Needles and Pens

I'm feeling incredibly unmotivated today, but I did manage to scratch out a to-do list for the week. Maybe getting it down here will give me that little push I need to get GOING. More string blocks Setting a block-a-day goal for these this week. Hopefully we'll see some progress. February's paper-pieced BOM Considering we're well into March now, I'd really like to have this done. Flannel critter quilt A new Simplicity pattern I bought this weekend. I thought it might be a good seller in the shop. We'll see... Go through email I owe an apology to all of you lovely people who have left blog comments. My email inbox is a MESS. I sincerely appreciate all of your comments, and am usually much better about replying in a timely manner. It's definitely time to get this under control. Bathtub caulking removal Hubby did indeed get that bathtub leveled, and has almost taken care of all of the leaking/dripping issues. I need to get in there now with a scraper, ...

I can't believe February is already here! Amazing how the weeks fly by when you give yourself loads of things "to-do!" Again, I almost finished everything on my list for the week . Almost. Plus a thing or two I hadn't planned on, so I guess that's fair. Straighten the basement, get the TV hooked up and get on the treadmill. (My excuse is that I'm waiting for my hubby to hook up the TV. Realistically, I could probably do it myself if I tried. Mostly, I just don't really want to get on the treadmill. LoL) Clean out the front hall closet. (What an amazing improvement. We can all hang our coats up now! Just wish I had taken a "before" picture... it was BAD.) Personalization on pink ragtime quilt. Make another pink ragtime quilt for shop. Shabby Chic Baby Pink Flannel Ragtime Quilt And this was not on my list, but since I was kind of on a roll with the flannel quilts, I also finished one that's a little more boyish. Shabby...

I've been making a lot of gifts lately, so haven't been able to share as I go, but there is one I can share today for Amylouwho's Sew & Tell Friday , a gift to my husband's longtime friend and co-worker, who is courageously fighting a battle with cancer. I fell in love with this pattern during a recent CQUSA mystery (I made a baby quilt, which I can't share quite yet), and for the first time ever, I've made three quilts in a row using the same pattern. It goes together really quickly, is perfect for showcasing larger prints and is very fat quarter friendly. The full pattern is made up of twelve 18" blocks plus sashing. This one is half that, with only six blocks, measuring approximately 46 x 66 inches. Countless prayers for our friend are stitched into this quilt, and my hope is that he will feel our love for him whenever he uses it. Our prayers continue for Joel and his family... for strength, for healing, and for peace that passes un...

Officially en route to the birthday boy today, and therefore really and truly finished... ( Thanks to Austin's grandma and grandpa, for the extra-special delivery service! ) ... for my great-nephew, Austin, who turned thirteen last week. Since he was born before I really started quilting, he's waited a very long time for his quilt. On the plus side, his is a lot bigger than the baby quilts his younger cousins have received! The inspiration for this quilt came over a year ago, when I joined an online quilting bee to make blocks for Margaret's Hope Chest . One of the requested blocks was a very simple, sports themed hourglass block. If you look closely at the finished quilt for Joshua , you'll see a couple of familiar blocks in there... ... 9-1/2" squares of the sports print and black Kona cotton, cut diagonally both ways, sewn back together and trimmed down to 8-1/2" blocks. Here are all of the blocks sewn together for Austin's quilt, before ...

What? Two posts in one week??? I haven't managed that in awhile. But before time gets away from me again, I wanted to get in an update on the scrappy cowboy quilt I was making for my niece, Annie (of Decorator in a Box ). She had chosen the fabrics and the scrappy layout, and the top was almost finished when I last posted... And just in time for a 4th of July visit from Annie and family, the quilt was finished! She'll be giving it to her friend back in Texas, as a special gift for her baby boy. I ran a little short on the cowboy print for the back, but had just enough of the buffalo plaid flannel left over to piece in the extra length: It's quilted with a gold thread similar to blue jean stitching, all diagonal crosshatching, except for two "blocks" that seemed perfect for quilted cowboy boots. Can you see the boot? I had a hard time getting a picture to show it off. Here's a closeup that shows the borders: And some of the crosshatching: ...

A group of my online quilting friends held a virtual sew-in last weekend. Amazing how motivating that can be! With the regular check-ins, chatting, and sharing of progress pictures all weekend long, it almost felt like we were all together on a quilting retreat. We often talk about organizing a real retreat someday. Now that would be a blast! This was my sew-in project, a birthday gift for a six-year-old little girl. A very spontaneous project, yet every bit of it was hiding in my stash, just waiting to be pulled together into this little quilt. Love when that happens! I used the Warm Wishes pattern, a free download from Quiltmaker.com, and I was super impressed with how fast the top came together. Every smidgen of the Little Mermaid print was used. The aqua/white polka dot filled in for the last round of blocks, "growing" the quilt from baby-size to kid-size. The borders finished off the teal print, and it took the very last bits of both purples to make the bind...

Pat Sloan is having a Valentine Link Party (and a giveaway!) at her blog today, so I thought I'd see how many heart quilts I could find in my pictures for a little Valentine quilt show. Starting with the most recent, my current WIP, which I blogged about yesterday. The borders are on now, and it's pinned and ready to quilt. Nora's quilt, 2011 Orphan Block Sampler, 2011 Grandma's Hankies, 2008 A Work of Heart, 2007 Gathered Hearts, 2006 Mackenzie's Quilt, 2005 Scrappy Valentine, 2005 Haley's Quilt, 2004 Brooke's Quilt, 2003 The photo quality gets worse and worse, the further back you go. Wish I'd had a better camera back then! But I guess a bad picture is better than no picture at all. They still bring back lots of fond memories. :o) Happy Valentine's Day, all!

I really can't believe there's only one more week until Christmas. This month is flying by! I've been sewing my fingers to the bone trying to finish my non-Christmas things, so I'll really need to step it up this next week. BUT my mom's birthday quilt is done! (Her birthday is the day after Christmas.) Center tied, the border quilted, and the binding on. My sister came up on Monday and helped me tie it, after realizing there were blocks that would not survive the "crush factor" of machine quilting. (Note to self on similar projects in the future: Make sure everyone knows their siggie block needs to not only be washable, but also crushable! lol) Another big finish this week -- in more ways than one. My niece's baby girls, Brenna Faith and Summer Grace, were born on Monday and they are SO adorable! I finished their quilts and they're in the mail. It looks like they'll be delivered today. Yay! I'm taking a chance and posting this now, ...

Happy Halloween! I managed to squeeze in one last finish for October today. I did the last few binding stitches on my July "Get 'er Done" challenge, the "Northwoods Noel" wall hanging, made from this panel: And here's the finished product (measuring 36" x 41"), already hanging on the quilt hanger at the top of our stairway. (Wrong holiday, I realize, but I couldn't wait to see it hanging.) It'll go perfectly with the garlands I hang on the stair railing at Christmas time: While finishing this up, I was also supervising pumpkin carving and helping with last-minute touches on Halloween costumes, so I haven't completely mixed up my holidays. It just looks that way. LoL ********************** Just realized, this is my 300th post! There's still time to enter the drawing for my Fall Giveaway , to be held this Friday, November 4th....