Primitive Quilts and Projects

Primitive Quilts and Projects Magazine

A premium publication dedicated to the primitive quilter, rug hooker, stitcher and more! Each issue features at least 15 projects from some of the most admired designers in the primitive fiber arts world.
www.primitivequiltsandprojects.com

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Frayed Edges


I’m making slow-but-enjoyable progress on my “Floral Abundance” quilt.  I stitch in the evenings while my sweetie-pie husband, Dave, watches TV.  I usually drink a glass of wine while stitching.

The tree is almost undecorated...boo hoo!
3 down, 3 to go!


Having enjoyed all that hand appliqué, I decided to stitch the blocks together by hand.  It feels great...I don't know when I'll ever use my sewing machine again!

Side note:  I learned something about drinking wine and sewing:

1 glass of wine=nice work!
2 glasses of wine = mistakes abound!

Carried away with stitching!

Notice above: I accidentally stitched both sides of the blocks.  A nice thing about hand stitching is it’s easy to rip out.  So I can continue sipping and stitching!

While stitching these pretty blocks together, threads around the edges start to fray. The frayed edges remind me of a long, long, long time ago when I was a little 8-year-old girl in Brownies.  Mom was our amazing troop leader.  She organized all the other moms to teach a project so we could earn several badges.  Mom’s project for us was a Christmas musical.  We sang “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” with hand motions.  I bet it was cute.

Another project for our little Brownie troop was to “make” napkins and table cloths.  If I remember correctly, we used red checked cotton fabric.  We were each given pre-cut pieces of fabric:  a large square for the tablecloth, and four smaller squares for napkins.  Our job was to pull the threads off the edges for a frayed finish.  I’m pushing 60 years old, and haven’t thought of that project in decades.  But as the edges of my “Floral Abundance” blocks fray a little, I’m transported back to that chubby-cheeked little Judy following her Mommy’s instructions to make a tablecloth and napkins.  Thank you, Mom.  How did I get to be so lucky?

Switching to a new topic, let’s talk about our upcoming Summer issue photo shoot.  This marks the 5-year anniversary of Primitive Quilts and Projects magazine.  I am super-duper excited to tell you that we will do the photography at the same house where we photographed the projects for our debut Summer 2011 issue!  It’s a beautiful timber frame structure made of logs from a barn that was built in Ohio in the mid 1800’s.  (And, if anyone’s in the market, this house is for sale!)  Click here to see pictures of that first photo shoot way back in February, 2011.

Our debut issue:  Summer 2011...where has the time gone?


There sure is a lot going on right now, with the happy holidays on top of everything else.  You might say we’re all a little frayed around the edges—but in a nice way, like the little table cloth and napkins I made a long time ago.

Loose threads from frayed edges.


I wish you the Happiest New Year ever!
Judy





Monday, December 21, 2015

Christmas time is here



Is it my turn, again?!

Christmas is my favorite time of the year! This Christmas is going to be the best, because I have plenty of kiddos to give gifts to! Not only is it Henley’s first Christmas…YAY….but it’s our first Christmas as a family in Williamstown!

Aside from the Falcsik Family Sing-Along (which Gretchen blogged about last week…scroll down), my favorite Christmas tradition has always been chopping down our own Christmas tree. No…I don’t mean going to a tree farm where the trees are all lined up in a nice row. I mean real..Chevvy Chase…National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, traipsing through the cold on someone’s farm, and chopping down our own tree with a saw! Here are my mom, Henley, and me after finding my parents’ tree!


And this is pretty much what Henley’s face looked like the entire time…haha!


My best friend, Leah, also came to visit recently. This was her first time meeting Henley, and she loved EVERY minute of it!

My dogs were also thrilled to see her. She and Sampson are BEST friends!

He’s quite the lap dog! 

I can’t wait for Christmas morning! I'm so excited to see my kids’ faces light up when they FINALLY get to unwrap their gifts!

Until next time….Merry Christmas!!
Kristen :)

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Hello, everyone!  Gretchen here again in blog-land!  First of all, let me just take a moment to tell everyone who didn't yet realize....CHRISTMAS IS NEXT WEEK!!!  AAAhhhhh!!!  I knew it was December, I knew we were in the teens on the calendar, I have a bunch of my shopping done and have even wrapped 3-people's-worth of presents.  But, I didn't realize C-Day was actually next week until yesterday - even though I have a calendar in front of me 24/7.  It's crunch time!

I know why I didn't "get" it.  It's because our Falcsik Family Christmas Sing-a-Long was really, really early this year!  On December 5 we all gathered together at sister Sally's house (hubby, Gary) for our 23rd annual gathering.  Everyone brings their instrument of choice...guitars, flutes, mandolins, banjo's, recorders, or even kazoos.  The handmade song books (laminated covers and all) are passed around and random voices start calling out page numbers and song titles! 
Big voices, 4-part harmony, lots of laughing, and even cow/sheep/goat sounds during appropriate songs.  If you don't happen to live in the area (i.e. Heather & Travis) you will probably get a phone call so we can serenade you over the phone line! 

The overflowing food table, the hot glog (or, is it grog...no one knows for sure) in the percolator, and usually one too many dogs running around....yes, it's an event no one in our family wants to miss.  If anyone is dating someone new the test of longevity is living through this crazy, wonderful family event!

Yes, this get-together marks the Falcsik Family Christmas Season.  I guess having it so early this year threw me off kilter.  I'll really have to put myself in gear over the next week and finish up some shopping, get baking and just try to take in all the pretty decorations, lights, sounds of this wonderful time of year.  I love it all!

So, that's a taste of our annual family tradition.  We would LOVE to hear all about yours!  If you have a moment, please comment below and share one with us today!  Thanks for reading, everyone, and I hope you all have a very, Merry Christmas....don't forget, NEXT WEEK!   - Gretchen


Tuesday, December 8, 2015

December is Here...

I can't believe it's December already... but now that it's here I'm ready for some snow... hoping we get some soon! I just put my tree up this weekend and finally decorated it last night. Don't mind the crookedness - I need a second pair of hands to help me straighten it back up! Have you decorated for the holidays yet?


I'm also pretty excited about our Spring 2016 issue coming out next month! More so than usual, because I've been designing and laying out some of the pages this time. I've been learning from our very talented graphic designer, Nikki Butler. She's a great teacher and I've really been enjoying this new responsibility! You will see my work on the following designers projects; Jen Daily, Michelle Joyner, Tonya Robey, and Vicki Mills.. as well as the Ask Mom, Charitable Cause and Book Nook features!

Here's a sneak peek of the Spring issue! This is Jen Daily's quilt, "Home is Where the Heart is."
Happy Holidays!

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Gratitude

Life has its ups and downs.  And I want to be mostly happy, so I do my best to focus on the ups, while striving for peace, love, and kindness during the downs.  Often that’s easier said than done.

This is where family, friends, and even strangers come into play.  There are countless kind loving people in the world, who have less than I, who suffer more than I’ll ever understand, and yet who get up every day with a smile and a determination to make this a good day for those around them.  I do my best to emulate these wonderful folk, and next thing you know, I am smiling, have a skip in my step, and am able to have a good day.

For this, for my family and friends, and for your love and support, I am grateful.  I wish you the best Thanksgiving ever!

Love,
Judy

“Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”—Marcel Proust (1871-1922), Novelist