Happy 2011

I hope everyone is looking forward to a great 2011. I hope you had your black eyed peas and collard greens yesterday to bring you happiness and wealth!

Back in November my aunt asked me to take her to the yarn shop. All the way there I was saying to myself, don't buy any yarn, don't buy any yarn. I have done some simple knitting but not much. My aunt asked the owner about some unique yarns and she showed us this silk and wool yarn made and hand dyed by a women's cooperative in Uruguay. I was sold! I love the idea of women helping other women.























The brand is malabrigo. I knitted a scarf for each of my daughter in laws and my daughter. This one is for me! The colors are luscious and so soft and warm.

That is the reason I didn't do a lot with my quilting during November and December.

If you have not gotten a copy of Word Play Quilts you are missing a real treat. Visit Tonya's blog. I know that many of you already follow her blog but she is a wonderful liberated quilter. She is so so creative. Her explanations in this book are amazing.






















By the way, the "JOY" on the left side is mine!! I also sent her some letters that she is including in her Student Letters Quilt. So exciting to be included.

Her book inspired me to add my grandson's name to the quilt I am working on for him. I am ashamed to say he will be 2 soon and this is the first quilt I have made for him.























There is so much color and movement in this quilt I kept his name more controlled. This is the top of the quilt. I really enjoy doing HSTs. I make them by the square method where you cut the square diagonally. I have a special tool that makes them fairly easy to do.

I love the black and white for him. Now I just have to decide whether to hand or machine quilt.

I am leaning toward hand quilting although it will take a long time. If I do then I have to decide how to quilt it! So many decisions so early in the year.

Christmas 2010

What an interesting holiday this has been. We had two of our children and their whatevers here. A wonderful time was had by all (I hope). I did a lot of cooking and they did a lot of eating.

I was so surprised when I opened my Christmas gift yesterday. Vintage Fiestaware!! I love all the colors and I love the fact that it is old and someone else used and enjoyed it. Isn't it fantastic?





















We live in an area that does not get a lot of snow but when a coastal low forms we can be surprised. All of the weather reports yesterday were warning of 6 to 10 inches and they were not wrong. We woke up to snow this morning and it has been snowing all day.





















Our daughter and her boy friend from Indiana were scheduled to fly out Monday but they became concerned yesterday that they might not be able to leave. So we spent Christmas day taking them to the airport. I was so disappointed that they had to leave but what are you going to do.

I hope all my blogging friends had a wonderful day and I wish you great sewing in the New Year.

Dressing or Stuffing?

Do you stuff your turkey or make dressing? In this part of the country we make dressing. I made the best dressing at Thanksgiving I have ever made. If you want good recipes, go to Never Enough Thyme. I sort of followed her recipe and mine turned out great. Go to the top to the recipe index.

I am also making some of her other recipes this morning.

This is the Redneck Toffee. My daughter in laws mother usually makes this and I love it. It is on the counter cooling right this minute.


















I also did the Rolo candy and pretzel thing. So easy and also delicious.




















This is my table. My daughter is flying in tonight and she will probably want to do more with it when she gets home. I really enjoy having a beautiful table at special occasions.


















Merry Christmas to all of you in blog land.

I haven't done much sewing lately but I plan to hide in my sewing room as soon as this madness is over. Right now I have a refrigerator full of food so if you need me check in the kitchen. We are having a standing rib roast Thursday night with stuffed potatoes. Friday night we are having turkey and dressing and all that goes with it. Christmas morning we will have our traditional breakfast casserole and maybe Mimosas!

The best to all of you. See you in the new year. I have to get back to the kitchen!

Still here

My daughter called and said mom, you haven't posted in a month!! I am still here, still sewing but busy with lots of things this time of year as every one is. I finished a flimsy yesterday using my beloved Disappearing Nine Patch. My DIL gave me some charm squares. I used them and some additional fabric.


















Not sure I will get this finished before Christmas. I usually use my dining room table to put together my quilt sandwich.

My dining room table looked so nice at Thanksgiving and I am sort of reluctant to undo it. I have to use it more often this time of year.



















When I have had a few minutes I put together some scrap squares. I have no idea what I am going to do with them. My aunt says to keep putting them together until I have a piece big enough for a quilt for my bed!!


















I included a star or two . I love how these random scraps go together and make more shapes and designs that you didn't anticipate.

I had to include this precious picture of my older grandson at his preschool Thanksgiving Feast! We had such a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. We had 12 here for dinner!! So much fun!

Very cool app

Wow! I can't believe I am blogging twice in one week. I just have to share the app I found yesterday. First of all, I love technology. My middle son got me hooked on computers way back in 1995. We bought one from Staples, paid more than you would for an I Pad today but loved it and it worked great for years. I now have a laptop, an I Pod touch and a Blackberry!

Anyway I was looking at apps for the Touch, which is my favorite! I found this amazing quilt app, called BlockFab and it is free. I can't even begin to describe all the things you can do with it. You could play with it for hours. You choose a block and then it pictures it in multiple ways and colors. You can also combine the block you chose with any other block and see what it would look like. Go check it out!!!

I had a wonderful day yesterday, no kids and no husband!! I brought my sewing machine down to the dining room and quilted these two. I didn't do anything fancy just parallel slanted lines. The first one is for the young woman that grew up in France with the fabric that Helen sent me. The other fabric on the back is some that by DIL brought me from her mother. It is perfect.
























This is the quilt for my daughters friend whose son was born a few weeks ago in the Chinese year of the tiger. I have shown you this one before, actually I have shown both of these before. I call this one Tiger in the House. I am showing them to you again so you will see that sometimes I do finish a project. Well almost finish, I do have to do the binding.








































One more thing, everyone seems to be into scraps these days. What do you suggest with this scrap? It is too big to throw away. Would you fussy cut the animals or ignore the print? Give me some creative ideas!
I have more if someone could use it.

Interesting weekend

Friday was a very interesting day. Neither of my grandsons go to preschool on Friday. The oldest one came in complaining about his tummy. Before I knew it he had thrown up. He seemed to get much better and we went to visit my husbands aunt. She of course gave the boys a little snack. Before we got home the oldest one said Nana I don't feel so good and he threw up all over himself, the car and me!! I knew we were in trouble when the ginger ale came back up. Fortunately he is fine now!

I got up early Saturday morning to go to the quilt show with my aunt and two cousins. But first she had to show me what she had done. She worked the last two weeks and made all four of these quilts. I posted them before but she has now put them together and put a border on two of them. Aren't they fantastic?

I love this border.




























Look at the way she extended the little strip she put in this one!

































Darling quilts.

































My aunt does not like the color of this one as much as I do.

































We had a great time at the quilt show. I will post more pictures later. This is the grand prize winner and unfortunately I didn't get the name of the quilter. Can you believe this? Amazing.




















I am working on putting the binding on Tiger in the House. What do you think? I stole the border idea from my aunt! SHH, don't tell.

Tigers are in the house

I have been plugging along with making my houses with the tigers in them. Unexpectedly I had a few hours this afternoon. I finished this house.



















I made this one the other day. I have six houses with tigers in them. I want to fill in with squares and stars. At least that is my idea.




















This is the first arrangement.


























I made a couple of more stars and a couple of nine patches and this is what I have now.


































Tell me what you think? I am drawn to the subtle colors. I want the houses to stand out not the stars or nine patches. Now I have to come up with a border. I am thinking maybe a green or blue, maybe a solid.

My creativity is really kicking in lately. I have all these ideas swirling around in my head. Does that happen to you?

I should have even more inspiration this weekend. I am going to the Durham Orange County Quilt show on Saturday with my aunt and cousin. I am so excited to see what other very accomplished quilters are doing.