Friday's Winner!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday. We sure did. With all the prep I didn't post as much as I had planned this week but a promise is a promise.

WENDY (gracerose172) is the winner for this week!

Remember, I'm picking one random comment from the posts of the week to receive a Crazy Old Ladies patterns. So don't forget to comment. You could be next weeks winner!

I'm not a coffee drinker but I love my Hot Cocoa. Toast some marshmallows for a delicious twist on an old favorite. It was so tasty but now I need to go get some more marshmallows and there's no way I'm setting foot anywhere near any stores today. 

Are you a Black Friday shopper?

I prefer to stay home and sew!

Drum roll please

Let me just say WOW!!!  You quilters really come out when goodies are being given away. :o)  It literally read through every comment and wish I could send something to everyone. But after adding up the 151 comments to the blog post, 40 comments on Instagram and another 46 comments on facebook I have randomly chosen a winner.......

SPARTANBABE from AnnieOak Designs!

Congrats to SpartanBabe for being a faithful follower. A bundle of goodies is headed your way.

I really love giving stuff away, that spirit of giving and brightening someone's day really does being joy to my soul. So I think I'm going to continue on giving things away. Every Friday I will choose a follower from comments left on the weeks posts to recieve a Crazy Old Ladies quilt pattern. Now you'll have a chance to win every week!

For those of you who recieve the QuiltHome.com newletter you'll see a little something special this weekend :o)  They're stocked up with awesome Fabric and Crazy Old Ladies patterns. 

Don't forget to use that coupon, it has an expiration date!!!

Have a wonderful weekend and we'll see you on Monday ;o)

HAPPY SEWING!!!

Give it away!

In an effort to not repeat yesterday's experience (read: here) I have decided to try in every way to make today a happy day. I'm starting with threatening my children with..... just kidding. I woke with a smile and gosh darn it I'm going to keep that smile on my face all day long even if I have to grit my teeth. No, I'm starting with a GIVEAWAY!!!

I haven't had a giveaway in a looooong time and I have all these goodies from market that I just have to share with someone. Do you want them?  :o)

This whole bundle can be yours. Let me break it down for you. 

Three fabulous magazines: Modern Quilts Unlimited, Quilting Quickly from Fons and Porter, and Stitch, Craft, Create Gifts. All three of these magazines are packed full of ideas and inspiration and tons of patterns!

Individual quilt patterns from Swirly Girls, V and Co., and Schlosser Designs! 

And of course, FABRIC!!! A bundle of 10 fat quarters from Terra Australis by Emma Jean Jansen (LOVE this collection!) with a few Oval Elements from Art Gallery Fabrics thrown in for good measure,

A delicious Chamberry charm pack from Adornit,

And two adorable mini's from Moda including Front Porch from Jan Patek and Sewing Box from Gina Martin. 

All of this goodness in one bundle- it feels like Christmas!!!

Leave a comment to enter (don't forget to make sure you're a member/follower). 

I'll pick a winner on Friday morning.

For more chances to win check me out on other social media outlets!

Facebook

Instagram

HAPPY SEWING!

(and happy tuesday!)

Cereal!?

Today started out as a Monday. I never really got the whole "Monday" thing until a few years ago. Today perfectly illustrates why SAHM's dread Monday's just like everyone else.

I was actually quite pleased when I didn't have to drag my kids out of bed this morning. They were all up and moving without any prompt from me and earlier than normal. I was thinking it was going to be a smooth morning. I started a load of laundry. Gasp! This is an unusual morning. 

I came downstairs to find the TV off- an unusual site. Normally there's a blaring of some idiotic cartoon adding to the morning chaos, but not today. I left the remotes alone and enjoyed the absence of extra noise. I even asked child #1 to unload the dishwasher and guess what- HE DID IT!

Things were going quite smoothly. Mondays? Not here!

I spoke too soon.

This is a picture of my kitchen table clean. I am posting it here so I can remember what it looks like. 

Upon returning from taking child #1 to school I walk in the house to find children #2 and #3 eating breakfast at the table. The TV is still off! It feels as if a miracle is occurring but the thought enters my mind just a moment too soon.

Before I know it #2 and #3 are spitting cereal at each other. REALLY!??  Let's get something straight here: These are not preschool age children, they are 8 and 11 years old for pete's sake!!! I holler their names in an attempt to get someone's attention hoping a lull in their antics will distract them long enough to stop the nonsense.

 The ease of the morning so far left me in an unrealistic state. I forgot that when I speak my children go deaf. It's an interesting phenomenon really. I can yell so loudly that the neighbors hear, but my children don't hear a thing. I worry at first about their hearing but my fears are put to rest when #3 cries out in utter frustration because she can hear #2 breathing and she's sure he's doing it just to annoy her. 

I manage to get a few more moments of peace a quiet before it starts up again. At this point I offer a prayer of thanks that I do not home-school and that in 20 minutes I'll drop them off at school. I've half joked before that I like my children so much more when they go to school all day. I'm not sure what the half part of the joke is. Going to school all day is a fabulous thing for them and me. 

I can enjoy peace and quiet for the next several hours and when I pick them up at 3:15 I can see their cute faces walking towards the car and marvel at how much I love them. Then the door opens and they fight over who's going to sit where in the car and it starts all over again.

Until then I will enjoy my clean kitchen table.

HAPPY MONDAY!

The day is HERE!!!

This retreat is going to be epic and I am so thrilled to be a part of it! 

I took a peek at all the classes and events and the list just goes on and on. There are so many fun things being offered it's going to be hard to choose which to do. Personally I think you should choose my HexPlus class, just sayin'  :o)

So quit poking around here and hop over to registration to claim your spot!!! 

See you in Midway!

INTRODUCING: NATALIE SMITH

Natalie is one of my favorite people EVER! (it's true) And I am so excited that she has joined me over here at "Crazy Old Ladies". I had her write up a little something so you can get to know her. 

Hi! My name is Natalie Smith, and I’m a stay-at-home-mom. Designing quilt patterns is my side gig –and it’s a dream come true! I come from a long line of homemakers that do a little of everything. My Mom raised her girls to be ladies (ankles crossed!), and to her that included teaching us to do all sorts of crafty things. I can cook and clean and play piano and crochet – and lately quilting has become my favorite way to pass the time.

 

I started hand quilting when I was about 6. My Mom would always include me whenever her family had a quilt on, or when the little old church ladies were quilting on the old church quilt frames, and I learned the most INTERESTING things from those ladies! They were just sewing & chatting, and my ears were wide open – I wanted to hear everything! I felt pretty grown-up to be considered one of the quilting ladies.

My first quilt as an adult was started as a way to pass the time creatively. I was a receptionist at Sento Corporation, where I met my husband, and for the first few months I was there the HR department would give me files to sort through. Due to a restructure, my job description changed, and soon I found myself with a LOT of time on my hands –and there’s only so much surfing on the internet I could do. I decided it wouldn’t be inappropriate to bring some sort of a project with me, and my cousin had just found out she was having her first baby, so I thought a baby quilt would be a nice present to give her. Since I was at the front desk of the company, though, I couldn’t do anything by machine, so I hand-pieced everything. After the first block, I decided my cousin could make do with a pillow! But I kept on working on my little quilt in hopes that someday soon I would bring home a little one.

Five little ones later, I need a creative outlet more than ever! These days, I REALLY love quilting, and my husband knows that a day that’s too busy to sew a little is usually not a great day in my world. I try to balance it all out by not “working” on Sundays – unless it’s a gift :). I love my family so much, and they are definitely first in my life – but I think it’s healthy for a Mama to do something just for her, and for me it’s quilting!

Earlier this year, I went to my first-ever quilt retreat. Since I’ve known Emily for quite a while, of course it was her “Cabin Fever” retreat! I wanted to be really productive at the retreat, so I knew I had to have a plan in mind before I went, because I didn’t want to waste all my kid-free time planning things out. For about a week beforehand, I made a plan and wrote it all down – and in the process, I realized that I was writing a pattern for myself. I’d never thought about it in those terms before, but I do it for almost every quilt I make – I just have to be able to see things on paper before I can bring myself to cut into that expensive fabric!

With that realization came the idea to market patterns. I knew Emily had done it for years – in fact, we traded piano lessons for her son with patterns a few times! So, I asked her about her company and to talk about patterns, and one thing led to another… and here I am, with published patterns as a CRAZY OLD LADY! I love seeing them in print – I hope that feeling never goes away, because I plan on designing patterns for a good long time!

For a little more information on my inspiration for these quilts, and for more about my finished projects, etc., please visit my blog at natalie-ever-after.blogspot.com or check me out on Instagram under the name smileynannn – I’d love to have you come visit!

Thanks Natalie! I'm so glad you're here.   

HAPPY SEWING!

NEW PATTERNS

Now that I've shown you what everyone else has been doing, it's time to show you what I've been up to.

I've been working on New Patterns! All of these patterns are available NOW for wholesale purchase by shops. They are also being carried by major distributors. Quilters- if you see patterns you'd like, rush to your LQS and tell them to order!

Hex-Plus has been in the works for a while now and the pattern is finally available. You can purchase the PDF here. I'll be telling you more about the design process of Hex Plus in a post next week. :o)

Sweet Cream is one of those quilts I stitched up ages ago and finally decided to write up a pattern for it. The block is a simple variation of a churn dash block and looks so yummy in Fig Tree fabrics. 

I love the graphic effect of Genevieve, designed by the fabulous Natalie Smith.

Another design by Natalie, Interweave combines two of my favorite things: Technicolor and Plaid! 

Join us on Monday to learn more about Natalie here on the blog!

My popular book Geared for Guys is SOLD OUT of hard copies. Unfortunately I can't have them reprinted. :( A PDF version of the book is still available in it's entirety (in my Etsy shop) but for the rest of you I've decided to release some of the more popular titles from the book as single patterns! Now you can make awesome quilts for those guys in your life that they'll love as much as you do.

No what are you waiting for!? GET SEWING! :o)

Market Recap (part 3)

Are you tired of market pics yet? I hope not! 

This is Lindsay from The Cottage Mama. This lady is so talented- check out those dresses! She makes the cutest clothes!

Check her out with her new book "Sew Classic Clothes for Girls"

I LOVED the modern design of Carolyn Friedlander's booth. I even managed to score a mini charm of her new collection Botanics!

I'm obsessed with this collection Ipanema from Birch fabrics (although I did need help with pronunciation!) I don't know if it's the colors or patterns but I can't wait to get my hands on it :o)

Me and Jana from Izzy and Ivy took a minute to shoot the breeze in their groovy booth. Have you seen her new designs!? 

Shannon Fabrics had such a fun booth. They had a whole dude-ranch theme going on with cactus and animals all around the farm and everything was made out of Cuddle! Seriously impressive! 

I scored a fat quarter bundle of this collection at Sample Spree and I can't wait to start cutting! Melissa Ybarra of Iza Pearl Designs new collection Garden Party for Windham Fabrics is delicious. And look at her booth! She even had a working fountain in the corner!

The lovely and talented Jill Finley (Jillily Studios) was showing her new collection Twirl for Henry Glass. She even has a new collection of basics coming out called Jams and Jelly.  

This booth caught my eye every time I walked by. I love her concept! Green Bee designs and patterns features clothing patterns and fabric! Oh, and they won an award for their booth, too!

Terri Griffin of Thankfully Sew and Patterns Gone Digital (pictured here with her beautiful daughter, Michelle) had a booth full of gorgeous new quilt patterns.

I LOVE this quilt with the stars! And what a cool method she has of putting them together. :o)

Bonnie from Fishsticks designs is such a sweetheart. I love to sit and visit with her at market. Her designs for children's clothing are just as fabulous as she is.

Folks, we've come to the end of my market recap. Oh there was so much more than I could even capture with my camera but this at least gives you a glimpse. :o)

HAPPY SEWING!!!

Market Recap (part 2)

Ok, let's get started!

Have you heard the buzz yet? Cotton and Steel, a new division of RJR featuring fun new fabric from fabulous designers we all know and love. Check to link to learn more. I CAN'T WAIT!!!!

 Vanessa's booth was just as darling as she is. Her new collection Color me Happy for Moda is full of happy prints. And check out that fun sewing machine quilt. Love!

Loving me some Sweetwater Wishes! And Zen Chic's setup was one of my favorites!

 I haven't seen this delightful gal in person for years. Kate Spain's new collection Daydream is just as fabulous as she is!

Mr. Joel Dewberry escaped market this go around but his new collection Botanique for Free Spirit certainly caught my eye- especially that quilt. LOVE!

Tula Pink's new collections Fox Field is full of rich colors and patterns- classic Tula.

Her booth was alive with excitement and she even offered a friendly hello :o)  I'm so in love with that bulls eye quilt!

 What do you think of those new modern solids by Denyse Schmidt!? Not only that, she has a new collection (Ansonia) premiering too! 

I really liked the color blocking setup in the Art Galley fabrics booth. 

My new BFF Frances Newcombe showed off her collections Safari Moon for Art Gallery Fabrics. Love those trees! Congratulations to Frances for an award winning booth!

The uber cute Jeni Baker showcasing Dreamin' Vintage - her newest collection for Art Gallery Fabrics. 

Her color palette and design elements are so fresh and evoke a feeling that's both retro and modern at the same time.

I espeically liked the strips of real vintage fabrics that hung as a canopy over her booth. :o) 

I stopped by Martingale to hang with my girl Rachel Griffith as she promoted her new book. Seriously folks, that is one good book. I don't buy a ton of books- only the ones I really love- and this one will be included. Plus, I love that girl so much! MWAH!

I have so many more pictures to show you. I was going to squish them all into this post but I was afraid it would cause your computer to crash. :o)  So check back tomorrow for the third and final installment of my Quilt Market recap. 

HAPPY SEWING!!