My words for 2026 are THOUGHTFUL and APPRECIATE. Maybe it's my age showing but my goal this year is to be more aware of how I go through my day. Not to add more to my day but to enjoy my day more and the activities I chose to fill it with. My prayer is that at the end of each day I take time to reflect and embrace all the blessings that filled it with gratitude.
Have a wonderful day! and year!!
MaryEllen
With a GRATEFUL heart I'm ready to start a wonderful and excitng 2025!
It may be 12 days into 2025 but already my new year has been busy. A wonderful, unexpected visit from great friends who live way too far away. Several days of babysitting my dear grandbabies. And, a variety of other events may have kept me from blogging but have made my 2025 looking good already.
This year my word of the year is, GRATEFUL.
Several times I've had journals and lists of "what I'm grateful for" as part of my new year must do plan. This year I'm trying to focus on remembering the small everyday things. Of course, I'm grateful for health, home and the wonderful people in my life and I continue to count those blessings each day. Now in 2025 I also want to add remembering the beauty and importance of the little things. The unexpected, a sight on my walk, a new food, or maybe something someone said that made me smile. A new year focused on all the little moments that make each day so sweet, inspiring, and beautiful but moments we so often overlook in the rush of our busy day.
May you all find wonder this year in the big and small things.
Have a blessed 2025!
MaryEllen
A word about the photos of my pour painting experiments. I love watching videos of artists using pour painting techniques. I really find it relaxing just to watch. But, then of course, I needed to give it a try. I'm not much of a painter but it's still fun to experiment with other mediums. I encourage you to check out pour painting online or maybe a local class. I watch many artists but one of my favorites is Designer Gemma77 on Facebook, so many great ideas!
It seems like so many things have been put on hold the last few years, but this year I feel ready to go!! I'm looking forward to 2024 as a time for new adventures. I'm also hoping it will be a time for reaching many of the personal and artistic goals, ones that seem to have been put on a waitlist since 2020. I have quite the list of quilts I hope to work on this year, we'll see in December how that all works out!
Last weekend I started 2024 by joining a new quilt group in my area. The theme of the month was scrap quilts and below are photos of the two quilts I brought for sharing time. Both of these quilts are older works and I have posted about them before. But, when it comes to being a scrap quilt what could be better than a postage stamp quilt and a crazy quilt.
In 2014 I made this queen sized postage stamp containing over 7000's pieces.
It has a cotton backing. and the binding is a gentle scallop. I quilted the piece on my domestic machine with a very geometric squares and rectangles design.
Also completed it 2014 is this crazy quilt which I called Paris in the Spring. The tittle comes from the Paris themed commercial fabric I used for the focal square in each block.
Embroidery, silk ribbon, beads, buttons, lace and misc. embellishments. This wall hanging is 28" X 28", with a batting and cotton backing. The piece is tied.
What are your goals for 2024? Have you start a check list of quilts to make?
Have a wonderful day!
MaryEllen
Welcome back.
I hope your holiday season was filled with special memories.
My word for 2023 is cherished. I picked this word as a reminder to cherish my time with family and friends, to look for the special moments each day to cherish and be grateful for, and finally, to know that I'm am a cherished and loved child of God just as I am.
May you all feel cherished in the year to come.
Now what to start on first, so many ideas!!
MaryEllen
Hi everyone! I really had planned on making some posts for Christmas and New Year's, but then life got busy. Thankfully it was all fun busy. I hope you all had a fun-busy holiday as well So here we go starting 2022 on the 8th of January!
You may have noticed my word for the year posted in the side bar. PURPOSE. I've been feeling very adrift lately and I hope my word of the year helps me be more focused. I plan is to post here any improvements I'm able to make. I hope there will be many!
The quilt pictured above is my first finish of 2022. It's still just a top, I have the batting, and the binding is all made but I still need to purchase a backing before finishing it off.
Block design is made from 2" squares, then a 3" cream border followed be a row of 2 1/2" squares. and a 4" border. The finished size is 52" X 56".
Block design, using 2" squares. I really like the block design but for me it's a bit messy made in scraps. I think the design would be more effective made with only two colors or at least fewer colors. What's your vote?
Hope everyone is having a great day, and a great start to 2022!
Each new year's I see people post their word for the year, and think what a nice idea. But. I've personally never found just the right word. Until this year. Today I woke up and thought to myself "we need more kindness". So my 2021 Word Of The Year is KINDNESS. We are coming out of a hard year, at the very least a very emotional year. My goal for 2021 is to be more kind to those around me, the people I know and those I meet just once. May I be more concerned about the care of our beautiful planet. And, may I also be more kind to myself. May your 2021 be filled with joy and peace. May those you encounter be refreshed by your meeting.
May 2021 be a year of healing for our world.
