Christmas Quilts...finally finished!

I gave the kids their quilts on Christmas Eve...and made them pose!

Even the grandpugs got new "recycled from 30 something years ago" quilts!

Now on to some "me" projects...................

Christmas Rush

I am one of those people who usually have their Christmas shopping done in October.  Not this year...  and I am now in a panic.  I promised my 2 kids and my son-in-law and my son's girlfriend quilts for Christmas.  After getting my new Janome for a gift from my husband last Christmas, I got caught up in the moment and really had no idea what I was saying.  I hadn't made a quilt in over 30 years,  just got carried away with my new machine. What a fool!  Now I am scrambling....no baking has been done, no wrapping, no Christmas cards this year, finally mailing the few packages tomorrow that have to be mailed.  Still not done shopping, but maybe, just maybe, there is a light at the end of the tunnel........

These are for the girls, all washed and waiting for labels.  Will show after Christmas as my daughter reads this blog.

My son-in-law's QOV is now ready for binding as I write this.....

And my son's in still just a quilt top...my weekend project.........

My first quilt in this process was for me, to kind of practice before I made some for gifts, but as it's pictured with its backing and binding still in a pile, it obviously has taken a back seat in my frantic race to finish.

I did manage to do a little work with wool...at least that's calming.

This one was going to be my Christmas quilt after seeing the pattern in Quilt Mania last year.  It was done in applique, I chose to do it in wool, but only got the center block done.  It'll have to be my Christmas quilt for next year...(sigh).

I did complete a few gifts...some bags for close friends, that I forgot to photograph before sending....and a new mini quilt for my guest room that I recently painted.  

And some embroidery............

Maybe I can get some decorating in before the kids arrive from Colorado.....or maybe I'll still be sewing the bindings on Christmas Eve.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Winner of the Hedgehog pincushion!

My husband was kind enough to pick a number out of a hat and the winner of my hedgehog pincushion and Kokka FQ is Marlene!

StitchinByTheLakeNovember 7, 2012 7:46 AM

Love to join your following - another wool lover here! But your hedgehog fabric is darling; I hadn't seen it before. blessings, marlene

I just emailed you so please send me your address and I will mail that to you right away...thanks for being a follower!

Veterans Day

Taking a moment to thank those who protect and serve this country, especially my wonderful son-in-law, Captain Mark Quint, who has served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.  This picture is from his homecoming last year to Vilseck, Germany after a year in Afghanistan.  My daughter, Jennifer was there to happily welcome him home.

U R Priceless Blog Hop

My first  Shop Hop......Yay !!!!!!!

I am so excited because today is my first blog hop ever!  I have only been a blogger for a short while and U R Priceless is what convinced me to take the plunge...well.... that, and Katherine, who was so kind and encouraging in her emails.  I love purses and bags of any shape and size, so thanks to an adorable pattern and another great idea from Madame Samm, here are my finished projects, as well as the list of others posting today.   Oh...and my first giveaway too!

The first one was made with Lucy's Crab Shack fabric along with some polka dots for the sides and lining...this was my practice run.  The second was made with Essex linen and some Bali Batik scraps and a little machine embroidery for good measure.

Feeling more confident, I actually cut into my favorite Kokka hedgehog material, added some rick rack and more polka dots.  I had to match the cute little hedgehog pin cushion, a free pattern from Fiona Marie called The Happy Hedgehog Pattern.

And lastly, because, well...because I Love Wool...I enlarged Madame Samm's pattern and made a purse out of my favorite blanket wool and used some wool scraps in reds and aqua blues to mimic the lining fabric, which is Sew Stitchy by Moda.  I do like hexagons and did a little embroidery of my own to match some of the fabric design.

Side 1

Side 2

Thanks so much for checking in.   Joyce

And now for my first give away....If you would like to win the little hedgehog pincushion and a FQ of the Kokka fabric,  become a follower and leave me a comment!  Any old comment will do!







Day 3 - Nov. 7th

I Love Wool
I Like to Quiltblog
Keep Your Fork There's Pie
Retired to Quilt
Selinaquilts
From This to That
Jenny E.
Domestic Deficit Disorder
Pig tales and quilts
CherrysPrairiePrimitives
Espritpatch
Maria
Count it all Joy!
Creative Notions

A Few Finishes

Trying to finish a few projects ..............

One for my sister Donna's 50th birthday

And some drawstring gift bags from A Spoonful of Sugar  tutorial.  Love this pattern...as you can probably tell.

Old friends and best friends

     A couple of months ago, I came home to a message on my answering machine.  It was from an old friend, Carol.  We met over 30 years ago as new ICU nurses and became close friends.  When my husband graduated from college, we moved back home and Carol and I maintained a long distance friendship for several years.  Then kids and family and work interfered and we lost touch.  We ran into each other 2 years ago at the Maine Quilt Show and talked briefly, then nothing until the message on my machine.  It seems Carol is the president of the Hancock County Quilters and they were having a Quilt Retreat in Bar Harbor in October.  She asked if I would come and bring my friend, Pat, with me.  That is where I spent last weekend and had the most wonderful time.

     The retreat was held at the Atlantic Oceanside Conference Center and the theme was Quilting on the Orient Express.  Though Pat and I love Japanese fabric, we had our own agenda and the brochure promised that you could take advantage of the numerous classes and lectures, theme movies and Make and Take projects...or you could bring your own projects, which is what Pat and I were most in need of.  I promised my 2 kids and son-in-law and son's girlfriend quilts for Christmas.  I made the promise last year after getting my new Janome machine and in my initial excitement, had no idea what I was promising!  Only one of the 4 is complete so I needed to focus!  I was able to complete the entire quilt top for my daughter and was so encouraged that I have finished the quilt top for my son-in-law too this past week.  I also made the item that will be my give-away when I participate in my first blog hop next week, called U R Priceless.  Unfortunately, I can't show my accomplishments as my daughter reads this blog, but I can show my first attempt at paper piecing...a little pumpkin pincushion, that I was able to finish also.

     The dinner on Saturday night continued the Oriental theme.  The lady on the left, Charlotte, was seated beside Pat in the sewing room and had the same machine as I do.  She was a wealth of helpful hints for me.  Carol is next to her, then myself and Pat.  A lovely time with lovely ladies.

     Pat and I took advantage of every minute to sew, forgoing the movies.

     All the rooms had balconies that opened to a view of the ocean.   These pics were taken from our balcony.   There were 3 cruise ships in port when we checked in.

   
     This is the pumpkin paper piecing project from Simple Quilts Magazine, and I finally finished the quilting and binding on my small Pam Buda quilt - along.

     When Pat and I drove through Ellsworth on our way to Bar Harbor, we saw a sign outside an old house advertising wool for sale.  It was closed on Friday and we asked about it at the Trenton quilt shop when we stopped in.  They said that it is owned by a gentleman who is a full time nurse and does this in his spare time.  He hand-dyes all his wool, but his hours are sporadic.  Surprisingly, when we passed it on Sunday afternoon on our way home, the sign said open and we pulled right in.  The shop is called Wool 'n' Ewe and was like being a kid in a candy store.  Gorgeous wool and as I was paying,  noticed a case with a few antiques.  I was able to get the pink Depression glass sugar and creamer for $5.  A wonderful end to a great weekend.   And Anna from Woolie Mammoth....another wool-loving nurse!  Well, hubby is calling for me to spend some time with him....he calls my time on the computer "wool porn".  More later............

Fiddlehead Artisan Supply

Spent a wonderful day with my best bud, Pat.  We left for  Belfast to check out Fiddlehead Artisan Supply.  Neither of us had been there before but we were both impressed with their booth at the Maine Quilt Show in Augusta.  The shop was wonderful!!!  We found wool and linen and all the newest lines of fabric, ribbon and even a stamp pad for fabric.  Had a great lunch at a Pub next door.  Not a bad way to spend a rainy afternoon.  Here's a sample of my finds.  Pat did equally well at stimulating the local economy.

A Woolie Mammoth Giveaway

Check out Woolie Mammoth wooliemammoth.blogspot.com tomorrow for a birthday giveaway!

I won!

To top off a great week, I won a giveaway from Debby Kratovil and received a copy of her wonderful 2013 Quilting Block and Pattern-a-day Calendar.  How great is that!  Thanks again, Debby.

A Wonderful Vacation

I just finished a wonderful week of vacation where I stayed home the entire time!  It's amazing how much gets accomplished...I did fall decorating, washed windows, painted the guest room and had all kinds of time to finish works in progress!

 A gift for my friend, Meg, who will soon be a new grandmother!

And a gift for Wendy who just turned 50!

 What started out to be placemats from fabric scraps turned into a tote....after seeing a gorgeous bag on a blog I love to follow called Charise Creates.  I realized I had the same handles in my pile of unused craft supplies....and a new bag was born!  Above is the front of the bag.

This one is a view of the back.

And lastly....I finished the hexagon quilt from The Civil War Sewing Circle, the top of Pam Buda's sew along quilt called Forget Me Not and started a new wool project.  This is Autumn Reflection by Lily Anna Stitches.   Please don't make me go back to work!

Other Wool Creations

The first one is called Maltese Flower from Allpeoplequilt.com, I just changed up the colors a bit. 

 

The second photo is a pillow from Primitive Gatherings...I was so fortunate to take a class from Lisa Bongean in Raleigh, NC this spring.

The fall block is a pattern from Primitive Quilts and Projects Magazine, my absolute favorite magazine!   

The next is called Babushka for Wooden Spools Designs. I made the table runner for myself and the 3 dolls, 2 of which were shown in an earlier post, for my globetrotting daughter, Jennifer for a birthday gift.  

The cats (and dogs from earlier) were Lake View Primitives designs...the cats were made for Luke, my son, when our cat Max died. 

And last is a rug I made for Jen and Mark for their 1st anniversary...my own design of their pug ( and my first grandchild) Edward, who was adopted from Slovakia. I think I'm finally getting a handle on this posting stuff!

New Blog!

Hello!  This is my first blog post...I finally took the plunge!  I have been following quilting blogs for almost a year now and love reading them, but wasn't sure it was for me.  I guess I thought I may not have anything worthwhile to contribute.  Then I started getting replies from comments I've left on other people's blogs and have even won a few giveaways and realized that there are a lot of kind quilters out there...so here I am (with a little help from my computer whiz brother).  My day job is being an RN in a busy Day Surgery Unit, but even though I only work 3 days a week, it's interfering with my sewing!

I have known how to sew for years, even made my own clothes at times while in high school, but the last few years, while busy with kids, my sewing has been limited to making curtains whenever I redecorated.  My best friend started making me a wool table runner every year for Christmas and every year, I would think that it was something I may like to do.  Last year, I ordered a kit from Primitive Gatherings and from that moment on, I have been a wool addict.  I got a new Janome 6600 for my Christmas gift from my husband, turned the kids playroom into a sewing room when my youngest left for college  and now, if only there was a bathroom in the basement, I would never have to leave!