Needles and Pens

This is my grandson, Aaron, one year ago. See how nicely he posed for a picture back then? LoL What a difference a year makes! We tried, I mean we really tried to get a good picture in his pirate costume, but the child never stands still . What I did get were lots of pictures on the go. This way... ...and that way... ...and for one brief moment, I thought I had the shot. But no, he had things to do and people to see -- and that pirate hat really didn't fit into his plans... ...there was furniture to rearrange... ...wrestling with Uncle Tim... ...Hotwheels to drive... ...and lots of hugging and kissing and giggling and squealing to do... Aaron's not the easiest subject to photograph these days... ...but he's definitely the cutest little pirate in town. ;o)

I only just discovered Sew & Tell Friday last week, and seeing all the great projects everyone posted really motivated and inspired me. In fact, two of my finishes for this week were directly related to last week's Sew & Tell, so if you're in need of some creative inspiration, I highly recommend visiting Amylouwho for a list of this week's participants. Last week, Beth, from Love Laugh Quilt , posted a scrappy pin cushion tutorial, that looked like so much fun, I had to make one myself. I wrote about it in an earlier post , but here's a picture, in case you missed it. Fun project, Beth. Thanks again! :o) I also received a package in the mail this week, children's novelty charms from a Country Quilters USA charm swap. The original plan was to use them in an Ami Simms Picture Play quilt. Unfortunately, I jumped the gun and had already sewn 130 little charms together before I learned that they were cut a little too large for the pattern. I could have taken...

I went fabric shopping the other day, just to pick up a few random things I needed for recent projects. I came home with... ...some blacks and whites, possibilities for my round robin's music border, $16... ...the perfect border print for my "Shoes and Socks" block-of-the-month, $6.99... ...some cozy fleece for our church blanket drive, $7.98... ...a pattern and materials for my grandson's Halloween costume. He's going to be the little pirate on the right, with the stripey pants. I hope to finish this up today (nothing like waiting until the last minute!), $15... ...of course, I couldn't resist the remnant bin, flannel, homespun, and novelty prints, $7... ...and at the Hancock Fabrics checkout line, I picked up one of these... Hmm... now if there were ever a job with my name on it, this would be it! I thought long and hard about applying after I went home that night. I haven't had a "regular job" in many years, and it would definitely be a big ch...

Continued from Part One ... So, whatever happened to my last round robin? It's a mystery to me. Prior to her disappearance, the last quilter to work on my top emailed me extensively about her addition. I was thrilled and touched by the thought and effort she was putting into it. Since this was to be a quilt for my son's graduation, the ladies had asked me to share a little bit about him, his likes and dislikes, favorite things, hobbies, etc. She had latched on to his love of country music and playing guitar and, in January 2008, shared this picture of her addition to the quilt: The notes on the staff are for the song, My Wish , by Rascal Flatts, one of my son's favorite country groups. The lyrics couldn't be more perfect for the occasion. In addition, she told me she had ordered the sheet music to include with his gift. Her thoughtfulness, honestly, brought me to tears. But then we lost contact. The emails trailed off, and the two quilt tops she had in her posession we...

Over the past several years, I've had the pleasure of taking part in a number of quilting round robins with online friends. These robins can progress in various ways; by rows, by blocks, and sometimes beginning as a center block with each new quilter adding another border around it. Sometimes it takes months before your round robin returns, but it's always worth the wait. A center block like this... Comes back home looking like this... Finally finished, this one became our bed quilt... This block... Now hangs on our living room wall... Pictures can be deceiving. This "wall hanging" is actually 50 inches square. My father-in-law made the quilt hanger just for this quilt, as a birthday gift to me. :o) And this one... Came home looking like this... And I finished it into a lap quilt for my daughter's birthday... These are just a few of my round robins that have happily come home to roost, but mailing quilts all over the country can be risky. It's rare, but every ...

So many giveaways, so little time, yet somehow... I. Can't. Stop. LoL These quilters sure are a generous bunch. If you'd like a chance to win, go on over to Brown Paper Packages , and enter the flannel giveaway, in celebration of 100 posts! And stop by Lynette Anderson Designs for a chance to win her new book, Gathering of Crows .

I currently have three different quilts in varying stages spread out all over my (very small) sewing room -- forget about the many unfinished projects still in bags -- and what did I do today? I made a pin cushion, of course. A little attention deficit maybe? Beth, from Love Laugh Quilt , posted a tutorial yesterday for making a cute little flower pin cushion. And since my only pin cushion is the generic, red tomato style, I thought I'd like, no, I needed a cute flower pin cushion. So, there you go. I made mine in fall colors, which may indicate a need for more seasonal pin cushions in the future. It was fun, it was quick, it used up scraps, and I guess I must have needed a little change of pace. Thanks, Beth! I now return to my previously scheduled quilting, but I now have a cute flower pin cushion in which to stick my pins. Sweet! :o)

I've been doing quite a bit of blog surfing today and there are so many awesome giveaways going on right now, I just had to share a few. Check these out! Brenda, at Pumpkin Patch Primitives , is giving away a fabulous bundle of Red Rooster's Pumpkins and Spice fat quarters, in her Happy Halloween Giveaway! Entries close October 31. There's another fabric giveaway at True Up , a Kiyohara bundle of "My Favorite" prints! Winner will be drawn October 28. Holly, at A Fish in the Water , is giving away BUTTONS! Maybe not these buttons, necessarily, but it promises to be a buttony giveaway. :o) Giddy for Paisley is offering a cute pattern, called Sweet Tweets. Enter by October 25. And last, but not least, Kelli, from There Is No Place Like Home , is giving away a $25 gift certificate for her Etsy shop, Seasonal Delights! Enter by October 25. Good luck! :o)

In one of my recent blog wanderings, I came across the blog of Amylouwho , hostess of Sew & Tell Fridays, where those like her, with "obsessive creative disorder" can share their finished sewing projects for the week. I'm happy to be joining in for the first time today! A couple of weeks ago, a quilting friend issued a challenge to our online group to make a donation quilt for Quilts for Kids , a charity dedicated to providing quilts to children in need. I love making small quilts, especially for kids, so I was thrilled to learn about this charity, and couldn't wait to get started on a quilt. In the past week, I have finished two Quilts for Kids quilts, and look forward to making more in the future. What a great charity! Now, I've been blessed to have others remember my quilting obsession when clearing out their fabric stashes in the past, so I've had boxes of fabric donated to my stash. It can sometimes be a challenge to work with various sized pieces, a...

...I have scissors -- and I know how to use them. My habit of saving every shot pair of blue jeans that crosses my path "to make a quilt someday" has gotten a little out of hand. Last night I noticed that my blue jean bin was stuffed to the gills, had leeched into a second bin, and random pairs of jeans had crept into every available crevice in my sewing room closet. To avoid the pain of tossing the overflow into the trash, I decided to beat back the monster another way. Cutting away all of the seams, waistbands, zippers and inside pockets... ...decreased the size of the pile by about half. It all fits in one bin now, with room to spare. Of course, I may regret this when I come across a pattern that uses the seams... oh, well. Now I really want to get together with my sisters for a sew-in weekend, so we can get back to the circle quilt we started a couple of years back. Have circles. Will travel. :o)