~*Freedom Is Not Free*~

Remember those that have fought and given so much... bless and thank those that continue to sacrifice.

Warm smiles to you all...

Betty

~*Friday Finishes*~

Hello Dear Friends! WooHooo! Friday has rolled around again... and it is a holiday weekend too! My darling hubby has taken an extra day off giving him a longer weekend. After we get the mowing & yard chores done... we get to play the rest of the time. I hope you all have fun, family~filled plans for the holiday.

I didn't receive any emails of finishes this week, but my buddy Marianne pointed me to this one... Joy has finely stitched one of my Valentine freebies... Isn't is lovely?



She writes on her blog that this is her first pinkeep. She has done such a brilliant job too! Looking closely you can see she stitched beads on her finish ~ too cute! On the back of her pinkeep, she has added a pocked for scissors & floss too.

Thank you for stitching & sharing, Joy!

Yesterday was a full day at home. Trinity had a friend over to play & swim. I set up a watchful post in the backyard... complete with ice tea, my cellphone (because it is attached to me at all times... although I'm really not sure why), and my needlepunch. It felt great to punching under the shade trees & was fun eavesdropping on the boys too. I've learned we have sharks & alligators in our swimming pool! lol I'm surprised the boys didn't use the cap guns to shoot them! ha ha

my workstation for the day...


my progress for the afternoon...


Last week, I purchased several small paper mache boxes. These will be box toppers when finished.

Wishing you all a blessed day with warm smiles...

Betty

~*Simple Joys*~

Hello Dear Friends! This is the first full week of Summer Break... and we have been keeping very busy. I've been trying to get some stitching & other crafting in... but trying to keep up with the family... and now suffering from allergies or something... it has been a little tough. Don't worry though.. I'll bounce back into the crafty~mode soon!

We filled the pool yesterday. Trinity is daring me! I've told him it is too cold to get in just yet... but see what he does!

(He did agree it was cold... don't know how he can even stand to have his feet in it!)

This guy is a new buddy of mine...

A big, fat bumblebee! He has been hanging around outside the greenhouse for the past several days. It is strange, he is just always there. It is interesting to watch him though. He will chase butterflies & birds off... then come right back to the same spot. There isn't a hive in the nearby tree or anything... not sure what keeps him around... but he is friendly enough.

Wishing you all warm smiles...

Betty

~*Cutter Quilts*~

Oh I do hate calling them that... cutter quilts... all that time, love, and craftsmanship... but they are too frayed to use on the bed now. However, maybe because they are so tattered & torn, they have been loved and snuggled with for many years.



Hello Dear Friends! I've spent the morning at a local estate auction. They are always fun! That battle~of~bids, that hunt for a lost treasure, and just watching the crowds. It is always an enjoyable time! The weather has cooperated too... no more rain... just sunshine and heat!

My treasure finds today included some sweet, old quilts. I love to see the collection of vintage fabrics. I'm not 'schooled' when it comes to quilting and am not familiar with the pattern names. I try to examine them to see if they were made by hand, by machine, or both. As far as I can tell, one is completely hand pieced and quilted... the other two look to be put together with a machine, but are hand quilted.





They smell a little musty... it would be nice to leave them out on the line, but it is too windy... they will get ripped to shreds. I'll just wash them on the gentle cycle and put them out to air on another day.

There are large areas on each the could be used to make something else... but I'm not sure what... and I do hate to cut them... but I probably will. Pillows maybe for the larger pieces? Pinkeep make~dos for the smaller pieces? For now, I'll just fold them and stack them on a cabinet though.

Wishing you all warm smiles and a blessed weekend...

Betty

~*Friday Finishes*~

Hello Dear Friends! Hey! It is FRIDAY... that means time for ~*Friday Finishes*~! There is only one crafty finish to share today... but it is a sweetie!

Laura (no blog or online album) used the blooms from the ~*May Day*~ freebie to make a charming book cover. Her book is by Willa Cather, "Shadows on the Rock"... a historic novel set in 1697. What a perfect way to add more character, charm & sweetness! I haven't read the book... but this sounds like a good book to judge by the cover!



The rain seems to have finally finished here... letting the sun have a chance to shine brightly... and help our fruits & veggies grow... here are some I snapped pictures of this morning...

peaches... This will be our first year for these!

apples... These are the SWEETEST & BESTEST apples on earth! Excellent for apple fritters!

pears... My Momma LOVES the pear butter I've made with them in the past. It looks like a great crop for more this year!

plums... Tony is so excited to see these growing! He has been threatening the birds daily!

grapes... Nom Nom... grape jelly!

cherry tomatoes... Candy on my salad every day! YIPPEE!


Wishing you all warm smiles...

Betty

~*Three Spools Rug*~

Hello Dear Friends! What do you do with a small scrap of linen? Hook a small mat of course!



After my hubby made the olde, ice pick hook for me the other day... I had to try it out. So, I pulled out a scrap of linen... it was too small for my frame... so I sewed a couple of strips of fabric to the edges to make it fit. These fabric scraps are actually an old sheet... it seems I never throw anything away...



I then drew a few 'spools' on some card stock to use as templates...



My pattern was then ready...



I hooked with woolly scraps... and wanted an olde, early~look for the finished rug. I did a rug hooking 'NO NO' and finished the edges kind of 'wonky'... but this is how I wanted it to look... a little crooked, naive, and time~worn...





I've listed this one on Ebay... if you are interested, you can see it HERE or search seller id primitivebettys.

Wishing you all warm smiles...
Betty