April Blocks

Some sewing but no finishes yet for this month.  I had a wonderful day visiting with my IRL friend and sewing buddy Karin at Life in the Slow Lane.  It was supposed to be a sewing playdate but we spent the whole time chatting and catching up since I haven't seen her in a couple of months.  Although no actual sewing was done, we did talk about:

1. projects we need to finish
2. projects we will probably start instead of finishing (#1) above 
3. speciality rulers that we bought but haven't used
4. the likelihood of beginning projects involving said (#3) rulers
5. the status of buying new fabric vs. using stash
6. new fabric lines that we would like to buy but really don't need to and will not buy even though we really want some
7. whether above #6 ever works in real life
8. the status on a scale of 1-10 of piles of fabric/projects/general chaos in our respective sewing rooms
9. the likelihood that we would do any or all of the above (#1-4) before organizing said sewing room
10. our cats

Thank you again Karin for a wonderful day and lunch too! Next time we really will work on hexagon projects already started (not new projects) and use fabric from our stash (not the new Minick and Simpson we kept talking about).

The first week in April brings new Block of the Month blocks:

Blogger Girl's BOM block #4, version 1

and version 2

Country Threads BOM (I'm doing a calendar month theme and trying to use up a bag of Jo Morton fabric.)

For this month's churn dash blocks, April reminds me of Easter (even though this year Easter was in March) and bright green leaves and newly opened flowers.

 6" block has purple and cream (similar to the irises blooming in my front yard now)

and fabric for the 12" version reminds me of the Eastern Redbud trees that bloom this time of year.

Better.

Remy and Edgar Poe

Did everyone have a good Mother's Day?   The cats were on their best behavior yesterday and enjoyed another day in bed.  The cats loved the peace and quiet, all piled on the bed napping.

S. brought me ice cream and good (soft) food to eat. And many cups of tea.  He's a good nurse for someone who is not a very good patient.

I Skyped with the family in Michigan and explained to Mackenzie how I had an "ow-ie" And then we talked about how everyone has teeth--Aunt Gretchen, Grandma, Shiloh doggie, Remy kitty, Mackenzie.  I love conversations with two-year olds; they are very factual.

 

Today, I am finally starting to feel better.  My last sick day off of day job and Starbucks so I better be right as rain tomorrow (or at least tolerable).

I finished reading Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson.  I am so happy I had a great, big, well written book to read as everything else made my teeth hurt.

Watching TV, eating, noise, talking, sitting, smiling, forget it.   I didn't even sleep that much.

It was a really great biography and a wonderful insight into a person who has revolutionized our modern life.  It made me love my Apple products more and really really really wish he had developed an iIron. Can you imagine an Apple iIron?  A quilter's dream!!  A perfectly designed, weighted, proportioned, temperature controlled iron.  Perfect steam. Perfect heat for different fabrics. Sigh.


I did venture out of bed to do laundry and iron S.'s shirts and decided that I was going to sew a little.  I finished two blocks of Doc and have the rest sorted.

The color placement is tricky in these blocks so I used my block design board that I made during retreat in February, which I had buried in the sewing room handy and ready to use.

Today was a fun mail day too.  For last month's Schnibbles parade, I won 2 charm packs of the new French General fabric from Sherri.  Thank you so much Sherri!!!  I can't wait to use these in a Schnibble later this year.

I also had a sweet note with some funny stickers from my dear friend Karmen.  Love you Karmen!!  You are the best!  Let's all be jealous of her going to Spring Quilt Market in Kansas City.  I can't wait for the report on all the great new fabrics and wonderful photos. (Karmen is a great photographer.)  Make sure you wear your boots for Sample Spree so you don't get your feet trampled.

Oh and look at how pitiful that is.  I am at 99 followers.  Anyone up for being #100?  I'll do a giveaway soon if someone will round up the number to three digits.  Just sayin'.

Remy and his fabric

Digging out from the pollen here in the good ol' ATL.  In case you didn't hear, along with all the record-breaking high temperatures in the country, Atlanta had a record, record-breaking pollen county of 9,369 particles per cubic meter on Tuesday (old record 6,103).  Everyone is miserable with allergies.  People who are really allergic to pollen (like me) are insanely miserable.

For temperature here,  it's been in the 80s all week and who knows what season it's supposed to be but the calendar still says March.  It's been in the mid-80s in Michigan too.   UNHEARD of.  Seriously, this crazy weather makes me really uneasy.  It's just too weird.  No winter and now summer temps in Michigan.  It's just not right.

Anyway on to Remy.

My friend Karin brought a present for Remy to Silver Thimbles club last Saturday.  It was fabric.  Yes, fabric for Remy.  She said that the kitty on the fabric looked like Remy so he needed to have it.  Who is to question that logic?  So I brought it home and gave it to him.

Here's what happened:

"Hmmmm what's this"

"Let's see what's on the back"

"I'm going to practice my fabric folding technique"

"I really need some assistance."

"Oh hey! I have claws.  Who needs thumbs when you have claws."

 "There. One fold done.  Now what? "

 "I'm tired and this sunbeam is too warm and now I'm ready for a nap.  Thank you Ms. Karin. I love my fabric and it's perfect for napping."

Remy, Royal Mail, A Gift, and a Block

A very awwwww photo of Remy with some of his favorite toys just because he is so darn cute and don't you just love those little toes???!!?? 

I was so very lucky to win a fun blog giveaway from Katy at I am a Ginger Monkey and this wonderful little bundle of mod fab goodness was sent all the way from England via Royal Mail.  I LOVE getting mail, especially fun mail, and Royal Mail with a gold sticker well that is even more better. Katy has a really cool, fun blog and she also is one of the designers/writers for the Fat Quarterly e-zine.  I signed up for a subscription and have a quilt all planned for these fat quarters--an out-of-my-box bright and solids mod quilt for when winter doldrums hit. 

    

I was so touched when I received a package from a sweet blog reader in south Georgia who sent me the most lovely note of encouragement and these gorgeous Civil War fabrics.  Quilters are the most generous thoughtful people ever. A proper thank you is coming and here's a public thank you too!

And to answer the big question, did I get to sew today?  Yes I did! After sleeping in for eternity and then I had to hem four pairs of pants (hemming is not sewing! I hate hemming pants!!!) And then I got to sew this one block LOL!

Don't look to close because it's rather wonky with 50-11 set-in seams but here is another Civil War block of the week block. This was a difficult block but it's staying the way it is because I'm not revisiting it.

Well it's back to work for everyone in the U.S tomorrow. Lots of rain and colder weather is headed towards Atlanta, which means it is going to be really hard to get out of bed in the morning.

Comfort and Joy

Even though today was a dreary, gray, cold, drizzly, damp day in the ATL, quilters at the Silver Thimble Quilt Club were comfortable inside and sewing with joy.  We snacked on tons of goodies from today's "Bring a Thing in a Dish" (other people may know this as a potluck but this is what Pat called it).  Quilters sure can bring lots of food--we had lots of ham, bread, rolls, desserts, munchies but no fruit or veggies (cracked me up!).

There's always great show n tell at Thimbles.  Here's Karin with her X-Block quilt.  Love the fabrics.

And this is a STUNNING Baltimore album block by (a different) Pat, who took a class from the expert Baltimore album lady Elly Sienkiewicz. The birds are made of silk ribbons and are just wonderful.

Some quilters were working on Bonnie Hunter's current mystery quilt including me. I did all the easy steps. Here is my step 4 blocks.  I'm doing different colors--purple, green, black, and something else that I haven't decided yet.  We all discussed the best way to make 600 half-square triangles for step 5 (face it, there isn't a best way to make 600 HST...).  

 While on the topic of obscene numbers of blocks to make, our little swap group is making a quilt that takes 848 -1 1/2 inch squares.  There's another crazy number.  Kristie sewed 846 and realized she need to cut 2 more (this cracked me up too!)   


Lots of us were planning new projects for 2011 and making lists of UFOs to work on.  Karin was already moaning and complaining about doing applique in 2011 (she calls it heinous applique!). Melisa at Sweet Home is hosting Pat's new Block of the Month pattern called "Comfort & Joy".  Karin has signed up to make this quilt and she is going to LOVE LOVE LOVE doing applique in 2011. 

Comfort & Joy by Pat Wys, Silver Thimble Quilt Co.

Everyone is going to support her through it but we may end up as one friend said "jibbering in the corner" LOL!!!  If you want to join Karin's support group in on the fun, you can order this BOM via Melisa's website.  

I am so thankful to have such fun, wonderful, talented friends in my life.

This evening, I'm working on Le Petite project for this month in between catching up on blog posts.

November Thimbles Meeting

This month I decided to go to the Friday night Silver Thimbles club instead of my usual Saturday. S. needs to go to Marietta today and I said I would go with him provided that we go to Little Quilts (a fair deal I think) and we eat at one of my favorite BBQ places, Williamson Bros.  [With Atlanta traffic, even on the weekends, it's nice to have someone to sit in traffic with you.]    I am trying to be patient while S. stalls finishes grading papers.

Although I missed seeing some of the Saturday people (namely Karin, my-partner-in-crime for lots of quilty fun), I did get to see Karmen and Brenda and also Saturday regulars Kristie and Becky.

I did buy the kit for this month's project (although I didn't start it). This great quilt is from the fabulous book Scrap Basket Surprises and the fabric line is by Little Quilts called  "Whittier Hill"

We could choose different border fabric so I chose the darker purplish-brown paisley. Here's my fabrics.


Just to show you that it's nearly impossible to take photos around here without a cat or two wanting in on the action.... Here's Stella with Whittier Hill fabric.

Improve every photo by adding a little Stella

Although it was a small group, we had lots of show n' tell from Sarah (no blog).  Sarah is very productive and a fabulous quilter.   Here are four of her quilts (four!)


 


For the December meeting, we are to bring a "thing in a dish but don't stress yourself out" which roughly translates to:  a potluck dish.  [Our fearless leader Pat just finished writing her quilt book and mailing it out and then realizing the holidays are hererightnow. Go visit her blog and give her a little hello, happy to see you back from book-writing-craziness].

For January, we have the choice to do this quilt (or as always work on our own projects).  Although it is a very striking quilt, I think I'll pass and just enjoy the photo.  It's not like a have 900 gazillion projects to work on...

 Alright, time to light a fire under Mr. S. and tell him to hurry up.  There is fabric waiting you know!!

A Most Excellent Blog Friend

No buzz here, I'm always this crazy.

Is everyone eating candy waiting on trick or treaters?  I hope so because I don't want to be the only one with a coffee-chocolate buzz all night.  It's finally fall weather here, just in time for November. Or at least it is at the moment.




Well I hardly know how to express my surprise and delight with an unexpected package that arrived in the mail on Friday. A birthday gift from blog friend Dianne of a month of sundays.  This most sweet, thoughtful gift made by eyes well up (but there's no crying on Halloween weekend.)

Stella is the postal inspector general of the house

 Edgar Poe, of course, is inspector of everything in the house.
He is one nosy cat.  I see lots of singing spooky songs in my future.

A super cool candy corn apron

Hunky Halloween guys on the reverse

 Thank you Dianne for such a thoughtful gift!!!!  I am so touched by your generosity, I hardly know what to say. A proper old-fashioned thank you is coming by snail mail. You're the best!  I will sing all these songs in your honor (be happy you can't hear, I can't sing worth beans.)

October Silver Thimbles Meeting

Thimbles was tons of fun yesterday and I got in some much needed time with my quilting buddies.

This isn't really us Silver Thimbles, it's from the Vanishing Georgia collection. It's close though....

Kristie brought in some new children's books (she is a elementary school media specialist and has a great personal library of books, cataloged of course).  One book she brought had my name all over it (I have added it to my ever-lengthening Amazon wish list).  It is called Sipping Spiders Through a Straw and  a collection of all your favorite sing-a-long songs rewritten with silly monster lyrics.  Here is Pat, Queen Silver Thimble, reading it to us.

 


Sheila does absolutely amazing quilting, embroidery work, sewing, and she now has her own long-arm machine and she does that amazingly too.  Babette, her poodle, is an official Thimblette.  Babette is a sweetie who is in her elder years and blind and has her own little Babette stroller so she can visit and sleep during the meetings. Babette also has a stylin' Halloween costume.



Karin brought her scrappy Scrappy-Nines all quilted 
 and with a brilliant backing too. 



I think everyone would fight over this quilt should she let it out of her sight.





Sarah (no blog) always has at least two projects for Show n Tell and usually more (maybe because she spends her free time sewing instead of blogging....hmmmm...I may be on to something here)
This vision in red and tan is the same pattern as Stella's quilt (in Stella colors). It's called "Honeyberries" and is from the 40 Fabulous Quick Cut Quilts book.  This is one of those great quilt patterns that just looks spectacular in any color combination and in scrappy.


Another of Sarah's projects was this batik quilt made from the "Twister" ruler. Wow!  See the quilt behind Sarah; that's our project for next month from the book Scrap Basket Surprises. Kits are by Little Quilts in the new Little Quilts fabric line called "Whittier Crossing."  If you want to make one too, I am sure they could rustle up a kit for you.

It was great fun to see some of the Friday Thimbles group including Suzanne with this lovely quilt. Suzanne has a great eye for fabrics and decorating and is one of the nicest people ever.  

I worked on a Scnibble but didn't get much done.  For once, I was visiting more than sewing.  Sometimes that exactly what you need and exactly what makes Thimbles such a great club.

September Thimbles

Yesterday was Silver Thimble Quilt Club. It was packed full and several people were absent at a quilt retreat (Karin, Becky, Cindi, and Brenda). To paraphrase one of my favorite movie quotes "Pat, we're gonna need a bigger boat!" I did manage to snap some photos of show n tell this time. There was not much room for quilt showing this time. I think we need a stage area too.

Here is Jane with her "Minnesota Hot Dish" quilt. I love the colors. Some lucky person is getting this quilt as a present. Wish it was me!

This quilt was made by Awesome Beth (she is behind the quilt and that is Trisha on the right). Beth is a longarm quilter and does amazing quilting. She did an amazing job on my Mardi Gras quilt, I just need a couple of quilt holders so I can photograph it outside.

Here is Trisha's quilt (Beth is on the left) and a detail...
This quilt had gorgeous fabric and is perfectly pieced.

I spent time chatting with Kristie and working on a new Halloween project. Here's a little look-see.

Today is more sewing. I made another Groovy Girls Club project using both selvages and a zipper for the first time (this little cutie is a pattern called "Cash n' Carry".
As you can see I am really getting into the Halloween spirit. October, my favorite month, is nearly here! I just love the spiders instead of the usual dots on the selvage in the center.
And the other side
As with all Atkinson Designs, the instructions were fabulous and my first attempt at a zipper went OK. I vowed I wasn't going to start saving selvages because I don't need one more thing to hang on to. Although I do have some neat jars that are currently empty. Maybe I'll just save Halloween fabric selvages...

well, maybe French General too....