29 September, 2019

Birthdays Past and Future, Those Little "Houses"

Bear with me; this is going to be a long post. That's what happens when I don't post for days weeks on end! I celebrated yet another birthday this past week. It was a perfectly wonderful day; Mr. Goodneedle took me out to breakfast and then on to an athletic shoe store that generates a 3-D model of your feet for superior fitting. I tried on three different pairs of walking shoes from there and settled on these new ones. They're probably the most comfortable shoes I have ever worn right out of the box!


We had dinner out for the next two nights, too; the celebration lasted for a full forty-eight hours. Our son and his family had a special birthday dinner in my honor on the second night, complete with a beautiful handmade birthday banner and a very special strawberry cupcake!
Yesterday we made a quick trip to the Capital City to celebrate Lucy Ann's upcoming birthday this week. She'll be nine years old. We brought a furry beanbag chair for her room, I believe it was a hit! Our daughter called to tell us that long after we had left and returned back home she was still in the chair!
We had a fun birthday lunch with her (and her family who were sitting on the other side of the table).
She was delighted with a piece of birthday cake that easily fed our entire table (with some to spare)!
So, those "Little Houses" that I teased earlier weren't actually houses under construction at all. But, rather, square-in-a-square blocks. I made fifty-four of these 2" block units. Why?
To border "Frank"! Isn't he handsome? He is a door banner measuring 17" X 44". "
Frank is a Country Threads pattern that can be ordered through the hyper link here until 10/31. 
I got carried away  consumed with details on this small quilt. The name tag was created from a downloaded name tag photo which I printed out onto Printed Treasures* and fused onto his jacket. The pieced border was my own idea too. I was auditioning solid color outer borders and couldn't quite come up with anything that got me excited until I decided to piece a border using colors from the shirt and jacket, I felt it pulled the whole thing together. Yes, I can turn even the simplest thing into a career move! All in all, it was so worth it; I absolutely love the final result! As you can tell, these are LOUD colors, perfect for Halloween and October decorating; almost time to bid September good-bye. And sew it goes. 

Life is Good!

* Printed Treasures are printable, paper-backed fabric sheets. This is the product that I use to make all of my quilt labels; I buy the sew-in sheets. I heat-set mine, face down, with the iron after printing and have never had trouble with them not being permanent after washing. They may fade a bit, over time, depending on how many times they're laundered with the quilt. 


Up next: the perfect, quiet, antitdote to all that garish color overload; a low volume remedy. 




8 comments:

Sherrill said...

I find the 'hyperlink' to order Frank only takes me to the Country Threads blog and I see no mention of being able to order the pattern He is very adorable and happy bday to you and your DGD.

Debbie B said...

I love your "Frank". I saw this on their website and thought it was adorable. What a cute idea to give him a name tag. You made it your own. Happy belated Birthday!

straythreads said...

Happy birthday to you and dgd your Frank is a hunk

Janet O. said...

Happy Birthday--you don't look a day older! :)
Those are some wonderful looking comfy shoes. I have been tempted to try some fitted shoes like that, since I have so many foot issues. Haven't actually acted on it, though.
Frank is utterly charming--so clever to add the nametag, and the border is the perfect finishing touch.
However charming he may be, he can't compete with the grandchildren. They are the best!

jude's page said...

Happy Birthday to you. Lovely family photos. Those shoes look great, sounds like a great way to find a shoe that's right for your feet.

Gloria said...

Happy Birthday! Love your "Frank." I bought the pattern but haven't pulled any fabric yet. What a wonderful way to finish your border!

Just Ducky said...

Care to share the brand of shoes? I would be interested in trying them.

Tanya said...

Happy birthday to you And your grand daughter! You found a great gift for her! Love the chair! Frankenstein is pretty cute too!