few months beforehand to get the building into shape and prepare all avenues of the day, praying to be a blessing to all in attendance. What a great day we will have! Please make plans (if you are in New Zealand) to come see us this Saturday at 10:00am....we have a great day planned!

Better scoot for now, have a great day. Time for me to rest!

Debi

Exceeding Abundantly...

 

Now that we are finished with Mystery Quilt 14 on the Quilter's Club of America site, I can share the finished product. Butterfly Kisses, was a difficult pattern I tore apart and made easy to accomplish. I so love doing these. I love watching the quilters get excited and sewing on their quilts. I love helping them learn new things and enjoying it. We have been working on this since the 9th of May. I have been sewing frantically on the next one, which I called "Desert Pinwheels" for quite some time, but mine is the king sized version as I love the design so much! I have been dog-earring for a couple hours! I love love love what I do!

I have also been working on trying to get this teddy bear finished. I am way closer today than I was yesterday. I need to decide if the test eyes are too big, ears are level and even, and finish with the nose and face plucking, shaving, or trimming....

Also, to decide if I do a black or a maroon nose...

So much fun...

Hope you have an amazing day. We have had a week full of blessings from God. We had a gift of money that was very unexpected, but God knew we needed it and how much we needed, He is amazing like that! I love this not worrying and trusting God thing, the stress is gone and I even think the lines in this old face aren't etched in stone anymore! Shane had his birthday this week and we had an amazing day at church that day..... surprise lunch and everything! I am so thankful God provides our needs. He even cares about the desires of our hearts and blesses exceeding abundantly above all that we could ever ask or think. 

Praising Him daily,

Debi

SUCCESS!

Friday's card class was a huge success. I had two ladies here for tons of fun and new ideas. I taught them how to make a wee gift box and we have direction on where to head from here. Then, we looked after a friend's children. I got one busy trying some things, knowing if a young one (10) could make them, so could an adult. We had a nice afternoon playing with paper and ribbon, she loved her final products, storing her sweets in the little one making plans for the four hidden boxes in the tall one.

You should join us every second Friday, 10:00 at my home for paper fun. We have mini scrapbook albums, more gift boxes, folded paper cards, sewing on cards, rubber stamping, embossing, and fibre fun on the agenda! 

The B&B has slowed down for the winter, the rain and stream are up. Shane has still been catching fish which we have been smoking and putting in the freezer for the off season. I am looking forward to smoked trout during the winter...YUM!

While things are slower with that, I plan to double down and get some quilts on beds and keep up with the website to keep those mysteries coming. I have one on the sewing table now and just played with another pattern in my head yesterday. I really need a design wall, but haven't gotten around to the leg work of researching for the best option. I have a large wall I can use, looking forward to filling it. Along with that, my own website needs a lot of ground work laid. Soooo much winter fun! 

My tulips are in the ground and pots around the house. I can see little sprouts coming up already. They have only been down 6-8 weeks. I thought they would be dormant through the winter and do their growing in the spring....I was wrong. Can't wait to see the color in the spring. I love how God even gives me color for my garden. The bulbs were given to me by a gardening friend. The veggie garden belongs to the chickens now, they are clearing it very nicely for me. I will be putting winter things in soon and planning for the spring and summer. I love pulling veggies and fruit from my own property out of the freezer to use. That is even compost from our heap....we even made the dirt!!!!!!

Well, I will stop boring you for now. Have an amazing weekend. I hope you get some "me" time and have some fun!

Happy Crafting!

Debi

 

Blessings in Disguise

It seems like forever since I wrote in my blog. Times are busy and tiring and the last thing on the list is to blog! I need to blog while it's dark and play while it's light! The days pass so quickly any more! I have been super busy with the Mystery Quilt on the Quilter's Club of America site. We are on clue three now. I am in the process of writing the rest of the clues. We are having fun. It's not too late to join us. I already have the next mystery designed and cut, I am in the process of piecing it and taking pics along the way.

 

I am also starting a fortnightly card class. I have some pretty good ideas in this wee brain of mine and have been working this week to bring them to paper. I am having tons of fun with it.

 

I am gearing up my own website (The Crafters' Thread) to share all the patterns for teddy bears and quilts that I have. I am nothing special, but if these patterns, pics, and tutorials can help someone, then I have accomplished my goal. I am really excited about it. WATCH THIS SPACE!!!!! 

All this, plus our ministry at church, my ministry at home, our bed and breakfast, planning our camps and retreats, and praying for others takes about 40 hours a day! But, I love being busy.  We are so blessed to be here serving the LORD with an amazing group of people.

This is a catch-up in a nutshell for me for this week. Hope you have a fantastic week and enjoy some "me" time to do something you love. Share your progress, frustrations, and conquests with us, we love to share!

Blessings are abundant, just be watching!

Debi

Back Online

Quilt friends: 
QCA is back online, clue two goes live in less than six hours! 

And my blog back to normal, hehe! 

Thanks for your patience,
Debi