I haven’t read my emails yet but this morning starts the Quirky Little Quilts Sew Along. I’m going to do it – blocks are tiny but it looks like fun – I’ll find out more and let you know. Anybody with me?
Reed and I had a fun afternoon yesterday. He fixed a mistake on his quilt back that I discovered before we delivered it to the quilter last week. Whew! Then we went to his Grandma Cheryl’s house where Reed’s 3 chicks are getting their start. I did not want to get 20 more chickens this spring so Reed got these 3 at Bomgars Farm Store. When I see them it makes me wish they were mine – haha! On a side note – I need to get some pictures of my chicks that are getting tail feathers and all 5 run together as one so there’s this little flurry of chicks wherever they go.
Back to Reed. Here he is holding one of the chicks who are named for great grandmothers. This is Pearl. The other two are Vernice and Alice. Honestly who names a chicken these personal names – except me! Maybe he’s had someone influencing him – haha! Remember his grown hens, Debbie, Delores, Edna and Alta, have spent the winter here in my barn.
Here are the new girls – Alice, Pearl and Vernice.
And now two more Harveys for the Harvey Parade! From Lois, a big Harvey.
And from Paula
And now I’ll show you my most embarrassing moment. Is my face red! I made this Harvey and have previously made several others. I became obsessed with matching the stripes in the pants which could not be done since the little strip of background fabric is between his legs. I would have had to put a seam in the top part of the pants to make the stripe continuous. In the meantime I didn’t realize what I did with his hands. I finished making the top, sewed around the bow tie and nose, added the embroidery and then quilted it. After it was quilted I added all the buttons, carefully choosing a variety, and then I bound it — never once noticing the hands – until I looked at Paula’s Harvey and I wondered about making a shirt of a different color for Harvey. Okay, here he is – my most embarrassing moment on the blog.
I couldn’t even get to sleep thinking about showing this to you guys and giving it to a friend! Poor Karla – I gave my deformed Harvey to Vera and June who loved him but wait till their mom explains that he has no hands. The hands are down by his feet!
Well, that’s all I can write – I’m working on the Goat Gazette price and will tell you soon. For now I have to get rid of my red face. Maybe I’ll be able to laugh at this by the time we meet in Rochester at the Minnesota Quilt Show. Reed is coming with me to meet any of you who can come. Tonight is Band Bonanza at the school. Hope you have a better day than me!
No worries- Harvey just hasn’t rolled up his cuffs yet. He is darling and will be loved as is.
We all make those goofs! Our eyes sees what our mind knows to be right. All is good, those girls will love that quilt no matter what. Be easy on yourself. Have a great time at the show with Reed.
I am laughing so hard I know that you aren’t right now but I think we have all made mistakes and just have to love these pieces all the more for it.
I love that you are comfortable enough with us to share.
I had thought about joining the quilt along, but I am obsessed with little Harvey right now. Finishing up a few almost complete projects and want to get Harvey on the wall before Easter. Thankfully Easter is late this year. I hung the egg wreaths over the weekend and bunny wall quilts. April 1 I will switch bed quilts and put a tulip one on the bed.
Starting to get itchy to begin the gardening season.
The chicks are so cute, I am have a little chick envy here.
Rita M – the minute you mentioned the Easter egg wreath I jumped up and dug around for mine and hung it on the front door. So glad you’re enamored with Harvey right now – I’m going to hate to try again.
I know what you mean about chick envy. I told Reed we could order whatever he wanted as soon as he can get here every single day to do the chores. So that’s what we’re going to plan for.
This is SO funny! Not quilting but still…. we took a group photo of our six grandchildren at Christmas. At that point my husband has taken lots of photos! A month later I was looking at the best shot of the six and kept thinking what is wrong with this???? Our four year old grandson had his hands up his sweatshirt sleeves.
Cheryl – haha! I’m laughing NOW about your Christmas picture! Too funny
Harvey will be well loved, as is!! His hands actually look like bows on his shoelaces. As Mary has said, he just hasn’t rolled up his sleeves yet! I love seeing what everyone has done to personalize their Harveys! I need to put down my pinnies and finish my Harveys!
THAT is exactly what I thought too!! 😊
Bet 99.9% of people would never have noticed if you fidn’t tell them. Just call it the eye of god and go on. Reed & his chicks are so cute. Looks like going to be a beautiful day here. Hail & storms went to the north of us…luckily, caused damage to the west…Denton & Allen got severe damage.Flower beds been severely neglected last several years, today plan to clean out and hopefully decide what will plant. Tomorrow go into town to have lab work drawn and will stop by nursery to hopefully get plants and hanging baskets for porch. Hopeless baskets of something the llama won’t eat once it is fill &beautiful …any ideas?
“From the back of a galloping horse!” 🙂
Michele – But THIS one can actually be seen from that galloping horse. Ugh.
OH, I am laughing out loud. A no-handed Harvey! With bows on his shoes. If that isn’t just like something I would do, I’ll put in with you?? Oh my gosh! What a shock to you when you found it. Just proves. We all make mistakes, even teachers. The little girls are loving him.
Your Harvey is adorable, and the girls already love him. I’ve pulled fabric for my Harvey but going to change to striped pants because they are so cute. I am doing the Quirky Little Quilts challenge. Love the smaller blocks. So I’m in with you!
Janine – what sort of fabric are you going to use?
I am trying to get out of my reproduction comfort zone so have some brights that I think will be fun. Not sure yet about his trousers!
Janine – will you email Karen’s address to me?
Love those chicks!!
I plan on doing the Quirky Quilt Sew Aling. As a side note, I had to look several times to figure out Harvey’s hands situation! We have all done something similar, at least I have!
Sheryl A – what type of fabrics are you using for your sampler?
Once again you start my day with SO many grins! Those two little blonde darlings love Harvey, hands or no!!
And you couldn’t sleep – thinking about sharing this with us! O MY! What quilters can loose sleep over. I am packing for next week’s retreat and I awaken so many times with projects dancing-in-my- head!
Just went online to look up #quirkylittlequiltsqal on Instagram. O yeah, I am IN! This will continue with the pincushion mini blocks addiction!!! Isn’t the Baptist Fan quilting on that mini sampler beautiFULLLLL!!!
HUGS to All Y’ll
Judy in Texas
Judy Linn – what kind of fabrics are you going to use in your sampler? Just little 3” blocks that won’t take too long is what’s so appealing to me.
Happy I could make you grin this morning – truly I couldn’t sleep for thinking about showing you gals my stupid mistake. The little girls are ill love Harvey and probably never notice.
when is the quilt show in minneapolis?h
Holly – I’m talking about the MN Quilters show in Rochester – I don’t know anything about Mpls.
Oh, and I wanted to tell about my new young hens. I didn’t want to do the chick thing again, so I followed up two adds on Craigs List and got two Swedish Flower 1-year-olds and two 9 mo. old Auracaunas. They are all so beautiful. Has anyone heard of Swedish Flower chickens? They are on the chicken endangered list, but backyard chicken people are slowing bringing them back. They are each marked a bit differently and can be different colors, too. The tips of their wings look like flowers. I am yet to see that because I have been confined to the house so much with the crud since I got them. The Auracaunas are adorable. One orange and white and one grey and white. So, they are all getting flower names this time. Dahlia, Zinnia, Marigold and I can’t come up with a name for the grey Auracanua. Maybe…Rose. We are getting about two eggs a day so far. My two very old girls were startled and a bit angry at first, but quickly adjusted and now they are already a nice flock.
I have two swedish flower hen Roosters they are such sweet chickens. The thing that surprised me about them is they could fly even though they are quite large. Their colors and plumage will change after their first real moult. They will be even more beautiful. I wasn’t able to get any hens when I got these two boys so they have a small haren of Buff Orpington hens. Enjoy!
Rita M in CT – I have never heard of Swedish flower hen species – gotta ask Reed.
Mary the original chicken arrived at JFK intl airport in 2010 and mine are from the first generation hatched here. I will email you a photo of my roosters.
Sue in Oregon – I just asked Rita about these Swedish flower chickens – I’ve never heard of them and the next comment I read is yours about the same kind of chickens- wow , I’d love to see a picture.
How about Bouganvillia or Aster?
Harvey is an original. He is just hiding all the Easter eggs in his hands to eat instead of giving them out. Reed is adorable.
Harvey is wearing bunny slippers! So cute! LOL
Oops! maybe you & Reed can machine applique some paws on Harvey . . . ??
I agree with Nikki, if you didn’t draw attention to lack of hands I’ll bet it wouldn’t be noticed. They are so cute any which way.
One-of-a-kind Harvey is adorable!
He looks as if he’s wearing bunny slippers! 🙂
-Jean ❤
All mistakes are fixable, I’m with Barbara F. –applique Harvey two hands and cover the other boo boo! Or , just leave Harvey as a unique original.
Mary, THIS Harvey is my absolute favorite!!! I laughed so hard, I had tears running down my cheeks!! I absolutely love him!! I think he’s perfect just the way he is. (& I am a perfectionist lol)
He has personality! I love all the fabrics you picked, but most of all I love his silliness! We’ve all made mistakes like this – most of us just don’t have a blog where we share them. He is incredibly encouraging to me. Thank you for keeping it real. I’ll bet this post has encouraged a lot of people – it did that for me. I think I’ll just sew and try to not be so worried about all of it!! xoxo
By the way: once, I put together a tall bookshelf from IKEA (a nightmare lol). When I got to the last bit I realized I’d put it together upside down!!! Not wanting to take it apart, I still have it in my livingroom! NO ONE notices except me! lol
Patricia E Campbell – Rick has banned me from IKEA because he hates putting the stuff together. I just love IKEA but don’t let myself go now.
Oh Mary! Thank you so much for the good laugh! This would be something I would do. The girls just love Harvey and maybe he just has something up his sleeve! Have a wonderful day.
Harvey is unique and wonderful! The girls will love him just the way he is! Reed and his chicks are adorable. Can’t wait to see Reed’s quilt when it come back from the long armer.
Yes! Bunny slippers! I think Harvey’s great – his sleeves are long and they cover up his hands. How can you be so embarrassed? We all make mistakes, this one is really cute, the kids love him already, and you gave us all a great giggle this morning. We will definitely remember this pattern….
And i love the little chicks, too!!
Hey there are no quilt police here, just good natured laughs and real friends. Only a real person would admit what you find wrong but I agree it looks like bunny slippers. The girls love it and that’s what matters when you create something. Reed looks so kind with his chicks. I sure wish the quilt show was in Rochester New York and not Rochester, Minnesota. I would be there in a heartbeat.
Well it took three looks for me to see what you were talking about with the missing hands. Marie Beers is right. We also have chickens with people names: Ellen, Thelma and Louise. I think lots of us do that lol.
Love your Harvey story!!!! 😂😂😂
I think your Harvey is cute! I wouldn’t have noticed it if you didn’t tell. It did make me laugh out loud though!
Actually, I kind of love that his hands are by his feet. 🙂
I am reading Prairie Fires – The American Dream of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Caroline Fraser. This is a book compiled from Laura’s diaries- the true description of her life compared to her novels.
Nice sunny day! Bill is off in west Iowa for Red Cross aid so I can sew!
Mary. Thank you for the book suggestion. Picked up at library today and am hooked.
I agree…he’s just wearing comfy bunny slippers and he’s hiding eggs in his sleeves! No biggie, Mary!
Just say Harvey likes wearing his sleeves over his hands because his hands are always cold! Reed is getting as famous as you, Mary. People are really going to want to meet that young man we all love reading about. Wish I could come see you both. Just take lots of pictures for us at the show.
what a good chuckle I got out of your post. Its happen to us all sometime. If you didn’t point it out most wouldn’t have seen it. Sometimes I think God helps us do some of these things so we can learn to laugh at our self. I think he’s wonderful. I’ve been looking me mine ever since you started showing these. We moved back in the fall and I’m not sure where my guy has gotten off too. I’m so glad Reed has someone like you in his life, kids can never have enough grandparents and bonus grandparents. I tell everyone if my grandkids will just think of me as I do my grandparents and some of the other people that were bonus grandparents then I’ve done my job. Love reading your blog keep up the good work.
My grandmother raised laying hens in her backyard in California. I lived with her during the week. Each of the thirteen hens was named. I don’t remember them all, but there was Vivian, Evelyn, Marion, Carolyn , Addylyn, and I don’t know what all! They all ended with an “n “sound! As for Harvey, Gramma would say. ” Twill nae be noticed on a galloping goose!”
Trudy Locke – I would have LOVED your grandmother! I want to be like her when I grow up – haha!
Love this. Proves you are human, sleepless night and all. Thanks for sharing. Lol.
Love this. Proves you are human, sleepless night and all. Thanks for sharing. Lol.
Those little chicks are sooo cute!!! I can see why you want more. Just remember, “all small things grow up”. There is a reason why they are so cute as babies.
I’m still looking for the mistake!!!
Thanks for a great laugh.
You can always appliqué the hands on. I thought he just had some fuzzy slippers on!
I have the Quirky Little Quilts book and do want to do the blocks, but won’t be able to get started until the
weekend.
I have saved scraps for a long time. Have boxes for 1-1/2″, 2″, 2-1/2#, 2-7/8″,3″, 4″, 5″ 5-1/4″. And have larger boxes for strips-11/2″, 2″, 2-1/2″. (had many cut for Noodles and worms from Debbie Caffrey books). Have recently started cutting some 10″ squares to use as “layer cake” size. Sometimes I do purchase precuts, as they can be so pretty, but mostly try to cut from what I have cut (and keep adding to). Have an almost complete collection of your books, and have always loved the scrappiness of your designs!
Those little angels you gave Harvey to could care less, you can see how much they love him. And it’s good to know someone else can make a significant goof and not see it until it’s too late. Chances are most wouldn’t notice it if you didn’t point it out. My girlfriend Marcia always asks ” Can you see it from Court Street?” Which of course is always no, so she adds – don’t worry about it!
As far as Reed’s baby chicks, like you I always name my chickens. I’ve gone through family and friends, often naming them by their color after family and friend’s hair color. The last three babies I got from the farm store for Nancy (who is my younger sister) when she became broody again and refused to leave a nest regardless if she was only sitting on the fake eggs. I knew my chicks were going to be one black hen and two pale yellow birds so they are named Elizabeth Taylor, Zsa Zsa Gabor and Marilyn Monroe. They are three stars and because they were nest mates they stay together when they are out roaming. Willey my rooster isn’t too fond of them because they run to fast and he’d rather “date” the hens that don’t protest as much! Lo
Love your stories, they are the highlight of my day! And I love the fact than someone else works on a farm as much as I do! Linda
Vera and June have a one of a kind treasure. As I wrote before, I’m so glad there are others on this blog who make mistakes. I cringe when I think of the mistakes I have made when I teach sewing. Luckily, the mistakes have all been fixable. Reed’s chicks are beautiful. They are such a sign of spring. It is cool here, but sunny with clear blue skies.
Thank you Mary! Best laugh I’ve had in a long time. We all do these things. I had a log cabin quilt quilted and hung on the wall for a loooooong time when all of a sudden I realized two blocks were turned the wrong way. I fessed up first chance I got with show & tell and the guild….it it so much fun to have a good laugh at yourself with your best “quilting friends”. We are laughing with you today friend!
Your Harvey is Fabulous and a one of a kind creation! Thank you for sharing the mistake. It really does make me feel better about the ones I make, too.
The baby chicks are precious Trio! They will be such fun pets!
Paula In Texas
Mary, I think your Harvey looks better, the shoes look a little flat on the other Harvey’s- without the laces, or maybe more like comfy slippers…just sayin. You are so descriptive I can actually envision the darting ball of chicks. I like everyone else, just enjoy your blog so much Mary. My driveway is no longer an ice skating rink -that means I can take my trash to the curb without wiping out WooHoo!! I really need a life.Cindy in Wi.
I like him. Hands are cold and he has them tucked in and he has buckles on his shoes? Years from now quilters will be having a discussion about ‘ I wonder why she did that’. Love it!
Oh! I’m already doing TWO sew along so I cannot start another! I already did your bullseye SAL. I don’t know what has gotten me going this year. My husband has been looking at chicks on line so well have some new ones soon.
I love your Harvey! Can’t wait to receive my patterns and get started!
Thank you Mary and the many others for your kind thoughts on the passing of our Sweet Steph!
I really got a laugh at your Harvey mistake. I noticed on one of the pictures you posted someone had the cuff and background fabric reversed on one arm. I was careful on my Harvey to be sure I didn’t do that, but low and behold after I put my borders on and looked over my Harvey I had put the shoes on UPSIDE down!
But it is just for me and no one else will know, ha ha! We all do silly things but that put the individual touch on it. These are so much fun, thank you for sharing and being a part of so many lives.
I didn’t even notice his hands were down below until someone mentioned the bunny slippers!! We all have made mistakes and most people don’t even see them! My husband painted houses in the summer and the crew always said, ““Can’t see it from my house!” Soooo… I think yours is cute and special and those little girls clearly love him. Your baby checks look so soft and cute. Reed is a keeper😃😃.
I’ve been told that the Amish always have at least 1 error in their quilts because only God is perfect. There are just some things that don’t matter. And just look at the fun we all are having making Harvey. What else could be nicer? Besides baby chicks???
Did I miss something about the Quirky Quilts sew along?
I love Harvey. It reminds me even The Best are human ! Encourages me to just go w/my mistakes and love it. Thank you for sharing your wonderful days.
Hi Mary, those little pieces were the ones tripping me. But in the future, I am going to remember that if you with all your experience make a mistake, I don’t have to worry about making them. Your Harvey is very cute and he will be so loved. I love those little chicks
I tried to leave a suggestion for Sue in Oregon, about naming the other chicken Bouganvillia or Aster, but it didn’t post under her message.
I have a red face moment as well. I spent a lot of time on a quilt that I just loved the fabric and couldn’t wait to get it done. Well, it wasn’t till I picked it up from the quilter that I noticed that I had put one border on completely upside down from all of the others. The quilter said to me, “I thought you wanted it that way.” I was so mad at myself that all of those stitches had to be taken out and re-quilted. To this day it still sits–I really should work on it while watching tv and get it re-quilted.
I laughed til I cried! In fact, my husband had to come over and see Harvey too!
Oh, I thought he had on bunny slippers!
Mary, we always give our chickens “people” names, just like we do for our dogs and cats. The most personal names we’ve bestowed so far was when we named two of the ladies “Grace” and Edith” after John’s oldest aunties. They were his dad’s sisters, but old enough to be another generation so they seemed like great-aunts to him when he was growing up; their kids were the same age as John’s dad and he had great memories of going to stay with his sisters on their farms and playing with their kids. I imagine that was a relief for his own mom who wasn’t expecting to be raising an energetic boy again after all those years. Those two sisters were fondly remembered when we tended to two of the best chickens we ever had. They followed Midge and Rita, named after my mom’s post-nursing-school roommates–how I loved the stories she told about their adventures: Sue Barton and Cherry Ames come to life, my mom’s own life! So, hooray for Reed, honoring the ladies! He is in good company.
Beth T – I loved your story! It kinda makes me crazy when I see a very personable dog named Buddy or a gorgeous cat named Fluffy. Janey, our first JRT, arrived from the shelter already named. Then came a little mixed breed puppy we named Faye for Rick’s mom and now we have Hazel named for my mom. Saying those beloved names brings a memory many times a day, doesn’t it? I also have one very special petite cat named Heidi for a cousin’s daughter who passed away at age 16 from kidney cancer. I believe it’s an expression of honor and respect and I think you do, too