Home Again!

We are back from vacation, and we had a great week! Weather was nice, and the ocean water didn't give me the instant numbing pain either, so although I wouldn't say it was warm, it was tolerable. Anyone who has been in the water off the coast of Maine knows what I am talking about! Feels so good to sleep in my own bed though. We have a king, so sharing a double bed takes a lot of getting use to!!! I wasn't able to get my laptop working in the hotel, so I was reading and commenting from my husband's computer, but I couldn't load pics, etc., so I decided to take the week off from posting. I have a lot of catching up to do, but I was working today, and when I got home tonight my husband had finished ALL of the laundry!!! I mean piles of it! He's the best, and he even folds it all. He's way better at completing things in a timely manner than I. Enough blabbing on...

I did not stitch one bit all week. Had those 3 block prepped, and well...Nuthin'...Nada...Zilch. Not even worried about it though. However, I did buy the most awesome things at a antique quilt store while on vacation. I go to her shop every year, and I want to buy so much more. There is so many beautiful, stunning antique quilts there. It takes my breath away to see them all in one place. A little warning, all of the completed quilts are priced way, way out of my range. But, I always manage to find a great deal on a top or block that I just can't pass up! All of them are anywhere from circa 1700-1940. I bought this. 1940's... 74x90... feedsack arcs... and the pink is WOW!!!! I bought some binding fabric on sale, and a great backing, photos of those another time...


Here's what else I bought. I am going to put them together as a wall hanging and do a little sashing between or something. It makes me sad to think of all the beautiful things that people put so much effort into, and they are just UFO's for decades. Here's hoping I don't leave a ton of the same for my kids to discard someday!!! I'm looking forward to catching up on everyone's posts, tomorrow. I'm beat! Off to bed.....got to catch up on a little thing called....sleep. :-0

Pincushion Swap and a Few Blocks

I sent out my pincushion to my partner yesterday, and mine came in the mail as well! I love it, and it's so nice! It's a felted wool flower in the cutest little garden pot. I think it's a neat coincidence that I just started needle felting, and then I received this beauty! Thanks to my partner Linda, she has a great blog that I have added to my list. I forgot to take a picture of the pncushion I made, oh well. I sealed the package and then said, oops!

These are my blocks from the class last night. I don't love the green on the darker blue, I'm going to switch it out to orange or red I think. Not enough contrast for my liking... The class was fun though, and I haven't sewn with my friend Chris in a long time, and she's just a fun person to be with. Thanks to Barbara for all of her tips on the technique! I can't wait to get more blocks sewn, so that next time I can do the topstiching. That is what makes the blocks look like they are curved, and gives it lots of movement. I am on vacation next week, so I might not be posting... I'll see how the connection is, etc. I'm looking forward to some relaxation and fun!!!! ;-)

Baby's Quilt? Check!

The wee play quilt is all done! I love how it looks, and I hope they do to. It's so little and cute, if I do say so myself. The binding fabric is from the same wee play line, it's called peas and carrots! Really, can it get any better? I think not. I did a simple grid quilting 1 1/2 inches apart.



That's all folks, off to cut my fabrics for my Ocean Breezes class tonight. Have a great day!

Well, well....

So I do have something new to show. All of those packages in the mailbox have become something. I've been admiring all of the wee play quilts out there in blogland, and I was dying to find something to make with it. Then I found the cutest pattern called State Fair- it's one of the Schnibbles patterns by Miss Rosie's Quilt Co.

So I took 2 of these.....




And then cut them up like this...



Cut my background fabric like this...




Sewed them together like this....



Squared them up and they looked like this...



Put them all together like this...



Then added the borders like this....



And found the perfect backing fabric, this....




Well, this has been a productive day and half. Just needs to be basted, quilted, and bound. It's a only a little guy 31 x 31. And yes, I WILL have it ready for the baby shower on Saturday. Yippie* I hope they like it. Perfect for a girl, or a boy!

Learning to sew.....

My little girl loves to sew, and she really loves the featherweight. The sooner we learn, the better, right? I hope she continues to want to learn to create things. Plus, I just love that picture. REALLY LOVE IT!

Someone has been shopping for fabric online again... who me???? Why, yes. Yes, I have. The purchases are adding up people. So I better have something to show for them soon, or hubby is going to demagnetize my credit card!!! (Should I tell him before or after that you can still shop online?) Nah, I'll keep that little secret to myself!!!! ha, ha, ha. What have I bought, you ask? I decided to buy some wee play fabrics and a pattern, I just couldn't make the 9 patch quilt for our friends, I mean, what if it was a boy? I'd felt really silly giving them a quilt with a TON of pink. I have to learn that even though it's my favorite, it doesn't work for everything. I also got some Amy Butler to make 2 tops for the summer, and a 2 beach house jelly rolls, and I'm waiting on a Heather Ross purchase to arrive. I've. been. really. bad. I'll show you another day.....

This is the picture of my crazy swap piece I sent to Sherry. It was easy for me to come up with the needle felting idea, since the first time I saw needle felting, it reminded me of watercolor. Which happened to be the June theme. What wasn't easy was trying to figure out what to make with it, once got the flowers on. Especially since I was machine challenged for most of the month. It's a small piece, but I think my swap partner is very happy with it, so I that is all that matters. :-)

Hopefully I'll have progress to show on the little baby quilt. The wee play fabric is so cute. I might have even bought enough to make another one, just because. I told you I was bad :-)

Raining, again!

I've spent yet another rainy morning prepping three more BOW's, I thought once they're sewn down I'll be caught up. Yippie! Then the mail came this afternoon with this weeks block, so I guess I'm almost caught up! This weekly arrival really forces me to stay focused, which as you all know by now, isn't one of my stronger qualities! LOL ;-) I was thinking about saving them to bring on vacation, but I haven't decided yet. We are going North to Maine for the week. I love going there, living on the ocean (even if it's only for a week) and I have been going almost every summer for about 17 years now. I can't wait!!!!!!! It's so fun to bring my kids to a place that I've loved for so long.

Update on the machine saga: WARNING- If you are tired of my complaining about it, just skip to the last paragraph :-) I actually got through the other day, and my machine is not ready, STILL. Has it been a month yet? I believe it has......*sigh* The woman who answered the phone was kind of lacking in customer service to be honest. I'm getting the "we will call you when it's ready" line.... The the owner of the shop is at a conference, so I am unable to convey my dissatisfaction,unhappiness, and all around grumpiness to her. The store I bought the machine at went out of business last fall, and I have not dealt with this shop before, and it will be my last time. I wanted to bring it to a Pfaff dealer, so that's the only reason I chose them. Never again. This is my last post complaining about it! The next time I talk about it, I will be telling you how great it runs... fingers crossed that it will be soon! I also found out that the shop down the street CAN service my Pfaff, even though they are a Viking dealer. I'm wishing I looked into that before I sent it off into the black hole.

On to something better now, I found out about a great giveaway today so I figured I should spread the word. The blog is called I'm Just a Guy Who Quilts by Ryan. He's having a giveaway in celebration of his birthday, and I must say, it's very good! His blog is great too, so go on over and see for yourself. Don't forget to wish him a happy birthday!

1001

This is the yummy new stack of fabrics I mentioned yesterday for the new project I shamelessly starting. I know I have a thousand things going, so let's call this one 1001! I don't know how well you can see the pattern, but the pinwheels are folded, so it gives it dimension. It sould enlarge if you click on it. It's called Ocean Breezes by Southwind Designs. They have a really neat way of the look of curved piecing, but it's not, and I can''t wait to try it! I am using the yellow for the inner border, where they chose red. I'm also using the four brights for the pinwheels instead of two. I have a friend that is taking a class with me for this pattern, so it should be really fun. Hello to Barbara (no blog) if you are reading this! (she's teaching the class, and she is an awesome teacher, who I always have a great time with!)
I haven't posted this one yet, it is my charm class from May. Our friends are having a baby, so I thought it would be fun to make them a quilt. I'm thinking of making the disappearing nine patch with them. I found a great tutorial here. Evidently I had 'girl' in mind when I made my purchases.... but I just learned they aren't finding out whether it's a boy or girl. Hmmm, back to the drawing board for the baby shower gift. Which is in less than two weeks.
This is last month's charm class, and I think my last :-( There are only two more months of it anyway, but the kids activities conflict with them. I'm going to miss that class, awesome teacher, and such a nice group of women. The blocks aren't finished yet as you can tell, but they were sewn on the featherweight, and with great advice from Quilt Hollow, my quarter inch seams aren't too bad! I really love the blue and white, almost as much as I love red and white, almost! I should go do some sewing- they kids are actually still asleep and it's almost 8 am! A little tired from all of the festivities yesterday, I guess. Hope you are all enjoying the weekend!

Happy 4th!!!!

Happy Independence Day to all of my fellow Americans,I hope you have a happy and safe 4th of July weekend! On to my thank you to Serena for my Crazy Swap piece... it arrived on Thursday, and it's just lovely. Serena you are amazing, I still can't believe you can hand piece and quilt so fast! I just adore it, and I know it will be well loved in our home. Thanks again!

I have a sneak peek of my swap piece too- my fellow swapper is anxiously awaiting it's completion. Thanks Sherry for your understanding. Now that my featherweight is in working order, it's almost finished!

I have few things I'm working on, so I'll be posting more pictures of those things soon. Oh, and I'm starting a new project, even though I have no business doing so. :-0 What can I say other than I love shopping for fabric! I know you all understand ;-)

I've been tagged!

Well, what do you know? I've been tagged with a Honest Scrap award by Kim at Magnolia Bay Quilts! Thanks for the "bloggerly" love, Kim. If you haven't seen her blog before, you are missing out! She always has beautiful posts, with lovely quilts and pictures. She also happens to be a quilt designer and has a new book that I hope to get my hands on soon Scrap-Basket Surprises. I am very flattered that she tagged me, and here is the part where I share ten things you might not know about about me:

1. I am a procrastinator, about almost everything, but I also work well under pressure, so it usually balances out!

2. I am afraid of creepy crawly things. Bugs, spiders, snakes, and the like.

3. I don't like going out in the snow. I never ski, snowboard, ice skate, nada.

4. When I was a senior in high school, I went to 'beauty school' school at night. I have my certificate as a nail technician, (aka manicurist) but I have never worked as one.

5. I've seen Nickleback in concert twice- and I'm going to again in July. I love rock music.

6. I don't watch horror films. They scare the living out of me.

7. Reese's anything makes me say yippie!

8. I don't have a MySpace or a Facebook page. I never plan to either.

9. Blue is my favorite color. Turquoise to be exact.

10. I plan on living on the water at some point in my life. Seriously, anywhere next to the ocean to listen to the waves, and taste the salty air. (Bonus since there is no snow!)

I have been also instructed to spread the love. Here are the rules:

• First, you have to tell your readers 10 things about you they may not already know, but are true.
• Second, you have to tag 10 people with the award.
• Third, you have to let the people you’ve given the award to know that they’ve received it.
• Finally, make sure you link back to the person who awarded you.


Here are my ten picks of blogs I want to share this great idea with. Drumroll please.....


Young Appalachian Quilter
Applique Artist
Log Cabin Quilter
Sugared Limes
Pepperberry & Co
The Rabbit Factory
JulieKQuilts
Tactile pleasures...In Fabrics
Stillmeadow Quilts
Fiber Fabrications


Whew, that was tough. Now go on, and get going. Go see all of these lovely blogs, and say hello!

The Waiting is the Hardest Part!

It's been two weeks. Two weeks people! I miss Mrs. Pfaff, BAD! Here is where I admit that I have a featherweight machine I bought on ebay quite some time ago. I finally had it serviced, and it looks so pretty when I take it out. But I don't have a quarter inch foot for it yet, so I try not to do any complicated piecing on it. Oh, and sometimes it jams up on me. For no apparent reason, other than the fact that it is 60 years old, I guess? (Or evidently my machine karma is off, I mean way off.) Mostly I wanted it, just to have it, just because she's so pretty ;-) See...... isn't she lovely, with her decorative face plate?

I tried calling the shop who has my Pfaff today for some news, and I kept getting a busy signal, all day. Hmmmm. Now I have to admit, a little paranoia is setting in... I will be trying again first thing tomorrow, despite the fact that I am working. I will keep you all posted.

I've been trying to do some hand work, but now that the kids are home all day, it's a challenge. Got about half way on the next BOW wool block. I also have a few more things to do for my June Crazy Swap. It's a surprise, so I can't post any pics just yet. This was probably the most challenging thing I've done this year. The theme was watercolor... I have very loosely interpreted that theme, let me just say.

I've been reading my Sookie Stackhouse novels, too. I'm reading #4 "Dead To The World". They are a vampire series of books by Charlaine Harris, and I'm loving them. I read the Twilight books last winter, and I'm still on that vampire falls in love with the human kick, I guess?!? They are very quick reads, and I'm not in the mood for any heavy mental challenges this summer.