Last night the hubs' flannel rag quilt came off the snipping station. While it still needs to be washed to fray it (which is a trip to a commercial laundromat), I let him use it last night. Oh, and it also needs a label (as do about a half dozen recent quilts I've done).

This is the back. Good intentions were to not have any of the same blocks touch, but it didn't work out that way, and once I realized I had a couple that did, it wasn't possible to rearrange the front rows to correct that. (Breathe Susan....repeat after me....'finished is way better than perfect....finished is way better than perfect...')



I don't recall exactly what I was looking for on eBay the other day, but I accidentally stumbled on these vintage Sewing Susan needle kits. Of course I had to buy them. I think there's at least one more version....they apparently updated the ladies' hair and clothing to fit the time period. My plan is to frame them as studio wall art. And clearly I'm going to need a larger studio as I'm running out of wall space.



The fabric seminar I went to Saturday morning was very informative. First they gave us all a fat quarter, and when the talk turned to the traditional Stonehenge line we were all handed a fat quarter of that. And at the end of the presentation they drew for about a dozen door prizes, and I won a 5-fat quarter bundle. Yippee!

After a delicious (and healthy) lunch, I went downstairs and promptly bought a pattern and fabric to make this Magnolia Art Glass wall hanging, which happened to be one of the pieces in the trunk show. This was so popular that they ran out of patterns and some of the fabric, as it seems that just about everyone in the seminar wanted to make this. Fortunately, I hightailed it down to the shop early and was able to walk out with everything I needed. Piecing, paper piecing and a little applique. Can't wait to start on it, but I've got a few things to finish before I can start something new. (ha ha ha)

On Sunday, as I'm leaving my class with Mimi, I hear the 'last call for the fat quarter madness' announcement. Now, silly me had not read my email from this quilt shop last week, so I had no clue what this meant. Not wanting to miss out on something I asked the shop owner.  Turns out that all fat quarters were 99 cents, and they'd been 99 cents for the past 3 days.  You snooze, you lose. Not wanting to be the biggest loser, I was able to snag 18. The golf balls and softballs I'll use for something for the hubs, a couple of randoms to fill in current collections, and a bunch of Michael Miller stripes to mix with either my polka dots or solids in a quilt. Stripes and dots are my new fat quarters to collect.

And now that the flannel quilt is off the design wall, the Baltimore album blocks are up. You probably can't see but those 5 blank blocks have patterns pencilled on them. And, since it's been on the wall, I've already decided to scrap two of the designs. This is why it's on the wall now, design scrutiny and fabric selection. I need to 'kit' another couple blocks so I've got stitching ready to grab and go. Hopefully I'll have a few of these block designs nailed down and kitted for the weekend.

And the winner of the pin cushion and the scissor bling was Janet, who I believe is from somewhere in snowy Canada. I sent her an email and I'll be posting her prize as soon as I hear back. Sorry if you didn't win, but we'll have another giveaway soon, so stay tuned.

I've got two immediate projects to turn my attention to now....the Twisted Drunkard's Path needs to be quilted for my upcoming Guild show, and I've got a challenge piece to work on.  Time's a wastin'.  Hope you aren't as rushed as I feel and can enjoy some leisurely sewing time this week. Enjoy the upcoming weekend....it can't get her soon enough!

Call Me a Thug in a Cocktail Dress...

...but as I look at the sewing machine, and the binding that needs to be pressed so I can finish the Japanese wrapping cloth wall hanging, thoughts are focused on the 10:00 season opener of Real Housewives of NYC. I just love a good train wreck of a reality show, and the Real Housewives franchise knows how to deliver. Granted, it's not NJ, but it runs a close second in my book.

I have always been reality tv's biggest 'prostitution whooore' (as Theresa from RHNJ would scream, while upending our dinner table), and gauging from what's on 57 channels these days, I'm not alone. Top Model, Top Chef, Cupcake Wars, Survivor, Idol, Race, Loser, Matchmaker, Jersey anything....if it's on cable, I've seen it. I think one of the reasons the hubs bought an HD flat screen for my studio last birthday was to keep the trash off of his 60" (which seems to be reserved for dismemberment, murder, rape, aliens, explosions, mayhem and such--though wait....that Allstate Mayhem guy can share my screen any time! Yum! I am SO about the bad boys with an edge and a dark side {smile}).

And  say ya-ay! Housewives premier was so non-riveting that I got the binding sewn on the wrapping cloth. I was planning on turning up the Asian Indigo backing, but the hubs thought the pink packaged binding matched the centers of the flowers perfectly and voted for that.

Here's a closeup that you can enlarge to check out the quilting. For the light blue I just decided to freemotion along the obvious and non-perfectly spaced weave of the fabric. Just the verticals. So, we now have an OPAM finish for April (said as I pat myself on the back).

With so many projects in the wings to choose from, I'm not sure where I want to go right now. I'm thinking it needs to be an Accuquilt GO! project, but I'm wavering on traditional or free-style. It's a bit late to get started now and I'll be out with the ladies tomorrow night, so I've got until Saturday or Sunday morning to make up my mind. Suggestions appreciated.

In addition to something on the GO! I've got quite a few other ideas....

1. I can make the pedestal cake plates for my sister and myself from our Mom's china dishes my sister had displayed on her dining room wall.
2. Switch to dollmaking and start on the Beachwalker Santa that's been in procrastination limbo for a couple of years now.
3. Maybe I should catch up on the Fiesta BOMs
4. I can spend a day making pincushions of all types...cupcakes, pies, donuts, petit fours.
5. What about taking on the painted batik wholecloth project?
6. There's always another Japanese wrapping cloth to be quilted
7. Don't I have a Bali briefcase pattern, Pop, and a hank of clothesline patiently waiting in the closet?
8. And let's not forget sewing border prints on dishtowels.

And we aren't even thinking about taking the Bernina embroidery module out for a spin...or cracking the EQ7 manuals open and designing a barn quilt for the Accuquilt contest.

Maybe I should call in the Calvary...what do you think? Or maybe you'd like to come over and motivate me. There's an idle Bernina 1260 and a Babylock Imagine available.

Oh, and here's the catalyst for the little Japanese furoshiki I just finished:

There are so many cool  'wrapagami' projects that this cloth could be used for, it's almost a shame to quilt it and turn it into a boring wallhanging....well.....okay....I have seen it quilted and turned into a wallhanging and I have to say 'boring' wasn't an adjective that came to mind that day, I was pretty amazed when I found out it wasn't an arduous labor of strip piecing that I was trying to purchase the pattern and fabrics for :)

I'm open to suggestions for my next project, so if there's something you'd like to see, drop me a comment and let me know. I always appreciate your input (and a little direction is always a good thing).

Have a great weekend...do what you love. (and if your weekend will be spent doing taxes...take lots of sewing breaks).

Unbelievable.....Believe It!

Finished Checkerboard Hearts and it's still Saturday!  Woo hoo!!!!!

Not sure you can see it, but there's more than 5 hours quilting on this. Half walking foot, half freemotion. And there's another 3 hours on the binding (which isn't all that great, but it is my first scallop edge...note to self...get a book or find a video for further training.

So wrapped up was I in finishing this (and scoring an OPAM finish for February early in the month), we never did make it to Fire in Ice. The sacrifices we make for our art.

Well, tomorrow the plan is to catch up with quilt labels, which shouldn't take too long, and then I must pack for Florida. Unfortunately it's gonna be cool, but I can deal...it beats the heck out of this:

There is nothing worse than filthy snow. If it would just fall, look pretty for a day and then melt while it still looked good, I could deal with it. It's when it hangs around for weeks and just keeps getting blacker and blacker, and harder and harder so it looks like piles of dirt in the Nevada desert that I become antsy for a house on the beach...which is where I'll be Tuesday....with my iPhone {mischevious grin]. I'll post photos.