Black Sunday

The letter I was hoping would never come was waiting for me when I got home from work this afternoon. It was sitting there, on the very top of the pile, just staring at me when I opened the mailbox. It was from the University of Wisconsin...letting me know that I have to hand over my only daughter to them on Sunday, September 6 between 8AM and 10AM. Seriously...how in the world did 18 years pass so quickly? I think back to her first day of kindergarten and can picture her in my mind (literally) like it was yesterday and I wonder if I felt then the same way I do now? I know that I need to let her go so she can learn to make her own choices, learn from her mistakes and just prepare for life in general but {damn!} someone should have told me how hard it would actually be to let her go...

My First Quilt

Well, we finally found a cabin that looked good (on paper anyway) so we went and looked it yesterday and wow, what a dump. It hadn't been used for 2 years and, boy oh boy, we could tell. The only thing you could possible do to make it look good is demolish it and start fresh. The "beach" was even disgusting. Makes me wonder if this isn't a "sign" that maybe we just don't have the time to maintain two homesteads??? We have two more that we like so we'll look at both this weekend and if neither of those work out we'll just throw in the towel.
In the meantime, I've still got "decorating the cabin" on my mind...we've got the cutest antique/quilt shop not too far from us and I absolutely love going in there. The owner, Edi, has a bazillion of her handmade quilts on display but, sadly, she never sells her work. So, I decided I'd make my own (with fabric from her shop) and the most adorable pattern I found that uses fat quarters...all the while thinking how good it'll look on one of the beds at the cabin {SIGH}. I've got the top finished but can't decide if I'll quilt it myself or cheat and send it to the lady that Edi uses...

And speaking of warm, cozy quilts, we have very, very LONG and COLD winters here in Minnesota but the summers are absulutley wonderful, there's nothing like a Minnesota summer. But as much as I don't want summer to end I find myself thinking alot about Fall and Halloween...so much so that I made this journal...
I found the vintage photo in an antique shop in Anoka, Minnesota...the Halloween Capitol of the World (or so they claim)

I'm also cleaning out my craft room, weeding out the supplies I never use and trying to decide if I should just donate them or sell them? I guess I'll make up my mind when I see how much stuff I want to part with.

Home Sweet Home

Since Tom and Sebastian were gone all week I had plenty of time to clean my craft room. I'm always more inspired when I can actually see my supplies, most of the time they're buried under piles of paper and ribbon. I knew that both "boys" would be happy to finally be home so I thought I would make a little felt house...Some of my inspiration came from a blog I visited a while back...not sure if it was Pam Garrison's or Charlotte Lyon's. I had so much fun making the house that I made a few felt acorns...

Then I made a mushroom...
Then I made a heart...
Then I hung them all together from a wooden hoop tied with colorful fabric...

Then I hung it in my kitchen...

Then the "boys" finally came home...
Ahhh...home sweet home!

Grandma's Garden

I found this adorable "Grandma's Garden" quilt (I think that's what it's called anyway) at one of my favorite antique stores. It's been there for quite awhile but now that "our cabin" is always in on my mind I decided to buy it (because it'll look so cute in the lake home). It's pretty worn in some areas but, since I basically stole it, I figured I couldn't go wrong, even if all I end up doing with it is cutting it up for craft projects. It was really dirty but after soaking it in Biz for half an hour and washing it twice (on the gentle cycle) it came out very nicely. So, I've been teetering back and forth between taking the plunge and getting a cabin...or not getting a cabin. I'm somewhat of a cheapskate so I panic a little when I think of all the money we may end up spending on a "vacation home". Plus, some of the guys at work were telling me all the cons of owning a lake home so I thought I'd ask you all what you think...If you own a "vacation property" send me a quick note and let me know if you're happy you purchased or if you wish you'd never even come up with the idea at all.

One more bit of news...I found out yesterday that one of my projects is being published in the December 2009 issue of Sew Somerset...I'm so excited! Of course I'll post more about it when the time comes.

Finds for my "Dream Cabin"

I drove an hour Saturday to a fabulous flea market in Cambridge. The treasures were priced to sell and I had to make several trips to the car with my haul. I would have bought more but I started running out of cash on the back stretch so had to be selective with what I bought. As I made my way though all the booths I found that I was buying with my "dream cabin" in mind...vintage pillowcases, a wonderful vintage breadbox with fruit decals, an old chipped and cracked lidded bowl with a cute little handle...(good news is if the cabin doesn't come to fruition I can still use these in the "regular" house right?) I found these cute vintage trims and a little gondola pin to use on my journals and scrapbooks...
This "days to remember" book was never used and the graphics are amazing...

I hope to put this little yellow duck in the bathroom at the cabin...maybe filled with some cotton balls or cotton swabs...

And I was so happy to find these German vintage valentines...

These buttons were sold by the bagful for a song, they're all so pretty I'm afraid I'll never use them for fear that one day they'll all be gone...

And I got all sorts of linens for $1 each, I especially love this one with the embroidered strawberries...

Now if only I had the week off work (like Tom does) to craft and create! I'm sure I'll find time to squeeze it into my schedule though, I always do!