On Christmas Eve...

I would like to wish all of my family and friends, old and new, a very Merry and Meaningful Christmas. When we celebrate our Savior's birth, His spirit fills our heart with love for one another and a desire to serve all of His children. I pray that we all can keep His spirit with us as we begin a new year and a new beginning.  

Below are some images of Christmas in the Scarbrough home.

Bambi and his Mom and cuddled under our tree.

"Over The River and Through the Woods to Grandmothers house we go"

May all your Christmas wishes come true.

Our baby, Molly on HER couch.

We wish you the happiest of Holidays!

Visions of Nutcrackers

Yesterday, I took 4 of my fabulous 11 grand daughters to see the Columbia Dance productions of  "The Nutcracker". I wish they all could have came, but alas, they don't live locally. Gabrielle, Katherine, Olivia and Shelby  AND their Grandmas really enjoyed it. It was a beautiful production!

December Sisters 'n' Stitches Party

Our December meeting was really fun-everyone was there except Pam, who we certainly missed! Here are our post cards for our monthly exchange.
Barb was the only one who brought things for "Show and Tell" and all her projects were amazing!
She has been a very prolific sewer/quilter, producing dozens of hand made gifts for her family.
Below are some of the examples she showed us:
How cute are these!!
This was just fabulous! (And this is from one "sleighbelle" who knows her sleighs!)
This wasn't yellow, of course - just bad lighting on my part, but it was really cute!
We enjoyed a yummy pot luck dinner, and a fun "White Elephant" gift exchange.
I'm sorry about the blurry picture-these ladies were actually very sharp! :-)
It's so fun to have friends who share your love of quilting, and are so generous with their friendship, love and knowledge.
Pat brought her daughter, Beth, who was visiting from Maui. She was a delight and fit right in!

Guest Room Makeover

After months of working on this project, it is nearing completion (just a few more pillows to sew).
It's really been fun making over the little downstairs bedroom that used to be my sewing room.
I love Sarah Richardson's style (of "Sarah's House" on HGTV), so I've tried to approach this room the way she does: by choosing the fabrics first and moving on from there. I did actually already have the room painted a dusty robin's egg blue, but from there it was pretty open. I found just the fabric I wanted for my curtains and waited till it went on 50% off sale and ordered it. It is perfect. I found the old bed at "Once and Again" consignment shop on the corner of St. Johns and 78th St. (Before and after pics are below) The dresser was a garage sale find as was the little chair and night stands.


This chandelier is my favorite thing in the room. I found it at the "Vintage Gathering" Flea Market Sale. It's even prettier in person.
Without intending it, the room has emerged with a bird theme. I got these paintings and the large floral one below at Fred Meyer. I hadn't even thought to look there, but happpened on them and they were just right.
This fun bookcase was a vintage find I have had for a few years. The pink mirror over the dresser is reflecting the two bird pictures.
I love this picture! It is just the right feeling for the room. We put up white bead board paneling and I really like the look. The bedside lamps were found at "The Olive Kat"!
This is a before picture of the footboard. It looks better in the picture than it was. It was pretty beat up and chewed up, but I love the curves, so I used a lot of wood filler and sand paper and paint and ended up with:
This is the "after". The lighting doesn't really show the detail, but it's pretty cute and the Headboard looks great too, I think. Below is the "before" of the dresser. I tried to put legs on it but was unsuccessful.
So this is the "after". The dresser is actually light pink and I added the crystal drawer pulls.
Now, all that's left is for you to come visit me and stay in my guest room! You would be so welcome!

Portland's White House

I don't know how many of you have seen "Portland's White House". It is not too far from Lloyd Center. It's a wonderfully grand bed and breakfast. It has great sentimental meaning for Gary and I, as it was where we spent the first night of our honeymoon 25 years ago. We just celebrated our anniversary yesterday. Twenty-five years ago we "blended" our two families and became the Scarbrough Bunch! We were able to have 6 of our 7 children together here at home for Thanksgiving and it was a great anniversary gift!

A Little Springtime on a Cold Rainy November Day

I recently finished these dish towels. I used one of the block patterns from "A Tisket A Tasket".
If you are a regular visitor to my blog, you may have noticed the "Blogs I follow" column on the left where I have links to some of my favorite blogs. Two I really love are "Birdie Blue" and "Bluebird Notes". Their photographs are so appealing - darling colors and subject matter, soooo, I am trying to borrow their style. I think I need a bit more education on photography. The first lesson would be actually getting my pictures IN FOCUS!
Today is a dreary, rainy northwest day, BUT, tomorrow my two daughters arrive from Utah with grandchildren in tow, for Thanksgiving, so I am a happy girl as I scramble to get my house cleaned up.
I wish a very Happy Thanksgiving to all my dear friends, old and new and to my loved ones.

Christmas at "Creative Interiors and Design"

I dropped by "Creative Interiors and Design" and was wowed by the elegant, luxurious, over-the-top Christmas decorations they have on display. None of the pictures I took of the several trees they have in the store turned out, but you really should stop by and see them.
This is a fun store for dreaming...




Another store with amazing Christmas decor is "Rare Earth Design" at the Ridgefield Junction.
If you've never been there or haven't lately, it is a "rare" treat. They have things I've never seen anywhere else and it's quite stunning!

I am grateful...for my "Sisters 'n' Stitches

We had a great time at our November meeting last Tuesday at Barb's. Lorali was our hostess. Candy started off "show and tell" with this amazing fabric bowl. It is a project for her Art Quilt Group.

This is the back. She explained out she formed it. It was really fascinating. She still has to do the stitching on it.

This was another bowl. She felted this one. The colors were soft and muted - really cool and completely unique!
This picture really doesn't do justice to these dish towels that Margy embroidered on her machine. You had to be there!
Lorali made this quilt for charity I believe. We loved the colors and I loved the piano keys border.

Lorali sewed this darling reversible apron for a friend. Soooo cute!
Here are our post cards for the month - one for each of the six of us that were there. We missed the rest of you!!

To borrow a quote from a blog I follow:
"When you're grateful, whatever you have is enough"

Cool Local Barns

I never thought I'd be blogging about barns, but there are a couple I've seen lately that belong to friends of mine that certainly deserve a mention! This barn belongs to a dear friend and fellow quilter, Colleen Bloemke. Her sons helped her add these quilt blocks to the side of her barn in Ridgefield and I LOVE the result!
This is the ULTIMATE Party Barn. It belongs to Roberta and Jerry Peterson of Woodland. She gave me a tour and I was blown away! They refitted the barn with everything you would need for a large gathering. On the main level, is a HUGE kitchen and dining area, a beautiful lobby and restrooms. Upstairs in a huge stunning room for weddings, parties, quilt shows or anything you can imagine. As you can see in the foreground of this picture, the grounds outside are fabulous too. Notice the sculpted bush in the shape of a dog.

This pond is part of the lovely landscaping surrounding the barn.
This is the view standing in the middle of the upstairs room and looking west. The other end of the room is equally dramatic.

These beautiful doors lead from the foyer to the kitchen/dining room. (Sorry this is out of focus)
The doors and nearly all the building materials they used were salvaged or reclaimed or garage sale pieces, but they add up to something amazing. Roberta said the barn is available to be rented. It would really be a treat to be able to have a function there!

Cupcakes for Breakfast

I'm trying to get a few more dishtowels made for the shop, in between quilts. My question is: Where do you find time to sew AND read? I think the answer is to eliminate housework!