A bit of This and That

My grd C came over for a few hours and we made this fun bouquet of daffodils after she ate some breakfast. C said she loves to come to our house cause I always have some fun thing to do. I picked up this kit last year thinking that it would be fun to make one day for the kids. Yep, I was right! C also said the best part is that it didn't need any glue LOL
As you can tell I was ready for a hair cut later that day!

Our quilt group meets weekly and last Tues was our community service week. We take the opportunity to spend one whole meeting creating, basting, machine quilting and binding all sorts of quilts that then get donated to several different causes such as Project Linus, Parent support group for children/babies who are in long term or very serious hospital stays and sometimes our projects go to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints humanitarian projects or St Peter's Catholic Church in American Fork since we have members of both in our group. Just a few photos from last Tues. Peggy holding up one of the quilt tops ready to be basted and you can see behind her larger tops on hangers ready for backs and basting so they all can be quilted. Next picture is Christina preparing the batting and then bottom is ME, pressing one of the backs.
We are lucky to have the quilt room that is just for us at the Sr Center here and we use our fund raising quilt to purchase backing fabric, and batting for our many quilts.

More Civil War Love Letter Blocks Finished!

Took me almost to the end of the month to get these six finished. I enjoyed sewing those Daisy blocks too much I guess. LOL
So what do you think of my color choices this time? I am trying not to repeat fabrics and I have plenty of blues and browns and probably greens but it is hard to NOT repeat those reds and yellow and purples.
I like all of the blocks this time but I have to admit I love the color combination of the right hand block on the second row a whole lot! It reminds me of having my Dad paint my room pink with green trim...he hated it but I loved it LOL.
I was looking ahead for the next ones I will be choosing and there are some complicated ones coming up. None of these were too hard but the red, white and blue with the flying geese luckily was paper pieced I can't imagine having to do those traditionally! YIPES!

Much better now!

In the beginning there was my 19th century stash...collected over the years from here and there. Sometimes it came in a set sometimes just what I loved. It was stored in baskets in my sewing room and when I wanted to use it I would sometimes have to pull all the baskets down to find the right piece of blue or red or whatever!
So, I decided it was time to make some changes in how I have stored the fabrics. Took it all upstairs and sorted by color this time (with a few exceptions) and piled it all out on the table.
Found out a few things too. First I have a lot more browns and blues than any other color other than maybe greens. So I am safe in NOT buying any to beef up that color. LOL Second I have several duplicates, not just in color way but the exact same prints! And third yellows and oranges are a bit scarce there. Just like today's fabrics I am betting so...I know to look for those two if I am on a shopping expedition. And last of all I have about 8-10 prints that just had so many different colors that I couldn't figure out where to put them so, they are in the right hand basket with my "background-y" type prints and my lovely Jane Austen collection that just needs to stay together so that one day when I get around to doing something JA- like I will have it! LOL

Now look at my lovely stash! Like colors together and I also found some prints that were reproductions but not 19th c. so they need a new home. I had a pile of scraps that need a new place too and then I still have some vintage yardage that never seems to fit in with what I like. I think I maybe need a give away!
I will ponder that and get back to it soon. So now it is all back in the sewing room but hopefully in a much easier to use order!

Some Blog Candy for you to visit!

Oh my can you imagine 50,000+ posts or visits?
Visit this lovely scrapping blog and see what she is offering to celebrate!
http://jacqui47.blogspot.com/2009/02/candy-time.html

There's quiet a que but you can at least try, right?

LIke Father like son...

I just had to share this picture my dd took of my grson little A studying with his Daddy!

Can you say...."so cute"?

I'll Bring You a Daisy A Day, dear!

Remember that old song?
Well, I thought I would take a picture of the daisy blocks so far. I actually finished one more this afternoon and by the time I am done I will get them perfect! LOL
As you see it has turned warmer and sunny here in Utah for the next few days...might even hit 50 and I am praying for it to do so!

I also did this card for H's co-worker as we are invited to his 50th birthday party so I thought I would make him something just for him. I used a card and sticker from a DCWV card stack, added some Provo Craft paper from a small stack, then cardstock, brads and used my Costco stamps I purchased back in Dec...I am determined to use those darn stamps.
Inside there is a smiley face and the word celebrate also stamped.

On the Sewing Table

Whoo-hooo it's Mardi Gras time in my little quilt house!(the confused house!)
Working on my BOM from Carol Doak's yahoo group the other day and this month's house had an identity crisis! I started out thinking Valentine Day house, then thought President's Day house and then thought Mardi Gras house and the poor thing ended up being none of the above, lol...so, it was time for a remake for sure.
I decided to be a bit different and chose a Mardi Gras theme and chose the purple, green and gold color scheme. Since I am sure there is green grass in Mardi Gras country (southern US mostly) the grass on this house is some great green batiks that just needed the right block. Finally I found that over-the-top corner fabric that just said Mardi Gras and a swampy LA to me. It certainly is a different look at Feb for sure! LOL

Remember that Spinning Daisies quilt in my sidebar? Well it is out of it's ziploc bag and back in progress once more. I loved the fabrics I chose and I would love to get it in my living room this summer. I have 6 completed and 10 more to go. The original has 20 blocks but I decided to only do 16. I am doing an assembly line (sort of) method by cutting all my freezer paper templates in a stack (4 sets at a time) then I have also cut the petal fabrics into strips and then sub cutting into rectangles. Take them to the iron and press on the petal templates 4 sets at a time then use TV time to cut the seam allowance and glue down the seam allowance to the templates so that they are ready to machine applique.
This is MY favorite machine applique method cause it is heavy on preparation but quick on sewing LOL
Wish me luck to keep my pace of one a day so that I can get this quilt put together soon.

buttons and cards

I just love to use buttons on both my scrapping and quilt projects and while cruising through the craft dept. at Wally-world I ran upon a bag of assorted buttons for less than $1.75 a bag. It was one where you couldn't really see what was exactly in the bag but it looked great to me so I bought one.
What a great bag full of buttons I got. Lots of pretty colors, and sizes along with some interesting novelty buttons including 8 snorkeling flippers buttons and a few mask and snorkel buttons to match. Now I am trying to figure out how to use them in my cruise album LOL

Then this morning I work up about 4 Am not being able to sleep so I headed to my scrapbook room thinking I would read a magazine and maybe play a bit with some Valentine cards I had started for my grkids. Well about 2 hours later here are the three cards finished.

The crown card has a base from a set of blank note cards I bought from Target at least a year ago at the $1 spot. It is a bit smaller than the others but it was so cute I thought it would make a good Valentine card. I used the new glitter cardstock from DCWV to make the crown (yes it is very glittery) and some jeweled brads for the accents on the crown and the little heart tag. Crown and tag are Cricut Cuts from Storybook and Doodlecharms carts.
The two owl cards have a base of cards from a set by DCWV that I bought at their warehouse sale (they are really ugly underneath LOL) Papers from DCWV 8x8 stacks once again from a warehouse sale, cardstock and some fun jewel hearts. The letters and owl are also from the Storybook cart.
I made another but forgot to photograph it before it was mailed to Texas so my DD promises to email me a picture of it LOL

Very much NOT traditional valentine's cards but they fit my grchildren and it is nice to use up things that need to be used LOL!

So what's UP?

I have been doing some scrapping...and I have been doing some sewing but nothing is complete and ready to show.
Scrapping...I am in the midst of more cruise pages but still need to do titles and journaling for them.

Quilting...I am preparing to teach the BOM's for Day and Night New Friends groups but since I am demo-ing them I don't want to finish the block but show it in construction. Sometimes when I teach I actually create two different blocks...one in parts under construction and one all finished to show what it will look like in the end. This time I only want to make one of each color versions so I partly construct the block and then show how you do each step with the "unfinished parts".
Just curious for those who teach quilting...how do you do it?

Maybe today I will finish those cruise pages and start some more LOL or maybe make some Valentines? Who knows!

And as for that photo...yesterday when I was making breakfast...I cracked a double yoke egg!
I hope that is for good luck but at least it is something interesting to take a picture of and share! LOLOLOL

Chitter Chatter Designs at New Friends

I have always tried to find local designers when I travel and new and up and comers when I am at home and Cori Blount of
Chitter Chatter Designs is a newer Utah designer that we invited to visit New Friends Quilt Circle on Tues. She is a delightful young lady, mother of 5 (I think that is what she said) and wife and loves to design applique quilts. She did a trunk show of most of her patterns/quilts and then gave us an insight into how she designs. She tells us she has a list of up and coming patterns focusing on Nursery Rhymes.
Near the end she showed us her method of freezer paper/needle turn applique and it was a "new concept" for most everyone in the room and we have some experienced appliquers. How about that.
She explained that she creates a freezer paper drawing and then cuts out the pieces leaving the "template" intact.
Next she uses the cut out piece to first iron to the appropriate fabric, cut out leaving a seam allowance and then irons on the remaining template to her background. Next step is to loosen slightly the space where the piece she will stitch down belongs and slip it back into place making a perfect matching spot for the background.
She also cuts channels (My word) to allow her pencil in and trace the embroidery line.
OK hard to explain in words but I hope the pictures help!
Any way Cori shows off her current favorite pattern Hickory Dickory Dock!

Peppers in a jar?

I had come home from some shopping and big A was helping me bring in some bags of stuff...He saw the bottled peppers I had bought...all 10 of them and he asked
What did you buy so many for?

I am adding them to my food storage because at $1 a bottle from Dollar Tree they are a bargain right? I figure I wouldn't use more than one a month and with 10 I have almost a whole year's supply on hand.
Have you priced fresh red peppers in the store? LOL Almost $3 each! I am trying to add weekly to my food storage...for those who aren't familiar with the idea...putting away foods that we use on a regular basis for "just in case".
I was listening to Glenn Beck on the radio and someone had called to ask for advice in preparing for the financial downs that were on their way. This was maybe 6 months ago...his advice was to stock up on food items that had the probability of getting more expensive in the near future and if you have growing kids on clothing items that they will need like coats and shoes.
Even if you don't think there is some great disaster on it's way it is a way to hedge against inflation right?
If you eat a bunch of cornflakes or whatever, then buying them for later might help you keep your food costs within reason if you buy 10 boxes on sale and you can last until the next sale.
Anyway...my Mom taught me to hunt for bargains and shop sales and this is just a bit more extensive of that idea LOL
Besides they are pretty in the jars and I could decorate with them for Valentine's Day...LOL