Crazy Old Ladies Quilts

Perspective

2012-02-17T09:57:00.001-07:00

To say this week has been interesting is an understatement.

It started out with expectations of 'Love' and celebrating Valentine's day by writing names on paper valentines and sticking lollipops to said valentines.

As the week went on it quickly turned into summersaults.

Those summersaults continued through yesterday evening when they came to an ubrupt hault with a sudden smash into a brick wall.

All in all we're good. Life has yet again been brought into perspective.

I'll be back next week with fun things to share.

But for now I'm going to veg.

Yup. Just me, my OnDemand, and Angry Birds.

Oh yeah, and these

What!? My Girl Scout cookies haven't come yet. Don't judge. :o)

Have a good weekend.

*Hugs!*

2012-02-14T07:12:00.002-07:00

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

'Smitten' by Crazy Old Ladies

Stare/Stair

2012-02-13T09:52:00.000-07:00

I decided that seeing the actual bolts is much better than staring at cardboard boxes. However, I am a little concerned with how we're going to get upstairs. I guess I need to reorganize the studio to make a space for these guys.

Block Contest

2012-02-09T05:52:00.011-07:00

So here's the deal- I wanna give away some fabric. LOTS of fabric. And it seems, based on all the comments, that you're willing to recieve said fabric. But picking random comments is getting a little boring for me and you, dontcha think? Instead I thought I'd have a contest.

Here's how it works.

All you have to do is design a quilt block.

You can make it in whatever fabrics you want and whatever style you want.

Your block does not have to be an original design.

It just needs to finish somewhere between 9" and 12" square.

(9 1/2" to 12 1/2" with seam allowances)

To enter you have to upload a picture of your block to the flickr group:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/blockcontest/

There's also a button link on the top left column of this blog.

Please post only one picture per block,

but enter as many blocks as you'd like.

The contest will run through MARCH 9th

(I want to give you time to make your blocks)

At this point my team will narrow down our favorites and list a poll here on the blog.

Then it's up to YOU to vote for the winner.

Votes will be tallied up and the winner announced on APRIL 2nd.

The GRANDPRIZE winner will recieve

1 yd of each print in the 'Hall of Fame' fabric collection!

(yes, you can get excited)

But don't worry, there's lots more fabric. I'm also going to have several FQ bundles to give away and

lots of Crazy Old Ladies patterns, too!

So, wanna play along!?

I can't wait to see what you make! :o)

Ode to Improv

2012-02-08T10:22:00.000-07:00

I FINALLY finished a project that I have been dying to show you!

I've always wanted to take a folded binding shot!

I started this quilt last year when I attended the Sewing Summit. I mentioned it a bit here. You can even see me working on some of the blocks. We were given a baggy of scraps but I had so much fun I started digging through the garbage (scrap piles) to find more. I even managed to get a couple blocks donated by some friends.

Thanks to some scraps and inspiration from Pam- I decided it was time to finish! However I wasn't too pleased with my quilting choice. I decided to do ramdom lines (not always straight) throughout the quilt. Eh. Not my favorite- but it is what it is.

I finally bound it last night while watching Glee. :o)

I LOVE the finished quilt!

I'm calling it 'Ode to Improv' because of the class at SS taught by the lovely Jess of Urban Patchwork.

My quilt has 3 parts:

The top where the large solids pieces are.

The center made up of several improv blocks.

And the bottom that has everything left.

*heart*

p.s.- I've got an idea for my giveaway. I think I'll announce on Friday. Stay tuned! :o)

Stacked

2012-02-07T08:06:00.000-07:00

These boxes came last week.

They are FULL of Hall of Fame bolts.

What am I going to do with all this fabric?

I think I should have a giveaway- what do you think?

But what should I do?

Leave a comment and tell me what kind of giveaway I should have
and what I should give away.

HELP!!! :o)

Let's get ready to rumble!

2012-02-05T14:34:00.003-07:00

Check out Making It Fun and see my designer spotlight!!!!!

Work

2012-02-03T08:40:00.000-07:00

Contrary to what some people think (my husband) I actually have a job. It's a little different from many other jobs. But it's still work. I still have to budget my time. I still get burned out (sometimes). And I still have to pull long nights to finish projects for deadlines.

Yesterday was a VERY productive day. However the nature of my job prevents me from showing you how productive just yet. What I can tell you is that I fniished 4 quilts yesterday.

Before you start thinking I'm some sort of quilting Terminator (Sorry, I have boys) I need to clarify. There's the 'Needs to be Pieced' stack that consists of folds of fabric carefully selected for a particular project. These are numerous and scattered throughout my studio but 2 are on High Priority status right now.

Then there's the 'Needs to be Quilted' stack that consists of pieced quilt tops waiting to be sandwiched and quilted. There is only one of these stacks but is almost more daunting that the plethora of 'Needs to be Pieced' stacks. This stack can range between 1 and 12 quilts on any given day. At this very point in time there are 3 quilts in this stack.

Lastly, there's the 'Needs to be Bound' stack. This stack is self explanitory and actaully embarassing. I HATE BINDING! I'm not sure why. It's that last little bump to get over before the project is complete but I often let quilts sit for days or weeks (even months) before binding them. Yesterday was an exception- I bound 4 quilts. Yes, the same 4 that made it to the FINISHED stack along with 1 that made it to the 'Need to be Quilted' stack and the 2 'Need to be Pieced' quilts cut out and ready to go.

So yesterday when the hubs walked in the door, I was laying on the couch half-dead (certainly brain-dead) watching old 'Big Bang Theory' episodes. He asked what I'd been doing all day and when I replied 'Working' he chuckled and said 'Uh huh' in his you-don't-have-a-real-job sort of voice. I showed him. I went to bed. He had to do dishes. :o)

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P.S.- Don't forget to check out http://makingitfun.blogspot.com/ on Sunday for my designer spotlight!

Wish List

2012-02-02T06:00:00.001-07:00

Sometimes I just want to sew something just for fun. Hopefully someday I'll have a little time for that. But it seems my 'Someday' list keeps growing and growing. Here are a few that top my list:

Gigi's Thimble

I fell in love with this pattern the moment I saw it....

Someday.

Cluck Cluck Sew

One of the many that I adore from Allison- that girl is AMAZING!

Someday.

Fig Tree Quilts

I bought this pattern as soon as I could get my hands on it. Can't wait to piece this one

Someday.

Don't Look Now

My love afair with this gal has only just begun. This pattern as a wall quilt is a must for me once I've perfected the technique.

Someday.

Chitter Chatter

*sigh* This EXACT quilt, in the EXACT fabrics will NEVER happen. But I can dream, can't I?

Someday.

Do you have a 'Someday' list?

Have you completed a 'Someday' project?

Please share so I can live vicariously through you. :o)

Outtakes

2012-02-01T17:11:00.000-07:00

I had a photoshoot today with the cutest little fans!

Cooper and Jake

or is it

Jake and Cooper

(don't ask me which is which- I can't remember!)

Feeling Grey

2012-01-30T20:42:00.000-07:00

Grey has been the 'IT' neutral for a while now- and I don't think it's going anywhere soon. At least I hope not. I just bought these today from 3 different online stores because no store carried any two! Gotta love that. But these are some of my favorite greys and are needed for 3 separate projects.

This first one is LOVELY! I believe it's called 'Dove' and is a ColorWorks by Northcott fabric. I first found this when I was shop-hopping in Houston. I love that it's very, very light. It's a perfect median between white and my next favorite-

Ah, Kona Ash. This is a GREAT light grey. Perfect for a light neutral when you don't want as light as 'Dove' :o) This has been a go-to color in my stash for a long time. I guess lots of other quilters love it as much as I do because it was out at 3 local stores!

Lastly, Hometown by Sweetwater in Concrete for Moda. *sigh* I could love on this whole collection all day long. Today I was in search of a dark, dark grey. I wanted charcoal. But every 'Charcoal' I found had either a green or blue tint. I love the more taupey greys. This one is PERF!!!

If you're interested in purchasing any of these beautiful greys for yourself I've linked each color to the online shop I purchased it from.

HAPPY SHOPPING! :o)

Walking Dead

2012-01-30T09:22:00.000-07:00

Ugh. I've been sick all weekend. I have one of those nasty colds that just makes you want to curl up and die. I'm feeling a bit better today- but not completely myself yet. Luckily the hubs has the next 2 days off so I'm going to milk it for all it's worth. :o)

______________________________________________

I started coming down with this Friday morning. I knew I was getting sick but since the hubs had been working open to close shifts all week I was NOT going to miss date night because of a little (HA!) cold. I needed a break from the kids just as much as they needed one from me. The hubs and I decided to meet for a movie.

I've been doing lots of quilting lately and realized that my walking foot wasn't walking very well. Time for a replacement I guess. I think I got my money worth- but I really didn't want to buy another one. Bleh! I searched online and was able to find one....but I felt like I should wait.

I'm not going to complain here. I mean, my kenmore walking foot is only about $25. Much less than some other machines. But I didn't feel like spending that money right then. Glad I waited.

________________________________________________

While waiting for my hubs to meet me for the movie I decided to poke into a couple stores. At the last minute I thought "I'll run into Sears and see if they have any machine stuff." (the last time I was there- several months ago- they were getting rid of their sewing machine section) I wasn't hoping to find anything when I saw this:

a Walking foot, Quilting foot (I go through these even faster than the walking foot), some other stuff and a 1/4" seam foot! I've NEVER had a 1/4" seam foot!

The best part- guess what I paid for all these goodies?

$7.97!

Seriously.

Best. Deal. Ever.

Just thought I'd share this deal with you for anyone who has a Kenmore machine or a machine that kenmore accessories fit on. I looked it up online and the set is around $55. In my Sears store there were at least a dozen- all prices at $7.97 and that was the REGULAR price. Might be something worth checking out. I'm just saying.

Now I just need to get over this dumb cold so I can feel like quilting again.

Happy Monday!

Brrrr

2012-01-26T18:50:00.001-07:00

I wish I was HERE

taking classes from HER

beacuse it's WINTERFEST

and she's AWESOME and practically in my backyard.

This is me being JEALOUS! :o(

Completos

2012-01-26T11:39:00.000-07:00

I just finished quilting my variegated thread combo quilt.

It looks SO COOL!!!

I'm so glad I decided to alternate between the two patterns.

I can't show you the front just yet- but when I do you'll know why!

Want to know more about 'Completos'?

Look here My kids (and I) LOVE them! :o)

Threads of Change

2012-01-24T08:35:00.001-07:00

Two firsts for me this week:

1.) Quilting with a variegated thread. I LOVE the way it looks!

2.) Changing thread during a project.

Because of the layout of this quilt, I have to change back and forth between the variegated green and the brown thread. It is turning out SO GOOD!

Lunch Lady

2012-01-21T13:41:00.001-07:00

Several months ago I had a great time at the Frenchknots quilt retreat. Did you know she's having another one? Go find out more and JOIN US!

Anyway, along with quilting with some old-er friends I met a few new ones too. We've had lunch a couple of times since- and plan to continue every month. (In case you're wondering, it was April's idea to call us 'lunch ladies' :o)

This month we had a special occasion- APRIL was not just featured in a new magazine...

her quilt made the COVER!!!

We all made sure to get a magazine, then had one of the ladies working at the restaurant ask April to autograph an issue for her. At that point we all brought ours out for an autograph. She was so surprised!

April is AWESOME! She has done lots of sample sewing for me- but that's not what makes her awesome.

She's a very talented woman. She has a very successful Etsy shop that you've got to see to believe :o) And has recently started one of the cutest BOM I've ever seen.

CONGRATULATIONS APRIL!!!

Pink Elephants

2012-01-19T09:15:00.000-07:00

I grew up watching Disney on VHS taped from the TV. I know "What's a VHS!?" Remember in Dumbo when Dumbo gets drunk and hallucinates the pink elephants? It was one of our favorite parts as kids. We would watch it in slow motion. Seriously. :o)

Elephants have been my favorite animal for a long time. Partly because my name starts with 'E' but also because they're just so amazing. They're so giant, yet so gentle. If I could own a pigmy elephant, I would!

Latley I've been seeing a fun trend in quilting fabric- Elephants!

I thought I would share a few fun ones that I found.

Pink Elephants from Violet Craft's PEACOCK LANE for Michael Miller

Pink Elephants from Michael Miller. These are perfect 'Dumbo' elephants *wink*

Deliciously fun elephants from Valori Wells for Free Spirit fabrics. LOVE these. I just have to make something fun for myself from these. YUMMY!

Lastly, this cute little number from Timeless Treasures.

So what are your thoughts- do you think elephants are the new birds or owls?

Who needs snow...

2012-01-17T09:17:00.000-07:00

When you've already been buried alive!?

This picture was not staged. I mean, I'm not that crazy. :o)

I'm not sure if I told you all about our "move". We moved a few blocks away a couple months ago. Actually, my husband so graciously offered to "move" us while I was in Houston at market. (Note to women: if your husband ever offers to do this- DON'T LET HIM!) You see, he moved some things- but not everything. So for the last couple months we've been moving the rest a couple boxes a day. Last night we finally made a big haul and moved the last big furniture pieces. Because I had a nice big open space on my sewing table- it was nominated to be the catch-all for "stuff". UGH!

So my day is pretty much booked while I clear this crap off so I can actually work. :o)

Jolly Jabber

2012-01-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

Go check it out!!!

Aussie Winner!

2012-01-13T07:56:00.000-07:00

Thank you for all your nice comments on 'Hang 10'. You are all so sweet! :o)

I have a busy day today so I'll get right to it:

My winner who was chosen to recieve the Australian Homespun magazine featuring my quilt is Vrooman's Quilts. I'm super excited too because she has been a follower for a long time and always has the nicest things to say in my comment box. So an extra big THANKS to you!

Hey all, we have a long weekend here- gonna be a busy one. Hope you have a great weekend. I'm hoping to have some fun things to share on Monday.

No Signal

2012-01-11T14:25:00.000-07:00

About 2 months ago my husband and I started watching The Big Bang Theory. Have you seen it? HILARIOUS! So the other day I was watching an episode and Sheldon was wearing a shirt much like the one shown below:

Zazzle.com

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? What a cool wuilt that would make! Definately brighter colors and not quite the combo I'm used to. But I think it would be fun. And since solids are BACK, that makes it even better!

Ok, so who's gonna make it? My WIP list is already too long. :o)

Slow Start

2012-01-10T08:49:00.001-07:00

Is it just me or is 2012 rolling in s-l-o-w-l-y? My kids agree with me. I know this because I can't seem to get them out of bed for school in the morning and they've been tardy twice in the last week (the first times this school year!)

I allowed myself a little break during the holidays and I think thats where the problem started. I should've just kept going and not lost momentum. Now that I've stopped, it's so much harder tp get going.

In all fairness I haven't been sitting around all day playing Angry Birds (well, not EVERY day) I finished up my next fabric collection. WooHoo! Of course there's still work to do but the hard stuff (designing) is done.

I've also quilted 1 1/2 quilts. Working on finishing the second one but for some reason my walking foot isn't walking very well. I think I may need a replacement. Then there's the 4 stacks of fabrics I've gathered for 4 more quilts I need to have finished by the end of the month. Yes finished. Pieced. Quilted. Bound. Ugh!

So even though I have done 'some' stuff I still feel like a slug in the morning. I have to pep-talk myself into getting in gear. Maybe it's just January. At any rate I'm working hard on being more productive in this new year.

Thanks for being patient with me :o)

Don't forget to enter to win a copy of Australian Homespun in yesterdays post!!!

Summer down Under

2012-01-09T16:55:00.001-07:00

Several months ago (has it been nearly a year!?) I contacted the wonderful people at Australian Homespun magazine. I'd worked with them once before on this project. But this time I had something exciting the share. I was sharing the news about Going Coastal. Since it's a beach-y collection I thought it would fit nicely with an Australian magazine. :o)

We worked for months on planning and I am happy to finally announce that it's been published in the current issue of:

The quilt is called 'Hang 10'

There's so many fun techniques in this quilt. It's a perfect 'class' quilt. There's piecing, HST's, fusible applique and raw edge applique. Not to mention the fun you can have quilting with all the different parts. It was such a fun quilt to design.

I LOVE Australian Homespun magazine. The projects in this publication amaze me. I always feel a bit inadequate with my projects when I see the rest in the magazine. :o) Besides the fun projects this magazine is fun to read. The write-ups on each quilt are wonderful and the pictures are spectacular (Don't you just LOVE those VW buses in the pic w/ my quilt?). This is definately one you should add to your subscription list. Just go to ZINIO.COM where you can get single issues or a subscription.

Want to win you're own issue of Australian Homespun featuring my HANG 10 quilt? Leave a comment and I'll choose a winner on Friday!!! :o)

Class of '73 (Hall of Fame)

2012-01-03T10:02:00.000-07:00

I have wanted to tell this story for months but I wanted to wait until it all came together. It's a long one, so hang in there. Hope you enjoy hearing about it as much as I enjoyed living it! :o)

Early last summer I began scouting my local antiques shops for sports equipment. I wanted to find items that were old, worn, used- because they have the most character. In between days of searching I came across a magazine article which showed an old megaphone. It was so cool! I knew my chances of finding one were slim (and all the ones on ebay were either cheap or way out of my price range). I continued my frequent trips to the antiques mall in search of other 'artifacts'. I found all sorts of fun things; and old hockey stick, ice skates, old metal roller skates, lots of baseballs, a couple old bats, and some tennis raquets.

I had pretty much given up hope of finding a megaphone when I walked into the store one day and there was one sitting in the very first booth. I checked the price and put it right back down. It was way too steep for me. I tried to wander through the store looking for other items but I just couldn't stay away from that megaphone. Besides, I knew I wouldn't ever find another one. I decided to take it to the counter and see if there was anything they would do on the price. As I picked it up I noticed the inside. Someone had written in black marker 'Head cheerleader- and don't you forget it!' There was also a name- Wendy Olsen. For some reason I knew I couldn't leave the store without it. I was given a tiny discount and left the store quickly so I wouldn't feel any buyers remorse.

You can see the megaphone in my booth picture from market. It's in the bottom right corner with a '73 on it.
(Sorry for the picture quality. I lost all my photos and this was the only one I had- from my phone)

I went to lunch a few days later and talked with Shannon. She had been to the antiques mall and saw the megaphone and wondered if I had bought it. I told her and Terry about the writing inside and how awesome I thought it was. There was story there, somewhere. Terry mentioned that her husband had graduated from the same school (Provo High School) that same year and said she'd have to ask him about 'Wendy'.

I went home and thought about the megaphone over the next few days. It may seem sillly to some, but I thought of how much I would've wanted to share that megaphone with my kids and their kids had it been mine. I had to try and find this Wendy girl and give it back to her. I was too impatient to wait to hear from Terry so I decided to do a little digging on the internet. My first search brought me to the class website. I was quickly able to locate Wendy's name and clicked on the link to send an email. I started writing the email and stopped. It's kind of hard to word an email- "Um, I just bought this megaphone...is it yours?" I went back to the website and realized there was also a snail-mail link. I gasped out loud when I saw it was in texas. A quick google maps search and I found out it was less than an hour outside of Houston- the very town I would be visiting for market!

Picture taken from PHS c/o 73 website

I know it's crazy, but I just felt so connected. It's funny because as soon as I saw the inscription it immediately took me back to my high school days. I wasn't even a cheerleader but for some reason I could relate to this person. It wasn't until I checked the websites yearbook pictures that I was brought back to reality. I wasn't even born when this girl graduated high school! This made it even more important for me to contact her. (She's the second from the left on the bottom row)

I sent an email and kicked myself afterward for feeling like a dork. But a day later I had a reply. She didn't remember the inscription but said she'd always wondered what happened to those megaphones. We decided that after market, while I was still in Houston, we would meet for lunch and I would give her the megaphone. (I still needed it for my booth display, of course! :o) But as luck would have it- she was visiting Utah the week I was in Houston!

We exchanged information about eachother. I told her about quilting, patterns and fabric. She then told me a little about herself. She married her high school sweetheart- Gifford Nielsen. They went to college at BYU where he played football. He then went on to play for the NFL on the Houston Oilers (which was what brought them to Houston). How cool is that!

We continued to correspond via email but missed our chance to connect again during Thanksgiving. She still has children in the area and visits quite frequently. This Christmas break was going to be our next chance but with all the hustle and bustle, again it was hard to connect. Fearing that another opportunity wouldn't come for some time we decided to just meet really quick at a gas station to connect.

Picture taken from PHS c/o 73 website

Wendy is gorgeous! I hope when I'm her age I look that good. She was so kind and cute! As she read the inscription she made some comment about teenagers and how they think. I told her I was so glad it was there because that's exactly what drew me to it. We hugged and parted ways.

And that's it.

Wendy Olsen- Head Cheerleader and don't you forget it! Has her megaphone once again. And I have, what I think, is one pretty cool story! :o)

Christmas Cheer!

2011-12-24T12:51:00.000-07:00

As a little present for ME and YOU:

Hall of Fame has shipped and is showing up in stores near you!

It can be found at The Corn Wagon Quilt Shop in Springville, UT

and online at FatQuarterShop.com

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Seuss-y Christmas

2011-12-19T10:46:00.000-07:00

Oh that Grinch- he is my FAVORITE!!! The moral of the story is a great one. Whenever it comes on television I have to sit and watch (the original animated Seuss- not the Jim Carrey one). It takes me back to my childhood before Disney and Nickelodeon were on TV and you only got to see cartoons on Saturday mornings and when there was a "Special" on during prime-time. I love "Specials"!!!! I haven't seen it yet this season though. Maybe I should Netflix it! :o)

I've been working on finishing some last minute projects. This is a quilt I just finished quilting for a friend of mine. She's giving it to her little boy for Christmas.

It's a simple design which is key when you have such loud and fun fabrics. I just LOVED quilting it.

Each row got a different quilting motif. The words got straight line quilting. The spots got loopty-loops around the spots. The stripes got zig-zags. And the other prints with characters on them got a simple stipple. I LOVE how it turned out.

(I tried to get a picture of the back but its snowing so the lighting is bad.)

Time to go deliver it!!!

Sharing

2011-12-14T17:10:00.000-07:00

I got to have lunch with Terry and Shannon today. I sure enjoy those two. I look forward to our lunches each and every time. Shannon surprised us with fun little gifts and I just have to show it off to you.

Can you tell how well she knows me? Dr. Pepper and chocolate with a side of fabric!

I didn't even know Cadbury made their famous 'mini eggs' any other time of year. Of course these aren't eggs- but it's the same delicious chocolate in a candy shell. YUM! And look at those cute FQ's. I teased her that I could've used them when I made her table topper a couple weeks ago. And have you seen those plastic cups!? I got one at market from the M&M people and LOVE it! I fill it with ice water every night and set it on my nightstand for cool little sips during the night. Aaaahhh! Now I can have one in the studio too!

Her card read:

"You sure are a "cut" above the rest! Thanks "sew" much for your friendship.

She's so cute. Thanks Shannon for the awesome gift, and more importantly- you're friendship. :o)

MIA

2011-12-12T11:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry I've been absent from the blog. I guess it's just that time of year. I have so many things I'm trying to finish up and deadlines to meet. And then there's that little holiday right around the corner. AHHH!!!

I promise I'll be back soon.

Hope you all are enjoying lots of friends, family and quilting!!!

Happy Holidays!!!

Somethin' special

2011-12-01T20:18:00.000-07:00

Wanna see what I made with my Christmas fabrics!?

Last week I saw THIS post by my friend Amy and FELL. IN. LOVE. It's such a simple design but it's so fabulous! I knew the minute I saw it that it was EXACTLY what I was looking for.

I made this cute table topper for my dear friend Shannon. Shannon is somethin' special. She has accompanied me to Minnesota, Houston and all the way to Salt Lake City! :o) And all the while she puts up with me (that's sayin' A LOT!) We go to lunch at least once a month but I usually see her weekly when I step into the shop to harrass her. I don't tell this gal often enough how much I appreciate her and cherish her friendship.

THANKS SHANNON!!!

Mini Me

2011-11-30T19:42:00.000-07:00

I've been trying to convince Santa that this little one would LOVE a sewing machine for Christmas.

But Santa said "She doesn't even know how to use one"

To which I replied "If she had one, she could learn"

Then Santa gave me the look.

So I decided to start teaching her, little by little.

This girl learns FAST! One of her favrorite things to do is play "Quilt Shop". It is very cute. I have to remind myself that she'll only be little once and soon she won't want to be in the same room as me. So I better take advantage of it now. :o)

Kenny has a "Tortoise and the Hare" setting- which I LOVE for this purpose. I just slide the dial to the little turtle and the machine creeps along at a speed slow enough for her to maneuver. She's still learning the whole 'seam allowance' thing but is doing great! Now she wants to use the iron!

This is her block. I'm so proud. What a great little improv. quilter! She searches through my scraps and always asks "Can I cut this?" before she starts assembling her pieces.

I showed Santa her progress. Guess what he said?

"Why does she need her own machine when she can just use yours!?"

Let's just say it's a good thing Mrs. Clause has a little pull around here. ;o)

Trunking

2011-11-29T08:22:00.000-07:00

Wanna see pix from my trunk show!? Amy just posted a wonderful re-cap over on her blog Diary of a Quilter. Check it out!

Stuffed

2011-11-28T13:41:00.000-07:00

It's Monday and I'm trying to get back into my routine after the Thanksgiving break. Did you have a nice holiday? I sure hope so. Ours was very nice and low key. I cook for my little family, my brother and another brother and his wife. There was lots of laughter and of course, over eating. I still feel full.

During some of my down time- sitting on the couch too stuffed to move- I had the chance to go through this book in more depth. I told you I'd tell you about it and I can hardly wait!

Honestly, I was excited to get this book because I won it- but I don't really make doll quilts. However once I peeked at this book I knew I was going to LOVE it. The techniques in the book are shown in doll quilt size- but you can make these 'blocks' in any size quilt. Which is just what I am itching to do.

This was one of my favorites. I love how Lucinda incorporated so many different techniques. The crosses, flying geese and the 'bird-house'. Oh, and did you see the one side with the triangle edging? I LOVE that it's only one side. Totally my style. And of course the color palette is yummy. Remember my post here- wouldn't this fabric be PERFECT!? I better write to Santa. :o)

I have been dreaming of making a quilt like this ever since I saw Amanda Jean's. It is a bit overwhelming to me to imagine making a large quilt in this technique. I think starting small like Cathy did would be the key. Besides, it has such a fun color-wheel thing going on. LOVE that!

I can't stop looking at this one. Now this one I can definately see in a large size. Who wants to make it for me!? ;o) I love Penny's string piecing technique and the way its accented in the diamond shape. LOVE!!!!

There are SO MANY other cute ideas in this book. You should really go get it so you can tote it from room to room in your hosue wherever you go like I've been doing. :o)

I've been collecting some Christmas-y fabrics for a little over a year now. I have quite a fun bundle. I haven't been able to bring myself to cutting it because I needed the PERFECT project for it. Well, I found that project this weekend and I can't wait to show it to you!!!

Have you been sewing any Christmas-y projects?

Don't Forget!

2011-11-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

Sale is going on thru

CYBER MONDAY

in my Etsy shop!

20% off

EVERYTHING!!

Use code

THANKS

"THANKS"

2011-11-23T09:50:00.001-07:00

Have you noticed how my list of 'things-to-do' keeps growing and I keep getting further and further behind!? I can't believe Thanksgiving is upon us. Like, TOMORROW!!!

I mentioned a few days ago that I was going to have a cyber monday sale. Well, its going to run all weekend long from BLACK FRIDAY through CYBER MONDAY in my Etsy shop.

EVERYTHING is 20% OFF

with the coupon code

THANKS

It's my little way of saying 'Thanks' for being such great followers.You have to enter the coupon code to get the discount. EVERYTHING is included- even QUILTS like 'Tiger Lily' pictured above. PERFECT for that special gift! All quilts will be shipped the first week of December to ensure delivery by Christmas.

Ok, I better get back to cleaning this house and prepping the food for tomorrow. Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. :o)

For a little added fun- check out this video on the Michael Miller website.

Rainy Days and Mondays

2011-11-21T16:08:00.000-07:00

It's dreary today. Rainy and grey outside. Days like today make me NOT like the color grey so much. Good thing I have the weekend to think back on to bring a smile to my day.

Would you believe I didn't take my camera to the retreat? Of course you can. Good thing my friend Amy was there and snapped LOTS of awesome pix. I managed to get a couple pix today- but again, with the rainy day, the lighting wasn't too great.

This is my Christmas wallhanging for this year (if I get it done). I made it for my husband since it's his favorite holiday saying. The majority of the fabrics I used for this are from Hall of Fame. I love how fun and festive the colors are together. Really, the combinations are endless with this collection.

I also managed to finish, er... work on some more...this project that I started at the Sewing Summit. I blogged a bit about it here. There was a class that I taught by Jess from Urban Patchwork on improv. piecing. LOVED that class! I'm going to work on this quilt just a little bit more and show you the completed project soon. (I hope)

Another cool thing from that class:

I won THIS book from Jess' drawing! It came in the mail this weekend while I was at the retreat. I've thumbed through it and LOVE it. Tonight, after the kids are in bed, I have a date with this book. Cover to cover. (no, not reading word for word- but looking intently at all the pictures!) I'll tell you more about that TOMORROW! :o)

BUSY-ness

2011-11-18T08:32:00.000-07:00

Today is a BUSY day. But first, lets take care of business and announce some winners! THANK YOU to everyone who left comments. You are all so sweet and encouraging. I honestly wish I had enough fabric, time, and money to send ALL of you some. Luckily you'll be able to find it in a store near you towards the end of Jan/Feb!

The winners of the FQ bundles (10 fq's in each bundle) are:
303- Bree
152- Cathy
263- Lucy

I also chose winners to recieve one of my newest patterns:
126- Patricia (Pep Rally)
167- Carol (Out of Time)
30- JamieLee (Rock Star)
348- Rsisland (Full Court)
216- SusGus (On Target)
63- Amy B (Double Bubble)

Again, thanks so much for playing!!!

Now I have to get ready to head to the FrenchKnots retreat today!!! I am so excited to get some real sewing done. Wish you could come too!

Did you know Thanksgiving is NEXT WEEK!!! How did it sneak up on my so fast this year? We're hosting at our new house. Yikes! I haven't bought any food or made any preperations yet. I've made a list for the hubs to do all the shopping while I'm off sewing all weekend. If he forgets the turkey, I guess we'll just have sanwiches! :o)

Also, in honor of Cyber Monday I will be having a SUPER sale. Check back soon for details.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday and an awesome week wherever you are! *hugs!*

Patterns

2011-11-17T09:53:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited to show you the patterns that I have released with the new Hall of Fame fabric collection. My goal was to design patterns that complimented the fabrics nicely but that weren't necessarily masculine patterns and could be used with many different fabrics.

From the moment I designed the pennant fabric print I knew I wanted to make a pennant quilt. This pattern is NOT hard to do. I made sure that my instructions were clear with lots of pictures so ANYONE can sew these angles! This pattern uses Fat Quarters and has instructions for 2 sizes.

Full court is a fun basic quilt. Perfect for beginners, but great for ALL quilters. The floating squares give it a fun modern look with just a little extra detail to add some interest. You can have some real fun with those floating frames!

One of my NEW favorites and a twist on an old classic- this pattern is super cool! Blocks can be mixed and matched for an even scrappier look. Try this one with fun florals and modern prints like Lush by Patty Young for an unexpected treat that's sure to please!

This is a revisit to an old favorite of mine. The circles are raw-edge appliqued for added texture. Soft to the touch but a rugged look for a more manly feeling quilt. Instructions are for 2 sizes and use 10" squares for construction. Think about stitching this one up in batiks- GORGEOUS!!!

Perfect for anyone but especially so for your star player. Mix and match the numbers for your favorite jersey and a tribute to your all star. Or leave the numbers off all together for a modern twist. Uses 10" squares.

Add a little interest with this fun quilt that uses different piecing and applique techniques for each block. Great for classes and workshops or a project to do in a weekend. You'll be amazed at how quickly your entire quilt is finished. Uses Fat Quarters for easy fabric selection and kits.

Don't forget to leave a comment on yesterday's post for your chance to win some FQ's from Hall of Fame. And because I'm in that giving kind of mood- I'll be picking winners to recieve some of my new patterns, too!! Leave your comments HERE to enter!
Winners announced TOMORROW- 11/18/11

Hall of Fame!

2011-11-15T12:09:00.000-07:00

This post was planned to go live first thing this morning. But Blogger had other plans. Like, not letting me load pictures the way I wanted to. So instead, you have the 'official' inside view of my market brochure featuring:

HALL OF FAME

my newest collection for Michal Miller

There are so many things I want to tell you about this collection so I'm just going to dive right in. (If you get bored just skim over it! :o)

First, I never intended for a rainbow, but as I was rearrnging the prints into a nice format the the brochure this is what happened and I love it. I have a fun 'retro' project I'm trying to figure out using several of the prints. It will most likely be a blog-only special. I'll probably show it sometime late winter when Hall of Fame is shipping to stores!

My inspiration for this collection came from vintage high school photos. I love the look and feel of these pictures. And although most were in black and white I could imagine what the colors were. I wanted to bring that feeling into a collection, yet have it feel modern all at the same time.

Obviously this collection has a more masculine feel- we need that in this industry. The colors, shades, and prints were all chosen to speak to a broad audience with a focus on the 8-30 male population. Colors can be mixed and matched to form almost any combination of 'team' colors.

There are a few focus prints that have a general sports theme. The pennants print is one of my FAVE's right now!

Of course I had to add some simple plaids and a fun multi-stripe. The 'sport spots' (or cheerios- as I often call them) are super playful and fun.

The ticking prints are reminiscent of those vintage sports but have a contemporary feel to them. I also designed some 'almost' solids with a slight tone-on-tone texture to mix and match with the rest.

Another of my favorite prints are the ones with numbers all over them. I'm a sucker for anything with type on them. LOVE these!

In the days to come I plan to show you the fun new patterns I've designed with the prints. They are so fun to work with. Want to see just how fun!? Leave a comment telling me your favorite print and you'll be entered to win a bundle of 10 fat quarters from this collection!!! I'll pick winners (yes, more than one!) on friday 11/18.

Can't wait to hear your favorite!

A little too revealing

2011-11-14T11:43:00.000-07:00

The STUDIO is as 'finished' as it's ever going to be. It's a work in progress, right? I'll contstantly be changing things around- that's half the fun. But it's functional right now and I'm loving it!

This is the view down towards the front door so you can see the close proximity my studio has to an open front door. SCARY!!! Hence the need to keep it clean (yeah right! Like that's going to happen!)

And a straight on view. I wanted to open the windows so you can get an idea of the amount of sunlight that comes in- even though it doesn't make for a great picture. Also, there's still things in boxes. The big one fron and center is overflowing with quilts. The two big frames are leftovers from my market display in Minnesota (spring 2010). They are going to become my design walls once I find the staple-gun. :o)

The view to the right: Thank you Closetmaid assemble myself furniture. It may be cheap, but hey, it's cheap! I'm on a budget here. My main focuse was continuity. Oh, and to fit all my junk in this room nicely. :o) Wanna know what's behind door number 2? FABRIC!!!

View to the left: (before I opened the blinds- blech!) Corner table thanks to IKEA. I took liberties with this one. Mixed and matched legs from a different desk set-up so I could have the top I wanted for the price I was willing to pay. So I had to pre-drill all my own holes- been there. done that. no biggie. Took me less than an hour from car to completely set up and I LOVE IT!!! There's room to do patterns on the left and on the right, sew. The corner gives me depth for extra quilt bulk when quilting. And there's room to store more boxes underneath! There's a little more minor construction/destruction that needs to be done when I can find my jig-saw. I'm going to notch out my table again so my machine sits flat. I did that in my old setup and it changed my life. Really.

This is my favorite nook so far. Behind the wall to the left is where I organized my shoes, um, I mean patterns! I have had several pattern organizational ideas over the years. Many attempted and just as many failed. But THIS is a winner. And of course, room for bolts underneath! A temporary spot for the ironing board- the hubs set this up yesterday to get church clothes ready for the kids. The iron is going to go atop the 9-cubby unit you can see in the photos above. I have a fairly large board on top that is going to double as my cutting area (so I don't have hunch over!!!) and my ironing area.

So there you have it!

If you have an eagle eye and can see past the glare there's a few goodies sitting out. More on those later. Oh yeah, and how about I tell you about my new quilt patterns and FABRIC collections. There just isn't enough time in the day. I'm asking Santa for a few extra hours... A DAY!!! Whataya think of a 26, or even 30 hour day? :o)

See you soon!

Tidbits

2011-11-11T10:48:00.000-07:00

First of all, thanks for all your wondeful comments on my Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks vol. 4 block (whata mouthful!) I'm in a hurry this morning so I just scrolled through the comments trying not to look too close and randomly picked one.

I've already notified the winner but to the rest of you- the magazine hits newstands next week so keep a lookout!

And then there's the little matter of my studio. I was hoping for a BIG reveal today but that just hasn't happened. What with having sick kids and then a sick self this week and all. I did manage to make the trek to IKEA yesterday to pick up a few things but there's still more to do and I don't want to show anything until I can show it ALL.

Just for a little sneeky-peeky I'll give you the "before"

Boxes, cords, clothes etc. It's a mess. But you see those 2 big bright things? WINDOWS! Lots of natural light in this room which I am SUPER excited about. I mean, I do a lot of sewing in the wee hours of the night but with light like this- who could stay away during the day!? Those big windows are the real reason I'm itching to get this room done. I just love going into that room just to stand and breathe in all the light. So lets all cross fingers that I have something to show for my efforts on Monday. :o)

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programing for...

2011-11-10T15:09:00.001-07:00

The STOMACH FLU!!!!

Seriously. My whole family. Started with my middle kid in which I thought it was just a fluke. A couple days later #1 and #3 got it. Not to mention several people that had been to my house in the last few days. Then yesterday the hubs and I fell victim. Luckily we're all feeling [almost] normal today.

I'm still planning a not-quite-finished reveal of my "studio" tomorrow but before that I just wanted to remind you of:

the FrenchKnots Quilt Retreat coming up- November 18th & 19th.

There is lots of fun stuff planned and TONS of sewing time. And if you can't get away for both days, there is a one day option (Saturday is when I'll be doing my trunk show!)

So hurry on over and get your tickets and I'll see you there!!!

Building Blocks

2011-11-08T00:00:00.000-07:00

I am excited to be working on my new "Studio".

I'm calling it that because 'craftroom' just doesn't fit anymore.

Oh and because in this new house we moved (still moving) into the only space to put my business is in the front room. Yes, you heard me. FRONT ROOM. As in the front of the house, first room you see when you open the front door. YIKES!

But I have a plan.

That plan included a trip to Target this morning. A stop at Lowe's on the way home. And entails a morning jaunt to IKEA tomorrow.

I've been working on a serious budget here- but I like where things are going.

The old house is mostly empty except 2 rooms: craftroom and garage. Mine and His. He said he wouldn't touch mine and there's no way in #3!! I'm touching his. :o)

My goal is the end of the week. By the end of the week to be out of the old and into the new. House, that is.

At that point I hope to show off you YOU since I know you'll be back to see who has won the Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks vol. 4 mag.! See you soon!

100 Blocks!

2011-11-07T00:00:00.002-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I mentioned that a new mag. was coming out with one of my blocks in it. It was so fun to come home from Market to a surprise waiting in the mail for me!

Today is the first day of the blog tour that runs through the 11th! I am so excited to be a part of it and to tell you a bit about my block.

This block was inspired by a geometric tile pattern I saw in a magazine. I grabbed some graph paper and started sketching. It just wasn't working the way I wanted it to. I finally decided to form it into more of a flower shape and LOVED the results...on paper. I think a whole minute-and-a-half went by before I was scanning my stash and pulling fabrics for the block. It didn't take long to throw it together. Introducing the SUNFLOWER!

After I made the block I didn't know what to do with it. I figure if it sat around for a few days a new pattern would spark in my subconscious and it would have it's place. But the next day I got an email looking for entries for Quiltmaker's 100 Blocks vol.4 and I knew at once that this block had found it's purpose. :o)

I changed the colors to red and gold for the magazine submission because the issue was being released in the fall and I liked the idea of a poinsettia. The border needed to be added to fit the size requirements for the magazine. But I think the blocks would look just as nice with a simple sashing between.

Another idea I had as I've been looking at this is to make a checked border by strip piecing 1 1/2" strips in alternating colors and cutting the border strips from that. Here's my "dream" of what it will look like when I get all my fabric and machine un-packed. :o)

Another border of the alternating strips would add even more cuteness.

So, how much do you LOVE these 100 block magazine's from Quiltmaker? I know I do.

If you would like to win one for yourself- leave a comment (don't forget to make sure you're a follower!). A winner will be picked at the end of the blog tour. Don't forget to click on the button to the left for the whole list of blogs in the tour. I'm sure they're going to be fun to check out. And who knows, maybe extra chances to win your own mag. too! :o)

Quilt Market Re-cap

2011-11-05T10:11:00.000-06:00

You should be super jealous that I have a friend as AMAZING as Shannon. I just peeked over at her blog (before I unplug and pack up my computer) and got lost in her perfect posts about market. I knew there was a reason to bring her along. *wink!*

Time to get busy
Market Mayhem
Quilt Market is now open
Sunday Snippets

Check them out. She's a GREAT blogger.

(*Thanks Shannon for letting me piggy-back off of your blog!)

My List

2011-11-02T11:39:00.000-06:00

I got home late last night

(from Houston)

(Quilt Market)

I went to a new home.

My husband began moving us

while I was gone.

He tried. Really.

The piles of STUFF are

overwhelming.

Not to mention

I came home to a crammed inbox.

If you placed an order-

it's coming. I promise.

As for my market re-cap...

It might have to wait.

But I think it'll be worth it.

I have LOADS of fun to share.

And between Sewing Summit,

Quilt Market, and

MOVING

I have LOTS to give to you.

Just give me a few days to

get settled.

Thanks.

Blog-stocker!

2011-10-30T20:24:00.000-06:00

I am totally a self-proclaimed blog-stocker.

One of the cool things about Quilt Market it getting to meet all the crazy-peeps that I see everyday in blogland.

This is me and Rachel being a little gangsta'! :o) It was so fun to FINALLY meet this girl in person. We hit it off right away (can you tell!?)

Of course a little V and some Jaybird to brighten up the day. Let me tell you- it got a little (LOT) crazy with these girls in the booth! :o)

I met up with lots more peeps, but this chick is TIRED. Time to get in bed. Tomorrow is the last day and take-down. Can't believe it's almost over already.

Market Mayhem!

2011-10-28T15:55:00.000-06:00

Hey there! I really wanted to post the last 2 days but let me tell you it's been BUSY!

On Wednesday Shannon and I took a trip to the coast. The Gulf Cost, that is.

I grew up in CA so the Pacific and I are good friends. But I couldn't miss the opportunity to dip my toes in another body of water. The sand here is SO soft. And the water is cozy cool. People ask if it's warm. Well, it's not like a bath. But it you've ever felt the north California Pacific (very COLD!) this was warm in comparison.

Yesterday we started booth set up. It was a long, hot, sticky day. I got most everything in place but had to wait to hang the quilts until today after my Schoolhouse presentation.

The presentation went ok. I always feel like a dork. But my friends said I did ok. Afterwards we went back down to finish booth set up. This is what we ended up with:

I'm pleased. It looks super crowded in this picture but doesn't have that feel in person. I think it's all in the details so there's lots of fun sports equipment scattered about. And of course, QUILTS!

See that yellow jersey in the middle? It belonged to my hubs when he was a teen. It's a pretty gross jersey and he was shocked when I told him I was bringing it. But hey, it works PERFECTLY in the booth.

The show starts tomorrow. That's when things get really crazy. :o)

On the road again

2011-10-25T19:33:00.000-06:00

Shannon and I were up at the crack of dawn to board our plane to Houston. It may look light outside, but I promise the sun was barely coming up. Don't I look sleepy!? :o)

Here's Shannon and I with our chauffer (Stuart- Shannon's sweetie pie husband). Shortly after this photo we were on our own. Let the party begin! Oh yeah, first we have to endure a 2 1/2 hour flight with the most annoying woman on the planet sitting behind us. UGH!

It is 8:30 and we are ready to go to bed...NOW! Just spent the last few hours driving around Houston trying to find a Target. Really? Why can't the GPS understand "Target". Took us forever! Finally had to look up target stored on my phone, then type the actual address into the gps. Aaaahhh...Target at last! Just a few last things to pick up for my booth.

Ok. That's all for now., Tomorrow we're doing some more traveling and a little sightseeing. :o)

Ta-ta for now!

Learning is GOOD!

2011-10-21T22:06:00.000-06:00

It's probably a good idea that I give you a little information- especially if you're going to Houston next week.

I will be teaching my first ever- SCHOOLHOUSE! I'm excited and you should be too. Actually, I'm a little nervous because I've never done it before but I hear it's pretty cool. I'll let you know how it turns out. But if you're going to market and are planning on attending schoolhouse make sure to come see ME!!!

Also, my booth number at market is 1651. I'll be with the rest of the gang over at Michael Miller showing off my newest creation- Hall of Fame. Make sure to stop by and say 'HI'! :o)

I've got a lot to do the next few days but should be posting again right before I leave. Have a good weekend!

The name game

2011-10-21T10:48:00.001-06:00

I'm teasing again.

Did you know my next collection has a name? It does. And it's a good one. :o)

Market prep this go around has been mostly on the computer. I am SUPER EXCITED about a new venture that I'm a part of and can't wait to share it with you.

As for the cutting and sewing- I have some of the most AMAZING friends who have jumped right in to help me. Really. Some are sewing. Others are quilting. Even more are Binding. One is even doing ALL 3!

I got my fabric less than a week go and I'm going to have 6 new quilts to take to market.

There is NO WAY I could've done that by myself.

And so a HUGE

THANK YOU!

to all those helping to get me ready for Houston.

In other news- have you checked out this today?

I only ask because my friend is the designer and she's having a giveway on her blog. Check it out!

Time to go do some more spray painting. ;o)

Looks what's coming!

2011-10-20T13:36:00.000-06:00

...and look who's on the front cover!

Follow me during the blog tour Nov. 7-11 to see all the blocks up close and personal!

SEW FUN!

2011-10-18T17:29:00.001-06:00

My friend Pam that I met at The Sewing Summit is having a quilt retreat and I am SO EXCITED about it!

(image lifted from frenchknots!)

This is going to be that perfect opportunity to finish up all those Christmas gift projects that you need to get done. I'm telling you- its going to be AWESOME! She has even asked ME to do a trunk show on Saturday morning. Ok, so maybe that's not a selling point to get you to go- you can leave and get donuts while I'm talking. But the rest of it is going to be SO worth it!

Click HERE to find out more!

Hope to see YOU there! :o)

Pirouline

2011-10-17T08:52:00.000-06:00

Sometimes Saturday ia a lazy day. Sometime Saturday is the extreme opposite. Sometimes you just need a little treat to help you get through. Oh, and a Dr. Pepper.

I snapped this pic quick. I didn't adjust my camera settings. I wanted it to be raw. Not RAW like professionals. Raw like I-don't-have-time-for-this-but-have-to-document-somehow. Don't you love the flash? :o)

It's funny what you can see when you aren't really looking.

Aaaahhh. That's better.

*That's all I can do for now. I've been asked not to show before everything is in the system to reduce hype. Hype? Is there going to be hype? Gee, I hope so. Until then...enjoy this little snack. :o)

INSANE

2011-10-13T08:59:00.000-06:00

That's that life is right now. I really wanted to post more about Sewing Summit and have a swag giveaway- but it's going to have to wait. Between new patterns, booth setup, waiting for fabric, etc., etc., etc. I feel like my head is spinning around like Linda Blair's. Yesterday it took all of me to not run to the nearest mental facility and check myself in. So please bear with me as I take a break for the next week or so. I promise I'll come back to show you what's NEW before I head to Houston. AND...when I get back I'll have all sorts of fun stuff to give to you folks!

Thanks for understanding. :o)

Best. Weekend. Ever.

2011-10-10T15:05:00.000-06:00

First, let me just start by saying that The SEWING SUMMIT was awesome! You (yes, YOU!) have to go next year. Really. I'll be looking for you. We (Terry and I) had so much FUN and met so many awesome people!

Shannon and AnnMarie were the first gals we met when we got there. They were chillin' in the Lobby waiting for the whole shin-dig to start and were nice enough to point the way towards registration. I'm sure they're not regretting that since we kinda' attached ourselves to them the whole weekend. We just couldn't help ourselves- they're THAT cool! Oh, and they're from Utah too!

This lovely lady is Pam of French Knots. She was so nice and friendly. Saturday night we all stayed late to sew and then stayed later to chat the night away. I'm looking forward to hanging with this chic again soon!

This was the closest to 'lunch' with these gals that we could get. Amy (on the left) from Diary of a Quilter (NOT diarrhea quilter) and Vanessa (on the right) from V and Co. both taught classes at Summit. I didn't take Amy's (quilting 101) but I didn take Vanessa's. It was SO GOOD. She taught us about setting up a shot and lighting and bunches of other things. She told us how to NOT get yellow-tinted pictures when we photo projects but told me it was "ok to flash your friends"! :o)

And here I am sewing the night away....

It seemed like Terry and I were the only ones that brought our OWN machines, everyonle else used ones provided.

Hello Lola and Busty Larue, whatcha workin' on!? They were sewing in their PJ's smart girls!

Melissa Esplin from ISLY. This chick is HILARIOUS! She taught me all about "royalty". Sorry, can't share that story. :o) This picture cracks me up because it looks like she's sitting on my lap. She could, because she's tiny. But she isn't. I kept it because it makes me laugh and reminds me of our silly meeting.

This is Jess from Urban Patchwork. She taugh the Improv. Pieceing class and now I have a quilting crush on her. Don't worry, I made it embarassingly evident! (I really am a dork!) She was so kind though and didn't even call the police when I asked to have my picture taken with her. :o) ...more to come from her class later.

It was so fun to see this familiar face at Summit. Lou who blogs at For The Love used to live in my neighborhood. I've mentioned her on my blog before because she makes super cute quilts. We did some catching up and even shopped a little.

Doesn't Terry look sick and tired of hanging around me all weekend? :o)

So folks let me just say that there were gazillions of other cool people there, I just didn't get pics of them. But I do have LOTS of other fun stuff to show you. Could be tomorrow, maybe the next day. I'm not too sure. Look, market is only a couple of weeks away (mini panic attack!) - so.... yeah.

Ok....gotta go write more patterns.

A little of this and a little of that

2011-10-06T10:00:00.000-06:00

Oh my gosh! Let me start by first apologizing for my last post. It's hard to convey sarcasm when posting on blogs so if I came across a bit (or a BUNCH) snarky - that was not my intention. Personally I thought the play on words was a bit funny. I just wanted to let everyone know about the correction before it caused any problems with your projects. If I offended any- SO SORRY!

Now, on to some FUN stuff! I quilted the first WIP yesterday. I LOVE how it turned out. It's not a very big quilt- small baby or table topper, but I love it just the same.

I used a Charm pack of Fig Tree's FRESH COTTON. (Again, started these ages ago).

I pieced them together- square to square. Then I appliqued white fabric 'peels' over the seams and blanket stitched them. For the quilting I just echoed the curved lines of the scallop. There's not a huge border- just straight to the binding for which I'm going to use another Fig Tree fabric from Strawberry Fields. (Some complain that many designers' collections tend to look the same but I LOVE it because I know I can always find something to match those long ago pieced WIPS! :o)

Another bit of fun is that it's raining. Well, the rain isn't so fun. But I am glad to have an excuse to use this:

And, just so you know, it works PERFECTLY! I couldn't get a pic because I was the one holding the umbi in the rain- but trust me, it works like a charm. :o) To find out more about my fabulous umbi check here. \

One last bit of news: Tomorrow I am traveling not-to-far-away with Thankfully Sew to attend

I am so EXCITED!!!

I can't promise blogging over the weekend but I can promise LOTS of blogging next week. To find out more about who I'll see there click here.

Hope you have a great weekend!

Quit your BEACHIN'

2011-10-04T21:40:00.002-06:00

As a pattern writer- it doesn't matter how many times I look over and re-read my patterns or how many people proof-read them for me, somehow a mistake or two is bound to slip through the cracks. I really do appreciate when someone calls them to my attention so I can make the appropriate corrections and hopefully save others from making a mistake on their project.

So here it is: BEACHIN' has a couple corrections I need to make. I'm posting it here so if you've bought that pattern you can run in and correct it now. That way, when you actually get around to making it you won't start cursing at me. :o)

Fabric L- requires 1 yd (NOT the 3/4)

Fabric D- when cutting needs [2] 2 1/2" x 18 1/2" strips (NOT 16 1/2")

Sorry for any inconvenience!

Productivity is UP!

2011-10-03T08:35:00.000-06:00

I had a good weekend!

It was one of those weekends where I had a great excuse to sit around for 2 days and not go anywhere or do anything. Instead I had the radio on listening to most wonderful messages and my machine going full speed. It doesn't get any better than that.

I managed to get 7 WIP's finished! SEVEN! I even pieced several of the backs. Some of you may not count a WIP finished until it is quilted and bound. In my book- if the top is done and borders are on it's golden. (You don't know how many quilts I've had sit around for months with only borders to add!)

Now that they're ready to quilt they go into another stack. But since I already have backs for these 7 it shouldn't take long to get them quilted.

I've decided to show them up close and personal one at a time after they're quilted and bound. My goal- by the end of 2011. That may seem like a long time to give myself but market is coming up and things can get pretty 'CRAZY' around market time. :o)

THINK PINK

2011-09-30T13:33:00.001-06:00

In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness month (October) I am offering the HOPE pattern for $5 all month in my Etsy shop.

As for the cleaning- I am almost done. I've even started working on a few WIP's.

In all my cleaning I found several of those, many other "someday" projects, and some more realistic "I'm never going to get to that" projects. Some are going to be in the shop next week so keep your eyes out.

Just for fun- head over to Ribbon Candy to see what she had going on today!

Buried Alive

2011-09-27T09:20:00.000-06:00

I decided that I've avoided the inevitable long enough and decided to dive in and clean my sewing room.

Ummm.....

I think I bit off more than I can chew. This is going to take awhile.

If you don't hear from me in a few days- send reinforcements.

Spooktacular!

2011-09-26T09:37:00.000-06:00

Can you believe it's almost October already!? (insert creepy music) What is so SCARY about that you might wonder? Market is only a few weeeks away! (Screems of horror!)

Ok, it's not that bad.....yet!

While I sit around waiting for *fun things* to show up on my doorstep I decided to offer a deal that can't be missed !

CREEPY COUNTDOWN BUNDLE

Just added to my Etsy shop this morning! The Creepy Countdown pattern and 6 fatquarters for only $20!

It's like getting the fat quarters for $1.66 each OR like getting the pattern for only $5!

Anyway, I'm telling you now because I only have 4 available so you might want to hurry. :o)

Laminations

2011-09-22T05:00:00.001-06:00

I loved reading all your laminate ideas. But one struck me in particular. This was mostly because I had had the idea once a long time ago and it had gotten hidden in the back of my brain with a bunch of mush. But Andrea helped bring it into existence again. And so I present:

My GOING COASTAL umbrella!

I'm going to be completely honest here: IT WASN'T HARD AT ALL! Seriously.

I used an umbrella I've had for years that was still in excellent shape. A few of the "arms" were slightly bent, but not too bad. I just eased them back into place.

I carefully cut the old fabric off and used it as a template. Since I had made this a while back the piecing was a cinch. I checked here for tips on sewing with laminates. Everything else was hand stitching it to the frame. About half-way through I searched the web and found this great tutorial. Glad to know I had the right idea.

When I told a friend what I was doing she said "As long as you don't actually use it in the rain." Are you kidding!? I can't wait for the rain to try it out. In fact, I may just turn on the hose and have the kids spray me- They'd love that ! :o)

Next on my list- Placemats.

I know, easy peasy. But they'll be fun. I'm going to make them reversible! :o)

Oh yeah ANDREA heads up- I'm sending some laminated Going Coastal your way!!!

For the rest of you- it should be available from FABRIC.COM in October!

Alamode

2011-09-21T07:50:00.000-06:00

I met this chick at market this spring. She is a hoot! She's one of those people that is just full of energy and so funny you just love being around them. She even impressed my husband enough that he kept telling me I HAD to send her some fabric. Well time goes by so slowly and I finally got around to sending her some. (Thanks for the reminder, Heather!) I think she got it a few days ago and LOOK what she's done with it already!!!

Did you see the bag? SUPER CUTE! And she didn't even use a pattern. Now, for all of you who commented on my last post about me getting into bag making: First, I'm not ANTI- bag. I LOVE bags. Every time I set foot into a quilt shop I am surrounded by beautiful arm candy. And I love so many of them. But I just can't get into making them. I started a bag over a year ago. THIS bag. The pattern is not the reason I stopped. It's a great pattern. I just like a finish-in-10-minutes project. Also, being the perfectionist that I am- if I make a tiny mistake (like I did with Penelope) I want to bag the whole project. (Pun definately intended). Second, to all of you who make bags- I am jealous! Watch out cuz I may just be a bag-snatcher. Not for the contents, just for the bag! *wink!*

Instead I'll make something else.

I'll show you tomorrow what I'm talking about. :o)

Plastic Plaid

2011-09-19T15:39:00.001-06:00

I've been thinking about laminates lately. And I'd like to know- If you had some cute laminated fabric, what would you do with it? Is there a project you've been dreaming of that would be especially cool in laminated fabric? I'd like to hear your ideas, so don't be afraid to share.

The thing is I'm having quilter's block regarding lamitaes. I keep thinking about this post from way back when but I don't really have any other ideas. Sure, I could make a bag....but I don't make bags. Seriously. Never have. Starting to think I never will. Maybe someday.

A certain fabric is soon to be available in laminates and I have got to make something cool out of it. So let me hear your ideas. Who knows? You may just end up being the lucky recipient of your own 'plastic plaid'. :o)

Gimme an "H"

2011-09-16T12:23:00.000-06:00

I FINALLY purchased my plane ticket for Houston today. YaHoo! :o)

Tis ths Season

2011-09-14T07:48:00.000-06:00

Paula from Stychee Woman recently sent an email frantic for more Season's Greetings patterns. They have made the cutest pattern from Sweetwater's Countdown to Christmas so no wonder they were selling out fast. I asked her to share a picture with me and I just knew you would want to see it too!

Isn't it the cutest!?

I just LOVE the litte vignette they set up with the dress form and apron.

Here's a closeup to see how they fussy cut the applique across the ornament to say "love"

And again on the stocking to read "Joy"

She also sent a picture (but for some reason it wouldn't load) of a cute wallhanging they made of the 'JOY' block hung vertical. It is a PERFECT way to get more use out of a pattern. Instead of making the whole thing- just use a part of it to make a smaller project. I'll try to load it again later on.

THANKS PAULA! For sharing your great projects with us.

If you're interested in making this cute quilt for yourself or someone you love I have listed the pattern in my Etsy shop. The fabric can be found at the link I provided above. :o)

SAMPLE SALE!

2011-09-12T22:15:00.000-06:00

Fall is in the air. Can you smell it? Ok, it's still been pretty warm around here. But the nights are getting much cooler and my husband has been out hunting a few times so that means it's almost fall.

I love fall. How about you? The changing leaves, the crisp air, pumpkins! I love it all! Oh and then there's snuggling up with a warm quilt. NOTHING beats that. With all these thoughts of fall, and the bins of quilts taking over my home, I've decided to have a SAMPLE SALE!

Head on over to my Etsy store to see all the great sample quilts I have for sale. This is a great time to grab an early Christmas gift for someone- especially since we all know trying to make something ourselves usually ends up in another WIP. :o)

I've listed over a dozen quilts including Secret Garden, Liliana, Animal Crackers, Nana's Attic, and Ladybug Picnic. Remember, there's only one of each so if you want it you better snatch it up fast.

Now on to the REAL reason you're here. Our lucky winner of their very own GO! Baby. First I just want to thank everyone for playing along. I know I can't get super excited about all those comments because most of you were just here to try and win- but I hope you'll come back and visit my blog again. :o)

From 221 comments Random.org picked:

Lucky number 124!

That means you LAURA from TEXAS!!!

(I expect your first project with your GO! to be with Going Coastal fabrics. Just kidding. Kinda. :o)

Alrightie.

My job is done today.

Thanks for playing.

See you soon!

:o)

Last Chance!

2011-09-12T07:09:00.001-06:00

CONTEST NOW CLOSED!

Today is your last chance to enter the GO! Baby giveaway (if you haven't done so already!)

See you tomorrow with our winner! :o)

GO! get your own!

2011-09-08T21:54:00.001-06:00

CONTEST NOW CLOSED!

Um, Yes. You did read that correctly. The wonderful people at AccuQuilt have agreed to give one of my followers a GO!Baby. That means YOU! Not only will you get the GO!Baby machine but they will also send you 3 dies OF YOUR CHOICE!

I have to be honest. When they first approached me about giving the GO! a try one of the big things that appealed to me was that I'd be able to share this with YOU! Really, if I didn't LOVE the machine so much I wouldn't even bother passing it along. But it is SO WORTH IT! (I was playing with it again today- I'll show you later ;o)

So here's the deal. You must be a follower to win. You can leave a comment but if I pick your randomness and I check to see if you're a follower and you're not then I'm going to have to pick a new winner :o) As long as you're a follower leave a comment and I'll enter you in.

As a bonus and to get an extra chance at winning, click on the button at the top of the blog and download the awesome patterns from AccuQuilt. I mean, that's a prize all by itself. Free pattens! Who doesn't want that? Just make sure you leave a second and separate comment for that extra chance to win.

Got it!? Ok. The contest will go through Monday and I'll announce the winner on Tuesday! (so make sure to check back!)

p.s.- Tell your friends! Oh wait, maybe you don't want to. But you should, because if they win, I'm sure they'll let you borrow their 'baby'! :o)

go, Go, GO!

2011-09-07T17:48:00.000-06:00

Oh yeah, I've been playing! Several weeks ago an amazing product was dropped off at my doorstep. You may have heard of this already (there's been a few mentioned here in blog-land) but that's because we really are that excited about it! And you should be too because there are so many things you can use this little 'baby' for.

I have to confess that I shamelessly blog-lifted this picture and I can't even tell you where from. (SORRY!) It's just that when I got my GO!baby I tore into it so quick and started cutting that I completely forgot to take some pix along the way. But can you blame me? This is what I was making:

I have had this idea for a LOOOOOONG time. But even the thought of cutting out those hexs was scaring me. Then came the GO!baby. I had those hexies cut in a few minutes. Seriously. I was stitching them together in no time. OH no, not by hand! I stacked them and layered them and stitched around for a fun raw-edge look. I took my quilt layout from this talented lady. I LOVE IT! I even attached my binding raw. Yes, raw. But of course I forgot to photo it up close. Eh. We'll talk about that another day.

Obviously I got the hexagon die. I also chose the tumbler die- And by die I mean I am DYING to get started on that one! Also, the 2 1/2" strip maker. Um, how much did I love this one when I was making that scrappy binding? TONS!!! Besides I am simply anti-bias binding because I hate all the folding and cutting- NOT. ANY. MORE. Piece of cake with this 'baby' But enough about my fun- ON to more important things.

Did you know you can get FREE! patterns. Uh, what are you waiting for! There are some super cute and fun pattern in there for quilt projects and BLOCKS.

And that's not all, oh no that's not all. If you've been around blog-land and seen this before then you know what is coming. Stay tuned!

Bedrock

2011-08-31T11:41:00.000-06:00

I stumbled upon this picture today. How cool is that!? This and more like is can be found in this Etsy shop. Give new meaning to the saying "I slept like a ROCK!" doesn't it? :o)

Thanks for the Birthday wishes. I had a wonderful day. Since then I've been trying to wrap up a few projects. Really. I am working. (not sure who I'm trying to convince here: you or ME?) I hope to have something to show for it by the end of the week. :o)

A Riddle

2011-08-29T08:02:00.000-06:00

What do I have in common with Robin Leach and Lea Michele?

Well we just happen to share the same birthday!

The hubs has the day off and we're spending it together. Nothing major planned. Just some quiet time during the day while the kids are at school. Oh, and maybe some shopping. :o)

See you tomorrow!

comPLEATly cool!

2011-08-27T10:27:00.000-06:00

I was just doing my Saturday morning blog-hopping (while the children screamed at eachother) and came across THIS. You've got to check it out. It is SO cute. I'm already scouting out color combinations for each room in my house. OK, now I have to go be a real Mom and pull my kids off of eachother. HAPPY SATURDAY!

Pre-Season

2011-08-25T10:09:00.000-06:00

The wonderful gals down at Bright Hopes Quilting in Mandeville, LA have been calling almost weekly for the past month or so. Why? Because they can't seem to keep this pattern in stock!

It's no wonder when you see the beautiful sample they've been working on:

I have to admit- I'm not a huge football follower. But you don't have to be a SAINTS fan to see how gorgeous this Black, White and Gold version is.

Thanks for sharing ladies! :o)

Too cool for...

2011-08-22T15:11:00.001-06:00

SCHOOL!!!

Last night they could hardly sleep. They kept saying "Mom, it's almost like Christmas!" And they were awake by quarter to 7 this morning. WOW!! Too bad this is only going to last about a week. I'm going to be dragging them out of bed with little time to get ready in no time.

But they were right about the Christmas thing- I haven't been shy about the fact that I've been counting down the days until they went back to school. Mostly because of this girl:

She just started First grade! (that means all-day school!) And while I LOVE her, I also love my sanity.
She was SO excited to have her own desk in first grade. (In kindergarten they sat at tables) :o)

Then there's this guy- Mr. Fourth grader! He was super excited about his back-to-school clothes more than anything else. (Skinny jeans!?) Just before he left I remembered to give him a pep-talk about being the "Big Brother" at school this year and to take care of his sister since the other big brother wasn't going to be at that school anymore.

That's this guy. He's starting Sixth grade. He's still in grade school where we live, but he started today at a brand new school. We decided to try the local charter school and we are super excited about it. (He was already in the garage at this point and way too cool to have his picture taken.)

I'm so proud of these GIANT kids! They sure are growing up fast. Time just keeps slipping by.

Speaking of time, they'll be home in a few minutes! Ah!

:o)

Calling all

2011-08-21T16:01:00.000-06:00

HOUSTONIANS!

I need YOUR help. The fall International Quilt Market is held in Houston, TX every year. It's 2 months away. I'm freaking out just a little bit. If you are from the Houston area and may be willing to help me track down some 'props' for my display- please send me an email. I'm sure we can figure out some way to make it worth you while. *wink!* ;o)

Scrip Scrap Horray!

2011-08-19T11:29:00.000-06:00

Can you believe I almost forgot about picking a winner this morning!?

All this last minute back-to-school stuff has been keeping me BUSY!!!

Anyway, here's the results from the awesome Random.org

Annelies who said: "oh YES I am a follower....and LOVE Coastal ( more than you could ever know)!!! Favorite thing this summer was bringing our new Grandson to visit the beach. Another generation....Picure my Mom ( 88) me ( 58) sweet daugther and new Momma, and our adorable Donovan. What JOY!!!!"

Well Annelies, now you're gonna have some fun beachy scraps to play with to make a fun quilt for Donovan to remember his first trip to the beach!

Hey, if you didn't win this giveaway don't be too sad because I'm going to have another one next week! And you're NOT going to want to miss it! :o)

A time to share

2011-08-15T10:53:00.000-06:00

So I have this bag. This isn't a picture of the actual bag. My husband is off on an adventure in the mountains for the next few days and he has my camera. But the bag is very similar to this one. It's roughly 8 inches wide, 10 inches high and 4 inches deep. If you're good at math (geometry?) you can figure out how many square inches it can hold. I'm not. I just know that it is stuffed beyond capacity with

GOING COASTAL scraps!

And since I haven't had a giveaway in quite a while I thought I would give it to one of YOU!

Naturally you need to be a follower. If you're not- become one. If you already are, then AWESOME! Next, leave me a comment telling me the best/favorite thing you did this summer. (I'm trying to live vicariously through all of you!)

I'll pick a winner on FRIDAY! :o)

Good luck!

Double Take

2011-08-12T11:35:00.000-06:00

Jovial meets Double Bubble

Maureen from Woodland Quilting Co. in Alberta Canada sent me this pic of a store sample they just made. I'm still trying to figure out how to convince her to send it to me. I love this! I've seen Jovial before annd I liked it. But I have to admit I wasn't "in love" with it. But when I saw this picture I immediately started searching the web for a couple of layer cakes. It's GORGEOUS! The funny thing is- even though it's a Christmas line I am really drawn to the blue. LOVE the blue!

Thanks for sharing!

2 weeks!

2011-08-09T12:21:00.000-06:00

I am counting down the days until school starts. I love my kids- but they need school. It has been difficult to get things done this summer with them home. They don't want to go to the quilt store with me. They don't want to go to the copy center. They don't want to stop playing their games so I can use my computer. And they definately don't want to get along long enough for me to sew a little. Oh, and they are always BORED!
So yes, I am a little excited. Maybe I'll miss them a little...but they need to be gone for a while before that can happen. :o)

Anyway, I have a few things I hope to share in the next couple of days- so stay tuned!

Clambake - a Tutorial

2011-08-05T09:37:00.007-06:00

As soon as I started cutting fabric for this quilt I knew I needed to write a tutorial. It is fun and easy and delivers great results! You should know by now that I don't like to do anything hard so believe me when I tell you "YOU can do this!" I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Fabric Requirements:

1 yard border fabric (I used white)

21 Fat Quarters- assorted prints and colors

(I used Felicity by Emily Taylor for Riley Blake)

1/2 yard for Binding

3 1/2 yards Backing

You will also need to download the PDF template for this pattern.

OK. Let's get started.

The first thing your're going to do is to press all your fat quarters. Then, fold them in half and in half again making a smaller square. This way you have 4 layers of the same print.

Next, print you PDF file onto plain paper and onto a medium-heavy weight cardstock. You'll need BOTH of these templates.

You're going to use the paper printout to make a template. I like to use the cardboard off the back of a notebook. Tape the paper printout on top of the cardboard and using a dull pencil or a medium point pen trace around the outside solid line on the template. You want to press hard enough to leave an indentation on the cardstock. Remove the paper and cut out the template using charp scissors. Your piece should look like the one below.

Carefully cut just the edge off of one of the folded FQ's so that you have a clean edge to work with.

Line the bottom point (for lack of a better term) of the template on this clean cut edge.

Now you have two choices. You can A.) trace around the template and mark your lines afterwhich you'll need to pin like crazy through all 4 layers and cut out the clam shape with sharp scissors. OR....

B.) CAREFULLY! And I mean carefully cut out around the template. I used lots of pressure to make sure I was cutting through all 4 layers. I also moved very very slowly. I used my regular 45mm cutter and it worked fine- I just had to take my time. However, if I had been able to locate my 18mm cutter I think it would've been a little easier.

*If using a rotary cutter you may want to make more than one template. After a while I would occasionally trim a tiny bit away from my template. I ended up using 3 templates to cut out all my pieces.

(Ignore the fact that I didn't line up the 'point'- I took this picture before I realized lining them to the edge was easier!)

Cut out 4 Clamshells from each FQ giving you a total of 84 Clamshells

Now you're going to get those cardstock templates you printed out. You want to cut on the SOLID line on the bottom curves and the point and on the DASHED line around the top curve as shown above.

Place a Clamshell print side down on your ironing board. Give a quick spray of starch or other pressing agent to the curve of your piece (I've found that this helps it hold it's shape better. I prefer using Magic Sizing). You don't want it saturated- just damp. Lay your template on top of the fabric clamshell like shown.

Press the edges of the fabric back onto the template creating your 1/4" seam allowance.

Remove the template and turn the piece over. I usually do one more quick press at this point. See the little corner? You can see where the seam allowance is pressed under. Using a marking tool, make a little mark at the top of each curve that tells you where the center is. (It's on the templates)

Alright now repeat for each piece.

*I'll be honest- that's a lot of pressing. So here's what I did. Since there are 4 of each print I divided the pieces into 4 stacks. Each stack contained one of each print. Then I pressed all the pieces in one stack. I started building my quilt with those pieces and then moved on to stack 2. This also kept me from repeating a print too close to eachother.

Enough prep work- let's get started with this quilt top!

You need a strip 8" x 45 1/2" long for your top border. This is how you'll start the quilt. I was able to get a full 8" x 44" piece of fabric after trimming my selvages. I also cut a 1 1/4" x 8" strip to add to the end of my 44" piece to give me the complete 45 1/2" in length. (See above) Press seams OPEN.

Remember that center mark I had you make? Well now it comes in handy. Press your 8" border piece in half so you have a seam marking the center. This is important so all your clamshells fit nicely into place. Line up that center mark on the seam and begin pinning the clamshell into place. Notice the bottom edges of the clamshell curve rest nicely on the edge of the fabric. Pin! Pin! Pin!

*A note about pins: I rarely use pins but I admit- they have their place. This is one of those places. If you absolutely refuse to use pins- this quilt is not for you. Pinning is a MUST. Sorry. But if I can get past it, so can you. It really is worth it! :o)

Continue adding camshells to either side of the center shell until you've reached the edges of the border. Your border and the outer edge of each clamshell on either side should meet up perfectly- like it was meant to be *wink!*.

See that pretty row? Super cute! And the places for row 2's clamshells are already there!

Move the border piece to your sewing machine and topstitch as close to the edge of your clamshell as possible. I tried to zoom this picture as close as I could to show you. If you prefer a different applique stitch by all means use it. I want your finished project to be as much "you" as mine is "me".

Now, on to row 2.

Using that center mark again, line up a clamshell's center mark at the junction between 2 clamshells from the first row. The bottom edge of the clamshell curve from row 2 will nest nicely on the 'points' from row 1. This keeps the quilt from getting wonky. I was worried that the curves were going to be a problem, but since each row sets up for the one to follow the quilt has a nice way of staying smooth.

Just remember: Pin! Pin! Pin!

But what to do when you come to the end of the row you ask? Simple. Find a clamshell you wish to use and cut it down the center. Use the half that fits into that side as your half piece. You can use the other half on the other side, or cut another piece for more variety. You'll use the rest of the pieces later on in the quilt. Pin this half piece in place too. Then top stitch the entire row at one time as you did the first row.

*(you'll notice in the picture below that my clamshell extends beyond the border fabric- IGNORE THIS! Originally I was going to trim the whole top down, then I realized adding a tiny bit of fabric would be easier and yield better results. Hey, we learn as we go sometimes!)

Now a word if I may about the top-stitching. When you get to the bottom of those curves where they're so gently resting on the 'points' of the piece below- GO SLOW!!! If you have a needle down option on your machine- USE IT. I don't so I manually turned my needle down, pivoted my work and made ONE STITCH from one clamshell to the next. This kept them nice and close. Again, leaving my needle down, pivoted the piece and began stitching the next curve. I tried to get a picture of this but it really wasn't showing well. I think my description is enough.

Did I mention to GO SLOW!?

I could add 4 rows of clamshells before I ran out of pieces. Then, like I mentioned before I would press the next set and continue. The quilt top gets large, but not too large to handle if you take your time.

Here is a picture of the back after a few rows so you can see how nicely the pieces fit onto eachother.

After you have run out of clamshell pieces it's time to finish that quilt top. My quilt top had 16 rows (with a few extra clamshells leftover).

I pressed my entire quilt top just to be sure. Then it was time to trim. Using a LARGE ruler I trimed each side. Only a tiny bit was needed to clean up the edges.

Now for the bottom. Line that large ruler up along the bottom edge of those clamshell curves (see photo) and trim off the points.

You'll use a 5" x 45 1/2" strip of border fabric along the bottom. Piece it together just as we did the top. Attach the bottom border to the quilt top.

See that beauty? Now we'll add the side borders. I cut (3) 5" x WOF strips for the side borders. I cut one in half and pieced each half to the other full strips, attached it to the quilt top sides and trimmed the excess. I know there's other ways of doing this so do whatever suits you. The yard of fabric I required is plenty for the borders.

And here is that finished quilt top.

As always, Quilt, Bind and Enjoy!

Check out my Flickr group to see more finished pictures of my quilt top and to see details of the quilting.

(p.s.- if you find any mistakes or something doesn't make sense, please email me so I can fix it. Thanks!)

Fresh from the wash

2011-08-04T15:13:00.000-06:00

I know I said I wouold post more on this quilt Monday but you know how things go. My weekend got away from me and then there were other pressing matters that needed to be addressed here on the blog. But I have not forgotten!

I just pulled the quilt from my dryer. I don't always wash and dry quilts right after I finish them. Sometimes they get folded and stacked. Other times they need to be shipped right away. And there's other times that it goes right from machine to snuggling. This one was different. I quilted a free-hand arched rainbow pattern in each clam. I liked the idea but once I started doing it I lost faith in my abilities. Still I pressed on knowing that often it looks better after the whole quilt it done. And it did...at least a little more than when I started.

I had the idea to quilt the border in a grid pattern but kept trying to talk myself out of it. SO glad I didn't. I LOVE IT! It may have taken a while to mark all those lines (another reason I needed to wash it) but I made up for the time because I just used my free motion foot instead of the usual suggested walking foot for this application. I love the slight wonky-ness of the lines- it just adds so much character. The whole grid idea reminds me of a fishing net :o)

I'm calling this one CLAMBAKE! And guess what? I wrote a tutorial for it that I'm posting tomorrow. See, I've been making good use of my summer. :o) Hmmm... Clambake....I can think of the perfect fabric for this quilt.... *wink!*

Clarification

2011-08-01T22:05:00.001-06:00

Just to clarify- I DO NOT have Going Coastal fabric for sale. It seems there has been some confusion about this. The fabric can be found in your local quilt shop (hopefully) and at several shops online. In my neck of the woods The Corn Wagon quilt shop and Gracie Lou's quilt shop will be carrying the entire line. Please understand that at certain times I may have fabric bundles or kits of one kind or another for sale but at this time that does not include any Going Coastal fabric. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email me at crazyoldladies@gmail.com

Thank You

IT's HERE!!

2011-07-29T17:00:00.000-06:00

I went into The Corn Wagon just as they were taking the plastic off of the Going Coastal bolts. I promised to tell you when it was here and IT IS!!!!
It was super exciting to see it on the shelf!

Don't forget to look below at my earler post this morning- it's fun. :o) Thanks!

Summer Sewing

2011-07-29T10:16:00.000-06:00

I thought I would give you a little peak at what I've been playing with the last few days. You know how I love to give you little teasers and say "I'll show you more later" and then somehow I never do. (Sorry about that) This time will be different...PROMISE! And as always, since I think the story around the project makes it all that more interesting I'm going to tell you that too. :o)

This is a FQ bundle of 'Felicity' by Emily Taylor for Riley Blake. No, not that Felicity- but that was one of my favorite shows! :o) The fabric is not new. I think it was being shown at Spring market in MN last year. I remember seeing it and really liking it. The color arrangement was different than anything I'd seen and that really drew me in. But I can't possible sew with EVERY fabric that I see (hence a craft room with over flowing closets and drawers). So I decided to let that one slide through my fingers.

Well, that was until I was at July fair last week. I don't even remember the store (sorry!) but they had a beautiful quilt top draped over one of their tables and I just kept staring at it. It used this same fabric and was an orange peel pattern. When I got a moment I ran over to see if they had kits- NOPE! I couldn't stop thinking about it that night so I did a quick search. Thank You Etsy for coming through for me- a FQ bundle with my name on it (Emily. HA!) It was in my cart and PayPal-ed in a matter of moments.

At some point I knew exactly what I was going to do with it. A shell quilt. Lots of Google-ing and searching to find the block is called a clamshell. It's been super fun to put together. Wanna see?

Don't those fabrics look delicious? I'm hoping to finish the top and start quilting it today. And then...a surprise on Monday! (fingers crossed I get it done or you might have to wait).

This is what I found in my bed last night when I finally decided to stop sewing and go to sleep

I don't care how big they get- there's nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby, even if your baby is 6! :o)

I forgot something else!

2011-07-28T11:31:00.001-06:00

Did I mention I am extremely hypo-thyroid again? If you know what that means than my forgetfulness will not come as a surprise to you. I have to go in for my yearly scan to make sure I'm still "All-Clear" so in preparation for that I had to go off of all my thyroid meds. Ugh. It's not fun at all. But I'm hanging in there and almost done. My scan is tomorrow and as long as everything goes ok (and there's no reason to think it won't) I'll start my meds again and be feeling more "ME" in another week or so.

Anyways, I bring up the forgetfulness because I forgot to tell you that I created a Flickr Group for Crazy Old Ladies!

I posted a button on the left that you can click on to go to the flickr page. It's not much to look at right now because I'm not super savvy at this stuff so it's still a work in progress. But the thing that makes a Flickr group so cool is YOU!

You can go in and add pictures of your Crazy Old Ladies projects so that other people can see the cool things you've been working on too!? I'm hoping to add more pictures of my own projects once I have my head on straight.

Hope to see lots of pictures of your Crazy Old Ladies projects soon! :o)

Quilter's Home

2011-07-27T21:00:00.000-06:00

Remember back in May when I went to Market and life got...CRAZY!? I had a brief introduction and chat with so many people it was hard to keep track. So I had almost forgotten about this until I got the mag. in the mail a couple weeks ago. And then, well, I forgot to tell you!

The latest (and I think last!?) issue of Quilter's Home featured GOING COASTAL in their design board segment. And let me just say that I LOVE their ideas!

I think I've only mentioned a time or two how much I think Going Coastal and the Nantucket-esque design style fit hand in hand. So I was delightfully surprised to see how the editor's of Quilter's Home thought out of the box and right into an awesome new box with their ideas. The modern lines of the furniture and contemporary yet retro feel of the lighting and side table give a completely new take on how to use Going Coastal in decor. I have to keep telling myself that I can't possibly re-decorate my house every time I design a fabric line or I might drive myself and my family absolutely crazy. But I am having a hard time keeping myself from jumping in the car and heading to the nearest IKEA to re-vamp my living room. It's not even the style that I usually go for and I think that's why I like it so much! It's new, fresh, and ...OMG I just Love it!

Thank you, Thank You Quilter's Home for opening my eyes (and hopefully many others') to yet another wonderful way to use Going Coastal!

(By the way, there are TONS of other cool things in this mag so you should run out and snag yours before you can't find it at all!)

Am I the only one?

2011-07-26T21:53:00.001-06:00

Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE is doing the Farmer's Wife Quilt-A-Long. Seriously.

EVERYONE!

Every blog I go to has a button and every blog I go to has pictures of their blocks.

They are SUPER CUTE.

I feel this tug as though I'm missing out on something big if I don't jump in and join the bandwagon. But honestly, I'm not much of a bandwagon kind of girl.

It's almost like a kind of unspoken peer pressure:

"Everyone else is doing it"

"One block won't hurt"

"C'mon, you know you want to"

I almost designed a button that said I wasn't participating. Not because I'm against it- because I'm not. I just can't start one more project that I know will not get finished. You know what I mean? Too many UFO's!

I hope this isn't coming across as rude. I don't mean it to. I think the book is awesome and the blocks are fantastic. What I really love is the variety of fabrics that people are using. So out of the box for a more traditional design and they really are BEAUTIFUL.

So I'm going to live vicariously through all of you who ARE doing the quilt-a-long and admire the blocks from afar. Keep up the good work.

Oh, and if you're interested in playing catch-up and following along, click the link above to find out all about it. And to see the awesome blocks some of them are doing visit their flickr group. :o)

Rainbows and Summitime

2011-07-25T14:38:00.001-06:00

My cute neighbors came over today to show me this cool rainbow. Once upon a time I took a Meteorology class in college so I should remember what this is called. But alas, I have forgotten. All I know is it was really cool and I HAD to take a picture to share. It's a little bit of heaven.

Did you see the new button off to the left? Well that's a little bit of heaven too, I'm sure. I am so excited to be attending The Sewing Summit. I found out about it a couple months ago and I have been pulling all the change out of the sofa so I could go. I finally registered a few days go. And guess what? I think you should too! Click on the button for all the cool info. including a list of the classes and who's teaching. Why am I so excited? Well AMY is going to be teaching, as well as VANESSA and AMANDA. My friend JANA is also teaching. And DANA who I have yet to meet but LOVE her blog. Plus TONS of others that I am so excited to meet and visit with. A couple of the classes I have signed up for are Dana's blogging class, Vanessa's photog. class and Amanda's free motion quilting class. Plus all the sewing and talking I can think of- that sounds like heaven to me. Hope to see YOU there!

*Squeal!* I can't wait!

(If you're going- msg me so I know! :o)

Update!

2011-07-23T10:27:00.000-06:00

Just a formal notice to say:

I don't have any insider info. on when GOING COASTAL will hit the shops. As a designer I get to wait along with all of you. My local shop has ordered it and I am anxiously awaiting it's arrival along with everyone else. IF I happen to find out anything I will be sure to post. Thanks for being patient. I promise, it will be here soon. :o)

Also, thanks for all the lovely comments on my post yesterday. I am not bitter, just disappointed. But it is nice to know that I'm not the only one who feels that way. *HUGS* to you all! :o)

Naive

2011-07-22T09:42:00.000-06:00

Naive is not a word I would generally use to describe myself. I grew up in California- that should say enough. Now I live in Utah where things that I saw and learned about growing up even grown-ups here don't know about. But let me tell you what I am naive about. Quilters.

Yesterday I spent the better part of my day in Provo, UT at the Utah Valley Quilt Guild Fair. Despite my waining health at the moment I managed to survive (thanks to a couple friends who came to my rescue by fetching me some lunch) and hoards of wonderful women who all share my same passion and love for quilting. That is why I do what I do. Not because I think I am better than anybody else- but because it brings me joy and fulfilment. So it was an extreme shock and down right sickening when I realized that someone had lifted (stolen) one of my Going Coastal fat quarter bundles. Really? I mean, REALLY!?

I just re-read my post from before the show where I mentioned that I was going to have some great deals and invited anyone who wanted a steal to come see me. Well I didn't mean that LITERALLY!

Ladies, I understand that the price of cotton is soaring. I understand that grocery prices are not climbing by the cent but by the dollar. I understand the need to take care of our families and save a penny here and there. But STEALING!? Seriously!? Where is the joy and fullfilment in that?

I am naive in thinking that ALL quilters are wonderful, kind, caring people. And it makes me sad that they aren't. Everyday I feel so blessed to be able to surround myself with such wonderful people who share my passion. Unfortunately there always has to be a bad apple to ruin the bunch. Ladies, DON'T BE THAT BAD APPLE.

I also recently read a blog post of a blogging friend. I've never met this wonderfully talented woman in person but she is so near the top of my list. I check her blog DAILY. She was also sadly visited by a bad apple. Can I just remind what we try to teach our children but so often forget as adults: IF YOU CAN'T SAY SOMETHING NICE, DON'T SAY ANYTHING AT ALL. (Thanks Thumper.)

going, going....

2011-07-19T19:15:00.001-06:00

Coastal!

Yes folks, you haven't heard the last of it yet. Tomorrow I am yet again GOING COASTAL.

Where you might ask? Well at the Utah Valley Quilt Guild's Quilt Fair, that's where.

All day tomorrow, July 20 I'll have my GOING COASTAL booth set up in the vendor mall. Oh and do I have some GREAT deals going on there. If you want a steal, and I mean STEAL! You won't want to miss this.

So if you happen to live in the area- or feel like taking a drive- come by and see me. The address is 270 West 500 North in Provo. I will be there from 9:30-3:00.

And hey, if you stop by, bring me a Dr. Pepper will ya'!? :o)

Bee for Me!

2011-07-17T19:14:00.000-06:00

The quilting Bee that I belong to met last Wednesday. I usually don't call it a "Bee"- I usually just call it our "Quilt Group". But with all the "Bee" talk lately I decided to start calling it my "Bee". :o)

I had fair warning that it was my turn to do a project. I even had an extra month as last months mtg. needed to be rescheduled. But as the day approached I was still trying to decide on a project. I was very excited about one idea until I shared it with the Bee Keeper :o) and she told me that they'd already done that kind of block. (I like to keep it interesting and not repeat- but where was I when they did it the first time!?) So I had to think of something else. Hmmm.....

Then my husband decided to infect me with some nasty cold/flu/death sentence that he picked up somewhere. Ugh! I was going to call in sick to the Bee but by the time the day was over I knew I needed a break from the kids. So I did a quick search. Found a block. Grabbed a stack of fabric and started cutting pieces for the worker Bees. And ran out the door- stuffy nose and all!

We just walked in from our weekend away and I already had a block (delivered in my absence) waiting for me!

It's a flying geese block....obviously! ( Sorry, sometimes I get in the habit of stating the obvious.) I'm not even sure who it is from at this point- but I have a good guess. All I know is I LOVE IT! I'm using a ton of leftover scraps of a few Fig Tree lines and white background. It's going to be DARLING! (Because anything made with Fig Tree is "darling")

The best part about getting this block already- I learned that in my sickness induced fog I didn't give each worker bee enough fabric for the number of blocks I asked them to make (2!) HA! Luckily they all know me and probably laughed it off as another brainless move made by me. I guess I'm going to have to make a lot more blocks if I want to have a finished top. :o)

Family Reunion

2011-07-14T22:13:00.000-06:00

Just wanted to let you know I'm heading out for a few days. I'm the lucky gal that got to marry her

Although we won't be going to his hometown, we'll be in that great state of Idaho for the next few days. I'm looking forward to a few days of rest and relaxation. (WE NEED IT AROUND HERE) But Heck! Who am I kidding? Vacations are rarely that for the Mom. There's all the laundry, cleaning, planning, and then all of that all over again once we get home. Don't even get me started on the drive. But it's worth it. I really LOVE going to his Family Reunions. It's so fun to catch up with those relatives you only see once a year or so.

So, until next time.....HAPPY SEWING!

Dreaming

2011-07-12T22:04:00.000-06:00

Every once in a while during my blog-hopping time I will skip over to FQS and check out their 'Coming Soon' page. And then the dreaming begins. I call it "window shopping for quilters" since there is no such thing as actually walking into a quilt shop and not buying anything. *wink!* Here are a few of my favorite finds this week.

I love the creamy pink, slate grey and buttery yellows in this line. I have a bundle full of pieces I've gathered in just these colors for a project and here they have them all together! Added bonus- Lori Holt is a local [to me] designer.

I love the geometric prints in this line. The two that are to the left of the FQS sign- YUM! The super saturated colors are fun too!

This isn't normally a colorway I would go for but I am LOVING this selection from Joel Dewberry. There's a couple other colorways in the collection but this one really grabbed my attention.

I really like this. Reminds me of my favorite Jelly Belly- Juicy Pear. Mmmmm. The print in the top left corner really grabbed me. So cute. And people thought birds were going 'out'. Not these ones. They're the perfect bridge between cute and quirky.

Ooh La La! I've been working with some black-to-white (or is it white-to-black) fabric selections lately and this is just awesome! I've seen these prints in scrapbook paper and loved every single one of them. I like how there are a couple more traditional prints, but also several whimsical ones as well.

I have no connection with any of these lines- they're just ones that really grabbed my attention. I love to wait for them to hit the stores knowing that I already have a strong connection to them. On that note, I've also learned not to discount ones that don't grab my attention on the screen. So many times I've seen them in the fabric flesh at my LQS and realized I was so wrong about them. Sometimes the computer screen just doesn't do them justice and you have to see them in person to see their true beauty.

What are you dreaming of?

Dresden Mini Quilt

2011-07-09T19:21:00.001-06:00

I couldn't wait. I started last night and just finished the last stitch. I LOVE it! I raided my scraps to come up with the pieces. Everything I used was leftovers from previous projects. I love when I can do that. The finished quilt is around 24" I think. (I didn't officially measure it, but when I squared it up before binding it that's close to where it was.)

I used the template from Sew Mama Sew and just left the petals flat on the ends instead of folding them as the tutorial shows. I liked the border effect of Lily's Quilts tutorial so I added one of my own. Althought I initially wanted flat petals, I think this would've been much cuter with pointed ones. I added the ric rac for a little extra something.

Because I wasn't feeling patient and just wanted to finish I fused the center on and blanket stitched around the edge. I did something else fun too, that's hard to capture I quilted around the flower center and the petals and then cut away the excess high loft batt. I wanted a more dimensional effect. The center is very puffy. It is really cool when you look at it. The petals are slightly pouffy but since I quilted in them it's harder to see.

I quilted each petal like a petal. :o) I love the result. I quilted a tiny stipple inside the main background and echo lines around the outer white border. I tried to capture it in a picture but since it's dusk now I can't really get a good one.

Thanks for all you thoughts and comments on making this block/quilt. If you've yet to make one- GO FOR IT! It wasn't hard and actually went together super fast.

I love the finished product. My daughter loves it even more I think. She's already told me more than a few times how cute it would look hanging in her room. :o)

Circle (Dresden) Blocks

2011-07-08T11:14:00.000-06:00

I have the urge to make a giant Dresden block. I've been seeing them all over blog-land and the quilting community and really like them. Since you're doing just one it doesn't seem as daunting as a gazillion blocks to make up a whole quilt. I've found a couple of tutorials online:

This one is from Sew Mama Sew

I like it because it has an even number of petals. It also shows a cool technique to get the points on the petals- but I'm not sure I want pointed petals. Also, the block is appliqued to the background.

This one is from Lily's Quilts

I like this one because the finished block is a little bigger and there are no points on the petals. However, there's an odd number of petals. For this quilt the background is pieced into the block.

Both of the tutorials were Quilt-A-Long's and have been finished for some time. But the tutorials are still posted on their blogs.

Have you made a block/quilt like this?

What technique or tutorial did you use?

Do you have any pictures to share?

My new Book!

2011-07-06T10:46:00.001-06:00

I just realized that the title of this post might be a bit misleading. I didn't mean "my" as in a book I'm featured in- just "my" as in a new book I own. :o)

I don't usually buy books. However, the other day I was hopping to this site and was very intrigued. I've been following the blog hop ever since and LOVED the quilts I was seeing. Amazon had it listed for a great price and paired with another book I've had my eye on for some time I was able to score both of them for a steal.

It came yesterday and it is GREAT! First, I thumbed through, looking at all the pictures. Next, I started going through and looking at each one more carefully and reading what the designer of that particular pattern had to say about it. I haven't gotten through all of them yet- but I'm sure I will today (the book came yesterday).

I'm one of those that's jumping on the 'modern' quilt bandwagon. I love the idea of using up scraps and piecing without a step-by-step plan. But it took a while to get there. I'm so used to having every little bit mapped out before me it was hard to start stitching with no boundaries. What makes this book so cool is it bridges the gap between following a pattern to the 'T' and sewing without a pattern completely. There are pattterns in this book, but they give you guidelines and recommendations but the finished product will really be a product of your own- COMPLETELY original. I LOVE that!

My next project is going to be this one!

By the way, if you can't tell already, I so recommend this book to ANYONE! :o)

Kenny Sew More

2011-07-04T22:19:00.000-06:00

Meet the newest member of our household. You may know him by Ken More, but I call him Kenny. As many of you may remember, early this year I lost my beloved Kendra. I have debated replacing her for some time- but she just seemed so irreplaceable. However, this weekend I was made aware of Kenny and at once knew I had to adopt him.

You see, Kenny is...um was the floor model at a store. He's been used and abused. Lots of lookers, no takers. Until I came along and saw the wonderful machine that he is.

I've thought and thought about replacing Kendra for months. I've looked at many machines. The problem is that even with a test drive in the store I still didn't know if that machine was going to be the one. Kendra was just so....perfect. So when I saw Kenny I knew the wait was over. After all, they come from the same blood line. They're cousins- but practically twins. Identical twins if-you-know-what-I-mean.

I haven 't gotten a chance to see what Kenny can do yet. He was missing a few important parts (power cord). Because of his condition he came at a very discounted price. Another reason I couldn't pass him up. Can you believe I just threw out Kendra's remains a couple weeks ago!? Grrrr! That's what always happens- you don't think you're going to need something and finally throw it out and right after it's gone you realize you do need it. Oh well, the new cord is on it's way and I'll be blanket stitching before the week is over.

Some may not think Kenny is a great machine. I know better. After having Kendra for 7 years and Kendall (my oldest and most beloved Kenmore) for almost 12 years- and still going, I am very pleased to have Kenny join the family. And I expect to have many good years with him.

Today we celebrate...

2011-07-04T10:08:00.000-06:00

our Independence Day!

Yesterday my 6 year old asked me why we have a 4th of July. It took my by surprise for a moment. "Don't they teach you that in school?" I thought. Then I remembered that since the holiday is in the summer I'm not sure how much she puts together from that they learn in school. Besides, she's only just finished kindergarten.
Anyway, as I started to explain to her why we celebrate my heart swelled and I felt such pride in my country.
It's not that I didn't before- but honestly, I don't think about it too much.

With all the political uproar that our nation faces day-to-day on various issues, it's easy to grab a hold of one side or the other and get swept up in the negativity. But it's important to remember those who have gone before to make our country what it is and to give us the freedoms that we enjoy every single day without a second thought. Even more, we have brave men and women today that are willing to put their lives on hold while they continue to fight not only for our freedoms, but fight for the freedoms of others as well.

While I may not always be proud of the way our leaders lead, I am still very thankful to live in this land where I can be free. I am allowed to work, to go to school, to choose what I'd like to wear each day, and the list goes on and on. I'm also given the opportunity to worship the God that I believe in, a freedom very dear to me.

So today, amidst all the BBQ's, gathering of friends and family, and watching of fireworks- take a moment to give thanks for the freedom's that you enjoy.