~yesterday~

I did not get a stitch of sewing done for Sew Day! :-o The day flew by too fast!  :-(
But I did mange to get a few more of these~

emptied and put away. :-)  Only a zillion more to go. ~sigh~

And I have to tell you about this fun mail I received! Becky at The Quilting Booklady had  a celebration giveaway and I was lucky enough to win these wonderful charm packs. :-) I thought I knew exactly what I'd do with them, but now... not so sure. ;-) LOL Maybe look at them for a bit. ;-)  Thanks Becky!

Don't for get to stop back tomorrow for the Fall Into Fall giveaway celebration!~
Until then~

Happy stitchin'!

Thimbleberries Sew Day~

Is anyone sewing?

I got a head start cutting out my project, but haven't been able to get near my machine yet~ but i will!  Be back later!

Happy Stitchin'!!

Design Wall Monday~

I got my 4 patches sewn last week and am hoping to make a few more this week. :-) Bingo~Bonnie is having a swap and my goal is now 20 sets of 10 blocks. I'm almost there!  I thought in the bottom ones, the light might be too dark; but when I hold something red over them, the one on the left looks just like two lights, and the one on the right looks like a light with a dark print on it, so I think they will both work out fine. I love the depth they give the 4 patches. Not sure what project I will put them in when I get 200 back, :-o  but I have a few ideas! :-)

Don't forget this Wednesday is Thimbleberries Sew Day! You can either sew a project with Thimbleberries fabrics, or use whatever fabrics you like with a Thimbleberries pattern. Barb and I both plan to be sewing! If you sew too, would you let us know so we can link to you?

And to see lots of quilty inspiration, hop on over to Judy L's Patchwork Times. You will be dazzled! :-)

Until next time~

Happy Stitchin'!

Happy Saturday!

The sun is shining and I got to sew! :-)

 I saw these really cute pumpkin coasters on Brandie's blog~ 'abc' and had to try them! Go look at her's, they are adorable! And she tells you how to make them. :-)  So I gave them a try~  fun and easy!

Then I thought~ how about apple coasters? After an intensive search for brown thread, which involved unpacking a couple more boxes! :-/ I ended up with these. Oh I know a couple are odd shaped, but I've seen a lot of odd shaped apples! ;-)

In other news, I have joined Debi in the Fall into Fall  Giveaway fun. See the little scarecrow on my sidebar?  Lots of bloggers are signing up~ it promises to be lots of fun!  I have a week to come up with a prize~ I'll let you know Friday what it is! :-)

Until next time~
Happy stitchin'!

Whoohoo! Mail!! :-)

I just came back from the mailbox and look what the mailman brought!~

 The last swap blocks from Bingo~Bonnie.  :-))  We have been swapping My Blue Heaven blocks from Quilter's Cache for the past year (or maybe a little more, we didn't count the time, just whenever we got some made) and we are now at the end. We both should have enough blocks now for big quilts. :-)  If you looked at the block on Quilter's Cache you will notice  it is a 12 inch block. We downsized it a bit for our swap. And we decided that all the large triangles would be blue fabrics and all the small ones could be scrappy. All the backgrounds were whites/tans/creams scrappy too.  We used Triangulations to make all the small HST's and boy was it a time saver!  Now I just need to locate the rest of my blocks and I can start sewing this one together. Whoohoo! :-)

 I am trying out blogger's new template for posting~ so far so good!  It is really easy to add links and move photo's around. Thanks Blogger! :-)

Hope you are enjoying the beginning of autumn and had a little time to stitch today~
Until next time,
Have a happy!

A Little Cutting

I did empty a couple boxes!~ LOL and then I got distracted. :-))

I cut up this little pile from my Thimbleberries stash because next Wednesday is Thimbleberries Sew Day! Are you going to sew with me? :-)



And then I cut these strips for scrappy 4 patches for the swap I'm in. Hmmm, now that I see the photo, I wonder if the light with the branch on it is too dark? maybe the gold is too?



Hope you had a happy day and until next time~
Happy stitchin'!!

A Little Fun~

There are so many fun projects in the Fall Quilts and More magazine, but I've had my eye on these two~ the Tiny Treat Bag (page 16), and the drink cozy (page 75). I need a little gift right before Halloween, so thought these two plus a few treats in the bag would be perfect. And the little green bats glow in the dark! LOL :-)

Hope you got to have a little sewing fun today too! ;-)
Until next time~
Happy Stitchin'!

Design Wall Monday

I know, its been a while. ;-) I am slowly getting unpacked and back into a little bit of a routine. And sewing! :-)) I joined a 4 patch swap that Bingo~Bonnie is sponsoring on the HGTV quilting forum. We are making scrappy 4-patches ala Bonnie Hunter. It is such a versatile little block; 2 lights, 2 darks and Bonnie Hunter uses them a lot in her patterns and books. :-) So this is where I am today~ 10 sets of 10 little blocks. I hope to get a few more sets done before the due date.



What are you working on? Hop on over to Judy L's Patchwork Times to see what other quilters are doing. There is always a lot of inspiration on Design Wall Mondays!

Until next time~
Happy Stitchin'!

Sunday Sewing!

Whoohoo!! :-)

First, thank you for your kind words for DH's back~ he is feeling much better and is actually looking forward to getting back out to trim shrubs. ;-) I don't think he gets out enough. LOL :-)

And I sewed! Yay! You know the saying 'sew on Sunday, rip on Monday'? Well not today! :-) It was gently raining when I went out to the cottage to see what I could do.. unpack or sew... you know what won out there! :-)) I worked on the border for Paganini (Carrie's new Schnibble pattern). To tell the truth, I loved the look of the scalloped inside border, but it involved ~shudder~ applique! And well, let's just say applique and I have one of those love/hate relationships! I love the look, not so keen on the process. I read Carrie's directions quite a few times and realized that she applique's the entire scallop down~ as in both sides! :-o I needed something less stressful. :-) I kind of flew by the seat of my pants on this, but it worked out! I only had to applique the outside. As I was sewing it, I kept thinking, 'if I had the right rick-rack, it would look so cool under this edge!' But I didn't come across any, so tomorrow I will get back to boxes. :-)

Anyway, I sewed the white for the scallop into the seam as I added the border. I cut off approx 1/2 inch on each end of the last two white borders, because you really don't need it to extend all the way out to the edge, and this way, it wasn't in the seam either. I pressed the seam open. Then I traced the scallop onto the white. I used old x-ray film to make my template, and I had to cut it and play with it a bit to get 3 to fit on each side. Looking at it now, I think I could've made them a little evener ;-/, but I am happy with my first ever attempt. :-)

Then I opened the seams and clipped so the white was inside the seam allowance below the scallop edge and outside for about 1/2 to 3/4th's inch, and sewed them each back together~ the pink with part of the white, and the white on the outside, so 8 little seams. That was the fiddly part. But I kept thinking, if you can trim to the seam when pressing 4-patches, why not in this case too? Sorry my photo's are not better, taking them was kind of an after-thought. :-/



I trimmed the scallop right above my lines and then using the biggest stitch on my machine, I basted the edges down. This way I didn't have to burn myself with a hot iron. ;-o After another good pressing, I used the buttonhole stitch on my machine to sew the scallops down. Then I ripped out the basting stitches.

Next time, I will probably allow a little more white seam allowance when I trim and sew them back, but otherwise, I'm happy with the result. :-)


Thanks for stopping by! Until next time,
Happy Stitchin'!!

Stitch - Stitch - Stitch

I'm cruising right along with my crocheting. :-) You can click the photo for a closer look. The blue looks a little bluer in the photo than it is~ it is more of a teal in reality.



72 inches long (I started with a chain of 300 stitches) and 17 inches wide so far. It is just beginning to warm my lap as I stitch at night which has been perfect for our autumn temps.

Have a happy weekend! I'll be stitching and unpacking boxes. DH hurt his back so the unpacking has been a little slow lately, but he is starting to feel better soooo... it'll be back to boxes soon.

Until next time~
Happy stitchin'!!

Looking for Some Fun?

Did you notice the new button on my sidebar?

I had so much fun blog-hopping with Gudrun last year for the Christmas blog hop, that I can't help but be excited for a Fall + Halloween hop! I love Fall, Autumn, whatever you care to call this season! Cool weather, falling leaves, vibrant color, oh I'm ready! And I need some quick and easy decoration ideas. I'm sure I won't be disappointed. Want to join me? :-)

~Question~

How many bobbins does it take to sew a Schnibble project?
Answer in a bit~

I caved and joined Facebook, but please, please don't send me any friend links or anything yet because I have a huge problem. Somehow I ended up with 2 accounts and I can't get into either one! LOL :-) This is probably why it took me so long to even try to register. I have no idea what I'm doing most times! ~I'm techno-challenged! LOL :-)) I have an email into the 'team' and maybe it will work out... or not. But at least I tried. Right? ;-)

I've been spending a little time in the cottage working on my Schnibble Paganini and that question kept popping into my head~ kind of like the number of licks it takes to get a Tootsie Roll pop~ remember that one?

Well, the answer I came up with~~

Answer: One more than you have wound! :-)
I had 3 little seams to go. :-/ LOL

Hope y'all are having a happy Thursday!

Thank you Wendy!

Wendy of Why Knot Kwilt is such a sweetheart! If you didn't visit her to help her follower count, visit her now. I had no idea that she was going to go and nominate me! :-) But I so appreciate her gesture! If not for Mary, of Quilt Hollow, it may have taken us longer to 'discover' we are sisters! LOL :-) Thank you too, Mary!

Now I get to pass it on to twelve of you! That is the hard part! :-o


Here are the guide lines to follow when you are nominated:

1. Save the image above and post it on your own blog.
2. Pass the award on to 12 fellow bloggers.
3. Link the nominees.
4. Let nominees know they have won this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to the person from whom you received this award.


Here we go~ I so admire each of you and your blogs inspire me to
work a little more, try something a little different and have fun along the way.

Bridget B, my Mom, at Granny Quilts who taught me how to sew and keeps me grounded.

Angela of Country Scraps Quilts~ a fellow DJ'er who inspires me to keep plugging away at those blocks. Sorry I'm behind Angela, hopefully this winter I can catch up! ;-)

Brenda at Brenda's Piece ~we've been friends for a long time, but have never met; and she can get me in trouble by just mentioning a pattern. LOL Fun trouble! ;-)

Barb at Bejeweled Quilts by Barb ~she is so productive and has such a wonderful sense of humor. Her love of quilting shines thru in her blog... and we share a love of Thimbleberries! ;-)

Bonnie at NapTime News who has such a zest for quilting in spite of being such a busy mom! Her days must have more hours in them than mine. ;-)

Carol of Carol's Crafty Creations who is always sewing some cute thing that I can't help but be inspired!

Cindy of Sew Cindy who is the only blogging friend I have met in real life and we had a ball! She is also very talented, caring and fun!

Darlene of Quilting Daze because she is so supportive & kind, and generous in sharing her talents.

Karen at Briarside Lane, actually a friend from when I lived in TX, we are two peas in a pod when it comes to shopping and can really get each other in trouble. I talked her into starting a blog among other things. Oh yeah, in case you didn't know it, I'm a bit of an enabler... or so I've been told. ;-)

Kelly of Cotton Charm ~she is not only the Charming Girls Club co-leader, but she is a sweet friend! I'm so glad to have met her through blogging!

Lindsay of SavedSinnr blog~ a friend I have yet to meet who is such a loving, cheerful person. She is new to quilting but that doesn't deter her one bit. LOL :-)

Mary of Needled Mom who always has a kind word, and her blog is fun to read because she is so busy!


Gosh is that twelve already?! I have so many more I want to mention! Please don't feel bad if I didn't mention you~ twelve isn't near enough! :-/

Until next time~
Happy stitchin'!

Friends In Need~

I have a few blogging friends who need your help. They are trying to get Accuquilt (makers of the GO!) to feature their blog, but they need 100 followers. So stop by and give them some bloggy love. You can mention me or not, that is up to you. One of them even has a little 'enticement'. ;-) LOL :-))

There is Darlene at Quilting Daze~ who makes the most awesome quilts.

And Monica at Diary of a Quilt Maven who is a sweetheart and fellow Thimbleberries lover. :-)

And Wendy at Why Knot Kwilt who I recently discovered is a fellow Charming Sister and lives on my side of the country! ;-)

And thank you to my followers! I've written to Accuquilt too but didn't hear anything back. I've decided it isn't meant to be for me, but I would really appreciate you helping my friends.

Have a great day and happy stitchin'!

Birthday Sewing~

Happy Birthday Lindsay!!!

Today is my friend Lindsay's birthday and she asked me to help her celebrate by sewing for a bit~ how could I refuse?! I can't get her blog to open today, it is filled with photo bucket tags~ does anyone know how to get rid of those? I'll pass along any hints you have!

Update~ its fixed! Thanks for the tip Myra! Now y'all run over there and give her some birthday love! Thank you!! :-)



Yesterday was a lucky mail day as my Paganini pattern arrived, so guess what I will sew! :-)) I cannot find my Angler so I sat and drew lines last night~ now I'm off to sew!

Hope you are finding time to sew a seam today too!
Happy Stitchin'!

Happily H@@king!

LOL, I didn't want to attract any unwanted guests with that title! :-) I've been crocheting! :-)) Monica mentioned on her blog how much she was enjoying crocheting and I commented that I'd picked up my hook too~

I learned to crochet from my grandmother when I was in elementary school. She was an avid crocheter of afghans. She would save the little bits and bobs of leftover yarn for me. I know I made a smaller throw before this one, but I have no idea what happened to it. I also made the most outrageously colorful poncho. LOL I loved wearing it to school. I don't think I even have photo's of it, but it was loud. Then I started making granny squares. I think I was in 8th grade when I put this afghan together. It has held up very well over the years. And it is heavy! DH and I both grab for it in the evenings when watching TV, so I decided we needed another. ;-)


Well, Kim started making a granny striped blanket and gave Lucy's link. LOL I loved what they were doing, but the timing was wrong for me to start anything... until this past weekend. Then JoAnn's happened to have a pretty good yarn sale and now I'm happily hooking along! ;-)


Have a good weekend!

Goals for September and October

It is time to set some goals for the Charming Girls Quilt Club. :-)

I still have quite a few boxes to unpack and put away, so one of my goals is to work on those everyday~ but not to the point of exhaustion... and I'm going to share some time between the house and the cottage, so both can get in order. No photo's yet~ too much chaos! ;-)

I joined Sherri and Sinta Renee for another year of small projects. This is our logo for this year~
And the first small quilt is Paganini. So I hope to find the pattern and get busy on that as soon as I can.

Kelly, our Charming hostess, has set a theme for us of...
That is a topic I usually struggle with, so I'm looking forward to seeing what the other girls have to say. I can do simple things with my home machine, and I'm getting more comfortable renting from my LQS, but finding the time motivation to get quilting are two obstacles for me. ;-)

Have you ever tried fusible batting? I just love it for small things at home!~ No pins! :-)) If you follow the directions, it washes out well and for things that are going to see a lot of washings~ placemats, table runners etc~ it is a time saver for me.

That's all for now~
Until next time~
Happy Stitchin'!!

Mail!

Look who came home today! Isn't she adorable? Mama Turtle is from Sinta Renee at the Pink Pincushion. I won her in Sinta's 200th post giveaway. Oops, it looks like she has a little packing material under her eye, we'll take care of that! ;-) We cared for rescued turtles when we lived in TX and this one reminds me of one of the mama's. :-) Thank you Sinta!!

I'm Baa-aack!

Well, sort of... ;-)

We are all in one house~ the move took a week and really wore me out. We had a huge fiasco with getting cable/internet~ why is it that they always tell you it will be sooo easy to transfer, when in reality, it isn't? We have a temporary cable strung across our yard until they can drill under the driveway. Yikes. But!~ I don't have to go to the library! :-)) I have lots of boxes yet to unpack, but I am taking them one box at a time and not worrying. They'll eventually get done. ;-)

I feel like I've missed months of blogging when in reality, its only been a couple weeks! Time has a way of flying by, doesn't it?Have you heard about the new year of Schnibbles now named Le Petite? Check it out on Sinta's blog. :-) It sounds like loads of fun and we have a new button~
I did complete all 12 of the projects for the past year. Unfortunately, I didn't know we'd have to post all of them in the end, so I didn't keep track of photo's very well. I know I have more of them quilted than not, but I have no idea where my flash drive is, so I pulled photo's from my blog to show the 12 months.
Here we have Sept 09 to Feb 10~ Winter White, Cindy Lou Who, Picnic, the tuffets, Madeline and Sunday Best.
And the last 6 months~ Roundabout, Tagalong, Nice Day, State Fair, Joy Luck, and Plan C. I made the large version of Plan C and hope to quilt it by the end of October... if I can rent the longarm at the LQS.

I also missed posting about my Charming Girls Club accomplishments for July and August. Hopefully I can figure out what to do in September and October and get those up. :-) Still lots of boxes to wade through, so I'm sure that is going to figure prominently! LOL

Have a happy weekend and until next time~
Happy Stitchin'!