The Feather Pen

  A couple of you asked about our shop.  Here it is!

My View...

This is the way I get to see my husband during the month of December.  Oh, every now and then he'll spin the chair around, but basically, that it.  He has a nice head of hair.  Broad shoulders. He comes to bed around 2 am and gets up by 6 am.  So I don't see him there. He kisses me good morning when he sets a Diet Coke on my bedside table.

We run an Etsy business and the holiday shopping really slams us.  That's the reason we celebrate Christmas in January.  And that's fine.  I really do look forward to seeing him again, though.  I'll leave you with a note we received, last night.  We're so tired and people can be so grumpy- mostly because they ordered last minute and they expect the moon. But sometimes you have a customer who makes it all worthwhile.

 I cannot begin to thank you enough for the PERFECT key chains! And what a special blessing to open the package and find Bill's note with the "extra" key chain. I will write and post a review as soon as I can settle my emotions enough to write one that might make sense. 

The handwriting was my brother's and was taken from the last note he wrote me. He faithfully served our Lord and Savior while suffering from an inoperable brain tumor - and the note he wrote me was a plea to make sure my children, niece and nephew always remember how much he loved them, but more importantly how much he loved God - even in the midst of unmentionable physical suffering. My brother passed away November 14, 2017. 

My parents cared for my brother every single day of the last seven years of his life. My sister and I helped as much as we could, but most of the care fell to my parents. The key chains are Christmas gifts for them and my sister. I started to order one for myself, but decided to wait and ask my husband to get it for my birthday as we try hard to stay on budget at Christmas - our belief is being present is much more important than getting presents. I will admit, I was sad when I opened the first envelope and saw the wonderful key chain...and my brother's distinctive "I love you" with his circled M signature. 

I selfishly wanted one and regretted not going ahead and ordering one for myself, My husband saw the tears and asked me if there was something wrong with the order...and I had to fess up and tell him I was just being selfish and wanting one for myself. He had already counted envelopes and couldn't understand why I was upset; after all there were 4 key chains! I told him I only ordered 3...and that's when I looked at the packing slip and saw the note. The tears came in buckets upon reading your note and realizing God has used you to bless me in such an incredibly special way!!

 You all have made this Christmas extra special! We are already thinking of what we can order from you next.

God bless and Merry Christmas,

Countdown to Christmas...

I'm spending a lot of time at my desk.  Our Etsy shop is still in high dudgeon. I don't think that's a real word but spell check says it is.  Last minute orders are needing filled and everyone is in a panic that the order they placed a week before Christmas may not arrive in time.  Guys, ya waited to the last minute to order.  I'm doing the best I can.  But we'd hate for anyone to be disappointed.  So we press on into the wee morning hours and beyond- taking a nap in place of a full night's sleep.  Reassuring nervous customers that it'll be there.  I wonder if they've considered that it might get there a bit sooner if I didn't have to stop and answer their emails... Probably not. 

So we bought a small artificial tree this year as a "pre-tree."  You know, one you put up before you get the real deal.  Why would I do that?  Cause with all this busy-ness with the business...  I just hate to be rushed when it comes to the holidays. I LOVE Christmas and everything it entails.  I'm that friend you're annoyed with because she plays Christmas carols in October.  I love the cooking and baking.  The wrapping and decking. So, I'm gonna have two trees. One small artificial tree that we've decorated entirely with home made ornaments- except the candy canes.  There's popcorn strings and dehydrated oranges and apples.  Gingerbread men and metallic painted cardboard stars. Hand sewn stars and hearts and a couple of these cute doves.  (My niece made these.  She's big into re-purposing and denim is her favorite. The red flannel stars are from flannel pajama bottoms.)  My daughter hand-dyes Ukrainian eggs- works of art.  It's a very pretty tree.  

But come Saturday, the big one is going to be cut down and I can hardly wait!  The tree farm is normally closed, but he says he'll open up for us- he lives there and said he doesn't mind- just call a day ahead.  I'm thinking BIG.  Hope he has what I need.  This tree will be decked out in all the bling that is my extensive ornament collection.  I used to buy an ornament every time I went to town in the months of November and December.  This year, well, I'm not getting out much.  But I found a huge box of old ornaments in a storage unit I bought a few years ago.  Score!  Lots of lights, lots of shiny glass. I once heard it said that Christmas trees are modern day asheroths.  ?!?!  I'm not worshiping the thing, I just happen to love how it looks and how it smells.  The same could be said about my husband! 

Gingerbread cookies anyone?

LOVE gingerbread.  Love gingerbread cookies.  They're like little shortbread cookies on steroids. We plan on icing them, tomorrow.  If we can keep from eating them all... 

 Bricks and stepping stones...

We're busy, busy here in the shop.  Like little elves.  While my sweet man is running to the post office to drop off orders, I'm lolly gagging around posting a blog entry.  Don't tell.  But all work and no play makes Nina a stressed out girl!  This is a bricks and stepping stones quilt from Bonnie Hunter's pattern.  I ended up making two of them- one for each daughter- out of yep, strip bins.  And I really like them and more importantly, the girls do, too.  I'd like to get them quilted by Christmas but things are going to have to settle down out here in the shop for that to happen.  At any rate, we're not celebrating Christmas until January, so I think it's doable.

'Tis the season to make fruit cake. 

 Fruit cake gets a bum rap.  If you think you don't like fruit cake, maybe you've never had home made.  I'm just saying it's a favorite around here and they'd never let me get by without making it every holiday season.  It takes 3 hours to bake so I make two at a time.  Kinda expensive but worth it.  The trick is to age it at least two weeks.  And I don't use brandy to soak them in but orange juice.  Is that weird?  But it's mighty tasty. I have a lot of elves to help in the process. Love spending time together.  I got to hold the grand baby, shout out directions and sit back and watch as they did all the work.  How cool is that?  

Strip bins...

Don't say you haven't felt this way when you opened your strip bin and started sewing.  Strip after strip and the bin never empties.  I think there's a story like that in the Bible.  Only she had flour and oil.  I'd be ok with that.  Never running out of food is a good thing. Now that I think of it, never running out of fabric would be pretty cool, too.  But I just really wanted to see the bottom of that bin.  One bin. I made three queen, one twin and one throw sized quilt from that one bin.  I no longer keep a bin of miscellaneous sized strips.  If it doesn't fit in the 2, 2.5, 3" bins then it just has to go away.  You have to draw the line somewhere.


This picture was taken last year and I got such a laugh out of it.  After the Christmas season is a tough time for me.  I love the holidays, but last year I was swamped with work and then I had a hard time winding down.  Thus the sewing frenzy.  I'm determined to pace myself this year.  I even have a list for the calendar, things to do during the months of December and January.  Because of our crazy working schedule during December, we decided to drag out the holidays through the month of January.  Taking it easy and slow.  This is supposed to be fun, right?  Sewing wise, I'm not sure where I'm going.  I think a few more place mat bags for the kids... I have a blank spot of the bathroom wall that could use a Christmas wall hanging... Bekah wants a skirt sewn onto the bottom of a pair of overalls... I still have that shirt to sew for Jacob... Not hurting for possible projects. Hoping you're all happily stitching along.  

 Pie making day in the USA


Let's be facing it, Thanksgiving is another reason to be thankful for pie.  I just had to share this pie crust recipe with my friends- it's too good to keep all to myself.  If you did your pie making yesterday, you can always save this recipe for Christmas. 

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that it doesn't involve a rolling pin.  There's no cutting in of shortening or butter. If I were a neater cook, there would be no floury counter top to clean. It seems too easy. The taste and texture is amazing and to be honest, I prefer the taste and texture of this pie crust over any that I've ever had.  So here goes:

Pie Crust

• 1 1/2 cups of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• 2 Tablespoons of sugar
• 1/2 cup of oil
• 3 1/2 Tablespoons of milk. 

That's it!

Mix the dry ingredients in the pie pan with a fork.  Whisk the milk in with the oil.  Pour over the flour mixture.

 Stir flour mixture and oil mixture together with a fork. It takes a little bit of time to get the flour completely incorporated, but trust me it will work.  All of the flour will pull away from the edges of the pan.

 Smash the dough out on the bottom and up the sides of the pan.  Tada!  You have a pie crust!  I'm so excited for you!  I didn't crimp this one, but then Bekah got involved and we went the extra mile and made the next few all fancy like.

If you want to make a pudding type pie, just bake at 425* for 15 minutes or until golden.  Otherwise, just fill the pie as usual.  You can't make a double crust pie with this recipe, but then I've been putting a crumb crust on the top of my fruit pies and that's simple, too.  This recipe works great for quiche and meat pies- just leave out the sugar.  I hope you all have a peaceful and blessed Thanksgiving.

 Light therapy...

Sewing therapy.  I think if you add the word "therapy" to anything you can justify spending time on it.  The days have been gloomy and oh so short.  William got me a therapy light last year and it really helped with the winter blues.  I have it sitting on my desk next to my easy chair.  I stitch on yoyos while I soak up the rays. Yoyos are one of my favorite hand work projects.  I tried hexies, but there comes a point where it get's too big and I'm puzzling over the right layout and direction.  It just got to be a bit much.  Yoyos are perfect.  Small.  Transportable.  They are always little and it takes about 3 minutes to make one. In a 15 minute light therapy session I can make about 5.  Hey, it adds up.  Plus, I work on them in the evenings watching a movie.  And even better than sewing them---  I get to cut them out!  I love cutting.  Applique is fun, but cutting out the applique, now that's a whole lot of fun. And tracing the little circles... also something you can do on your lap with a clipboard. This bag of yoyos is about full.  Time to break out a new bag.  The girls say they are going to start making them, too.  Can you imagine how many yoyos three people could make?  I sew them together on the sewing machine using a bar tack.  I'm undecided yet as to how we are going to sew them all together.  Crib, twin, queen... but for now I'm just playing with a running stitch. 

Today is a weird day for me.  The kids all went to work with their dad.  The grown kids and baby are out of state.  I'm left alone in the house.  The only time that happens is when I'm sick and they go to church.  Not very much fun.  SO what to do all on my own...  First, don't let the creepy quiet house bother me. Music.  That's what I need.  And I can listen to anything I want as there's no one else's taste to consider.  Decisions decisions.  I have a quilt on the quilting frame that could use a couple passes.  My limit as it gets a bit tedious. I am wanting to hand sew a civil way reproduction shirt for son #3.  He loves to participate in re-enactments.  Wouldn't he be surprised if I got it done for Christmas?  The pattern is online and it involves just measurements- it's called a square shirt- and no directions.  Ya have to go authentic to get any points for effort. So I need to search that out and print it up.  I need to bake an apple cake for Thanksgiving.  It's tradition.  Pumpkin pies, tomorrow. So I have a full day. Then, there's always the yoyos and the easy chair...

 Zipper bag: A tutorial...

I've never done a tutorial online.  In a blog.  How many pictures should there be?  Will I be able to describe in words clear directions? So here goes nothin':

This cute bag is made from a table place mat.  I bought this one at a thrift shop for a buck. You'll also need a plastic zipper- any size is fine as long as it will at least fit across the short side of the place mat.  See?  Mine's much longer- no problem. And 20" of strapping.  That's it.  Pretty simple. 

Unzip zipper and pin onto the place mat with right sides up.  (Both the zipper and the place mat is right side up.)  Any where along the zipper is fine.  I usually space mine somewhere in the middle.The plastic zip coil should be showing along the edge of the place mat.

I usually stitch along the top stitch sewn seam of the place mat.  It is very close to the zip, but will still be out of the way.

 Next, sew the second side of the zipper. Make sure that the place mat is centered on the zipper so that the zipper tab meets at the same place on both sides of the place mat. 

Add caption

Unzip zipper and pin second side of zipper to opposite side of place mat. Sew second side of zipper onto place mat the same as the first side.

When the bag is folded in half, right sides out, it looks like this:  But we're going to turn it inside out for the rest of the sewing.  I forgot to take a picture of it, but now is the time to open the zipper halfway. (Or else the zipper tab will be cut off your bag!)

This is a tab and I put them on either end of the bag to help with pulling the zipper opened and closed. (I made my own strapping by cutting a 20"x 4" piece of fabric, folding it in on itself and stitching 1/8" from either side.  This tab is 1" x 4", folded in half.)

Making strapping

I fold the place mat in half with the zipper centered down the middle. Tuck tab with raw edges running along the outside edge of bag and under the end of the zipper and back of bag and stitch along the side- being sure to catch the tab.  I use a 3/8" seam allowance. Repeat on the second side- MAKE SURE YOUR ZIPPER IS AT LEAST HALF WAY OPEN!!   Otherwise you won't be able to turn it right side out.  Seam rippers do exist, so all is not lost if you forget and sew it up tight.

Trim excess zipper off from the top and bottom of the bag. 

 At this point, you have a perfectly serviceable bag, but I like mine to stand up. This is what is called a box bag. 

 

This is the hardest part to describe.  Leaving the bag inside out, match an end seam up with the fold on the sides of the bag.  It will make the bag come to a point.  Draw a line 1.5" across the point and sew on that line.  This is what makes the square corners of the bag.  I slide a strap the width of my place mat into these corners of one side and when it's all sewed up- tada. Your bag has a handle.  This is called a "Box bag" and you can youtube to get a step by step tutorial video. They just tend to be a little long and I like to keep things as simple as possible. But sometimes you need to see it being done to get a grasp of the concept.

handle on end

This is what the bag looks like when it is finished- but not turned right side out.  See how there are no raw edges?  The lined place mat makes a lined bag.

I use mine for hand sewing projects.  My grandson keeps his quiet time toys for church in it. My daughter in law stores her make up in one. They're just a nice size and a really quick project- about 30 minutes. Probably less.

 Ice storm...

The winds kept me up for a couple hours last night.  Winds are common place here, but the pecking of ice on the windows is a bit more ominous.  Good news, we still have power. I thought I'd share some of the beauty with you.  The air after an ice storm always smells especially sweet.  I'll spare you the havoc that the ice wreaks on our trees.  Trees in this neck of the woods are honored, I guess because there are more fields than anything.  So when a tree is taken out, or nearly so, it's always a bit sad. But you can't deny that the ice is awfully pretty and if you can't take the bitter with the sweet then you can't be a very well adjusted person, now can you? 

 The flower garden that went to weed at the end of the summer now has it's own sort of beauty.

 This garden ornament is my favorite picture after the berries. 

The grass shatters when you walk on it and makes a slight jingling noise.

My sweetheart broke the handle on his truck door trying to get into it, this morning.  Wonder how long this will take to melt?  

 Easy does it...

I don't know about you, but I like to ease into the week.  I am blessed with being able to work from home.  So I'm wearing a ratty sweater- holes and all.  Box of tissues at my elbow- sinus infection. Pumpkin roll- remedy to a low blood sugar. My daughter is an assistant baker at a bake shop and she brings home some amazing goodies. Thoughts of sewing. Just taking things slow. 

Thread guide... maybe you'd be interested in this little gadget.  It's such a small and insignificant thing, but it works like a dream.  A dress maker would never be able to grasp the concept of how much thread a quilter goes through.  Where they buy a spool, we buy a cone.  My cone is getting low.  That's alright, I have a drawer of extra ones.  This guide keeps the tension nice and also keeps the cone from skittering across the table.  It's just a dowel rod with a hole drilled in the bottom, and an eyelet screwed into the top.  You could put your cone in a mug if you're still having skittering problems. The cones sure are nice when you're winding 25 bobbins at a time.  Barely makes a dent in the thread.

This is one of the little bags I make from ready-made place mats.  I actually made this place mat from some scraps, but I usually buy the place mats at a thrift shop for a buck.  The bags sell for $10.  Not bad. The place mats are lined and the edges are finished so there are no raw seams. Think they will make nice Christmas gifts- stuffed with some fun things. A lot of nurses buy them to store their stethoscopes and such.  Keeps toys separate in diaper bags.  Store make up.  Just whatever. Takes me about ten minutes to whip one up. Pioneer Woman has some really pretty place mats.

 Homely...

  In the US when we say "homely"  we're describing something dowdy, ugly.  But I've seen some home improvement shows from the UK and when they say "homely" they're using it as we would "homey."  Something cozy and warm. This one has the bases covered.  It's homey and homely. It's a client's quilt and I'm impressed with it- in that it's entirely hand stitched. It's just not entirely pretty.  But very homey.  And I think it will look sweet on a bed.  Of course, I've never actually met a quilt I didn't like on some level. As you can see, I'm just meandering it and she is using a Warm and Natural batting so with one wash it will have an even more homey feel and look to it.  It's growing on me.

Sleepy head...

I just couldn't resist sharing this picture.  He was eating some cheese puffs and then he wasn't. Fell asleep with his hand in the "cookie jar."
 

Blitz...

This is my fat goat.  I love him as much as any one ever loved their dog. OK, maybe that's an exaggeration as some people are just a a little over the top with their dogs.  But you get my point.  We love him.  He moves around the property taking care of weeds and overgrown grass.  He loves people.  He especially loves to be read to. He never head butts. But if you punch him on the top of the head, he practically purrs.  

I'm getting my autumn quilts put up.  I don't have a lot of free wall space, so sometimes I need to scour the house for an empty place.  This is my bathroom wall.  Yes, it's orange.  (I heard somewhere that the color is complimentary to skin tone, so you look better in the mirror.  That's what I heard anyway.  I am going through a grey phase where I want to paint everything grey- a shocker to my family because they know how much I like color.  But grey makes a nice background for pops of color.)  I made a couple wall hangings using this design and then had a moment where I thought, "Wouldn't it be cool to have a bed sized tree quilt?"  With the tree as big as the bed.  No kidding.  I got all of the HST(5") made and got distracted by something else.  Now where did I put that...

Today is a "BIG" day.  I'm putting a king size quilt on the quilting frame.  I've been putting it off for three weeks now.  I had to unearth the frame- it was a landing zone for husband's crates and boxes.  And then all of my tubs underneath were getting clutter on top of them which makes it impossible to get the quilt through. So, now all of that's resolved and the quilt will go on. Hopefully.  I had a happy moment when the batting and the backing proved to be big enough.  It's for a client and it's always a gamble that they have the measurements correct.  My luck with that gamble is about 50/50. It's just a simple meander as the top is super busy.  I'll try to post a picture when I get it on. The size is a bit daunting, but maybe I'll be surprised and it will go more smoothly than I expect.

  

Two minis bound and ready to go...

Finished binding these two mini wall hangings.  I love hand sewing- just hard to find the time.  Or to justify the extra time it takes when I know I can do it in a fraction of the time on my sewing machine.  But there's something very therapeutic about sliding the needle through the fabric while listening to music on the stereo.  Peaceful.  And who couldn't use a little more peaceful in their life? 

Forty Christmas postcards...

I finished up these postcards for the holidays.  Can't wait to send them on their way!  

I've had the worst head cold this week, but I think I've turned the corner. Today I'm attempting to sew little draw string bags for my husband's business.  One of the things he engraves is bracelets and I just haven't found a way to package them pretty.  So I'll try this and see if it is time effective.  Post pictures later!  Hope everyone is having a pleasant- and productive, day!

Maybe it's me...

There comes a moment in your life when you see a pattern.  I'm 51 and I'm beginning to get an inkling that maybe the mess isn't the projects' fault.  It's all me.  

I've been making postcards- for Christmas- and even though they are only 4"x 6" they seem to make a big mess.  I mean, I seem to make a big mess. There's bits of fabric, stabilizer, embellishments, different colors of thread- just stuff.  I keep thinking I need to put it away, but then I get to thinking I probably won't drag it all out again.  What a bother!  I've made about 35 cards and I'm getting close to finishing up.  I need to bind the edges and then I'll be done.  I'll show you a few once I'm at that point.  

Speaking of Christmas... (Is it too early to mention Christmas?  I'm one of those dreaded people who honestly doesn't mind the Christmas carols on the loud speaker of the store even if it's not Thanksgiving yet.  I mean, it's not like there are Thanksgiving songs to play.  I've been listening to Christmas music for a while now.  I figure since I'm working on a Christmas project it would be easier if I get into the spirit.)  Our family is planning on making some new Christmas traditions, this year.  I suppose it isn't a tradition until you've done it a few times.  But I love traditions and I've been having to sacrifice quite a few of mine over the last couple of years.  You see, my husband, William, has an Etsy shop and he really gets slammed with last minute shoppers in December.  I mean slammed.  We pretty much work around the clock and so even if we had time to do the usual, who has the energy or the drive?  

I have been considering a few things.  Opening presents on January 25- catch the after Christmas sales and having extra funds from the successful business month of December. Having our big dinner that day. Still opening stockings on December 25th. Still fix a big brunch that morning.  We usually visit the tree lot the Sunday after Thanksgiving, but this year we're going to get an small artificial tree (making all of the ornaments) and then go and cut down a big live tree on the first day of winter- the 21st.  Plan out cookie baking days, fruit cake making day, postcard addressing day, a couple of quiet evenings with candle light and reading (Eva's request) - anything festive I can think of to fill December and January- ahead of time and decorate the house until it's the gaudiest thing you've ever seen. We have an extra month after all. Do you have a beloved Christmas tradition I could incorporate?  

Making December even more hectic, we're expecting a new grandson on Christmas day.  So we'll need to keep all of our plans flexible. Considering the cause, I'm fine with that! 

A pillow it is...

Decided to go with the pillow option for my little tea towel. The cost of the towel was 99 cents. The red ruffled fabric was scraps from someone else's scrap bag.  The fluffy filling was left over high loft batting from a customer's quilt.  So the full cost of this project was less than a dollar.  My bed has a yellow and red quilt on it- and I have blue bedroom walls- so I look forward to seeing what it looks like in there.  

But, first, I need to make my bed.  I've heard that making your bed every morning makes you a better person.  Usually, my feet hit the floor running and I don't take the time before I jump into "Life." I'll flip the quilts up, but rarely get to the whole making the bed until later in the day- if at all.  Definitely have room for character development.

And lookee there!  I've been looking everywhere for that bobbin holder and there it is in the top left hand corner of the picture!  Eureka!