Christmas heart 2010

I have a little Christmas gift from me to you :)

This heart is the 4th design from me. It has become a tradition to draw a heart and send it to my friends as a little Christmas greeting. And this time I have made it with both English and Norwegian text. Hope you like it and want to stitch it. It can be used as a stuffed heart, as a decoration on a toilet purse, drawstring bag or whatever you want to make of it. If you make it, I would be happy to receive a photo from you in a mail (or a link to your blogpost about it)

Blogger is not nice letting me store PDF's, but Wenche at Northern Quilts have been so nice to help me. You can find the pattern for my Christmas heart 2010 here

http://www.northernquilts.no/pdf/Christmasheart2010-abyquilt.pdf

Saying for today is a little poem:

The Christmas season fills my heart with joy:
Bright, happy days brings special kinds of pleasure.
I'm wrapped in the excitement of it all,
The sights, the sounds, the smells, the tastes I treasure.

Yet when I have some quiet time to think,
about my finest blesings all year through,
I focus on my family and my friends
And appreciate the gift of knowing you!

Poem by Joanna Fuchs

2nd sunday in advent

Så tenner vi to lys i kveld,

to lys for håp og glede

De står og skinner for seg selv

og oss som er tilstede

Så tenner vi to lys i kveld,

to lys for håp og glede

(the english version is in my saying for today)

And the best with these sunday mornings is that I have three advent packages to open. It is so fun and I know they have spent as much time as me to put these packages together. It is a great tradition we have together.

And this is what I found in my packages today. From Nancy a lovely stitchery of a snowlady (that's why I had to take the photo out in the snow). From Hanne Christmas tissue and a quilt hanger, and from Bente some lovely laces (I know exactly what to make of these, but I think she is challenging me a bit, she knows about me and the colour blue, but in fact I start to love this blue/grey colour). Thank you girls, you are the best :)

Now I am heading to my sewing room again. Got a lot done yesterday, and so I hope today too:)
Guess I'm not the only one spending time in the sewing room these days.

Saying for today:

We light two candles tonight

two candles for hope and joy

They stands there shining by themselves

and we who present are
Tonight we light two candles
we light it for hope and joy.

Hibernate

That is exactly what I am going to do this weekend

hibernate

Big plans turning this into Christmas presents

But perhaps I really should do what one of the stitcheries says:
Slapp av, det blir jul uansett (no)
Relax, Christmas will come regardless (eng)

It is a free pattern here.

I just have to show you Frida Cat's new favorite place. Yesterday when I came home I looked for her high and low, but no cat to see. After a long time I discovered her on the floor, besides my basket, in front of the wall warmer (have no idea what the english name is). I guess she don't like the very cold temperature we've had the last days. Of course she now has a quilt to sleep on.

Saying for today:

One kind word can warm
three winter months.
~Japanese Proverb

Baking cover winners

After reading all the comments Hanne and I have now picked three winners that each will get this baking cover pattern.

We are surprised that so many do not know about this tradition with baking covers, so I guess this really is a Norwegian tradition. But I hope our posting may have inspired some of you to make your own baking cover. And if you do take the challenge and make one, we will be happy to have a little note about it :)

And then over to the winners.

Radka over at My Stitching journey

Sølvi over at Sølvi's blog

Marie over at C textiles

The patterns are put in envelopes ready to be posted, they are just waiting for some adresses to be written on, so please email me your adresses.

More on the baking cover pattern giveaway - a change of rules

Hanne and myself have learned over the last few days that the decorated baking covers seems to be mostly a Scandinavian tradition and that it is more common to use a regular tea towel in other parts of Europe and in other parts the world.

The more a reason to enter the giveaway! :-)

But - in order for you to do so we have to change the rules a bit, to fit reality:

1. You have to have a blog AND you have to be reachable by mail.
2. Tell us what you like the best to bake - bread or cakes
3. Make a blog post about baking if you will - it will make it fun for us to visit your blog

The deadline for the entries will still be Wednesday at 6 pm ( noon New York time)

***************

I have finished the stitchery on my new baking cover, and this is the pattern you can win. And I was so lucky that I won a small bundle of lovely pink and brown fabrics on our quilt guild meeting last thursday. I am going to use these on the border around this baking cover.

You remember Bente stitching on her baking cover while visiting me this weekend. She finished it. This is also a great idea for you to make a baking cover for yourself. Just a piece of linen or soft cotton fabric like a tea towel with stitchery on.

and here is a stitchery pattern for a gingerbread man.

Or you can applique a muffin on it, free pattern here.

or just stitch a heart on to decorate it.

Saying for today:

A balanced diet
is a cookie in each hand

1.st sunday in advent

Today I lit the first candle in my advent decoration.

I am swapping advent calendar packages with Hanne, Bente and Nancy. We have four packages, one for each sunday in advent. Not only kids wants an advent calendar. It is so fun with these small packages and I really apricitate this tradition.

Hanne and Bente is visiting me this weekend and this sunday morning we was ready to open our first packages while eating breakfast.

It is so fun to open packages.

And this is what was in my packages today. From Bente I got colour cather (I really needed some now), from Hanne a tape measure in a cute box and a purple piece of fabric, from Nancy a lovely thimle from her trip to Texas and some embroidery needles. Thank you girls; I love it all :)

Saying for today is a Norwegian advent poem
which I have translated to english:

Tonight we light one candle
we light it for joy
It stands there shining by itself
and we who present are
Tonight we light one candle
we light it for joy.

I've made a MUG RUG

Now I too have a mug rug and I love it!!!!

I have seen mug rugs on several bogs, and they have all said it is addictive to make mug rugs. And yes it is.

So while making my own mug rug, I made three more. Some months ago when Hanne and I visited Bente we got some wonderful mugs, travelling mugs as Bente said it was. And I picked fabric that matched the mugs and made mug rugs for all of us. Bente and Hanne got theirs when they arrived here for our advent weekend.

Thursday was my quilt guilds meeting (will show you photos from the meeting later) and both Hanne and I brought our mug rugs with us. It is perfect for my mug, gingerbread cookies, chokolate and thread. Even useful to pin my needle there :) Did I mention I love my mug rug.

I guess you all remember the challenges between Hanne, Bente and I. Last time we met it was Hanne's turn to give us a challenge. And this is what we got. Two stripes of yellow fabric. and the text on the challenge was: A lot of light and warmth (lines from a Norwegian song).

And what did I make :)

A MUG RUG of course.
I told you they are addictive.
I have to make more.

Don't forget about the challenge/giveaway in my previous post.

Saying for today:

Because we can't call people
withouth wings angels,
we call them friends

(this is the saying on my mug)

More baking covers and a challenge/giveaway

This weekend Bente, Hanne and I have come together for our annual first sunday in advent meeting. And as a project we have chosen to stitch on new baking covers.

I have got a new wonderful box which I keep my stitchery in. Isn't it cute. As you see I have started on Northern Quilts new pattern for baking covers.

Bente had brought with her an 70 year old bakery cover she have inherited from a old lady Mrs Monsen. This is a white linen cover with a M embroidered on it. It is a lovely vintage bakery cover, so you see the thing with bakery covers is an old tradition.

I have refurnished my livingroom so that we have good light to stitch in. "Old" ladies need good light you know LOL A lot of coffee, gingerbread cookies and chocolate is a must.

Hanne have also started on her new baking cover. You have to visit her blog too to see what she is writing.
Bente have found a good position to sit while stitching on her new baking cover,

and she is stitching on some cute gingerbread men.

Now we have a challenge/giveaway for you:

You remember those three patterns from a previous post?
There will be three lucky ladies that will win one each.

And this is what Hanne and I want you to do.

Write a blogpost about your baking cover (s) and a nice story from baking. Then tell us about this in a comment both on this blogpost and on Hannes blogpost.

You have until wednesday des 1st at 6 PM Norwegian time (which is noon New York Time) to make a post and comment.

Wenche at Northern Quilts have sponsored these three patterns for a lovely baking cover.(Thank you Wenche :) The pattern is only in Norwegian, but you can have fun just stitching the buns and muffins and leave out the norwegian text on it or stitch your own saying about baking. A piece of cake.

And three lucky ladies will win one baking cover each.

Have fun :)

Saying for today:

Cookies are made
of butter and love.
Norwegian Proverb

Baking covers

Yesterday I had a baking day. I am preparing for the advent weekend with Bente (no blogger) and Hanne. It is always nice to serve warm rolls for breakfast.

While baking I found all my baking covers. I am not sure if that is the correct english name on it. In norway we call it bakeklede/baksteklede - bakeduk/baksteduk. I remember both my grandmother and my mother having these with embroidery on. So it is an old Norwegian tradition using embroidered baking covers.

The first one I will show you was a Christmas gift from a friend some years ago. On the baking cover it is embroidered the word Quiltebakst (quilters bakery).

This is another baking cover I received from a bloggerfriend in a swap. I like it very much because it is so big that it covers a lot of rolls while rising.

But this is the cover I love the most. It was a gift from my DD several years ago. She did the embroidery at school when she was about ten years old. And she gave it to me and I treasure it so much. It has been used so much that it starts to get worn out. My DD is now 22 years old so perhaps it is my turn to make her a baking cover for her. And I want to make a new one for myself too.

I have this pattern (oooops, it is three patterns on the table). It is a new pattern from Northern Quilts with a cute stitched baking cover. I am going to trace the stitchery now.

I know Hanne also is going to blog about her baking covers later this week.

And why is there three patterns on my table. Come back later this week and you'll know :)

Saying for today:

"HAPPINESS IS HOMEMADE"

Christmas Quilt Show 2010

I have entered this quilt in SewCalGal's Christmas Quilt Show 2010. If you go there you can follow links to other blogs that have entered quilts in this Quilt Show.

I stitched this quilt some years ago, and it is always the first one that comes up on my walls when preparing for Christmas. I have hung it up today, preparing for Bente and Hannes visit next weekend. It was used as an adventcalendar to hang packages on in the original pattern, but I just love it this way.

I love the stitcheries in it. It is a design from Jordbærstedet (a norwegian shop that do not exist anymore), so I guess this pattern is not available anymore.

I am looking forward to Christmas and I always start decorating the first sunday in advent.

Saying for today:

Christmas is not as much about
opening our presents
as opening our hearts.

~Janice Maeditere