Try-It Tuesday.... Thangles

Well good morning.... I would invite you in for tea but I am out so I had coffee early this morning. I really needed the caffeine as I was dragging- it was cool in the mid 50's and foggy. I was under a quilt so what can I say I know how the bear feels when he is just coming out of hibernation!
Once again it is Try-It Tuesday, I have no idea where the week has gone except work!  I am still waiting on my bunnies to have the babies! They are due today, the one rabbit always goes 3 days over due date and the other two are first timers with the whole mommy thing! So you know what they say a  pot watched does not boil! Remember to go over to Jo's Country Junction and see what all the ladies are trying over there. Also when you care done visiting Jo's site go check out Tip Me Tuesday and see all the tips and home-made things folks are busy creating!
So today I am going to actually try sewing with Thangles. I know they have been around awhile, alot of people have used them or are using them.  I haven't tried them before, I am too cheap to purchase them especially when I don't know if I will like them or not. I lucked out at the Quilt show this last weekend and got a package that has size 1, 2, 2.5, 3 in there with a pattern to boot..... the price was only a dollar! Score me!!! I am working on graduation quilts and other gifts so I thought I would give them  a try.


This is the packet that I bought for a $1.00! Can you believe it! The picture is upside down but I want it at the beginning of the pictures so you can see what the Thangles look like! Computers! Or in this case humans! LOL I just don't want to download all the pictures again! 




So I ironed my fabric that I chose.




Then you put the like sides together. The directions say put the lighter fabric on the top and then the seam allowance will go
to the darker fabric.




Then you add the Thangle paper and pin it down. If you want your half square triangle to be finished at say a
2" than you cut your fabric 2 1/2 wide.




Here I am almost ready to sew. You will be sewing on the dotted lines, and cutting them apart on the solid lines!



As you can see my first attempt was wrong! Yes I sewed the solid line! Duh! Well lesson learned. =) I am also using my industrial sewing machine -Sushi is her name. She is fast! So I had to control her!



Here is a close-up to see how I got the needle right on the line and then actually put the needle through the paper before sewing with the foot peddle. Like I said Sushi is fast so I don't want to unthread the needle being I have it centered on the line so well! Remember you should have it centered on the dotted line!



So you are sewing on both of the dotted lines on each piece- which will give you 4 half square triangles. You will be cutting between the two lines that you sewed and between the two solid lines  that seperates the two Thangle pieces.

As you can see I was way better on sewing the one on the left! So yes, following a line will take some getting used too!



So I cut on the middle line- which I had sewn as you can see.




Here it is as I started ripping them apart. When you sew with the stitches so close together it rips easy. Also I realized after ripping them apart that you should wait til after you press them, then rip apart, that the seams don't stretch. Second lesson I learned!




I used the size 2.5 and I will get 4 of these cuties out of each Thangle paper.




This one needs to be cut down the middle solid line and then cut on the solid line at the top of the Thangle..




After ripping you have paper to recycle.




Before pressing open.





After pressing open. You will have to trim off the little point popping out of the bottom of the square.




Here are the finished project. I am excited that so far this morning I have added 4  half- square triangles to my bin. I have to say they seem alittle putsy, learning a new thing, trying to get the dotted lines sewn right and then cutting them apart. I think if all your fabric is put together, cut out and they are all put together with the paper it would go alot faster to just sew them up, put  them in a bin to rip later. Then what I would do is rip them apart while watching a movie.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Feel free to leave me a message. Let me know if you have ever made anything with Thangles. If you would like to buy Thangles I am sure your local quilt store might stock them or I am sure that they would love to order them for you!
Happy Sewing!



Hayward Piecemakers Quilt Show- July 27-28, 2012

This last weekend I was excited to be able to attend the Piecemakers Quilt Show in Hayward, WI. The ladies (or men) did a fabulous job of having wonderful displays, great giveaways, friendly folks and some great vendors. The quilters did some wonderful work, such vision on some of the pieces. What a great way to be inspired!

Beautiful work! Some day I will get to the point where I can quilt something like this.



Really like this quilt. These are my colors! Love the staggered rectangles. It gives this quilt movement and makes it almost look 3D. Very cool!




This is very simple, cute and yet very interesting. I love the pattern on the fabric. I really like butterflies and thought this was cool, its even stuffed to make it 3D. I thought this would be a great idea to show my daughter-spark some interest in quilting.
Love the colors!



If you know me  I am  a chicken freak! These are just so cute! I want them for my kitchen! Oh they are so funky, hip, and too cute!
Great job!!!



Want to make this! Its so alive, has movement! Love the colors!




Wool, Yes wool!! I was so excited! She had lots of fun patterns, great kits. I wish I would have had big money with as I would have like to buy a TON!!! I like the fact that her kits are so cute but that you get all the little pieces to make the item. She adds some very nice buttons, beads etc to her pieces.




Here is Darlene's website www.onewingwool.com go check her out. I still have to go check out her web-site but I am sure that whatever you are looking for she would be able to get for you. She is a MN but she has a cabin in WI. She is a great company to add to my list of fun business owners!




Bolts of Fun another one of my favorites was there. We find Sandy so bubbly and well just plain energetic. We of course are in love with her pug! Sandy can be reached at www.boltoffun.com. I want to go down there again real soon as she has a great store with lots of goodies, also a great cappachino machine!




This is the BOM club that Kathleen over at Heartlight Quilt Shop is offering starting in Sept. It is called "Woman of Courage"- it is really beautiful. I am planning on signing up for this one as I really want to do some of the Civil War Reproduction quilts- there are alot I have seen and want to do.  I love that they this one has a  story that goes with it. This will be my first and I really am excited. If you want all the info get ahold of Kathleen at www.heartlighthouse.com she is awesome and a joy to talk to!

Thanks to all the vendors- Bolts of Fun, Heartlight Quilt Shop, J&A Stitches, Northwoods Craft & Variety, One Wing Wool, Scarlett Poppe. Also the volunteers that participated in the show. You all did a wonderful job. I look forward to visiting all the new shops I learned about.

If you are in the Hayward area and would like to join Piecemakers they meet on the 2nd Monday of the month at 10:15 at the Hayward library. The next meeting is August 13. To become a member there is a $15 fee for dues. To contact them haywardpiecemakers@hotmail.com



Thanks for checking out the blog today! I love sharing with my readers fun places that I get to go too.

Happy Quilting!!!



Spooner Advocate Column- July 26,2012

Good morning neighbors!
Wow it is a hot one out there already, suppose to go up to 89! I hope everyone is being smart in the heat, drinking lots of water, stay cool- air is wonderful but even with a fan on and a wet towel around the shoulders will help! Keep your windows closed and curtains closed. Remember if you are feeling weird, sick, not the normal way you always feel call for help. Check on people as well as all those animals that are out there- they need shade and water! Be smart... stay safe.

Our prayers go out to Barb Atkinson's family, her brother passed away from the heat last week.

A big thank you goes out to Sandy and Len Sheehan of Whispering Oaks Equine Center, Hayward for hosting a horse pasture walk on July 21. The Sheehans have a wonderful set-up over there for boarding about 40 horses, large indoor arena, nice big pastures. We were very impressed how very professional, clean and inviting their set-up is. Makes you want to have a horse to board over there just so you can go ride the trails! Thanks again for having us all out to the farm!

On the weekend of July 14th the Springbrook VFW had a big event to raise money for the local Washburn Food Pantry. The Springbrook VFW, which is a chartered organization that is made up of volunteers who are Veterans  that were in combat zones, host different venues to raise money for various organizations. The organization has donated various monetary amounts to Scholarships for Seniors, Spooner Girl Soccer Team, Vetereans that need help just to name a few. They  have also volunteered hours cleaning the railroad tracks right there in Springbrook. This last fundraiser was for the Washburn County Food Shelf. They had 5 bands, 2 guitarist who entertained over 500 people. It seems like everyone had a good time listening to the wonderful music and  listen to Larry and the Drifters until the bugs drove them inside! We appreciate all the volunteers that make things like this possible, thanks to all the bands that come out to entertain everyone with their talent! Without all of you things like this would not be possible. Springbrook VFW were happy to donate a pickup truck full of food as well as $1500.00 to the food shelf, so far to date they have donated about $2500.00 to the pantry- way to keep it local guys!!! The Springbrook VFW is open M-F 3-9 Sat and Sun 12-9, weds evening (4:30-6:30pm )they do a burger for $2.50 that is delicious!!! August 3 come on out and listen to Les Mallard from 7-9pm, everyone enjoys Karoake right? If you have any questions please give them a call  at 715-766-2128. Thanks for supporting the Springbrook VFW!!

The Washburn County Fair starts this week in Spooner. Good luck to all the exhibitors! We appreciate all the hard work you put into your animals and exhibits! Please go and check out all the fun that will be going on at the fair, you can pick up a schedule of events a the Kwik-Trip in town. Enjoy the Washburn County Fair!!

If you have any news please let me know. Have a great week!

Try-It Tuesday- African Violets!

Good morning friends. I am pleased that you stopped by to visit my blog. Today is Try-It Tuesday, orginally thought up by Jo over at Jo's Country Junction. On Tuesday we try out things we would like to "try" . If you have come here before then you know I always ask you  to go check out Jo's site and see what her readers are "trying" and of course see what she has made. She has made some wonderful quilts! I do not know how she gets so much done, I wish I was that fast!
Today I started out with my African Violet that I bought at the grocery store about 5 months ago, it was a house warming gift to myself. I love the color and when I first bought it it was a healthy plant, not huge and had like 2 flowers. Not the same plant today!


The Violet is in a west facing window and has really taken off. I also have a Hoya in this window that has grown like a weed as well. This plant was small but hea;lthy when I bought it, 2 flowers and 8-10 leaves. Not any more!




I really like this color. I have not seen it on any other African Violet, it was the only one at the store. All the rest were purple and pink.



My first thing to do was to get the flat that I used before. These leaves that you see were harvested off a African Violet plant at my job, I have no idea what color the flower will be. I started 4 from leaves and three are still alive and thriving.




First thing I did was put water in there so that the soil can have time to really let it sink in. I will use these 6 starter  holes on this side, and the 6 on the other side as well. I will transplant the 3 that are already started into their own cups.




First I used a paring knife and cut a healthy leaf off the main plant. I used different leaves as I am not sure if the healthy new thick leaves will create a new plant better than a leave that is older and further from the plants core. This is Try-It Tuesday so I figured I will take the time and start as many as I can from various leaves  and see what I get. After cutting the leaf I then dipped it in water.... 




Then in root starter- I used Take Root Rooting Hormone by Shultz, I just bought it at Walmart.




Not a good picture, but I wanted you to see it is clumped on the end, just shack it off alittle.





Then dig a little hole and pop it in. I like to keep the leaf up alittle so it is not laying on the dirt. Violets seem to be picky about their leaves.







This is the seed starter that I used in the yogurt cups.



The leaves were dug out with a spoon and put in their yogurt cup, more soil was added. Watered.





This is how much soil I added before put the leaf in with the soil that they already had around their roots.




As you can see there are a bunch of new leaves coming out. That is why I decided to trim as many leaves off and give the plant some room to breathe. Also I think it will be fun to share some little African Violets with my friends. Friend plants have been started!  



Here are the difference between the leaves. The lighter one is from further out on the plant. The darker one is from closer to the plant- thicker and daek. I guess we shall see which creates a better plant.



Close-up of more leaves and tiny flowers that will be coming out!



The finished leaves all put to bed in their own holes. There are two cells that have 2 leaves in them. I am not sure how many will turn into plants. I was happy last time that 3 out of the 4 that I planted are still alive so I am hope 10 out of 14 this time. We shall see. This was a fun experience. I will have to update everyone as they grow!





Thanks again for visiting the blog. Let me know what you are growing or if there is something I need to know about African Violets. Make sure that you go check out Jo's Country Junction

Spooner Advocate Column- July 19, 2012

Good morning neighbors. I hope this finds each of you doing well with the heat, lack of rain and the sometimes crazy storms we have been experiencing. 

We have seen another bear in our area, this time cutting through our pasture to cross the highway to get to the neighbors. Mikhaila called me to tell me all this-  she was so excited to see another bear! I have to say they are so cool to see, huge, looking soft and cuddly. Makes you just think how God really made some awesome animals. However it also reminds us that we are sharing the earth with other creatures and we should try to respect them and live in harmony with them. We are lucky that the bear really has paid no attention to us or the animals here on the farm, that is a good thing. Its hard to remind a 15 year old that they need to know what is going on around them, they need to see what is in the yard before they walk out there! Kids still think they are invincible!

Jack Pine Savage Days is coming up on August 3,4,5. Seems there will be all kinds of things to do, like the 5K Mud Run/obstacle Race on Friday the 3rd. Lots of music, a car show, the Spooner Women will have their book sale, food booths- alittle of everything to interest everyone! If you would like to see what is planned on what date and time check out the line up at www.jackpinesavagedays.com they are also on Facebook.

Please remember that there is a Farmers Market in Stone Lake every Thursday from 2-6 pm. They are located between Marie's and Lakes Co-op by the railroad tracks. If you know od other Farmers Markets in our area please let me know. I thought I heard that there was one in Stanley or Earl but I don't have any information about it, if you do know their schedule please let me know.

I saw in last weeks Advocate that the Springbrook VFW had a Band Fest scheduled on July 14th. I wish I would have known that this was scheduled as I would have put it in the paper! I have called up to the VFW and have never gotten ahold of anyone. So if anyone up there reads this please let me know what is on your schedule. This is a community column so if you have a neighborhood garage sale, church bazaar, collecting items for donations (ie glasses, hearing aids, quilts etc), get togethers or anything else planned please let me know. I feel bad when I find out things that could have been promoted, that never get the coverage that they deserve. So give me a call even if you think I know about something chances are I don't!

The Washburn County Fair is right around the corner July 26-29, 2012. I hope that you have all your registrations in for exhibiting as the deadline was July13th. Sounds like it will be a great time, make sure you put it on the schedule to go and support all the 4H kids and other exhibitors! Thanks in advance to all the volunteers and exhibitors that make the fairs possible.

Talking fairs the Wisconsin State Fair is August 2-12. I have never been to the Wi State Fair- since I came from Minnesota we always have gone to Mn State Fair. Either fair you go to the fun, sites, exhibits, smells and of course food are well worth going for!  I sure hope that you put it on the schedule. for this year. Let me know what you did while you were there.

Alittle further ahead on the calendar you can put the Wi Quilt Expo, September 6,7,8 2012. You can volunteer to help at the Expo, you would get a  ticket to get into the exhibit and a parking pass just for working 3-4 hours. There are all kinds of classes that you can take to further your knowledge about quilting.  There are even quilting contests that people can enter, see if they win something. Anyway you look at it there is something to do on one or all three days of the Quilting Expo! I  really want to go, guess I will have to see if I can get over there, would love to take a quilting class or two. I hear we have some great quilters in our area, are any of you going?? If you would like to see the agenda or need the forms for entering something you can get all the info at www.wiquiltexpo.com

That's it for this week. Please let me know if you would like something in the column. I need to have the info by Sunday evening so that I can put it all together and get it in by Monday  at noon. Have a wonderful week!

Spooner Advocate Column- 7-12-12

Good morning friends. First I want to apologize for last week, I had the column all typed ready to send, I always save things as I go and well the computer ate it! It had been acting funny and well it did not save the file or send the file to the office. So due to the early print time there was no way to write it all over again and resend in time for printing last week so I am sorry about that! I really do like paper and pen sometimes more than technology! Although I do have to say I love to have a computer, I like blogging and well just being able to find what  I want when I want it. Plus it is so much easier to stay in touch with those far away. So at some point I will need to get  a different computer......not looking forward to that!

I hope everyone is enjoying the cooler weather. Seems now at certain times a person can feel cold as its only 80 not 90 something! LOL How are the gardens growing out there? I have canned up three jellies so far, Onion, Dandelion and Strawberry Rhubarb- I had just enough Rhubarb!!  I love rhubarb and was hoping for more this year. I hope everyone is enjoying fresh food either from the garden or from the Farmers Market. Please support the local Growers and Farmers.

Did any of you go to the Spooner Rodeo? Sounded like everyone had a great time! How about the parade? We were there, Mikhaila and her youth group from church handed out water to folks. I was amazed at how many people were in the parade! It was really good and I have to say well done to all the folks that put it together, volunteered for it, or were in the actual parade itself. You all did a wonderful job and we all really enjoyed it! It really was a hoping town, so I hope you got out and enjoyed some of it.

Have you gone to any of the Cakes at the Lakes Nature Series over at Hunt Hill Audubon Sanctuary? This weekend July 14th Barb Sabatke presents
Loon Ranger on the Lookout. Aug 11 will be Mammals of Shore and Shallows. The cakes are served from 8-10 and the program follows at 10, the cost for breakfast is $7 for adults, $3 for folks 5-12. This is a great family event so go out and experience nature, the kids and the kid inside of you will love it! Any questions 715-635-6543 or www.hunthill.org

Anyone that knows me knows I have a huge heart for animals. I have a menagerie of animals here and am working up to getting  sheep! I have one sheep, Bob- he is here for fiber as he can't do anything else for the farm. So I have been looking for sheep, and what a hard decision to make about breeds! I know I want wool sheep and something that can be used for fiber and meat other than that well I am on the fence- I like to many breeds! I wish someone would just say " here Raine these are for you and please enjoy them"! That would be soooo helpful, not likely to happen, but helpful! So in the meantime I will keep looking at sheep, drooling over them. If you are interested in sheep or would just like to see what the Spooner Ag Station is up to they are hosting Spooner Sheep Day, Aug 18th from 9-3 pm. If you have any questions give Otto a call he can be reached at 715-635-3506. Hope to see some of you there!

Last but not least this weekend- July 14-15 is also Heritage Days over at the Pioneer Village Museum in Barron, from 10-5pm both days. I have not been to Heritage Days but have heard from others that it is worth going too. I did tell you that Mikhaila and I had just been over there and that a person should go just to see what  a great job that they have done over there. This is your opportunity, take the family and show the younger generation that they do have it pretty easy these days! They could be bailing hay the old way, or cooking on a wood stove! I know Alice was looking for folks to share their talents and to do demonstrations, it may not fit into your schedule this year but she is  putting a list together for helpers next year as well. Alice can be reached at 715-719-0256.

Thanks so much for reading the column. I would love to hear from you, even if its just a short hello. I can be reached at 715-766-2221 or twogirlsandagarden@hotmail.com. Have a wonderful week!

Try-It Tuesday!! Want to play with yo-yos?

Good morning come on in and have a glass of tea, lately we have been drinking a lot of sun tea. We also at times with make it a sweet tea- depends how much sweetening I need. Do you drink cold tea? Do you brew it outside? I am getting lazy- I throw some water in a mason jar put a Lipton cold tea bag in there and then I put two tea bags in a applesauce jar that is bigger, add water and then outside to the deck. Now we use those bags twice, once they are brewed we put them in a pitcher in the frig and refill the jars with water and put them back on the deck to brew again. If you have not tried sun tea why not give it a try.

Ok I am back... Mikhaila and  had to go break into the garage so that we can let all the animals out! That was really fun! Guess it was my fault as I had the second set of keys in the car! Still need to get a couple copies of the keys for the garage and house! Always something! Nothing dull around here! Just so you can enjoy the craziness with us I took  pictures! LOL

Here she is waiting for me to go get the chair (that I told her to bring out) so that she can put it in the window and set it up so she can stand on it and that way she does not kill herself.  At this point she had already had her leg and body in the window but wasn't really touching the ground. I thought it was a no brainer that she would use the chair to stand on.... hmmmm guess not???

At first we could not get the window open so I told her she had to dig under the door....we were also asking the geese who were on the other side of the door to hit the garage door opener.... ummm they didn't help us out!

This is where she was going to go in and put her leg on the chair, only she lost the chair (still folded) through the window!

This is when she told me the chair was laying on the ground on the other side of the window! I started laughing and she then started laughing and telling me to stop! All I could think of was she could be one of those people that fold themselves into a box! How is that possible... she is almost  6 feet tall!

Oh happy day! We can now let the animals out! Thanks to my daughter as she is awesome. I would not have been able to do this that quickly!

 Ok back to Try It Tuesday....Over at Joscountryjunction  Jo and her readers share their successes and failures on new thing that they have tried. Please go on over and see what Jo and her friends have tried. Also if you are looking for some more inspiration, a new idea- head over to Tip Junkie and see what her readers have been making. There is always  a lot too see at both of these websites , you are bound to learn something new and have some fun doing it! What I am sharing today its Yo-yos.... Have you ever made them? What did you make with the yo-yos? Would you like to share a pattern? I got the yo-yo maker awhile back and have been making them for awhile. I want to make a table runner, and that is where I need your help.....

This has the flash on... alittle washed out but you can see the patterns. Alot of the yo-yos are dark, so I started doing yellow - maybe for a center of a flower.

Then I could make them into flowers, with yellow centers. Then sew them together, maybe two flowers wide and however many flowers long. Or.....

I could lay them all out in a row and just do dark, light all the way down to add some "pop" to it. This option is all yo-yos straight across from each other- very square. Maybe like 6 or 8 wide and then however long.

Then I threw all those in a bag and started doing just light colors. Here I started staggering them. I would add pink and maybe a light purple- pull out some of the colors in the floral yo-yos.

What do you think? What would be your favorite? Would you put a back on it? Would that be wool or fabric? I  am leaning towards the staggered light yo-yos with no back. But hey who knows if that is the one that will happen. Thanks for visiting the blog today, I do appreciate your stopping by during your busy day. Have a wonderful day and have fun doing something crafty!