Another Quilt Retreat!

Just back from another quilt retreat

This was a very low keyed relaxing retreat.

It's held at a Salvation Army Retreat Center...
Very calming and relaxing!

Here is my room...
Yup a little twin size bed, which was
actually pretty comfortable.
Had the room all to myself - that was a treat!
First time in 25 years I've been by myself!!

This is my favorite room,

a beautiful sitting room with gas fire places.

Just a wonderfully cozy room....

with a beautiful view of the frozen lake!

Saturday afternoon it was so sunny and beautiful,
made myself a huge cup of tea, gathered my applique,
and stitched for over an hour...
LOVED every tranquil minute of it!

 Here is the sewing room filled with 30 quilters, machines and Quilty Stuff!,
except me - no machine - just my sewing basket!

This weekend I worked on the  right border and was able to finish 

five flower sets and baste the last three in place.

 It's getting there!!!

Red Applique Quilt - Left Border on!

I brought my Red Applique quilt out of the UFO pile 

to start working on the vine and flower applique boarders during my last retreat ....

Well I finished the left border and stitched it in place over the weekend ...

LOVE it!!! 

Very Happy with how it's turning out.

Can't wait for my next retreat (this weekend!!) 

to finish the right boarder!

Wonderful time at the SCQG Retreat

Just back from a laugh riot of a time 

at the SCQG Quilting Retreat held on the Cape.

Here is my view of the quilting room.

We had 30 Quilty Gals ... lots of fun & laughs.

We had a SAFARI theme this year
every one was given a hat to decorate!

Here is my hat decorated with wild animal stickers!

And the Prize Winning Hat...

Sue "borrowed" her grand kids stuffed animals!!
The only animal she didn't have was a monkey.
Her prize for the best hat ....
Yup - you guessed it...
a stuffed Sock Monkey!!


And here are the ring leaders of the SAFARI
Carolyn ans the Witch Doctor and
Donna as the Hunter

They always do a fabulous job every year putting together
the retreat ...Three days of  fun, food and friends!


Worked on my appliqué border

Yup didn't even bring a machine!
Very liberating ... all though I seemed
to have to carry in just as much quilty stuff!

Finished a Winter Taupe block and started the
McKenna Ryan "Beach Walk" fusible applique quilt!
More on those two later.
Now back to reality...
time to take down the Christmas decorations!!!

Only 365 more days until the next retreat....
I wonder what the next theme will be?!

Happy 2013 and my 100th Blog Entry!

HAPPY 2013!!

Can not believe this is Blog Entry # 100!!

Watched the ball drop in New York City ... on the TV!!

Went to bed and couldn't sleep!!

Up until 4:30 am!

Working on a UFO!

Remember this one

Started in on the appliqué boarder

Already had the vine appliquéd

worked on selecting fabrics for the petals!

Think I'm off to a good ... re-start!

My New Years Resolutions...

#1 - Become Healthier! 

(No more eating junk includes cookies and candy!)

#2 -  Spend more quality time with Hubby!

(That should be an easy one!)

#3 - Walk / Workout and loose 20 pounds by JUNE

(Oh My!)

#4 - Be the best Wife, Mom, Daughter, Sister, Friend I can be

(only measured by the smile I see!)

HAPPY and HEALTHY New Year to Everyone!

Wrapping up 2012

Christmas 2012 was wonderful ...

 The kids were home and no one had any place to rush off to. We spend the day all together!

Matthew took this panoramic picture with his iPhone!

Stephen was watching me use my new mini iPad, 

Nana is getting her picture taken and 

Victoria is hiding in the corner buried under presents!

In the afternoon we celebrated my birthday!

With a special gift from Nana ....

a new sewing machine!

WOW! a Janome Memory Craft 6600!

I am on lucky Quilty Gal!

Spent the rest of my school vacation rearranging 

my sewing room .... AGAIN!

New Janome Front and Center!!!

With a few added organization moduales from

a local shop - the room is ready for my

2013 Quilty Projects!!

Christmas Cookies

At Christmas time we have a tradition ....

Santa cookies!

We make Santa cookies

and lots of them!

This year my son's friends actually started acting about them

in September ... making sure they were on the cookie list!

It all started when the kids were little

The sugar cookies were made while they were at school

and on a special evening all of the frosting components were set up

the center of confectionery frosting is surrounded by
chocolate chips, coconut, red sugar,
mini marshmallows and a cinnamon candy

and let the frosting begin....

even at 25 Matthew still loves this tradition

 Ta-Dah! Santa Cookie

 Love lining them all up!

This year there were two cookie nights

so Victoria wouldn't miss out!

So glad she's home from college! 

It looks like Christmas!!

 All boxed and ready to go!

We figured we made 25 DOZEN of these

cute little Santa Cookies this year!!

Growing up my mom started her cookie tradition

Press Cookies...

We made 24 dozen of the Press Cookies

(TWO at a time! it took awhile!)

All in all December was spent making over 50 dozen cookies!

It was such fun ... 

and all were given to Family and Friends.

We did manage to save ONE box for

our Christmas dessert!

Block 10 and 11 of Winter Taupe Quilt

Slowly the blocks are getting done!

Block #10

Block #11

Christmas Crafts

Way back in 1983 as I was preparing for my first Christmas as a newlywed,

making a Christmas tree skirt was at the top of the list!

It must have been a crazy list!!!

Using extra wide felt from "Sew-fisticate" (remember that shop?!)

and a Santa pattern (long since lost)

This beautiful trees skirt came to be,

features four large Santa's and

has been used under the family tree for the past 29 years!

When the kids were born  .... of course they each needed a

wonderful Christmas stocking.

Ya know ... something ...easy!

Found these patterns in a Cross Stitch magazine

way back in the late 80's and early 90's

Matthew's stocking is a combination of two patterns.

The original piece had a trunk in the lower

portion, changed it up a bit...

added the Santa and expanded the quilt over the chair.

Victoria's Christmas Stocking

was so much fun to do ... and so girly...

and so not a stocking for a "tom-boy"!

But she loves it anyway!

Never made a stocking for myself ,

 found a pattern of a sewing room ...

but sadly can no longer find it.

Hubby's stocking is half done, it's a Santa's workshop

and still under construction!

(it's been that way for  ... a very long time!!!)

Happy Christmas Crafting!!!

Over The Moon Workshop

 Last month I was able to take a class by Linda Warren

for this quilt

"Over The Moon".

Cutting fabric with Linda's specially designed

Learning Curve ruler

  

then sewing the blocks together creates a nifty 9 patch

playing with my blocks on the classroom design wall

and here is Linda holding one of her very awesome quilts

made with her Learning Curve ruler

made with black and one Ombre fabric!

It was a great class, my blocks are on the top of my UFO

bucket ... planning on finishing piecing the top in January!

Now the quilting ... that might take a bit longer!

Baby Quilt is Quilted!

The baby quilt for my nephew's little girl ...Emmelou

(love the name!)

is all done and ready for delivery!

It started out as a panel, which was promptly cut up into 5 inch squares,

and put back together with sashing and cornerstones.

The flowered boarder  fabric was hiding in my stash!

The quilting motif is a combination of two designs.

The large flower is a Sashiko design and the vine

is my new favorite from the book

Machine Freehand Patterns by Nan Moore.

the stripped binding is actually the backing fabric!

And of course I just had make a SPECIAL handmade label!

This pattern was sent to my by Monica

from Diary of a Quilt Maven

Just love how it came out!

Drawing on the boarder

working on a baby quilt and now it's decision time ...

boarder quilting design

think I'll go with this big flower and funky vine design,

had the vine design all drawn out from another quilt

so it was easy enough just to free hand draw it right onto the quilt!

not sure how to quilt the center...

since it's a baby quilt and will get lots of use

think I'll just do a meander stitch 

Just finished reading my copy sent from the publishers to read and review

(How exciting is That!!)...

Jennifer Chiaverini delivers another fabulous novel in the Elm Creek Quilt Series!

Without giving away too much....

Jennifer brings the Elm Creek Quilters and a few new characters

 together for a special "Quiltsgiving" quilt camp to make quilts for Project Linus,

as usual the Jennifer draws you into the book and make you part of the story.

Can't you just her Sylvia's voice!

Each camper at "Quiltsgiving" quilt camp is asked by Sylvia...

"Why do you give?"

With that one question the story unfolds 

and we learn about each camper and

what brought them to quilt camp.

We read how they form friendships and work towards a common

goal ~ to create their Giving Quilts for Project Linus

This has become my favorite Elm Creek novel...

but I say that after I finish each one of Jennifer's books!

If you are a reader, a quilter or just a gal who loves getting together

with other gal pals for a good cause (Project Linus)

You will LOVE this novel.

So grab a cup of tea, comfy chair and a quilt

and start reading "The Giving Quilt"!

Enjoy!

Hand Quilting during Storm Sandy

 As Hurricane Sandy approaches my hand quilting projects are ready

Just incase power is lost!

In the process of making a Hawaiian Bread fruit design pillow for a future class

All my tools fit neatly into this little blue contact case!!!

The essentials:

Quilting hoop - love the lap hoop 

Clover Gold Eye Quilting Needles Between (No.12)

Needle threader and cutter combo tool

Thread Heaven

Thimble of choice

Thread on bobbins (beat lugging the big spools)

 a little rubber needle pull thingy!

Minin battery operated OttLite (with spare batteries!)

OH ... Glasses 2.75 magnification! for those over 50 eyes!!

That's is I'm ready for any power outage! 

I can hand quilt for days!!