Wonderful Wednesday - The DOQ Road Show Edition

Welcome to another edition of Wonderful Wednesday!!  I thought you might like to see the quilts that I took for the Healthcare Center residents at Carol Woods to enjoy.  It's been quite a while since I've visited and the ladies were happy to see me.

Here are the quilts that I took on the 11/16/16 DOQ Road Show, rescheduled due to the Thanksgiving Holiday...

Sunflower Wall Hanging, purchased at a DOQ Quilt Show a number of years ago. Couldn't resist supporting the guild:

Leaves of Fire, fabrics purchased on my first trip to Las Vegas and blocks made in a Thangles class at Quilting Possibilities nearly 20 years ago.  Machine quilted (by me) using a paper template to sew through:

My very first "quilted" jacket, affectionately called the Big Bird Jacket, due to the bright yellow "accents" that somehow took over:

My Snowman Jacket, made according to a pattern made specifically for me.  The red "accents" needed to be narrower to avoid it being renamed my Flag Jacket.  On top of that, the made-to-me pattern DIDN'T FIT!!  Ultimately, it was reassembled to enjoy during the holiday season:

Antique Quilt, supposedly made by my great aunt Ira.  It is a tied quilt of unusual construction:

Another Antique (tied) Quilt...

With an obviously antique print on the back:

Antique Double Wedding Ring quilt top, purchased to practice my machine quilting.  Never found the time or inclination to quilt it:

Antique Apple Core (Double Hatchet) Quilt, purchased in Paducah, Kentucky at the AQS Quilt Show in 1995:

After my Quilt Talk, the residents were entertained by Helen Wolfson, a local hammered dulcimer player:

Antique Honeycomb Quilt, purchased as a top in Monroe, Georgia and later machine quilted by a California quilter and bound by me:

I hope you enjoyed seeing the quilts that I shared.  It was a lovely morning and I am happy to be able to represent the Durham Orange Quilters Guild in this way.

Until next time...
Air those quilts!!!

Mystery Monday Link-up! En Provence! Part 1!!

Welcome to Part ONE of the En Provence Mystery!!  Each year, Bonnie Hunter (of Quiltville fame) does a Reader Appreciation Mystery Quilt.  I have participated during the last two Mysteries. It's FUN to sew along with quilters from around the globe.

This year, I've been distracted.  While I planned to participate, I have done NOTHING to prepare!!  Well...

Nothing, but THIS:

Lists made to determine what colors to use.  Next step...

Digging in the stash!!!

Go check out the Link-up to see what others are doing.  They might even have SEWN something!!!  LOL

Until next time...
Quilt happy!!!

ScrapHappy Saturday - RSC16 - Week 48

Welcome to Week 48 of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge!!  This week was filled with a variety of obligations and events.  I keep hoping that some sewing will work its way into my schedule...

Let's see how that panned out for me.

SUNDAY afternoon, I sorted one of the FOUR scrap bags that I received on Saturday:

My MONDAY was filled with crafty goodness.  Knit Group in the morning, fabric scrap sorting in the afternoon, and Quilt Guild in the evening.  What a wonderful way to start the week!!

I wove in the ends of my Stripey Sleeves of Warmth:

I also took THREE bags of scraps to share with guild members!!

On TUESDAY, I took care of the family finances in the morning, did some more scrap sorting in the midday...

... And took a SLOW tour of the Triangle area in the late afternoon/early evening.  Those of you who have followed my blog for a while will know that means that I had to go to both Raleigh AND Chapel Hill to pick up my college boys.

ETA... Last minute change of plans!!  DS2 needed to complete a project, so my trip to Chapel Hill will have to wait for tomorrow.

WEDNESDAY afternoon was reserved for a special meeting of my Quilt Bee.  Our member who now lives in England is back in the States for the holiday and wanted to get together with everyone.  Of course, we said YOU BET!!!  Here's a photo of our hostess with the guest of honor:

On THURSDAY, my family gathered at Mom's for a Thanksgiving feast.  We collaborated and did the best we could (without the assistance of my SIL's "magic oven" - the one that cooked the turkey lightning fast each year!)

I took my newly started knitting project made with my Post-SAFF yarn purchase.  I'm making a Quaker Yarn Stretcher Boomerang:

FRIDAY was filled with a trip to Quiltville.  It's time for Bonnie Hunter's post-Thanksgiving Day Mystery.  Thank you, Bonnie for this year's to France!!  The first clue of En Provence was released this morning... I guess I better go choose my fabrics and get busy.

Yes!  You read that correctly.  I have been a slacker this year and DID NOT prepare for the Mystery when Bonnie announced this year's color cards.  If you've never done her Mystery Quilts, head over and check it out!  You are welcome to substitute colors or choose to make a portion of the units.  I do one-quarter of the assignment for a lap quilt sized end product.  It's SEW much fun!

SATURDAY is here and that means it's LINK PARTY day over on Angela's So Scrappy blog.  I'm headed over to see which of the RSC Quilters have finished their Rainbow Scrap Challenge projects this week (because you KNOW that I didn't finish any here!!)

Until next time...
Get Scrappy!!!

ScrapHappy Saturday - RSC16 - Week 47

Welcome to Week 47 of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge!!  My goal for this week was to get back into the habit of spending time up in the sewing room.  You see, I've fallen out of the habit.  It's sad, but true.  My place of refuge hasn't been drawing me in.

I was excited to get sewing upon my return from Quilt Camp. Really, I was!!  I even had a Sew Day with my friends.  That was GREAT and I was energized, but that was a busy week.

That busy week ended with a trip to SAFF.  Which you might have read about HERE.  Needless to say, getting excited about YARN didn't help my desire to spend time SEWING!!!  :o((

Once home, I took some time to relax.  One day turned into two and so on, until TWO WEEKS had gone by without sewing a single stitch!  Can you believe it???

Well, finally, enough was ENOUGH and I set about completing just ONE task each day this week.  Cleaning up the mess on the ironing board (it's a flat surface, you know.)  Putting away a pile of fabric sitting on the cutting table (it's a flat surface, too!)  Finishing a little something, or ANYTHING really!!  Small tasks that don't take much time, but get me in the studio.

Let's see how far I got...

SUNDAY afternoon, I put away the project littering the ironing board.  That one clear surface did wonders for the entire room!!

On MONDAY, I missed Knit Group and I spent NO TIME in the studio... I was in Raleigh all day.  The quarterly meeting of the APQS Owner's Group was on today's agenda.  I brought along THIS Circle Lord template board:

It's one that came with my (still) new-to-me APQS Longarm Quilting Machine.  I had hoped that Angela, at Thread Waggle Quilting, could show me how to set them up properly.  This Swirls board is what I'm leaning toward using on my recently completed (sans borders) Think Spring quilt:

On TUESDAY, my task was finishing up a pair of gift bags for some little friends.  These were started by special request and it was time that they were completed:

If you follow my blog, you might have spotted the above photo on this week's edition of Wonderful Wednesday.  Sorry for the duplication, but it's the only quilty thing I did all day!

WEDNESDAY morning, I went into the studio looking for items to take to the DOQ Road Show at The Health Center at Carol Woods. No cleaning or straightening was done, but I did rummage through the closet for a couple of Quilted Jackets to take with me to show the residents.

I spotted some Rainbow goodness on the way out of the facility:

During the afternoon, I had some housekeeping chores to attend to before leaving for Girls Night Out in the late afternoon.  (Early arrival means more time for knitting before the sun goes down!)

On THURSDAY morning, I headed off to my weekly Quilt Group meeting.  Plans for the afternoon weren't set in stone so I played in THESE scraps that Dee Dee delivered:

FRIDAY came and the knitters descended on Filament Coffee.  I missed Monday, so I couldn't resist!!

SATURDAY is LINK PARTY day over on the So Scrappy blog.  Angela concluded her Color of the Month program early this year.  That gave the RSC Quilters more time to get their rainbow projects put together before the end of the year.  Thanks, Angela!!

Well, I made some progress in the sewing room, however little! I've got to go finish getting ready because...

The quilters are coming.  The quilters are coming and they will be here very soon. (Anyone available to help clean up the last few piles of junk mail "decorating" the kitchen table???)  LOL

Until next time...
Get Scrappy!!!

Wonderful Wednesday - The Gifty Edition

Welcome to another edition of Wonderful Wednesday!! This is an a short post.  It could have been described as (Nearly) Wordless Wednesday.  LOL

I forced myself up to the sewing room several times today.  Yes, I did say "forced" and I'm not sure why that is.  Although, I'm guessing that it's because the room is quite a mess at the moment.

Anyway...

On one of my trips to the studio, I spotted the little pouches that I'm making for 2 of my favorite girls.  I started them at Quilt Camp and they still needed their drawstrings inserted.

After an entire MONTH!!!

SEW...

I took care of that one small task:

Hooray...
End of story!!!

Mail Call Monday - Guilty Pleasures

Welcome to another issue of Mail Call Monday!!  Each year that I have attended SAFF, I have debated and debated over the Biker Chick colorway from Miss Babs, purveyor of fine hand dyed yarn. 

Each year, I walk away from the yarn!!  This year was no exception.  The illusive "perfect skein" didn't exist in the base that I was hoping to purchase.

Days after arriving home, Knittingsuek sent me PM on Ravelry regarding a private destash that she found listed on GROUP.  The rest, as they say, is history.

Hence, the package at my front door:

With THIS inside:

My PERFECT skein of Biker Chick:

And...  The funny sight that greeted me when I went upstairs this morning.  My husband.  Trying to be funny:

Also in the mail...

THIS book that captured my attention while surfing the web:

It's in like-new condition and included the accompanying DVD:

Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict recently completed a quilt using a very similar pattern and I thought it might be PERFECT for one of my upcoming commission quilts:

Until next time...
PayPal ROCKS!!!

ScrapHappy Saturday - RSC16 - Week 46

Welcome to Week 46 of the Rainbow Scrap Challenge!!  I had high hopes for this week, but...

Here's how my week progressed:

SUNDAY was a waste!!  I sat around all day... didn't even do ONE load of laundry!

MONDAY is my happy day.  I spent the morning with my Knit Group and the afternoon was spent shopping. (Thrift, grocery, etc.)

This TUESDAY was my regularly scheduled hair appointment. Not a minute too soon, let me tell you!!  Afterwards, I felt human, again.  A rather lazy human who spent the afternoon knitting (alone) at her favorite coffee shop.

WEDNESDAY was a wash!  I curled up in my "reading chair" (with a book that I bought at Goodwill on Monday) and didn't resurface until it was time to cook dinner.  Bliss!!!

My THURSDAY provides joy.  The morning is for my weekly Quilt Group meeting... NOT at my house this week.  Whew!!

The afternoon was spent writing up the meeting notes and posting to our group blog, then playing with my RSC blocks:

FRIDAY was "bonus" Knit Group, followed by a trip to UNC Chapel Hill.  You know what that means, don't you???  MORE laundry!!!  DS2 is home for the weekend.  :o))

SATURDAY is LINK PARTY day over on the So Scrappy blog.   Angela's Color of the Month has been suspended until January, but some of the RSC Quilters are finishing up the projects that they've been working on throughout the year.  Go check it out!!

Until next time...
Get Scrappy!!!

Wonderful Wednesday - SAFF 2016 Edition

Welcome to another edition of Wonderful Wednesday!!  This week you will get the inside scoop on last weekend's SAFF trip. Stick around, if you'd like to break the code... "What happens at SAFF, STAYS at SAFF!!"

Miss Bab's SAFF Colorway 2016:

A wonderful New-To-SAFF shop:

Owner, Kate, LOVED my Trail Tote:

Another New-To-SAFF shop and this one's from Tampa:

Here I am on a Knitting Break, while waiting for Knittingsuek:

She's here, she's here!!  Quick!  Let's take a picture in front of Miss Bab's booth.  Lots of pretty yarn, but I didn't make a purchase:

Hmm... which Wild Hare Neon do I want:

What about the SAFF Colorway from Shalimar:

Sue had a tough choice, too:

The Fiber Seed dyed yarn for THIS fun cowl pattern, available for FREE on Ravelry:

Saturday was Quilting Day at SAFF!!  Sue worked on her Shaggy Denim Quilt:

Joy brought scraps to share:

Sue showed off her newest project bag:

It was purchased due to its interesting construction details:

Field Trip!!!  After lunch at The Blackberry Mountain Cafe, we headed off to Beginnings Quilt Shop in Hendersonville, NC:

THIS fun quilt greeted us:

I brought along Spring Fling, in the hopes of finding borders, backing, and binding.  Score!!  The purchases were also on SALE:

Sue looked to add fabrics to her Hexie Project:

We enjoyed a glorious autumn afternoon:

Let me take a picture of the bag you made:

Silly shot followed by a good one:

Oh, how cute...

... And look at the interesting detailing:

Twinsies!!!  This bag was spotted down in the lobby:

How do these buttons work:

Just. YUM!!!  Dinner at Tupelo Honey Cafe:

Which "Ashley Bag" should I get:

Process of elimination:

A "summer" and a "spring" bag decided to follow me home:

The sheep ran away:

Must. SEE!!  Tracy's KNIT sneakers:

Happy Christmas gift from Sue.  Thank you!!!  It's AWESOME:

It's SO soft:

Colorway - Half Past Midnight:

It's a NEW yarn from Miss Babs:

All wound up and ready for my next project:

A bag from Whimzee Stitches:

And one from Erin Lane:

Until next time...
Shop with friends!!!