Darling Jill Quilts

Tiny Tuesday - 1/24

2012-01-24T22:30:00.001-05:00

Another block done! This one was a doozie! Not paper pieced, but lots of tiny pieces. Fifty-two to be exact! #28 - Calico Puzzle Anyone else have any tiny blocks to share?

Stash Report Week 3, 2012

2012-01-22T10:52:00.001-05:00

I got a lot busted this week! The flanges and cuffs for 2 pillowcases - the body of the pillowcase was cut last year. The backing for the cow quilt - a queen size quilt takes queen sized backing! (Or prince sized depending on who is using the quilt at the time.) And I started cutting pieces for my first Scrap Squad quilt. I am going to finish the cutting this morning and start making my

FNSI and Saturday finish up

2012-01-21T22:33:00.003-05:00

Thursday night, I loaded the cow quilt onto the frame so that I could work on quilting it during FNSI. This quilt measures 90 x 108. It's HUGE! I really pushed myself and got about 2/3 of the way through last night. Today, I spent a little less than an hour and finished the quilting. Then, I got the quilt trimmed, the label made and the binding on! I did a stipple and a Lava black and white

And the name is....

2012-01-19T22:08:00.000-05:00

I put a call out last night for a name for the Ohio Star quilt here on my blog and on my Facebook page. You all had a lot of great ideas! It was really tough to pick just one! But I now have a few names for future quilts. :) Some of the notable suggestions were Strawberry Fields, Northern Lights, Sailors Delight, Razors Edge, Fade To Glory. Of course, there were the ones suggested on Facebook -

Quilt name needed... QUICK!!

2012-01-18T19:45:00.001-05:00

I have to turn in some paperwork for the Ohio Star quilt tomorrow. I have been racking my brain trying to come up with a name for the quilt, but I am drawing a blank. Do any of you have any ideas? Anyone? Anyone? HELP!!! Did I mention that I need the name by tomorrow?

Tiny Tuesday - 1/17

2012-01-17T21:53:00.001-05:00

I have 27 blocks done! I have left them on the Design Wall and they look good! Here is block #27 - Orange Peel. Definitely adjusted to make it easier! Anyone else have tiny blocks to share?

Design Wall Monday - 1/16/2012

2012-01-16T15:22:00.001-05:00

Lots happened in the studio yesterday, but I have nothing on my design wall to show for it. Well, nothing of my own. I helped Barb with her Ohio Star quilt and she got four blocks done and on the wall. It's her own design and the blocks look fantastic! She did lots of piecing here. Lynn was here and let Max keep her company on the bed. She is working on the binding for her Ohio Star quilt.

Stash Report Week 2, 2012

2012-01-15T10:11:00.003-05:00

[I'm changing my Week number to #2 because I am reporting on the second week of the year (last week) and not the third week (this week). Looks like I will just be a week off from Judy all year. lol] I finally got something busted for this year! I made the backing for the Ohio Star Challenge quilt. I still need a name for this quilt.... I finished the quilting on it last night and hope to have

Yearly Goals

2012-01-14T08:28:00.000-05:00

A few weeks ago, I posted about yearly goals and asked if anyone planned on making goals for 2012. I got a few great responses and have spent a bit of time thinking about whether I want to make any goals for this year. I should recap my goals from last year though.... Stash Reports - End the year in the black. I'm not so much concerned about ending at a net of 100 used this year. I will be

Monthly Accomplishments - December 2011

2012-01-14T07:21:00.000-05:00

I'm a little late on this one, but better late than never. It doesn't seem like much and I know that some of these things only took one or two nights. Assembled blocks and put on several borders for the Guild Raffle quilt Midget blocks – 24 and 25 Quilted a purple lap quilt Quilted a yellow and pink baby quilt Quilted an animal baby quilt Cut up an old

On the frame

2012-01-13T23:19:00.000-05:00

And soon to be hanging in a show! This week, I prepped the backing and got the Ohio Star quilt on the frame. I have been working on quilting it the last couple of nights. I really want to get it done tomorrow because the quilting is very boring to me. And I am not that far along. But also because I want to get pictures of it this weekend so that I can turn them in with my form that is due for

Book Review Thursday - 1/12

2012-01-12T19:06:00.000-05:00

I only managed to finish one book this week. I don't think that I did much of anything last weekend other than watch TV. Oh well. Heaven is High is the latest book in the Barbara Holloway series by Kate Wilhelm. I'm sad that I am all caught up, but this will give me a chance to catch up on other series that I enjoy. When I started this book, I thought it was a little odd because it didn't

Tiny Tuesday - 1/10/12

2012-01-10T07:19:00.001-05:00

I decided this morning that I am not getting the next block done today. I should have worked on it over the weekend, but I was too busy not doing anything. lol This block is a little crazy for being a 4 1/2" finished block. There is no way that I am machine stitching all these little pieces and I am not hand stitching them either. I'm going to just work on a 4 patch and enlarge the curved pieces

Empty Design Wall

2012-01-09T23:06:00.002-05:00

But there is something on the frame!! Ready to be quilted! And I am using a Quilter's Dream batting! I didn't have a choice because I needed a black batting for the quilt. I opened this baby up, popped in the dryer to fluff for a few minutes and then loaded a quilt. It took me a little longer because I took pictures along the way to show off the Red Snappers. After using these a few times, I

Stash Report Week 2, 2012

2012-01-08T10:59:00.003-05:00

Nothing much to report this week except for the new blog look and my announcement. I have lots of things to work on and haven't taken much time to sew or work on anything except for a little cleaning in the studio. I will get to all of it very soon, I hope! Fabric added this week: 0.00 Fabric added YTD: 0.00 Fabric used this week: 0.00 Fabric used YTD: 0.00 Net Fabric Used: 0.00 And this

Change of plans

2012-01-07T21:44:00.002-05:00

I was working with the reds and teals from my previous post for the Scrap Squad quilt and it just wasn't working out the way I was thinking it would. There just weren't enough reds and I didn't feel like digging through the rest of my stash because I am sure that I wouldn't have found any other reds that would work. Instead, I grabbed another hank of fabric scraps from the pile of Connecting

First Scrap Squad quilt

2012-01-07T10:57:00.000-05:00

I'm getting ready to start working on my first Scrap Squad quilt! I have had the pattern for a few weeks and have been mulling over the possibilities for my fabrics. I have a few weeks to get the top together and then the quilts from all the members will be shown on the Quiltmaker's Quilty Pleasures Blog. Until my blog post is on the magazine's blog, I can't show much more than this. I might be

A Revision and an Announcement

2012-01-06T20:29:00.000-05:00

I am pleased to present my revised blog, Darling Jill Quilts! After the renovations that I did in my condo over the summer, I feel like the blog needed a bit of a renovation as well. I feel like I am more focused in my crafting life than I was when I started the blog four and a half years ago and there are no more ‘ramblings.’ Or not as many as there used to be! While doing the

Book Review Thursday - 1/5/12

2012-01-05T21:41:00.000-05:00

Two finishes this week! Woot! The Wedding Quilt is the newest novel in the Elm Creek Quilt series by Jennifer Chiaverini. It takes place 25 years after the books that were written in the current period. If you have read any of this series, you know that the author jumps around in time which can be a little confusing if you are trying to keep things in chronological order in your head. And some

Moooovin' On

2012-01-04T07:18:00.000-05:00

I finished the cow quilt top on Monday night. I am glad that I tried the second option in the pattern because I like it much better this way! And several people have asked me for the name of the pattern. It's BQ3 by Maple Island Quilts. Very easy once all the cutting is done!

Tiny Tuesday - 1/3/2012

2012-01-03T22:01:00.000-05:00

I have a virus! I mean, I have a midget block done! And a virus! I am under 'warranty' so I will be taking my laptop back to the shop later this week. I'm not looking forward to it. But, it is what it is. Now, the block I have done is # 26 Old Snowflake. The colors are white, purple and light purple even though it looks blue in the picture. I really like how this one turned out! Anyone else

Design Wall Monday - 1/2/2012

2012-01-02T11:32:00.002-05:00

I finished all the blocks for the cow quilt on Saturday. I was hoping to get the quilt assembled yesterday, but I spent the day organizing and cleaning and just watching TV. I did get 2 rows put together though. And a close up. Here is the original layout that I had, but I changed it up. I like the new way better. I have big plans today as well. Laundry and sewing with movies thrown in

Stash Report Week 53, 2011 and Week 1, 2012

2012-01-01T12:09:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure how everyone else is handling their stash reports for the last week of 2011, but I am reporting it as a 2011 week. For 2012, nothing has been done so it will be an easy report. Yesterday, a local quilt shop had another day sale trying to empty their shelves. I helped them out a little. It was easy to since all fabric was $2.50 a yard! I thought that the flower print in the top

Progress and a tumble

2011-12-31T16:18:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, I got off a little early from work and when I got home, I some how got stuck watching a Jersey Shore marathon. This show is crazy and a total train wreck and I watched from the afternoon until midnight when I finally pulled myself away to go to bed. I'm not necessarily proud of this, but it did help me make progress on the cow quilt. I got the wonky parts sewn together and everything

Book Review Thursday - 12/29

2011-12-29T20:30:00.000-05:00

Just one book to report this week. Not enough time spent reading because I was trying to get too many things done. And I think that this weekend will be dedicated to sewing and watching movies that are checked out form the library. :) I decided to listen to one of the books that I have in my queue that was Christmas related and this was the first one in the list. It was a recommendation from my

Tiny Tuesday - 12/27

2011-12-27T23:33:00.000-05:00

Well, I didn't get a block made even though I had plenty of time on Monday to sew. sigh But I did print out the next 5 sheets to work on. I need to get more ink so they are all in black and white. I do plan on prepping the fabrics so that I can start working on this set. And I am thinking that I should start printing out more so that I can be ready when these 5 are made. Anyone else have any

Design Wall Monday - 12/26

2011-12-26T17:19:00.000-05:00

I was really hoping to spend all day today sewing and relaxing from the weekend, but I didn't sew much of anything. Just a lot of relaxing! I finished the binding and the label on the bug jar quilt. I have named it Don't Let the Bugs Out. And there is still time in the day so maybe I can make a few more of these cow blocks. Or maybe cutting apart some strip sets to make make some four

Stash Report Week 52, 2011

2011-12-25T13:46:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas!! I hope that everyone is having a wonderful holiday! I busted a bit of stash this week. The rest of the fabric for the cow quilt top and binding and backing for a couple of table runners. Here is the runner that I finished yesterday. And this is the first block that I finished for the cow quilt. Twenty-nine more to go! I'm not sure what else I will get done before the

Another Christmas gift finished

2011-12-24T15:02:00.000-05:00

I just finished another table runner for a Christmas present. Since I haven't finished any of the quilts that I planned for this year, I'm thinking I should stick to runners for future years! lol This is the pattern that I got the runners from. Little Charmers II. I have plans for a few more from this series of patterns. They are pretty quick and easy! And here is the finished runner. And

Goals for the new year?

2011-12-22T22:32:00.001-05:00

Judy posted earlier this week about the 2012 UFO Challenge and I am torn. I can't decide whether I should make up a list or just bypass it this year. The last couple of years, I have set crafty goals for myself. In 2010, I made an effort to stick by the list, but fell short on a few. I made more realistic goals for 2011, but in looking at the list, there were shortfalls here as well. I know

Book Review Thursday - 12/22

2011-12-22T21:58:00.000-05:00

I haven't been reading much this week so I will be all caught up with these reviews. I was thinking that I should try and listen to the Christmas books that I have and I finished one, but I just can't seem to get into the next one. I still have a couple of days so we'll see what happens. In Cold Case, the 11th book in the Barbara Holloway series by Kate Wilhelm, David Etheridge returns to

Finished present

2011-12-21T22:00:00.000-05:00

First of all, I should mention that I have my laptop back!! It's been running for about 3 hours now and so far so good!! I finished the table runner on Monday and gifted it on Tuesday to my boss at the Christmas party that she throws for the department. I think that she really liked it! The pattern is Little Charmers II from Anka's Treasures. I think that I am going to try a couple more

Tiny Tuesday - 12/20

2011-12-20T06:58:00.000-05:00

I got block #25 finished this week. I am posting from the library and I can't remember what the name of the block is. And since I couldn't pull up the block on my laptop due to the virus, I am only assuming that the colors match the pattern. Here are blocks 21 - 25. And hopefully, I will have my laptop back this week to be able to print off the sheets to make the next block. Anyone else

Design Wall Monday - 12/19

2011-12-19T07:56:00.000-05:00

Here is the table runner top that I was able to get made Sunday. I will get it quilted tonight and gift it tomorrow. I can't wait to make another one! Love this fabric! Christmas Past by Minnick & Simpson and it's an older line that was aging in my stash. :)

Stash Report Week 51, 2011

2011-12-18T13:43:00.001-05:00

This week, I decided that it was time to make a few Christmas table runners. I couldn't decide on whether to pull scrappy fabrics or use a small FQ bundle I have with bright reds, greens and blues. And I also have an older Thimbleberries holiday bundle, but I couldn't really get behind that choice either. Then, Friday night I was talking to my mom and gazing at my shelves of pre-cut fabrics and I

Friday Night Sew In Results - 12/16

2011-12-17T11:39:00.002-05:00

Last night, I was able to get the next 2 borders on the raffle quilt. (Pardon the picture that was taken with my iPod and emailed to myself. The library computer wasn't being cooperative about letting me save the file as it was.) Once I am done at the library, I will be dropping the quilt and the next borders off to my cohort who will work on finishing them up. I have a few things that I am

Book Review Thursday - 12/15

2011-12-15T18:24:00.002-05:00

Since I got my Kindle I have acquired a few of Leslie Meier’s Lucy Stone series for free and I like to start at the beginning of a series so I found the first book in the series, Mistletoe Murder, at my local library. And since I had a Christmas theme book, I figured that this was the right time to read it. Lucy Stone is a mother of 3 who works part time in the evenings at a mail order

Another computer problem

2011-12-14T14:42:00.002-05:00

Last summer, I had issues with the hard drive on my laptop, but my neighbor came to my rescue and it was fixed rather quickly. Last Saturday, I began having a funky spyware screen pop up and start scanning my laptop. I updated my current virus software and crossed my fingers that it would take care of the problem. It didn't. On Sunday, I searched for the program that kept popping up and learned

Occupy Your Sewing Room

2011-12-12T22:19:00.001-05:00

I occupied my sewing room A LOT between December 3 and 10! And a room at the Centennial Barn for a Sew In and Patrice's sewing room because we worked on the Guild's Raffle quilt last weekend. Last weekend, Patrice and I assembled the Guild Quilt. Tuesday night, I made a Midget Block. Tuesday and Wednesday night, I quilted a lap quilt. And Friday night, I quilted a baby quilt and

Design Wall Monday - 12/12

2011-12-12T22:06:00.003-05:00

I wasn't sure that I would have anything to update, but I was able to get the pieced borders on the Morning Splash quilt tonight. This quilt is the Guild's Opportunity quilt. Getting the borders on involved ripping out the first border and re-sewing it on so that the sides were more in line with what they should be. Then, I had to pin (A LOT) all four of the pieced borders on. The pattern

A Christmas Dilemma

2011-12-11T16:35:00.001-05:00

Regina has an issue and she needs your help! She has a present and is unsure of how to proceed since it won't be finished by Christmas. I have a vested interest in the decision since it is a present for me. lol So go to Regina's post and help her make a decision by voting for one of the options. And please... DON'T pick #4!! I don't think I could stand it! lol

Stash Report Week 50, 2011

2011-12-11T15:00:00.001-05:00

Last week, I reported no change in my report, but I forgot that I had cut out the borders and binding for my Ohio Star quilt the week before. I know that I have shown it before, but I am going to show it again, just to prove that the borders are on it. :) And only 1 FQ brought in as a freebie from the Guild meeting. Fabric added this week: 0.25 Fabric added year-to-date: 142.97 Fabric used

A bit more quilting

2011-12-10T16:32:00.001-05:00

After my successful quilting adventure last night for the FNSI, I knew that I wanted to get another quilt quilted today. Before I shut down for the night, I changed a few things on the frame and loaded the quilt for today. After 3 hours of quilting today, I finished the second quilt for Kristen from my Guild! I used Warm and Natural batting, Superior's Lava thread in the top and Bottom Line in

Friday Night Sew In Results - 12/9

2011-12-09T22:36:00.001-05:00

What a great night! I was hoping to get 2 quilts quilted, but my back gave out on my too early. I am going to try and get another quilt loaded onto the frame, but that may have to wait until morning as well. Wednesday night, I got a quilt loaded for a gal in my big guild and I was hoping to start quilting on it last night, but my hair appointment ran long. So I was able to get it all quilted

Book Review Thursday - 12/8

2011-12-08T21:58:00.000-05:00

Sleight of Hand is the next book in the Barbara Holloway series that I finished. Wally is being accused by a childhood friend of stealing an expensive Egyptian artifact. Wally has a history of pick pocketing, but hasn't been a criminal in years. Jay, the accuser, is a childhood friend of Wally's who knows about his sordid past. After a consultation with Frank and Barbara, Wally and his wife try

Angel Wings panto

2011-12-07T21:09:00.001-05:00

I finished quilting a lap quilt for Regina's SIL Cathy last night. I used a Connecting Threads purple variegated in the top, a silver Bottom Line in the bottom and Warm and Natural batting. I used the Angel Wings panto for the design. The purple that is in the squares has inspirational words and that is the same fabric used on the back. I thought that the Angel Wings panto was the perfect fit!

Cute Tiny Tuesday - 12/6

2011-12-06T07:30:00.001-05:00

Another week, another block done! Not that this is normal, as you all know. lol This week, block #24 - Hour Glass. A pieced block. Woo hoo! But it looks good! :) Anyone else have any tiny blocks to share? I did have a hindrance this morning, but it was under my sewing table by my foot pedal.

Design Wall Monday - 12/5

2011-12-05T06:34:00.000-05:00

Most of this past weekend was spent on the OVQG Raffle quilt. I am the chair on this project and things have been moving along steadily. Yesterday, I got the blocks assembled and laid out. Today, I assembled the center and then went to Patrice's house to work on the borders. Here's where we are now. So we have a few more hours until the top is done and we can hand it off to the quilter.

Stash Report Week 49, 2011

2011-12-04T21:08:00.001-05:00

No progress on the Stash this week. I still have a backing to make and a quilt to cut out and assemble before Christmas. If I can get everything done for the other people, I might actually be able to find time to make that happen. This weekend was spent on the Guild raffle quilt. I'm hoping to pass it off to the quilter within the next 2 weeks. I'm a little tired of working on it at the moment

Occupy Your Sewing Room

2011-12-04T20:39:00.001-05:00

This is a great idea! Just spend a day sewing between December 3 and 10 and you can split the time over multiple days. How easy is that? Just go here to read about it!

Monthly Accomplishments - November 2011

2011-12-03T07:49:00.001-05:00

Another great month! I love having long weekends where I don't have to do much of anything except quilt. It's great way for me to rejuvenate myself. Ohio Star Challenge Quilt - Laid out the blocks, assembled the quilt top Bought fabric for a cow quilt for my niece - once, twice, three times Midget blocks #22 and #23 Had the Big Board damaged at a sew in. I also got it fixed over Thanksgiving

Book Review Thursday - 12/1

2011-12-01T21:36:00.001-05:00

I am caught up on my reviews! The Unbidden Truth by Kate Wilhelm is the 8th book in the Barbara Holloway series. (If you want to know the order of the books, check out the author's page on the Stop It You're Killing Me site. I *love* this site!) In this novel, Barbara is hired by Louise to defend Carol Fredricks, a young pianist accused of murdering her boss. As usual, there is more to the

Very big news over here....

2011-11-30T06:54:00.000-05:00

On Monday morning, I got news that I had been hoping for! I applied to be a member of the 2012 Scrap Squad for Quiltmaker's magazine and on Monday morning, I found out that I made the Squad!! What will happen is the magazine will pick a pattern from each issue and send it to the Scrap Squad members to give them time to make up the pattern in their own fabrics. Once the due date arrives, the

Tiny Tuesday - 11/29

2011-11-29T07:28:00.001-05:00

I just finished block 23. I finally remembered to use stabilizer so this little block is laying nicely. I still need to tear away a bit on the back. Valentine Anyone else have tiny blocks?

Design Wall Monday, 11/28

2011-11-28T07:17:00.000-05:00

I finished my Ohio Star Challenge quilt top yesterday. I'm very happy with how it turned out and I can't wait to quilt it. I need to find some black batting and try a new quilting method before I attempt it on this quilt. The colors are much better in person, but I tried to pick a picture that seems to match the colors the best. It's more of a cross between these two. I'm quite proud of my

Another quilt test

2011-11-27T17:34:00.001-05:00

Today, I loaded a wall hanging on the frame for Jen in CT. I used the Mini Paisley panto from Willow Leaf Studios, a yellow Connecting Threads thread in the top and a gray Bottom Line in the bottom. And here are better pictures of the quilting. I think it turned out great! And it was definitely easier using the Red snappers the second time.

Stash Report Week 48, 2011

2011-11-27T09:39:00.001-05:00

I have had a pretty productive weekend, but only a little stash was busted. I had to make the backing for the bug jar quilt. Out of Superman fabric! And I had to get 4 more yards of the pink and black for the cow quilt. I'm hoping to get the cow quilt cut out this weekend. Since I have finished a couple of things so far this weekend, it's looking good for that to happen! Fabric added this

Before and After pics

2011-11-26T08:45:00.001-05:00

Back in October, I quilted a blue and cream quilt for Regina. I didn't take any before pics, just the after with the quilting. When she got the quilt, I could tell that she was quite pleased with the quilting I picked. She got the binding on it and has been waiting for a sunny day that would allow her to take the quilt outside for pictures. This is the quilt. Now go and check out her blog to

Buggy quilting

2011-11-25T19:54:00.001-05:00

I tried out the Red snappers on the frame today by quilting the Bug Jar quilt. I just wanted to quilt a simple stipple on this quilt and thought that this would be the perfect quilt to try out the snappers on since it would be relatively quick to quilt. I didn't take any pictures because I was concentrating on the loading process since it was my first time. I will have to load a few more quilts

Black Friday shopping!

2011-11-25T11:00:00.001-05:00

I had no inclination to stand in lines for stores that were opening at midnight. Props to those who did, but that was not for me! I did, however, head to Joann's this morning for some deals. I meant to get a number for the cutting line earlier than I did so I ended up waiting for quite a few people to get their orders cut. And I only had 1 thing to get cut. But I did special order bolts of

Book Review Thursday - 11/24

2011-11-24T13:13:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that you all are able to stuff yourselves with wonderful foods while you give thanks! Here, I am still catching up on book reviews! Clear and Convincing Proof by Kate Wilhelm is the next Barbara Holloway novel. A murder occurs outside of the Kelso-McIvey Rehabilitation Center and there are plenty of suspects to go around - the widow, the brilliant physical therapist,

Happy Turkey Day!

2011-11-24T09:55:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope that everyone reading this has a wonderful day with family and friends!

Mid-Week Update

2011-11-23T23:16:00.001-05:00

Not much is going on here that I can show, but I wanted to do a quick update before the festivities start tomorrow. Tonight, I finished up the quilting on a secret project. It looks fantastic, but you will have to take my word for it for now. I will be able to show it off eventually! And now that it is done, I can get back to some other things that need my attention. It's a good thing that

New to me

2011-11-20T10:15:00.001-05:00

I've never done a mystery, but I am almost totally committed to doing the Orca Bay mystery that Bonnie Hunter started yesterday. Maybe a little more than almost totally! I just love the color combination in this mystery. Bonnie likes to use the Easy Angle and Companion Angle rulers. I have had the Easy Angle for a while thinking that I would do another of her mysteries, but I never got around

Stash Report Week 47, 2011

2011-11-20T05:53:00.000-05:00

Friday, I took the day off work to work on some things around the house. Once I decided to take the day off though, I made plans to meet up with Lynn from the CMQG for breakfast and a trip to Joann's and a local quilt shop that is closing. There are 2 quilt shops in my area that announced their closings within 10 days of each other. Of course, there are a few that have opened in the last

Miles Away

2011-11-19T12:30:00.000-05:00

On Sunday, I walked in a 5K that was organized by my neighbor. He created Miles Away to help support the Wounded Warriors Project and organized the walk/run with one of his friends. He has a Facebook page that you can see here. I think that he said there were over 150 participants. Luckily, the weather was nice and just a tad chilly until I started walking. And Aaron contacted local companies to

FNSI results - 11/18

2011-11-19T09:57:00.001-05:00

I took the day off yesterday for various reasons and I was hoping to get a lot more done than I did, but after a morning outing, I worked on the computer and then took a nap. When I finally got to quilting, I made great progress! I can't show you what I worked on because it's a super secret project, but I think I can show a small portion. I basted a quilt a few weeks ago and am doing some

I'm so Excited!

2011-11-18T08:00:00.001-05:00

A quilt that I quilted is featured on the Moda Bake Shop site today! My CMQG buddy and dear friend Andie asked me to quilt her MBS quilt for her and I was very excited to quilt it for her! It is a very cute quilt made with a jelly roll, I believe. The design is blocks that resemble flags with sashing and an outer border. I quilted stars and loops in the flags, lines that resemble ribbons in the

Book Review Thursday - 11/17

2011-11-17T23:26:00.000-05:00

I am a few weeks behind on reviews, but I am still reading so I am a few reviews behind. But I will only review 2 books a week until I catch up. I'm sure it won't be too long with the holidays coming up fast. A few weeks ago, I returned to an old favorite author - Anita Shreve. I read Rescue which is about Peter Webster who is an EMT in New England. He rescues Sheila from an accident she

Friday Night Sew In - 11/18

2011-11-17T07:11:00.001-05:00

I know that I will be sewing tomorrow night! If you will be, sign up for the FNSI! Sign up here!

Retreat surprises

2011-11-16T07:09:00.000-05:00

When I was preparing for the Shipshewana retreat a couple of weeks ago, I read on Ruthie's blog that her hubby made a big board for one of the door prizes. I thought that was pretty cool and as I was loading up the car, I thought to myself that I should be sure to save room for that big board. Imagine my surprise when my name was called for the big board when Ruthie was pulling names for the

Tiny Tuesday - 11/15

2011-11-15T18:57:00.001-05:00

Well, I figured out the block with a bit of help from Cheryl. Here is block #22 Kaleidoscope - modified. Thanks for the help, Cheryl! Anyone else have any tiny blocks to show off?

Stash Report Week 46, 2011

2011-11-13T11:22:00.001-05:00

I had a bit of fabric come in this week. Cow fabric for a quilt for my niece. This is the fabric that she asked for and I am going to use this BQ3 pattern with some black, pink and another print if I can find something that works with the cows. I did get a little cut out - the setting triangles for the Ohio Star quilt. And I got one small section assembled. I was hoping to get a couple of

Tiny Tuesday - 11/8

2011-11-08T21:09:00.001-05:00

OK, I did my best to get a block done today! BUT!!! Who on earth does a paper piece block with a Y seam??? The center parts of this block are too damn small for me to waste anymore time on it. Seriously, how could someone designing a block this small think that this was an acceptable way to piece this block? One of the center seams is FOUR stitches long! OK, enough venting. Did anyone else

Design Wall Monday - 11/7

2011-11-07T07:28:00.000-05:00

When I got home from retreat, I threw my challenge blocks on my wall. This past weekend, I put up some of the finishing pieces that I had made. I still have some black squares to put up and other pieces to cut, but I am liking how this is coming together! I haven't started sewing it all together yet because I spent a lot of the weekend quilting. But I'm hoping to get it all assembled by the

4 Patches from Retreat

2011-11-06T18:00:00.002-05:00

Regina launched her 4Patches4Hope project in enough time for me to pick up some 4 patches from the other gals at retreat! There were several quilters who made 4 patches and one who donated some fabric. Woo hoo! Here are all the stacks of 4 patches made by others at retreat. I'm so happy that others participated and gave me 4 patches to send to Regina! And here is the fabric that was donated.

Stash Report Week 45, 2011

2011-11-06T17:50:00.000-05:00

I almost didn't post this week, but in cleaning up my studio I happened upon the 4 patches that I made last week. Four patches for a good cause and some fabric busted! The patches on the left, I supplied the white and ivories and the stack on the right are all from my 2.5" scrap bin. And this is a nice time to mention that if any of you quilters would like to help Regina with her

Monthly Accomplishments - October 2011

2011-11-05T20:00:00.000-04:00

What a month! It’s just amazing what you can get done when you have a retreat to prep for and a retreat to attend! Finished the quilting on Regina’s Sunny Lanes quilt Midget blocks – 19, 20 and 21 Got Max’s leg all healed so that I could go on retreat and leave him with a dog sitter Finished the Argyle Holiday top and made Binding Made 4 take along bags

Cute things from retreat

2011-11-05T11:28:00.001-04:00

Just a couple of pictures of some very cute things that were at retreat! There was a gal there who made these holiday dolls. The bodies are yo yos! I think the reindeer is just adorable! The gals from Grand Rapids waited for our show and tell and put on some masks. Those ladies are a hoot!! I was so happy to see all four back this year! And I am happy to report that Jean worked on an old UFO

Retreat Show and Tell

2011-11-04T21:01:00.000-04:00

Here are the goodies that were on display for the Show and Tell. (Please note that there camera batteries did not run out this year! Woot!) Can you tell what this is? Great things, huh?

Some retreat pics

2011-11-03T20:56:00.002-04:00

No book reviews tonight. I still haven't written them so they will show up in the next few days. Instead, I will share some retreat pics. I was thinking about some of the goodies that I had while in Shipshewana. Peanut butter pie and a homemade cinnamon roll with caramel icing. YUMMY! I also had a cinnamon pretzel from JoJo's, but I forgot to take a picture. My sewing area. I should have

I'm around

2011-11-02T20:55:00.001-04:00

I'm here. I got home from retreat on Sunday and crashed earlier than I expected to. I had wanted to put everything away, but that didn't happen. It still hasn't really happened. I wanted to have a Midget block to show yesterday. Didn't happen. I wanted to respond to emails and get my inbox cleaned up. Didn't happen either. What I have done is put a few things away, smiled at retreat memories and

Stash Report Week 44, 2011

2011-10-30T09:46:00.001-04:00

What a great weekend! I have done really well on getting some fabric cut and I did pretty good on buying in spite of being in Shipshewana for a couple of days! I got a lot of the pieces cut for my Ohio Star Challenge. (I also got a lot of them sewn, but that is another post!) And I picked up a couple of backings while I was here. One for Argyle Holiday and one for the bug jar quilt. And

Just a tiny bit OCD

2011-10-29T11:57:00.001-04:00

I got a comment a couple of weeks ago asking what kind of organization I was going to come up with for this retreat. I didn't plan on coming up with anything new, but I did organize a new project that I started working on now. I'm working on an Ohio Star challenge and am using 7 gradations of pink to red and black as the background. I have a packet for each of the colors and then 1 packet for

Friday Retreat Progress

2011-10-29T08:45:00.000-04:00

Friday morning, I worked on a couple more Witch blocks. I now have 4 blocks complete and have dubbed the boots the Bitches' Boots. It's very appropriate! Do you see all the detail on the boots? Next, I sewed up the blocks that I had leftover for the Guild's Raffle Quilt. I started working on the top stitching on the Doodle Bugs blocks and then we went to dinner at The Blue Gate. I got

Retreat progress

2011-10-27T22:53:00.001-04:00

I'm at retreat!! The drive was relatively uneventful except for the nagging misting rain and kick up from the trucks that inevitably prevented any safe passing. Ugh! I have already hit Yoder's and Lolly's and picked up a fabric for Argyle Holiday's backing and scoped out backings for the bug jar quilt and the Doodlebugs. This of course means another trip before Sunday morning. :) After shopping

Tiny Tuesday - 10/25

2011-10-25T23:34:00.000-04:00

No new blocks this week, but here are all the blocks I have done so far. They look pretty cute! Anyone else have tiny blocks to share?

Three more days

2011-10-23T20:14:00.001-04:00

I have 3 more days until retreat! I'm not ready.... Not really close at all. I have 3 more days and 4 more nights (counting tonight) to get ready. And there is only a couple of more hours to work tonight. Today, I made a casserole and a pot of chili that will take care of lunches and dinners for the week. And I finished the cleaning on the condo which is awesome! And I started laundry and have

Stash Report Week 43, 2011

2011-10-23T11:06:00.000-04:00

Nothing in this week, but a tiny bit used. I finished up the next set of 5 midget blocks with this one, so I can count the fabric used. I also checked and I hadn't counted the fabric for the previous 5 so I am counting that now, too. And some fabric used for binding on this charity quilt. It's great to have gotten these things done this week! Fabric added this week: 0.00 Fabric added

FNSI Results - 10/21

2011-10-22T09:27:00.002-04:00

What a productive night!! I didn't work on the applique that I thought I would, but I got so much done that I will be able to work on the applique this weekend. To start, I machine stitched the binding down on the last charity quilt I quilted. I did this in the morning before heading to work. And the dogs have tested it so I need to wash it before I turn it in. Last night, I spent less than 2

Book Review Thursday - 10/20

2011-10-20T21:00:00.001-04:00