~ Anchored in Years ~

My latest project is here. You can find the pattern here.

I've called it Anchored in Happy.
It makes me happy.
And you?

I have been wanting to sew anchors for some time now, but they just had to wait their turn on "the list".

Red, Blue, Stripes, Dots ... what's not to be happy about?

In other anchor news ... yesterday was my birthday.  I don't think any of my children were privy to the fact that I spent part of the last week sewing an anchor ... and yet ...
D#2 gave me these precious anchor note cards to add to my collection and ...

D#3 gave me this fabulous necklace featuring ... guess what?
I felt the love (and way too many gifts) from each child + some other generous relatives and friends.

Please don't try to guess how old I am.

However ... this may or may not be a hint.

~ Breathing Room ~

This last week I discovered a brand new room in my home.  It's called "My Office".  Previously my office was part of another room called "TheOffice/Studio/Room O'Chaos/Mess".

The picture above is the only one I could find of the old set-up.  The office portion is over to the right where my computer sat on a teeny-weeny corner of my quilting table and where the paperwork/office supplies/lessons/patterns constantly spilled over onto the cutting table. 

This is my view from my sewing machine now.  Only my relatively flat lightbox sits on the corner of that table now.  Its former home was in the hall.  The printers are no longer under the table.  Until a couple of weeks ago, the only way to access my color printer was on my hands and knees.
True story.

This is my office space now.  The table and other organizational shelves/drawers were all just sitting in my garage, begging to be given a (spacious) home.

I cannot tell a lie.  This space was created because I took out one of the two twin beds that had been in the guest room.  The bed that is left will be replaced by a bunkbed in time, so that no guest accomodations will have been officially sacrificed.

The laser printer sits on the table and requires no scooting and no bending.

I did purchase 2 lovely baskets (from Ross ... and yes, they were cheap) that are the exact same lovely aqua color as the walls.

I. Am. Giddy.

The new color printer/scanner (the old one bit the dust before any of this process started) sits behind me.  Because it wasn't 6 years old like my last one, it can be accessed via WiFi and doesn't need to take up valuable desk space.

My precious pattern files fit perfectly into my other new basket. Each file represents one of my eight quilt patterns on Etsy.  Soon there will be nine.

Thank you to Daughter #1 who suggested this idea.
Thanks to Daughter #2 and her handsome hubby who did all the heavy lifting to make this possible.
Thanks to all four of my children for lying by saying they don't care if they have to sleep in a bunk bed.

And thanks to YOU for listening to this incredibly boring story.
And for being happy for me anyway.

~ A Wallpaper Weekend ~

My Memorial Day Weekend involved two plane flights and a lot of food that was NOT good for me.
It also involved a DIY project at my daughter's new home.
And as a result ... it involved Amy Butler.

All of the walls in this room were painted a peachy beige, so the first thing we did was paint the other three walls white.  You know I love white.

Then we applied this to-die-for paper by Amy, called Lacework - Moss.

Oddly enough, it was the kind of paper where you actually put paste on the wall first making it significantly more difficult.

But still worth it.

Please understand that my role in this whole thing was to hand Ms. G things as she needed them.  I did play a slightly more significant role in the painting process.

Apparently, I am really good at handing people things.

This room (once the bed frame has an actual ... bed ... attached to it) will be the guest room ... which I like to call "my room".

I daresay that there will be many more of those same flights (or drives) in the future.

Do you blame me? 

~ St. Patty ~

This weekend we are celebrating all things Green.  And rainbows and leprechauns. And Lucky Charms cereal.  I have lots to celebrate on St. Patrick's Day every year, but I wanted to start out by celebrating a rainbow of colors ...

... in thread. 

I had purchased some bins to help to organize what can only be described as a chaotic web of color and string in my studio. 

I separated the shiny threads from the not-shiny's.
My camera was drawn toward the shiny's.

 

 

 

All right!  Here is a before picture of the chaos.  Let's just say that a year ago when I moved in there was some purpose here, but I can't exactly remember what it was. 

Here is the finished product with all the little soldiers in a row and ready for action.

Thirty (some-odd) years ago, I celebrated St. Patty's by giving birth to daughter #2. Let's just say I wasn't looking my best and I didn't think I cared. 

That is until the nurse shift changed and in walks my new friend ... a darling red-head sporting this button on her nurses uniform.

I gave my husband a look that said  ... uh, don't ... and he went back to coaching my breathing.

When our little "Irish" girl was born, we took turns kissing her.
Happy Birthday to Mrs. Gee!

I am honoring the day in rainbow colors!

Linking to:
Wow Us Wednesdays
Open House Thursdays

~ Color Day: PINK ~

'Tis the season for all things PINK.

Yes. PINK grows on trees.

Here's some love from Daughter #2 when she was just a little one. Now she has little ones of her own.

PINK vases ...

 and pillowcases ...

... and a lovely (sensational!) PINK book.

PINK is on pillows here ...

and there ...

... and everywhere.

PINK covers a duvet ...

... and wraps my favorite scent from Anthropologie.

PINK graces some hydrangeas ...

... and outlines some succulents.

Let's face it. In February ...

Pink is to be shared.

Linking to:
Sew Happy Geek
The Girl Creative
Coastal Charm
Creative Me!
Cedar Hill Ranch