Quilting Projects

I have finally finished my wall hanging!
It was a lot of fun I really enjoyed learning
the different aspects of quilting on this smaller
project.

When I began this project I thought oh I will just machine quilt, no problem,
but the teacher said, "no I am going to have you hand quilt."
I really enjoyed the hand quilting it worked out good at night when I
finally had a little time to just sit and unwind.
Now I do not know if I would like to hand quilt a large quilt, but I can appreciate
why hand quilted quilts are so much money :)

I had some fabric left over so I decided to make a throw pillow to match.
This pattern is quite easy once put together and a good size to hand
quilt again.


If you have some fabric left over this would be a great project to begin with!
God Bless, Kathy

Some More Great Savings!

I went to our local Walgreen with coupons in hand and I was able to get some great deals last week !

I bought 2 Gillette Gamer mens razors for .04 each! They were on clearance and I had a 4.00 coupon for each of them.

I also bought 2 packages of FriXion erase-able pens for .19 each package.

My best deal was for the FriXion erase-able highlighters. They were on sale for 1.19 each pkg and Walgreen had a 1.00 off coupon so they came out to .19 cents each same as above for the pens. What made this deal even better was the package had a 4.50 rebate on the back if I bought 3 of them. So I have the rebate in the mail and I will actually make money on this deal :)

Trying to be frugal sure is fun :) It does take some time and planning though but some times the rewards can be worth the work.

Money Saving Mom or Living Rich with Coupons are a great place to start for some ideas on some great tips.

Frugality It is so much fun!

Well one of the things that I have been trying to learn is shopping more wisely. Last week at Shoprite (our local grocery store) I did very well I was so excited!

My receipt said that I saved a total of $170.00 after sale prices and coupons. I had quite a few many which were doubled. Love those .75 cent coupons :)

In the picture up top I was able to get the 4 tubes of toothpaste for free, I received 12 boxes of Smart taste Pasta for free, 4 Snuggles dryer sheets for free, 4 bags of No Yokes egg noodles for free, 1 dozen eggs for free too, in the end I spent a total of $51.00.

There are many websites that I like to frequent for deal ideas and coupons here are a few.
Couponmom.com
Living Rich with Coupons
Money Saving Mom

This year I thought I would learn a little more so I purchased a book from Coupon Mom .
She had a lot of good ideas which have helped me.

I know that there are a lot of young ladies that frequent my daughter Rebecca's blog and I must say that learning this important skill while you are still young can be such a blessing to you in the future. What husband would not be happy if his wife was frugal and spent his hard earned money wisely. :)

I hope to continue to keep learning more tips in my Frugal journey ;)

Baby Quilt Project

Here is my first baby quilt top that I decided to make for a

dear sister in Christ in our church who is due any minute. :)

I found this free pattern on line at Claudia's Quilt Shoppe

It was written for Absolute Beginners!

The quilt had 5 , 9 patch squares and 4 snow ball squares

I decided to sew the backing to the front along the edge and to turn it right side out.

I had pinned the batting to the back of the front piece.

I also decided to tie the quilt.

I used 6 strands of floss and tied every 4" or so.

I really enjoyed making this quilt.

I would encourage any one who is new to quilting to give this one a try.

God Bless, Kathy

My Version of Julia Child's Beuf Bourguignon!

One of the many things that I enjoy learning is cooking. Of course I do cook everyday for our family of ten but I would like to learn how to cook some new dishes.

So off to the library I went and I took out the book Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

My husband loves beef stew but I never knew how to make a good beef stew so I found this recipe "Beauf Bourguignon" from Julia's cook book. This book is very thorough and I think that I will have to start saving up for a copy of my own.


I have to add that I did not use the 3 cups of red wine that Julia used in the recipe. I replaced this with 2 cups of red grape juice and 1 cup of water. So if this changes the recipe too much and it does not qualify to be called Beuf Bourguignon well than so be it :)

I decided to make it last Saturday and rewarmed it for our Sunday lunch after church. This worked out wonderfully! As a matter of fact Julia states in her book that it tasted better the next day and I think I must agree!

I found a site with the full recipe and directions if you want to give a try for your self!

Here are a few photos of the process. I hope you will give it a try I am sure you and your family will enjoy it.

Free photo slideshow generated with Smilebox

My dear husband bought me a brand new sewing machine this past christmas so I decided to take a quilting class at our local high school. I have been working on a wall hanging and learning a lot of different techniques.

I also found some curtains this past summer at a tag sale and I had to cut them and adjust them to fit our basement windows. I made up a little smile box that you can see some of the photo's.

The picture of my quilt is in progress and when I have it finished I will let you all know.

God Bless, Kathy

(Of course the photos are taken by my wonderful daughter Rebecca the photographer! :)

This digital scrapbook created with Smilebox

I have a question for you all...

(image courtesy of Gasoline Alley Antiques)

I volunteered for our annual Ladies banquet coming up and I was asked if I had any ideas for some party favors.

The theme is going to be picnics. There will be the checkered table clothes and mason jars with cut flowers for the center pieces.

Sounds so cute! I was thinking of making pin wheels. What do you all think of that? Does this go with the picnic theme?

Does any one have any other ideas? I appreciate any suggestions.

Have a wonderful day! God Bless, Kathy