Sandy's in Stitches

Happy New Year

2012-01-22T17:11:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it is the 22nd of the month and it is just my Happy New Year post. I guess I am a little slow for this new year of 2012. By the way, I am now calling the year "twenty twelve". I like the sound of that better. ;o) This was one of my first pics of the year....Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal....we always see them in couples here in Ohio.

I know that I should be concentrating on finishes. I did finally get this guy done last night. Now to make him into a pillow with wool borders and backing.

But, I am going to be starting some really fun stuff with my Material Girls Quilt Guild. We are sewing pillowcases for Chelsea Cares for our local Children's Hospital and also for Deployed Military. We will turn these in in Feb. and March. Then we are starting a Row by Row type of round robin. You pick the fabrics you want and the width of the row (not to exceed 54") and make the first row. Then we will pass it along to the others in our "group" to make rows that width. These 30's prints will be the inspiration for mine.

We are also going to be making HST's using these papers (like thangles). We can turn in however many we want over the course of this year. A cream and dark print will be used by all. We don't cut them, just turn them in and in Nov. we will get back an assortment of perfectly sewn hst's to make whatever we want with them. Lots of yummy scraps from everyone.

All of these new things are voluntary, but seems like lots of fun will be had this coming year. I can't believe that decorating for this next holiday is coming soon. Yikes!

What Fun

2011-12-31T13:37:00.000-05:00

The Oklahoma son and family were here this past week. What fun we had with them. Guess where we were on Thursday?

Yep, the Christmas Story house....it is right up in Cleveland, about 40 minutes from us. It was really a lot of fun with the kids....and the big kids, us, also.

Grandpa and son having fun with the major award. The actor that played Randy was at the house to answer questions and pose for pictures.

Remember the bib with the mashed potatoes scene?

Our "Randys" being afraid that the Old Man was gonna kill Ralphie!

They have a small museum of memorabilia from the movie. So fun to see the actual outfits, toys and pictures from the making of the movie.

It was a fun day.....ending with dinner at the Great Lakes Brewing Company. And here is my souvenir from the Christmas Story gift shop.....of course there was a gift shop! And they are headed back to Oklahoma already....visit, too short!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T13:26:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas to all of my blogland friends! I have learned so much and established so many friendships. May your day be extra special no matter how you celebrate....and don't forget to eat lots of goodies!

Early Presents

2011-12-17T15:03:00.000-05:00

I participated in the Santa Sack Swap. We have sent a couple of gifts monthly to each other since July. Then for December we were to make or buy something a little bigger along with the other 2 gifts. I had Linda for a partner and was so excited when I opened all of my goodies yesterday. We sent a sack we made the first month and this is what we put our presents in these past 6 months. Thank you so much Linda!

On Thursday grandson, Oliver, had his Christmas program. These 3 and 4 year olds were so cute singing about 4 songs. Most of them knew all the words too! You could feel their excitement.

Sorry about the blurry last photo.....didn't check that one.

Ho Ho Ho

2011-12-13T17:05:00.000-05:00

Still have a lot to do in the next 12 days, but am taking it a little easy because of this.

Tendonitis in my right (yikes) wrist. Lots of pain, but the splint and a lot of Ibuprofen is helping. Finished some last minute shopping today....with hubby....and now am just looking at the season's prettties! Off to granddaughters Christmas concert tonight, with 2 more grandkids programs to go before Christmas break. They are so proud and I love it!

Great Weekend

2011-12-06T19:50:00.000-05:00

This weekend was a wonderful closure for Norwayne High School football where grandson, Graham, plays in the marching band. We have all gone to the 4 last games...all playoff games leading up to this past Saturday's State Championship. It was so exciting and a beautiful day weather wise for Ohio.....sunny and 50's!

They were very well matched teams....Kenton Wildcats and Norwayne Bobcats. This was the score at halftime.

With less then 2 minutes to go, Kenton was ahead 42-41. We got the ball and scored the last touchdown. What a nail biter! There were times that I was looking into my lap instead of at the field.

What a wonderful season.....now on to the last minute Christmas sewing and decorating! Weekends are going to be so different without high school football!

Still Stitchin'

2011-12-01T16:20:00.000-05:00

I have been around...blog hopping, but so behind with some. I have enjoyed a lot of the free tutorials for Christmas ideas and just plain quilting ideas also. Such talent in blogland!
I have been sewing, but can only show snippets of some things. I did complete my Birdie Stitchery for November.....even before Thanksgiving ! Yeah me! Now the new one is up and so darn cute!

Hope everyone is sewing and having lots of fun looking forward to Christmas and the New Year. I guess I should get back to the sewing machine....bye for now.

2011-11-18T18:55:00.000-05:00

This morning when I went out to run an errand I heard a bird call that I don't remember hearing before. I spotted this guy in the tree and then hopping onto the feeder. I have seen plenty of these types of woodpeckers, but don't think I have heard his "chirp" before. Time to keep the feeders really full with that nasty white stuff coming soon!

Julie has relocated to California. She is a great designer and has the best patterns. She is living near Eleanor Burns' shop, Quilt in a Day, and will be teaching there this winter! Julie had a giveaway of this quilt kit for a BOM that Eleanor is featuring. I won!! I don't know whether I will do the pattern or not, but the yardage that came with it is fantastic. What a stash builder. Thanks Julie....good luck in California! Thanks Eleanor for some great fabric.

Happy Veteran's Day

2011-11-11T16:57:00.001-05:00

Hubby and I attended a wonderful Veteran's Day program this morning at granddaughter Mia's school. The music, essays, pictures and speaker were great. Thank you CIS and thank you Veterans also!

Most of the trees in our yard look like this.

But the Cleveland Pears (two of them) and the Bradford Pear have their brilliant colors now....Autumn is still hanging on!

Last night the Material Girl's Quilt Guild had our Christmas party. We dined at a really nice Italian restaurant and had our gift exchange and Secret Sister reveal. This is the cute container that I gave my secret sister, Heather. It contained earrings and a gift card.

I made these (well, not the mug) for my gift exchange.

I received this gift from my secret sister. The mug reads To Stash or Not to Stash....that is the Question. We all know the answer to that one!

Fall Finish

2011-10-26T20:34:00.000-04:00

I finished my October Birdie Stitchery before the end of the month....wahoo!

I made this on Monday....yummy, warm, homemade apple sauce. Thanks Stephanie!

And hubby bought these....autumn colored peanut M&Ms....now if only the sun had been out today.

Fun Times

2011-10-23T14:17:00.000-04:00

Grandson, Oliver, at our house taking advantage of some of the remaining nice days of Fall here in Ohio.

It is always so much fun to sew with a bunch of women that love quilting, talking, laughing and eating! Not necessarily in that order. A couple of weekends ago this was Dawn's dining room.

And this is Dawn in the foreground.

Fun bunch of gals.

And me hiding behind my machine.

Lunch was delish!

Some of us were working on Sylvia's Bridal Sampler quilt. These are my first 4 blocks. (fourth almost completed). Fabric is Butterscotch and Rose by Fig Tree.....yummy!

Catching Up

2011-10-06T21:59:00.000-04:00

Finished my version of August. Now on to the adorable October.

And I also made another one of these.....for someone special! These are so darn cute....thanks Karen!

Stitches

2011-09-29T20:38:00.000-04:00

I actually finished September Birdie Stitches before the end of the month. I started and almost finished this at our mini retreat last week. I really love this month and I love Sunkissed and the floss colors that go with it. Now I'm working on August...go figure.

I also got mail from the UK this past week. My win from Paulette's blog....Sue Abrey's new book came. Thank you Sue....I love it.

Mini Retreat

2011-09-27T16:29:00.000-04:00

Back in the spring when my friend, Sandy, and I attended our first quilt retreat in Wilmot, we went on a shop hop one of the days and Sandy won the grand prize of a nights stay at Mrs. Miller's cabin in Charm. She scheduled it for September and we went the end of last week. She asked several more of her quilty friends and we added an extra night and had a ball. This is the entrance to cabin.

And our cabin.

The front porch was cozy.

And these guys would visit up by the fence once in awhile.

A tour of the house and what we did at night. Actually there was some form of stitching and/or cutting going on at most hours.

That was my foot.

We ate and drank lots also.

Sue got all of the binding sewed onto this lovely quilt.

On Saturday morning when we had to bid fond farewells to each other, we made our last stop (of several) to Miller's Dry Goods. The lovely gal, Sue, from the shop, took our picture with quite a few cameras and we were off for home. Seven ladies that were relaxed and happy left.....until next time!

Sandy M, Sue, Dawn, Midge, Roberta, Me and Sherry.

Mystery Quilt

2011-09-25T16:24:00.000-04:00

For our September Quilt Guild meeting we had our ugly fat quarter reveal (see previous post) and also our mystery quilt reveal. We started getting monthly mystery directions the beginning of the year and by September we saw all of the beautiful results. It is truly amazing to me to see the difference fabrics can make in the final product. Here is the final result.

Great job ladies! Maybe I can get my act together and join in next year.

Ugly Challenge

2011-09-19T11:44:00.000-04:00

Several months ago our Material Girl's Quilt Guild had an ugly fat quarter exchange. Anyone that wanted to participate put an ugly fat quarter from their stash into a brown paper bag with their name on it. We then drew a bag and over the next several months sewed or planned what we would do with this fq to be revealed at our September meeting.
I had a really hard time with mine. Trying to find a match with fabrics and changing my mind several (hundred) times as to what I would make. Then I discovered Brady Bunch fabric and wahlah...I found a match.

You can see the ugly fat quarter in the foreground. I love this Sprocket pillow pattern found here. Then I found this darling little pincushion pattern over at Karen's Tool Time Tuesdays. Simple and fast!

Thank you, Mary, for taking these pictures for me after receiving your gifts! I completely forgot and was really bummed about it.....another senior moment!
We also had our mystery quilt reveal....I will share those pictures next time.

A win and a movie

2011-09-04T16:18:00.001-04:00

I won the Pick Four book written by QuiltSue and given away on Paulette's blog during the blog hop giveaways...yeah!

I read the book The Help this summer and enjoyed it very much.

The hubby and I went to see the movie last night. All I can say is fantastic! I was so afraid that I would be disappointed after reading the book, but not so. It was a long movie, but followed the storyline....I didn't want it to end!

Busy

2011-08-23T17:41:00.001-04:00

It's been quite a busy summer and my sewing/stitching time has suffered. I did get to go on a great bus trip with our quilting guild, Material Girls and another guild Honeybees Quilt Guild. We went to the Columbus area for a day and visited these shops....the brick one without a sign is Red Rooster.

I bought some things to boost the economy!

We also have been watching grandson #2 march in the parade and practice for his first season in the high school marching band....his mom played the trumpet also!

I did make this block because I thought it was so cute....and easy! Thank you Alison at Cluck Cluck Sew!

Vacation

2011-08-10T12:13:00.000-04:00

The last weekend in July hubby and myself met up with son Steve and family in St. Louis. He came from OK and we came from OH. I found out that St. Louis has some pretty neat stuff to do and is a city I could live in. The Trolley Tour driver was very persuading about his town....a great time was had on his tour.

We saw the art museum and St. Louis statue in front. All museums are free......what a deal that is!

We saw the beautiful Busch Stadium. The old one was torn down and rebuilt in one off season to make it look old and blend in with the rest of the town....it does.

These pictures were down by the river showing how the flooding can affect and has affected its level. These are pictures of the Lewis and Clark statue that really shouldn't be underwater...what it looked like and what it should look like.

On Sunday we went to Union Station. What a gorgeous restored train station that was huge in its day. The hotel and mall around it were fun to walk through.

The Fudgery was one of the fun shops to stop by and watch (and participate) in the fudge making and the singing that went along with it.

The restaurant in the terminal was famous for their waitresses....the Harvey Girls....this was the menu and what they actually wore. Yikes, how uncomfortable that must have been, especially in the summer.

Me and the grandsons, Jordan and Jared.

One of our last stops was Ted Drewes frozen custard....an icon in the area. The chocolate covered cherry frozen yogurt was yummy!

We did visit a caricature artist in the mall and we all had our "portrait" done....he was so good. We could see a little of each of us in the drawing along with the exaggeration of our features! Fun, fun!

We had a good time St. Louis.....thank you! On a side note, I had big plans for hand sewing while traveling....I did work on these, but that is all. I love hexies....doing the Vignette Hexagon quilt.

May

2011-07-25T13:06:00.000-04:00

I have finished the May Birdie Stitchery.....yeah! July is traced and ready to stitch this week. I skipped June to make me feel like I am caught up!

Sharing

2011-07-23T15:02:00.000-04:00

Material Girl's Quilt Guild always has a lot of inspiration with show and tell. Summer time slows down a little with our finishes, but July still had a few really lovely items. Carol got a new quilting machine for her 50th wedding anniversary and she is using it faithfully.....front and back of quilt #1 and quilt #2. You are an inspiration, Carol!

Sue made a lovely flag quilt with her tumbler blocks.....redwork quilt finished and a baby quilt with matching drawstring pouch and cute bowl.....

Midge brought an old quilt that had been her mothers.....quite striking with all of the old fabrics....were they dresses, aprons?? What history!

Show and Tell

2011-07-20T16:42:00.000-04:00

Last week at Quilt Guild we had a speaker (sorry, I can't remember her name) that spoke and demoed on putting ruching in your quilts. She made it sound very simple....basically gathering and inserting into areas like borders, etc.

She even had it as her scalloped border....so pretty!

Next time.....show and tell and gobs of inspiration!

Dinner

2011-07-04T19:25:00.000-04:00

Every evening around dinner time we get a visitor in our backyard under the apple trees. These yellow apples usually drop every year before they ripen completely. Well, this year there is someone enjoying them.

Always by his/her self. So beautiful.

Wins and finishes

2011-07-02T19:52:00.001-04:00

First of all, I cannot believe that it is July 2nd already.....Independence Day (July 4th) weekend....and halfway to Christmas. Boy the time sure flies fast as you get older!
I was a lucky winner of Izzy and Ivy Designs giveaway. They have designed Sprinkles, little tags to sew into your finished projects....sizes tags too.

This is the box they come in.....bakery goodies! Then you open it and see the "Sprinkles"/cupcake containers. Very nifty packaging.

Also in the giveaway we got to pick one of their patterns. I picked this one and GD, Mia, definitely wants to try and make herself one of these. It is a cutie!

I sewed today with a few friends. That is always so inspiring for me. We do talk a lot, but I always get some things finished too! I finished the last 2 blocks for the 12 Days of Christmas BOM. I can't wait to get the finishing kit out and complete the top. I have seen it on a few blogs and it really is lovely.

Have a Happy and Safe July 4th all of my US friends. And for all of my Canadian friends, I hope your Canada Day was a fun one yesterday!

Mail Call

2011-06-23T21:52:00.000-04:00

Yesterday's mail arrived and with it was a box wrapped in brown paper from Oklahoma. I knew it was my partner, Linda, from the Santa Sack Swap....yippee, my first delivery of six before Christmas. Look at this gorgeous sack and I put the 2 gifts for this month in and pulled the cording tight so I wouldn't peek. I LOVE surprises, so I wouldn't peek anyway.

This is a gorgeous Yucca plant that we have, but I hate it! Hubby is the one that keeps it living around here....the flowers are beautiful, but they don't last long and then you have all of these blooms laying on the concrete sidewalk and bare stalks. Messy, oh so messy!

Yeah, I'm here!

2011-06-13T20:46:00.000-04:00

I have just added the new, updated blogger to my blog. I know, I'm a little behind the times here. This is sort of a test post to help me get the feel of things....I think it is going to take awhile. I can't type the dialog on my post when the pics are in the thumbnail box....oh well, I guess I will figure it out. This I am still working on...it is a lot further along, but I refuse to take another pic until it is finished.
And now I can't get space between my pics. Yikes..... I did find out that I loved what is in the cup at the bottom of this post....even though I don't like coffee. Go figure, the story of my life lately.
P.S. DD#1 had an emergency appendectomy 10 days ago and DD#2 tore her meniscus in her left knee and is in a brace. The excitement never ends.

I'm Still Here

2011-05-28T19:55:00.005-04:00

This is what I have been doing lately.....attending Spring band concerts. Ethan (with much shorter hair now) on percussion and Graham on trumpet. Same night, same school....whew.
On my birthday....thanks boys.

Mia in green shirt on flute.....another night, another school.

I have also been enjoying Spring flowers. I wish I had more.....have already written a note on the September page of my calendar to plant more bulbs this fall!

Of course blogger shot these photos out of sequence for me.....have been watching Mia's softball games also in the evening.

More color.....

I still have my Bliss DNP blocks waiting to be cut apart and sewn into a tabletopper or wallhanging....have not decided which yet.

When I was stitching on my Birdie Stitchery, Mia decided she wanted to stitch also....she already knows the backstitch. She went online, printed off some simple patterns, included her birthday month and put together a block.....and started stitching before she had to go home! We will be watching her and Oliver this summer, so maybe with her around I will get more sewing done!

Yeah, May still isn't done....if I can stop reading my latest novel, The Help, oh my is that a good one.....understand the movie is coming out later this year......I could probably finish this birdie before Wednesday when June comes out. We will see.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend with friends, family or just sewing. Heartfelt thanks to all of our servicemen and women now and in the past who have given their lives so that we can have the freedoms we enjoy!

Colors

2011-05-04T16:22:00.003-04:00

Sewing with friends is so invigorating....and inspiring....I worked on my Birdie Stitches BOM. I am soooo behind with these. I also sorted several rows/blocks of my beloved Bliss for the disappearing nine patch table topper I am putting together.

On Monday I received my bundle of Kona solids from the swap I was in with AnneMarie. I have quite a few pieces of light colors, so was very excited to receive some darks.

Even though I am behind on the Birdies, I am going to start May's birdie. I love May...maybe it is because it has my birthday in it, but more so because it is such a month of newness...trees, flowers....a real Spring month.

Winner, winner chicken dinner.

2011-04-27T20:03:00.003-04:00

Blogger flipped my pictures....the above picture is AFTER I straightened up my sewing area....yikes, it still looks "busy", but at least I have room to sit and sew now. And the picture below is my winnings from Stephanie that arrived in the mail today. She had a giveaway of Denyse Schmidt's newest fabrics that are now being offered at JoAnns. I only found one bolt at my local store, so was really happy when I won these....all 20 fat eighths! Thank you Stephanie.

Happy Easter

2011-04-23T16:04:00.006-04:00

I hope each and everyone of my readers that celebrate Easter have a gorgeous Sunday. Ours will be gorgeous inside with family because the outdoors is supposed to be chilly and rainy....70's today with wind...too bad it didn't wait for tomorrow!

Blocks

2011-04-18T16:11:00.006-04:00

I really love how my 12 Days of Christmas BOM is turning out. Here are the finished blocks so far on my design wall. Sorry for the poor lighting on the bottom. I am really pleased with the designs and have only 2 more to finish. The one that came last week and the last one to be delivered next month. The finishing kit, which I also purchased, has red sashing with blue cornerstones and blue borders.

Play Day

2011-04-16T10:24:00.005-04:00

Yesterday was a fun filled day of sewing. Once a month anyone that can from our quilt guild gets together on a Friday and sews at the community room of a local business....and it's free! This is the tables all set up with our essentials! Midge and Sue are both working on the cutest wool project for Easter.

Carol was doing hand applique on her blocks.

New to piecing was Darla and she completed this darling tablerunner with 3 friendship blocks down the middle and borders of the floral.

Dawn was piecing....and helping Darla.

Diana was making another grandkids quilt and this one was the Ninja Turtles....bright red and purple borders.

Sheila was working away on her Civil War blocks of the month......love the fabrics.

Carol S. was doing hand applique also...the flowers were padded and lovely!

As for me, I got another 12 Days of Christmas block done. Only behind by 2 now....maybe I can get those done this weekend. Just one more month to go for this and then I start putting it together....can't wait.

I also got 3 blocks sewn together for a dissappearing nine patch table topper that I am making out of Bliss....love that line...

Guild Meeting

2011-04-15T18:55:00.005-04:00

At guild meeting on Wednesday, Billie, shared her love of doll making and some of the fantastic dolls that she has made....just lovely. Thanks, Billie!

Blogger isn't being nice today....can't put my script where I want it. Hopefully tomorrow when I want to post about today's sew-in it will cooperate.

Sounds like Fun

2011-04-08T11:43:00.004-04:00

I thought this sounded like so much fun....a 6 month committment, but spaced out and you have a special something for just you on Christmas morning. Take a look here.

Eye Candy

2011-04-07T19:00:00.003-04:00

Don't these look yummy? I am in a Kona Solids swap and I just sent these off to the head swapper today....I just love the look of solids!

This is a "big board". I really love it....made by Karen's husband. She is from my quilt guild and a great longarm quilter. Her hubby made several (10?) of these out of great wood....all stained and everything. My hubby and I covered mine. I have pressed my finished quilt from retreat and what a dream to do it on a large area! It comes off the regular ironing board and stands in the corner. ;o)

I can't believe how swollen the maple tree buds have gotten recently....maybe Spring is coming after all!

I wish I was going here tomorrow!

Gifts and snow?

2011-03-30T20:48:00.002-04:00

I got this great journal in a darling shopping bag (with lots of pockets) at retreat. Thank you so much Mary....and I think Karen helped with them also.....everyone received one! Isn't the button darling? Thanks for those go to Roberta!

This is just part of my shopping from the shop hop in Amish country. The panel on top is a darling Advent calendar....very simple and very cute! I probably should start it now for next Christmas....just sayin.

Have you seen the new Peeps out this year? Chocolate dipped....I love chocolate covered marshmallows, so hopefully these will be just as good.

And this is what happened this afternoon....enough already! I am so over snow.....March did come in like a lamb, so it is going out like a lion. I couldn't believe this much fell in just about 4 hours!

Retreat #4

2011-03-29T16:13:00.006-04:00

My friend, Sandy and I were planning on bringing a Jelly Roll to try the quilt that I had seen featured here. When we started to sew it, we realized that we had brought the same fabric..Rural Jardin by Moda. They turned out different because of how you sew the strips together....that's me on the left. I took 6 blocks to get caught up on the 12 Days of Christmas BOM.....I finished 3 of them. I just love how they are turning out....I got a lot of compliments on the fabric also.....I think I like everything that Kate Spain has designed. Here are a few pics of what everyone was working on.....really great projects.

I got the next 3 pictures in the wrong order. This is proud Liz showing off her watermelon quilt on the final morning.

Here she is on Sunday working hard to finish.....sister-in-law Dawn is working on the same quilt also.

Marys Jelly Roll Sampler quilt put together.....I have mine done with sashing, but no border yet.

We had a great time.....thank you Mary for being such a great hostess.....see you next year, same time, same place!

Retreat #3

2011-03-28T11:00:00.003-04:00

Elaine and Darlene, sisters, made the Turning Twenty pattern and both finished by Saturday evening. They cut the fabric and sewed.....so cute!

Midge finished her beautiful snowflake quilt.....

Some quilts came back from the quilter on the weekend.....

And Saturday night ended with this gorgeous, huge, full moon.......

Retreat #2

2011-03-27T10:12:00.005-04:00

I did want to show you the rest of the entries in our paint swatch challenge....there was so much creativity here!

The paint swatch next almost blends in completely with the quilt!

On Saturday quite a few of us went on a mini shophop in Amish country. There was 6 shops participating and we received a block pattern and recipe from each. At the end of the hop we all met up at the Community Center in Kidron for drawings and showing of the quilt from each shop...with their spin on colors....oh so beautiful and different!

This coral combination was probably my favorite......

Retreat #1

2011-03-25T11:02:00.005-04:00

It's hard to believe that a week has gone by since I was so excited to head to our quilting retreat. This is where we stayed. I borrowed this picture from their website since I forgot to take my own. It was a gorgeous building with the best ever conference room where all 36 of us set up our sewing essentials! The upper (third) floor with the rounded structure was our sewing area.

These are some of the pictures of the inside....before alot of the women were there....lots of natural and overhead lighting. I brought my Ott light and never needed it.

Back in the Fall we were given a paint swatch and told to make something quilty with the colors on the swatch...we could add an additional color. It was for a contest (if you wanted to participate) that would be voted on by all of us. This is what we laid out Friday when we arrived and then voted on later in the evening.

This was my entry....the lining was the green color with a blues print pocket. The pattern can be found here.

I'll have more to come tomorrow and some great pictures of the inspiration that was flowing all weekend.

Retreat, here we come.....

2011-03-15T19:24:00.002-04:00

Yes, I am going on my first "real" quilt retreat this weekend. This is a group of gals from our quilt guild and friends. It is the 2nd annual retreat....my friend and I missed the first one. I am SO looking foward to time to sew uninterrupted and just having fun. It is Friday-Monday...this coming weekend. I am five (5) blocks behind in the 12 Days of Christmas BOM...yikes, how did that happen. I have them all cut and bagged to take with me. And I do mean lots of cutting....many, many pieces in some of the blocks!

Six months ago we were given a paint swatch (see below) and told to make something with those colors to show at the retreat....if we wanted to. This is a peek at mine.....more...alot more....pictures to come after this weekend.

I am planning on having a good time sewing, eating, drinking and laughing this weekend.

Sewing....and snow(again)

2011-03-11T18:32:00.005-05:00

Wednesday we had our quilt guild meeting and a fellow quilter taught us a class on this cute purse. I did my prep work sewing 2- 30" squares together, turn and press. This was a purse size and you could make this any size depending on the squares you start with. Someone even made a tiny one with squares about 12 inches...so cute. My fabric was Charisma by Chez Moi for Moda Fabrics. I have had it for awhile and it just seemed to fit for this project.

The inside....pockets made by how you stitch the outside as it is folded in above photo.

Casing made and straps inserted.

Finished....I could see this in all sizes, as quick gifts....someone even quilted her fabric and what a cute tote that was. Thanks Shirley for your teaching!

We have a fundraiser for our treasury in the guild this year. We donate sewing items that we don't want/need anymore. One of our members, Sandy M, puts these together in baskets (don't you just love this one) and we can buy raffle tickets at the meeting and a winner is chosen. Guess who won Wednesday....yes, ME! And we are neighbors too!

We woke up to white stuff again this morning...this is after having a week of rain. If nothing else, it was very pretty on the shrubs and trees. Spring can't come soon enough. Maybe setting our clocks ahead this weekend will help just seeing daylight a little longer.

Testing

2011-03-09T15:13:00.004-05:00

Tried taking a picture by the window on white on a gloomy, rainy day in Ohio. I don't have an all white chair like Jodi, so I used fabric. I may have to paint a chair all white! Jodi has some really great tips on her blog for picture taking....especially if it is gloomy....and white is a big factor! I also enlarged my photo, but right now as I am composing this it doesn't look any bigger. We shall see. Mmmm, wonder what is happening here with all of these dresdens?

Edit...the picture is bigger then my other posts, but not really large like I wanted. Anyone know where you can make them really big. This was the largest setting on blogger where I download my photos.

Family and some Goodies

2011-03-08T18:36:00.005-05:00

Here are some more pictures from our trip to Oklahoma and our grandsons wrestling. All of us in front of the arena where it was held in Tulsa.

Three generations of Kalmeyer men. Jordan is 15 years old already.

Jared, 13, getting a pin....and a win.

Jordan trying really hard to turn this guy.

Intent and focused.....

Such a great time we had....
These came in the mail today. I have read all of Jennifer Chiaverini's Elm Creek series and have them in hardcover. Can't wait to start this one. Actually it is time to read them all again....summer should be good for that!
I have seen the other two on blogs and was excited to get them, especially Scrap-Basket Sensations....each quilt is yummy. They are designed for Jelly Rolls, but she gives instructions for using your stash also.

In the Quilt a Gift....so cute from yo-yo's.

Wool projects also.

This advent calendar looks really darling with wool and hand embroidery.

This quilt really caught my attention...think it could be the first one I choose from the Scrap-Basket book.

And this is prep work for a purse class to be taught at Quilt Guild tomorrow night....can't wait.

Been Away

2011-02-24T21:53:00.002-05:00

I've been away from my blog lately because we took a spur of the moment trip to visit son and family in Oklahoma. Both of the grandsons, Jordan and Jared, qualified for state in wrestling and we decided to surprise everyone out there and show up! This is so out of my comfort zone...I am a planner! We surprised them at this restaurant.....what fun and a lot of white lies to get to this point! More to come.

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T09:37:00.002-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day to all of my sweet bloggie friends. I wanted to share some vintage cards that I think are so sweet. Most of them look like what I received back in the 1950's when I was getting them in my decorated box at school. However the above one, that I really love, wasn't from my era....I am older, but the boys didn't wear knickers! ;o)
Enjoy these cards. I hope they bring back memories for you too and that your special person and you have a great day!

We sure don't "darn" socks anymore....well, maybe we do if we knit them ourselves! You can find a lot of vintage cards here.

Still winter??

2011-02-09T10:20:00.002-05:00

I really needed a new header with some color. The drabness of winter has taken a toll with me and if the sun comes out (not alot in Ohio) it does make you feel better. Here is another pic of the cardinals the day it was snowing pretty steady. There were about 3 or 4 males in our tree!

I have not felt like sewing lately and it bothers me. Could have something to do with the bursitis in my left shoulder and the infected big toe that I am nursing lately....both a separate Drs. visit. I am feeling better, so I guess I am running out of excuses. I did clean up my sewing room and organize. Don't have before pics....this is a section after organizing.

My cutting table was still a mess from Christmas and now it is clean and ready for cutting!

I did cut out the last three 12 Days of Christmas BOM that I am behind in, but no sewing yet. I need to get my mojo back. Maybe going to quilt guild tonight will help....it usually does! Reading all of the great ideas on blogs out there is inspiring also! Some of you gals, especially the ones with young children, really make good use of your time! When I was working and my kids were at home, I did too. Go figure, I have lots of time now that I am retired and waste too much....could be I know that there is always tomorrow! ;o)

Reading

2011-01-27T15:03:00.002-05:00

I got this for Christmas and just downloaded 2 new books on Sunday. I have wanted to read Happiness Key and Fortunate Harbor by Emile Richards. The catalyst for getting going on the reading was a post on her blog that she was writing a novellini (somewhere between a short story and a novella) to tell us a little more about what the characters were doing between Fortunate Harbor and the last release, Sunset Bridge, due in July. This sounded so interesting I read Happiness Key in 2 days. Of course, I didn't do anything else! It was wonderful and I can't wait to start the next one. She will run this from February-July....every Tuesday. Pat Sloan will join her with a free BOM the beginning of each of those months. I need to read Fortunate Harbor before Tuesday....I think I can do it!

But.....I really need to work on this before next Tuesday also. That is when the next Birdie Secrets pattern comes out. I really don't want to get behind.

And just because he is such a little doll, a picture of Oliver at Christmas!

Round Robin

2011-01-18T11:44:00.004-05:00

Thanks to a sweet friend, I received another friend's pictures to share from our round robin reveal at last week's quilt guild. Thanks, Judith! All the gals made their center motif, included some fabric, put everything in a clean pizza box and it went on its way a year ago! Every 2 months the boxes were passed on to the next gal. It never ceases to amaze me at the creativity!
This one's owner is Carol.

This one belongs to Elaine. I think it was the third person that did the large sunbursts....amazing.

This one belongs to Judith.

This one is Karens.

This is Sue's quilt.

And this one belongs to Midge. Those Irises around the outside are simply stunning in person.

Great job girls!

Goodies

2011-01-16T11:55:00.003-05:00

I'm borrowing Tudy's picture to show you what I won in her recent blogiversary. Thank you so much Tudy for these sweet, thoughtful gifties! She told hubby to pick a number between 1 and 25 and he picked 8....me! She saved a lot on postage also. We live about 2 miles apart and have known each other for years!
Slippers, pincushion, mints, bookmark, totebag and air freshner have a new home.

Christmas Fun

2011-01-14T10:43:00.004-05:00

Some of the older grands got hats from Santa (us) this Christmas. They are back in style for the younger set, I guess! Jordan from OK.

Jared from OK. I think they need them out there this week....it is brrrrr!

Mia......

Graham.....

And Ethan.

And this is the whole bunch at Aunt Lo's house on Christmas Eve. Boy I feel old when I see how they all have grown!

I planned to share pictures from last night's guild meeting. I turned on my camera and "Battery Exhausted" popped onto the screen.....grrrrr! I took pics of the 6 round robin quilts that were revealed after a year of working on them with my phone, but they didn't turn out good at all. They were all gorgeous....congratulations to Elaine, Carol, Karen, Midge, Judith and Sue!!

New Stitching

2011-01-09T20:20:00.003-05:00

The other day I went here.....

To buy this.....

and to join in with the group making this! Haven't done hand stitchery in awhile, so am looking forward to this BOM!

Christmas pictures of the grands to come soon!

New BOM

2011-01-03T12:08:00.003-05:00

Jenny is offering a really sweet BOM over at her blog. A really great idea for yourself or as a gift to keep us aware of just how many blessings we all really do have!

My wins

2011-01-02T10:58:00.002-05:00

I wanted to show you a couple of wins I had last month....last year! These darling patterns and notepad was won from Pam. She is a wonderful designer and does it for Elizabeth who has the sweetest fabric line out now, Red Rose Farm for PB Textiles.

I got my pick of patterns....and I picked this purse....when I won over at Lynette's blog. Maybe I can get this done for next Christmas. ;o)

Happy New Year

2010-12-31T11:28:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year to all of my friends here in blogland! It is already January 1st for many parts of our extended family and soon will be for others. I hope you all have a safe and healthy new year and all (or most) of your dreams come true! ;o)

Gifts Given

2010-12-30T11:35:00.002-05:00

Here we have the three pillows that I made for the 2 DDs and 1 DIL. I don't remember who got which one....just sort of wrapped them blindly. I really like that Fruitcake fabric!

I used the pattern from Camille's book Simplify. It was easy peasy, but I would do the envelope back a little differently next time. I would definitely allow more fabric for the foldover. Have made a note on the pattern.

Then I made a dozen of these....fun pillowcases and the eight grandkids took their pick....and a couple adults got the rest! Very fun simple pattern. It is called the 20 minute pillowcase and it encases all of the seams....sweet! I don't remember where I got the pattern, but if you google the name, I bet you will find it.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

2010-12-23T11:43:00.002-05:00

My oldest son and his family are on their way here from Oklahoma and so my next few days are going to be filled with loving on them! I want to wish everyone in blogland a very Merry Christmas. I have made some wonderful friends on this laptop and for that I am grateful! I will be back the beginning of next week with pictures of the sewn presents. Yes, I remembered to take pictures before wrapping!

Friday Night Sew-In

2010-12-18T10:09:00.005-05:00

Last night was Friday Night Sew-In for the last time this year. Heidi organizes this and it was a great way to get caught up with our holiday sewing and knowing others were doing it at the same time. Of course it is gift time, so I can only show you the fabrics I worked with.

This will be the fabric for the back .....

And this is the book that had the great pattern.....I really heart this book! Hope everyone that sewed had fun and had some finishes like I did!

Merry Christmas FNSI buddies........

Snowman and Soup

2010-12-14T19:33:00.002-05:00

I finished my Snowman stitchery and really love the way it turned out. I really like Kate Spain's 12 Days of Christmas, but Fruitcake is right up there also...I love the way all of the prints come together.

I used the extra charm squares for the backing also....love it.

And tonight I made homemade chicken noodle soup....yummy and some for the freezer also. It was great on this snowy day that never made it out of the teens for our temperature.

2010-12-12T16:29:00.002-05:00

Does anyone know where I can find a quilt block pattern for a house? I know they are out there in blogland because I have seen them, but I can't find any today. It can be wonky or "regular". It should be 12x12 inches finished. Thanks for any help .
And because no post is complete without a picture, our Browns did not win today in Buffalo....even though I wore my shirt! :o(

Decorating

2010-12-07T19:41:00.002-05:00

I have been sewing, but I can't show any of those things right now...might be gifities or pressies as our down under friends say. Our quilt guild has a sit and sew on the 2nd friday of the month, so I plan on going to that this week and getting a lot accomplished. There won't be any computer distracting me there! I have done some decorating. I don't decorate with a lot, but there are some special things that go up each year. Like my little tree in the kitchen that has my beagle ornaments on it (those were a gift from my sister Cathy). Of course they are in honor of my beloved Barney.

Like this one for instance....I think it looks a lot like him. Heart you Barn!

Relaxing

2010-12-01T12:06:00.003-05:00

Discovered that I can look at an open fireplace and even have the crackle of the burning wood on my television! It plays Christmas music too!! All this and no mess with wood! I know the mess, we used to burn wood for years in our closed woodburner...I'm too old for that now! I think this will be neat on a cold evening when you just want to relax. Speaking of cold, it has arrived in NE Ohio and it brought snow flurries with it!

Family and Win

2010-11-27T11:07:00.003-05:00

We had a great Thanksgiving with family and good food. Of course it was extra good because I didn't have to cook. After many years of cooking it is nice to go to the "kids" for a meal! Some of the grandkids below....

The 2 DD's posing over the mashed potatoes.....

Grandpa helping Graham carve the turkey.....

A relaxing fire after the feast......we were all stuffed....and then it was time for pie!

On a side note, I won this darling pattern from Renee Plains during the Home for the Holidays quilt designer hop. It is still going on and the link is on my sidebar!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-24T12:22:00.003-05:00

My wish for all of my friends and family is a blessed Thanksgiving Day! Let's eat!!

Less than 5 weeks.....

2010-11-21T19:13:00.003-05:00

Today I was sewing some more of these.....

that wind up by being these and then will be joined together....2 of them are already....can't reveal anymore at this time.

I did that sewing while I watched this on TV....one of my favorite movies, When Harry Met Sally. Don't have to really study the TV too much because I know it by heart! Sorry for the very tiny picture!

This is ready to be sandwiched and quilted....this one is for me!

Winner, winner.....

2010-11-16T11:34:00.003-05:00

I have seen this magazine all over blogland and several of the gals I follow have blocks featured here. Vickie at Spun Sugar Quilts had one of the giveaways to win this beauty and I did! Thank you, Vickie, I have several dog-eared already that I would love to make!

Come to the Quilt Show!!

2010-11-15T16:32:00.002-05:00

Head on over to SewCalGal's blog and join up with a favorite Christmas quilt, tablerunner, wallhanging. This is so much fun to see everyone else's goodies.

I worked on this small quilt all of 2009 by stitching the embroidery blocks that Gail Pan Designs gave to us as freebies for 9 months. I just started my blog at the beginning of 2009 and I was also trying to start AND finish quilts for the first time! I was determined to finish this for Christmas 2009 and I did....and it hung in my hallway and I am so proud of it!

I am working on Fat Quarter Shop's BOM, 12 Days of Christmas, and hope to have that to show and brag on next year.

Great Stuff

2010-11-11T18:15:00.003-05:00

Last evening we had our Material Girls Quilt Guild Christmas party. It is early, but we don't meet in December, so it is on our November meeting night. We had a really nice dinner and a lot of laughter at a nearby restaurant. Our secret sisters were revealed and this is what I received from Judith. A darling wool ornament kit, a gift card and of course chocolate. Thank you Judith for a fun year of great gifties!

We also have a guild exchange. We have a game that we play and the gifts get sent here, there and everywhere. I picked this one and nobody else took it from me. This is the "gift wrap" and one of the reasons I grabbed it.

When we finally opened our gifts, this is what was inside....I was overwhelmed and felt very lucky! Thank you, Carol for your exceptional sewing skills and generosity! I don't really need anything else for Christmas after bringing these gifts home with me!

And on a side note, a girl can never have enough BLISS.....love this fabric!

So Cute

2010-11-07T21:04:00.002-05:00

Today I was doing a little chain sewing. I enjoy making snowball blocks.

This is the pattern I am working on. I saw it on Paulette's blog and thought it was so cute. I am making the smaller one.

It turned into this first....

And now it is ready for attaching the wool goodies.....so cute.

That's All Folks

2010-11-01T20:14:00.002-04:00

This is all that got sewed today. Three puppets for the sick grandson's language arts group that is due tomorrow and he hadn't started. Very basic puppets....a boy, a girl and an astronaut. That poor astronaut kept looking like a snowman or a ghost, even with the plastic stitched over his head like a helmet. Oh well, he said they are good, so that is all that counts. BTW, I have no clue why these particular characters....am anxious to learn the story.

Christmas BOM

2010-10-29T10:37:00.002-04:00

I think I mentioned once or twice how much I love this fabric line, 12 Days of Christmas by Kate
Spain. Blue is usually not in my color scheme for Christmas but I am really liking this shade of blue. Fourth and fifth block finished.

All caught up with my blocks now....yippee!! I think I'm liking the presents block the best so far. They all have a lot of pieces to them and a little bit of a challenge for me, but I do have to say that the directions are VERY well written which makes it fun to sew!

Tidbits, but no Sewing

2010-10-25T20:00:00.004-04:00

Haven't done much stitching lately. It has been pretty busy around here with "stuff" that doesn't include sewing. Going to remedy that in the next couple of days. Did take some cool pics, so here they are. An empty Bald Eagle's nest....very large and very high in this tree...about 5 minutes from our house!

Our home team won yesterday! Only their 2nd win of the season and they beat the Super Bowl champs, New Orleans. It had to be because I was wearing my team shirt!

This is Oliver this morning with the newspaper. Maybe if you enlarge the picture you can see the headlines.

I love the combination of these two......sweet and salty....yummy!

Jackson got a haircut today and a Halloween bandana.

And this is what I hope to sew tomorrow.

Goodies

2010-10-19T20:20:00.002-04:00

These are the last 2 PIFs that I mailed out a couple of weeks ago. I have heard from one of the gals, but not the other. I decided to post the picture anyway. These were fun and fast to make...now have to make myself one!

I am in love with this book. Camille has such a comfortable way of explaining and giving extra tips....my kind of gal!

This is just one of the many projects I would love to make.

Thanks

2010-10-17T18:53:00.003-04:00

Thanks to Annie (no reply), I now know where I found the recipe for the pumpkin spice cookies. It was from Lori.....thank you Lori and thank you Annie for visiting my blog!

Yummy

2010-10-14T20:28:00.005-04:00

I made these yummy cookies today. I can not remember which blog where I found this recipe. I hate that, I have to write everything down! If you read this blog, please contact me so I can give you the credit. It is a very simple recipe, my kind. A box of spice cake mix, a 16 oz. can of pumpkin and a cup of choc. chips! Drop by spoonfulls on cookie sheet...bake 350 deg. for 10-12 min. FYI, I baked mine close to 15 min. before they were done. This is a cake-like cookie, not crisp, but very tasty!

Last night at quilt guild it was our month to give a gifty to our secret sister. I was SO excited when I saw what was in my bag.....the makings of a cute Christmas hanging....I just love it! The pattern, fabric to trace the design onto and a charm pack to do the front! I may even sew charms together to make the backing.

She even included the floss that I will need to stitch snowman.

Pardon the glare, but I wanted to show you a close-up of the cuteness!

Going to get this traced tomorrow!

Wonderful Wednesday

2010-10-13T22:23:00.004-04:00

I finished block 12 of the jelly roll sampler....finally.

Today I cut the sashing and cornerstones and sewed it all together. Tomorrow I will add the narrow white border and the wider dark pink border. Then I will have to decide how this will be quilted....any suggestions?

I love the texture of this tree that was planted 33 years ago when we were building our home. It is a honey locust and quite large.

I don't think we have had a really good show of color this fall. I don't know if it was because of our unusually dry summer, but there is really not brilliant color around where we live. Typical is this bradford pear tree in our yard....this is how the color is showing, in little spots. Some of the trees in the woods have dropped leaves already and others still have green leaves. Go figure!

And still blooming are these geraniums. I am going to keep these summer colors around for as long as I can!

You can do it Too!

2010-10-10T10:40:00.002-04:00

Several of you have indicated your interest in the siggy of mine. I didn't figure this out myself, that is for sure!! But you can try it for yourself by following Jennifer's great instructions.

My Siggy

2010-10-09T21:43:00.001-04:00

Just checking out my new signature.

In the Mail

2010-10-07T21:17:00.003-04:00

My last 2 PIF's from last year are now in the mail.....wish I could show you what they are, but I need to wait until I know that the gals have received them. Will post pics soon.

And again this year my white Iris is blooming in the Fall after a great blooming season in the

Spring....I love Iris!

Sew

2010-10-01T22:03:00.003-04:00

One down and one to go! Fall cute.

Does any one know what this "pod" is? This area was home to a large yellow and black spider most of the summer. This is in what is left of the web. I missed a week or so watching it and wonder if the spider and/or eggs are in here??? It seems very hard.

B.O.W

2010-09-29T18:33:00.003-04:00

I have been working on a BOW....block of the week....from our local quilt shop. 12 weeks and then a finishing class to possibly have a gift done for Christmas. This friday is the 5th week. I had to unstitch on one of the blocks....you'd think I would remember "right sides together" when stitching! :o)

These are my blocks so far....the quilt is designed by a shop employee. I like the fact that the blocks are different sizes. Can't wait to see them grouped all together.

Shopping

2010-09-26T11:03:00.003-04:00

Saturday was a great shopping day with good friends! Nine of us met up at Country Fabrics in Shiloh. About an hours drive, but well worth it for the inventory and the price! Plus, they were having a 10% off everything in the store sale! I usually don't buy yardage unless it is for a backing or background for piecing. They had Fandango and I have been waiting for that line, so yardage I bought!

I can't remember the name of this line by Michael Miller, but the bold turquoise caught my eye and I could see a bag/purse with these fabrics.....again, yardage!

I don't have any batiks in my stash.....maybe a few FQ's. I found a pattern for a Fall leaf tablerunner (actually Sandy did) and thought, yes that would look great on my dining room table. Again some yardage.

Their prices were great on pre-cuts also. Pure by Sweetwater for Moda was a line I admired, so let's get some of that too! Now to make that sewing machine hum!

Oliver's 3rd birthday was great last Tuesday and he got the gift that he asked for the most. Buzz Lightyear with all the bells and whistles! Big sister, Mia, saved her money and bought it for him! A couple of the older grands know how to save their money if they really want something.....hope this way continues into adulthood....love you guys!!

Still Here

2010-09-21T14:41:00.004-04:00

Yes, I am still here! We went to Put-In-Bay on South Bass Island in Lake Erie on Saturday. They are still working on Perry's Monument....scaffolding in place now for the past 4 years. Some day we will be able to go up into it.....maybe.

I have also been decorating a little bit for Fall.....which comes officially tomorrow, Sept. 22nd. You would never know it in NE Ohio though.....we have mid 80's today. I would love 65 deg. until Christmas.....then a couple inches of snow.....then back to 65 until next summer. I know.....wishful thinking!

I did finally send out a PIF from last year. This pincushion went to Sandy.....2 more gifties to be sent soon.

I'm getting the sewing bug again.....it had waned for awhile. That happens and now I'm ready for some serious projects, there definitely are quite a few waiting for me.

BTW....today is youngest grandson's birthday.......Happy 3rd Birthday, Oliver.....we love you!

Ugly Fat Quarters

2010-09-10T15:58:00.003-04:00

Several months ago our Quilt Guild announced an Ugly Fat Quarter Challenge. Next meeting we were to bring one, put it in a bag with our name on it and take someone elses bag to make something from their ugly fabric. It could be anything you wanted....large or small. September meeting we were to reveal our projects....wow, what a bunch of winners! Mary made a journal cover for her partner...FQ was the plaid.

Karen made this notions caddy and adorable pincushion for her partner....the yellow was the ugly fabric. She even put some notions in it!

This gals ugly FQ was the flower centers and darling butterfly....I think maybe the binding too.

The center fabric was the ugly FQ for this tablerunner.

This travel case was made with the brown stripe being the ugly FQ. (Sorry I am not remembering the gals that stitched some of these)

Shirley made this pincushion caddy using the purple abstract fabric from her partner....it looks darling now with that purple dot.

Carol outdid herself for her partner....the ugly FQ was one of the lighter blues in the center area. Gorgeous!

Judith stitched up this darling kitty pincushion from her fabric....the green looks darling now.

Another Judith made this utility bag for her partner. The ugly was one of the verical stripes in the bag.

This gal made a casserole carrier complete with casserole dish and wooden spoon. Inside center is the recepients favorite quilt block....Carol's Star. The ugly is the binding and the "sunburst" stripes in the star block.

Karen also outdid herself for her partner....another quilt.....the ugly fabric is the dull purple color in the blocks.

Carol's ugly fabric was the blue and her partner made her some great oven mitts.

Karen's ugly FQ was the pineapple fabric and so her partner made her pineapple hot pads....too cute!

It was a fun challenge. I didn't do it this time, but they are going to repeat sometime and I am sure going to join in then!

Labor Day and a Block

2010-09-08T11:40:00.004-04:00

We have a trailer up by Lake Erie and the big finale for the summer is a huge perch fish fry on Labor Day weekend. The night before is the official trailer and boat decorating contest. We walked around and saw some of these.......

A couple of the grandkids and DD #2 was with us....this is how they spent some of their time.

Oliver, Mia and Grandpa went fishing too.....Ollie was the only one to catch something!

On a side note, Material Girls Quilt Guild is tonight and here is my block for this month. Of course I won't win them.....I haven't in 2 years! Some time I will blog about what I did win several years ago.....the mother of all wins.....I can't complain too much about not winning quilt blocks. (no, it wasn't the lottery)

Autumn?

2010-08-31T15:32:00.002-04:00

Autumn is officially almost a month from now and by our 90 deg. weather lately you wouldn't think it was that close. I decided to make another fabric wreath like I made for Spring....Rachel did the tutorial here. This time in fall colors....I used Pumpkin and Spice by Deb Strain for Moda. I got everything prepped.

Then I assembled it. The tying took me about 3 hours total....spaced out.

I sent for this darling seam ripper that was featured on Lynette Anderson's blog. They had a bunch for sale and I picked one that appealed to me. It says on the wrapper that it was made in Hampton. I looked that up and I think it is in Queensland, Australia....am I right my Aussie friends??

I love it and it will make "unsewing" a little more fun!

On a side note, I finally finished the latest Elm Creek Quilt series book. This one came out in April and now I have officially read every single one of the books in the series. I love them!

Caught Up

2010-08-25T22:04:00.003-04:00

I am really enjoying the FQShops Mystery Quilt of the Month. I love the fabric 12 days of Christmas by Kate Spain and they are really cute in these patterns so far.....and....I am all caught up now and waiting for the next block. Yipee!

Another sweet flower. It is a sedum and has come back every year for 32 years we have lived here. Not one of my favorite flowers, but oh so gorgeous up close. I just love what the camera does with close-ups!

Mia's Finish

2010-08-22T18:05:00.003-04:00

This is the tabletopper that Mia started on Spring Break at the classes at our LQS. Karen and Carol were so great to her, letting her take the class even though she was the only one signed up. That happened again 2 weeks ago with classes she took....will blog about that another time. I finished sewing the binding down for her last week....she had done half of it....not perfect, but so cute, she will look back on this and say that it was pretty darn good for a 10 year old! They had let her quilt it herself on their longarm machine......

She even signed her name and the date to it.

Such a pretty color on the Morning Glories.....

Steamy Quilt Show

2010-08-15T23:35:00.003-04:00

Saturday hubby and I went to Wellington to see a quilt show/elk farm! Yes, that is correct...it is a working elk farm where they have special shows also. It is called Bonnie Brae Elk Farm. I would have enjoyed myself a lot more if the weather would have been just down a notch from "unbearable"! If you look at the blue sky, you wouldn't believe that the temp was 92 degrees and the humidity was right up there also.

We only stayed about an hour. The quilts were really beautiful. The vending was really sparse...our local shop was there though!

Hubby is a good sport about going places like this with me. He takes his newspaper or in this case walked around with me. When we drove into the entrance and had to pay admission, the girl asked him if he "lost a bet" because he was there with me. He got a kick out of that!

Nature

2010-08-11T10:53:00.004-04:00

This is our man-eating Morning Glory vine that is all leaves....a couple lonely flowers! You'd think there should be gobs of flowers.

The Rose of Sharon really amazes me this year. I know I have posted about it before, but now the buds are just going crazy....I really love this bush!

If I don't have hydrangeas, the next best thing (I think) is a geranium flower head.....so pretty.

Spiders are not my thing at all!! This huge thing is fascinating though....yesterday morning it was just in the web....this morning it has something that it is really working hard on. I am assuming it has eggs in it.

On a side note, I absolutely heart Hobby Lobby!

Love

2010-08-10T15:21:00.002-04:00

Love is what I had for a very special gentleman that passed away last evening. He and his wife were friends, neighbors and surrogate parents to me. His beloved wife passed away 4 years ago and I still miss her and can hear her voice the last time I talked to her. He was a craftsman with wood. These are just a few of the things that he gave hubby and myself over the years. The wood for the basket on the left was taken from a tree that had been on his property. This piece has always amazed me because of the thinness of the wood.

He would have been 90 years young in December and he was still working with his wood up until this last year. He called me "daughter" every time he saw me and I am going to miss him very much.

More Shopping

2010-08-07T12:00:00.004-04:00

Went here yesterday with the hubster. He is very willing to read his paper and then take a short nap in the car. Of course he could have sat in one of the many rockers for the non-quilters outside the shop! Haven't been down here since earlier in the year....I love this shop and am only about 50 minutes away. Actually came for Bella or Kona solids....can't find them locally. I knew Miller's would have them and they did.....in gobs of colors and shades. I got Bella white, pale yellow and pale green....plus other "stuff".

I collect Dick and Jane things and when I saw this I had to have it. Everything to make that cute backpack is in the lunchbox....even the button!

I bought this yardage for pillowcases for the granddaughters.

Their business card is on the other side of this cute hexie....it is a stiff cardstock and so clever....don't tell anyone, but I took several!

Then we saw these wonderful sites on the way home....one of the Amish schools complete with the outhouse (boy and girl sides) and the backstop for the ballfield.

These cows were definitely not on the right side of the fence.

Straw sheaves in a field....done by hand.

A lot of horses live in Amish country!

A family job.....

A comparison of modern day methods!! Btw, couldn't have asked for a more beautiful summer day!

Shopping

2010-08-05T21:15:00.002-04:00

GD Mia and I went shopping today....for errands and Wal-Mart but also for a quilt shop sale. A Piece in Time has been in business for 26 years and I got 26% off today on my purchases...yippee! Mia picked the greens for the paper pieced trees she is going to learn and make for Christmas. She also picked the teddy bears! Fat quarters were all $1.50....I got several to add to the stash......

Then I got this yardage....omgoodness, I love this fabric....yellow is a favorite and I thought what a cute purse this would make!

Gifts Under the Tree

2010-08-04T21:55:00.004-04:00

OMGoodness, I just completed Block 1 of the Fat Quarter Shop Designer Block of the Month featuring Kate Spain's fabric, 12 Days of Christmas. This fabric is so much fun. I have never made a block though with this many pieces...it is a 12 1/2 inch block and it had 49 pieces. It was a challenge to keep that 1/4" consistent....practice makes perfect! Can't wait to start block 2....it is all cut and only has 34 pieces! ;o)

Caught Up

2010-08-01T15:53:00.002-04:00

Well, I finally got back to playing with my toys....sewing machine, rotary cutter and mat (among other notions)! I really missed sewing and now am all caught up with the Jelly Roll Sampler. Tomorrow will be the last block, the 12th!! I've been worried about the sashing because I bought enough white for that, but now I know what I am going to do. Quilt Dad made a few blocks with Verna and he used some Bella Solids from Moda to break up the busy prints. I am going to buy some for my sashing...I'm leaning toward a light green....maybe light yellow...we will see!

Now it is time to break into these babies....I have until the middle of the month to be caught up on them! Think I will press fabrics for Block 1 right now!

No Sewing

2010-07-25T22:50:00.003-04:00

There has been no sewing or crafting at my house lately. I have spent the last week getting ready for our family from Oklahoma...son, dil and 2 grandsons! This next week will be having fun and enjoying them. It is great to have all 3 of our kids and their kids together. Sewing will resume the end of the week! This was some of the weekend fun.......

Guild Meeting

2010-07-15T18:20:00.005-04:00

Last evening we had our Material Girl's Quilt Guild meeting. Our guest speaker was a local gal, Dolores, who brought her trunk show to share with us. This gal worked for a nearby quilt shop and most of the quilting on these quilts was done by them. She now has a network of quilters through her quilting group. These were only a tiny bit of what she has done over the years....she brought flimsies also...about 15 and she says she has many more at home. She tries to sew at least 2 hours every day! Hope you enjoy looking at these...they were fabulous in person.

This is the front of the quilt below.......

And this is the back of the quilt....unreal!

This next one is black and white with these tiny colored squares....it was gorgeous in person.

Broderie

2010-07-13T20:08:00.004-04:00

I love Queen Anne's Lace....even though it is considered a weed, I let it alone wherever it grows in my yard.

I won a gorgeous prize in the drawings that were held at the end of Stephanie's String Challenge. She had many great prizes that were donated by fellow stitchers and groups. This is what I won from Linda....it is beautiful and I will carry my hand sewing/embroidery supplies in it proudly.

I arranged the pictures so it would show what it looks like as it is opened.

It has a needle "heart", tapemeasure ribbon, and zippered pouch.

Little pockets, a scissors holder....a lot to offer and yet folds compact.

Thank you Linda for your generosity!

Always read the Instructions

2010-07-12T14:24:00.004-04:00

I really want to have this....the Nikon Coolpix S8000. I have seen it in action over here and really like the pictures and have gotten good reviews from its owner!

I have this camera and have really enjoyed it but didn't think it had any bells and whistles....wellll, I really should have read all of the manual when I got it several years ago. I found the basics and that is what I have been using. On another blog (can't remember where) they were talking about the Macro setting and the Portrait setting. This weekend I read my manual and guess what....I have those settings also!

I had a lot of fun playing with some of these new settings....

Amy, Mia and Oliver.

Grandpa and the kiddos!

I was really impressed with the quality of the closeness.

I still want to purchase the one above. It is 14 megapixel as compared to my 8 and the zoom is twice what I have now. I think that will be a present to myself soon!

Not too late

2010-07-09T17:32:00.003-04:00

Better late then never. Of course patriotic things can be a part of decorating always, I say. I saw this tutorial here and thought it was a cute quick project. Now all it needs is the binding....REAL binding....I need the practice for sure!

Sandy's in Stitches

Happy New Year

What Fun

Merry Christmas

Early Presents

Ho Ho Ho

Great Weekend

Still Stitchin'

Tweet

Happy Veteran's Day

Fall Finish

Fun Times

Catching Up

Stitches

Mini Retreat

Mystery Quilt

Ugly Challenge

A win and a movie

Busy

Vacation

May

Sharing

Show and Tell

Dinner

Wins and finishes

Mail Call

Yeah, I'm here!

I'm Still Here

Colors

Winner, winner chicken dinner.

Happy Easter

Blocks

Play Day

Guild Meeting

Sounds like Fun

Eye Candy

Gifts and snow?

Retreat #4

Retreat #3

Retreat #2

Retreat #1

Retreat, here we come.....

Sewing....and snow(again)

Testing

Family and some Goodies

Been Away

Happy Valentine's Day

Still winter??

Reading

Round Robin

Goodies

Christmas Fun

New Stitching

New BOM

My wins

Happy New Year

Gifts Given

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Friday Night Sew-In

Snowman and Soup

Decorating

Relaxing

Family and Win

Happy Thanksgiving!

Less than 5 weeks.....

Winner, winner.....

Come to the Quilt Show!!

Great Stuff

So Cute

That's All Folks

Christmas BOM

Tidbits, but no Sewing

Goodies

Thanks

Yummy

Wonderful Wednesday

You can do it Too!

My Siggy

In the Mail

Sew