Are you sick of this quilt yet?

Just tell me when enough is enough because I ‘m so tickled with the way its turning out….well, I’m going on and on.

While I had to wait for the blue to work on the bottom panel, I wanted the work on the quilt to continue some how.  And because I’m a cheap penny pincher  frugal person (bahahahah)

I took this pile of scrap & started sewing them together. 

Just randomly grabbing pieces and sewing them together willy-nilly which gave me this

and then this

Binding ready and waiting when (if ever) I get to that point!

Last night I was able to get the “trees & trunks”

made & will sew those panels together, and then on to the main quit this afternoon.

I hope.

Have a wonderful Sunday!

Katie

Technorati Tags: Katidids,quilting,sewing,handmade,homemade/handmade,progress

The Bumper is DONE!!!

I thought for sure Alix would be entering high school & Evie would have collage applications in hand before the bumper pad would be completed.  It’s been decorating my dining room table for nearly a month.

I tend to get bored with a project quickly & after it sets unfinished for a while well, they tend to be set aside and forgotten.  Like the flannel jammie pants I made for Erika a few years ago…Later this month when I add the elastic to the waist they will fit Evelyn. 

Any way, I didn’t think a young lady in High School wouldn’t appreciate a bumper pad…nor the crib so it was finished & sent home with Erika yesterday….and am I ever glad because I’m really tired of looking at these piles of prints.

I think this has to be one of the least expensive bedroom sets I’ve ever made.

The quilts & bumper pad were all made with scrap, the batting in the quilts was cut from a surprisingly sturdy & warm  $5.00 blanket.  The Nu-foam insert for the bumper was purchased with a 50% off coupon and stacked with another 20% off your total purchase. The fabric for the sheets 1/2 came from stash..I think I might have spent $20. total with the majority of that toward the bumper padding.

How’s that for frugal!

The colors are actually bolder than they show here

So, THEY ARE DONE!! I’m really hoping Erika will take a photo of the room set up for me.

As we  Evie & I were cleaning up the scraps, she picked up the excess from the bumper pad as said

“What’s dis Gwama”? It fow me?  Fow MY baby?”

What could I do but make another blanket…..and then because of help re make it. She chose the backing & stayed with me helping along each step. It was fun looking at a simple project with new eyes…and fingers

I’d trimmed the edges after sewing the backing on…set the scissors down and turned to grab the pins for my helper….and found her “trimming” about 4 more inches from the width.  Lessons for us both, a reminder for me of safety and a lesson for her again of what she is and is not allowed to do when helping… 

I left it as “she made it” and continued on.

 

Not quite done and “Belle” had to try it out

I’m not sure but I think I heard her say “What do you think of that Barbie!”

Evie Chose the “Wiggle Waggle” stitch for top stitching…

bet you thought it was called zig-zag

Not quite the size we’d intended but she’s very proud of her work

And I’m thrilled to have a sewing buddy…

Excuse me, I need to go hide all the scissors!

Technorati Tags: katidids,quilting,bedroom sets,evie,sewing,on the cheap,frugal make over

Chicken in Every Pot…Um…Jar

Our weather is really cooling off.  The garden is just about done. 

The cucumbers have dried up & I have one melon left on the vine.  There were 3 but deer got into 2 of them.  It/they ate half of  2 melons. Grrr !!!! At least they could have shared! 

The tomato plants are loaded but are slow to ripen in the cooler days.  I have been cooking them into sauce and then freezing until I have a larger amount.  Yesterday I was able to pick enough to can 4 quarts of tomato sauce with the freezer batches.

Our green beans are about done also, I’m only picking a meal or 2’s worth at a time.  I’ve pulled over half the plants and have the 3rd planting finishing up now.  Again, its not enough to batch can so in the freezer they go!

A month or so ago I bought a pressure canner and just love it!  I have so much more flexibility  in preserving.

I tried my first experiment with poultry canning yesterday.  I had picked up a few whole chickens on sale for .89 lb. We roasted one the other night, we  (5 of us) ate 2 suppers with it & a few lunches.  Yesterday I cooked the carcass, deboned it & had a full pan of rich chicken soup base.  After skimming as much fat as possible,  ended up with 2 quarts of stock. Or, depending on how I use it 2 suppers of chicken stew, cream of chicken soup or casseroles.  An we will get at least 2 meals from what I choose to make.  Not to bad for 1 $5.00 Chicken!

So, why didn’t I just stick the bones in the freezer until I was ready to use them?  Well, the onset of Fall means hunting season.  I need to create lots of space with out loosing what I have stored.  Erika’s fridge is due in today so that will help clear their things out but still not create the space I need.

I’ve been researching canning the venison we have thru 2- 3 sites using raw or cooked meat.  I’ve decided to start with cooked meat, making stews or BBQ before I move on to raw.  If I do it correctly it will preserve the meat even longer & free the needed freezer space.

I’m open to advice so speak up if you’ve done this before or, know of any proven sources of information!

Technorati Tags: canning,preserving meat or poultry

Yesterdays Fun Finds

Yesterday I had errands that took me from one side of Louisville to the other, with a few added stops in between. Fun stops, its gotten to the point I think my little car’s stopping at thrift stores on its own !

My oldest daughter Danielle loves “Tea Cups” so I’m always on the lookout for cheap good buys on them.This is what I found yesterday……for $1.00!

I have yet to identify the pattern, so please give a holler if you know, however I did find a bit of information on the Colclough Company here. Dani as we call her, works as a residential therapist at a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Center for Adolescents and Children. Long shifts, lots of highs and lows. She has worked nights for quite a few years & finally just switched to days. She’s learning all about sunlight again! The cup is just a fun way to help celebrate her new hours.

One of my other stops was the fabric store. Well, I coupons..for 40 & 50 % off…I couldn’t let them go to waste!

Plus flannel was on SALE!

I picked up a few new boyish prints, could be PJ’s for Isaiah and diapers for another little man

For our Diva Miss Evelyn I found this cute owl print pinwale corduroy…super soft, I’m think it will make a warm little pinafore for for this winter. I almost missed it then the bolt some how jumped into my cart……

No I didn’t think you’d believe it but it was just to cute to pass up. Besides I still had my 50% off coupon to use and I couldn’t let it go to waste! Its my duty to help boost the economy!

Tackle It Tuesday....Coupons

Boy, have dropped the ball in my couponing.

One of the easiest money saving

things you can do!

Tackling the Coupon's today!

I had a 4X6 card box.

Cream colored, broken up neatly in categories

with index cards,

sorted with a ready to expire section,

rebates...

Money saving at my fingertips,

and I saved lots of money!

Now, its at another's finger tips

can you believe some one would steal a coupon box?

How low can you go!

That was a few years ago....

Can you tell I'm not quite over it?

So, I started another

it was Pink

Pale Pink

No one will steal a

Pink coupon box

I've left it in the cart

in the parking lot....

It was still there a few hours later

when I went to retrieve it.

Although it was great for organizing it was designed

for desk top use,

not the battering it was receiving

The last time it dumped,

I crammed all the coupons back in and have left it sit.

I wasn't about to put all the work

back into setting it up (& have it dump for the 100th time) AGAIN!

I've been using the bowl or baggie method...

you know, the little dish on your counter that"collects thing"

I'd poke through the earrings & bobbins to find the clipped coupon I needed

or the big freezer bag in the cabinet stuffed with the Sunday ads

Did you know expired coupons breed?

(Neither did I

But they do)
I needed a new system

Besides, Bertha is used to being fed all the

$ I saved..& shes hungry!

Here I think is my solution

A clear 24 paged presentation book

It has blank inserts inside each page

effectively giving me 48 sections!

Catching up clipping all the coupons has been a chore

but, all I have to do is think of how much cash I've left at the store

& I get motivated again.

Its been sitting (the pile of coupons)

at the end of the table for the past few days &

I've been working my way through

bits at a time.

Tackle it Tuesday was my motivation to complete it!

Now to shred the expired pages for the garden!

Whats your Tackle it Tuesday?