Another winner drawn....

UPDATE - Lorraine made the deadline. Her zipper bags will be shipped off by early next week.
Thanks to all for commenting.





No response from the first winner of the zipper bags, so I have drawn another number.

COMMENT NUMBER 10 - Lorraine come on down!!

You have until Tuesday night 8pm Central USA time....

I know that Lorraine is in Australia, so I won't be hearing from her very soon. Think they are all asleep....and not sure what day it is over there...LOL

Lorraine, send me your choice of color (green/yellow/red or blue)with your mailing address and I will get those zipper bags made and sent off this week.

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Thanks Gracie....

A long time ago when Gracie was just a baby, I found some of that chalkboard fabric and had all kinds of good intentions on making a cute thing for the car. Well, life got in the way...I realized it probably wouldn't be a good idea to have chalk in a car and so I took the material and made a nice chalkboard for my kitchen. It hangs on the wall as you walk in from the laundry room into the kitchen.

It works really well. I can use it as a running grocery list, leave notes for the Rock Star (although he would never notice!lol) or write the dinner menu on it. There are pockets along the bottom edge for chalk and an eraser.

Sometimes though this happens.




This note has been on there for a while now and I refuse to erase it. Isn't it cute!

No sewing yesterday. DH is leaving for 3 days so I stuck around the family room with him. I will have the next 3 days to sew....

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Sneak Peak....

I love swaps. I joined a Spring Swap hosted by Linda and thought you might like a little sneak peak. Can't show too much of it. This is a surprise swap and you never know who could be out there lurking...LOL I can't remember the rules of this swap. I know you are to make one item and then fill in with spring thingys....I have made 3 items and filled in with one springy kinda thingy... I hope my swap partner likes them... I need to get them packaged up and ready to mail by April 3rd which I guess is this Friday!!.. For once I am early...

You know, quite a few people are surprised that I do swaps with people I don't know. I LOVE swaps... I also only do swaps with two groups. Linda is one and the other is Pat Sloans Quilt group. I have NEVER been disappointed. I have done small swaps and big swaps. One swap was a row by row full size quilt. It took over 6 months to complete this swap, but I got a beautiful quilt out of it. I made the 4th row. I sent some fabric, but certainly not enough for everyone. I made the first row and then sent it to the next person on the list. They made a row for me and sent it on. While they were working on my quilt, I was making rows/blocks for someone else. It was so much fun. We posted photos, but some didn't look and were totally surprised when they got their finished rows back. We had a wonderful group of 6 ladies and I ended up with beautiful rows to make into this quilt. One row is entirely hand appliqued, most are machine appliqued (like mine).



This is why I join swaps....

Next time you find a swap online- take the plunge, cross your fingers and dive in...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

small happy dance...

I am doing a small version of the happy dance. I got my redwork quilt all put together today. I did have a bit of a misstep.... I wanted to use the "worms" I bought (see them up there in the header?).... Worms are cut 2 1/2 inches wide. The pattern calls for strips cut 1 1/2 inches wide. I really thought it would work. I kind of figured that if you were consistent with the size it would work out in the end. but it didn't. it wouldn't work. so I had to unsew some seams and cut all the strips down to 1 1/2 inches which is what the pattern said to do in the beginning. Oh well, so much for "design opportunity". LOL



Now it needs two borders. First will probably be a narrow solid red and then a red/white print. Then quilting. How would you quilt this? All over design or diagonal lines throughout the whole quilt?

I really like how this turned out. This will hang in my upper hall with all the other quilts made from 30's fabrics...

Why only a small happy dance? It needs borders and I don't have anything in the stash. I might go out tomorrow and see what I can find, but it seems we have some SNOW in the forcast, so I might wait til next week.

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

HSM, redwork baskets and Oh...a winner....

This has dragged (drug?, am I ON drugs?) much too long. I have had Monday's date written on my calendar for a while now. Then with me going off to staycation it got a little bit weird...

BUT...that doesn't change the fact that we have passed the chosen date and I have used the random generator to pick a winner.

First though I have to tell you a little story. I did a funny hilarious terrible thing to one of the grandkids. Miss G. is a HUGE FAN of High School Musical. She and her brother know all the words to all the songs in the movies. Tuesday night after dinner, we sat and watched it. Well, I sat and tried to watch it.....Miss G. and Mr. J. were bouncing on the couch singing along and talking..at lot. At one point in the movie, there is a musical scene in the cafeteria. (Cause don't you know that would be so cool to sing during lunch...LOL)
ANYWAY!
I am watching these high school kids sing in the lunch room and I say to Miss G. "Um, that looks really familiar" "When I went to the Rock Star's school, I think they were singing that song". Miss G's eyes got HUGE and she said very slowly "Does Rock Star go to East High School?". "Why, yes" I said. She flew down the stairs where the Rock Star is playing some video game. Her mom quickly mutes the TV and we listen while Miss G. asks the Rock Star all about his school. Of course the Rock Star doesn't know about East High (we've never seen HSM) and tries to convince her that he doesn't go to East High. She runs back upstairs to tell us that he says we are not telling the truth. "Oh Miss G" I said, "He is just embarrassed to tell you that he sings and dances at lunch". Ha....Ha....She runs back downstairs to tell him "it's ok if you sing and dance at lunch. Do you know Gabriella? Do you know Troy?" "Can I meet them?" "Have they been to your house?". '
Meanwhile, her mom and I are laughing so hard we are crying, because it is hilarious to us that she doesn't realize that East High doesn't exist except in the movie. Rock Star even pulled out his lunch card to show her.
Yes, we finally told her we were teasing her. She cried. She was really upset and I felt bad that she had fallen hook, line and sinker....LOL I still laugh when I think of her eyes wide open and hoping that her Uncle Rock Star really did go to East High so she could meet Gabriella...and Troy....and the rest of the gang.

Oh, and I finished the last block of redwork baskets. I hope to start trimming them to size and getting the blocks bordered and the quilt top together...



So today is grocery shopping and really that's about it. I have my Spring Swap package ready to wrap and ship but can't do that until April 4th. Miss Nancy, Anne and I are doing the program at Redwork Club next Thursday on quilt labels, so we will get together next week to iron that out. I have a few recipes to make and review for a friend that is writing a cook book. I have a new redwork pattern to trace and start. So, I guess that's it for today...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Oh, wait....I forgot the winner...silly me... The comment contest started HERE. Got a little waylaid HERE, but finally the day came. It was MONDAY!!!! There were 12 comments. I used the random generator to pick one and the winner is - number 6


CORI LEWIS

Cori, you have til Sunday March 29th at 8pm central to contact me. If no contact I will do the random generator again...

Yea, Cori......email me with your color choice of red, yellow, blue or green polka dots and your snail mail address and I will get the zipper bags made and sent....

Thanks everyone for playing, and leaving comments....now don't you all go and stop visiting me!! You never know when I will have another date on the calendar for a surprise giveaway....


Nancy

It's true. Alcohol doesn't make you sleepy..

I am back home after three days of staycation. Unfortunately I am too old to even THINK about venturing out with three kids under the age of 7. Not going to happen. So we stayed home with Disney Monopoly, Nintendo DS, made brownies and watched High School Musical. One day they even stayed in their jammies all day....

I last left you wondering what I had purchased at the quilt show last Saturday so here it is....

A yard of little red squares. I have no plan for this now, but couldn't pass it up.



This book -



For this pattern - I have become very smitten with birds lately.



and finally, these 30's reds for my basket quilt. This is the first time I have purchased a jelly roll (or worms as the seller called them). I can't wait to open it.



No, Alcohol doesn't make you sleepy....but these guys will...





Off to restock the fridge...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

slow as a turtle....

daughters internet is SLOW.....................as a turtle running a race.

Will be back on line THURSDAY....

sorry...caps lock on...

happy sewing,
nancy

Get your pen and paper ready....

Ok, I forgot I would be packing, dropping off the dog at the vets and driving to my daughters house today. So I can't show you what I bought at the quilt show.

BUT....I can't leave you empty handed with nothing to comment about. You know this could be the ONE!!!!!

So get your paper and pen out...
Ready?
Number your paper from 1 - 26 (I loved doing that in school!!) Now put your name in the top left hand corner...OK! you don't really have to do that. Sorry, I got carried away.LOL

Can you guess which of the following are true and which are false? Next to each number write either T for true or F for false. NO CHEATING!! The answers are below, but don't be cheating and look before you mark your answers. Read very carefully....

Ready?? Start -

1. Apples, not caffeine, are more efficient at waking you up in the morning.

2. Alfred Hitchcock didn't have a belly button.

3. A pack-a-day smoker will lose approximately 2 teeth every 10 years.

4. People do not get sick from cold weather; it's from being indoors a lot more.

5. When you sneeze, all bodily functions stop, even your heart!

6. Only 7 percent of the population are lefties.

7. Forty people are sent to the hospital for dog bites every minute.

8. Babies are born without kneecaps. They don't appear until they are 2-6 years old.

9. The average person over 50 will have spent 5 years waiting in lines.

10. The toothbrush was invented in 1498.

11. The average housefly lives for one month.

12. 40,000 Americans are injured by toilets each year.

13 . A coat hanger is 44 inches long when straightened.

14. The average computer user blinks 7 times a minute.

15. Your feet are bigger in the afternoon than any other time of day.

16. Most of us have eaten a spider in our sleep.

17. The REAL reason ostriches stick their head in the sand is to search for water.

18. The only two animals that can see behind themselves without turning their heads
are the rabbit and the parrot.

19. John Travolta turned down the starring roles in 'An Officer and a Gentleman' and 'Tootsie.'

20. Michael Jackson owns the rights to the South Carolina State Anthem.

21. In most television commercials advertising milk, a mixture of white paint and a little thinner
is used in place of the milk.

22. Prince Charles and Prince William NEVER travel on the same airplane, just in case there
is a crash.

23. The first Harley Davidson motorcycle built in 1903 used a tomato can for a carburetor.

24. Most hospitals make money by selling the umbilical cords cut from women who give birth.
They are used in vein transplant surgery.

25. Humphrey Bogart was related to Princess Diana. They were 7th cousins.

26. If coloring weren't added to Coca-Cola, it would be green.

Now, for the answers.........................

Now I know you didn't cheat. Right?

Ready??

Now??

Ok, Ok....




They are all TRUE ... Now go back and think about #16!!!
EWWWWW!!!!!

Come back tomorrow to see what I bought...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

oooops.....

Almost forgot. I was gonna give you a little hint reminder that the comment contest is this week soon...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

The Quilt Show revealed....

We arrived at 9:45am and were second in line. Enjoy all the photos....I will only comment on a couple of them as the stories were so interesting...

The first quilt had the following information on the label. "This quilt was started in 1943 as I traveled by train from Missouri to California to meet my fiance who was in the service. I finished it on that trip, but it wasn't quilted until 1986". If you click to make the photo bigger, maybe you can tell it is NOT applique. It is ALL cross stitch.



The one above is the quilters first quilt. She called it "Rail Fence of Mistakes". She indicated that it had a thousand mistakes in it, although we couldn't find any of them.

What can I say. I live in St Louis, Miss Nancy's DH is an AVID fan of the StLC so this photo is for Lloyd...










Here is the label for the quilt above. I wanted to have this photo here so you can see how small the squares are for this quilt and to understand that it is based on a computer generated photo and made with all of her hand dyed fabrics. What was very surprising was that when you stood in front of the quilt it wasn't all that amazing looking. We thought, wow ok she made all the little points meet and she used hand dyed fabric. THEN, I took a photo and we could see how it Really Looked!! AMAZING...









Hope you enjoyed the quilt show. I will be back tomorrow to show you what I bought...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Happy National Quilting Day...

How are you celebrating National Quilting Day today? I am off to a local quilt show and shopping the vendors... Yea, I know...I am lucky.

To keep you busy I thought I would share the link to Heather Bailey's blog and her tutorial on how to knot your thread... I am not a redwork purist. Since the majority of my redwork ends up in quilts, I knot my thread at the beginning and the end. I know! I shouldn't, but I do...
Of course this knot also works for hand sewing, etc...

I will be back Sunday with some quilt pictures.

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

ok, this is going too far....

Follow this link...

Has anyone seen this in their local thread store?

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Getting closer.....

I am getting really close to a finish here. I finished block number 10 last night...AND traced and started the last block. There are only 11 blocks in this series and I love them all. Here are all the blocks together on my design wall. I can't wait to find the perfect reds to border these and get them together and off to the quilter.



And I will finish the week Saturday with a trip to a local quilt show. I am taking a list. I get overwhelmed very easily. I either buy everything or nothing at all. LOL Thimble and Thread always does a terrific show with great vendors. If you are in the St. Louis area here is some more information...This would make a great day trip for some quilting friends. I am going with one of mine! The link will take you to a nice article about the guild and one of few male members...

The day is B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L....I have all the windows open and pushed the dog outside. Now to sew!! Are you close to a finish? Tell me!!

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Be Anonymous no more,....

Terri has a good tutorial to show you how to change your settings so you aren't a No-Reply-Blogger any more....

CLICK HERE to read it...

Hope this helps...

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

No reply comments....

I have had a few questions on the stitchery I showed the other day. Peace and Plenty is by Kathy Schmitz. I found mine at Colonial Crafts....

I love to reply to comments, questions and suggestions about posts on my blog. But sometimes your comments come through as NO REPLY.... I can't get back to you. There are several ways to "sign in" and comment. If you don't want to leave your email address in the comment section then click on the "EMAIL ME" on the left side bar.

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Non hand quilters need not apply....

This is the Quilt Guilds raffle quilt for 2009. These women show up every Monday at 9am and hand quilt until 2pm. Everyone is welcome to hand quilt on it, UNLESS you don't hand quilt. No newbies are allowed..LOL um...that would be ME! I took my one and only hand quilting class about 6 years ago. I finished my pillow top and never looked back. I do NOT like to hand quilt, which surprises me since I love to embroider. As soon as the hand quilters are finished and photos are taken, we will get our tickets to sell. We will sell tickets all summer at different festivals (and neighbors and friends, so watch out!!)and the winning ticket will be drawn at our Christmas Party the first week of December. Wouldn't this make a lovely gift for someone special? Last years winner didn't even buy a ticket!! Her daughter purchased a ticket and put her Mom's name on it. It was the winner and boy was she surprised when she was called.

I am hoping for this one and I promise to paint and redecorate the bedroom if I win. It is the first time that the quilt is all from one line of fabric. I heard someone say it is Alex Anderson's Romance? Very pretty....

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Oh the wonderous things we can win....

Click HERE to be in the running.....

I am off to quilt guild today....

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Just a little redwork....

I have been furiously working on my redwork baskets. They are from this pattern. I have nine of the eleven blocks finished. I am thinking of using a bunch of different reds as the borders and getting this one done!! I am using this as my personal series at my quilt guild so I really do have a deadline to finish it although I am not sure what the deadline is? I used floche embroidery thread for the first time on these blocks and really like it. You only use one strand so there is no twisting, it comes in a hank and you just cut it in two pieces and you are ready to go. I buy mine from Needle in a Haystack by the hank. They have great service and quick shipping. The thread also gets sent in tissue with a gold sticker. Very cute and keeps the thread clean.




Yesterday, DH needed to go to the gun shop and I rode along, knowing quite well that it is very near a quilt shop. I got him to drop me off and pick me up. Chris had ordered 3 patterns for my sewing group. Slide Show is by Atkinson Designs. Miss Nancy and Anne will do this in Batiks and I will be using black and whites.


While browsing I also found this pattern that came home with me. I love samplers and houses. I think I will do it in black and have DH build a custom frame for me. It will keep him off the streets.



As we drove into the neighborhood last night we saw a small helicopter taking off. It seems a neighbor took his wife to work yesterday, drove home becoming dizzy and by the time he got into his driveway he was so confused he couldn't figure out how to use the garage door opener. Luckily his grown children were visiting and called an ambulance, who in turn called the medi-vac helicopter. He was awake, but confused when they left with him. We had a late night update that the ER physician thinks he may have had a TIA (mini-stroke). Seems he has a family history. If you are so inclined, prayers would be appreciated. He is a younger man in his middle fifties.

We have a roofer coming today to replace some shingles that got blown off in the wind. Guess that will wake up the Rock Star as the shingles are missing right over his bedroom...LOL

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Clarification on contest....

The winning blog post is in the future...it will be soon. It is a secret so you best comment on every one to be sure you get in the winning post. It is NOT one of those already posted.

Nancy

Um......

Remember THIS post???? Well, last week the date came and went. I didn't even blog. I had Abbie here and never even had TIME to look at the calendar...

SO!! I have picked another date. Comment on the correct post and win two zipper bags with your choice of one of these fabrics....



Today is SEWING ROOM CLEANUP DAY!! I have a mess in there....

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

Now I know....

Why my daughter only changes her sheets every two weeks.

How to keep a 13 month old busy while I unload the dishwasher.

How to change a VERY poopy diaper and not get anything on the couch.

How to cook dinner with one leg being pulled on.

That it is ok to look forward to bed time.

That it is important to get up very early and get a shower and dressed for the day. Cause you can't go anywhere in your pj's with bed head...and you can't shower after the grandbaby is awake.

That when you have a guest and you can't use the guest room for the guest because your Rock Star has turned it into a music room and so you put the guest in the
sewing room, that you can't sew when the guest is asleep and of course you can't sew when the guest is awake.

That every dinner needs to include some kind of protein, a veggie and some fruit.

That you don't feed the grandbaby until she explodes (got that, grandpa?)

Beautiful Abbie went home yesterday. We surprised her Mommy and Daddy by leaving very early and taking her all the way home. We had to stop 3 times to get "binky", but made it safely home. You could have heard Abbie all the way to New York when she spotted her Mommy and Daddy coming up the walk. She was hysterically happy. It had been a long 6 days. For all of us......

Now to get the sewing room back in order and get some sewing done this weekend. I need to catch up on my Calendar Quilt Challenge and I have decided that my bathroom needs some new window coverings.

Happy Sewing,
Nancy

We're having fun....

I'll be taking a break.....

This little one wants to play!!

Be back Friday!!

Happy Sewing,
Nancy