Crazy Quilt Valentine Pillow Almost Done

I didn't have too much in the way of stitching time yesterday so this is almost done but not quite:

This just needs a few little hearts and some bugs.  I love bugs on crazy quilts! 

Flea Market Beads

I mentioned yesterday that Scott and I were going to Grayslake Flea Market and Antique show.  I really enjoy that one because it's all indoors!  Many of my favorite sellers weren't there which surprises me.  We've been going to this flea market for years and years and December has always been a "productive" treasure hunting month.

Anyway, onto my treasure.  Now I usually don't find cool beads at the flea markets.  Vintage hankies, vintage lace, vintage jewelry pieces, old cook books yes, but not beads.  I think I hit the mother load yesterday!  LOL!!!

These are all all vintage glass rice beads from Japan.  They were still on the original strings and had the old paper "made in Japan" tags on them.  Check out all the colors!  And they were not all from the same vendor!

These are all vintage glass seed beads and vintage glass pearls.  Again, still on the strings with the "made in Japan" paper tags on them:

Those aqua blue ones on the right are absolutely gorgeous!

There was a new vendor there who had some strings of crystals so of course, I had to have a few of those too:

I usually find tons of pretty vintage handkerchiefs at Grayslake Flea Market but yesterday, not too many.  I only found this pretty one with pansies on it:

In other news, thank you to everyone who left me comments regarding my cat dolls.  I will definitely plan on a series of the taller cats for 2012.  I personally like the little ones but the taller cats definitely give me more room for stitching!  LOL!!!

After our trip to the flea market, we stopped at Kohls.  I needed a new pair of shoes.  After that Bubba wanted a Christmas tree so we stopped for one of those.  I could have lived without it but we haven't had a tree in 3 years so I conceded.  We decorated it last night so I'll take a photo of that later today.  It is pretty and does smell good so I guess I can live with it in my living room for 3 weeks.

Finally for today, here's an update on my Pink Valentine Pillow:

I can stitch on this for about an hour before I get ready to go into town.  I think I'll use a few of my new vintage beads on it!

Pink Valentine Pillow

Well it doesn't look like I've done much stitching on this but it does take time to sew all those beads and sequins on!

When I finish adding beads to the last seam, I'll start adding some larger embellishments.  This definitely needs flowers!

We're going to the Flea Market and Antique Show in Grayslake Illinois today.  Maybe I'll have some goodies to share later!

Back to my cat dolls, Sandie told me that she likes the taller cat doll:

I'm open minded so I'm thinking of doing a series of these in 2012.  What do ya'll think?  Does anyone else like this taller version of my Crazy Quilt cat dolls?  Let me know please!

Crazy Quilt Cat Dolls List Complete

This is the original, the very first, Crazy Quilt Cat Doll that I designed for Pat Winter's Comfort Doll Project:

As you can see, he's a little goofy looking.  Too tall.  So I shortened my pattern to the size that I use today.

I've completed my list of all the cat dolls that I've made over the years and I've dated them so if you have one of my cats, you can now find out when he was made.  Also, if you have one of my cat dolls and you don't see him on the list, please email a photo to me and I will gladly date him and add him to the list.

Starting in 2012, I will be dating and numbering my cat dolls and of course, I will continue to add them to the list.  The newest cats will always be at the top of the page.  Enjoy my Collectible Crazy Quilt Cat Dolls page.

Rose Garden Cat Doll

I've been asked many times, how I manage to get so much stitching and finishing done.  I've told my story before but I'll post it again.  I have ADD with high anxiety and I've found that keeping my hands busy helps to manage my nervousness.  When the hands are occupied, the mind is occupied!

Yes, my house is always clean, my laundry always caught up, I do make healthy meals and I bake.  I have time with my husband and I help my parents out.  All in all, I guess I'm just one of those people who gets stuff done.

So with that said, my Rose Garden Cat Doll is my latest finish:

And here are closeups of the seam treatments from this project:

I keep an ongoing photo gallery of my Crazy Quilt Seam Embroidery so if anyone needs some inspiration, it can be found on a page at the top of my blog.  The newest photos are always at the top of  the page.

Back to my cat dolls, photos of all the Crazy Quilt Cat Dolls that I've made are now available to see on the Collectable Cat Dolls page, also found at the top of my blog.  Again, the newest photos will always be at the top of the page.  Now that I have all the photos available, I'll go back and date them.  I hope to get that taken care of over the weekend.

I've decided, since I've made so many of these little kitties, and because I have several ladies who like to collect a few of them, that it would be fun to start dating and numbering them.  Starting in 2012, all of my cat dolls will be dated and numbered on the back.

If you own one or more of my cat dolls, check that page again in a few days to date your doll.

Finally for today, I've started on a new project:

I thought I'd better start making a few Valentine's Day projects.  I know, it's not even Christmas yet but since I like to make things for my Boutique, I have to start long before an upcoming holiday!  Anyway, this will be another pillow.  I sewed a few Valentine pillow projects up the other day so I have a nice little pile of things all ready to stitch on!  And I must tell you, I just love Valentine's Day!  The soft pastel colors, the little hearts and cupids and the pretty flowers are quite soothing on the eye!

Crazy Quilt Pillows

I am absolutely thrilled with how these turned out:

I finished these pillows with lots of lace and extra buttons.  They're so pretty!  And both are now available in my boutique as well as my Etsy shop.

I started adding my cat dolls to my "Collectible Cats" page.  I still have to pull some of them off of Flickr.  Once I have them all posted, I'll start adding the dates as to when I made them.

Collectible Cat Dolls

I did a lot of sewing yesterday.  I have both pillows sewn up but still have a bit of handwork to do on them before they're ready for photos.  I'll share those tomorrow.

I also finished up my little Green and Pink Cat Doll:

And speaking of my Cat Dolls, I have a few ladies who like to collect them.  I thought it would be fun to start dating and numbering them so starting in 2012, my little art doll cats will be dated and numbered on the back.

I will also start a page here on my blog for dating purposes.  It'll take me awhile to put this together since I've made so many of these cats over the years.  I'll start on that in the next few days and if nothing else, it'll be fun for everyone to see all the pretty little cats that I've made.

Yes, A Few More Cat Dolls

As always, between larger projects, I like to stitch up a couple of little things.  I always gravitate to my little crazy quilt cat dolls.  I stitched this one up the other day:

And this little one is what I'm working on now:

They never really look like much until I get them sewn together!

Anyway, at this moment, I don't have to go anywhere today.  Unless mom calls and needs me to run uptown for something, I plan to sew these 2 pieces together today:

I'm thinking pillows but we'll see.

Little Girls In Yellow Roses Stitching Completed

This bright and cheerful crazy quilt block will most likely be sewn into a pillow:

I just love the little Victorian girls in the roses!  I was looking at it yesterday and thinking it would make a pretty pillow so I'll add a green border and some pretty lace.  I'm hoping to have some sewing time tomorrow.

Here is the crazy quilt seam embroidery:

Be sure to click on the images to see closeups!

Also, you can find more of my seam treatments on my Inspiration Page!

ATTN:  Cheryl who commented on this piece!!!  Please email your blog address to me! 

Pink and Green Crazy Quilt Christmas Pillow by Mom

Just a quick post for today everyone.  Dad is home and doing well.  I need to run to WalMart and pick a few things up for my mom.

For now, I wanted to share mom's latest crazy quilt pillow:

Yes, mom caught the crazy quilt bug!  Mom's beautiful Christmas Crazy Quilt Pillow is available in our Boutique and in our Etsy shop.

Little Girls In Yellow Roses

Sandie told me that I must stitch in my sleep!  LOL!!!!   Stitching is therapy for me as it is for many people.  I make sure I have plenty of time for it every day.  And I don't always sleep well so it's a good way to spend my early morning hours!  Here's my newest piece:

I've always loved the Victorian images of the little girls in the flowers!  The lace appliques are a bit bright but I'll soften them with beadwork.

My dad's surgery is today so please keep him in your thoughts.

White Cat In A Rose Garden

My newest Crazy Quilt piece features a vintage image of a white cat in a rose garden:

I haven't decided yet on how I'll finish this. I'm going to stitch a few more pieces that are the same size and then we'll see what I do with them.

Here are the embroidered seam treatments for this piece:

If you click on the photos, you can see a larger version.

If you're new to my blog, you can more of my crazy quilt seam treatments here.

More Little Cat Dolls

I like to stitch these little Crazy Quilt cat dolls in between larger projects.  Here are my 2 newest along with closeups of my embroidered seams:

It was a very windy day here yesterday so I did a lot of stitching!  The only good thing I can say about Winter is that I have a lot more stitching time than I do in the Summer!

Crazy Quilt Gatherings Volume #4 Winter 2011 Issue

If you're a crazy quilter, you don't want to miss out on ordering the latest issue of Pat Winter's Crazy Quilt Gatherings Magazine.

This issue is loaded with beautiful crazy quilt photos, tutorials and articles!  You won't be able to put this down!!!

Kathi's Gingerbread Muffin Recipe

After braving a trip to WalMart yesterday to pick up a few things, I decided to bake some muffins.  This is Kathi's recipe for Gingerbread Muffins.  It's the first time I made these and I must say, they are good!

Twice Ginger Gingerbread Muffins
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 19 Minutes
Makes 18

2 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground Clove
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter at room temperature
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup unsulfered molasses
1 cup boiling water
1/3 cup coarsely chopped crystallized ginger

1) Sift together flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cloves & 
nutmeg into a bowl.  Mix the butter and brown sugar together in another 
bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until well blended and 
smooth, about 3 minutes.  Add Eggs one at a time and blend after each.  
Reduce speed to low; beat in dry ingredients.  Add the molasses; beat 
several seconds until blended.  Add the water; beat a few seconds until 
blended.
2) fill two standard-size muffin tins, coated with nonstick spray, about 
3/4 full.  Bake until tops are set but mixture beneath is jiggly,  10 
minutes.  Remove pans from oven; sprinkle muffins with crystallized 
ginger.  Return to oven; bake until a tester inserted into the center 
comes out clean, 9-10 minutes.  Cool muffins in tins, 15 minutes.  Serve 
warm or at room temperature.

Calories=207

I've never been huge on Crystallized Ginger but 

it's a nice added touch and I really like this recipe! 

Give it a try and let me know what you think!

Large Crazy Quilt Cat Dolls

I finished up the large versions of my Crazy Quilt Dolls:

I love them all but as you know, I'm quite partial to pink!  Anyway, these are available at our Boutique and as well as our Etsy shop.

Blue Crazy Quilt Cat Doll

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.  Ours was very nice.  A traditional turkey dinner at mom's with my aunt and uncle.  Good food (mom is an awesome cook) and quiet conversation.

I'm almost done with the stitching on this crazy quilt cat doll:

I just need to add a few little do-dads.  Perhaps a butterfly or 2.

And here is the seam embroidery:

I'll be sewing these up and finishing them today so stop back to see photos over the weekend.

Don't forget, we're offering 10% off at both Kitty And Me Designs website and Kitty And Me Designs on Etsy.  Use coupon code:  BlackFriday.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing all my blog friends a very Happy and Safe Thanksgiving Holiday!

Crazy Quilt Cellphone Pouches

I finally finished up my little Crazy Quilt Cellphone Pouches:

I love making these little pouches.  Well, except for sewing the snaps on!  LOL!!!  I think I'll sew up a few more the next time I have a sewing machine day. 

Today I'll be heading over to my mom's house to help her with Thanksgiving for tomorrow.  First, I have to run to WalMart for a few things.  I want to get there early before everyone else does!

A quick update on my dad.  It wasn't a kidney stone.  Surgery is scheduled for the first week in December.  May I say that I absolutely hate the "C" word!!!!!  I think everything will be okay.  I hope so anyway.  It hasn't completely sunk into my crazy ADD brain yet.  Please keep him in your thoughts for me.

On a final note, we offering 10% off at our Boutiques now through Sunday, November 27th.  Use Coupon Code:  BlackFriday at Kitty and Me Designs & Kitty and Me on Etsy.

Large Pink Cat Doll

Yesterday, at 2 am, I somehow managed to bump my electric wax tart melter that I keep on my stove.  I keep it there so it's away from the cats and I can't burn candles because I forget to put them out.  What can I say?  ADD. So I use a little wax tart melter and Yankee tarts to make my house smell like I'm always baking.  Well, I bumped it while making coffee so I had wax all over my stove and all over the wall behind my stove.  It took me over an hour to clean it all up!

After all that, I said AMEN!  I'm stitching!!!  And I did.  I finished up my Pink Cat Doll:

If you look closely at the photo at the top, you can see his little ears!  I have one more large cat doll to stitch up.  That one is blue.  I'll start on it later today.

In the meantime, here is the seam embroidery from the Pink Cat Doll:

I also finally got my little cellphone pouches all sewn up.  All I have left to do on those is to sew on the trim and the little snaps.  I plan to get that done today.

My dad has a Dr.'s appt. today for that final test.  The others all came back normal.  Mom and I are thinking he passed a kidney stone.  I'll be going with him today in case he needs me to drive home.  I suggested that he just let me drive my Towncar because I'm more comfortable driving my own vehicle but that was a "no go".  Men!  They're so stubborn!