All of us are winners.......

A few wks. ago I actually won something for a change!  Over at Barb's Heartstrokes blog, she had a giveaway and I won this cute little snowman that she handpainted!!

 It was wrapped in this darling little package and inside was a darling little snowman staring back at me!  She paints all sorts of things and is uber talented, so give her a visit.

 Last time I posted that I would reveal what all I sent in my Mystery Give~away packages.  I sent one package to England and she was interested in the sewing/quilting category, so this is what all I sent to Gill(no blog).  Just some fat quarters, some lace, a needle threader, patterns, tissue holder and a 'sewing' wristlet bag.

 Then on to another gal who won the cross stitch goodies..........Denise from Florida.

 I sent her a more 'beachy' theme, since she lives in the Sunshine State!!  A beach graph, beach kit, beach zip bag, needle threader, tapestry needles, linen, kleenex tissue holder...........

 And they all fit nicely in her little bag I made.

I am finished w/another sewing project I completed last wk.  It was a bit bigger project, but I completely forgot to take a pic of it, so will try to remember that next time!

Hope you all are enjoying what's left of your summer break!  our local schools start back up in about 3 wks. from today and the county schools start in less than 2 wks!!!  Wow, that seems so early!  I remember when I was a kid, school didn't start until right after Labor Day in Sept.  Wish it was still like that sometimes.  I think it's still way too HOT when school starts up, but I don't have any kids in school anymore, just college, which is on a bit different schedule, thank goodness!!

OH, I almost forgot ~ I'm having a sale in my Etsy shop for one week only~ FREE SHIPPING ~ when you spend $25.00 (or more) good through July 31st.  U.S. residents only!  Just use the coupon code - FREESHIP25, w/NO spaces.

See ya soon!

Sewing up a Storm.......

I don't think I've done this much sewing in years!!  It has been SEW much fun, tho'.  I've really enjoyed getting my sewing mojo back.  Something I did once a very long time ago was that I used to sew all the time. I would turn on my record player and sing along w/John Denver, Olivia Newton-John, Karen Carpenter and Donny/Marie Osmond, etc, while my sewing machine hummed along to the tunes. (ok, I'm dating myself, but oh well....)

 I made many of my own clothes in High School and took every Home Ec. class that was offered.  I'm sure I've forgotten quite a bit over the yrs. but I am plugging along once again.  Here's a few of the things that I've managed to make during these past couple of months......

I had put this kit together myself last summer and just never sewed all the pieces together until recently!  

 It was the very first time I used the applique stitch on my machine and I was pretty pleased w/how it turned out.  (My machine only has 50 different stitches on it ~ LOL).  I still need to make a little sleeve for the back so I can hang it on one of those Ackfeld wire hanger thingys, ha.

 Then I got into making these cute little zip pouches/wristlet bags.  I put two (or more) patterns together, (kinda in my head), and came up w/this version.  I am not really a cat lover(NO offense to anyone who is), but found this fabric at my local quilt shop and knew it had to come home w/me ~ too cute!!

 Then I made a matching tissue cover......... front side

 back side..........

 I also made about 21 or more of these lil' cuties...........  I have given several out already, just as lil' gifties.

 It was like Lay's Potato Chips, I just couldn't stop w/one of these lil' zip bags......I made two of these, one w/a green zipper, one w/orange.  I fell in love w/this colorful flip flop fabric I had purchased a yr. or two ago and forgot I had.  (you know I'm still mostly a 'prim' gal at heart, but I do love brighter, whimsical colors in the spring/summer months).  I just can't help myself ~ :)))

 I'd had this fabric since last yr. I think.   I made two of these too, one w/a darker blue zipper, and one w/a lighter blue.

 The inside lining piece is buttons that match the 'sewing machine' fabric on the front.

 I also used to make aprons a lot, a few short yrs. ago, and found some really cute patterns at JoAnn's recently when they were on sale, of course!   This cupcake fabric is just too cute and I thought the 'sprinkles' fabric matched it nicely, altho' they didn't have those two bolts together at the store.

 This was the second time I managed to 'applique' stitch all around by machine.........

 At Hobby Lobby they had the cutest 'cupcake' buttons, so I added one for the 'cherry' on top.

 Of course, these are all for sale in my Etsy shop.

While it's HOT/HUMID outside, I'm  staying COOL inside my sewing/craft room!!

I'll be back soon w/more pics of things I've been working on and also I'll show what all I sent to the winners of my recent Mystery give~away, as well as a little something I won a few wks. ago.

Stay cool and happy stitching!!

Give~Away Winners!!

I pulled two names out of the bowl earlier today and forgot to post them till now, ha.

Denise is the winner of the cross stitch package and Gill from the UK, is the winner for quilting/sewing.  I have already emailed them both for the addies, so hopefully I will hear back from them soon.

I am busy getting both packages made up and ready to go, so I will have to wait a bit till they receive their packages to show what all I sent them.

Congrats ladies!!

Be back in a few w/some more pics of what all I've been up to.
Thanks for stopping by!

Tanya

Happy Birthday America!!

I finally finished a few things I've been working on and this first pillow is just in time for the BIG holiday here in the states tomorrow. I had stitched this last yr. and wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to do w/it, and since I'm not real good about thinking outside the box at times, I ended up w/another pillow.  But at least I tried something just a bit different ~ I used a dark red piping to give it a little more detail and make it 'pop' just a little more.  I used Fine Ariosa Linen that I hand-dyed first.  I am totally in love w/this fabric!!  (yes, I do sell it in my ETSY shop).

 Here's another little project I've been working on, but haven't quite finished it yet.  I still need to bind it around the outer edges, etc.  But at least it's almost done. ha

 This little pillow I finished awhile back and forgot to show it.  It is stitched on 30ct. Straw linen and I changed out the colors on it for a more prim look.  I backed it w/the gold/black cotton print you see in the background and made it into a simple pin pillow.

 I needed to write up a couple of book reviews as well, so I will add them to this post.  I receive these books free from Bethany House Publishers in exchange for an honest review.
This book by author Leslie Gould is one I had a little trouble with in the beginning, as there were so many characters introduced early on, that I found it a bit confusing as to who was who and how they were all related.
 It is the second book in a series called, 'The Courtships of Lancaster County' so maybe if I had read the first book it would not have been so confusing to me.
 The author does a good job of moving the story line right along w/its modern-day Romeo/Juliet type of story w/out the sad ending.
Two Amish families have been upset w/each other for yrs., but no one knows why and the two main characters(Addie/Jonathon) fall instantly in love. They try their best to reconcile their families so they can be together but Addie's family wants her to marry the boring Philip Eicher, and tries very hard to keep Addie/Jonathon apart.
 Several of the minor characters annoyed me because of the way they treated Addie and took advantage of her, but it did make the characters seem very real w/all of their flaws. I loved the character of Jonathon and what an awesome Godly man he was to Addie in how he treated/adored her.
I have never been a big fan of an author writing in the first person and this one is written in that fashion.
All in all, it was a good Amish fiction romance and a nice summer read.

(sorry I just somehow deleted the picture of the book)

Another book I read is a NON-fiction, called 'Angels by my Side' by Betty Malz, who had authored 10 books before her passing. This book recounts the true story of Betty herself, along w/many other stories about people who've had real-life encounters w/angels. 

 I found this book fascinating from the first chapter to the last, as Betty writes about these experiences.  Betty, herself was declared dead for 28 minutes before returning to life.  She begins by telling about what happened to her during those 28 minutes, in great detail about going up to Heaven and what all transpired while she was there.  The yrs. following her encounter, she met many others who told her their amazing encounters w/angelic beings.  Betty gives Biblical insight as to how these angels help humans in their time of need from the Bible's perspective. 

If you want to know more about how God uses angels to help His children, then this is the perfect book for you!  I highly recommend it!!  Only 121 pgs. long, it is a very quick, but fascinating read!

  P.S. I hope everyone here in the states has a wonderful 4th of July holiday tomorrow!!
P.S.S.   Don't forget to sign up for my GIVEAWAY if you haven't already!!  Click here to find out all about my Summer Fun Mystery Giveaway.  There will be TWO winners and you can choose what category you'd like to win!

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