QUILT COOKIES

Valentine gifts for grandkids!

2012-02-09T13:49:00.000-06:00

NAME TAGS!

These tags are for luggage, gym bags, music bags or sports bags!

I've had the embroidery applique designs for several months and kept delay making them as I had not done anything like that before. (It uses the heavy stabilizer inside, so it's pretty thick.)

However, once I got started the instructions were very easy to follow. The designs are from "Tag-A-Long" Embroidery Collection by Hope Yoder.

You can't tell, but these tags are 5-6" long, a nice size. I am going to get some ribbons to tie on the flip flops for the girls and maybe a chain for Jake's.

There is a danger of having name tags on kid's bags (everyone is aware of those dangers I think), but in my grandkids' situations they are never anywhere that their parents aren't nearby.

They turned out so well, that I think I'll be making me a new ID tag for my quilt guild! Now to go get something (candy??) to go with these tags!

IPAD 2 Quilted Case

2012-02-02T19:58:00.000-06:00

My IPAD has a nice cover I received as a gift, but I felt like I needed to completely cover it, in case I dropped it and also just so it wouldn't be so "exposed" when not being used.

So I did a little research on what was out there and decided I could make one much cheaper than buying one. (ya think??!!) In my stash I had some quilted fabric that I had leftover from another project and thought why not. The work was half done for me.

This one was done in 30 minutes or less! That includes figuring out what I was going to do.

I cut the fabric into a rectangle 9 1/2" x 25" long. Turned down the short sides 1/4" and then turned down again about an inch or so and hemmed again. (Use your ipad to measure exactly by folding fabric in half and adjusting the depth of case.)

Put right sides together and sew outer edges. Turn inside out. Sew a button on the front and add an elastic hoop sewn on the inside of the back of the case that pulls over to the button keeping the ipad from falling out! DONE!

Another Storybook Quilt!

2012-01-27T21:42:00.000-06:00

I couldn't help myself, I found this very cute fabric depicting "The Grouchy Ladybug", so I decided to make another mini quilt for our guild project for the library! I ordered the book from Amazon and am very happy with the result.

You can't really see much of the quilting, but I just cross-hatched it! Simple and quick! The guild members are beginning to turn in their projects and I think it is going to be a great service project for our community.

Storybook quilts!

2012-01-12T20:58:00.000-06:00

As a community project to commemorate our 20th anniversary in June, my quilt guild is making STORYBOOK QUILTS!

We are making mini sized quilts (from 12" squares to door sized) that are based on children's pre-school books. Then the quilts and the books together will be presented to our local public library during National Library Week in April. They will be used by the Children's Librarian during story times at the library.

These will be "hands on props" to be used when the books are read to the children and then hung periodically on the library walls. It also will give the librarian a chance to explain to the children just what a quilt is, therefore promoting quilting, even though these will be wall quilts instead of the kind used on beds.

We have had good response for signing up to make these and I can't wait to see all the different interpretations of the different books. I retired from the library and we have several former teachers in our guild and we are all very excited about this project! They aren't due until March, but here is my first one. I thought it might be good when they have a program on "manners".

Christmas Pic

2011-12-29T18:29:00.000-06:00

Every Christmas I purchase pajamas for my grandkids and have to have a photo of them. It's so much fun to see how they change from year to year. They used to be all the same but as of last year, Jake gets his own. The girls, Lyndey, Kayley and Paige love wearing matching ones!

A quick and FUN gift for machine embroiderers!

2011-12-21T16:55:00.001-06:00

Okay, I have seen these before, but never attempted them. It was on my "TO DO" list SOMEDAY. Well, I was needing some inexpensive fun gifts and thought of them last night when I couldn't sleep.

Embroidering on toilet tissue is interesting. I had no trouble with it tearing at all. I was careful though. Using three thicknesses folded under and cut-away stabilizer, it was really quite easy. I would suggest not using a dense design. I liked the lightness of the snowmen.

The toilet paper brands I used were Cottonelle and Angel Soft. I prefer the Cottonelle, a little more durable, but the Angel Soft worked fine too. I am sure that I need to change my needle too, after sewing through all that paper, it's bound to be a little dull.

They are so easy and depending on what design you choose pretty darn quick! I made the flowers first and then decided I didn't want to change threads because I needed several rolls and found the SNOWMEN! I think they're cuter anyway.

So instead of cleaning today, I was in the sewing room. That dust will still be there tomorrow! Put that off as long as possible. Here's what I ended up with:

I may have gotten a little carried away! Here are some closeups:

When my husband saw these, he laughed and said, "what will you do next?" Who knows! MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Christmas came early for me this year!

2011-12-16T22:58:00.000-06:00

The past six months I have swapped gifts with a new internet friend--Sandy from Ohio in the SANTA SACK SWAP. Each month we sent two wrapped gifts to each other and they were put in a specially made "sack" and told not to peek!! We could open them yesterday and this is what I got.

Sandy did a fantastic job of choosing gifts for me! I absolutely love the mug rug with the coffee cup. I don't drink coffee, but I love tea AND hot cocoa. So cute. And the purse and table topper are just gorgeous! She sent some charm packs and fat quarters so I can sew up something new, some sewing tools, the cutest ear rings, footies, an assortment of BEST PRESS, a wonderful cookie cookbook, and the neatest framed pin cushion, so clever.

This was definitely a fun swap! Not often do we mothers/grandmothers get many gifts. At least I don't. And we got to open them early so we could actually enjoy them at the time. Thanks go to Cheryl at Gone Stitchin' for organizing such fun for all of us. And, Sandy, thank you very much for everything you sent!

Clara's Calling

2011-11-11T15:38:00.000-06:00

Today I found out about something that touched my heart!

Master Sergeant Clara Vargas and her team of American soldiers have a mission to teach 4,000 widowed Afghan women to sew, so they can provide basic necessities for themselves and their children. These women have nothing. Clara started this project last year and quilters and lots of sponsors are doing what they can to help.

They are asking for treadle machines and irons that are heated on a fire, like my grandmother used, because there is no electricity available. When I think of how fortunate I am, I thank God. Who uses fire to heat irons anymore? These women do. I may not be able to donate a treadle machine or an old antique iron, but I have many of these items in my sewing room that I doubt I'd ever miss. How lucky I am.

Several quilt stores, have jumped on the band wagon and are providing postage to mail these items to Afghanistan. All we have to do is give what we can to help these poor women.

Some of the things they need are:

Fabrics*

Scissors

Rotary Cutters

Bags or Totes

Pins

Lace

Rulers

Bindings

Fabric Markers

Patches

Fasteners

Elastics

Buttons

Embroidery Supplies

Zippers

Needles (Hand & Machine)

Ribbon & Trim

Sew-In Interfacing/Stabilizers

Organizers

Thimbles

Pincushions
And much more!

Please go to clarascalling.com and read about this amazing project. I'm taking this to my local guild. I know they will be ready to give generously. I hope you do your share.

Embroidered Burp Pads!

2011-09-20T12:37:00.000-05:00

My sister asked me to embroider some burp pads for a co-worker's daughter so that's what I did this morning. Pretty simple and quick!

I got some Carter's cloth diapers at Wal-Mart to use. They really are super for burp pads. They have that extra padding in the center which is perfect.

I also made one with the baby's name on it. Now get this--the baby isn't born yet. Things change. I made a quilt once and put the label on it with the baby's supposedly "name" on it. Yup, you guessed it. They decided on another name. I told them I'd take the label off and re-do it, but I never got it back. Who knows if they took it off or not. Hope so. Rather have no quilt label, than the wrong name on it for the poor child.

I may have to start selling these for people. Maybe I could make enough to pay for my thread!! Anyone need some??

FINALLY--Quilts done started seven years ago!!

2011-09-06T12:26:00.000-05:00

CELEBRATION TIME!!! Seven years ago when my two oldest granddaughters were two, a long time friend made some embroidered doll blocks for them and told them that their Nana could make them a quilt out of them.

Patsy had just gotten a new embroidery sewing machine and she just has grandSONS, so was anxious to try the cute "Sue's Cousins" designs. Well, then the ball was in my park and I used the excuse for a while of finding the perfect pattern. Then I used the excuse of finding the perfect fabrics. So I finally decided if I was going to do it while they could still use them, I'd better get in gear. So this year I finished them.

I then had another problem, because I had another granddaughter born later. So I decided to make her one too. Well, I do have a nice embroidery/sewing machine now, but didn't have the designs in the right format, so Patsy made the blocks again for Lyndey and I got busy and made hers too.

Their birthdays are within a month of each other, and the past weekend, we celebrated two of them. So I decided to give them all at the same time.

Lyndey, the youngest, says "Paige got the prettiest--PINK!" I knew that might be a problem, they all love pink. Patsy had chosen the red for Kayley and I knew Paige loved pink, and Lyndey likes purple too, so I went with that. I wanted them to be the same but different colors.

My daughter had taken photos of me and each granddaughter at Easter so I used them on my label, so when I'm long gone they won't forget me!!

The girls were much much more excited with the toys they received, but someday I know they will appreciate the quilts and know that their Nana loved them so much!

Journal (Notebook) Cover!

2011-08-12T21:21:00.000-05:00

When we were on vacation I spotted a similar journal cover that I really liked. As usual, it was on display for a class and no pattern was available. So....... I came home and made my own pattern! Here it is:

I LOVE JOURNALS. I can't really say just journals, but notebooks, too. I jot notes down all the time. Robert says I "make lists of lists"! Things to do for the day, things to make (sew or quilt) and then every so often I have to prioritize what I'm going to do FIRST. Please tell me I'm not the only one out there that does this.

Anyway, back to the notebook cover. When you open, it looks like this:

And behind the spiral notebook, there is a panel that holds the notebook in.

Sorry, for some reason I canNOT rotate this picture, but hopefully you get the idea.

If I make another one, I'll make a change or two. One being putting the velcro on the front cover before adding the inside cover and binding. As you can tell, you can see the sewing on the little pencil holder which also made the cover of paper notebook NOT FIT!! I was already to rip it out when Robert said why don't you just trim the paper cover. HELLO.....sometimes he is amazing!! Why didn't I think of that.

Home from 4148 mile motorcycle journey!

2011-07-26T09:31:00.000-05:00

Wow! What an adventure Robert and I had the past three weeks!! In 19 days and 15 hotels, we managed to travel to 12 states and survived the heat wave too. Our friends Bill and Linda decided to take this trek and invited us. We both had gotten our trikes within the past year and we got a trailer (which you really need or at least the women think so) so we were anxious to try a long trip. Here are some of the highlights!

It was great! We started east to Memphis and had the King's favorite peanut butter and banana sandwich at Graceland! On to Nashville to see the Ryman and Music Hall of fame. We attended Wing Ding in Knoxville, but was only there a few hours--not near enough! The Smokey Mountains were fantastic, so pretty!

We SURVIVED the Tail of the Dragon. 318 curves in 11 miles! Rob drove a little slower after I was sucking air in the beginning. What was scary was the crotch rockets speeding around the corners coming straight at us. If they would lose control they'd wipe everyone out!

The Biltmore Estate was fantastic. We had seen it before but Bill and Linda hadn't, so we had to show it to them in Asheville, NC. Our good friends, George and Luana (they used to live in Perry) met us and had lunch with us. It was great to see them.

The next day we toured California Sidecar plant in Arrington, VA. They made our trike conversion. The guys enjoyed that! And then on to Norfolk to the Naval Base for a tour. Went to Kitty Hawk and then on to Mrytle Beach!

The guys did take us to three quilt stores on the trip and the best one was "Sewing in the Carolinas" near there. Wonderful quilt shop. I have a couple of new projects to work on now. Linda and I rode the big Sky Wheel on the beach. Huge and a great way to see the beach!

One of the neat things we saw was a lady "crabbing" on a pier in Mrytle Beach. She threw out baskets on strings tied to the pier. The baskets had raw chicken tied to the bottom and she was pulling out crabs fast and furious!

We rode the Outer Banks and that was fun! It included two ferry rides which made for a very long day but definitely worth it. We stopped in Charleston and Savannah. We took a historic tour in Savannah and it was very interesting. I LOVE the Spanish Moss on the trees and the lovely old homes. We stopped in Defuniak Springs, Florida and what a quaint little city. We saw the Circle Lake and found a geocache (one of three on the trip--didn't have time for more) there. Also, we visited the "Big Little Store".

This was just like the old time general stores. This man had everything you could think of and more. Loved it!

In Pensacola we toured the Air and Space Museum. Very busy place. Not my cup of tea, but the guys enjoyed it.

And then we come to Louisiana. We went to Bourbon Street to the Cafe Dumonde for beignets. Delicious!!! Everyone should have one of those powdery delights. (Excuse the dorky hat!)

We walked the open market and then down Bourbon Street. I'm glad we did it, but not impressed. We were in the area three hours and our parking cost us $32!! Rob was not happy. They said our trailer doubled the price, but it only took up one space. Go figure. And the weather is SO HUMID there. I don't know how they stand it all the time. I'm sure there are lovely spots in Louisiana, but we didn't see them.

By this time we were ready to get home and it was getting very hot in the afternoons so we travelled in the morning and tried to stay out of the heat in the hot afternoons. In Hugo, OK we stopped at the Mt. Olive Cemetery to see the circus section. They have very interesting headstones and I do love cemeteries.

The last night of our vacation we spent at the Durant, OK Casino Resort. Very nice accommodations. I just made a donation to the casino, no luck at all. I think Linda did okay, but nothing big. It's all about entertainment for us!

So when we heard that our hometown was going to hit 106, we decided to hit the rode early and we were home by 10:30 am. It was 99 degrees when we got off the trike. My cooling jacket really saved me. Thank God for allowing us a safe and fun trip.

Santa Sack Swap!

2011-07-01T11:48:00.000-05:00

Today I received my Santa Sack and two wrapped gifts from my Santa partner, Sandy in Ohio! Love the fabrics and the giant ric rac really sets it off!

This is going to be such fun! I, too, was tempted to take a little peak but I didn't do it! For those of you that don't know about this fun swap, Cheryl at

http://stitchingcubbyhole.blogspot.com/ is hosting this! Each month we send our partner two WRAPPED gifts between now and Christmas. This first month we included a gift bag to put the gifts in each month and then on Christmas morning we get to open all of them.

I don't know about you all, but sometimes Moms get the short end of the stick on gifts! I'm not complaining, as at this stage in my life I have everything I need and most of what I want, but don't we all like to open gifts and these will be from quilting buddies, so they know what we like!! Thanks, Sandy, can't wait to see what's in those gifts!

Lucky Charm Lotto Blocks of the Month

2011-06-17T16:03:00.000-05:00

It seems as I forgot to post last month's block. If you remember I'm providing a block made from 5" charms in an effort to use up our stashes and charm packs for my guilld. This was what I am calling the "Six Pack".

How easy is this one? Just choose three light browns and three darker/black charms and make two rows of three for each block. Of course the winner may put them together the way she chooses, but I'm thinking a frame or sashing of the same fabric and this would turn into a manly looking throw very quickly!

And for this month, I've chosen the "Nickel Brick".

This block uses four 5" squares, different prints. Cut squares to 3" x 5" rectangles. (Save the 2" x 5" strips for piano keys border).

One 1 1 /2" x 40" strip of solid black fabric. Cut eight 1 1/2" x 5" strips.
Sew a black strip to each long side of 3" x 5" prints.

Arange the four blocks together and sew together as above picture. It is most important that you position the four mini blocks the same way for each block. Ask me why I tell you this. Yes, I was sewing along just trying to get the twosies to match colorwise a little bit and was not paying attention. Sure enough, I had sewed some with the upper left mini block going horizontal and some vertically. It does make a difference, trust me!

I have several layed out in the following picture to show how it would look in a quilt.

There are several blues that need to be re arranged, but this is just to give you an idea how the blocks will appear to be woven. A great way to use up those scraps!

Granddaughters making MUD PIES!

2011-06-16T15:28:00.000-05:00

My granddaughters love making MUD PIES! Actually, they make pies, cakes, cookies, puddings and anything else they can think of. They were over last night, and decided it was time to have another "baking session". (Actually, it was hot enough to "bake"" them pretty quickly.

As you can see they had a ball. They added "chips" (rocks), coconut (grass), cinnamon (sand) and just about anything they could find. They found some roly poly's and wanted to add them, but I said no live animals. :) Mostly they love making "batter" and playing IN IT.

Kayley loves to "mold"cookies!

Lyndey with the PECAN PIE

They even decorated the swing set!

They had a ball! They wanted their cousin, Paige to be there and she will be in a couple of weeks. She gets to come along with her brother to spend a week at Nana's and Papa's. When that happens the cousins are together most of the time. I love that.

Easiest lint brush YOU can make in a flash!

2011-06-12T20:36:00.000-05:00

Today I made the "neatest" (that's not an in word, I know), "coolest", (okay, I'm still not there) LINT BRUSH, but suffice to say it is pretty darn "nifty"!

It is a lint brush to clean the bobbin area on your sewing machine! Okay, I know I have one that came with my machine and I also have a "big"fuzzy one I use quite frequently. But this one is made with things you probably have in your home if you're a grandma or mother and you make it in SECONDS. AND, you can make multiple ones at a time and if they get lost--no big deal.

All you need is a pipe cleaner and a straw.

Fold the straw in half and poke both ends into the straw.

You are done. How great is that!!!

BEFORE

AFTER

I always clean the area when I change bobbins. But with this handy, I'll be doing it a lot more often! The straw is long enough you can manipulate it very easily. I forgot to tell you that the straw I used was a thin one and it worked perfectly. I expect if you had a bigger holed straw you could just double again and it should work.

Now I CANNOT take credit for this. Cheryl over at naptimequilter.blogspot.com

had posted this on her blog. She gave me permission to tell you about it. Hop on over and check her site out. Thanks for sharing, Cheryl!

Tortilla Steamer

2011-06-07T17:10:00.000-05:00

Today I made some of those very easy tortilla steamers. You insert your tortillas and stick them in the microwave for a couple of minutes to heat them. Of course, the time varies from microwave to microwave. We eat a lot of Mexican food and love flour tortillas. This will be used a lot.

I have one of those plastic tortilla "bowls" with the lid like you see in the restaurants. One time I put that in the microwave. Not too smart. I didn't think I'd ever get that lid off! I learned you heat them first then put them in those containers.

The next picture shows that one half of the steamer opens up to insert the tortillas.

The pattern is by Legacy and really a quick project. The only thing you must remember is to use 100% cotton fabrics AND batting.

You can even put potatoes or frozen corn on the cob in there too. I may get some potato or corn fabric and make me some more of these! Too cute!

Beautiful Needlecase!

2011-05-17T12:01:00.000-05:00

This gorgeous needlecase was sent to me from Corina of Winnipeg, Canada.

Her free motion quilting is wonderful and I love the idea of the additional pincushion on the outside monogram ! And isn't it so functional, I love it. Thank you, Corina, for the wonderful surprise!

Bloggers Quilt Festival (Jar Quilt)

2011-05-13T12:53:00.000-05:00

Amy over at Amy's Creative Side is putting on the Bloggers Festival again. This is a fun way to see a lot of beautiful quilts without leaving the comfort of your easy chair.

I decided to participate again and chose a quilt I finished ten years ago. I've been noticing a lot of people are doing "jar quilts" again and wanted to show mine made way back then. I even left one jar "open" with a fly trying to get in it.

When this pattern first came out, everyone on the internet jumped on the idea of swapping jar blocks. I was in a group that decided to do FOOD instead of bugs. This was in 1998, I finished it in 2001 and it hung in my kitchen for quite a while.

It was so much fun and I was lucky enough to get blocks from the Netherlands, Australia, Norway and many places across the United States. I decided to put labels on my jars and put everyone's names and email addresses on them, just like they were real canning jars on a shelf. (It's doubtful any of the addresses are still current, I know mine isn't!) It was a real conversation starter!

Anyway, I thought it might be fun to list the names on the quilt. Maybe some of your are still out there and might like to see your block made into my quilt. (And if you are, please let me know!) Here they are:

Bonnie Preslar, Beverly Burris, Peggy Raley, Judith Brainerd, Jean Fajimoto, Lyn Sethna, Wendy Harrison, Barbara Morris, Patsy Brown, Dixie Reed,
Laurel McDaniel, Eileen, Chrysanne Demirel, Karen Dent, Lucy Radatz, Synnova Vanar, Susan Leise, Nataya Segerink and Patsy Hasenfratz. (Thank you all.)

Everyone enjoys the back of the quilt too. It was a huge jar full of Hershey candy bars and my label was on the jar lid.

Be sure to check out all the quilts here.

Enjoying the week in Texas with GRANDkids!! (Sewing, too!)

2011-05-11T11:53:00.000-05:00

This week my daughter and son-in-law are on a fun trip and Nana volunteered to come stay with Jake and Paige. I am really enjoying them so much. Jake is always on the computer as you can see.

Paige sometimes teases him as she goes by. He always gets even though! With an eight year old and a ten year old--something is always going on between them. Paige showed me the neatest experiment she learned in science class.

Put a little milk in a bowl, then add a drop of four food colorings. Take a cotton swap with a little dishwashing soap on the tip and dab in colors. The soap reacts to the fat in the milk. It really is pretty cool.

I tried to insert a video clip but didn't have success, but the process is neat!

While the kids are in school, I have been sewing and shopping. On Monday, I made it to "Quilt Country", one of my favorite quilt stores. I'm like a kid in a candy store there. So much to see, patternwise and FABRIC!!! I only bought one yard of fabric for a specific purpose, so I was happy about that. But you just have to visit those favorite stores just to keep you

aware of what's out there, right??

I had brought my little Janome and a couple of projects to sew on. One being--Nickel Bricks, a great way to use up scraps.

It's mindless sewing, something I can stop and start at any time, so it's perfect to do here. I'm determined to diminish that stash!!

Oh, can't forget this! Julie treated me for Mother's Day! She gave me a massage, a manicure and my FIRST pedicure. Oh, I like that pedi! I even had them paint a little design on my big toes. I'd show you, but I emailed a pic to my husband and he responded--"those cute little sausages look pretty". So a photo online is not gonna happen!! But NOW I can say I've had a pedicure and up with my granddaughters now! Thanks, Julie and Tom!!

Paper pieced table runner done, well almost

2011-05-06T11:36:00.000-05:00

Since last week, I paperpieced the remaing squares for the blocks, keeping in mind the different colors and trying to match blocks a little better.

After rearranging the squares in the blocks, I came up with this. I like it so much better than the other one I showed you before. You can see the yellow, blue, pink and kind of purple blocks and they don't look so "discombobulated".

My daughter tells me I need to improve on my picture taking and use the outside light. Looks like I still need her help!! Draping on something would help too. I should have pressed a little better also. Somewhere online, there are tips for this and I'm going to find them!!

I did just want to show you the color difference and remind everyone that those beautiful batiks that have lots of different colors can be problematic in some blocks. The center square had to be "matched" also. Now, I have to figure out how to quilt it, but there is no hurry for that. The goal was to get the top pieced before the guild meeting. Woohoo!

Pincushions!

2011-05-02T10:15:00.000-05:00

Look what I received in the mail this morning!!

My little BLUE BIRD of Happiness. It makes me smile everytime I look at it. You can't see them, but there are some very cute pins with button heads on them. Thank you so much, Sandra! It's so sweet. And that candy egg will be gone this afternoon!

I don't think I've shown you the pincushions I made. Here they are. Hope they are liked. I included the fingercushions too. They come with warnings though. REMEMBER to insert your pins from the side NOT the top. lol

Paper Piecing Class

2011-05-01T17:33:00.000-05:00

Saturday our guild had a paper piecing class. We have several new members and this was something they wanted to try. I had done some of this years ago, but not recently so I was ready for a refresher too.

Our teacher from another guild, Ellamay, was great.

She has done a lot of paper piecing, including taking classes from Cynthia England. So talented!! We wanted the basics, so she chose this for us to do. The enrollment started with 12. We had 15 wanting to take it, so she said go ahead and open it to 20. When we told our guild that, we had 22--sooo, my friend and I helped with the class and didn't get to sew.

Here is Nita with her finished squares, read to sew together. So pretty! I didn't get any other photos of the finished blocks, but be assured there were some pretty ones.

Today, I started sewing on mine. So accurate! I had forgotten how nice and sharp paperpiecing can be. However, the batik I chose for my "flower" has several different colors and patterns and when cut up I am not happy with it.

I think what I may do is go ahead and make all the squares for the runner and see if I can position the same colored batiks together for each block. In other words, don't sew the squares to make the blocks YET. Any other ideas out there??

I can't wait to see all the finished runners at our guild meeting!

The Royal Wedding--So Majestic!

2011-04-29T12:09:00.000-05:00

I just finished watching "the wedding"! No, I didn't get up to watch it, but I did record it. So I got up, fixed me a cup of tea (I do that very often, not just for the occasion) and watched the history that had been made.

When Kate and her father started down the aisle, it took my breath away. Beautiful setting and so magical.

Everything was perfect--how do they do that?? I know really-- rehearsal, money and more money! The people attending the wedding looked smashing. I loved the hats the ladies wore. Well, most of them. A few of them were really down right hideous, at least to me. I wish I could wear hats but you have to feel like you own them, and I don't. The British do that very well.

Kate's dress was beautiful. Very classic that will look good in the years to come. Not like Diana's that to me is very dated. Beautiful at the time though. One of my favorite moments was when William and Harry were at the altar and Harry looked back to see her. I'd love to know what he said to his brother. I'm sure William was dying to look too! What a shame their mother couldn't have been there.

I can't wait to hear what my granddaughters think of the wedding. They love to play with their Barbies and Disney princesses. And this was definitely the wedding of the century--a grand affair. Something for them to dream about!

Easter was wonderful even though it was rainy!!

2011-04-26T08:31:00.002-05:00

It was a good weekend even though the weather could have been better!

The Texas kids came in Saturday and the others came shortly afterwards. You just can't keep those cousins apart! (I love that. I hope they're always close!) Anyway, the afternoon was spent dyeing eggs and then we went to the lake and Julie who has a nice camera and taking classes on digital photography, took photos of our trike and new trailer.

As you can see Jake is no where to be found. I guess 10 year old boys are past the thrill of dyeing eggs.

I had made journal covers for the girls for little Easter gifts. All three of them love writing notes and drawing so I thought it would be perfect. They took them to the lake, see.......

The covers fit the composition books you can buy at Wal-Mart. I should have taken a photo of the inside. There's a sectional area for three pencils. I want to make myself one sometime soon. Here's how cute they turned out.

I got Jake a new tacklebox and some fishing items. He loves fishing and can sit there FOREVER!!! He decided to leave the box here so he'll have his own stuff here when he visits. I did ask him if he was disappointed he didn't get a journal--he said, "Yeah, right, Nana!"

He did bring six, yes, SIX nerf guns to play with. We had a nerf war in the backyard. Fun, even though we were picking up the ammo forever.

Oh, and Paige, got her first pedicure.

Zebra designs! She told me that she had thought a pedicure was where you took your "pets" to get their nails done. We all got a laugh out of that remark. She told Kayley, her cousin, that she was a little scared when she saw all the "tools" the manicurist used on her feet. She's only 8 1/2 and had her first pedicure. Guess what, I've never had one.

My kitchen sink decided to clog COMPLETELY on Saturday evening, so we moved Easter dinner at Stacey's (DD2). She has a big home and since it was raining, the egg hunt had to be inside and she has a huge grand room. All the aunts and uncles came and we had a feast. I'd post a pic of that but, Julie took those pictures and she hasn't shared yet.

The last few years, we started adding coins in addition to candy to the plastic eggs and the kids really enjoy that. They always have to see who came up with the most $$$. And my newest grand neice, Sloane, who is 9 months old, got to participate too. She didn't know quite what was going on, but she will learn!!

Isn't she a doll!

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter too!

Blocks from charm squares!

2011-04-20T23:16:00.000-05:00

Last year our guild exchanged charm squares to enhance our stashes. The idea was to use them in charm quilts, or maybe use them in some scrap quilts (which I love). They could also add to those lovely charm packs they had but couldn't decide how to use.

Several members had mentioned they have done nothing with their charms so I came up with an idea to use them. Each month I am going to design a block using 5" squares, some with specific colors. The members will make one and bring it to guild the following month. For every one they bring they will get a ticket to win all the blocks.

Hopefully, the members will learn a new block, use their charms, and maybe get lucky enough to win all of them. If they don't win, they may want to make more blocks, using their own colors and make their own quilt.

I'm calling it "LUCKY CHARM LOTTO". I'll be posting the block here too, each month. Maybe some of you will be interested.

Here's the first one:
The Disappearing Nine Patch

Five 5” squares of blue fabrics (all different)

Four 5” squares of white fabric (the same fabric)

Make a nine patch block.

Cut in half vertically and horizontally

Re-arrange in the following pattern and sew.

Here is what my blocks looked like:

You can put the blocks together in different ways to achieve different looks.

I'm hoping that all the different blues will look okay together. Time will tell. I'll try to remember to take a pic of all them at the guild meeting next month and post it!

Great Quilt Class ONLINE and it's FREE!

2011-04-17T10:56:00.001-05:00

During my surfing of quilt sites I've found Rebecca from Australia of Chasing Cottons! She has started a Quilt Class 101 online and it is so thorough. Nothing has been left out. She's doing it for 12 weeks, a little (?) at a time. We all know there is so much to learn in the joy of quilting. It has started but you can join anytime.

Chasing Cottons

I have been quilting for many years, but I believe that all of us can learn something from one another. Everytime I get together with my friends, real and online, I add to my education of quilting and I for one love to see the different ways people do things in the journey of making quilts. Thanks for sharing Rebecca!

Here are some great giveaways!!

2011-04-13T17:10:00.004-05:00

Don't you love giveaways?! Here's some you have to check out. Their sites are wonderful too!

Want it, Need it, Quilt! is giving away 12 beautiful fat quarters! Ends the end of April!

Leona's Quilt Adventure has several different goodies in her giveaway! Ends on April 22, 2011.

P.S. I Quilt is giving a wonderful FQ bundle. Ends this Friday, April 15, 2011.

Oops-Lah 's prizes are a layer cake, jelly roll and Bali Pops! I want those Pops!! Ends May 9, 2011.

Arden's Nest has a wonderful tutorial and giving away 1/2 yard cuts of fabric. Ends April 16, 2011

Cotton Blossom Farms is giving away 12 fat quarters. Ends April 16, 2011.

Bluebird's Wing is giving away a bunch of prizes. Ends April 17, 2011.

Kool Beenz has a FQ bundle to giveaway. Ends April 15, 2011.

Quilted Journeys also is giving away a FQ bundle. Ends April 15, 2011.

SewCalGal has a quilt kit and a $25 gift certificate to AccuQuilt. Ends April 17, 2011.

Fort Worth Fabric Studio has fabric bundle and a purse insert pattern. Ends April 17, 2011.

Burgundy Buttons has some lovely patterns as prizes. Ends April 15, 2011.

Sunshower Quilts giving 10 die cut butterflies for applique. Ends April 17, 2011.

Just Plain Laine is giving an AccuQuilt Die. Ends April 17, 2011.

Okay, I need to take a break. It takes a while to get all these sites down and checked out! Enjoy browsing and I hope you win something!

Santa Sack Swap

2011-04-08T16:56:00.000-05:00

Cheryl over at "Gone Stitchin" is having the coolest swap. It's a six month committment but sounds like it's going to be really fun. Starting in July you make a bag and send some goodies WRAPPED UP in it. Each month you send another goodie or two WRAPPED UP. The idea is that you have six months of presents to open up in December from your partner.

Loads of fun and lots of surprises, just up my alley! Come join the fun.

Pincushion Swap!

2011-04-03T21:39:00.001-05:00

Okay, it may just be the four of us, if you all still want to exchange pincushions, OR we could each make three and send them to each other! I could use three new ones!!

This is what I thought we could do--

1. Leave a comment and tell me for sure you want to swap and if you want to make more than one.
2. Your choice of any cute pincushion pattern or one you design yourself
3. Mail date May 2, 2011 to partner/partners
4. Send me your email and physical address -- firstos@sbcglobal.net
5. Signups until next Monday--April 11, 2011!

Pretty simple! Let's do it! And if anyone else wants to join, let me know.

The truth about men!

2011-03-22T11:30:00.000-05:00

I received this in an email this morning and it made me laugh! Whoever gathered all this MUST have known my husband!! LOL I had to share.

WHY MEN ARE NEVER DEPRESSED:

Men Are Just Happier People --

What do you expect from such simple creatures?

Your last name stays put.

The garage is all yours.

Wedding plans take care of themselves.

Chocolate is just another snack.

You can be President.

You can never be pregnant.

You can wear a white T-shirt to a water park.

You can wear NO shirt to a water park.

Car mechanics tell you the truth.

The world is your urinal.

You never have to drive to another gas station restroom because this one is just too icky.

You don't have to stop and think of which way to turn a nut on a bolt.

Same work, more pay.

Wrinkles add character.

Wedding dress $5000. Tux rental-$100.

People never stare at your chest when you're talking to them.

New shoes don't cut, blister, or mangle your feet.

One mood all the time.

Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat.

You know stuff about tanks.

A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase.

You can open all your own jars.

You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness.

If someone forgets to invite you,

He or she can still be your friend.

Your underwear is $8.95 for a three-pack.

Three pairs of shoes are more than enough..

You almost never have strap problems in public.

You are unable to see wrinkles in your clothes..

Everything on your face stays its original color.

The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades.

You only have to shave your face and neck.

You can play with toys all your life.

One wallet and one pair of shoes -- one color for all seasons.

You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look

You can 'do' your nails with a pocket knife.

You have freedom of choice concerning growing a mustache.

You can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives

On December 24 in 25 minutes.

No wonder men are happier.

NICKNAMES

· If Laura, Kate and Sarah go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Kate and Sarah.

· If Mike, Dave and John go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat Boy, Bubba and Wildman .

EATING OUT

· When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $20, even though it's only for $32.50. None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.

· When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.

MONEY

· A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.

· A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need but it's on sale.

BATHROOMS

· A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel.

· The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. A man would not be able to identify more than 20 of these items.

ARGUMENTS

· A woman has the last word in any argument.

· Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

FUTURE

· A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.

· A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.

SUCCESS

A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.

A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

MARRIAGE

· A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.

· A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, but she does.

DRESSING UP

· A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.

· A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.

NATURAL

· Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.

· Women somehow deteriorate during the night.

OFFSPRING

· Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.

· A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

A married man should forget his mistakes. There's no use in two people remembering the same thing!

Pincushion Sites!

2011-03-22T09:23:00.000-05:00

Since I'm thinking of PINCUSHIONS, I've been doing a little research and found all these wonderful sites that have patterns available and/or images of ones that are so cute.

So if we decide to do a swap, we've got the ideas!!

Pincushion Sites:

http://tipnut.com/22-free-pincushion-patterns/

http://paperstringcloth.blogspot.com/2007/07/pincushion-tutorial.html

http://www.luvinthemommyhood.com/2010/08/teacup-pincushion-tutorial-roundup.html

http://www.stamps-and-stitches.com/2010/01/cupcake-pincushion-tutorial.html

http://www.bhg.com/crafts/sewing/accessories/patchwork-pincushion/

http://www.squidoo.com/pretty-pincushion-patterns

http://www.copycatcrafts.com/10-kick-ass-pincushion-patterns/

http://pinkeeps.blogspot.com/2009/08/60-free-pincushion-patterns.html

http://www.cafemom.com/group/112383/forums/read/13111493/60_Free_Pincushion_Patterns

http://www.thediydish.com/2011/03/joel-dewberry-joins-the-diy-dish-twins-make-a-bird-pin-cushion/

And the last one had a suggestion I'd never heard of--walnut litter for stuffing!! You get the walnut shell litter at pet stores, it's reptile litter. Supposedly, it is heavier so cushions will sit without falling over and it also sharpens your pins. I think I may go get some and try it out!!

Pincushion Challenge?

2011-03-19T10:50:00.000-05:00

There seems to be the cutest pincushions being made everywhere I look. I was thinking about making some and it got me to thinking of what I'd use for stuffing. I've been doing some research and someone suggested using a SOS pad. Something about it sharpening our pins and needles while holding them. That certainly makes sense. Have any of you done this?

Now I know we all already have so many pincushions, but you need more than one right?? I have one by my sewing machine, one on by cutting table, one on my ironing board and a few in my portable sewing kits. Plus I have some chickens sitting around too! And I bet most of us could find one of those old red apples with the needle sharpener bud attached to it in one of our drawers. Then there are wrist and finger cushions, in addition to regular ones, plus pincushions in teacups, little figurines, etc. So interesting, don't you think?!

SOME of mine, but nothing cute like they're making now!

Maybe some of you have collections. Would love to see pics of those.

We all have so many projects we are working on but sometimes, I need a distraction--a quick project--something fun! And some of mine are looking a little, should be say, worn. Which brings me to my idea. Would any of you be interested in a pincushion challenge? We could call it our PINCUSHION PARTY! We could just make them for ourselves and post pictures--- OR have a swap. I really would like to do that if there's enough interest. I love getting surprises!!

Leave a comment with some ideas if you're interested and if there's enough people wanting to have an exchange I'll come up with some guidelines.

We have a winner!!

2011-03-18T12:46:00.000-05:00

The winner of my giveaway is NANCY from Louisiana. She gets the following:

A yard of this beautiful blue that I have been saving for something. I guess this is it!! Enjoy Nancy--make something beaUtiful. And the seam ripper, can you have too many of these? I think not! I have them everywhere. It's bad enough to "reverse sew", I believe they should be handy. lol

Thank you all for "doing" the Jump Start tour, it really was fun!

"Jump-Start your Quilting" Blog Tour" and Giveaway

2011-03-10T20:35:00.001-06:00

How exciting it is for me to have the opportunity to review a quilt out of the new book, "Jump-Start your Quilting".

This book has over 40 projects that uses fat quarters, charm packs, jelly rolls, and 10" layer cakes to give you a head start on quilt projects. What a great idea! There are many books out there that use fat quarters or one of the other pre-cuts, but I haven't seen any that use all of them like this one--I love it. And what a help for those of us who have these wonderful pre-cuts in our stash already and don't know what to do with them.

Besides quilts in this book, there are placemats, pillows, stockings, table runners and abundant gift ideas. You will definitely find something you want to make in this book. One of my daughters has already chosen several she wants for Christmas. Guess I don't have any excuses about having time for making them.

"Cheerful Blooms and Buttons" is one of the projects that just shouts SPRING to me. This quilt combines piecing and applique with wonderful embellishments of rickrack and buttons.

The jumbo rickrack, which is so popular these days, is such an interesting addition. It makes your eyes dance across the quilt! Don't you love the whimsical flowers with the darling buttons accenting them. And the flowers are so unusual, simple but so attractive, just perfect for the the quilt.

The beautiful floral outside border print really pulls the quilt together. This would make a wonderful wallhanging for someone special--even yourself!

You can purchase this book from Clotilde.

Be sure to check out all these blogs to see some other projects from this book.

Day 1 (March 10) Victoria Wolfe -- http://www.bumblebeansinc.blogspot.com/
Day 2 (March 11) Linda Oberholzer -- http://quiltcookies.blogspot.com/
Day 3 (March 12) Jessi Jung -- http://laurenandjessiblog.com/
Day 4 (March 13) Pat Sloan -- http://patsloan.typepad.com/
Day 5 (March 14) Melanie Sullivan -- http://www.texasfreckles.com/
Day 6 (March 15) Aunt Pitty Pat -- http://auntpittypats.blogspot.com/
Day 7 (March 16) Glenna Hailey -- http://www.hollyhockquilts.com/

Thanks for visiting my blog! If you have made it this far, I'm giving away a surprise gift (FABRIC) so please leave a comment that tells me whether you like doing applique or not and I'll pick a random number for a winner. If you post about my end of the tour on your blog, add another comment and you'll get an extra chance!

It took me a lot of years trying to figure out the "A" word, as my friends and I used to call it, as there are so many different ways to do it. I really like the beautiful needle turned method, but it takes me forever. So lately I've been appliqueing by machine with a buttonhole stitch, works for me!

Be sure to visit the sites listed above, you'll be glad you did! And I'll announce my winner when the tour is over.

Cosmetic Bags

2011-03-08T01:58:00.000-06:00

I've been making the cutest little bags lately. So simple AND quick.

This one I added the rickrack. It seems rickrack has really made a comeback lately. And this jumbo size does make a statement!

The body of the purse/bag used a flip and sew method to quilt it.

On this bag I added a handle. Straight line quilting was all I did on this one.

This was the smallest bag made and I did free motion quilting on the bottom portion of it. A little butterfly
button chose its home on the upper green section.

It seems like lots of quilt stores are selling the very colorful zippers and it really is fun to use them in projects like this. They show up so well!

As you can tell the bags are all different sizes, very easily done. I think I'll be giving them as cosmetic bags for ovenight trips.

Vintage Aprons

2011-03-02T23:29:00.000-06:00

Today my sister who is moving soon to Florida, gave me her collection of old aprons. I also have a collection, so I was excited. She had washed them but not ironed, so I immediately ironed them and took pictures. I grabbed the ones in the bottom of my towel drawer, which I never use but like to look at occasionally and took pics of them too.

The only time I wear an apron is on holidays when I'm in the kitchen all morning and I would never wear one of these. I need a heavy duty one! I'm a sloppy cook. lol I guess a lot of these were worn after the meal was completely done and the cooks wanted to look fresh.

These were made of organza, cotton fabric and rickrack.

The highlight in these are hankerchiefs.

An apron entirely made of hankerchiefs and a fancy one with printed white decoration.

Cotton and rickrack!! The sturdy type.

As you can tell this one is very dainty and a full size apron.

When I saw this magazine/book last year, I thought it was so interesting. There are lots of aprons made from unusual items such as, crocheted doilies, tea towels, men's ties, newspapers, handkerchiefs, and also lots of different styles. A fun book to peruse!

I found this poem on the internet that I thought was so fitting and maybe some of you will remember your Grandma's apron.

Grandma's Apron

By Tina Trivett

The strings were tied, It was freshly washed, and maybe even pressed.
For Grandma, it was everyday to choose one when she dressed.
The simple apron that it was, you would never think about;
the things she used it for, that made it look worn out.
She may have used it to hold some wildflowers that she'd found.
Or to hide a crying child's face, when a stranger came around.
Imagine all the little tears that were wiped with just that cloth.
Or it became a potholder to serve some chicken broth.
She probably carried kindling to stoke the kitchen fire.
To hold a load of laundry, or to wipe the clothesline wire.
When canning all her vegetables, it was used to wipe her brow.
You never know, she might have used it to shoo flies from the cow.
She might have carried eggs in from the chicken coop outside.
Whatever chore she used it for, she did them all with pride.
When Grandma went to heaven, God said she now could rest.
I'm sure the apron that she chose, was her Sunday best.

I wonder where I've put the rest of my aprons. I need to locate them somewhere in this house and get them all together in a box. Then sometime I'll get them all out when my granddaughters are here and explain another time when aprons were stylish.

Mail Sack

2011-02-28T11:44:00.000-06:00

This bag is BIG and wonderful! I think it will be great when going shopping or taking classes. It goes over your head, so your hands are free. The pattern is by Pink Chalk Studio. I made it to try using some new techniques and feet on my Bernina!

As you can see, the big yellow flower has been outlined with cording. I used the Free Motion Couching #43 foot on my Bernina. Really fun to do!

The Sashiko was also interesting to do. I used a topstitch needle with Cordonnet thread, which is heavy and thick that shows up very nicely. And having the Cordonnet foot #11 also helped feed the thread evenly. If you can't or won't do the very impressive regular hand sewn Sashiko, you must try this! It's a nice look.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T09:35:00.000-06:00

Sweethearts in 1962!

Yes, 1962, that is not a typo. How could it be that long ago--it seems like yesterday. We didn't get married until three years later. Time enough for him to get his military service and my graduating and business college done.

We've had a very happy and wonderful life and I've never regretted marrying this fellow.

As for a romantic (as I am) he is NOT!

We were married in March and the following Valentine's Day, he asked me what I wanted. I told him I didn't want anything and he didn't get me ANYTHING!! Can you imagine? What was he thinking!! He took a lot of ribbing about that. He still doesn't always get me things all the time. He says he likes to surprise me and doesn't want me to expect things. Ha! Got to love that man.

He never complains about anything I do, let's me do what I want and supports my quilting habit, so after all these years I have realized that "things" are really not what a true love buys you, it's how every day is spent loving each other.

I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day, but most of all, I hope you all have that kind of day EVERYDAY! If you have a special Valentine, let me hear about him.

More SNOW!

2011-02-09T13:50:00.001-06:00

Okay, enough is enough. Oklahomans are not used to getting this much snow so often. This has been the third storm in less than a month. How do people get used to this up North? I guess that is why I love Oklahoma. You know the old saying of ours, "If you don't like the weather, just wait a day or so and it will change." Our forecast includes temps in the 50's this weekend. I'll be ready for that.

So here is the same shot as the last time from my back door.

As you can see we got more snow, about 10-12 inches. The snow is lighter and a little easier to clean up. There was no ice ahead of time which helps getting around now, not that I am going anywhere for a while.

My husband is home today so getting into the sewing room may not be possible. He wants to watch a movie this afternoon. It's "Date Night" which my daughter, Stacey, says his hilarious. Guess we'll stay in, away from the exceptionally cold weather outside, relax, and get the popcorn ready!

Line Art--a new project!

2011-02-06T16:39:00.000-06:00

When I saw this pattern in "Quilts and More", Winter 2010, I knew I had to make it. It uses 2 1/2" strips--perfect for a jelly roll. Since I had one yelling "USE ME, USE ME", I took the challenge. I like the idea of using one color of fabrics for the pattern too. Might try that later.

I've almost gotten all the strips sewn together, but I had to stop to go to a quilting store sale (40% off bolts if you took it all). A great time to buy backings and also I found some small yardage of batiks. Well, I also found a couple of other pieces too.....hey, I saved 40%, remember?!!!

Now it's ready to get ready for the Super Bowl party at my house.

My husband and I are not big football fans, but I love a reason to eat party snacks so my daughter and her family are coming over for the evening. Should be fun! This is a big game and I don't care who wins, but I am in a quilting "pool" where I signed five squares in hopes of winning 100 fat quarters. The problem is they haven't filled the squares yet (the store is still open) so I don't know what scores I need to send my "mojo" to. You know I believe it doesn't hurt to think real hard on those scores. LOL

So tomorrow I will finish the top of my Line Art quilt top. Oklahoma is suppose to have ANOTHER snowstorm on Wednesday so that will definitely be a good day for sewing if I can't get it done before then.

Fun and Done Runner DONE!

2011-02-01T13:29:00.000-06:00

Since Oklahoma is having a blizzard today, it's great for sewing!

I finished my table runner. The colors remind of a winter day--with little icicles in the fabric. Really I think they're suppose to be tree branches, but today they're icy tree branches.

Nita and Linda have finished theirs too. I need to get some pics of theirs. We had a great time when we sewed together. The great thing about this pattern is that the quilting is done as you go--FUN and DONE!

Back to the weather situation. This may end up being a record breaking snowfall. What is really making it bad is that the wind is blowing so ferociously. Everyone knew this was coming. Our Governor declared a state of emergency yesterday. Most all Oklahoma schools are closed and many small businesses are shut down too. Everyone is encouraged to stay home and off the roads.

This is our backyard. You can see the drifts are probably four feet high in some places. The rain gauge and bird bath are almost covered up with snow. Brrrrr......

The department of transportation cannot keep up with the cleaning of the roads, as the wind comes right behind them and blows it back. People cannot get on or off the exits as they are being blocked. Thank goodness the snow is just about over, but they say the winds will continue and the temperatures are suppose to be brutal for the next few days.

I'll be staying in. And the best thing, I am ready to start a new project. Which one??

Look what I got in the mail today!!

2011-01-28T12:11:00.000-06:00

Today I received a package from Canada! I was a winner on quiltmomsjourney.blogspot.com website. WooHoo!! Anna has a terrific blog. I love to check it out often. She is very diversified in her talents and you all should go visit her.

Here is what I got--beautiful fabric, a very cute blouse pattern and a new quilting book.

Can we have too many quilt books? I think not. Even if we don't make something out of them, don't you love to read them. Being a former librarian, I seldom buy fiction because once I read them, I'm done. BUT, with non-fiction and I especially mean quilting books, I don't have a problem purchasing them. I'll peruse them today while I'm working on another project and maybe a month (or a year?) I'll go back and re-read and MAYBE even make the quilt then. Sometimes I don't, but I loved reading them. Thank you, Anna!

Fun and Done Blocks

2011-01-23T18:49:00.000-06:00

Tuesday two of my good friends are coming to spend the day sewing at my house. Although we have several projects we're all working on, we decided we needed some "social" time and since two of us have had the template for Fun and Done several months, we decided to make that our project.

I am using the Easy Diamonds pattern and have already got my strips and batting cut.

Nita and Linda are making patterns using a square of fabric on top instead of strips. One is machine quilting and the other is using her embroidery machine for the quilting. I'm hoping we can get the small table runners (only need 12 blocks that way) done Tuesday, so I'll post the results Wednesday. Should be fun!! AND DONE!!

Snowy day in Oklahoma!

2011-01-20T13:27:00.000-06:00

Last night Oklahoma had snow. Northern Oklahoma, where we live, only received 2-3 inches, but it "drizzled" first so there was ice under the snow which made things worse. School was closed and there were lots of accidents in Oklahoma City.

There was a little wind last night too, so there were drifts to deal with too. Not a severe storm but a storm none the less.

My granddaughters went sledding right after breakfast this morning and loved it. I talked with my daughter in Texas and she said her kids were sad they couldn't be here to do the same! Last year they were here when we had a severe storm on Christmas Eve and loved it. They don't see snow often, especially enough to go sledding. I love snow, unless I, or my family, have to drive somewhere. It is so beautiful but sometimes causes a lot of havoc.

The past week has been very trying for our family. One of my brothers in law had a massive heart attack last Thursday and we all have been at the hospital in OKC a lot. It is amazing, but he is doing fine and after having a defibulator/pacemaker put in, he'll probably be released this weekend. God does answer prayers.

So today, I plan to go to my sewing room and do some machine applique on my Hop To It project! It is fusible applieque and all the blocks are done I just have to applique them down. I have four out of the twelve blocks done. This is not the fun part. But I have made a goal of doing at least one a day. I have other projects that I'm working on too, so I switch around a lot!

So while the cold snow is outside, I'll be in my nice, warm sewing room!

Oh, by the way. The LINDA that won my blog contest was Linda Douglas from Montana. She'll be receiving her gift as soon as I can get to the post office to get it mailed. I'll bet she has snow ALL the time! Congrats, Linda!

Blog Winner is another LINDA!

2011-01-19T13:12:00.000-06:00

This morning I did the random number picker thing and the winner is...... Linda. That's all I know. She doesn't have a blog, so I have sent her a email for her full name and address in order for her to receive my gift. And this is it:

A little Snap Purse I made and 10 beautiful citrus colored cuts of fabric from MODA. I really hated to part with those, as they are really vibrant colors. They will make a quilt block POP for sure!!

Congratulations, Linda! And thank you ALL for visiting my blog. I always check out the blogs of people that visit mine and I enjoyed all your blogs as well.

A funny word!

2011-01-11T09:20:00.000-06:00

Did you ever think about the word UP? I received this from a friend and just had to share. It cracked me up!

Read up about a two Letter Word....if you are UP to it....

The word is Up.....

Read until the end.....you'll laugh....

This two-letter word in English has more meanings than any other

two-letter word, and that word is 'UP.' It is listed in the

dictionary as an [adv], [prep], [adj], [n] or [v].

It's easy to understand UP, meaning toward the sky or at the top of the

list, but when we awaken in the morning, why do we

wake UP?

At a meeting, why does a topic come UP? Why do we speak UP, and

why are the

officers UP for election and why is it UP to the secretary to write

UP a report? We call UP our friends, brighten UP a room, polish UP the

silver, warm UP the leftovers and clean UP the kitchen. We lock UP the

house and fix UP the old car. We power UP appliances and when we

go to the beach we need a cover UP.

At other times this little word has real special meaning. People stir UP

trouble, line UP for tickets, work UP an appetite, and think UP excuses.

To be dressed is one thing but to be dressed UP is special. Don't forget

the need for make UP. And this UP is confusing:

A drain must be opened UP because it is stopped UP.

We open UP a store in the morning but we close it UP at

night. We seem to be pretty mixed UP about UP !

To be knowledgeable about the proper uses of UP, look UP the word UP in

the dictionary.. In a desk-sized dictionary, it takes UP almost 1/4 of

the page and can add UP to about thirty definitions

If you are UP to it, you might try building UP a list of the many ways UP

is used. It will take UP a lot of your time, but if you don't give UP,

you may wind UP with a hundred or more.

When it threatens to rain, we say it is clouding UP . When the sun comes

out we say it is clearing UP. When it rains, it soaks UP the

earth. When it does not rain for awhile, things dry UP. One could go on &

on, but I'll wrap it UP, for now ........my time is UP !

Oh....one more thing: What is the first thing you do in the morning &

the last thing you do at night?

P !

Did that one crack you UP?

Don't screw UP. Laugh about this with your friends.

Now I'll shut UP!

Mug Rugs, Mug Mats, whatever you want to call them!

2011-01-09T15:56:00.000-06:00

Mug rugs seem to be everywhere especially the last few months. I had seen the small square ones similar to coasters but I really like the new bigger versions.

I needed some small gifts for Christmas and here is my version:

Embroidered Mug Mats

The dimensions are around 6" x 9", perfect for your favorite cup/mug and room for your snacks too. I found the coffee cup fabric at my local quilt store. Thought it was perfect. I used my 730 for the embroidered name and I did minimal quilting--just straight stitching.
I tried machine stitching the binding on one of them and just didn't like the look, so I hand stitched the binding on the back of the rest. It took a little more time but I think it looks better on the back. Wish I had made myself one!

There may be a mug mat swap coming up at Quilting Gallery if you want to join it.

Giveaway!

2011-01-04T14:02:00.000-06:00

Yes, I'm going to have a giveaway in honor of 10,000 hits on this blog!!

When I started this blog, it was mainly for me to document my quilting journey along with a little bragging on my grandkids! I just can't help that--aren't grandchildren the best?!

So after the holidays, I was quite surprised to see that my hits had surpassed the 10,000 mark in a little over a year. I know lots of other blogs are bigger and do a lot better than that, but I'm talking about my blog.   It's amazing that people visit my little site. Isn't the internet wonderful? We all can learn so much from other people. Sometimes it just fuels me to try something new. Other times I just love viewing other people's projects.

Best of all, I love the tutorials I find on blogs. I think quilters are so kind to take the time to help other quilters in this way. My hope is to do more of these on my own blog. I sometimes think that everyone knows what I do, but I am realizing that there are new quilters all the time and maybe those people can learn a little from me.

So....back to the important thing--the "giveaway".   The prize will be a surprise and all you have to do is leave a comment about what you would like a tutorial on or maybe what tutorial has helped you most or loved the best. I would love you to share some of these if you want to leave a website address also. Let's all learn something from everyone!!

If you want to post this giveaway on your website, feel free to do so! Oh, and the giveaway date???? Two weeks from today is my son in law's birthday, so it will be easy to remember--January 18th at midnight, CST.   So on the 19th, I'll do that random number thing and post the winner!

Thanks for visiting the QUILT COOKIES!

Linda

More table runners!

2010-12-10T23:00:00.000-06:00

The past few weeks I've been on a table runner making "kick". There so many patterns out there and you can make and quilt a table runner very quickly. They make nice gifts too!

On this one, I used my paint sticks that I have had for over a year. I used a stencil to make the black blocks. It was pretty fun, but not quite as easy as I thought it would be. I should have made two, as both my daughters wanted it. Guess I'll have to make another.

Now the next one is a project made for my guild challenge. We all had the same 1/2 yard of fabric and could make anything we wanted. The fabric we all had was the green with colored circles on it. I shouldn't be posting it yet, because it's suppose to be a surprise next Tuesday, but I don't think any of the members read my blog, so I should be okay. Nothing outstanding but it's done!

Now the next runners are the easiest I've ever done.

All you need for one is:

1/3 yard focal fabric
1/2 yard coordinating for backing and hem
18" x 44" batting (optional)

Put the focal fabric and backing fabric right sides together, aligning the raw edges. (If using batting, place it on top and match raw edges.) Pin and sew long sides.

Turn right sides out and press, leaving an equal amount of the back fabric on each side of the focal fabric.

Stitch in the ditch on both sides where the two fabrics meet. I chose to use a decorative stitch.

Trim any excess off short ends of runner.

Fold one short end with back fabric right sides together; stitch along raw edge. Trim corner and turn right side out to form a point. Tack down point or use decorative button or ribbon to hold down in place. Repeat on other end.

And you are done!

This is about 14 1/2" x 44" tip to tip! Not real long, but you could adjust to fit any table.

So I think I'm done with table runners for a while. That is, unless I find another I just can't do without!

Make a Christmas Plate with Fabric!

2010-12-06T23:20:00.000-06:00

While we were in Texas visiting, Paige and I made the cutest Christmas plates. She and I don't get to do many "Plan B's" which is what we call craft projects, and it was a lot of fun. She is always willing to learn something new.

Let me tell you how easy this is to do. Go to Wal-Mart or anywhere that sells clear glass plates and get you a supply. You'll want to do a bunch once you get started. Get some Mod Podge glue/sealer. I didn't know they had a Fabric Mod Podge, but they do. I purchased that but I'm sure the plain Mod Podge will work just as well.

We used sponge brushes. Rob your stash for fabric or buy some fabric. It doesn't take much. Just enough to cover the plates. Wash the plates and dry well. It took us longer to get those dang stickers off than anything. Then all you do is apply the glue to the back of the plate. Lay fabric right side down on back of plate. You want to be able to see the right side of the fabric through the top of the plate.

Once you have smoothed the fabric on the back of the plate, use your scissors to cut fabric around the edges. Then all you do is apply a coat of Mod Podge over the fabric and let dry.

This is the end result.

How cute are they?! And so easy. Put some cookies, candies, or breads on one and you have such a nice gift for your neighbors, teachers, mailman, beautician, or anyone else you can think of. Just be sure to tell the recipients they CANNOT immerse the plates in water. Just wash the tops.

Didn't Paige do a great job!

If you are interested in doing this and want to see a "you tube" tutorial, check out Missouri Star Quilt Co They do such a great job on all their tutorials!

Weekend to Texas--Cold trip coming and going!!

2010-12-05T19:08:00.000-06:00

This weekend in Lewisville, Texas, there was a big Christmas Parade, which granddaughter, Paige participated in as a Brownie and also a huge Motorycycle Toy Run. So we decided to ride our new Trike down there for the weekend and do the run also.

Now the Saturday forecast was great, it was just getting down there and and back that would be a little chilly. We left for the four hour ride and it was around 40 degrees. On the back of a motorcycle that is pretty cool and I do not mean "cool" as in neat, I mean cool as in chilly! Of course, when you are prepared, it's not so bad and we were dressed for it. On the way back it was 39 degrees when we got home. It took us a while to get warm again.

Saturday was perfect for the parade and the run! Jake, our grandson, wanted to ride the cycle with Papa, so away they went.

The toy run started 30 minutes before the parade, winding through the city and back to lead the parade. There were hundreds of cycles there and they donated all these toys!

Cycles were lined up on both sides of the street for several blocks. Pretty noisy when they all fired up their engines! :)

Then Paige and Mom showed up with their reindeer antlers and noses! Pretty cute if I do say so.

We had a good time, got some Christmas shopping done, and ate at a few new places!

Paige and I made some cute Christmas plates but I'll tell you all about that tomorrow after I've completely thawed!

A trip promised 30+ years ago!

2010-11-29T22:01:00.000-06:00

My family watches the Macy Day Parade every year and have loved seeing the big balloons, the bands, and the stars on the fancy floats. It was part of our Thanksgiving tradition and we loved it! When my daughters were little they loved the big balloons especially. They were both in the band in junior high and high school and liked watching the bands also. I always said some day maybe we could watch it in person. This was the year!!!

My husband, the best around, treated my daughters and I to a trip to New York City and we had so much fun! It was awesome. Julie, my oldest daughter, had been there last year for a weekend and I had been there before also. But this was Stacey's first trip and we crammed everything we could in four days AND then seeing the parade on top of it was wonderful. Here are just a few thoughts and scenes from our terrific trip.

The first morning we got up early to see the TODAY SHOW.

We got to see a little of Susan Boyle singing before a page from the Dr. Oz show asked us if we wanted to be at a taping of his show. So off we went for that. Pretty exciting and we will be on tv in a couple of weeks--just in the audience though. It was interesting to see how they tape a show and we even learned a little. :)

This picture, one of my favorites, was taken in the Rockefeller Center where the taping took place!

Here we are on the ferry to the Statue. Before we got on we had to go thru security and Julie got pulled out of the line for "wanding". No problem though. Even the shows we went to, our purses were checked. Security was high everywhere. Policemen were very visible throughout the city. I liked that feeling of security.

Anyway, back to the Statue. It was so impressive. It looks so small from a distance, but really is huge. We went on to Ellis Island and we really enjoyed that. To think that so many people came through that building daily for so many years is mind boggling. And my father-in-law was 14 when he came from Switzerland ALONE. We are not sure if he came through there or not, but I'm going to do some research and find out.

We tried out "Ray's Pizza" and it was delicious. I tried it another place and it was good too. Not the same as Oklahoma's for sure. We also had to try cannolis, and a delicious hot dog from the street vendor. Pretty darn good!!

Julie

Julie and Stacey

The Empire State Building was fun too. When I was there the last time, it was very cloudy but this time it was clear, and very windy and cold. It amazes me that it is so small on the 86th floor viewing point. In "Sleepless in Seattle", it looks much bigger.

Here is the photo the photographer took before we went up.

We saw the Rockettes at Radio Music Hall, and two Broadway shows, "Promises, Promises" and "Mamma Mia". Sean Hayes was sick, so he wasn't in Promises, but it still was great. Wish we could have seen more, love those shows!

We made it to Macy's (did some damage to the charge cards there), FAO Schwartz, Trump Tower, window shopped at Tiffany's, Saks and all the other stores on 5th Avenue. Oh, and the Christmas windows were fantastic!! The work that goes on them is unbelievable. That is when I wished the grandkids were there to see them. But another time for them. They are still a little young for a New York City trip.

Macy's

And the parade, what can I say!! We decided if we went back a dozen times, we would never have it as good as we had this time. Our hotel was at Time Square and the parade went right by the front of our hotel. We got out there around an hour before parade started and was able to get right behind the barricade. And the weather was super. Perfect!!

Love this one!!

When Stacey was a little girl, she loved Smurfs! So when the new Smurf balloon came down the street I had to have a pic with her in it.

The parade was wonderful--just as we thought it'd be. The weather was perfect, 39 degrees when it began. And I saw it with my girls, how could I ask for more!!!

That afternoon, it started to drizzle, but that didn't stop us from walking around Central Park. In fact, we had Thanksgiving lunch in the park right next to the ice skaking rink.

For Thanksgiving lunch, 2010, we'll always remember we were in Central Park. Stacey had a hot dog, Julie had a chicken sausage, and I had a cheeseburger! We missed the big Thanksgiving Dinner in Oklahoma that my sister fixed, but mostly we missed our family.

However, we did get a nice meal that evening at Rosie O'Grady's. Turkey and all the "fixin's".

Even though we had a long plane ride home the next day (via Houston), it was still a wonderful trip. And I hope that my daughters will someday get the same experience with their children. Thanks, Girls, for a great trip! Thanks, Mike and Tom, for keeping the kids so your wives could go. And most of all, thanks, Rob, for making this awesome trip happen.

Christmas Quilt Show 2010

2010-11-17T12:05:00.000-06:00

Seeing quilts is so inspiring for me. I always get ideas of things I want to try making. It may be the pattern or sometimes it's the colors. And sometimes I enjoy seeing things I could never do. Maybe I shouldn't say NEVER do, because I believe that anyone can do anything if they put their mind to it. It's just that my mind may not want to do it!! LOL

And so when SewGalCal decided to do her "Quilt Show", I decided to join. Here is my entry. Some may think it's not a Christmas quilt. But it makes me think of the beautiful cardinals in a Christmas Snow.

It was a little challenging because of all the different angles of the windows, but I did it. Making one of these was definitely enough. Hope it makes you think of a wonderful snowy Christmas Day!

Christmas Table Runner

2010-11-11T12:04:00.001-06:00

Bernina Club had the cutest table runner this month, but they were out of the pattern, so I came home and drafted my own. Not exact, but I don't like cookie cutter stuff, so this worked for me.

I embroidered the words on my fabric with my 730 and then

appliqued the snowflakes. The original pattern's snowflakes were all the same. I had to make mine different sizes because of the size of the blocks, but I think it adds a little more interest.

The piecing went together very quickly, because few seams had to match.

As you may be able to see, decorative stitches were sewn on each seam of the top. I used fusible fleece on this project and then the giant rick rack was added along with the backing. It was turned inside out and topstitched.

Here is the finished runner!

Popcorn Magic!

2010-11-07T21:42:00.000-06:00

One of my sisters, Marilyn, gave us some popcorn still on the cob she got us while on vacation in Buffalo, New York. So the other day Kayley and Lyndey were over here and I thought it would be a fun "Plan B" project. They were so amazed. I thought so too!!

Kayley

Lyndey

Then Robert and I rode our cycle to Texas to see the grandkids down there. I took a "cob" for them too. We popped the corn a little longer so there wasn't as many attached as the girls had, but Jake and Paige thought it was fun, too!

Paige and Jake

While we were there, we got to see the last soccer games of both Jake and Paige. Both their teams have improved so much this season. We sure miss not being able to see more of their games. But mainly, we miss them!

See what I received today!

2010-11-02T10:12:00.000-05:00

Candle Mat Swap
I got this lovely mat from Maria Wilson in Australia. She included a cute little Christmas card that she machine appliqued and the cutest tiny book that is a holder for pins and needles which will be great for my travelling sewing kit. Also, was a cross stitch ornament kit and a Cadbury candy bar. I'm thinking that is going to be eaten along with a cup of tea this afternoon!!

Thanks so much, Maria!!

Now I need to get my mat in the mail for my partner, who is not Maria, but is out of the country. I can't say who or where--it's suppose to be a surprise!

Blogger's Quilt Festival

2010-10-29T15:03:00.000-05:00

Amy's Creative Side is holding her 4th quilt festival for all of us to enjoy. This is my first time to join. (I was a few days early and my previous post would not work so I deleted it.) Go to her site and enjoy all the bloggers' quilts!

The quilt I have chosen to show is a quilt made from men's ties.

"Tapestry"

In 2008 I took a class from a good friend who has made numerous projects using ties, including vests and quilts. I had saved ties for several months, getting them from family, friends and also the good will stores. They all had to be washed and taken apart. The ones that bled were thrown away. I also saved all the labels on the ties, afterwards deciding to use them on the face of the quilt. Several were from local stores not in business anymore, which is always fun to hear the comments from people remembering them.

The pattern was very easy and no seams were suppose to match because different widths of ties were used, using a specific number of strips in each block.
The pink fabric was from a dress of mine that I had worn twice several years before and still hanging in the closet. (Tell me some of you save those old outfits too!) The quilting was done by a longarmer (also a friend) who did a fantastic job.
After making this, I made the decision that I prefer working with cotton fabric and not the ties. BUT, I enjoy trying new things--you just never know what you WILL like!

Easy Peasy Checkbook Cover

2010-10-24T11:45:00.000-05:00

Today I made the easiest checkbook cover ever!!

While I was surfing the net and enjoying lots of other blogs I can across this tutorial at Crazy Moms Quilts. This is the quickest thing I've ever done and it's so cute.

I'll leave the detailed instructions at Crazy Mom's site, (she has three different styles) but here are my photos to show the easy steps. And yes, I did do the easiest style. I have other projects on my plate as usual!!

Two fabrics!

Everything fits perfectly!

Two pockets as needed

I love this because it just has interfacing on the fabric, so it is very lightweight! I'm thinking you could use this for lots of things--coupon carrier, small wallet size photo carrier--what else can you think of???

Paige turns EIGHT!

2010-10-18T08:58:00.000-05:00

My granddaughter, Paige, who lives in Texas, celebrated her birthday with a party at a Pumpkin Patch. The girls wore their Halloween costumes and they all had a ball, despite the dust. This pumpkin patch had bouncy houses, rides, and a sling shot for gourds/pumpkins, among other things.

Aunt Stacey and cousins, Kayley and Lyndey, went with Papa and I for the weekend. Jake turned 10 the week before and we didn't get to go to his party. I don't think he minded too much, as he was having a "boy party".

I love this picture--you can see the joy in his funny little face!

I'm a winner!!

2010-10-17T22:31:00.000-05:00

Kelly Jackson, from I Have A Notion just notified me that I was her winner on the giveaway she had in the "Bloggers Giveaway for Fall".

Woohoo, I'm getting a great little jelly roll! And right now I'm really enthused about using those rolls of fabric. Whoever thought up of cutting jelly rolls, charm packs, layer cakes, etc. should be making a mint! To have all the coordinating fabrics together for a project is wonderful. I love them.

Be sure to check out Kelly's blog!

Candle Mat

2010-10-13T09:01:00.000-05:00

I joined the "Candle Mat Swap" at the Quilting Gallery and it is so addictive. So far, I've made three tops. I needed one for the swap and then thought I'd make myself one. Then I thought I need some quick little gifts for Christmas and this pattern is perfect!

The neat thing about this little mat is the size. It's only 14" square, but has 56 pieces in it. That sounds pretty daunting, but it adds such excitement. You can make two mats (tops) with a charm pack and have some left over.

I took a few photos when I made the brown one:

In the first picture you can see I just had the two fabrics in the piano keys. The second picture I added another green--didn't like it as much.

Then I auditioned a square in the middle of the center. I liked it, it tied in the corners, but in the end I decided it wouldn't show when the candle was put on it. So I left it off. Maybe I'll try that on another mat.

What I love about this pattern is the many different ways you can change the look of it by just changing the fabrics in different places--the corners, center, border around the center, piano keys. And that doesn't even count the embellishments you could add, which I haven't ventured into YET!

Happy Spooky Halloween!

2010-10-06T12:16:00.000-05:00

Today I put the binding and label on my Halloween quilt. It's called "Happy Spooky Halloween".

The pattern and fabric were purchased last year on sale after Halloween. The blocks were on a panel and I just fell in love with the images. So cute. The pattern looks like it would take a while, but the sashing is strip pieced and went together so easily.

I am so lucky that I decided to go through by basket of "WIPs". No, that isn't right, because in that basket are all projects that haven't even been started! One more done, now, though!

I think this quilt will stay in my possession, at least for a while!

Pink Ribbon Quilt

2010-10-04T21:03:00.000-05:00

A friend that I've known since our daughters were in first grade and we were Blue Bird leaders together has recently found out she has breast cancer. I wanted to do something for her in this very trying time in her life. A mutual friend that does beautiful embroidery, embroidered some pink ribbon blocks for me. I found some fun polka dot fabric and came up with this.

It was a quick pattern, which is what I wanted so I could get it done as soon as possible.

The quilting is meandering and I used pink minky as the backing. It is sooooo soft. I love that stuff! It should be so nice to curl up with, at least that's what I'm hoping for!

I'm giving it to her tomorrow, I hope she likes it!

Paige becomes a Brownie!

2010-10-02T22:49:00.001-05:00

My granddaughter, Paige, became a Brownie last weekend and we were fortunate enough to be there.

On Saturday, she was in the Western Heritage Parade as a Daisy:

(Please forgive the photos!!! Blogger is having problems and not letting me rotate these pictures. So frustrating, but that photo of Paige is just too cute even if you have to look sideways!)

Then on Sunday afternoon they had their "Bridging Ceremony" to become a Brownie. My daughter, Julie, is her leader and does a fantastic job. She comes by that naturally, as I was her BlueBird/Campfire leader!! LOL All kidding aside, she is much better than I was, as she has a FULLTIME job also and manages to squeeze planning and meetings on the weekends.

It was a fun weekend even with the rain that threatened the parade and cancelled two soccer games. We will have to watch Jake another time.

Afterwards, they had pizza and BROWNIES, of course! The girls had a fantastic time, especially with silly string fights. And being a good Brownie, they picked up all their string afterwards. They left the park, just as clean as when they arrived. I was so impressed!

Block of the Month Carrier

2010-09-22T15:44:00.001-05:00

Today I finished the BOTM carrier.

Since I didn't have a pattern, I had to figure things out as I went. I wanted to make the cover stiff, so I had to put the insert in before I quilted which also meant I needed to quilt just the cover and batting, not the backing.

Then I wasn't sure how to quilt it. I finally decided to do some echoing. It was the first time I've done this and it was pretty easy. It's not perfect but not bad for the first time. I was considering using Timtex for stiffness, but it wasn't quite as thick as I wanted, so just used some cardboard. So I put two pieces in and left one end open to do so. I was able to machine sew it shut adding a little enclosure tab. The pages are fleece which I tried to add with the machine and quickly found out there wasn't room to do so. So I added the brown spine to the pages and then hand sewed it to the book. Then I found the perfect button to sew on the front cover.

Now I have no excuse for not finding my blocks of the month! I think I will also use this when I am doing applique projects. The fleece will hold all those tiny pieces. Some of which I have had to re-do as I had lost them. No more!!

Quilted Book

2010-09-17T18:22:00.000-05:00

Today I worked on my Bernina project for the month. Nancy, our instructor, demonstrated a wonderful sweet wall hanging and cute Halloween bags. I decided to do something a little different but using the techniques we learned.

I need something for keeping my blocks of the month I'm working on, so thought I'd make myself a carrier to keep them. I did a little research online and ended up designing my own. I started with the front cover. Here's a pic of it in the beginning.

We all have these wonderful sewing machine feet and very seldom take full advantage of them. Nancy encourages us to use them and finds us lots of different ways to do so. I was switching feet like crazy today. I used the #37, 1/4" foot which I love in my quilting. The #1C I sewed the rick rack down with, 10C is my new favorite, just love that one!! I used #12 for zigging the beaded thread down and #23 applique and piping foot. I also used some decorative stitches on the wide stem.

She also demo'd "Piping Hot Binding". There is a book and"ruler" (not really a ruler but...) for this which I've had for over a year but never used.

Today I had success. I used it as an accent, not in a binding, but it worked out very well. And I really like that little pop of color.

Three of the flowers are 3-D. I topped then with a tiny button which I tried to use with my #18 foot but had no success. The holes were just too small. Dang, I had to hand sew them!

I have the cover done as of this afternoon and ready to put my BSR to use. I'm dreading that. I haven't used it much. We'll see how that turns out next week.

Grandkids!

2010-09-06T12:40:00.000-05:00

My Texas kids were here for the weekend to celebrate their cousins' birthdays and did we have a good time!

Lyndey turned five on August 31 and Kayley turned 8 on September 5, so they had a combined birthday swimming party on Saturday. They had a blast! Fifteen kids, that's pretty hectic. Then the family had pizza and Paige got to spend the night with her cousins. Jake got to spend the night with Austin, my niece's son, that was staying with my sister. They played the Wii for hours. The next day we all got together for swimming, trampoline, croquet and visiting. Had sloppy joes and lots of goodies to go with it. Then the adults played a new dice game called "Dicescapades". It's a lot of fun. It has about a dozen different kinds of dice and you have to do different things with them. Jake and Austin loved it too. It was late when we left my daughter's house, but I had promised Kayley and Lyndey they could have a sleepover at our house with Jake and Paige so we woke them up (they had fallen asleep) and brought them over.

We were all worn out this morning. It was slow moving and I was going to fix pancakes for breakfast but quickly got out voted. The grandkids all love "monkey bread". You know where you use canned biscuits, butter and cinnamon sugar! So Papa made a quick trip to the grocery store with the three girls and we started our assembly line. Lyndey loves cutting them up with the kitchen scissors and Paige and Lyndey love to roll them in that cinnamon sugar!

Jake being almost ten now has outgrown the fun of making them and prefers to enjoy eating them. (He'd rather be playing Wii!) I had given him a "Hex Bug" and he was checking it out.

Before they all left today, I gave the girls their new fabric "paper dolls". They played a little with them, but with all the new birthday toys, it wasn't on the top of their play list! I do understand. But I know they will play with them some because I kept a set for myself!!

So, Bo, aren't they cute? : )

New Fabric Paper Dolls

2010-09-03T14:32:00.001-05:00

When I saw these I had to get them, so cute! Two of my friends have grand daughters and they are doing them too. We kind of inspire each other to get things done. Maybe we just use the kids as a reason, but we really like them for ourselves.

The fabric of course, had the neat little tabs that we all used way back when they were made out of paper and used to keep the clothes on the dolls. I hated to cut them off but, they were unnecessary because I used flannel on the backs of the clothing. I backed the dolls with poster board. The clothing clings very well.

There are actually two different fabric lines. One is "Aunt Lindy's Paper Dolls" by Sibling Arts Studio and the Christmas line is Paper Doll Christmas Pattern No 30861 by Windham Fabrics. I got a half yard of the clothing of each and as you can tell there are several repeats which is fine. The girls can have the same dresses as long as their doll is facing the correct direction.

My three granddaughters will be here this weekend, so I'm going to let them choose what they want and of course, the extras will stay at Nana's!

Can't wait until they see them. We are going to have such a fun time!

Car Trash Bag

2010-08-31T08:29:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I made a trash bag for the car. I can't stand trash in the floor of my vehicles, so I'm constantly putting trash in the side compartments of the doors. Needless to say, that fills up pretty quickly and hard to clean.

I have this wonderful book, "One-Yard Wonders", that I've had for several months. It has 101 sewing projects that can be made in a flash. This bag was one of them.

It was suppose to have a buckle on the straps, but of course, our small Wal-Mart didn't have any, so I just used some velcro and it worked very well.

I love the second pocket also. The big pocket will be for trash and the side pocket will be for tissues. And I can just throw it in the wash when it needs to be cleaned. Now if I had thought about it, I would have embroidered something really cute on it, but didn't, so next time....

Flowers Blooming!

2010-08-23T22:56:00.001-05:00

Check out my "Naked Ladies!"

The day after my granddaughters, Kayley and Lyndey, added the frog house and shells, these flowers popped up. As you gardeners know, these grow very rapidly and in less than a week this is what we have!

When I told the girls we had naked ladies in our garden, they couldn't wait to get outside to see them. I had to explain the name to the girls and their mom told them to be sure and tell their friends just exactly what kind of "naked ladies" we had in our back yard when they were discussing our garden. lol

A friend of mine gave us the sea shells and the wonderful little teapot and cup on the table in the middle of the photo. She loves fairies too and had come over to check the garden out. A few days later she brought over the items. Thanks, Carrol!

The "Ladies" real name is Amaryllis belladonna and you can learn more about them here:

http://www.ehow.com/how_5264061_plant-naked-lady.html

I think the fairies are loving our garden!!

Embroidered Tea Towels

2010-08-12T22:32:00.000-05:00

Today I made these two hand towels for a relative that's having a surprise birthday party tomorrow night. Don't know if they'll match her kitchen, but I hope so.

They "whipped" up (is that a Oklahoma term or what?) very quickly. I couldn't think of any cute sayings this afternoon, and this was all I could come up at the time. Afterwards I emailed one of my sisters and she came up with these:

Move over, Martha!

Your opinion wasn't on the recipe.

If you want fast food, let's eat out!

I also thought of, Kiss the Cook!

Can any of you think of something really cute? Let me know. These make great little gifts and I want to be prepared next time!

On Point Table Runner

2010-08-08T23:36:00.000-05:00

This table runner had a lot of "firsts" in it for me! To begin with, 5" charms were laid out on a fusible webbing of 1" squares that were on point. Strips of 7/8" were put in between the charms. You fuse them down and fold over and begin sewing 1/4" seams. The pattern is called Point Setta. "SEW" easy!

The bias stems were added with a machine blindstitch. I appliqued the flowers down and then applied the tendrils with my new #43, free motion couching foot. Now that was an experience. I practiced and practiced and then tried some on the runner and ripped it out several times. Finally, I settled for what you see. It's pretty cool and works great, I just don't know how tendrils wind around naturally!

Three-D leaves were supposed to be added along the vines and it definitely needs them. Either that or I should have made the vines shorter. I used my great embroidery attachment to do the quilting. You can't see it but there are feathers quilted on it. As soon as I can learn to hoop the sandwich easier, I will be so much happier, because I love the end result!!

This is not my favorite piece, but I did learn how to do some new things and I do love doing new things!

Fairy House

2010-08-06T10:36:00.000-05:00

This week I finished the fairy house my husband and I made for my granddaughters!

It was so much fun doing this. There was an article in our newspaper about these and it got me fired up! My son-in-law had the perfect stump in his log pile and then Rob drilled me some doors and windows. He then made a swing for the fairies and I added the ladder. Kayley, my seven year old granddaughter is so smart. As I was making it she looked up at me and said, "Nana, why do you need a ladder, fairies have wings!". Man I had to do some fast thinking. I told her fairies get tired of flying, just like people don't like to run all the time.

Then I made the lounging bed and table and chairs. We made some fairy rings to encourage the fairies to dance. The girls love it. I ordered a couple of books from Amazon and also ordered some from the library. The books by Barry and Tracy Kane, especially Fairy Houses, everywhere! and Fairy Houses and beyond were great help. And The Girls Book of Flower Fairies is wonderful to read with your children. Just Google Fairy Houses and you will find lots of information to help.

It is a lovely addition to my garden and quite the conversation starter. I encourage any of you to try this--you don't need kids around to enjoy. I believe in fairies, do you?

Finished Rag Quilt!

2010-08-05T19:06:00.001-05:00

The flannel ragtime quilt for my brother-in-law is done. It took more time to clip the edges than making the whole quilt. I took it to the laundromat to wash and dry. Didn't want all those strings to mess up my washer and dryer!

I chose several animal prints thinking they looked more "manly". And also, since he will be going for chemo, to make him think of the courage he might need.

The second photo is a picture of the back of the quilt, complete with a label! Woohoo, another project done.

Row Markers

2010-08-01T15:41:00.000-05:00

Today I am working on a Ragtime Quilt for my brother in law, Jim. He was diagnosed with cancer recently and will be starting chemo in a couple of weeks. I want to get it done soon.

I am all ready to put the rows together. I usually grab my sticky notes and number some, slap them on and half of them fall off before I get to the sewing machine. Then I keep them for a while and then they get thrown out when I straighten up (which I should do more than I actually do). Maybe you all can carry two rows to the machine and sew without turning one upside down, I have not mastered that, so I have to mark them.

My friend, Patsy, showed us all something at our guild meeting the other night that will help me immensely. Of course, you can purchase row markers, but who wants to purchase them (save that money for fabric!!). It literally took me less than five minutes and that included finding the supplies.

Grab some template plastic or really anything stiff. You could even use heavy cardboard. I made mine one inch square, wrote the row numbers on each, punched a hole in top and ran a safety pin through it. DONE! And they'll be easy enough to save. And of course, you can also make column tags if you need to do that.

Now to start sewing those rows. Then the "FUN" part begins--clipping the edges!!

Bathing Beauties or is that Bathing Booties?

2010-07-30T07:29:00.000-05:00

Quilting Gallery has a weekly contest and this week's theme is "SUMMER VACATIONS." You do not have to make a quilt in a week (thank goodness!), just send in a photo of a previously made quilt. People vote on their favorite Friday through Sunday. (Feel free to vote for my beauties).

I've never done this before, but don't we all have previously made quilts sitting around? Why not share them. I always see something in someone else's work that I want to try.

Anyway, this quilt I made in 2004. My guild had a block exchange. We each made twelve of our own and then swapped. Some were hiliarious with their face expressions. It was such fun. I used the attic window thinking that they looked like they were each in a dressing room in front of a mirror trying to get enough courage to come out! lol

A week of fun with grandkids!

2010-07-25T10:55:00.000-05:00

Jake and Paige were here from Texas for a week with Nana and Papa. Or should I say their cousins! They were together a bunch. And that is fine with me. They play well together and it keeps them happy.

We went to Frontier City, an amusement park, one evening. It has been really hot in Oklahoma and we were not going to be miserable all afternoon. At least Nana wasn't. :) They loved it. Lyndey, the youngest wasn't tall enough to ride all the rides, but enough to keep her smiling. She did talk her Papa into riding the Tilt-A-Whirl with her. Bad mistake on Papa's decision. He felt bad the rest of the evening!! I knew I couldn't do it and I guess his time has come too.

The biggest hit was the river renegade ride. They loved it. Everyone got saturated including Stacey, my daughter, who had to buy some clothes to come home in.

The picture at the top was taken as we first got to the park and they were not happy. They wanted to get on with the rides, not picture taking. It is so difficult to get all four together and smiling!! I keep trying though.

Lyndey sitting pretty!

Paige, Kayley and Lyndey

Uncle Mike helping Jake shoot!

Rob and my son-in-law, Mike, took Jake out for a shooting lesson with, as Jake says, "real guns". They had 22s. Between Rob and Mike they had several and Jake enjoyed it very much. And the guys said he shot surprisingly well. Rob and Mike are both very cautious with guns and even Nana put in her two cents in before they left asking him if he knew the number one rule with guns. He looked up at me like I was nuts and said "Yes, Nana, everyone knows that--don't point the gun at any person". I was so proud. His mother is not a lover of guns and though she knew they were going and they would protect her son, I think was glad she wasn't here to worry about it.

During the week we also went fishing, not much luck there though. Too hot for fish even. Jake loves trying though. He really has patience for a 9 year old--at least when it's fishing. We made cookies, a must, even decorating them. We also went swimming several times and did some geocaching. Paige is my little geocacher. We even found a travel bug she's taking back to Texas. We also tried to make a worm farm. Our worms DIED. It's so dry here, I couldn't find any worms in the soil, so I went to Wal-Mart and bought some. Of course, they had been kept in a refrigerator and when we brought them home and put them in the container, they went into shock (so hot again) and died. It was a good idea we'll try again another day! They loved messing with the worms anyway and come to think about it, that may have been the reason the poor things didn't make it!

It was a fun week and I'm so happy they get to come and enjoy Oklahoma with their families up here. BUT, Nana and Papa are sure enjoying today, if you know what I mean!

Storage for pantograms or STABILIZER ROLLS!

2010-07-20T10:58:00.002-05:00

This is a quilted storage unit for pantograms. When I took the class for the Tin Lizzie at a quilt shop this is how they stored their patterns. How clever is that?!

I'm thinking why not adjust this for the rolls of stabilizer I have all over my shelves that keep falling over!

Basically, they just quilted a long section that would measure whatever your door size might be. Then they took a strip of velcro and sewed vertically down the center of quilt. Then each roll was wound with the ying or yang of the opposite velcro and slapped on the strip. OR on second thought or LOOK, they just took elastic and sewed down the center every three or four inches allowing a little for fullness in order for the cylinders to slide in. Yep, that's what they did, see the empty slots?!

Now all I have to do is put this project on my long list of other items that I want to do!!

Super-Sized Nine Patch Baby Quilts

2010-07-17T10:42:00.000-05:00

My niece, Kassidy, is having her first baby--a girl--in less than a month! We are all so excited for her and today there's a shower for her. I wanted to try the "super-sized nine patch" pattern. http://www.quiltmaker.com/patterns/details.html?idx=184
This pattern is the quickest thing I've ever done. Three yards of coordinating fabrics will make three tops! You fold the fabric and make two cuts and you are ready to sew. They are small but great for putting on your carpet when the babies are a little older and start wanting to move around a bit! If you click on the photo you can see that I quilted each one differently also.

My labels are on the quilts but not would I have preferred. I think I know what the baby's name will be, but one time I did that and the mother changed her mind and the label ended up being wrong. You never can get the quilt back to change it or add one so I compromised and just said it was made with love from Great Aunt Linda and put a date, so hopefully that will suffice. Since I am the member in our quilt guild that is always insisting everyone put labels on their quilts, and there will be members at the shower there, had to do something!

Her nursery is jungle things, so these little quilts should fit right in!

Another little bag!

2010-07-02T22:01:00.001-05:00

Another bag. What was I thinking. But if the pattern is different, it intrigues me and I have to try it!!

The Snippity Snap Purse is the title of the pattern used for this one. I didn't put the straps on it as I'm using it for either make up or a little sewing bag!

What makes this one unusual is the closure. That is the "snippity snap" part. A metal tape measure is cut and inserted in the top sections and it pops open and shut. Pretty clever. And another thing, the pattern just takes a couple of fat quarters. How quick and easy is that?!!

Placemats

2010-06-29T04:20:00.000-05:00

Last week I went on a quilting shop hop. The first day we drove 381 miles visiting seven different shops in 11 hours. It was a long day but we sure had fun seeing all the great things the quilt stores had for us to enjoy. Two days later, we went to the last three. Always lots of new things and of course, I found a couple of new projects.

One of them was a four in one placemat. It is really pretty cool and very easy to make. I bought some of that realistic vegetable/fruit fabric--peaches, cherries, peas and yellow squash. My placemat is very colorful as you can see! Of course, when unfolded you would only see one color at a time. I like them because you can have a different look with a turn of your mat!

"Heirloom" Table Runner

2010-06-23T12:57:00.000-05:00

Okay, this will probably NOT be an heirloom, as this was my first attempt, but it was fun. I can already tell I need to press better and use a little more "Best Press". (If you click on the photo, you can see stitching better.)

The center was a ladder stitch used with a wing needle. The next was decorative stitches and finished with pin tucks. I then machine embroidered the flowers at the ends.

I used black lingerie thread on the linen table runner. This was done for the Bernina Club and a friend of mine used the black table runner also. She chose to use some colored thread. I'm anxious to see how different that looks and also her design! I always learn from what other people have chosen to do. I guess that's what classes are all about!

Pro Bono Quilts

2010-06-21T23:21:00.000-05:00

My friend, Nita, and I got together last fall and made a couple of pro bono quilts each to use up some of our stashes. We decided on the Take Five pattern which is quick and easy. We went to one of our local quilt shops and used their AccuQuilt cutter. That is one quick way to do some cutting for sure!!

Well, we got the tops done very quickly but stalled on the quilting. But, Nita got a new Tin Lizzie recently and we both took a lesson to learn how to use it. I plan to go to the shop and rent their machine! It is so much fun and so much easier than trying to quilt on a regular sewing machine. But Nita invited me to quilt on her new "toy" and I loved it.

So, my two are done. They aren't perfect--I definitely have lots of room to grow--but they will do.

Trip out West

2010-06-08T21:50:00.000-05:00

Hubby and I just returned from a road trip to Colorado and Arizona!

Colorado is one of our favorite spots and we hadn't been there for several years. We went to Manitou Springs and enjoyed Pikes Peak by way of the Cog railway, Garden of the Gods, Seven Falls, and the magnificent cliff dwellings!

We then drove through Durango to Mesa Verde National Park and saw the even bigger cliff dwellings. Wow, they were impressive. Those people worked hard to live! How lucky we are to live in this day and age.

Then we drove over to the Grand Canyon's North Rim. Nineteen years ago we saw the South. They are very different views. We enjoyed both. Incredible! We were only there for a few hours and we didn't get to see the sunrise or sunset. If we had to do it again, we would stay in one of those quaint little cabins and spend a day or two.

It was very hot and being in the sun was miserable. Our daughter, Stacey, and son in law, Mike, hiked down into the cabin a couple of years ago and loved the experience. Not us, we are too old and out of shape for anything like that! As we were driving out of the canyon area, the temperature was 110 degrees. Thank God for air conditioning!

The most unusual and fun thing we did occurred at the Garden of the Gods:

Yep, we rode "SEGWAYS"!

We always try doing different things on vacations. We've rode four wheelers in Hawaii and Alaska, ziplined in Alaska, and hot air ballooned in Albuquerque.

The segways were so much fun ONCE we learned how to use them. It is definitely different and steering was the main thing I had trouble with. While practicing, I got a little too close to a parked segway and turned improperly and down I went! But it was the 5 second rule and I was up and good and ready to go on. We headed out in the bicycle path on the road and rode for an hour around the park. It was a little stressful at the beginning but we got the hang of it very quickly and had no problems whatsoever. We didn't do these kind of things when we were younger and are trying to make up for it now!

We also managed to find several geocaches along the way! Always fun to do them! Even found one without a GPS! And that's another story for another day.

Tea Towels!

2010-05-27T16:22:00.001-05:00

This past week I've been working on these tea towels.

I love embroidery, but I am not very good at hand embroidery. My oldest daughter, Julie does beautiful work, but she didn't get that talent from me. So since I got my embroidery/sewing machine, I'm trying the new easier way. When I saw the Anita Goodesign design pack with these sweet old fashioned looking patterns, I had to do them. They really look like I spent hours embroidering them, don't you think?!

And I love the rick rack. I used the jumbo size and I did take the extra time to sew around both sides of the rick rack. One of my pet peeves is seeing rick rack that has the tops of the curves falling down after washing!

So now that that project is done, what shall I do next? All I need to do, is go in my sewing room and look at some of my "pigs". : )

Another old project finished!!!

2010-05-16T13:05:00.000-05:00

In 2003 my quilt guild decided to do a fun little project. It was taking a "plump lady" drawn on a piece of muslin and dress it for different occasions. There were about a dozen members that participated (we only had a membership of 20 at that time). We each made 12 of our lady so we could give one to each person. We did Summertime, 4th of July, Halloween, Occupations, Cowboys and Indians and Christmas. We also signed our names on each one. And some of the expressions on them are hilarious!

So in the end we had enough to do a small wall hanging for each occasion. It was a riot to see what some of the members came up with. They were just fused down so unless we chose to applique them down we couldn't really make them into a washable item. Some had a lot embellishments, so that was a problem too. There were a couple of ladies that really "went to town" and finished all of theirs. Most of us were not as ambitious. I made two as you can see.

After going through my "pigs" I came across them AGAIN. A good friend of mine and I were discussing them and she said hers were getting worn around the edges because she shows them off quite often. So we decided maybe we could put them in a book. It was a challenge because we couldn't make them too thick if we wanted to sew through the spine. I thought of maybe using grommets, but that would have made the spine too thick also. In the end, they're not perfect, but the ladies are finally DONE and it just took seven years to do so!!

Small zippered bags

2010-05-03T16:51:00.002-05:00

These were my first "in the hoop" embroidery projects. I was amazed that they were so simple to do and I just kept making them, so my family will be the recipient of some of these.

I tried using some faux leather and it worked pretty well. I wanted to try some ultra suede but in my tiny little town, the only fabric we have is in a Wal-Mart. I guess I should be lucky that this one still has a fabric section. Sometimes you need fabric and notions and just don't have time to drive an hour to get it at quilting stores.

So many Wal-Marts are losing their fabric, which is kind of sad. As much as I love the very nice quilting fabrics sometimes you just want inexpensive fabric for some projects.

I also liked using the variegated thread as in the top picture. Every month I try to buy a few spools of embroidery thread to improve my thread stash. My husband just doesn't get it. I told him if I had that new embroidery machine I HAD to have the thread too! LOL Actually, he is really good to me, he just likes to give me a hard time!

Bernina project!

2010-04-25T12:28:00.000-05:00

Our project at Bernina Club this past month was to use the circular attachment #83. This was also to encourage us to use several of our decorative stitches which some of them, of course, we've never used. I even tried some varigated threads which was fun. The fabrics were some hand dyes I had done years ago and was glad to find a reason to use. The batik has been in my stash for a while too. I loved the pattern and knew I'd eventually find a place for it.

This is a pretty loud piece. Not sure I'll use it much, but I am glad I made it. I always learn something when I make a project like this. I do think this would be very cool using different beiges and one thread color. Doubt I'll do another though.

Dolls have faces now!!

2010-04-25T11:59:00.002-05:00

One of my friends who paints a lot helped me out with faces for Joe and Jenny. They are no longer FACELESS! I think Jenny needs to go on a diet. Her face is a little fat! But Kayley and Lyndey will be so happy.

They came over a few days ago and we "bedazzled" some of the dolls' clothing. Kayley, the 6 1/2 year old said we couldn't put any brads or rhinestones on Joe's clothes and I asked why. She informed me he was a boy and they don't wear stuff like that. I laughed and told her Joe could because he was a "model". She agreed reluctantly.

Flat Dolls!

2010-04-16T13:03:00.000-05:00

My granddaughters and I love to play with "paper dolls" of all kinds. At Nana's house we have paper, magnetic, bath, wooden and now quilted fabric dolls!

When I saw this free pattern at Moda Bake Shop I knew I had to make them for Kayley, Paige, Lyndey AND myself. (And if you haven't been to Moda Bake Shop, be prepared--they have wonderful projects to do.)

I did use a stiffer Pellon for the dolls. It was fusible Pellon Peltex and I like it a lot. The clothes were easy and fast to make, also. You put velcro on the dolls and clothing and the girls can easily manipulate them.

As you can see Kayley is really enjoying the dolls. We named them Joe and Jenny. Kayley has already requested more clothing for Jenny. She even drew me a picture of the long strapless dress she wants in RED. So I must get it made soon. The girls keep asking why the dolls don't have faces. Truth is, I'm not too artistic and hate to ruin the dolls. So until I find someone to help draw, Joe and Jenny remain faceless. : )

Grommet bag-- Yep, another bag!

2010-04-09T16:12:00.000-05:00

What is it with bags for women?? It just seems we can't have too many. My friends and I got together and made some neat "grommet purses".

I chose a batik that I've had for a few years. I don't even remember where I purchased it. I loved the fabric but didn't know what to do with it and so I thought why not another bag. It's very "springy" looking I think and turned out to be a fun bag. The photo's colors are a little light. It really is a little darker.

My friends all chose something different--a black and white fabric, black/red faux leather, and another batik one, but with a variety of different fabrics. It was a fun day--always, when you're learning a new project with friends.

By the way, the name of the pattern is "Grids & Grommets" by Indygo Junction.

Two more Purses!

2010-04-08T14:59:00.000-05:00

Got 'em done! And my three granddaughters liked them. Not as much as the Easter candy and toys, but these will least longer, right?

I really enjoyed the bobbin work. Bernina Club at my local dealer is making me stretch my capabilities and I love trying new things. Last session was learning the circular embroidery attachment. That is really going to be fun doing. I'll be using all or at least a lot of my decorative stitches.

Easter was wonderful. The kids had their usual egg hunt and as you can see all got their share!

Happy Easter!

2010-04-01T17:23:00.000-05:00

Getting ready for a fun Easter with family!

Today I cleaned house and went to grocery store for the weekend. We'll be hosting Easter dinner for around twenty. Rob will be making the main dish -- BRISKET. He smokes it all night in our electric smoker and it is delicious. So, the rest of the dinner will be easy. I think I'm making potato salad, mexi-corn, pea salad, lettuce salad, easy cheesy lemon bars (so delicious), and of course, we have to do deviled eggs. The kids will be coloring eggs on Saturday, so we always have plenty of eggs to eat! The others attending always bring side dishes, so we have a smorgasbord!

Julie is on another diet to lose 10 pounds (I wish that was all I needed to lose), and I think she may have to skip a day because this dinner is not for dieters at all. I AM going to start walking soon to make up for this day!!

She and the grandkids will be coming tonight from Texas. They decided to come up tonight instead of Friday because the weather is suppose to be very stormy then. That makes me feel better. I worry about them enough, don't need to add the weather too!

Sunday, Easter, is suppose to be beautiful. I sure hope so. We always have a big egg hunt in the back yard for all the kids. They all love that! Don't you just love to see your loved ones having a good time.

I hope you see your loved ones enjoying the day too!

Easter Embroidered Tea Towels

2010-03-20T17:21:00.000-05:00

Here are my finished little tea towels. These are going to my daughters for Easter! I want them to use them between now and Easter so I'm giving them to them early. I'm hoping to make some more for me!!

One of these days I'll get enough nerve to try the BIG TOWELS!!! LOL

Spring Break!

2010-03-18T16:32:00.000-05:00

It's spring break in Oklahoma AND Texas, so my Texas grandkids came to spend the week with us.

Jake and Paige have been so much fun to have and they love playing with their cousins Kayley and Lyndey.

The weather has NOT been cooperating much and it's been pretty chilly most of the time. Papa and Jake did try going fishing (which Jake loves to do) but it was just too cold. We did make it to the three parks around here all in one day. The three girls couldn't make up their minds what they wanted to do. We also went to a nearby city to play at Leonardo's, an adventure discovery place. Paige and I have done some embroidering on tea towels for Easter gifts. (I'll be posting pictures of them later.) She loves to choose the colors and watch the machine do it's thing!

Of course, we've played the Wii a lot, rented videos and even squeezed in some reading this afternoon just to please Mom. Yesterday Paige and I made Apple Orchard Cookie Bars (good--see recipe below and today we made Molasses Cookies with the majority of them going to my son-in-law, Mike, who sprayed our yard the other day. He loves those cookies and the kids do too. Hope they leave him some! Tomorrow we're going to see "Diary of a Wimpy Kid". That should be fun for them.

They go home on Saturday and Friday night we are expecting snow. Yuck! I believe that is the first day of spring. Snow on the first day of spring--that's just wrong.

Here's the recipe:

APPLE ORCHARD COOKIE BARS

1/2 c melted butter
1/2 c sugar
1 c brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
2 beaten eggs
1/2 c rolled oats
1 c peeled chopped apple
2 c flaked coconut
1 1/2 c flour

Melt butter, add the sugars and stir. Add baking soda, salt, baking powder, vanilla, cinnamon, and beaten eggs. Mix well. Then add the oats, chopped apple and 1 1/2 cups of coconut. (Reserve 1/2 cup for on top.) Add the flour and mix it all thoroughly.

Grease a 9 x 13 cake pan. Spoon the dough in and smooth it with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the remaining coconut evenly on top. Bake at 375 degrees for 25-30 minutes. This was more like a cake than bars to me, but still delicious especially on the second day. You can really taste the apples more and it is so moist!

"Big Shaggy Bag"

2010-03-12T09:40:00.001-06:00

I should have been making those two other Easter purses I need to make BUT I wanted to make this quick bag from a pattern I got in Australia. It is a very, quick project and I used a charm pack from Moda (At Water's Edge). Love those muted fabrics. I've just washed it once so it should fray more when used and washed more.

The pattern was a little different than what I've done before, as it is very flat--no inserts. I thought it would be great for carrying patterns, papers, small sewing kits, etc. Being an Australian pattern, all the measurements were in centimeters. Ugh!!! I converted and made some adjustments as I wanted to use the charm pack and everything turned out fine. If you'd like to check out some other bag patterns plus other quilt patterns from this company in Australia, check out their site at: http://thebirdhouse.com.au

Pursenality!

2010-02-27T13:22:00.002-06:00

I have been attending "Bernina Club" at my LQS and learning a lot! They always have a project for us to do for the following month and this is the latest item. It's a cute little purse that will be perfect for Easter gifts for my granddaughters. That means I have to make two MORE.

The next ones will be a little different. I learned that I need to use a darker thread for my decorative stitches if I want them to show up. I kind of like the subtle look though on this one. The #10 foot is fantastic for sewing on the ribbons. I'm really liking that foot a lot. What was such fun though, was the bobbin work. I had never done that before and it was quite easy. I do have an extra bobbin case for this. Experts say you need to dedicate a case just for this work because you have to adjust the tension on the case for the different threads, ribbons, etc. used in the case. On this purse I used the #5 perle cotton thread. I want to try the 4mm silk ribbon on one of the next ones.

This is the other side of the purse. I embroidered a sweet little butterfly on it. I'm loving my Bernina and this was a fun project!

Pillowcase Challenge!

2010-02-22T21:22:00.000-06:00

I have taken the challenge of American Patchwork & Quilting to help them with one million pillowcases. So far I've made these three but my local guild is also participating so I know I'll be making more.

This is a great way to use up some of that fabric that is hiding on your shelves! I love the idea that the cases will be staying in my area, too. I'm a firm believer in helping your own first.

If you want to check out how to help this wonderful project, check out their site:

http://www.allpeoplequilt.com/millionpillowcases/

They also have free patterns, but you can use any pattern and so easy to whip up with a serger!

Potato Pizza

2010-02-21T10:28:00.000-06:00

On our cruise, we stopped at Hobart, Tasmania and really loved that area! For lunch, we stopped at a local cafe and had an unusual pizza.

Rob is usually a meat, meat, meat, pizza man. And family knows that means on our usual pizza goes, pork sausage, ground beef, ham slices, and weinies. (I know people out there are screaming when they hear hot dogs, but he loves it.) Plus all the cheeses, sauce, etc. Needless to say, this is not made often and definitely a thick pizza. So when he agreed to try this new dish, I was amazed.

We LOVED it. Let me describe it to you. A thin bread crust, a white cheese (mozzarella ?), sliced potatoes, red onions and the kicker ingredient--ROSEMARY! I tried to replicate it the other night and did pretty well. Needed a thinner crust though. Lots of carbs, needless to say, but so good.

I love potatoes of any kind, prepared anyway. Can you mess up a potato?? The only exceptions are sweet potatoes and baked potato chips. Why bother?!!