This is what I've been busy doing....

I still can't post a pic of my November "ALYoF" project, (check back on Tues.!), but there are other things I've been busily sewing while we're waiting for our first grandchild to make his appearance.
What baby / mom doesn't need a few burp cloths? and babies always need bibs, right?  So, I paired up some flannel fabrics for burp cloths, and some cotton and flannel for bibs, and gifted them to my daughter at her baby shower on Nov. 15th.  Of course, I totally forgot to take pictures, so I had to wait for my DD to send me some, and they have finally made their way to me!  Here are the bibs:

and the burp cloths:

November 2014 wrap-up

So, it's Nov. 30th, and it's the last day of the month to record my progress, both knitting and sewing/quilting.
My "A Lovely Year of Finishes" project is done, but I finished it too late for my daughter's baby shower - so, I still have to give it to her, and I still can't share a pic of the completed project.  I will share a few "sneak peeks" though - and it will be gifted to her on Dec. 7th or 8th, so look for the final pics then.  The pics:
This is the bottom left corner - the project is a wall-hanging for the nursery; the 2nd pic is the top of the back - the corners have diagonal "pockets" for a small dowel, which is what the wall-hanging will actually hang from.
I also finished my Christmas gift project, so I can share that for my "On the Needles" report - the infinity scarf was already completed, but the matching mittens were still being knitted - thankfully, they're also done, so I can link that project up on Judy's site.  Here's what the finished set looks like:

I guess that means that I'm ready for December!

On my needles - shh! It's Christmas gifts!

So, I know that daughter #1 doesn't read my blog at all, so I'm safe showing this Christmas gift.  I made an infinity scarf, and I've got the matching mittens almost finished.  The scarf looks kind of short, but it's a ribbed variation, and it stretches out a lot.  I can wear it wrapped twice around my neck, or with one wrap over my head, with a second wrap around my neck - it all depends on what the weather is like....
I bought the yarn at Mary Maxim about 5 years ago - just happened to hit there during their annual summer Tent Sale, and scooped up all 5 balls of this Caron Simply Soft yarn - and it feels so soft and snuggly!  I'll probably have some of the yarn left over - there might even be enough to make another pair or two of (smaller) mitts for the mitten tree at my MIL's church.  I'd have to have them done by Dec. 1st, so I think I'd better stop writing, and get knitting!
Here's the scarf, and the almost completed mitts:

I just wish you could feel how soft the yarn is!

Some baby-related items!

So, we had my daughter's baby shower yesterday, and had a wonderful time, seeing some folks that we hadn't seen in some time.  Unfortunately, not everyone was able to attend, but we made the best of the day! I wasn't able to finish the project that I hinted at last week, but as soon as it's completed and delivered, I'll post the pics.
I did make a number of items for the shower; just can't believe that I forgot to take pics of some of the items! Maybe I'll have to get her to return some of the goodies for a photo shoot....
So, here is the receiving blanket, and the change pad (folded up) and unrolled:

I've had a half-yard of the Newton sheep fabric for about 7 years - finally found just the right project for it!

I've also made a little progress with my knitting - the back of the sweater is completed to the yoke, and I've started the fronts.  I prefer knitting both of the fronts, and then the sleeves, at the same time - that way, the shaping gets done at exactly the same place on both pieces.

But right now, Christmas knitting has taken over my knitting time.  We've always made the choice to open our gifts on a day other than Christmas day, mostly to focus on the real meaning of Christmas on Dec. 25th, and also because both of our daughters work retail-type jobs, and being able to take 2 consecutive days off at Christmas is almost impossible.  This year, we're getting together to open our gifts on Dec. 7th and 8th - which means that I really need to concentrate on those gifts - the baby isn't due until Jan.!

Catching up....

I know that it's only been about 2 weeks since I last blogged, but it seems like a lot longer..... and to solve that problem, I'm going to combine a post or three!
First off - my "A Lovely Year of Finishes" post - I'm supposed to share a picture of what I'm hoping to accomplish this month - well, I can write a bit about it, but I can't show a pic just yet, because it's for my daughter's baby shower, and she reads my blog!  So, what I'll do is show you some of the fabrics for the project, and the I'll share the completed project later this month, okay?  Good.  Here are a few of the fabrics - so, have you figured it out yet?  LOL!

Next up is my "On the Needles" post - again, a baby project, but this one she chose, and is totally aware of.  The baby isn't due until later in January, so I have some time - and I have 2 or 3 Christmas projects that need to be finished first, but again, she reads my blog...!

Then there's my final brown blocks for the Rainbow Scrap Challenge.  December's colour is light blue, and I have my fabrics cut, but I needed to show these last two blocks for October.

Finally, this blog IS called "Quilting and Card-making" and I do occasionally have to show a card - this one is for a special friend's birthday.

So, I think I'm caught up again for a bit - I should be popping in again in a day or two, or three........ hopefully! 

October's brown blocks

I know that the summer just flew by, but that won't happen again, right?  So, what happened to October? One day it was the 3rd, and then it was (Canadian) Thanksgiving on the 13th, and then it was - wait, it's the 25th?  What happened?  Well, now that I think of it, there was a quilt show, and a few appointments, and a baby shower to plan, and Christmas plans to sort out.... so, I guess that I shouldn't be too surprised!
Before I let too much more time slip past, I should share my RSC blocks - seeing as this is the last Saturday of the month.  I managed to get my Braid strips done, and my Kickin' Stash blocks finished too - and I hope to be able to get the X and + blocks done on Mon. or Tues.....
Angela chose brown for October's blocks - which is fine with me, because I have a lot of bits of brown fabric - and they look pretty good with last month's orange blocks!  Here they are:

I'm looking at the braid strips just lined up side-to-side, and I'm liking the look!  I was anticipating putting sashing strips between each strip, but now I'm beginning to think that just off-setting them by a row up or down will look great - but I still have two months worth of strips to add....  I'm going to keep that in mind though!

I'm hoping to share some new cards in the next day or two - and those last blocks too - and then I'll wait to see what Angela chooses for November's colour!

A special birthday card

Can't believe that it's been 3 weeks since I last posted - so I'm popping in quickly to post a birthday card.  I made this one for my MIL's birthday at the end of September, and just forgot to post it then - so, you get to see it today!

I've had the embossing folders for quite a while, but the flower dies are fairly new.  I'm still trying to figure out how best to use them - I'm having issues with the dies not cutting through the card-stock cleanly.  I hope I've got the solution now!  I love the effect of the yellow pistils (stamens?) give - they got sort of stuck in the die, so I had to push them out with a pin, making them curve toward the center a bit - and it made them look very natural.  The best part was, my MIL loved the card!