Needles and Pens

This weekend I tackled the last of my sewing room projects, an unsightly stack of plastic bags containing unfinished, long-forgotten sewing projects from years gone by. Little did I know that the experience would be a perfect fit for this week's Sunday Scribblings theme, "time machine." Patterns Revisited Today I sewed sweatpants cut out in ‘01 Doll clothes from 1998 Added zipper and hem to a dress from ‘06 The progress I made, it was great. Next, some pajamas that Grandma cut out Perhaps around ‘79 She passed them to me, in about ’93, Surviving through decades of time. I sewed and I sewed, and the memories flowed, Of how all this attire got its start. Of the people, the places, the beautiful faces Some gone now, but still in my heart. It was only a project, another “to-do,” But it gained a more meaningful theme Who knew that a trusty old Singer could serve As a homemaker's time machine? 2008 © Heather Haapoja

Halfway there... I lost two pounds this week, for a total of twelve, marking the halfway point to my goal since January first. Oddly, that didn't excite me too much this morning, until I looked back at my weight loss records for the past year. A year ago, I was at my all-time heaviest - including pregnancies - at 174 pounds. Mind you, I'm a small person, short and small-boned, so 174 pounds put me well into the obese category on the BMI chart. I began my diet and exercise program in April and stuck with it pretty faithfully until September. I fell off the wagon after that, and gained some weight back over the holidays, so I decided to start fresh with the new year, and a new, more modest goal. BUT, if I look at my total weight loss over the past year, I've lost 37 pounds, and that's something to get excited about! Only twelve more pounds to go...

I was tagged awhile back by my friend, Carol, at Giraffe Dreams , to do the Seven Random Facts meme. THE RULES: 1). Once you are tagged, link back to the person who tagged you. 2). Post THE RULES on your blog. 3). Post 7 weird or random facts about yourself on your blog. 4). Tag 7 people and link to them. 5). Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged. Okay, here goes... seven (extremely) random facts about me: 1. I’ve read the Bible from cover to cover – once. I’d like to make it a regular habit! 2. Growing up, I wanted to be a veterinarian. When I was about fourteen, my sister-in-law was a pre-med student and let me help with her lab work. I did my first (and last) surgery, performing an ovaryectomy on a white lab mouse. I’m happy to say, the patient survived. Actual surgery didn’t change my mind, but four years later, the pre-vet college workload sure did. I gave up my veterinary dreams. 3. Everyday conversation triggers music in my head. For example, a simple “hel...

This week's Photo Hunt theme is "party," and since my daughter will be graduating this year, I've had "graduation party" on my mind. There's so much planning and stress involved in planning a grad party, but when the day finally arrives, it's all worthwhile. Right about now, I need a reminder of that! This group is my son (in the middle) and some of his friends playing bocce ball at his grad party in 2006: Family and friends on the deck, enjoying the beautiful, sunny day: The younger crowd had a blast on the trampoline: A great time was had by all -- and yes, we can do it again!

It's Show and Tell day over at Kelli's House ! I'm relatively new to Show and Tell, and I'm already having a hard time finding things worthy of showing! I think my post today is a bit unusual, but it does have a great story to go along with it. At least, I think so. ;o) I have a thing for birds' nests. I'm amazed at the intricate, detailed work that goes into them. I'm inspired by the care taken in the construction of these little works of art, designed for the specific purpose of comforting and protecting their young. Like this one, for example, a high-walled, cozy little cubbyhole, tightly woven with soft, grayed moss. My dad found this one abandoned in his garage, and gifted it to me. Besides this little beauty, I have a couple of nests that grace my Christmas tree each year (I've heard that this brings good luck for the coming year). However, there is one special nest that holds a place of honor in my china cabinet, year round. This is the one with t...

Finally, my first finished quilt for 2008! "A Box of Chocolates" is a mostly-monochromatic brown/cream, nine-patch quilt, made from fabric samples that have been in storage for over 20 years now. I think its about time they were put to good use, don't you? I have plans -- and more than enough samples -- to make several more of these, in various colors. This photo doesn't really do justice to the rich colors and prints in the quilt. Here's a closeup for a slightly better view, also showing the border, backing and binding fabrics I chose: Of course, there's a story behind all these fabric samples. Back in the mid-to-late '80's, my parents owned and operated the local Ethan Allen furniture gallery. Unfortunately, recession slowly forced them out of business and the gallery was closed in 1987. My mom -- who has the same affinity for fabric as I have -- couldn't bear to throw away the thousands of beautiful samples in the inventory. In fact, she saved b...

Well, getting all the quilting fabric sorted yesterday really helped to put my space into perspective. I spent just a few minutes looking over my sorted piles today, and I could see just where everything would fit. For the smaller pieces, I decided to make better use of my drawer carts. Now my cut scrap pieces are in the smaller upper drawers, and the lower drawers hold fabric. I even got labels on the drawers. Yeah! The larger pieces went on two unused shelves on my bookshelf. I'm not sure I like it being out in the open like this. On the other hand, it might just inspire me to get sewing! And the REST of my fabrics are in bins in the closet. I wonder if I can use all of this up in my lifetime??? Now I have just a few boxes of miscellaneous "stuff" to go through from my old sewing room, and my new sewing room will be set! Then it's finally time to move my desk and computer up there. Still not sure how I'm going to like that, but I'll never know unless I try,...