Passionate Quilter

Joy's Parting Gift

2012-01-30T08:15:00.000-05:00

My first UFO of the year done! Okay...so it wasn't that old, but it was from last year and now it's done. I was in a hurry to get it mailed off, so only got one good shot.

Joy's Parting Gift

There is a pattern out there like this, but it make a big quilt, I thought I would rather have it be wall hanging size. I just sewed jelly roll strips together, adding a wide "ribbon" 1/3 of the way over. Then I cut off the top third of the strips and added another 'ribbon' of fabric Added the bow...wishing now the tails were a bit longer. :( I had a party and had everyone sign good bye wishes to her. I quilted it with various size swirls. And now it's on it's way.

Sample sewing

2012-01-29T09:32:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again....getting all my samples done for Spring. Actually, this is later than normal as I decided to take January and part of February off and head south...where it has been deliciously warm! I love it! Sure makes it more enjoyable to sit and sew, looking out at bright sunshine and taking the afternoon walk to stretch the legs and back. Especially when I have 11 quilts (ok--some are just blocks) to make!

Here is what I've been working on...

This is a fabric line from a few years ago...Oz by Sanae (Moda). I had just a FQ bundle that hubby bought me and thought I would wing it on the border...more on that later....

sewing strip sets.....

making cornerstone units

making sashing...

is it ever going to end?

all done but the border...

Ta da! Slide Show (a pattern by Atkinson Designs). A scrappy border just wasn't going to look right, so a quick internet search yielded just enough fabric for a border and some for the binding. I am loving this quilt, even without the border!

Sew It's Finished...

2012-01-17T20:02:00.000-05:00

Well, they will be this year! I joined the group "Sew It's Finished" in hopes that publicly admitting my need for accountability for getting UFO's done will work. :) And so here they are:

1. Be Attitudes
2. Pop Star
3. Dresden Plate
4. Folk Art Christmas Stars
5. JOY's Parting Gift
6. Shakespeare in the Park

Shakespeare in the Park Blocks

7. Red & Black Row by Row
8. French Lone Star
9. Pink & Black Pinwheel
10. Folk Art 16 patch
11. Nana's Garden

Nana's Garden block

12. Diamond Scrap Star

And so there they are--the UFO's I'd like to finish this year. Some are 8+ years in the aging barrel and others were started last year. And I have plenty more, but I chose these to be done first. I also have flimsies to do as well, and would like to get 12 done of those. But it's an ongoing project and wonder if I will EVER be caught up there.

Project 365- Week 2

2012-01-15T22:43:00.001-05:00

Week 2 of 2012

I decided that I would try to do Project 365 this year. I have been sporadic about taking photos, kind of a feast or famine thing. I'm hoping that my picture quality will improve. But more important to record our daily life, as it is. So when we look back, we can see what our life looked like. Very real. Not perfect.

I haven't gotten Week 1 compiled yet. I made the mistake of using 3 different cameras.

iPhone 4s

So thought I would share the end of Week 2. It's really hard to narrow down your photos to just ONE per day! Some days I would have several and then other (lots of other) days, I would have one.

Canon sd1300is

Week 2 had me finishing up a big tournament that my hubby holds and I have to feed staff/coaches and I had just a small plate of brownies left over. It has become synonymous with the tournament. Tournament = lots of fudge brownies. :) Picture 1

Nikon d90

Then I headed to my daughter's to watch the 3 youngest grandkids for 9 days while they all traveled to Europe. My Mom came up to help so it's been fun! Pictures 2,3,4,5

By Saturday night, we were a bit whipped. Mom went to bed at the same time the kids did, and I was too pooped to do anything but cruise through Pinterest. Picture 6

Sunday was a beautiful sunny, yet cold day. God's Frosty Beauty...as seen on the way to church. Picture 7

I did get to cut some kits out at night, after the kiddos went to bed.

But no sewing. That's okay, I didn't need help from a 20 month old! I'm headed to SC for a month after this week--I'll need it! Haha. No, they were good..just anxious to get to a bit warmer weather for a while. So I thought I would cut kits to take down with me to make samples for my Spring classes.

Photos not making the cut for my Project 365;

for "Taxi" quilt....need more yellows though..

Auditioning for Taxi-the quilt, not the show! Oh wait, does that 'date' me?

Ready for a "Slide Show"

Cutting kits to sell (from my stash). Great way to make some 'moolah' for new fabric!

2011 Finishes

2012-01-05T06:00:00.000-05:00

I've been seeing these photo collages around blogland and thought what a great idea to recap my year. I ended up with 18 finished quilts, 18 ANGRY birds, 3 tote bags and 8 pillows. Not bad considering I was gone 100+ days last year! I didn't realize I had been gone so much until I started adding up the days! I also made a book of my finishes. I hope to start doing that to have record of how I spent my time.

Row 1: Scrappy Zig Zag Diamonds, Granny's Bloomers, Triple Irish Chain, Circlin' Round Kaffe, 4 patch and friends
Row 2: Split Daisy, Scrappy Fall, Poppy Baskets, Picture Perfect, Beckam T Shirt Quilt
Row 3: Scrappy Trip Around the World, Buttons and Bows, Scrappy TOW, Hexagons, Railing Beauty
Row 4: Circling Tweets, Second Helpings, Angry Birds, 16 Patch and Pinwheel, Dresden Plate Topper
Row 5: Ticker Tape Pillow, Apple Core Pillow, Figgy Tree, Tote 1, Tote 2 (Tote 3 not shown)
Row 6: Cathedral Window Pillow, Twister Pillow, Dresden Wheel Pillow, Hexies Pillow and Tumbler Pillow.

Lots of finishes, but I hope this year brings more quilt finishes!

Folded (fabric)

2012-01-04T00:11:00.000-05:00

My birthday present.

FQ bundle of Daisy Cottage by Lori Holt

A stack of folded fabric.

Love.

*sigh*

I have a fabric closet that rivals a small quilt shop. I do NOT need fabric. In fact, after tracking my stash for a year through Judy L's Stash Challenge, I realized that I don't need to buy any fabric. Ever. Again. But of course, I do and will, but not at the speed and tenacity that I used to ~~accumulate~~ it. I mean, collect it. :)

And I have done very well these last 3 years. I've purchased fabric, but not very much. And this year I could count on 2 hands the amount of yardage purchased by me. Until...

I stumbled on Lori Holt's blog, Bee in my Bonnet. And saw her latest line of fabric, Daisy Cottage. And I fell.in.love. As in, I want the whole line! I love her patterns. It kind of shook me up because I haven't felt that way about fabric for a while, to the point of wondering what was wrong with me! hahaha

Never fear. I'm fine. I did show patience by asking for it for my birthday instead of rushing out and buying it. By the way, the grays are showing up a bit on the brown side. Sorry--was kind of a yucky day outside and was hard to get a good picture. But it is gray, pink, and gold mostly.

{oops, I just looked at that stack and 3 Moda Marbles jumped right into that stack! They hid themselves pretty well! A light pink, light blue and hot pink. See them? just trying to blend in.} *cwazy fabwics.*

one little word...

2012-01-01T22:13:00.003-05:00

this is my 'one little word' this year. Do you do that? I started a few years ago....in 2010 it was JOY (as in I choose JOY), 2011 brought FOCUS ( and I didn't do so well!! LOL) and thought I would do it again. I really don't like to make resolutions, but instead have a word to help focus my intention of the direction I want to head in my life.

Nourish.

My mind--reading more. My body--overall health. My soul--continuing growing closer to God. Family--being a positive influence in my family, especially the grankids lives. Community--giving back to others. Imagination--getting the creative juices flowing again (how do you like the little logo I created above?)

Another thing I would like to do is participate in the Project 365...taking a picture a day. I'm a little worried about that one...it all sounds so good, but come March, will I fade away? I really wish I could stick to something...anything...more than a few months. I get so distracted, unmotivated, forgetful or whatever you call my lack of stick-to-it-ness(is that a word?) that I never finish out the year.

Why is it that a New Year feels like you get to start over fresh? Something about a new year that wants you to be able to start that new diet, renew your gym membership, start that Read the Bible in a year program, or any other self improvement project.

Whatever the reason, I'm hoping that announcing it publicly will keep more on track..for my sake. I know you all have your own issues! LOL So..wish me luck!

This is Day ONE of the new year and yes, I did take my photo. I don't think I'll post them everyday, maybe in 1 week batches. In keeping with my new word of the year, I need to start NOURISHing my body and the first thing is getting more rest! So took a photo of my bed! Hubby made a comment about how much better I looked while on vacation..no bags under the eyes because I was getting more sleep. Guess I should get off the computer earlier. I hate to admit it, but surfing' the net keeps me up in the later hours of the evening.

Nourishing my creativity will hopefully get me back into a more regular schedule of quilting. I went more days than not last year of sewing and it was almost always for something other than for me. Not that I don't like creating for others, but nurturing my own creative urges makes me happy.

And in all this, I hope to be a bit better blogger. I miss it.

Here's to a BRAND NEW YEAR!

Almost here...! Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T22:20:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year!

2011-12-30T21:45:00.002-05:00

I wish a very Happy New Year to all and hopefully a fun, quilt filled one as well.

What a blur this last month was! We took a little R&R trip and I really thought I would be able to do some sewing! What was I thinking? LOL We had gorgeous weather, unlike last year's trip, so we spent all of our time outside. Met a cute little friend..who really wanted to share our lunch...we obliged. We watched him a day earlier jump on a woman, trying to get food and scratched her. Scared the crap out of me, I screamed and it wasn't even me! So when we saw him stalking the pool area the next day, we just got up, warned the others and let him help himself!

Our iguana friend..who loved nachos! OURS!

Time to get back into a regular routine again. Making samples for classes...again!

February Wallhanging of Month

I had a FQ bundle of Moda's Quilt Pink "Love", which I used and then created 5 kits with the leftovers.

This is the pattern pack that I used and I plan on having a class once a month. We are starting with February, so hopefully the wallhangings will be done in time for the actual month, rather than being behind. What a novel idea! I bought my pattern at a LQS, but found them at JoAnn's now! Yeah, with a coupon. Sheesh.

This little guy is such a cutie...it's a pattern by The Wooden Bear, and I'll admit, I used my friend's idea. She made hers with a sports team fabric. Since Ohio State University does not have licensed fabric, I bought a T-shirt and used that! And embroidered Ohio State on the hat brim. I should have curved it a bit, but oh well. Eyes still need attached and all the blanket stitching needs done.

Hanging Snowman

Close up of hat

Back to work and hopefully I can get more photos uploaded of what other things I've been working on. In the meantime, stay warm and enjoy the calm that settles in after the Christmas festivities.

Our parting picture as we left Costa Rico. What a great place!

Fall fun

2011-11-24T08:00:00.000-05:00

Sheleah at pumpkin farm

Making grape jam--sure wish you could smell how heavenly it smells!

Fall is such a fun time of year, with the cooler temps, to the beautiful changing tree colors, lots of pumpkins...apple cider...making jam and so much more. It's hard to stay motivated to stay in or home with it being so nice. Which is how I find myself in November, wondering what the heck happened to the rest of September AND October!

I've been sewing some...

costumes for school plays....

costumes for Halloween....

purses for Christmas (shhhh..)

having PJ parties with 11 year olds..making bags...

11th Birthday Party Fun!

Row by Row commitments...oops, forgot to take pics. But then again..when you are working right up to the deadline MINUTE....it's hard to remember to take a photo.

Then the excitement on the home front with hubby coming home from a 3 week trip from France/Russia/China and got shingles the next day. Whoa! I heard they were painful, but seeing it firsthand is something else. My sympathies go out to all those who are suffering or have suffered from it.

And as always, things are always changing with our youngest daughter.(she's in the top photo) She is now 30 and we are trying to decide if she is starting to suffer from early onset dementia. Unfortunately, a common affliction for adults with Down's Syndrome. :( She wandered off from her new day care place last week, a police found her on the side of the road, repeating that she is a client. God sent an angel in the form of a friend who happened to drive by at that time and helped the poor bewildered cop out who wasn't sure what to do with her! We were all way more scared than she was. She said she was just walking. Obviously more secure measures need to taken with her. This is the third time in a month she has done this (from different places). Oh the adventures she brings into our life! Thanking God for blessings this week.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Winner!

2011-11-21T13:51:00.001-05:00

I knew that wouldn't take long! Julie (floribunda) gave the correct answer...ANGRY BIRDS!

Yellow Bird's feathers

Yellow Bird's beak

Yellow Bird--and yes, he looks angry!

Some of his buddies...

All the others are waiting in line to be stuffed or have their beaks sewn on. And then on to the pigs! I'm going to give these to my grandsons along with a big set of basic building blocks so they can play the game in real life. When I asked my girls if the boys would like this for Christmas, they wanted to know which boys? The big ones or the little ones! LOL

The website where I found these great patterns is Obsessivelystitching. She has done a great job with her tutorials. And there is still time to get some made before Christmas!

now off to more stuffing and making ONE more yellow bird for Julie--her choice!

Nana's workshop and FREE giveaway!

2011-11-21T11:26:00.001-05:00

See the FREE giveaway below...

Whew! If I'm this busy with just two grandson's toys, I can't imagine Santa's workshop! LOL I need some elves of my own I think. Actually what I am working on is not so hard, but does take time. Here are some sneak peeks, I hope to have these done by Thanksgiving.

Here is what I started out with....

And this from a great website..(I'll share later :) )

work in progress....

Anyone guess what I'm making? I will send ONE of these

FREE to the first person who correctly guesses what I am making. Easy peasy if you have kids or grandkids! Just because I'm nice like that. :)

I'm also working on a few things for the girls in my family..and here are two that are done. Sorry--no freebies on these! :)

These two tote bags/large purses are for my daughters. They sure hold a lot..the one inside pocket holds an iPad..that's how big they are. Great pattern and directions. Which is good to know, because there are a lot of patterns that leave a lot to be desired, including one big name person, who shall remain nameless, but I'll NEVER make one of her patterns again. Anyway..this is

My Favorite Bag by Katie Cupcakes. ~~I think~~ she has a smaller version of the same bag as well.

Now...back to work!

Baby Rag Quilt Tutorial

2011-09-28T09:59:00.000-05:00

Mom was here for a few days and really wanted to make a couple of baby rag quilts for a friend whose daughter is expecting twins. We got two done in a day! Well, the washing isn't done and a little bit of clipping left, but pretty much done.

Baby Rag Quilt

Size 35" x 45"

the seams aren't clipped or been washed yet...but it's on it's way to SC to be finished!

Fabric Requirements

2/3 yard of 6 different flannels

Do NOT prewash the flannel.

Press each piece, wrong sides together, with the selvages matching up perfectly (like it comes off the bolt)

1. Cut (4) 6" strips out of each color

2. Make (3) 6" cuts out of each doubled strip. (which yields you 6 squares per strip and 24 squares per color) or 144 squares total. Leave the squares doubled and you'll be ready to sew! You'll have 72 block.

3. Sew an 'X' in each block (two squares, wrong sides together) so the fabric doesn't shift all over later after washing. I chain piece this part. I start with the first square and sew a diagonal line from one corner to the next corner.

Stitch an "X" in each block (2 squares wrong sides together)

NOTE: I do not mark a line, although you could if desired. But try this first: Put your needle in the first corner and stitch a little bit. Now let your machine do the work...on a slow to medium speed, let the feed dogs advance the material, barely guiding it with your hands. Believe it or not, your machine will stitch straight without you interfering! And if you do have to gently guide it, look at the next corner where you are headed...do NOT look at the needle. It's like driving a car, you don't look just ahead of the front of the car, you look down the road.

4. Lay out your blocks in a 7 x 9 format in a pleasing manner. I just laid them out with the blocks being in a diagonal row for quick way to be done. You could lay them out randomly all over as well.

blocks laid out randomly

You will have some blocks leftover. You could always add them to make another row, if you would like a bigger quilt.

5. Lay Row 2 over onto Row 1.

The photo below has the top two blocks of Row 2 laid on Row 1. Continue down the row.

Lay Row 2 onto Row 1

Pick up the blocks, starting with the top block, and leaving them in order. Your stack should have the top blocks on top. Take to the machine and stitch with 1/2" seam, chain piecing the whole row. (chain piecing is stitching each block and then adding the next block without breaking the thread in between the blocks). Do NOT clip the blocks apart after the row is complete. It is easier to keep them in order if they are still connected by a thread. The front will have all smooth seams and the back will have big ol' seams hanging..that's okay, we'll take care of those later!

Stitch with 1/2" seam

6. Now pick up Row 3 in order with the first block on top of the stack. Take to the machine. Lay the top block of Row 3 on top of Row 2 and stitch with 1/2" seam. (Notice that the smooth seam of Row 1 & 2 is facing up) When you are done with that first block, pick up the second block of Row 3 and lay on the next block of pieced unit. Continue until Row 3 is pieced onto the first two rows.

Laying Row 3 onto Row 2.

7. Continue in the same manner for all the rows. They will all be connected in one big unit, with the horizontal rows being connected to each other by just by threads.

Sewing all horizontal rows together, leaving the connecting threads (as shown from the 'ragged' side)

8. Lay the smooth sides together (NOT the side with the big ol' seams hanging) of the first two rows. Stitch with 1/2" seam. When you approach the seams, finger press the top seam UP and the bottom seam down and then 'nestle' them together to match the seams.

making seams go in opposite directions to 'nestle' the seam

9. Repeat for each row, continuing until the rows are all done. Do NOT worry that the seam directions are going all over the place! We will clip them later, so don't stress about it now.

Stitching the rows together, photo show bottom rows sewn

10. Last step of sewing: Stitch 1/2" all the way around the outside edge to keep the seams from coming apart.

Stitching 1/2" around outside edge of quilt

11. Now to the fun part: Clipping. I'm not going to ~~lie~~ sugar coat this. This is not the funnest part of this quilt to do. Although it is smaller than the regular size Rag Quilts, it still is a lot of clipping. My recommendation is to get a Rag Quilt scissors. They are well worth the money if you are going to make Rag quilts. If you don't want to invest in one, make sure you use a spring action scissors at the very least!

Clip about 1/2" apart to ALMOST the seam line, taking care not to cut the seam. If you cut closer than 1/2", the seam will get real ragged and almost create a ridge, so I recommend not to clip too close together, at least for a baby quilt. When you get to the intersections, just clip the fabric free from the seam to release it. Don't forget to clip around the edge of the quilt as well.

(PS..sorry no pics...they all turned out blurry and the quilt is gone now)

12. Washing: take the quilt to a laundromat and wash with a small amount of mild detergent. When it's through the wash cycle, take outside and shake it really hard to get rid of a lot of threads. Trust me..take it outside! Then put it in the dryer. Take outside to shake again and voila! A soft cuddly baby quilt.

Note: on regular sized Rag Quilts, I use Warm and Natural batting, but I don't on baby quilts as it makes it almost too heavy. Two layers of flannel is a nice weight. Now go cuddle that baby!

Staying for a few days in PI

2011-09-21T13:00:00.000-05:00

After all the girls left from the retreat, I stayed on for a few more days. I THOUGHT it was to rest! HA! I.....

......went to a great church service on 9/11/11 asking us to 'Remember'

......had iPad lessons with my parents all afternoon and evening

......had lunch with a new friend (our fearless tour leader to Israel) and had a GREAT Crab Quiche at The Chive Blossom in Pawley's Island

Crab Quiche

......spent the day doing errands with banks, electric companies, etc.

......spruced up the condo and fixed things

......had lunch with my neighbor--thanks Martha!

.....had dinner with my good friend, Marilyn and her quilt group and then learned how to do locker hooking! Something that's been on my list to learn. Thanks Donna for your great lessons!

And look at Donna's curtains in her sewing room...too cute!

Donna's Curtains

and then I had to leave! Whew! I needed to head home to finally rest. I did stop at a few antique malls along the way. I'll post more later on my newest thing I'm collecting, but I just had to share these things.

Cute tablerunner....not so cute price.. $185! AND it was called a Double Wedding Ring runner! Just your chuckle for the day.

and one final photo...

hello? Vintage? does that mean I'm vintage? These were my FIRST canisters when I was first married! AAACCCKKK! And someone might want these? Ah..the days of Avocado Green and Harvest Gold and that orange!

Final Day of Retreat

2011-09-20T13:05:00.000-05:00

Final day of the retreat...

no projects

'clean out the fridge' meals

no adventures

BUT

Memories of a fun week!

Some of us did not get dressed all day and was able to work on projects the WHOLE DAY! what a novel idea for a retreat, huh? :) Actually, we were so pooped, that we didn't have the energy to drum any more excitement. We'll save that for next year. I hear there are new plans for hijinks next year. I better start worrying now!

One final photo...sunset at Pawley's Island Beach...

Thanks girls for all the fun memories and adventures!

Day #5 of Quilt Retreat

2011-09-19T13:00:00.000-05:00

Day #5 of Retreat

Project of the Day:

Stitchin' on Island Time Clock

Dinner:

Hot Fish Club in Murrell's Inlet

The Girls of 2011 Pawley's Island Retreat

Adventure of the Day:

Sunrise at the beach

Loggerhead Turtle Nest Reveal

We happened to choose the right day to watch the sunrise! Not only did we have a beautiful view of the sun with no cloud cover, but it was the 4th day after the Loggerhead turtles left the nest. And that is when they dig up the nests to see how many turtles hatched and how many did not make it. We didn't get to see any turtles though. :( But it was kind of fun to be there.

Memories:

Some girls couldn't get enough seafood, so they ate out at lunch as well. There were a few extra 'ladies' hanging out so we offered their lonely machines to them. They didn't do so well. :)

and so the retreat is winding down. One group is leaving in the morning, leaving 4 of us for one more day. So all our projects are done. wow..does time fly when you are having fun or what?

Day #4- Quilt Retreat

2011-09-18T20:13:00.000-05:00

and back to the reports of the retreat..had to stop and pack up and come home! but here was the rest of the retreat...

#4 of Quilt Retreat

Project of the Day:

Snap Bags

Snap Bag

Dinner:

Hot Chicken Salad

Cottage Cheese

Green Beans
Green Salad

Apple Crisp

I think this is quickly becoming our Quilt Retreat annual meal. Marilyn served it to us a few years ago and now it's requested. Worth breaking the diet over, right E?

Adventure of the Day:

Beach Walking

AND

Round TWO of quilt shops

Memories:

yep, just a wee bit of sewing going on!

Quilt Retreat Day #3

2011-09-14T08:26:00.000-05:00

Day #3 of the Quilt Retreat

Project of the Day:

Sewing Machine Covers

Elizabeth's Sewing Machine Cover

Dinner:

Pot Roast**

no photo..but the most yummy roast. And easy too! Just plop a 3# roast into a slow cooker, mix a package of dried onion soup, a can of whole cranberry sauce and 3/4 cup french dressing and pour it over the roast. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Fall apart goodness. It makes a bit of a gravy, so it's great served over mashed potatoes, noodles or rice.

Adventure of the Day:

Crashing the Beach Crab Party......

Notice the time...and how dark it is outside..that's because it is 2AM in the MORNING!
and we left at that time!

We went to the beach at low tide....which happened to be at 2 AM! We were hoping to find lots of great shells and some really wanted to find sand dollars, but we ended up crashing what appeared to be a Crab Party! They were everywhere...scrambling to hide from our lights. It was actually quite comical.

We also found other creatures as well....sea urchins...

on the search...and boy was it dark...you didn't venture too far away from the group without a flashlight. Who knows what you would have stepped on!

And what on earth is this crazy thing? It appeared to be hollow, filled with air. Some type of creature...someone told us it was just some type of seaweed..but it didn't look like that either. Any ideas?

Memories:

Round One of Quilt Shops

Quilter's Cottage

and

Accent Sewing

Both places were kind to us crazy ladies!

Memories:

Random ladies make their appearance again

Someone asked if this was really a quilt retreat...as we seem to be doing everything BUT sewing. But here's proof. It seemed like most of our sewing was done in the weeeee hours of the morning.

2011-09-13T07:40:00.001-05:00

Editor's note: I just found this post in the draft file. Wonder why I didn't publish it? who knows..but here is just one video of my Quilt Show that was the last weekend in August.

Day Two- Quilt Retreat

2011-09-13T07:37:00.000-05:00

Day #2 Quilt Retreat

Project: Coasters and Coaster Caddy

This was a pattern out of the Summer Issue of Quilts and More. Some ladies had so much fun making them, they went after more fabric. They'll make great Christmas gifts. MJK made 5 sets! Way to go girl! Sure beats shark tooth hunting, huh?

Dinner:

Shrimp Fest!

Here we are, cleaning the shrimp. Some opted to clean up AFTER dinner, smart ladies! :) But boy, was it all yummy.

YUM! Shrimp cocktail, shrimp scampi and fried shrimp. We used cornmeal in the batter and then rolled it in cornmeal, quite tasty!

Adventure of the Day:

Shark Tooth Hunting

It was a good week at Litchfield, we are able to find shark teeth as soon as we came down from the deck! Deb had a sharp eye and found the majority of the teeth.

Memories of today:

3 AM sewing..and life just gets silly after midnight!

Annual Quilt Retreat in Pawley's Island-Day 1

2011-09-10T20:06:00.000-05:00

Again, we are down here in Pawley's for our retreat and if I remember right, it's supposed to be a Quilt retreat...but we seem to be doing a lot of other things as well! This year, instead of having a week long project, I only planned fun little projects for each day. They make cute gifts, so gave a lot of the ladies ideas for Christmas gifts. I'll share what we have been doing all week...warning...it's not all about quilting :)

Project of the Day: Shell Collector Bags

Shell Collector Bag
--of course we had to make these being at the beach! Made with screen door mesh, they are a quick project to make for kids..even the big kids at heart.

Dinner of the Day: Lasagna

no picture--but I bet you can image it in your mind :)

Adventure of the Day:

Alligator Hunting!

There is a huge pond near our condo here that always have several alligators in them. It's right behind my parents house and this past spring, a 10 footer ate the neighbor's dog! So, at night, we went and stood on the bridge and shined a huge spotlight over the water to look for their eyes. If you catch them at the right angle, they were a spooky red! We saw 3 that night. Unfortunately, the big ones were far away and not having a night camera, the only picture we took was of a baby alligator. See the little, itty bitty white dot? That is his eye. It appeared to be about 3-4 foot gator. Just a baby. Of course, we were really brave.....standing on the bridge......looking over at them!

Other Memories:

Gotcha Elizabeth!

Visiting Ladies

We had several surprise visits from 'friends' in low places....need I say more? LOL

This is going to be wild and crazy week.

Quilt Show success!

2011-08-30T21:15:00.000-05:00

here is the first of 6 videos of the quilt show. My comedian husband did the narration. He thinks he's a quilt expert! LOL

We had a BEAUTIFUL day, sunny, not too hot, not very much wind and had a great turnout! Thank you to all the quilters who shared their quilt that day and to all who came to enjoy.

#10 in 10 in 10 done!! 16 patch and Pinwheels

2011-08-27T09:00:00.004-05:00

# 16 patch and pinwheels

16 Patch and Pinwheels

I made a mistake earlier in calling another quilt by this name. This was made from scraps and it is one of my favorite quilts. It's going to go on one of my guest room beds. I used Mary's pattern for this one.

close up...

and the backing......not overly exciting...

and that, my friends, concludes my self imposed challenge of finishing 10 quilts in 10 days! The quilt tops were all completed and 4 out of 10 backings were done and several of the bindings were cut. But I still had to create backings for 6 quilts and about 4 binding sets. They were all quilted on my long arm...Khloe. I used a pantograph for two and free hand quilted all the rest.

I'll post pictures of my Quilt Show this weekend. And after all my worrying that I wouldn't have enough (which prompted me to do this little challenge)...I'll have about 117 quilts in the show. My goal every year is to have at least 100. I would have hit that without these quilts. But NO problem, they are NOW done and some of them were WAAAYY overdue!

Thanks for following along in my little challenge. Maybe I should do more challenges...sure gets things done! wanna join me?

#9 in 10 in 10 done! Scrappy Trip Around the World

2011-08-26T12:03:00.000-05:00

#9- Scrappy Trip Around the World

Scrappy Trip Around the World

Woohoo! Final countdown...I see the end in sight! And I should actually call this Scrappy Trip Around Las Vegas as I bought this fabric in LV a few years ago. I just loved these fabrics and it's bright..right up my alley! I followed Bonnie of Quiltville's basic instructions. I controlled my scraps though. Easy peasy.

I had two extra blocks left so rather than come up with another project for them or have extra blocks sitting around, I put them on the back. It's hard to see the lower fabric, but it has all the colors of the quilt in it and is just perfect for the backing.

ignore the propane tank in the background, okay? :) I cropped it and then the program wouldn't load it, so you get to see it. Lucky day for you.

Sitting in this chair...looking so perfect near the garden...and fits right in with that pink flamingo! LOL It's so cheesy, I love it! My hubby just rolls his eyes. Ah...living with a crazy quilter!

Quilt Show preparations are coming along. We won't hang any quilts until tomorrow morning, but the good news is that it's going to be a gorgeous day! Hopefully not very much wind. My last show in 2009 it was so windy, I could hardly take any photos and most of them were hanging horizontally--flapping in the wind!

If you live in Central Ohio, you are welcome to come visit all these and 115+ more! I love seeing all these quilts hanging outside...in the woods. Quilters just sharing their work with others.

I get several people stopping by thinking that I'm having a yard sale and am selling all of them! Yeah right. I had a guy stop one year and wanted to buy a particular quilt. I told him, no, they are not for sale. In fact, the one he wanted was a class sample. I told him I could teach him how to make it, but it wasn't for sale. He got very persistent, telling me that everything is for sale for a price. So I told him the price I would sell it for to recoup my materials and time and he got mad! Said I was asking way too much. I told him he was right--everything is for sale--for the right price for ME--not him. :) I'd rather give my quilts to those that love them, than sell them for next to nothing. So..therefore I teach people to make their own. Much more satisfaction in that anyway. right?

#8 in 10 in 10 done! Hexagons

2011-08-25T15:48:00.000-05:00

#8- Hexagons

Hexagons

Whew--I'm wearing down...can I make it to the end? I sure hope so. I had to throw in putting up corn today, making cake balls for the Open House and clean my sewing room. Stopping to take time to those dropping quilts off for the Quilt Show and the day is buzzing by fast.

This was made with one of the FQ packs that my hubby gets me every year from Fat Quarter Shop. I love all the prints..they are so rich in color.

One thing I decided to do was cut off the points on the sides. I decided I didn't want to deal with the binding on all those points. I didn't think it added that much to the quilt. But then I had some scraps and heaven only knows I hate to waste fabric! So I took the cut off points and appliqued them to the backing, in the seams. I kind of like it.

and for close up...

You know, it's the backings that is taking up some of my time! Creating something interesting takes time! :) But it's so worth it.

Two more days......I wonder what they would think if I took a quilt to bind during my meeting? Hmmm, I'm the Secretary..kind of hard to take notes and sew at the same time!

Note to Demanding Doll.....if I EVER find that evasive cleaning fairy--I'll be more than happy to share! :)