What Are Quilters Blogging About Today?

So much to catch up on today! Get comfortable and enjoy a long and picture heavy post. Cooler weather is supposed to come in this week, and I am hoping for more seasonal temperatures, but where has the month gone?! It is turkey time around here, the wild kind. These guys have nothing to worry about from us this week, though. They know me, and come running when I step out to scatter some sunflower seeds for them.

It is always a delight to see the wildlife.

A predicted freeze last week prompted me to pull the more tender perennials ...

It’s turkey time! My favorite day of the year is Thanksgiving. I love the food, the holiday spirit, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the football, making calls to friends, and all the anticipation of the holidays to come. Central to our celebration is a good meal, served with gratitude for all we have. Setting a beautiful festive table is part of the fun. This year, my Turkey Time Tablescape has 24 turkeys!

During my annual October event, Autumn Jubilee, we made some fun placemats using a fabric that featured large turkeys. See that post on Turkey Talk Placemats ...

We have been busy here in NC and the time is just flying by! . Chris and I packed up the truck and sent him back to MI for a week or so.  He will be flying to Phoenix for a week for a church retreat then driving back here to finish out the year.  So let's catch up. We were driving and I spied 2 huge cotton fields.  I have never seen them in person and it was so beautiful.  Fabric seeds as it

Four days of mild weather (as high as 58) and sunshine = four afternoon walks. We'll have another this afternoon.  

(Three forest preserves -- Rollins Savanna, Lyons Woods, Van Patten Woods -- and Hosah Park along the lakefront.)  

The path really rocked on Thanksgiving Day.  Once I started seeing the painted stones I kept seeing them -- 18. There were probably a few that I missed. 

We enjoyed our traditional favorites at our just-us dinner.    The pie is made from the Halloween pumpkins.  The cranberry relish is Mama Stamberg's from NPR.   It's an acquired taste that we acquired long ago. 

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It’s my favorite day of the year! From the aroma of delicious food cooking all day, parades and football on TV, to connecting with friends and spending the day with My Sweet Babboo, it is the best day of the year. Often, my birthday falls during the holiday weekend, so sometimes there is cake, too. In the quiet of the morning, I like to remember all the things I am grateful for – health and family, friends and faithful readers like you, our home in the mountains, food on the table, and time to enjoy it all in safety and ...

I got my Thanksgiving cards done on time this year, whoopee! In a fit of stamping frenzy, I made a bunch one morning. Sometimes the inspiration is just there, and with the pretty new papers I got from Impression Obsession, and a score at a private sale, I had plenty. I got out some leafy prints, fall colors, stamps and inks.

I began with one of my favorite designs, a dark strip on the left with a large print offset to the side.

A strip of contrasting color paper is added to the bottom, with a seasonal sentiment.

It needed ...

Gobble Gobble Gobble!  The turkeys in these charming quilt patterns are happy that they are not being served for Thanksgiving!  They will, however, look great displayed on the wall or somewhere else.  All of these patterns are pdfs and they can be purchased over on Etsy.

1. This fun turkey pillow pattern will look terrific in any room.
2. Tom Turkey stands proudly between his bunny and duck friends in this cute design.
3. Scraps are what this beautiful turkey quilt pattern is all about.
4. Here’s a fun and scrappy pixelated turkey design.
5. This turkey quilt block pattern is pretty and would ...

Have you recently made a fall or Thanksgiving quilt top but just can’t decide how to quilt it?  Just take a look at this adorable design by Lori Kennedy for Bernina.

This tutorial takes you through the design, step-by-step so you should not have any problems.  Wouldn’t this be perfect for an autumn themed quilt?  I think so.

Designed for an intermediate sewer, it takes some time to learn, but once you have, imagine how cute it will be.

Lori and Bernina always have the most informative and helpful tutorials and this one is no exception.

Click here ...

On this last day of November, I am thinking about how quickly the month buzzed by and how busy it was. Lots of work on the house was accomplished and just a bit of sewing. Such is life.

Earlier I made this pair of pants. They are really, really comfortable and I am quite happy with them. I used Simplicity 2369 to make these stretch knit, wide legged pants.

After making the pants, I was browsing in a shop downtown. I ...

We love the tang/sweet/onion taste of Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish .  

I always make a loaf (or two) of cranberry bread using the recipe from Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin. The well-used photocopy dates from the 1970's when ...

This is my favorite day of the year! We’ll begin the day with my baked eggs breakfast, have some nibbles through the parades and football games, and enjoy our turkey dinner in the early evening. I promised a photo of the pilgrims with the little mini quilt from Autumn Jubilee a few years back. I put them with the little quilt on a stand with a pumpkin topper, a little turkey and rust color candles in clear depression glass candlesticks with silk flower candle rings.

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade is a tradition in our home, to be enjoyed ...

One year.  That's how long it took me to quilt this quilt.  I don't call it my Lifetime Achievement Quilt because it is hard or anything special.  I call it my Lifetime Achievement because I am proud of myself for persevering.  This quilt has been on and off the longarm for one year.....  I would work on it for a bit.  A custom quilt would come in from a customer and I would take it off long enough to take care of the customer.  Then - back on the longarm it went.  

I like wholecloth quilts as a longarmer ...

Today, let’s take a little trip back in time to see a variety of tablescapes for the Thanksgiving table. Starting with this one, a gold and rust theme with turkeys all over. The ecru tablecloth lightens the look. I used my largest ceramic ones for the centerpiece with honey color candles. Gold napkins are held with turkey napkin rings. Turkey plates sit on rust ruffled dinner plates on rust color chargers. Mismatched wine glasses, gold flatware and turkey place card holders complete settings.

Another year, I did only placemats, allowing the warm wood table to show. Turkey plates top ...

Family time is the best time, and it’s only better when delicious food and snacks are added! The Doans love family get togethers and there’s nothing more special than dusting off those old family recipe cards and sharing a taste of generations past. If you’re looking for some holiday inspiration this year, try out one our own family recipes and start your own traditions today!

Pumpkin Rolls

Perfect for the fall season, Pumpkin Rolls are a delicious treat that can be served anytime between Halloween and Thanksgiving (really any time of the year is fine, they’re ...

The year my friend Margaret hosted her first Thanksgiving dinner, everything seemed to go wrong. 

The cat left paw prints on the freshly-baked pie, the oven stopped working mid-turkey, and the little cousins ruined a white couch with a box of sidewalk chalk. (But the mashed potatoes were excellent, and so was the company!) 

Thanksgiving dinner is no small feat, but Jenny’s new Thanksgiving quilt is easy as pumpkin pie—minus the paw prints!

This pretty harvest quilt combines applique Dresden turkey blocks with a variation of the Irish Chain called Irish Change. It’s simple, quick, and “sew ...

 Today, I have a new little free cross stitch pattern for you.  

I've always loved the little verse "Live Within They Harvest".  I was thinking of Thanksgiving when I designed this:

You can download the PDF file here.