Is This Cute or What???

I have shared before my love of yard sales.  I can't wait for yard sale season to start again.  But in the meantime I visit Thrift Stores in order to get my fix of aquiring other peoples unwanted junk. Not long ago I was in one of my favorite stores and spotted this little gem.:

How cute is this???  The funny part (or maybe not - perhaps it's a sign that I need a 12 step program) I have NO idea what I am going to do with it.  I just had to buy it.  But it's great - I love the bright colors.  It is all handmade -the little appliques were sewn on by hand - the quilting is hand done - it's brand new. It makes me wonder, someone put all that work into it and then it never got used - that is very sad.  So while I was feeling sorry for this little quilt it just jumped out and landed in my shopping cart somehow.  The best part was that I only paid $5.00 for it.  So now what to do with it - I could sell it, I could give it away as a gift, or I might have a need for it sometime - there will be kids (or grandkids) coming along in the family one of these days.  I just love finding things like this.

You Should Visit

One of my favorite blogs is Geta's Quilting Studio

I found Geta when I was wanting to figure out how to do a kalidescope quilt. Her blog is loaded with tutorials, patterns and fun information about her passion - quilting.  She does amazing shadow trapunto work.  Geta is a very talented artist.

Each month Geta has a give away.  This month two lucky winners will each receive a copy of her "Pockets with Love Pattern"

You can find Geta here: 
http://cadouri-din-inima.blogspot.com/2010/01/january-giveaway.html

Or just click the button to the right!

I'm a Genius!!

I'm back after a little lapse in blogging - I have returned. 

At the bottom of the blog you'll see a new feature - a game.  Well, hey, Thanksgiving is right around the corner (ugh!) and I LOVE games, sometimes the sillier the better.  So this game was perfect!  If you have a few moments and you want to do something mindless - here ya go - it's fun!  That's part of the reason I'm a genius - I figured out how to add this all on my own and I didn't have to go running to anyone (I'm looking at you Julie) to help me! WooHoo!

AND remember a couple weeks ago I ran those pictures of that really pretty kalidescope quilt that my friend had made.  I was bound that I was going to figure it out???  I'm a fricken' genius - I figured it out!!!!!  Without much direction and only a few hints from MaryAnn - I did it.  I had a piece of fabric that fit the qualifications - it had medium to large, bright print and I had enough fabric so that the pattern was repeated at least 4 times.  I barely had enough fabric - but this is my practice piece. I just wanted to see if I could do it and if so I have another piece of fabric I'd like to make a bed-sized quilt.

So here's what I came up with:

This is the fabric before I cut it. Of course it has cats in it - did I ever tell you that I LOVE cats? 

And then.....LOOKY!!!!!!!

These are two of the blocks.  I am soooooo excited.  I think they are very cool.  I have 16-5" squares.  I sewed the squares together yesterday. Today I am going to cut some of the coordinating fabrics and see what I can make from that - I think I will only have enough for a little lap quilt - but that's OK.  This was only an experiment anyway. I just wanted to see if I can do it.YAYAYAYAYAYA!!  This quilting technique is sooooooo addictive I want to do more and more.   Wednesday is Veteran's Day and a holiday for us government types, so MaryAnn and I are going to do our mystery quilts.  I will take lot of pictures - I can't wait to share our creations with you.

Beautiful Quilt!

My friend MaryAnn and I known each other for well over 20 years. We work in the same field. But over the years we have discovered that we have many common interests.  (I have her to thank for getting me into the jewelry making thing.)  But, she is a master quilter and I am constantly in awe of her work.  She makes all sorts of quilts and always has a few in the works.  She has entered many of them in shows, with positive results. 

Whenever we get a chance we like to get together and sew.  We have made a couple projects together (I'll share those in detail on other posts).  When we do work together, she is the ying to my yang.  I am the sort that just kinda throws things up in the air and they come out kinda gal.  She brings precision to our projects.  I can't be bothered with the precision that some things take (or I don't have the patience for it).  She also has a eye for color and patterns in fabric that work best together (in that department you'd think I was color blind).  Thus a couple very good reasons that she is a master quilter and I am not.

We also ike to share pictures of projects we have made or patterns we have purchased.  E-mail and those fancy-schmancy phones we have make sharing so quick and easy.  We are gettin ready to do a project together - a mystery quit - you don't know what it is unti it is done - I'll post about it later as we are going to work on them Veteran's Day.  But the other day she sent me a picture of her latest quilt.  She picked up the technique on a recent trip to Hilton Head (even though it was a vacation with the famiy - she always takes her sewing machine and works on some projects).  I beieve it's called a kaliedescope technique (that's what it looks like).  Anyway it is absolutely gorgeous!!!!  I wanted to share it for her.  hahaha  It is very beautiful and I wanted y'all to see it.

MaryAnn, my dear friend I hope you are reading this!  hahaha (and not kill me for posting your quilt, but it is just too beautiful).  You're an inspiration and a true friend.

I am aso bad about looking at someone's project and figuring out how to do it mysef. So I have been trying really hard to figure this out. I think I have it and am gonna try it and see.