Sewing

I felt so bad because I got behind in the Jelly Roll Sampler....well now I am caught up and have 10 more days to do the current block. I really love this sampler and the line I am using, Verna. I know I have said this before. Every time I pick out my fabrics for a new block I think, no, this will never work together. It always does though, thank you Kate Spain!


I won a giveaway from JoLynn over at West Side of Straight. Such sweet things she included. I must ask her also where her blog title came from.

Last weekend up at the Lake, we saw a swan's nest in the pond really close to the road....how beautiful this looks and the nest is really big. We will be there again this weekend and am anxious to see if there are any babies yet.

Spring Fever Bingo

I'm going to have some fun with this bingo over at The Quilt Shoppe. It starts next week and there are going to be some very nice prizes also!

Guild Meeting

Last night was Material Girls Quilt Guild and I was armed with a full battery in my camera for show and tell, and there was very few! I think a lot of gals are working out in their flowers beds and not sewing as much....although around here lately we need to build an Ark we have had so much rain (with more to come). Below is the block for May. I really liked this one and especially so with using the line, Patisserie. And my friend and I have never won the blocks since we have been going to meetings in 1 1/2 years.....well Sandy M. won them last night....hurrah....15 of them.!



She will probably kill me for showing this picture, but hey, we were having fun! She had liked this month's block so well that she made a tablerunner from the block pattern...very cute!

Our LQS had us make a block (I had posted mine before) and Karen put all of them together and quilted the quilt and is now binding it for the ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) fund raiser and competition. It is gorgeous and amazing how it all came together. The guild will fund the shipping and we will see if we hear back anything. It had to be at least 36x45 and ours is 100x100! Great job girls!

And just because we haven't seen any sun in awhile, I am also adding a picture of my beautiful columbine....I sure wish they bloomed all summer!

Block 5

Got to do one of my favorite things this evening on Mother's Day and that is sewing. Block 5 of Jelly Roll Sampler is completed and posted on Flickr and I'm ready for Block 6 to be posted tomorrow. I didn't know if I chose the right fabrics from my jelly roll, but I really like how it photographed. This jelly roll is out of my comfort zone, but I am so enjoying working with these "modern" prints...lotsa fun!

Happy Mother's Day

If I had a flower for each time I thought of my Mother, I could walk in my garden forever!......Anonymous

Shopping

On our travels for the shop hop, we purchased a few things also. This was the cutest wallhanging made up at one of the shops. I bought the panel and some fat quarters to make my version of it. I have an antique sewing book for children that has characters in it that look just like these kids.






I found Rural Jardin that I have been wanting to get and the cutest little stitchery kits that come with the fabric "aged" and the pattern stamped and you just do the stitching....something to get going on for Christmas this year.

May

May is a good month. In NE Ohio it is the time to think about planting seeds, putting out your hanging baskets and maybe planting the delicate garden produce (tomatoes, peppers, etc) by the end of the month. You never know when you will get a frost around here at night. For instance our high predicted for this coming Saturday is only 49 deg. Tomorrow it is supposed to be 80 deg. See what I mean?
Anyway, I have always loved May....it contains my birthday and also starting 39 years ago, Mother's Day for me. May's flower is Lillies of the Valley. They are soooo fragrant and so delicate. I have had the same ones growing in my yard since we have moved here....and that is 32 years ago. They really multiply (underground roots) and can take over like a weed. In fact I got the starts of these from my bil's house....he just mowed them down and I dug what I wanted. I have kept mine under control and love a vase or two every Spring!

Spring Fling Shop Hop

Sandy and I had a great time on Wednesday and Friday traveling around for the Spring Fling Shop Hop...the Baker's Dozen....13 shops in 13 days. And travel we did, 185 miles on my car Wednesday and 146 miles on hers on Friday! Thank goodness for our GPSs!
Every shop gave out a free pattern for a block and a free recipe. We have one more shop to visit before next Saturday when the hop ends. It is local, so no real traveling for this one. We then hand in our stamped "passport" at the end and hope that one or both of us wins one of the sweet prizes each shop has offered. The following are some of the pictures of the blocks and how the shops made them up as their project.

Sorry for the blurry picture here....these purses were really cute and I bought the kit for the blue and peach one....batiks.

This shop had 3 different sizes of its block.....this was the largest hanging outdoors on the front of the building.

I love the 30's fabric in this table topper.

Some sewing

Over at Heidi's blog she offered a kit for April's Friday Night Sew-In and I thought it was really cute. I sent for one and was planning on making it that night. Well, life got in the way and it didn't get made that night. I finished it today and love the way it came out. In fact I cut the canvas so frugally that I have enough to make another one, minus the roping. We supplied the lining also.



I'm going to carry it tomorrow for the 2010 Quilter's Fling Shop Hop my friend and I are going to go on. It is 13 shops in 13 days. I haven't done one of these in a long time. I am looking forward to visiting shops I have never been to before!

I also was working on one of the granddaughters quilts....finally putting the blocks into rows and soon the rows will be the quilt flimsy.

The red fabric will be an outer border and the ladybug fabric will be the back. I want to practice on small quilt sandwiches doing stippling before I attempt these quilts for the Grands. Barney the beagle needs a small quilt and I think his will be a practice also....just pieces of fabric sandwiched, no piecing for Barneys.

A little sun and some thunderstorms

It was a good Sunday because I did a little sewing and plan on doing more when I am done with this post. We had sun this morning and mild temps, but storms this afternoon. I love sewing when it is raining!
I wanted to share this picture of grandson, Graham, who got student of the month for 7th grade. We were invited to share the honors and a lite breakfast Friday morning at his middle school. We love you, Graham!


This came in the mail this past week and I started reading it. Love her books and have read all of them....in fact, I own all of them too!

I just got under the wire with Jelly Roll Block #4. This one was pretty simple and yet very striking, I think.

I really love this fabric, Verna. I haven't worked with such bold colors on such a large project, but I really am loving them. There will be sashing between blocks and they will really stand out and shout summer!! Can't wait for #5.

Ouch!

Poor little Oliver had a run in with the edge of his wooden toybox!! At 2 1/2 he has acquired his first shiner. He's a toughy though....love you Olvie!

Guild Meeting

Last night was Quilt Guild meeting and this was the block I stitched for April....guess what, I didn't win the blocks this month either.


We started bringing gifts for our secret sister this month and this is what I got. The piping is wrap and fuse piping that looks really easy to apply. I just love the purse pattern. I read through it already and really want to make this soon....love it. And a little "sampler" of Frolic by Moda....love that line a lot too! Of course a gift wouldn't be complete without chocolate!

We had a hands on demo for the blanket stitch. I have done it before, but I always have problems with getting it started and looking good. I learned the right way last night. And we have a needle case in the end!

Mia loves to sew!

Last week was Spring Break for the grandkids and Mia went to our LQS for 3 days of sewing. On Wednesday there was 3 girls and they made pajama pants. Her fabric is really cute and she had a ball sewing from 9-2....with a salad lunch provided! Aren't these cute?


For Thursday and Friday the other 2 girls couldn't be there, so Mia had a one on one class with the 2 owners. One of them on Thursday and the other one on Friday. The class was to be a Mother's Day gift....I wish it was a Grandmother's Day gift. It is a gorgeous tabletopper! I am sure she had help, but she does follow directions well annnndddd she even got to use the longarm machine to quilt it. She has her name quilted in and the date! I am so proud of her! She is going to be surpassing me with her skills....I have never used a longarm! The binding is on and pinned and she is now doing the handwork at home. Mom knows about it....she couldn't wait!

She won't be 10 until June!! She started sewing on my lap when she was 6....great job, sweetie!

Cold Sewing

This morning the temperature was 37 deg. after having a high of 86 deg. several days ago. I knew we weren't going to maintain those high temps in April, but it actually feels bitter this morning. Got a picture of my grape hyacinths with my new forsythia shoots in the background.


These are the blossoms on our Cleveland Pear tree....very early for these to be out this much.



A couple of tulip blossoms closed really tight this morning.

These are blossoms on the Bradford Pear....again a really early blossom time this year. Both of these pear trees do not bear fruit, just lovely blossoms in the Spring.

I hadn't sewed in several days...I was a little bummed because my sewing room was a disaster and I didn't have the drive to get it clean....until last evening! Some of my "bakery" in a blanket bag.

Some of my stash behind closed doors again. The piles are a little wonky, but still put away.

Mat is clear for action!

Sewing machine table and machine are cleared.

I may start this on the weekend or I might finish putting together one of the grandkids quilts. This layer cake will be used for Rachel's Pinwheel Sampler Quilt Along. I did not start when she began posting the patterns, but I really love the patterns and will work at my own pace.

Warm Easter

Easter was gorgeous in NE Ohio yesterday. We don't always have nice weather even if Easter is later in April. One of our April Easters saw the kids in winter coats and gloves hunting for eggs. Grandpa always writes up clues for each of the grandkids and they follow these around the yard for the next clue hidden in an egg. At the end of each of their searches is their basket with sweets and also an extra "gold" treat! Here is Oliver, the youngest, and his eggs are within easy reach...he loved it!


Mia retrieving another egg clue.......

Ethan and one of his clues......

Graham..........

By the end of the day it was time to get silly and I looked a little "strained" at this point. Lots of food and family....good times.

Giveaway

This is just PART of three different giveaways to be drawn tomorrow, April 5th, over at Adventures in Alice Land....really some neat things!

Happy Easter

I want to wish everyone a very happy Easter weekend. May you be with loved ones and/or enjoying something that makes you feel extra special. Hopefully there will be lots of food and sweets involved too!