fabric giveaway!!!

this was a sewing weekend! i've had a couple of projects in my head for a while now to make for my niece and my little friend olive. finally i felt like doing it! you know how sometimes you just do not feel like sewing(or knitting or crocheting)? i'm glad it's back!

i am not the best sewer in the world, so i like the patterns that say "sewing for dummies" and " fast and easy".  and i have to say i was scratching my head at times with the "easy" one. "understitching"??? what the heck is that? i ended up just topstitching instead, and that was fine...

i was given that leopard (ocelot?) fabric by a nice woman who comes into the bakery. it's really nice, hand-printed, but i just didn't know what i'd ever use it for. but then i thought it was kind of lily pulitzer-ish and might make a nice simple dress. i like how it came out, and i think it's perfect for a 6-year-old!

i was also happy with the top. i've made that pattern several times, often with some cursing involved, but this time went very smoothly! i'd just say that if you make it, add to the length. i added 4" which seems about right (on the 4-year-old size).

i have about a yard of the leopard fabric left and if anybody wants it, leave your name here(or on facebook ) and i will send it to you!! i will draw a name from the comments TOMORROW(that's TUESDAY), and mail it off to you!

(i am using all of the restraint i have not to complain about the heat, thank you very much!)

**HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!!!!**

scilla time!

i pulled a bunch of fabrics for a new quilt i'm thinking about. i'm not sure what pattern i'm going to use for this one. i have always been a big fan of the 4" square. just random 4" squares. i don't like a quilt to be too matchy. but i'm thinking about finding a different design...we'll see. i may just stick with my squares!

we went for a walk yesterday and came upon a beautiful patch of scilla, which is one of my favorite flowers! when we bought our house, one of the first things i did was plant about a million scilla bulbs hoping to have a yard covered with them, eventually. i'm thinking that "eventually" is actually decades. decades and decades. it's so nice to see huge patches of them, and i know of a couple.

enjoy your sunday!

opening day!! (no, not baseball, the flea market!)

sunday was opening day of the flea market at todd farm in rowley, mass. i brought my camera intending to take lots of pictures, but i was waaaaaaaay too busy shopping to think about pictures! there were tons of vendors and tons of shoppers, and it was a gorgeous day. so much fun! here are some of the things i got!

some beautiful bits of vintage fabric and notions!!

i made a bee-line for this tin when i saw it! i love anything plaid, and i love cute tins/boxes. so, the guy said "you can have it for $5, and take all the stuff inside!" i was thrilled and didn't really look at the contents til later when i found...

super adorable vintage christmas ornaments!!!!! made me think of barbara.

i got these two "nature library" books published in 1926 and in excellent condition. not even smelly! they are FULL of beautiful, vibrant color plates:

a very successful day at the flea market! (now where will i put all of this stuff............)

yesterday

we headed up to alfred, maine yesterday for a maple syrup festival, which actually turned out to be today...but we found this hot dog camper. pretty great! i had to take the inside shot to show you that his curtains match his truck! wow! the hot dogs were very tasty! we just had the "regular" hot dogs. i don't know about you, but those red ones give me the creeps! i was surprised to see that he had to have 4 sinks in that little camper! i know that's a restaurant requirement, but in a camper....i mean, what does he have to wash really, but a pair of tongs??

we went to a little antique shop and i found some wonderful treasures. i loooove that little planter!! and i found a couple of christmas cards. (kelly might find that poodle card in his mailbox next year!)

then we made a stop at marden's in sanford, maine. sewers, if you haven't been to marden's, you must go! they have a huge fabric section, and it's cheap, cheap, cheap! all the fabrics are from $2.99 to $4.99 a yard, and they have nice stuff! even some big names(denyse schmidt, amy butler-you have to look around!) i'm going to make some napkins with some of this. i love having cloth napkins. i used to be rather fussy about making them; reversible, with trim...then someone wanted me to make them a lot of napkins for an event, and they just wanted 20" squares, just raw edges, very simple! i made them and washed them, and they frayed nicely on the edges, and now that's how i make my napkins!

i spotted the aqua camper in someone's backyard, so i had to sneak a picture. looks like a brand new paint job!

have a nice sunday! i'm hoping it will warm up like the weathermen predicted.......