Sister's Choice Quilts

Some Shopping, Some Sewing

It would be so wrong not to mention the Shop Hop we girls went on while we were up at the retreat.  We have gotten into the habit of going off to explore quilt shops in the general vicinity on the way up to or on the way home from the monastery.  This time we left for shopping right in the middle of our prime sewing day, Saturday!  Sometimes you just have to throw in the towel and SHOP.

The red batiks above I didn't even have to shop for.  Isabel gave them to me as sort of a thank you gift at the end of the retreat.  Gorgeous aren't they?  Look how cool they look with the black and white batik I had at home! 

On Friday Sara and I went to In Between Stitches in Livermore.  If you live in Northern California, you have got to make an effort to drive over there to see that store.  They recently moved to a new location at 2190 First Street in downtown Livermore.  This shop is so appealing, with its large windows, high ceilings, old oak flooring and cheerful pale yellow walls.  I love the look of this place and know you will as well.  The lighting is fantastic and they have all their merchandize displayed in the most tantalizing manner.  And the staff?  They don't come much friendlier or more helpful than Melissa and her ladies. There are loads of restaurants on the street where you can rest up after spending loads of money on fabric. 

In Between Stitches carries lots of new Moda groups (and might have what you need of some older collections), but they also have batiks, Civil War fabrics, and fabrics by other companies.  Look at these purple Civil War prints I picked up there.  Purple!!!!  Wait till you see what I am going to do with these.  Lisa and I are planning a Challenge with Purple sometime this year, and these will figure in as major players in my project.

The closest shop to the monastery is Quilter's Inn in downtown Danville.  This place is small, but jammed with gorgeous fabrics and quilts on display.  The owner, Jane Lewis, is just lovely, and generously gave all of us retreaters discounts on our purchases.  The shop was featured in last summer's American Patchwork and Quilting magazine.  The shop is easy to get to, just off 680 on the way to Sacramento.  And talk about nearby good shopping and restaurants!   Lordy lordy.  You could make a day of a trip to Danville.

I was going to share more about the projects I actually sewed on while on the retreat, but I am out of time for today.  Gotta go to work so I can buy more fabric!

Retreat Antics Continued

I am just so touched by this, I can hardly find the words.  A year ago at this same gathering of quilting  friends retreat we did a little UFO exchange.  I had made a ton of pink, blue and green blocks out of assorted Moda fabrics, and knew that I just would not be finishing the quilt top. I just wasn't feeling the love anymore.  I left the blocks and pattern on the UFO table and one of the gals picked it and said she would finish it.  Sure, right.  At least it was out of my stash closet.  Well, she ended up giving it to Annette, another friend, who actually did turn these orphan blocks into a quilt.  The quilt pictured above.  I was just stunned when she shyly brought it out to share at our Saturday Night Sew and Tell.  I think she was afraid I might demand it back again (I was tempted!).   I was completely blown away that some blocks I decided I didn't care for were turned into a gorgeous quilt that is going to be cherished by the maker.  Annette says she is keeping this quilt for herself, which she rarely does with the things she makes.  I was truly honored.

If any of you are planning a quilting retreat, consider having a UFO exchange.  One person's cast offs can turn into someone else's treasure.

I was also quite surprised to have been the recipient of a special gift from my quilting friends.  It is a bit of a joke, but it sure isn't on me!  There I am above, saying "For ME?  Oh you shouldn't have!"  At last year's retreat I organized a very stupid game called Left Right Center, which involved passing fat quarters to the left or right depending on a roll of the dice.  The game ended when one person was left with all the fabric.   I had the rules all wrong and the game turned out to be endless.  The fat quarters I was using for the game were a stack of old Mary Englebreit fabrics that featured cherries and daisies.  Everyone HATED them.  My fabrics were the joke of the evening, everyone trying to pawn them off on everyone else as fast as they could.  Toni ended up with them and now that I think back, I do recall her saying something about me not seeing the last of those ugly fabrics.

So here is what was in the gift bag.  Something very familiar.....

Oh no, say it isn't true?  Toni and Annette had made me four place mats, four napkins, a bread basket liner and a huge tea cozy.  They were adorable!  How cute is that?  Eat your hearts out Girls!

We had a good laugh over that, I can tell you.  And you know what?  When I showed my husband, he LOVED them!  They are our new Summer-Eat-Outside-In-The-Garden placemats and napkins.

This was what I worked on mostly at the retreat.  I wanted to get the borders on my purple batik quilt, and it keeps getting bigger.  I wanted a dark purple containment border before the border of squares, but once that was on, I thought it needed an additional purple containment border to separate the squares from the fabric border.  Don't you agree?

I also finished my blocks for the Patisserie fabric project I have been working on, using the Patisserie jelly roll.  With any luck, I will get those blocks together this weekend and show you a quilt top!

I had so much fun on the retreat and feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends to share my passion for sewing with.  Can't wait for the next one!

Sophie was so glad to see me come home she helped me bring my bags into the house.  This little girl just loves to help out.  She even knows if something goes in my bedroom or my sewing room!

Tuesday Sale

Lots of things to share with you today!  Big Sale.  Something for everyone.  I will get right to it.  If you would like to buy something, click on the PayPal drop down "Buy It Now" button on the right side of the screen.  I have two PayPal buttons this week to handle all twelve of my items for sale.  Postage is costing me about twice what I have been charging, so I have had to up that a bit.

34 fatquarters of Wildrose by Brannock and Patek, plus one yard of a brown I liked with it, and 3 yards of green paisley for a border.  Rich shades of olive, red, brown, navy.  $80 plus $8 postage.

40 fatquarters of Mistletoe Manor by 3 Sisters.  Brown, red, dark green, pink and lots of lights for a scrappy background.  You cannot find this for love or money.  $75 plus $8 for postage.  SOLD

44 fatquarters of ShangriLa by 3 Sisters.  I had major plans for this fantastic collection of fabric, but I just don't think they are going to "materialize".   $80 plus $8 for postage.   SOLD

 

16 fat quarters of Harvest Home, plus 2 1/2 yards of border fabric.  Remember this group?  Doncha wish you had bought it when it was available?   $45 plus $5 postage.

 

I had these Kansas Troubles fabrics in the same plastic project box with the Harvest Home shown above, because I thought they all went together perfectly.  These are mainly from Shades of Autumn. Gold, brown and red.  22 fatquarters $40 plus $8 postage.

 

29 assorted gold fatquarters, mostly Kansas Troubles.  $45 plus $8 postage.  SOLD

 

21 fatquarters of Kansas Troubles lights/backgrounds.  $35 plus $5 postage.  SOLD

 

12 quarter yard cuts of Thimbleberries Candy Coated Christmas.  This could end up as a couple of darling table runners for Christmas gifts.  $21 plus $5 postage.

 

This was a gorgeous quilt that never happened.  The yummiest collection of flannel plaids you ever saw.  Rusts, golds, browns, olive greens.  So pretty.  I live in California people.  Flannels just don't work for me.  I bought it all at the fabulous JJ Stitches in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin on a visit to  my sister Mary.  27 gorgeous fatquarters plus one yard of rust plaid and approximately 3 yards of the olive green for a border.  $70 plus $8 for postage.    SOLD

 

 

This Jo Morton Civil War collection is still being sold in stores at regular prices.  This also came from JJ Stitches in Wisconsin.  I have 10 half yard cuts (with the brown twine) and 12 fatquarters.  Two of the fabrics are duplicated (the black paisley and the red with green hearts).  $75 plus $8 postage.  SOLD

 

I was too lazy to measure out the total yardage, but these fabrics are all from the Mother Goose and Friends group Moda had out last year.  Shades of red, French blue and soft green.  There are a couple of yard cuts, a few half yards, some quarter yards and a couple of pieces I cut into for another project.  Plenty of fabric for a good sized quilt top especially if you add a cream background.   $40 plus $5 postage.   SOLD

 

 

 

Last, I have an entire kit, all cut out and ready to go!  The kit came from Always Quilting in San Mateo, CA, and is all rich fall colors.  I cut out the squares and strips for the top and all you need to do is sew it together.  I am including the book Simple Quilts that has the pattern Indian Summer (pictured above).  $65 plus $8 for fabric and book.   SOLD

Was That Fun Or What?

Back from the retreat, and I have to say we had a FANTASTIC time!  The monks and their helpers treated us like royalty.  We laughed, ate, stayed up late, ate, sewed up a storm and pretty much ate constantly.  My gosh, my friends had wonderful projects, and of course I will share them with you!

This was Linda's.  Something inspired from the book Circle Play.  She says she takes a circle to work with her every single day and appliques it to a background block on her lunch hour.  Seriously.  She plans a queen sized quilt out of these blocks, and trust me she is well on her way.

This was Diana's project.  She had a focus print of Laurel Burch fabric and had a collection of stripes she had collected over a few year's time.  She got this entire thing pieced together over the weekend.  She just made up the pattern.

Here is another of her tops--this is a girl who isn't afraid of color.

This was a top Isabel finished for her son.  Gorgeous prints, but very masculine feeling over all.

This was another top Isabel completed over the past year in her spare time, which sounded non-existent between a death in the family, buying and renovating a vacation home, and her full time job.  If she can do it, anyone of us can squeeze in some extra sewing time!

My friend Bette is awesome in what she accomplishes.  This is a table runner she made, which I think is just amazing.  Her use of fabric and color is so incredible. 

I ran out of batteries and had to run to my room for a second, and missed my chance to get a shot of the front of this quilt, also by Bette.  I did get a picture of the back though, and check out the quilting job, done by the amazing Toni.  Yes, Friends, this the the *back* of the quilt.

Here's another Bette top.  She did get three mitered borders on it the next day.  She kept saying, "It isn't too Christmassy, is it?"  It's gorgeous Bette.  Just go with it Girlfriend.

You may remember last November I posted about our retreat, and that Toni had picked up some fabric at a shop on the way up to the retreat, and just proceeded to cut it out and sew things together, without a pattern, during the weekend.  This is what she created just off the cuff.

This is another of Toni's pieces.  She is in a league of her own. 

Close up of her thread embroidery.

I have tons more to share, but it will have to wait until Wednesday.  Check back with me tomorrow for my Tuesday Sale.  Lots of goodies!!!!!!  8:00 AM  Pacific Time.

Sneak Peak at Stunt Sewing Project

This is the quilting design that the fabulous Debbie Thornton at Prairie Queens chose for the quilt I made for my favorite quilt celebrity Rock Star.  Don't you love the design of high heeled pumps on the fabric Objects of Desire?  OMG, this quilt is seriously adorable.  I can't say too much more about it now, but this is going to be part of a very Hot Project for a major quilt publishing company.  Great things are worth waiting for!  Trust me on this one girls.

I finished my other stunt sewing project for Fig Tree and got the top Priority Mailed yesterday.  Very tight deadline on that one, whew!  Precision Piecing.  Now the quilter has the tight deadline, not me!  This fabric line, Mill House Inn, designed by Joanna Figuera will be out sometime late this summer I am guessing.  It has some wonderful tones of bittersweet, coral, brown, cool greens and soft blues.  You will love this group, every single piece of it, so start saving your pennies so you can buy a bundle!  Check out her blog, she has some peeks of it.

Shingles are almost gone, you have to look hard to see where they were.  I win the prize for the mildest case ever (vaccine induced).  But thank goodness for cover up.  I look like a fairly normal person, if you don't notice the crazed look in my eyes.  Which was largely brought on by major glitches with PayPal yesterday.  They were mainly self-induced I guess, but what a mess I made of things.  First off, I neglected to check Inventory Control, which meant that folks were not told if an item had sold when they placed their order.  I managed to sell Vintage Reserve twice and Red Hats three times.  My face is sure red over that one.  How embarrassing.  There goes my cred as a good merchant.  I thought I had that figured out after some tinkering, but then when anyone went to buy something they were told it was sold out, even if it wasn't.  Good grief.  Nothing was selling, so I marked down all the prices.  (big laugh on me).  Some good souls alerted me to the fact that things were amiss, and I was able to correct things and get it all sold.  Thank you for your patronage and for your patience.  I promise next week will be smoother and I will have more good stuff!

Hey, guess what?  I am leaving for a retreat tomorrow!!!!  We are going up to the monastery again, where they treat us like we are super special.  (Which we are, just not everyone sees that right off the bat).  Gettin' away from the stress and the dogs and the responsibilities of stunt sewing.   I should have wonderful photos of all the gal's projects on Monday! 

Working From Home

I was not able to go to work today.  On Friday I had an appointment with my doctor for my annual check up.  I am doing pretty well--weight is acceptable, blood pressure a teensy bit high, and cholesterol needs attention.  Nothing major.  Lucky me.  At the end of the appointment, my doctor said "You know, Nicole, they have come out with a vaccination for shingles.  I am recommending it to all my patients of a certain age.  Would you like to have one today?"  Well, as a person who has had major issues with cold sores all her life, I was very excited to think that I may be spared the gruesome effects of shingles, which is a related virus.  I agreed to the shot and that was that.

Until Saturday.  When I developed a patch of shingles on my face.  Now, it is very mild, hasn't spread, and is now just a little red patch, with no active blisters.  Just a little reaction to the vaccine.  I took my acycolvir, which probably totally counteracted the effect of the vaccine, but at least the patch hasn't spread and was lessened considerably in its severity.

Herein lies the problem.  Shingles is related to chicken pox as well as the common cold sore virus.  A person with shingles can't give shingles to someone else, and the virus is not spread by sneezing, coughing, saliva etc.  But, and this is a major BUT, a person with shingles (no matter how mild a case) can give chicken pox to someone who has not had that disease. They would have to get pretty intimate with the shingles blisters, but it could happen.  Weird, I know, but no joke.

So, in all good conscience, I fessed up to the folks at work and said I had a mild case of shingles and had to stay home for a couple of days.  It is now Wednesday (five days after the vaccine) and my doctor says I am no longer contagious, and am perfectly fine to go back to work.  Three of my colleagues at work have never had chicken pox, and were greatly alarmed that I might give it to them if I came back to work too soon.   They threatened to stay home from work themselves if I set foot in the place, doctor's ok or not.  I caused quite a little stir at the work place with my over cautious co-workers.  Just call me Typhoid Mary.

So, I am missing the entire week of work (and the pay I desperately need) and am stuck at home with a little fading red patch on my face. 

I put the time to good use though, and worked on my Wuthering Heights quilt top.  The pattern is Summerwinds by Miss Rosie's Quilt Company.  You start with a center medallion and keep adding borders until the quilt is around 76" square.  I have two borders to go:  a border of stars and a border of squares and rectangles.  Watch me, I could finish this up tomorrow if I work hard.

On the Tuesday Sale front, I didn't sell everything yesterday (major PayPal issues), and have reduced the prices on what I have left.  You can still purchase if you are interested.  No foreign buyers please-- postage is a killer.

Tuesday Sale

Welcome to my little shop, open only on Tuesdays!  Today I am selling some bundles and some fabric cuts.  If you see something you would like to buy, click on the PayPal button on the right hand margin.  Don't waste any time emailing me to tell me you would like something.  Some of this stuff goes really quickly, so if you think you like it, click on the PayPal link.  ALL ITEMS ARE NOW SOLD.  Thank You!  Check back next Tuesday to see what's new!

 

This is an entire 45 piece fatquarter bundle of Chelsea Boutique.  Not only do I have the bundle, but I have 1.75 yards of a coordinating teal "Crackle" fabric to use as a border and binding. See how well it goes?  $80 plus $5 shipping.  SOLD

Here is something for any of you Red Hat ladies out there!  A bundle of Red Hats/Old Friends.  18 fatquarters plus a panel.  $35 plus $5 for shipping.  SOLD

And you April Cornell devotees will swoon for these two bundles.  First, Decadent Victorian, 36 fatquarters in dreamy pinks, greens and purples.  $60 plus $5 for shipping.   SOLD

 

A Little Romance, a big bundle of 40 fatquarters in pinks, lavender, and green.  $65 plus $5 for shipping.

 

This collection is called Vintage Reserve by Minick and Simpson.  Muted shades of red, green,brown,  bronzey tan, and lots of great light backgrounds.  Plenty of contrast for a scrappy quilt here.  36 fatquarters, $65 plus $5 for shipping.  SOLD

Now, here is something for you Kansas Troubles fans.  I need to do a bit of explaining before I show the pictures.   The fabric is all Seasons, a gorgeous and rich looking collection.  I bought fabric to make a specific quilt, but the yardage will work for many patterns.  I have 10 quarter yard cuts, a 3/4 yard cut, a one yard cut, and a 1 1/2 yard cut.  SOLD

 

From left to right:  1 1/2 yds, 1 yd, 3/4 yd.

Here are the dark quarter yards:

 

And the light quarter yards:

And here is the pattern for sweet little nine patches.  But you could do a ton of other things with this collection.  Great Kansas Troubles line.  7 1/4 yards total.  $45 plus $5 for shipping.

I will close with something quite current.  If you love Fig Tree designs (doesn't everyone), I have a Moda U kit of Allspice Tapestry.  It contains 30 fatquarters, a pattern, 1 1/4 yards of border fabric, and 2/3 yard for binding.  $70 plus $5 for shipping.   SOLD

 

 

Welcome To My Sweat Shop, I Mean My World

It was a gorgeous weekend here in Northern California, or so I am told.  I wouldn't know any thing about that because I spent every minute inside sewing on my celebrity stunt sewing gig.  You see, as honored as anyone would be to be asked to sew for a major figure in the quilting world, the assignment usually comes with a very short deadline.  And if you have any sort of life outside of sewing, like work, or dogs, or a family who likes clean laundry and a hot meal at the end of the day, this can be a challenge.

My husband rose to the challenge and promised to plant the two flats of annuals I recently bought, plus to be responsible for all our meals until this project is over.  For the Gratitude Journal:  give thanks for a supportive husband.

The star block above is a unit in the blocks I am assembling for the current project.  The center unit of each block.  The fabrics are a joy to work with and are part of the latest Fig Tree design called Mill House Inn, due to be released sometime after Spring  Quilt Market.  Don't tell me I never gave you any major scoops, friends!  These fabrics are To.Die.For.  Hot off the boat from the Korean fabric mills, where Moda fabric comes from, if you didn't know.

 

The responsibility of sewing a quilt top that may well be seen at Spring Market, is an onerous one.  I am thrilled, but at the same time, scared to death that anyone might find my piecing wanting.  The points need to line up perfectly, not a thread's width off.  Let me just say that my seam ripper and I are very close. 

Better get back to it....

Oh, be sure and check back tomorrow for my Tuesday Sale.  The theme will be Bundles!  Store opens at 8:00 AM Pacific Time.

I Know What I'll Be Doing This Weekend...

I have my fabric all cut out for my top secret sewing mission, and placed into carefully labeled baggies.  Hmmm, there are a lot of pieces here to sort out.  For each block, I need to choose one back ground fabric and three different colored fabrics to form the pattern.  My biggest decision is whether to work on individual block units (stars, flying geese, etc) and get those all done, or just tackle one entire block at a time.  What would you do?

On the Ozzie and Sophie front, things are going well.  They have been playing nicely, even when they "play fight".  They tussle around on the ground, taking turns being on the bottom, play growling, and displaying lots of teeth in a fakey sort of way.  If the game shows any sign of not being fun anymore for either of them, we stop it and separate them.  Sometimes they just lie quietly next to each other and play kissy-face.  I never seem to be able to get a picture of it though!

Have a great weekend everyone!

A New Mission

 

I have been asked to take on another celebrity stunt sewing mission, for someone known for her beautiful fabric designs and creative patterns.  I am not permitted to say too much about the project, but have permission to give you little sneak peeks of my assignment. 

The fabric for my project arrived yesterday and in it, there is a sea foam green colorway that is somewhat of a departure from this artist's usual palette.  My early morning photo doesn't do the fabric total justice, but I think you can see that it is elegant and soothing and ever so beautiful.

This project has a tight deadline, and will require my complete attention for the next 10-14 days.  Yes, I did say 10-14 days.  Gulp.  Now I know how people in the Quilting World feel when they have to do nothing but sew night and day to get ready for Market.  Be careful what you wish for, right?  Just kidding.  This is a dream come true to for me!!!!

Stay tuned for more teensy peeks at what I am working on!

Easter 2009

 

Easter is one of my favorite holidays.  It signifies the arrival of Spring and New Beginnings for one thing.  And for another it is a holiday that focuses on joy, family,  and food rather than a lot of gift giving.  It is the tradition in my family to celebrate Easter with a brunch.  Everyone contributes something and the spread is truly formidable.  You can hear the table groaning under the weight of all the food.  We start the occasion off with Mimosas, a light cocktail of sorts, made with a bit of champagne and orange juice.  When the food is ready, the grandparents are served, and then everyone else digs in.  There is a lot of hub bub and good cheer.  The weather was lovely and the crowd was large, so some of us spilled outside to enjoy our meal in the sunshine.  It was a glorious day.

My sisters out do themselves with the pot luck offerings they provide.  I rarely vary from my dish of Blueberry French Toast.  The kids all love it, so why experiment?  My sister Trish always comes up with something innovative, and this year she made dozens of tiny little quiches.  Some filled with ham and others filled with a surprise bite of jalapeno.

Andrea outdid herself with the strussely muffins in the lower part of the photo and these amazing stuffed strawberries.  Who have you ever heard of who would stuff a strawberry?  Only Martha or Andrea.

Sara contributed the Sacrificial Easter Lamb, a job she took over from Grandma Mimi.  Grandma made the Rice Krispy Treats lamb for decades, but recently passed the metal mold off to Sara and now she is responsible for our centerpiece.  There is always a debate on how to cut it.  Head off first, or do we whittle away at the rear end?

All these photos are courtesy of Andrea, who even took one of me that I like, showing me beaming at my assembled loved ones.

Tuesday Sale

This week I have a bit of this and a bit of that for you.  Some kits, some fat quarters and some yardage.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE PAYPAL LINK TO THE RIGHT IF YOU WANT TO BUY ANY OF THESE ITEMS.  DO NOT EMAIL ME TO SAY YOU WOULD LIKE SOMETHING, CLICK RIGHT ON THE BUTTON.  Don't want anyone to be disappointed!  If something sells, you will get a Sold Out notice when you try to buy it.   On Wednesday, I will take the PayPal button away until next Tuesday.

This is a pack of 20 Michael Miller Neutral fat quarters.  $30 plus $5 postage.  SOLD

37 fatquarters of Sanctuary by 3 Sisters for Moda.  Pinks, purples, yellows and creams.  $50 plus $5 postage  SOLD

This is a kit I bought from the Quilt in a Bag booth at the Pacific International Quilt Show.  The fabrics are all Moda Marbles and the pattern is autumn leaves with a piano key border.  Very colorful and pretty for Fall.  I paid $110 for the kit, so how about $70 plus $5 postage?

Remember Web Sampler II?  This is a fat quarter bundle of the fabrics used in that project.  28 fat quarters of Civil War Classics by Judy Rothermel for Marcus Brothers.  Reds, browns, tans, creams, and a few blacks.  $45 plus $5 postage.  SOLD

These are the twelve blocks of the month for Web Sampler Celebration III.  Beautiful blues, tans and browns.  Each month has the fabric and block instructions to make one block.  I did not buy a finishing kit, but some participating shops still have them available at this website:  http://www.websamplercelebration.com/  (blocks were originally $8.50 each)  $70 plus $5 postage.  SOLD

This is the pattern and fabric for a braided look table runner.  The colors are russet, burgundy and light tan.  $30 plus $5 postage.

Last, I have some yardage of a really different Christmas fabric group.  It is Traditions by Sentimental Studios for Moda.  The prints are all black and white toile like designs.  A quilt using these fabrics with a cream background and a touch of red would be simply stunning.  I have one yard cuts of the five prints in the top photo and 3.5 yards of the print in the lower photo.  $45 plus $5 postage.  SOLD

A Bit of Sewing, A Bit of Shopping

It was a perfect weekend, with time for sewing, time for shopping, and time socializing with the family.  I worked on the blocks for the quilt I am making out of the Patisserie jelly roll.  I would have finished them I think, but I made a discovery that bummed me out, so I quit.  Remember me saying that when I was cutting out the fabric it was after work and after half a glass of chardonnay?  And how I cut all my 2 1/2 inch squares instead of leaving them in strips so I could strip piece them?  I discovered that I also cut some of my green block surrounds a quarter inch too short.  I had to order fat quarters of the three that I had ruined so I would have enough green in the quilt top.  Honestly.

Remember in high school in Drivers Ed how they would show movies of people who had had just a teensy bit of alcohol and how it affected their driving?  They would give these poor schmucks one beer and see how they did on an obstacle course.  Even with a minimum of alcohol their coordination and judgment was impaired and they all knocked down the obstacle course cones.  So you think you are just fine after a tiny bit of beer or wine?  Hah. 

It is the same with sewing friends, don't drink and drive your Bernina.  Or even worse, don't drink and use your rotary cutter.  That is a disaster waiting to happen.  I didn't cut myself, but I sure did make a lot more mistakes that I normally do when I am cutting out fabric.  Lesson learned.

I ordered a bit of something from Fatquartershop.com a week ago.  I just couldn't resist these green batiks.  They are the prettiest sagey color with darker brown contrast.  No clue what to do with them, but they are getting a lot of petting while I mull it over.

Hope you will check in tomorrow for my third Tuesday Sale.  I will post at 8:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time.  There might be something there for you!

Around the Block

Well, the consensus from yesterday's question:  Do you wash your finished quilts right away to give them that soft quiltier feel?    A resounding YES!!!  As Carrie said, it makes them Nap Worthy.  So true!

While at work this week I have had a persistent, distracting notion that I have not been able to get out of my head.  I keep thinking of the fabric group Patisserie by Fig Tree for Moda.  And how I need to make a quilt out of it.  As with most Fig Tree designs, it is lusciously beautiful.  It doesn't help that the fabrics are named after wonderful pastry concoctions that one would most certainly like to eat.  I haven't been able to get those images out of my head either and broke my diet today to eat a chocolate cupcake with mocha frosting.  I have no regrets.

But I digress.  I have been thinking of Patisserie, and the sad fact that I could only afford a jelly roll when the group came out.  What wonderful thing can I do with a single jelly roll that cost me $33?  What pattern might show off this lovely fabric line, even though I have such a meager amount of it?

What do you think?  This may be my answer!  I made three blocks as an experiment and like what I see.  A little framed nine patch block.  How sweet is that?

My only problem is that I wasn't paying strictly enough attention to the (extremely clear) cutting directions, and now I have to piece the nine patch blocks the old fashioned way--No strip piecing because I forged ahead and cut out all the little 2 1/4" squares.  Lesson learned:  Do not attempt cutting after work when you are half way into a glass of chardonnay.  I know better.

Any way, I love the fabric & love the pattern "Around the Block" from Heather Mulder Peterson's book On a Roll Again.

Garden Fences

A big thank you to all who shopped at my Tuesday Sale this week!  I hope that you love your selections when they arrive.  I've still got plenty more to sell, so check back next week!

The quilt above is the one I recently got out of hock from my favorite quilter.  It is an old pattern from Fig Tree called Garden Fences.  It is also in a book by Fig Tree called Hearth and Home Quilts.  The "fence" part is the teensy checkerboard squares that surround each block.  Thank goodness for strip piecing.  That would have been a lot of 1 1/2" squares!  The fabric was all from my stash.  I was proud of my machine applique effort (the circles).  If you are trying to teach yourself machine applique, those circles are a gentle introduction.

Now I need to get the binding on and give the quilt a wash.  Let's hope all my machine appliqued circles don't fall off!  lol 

Tell me, do you wash your quilts right away when they are finished?  Or do you prefer the flat newish look?  In the past, I have preferred the newness aspect, but recently was told that the "quiltier" look a quilt acquires after washing is the preference of many others.

The quilt top I have been working on for a certain Quilting Rock Star must be washed upon completion, it turns out.  The reason being that washing a quilt gives it a much more interesting look in photoshoots.  Also the quilting design shows up better after washing and makes for a more attractive appearance.  Isn't that fascinating?  Who knew?  What is your opinion?
 

Tuesday Sale

Last week's Tuesday Sale was a big success, so I am going to keep this up until my stash cupboard is manageable.  Thank you to everyone who made offers!  I really appreciate it. 

I played around with PayPal and have set up a link on my right side bar to make purchasing easier.

This week I am offering something you Thimbleberries fans may like.  The first collection is 26 fatquarters of a group called Garden Graphics.  26 fatquarters for $45 plus $5 postage. 

Here is a close up of one of the prints:

Next, another Thimbleberries group in a Christmassy theme.  The collection is called December Day.  24 fatquarters for $42 plus $5 postage. SOLD

Here is a close up of one of the prints:

Here is a group called Anticipation by Moda, designed by Sandy Gervais.  I have 22 fatquarters for $38 plus $5 postage. SOLD

Next, some wovens that coordinate with a lot of Moda collections.  15 fat quarters for $26 plus $5 postage.   SOLD

Now, here is something some of you may like.  It is 17 fat quarters of mostly Faded Memories by Moda (there may be pieces from other groups in this bundle, but they all work together), plus 1 yard of pink floral, plus 1/2 half yard each of a salmon tone on tone and a pink tone on tone.  $40 plus $5 postage.

SOLD

For you American Jane fans.  A complete bundle of Recess, still in its plastic wrap.  $80 plus $5 postage.  40 fatquarters.   SOLD

My last offering for today is a quilt kit I bought at the Pacific International Quilt Show.  The fabrics are folk art Christmas in theme, in a subdued burgundy, forest green and golden tan palette.  Very very pretty group of fabrics by a designer named Lisa Liffick.  The fabrics have a Buggy Barn sort of feel and style.  The pattern is super easy and would be great for a beginner.  $70 for the kit plus $5 postage.  SOLD

Wine and Friends

Aren't these coral roses just the prettiest color?  I wanted to do something a little different this weekend when we had company.  Coral isn't a color I wear or decorate with, but I think I may have been missing something.  It all started with our kitchen table, which we have had for over 30 years.  It is showing many signs of, shall we say, "good use".  I wanted something to cover up the rings, scratches, and scorch marks, and thought a table cloth might be in order.  I found a pretty coral colored April Cornell table cloth at a local shop and brought it home with me.  While I was at Costco buying groceries I spied the perfect bunch of coral roses.  Two coral colored pillar candles later, and my table scape evolved.

The dinner I made was Italian, with the recipes coming from Giada di Laurentis' cookbooks.  My appetizer was white bean puree (just like hummus) with pita toasts.  I called them toasts, but my family said they were burned.  Harumph.  I made her Chicken Marsala with Marscapone, and served it over fettuccine.  On the side was an Italian version of Caesar salad, but the dressing recipe was strange.  "Never put more than one tablespoon of Dijon mustard into anything" is the lesson I learned there.  Dessert was raspberries over Hagen Das vanilla ice cream.   I think I give myself a grade of B for this effort.  Not my best, but at least the entree was good.  Here is a recipe for the Chicken Marsala.  Just cut back on the mustard.

This is a book I bought recently that I have yet to try any recipes from.  Doesn't the concept look fun though?  Lots of suggestions for just the right wine to serve with your food.  All the recipes come from Cooking Light magazine.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend.  I sewed like a sweat shop worker on my secret project.  Got to get it to the quilter ASAP.  It is turning out pretty cute in spite of my worries that the backgrounds were too busy.

Check back tomorrow for my second Tuesday Sale!  I plan to post at 8:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time.  Good stuff!

Sneak Peek and Tentative Truce

Interesting comments to yesterday's post on the low tech way to do laundry.  So many of you have the same memories as I do.  One woman said that we must have had the same grandma, her recollections were so identical to mine.  We always wondered what happened to Uncle Roger, maybe this is a clue?  He disappeared back in the 50's and some folks speculated he ran off and started a new family.  Maybe he secretly turned up and had Grandma watch his new kids?  Actually I believe he ended up in the Detroit River, as a victim of foul play, but that is a story for another day.

Here is a sneak peek at something fun-

I mentioned that I was going to be doing some sewing for a well known Quilt Diva.  Well that moniker was a terrible choice of words, and I do apologize.  This lovely person is FAR from being a temperamental drama queen.  She is more of a Quilting Rock Star, as Lisa calls her.  She is cool, funny, wildly talented, and super nice.  The fabrics above are called Objects of Desire by Sandy Gervais for Moda.  It is so much fun to work with these bright, sunny, cheerful fabrics, and the fact that there is a shoe motif running through the collection is just my thing.  I am on a bit of a deadline for her though, so I have been working on this project and can't show you too much of it just yet.

Here is something I can talk about and that would be my dogs Ozzie and Sophie.

We did speak to the professional trainer, who turned us down.  She said some dogs are hard wired to be a certain way, and were untrainable.  My husband refuses to accept that and has been working with the two dogs constantly since he returned from his trip.  He is determined that this behavior can be modified.  We have not had any repeats of the fight that I experienced while he was gone, but I am waiting for the other shoe to drop.  We never leave the dogs alone together unsupervised and have upped the exercise and play time to tire them out.  For now, we have a sort of truce going on.

I believe that body language tells so much about people, and my theory holds for dogs as well.  That is Sophie on the left with a yellow tee shirt in her mouth.  She had pulled it out of the laundry basket and was capering all around the bedroom with it in her mouth.  Ozzie was running about with her, joining in the game.  But, look at the way he pulls slightly away from her.  He is a bit uneasy.  Wary, if you will.  He also doesn't have his happy face on.  Sophie looks playful, but there is a challenging expression on her face, don't you think?

Well, I have a busy weekend ahead.  Sewing for the QRS and a casual dinner party to plan. If I get a chance, I will even replant some of my big pots with summer annuals.   Hope all the rest of you have a super good one! 

Laundry

 

When did laundry stop being fun?

When I was a little girl, I used to love helping Grandma Agnes with the wash.  There was a comforting and predictable sequence to Laundry Day.  We started early in the morning, and devoted a good part of the day to complete the task.  There was a big tall wringer style washing machine in one corner of her kitchen, which I was not allowed anywhere near.  Grandma claimed to have once known a boy who had stuck his fingers in the wringer and got them completely squished, which was enough to keep me at a distance.  

Once the batch of clothes had been put through the terrifying wringer, I would go with Grandma outside to the yard to hang them out to dry.  If it was a cool day, sometimes the freshly washed laundry would actually be steaming in the wicker basket!  There was a pretty flowered cloth bag that held the clothes pins, which Grandma would take down from the line and let me hold.  She also had a supply of pins in her apron pockets and also a couple held between her teeth.   I liked to sit at her feet and hand her the pins ("clothes pegs" she called them), thinking I was being a big help.  I would sometimes pretend they were people, and put hollyhock blossoms on some of the pins to better imagine them being princesses in ball gowns.  Once I recall taking an ink pen and marking the knobs on the top of each pin so that they had faces and hair.  I even drew underwear on them for modesty's sake.  Grandma didn't really mind. 

During the day, while I played in the shade of the weeping willow tree or in my sandbox, I could see the clothes gently moving in the breeze.  I loved it in particular when she laundered bedding, because I could hide in amongst the sheets and blankets and pretend I was invisible.  After a few hours I would help Grandma take down "the wash", and the clothing would still be warm from the sun and smelling sweetly of soap and fresh air.

I wasn't all that much help with the folding, but loved to watch Grandma's precise motions as she created order from the pile of freshly laundered articles.  I especially loved watching her fold the big sheets into neat manageable stacks.  I would chatter incessantly, constantly asking Grandma silly questions, such as why don't all shirts have the same number of buttons, why overalls took longer to dry than underwear, or why Grandpa's clothes were always so much dirtier than hers.  She never minded my babbling and we would chat companionably while she did her chores.  I never felt like a bother to her, even though it was obvious even to me that I wasn't particularly useful in my assistance, no matter how willingly it was offered.

So, where did the joy of doing laundry go?  Certainly the labor saving devices available to me cut the time the chore takes by many hours. Partly to blame for my lack of enthusiasm is the absence of routine.  I have no regular assigned day for doing laundry, and the task may be interrupted at any stage by errands, other tasks, phone calls or the computer.  The clothes pile up and get washed whenever I have a load's worth of similar colors.  There definitely is no ceremony about dumping a load of wet wash into the dryer. Sometimes I completely forget the dryer load, and the clothing ends up so wrinkled I have to start all over again.  The sweet smell of outdoors is lacking, as well as the loving companionship of sharing the task with another.  And folding?  Ugh.  I am still no good at it. 

I wonder if I got myself a clothesline I could recapture some of the joy?

A VERY Special Day

istockphoto

One of my very favorite people in the entire world is having her birthday today.  That would be my little sister Andrea of Under a Blue Moon.  Please go on over and check out her blog and say Happy Birthday.  She is such an amazing person, and if your style leans toward romantic/shabby chic, when you see her blog you will think you died and went to Heaven.  Not only is she talented, but really nice too.  I am so lucky to have her as a sister and best friend.

I remember the day she was born so clearly.  I was eleven and we were living in Michigan.  It had been a tough winter, but we had now moved into Mud Season.  Mom had gone to the beauty salon to have her hair done, and well, while she was there, certain things happened that led her to believe that she had better get to the hospital without passing Go.  Andrea was born and brought home in no time, and I had my third little sister.  She was a sweet baby, and never really had any issues, except that she craved having a baby bottle way longer than considered strictly necessary.  When my fourth little sister Trish was about a year old, she used to just hand her bedtime bottle over to Andrea because she realized that Andrea needed it more than she did.  I am happy to say that Andrea has now substituted bottles of chardonnay for the milk, but does not swig it out of the container.

At the time, the best thing for me personally about her choosing that particular day to be born was that it was the occasion of the Ballroom Dance Recital in Port Huron, Michigan.  It was a dance that no one had asked me to.  Now, let me just say that this NEVER happened to me again in my life, but on this day, I was so happy to have a reason to tell people that prevented me from attending the dance.  Thank you Andrea.  You have often saved me from embarrassment.

Except for that one time when you were five and streaked the mailman, and ran straight into Mom on your way across the yard.

Andrea has been interested in beauty and self improvement all her life, and is a very attractive woman.  This photo shows an early style experiment that thankfully, she did not add to her normal look.  I am pretty sure that that is Mom's glass of chardonnay in the foreground.  The apple don't fall far from the tree.

Besides all her other attributes, she is a great friend, a wonderful companion, and has promised me that when I am old, I can live with her and take up residence in a rocking chair on her front porch.  Who needs anything else when you have a sister you can count on?  Muwwwwahhhh.  Big hugs and kisses and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!