Patriotic Pennant Banner

This is the banner that Angie my partner in the Patriotic Swap sent me.  Isn't it darling!  I had it hung on my mantle but I could not get a good picture, so I hung it on the bannister of the front patio to take a picture.  I just love all the fabrics she used! 

You can see all the other great items that were sent and received from all of the other girls on Instagram by searching #spiritsewingswap.  Hope you are having a great Tuesday!

Fun Mail- Patriotic Swap

Came home from our glorious trip to Kauai.  We had a wonderful time with 30+ family members.  It's been a few days and I am still adjusting to the time change.  I think my body liked it when I got up at 6am Hawaii time...but somehow 12 noon doesn't really work in Texas.

When we arrived at our house, I had a wonderful package from my partner in the Patriotic Sewing Swap waiting for me.  The package contained four hand made items and this mini quilt is my favorite.

Isn't this lovely!  Angie my partner, did a fabulous job.  I love setting a patriotic table and this goes perfect with my Stars & Stripes Hartstone dinnerware I purchased in the 90's during Desert Storm (back when my love for tabletop began).

I'll show the other items in the next few days.  Thanks for stopping by!

Fabric Bowl Cover

One of the items I made for the Patriotic Swap was a fabric bowl cover.  I had been wanting to make some fabric bowl covers for a while.  The other day when I was at my grocery store I spotted some red, white and blue melamine bowls and right away I knew they would be perfect for the bowl covers and the patriotic swap.  The bowls are 6 inches in diameter, perfect for a side dish or a small amount of chips.

I looked at several tutorials, in the end I followed this one at Green Lifestyle in Australia.   I love the idea of reusable bowl covers and NOT using plastic wrap.

The tutorial was easy to follow.  I liked that it used two different fabrics so the cover is reversible.
I used some fun Texas fabric I've had in my stash for a while and fussy cut it so a big Texas was in the center.  My partner for the swap is also in Texas.  The other fabric I used was white with red and blue stars.   I didn't think about photographing the other side until the bowl was in the sealed box ready to ship. 

I am planning on making more of these.  I think using fun seasonal fabrics would be really cute for holidays too.  Thanks for stopping by. 

Patriotic Fabric Basket

Here is my first project completed while away from home. 

This Patriotic Fabric Basket is for the American Spirit Sewing Swap I am hosting.  I looked at many tutorials for fabric baskets and finally ended up following the larger basket pattern featured in this:  Sew 4 Home tutorial.  I found the tutorial easy to follow and I plan to make more of these. 

BBQ anyone

I love summer and I love patriotic decorations. Embroidered this to kick off summer Memorial Day BBQ and had forgotten to post. Can't take credit for the grill portion of the embroidery, only our name. Thanks for stopping by!

Allen USA Celebration

Last night we went to the Allen USA celebration. Allen is the next city south of McKinney on Hwy 75. This is a huge event that draws more than 75,000 people and what is most impressive about the event is they make it extremely green by having a ZERO WASTE policy.

Here is a picture of the bins they have throughout the park.



Here is a video of the fireworks. Thanks for stopping by!

Garden Update

Here are some pictures of our yard. We've had alot of rain the last couple of months so everything is nice and green.

This is right on the sidewalk leading up to front door.

I love stakes in pots...

Star stakes as you walk up the sidewalk.

This little Uncle Sam greets you at the front door. He's made from a fence post, my cousin Dora gave him to me about 12 years ago.

Our birdbath in the backyard...

I love this little bicycle.

Thanks for stopping by!

"Little Girl" Table for Memorial Day BBQ

We had a BBQ with some dear friends. Micaela decided to set a special "little girl" table. Check it out... She wrote out the placecards herself. She knows exactly where to find the right stuff, notice the flag stirers in the glasses, the little star salf & pepper, and even found a patriotic bear for the centerpiece! Love my girl!

Happy Flag Day

Here's a quick snapshot of our front yard. I forgot to put our flag out last night and did it first thing this morning. Hope you are having a wonderful Flag Day!