I love comfort food. Who doesn’t? Any kind of soup or stew is a comfort food in my opinion.
Tonight’s dinner definitely fits the bill.
Sausage and Collard Soup
Vintage Spool Wreath
The ladies of the Quilt Ministry and I have started a sewing ministry. It all came about when Connie became gravely ill a few years back.
It was a scary time first, because my dear friend was so sick, and secondly, I worried about the fact that our quilt ministry would suffer. We still had Barbara, my other precious friend and mentor, who along with Connie keeps us going in the right direction but I feared that Connie might not be well enough to continue on with the ministry. I have come to rely on the both of them as friends and mentors.
My thoughts turned to the fact that sewing is not widely practiced among the younger crowd which made me worry for the future of the quilt ministry. So after Connie recuperated, we sat down and hashed out some ideas for this new ministry. Our church trustees welcomed our proposal for a new ministry with open arms and dedicated a room specifically for us.
Easter Greetings
The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as He said.
Matthew 28: 5-6
What a glorious day to celebrate. He is risen indeed!
Halleljuah!!!
Wishing you Easter blessings, Faith
Oxford Shirt Quilt Top
I’ve mentioned our church’s Prayer Quilt Ministry before. We make lap quilts from donated materials to give to members of the community when they are facing a trial of some sort, such as an illness or loss. Before being presented to the recipient, strings are secured around the quilt. The quilt is laid across the altar rail and the congregation is invited to come pray for the person and then tie a knot in the string. The knotted strings are a tangible reminder to the quilt recipient that they have been remembered in prayer. The purpose is to bring the peace, hope, strength, and comfort of Christ to them during a time of anxiety and suffering.
Being a part of this ministry is one of the greatest blessings of my life. It allows me to use my God-given talent of sewing for His glory. Getting to work with some very talented, loving women in the ministry is a blessing as well. I’ve spoken of my mentors in several previous posts here, here, here, and here.
Designing and piecing is my favorite part of creating a quilt. The ladies of the ministry are so gracious to allow me to do that part while they do the (boring and tedious to me) tasks of basting, quilting, and binding the quilt tops that I piece.
Definitely preppy, this quilt top is made from thrift store oxford cloth men’s dress shirts in pastel colors.
A Perfect Rosebud
Isn’t God’s artistry perfect in every way?
Look at that rosebud. Have you ever seen anything more perfect and beautiful?
I’m sure we could all say yes but today, for today, this is His perfection. This and the ones we love so much.
An Old Ornament Commemorates a New Year
Happy new year, friends, from long lost me. The holidays kicked in and this little space was left neglected. Truly I meant to visit here to show some Christmas around my house.
I got crazy busy with a commissioned sewing project (I’ll show you that later) and then a friend wanted me to make fifty two blackberry wine cakes for her clients for Christmas gifts. Yes, you read that right, 52 cakes that I baked over the course of two weekends.
This is only about half of the cakes piled on my dining room table!
My tree was up but sat there undecorated until December 21st, the first day of Christmas break from school. My mantle wasn’t decorated until Christmas Eve. All that baking, working my two part time jobs, sewing, shopping, and just life in general simply got the better of me.
But now that the holidays have come and passed, I feel much more relaxed and rested and wanted to pop in to say “Hi” and wish you all a very happy new year.
Dear hubby gave me this Radko ornament fifteen years ago. I collected Radko for a while and now you just don’t find them anymore except maybe on Ebay. I always loved them because of their old world look and brilliant color. I’ve got about ten of them and this one is my favorite.
Do you recognize who this is?
Veteran’s Day: Thankful for our Heroes
This day is set aside to remember our veterans with gratitude and appreciation. Can you imagine where our country would be without them? Their dedication, hard work, and sacrifice provides us with our freedom. To simply say thank you seems so small compared to what so many have given.
The most beloved veteran in my heart and mind is my dad. He bravely served in WW2 in the South Pacific arena. He was in the Army serving as a medic and cook. He was a truly wonderful man and it was a tremendous blessing to have him as my father.
Pennant Banner from a Vintage Quilt
Today’s (re)purposed project from my friend’s vintage quilt is a pennant banner.
Banners are festive; they can be used for special occasions or just for everyday.
Who wouldn’t want every day to be a special day?
Every day is a gift to be savored and appreciated.
Everyday should be celebrated.
Write 31 Days – Taking the Challenge
I’m a participant! A tradition started several years ago by The Nester challenges writers and bloggers to consistently write for 31 days straight. Crystal Stine has capably inherited the task of adminstrating this challenge. Go visit here to see a list of participants writing on a plethora of topics. You can find Crystal for a sampling of her own wonderful uplifting stylography.
Admittedly, I had to strongly consider this challenge, mostly from a standpoint of time. I work two jobs, three if you count the sewing for hire that I do. At the moment, the pipeline is cleared so I cannot use that as an excuse to pass up this challenging opportunity.
Neither can I justify the fact that I am so new to this blogging thing to pass the chance by. I have so very much yet to learn and tweak. What I have in this little space of mine so far is very elementary at least in some folks mind, but not to me. I would really like to grow this blog and need to put myself out there for the practice and the hope that I might inspire someone.
I have heard about how hard bloggers work so I am just going to jump right in and see if I’ve got what it takes to actually post for as many of those 31 days as possible. I know its going to be difficult but I’m going to give it my best shot.
Won’t you join me please for the month of October and 31 days of writing? Of course it will be centered around sewing – my favorite thing to do. I’ll add a link for each day at the bottom of this post so you can come back right here to check out the projects I plan to write about. Check out all the other great bloggers with whom I have the good pleasure of their company. Thanks for coming along and for your support!
xoxo, Faith
Write 31 Days – (Re)Purposed Sewing – You are here.
Day 2 – (Re)Purposing old things into new things
Day 7 – Patchwork Pillow Cover
Day 9 – Canvas tote with patchwork roses
Day 20 – Apron from grandmother’s quilt
Day 23 – How to make patchwork pumpkins
Day 27 – 21 Ways to (re)purpose a vintage quilt: A wrap-up
Day 29 – Patchwork pumpkin of a different kind
Day 30 – Patchwork pumpkin of a different kind: what I used
A New Day
Okay, so I finally did it, but not without a lot of fretting. This is my first blog post and suddenly I have nothing to say. For those that know me, they would be shocked. Lets hope I get over my giddiness, find my voice, and create posts that will be thoughtful or informative or inspiring.
I’ve dreamed of this for probably the last 7 years and finally I am taking the leap – a leap of Faith. Yea, I’m a little slow; maybe intimidated is more like it. All this techie stuff is not me but I’ve got to start somewhere so forgive the many mistakes I will probably make along the way. I’m going to give it my best shot.
My goal is to share things that I love – my faith, family, home, projects. I hope that I can inspire or help someone along the way or record a memory for those that love and support me. Lets see where this takes me. I’m looking forward to it!
xoxo, Faith