Add to the stash for not a lot of money

A week or so ago, I posted about how to build your fabric stash without spending a lot of money.

I have recently realized that one of the thrift stores that I go to has fabric that is donated to it. And sometimes the fabric is quilting quality- 100% cotton and just good quality fabric.

 

This week I went by said thrift store and found this gorgeous piece of fabric- 3/4 of a yard for $1.00! What a deal! It has little sparkles in the fabric as well. This photo doesn't do the fabric justice.

 

Now I wanted to share another great resource to add fabric to your stash costing hardly anything at all. Monday night I went to my Quilt Guild meeting. They have a back table where fellow quilters bring quilting stuff that they no longer want for anyone to get....for free! What an awesome deal on fabric. I found these two great pieces of fabric - 3/4 yard on one and 1 yard on the other- with no money out of pocket - other than my membership fees each year. But as my MIL explained - even that 30.00 is a bargain when you consider that there are 11 meetings a year - costing me less than 3.00 a meeting. These meetings are 2-3 hours long. Each month volunteers members bring food to create a meal for us to eat before our meeting. Each member is asked to bring food at least one time through the year. The rest of the year - you go and eat a great meal without any hassle at all. There is  the opportunity to meet like minded people and make new friends. They usually have several door prizes each meeting. Show and tell - lots of beautiful quilts to see. This is a great way to get inspiration. And it encourages me to get busy working on my own projects. Then there is sometime of a program that provides learning opportunities and laughs. So when you take all of this in to consideration - plus more that I probably left out - it really is an awesome deal. So this time I was able to add two pieces of fabric to my stash just by going to my quilt guild meeting.

 

I was reminded last week that Walmart used to sell the remnants of fabric from a bolt for a good deal. The next time I make it to Walmart I am going to go see if they still do this - I want to see if that would be a good way to add fabric to my stash.

 

If you have JoAnn's or Hobby Lobby in your area- they could be great places to get great deals on fabric - Hobby Lobby usually has a 40% off coupon online that you can use for one item - why not use it for a great piece of fabric every now and then? JoAnn's has coupons in the newspaper - and might also do one on line - I am not sure. The nearest JoAnn's from me is probably about a 25 minute drive or so - I don't go there very often to be honest.

 

So there are many great resources of places to find fabric to add to your stash- if you are trying to built it of course. But let me tell you this - when I am watching a show and tell at quilt guild or at my Block of the Month meetings- I am happily surprised at how great many quilts turn out when people say they just used their scraps. Having a stash allows them to do this!

If you have any great ideas on how to add to the stash for not a lot of money - please share. Thanks :O)

Thankful, Great Deal and a Puzzle

As I am writing, a rain shower is moving through. There is a chance of thunderstorms and maybe even severe weather. But I am not going to be complaining. I am going to share with you that I was able to get out and get a walk on Sabbath, Sunday, and Monday! The sunshine felt SO very good! And in fact, as I walked I noticed that the clover was very happy to see the sun as well. If you were to take a photo of a clover patch- you would easily be able to tell which direction the sun was shining from because the clover was reaching for the sunshine. I have to say that I am so happy to have been able to get out and walk. Walking is good for the soul, as is the sunshine and fresh air that you get as a result from being out in nature walking. Just being out in nature is so good for your soul. I am so thankful that we had a few days that had some sunshine interspersed during the day.

As last week-ended and I finished up adding all of my things to do for the upcoming week(this week) I noticed that this week would be very busy with an appointment for me or my MIL each and every day of the week. But my MIL ended up coming down with flu -B. So Monday I spent some time on the phone rescheduling appointments.

I was able to get my hair cut - after 7 weeks - which seemed like a long time. My hair is back to where I love it! I have loved it for a while but I just seem to appreciate it more and more. I am so thankful to have my hair back. While I was out and about I was able to stop by a couple thrift stores. I am happy to say that I found a nwot pair of St. John's Bay jeans for me - $8.00 - They are SO comfortable - they will be favorites for sure! I am thankful when God brings these great deals to my attention. I also was able to add to my stash and will have a blog post tomorrow about that- along with another several more ideas of where to find good deals for adding to a stash of fabric.

Last week end I found the prettiest 500 piece puzzle for 50 cents. There are no guarantees that all the pieces are there but it was so pretty I could not pass it up. Plus I have been wanting to have a puzzle to work on - but didn't want a huge puzzle to do. We have 5 cats -so I have to cover the puzzle when I am not working on it and that can be a pain if the puzzle is large.

See what I mean~ It's beautiful! I look forward to little bits of time here and there that I am able to work on my puzzle.

 

Hope you all are doing well. :O)  

Beloved Names of God..series "Wall of Fire"

Wall of Fire

 

"For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about,

 and will be the glory in the midst of her."

Zechariah 2:5 KJV

 

 

• Name of God the Father
• God is referred to as a "wall of fire" once in the KJV.
• In an age when fireproof materials were all but inconceivable, a wall of fire would have been considered an unbreachable defense.
• Zechariah was predicting a return to glory for Jerusalem - a city once again under God's protection. The scattered Jews would return from exile and people of many nations would worship in Jerusalem. it would be a time when God would dwell in the city. Zechariah may have been predicting Jesus or the Second coming.

 

IF you have a computer, it is probably protected by a firewall. When you go online, the firewall filters all messages, allowing the permissible ones through and blocking potentially harmful ones.

 

God, Ezekiel promised, would be that kind of protection for Jerusalem, It wouldn't need city walls; it would have a divine Wall of Fire.

 

The Lord can be a Wall of Fire for our lives, too. Jesus activate a program called prayer- it's the best firewall around.

 

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Next week we will look at "Quickening Spirit"

and winter continues.....

Prior to winter arriving, my mother in law had heard a report that we were in for a wet winter. And boy were they right. It has been overcast and rainy most days for the last several weeks. Sadly there have been very few times when the sun has actually been seen. There has been a day in the upper 60's or 70's here and there and one day it almost got to 80 degrees but still not much sun. I could count on one hand the days we have had that have been in the 60's or above the last month or so. This is very unusual for Texas. We are used to winters where we have bad weather here and there but not most of the time. I know, I know there are some of you readers that deal with so much worse winter weather than we do here- but just trust me - we are not used to this much overcast, dreary weather. I have new sympathy for those of you who deal with real winters every year.

Spring can not come soon enough! This is how I am feeling today. Thankfully I am not as sickly as I was feeling yesterday. I still have a lingering headache but thankfully not dizzy like yesterday.

Well I hope you all are staying warm and dry.

Extra prayers requested

I feel like I am getting sick. This am I was so dizzy off and on for an hour and decided to take a nap. Even laying down with my eyes closed - I felt very dizzy. It calmed down until I went to change positions and I felt very dizzy again. I slept for 1 1/2 hours and woke up feeling a bit better. I got a shower while I felt better still and am now feeling like I am on the edge of feeling crappy again. I do not want to get sick that hour or so earlier I was miserable- felt hot flashes and nauseous as well.

I have taken some charcoal with water - which is suppose to pull poisons out of your body - hopefully I can keep this bug at bay. I was miserable earlier and don't want to get that sick again.

Thanks so much for the prayers.

Beloved Names of God..series "Plant of Renown"

Plant of Renown

"And I will raise up for them a plan of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.

Ezekiel 34:29 KJV

 

• Name of God the Son
• Jesus is referred to as a "plant of renown" once in the KJV.
• The term Plan of Renown may have been another way of referring to the Branch of Jesse, a description ( and prediction) of the coming Messiah. In talking about being hungry no more, Ezekiel was probably referring to the Plant of Renown satisfying our spiritual hunger.
• Ezekiel reminded the Israelites that, despite present troubles God was still with them and would be their deliverance.

After all the uproar about genetically modified crops, there are still people who think that what the scientist are trying to achieve is a find and worthwhile goal. The plans they want to "create" will, they hope, thrive in harsher environments, provide a greater yield, and help sustain life. Of course, we wouldn't have to manipulate our agriculture into working overtime if people could be convinced to turn away with war, corruption, and greed, concentrating instead on "Love they neighbor,"

 

It was a Plant of Renown who gave that advice. The Holy Spirit planted a seed that grew and lived in such a hostile environment that it was killed a mere three years after glowering. But in those three years, it produced a yield of first twelve, then hundreds, and then millions of others. And as for sustaining life, the Plant of Renown sustains lives of renown, and no just until the next harvest- forever!

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Next week we will look at "Wall of Fire"

 

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Continuing, continuing, continuing...

It's time for another look at "grace."


Grace saves by continuing, continuing, continuing to love to the absolute nth degree. It supersedes guilt as a dominant force. As the law of speed transcends the law of gravity, so the principle of grace transcends the principle of sin. Whereas guilt says, “You are a worthless, rebellious, degraded wretch, undeserving of even one more breath of life.” Grace says, “True, so very true, but God loves you still and sees so much value in you that He literally laid down His own life so you may live.”
~Ty Gibson in “Shades of Grace”

Which Are You?

There are two types of people.

Encouragers and Discouragers

Thankfully we usually have some of each kind of people in our lives. Well I say thankfully only because I would hate to only have discouragers in my life. Life is hard enough to deal with already - we really don't need anyone trying to bring us down with their unrealistic expectations from us. Thankfully God brings into our lives those who encourage us and lift us up above the storm clouds in life.

There are two types of people ~ Encouragers and Discouragers

Do you know which category you would fall under?  

I think that many times we vacillate between the two. It all comes down to the choices we make each day. It comes down to the words we choose. Are our words uplifting? Or do they drag people down.

This week I have dealt with some discouragers - I don't even know if they realize that they are discouragers by the words they choose to say.

Those discouraging words can have a very negative impact on us. They can cause unnecessary stress. They can cause a bad nights sleep...or two.

We can't control other people and which category they choose to live under, but we can choose which category we want to live under. We can choose to be uplifting to those we come in contact with. We can be kind - even to those who are discouraging to us. It is in the choices that we make. Let's choose to be encourager. There is enough negativity in the world. Let's let our lights shine for Jesus. Allow Him to love people through us.
  

We never know....

This past week I ran across another photo of our dear sweet Wally, who passed away on
 Thanksgiving day.

As I looked at the photo I thought to myself, "Had I known you were going to be with us for such a short period of time I would have sat down and enjoyed you more often." I have been pondering this thought this week. We need to have this same mindset with those we love- our family, friends, and animals. We have no idea how long we will have them in our lives and it would be so much better had we taken the time to love them to be patient with them - then to lose them and then to feel frustrated or guilty for not spending more time with them. Just a thought that I wanted to share- I think it is important for us all because we never know how long we have with those we love.

I think this is a great message - not just because it is Valentine's day. Because I think that we need to show those we love  - that we love them - not just on one day a year - but every day! :O)

Refurbished

So slowly we are making a few improvements around the house. A couple of weeks ago, I showed how my husband reupholstered our dining room chairs and a stool. Well he also reupholstered these chairs for me.

 

And then he got some special pain and he sanded the chair down and then painted it. Once he finished a few other important jobs we have going on around here - he will be working on the other chair. I think they will look great in my sewing room!!

 

Sublime Reality of God....Grace

“ Grace is the sublime reality of God, who is infinitely holy in all His ways; God, whose law requires perfect obedience; God, who by His mighty power could speak a word to obliterate all that now is and start creation all over again; Grace is this God choosing to forgive men and women who have mocked his holiness, rebelled against His law, and denied His power.
Grace is God sacrificing His own happiness, His own comfort, His own life, to secure our happiness, our comfort, our life. Not because of obligation, but because He loves us. Not because we deserve it, but because He wants to give it. Not because we can do anything to merit it, but because His heart longs for our eternal joy.”
~ Ty Gibson in his book “Abandon Ship”

Best Deal

This edition of "Best Deal" is actually a deal I got last Sunday.
I went to a favorite little thrift store that is only open a couple of days a week.
I have looked at the shoes there many times, but have never found any before. I have wide width feet so it is harder to find shoes that fit.

As I stood there looking I noticed these find looking shoes. I thought they were cute so though I would at least try them on. You don't know if something fits your or not unless you try it on. A very important lesson to learn.

 

Anyway as you can guess they fit! They are a good quality leather shoe. I am very happy with them. And the price is the what makes them an even better deal!

$1.00

Yep - that is right! Only one dollar!!

I got them home and sprayed them with some Lysol spray.

 

I look forward to wearing them!!

 

Have you found an excellent deal? I would love to hear about it!! :O)

Beloved Names of God...series "Firstfruits"

Firstfruits

 

"But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits;

 afterwards they that are Christ's at his coming..."

1 Corinthians 15:23

 

• Name of God the Son
• Jesus is referred to as "firstfruits" twice in the KJV.
• The firstfruits were traditionally the part of a crop, or the part of an increase, which was offered to God as a sacrifice.
• Paul told the church at Corinth that Christ had conquered death and through His victory would come ever lasting life for His people.

 

Throughout the Old Testament, people were directed to offer God their firstfruits- or, the best they had to offer. If they offered wheat, it had to be the freshest, their offerings of bread had to be leavened, and only animals without defect could be sacrificed. It might seem a lot to ask of something that was...well, basically going to be destroyed by fire on the alter.

 

But then God made a sacrifice for us. He didn't say, "I am God, so I don't owe anybody anything"- although He could have, how could we have argued? He didn't offer us a few years of better harvests or generations of peace, although both were well within His power, and people would have been grateful.

 

No. Instead of divine gimmicks, He offered the very best He had to give, His only begotten son, His own Firstfruits, to be destroyed upon a rough wooden cross. He didn't do it because He had no other choice. He did it because He loves us and wanted to guarantee our eternal salvation. Surrounded as we are by that kind of love, how could we possible offer anything but our very best in return?

 

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Next week we will look at "Plant of Renown"

 



 

 

 



Frugally Building a Stash

Yesterday we found out our granddaughter has strep throat. I have been feeling worn down the last several days. I figure I am trying to get sick. At the same time I am doing what ever I can to take care of myself and work towards better health. So far I am holding steady. Not at 100% but at least not going down hill.

 

Today I wanted to share with you a great way to build your stash frugally. I stumbled upon this method recently and so very glad I did. And truth be told this method may not work for everyone. Plus this method is not fool proof.

 

So a couple of weeks ago, I was looking around one of the thrift shops near where my Quilting Store is. And I found piece of fabric folded up and taped with a price of about 50 cents written on it. I thought for 50 cents it would be worth me buying it to see if it would be good quality fabric or not.

 

This is where this method could get tricky - not all fabric is of good quality and good to use to make quilts. So you need to get a feel for good quality fabric. And when the fabric is all folded up and taped in that position it is hard to see if there is any information about the fabric on the fabric. Many times on the edge of the fabric is the name of the company that produced the fabric and then they also have the name of the fabric line. These details can be very helpful to know what quality the fabric is. Utilize this when possible.

 

When I got home and opened up the piece of fabric I found a great quality piece of fabric! The next time I went to the store, I decided to look in the same area to see if I could find some more good quality fabric. They have fabric there many of the times that I go to this store- not all of the fabric is the quality of fabric I am looking for, so I have to be selective when looking.

 

This is the batch of fabrics I found last week:

The two fabrics with the cream back grounds were 1/2 yard pieces of fabric - for $1.00 a piece I thought it was a bargain.  The blue and beige fabric and the birdhouses fabric were 1 yard pieces  - for $1.50 per piece I was happy to add these to my stash.

This 3/4 of a yard piece of fabric was found at a different thrift store- for only a quarter - I could not pass it up. Sad thing is that there is not much fabric that goes through this store- but I will certainly keep an eye out for more good quality fabric!

 

Oh and for those of you that may not know- when you buy good quality fabrics at quilting stores you will probably pay about 10.00- 12.00 dollars a yard - give or take a little. You can find some fabrics at other type stores for less money - and some may be good quality to use making quilts - you just have to really pay attention to quality. 

So when you realize that the price of quality quilting fabric is quite high - it really shows what a good deal I got on my fabric. And also why I have found it important to have these other place to shop to add to my fabric stash. I don't have a lot of money to put towards fabrics. And it is so fun to find great fabric at great prices!!

I hope you are lucky enough to have some stores in your area that have good quality fabric that come through - so you too can add to your stash for very little money! :O)

 

Hope Thou In God

So I am working on a blog post for tomorrow. And thought I would share my devotional for this morning - this is from one of my favorite devotionals - "Streams in the Desert"
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Why art thou cast down, O my soul (Ps. 43:5).

Is there ever any ground to be cast down? There are two reasons, but only two. If we are as yet unconverted, we have ground to be cast down; or if we have been converted and live in sin, then we are rightly cast down.

But except for these two things there is no ground to be cast down, for all else may be brought before God in prayer with supplication and thanksgiving. And regarding all our necessities, all our difficulties, all our trials, we may exercise faith in the power of God, and in the love of God.

"Hope thou in God." Oh, remember this: There is never a time when we may not hope in God.
Whatever our necessities, however great our difficulties, and though to all appearance help is impossible, yet our business is to hope in God, and it will be found that it is not in vain. In the Lord's own time help will come.

Oh, the hundreds, yea, the thousands of times that I have found it thus within the past seventy years and four months! When it seemed impossible that help could come, help did come; for God has His own resources. He is not confined. In ten thousand different ways, and at ten thousand different times God may help us.

Our business is to spread our cases before the Lord, in childlike simplicity to pour out all our heart before God, saying, "I do not deserve that Thou shouldst hear me and answer my requests, but for the sake of my precious Lord Jesus; for His sake answer my prayer, and give me grace quietly to wait till it please Thee to answer my prayer. For I believe Thou wilt do it in Thine own time and way."


"For I shall yet praise him." More prayer, more exercise of faith, more patient waiting, and the result will be blessing, abundant blessing. Thus I have found it many hundreds of times, and therefore I continually say to myself, "Hope thou in God."
--George Mueller

Not What You Would Think

From the list shared on yesterdays blog post, you already know that I have a list of things to write about. All I need to do is pull photos together and get the posts typed up. So you would think that I would be sharing one of them today, but that is not the case.

Today I am discouraged and I felt the need to write about it - hoping that it can be therapeutic for me to write it out and maybe somehow I will find the cloud lifted.

Ever since July I have been really struggling - trying to lose weight and yet not losing the weight. I have been exercising, sometimes more than once a day. For the month of January - I ended up exercising like 36 or 38 times for the month. So I had thought that even though improvements were not showing up on the scales that improvements were still being made.

Today I pulled down an tote that has some of my summer things in it. I tried on a few of the tops and had hoped that they would be fitting much better than they were when last tried. I was disappointed that there was not a very big difference. Therefore, I felt discouraged all afternoon. I have wondered if all the effort is pointless. But I have come to realize that even though I am not seeing big changes right now - that I know that what I am doing is good for me. I know that exercise has many benefits.

I know what giving up feels like and what the results of giving up are... me gaining weight back and being even more disappointed in myself and I do NOT want to repeat that. That is why I am having to work hard to just get to where I am - because I gave up in the past. I want to see what will happen if I will stick it out. If I can just keep at it even when I don't see results. That is really the hardest time. It is easy to continue to make good choices to take care of yourself when you see the weight loss and when you see the improvements for the betterment of yourself. But what about when you are really putting out effort and you are trying to take good care of yourself and not seeing results? That is the hardest time to keep going.

And it doesn't help that I have several friends who are spending the big bucks $$$$$ and taking ketones and have lost a good amount of weight...sad thing is they were not that heavy to begin with.
It discourages me to see their big differences in such short amounts of time - 6 months or so. And me? I have been plugging away at this for 1 1/2 years. And I have a ways to go - till I reach my goal. And I will even then not be any where as thin as these ladies are that are taking Ketones- even when I reach my goal. It is quite discouraging. But I am NOT giving up.

I am planning on spending some time today refocusing on what my goals are and what I am going to do to reach my goals. Maybe spend some time adding things to my Heath and Wellness journal. Maybe reviewing things already in my book. I might even write up a few of the posts that I have planned for this week.

I hope you all are doing better than I have been doing. It has been over cast and much colder than what the weather people were saying it was going to be so far this week. Hoping the sun comes out soon so I can get out and get a walk in. I know getting out in the sunshine and fresh air would be very beneficial for me.

What You Can Expect to See

The schedule that I have found works best for me is to have my quiet time first and then shortly afterwards to take time to exercise. Because I spend the 30 minutes or so exercise in the morning - then my shower and breakfast afterwards - sometimes I feel like I could be getting lots of more important things done if I would skip the exercising and do it later. The only problem is that when I don't do it in the morning - many times I find too many things coming at me during the day and not ever getting the time to exercise. So it really is best for me to do it earlier in the day. Then later in the day if I get a chance I can always add more exercise in - which is always a good thing!

Putting God first and then choosing to take care of my physical body by exercising, I get myself in better shape to handle what ever comes my way during the day. Sometimes I don't get everything done that I would like to get done. But each day I write out my list and I work towards getting as much done as I can and that is all I can do. If I don't accomplish all of my goals for the day - I can add those things to the next day.

These are just a few things I have been thinking about lately and just wanted to share.
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I will be busy this morning volunteering. I also have a bill that I need to get paid and then a few other jobs around the house I need to take care of. I have several posts I would like to write this week:
"Refurbished" "Frugally Building a Stash" "Money Well Spent" just to name a few! And of course I will have at least one post about "Grace" ~ Speaking of Grace - I am amazed at how often I just happen to see the topic of Grace. I started a new book and the 3rd chapter in the book is called "Theater of Grace" Will probably do a post about that since this is very important for us to know what the Theater of Grace should be.

Well I better close. Hope everyone had a good week end!

 

 

 

 

Beloved Names of God ....series "Author and Finisher of Our Faith"

Author and Finisher of Our Faith

 

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;

who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross,

despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:2

 

• Name of God the Son
• Jesus is referred to as the "author and finisher of our faith" once in the KJV,
• As Author and Finisher, Jesus is the creator, fulfiller, and the very last word on Christianity.
• The author of Hebrews urged his listeners to be good examples because many were watching them. He urged them to turn from temptation, knowing that the prize waiting for them was an eternity in heaven in the company of a faithful Savior.

 

Jesus Christ came telling parables, or stories. Like most stories, they had beginnings, middles and ends- but they often left people feeling unsatisfied and confused. Likewise, his life was the story of the creation of Christianity. It had a wonderful beginning, a little-known middle, and a glorious end- and millions of people have asked, "What was it all about?" since then.

 



As God the Father, He authored His story at the beginning of time. As the Son, He brought it to a conclusion and He told us "whodunit." But, just like those puzzling parables seemed to have more to them, He had more to offer after His death and resurrection. He promised us a sequel. The Sequel would be like no other story ever told; it will have a beginning, it might have a middle- but it will never, ever end!
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Next week we will look at "Firstfruits"



Sometimes you have to lose something to truly appreciate it

Sometimes you have to lose something to truly appreciate it. I know that's how it was with my hair. I had loved my hair before the adventure with chemo, but it was only after that time period that I truly was grateful to have hair.

Well last night I had the opportunity to truly appreciate something else that I have taken for granted. At 2:15am I was awoken by my husband opening the closet that houses our heater unit. He pointed out that the temperature in the house was below where we had the heater set, but the unit was not going. It was making a weird noise and I could smell the kind of burning smell that you smell at the beginning of the season when you turn your heater on. For an hour we messed with this and that to see if we could fix it. My husband also went up in the attic to check to make sure there wasn't a fire.

It took a while to get back to sleep after being up and being stressed. Thankfully my husband was able to go get the part needed from a business nearby and get the heater going by about 9am.

Did I mention that last night it got down to 32 degrees and it felt like it was 25 degrees? Yeah... The several nights before that night- the temps hadn't gotten that low. Too bad the heater didn't do out on one of the other nights. Oh well. It is done and fixed now so I'm just gonna praise God that my husband was able to fix it and that we didn't have to spend any more than a half of night being cold.

You can be sure that tonight when I say my prayer, I will include a big thank you for heat and protection from any serious damage.

Hope you all are staying warm. :0)

Divinely-implanted

“The vital point is this: We are saved by God’s grace alone; and the faith by which we lay hold of that grace is itself a gift. Far from anything we can take credit for, faith is the divinely-implanted capacity in the soul to believe in, and act upon, the revelations of God’s saving love. “For by grace are you saved through faith: and that [faith itself is] not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8,9). “
~Shades of Grace by Ty Gibson, pg 46

I love it- faith, grace, and love - all mingled together. :O)