Goals, Completions, Celebrating!

Hi everyone! Sorry I have been a bad blogger of late~ I've been visiting, just didn't have a lot to talk about here. Well, now I have a lot to talk about! lol

I finished my Charming Girls Club goals for the past 2 months. One was to do Butter Churn~ pattern by Sherri K. Falls and the November Le Petite project.

Another goal was to corral battings and backings to rent the HQ at my LQS. And I'm happy to report I got everything quilted and bound(!) that I had hoped to do! :-) This is the BOM we did on the HGTV quilter's message board. My friend Lindsay and I picked the blocks from various internet sites and presented them to the board members to do each month. I also used EQ to downsize the 12 inch block to a 4 inch one. I made the layout in EQ7, got my blocks together and took it to quilt last week. I used an all over panto called 'Featheration' by Meredith England.  I used 80/20 batting because I wanted the crinkle look. ;-) I'm really happy with how it turned out. :-)

If you are still with me~ I had this book in my stash and as I was unpacking I realized, it has very cute and quick projects in it, but isn't really my style. If you'd like to have it, just leave me a comment telling me so. If you really, really want it, and are a follower; tell me that in a second comment. This will be a short giveaway~ I'm headed to the PO Tuesday and would get it mailed to you then. So I'll draw Monday afternoon.  Good luck!

Happy Stitchin'!

Odds 'N Ends~

Amy over at Park City Girl is having a little re-look at all the 683 quilts from her Blogger's Quilt Festival last fall. You might recall my entry~ It's #462. :-) here's the link to it all quilted up. If you are snowed in ;-) with a little time on your hands, go back and check out more of the quilts. Loads of inspiration!! :-))

And yesterday I finished my 2009 HGTV BOM blocks~ I have an idea for the layout I want to use, but need to let it 'stew' for a bit. Well, that and I need to find a huge chunk of time! LOL

Until next time~
Hope you are happily stitchin'!! :-)

~Design Wall Monday~

Don't Mondays seem to show up awfully fast? Once again, it is time for Judy L. at Patchwork Times' design wall show-and-tell. I love seeing what other quilters in blogland are working on! If you have some free time, head over and view the links Judy has on her blog. :-))

As for me~ I am playing catch-up! I got a little behind in the BOM some of the ladies on the HGTV quilting message board are sponsoring, so I got myself caught up. :-) I'll have to take a photo of all the blocks so far, but here are the past 2 months. I'm doing my blocks in holiday fabrics in the hope that I'll have it all ready for next year. ;-)

Thank you to all who stopped by for the Bloggers Fall Quilt Festival! (see previous post) I am slowly making my way thru all the links on Park City Girl's blog and enjoying the show! :-)

Until next time~
Happy Stitchin'!

Catching Up and Homework~

Yesterday I got the 2 blocks made for the BOM I am participating in. The hostesses chose the blocks, but they are all from Quilter'sCache. May's block was called 'Alaska Homestead' and June (on the right) is the 'Tennessee' block.~ it should be all scrappy, but in keeping with my Christmas theme, I made it in the same prints I've done the other blocks in, I'm not so sure if I like it or not, but I'll leave it until I see all the blocks together before I do any changing. ;-)

I also finished up the May Verandah Views block (link in sidebar).

And then I got down to my 'homework' as Bingo~Bonnie calls it. :-)) I like that term! It was making more HST's with the Triangulations papers. I made up a batch for our swap and a batch for the 30's Jewel Box blocks swap I am hosting on HGTV. Last night I finger-pressed them and took out the papers, so today I can sew! Hope you are finding time to sew a seam or two too! ;-)

Until next time~

Happy Stitchin'!! :-)

Catching Up~

I've been sewing! I'm doing a BOM with my friends on the HGTV message board and after a few 'false starts' :-) I've finally picked the fabrics I want to use and made my first 3 blocks. :-) I am going to have a Christmas quilt for my bed! Whoohoo! :-) Of course, it is an all year BOM, so the quilt construction part won't happen until next year... I sure hope I have enough fabrics! :-) I have put them in their own box, so I won't inadvertently use any for anything else. ;-) LOL Have you ever done that? It seems to be a common occurence around here. :-/

The other photo is a 'play piece'. :-) I know, I should be working on my swaps, but it was an irresistable challenge! :-) I was talking with a friend about the 'tucks' quilts that Caryl Bryer Fallert made. Check her gallery. (She also had an article in Fons & Porter's magazine in the fall of 06 called High Tech Tucks.) Her directions started with a large bright-colored dyed background piece and we were wondering about using an actual scene for the background. As we were talking about how to do it, she finally said, 'well, when you figure it out, let me know'. :-)) A Challenge!! :-)) She was just kidding, but I couldn't get it out of my head. I had the pillow panel in my stashy, so I tried it~ :-) I know DD will want to take it back to school with her... or she'll want me to try it with a dolphin fabric! LOL :-)

Ok, now I'll get back on track and get my swap blocks finished up! ;-)

Have a happy weekend and until next time~

Happy Stitchin'!!

Free BOM's on the Web~

Here it is the middle of February and I'm deciding which BOM's on the web I'd like to do~ well, honestly~ I'd like to do all of them! :-) But since that isn't possible, I chose the Veranda Views from Willowberry Designs and A Tisket A Tasket from Anne at Bunny Hill Designs. I am still learning blogger, so please forgive me if my photo's in the sidebar don't take you where they should! :-/ (if I did it wrong, please tell me and I'll try again!) ;-)

I chose these two because it is about time I learn to hand applique*! There are so many great patterns out there, and I've always avoided them. ;-) Although my first attempt isn't the greatest, I did learn a lot~ so hopefully February's block will be better. And if at the end of the year, I decide I can't live with January's block... well, I can always make another! ;-) And I chose the Verandah Views because I do like to embroider and it will give me a chance to do more than my go-to stitch, the stem stitch. :-)

*Ok, about that hand applique~ I did it once before. A long time ago when I was young and had no clue what I was doing. I made this quilt for my oldest DS when he graduated from the crib to a twin bed. I painstakingly stitched each block. ~I am a lefty and a needle felt very awkward in my hand!~ Then once I had the top together, I thought 'what if they rip out when he is jumping on the bed?' So I went back and sewed with my sewing machine around each applique close to the edge! :-o Wrestling that whole quilt top to do it! :-o I know! I made twice the work for myself! And the fabrics were not 100% cotton, or even very good quality. Well, it didn't rip out! :-)) lol My Mom took pity on me, and she and her friends hand quilted it for my DS. :-)) After that, I thought 'I will never do hand applique again!' Well, you know what they say~ never say never!! :-))

Until next time~

Happy Stitchin'!!