Lime & Lace

Falling....to pieces

2012-01-07T16:11:00.001-05:00

ok, i just thought this was a kewl pic! ;)

sew, i am working on my next pattern
currently titled "Falling" (for the block and
colors used). The further along i get, other
names start coming to mind. No, not bad ones! ;)
but i have had a BUTT LOAD of EVIL MATH
to do on this on.

Here be quad. 1 with completed section 1-3.

none too shabby, right?!
i am on a deadline of March, as i am signed up
to teach a class on it....this one makes me NERVOUS!
It looks easy, but i have combined fabrics in different
arrangements so you don't have to cut and sew every
single square. Which i can assure you was wicked hard
to figure out from scratch! I think i am going to have to make
a 2nd one before i release the pattern to make sure all that
evil math checks out. (i have many pieces left over that....well....
shouldn't exist. ahhhh, good times.)

and i am SEW PROUD of this:

check out them points, gurl!
Ok, ok, this might be the only 'perfect' one...
sew, i'm gonna brag about it ;) lol

all in all she is coming together nicely.
If i didn't have to make a pattern i am sure
i woulda been done like 4 months ago (or so
i tell myself).

Well, what kind of projects are you guys working
on for this New Year? If anyone out there has a list
as long as their arm, i'd love to hear it; misery does
love company! ;)

Bargain Barn!

2011-12-30T04:00:00.000-05:00

I wanted to share my favorite place with you guys!

Welcome to the Bargain Barn!

This is my home away from home :)

I took these pix with my phone, so please excuse

me for not living up to my normal pic quality.

My pink Polaroid was down for the count that day.

They make their own jelly rolls, charms and layer cakes.

Tiara picks out fabrics from stock that match and makes

beautiful fabric pre-cut combos. Here be the civil war jellies,

and the 1st pick is 40's repro. prints. She also recently made

pre-cuts from all modern prints.

of course i had to take a pic of the roo! :)

all these wool pieces they dyed themselves!

And not pictured are rows and rows and rows

(and rows) of upholstery and home decor fabric and trims.

i mean more than you can even imagine! Check out their

site from the link above, or the button on my side bar ->

and check out all they have to offer.

They have a wide variety of quilting fabric and just

about every kinda fabric you need. and many different

quilty patterns too! (not just L&L :)

Check 'em out! oh, and most importantly

Marietta and Tiara will give you THE BEST

customer service EVER! :D

Goodies!

2011-12-28T16:38:00.000-05:00

I wanted to share some of my awesome treats with you guys.

This post is riddled with pix, just the way i like 'em!

My mom got me this AWESOME trinket box by

Jim Shore. I love me some Jim Shore. I think its the best

combination of a modern classic style. His things are just

amazing. Mom and dad both got me the Jim Shore Nativity

last year. i LOVE IT.

check out the dangles inside! CUTE! and what i love about it

the most is the title of the piece:

"Create a life Sew Beautiful."

perfect.

Quilting Goodies!!

I have had my eye on that binding board for

quite some time. Can't wait to try it out!

My wonderful hubby got me these lovelies!

Ruby by Bonnie & Camille for Moda

and Flora by Lauren & Jessi Jung for Moda

also under the tree was this ring stack set that i have had saved in

my favorites etsy list. it is by Hillary Burkett, who we had

the honor of having her as our wedding photographer.

SHE IS AMAZING!! Please check out her

etsy store. Her jewelry is hand made with pix that

she has taken herself, and some, like these rings

are sterling silver. Amazing, amazing, amazing.

and this is a specially crafted bag from Marietta at

the Bargain Barn! HOW AWESOME IS THIS PEOPLE?!

it is a Lime and Lace bag! BAM! AND she made this

up, like outta her head, just thrown' things together, and

also made it in 1 afternoon. AMAZING!

(this blog, brought to you by the word amazing)

i can't even say in words how unbelievable this is.

she made 5 pockets inside that fit my patterns. oh, and

of course, the inside was filled with Lime and lace towels :)

my new favorite bag? i think sew!

and another amazing handmade gift- fingerless mits!

From Steph (my mini partner in crime-we both gave up. lol)

i am forever freezing at work, and these are PERFECT!

i LOVE THEM!!

I also got some Build-a-Bear gift cards. hahah.

yeah, the same gift that my Hub got our 5 year old niece.

i love build-a-bear.i mean, after all it is where

best friends are made! (i think we've already covered

my nerd-ness last post.)

thank you SEW MUCH everyone for all

my awesome gifts!!

SEW!! What kinda amazing goodies did yall get?!

do tell!

Nerd Alert!

2011-12-26T15:59:00.000-05:00

This is one of my many awesome gifts
this year. Yeah, its a big box of Lego's.
Sew, i am sure that everyone knows i am
a VW fanatic. :) any guesses as to what
this might be?....well, i literally stayed up till
3am this morning finishing it. (what?! Lego's
are addictive!)

That's right!!!! ITS A LEGO BEETLE!!!!!!!
I built a car! pretty good for my first one, eh?

check it out, actual size engine! lol :)
everything "works". the "trunk" opens and doors open....
i mean, how stinkin' cool is this?

i <3 this pic

even a shifter, parking break and glove box.
all which "work"!

i have always loved Lego's! I have 3 lego
spongebob sets (yes, all of which i have
received within the last few years....)
and of course all Lego Star Wars video games...
for my Gamecube none the less. ( no, i haven't
up-graded, i prefer to think of it as 'keepin'
it real.')

Sew, there is a look into the geek portion of
my life. its not always pretty fabric and sewing....
i am a gamer/nerd at heart :) or perhaps i am
just 7 at heart....either way i get to play with
toys! :D

Merry Christmas!!

2011-12-24T04:00:00.000-05:00

Ornaments!

2011-12-22T08:18:00.001-05:00

These lovelies are what have had me
sew busy the last few weeks! I made one
for all the gurls at work....I had to wait
till after our office party to post ;)

i had totally planned on doing a tutorial on these
for you guys, but i ran outta time. Fear not, i will
still make one, maybe i'll have it all together by
next Christmas. If you guys want it even tho
Christmas will be over in a few days let me know,
and i will put up sooner after the new year.

Sew, how are all your Holiday crafty gifts coming?
Do tell!

The Charming winner is......

2011-12-18T12:31:00.000-05:00

CHERISE!
Congrats guurrrlll friend! This
charm pack will soon be on its way
to its new home. Now you know,
you must share with us your chram
pack project ;)

I want to thank everyone SEW MUCH
for playing along, visiting, leaving comments
and becoming "friends" of mine! AND
since there were sew many comments, i
have a coupon code for all those who
really wanted to win...
I still have one of these charm packs in my
store, if you'd like to take it home with you,
just enter BlogHop in for the coupon code
when you purchase the charm pack.
it is for 40% OFF!!! hotdog!!!
*This is for the Charm pack only*

I hope this last charm pack goes to a happy
home and gets to be a full grown project someday ;)

Hope everyone is having a great weekend, and thank
again for playing along!!!!!

Blog Hop Give-Away!!

2011-12-09T08:08:00.001-05:00

As i mentioned, i am happy to party with over 100 fellow quilt-y
bloggers in the Quilt Bloggers Blog Hop Give-away!
UP FOR GRABS is a vintage sheet charm pack from my store!

This charming sheet bundle is a total of 40 squares at 5"x5".
And as my fellow quilters you know how useful (and fun) a
charm pack can be :) Sew who wants to win?!?!?!

How to enter: there are 4 ways!!
1: Become a follower of my blog and leave a comment
saying sew (or tell me if you already are).
2. Visit the Lime and Lace Facebook page and LIKE me,
leave a comment telling me you did (or tell me if you already
like me)
3. Leave a comment telling me what you'd like to make with
this charm pack.
4. Check out the other bloggers on the list and leave a
comment about your hopping!
***Please do a seperate comment for each. That's 3 times
to add your name to the drawing pot!***

SEW, who's ready to win win win! :D
Make sure to check all the people on the blog hop.

Good luck everyone!! This giveaway will be up and
running until the 17th, next Saturday, so you have
plenty of time to check out all the participants, and make
some new bloggy friends!

Quilters Blog hop GIVE-AWAY!

2011-12-08T08:18:00.001-05:00

Hey guys! I am joining TONS of fellow
quiltie bloggers in the Quilt Bloggers give-away
starting tomorrow and going thru Dec. 17th!!

Make sure to check us all out and check back in
tomorrow for all the details!

Final Days

2011-12-01T18:48:00.001-05:00

OK you guys, this is it!
My last sale item. Up for sale is a pattern bundle
of my version of the quilted ornament balls and 2
vintage sheet fat quarters! Regular $12.00 NOW $5.50!
All you need are the styrofoam balls and pins!
Check this listing out here, and all that Sheet Cake
has to offer here.

Since i am late getting my act together today, i will let this
sale run thru Saturday, but all other sales will be coming
to an end tomorrow night. Sew, get your shop on and
take advantage of these awesome sales!!!

Happy Holiday shopping everyone!
P.S. why didn't anyone tell me December was
so close?! Its the 1st already!! I may be
unprepared for this Holiday season......
anyone feel me?

Pattern Special!

2011-11-29T21:19:00.001-05:00

Since my first days back to work have been
rather hectic, and, i'll just be honest, i turn
lazy when i get home, i am changing things up a bit.
SURPRISE! :D

Sew, i have decided my next sale item to go up will
be my patterns! Regularly $7.50, now on sale for $5.00.
BAM!

OHHHH, and if any of you haven't been checking in
at the shop, i am keeping all my sales up till this friday.
I was going to be doing it day by day, but thought i'd
make a whole week of it. SEW, if you have missed
a day, fear not! The deal is still to be had!

Happy Sheet Cake Shopping!

BoGo! BoGo!

2011-11-27T20:01:00.001-05:00

As promised here is my Cyber Monday 'Head's Up'.
I put this in my store tomorrow morning.
This sale is buy a yard, get a yard! YOUR CHOICE!
Just make sure to tell me which yard you'd like
as your free one.
WOOT!! Two for one, baby! Can't beat it!

Well, here to great long weekend. Sorry to see you go.
I got a lot done, but still sew much to do ;)
But i don't think that will ever change.

Hope all you guys had a great weekend
and a great Turkey day! Now let the
crazy Christmas shopping and traditions
(and most importantly the cooking) BEGIN! :D

Mmmmmm....Sheetcake

2011-11-26T09:46:00.001-05:00

Hey guys! Everyone recouping from crazy
shopping hours yesterday? Or maybe you're
just like me and eating continuously. :)

Welp this was the first to launch my sale!
An actual sheet cake!! This pattern combo
comes with the Secret Garden pattern AND
a sheet cake of 32 vintage sheet 10" squares.
All you need to do is sew!
Retail is $25.00 on sale now for $19.00!
You can reach this awesome deal here,
or click on my shop button -->

This is the release for today and tomorrow:
A Big Fat Trio! This is a 3 pack Fat Quarter bundle,
2 of which are super fats, measuring aprox. 22"x23"!
Retail $6.70 now $3.75! Check it out here or my
shop button!

I will release my Cyber Monday deal tomorrow night. You
guys will be the first to know!

Hope everyone had a great Holiday and saved lots of $$$$
this weekend :) And, most importantly, has many leftovers
so you don't have to cook for the rest of the week.
My favorite part :D

Sale Warnings :)

2011-11-22T08:10:00.001-05:00

Everyone preparing for over-eating and an early morning
shopping trip?! Me too, well at least i am ready for
over-eating...not much of a crowds person ;)

And for all of you other non-crowd people, i have a great
week of sales in my shop!!! Get what you want without
changing out of your jammies :) Now that's a good day!

As promised, here are some hints for the up-coming
sales for all my bloggy palls:
Fri. 25: Pattern & Material Combo
Sat. 26: FQ+FQ+FQ
Sun. 27: FQ+FQ+FQ
Mon. 28: Yard + Yard
Tue. 29: Yard = FQ
Wed. 30: Yard = FQ
Thur. 1: New pattern bundle
Fri. 2: New pattern bundle

Sew, head on over and get an idea of what you'll be clicking + saving
on in the days to come ;) I will also be adding 3 new sheet patterns
for the week!

So please tell me, what do you guys do on Black Friday?
Shop till you drop or eat the leftovers?! ;)

Patterns are in! (& other shop news)

2011-11-14T05:00:00.000-05:00

I have finally added my patterns
to my etsy shop! Both Fat Sudoku and
Secret Garden are available :)

In other shop news!!!!...
i will be having a sale in the shop for
a whole week starting Black Friday, Nov. 25th.
I will have different sales running different days AND
as a special gift to all my peeps in blog-land, i will
release an overview of hints for the whole week's schedule,
so you can make your wish list and hit up the store when the
time is right for you! that way you don't have to check out
etsy every day.

and just to bait the hook a little more ;) i will
be releasing another pattern during that week,
as well as a new "product" and a few new
sheets as well! Gonna be a big week!!!
(and a busy one, thank goodness for extra
holiday time off ;) )

stay tuned! :)

A-stashing-we-will-go!

2011-11-12T22:02:00.001-05:00

OK, sew it is a little early for Christmas songs,
but you know its been in the stores since 5 seconds
after Halloween was over, right?!
Welp, here is some of my latest goodies!

Let me break it down for you, after all
every fabric has a story...well...mostly :)

these sea critters cuz it has been in the remnant bin
at Joanns for months...so i knew it was meant to be.
*Someday* this will be a runner in my beach room.

these cuz Joanns was having a good sale on
Holiday fabric...and i had to go get some things
for mom any way....so had to make the best of it! ;)

FQ's because you can never have enough...AND i
had a gift certificate!!! :D

The chicken print is part of a new project; a
challenge brought on by my Bargain Barn gals,
and i found this PERFECT red to go with.

and these because...you can NEVER have
enough moda! :D AND i also got these with
my gift certificate!!! I got it for my bday from
my awesome in-laws and i just cashed it in
the other day. it was SEW AWESOME
getting to go on a Moda shopping spree!!!
A gurls dream come true!

Sew, what have you guys been up to?
Any good stash building going on?

Strawberry Shortcake Returns

2011-11-02T12:26:00.000-04:00

Remember her? The original version?
How can you not love that face?! :)

She was my inspiration for Halloween.
Of course i had to make the costume, cuz all
the store ones were, well....lets just say rather
skimpy. lol.

TA DA!!! Blast from the past!
Let me tell you, i can make a mean apron.
There is even strawberry pattern ruffles at the bottom
and hand sewn X's. The base dress is from the Goodwill,
my go-to place to lay a costume foundation :).
I added the sleeves. And a special thanks to Ebay for
the socks and hat in last minuet fashion, as that is how i roll! ;)

We had a great time in NC for Halloween. My friends were
Deb from Napoleon Dynamite and a Zombie:
Here is Deb about to be a Zombie snack.
good times.

Yeah, we are 20 somethings going on 7 :)

What did you guys do for Halloween?!
Do share!!!!

2011-10-26T18:39:00.000-04:00

My first class! :)
I had the privilege of teaching these
lovely ladies as my very first quilting class.
it was a BLAST! and we made new friends.
We will be meeting up next week to show off
our finished quilts. I have a photo shoot planned
for these ladies! lol hope they are up for an
afternoon of modeling :)

You can see more pix of class and their
projects on the Lime and Lace Facebook page!
--------> i have added an icon over there.
Please drop by and check it out. Perhaps
hit a "like" button if you'd like :)

SEW, what is everyone working on for
Halloween? Any gr8 costumes being
feverishly sewn together at the last minute?
I am one of those last minute people myself.
(shocking). This year i am going to be
Strawberry Shortcake!!! Yeah, i'm an
'80's Cartoon kinda gurl. (anyone that
remembers last year, i was Rainbow Bright).
Sew, what is everyone going to be this year? :)

Didn't there used to be a blog here?

2011-10-07T15:49:00.000-04:00

yes, yes there did.
I think has been my longest absence.
Sorry all my bloggy pals, i have been on
a hiatus from computer land. Work has been
kinda fierce lately (which is a good thing!) so
when i get home i kinda stray from the computer.
There really can be too much of a good thing.
HOWEVER, my quilting brain hasn't turned off yet!

'member that all solid quilt i was pondering?
*BAM* here be the colors!!!! Yummo!
AND the best part? it was ALL on sale!!!
Can i getta woot woot! Thanks to JoAnns
Columbus day sale, i scored all this for1/2 of
what it shoulda been, AND that is 1/2 of what
it woulda been using Bella Solids. Oh yeah.
Luck is on my side. sew, now i need to finalize
my how-to. my plan is to make this super easy.....
which turns out, isn't super easy to figure out. lol.
In a few months i should have it well underway, but
i really wanna start cutting now!

Welp, wish me luck, my 1st day of quilt class is
tomorrow!!!!!!! :D

Grand Opening!

2011-09-15T11:56:00.001-04:00

Introducing Sheet Cake, my Etsy Shop!
I am selling vintage sheets and other
quilting goodies....as well as my patterns (coming soon).
You can click on the above banner or my
shop button over there --->
and be whisked away to fresh from the dryer
vintage sheet land!

And just for my bloggy palls, i am having a special
for you guys! Get a free Fat Quarter with any purchase.
Just add this in the comments to seller box at check out:
LOVE LIMES. I will surprise you with a FQ that will
compliment your purchase; who doesn't love surprises?!
I will have this promotion going for a week,
ending next Saturday, the 24th.

I will be adding things to the shop all week long, so
check in for some new things :)

I hope you guys will come by the store and visit,
and check out all the amazing people on etsy.
My personal favorite is the handmade silver jewelry.
I am a sucker for shiny things. I have quite the
Christmas list for the husband this year!:D

Happy shopping & almost weekend everyone!!!!

Holding Back

2011-09-11T10:54:00.000-04:00

i <3 fall.
i love the colors and the weather and the
festivals (wine and non ;) we had a few
fall mornings a week ago and ever since i have
been raring to cut loose with the fall decor
around the house. i am trying to hold back
until the 23rd, which is the 1st day of fall.

i also really love these s&p shakers. they were a
bday gift last year.they are for my fall table. :)
i have already broken out the pumpkin spice candles,
so it may still be in the 80's some days, but my house
smells like fall. i have also made (or at least working on it)
a new pattern with some yummy fall colors. i think i'm
actually doing this one in solids!! *gasp* i know. i think i
may even use Bella solids! *larger gasp* i buy high rent
focal prints....and tend to hit up the bargain bin with a coupon
for the filler prints/solids.....so this is a big step!
"That's a lot of money for just one color"-Sheldon from
Big Bang Theory. lol. (P.S. Season 4 Drops Tuesday, and
we pre-ordered it....and it shipped out yesterday!!!!! when
it arrives, there will be NO sewing, sketching in the house that day.)

Anyone else decorate for fall? what are your fall
traditions?

I'm back, baby!

2011-09-04T13:07:00.000-04:00

:) can i getta 'Woot Woot'. Sure, playing gamecube was
great, but i am glad to be back in my sewing room.
I went to a sewing class last week with a friend and
i figured since i was going to be 'teaching' this fall i should
invest in a carrying case. and you know me, i am anything
but normal, sew i had to pimp it out a little.
This is when my day job comes in handy ;)

i designed this pattern and cut it out of vinyl
(lime green of course). It doesn't really stick all
that well, sew i couldn't turn the corners. i coulda used
a different material.....but that would been $$.
It will just make me be more careful, which is good
for the life of the case, and the machine inside of it :)

and what did i sew in class you ask?

a zipper bag! the whole thing is made out of one
incredibly long zipper. now, its way too small for
me to actually carry, i mean, this thing could barely
hold my sunglasses case, lol, but it was sew much
fun to make! and to hang with my gurl, T.

here it is unzipped:

no, that's not a green snake. its my purse!
the pattern is from the booklet Zip and carry bags.
really neat things in there!! i am gonna make a small one
for my BFF.

Hope you guys are doing well and
having a great Labor day weekend!!!

anyone working on anything this long weekend?
or just cooking out and watching football? :)

Funk-ay Funk-ay

2011-08-28T17:23:00.000-04:00

...remember that song?
Yeah, me neither, but i remember
that part of it :)

Sorry i have been MIA....
i've been in a funk...and i think it is
cyber-contagious. I noticed a few
of my bloggy buds have had the same
kinda title last week.

i have nothing to show that has even the
littlest thing to do with quilting. BUT
i do have a few pix from the countryside
so i thought that might hold ya over.

these are from a few weeks ago.
the sky has just been beautiful since
the heat has broken.

i love this one.
these are from my "pavement leads me home" series. lol

i hope everyone is doing ok and being much more
productive than i.

Happy Sunday afternoon!

Get your limes here!!

2011-08-10T21:33:00.000-04:00

BIG NEWS!!!!!!:D
so this is what i have been toiling
away on instead of quilting and blogging
per the usual. May i introduce
LIME AND LACE PATTERNS!

They are on sale at Bargain Barn!
(check them out! they have WAY more
stuff in store than on line so if you have any
requests they are more than happy to help out)

This is where i have been taking my batik and
silk painting classes and in conversation one Sat.
it slipped out that i was a quilter, and the store owners
wanted to see my work so of course i was happy to
do a little sew and tell ;) they loved my patterns and
wanted to sell them.... so the long and short of it is
that i am blessed beyond belief and i just can't even
believe it!!!!

check it! they are in a store and everything!
yeah, i'm a big 'ole geek and had to take pix of it.
I am also working on an etsy site which i still have a
ways to go...but of course i will also be selling some
of them them on there too. Some will be only available
at Bargain Barn.

AND...

My quilt is on display there...because.....
i will be teaching a beginners quilt class in oct.
i am totally nervous and i am sure that this will
be quite an adventure. i don't exactly have the
most patients.....soooooo..... well, lets just
pray i don't end up in jail when its over! lol j/k
The store owner is gonna help me out, sew i think
we will make it just fine :)

i am in a state of limbo i think.
it is all so surreal and i just can't believe it.
i seriously can't say how blessed i am.
Sew, if your in the area in October,
you best come take my class and say
hello and partake in the Par-tay!

and i'd love some teaching advice if you'd like
to share ;)

PS :
i now officially own this domain.
I am now limeandlace.com!

The end of SSQA

2011-08-07T15:02:00.000-04:00

the final 3 blocks! i did it!! i actually finished
this QA in record time :D i almost ran out
of white...and i plan on white sashing so
i must pick some up soon before the
magic wears off and this becomes a really
awesome UFO.

i have to say i am really pleased with my
1st bout with PP, despite all my complaining.
My points have come out really nice and clean
for the most part. and as any quilter knows,
that is just sew darn important :)

for some reason, i really loved this one.
it is the most simple of them but there's
just something about it. i did sneak in some
of her Neptune line from a few years back
when she was with Moda. i still really LOVE
this line (and not just because she has a
VW van in her magazine ad for it).

and here is a sneak peak of the final layout:

hazaa! ;)
AND the best part....i have a great name
for it: 'The Princess and the Frog"
i know, its genius. OH and even better,
i have the PERFECT quilt label for this one.
A while back i got this from Tula's store
(i'm a huge fan and huge nerd, i even kept
the envelope it came in. she is sew awesome)
and i have been waiting on just the perfect Tula
quilt to use it on. VERY EXCITED. it's the
little things, people. however, the collector in me
wants to keep it mint in the package as most of
the labels have sold out....what if she doesn't offer
them any more and i end up with one of few that
never gets used?! yeah, i'm nutz. ;)
"but all the best people are." -from Alice in Wonderland.

anywho!! anyone else completed their QA's?
Anyone with a quilt top together? i hope not!! :D

Welp i guess we're gonna have to find something
else to perk us up for Mondays. any suggestions?

have i mentioned...

2011-08-06T15:58:00.000-04:00

....i don't like paper piecing?!
my goodness, this crap takes forever.
i have 3 more blocks to make for
the SSQA. (i am a wee bit behind.)
The PP is slowing me down. i kept
hoping for a regular one, and then before i
knew it, it was over! this is the last block.
Yeah, i am outta order too. oh well.
looks like i'm gonna be up to my knees in
paper this weekend. ugh. Head down and
power thru.

and you guys have gone far too long
with out a chickie update, so without
further adue:

silkie babies!!!!! 4 have hatched out
so far today and still a few left in the
incubator, AND mrs. squishy is setting
now too, so there will be even more adorable
silkie babies on the way....only i won't be
able to get near her's without getting eaten
by mr. squishy. he is one protective daddy.

Happy weekend all! And happy paper
piecing to all those who are behind in
their SSQA :D

SSQA Progress

2011-08-01T07:44:00.000-04:00

i must say, i am doing MUCH
better at keeping up with this QA.
We all remember my other QA fiasco.
now, don't be fooled, i have definitely
broken in the shiny new seam ripper.
at least it makes me happy when i use it :)

that up there ^ is block 4. it was
paper pieced, and let me tell you, it was
quite an undertaking fussy cutting those
frogs just sew. especially the dark one.
but for my very first real paper piecing, i
am SUPER proud of it. i ran to mom's the
second i ironed it out.

this is block 5

another paper piece. this one not

quite as good. but after ripping it

out 3 times, i said to H with it.

block 6 i am saving till the end as it is

a scrappy paper piecing. i want to use

all left overs for it.

block 7

finally back to regular piecing! :)

block 8

more paper piecing. i have learned that

neither myself nor my machine like

paper piecing that much. i would think

i would have more control with this method,

but i think i am better off on my own.

now that is scary. but i am glad i learned

how to do it.

sew, there we have it. i really am doing

something.

hello out there?!?! anyone else playing along?

check out all the commotion on the flckr group.

happy beginning of the week everyone.

if you want to have a good start, join us

on the SSQA and start your

monday block :) this is the ONLY

reason mondays are OK. :D

...and the winner is....

2011-07-27T17:49:00.000-04:00

Theresa! You are lucky #7!
Congrats you lucky duck!

I'll shoot you an email and get your
blushing charms right over to ya.

regular posting will be back
to normal next week.

Happy Humpday!

Thank You (giveaway) !!

2011-07-20T07:44:00.000-04:00

Sew, it has been a while
since my victory from the
Moda Bake Shop May contest,
and i did get my winnings :)
They weren't exactly my color
choice but it was still awesome.
I gave some to mom; you know
how mom loves those Civil War
color combos.

Well, as my THANK YOU
to all those who voted
for me, i wanted to give
something back. Sew, i am
having my very first GIVEAWAY!!!

My 'Thank You Giveaway'
is going to make you Blush.
(HAHAHA, awesome horrible pun.)

The winner will recieve this
Charm pack of Blush by Basic Grey
for Moda.

3 CHANCES TO WIN!!:
leave a SEPARATE comment for
each of the following:

1. leave a comment about what you
would make with it.

2. become a follower of this blog
and leave a comment saying so
(or if you already are).

3. Blog about my blog/giveaway and
leave a comment with a link.

The winner will be chosen next
Wednesday, July 27th.
*Open to USA Residence Only*
I will announce the winner in
my post and email them for
mailing info. If you do not have
a google account or email address
given in your profile please leave
your email in a comment or email
me.

Best of luck to you! I hope the lucky
winner is as happy as i was :)

Stash & number 4

2011-07-19T12:24:00.000-04:00

Block 4!
Ok, sew remember how i just said
that i liked QA's because someone
else does the math? Scratch that.
Those who are in the QA know that
this is NOT AT ALL how this block
was to be put together. But i had a
vision and i have to have it my way
so i had buttloads of math to do on
this one. See how it shoulda been
here. I didn't wanna cut up my
Tula gurl so i had to figure out
how to make the center all one piece.
Which involves DIAGONAL MATH.
I expect a parade in my honor for getting
this to come out right the first time.
At the very least, a cookie.
I am WAY proud of it. i guess i get a
high from math when it actually comes
out right. it's like magic.

On to stash!!
if you remember, when i re-did my
craft room, this is what my stash
looked like then:

look at those empty cubbies and how
lonely my bakeshop tray looks.
no more!
here she be now:

now thats one handsome stash if i
do say so myself. and thats just
since January! very proud.
i just keep reminding my
self of this when i accidentally end up
in JoAnns or any other quilt shop in
my path.

Be sure to come back tomorrow
for a fun surprise ;)

Happy Tuesday!

Blox 2&3

2011-07-17T13:32:00.000-04:00

the SSQA is in full swing.
Here's blocks 2 & 3.
I love doing these QA's
cuz i don't have to do any of
the math! Someone already did
it for me!! Bless you.

I also really like 'em cuz i have
a tendency to control everything...
so when i design my own pattens
i HAVE to set them up in EQ so
i know exactly what material is
best for the pattern, if they all
play nice together, if the fabric
pattern scale is good for the blocks......
i can go on and on and on. (you know
how those designers are).
but with these i like to wing it!
just pick up a bundle of fabric and
get to sewin'. It makes me feel
wild and reckless. My, how my
view of "wild and reckless" has
taken a turn str8 down hill! lol.

Anyone else playing along?
How's yalls progress?

Block numero uno

2011-07-11T19:10:00.000-04:00

Sew charming, isn't he? ;)
Here is my first block for the
Summer Sampler QA. Very
excited. i joined this cuz i thought
it would be PERFECT for showcasing
my newly acquired Tula Pink stash.

turns out, i was right.
i mean, how can you get her fabric
and just cut it up willy-nilly?

This was the star of VA.
Can i get a Woot Woot for VA?!

I seriously couldn't w8 to get home
and start on this. I have been itching
to cut up my new stash. Ever get
that way?

Anyone else doing this QA?
Leave me a link in your comments
sew i can check 'em out!

Can't w8 till wed...... (block numero dos.)

Birds of a Feather

2011-07-10T16:38:00.000-04:00

FINALLY!
I have gotten way sidetracked on this one.
But finally got it all sewn up today.

the border is made of the siggy blocks
from the swap i did last year over at
the Quilt and Needle. I finally put them
to good use.

When i pieced the top, i obviously had

high hopes of it being done last month.

Oh well!

Summer time is a hard time to focus

on indoor things.

Sew, what are yall up to?

Anyone complete anything lately

that has taken much longer than normal? :)

OH! Don't forget; tomorrow starts the

Summer Sampler QA.

mmm..summa time

2011-07-03T18:59:00.000-04:00

i think by now everyone knows i love me
some summer. we are going to my friends
pool tomorrow for some sun and sangria ;)
after all, that is the only good thing red
wine is for! this batch features home made
elderberry wine my cuz made last year.
i'm really excited to try it.

how pretty is that?! you almost don't
want to drink it.....well, i said almost.
There isn't any room left in this thing
to add the ginger ale, but i just wanted
to use this pitcher so bad. its an antique
that my mom and dad gave me and
i just love it, but it never gets used.
We'll have to do it up mix drink
style by the pool. lol

i am toying with the idea of joining
the Summer Sampler Quilt along.
i think it will be perfect for my tula pinks
i just bought. i'm sure i have enough wild
colors in my stash to add to the bunch.
it has some paper piecing in there and i'm
not too skilled on organized paper piecing,
sew i figure it'll be a fun way to fine tune
my mad skillz. well, make them "madder"
anyhow. lol. it starts July 11, sew yall
should join in!! I know Carla is! :D
who's with us?

and i just wanna throw in this pic.
our evening sky a few nights back.
we had a wicked storm, i hated
driving home in it, but what a beautiful
sky after the fact.

Hope yall are having a gr8 4th weekend
and join me in sitting pool side with a nice
tall glass of yummo sangria :)
Cheers!

Proof

2011-06-27T07:48:00.000-04:00

I'm still a quilter, i promise!
OK, sew this picture is a complete
lie. A pretty picture, but thats about it.

I started quilting this wall hanging and
had one problem after another (i got to break
in my new seam ripper) sew, i decided to
give it a shot by hand. i was doing pretty good,
then i realized that the bottom wasn't even close
to as pretty as the top. i took this celebratory
picture a bit prematurely. i gave it another shot
and wasn't satisfied with that either; back to the
machine. i found a foot that is MUCH more
helpful in my tin of goodies.

I feel like i've been working on this one
forever. only because i keep getting
side tracked with something else.
its coming along.

Happy Monday!

Wino Weekend Returns

2011-06-25T23:09:00.000-04:00

I've started drinking again. LOL
We have picked up our wine tasting
tours again; always a good time.
i mostly just love going to all these places.
This weekend we visited Veritas;
pictured above, and Afton Mtn. Vineyard.

These places were by far the most
beautiful we've seen. The wine wasn't
really up my ally; TOO MANY REDS!!
No Bueno. i like my wine to taste like
candy. lol. perhaps i need to stick to mixed
drinks. But hey, after the 3rd tasting, anything
is good right?! :D Afton Mtn. had the best Rose'.
I am kinda regretting not getting it.

This is at Veritas. Can i just say how
incredible that place was. i mean it looked
like royalty should be there. i felt like a big 'ole
red neck when we walked in. My batteries were
dieing so i didn't get many pix. i always carry
backup batteries, but since they were re-charges
they had lost their energy too.
I was very unprepared today.

OH, we also went to Cardinal Point. The camera
didn't have any more juice, so now pix there.
They had a really good desert wine, but
once again, too many reds.

If only the wine tasted as good as the descriptions of it;
for example i got a glass of something that was described as
hints of coffee, carmel, bla bla bla, finishes with a toffee....
How can that NOT be good?! well it wasn't!
EWWW, dry red. no bueno.

Sew, anyone else like wine tasting? or wine?
or just day trips with friends? :)

please share some of your fave wine stories!

Sum Sum Summa Time!

2011-06-24T08:19:00.000-04:00

Who ~~likes~~ loves summer?! I DO!!
and not just because of my birthday :)
I <3 heat and sun, especially since my
office at work is cold...freezing. i wear
a hoodie just about year round in there.

On to some good 'ole pix.
Lets call this Picture Taking Thursday.

Those up there are some berries in our woods.

these are flowers at my BFFE's house in NC.

and this sweet little guy is in our
front yard right now. I love turtles.
look at that sweet little face, whats
not to love?!

Have yall noticed something here?!
When is the last time i had a project pic on here?
I know yall were being polite and are trying not to
say anything. But i SWEAR i am working on like
2 actual quilty things and working on a rather
large WIP which i am excited to reveal. May be
a little white still.

I think i need to stop buying fabric, and
start actually sewing it!!

I'm really running out of room to stash it.

Hope you enjoyed my slide show.
What is yalls favorite summer time thing?

Bday Stash

2011-06-22T19:13:00.000-04:00

I might have had a birthday yesterday :)
to kick off the festivities i went to my
BFFE's in NC and we ate too much
and spent too much. always a good time!
She took me to a quilt store: Wish Upon a Quilt.
They had Tula Pink's Prince Charming AND
Parisville line. AWESOME!! it was like
meeting a movie star, sew i got a few to
bring home, along with a few others.

When i got back the hub took me on

a suprise trip to the Luray Zoo. It is a

rescue zoo. I loved it, i just wished that

animals loved me as much as i love them!

:D And of course he took me to a little

quilt shop where i found these:

FEED SACKS!!! like in the wild

and everything! He got these for me.

I was soooooo excited. I've never

seen them in a store before. I have some

that my mom gave me; these will join

them, prob. never be used. I mean they

are antiques, you can't just go cutting up

antiques!

My mom and dad also got me this kit

which i LOVE, but i am pretty

sure that when i get around to actually

doing it, there will be a lot of sailor

talk going on!! i mean, look at all that

applique! this is my nightmare on elm st.

but it is just sew beautful...i must make

myself do this.

and the piece de resistance:

CHECK OUT THIS SEAM RIPPER!!!!

how stinkin' kewl is this?! I got this in NC.

I about had a cow right in the middle of the store.

The lady helping us had quite a laugh.

All the people there are awesome, btw, sew

if your ever in the area, please look them up.

you'll have a gr8 time just talking to them,

never mind all the fabric! :)

Well, sorry my pix were not up to my

standard quality, but i am lazy from

vacation and its hard to get back in

the groove. I will have some nice

nature pix soon.

Hope yall had a good weekend

and your week is going just as well!

Back it up

2011-06-17T11:54:00.000-04:00

OK, here is my some what tute for the back
of my pillow. the pix i have are not to scale;
the measures on them are right, and that's all
that matters ;)

The original recipe is here. You can do
everything the same, only don't cut 2
17" squares in step 1, only cut 1 for the
front. Also, i didn't have elastic thread
so i pleated my "ruffles" by hand as i
sewed the wrong sides together, that's
why they look all uniform.

FOR THIS BACK YOU WILL NEED:
(1) 19" square for the back
(4) 2" x 14" strips for the bows

Step 1:
cut the 19" square in half yielding
(2) 9.5" x 19" rectangles.

Step 2:
on one end, on the 19" length, fold
down 1" and iron.

Then unfold and
bring the raw edge of the end you just
ironed to the "ditch" you created, and iron,
then fold it in again and iron. this will
give you a 1/2" "seam".
this is the hemmed finish edge for the
back. repeat on the other piece.

Sew down the open side of you seam
to secure.
My allowance was just under 1/4".

Step 3:
Making the pieces for the bows.
Iron one of the 2" strips in 1/2,
wrong sides together.

This will give you 1" on either side of the
center fold. Now bring the 1" ends inside
to the "ditch" and iron again.

Now iron the whole thing in half one
more time.

This will give you a 1/2" wide strip.
Sew this down the open side as well.
When you get to the end that will be
the tail of your bow, fold then ends in
like a present and sew to secure them.
you can leave the "top" end with raw
edges; this will be hidden inside the back.
Do this with all 4 strips.

Step 4:
Sew the bow strips to the back pieces.
I measured up 5" from the bottom and
top of the 19" length and attach one
strip at each mark. Do the same on the
other back piece.

I attached mine by just sewing
a box.

Step 5:
now just sew the back to the front.
Line one of the back halves, right sides
and raw edges together (so the hemmed
edge with the bow strips are toward the inside)
and sew together. do the same for the
other side. once its all sew together turn inside
out and insert your pillow form and, BAM!

all tied up in a neat little bow :)

I hope this was helpful. I just breezed thru
it so if you have any questions please let me know.
If your good with button holes, this would look
awesome all buttoned down the back (like miss
mary mack, mack, mack...) yeah, i wen there ;)

Happy Friday everyone!!!!!!!!!
I am off to see my BFFE this weekend.
A little pre-birthday present to me :)

Old dog; New tricks

2011-06-15T07:13:00.000-04:00

sew, i am revisiting my new favorite block
with a new/old fabric choice.
I never really notice how much i
liked these prints.

this was just a kewl pic.

Fabric of choice: Verna by Kate Spade for Moda
(who else?!)

my speed is going pretty good.
Already have the first row done
and the 2nd row "prepped" for
reconstruction. This quilt is for a
special project. No, not another
contest, i figure i need to quit
while im ahead ;)

What are yall up to? Any one doing
any extreme summer sewing?

Mug Rug

2011-06-14T07:07:00.000-04:00

ever since Pat's Mug Rugs i've been wanting to
make one for myself for my desk at work, but
its just one of those things you never really think
about/get around to. Mine isn't near as awesome
as her's but it'll do ;) i only had 10 birdies to
fussy cut, so i figured out my pattern which only
needed 9, sew i couldn't let this little guy just
sit all alone in my test block scrap pile, now
could i? It really cheers up my office.
(no, my office is not my front porch
but how awesome would that be?!)

i love the back just as much.
its some fuzzy really old vintage
lime green goodness i had lying
around.

I want to say a BIG HELLO!!!!! to all
my new followers :) Welcome to the
Crazy Chicken ladies blog!!
I'm sew very excited that you've all
joined in the fun!

And i have had a lot of requests for a tute on
the pillow i re-created for the contest.
here is the original recipe from the Moda
bakeshop. I assume yall mean the back;
I will post a tute of that hopefully by Friday
for you guys!

Happy Tuesday everyone :)

.....the surprise.....

2011-06-12T08:46:00.000-04:00

I WON THE MODA BAKE SHOP
MAY CONTEST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THANK YOU SEW MUCH TO
EVERYONE WHO VOTED FOR ME!!!

I CAN NOT EVEN TELL YOU
HOW EXCITED I AM.

ok, sew maybe you can tell by all the
uppercase going on!

The hub and i were both having a pity
party one day about how we enter all
kinds of give aways and never win anything.
Welp, looks like me luck has changed ;)
He's hoping that my luck will rub off on him. lol.

THANKS AGAIN TO EVERYONE!!
I COULDN'T HAVE DONE IT WITHOUT YOU! :)

Who loves fabric?!

2011-06-08T19:48:00.000-04:00

it's me! it's me! So i may have finally placed the order that
has been sitting in my fabric.com shopping cart for about
3 weeks. I always fill it up the the brim and then whittle
it down after i see how much it is! :O
AND i waited so long that they had a new coupon code
that saved me some green! BONUS!
So above is my main reason for my order.
Its from the Poppy line by Laura Gunn for Michael Miller.
I had no idea how big the print was! I mean look at that?!
but it is BEAUTIFUL.

and i also got some other Michael Miller goodies that
were on clearance (extra bonus). The 2 at the bottom are
from the Meadow Sweet line by Sandi Henderson.
(warning: the swatch pages don't show much of the collection)
Also in there are some prints from Just Wing It by MoMo for Moda.
I totally wish i would have bought them out of the plaids....
how can you not love those? Would be perfect for backings.

And i wanna welcome Carla to the group ;)
Check her out, her work is awesome!

Sew, i have a MONUMENTOUS (is that even a word?!) surprise that
i CAN NOT WAIT to tell yall about......but i will wait.......
perhaps tomorrow.... perhaps the next day.......
i want to be able to link to it ;)

Gotta end with a cliffhanger to keep ya coming back!
tricky, i know!

See ya soon!

For the birds

2011-06-04T07:33:00.000-04:00

I am moving fwd with the birdie blocks. i didn't realize how
pretty they were until i put them all together for their photo shoot.

I really don't have a plan for this....other than using up scraps,
but i think i will sew these right next to each other rather than
using sashing.

I have found that if you split up your work, these log cabins types
aren't so hard. I'll use one night to cut strips for 2 blocks, and the next
to sew them all together. Seems to go quicker.

He lives!!! This is Nibbler (name from Futurama).
This little silkie baby is one of 3 that have lived past
1 week!! So glad our silkies hatch rate is up!!
Cuz, ya know i need more chickens.

Happy June everyone!!!!!
I LOVE me some summer AND my Bday is this month.
I am trying to figure out what i want to do; perhaps a
professional hair coloring? a cook out? a group dinner
at Buffalo Wild Wings? A trip to a far away quilt shop?
Why not all of these? lol. Hopefully there is a camping
trip in my near future.

What do yall have in your summer plans?

2nd Times the Charm!! :D

2011-06-01T18:20:00.000-04:00

Hey guys, i did it again!!!!!!!
I am one of the 5 finalist in the Moda Bakeshop
contest from last month!!!! YAY!!!
!!!!! <- can you tell i am excited?!

My gurlie pillow made it! Thanks to Fig Tree Quilts
for making fabric to make me look so good ;)

Soooo....... hook me up with some love guys!
please visit the bake shop and think about
voting for me ;)

YAY!!

Playing with Wax

2011-05-29T20:49:00.000-04:00

Ta da! I call it happy poppy surprise. That's trade marked people. lol
so this is my batik from class. It reminds me of the Mary Engelbreit

flowers. For some reason my mind kept thinking this was silk painting,
so i had expected the dye to just run free with a mind of its own, but
it did exactly what i told it to do. As usual, i have to test the waters
with floaties on before i know what i really wanna do, so next time
i wanna do lots of layers and something a little more random.

The material actually has a pattern, which you never
even notice until you are right on it.
This was tons of fun! I love my peeps at the
Bargain Barn!!! They are never gonna get rid of me now.
Well, until winter and there is ice on the mountain.
I bet they are praying for winter! lol. j/k

and the best part?

a hand dyed selvage for my Selvage Splendor quilt!!
That quilt has about 100000 names. i guess we'll find out
who she really is when the label goes on.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!
I'm doing some home redecorating.
I. Love. White. Paint.

Can't w8 to show off some before and afters.

Happy Memorial Day everyone!!!
Get to cooking out and family time!

Tha Fam.

2011-05-28T10:50:00.000-04:00

My family is just about the coolest ever. I wish that
i would have realized this when i was a kid.

My dad is/was a bee keeper. At one point he had
about 20 hives of honey bees. Now he only has one.
We don't harvest the honey, we let them keep it; they
are more like pets, i guess.

So his bee's swarmed yesterday.
That dark clump in the top of the tree; thats them. A big
'ole pile of honey bees. Dad tried to box them but by the
time he got all his stuff together and a friend over with a
bucket truck to reach 'em, they were gone :(.
I really wanna see him put them in a hive. He doesn't
even wear the bee gear. He's hard core.

This is my moms current project. Log cabin blocks are
her favorite. i love the colors she picked out. This
quilt is going to be awesome. i can't wait to take
it out on a photo shoot when its done!

I have learned so much from mom when i was a kid.
I bet she thinks that i never paid attention, but i did!
I know i've said it before, but i love that mom and i
can bond over quilting. Its nice to have a quilty friend
nearby to talk to :).

yall know i needed more fabric, right?!
I took myself on a date the other day. I went shopping
and saw a movie all by myself. it was awesome!
I took in the mall and a few other stores, and of course
went to a far away land with a quilt store.

I know that i am a little behind the times, but i really am
drawn to the ever so popular blue and red color combos
lately. Its not cliche anymore if the band wagon has already
moved thru, right? lol.

Bliss is the perfect collection for just this kind of disorder :)
i am fiddling around with a few ideas.
I am off to pick up my Batik today....i might have to
get some coordinating yardage for this..... and did i
also mention that i have a more than full cart at Fabric.com
that i need to widdle down?........
pretty soon i'm gonna have more fabric than chickens,
and that my friends, is a butt load! :D

Happy Weekend!!

Fussy

2011-05-26T07:22:00.000-04:00

BAM! here is my Eden block. I am going for that good 'ole
log cabin block.....i now remember why i stray away from these...
TOO MUCH CUTTING!!!!! ARG! the pre-cut princess is in
distress. anyhow, i don't really think its what i am going for...

my whole reason for using this was so i could fussy cut the
little birds out for the center. but i think there is just too much
going on in the background to understand that's what the focal
point is. (holy crap, is my day job interfering with my playtime?!)
i don't have any whimsical prints to fussy cut from....
I JUST WANNA FUSSY CUT SOMETHING, DAMN IT!!
For someone that hates cutting, i sure do wish i could fussy cut
something. So i dunno if i should carry on with this scrappy project.
its definitely not gonna work for the pattern i created. i seriously have
designed all kinds of patterns, but i just can't seem to get the right fabric
for them. lol. which i why i keep coming back to pre-cut friendly designs.

oh, and obviously, i am using up other scraps from my
strip bin. i have enough in there to make 20 quilts i am sure.

to sew or not to sew....what is the verdict guys?!
shall i continue on?

(also, no new babies yet, but rest assured, i will keep yall
in the know.)

The wheels are turning

2011-05-24T21:18:00.000-04:00

I have had this scrap bag for just over 1 year (got it in TN
last year for our anniversary trip, only place i've ever seen them.)
and i keep pulling it out for things, and end up putting it back.....
Sew, my challenge to myself is to make this into my next project.
I am getting my scribbley on and working the calculator to death.
Thank goodness for calculators!!! I am sure i would be fired
by now with out one :D

Also, we have EVEN MORE chickens now!!!

this is fluffernutter and one of her 8 babies. Fluffers only
likes the hub, she basically tries to eat my face off.
As you can tell she was all puffed up and she growled
at me a few times during the photo shoot.
She even pecked the camera. I think she kept a chunk
of pink as a souvenir.

We have another hen expecting this week :D

Yes, this is chicken headquarters.

Idle

2011-05-22T18:03:00.000-04:00

alas, i am ashamed to say i have nae a one
iron in the fire. I am still looking for that perfect
material for the Wreath of Spring. Once i get something
in my head, it is impossible to substitute.

On the plus side, i took a batik class with my favorite
fabric peeps yesterday! I will bring home the finished
project next weekend. Sew, you must stay tuned!! :)
Gotcha!

Till i get off my rear and get something quilty a-brewing,
i have been pondering this.

and i will leave you with a super cute pic ;)

now that is a lazy Sunday afternoon pic. if i ever saw one.

(p.s. sad to say, Pirates 4 be a loss but for jack.)

Just another day

2011-05-20T21:04:00.000-04:00

guess who finally came out to play today?
THE SUN!! oh how i miss the sun.
I do however love rainy days when i am
knee deep in a quilty project.

I had a great day out with my cuz.
We stopped by to get some flowers at
the local hardware. Well, she got some flowers.
We all know i'm a plant killer.

(i love this one). And i just don't understand
spending all this $$ on something thats gonna
die at the end of the season anyway. Obviously
i am not a green thumb kinda gurl.

but ya know, they are really pretty!
These are some of her roses.
These are roses right?! lol.
anyway, i just love taking pix and
especially of pretty things :)

Hope you guys enjoyed this virtual day
out in the sun!

Happy Weekend Everyone!

Late...as usual :)

2011-05-19T17:39:00.000-04:00

Ok, so I'm late yet again on getting my act together!

Amy is having her annual quilt festival, and i just squeeked in!
Welcome all from Festival!

I made this for Christmas last year to add some extra cheer
to the house and it is one of my faves.
I got the pattern from American Patchwork and Quilting.

I really hated to pack this up and store it away for a whole
year, but i will be pleasantly surprised next year :) I know i
will forget about it by this Christmas.

And i learned a new trick:

Prairie Points!! Way easier than you think at first.
Perhaps i should make one for each season?

I hope everyone that stops by had a good time,
and feel free to stay a while and snoop around :)

And more than anything, CHECK OUT THE FESTIVAL!!
some REALLY amazing quilts in there.

Now, if you will excuse me, i must take in some more
fabric festival goodness!

Ruffled Rosette (MaGoogle Version)

2011-05-18T07:43:00.000-04:00

Ta da! My version of the Ruffled Rosette pillow. This was
great fun! I wish i didn't take so long to make it. If anything,
these contests have really made me get things done :) Maybe
Moda should have more of them just so i can get my quilty
to-do list complete, forget winning things!

As you can tell, i kinda have a thing for Fig Tree Quilts....
how can you not?! i love her colors. great choice of greens too!

I edited the back. I've seen lots of those tied together pillows
and had to throw some of that in there. I really think im gonna
make a few more of these little guys. After all i do have 2 bus
seats and a couch i need to decorate in the Shabby Beach room.
(p.s. its gonna take a long ass time for me to get this room
together..... augh....)

So there be me entry. (had to get in the spirit, you know what
comes out friday don't you ladies?!!?!?!?! Pirates 4, other
wise known as Johnny Depp extravaganza.)

Who's gonna see it with me?!

Back to the drawing board

2011-05-16T07:22:00.000-04:00

I am sure most of you know by now that i didn't win the MBS
April contest; which is totally cool. Julianna won for her
book keeper, CONGRATS GURL!! When i first saw the post,
and her bookkeeper was the first pic, i said "i'm totally voting
for that one" before i even saw the others....little did i know! :)
I am seriously just grateful to have been selected.
And thank you to all those who were pulling for me :)

Sew, i am working on my project for this month's contest.
Wish me luck ;) I'm gonna need it!

Misery loves company

2011-05-15T07:07:00.000-04:00

We all feel like we're losers some times,
( i hope so any way, i'd hate to hog loserville
all to myself) and there is a place where we
can all gather for some therapy.... CraftFail.

For some reason i got Quilters Home magazine in
my mail box yesterday and they had 55 blogs that
are must reads. this was one of them. and i can safely
say, this is my new favorite. This is one that i can really
identify with! I was up 1/2 the night going thru all the
old posts. some of the fails actually look kinda kewl,
and then some are serious side-busting-from-laughing
disasters. But, remember, we are laughing with them,
not at them :) lol.

And i actually read (thats right, me, reading)
many of the articles in the mag., and this thing
is awesome. The writers have serious attitude
and they don't seem to sensor themselves too much.
I can really relate to it! Check it out. I mean with
an article titled "Quilting badass finds love"
how can you not read it?!

Total side note: obviously i am having some posting
issues, but according to fellow bloggers, its not just
me. apparently blogger is having a few issues.
Bare with us!

Sweet as lime!

2011-05-13T18:10:00.000-04:00

Turns out, my job is good for something other
than paying bills! :D I knew i'd figure it out one day.

I got this set from Target on our Anniversary-Day-Out.
I have been needing a canister set like you wouldn't
believe. and these come with spoons!!

(Horrible inside shot)

So i had to make them match the kitchen.....
Pretty awesome. Even when they are empty.

i LOVE this. now i need to give the whole kitchen
an upgrade to match the cuteness of these canisters.
Funny how these things snow ball.

Happy Hump Day everyone!
We've almost made it :)

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

2011-05-11T07:00:00.000-04:00

If you are a local here, you will notice i am having some issues
making up my mind! (just like a woman).

I will not be shutting down; just be prepared in the event
that you are visiting while i am trying out "bad" choices.

I am adding tabs and playing around with other
design options. I promise to have my crap
together at some point.

Feel free to tell me what you'd like to see, or
not to see, or what i need to burn in a ritual.
And, if i have the power i will do what i can.

Until then, enjoy the many views of L&L.
(and Delia, be prepared for me to hire you
as my personal I.T. gurl!)

Home Improvement....

2011-05-10T08:08:00.000-04:00

.....more like home "beautification".

sew, i have been looking for just the right (& affordable)

coat rack for a quilt display hanger. Been scouting

for quite a while; some hooks were too short, and,

well, quite honestly, all the prettiest ones were

high rent! But this was my littlest-of-the-3-bears

perfect! A wally world find on our anniversary day out.

ya know, i had 3 total quilts i wanted to hang on this,

but now that Strawberry Patch is up there......

no one else seems to match. Is it wrong that i wanna

make more in this color scheme just to match this one?

Its just so beautiful up there against the white wall....

i kinda don't wanna put anything else up there.

oh well, like 4 hooks will last long in this house

of quilts anyway! I haven't started a new project

yet....but i have one in mind....

just gotta find the perfect fabric for it.

this one's gonna take some yardage and you

know i am only knee deep in FQ's.

Sew, what are you guys up to?

2 Years ago today....

2011-05-09T15:38:00.000-04:00

we became Mr. & Mrs.! it really doesn't seem like

that long, and then again it seems longer; but in a good way!

Happy Anniversary to my hub! <3

Thanks for hanging on :D

We had a gr8 day out today! We took a

road trip a few hours out and he found me

a quilt shop (like he had a choice) and we took in

some Wally Worlds, Dicks, Ace, the usual.

And one of my fave presents:

the 2nd charm down from the top; its a ring barer

pillow with the wedding rings on it :)

I am not 80, but i do love me some Pandora.

This is my most favorite piece of jewelry.

so shiny and colorful. He also got me

the heart one for Valentines, and you can't see it,

but he got me a baby chick one for Christmas last year.

I got him some fun gun accessories and some

different ammo to shoot. Its like different

fabric to us; can't w8 to get something new.

We just pigged out at Country Cookin, so i am

off to nap-y town.

Happy Mothers Day!

2011-05-08T14:14:00.000-04:00

To all the moms out there,

thank you for all you do and for being there.

Happy Mothers Day <3

Strawberry (9) Patch

2011-05-06T20:10:00.000-04:00

Bam! Here is my Strawberry Patch.

1 layercake of Strawberry Fields

diced up into disappearing 9 patches.

I totally winged this, i mean, TOTALLY.

As usual, only after sewing 1/4 of the

blocks did i change my mind and pattern.

So needless to say there was a butt load of

seam ripping and re-piecing on this one!

it is pretty yummy tho. so i was really hauling

on this one too. and this is why!

of course i don't have a "Snowballs chance in

a cat scanner" ( a little Big Bang Theory humor.

holla if ya hear me!) but it was more about

me proving to myself that i could make a deadline

and actually enter a contest that i say im gonna enter.

I think im gonna actually repete this one with Verna.

I bought it a long time ago and haven't had a chance to use it.

I think it would look nice in this pattern, and i know what MUST

be done to make it nice. Trust me people, i take GOOD

pictures!! This is way jacked up in real life. Of course,

only in depth quilters would know, normal people

would have no idea :)

And in true Magoo fashion, the back is some

on sale special from JoAnnes! :)

OH!!! but i did do real binding this time!!!

it looks SO HARD, but man is it easy

and them there mitered corners are SEXY!

Learn from the best: Julie of JayBird Quilts.

I usually just bound one side at a time with

its own strip of material instead of one entire piece.

I've been wanting to try this for a long time, but

wasn't sure i could do it right. I CAN!

Woot Woot!

I hope you have enjoyed the Strawberries

and the multitude of links :)

Stash & a chicken bath!

2011-05-04T21:32:00.000-04:00

A little late, but here is my score from this past weekend!

and YES, that is Amy Butler back there!!!!!

Can i get an Amen! :) lol.

I had a pretty good haul, and not one bit of it

was on sale. lol. so there is my paycheck

in material status! haha.

WILL WORK FOR FABRIC!

makes you wonder doesn't it?!

First, let me apologize for the horrid pix. My camera only

takes nice pix in natural light, otherwise the flash either washes

everything out on one setting and one seems to take out more

light than it shoots out. But i digress, on with the story.

This is Mrs. Squishy and she has decided once again that

it is time to be a momma so she began sitting.

While doing so today, she must have gotten rough with one

of the eggs and it busted all over her. So when we got home

she was one nasty, hardened, yellow covered mess.

Well, that means its bath time! She was REALLY pissed

at first cuz we had to hose her off before bringing her in

and the water is cold. But i ran her a nice hot bath in the

sink and she was in chicken-spa heaven.

(not that you can tell that from the pic!)

And of course she couldn't do this on one of the warm

nights; its supposed to get down in the 40s tonight, so

i had to blow dry her so she wouldn't freeze.

And just in case you were wondering, it takes about

20 min. to blow dry a small silkie hen.

and to make it up to her, i gave her a cracked corn treat.

All to herself, no other chickens to fight for it.

Pretty sure she is still mad tho, she tried to poo

on me. I am pretty sure she was aiming, and it

was on purpose.

So, you see, having chickens is just like

having children! And we have 55 of them.

I also finished my Strawberry Fields quilt.

More to come :)

Peace out Wednesday, Bring on Friday!!!!!

HOLY COW!!

2011-05-02T11:19:00.000-04:00

I can't even believe it!!!

I am a finalist for the Moda Bake Shop

monthly contest for April!!!!!

Check out all the lucky ladies

(and of course my work) here!

Man, i am SO EXCITED just to be a finalist!

So, while you are there vote for your

fave project, even if it isn't me :)

everyone has done such an awesome job!

I had another fabric excursion this weekend.

i shall return with yummo pix soon.

i was just so excited, i wanted to share

in the party with all my friends!

(especially for Delia,

please note, this post has no pictures!

lol. :P)

See ya soon!

Home Stretch!

2011-04-26T18:59:00.000-04:00

almost there!

this one has been a challenge. I tend to have

that problem when i make a pattern. i have ripped

out more seams on this one that even the Shabby quilt!

i know, as if that is even possible! well, it is. but

the important thing is i learned from it.... and i didn't

have a melt down. that's a win, win people!

these are all the trimmings!

do you see that in there? yeah, there's

enough for a whole 'nother quilt!!

it amazes me how much i trim off and true up

and then somehow, the seams still magically line up.

sure, there are a few off by a bit, but you'd think

they'd be off by about a foot! its simply magic.

and!!! another chick pic!

these guys were born on Good Friday! :)

how sweet are they?!

the fat one is Theodore, and the other is Munkin.

(they are chipmunk patterns)

More to come :) as if you didn't see that coming.

Happy almost Wednesday, we're almost thru it people!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T11:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Easter Everyone! :)

I need to be stopped

2011-04-23T18:12:00.000-04:00

ok, so, i don't have a problem. really. i can stop at any time.

after my $100 spending spree at JoAnns last weekend (but

$20 of that was moms, so really it was only $80) i may have gone

back to Joanns this week...i didn't have a choice, they gave me

a coupon. it was going to expire this weekend. it had to be done.

THEN i had a friend mention a huge billboard for a quilting shop

up the road a piece, and you know, its such a nice day today.....

so i managed to get the hub in the car and 1.5 hours later i

found a new quilt shop! It is Patchwork Plus. pretty cute place

but no Moda Pre-cuts. :( but i did get a pretty cute score.

Speaking of Moda, don't you know the day i finished my

strawberry quilt top that they released this; the swatches for

my EQ. lol. better later than never!

Also, just a side rant, NO ONE around here carries Free Spirit.

ERG!! I have yet to see Amy Butler, Heather Bailey or

Tula Pink in any of the stores that i have been in.

This is why i want to open my own quilt store....to offer

some material alternatives in these parts. I mean don't get me

wrong, dark blues, burgundy's and creams are gr8, but hows about

some modern color people!!? I guess there aren't many young quilters here.

anyhow, i hope the Easter bunny leaves yall some yummy

fabric goodies in your baskets :)

Happy Easter Everyone!

Sunday is for Stash Building!

2011-04-17T17:25:00.000-04:00

ok, so we just got a new JoAnns. which is AWESOME!

i can't believe how HUGE it is, and how much more

fabric there is. (ok, so we already know i am in trouble here.)

it is bitter sweet cuz the new store is now about an hour

away from home and too far from work to make it

there on a lunch break. the old one was like 5 min. from

work, so i spent lunch time there quite often.

so, you know what that means?

i have to stock up when i do go!

par example:

because i am working on something.

this is for the finishing touches on my

Strawberry Patch.

because they were pretty.

too bad they weren't on sale.

and because i am a pre-cut princess.

i <3 me some fat quarters.

i also came away with 2 bags of batting for

me and mom. it was 40% off after all!!

Also, it is FINALLY!!!! spring here, like for real

this time. i think. the weather has been NUTZ! like

Day After Tomorrow kinda nutz. I hope it doesn't come

to that. if so, we all best head south ASAP!

so, here are some pretty pictures from the afternoon.

its OK, i didn't touch it.

blue car in a sea of green.

self portrait.

(i could've at least took the hub cap off

and turned it right side up!)

Hope yall enjoyed the springy-ness.

Happy Sunday and Happy Next Week!!

Turtle Finale!

2011-04-10T18:30:00.000-04:00

Crush is finished! I pimped it out with some

metallic fabric paints and he is complete! Good times!

I think the dynamic silk painting trio will be doing another

silk painting when it comes along. We've also

signed up for the Batik class next month.

This is gonna be a summer full of wine tastings

and craft classes! I sound old already don't i? :)

Well, this will be assurance that i am really a 10yr. old.

so i am a VW FANatic. I have a real one, a new beetle, and an

original 82 Superbeetle (but she is WAY run down)

and i collect all things VW, as i am sure you

figured out from this post. And this ladies and gents,

is my unicorn!!!!! Ever since Cars came out i have

been outraged that everyone in town had their own

little play set but Filmore (who, by the way, made the movie,

all your kids think it was McQueen, but they are WRONG!)

....so the hub took me out for some "Hot wheels across America"

which is where we hit up all the stores for 82 mustangs and VW's.

and look who i found!!!! i am SERIOUS when i say that i snatched

it up, and began to jump with joy. i am also serious when i say

that i almost cried. seriously. you have no idea who freakin

excited i was. i carried it thru the whole store like a baby

in my arms. i hope you enjoy these pic of a real life unicorn!

Best. Sunday. Ever.

Happy Sunday and heres to a hopefully happy week!

Found Something!

2011-04-06T18:40:00.000-04:00

so this is what i did with my Sunday afternoon!

chopped up those sweet strawberries into pieces while watching

a Disney movie marathon. (followed by a REALLY long nap.

yeah, i live an exciting life.) so far i have sewn 5 blocks together

.....and i can't really decide how i'm gonna lay all them out (this is where EQ

comes in handy...nothing better in this whole world than ctrl+Z)

so i may be posting a poll for a little help from my friends.

this week has been NUTZ, hope yalls is going

more smoothly than mine!!!

Here's to a productive day off tomorrow...

if i don't end up going to work after all!

Happy Humpday Everyone!

Strawberries & Sea Turtles!

2011-04-03T11:08:00.000-04:00

my hubby surprised me with this last week! the new collection

from Fig Tree Quilts, Strawberry Fields. How awesome is that?!

I love surprises, especially fabric ones! Now, i don't have a link for you

guys, cuz Moda hasn't released the fabric swatches on their site,

which is a big 'ole bummer cuz i am without a quilt project, and

i need me some fabric swatches for my EQ so i can get busy!

i hope this isn't another "Dream On" goose chase; those fabric

samples weren't released either. At least the patterns are small

so if i have to break down and do it by hand, it can be done.

I took a silk painting class this weekend at a local fabric shop.

It was awesome! and i made some new friends. this is an

in process shot of my sea turtle. I go back next week to pick

up my piece and add embellishments if needed. The teach

also took some in process pix, so i'll have a whole post of

everyones artwork next week, hopefully. the store is a little

over a 1/2 hour away, but it is a beautiful drive over the mountain

and well worth it! the owners are a mother and daughter, and they

are just about the nicest people in the world. I believe my weekends

are gonna be busy this summer :)

and the ever better part:

we had to wait for the resist to dry....and the store was

closed....so we had the run of the place! While we waited we

did a little shopping down stairs. it was kinda like being a movie

star; having the whole store to our selves :) i got these beauties

and also a few for my mom (civil war prints of course). There were

only 3 of us in class, but we sure did put a hurtin' on their FQ's!

It was the most fun i've had in a while. Good friends, great times

and fabric, what more do ya need?

Now to figure out what to do with the rest of my Sunday......

Fat Sudoku

2011-03-29T19:26:00.000-04:00

yay! top # 2 is now quilt #2!

2011, i am officially kicking your butt!! :D

i LOVE Sudoku. i do it every night before

i go to bed. i've gotten pretty good at it.

i am working on my 3rd book of them.

thank goodness for the dollar tree! lol.

so, i wanted something fun and easy and to use up

some of my stash (so i can buy more stash)

so why not a little fabric sudoku?

and for all the wondering minds, this is based off

of an actual puzzle that i finished. all the pieces

are in the right place :) the most amazing

part, is that i used a misc. remnant from Joanns,

and a Wally world FQ bundle i got for Christmas,

and they all match PERFECTLY with my

Heather Bailey. it was awesome!

i believe i will be revisiting this quilt come spring.....

i hate all this deadness in my pictures.

i have also come to the conclusion that i need

to build some props for my photo shoots.

its gonna be a busy (and expensive) summer.

wood is expensive!!

i also love it because it is so easy to quilt.

i mean, its all squares. how much easier

can it get?!

hope you enjoyed the show!

how 'bout yall? any summer projects

in the works already?

Thank You Pat!!!!

2011-03-26T12:38:00.000-04:00

Look at my new goodies!!! They were waiting for me

in the mail yesterday. i LOVE to get "fun mail". all i ever

get is crap advertisements and bills, it so much fun to get

something unexpected in the mail :) These are from

one of my Quilt and Needle home gurls, Pat!

She is working on a really awesome mystery quilt,

check it out. It looks great Pat!! and THANK YOU

so much, not only for my selvage goodies, but for the fun mail!

i am putting them to good use today :D

that one in the middle is my favorite.

it was so awesome to look at all the

different pieces from a different place. that is

my favorite part of going somewhere different;

you always find new things that you don't have

back home. so just in case you missed it,

THANKS PAT!! :P you rock.

hope you guys are having a

productive weekend!

Top #2

2011-03-21T15:04:00.000-04:00

even the hub said "did you finish the one you had in the floor?"

ughmmmmm....no. i have quilt A.D.D. if i run into trouble

or get bored with something, it gets tossed aside when a

new idea comes along. like yall didn't know that?!

but i wanted a fast project to make.... some friends and

i went to a local winery this Sat. for some spirits & tunes,

and we needed a nice quilt.....sooo..... you know i had to

remedy the situation. i needed to make something that

had tons of color and a busy back in case of grass stain.

of course all this being said, i prob. will go postal if someone

gets careless with their chips and salsa. Watch it! :P

my weapons of choice were FQ's from Heather Bailey's

Nicey Jane in grass colorway, a matching remnant from

some kind of JoAnn fabric and some FQ's from a set

i got for Christmas from Wally World.

(words of advice....the wally world pre-cuts

are cheap for a reason. if the pieces are actually

cut correctly, they have skipped threads and ruts.)

OH, and most amazing, i didn't buy not one new piece

of fabric for this top!! i actually used what i had on hand.

now THAT is amazing. however, i will have to buy something

for the back....and batting....waiting for a JoAnns sale! :D

hope yall had a great weekend and a productive

start to this week!

Just One?

2011-03-17T19:13:00.000-04:00

sew, Moda is sponsoring "Just One Star" for the Semper Fi Fund.

Just make one star and send it to Moda and they will make quilts

for our soldiers. Their goal is 100 quilts in 100 days.

Please click on the link and check it out and send in a star.

I can only imagine how awesome it would be, as a soldier,

to receive something that was hand made by the

Americans they were working so hard for.

I just want to say thank you to all of the Brave

that work to keep us all Free. I hope that all of our

stars bring them joy. :) I am making a few more

than one... 4 so far :) and my mom is making some too.

If your not a quilter please let your quilting pals know

and maybe we'll all send in enough for 1,000!

Their deadline is May 1st. I just found out about it,

so i am a little behind...hopefully yall know about

this by now, and if not, i apologize in my

delay! Now lets get sewing!!

and...... its damn near spring time,

and you know what that means?!?!?!

CHICKEN BABIES!!!!

man, i bet yall thought you were gonna be

in the clear this year, hu?! FAKE OUT!

this little silkie baby was born 2 nights ago.

this was his first day outside. its been cold and

nasty here, today was the first warm day that

he could go out.

he stayed by my feet the whole time.

every time i walked away, he'd come

running. don't you just wanna

smoosh him?! we are pretty sure

its a boy; i mean that seems to be the only

thing we can hatch! errr.... at least they are

cute and sweet for a small period of time!

hopefully it is a girl. but thats pushing it.

i guess we'll know when he crows, or she lays

her first egg. Anyone wanna take bets?!

only 3 months to figure it out!

So anyone started on their stars yet?!

Or does anyone get baby chicks for Easter?

I'd love to hear some chicken stories if yall got any.

Happy almost Friday everyone :D

Chicken Tales!

2011-03-12T20:11:00.000-05:00

stop rolling your eyes, you know you've missed my chicken stories!

this is Mr. Squishy trying to be intimidating. i mean really,

can you take him seriously as a rooster?! Mrs. squishy has gone

broody, which means she is sitting on eggs to hatch babies,

and we go talk to her everyday and give her treats.

he is "protecting" her. how sweet is that. they are inseparable.

she does stay inside the coop all day (and will until she gets babies)

that's why we feed her, hen rarely if ever get off the nest to eat or

drink while they are "sitting") and Mr. comes out in the run,

but always goes in to check on her.

she is THE NICEST hen that we have had to date. most hens

turn into predator when sitting; after all they are protecting

their young. you best not stick your hand near them unless

you're wearing a welding glove.

oh, but shes not sitting on eggs..... we started saving

her eggs to put in the incubator, and when she went broody

she was only sitting on 1 egg, so we took it and snuck in

some golf balls. but she is still protective of those golf balls!!

one the eggs hatch in the incubator (hopefully starting monday!!)

we will sneak them back under her. and then it will be

a Squishy family of silkies!

we FINALLY had a nice day here today.

the past week has been monsoon season, apparently.

so all the gurls are out for some sunbathing.

we put up this "log" between 2 other trees

and it is their favorite spot to sun and to rest

after eating. we like to cook them up big pots

of slop, and they LOVE IT. the hub and i tell each other

when going out to feed them a nice hot meal,

"if i'm not back in 5 min. come rescue whats

left of me". chickens are quite carnivorous.

when they see us coming it is a stampede

up to the gate, and they will fall all over you to

get closer to the food. that is really

the only time they love us. feeding time.

well i hope you have enjoyed me talking about

my kids as much as i have!

and i love answering chicken questions,

so if you ever have one, please don't

hesitate to drop me a line!

Happy Chicken Saturday Everyone!!

Selvage spectacular!

2011-03-10T13:22:00.000-05:00

here's the official block from triangles.

the dark side

the bright side!

I have decided to call this quilt "Mom & Me". it is a PREFECT

representation of both of us in quilt form. Me, birght and loud;

Mom, dark and antique. Not to mention if it wasn't for her

i would be able to make the dark side work :)

i haven't sewn these together, as it will be quite some time

before i will have enough to make a whole quilt top

(however at the rate i am going, it may only be another month!)

and i can keep the single blocks nice and neat in a pizza box.

i hope some of you out there are saving up to make your own

selvage salvage project. i thought of so many themes that

could be done; like all christmas material -like for a table runner

or a quilt dedicated to your favorite designer, how yummy

would a Fig Tree theme be, or Tula pink, or Heather Bailey,

or Amy Butler, or....... well you get the idea :)

well, i think i have made up for my weeks of being awall

all in one week of posts. you are welcome :P !

anyone else ready for spring?!!!!!

(and friday?!)

overboard

2011-03-08T19:55:00.000-05:00

its kinda like after you eat everything on the table

at Thanksgiving dinner, and you're literally splitting at the

seams, but you just can't resist a big ass piece of pumpkin pie

with about 1 cup of whip cream on top.

yeah, you're overdoing it, but man is it good!! :)

Contributions...

2011-03-07T21:03:00.000-05:00

....from mom!

"hey mom, you got any selvage scraps?"

"what? why? you know, i just burnt a whole bunch

of scraps today..."

a day late and a dollar short, you guys!

Mom is working on a quilt at the moment and i just

was sure she hadn't thrown any of the cuttings away.

I asured myself of this yesterday when i was

gonna call her, but then didn't.... next time, I'll know better!

anyhow, we went thru her stash and still look at

all she had! there were even some that missed the

trash can, that i was able to save!

i am officially addicted to selvages.

One of my own!

2011-03-06T21:24:00.000-05:00

sorry to be gone soooo long. i swore this year

that i would post every weekend, even if i had

nothing to share but my opinion; but i have been

kinda down in the dumps this past week.

i have let everything go; sewing, the house,

laundry, cooking....... all of it.

i basically just come home and sleep.

i'm not gonna go into all the TMI about it,

but today is the first day that i actually feel

like myself again, unfortunately tomorrow

is monday, and i'll have to go back to my

~~hell~~ hole. :( i need an UBER LONG

vacation. don't we all?!

ANYHOW!! i am working on another

project that has lost its luster, so while

working on some of it, i started this!!!!

i saw this like, a year ago and fell in love with it.

i new i must have one of my very own.

so i started saving all my selvages and i drug them all

out today and searched out this tute and got busy.

i am SO EXCITED about it. but i am gonna

need to go buy more "dull" or dark fabric.

hey, any reason to buy new fabric, right?!

my octo's are gonna be brights and darks.

i think this is amazing and i'm so glad that all these

gals have come up with great ways to use the

selvages. i remember when i was little and playing

around with all my moms scraps, and how much i loved

all those little dots of color and decorative text.

i guess the graphic designer in me was

making its first appearance!

so if you'll excuse me, i'm gonna need to go thru

every piece of material i own and look for more

selvages....and then hit up my mom's stash.

(its so awesome being next to my mom and her

fabric :) lol. she comes over to raid mine every once

in a while, when she's feeling wild and needs

a bright color or just filler material )

The Demon Has Been Set Free! :)

2011-02-14T12:19:00.000-05:00

The devil has returned!!! This hateful demon has been exorcised!

Now that she is done, i really love it.

you may remember my rant here, and if you are

steff, you got to hear about it damn near everyday

at work! :) the nightmare is now over

and i get to enjoy her shabby romance.

the backing is snuggle fabric.

i want to do every quilt in this now...

wish it wasn't so expensive, but hey, thats

what JoAnn's makes cupons for :)

my mom got me some quilt lables for Christmas, and

i finally get to use one! my mom got me all kinds

of awesome quilt things that i never even

thought about needing, and i have used

every. single. one. and its only Feb!

so glad she's done.

have i mentioned that?

OH, and my favorite part (ya know, other

than the fact that it is done) is the binding....

i used some kind of pink velore feeling material.

it was in the remnant bin :) it is so soft and to my

suprise, was very easy to iron and sew.

so now i am working on something new.

my mind never stops.

Happy valentines day everyone!!

Grab your honey and a quilt and snuggle up

with a good bottle of wine and some chocolates! :)

1st top of the New Year

2011-02-06T09:49:00.000-05:00

ta da! this is a sneak peek at Wild Thing.

I was gonna take it on one of my usual photo shoots,

but it still needs to be quilted and i didn't want to

ruin the surprise.

So obviously my fabric came in......

it actually came in Thursday! The day

i wrote my last blog complaining about

how it was going to take forever!

::Insert foot in mouth::

I was super excited!

Here are my stash building goodies ;)

oh, and you know how my whole purpose for Wild Thing

was to use up all the bits of batik i had been collecting?

well i'm not sure how it happened, but i have acquired

MORE batik by making this thing.

that's normal tho, right ladies?!

today i will be working on

an old ~~enemy~~ friend, from last years

UFO's. Yall know i made a ton of those

last year. wish me luck, and lets

hope i don't have another meltdown with it :)

While i wait

2011-02-03T10:08:00.000-05:00

my quilt top is all but done, i ran out of material

(don't you hate that! "water, water everywhere, and not a drop to drink!)

for the 2 outer borders, so i ordered some from The Quilt Shoppe.

they are having a kick ass sale; sadly it is because they are closing

up shoppe. :( i also may have gotten a few other things......

hello! its a sale!! i have been eyeballing some certain fab's for

a while, so i figure now was as good a time as any to stash build.

anyhow, i still had this overwhelming urge to create, so

all last Sunday i made this runner. super simple and i so

badly needed it for the living room what-not table.

Remember the one i made 2 Christmases ago?

i had that on the table this year and it just tied everything

together. i really didn't want to take it down (or any of it,

the house always looks so magical at Christmas).

so high on the list was a new runner.

( i <3 this bird candle holder, can you tell?)

My weapon of choice was Mill House Inn by

Fig Tree quilts for Moda. All her fabrics are just so warm

and calming, and they go great with my gold & maroon

living room! I can't wait till her release of Strawberry Fields!

and of course, i trimmed it with my Maw Maw's hand crochet

lace. the perfect family heirloom touch to any table runner :)

i still can't believe that is hand made. so amazing.

well, apparently my fabric has shipped......from CA.....

so it will still feel like forever before it arrives.

why does everything cool have to be in CA?!

so today i am scrounging around looking for another

quilt-y project to start. i am really on a roll

this year. AND all while STILL keeping

a clean house!!! can you believe it, people!!

i expect a parade in my honor.

Happy Almost Friday Everyone!!

No-Carb Meringue Cookies

2011-01-30T13:01:00.000-05:00

That's right, you heard me, NO CARB!

These little guys are just about amazing, and a great

snack to curb that sweet tooth.

Ingredients:

4 egg whites

1 pk. sugar free jello

vanilla extract

Prep: Preheat oven to 225 and line 2

baking sheets with aluminum foil and spray them

with non-stick butter (we use Kroger brand :)

Add the vanilla (as much as you want, i usually

pour from the bottle and count "1 one thousand"

to your bowl of egg whites.

mix until bubbly.

Then gradually pour in the jello mix while

mixing. Continue on until you have stiff peaks

in your meringue.

Now the fun part!

If you have an icing bag set you can certainly use that;

however if you don't just fill up some sandwich baggies

and cut the tip off one corner of the bag.

(that's how i roll!)

you will need about 5 baggies.

its easier to get new ones, than re-fill a used one.

squeeze out the meringue in little Hershey kiss

like drops onto your baking sheets.

you can make them larger if you like.

Place one sheet on the bottom/middle rack and

the other on the top/middle rack in the oven and

cook for about 45 min. cook for 1 hour if you

make them thicker and fatter.

and TA DA!! you have some no carb yummy cookies!!

My fave. jello flavor to use is Raspberry.

This recipe makes about 200 bite size cookies,

but believe me, they will not last long.

We have yet to make them last more than 24 hrs!

Happy Low-Carb Eating everyone!

Progression

2011-01-27T22:16:00.000-05:00

can i just say that i am really kicking ass on this one?!

HA! it is moving right along. my goal for

tomorrow is to begin piecing the top.

"dun dun dun" that is the 2nd scariest part.

quilting is the most scary.

oh, and not to brag, but i went to a quilt

shop today with friends, and didn't buy a thing!

i know, right?! not one thing.

i am so proud of myself. :)

i need to bounce back from all that

holiday spending. don't we all!?

hows it going out there yall?

TMI & a snow day!

2011-01-26T14:12:00.000-05:00

here is some personal (and pathetic) info on me...

"My name is magoo and i <3 stuffed animals."

yes, i am pushing 30.... what is ur point?!

so valentines crap as taken over the world already,

and i saw this little guy at wally world last week

and the hub got it for me! (or rather i pouted and

he got it for me)! i guess i really am 7! lol.

turns out i'm not the only "woman" i know....

there are 2 at work and one of the guys wife! and

they are all older than me, so there!

"there are dozens of us!" <- quote from Tobias

from arrested development. best. show. ever.

so enough stupid crap! :)

on to the snow day!!!! YAY!!!

(this really isn't helping me to convince you that i am not 7)

i have been working like mad on my new project.

i actually spent the whole day Sat. (like 8 am to 8 pm)

sewing! now thats what i call a saturday!

as you can tell, it is snowing here :)

we shut down work early so i get to play

for the rest of the day. woot woot!

Have a great snow day!

I'm Back , Baby!

2011-01-23T09:41:00.000-05:00

(look at that, an "inside" picture :)

so ya know how i was starting a new project

every 5 min. there for a while, and then i just

quit due to lack of motivation?

Those days are behind us now!

after i finished the place mats i had such

a need to jump into something else.

So while i am working on 2 designs that i

have created i will also be working on a quilt from

Baker's Dozen. can you guess which?

i wanted to start it a while back out of my

misc. batiks that i have collected but i didn't

have enough.... mom got me a wally world

gift card and i cashed it in for a batik "jelly roll".

well, i went from not having enough to having just

enough in just the jelly roll! so i still have

batik that just gets to sit and be pretty :)

and i am ok with that!

I wanted to say HEY! and welcome my new

friends Bizzy and Donna! thanks so much

for stopping by and joining in the madness :)

anyone else starting anything new?

(yall know my questions aren't rhetorical, right?

i'd love to hear about your quilty adventures!)

"phone-ing it in"

2011-01-22T15:05:00.000-05:00

yep, i'm calling it done!

i was planing on doing crochet around the edges,

but because the place mats were a different size

from the crochet instruction i had it didn't work out

quite right. but they are just as pretty without :)

if i could take a decent picture inside my house,

you could see how cute my table is with the

<3 candle holder and red/white/pink candle.

no matter how bright it is, the flash always

goes off and bleaches out everything.

(especially since my table is white)

i like natural light.

it shows the true beauty of things.

and i did in fact make 4 of them!

i just couldn't fit them all on the

coop "window". :) promise!

hope yall are stayn' warm and

having a gr8 weekend!

Women and their dishes

2011-01-19T14:19:00.000-05:00

guess who got new dishes?!

our old dishes are square

(like the shape, as well as uncool!)

and hub has an awful h8red for them

and i am in "house update" mode

so i made up my mind to get new dishes.

i got these beauties at Marshal's.

i <3 Marshal's & TJ Max.

they clothe me and keep my house

looking awesome.

so they hub is all "but i still have all my old dishes"

to which i responded "but they're not pretty"

and he is puzzled by the fact that i must have

pretty dishes when we have perfectly

fine dishes that will do the job.

yall feel me don't you ladies?!

i mean, look at how cute this is?!

don't you just want to fill one of these

up with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup?

man i can't w8 till summer time and

adkins time to take a break so i can

break these in properly!

anyone coming over for ice cream in a few month!?

oh, and ps, don't think i will have much time

to work on those placemats today.

i put a foundation stitch on one, now just

need to get back in the crochet mode.

So far So good

2011-01-18T07:22:00.000-05:00

believe it or not (which i don't even believe it)

i have finished all the place mats! well, in theory.

in one day i had all the pieces cut, sewn, and pinned

up with backing and batting, and even ironed

all the binding strips! Then on Sunday i

quilted them and binded them.

they call me speedy!

so while a normal person would mark this

project off as complete, i have one more trick up

my sleeve that i wanna add. i kinda started that

last night. i have Wed. off so maybe i'll get one

100% complete.

I am excited to be ahead of schedule, but

i best not count my chickens!

oh, and p.s., this is my 101 post!

my goal way back when was to

have lots of followers and have

a give-away for my 100 post.....

here to a new goal in 2011!

anyone have any secrets for getting followers?

perhaps i could aim for my 150th post.....

hows yalls week been so far?

I lied

2011-01-15T10:14:00.000-05:00

So i did finish my sample block for my Dream On Project,

but this came to me in a dream...well actually

the time between waking up and actually

forcing yourself to get up :)

making some <3 decor for the hizou.

come next year, i will officially have quilty

decor for each holiday/season for the house.

I already have spring covered thanks to a

beautiful table runner from my gurl Delia

from a swap we did last year.

She sent me some of the left over fabric, so

i will have to get busy on placemats

to match . anyhow, i am having some

old friends over for game nite in a few weeks

so i wanna have my table ready!

i'm actually gonna make 4!, count them, 4!

place mats just for their company!

yall should know by now that i am a

lazy ass and only do 2 mats.

we never have people over and only 1 set

of friends so why bother?! :)

Here's to another eventful week of sewing and

keeping a clean house.

(a cleaner house at all times is my resolution,

boy, do i have my work cut out for me!)

New Obsession

2011-01-14T14:34:00.000-05:00

yeah, i'm a little behind the times.

i got some old quilt mags from a friend and saw

this ad and about passed out! unfortunately the mag

was from 2008, but there is still some of this out there!

ebay, how i love you. so my new fave is Tanya Whelan.

check her out. i love every single thing she's done.

i wish she would move over to moda so that i can

get layer cakes and download all her swatches

for EQ. but i will have to drool from afar.

i found a few sweet deals on etsy..... i just

may have to splurge today ;)

days off and Internet at home are bad juju.

I have gotten tons accomplished today, tho!

Fixed a bunch of gnarly screw holes in the walls,

put up new curtains, cleaned a butt load

(not that you can actually tell it!)

and finally put up these little guys:

a guy that the hub works with gave him these 2

chicken hanger things. i painted them white, of course.

really gives the kitchen some umph.

that's right, my kitchen is lime green.

did you expect something else?!

when i moved in 6 years ago, that was the very

first thing i did. went out the next day and got

me some lime green paint for the kitchen!

i had been planing on that before i even ordered

the house! (its a modular)

so how is every one's new year turning out so far?

oh! p.s. this is my next project:

i am cranking out the math for my pattern.

lol, who are we kidding here?

yall know i make my hub do the math!

and does anyone know why Moda didn't have

swatch files, or even list Dream On on their site?

it makes me sad cuz this collection is AWESOME!

If your out there Urban Chicks, This is one of my

favorite collections right now! Keep up the good work :)

Crafty Face Lift

2011-01-08T18:31:00.000-05:00

can you believe that this is my craft room?

or at least was! This mess forced me and my machine out

into the living room...and this became the catch-all.

i couldn't take it anymore so after Christmas i re-arranged.

this is the same shot after. all my things VW. i am running out of room.

is it wrong that i wanna box all this up and spread my craft

wall to the whole room? I am growing up. :(

"Craft wall" Before.

"Craft wall" after! <3

mmmmmm..... moda

i love this so much!

chickens are an important part of the creation process.

that on the bottom there, are original feed sacks from my mom.

i love them so much, i just can't bring myself to make them

part of a project.

I can't w8 to create something in here! i love

the nice clean feeling.

even the hub keeps telling me how nice it looks, and

that its just like a store. :) of course he did help

with the shelf hanging. that crap was heavy.

i have had the flu this past week, so i haven't

had any energy to create, but i will soon!

i am on the mend! all thats left is the cough.

Hope yall are well and got those flu shots! :)

hows those resolutions coming along?

A Year in Review

2010-12-29T09:51:00.000-05:00

so there is my 2010. i was thinking

"man it felt like i did more than that"

and i did....but here is a shocker.... i didn't finish them!

perhaps those little guys will make it to the 2011 post :)

i think my fav. thing to make was the ornaments.

no way to get wonky stitches on those!

so 2010 wasn't too bad...i got to paint my office at work

a soft lime green :) i learned a lot of really awesome

things about God, i got my best friend back after

almost 2 years, had our 1 year wedding anniversary,

had some family over for Thanksgiving

(which really meant a lot, usually its just us, mom and dad)

learned a lot about wine :) with some great friends !

i guess that doesn't seem all that eventful, but no news

is good news :) didn't accomplish not 1 of my resolutions,

who the crap ever does?! but i do tend to set my

sights high...so this year will be a little easier.

starting with Adkins next week and sticking too it!

its really easy once you get the hang of it.....

(plus i can't fit into any of my cute clothes anymore!)

So best of luck to yall with all those resolutions

and here's to a happy healthy new year!

What are your 2011 goals?

Holla!

Merry Christmas to all!

2010-12-25T12:14:00.001-05:00

Holly Jolly Table Runner

2010-12-16T12:41:00.000-05:00

2 posts in 1 day?! Can you tell its a snow day?

just when you thought you got rid of me!

welp, here she is, my finished Christmas table runner.

i <3 it. Pattern courtesy of the great people

at American Patchwork & Quilting in the

Dec. issue. as you can tell i am a slacker

and didn't do the applique. i just don't have the

patience. plus, i was late getting started

and all my decorating had been done,

i had no time to waste on holly berries :)

i also <3 prairie points!! its just about the

only thing i can control. they

actually line up!!! hazzaa!

i know that you were just dying to see if i had

actually accomplished a project.

you can start breathing again! :P

anyone make anything kewl from their

quiltie mags?

Who doesn't love Ornaments?

2010-12-16T08:28:00.000-05:00

I made these as gifts for the office.

They are really addictive once you get started,

and a GREAT way to use up scraps and

left over jelly roll pieces.

I found this great tute here.

i totally cheated and hot glued the "binding" edge on.

one thing is fo sure, DO NOT under estimate the

amount of pins you will need! :)

hope these help you guys decide what to make

for some last minute gifts!

lemme know if you make any and post some pix

somewhere! the possibilities are endless.

remember the holly jolly project i was working on?

its been finished for about 2 weeks now

(impressed, no?!)

but the weather has been less than stellar so

i haven't been on any photoshoots....

it is snowing today, and i think it will be great

to take some pix today while the wind is

laying low.

Happy holidays and good luck to all you

last minute shoppers!!

Tis the Season!

2010-11-27T13:48:00.000-05:00

and it starts.

i have completely given up on Raggedy.

anyone see that coming?!

it took all the joy out of sewing for me,

and if it doesn't bring you joy, why bother?!

so i have shoved it all in a bag, maybe one

day i can look back at how horrid it is

and have a laugh. doubtful.

SO to brighten up my spirits,

and the kitchen table, i am working on

this! I am really excited about it.

i had to order in some fabric.

p.s. 12 days by Kate Spade is SPARSE PEOPLE!

i know they release it in may, but there should

be a new shipment in Nov. when all the quilting mags

come out with new Holiday patterns.

sew, i had to make sacrifices, and pick a red

from JoAnns 50% Holiday material sale!!

i would've done it all from there, but i am just

so in love with the Green poinsettia pattern.

How can you say no to that face?

and the Charm pack is Holly Jolly from last

years moda Christmas stuff.

i promise this one will be done in a timely manner.

anyone holding their breath?!

and it is time for the tree!!!!!

this year i have conglomerated all of

years past themes. as my hub would say

"it looks like Walt Disney thew up on it"

Lime green, hot pink, electric blue & purple, and

damn near anything with glitter! :P i really like it.

I think the overall theme this year is

"Candy Christmas".

and i thought i'd share one of our traditions with yall.

each year since we've been together i get a

picture ornament for our holiday picture.

this one is from 2 years ago. its neat that

we can already see a change in us with

each ornament. anyone out there

do the same? how far do yours go back?

and i meant to post this on Thanksgiving

(Happy late Thanksgiving yall!)

nothing says holidays like cooking!

mom asked me to make my

~~stolen~~ famous Deviled Egg recipe.

(i figured it out from an ex's family recipe

and have been using it ever since)

so these are our beauties. i even made

some from the banny eggs. imagine a deviled egg

the size of quarter. SO CUTE!

and what makes them so yummy?

i don't use relish, i add bacon bits

(Hormel real bacon, or fresh is the best)

and small chunks of sharp cheddar cheese.

mmmmmmmmmm goooooood.

what are some of yall's Holiday Traditions?

anyone makeing something aweseom for

a Christmas present?

holla!

really i am

2010-11-13T16:07:00.000-05:00

so here is the RJ medallion. i actually have about

1/4 of the rest of it done...not stoked. after trimming

and tru-ing, there is nothing left! not one damn square

in the WHOLE thing. seriously. not to mention that

my EQ set up has finished size at 40".......i have

one side panle almost done, and i seriously don't

think it is even 3'....maybe 27". thats

just to give you an idea of how much trimming

is going on, here people. i have no idea how

i have become the worst quilter in the world.

and to actually enter the worst thing i have ever

made into a competition!

but i bought all this crap just for it, so i am making myself finish it.

i just wish i could get excited about it. but i need

to hurry up so i can get it out of the way to make

Christmas presents. The time is upon us people!
Why didn't anyone tell me it was so close?!

So have yall been missing my chickens?

don't lie, i know you have.

so guess what?!

i had a photo shoot today! and they were the

best models ever!!! They behaved and

we didn't even have to chase them to

get them back in the pen.

This is BJ, short for Bart Jr. (Bart is his dad)

and Black Beauty. She is THE SWEETEST

of all our girls. I give her chicken hugs every night

when we go out to do water, feed and tuck them all in.

Bart is the hubs buddy. Bart hates me.

i am honestly suprised that he didn't attack

my face since i was eye level. he used to be part of

the yard bird flock, and he would stalk me around the

yard...and when i had my backed turned he

would charge me like a bull. ass.

i like to hug him just to make him angry,

ya know, like when you hug a cat who doesn't

wanna be touched. awesome.

i have no idea why he doesn't like me.

Have you hugged a chicken today?

Back from the Depths

2010-11-07T16:49:00.000-05:00

sorry, we've been watching a Pirates of the Caribbean

marathon today. Arrrr....

so i have resurrected Raggity not that

i am actually getting anywhere with it.

it is well below contest quality to me.

so it is hard to keep pushing fwd with it...

but i will. i would be honored to make it to the

top 20. so i am setting my sites for that :)

low expectations, that's how i roll.

and in my defense, i did spend the week

before last sewing my Halloween costume:

Rainbow Brite!

my all time favorite cartoon character.

there was actually one dude at the party

that asked me "who are you supposed to be?"

i mean really?!

how did yall's halloween costumes turn out?

i'm back :(

2010-10-09T18:16:00.000-04:00

....from vacation. we went to VA Beach for a few days.

and to be honest i was glad to get the hell outta here

for a while, but wasn't really looking fwd to VA beach.

i have been there about 100 times, and i just don't

remember it having lots of fun things.

boy was i wrong!! i just wasn't looking in the

right places! WE HAD A BLAST!!!

and we are planing our anniversary trip

there next spring already!

the hub doesn't like the beach much,

but he's the one that actually recommended that

we go back in the spring. that means its good people!

we visited the VA Aquarium which i HIGHLY

recommend. and most definitely take in an IMAX.

we've been to Ripley's, but we really liked this one more.

GO VA for finally having something kewl! :)

we drove around a lot, and took in some fresh

catch sea food. it was just a wonderful time!

i was actually gonna book just one more day...

but then we'd be coming back in crazy weekend

traffic....and i was shook up enough

from all the regular crazy traffic.

i didn't take in any quilt stores, oops!

the main one was deep in the heart of

crazy traffic town, and even if they had

moda for $1 it wasn't worth it to me.

i did however pick up another "old-lady"

habit. Pandora! i haven't seen anyone

other than that wear them, anyways

(the authentic ones, anyway)

i got a starter silver bracelet with

a sea turtle charm.

i fell in LOVE with the sea turtles

at the aquarium. even when they are

as large as me, they are so adorable.

anyhow, here are a few of

my fave pix.

sun rise

sun risen!

statue outside our hotel

hope yall had a good week,

i know i did! ;)