Not Much

I haven't been quilting much in the past couple days- I did make a mini for my Secret Easter Swap partner, though, and sent it out this morning. But I'm not supposed to blog about it until she gets it!

The weather here has been gorgeous these past couple days- it was 62 yesterday!! It's supposed to be just as nice today. Then get completely crappy for the weekend! Oh, well. Spring is coming, and I for one cannot wait! I spent most of yesterday morning out in the garden doing some cleanup work and planning. I have my seeds, I have my plan, now I need spring!



My mother-in-law's spider plant exploded with baby plants! I think she has enough to give one to every man, woman and child in her town! I took 3 of them for the house- spider plants are one of the best plants for taking pollutants out of the air and replacing them with good oxygen. Plus they're easy to grow... for most people.

I am not very good with houseplants, I admit- I killed the first spider plant she gave me- and that's not an easy thing to do! Hubby is amazed that I can grow such a good garden every year, but kill houseplants. And flowers. Flowers don't like me either! But veggies and fruit are my friends!

I'm A Swap-a-holic!!

Swapping is just so much fun! I did my first ones in February- 2 mini quilt swaps and a four-patch quilt block swap! And for March I am in 5 swaps!! I am signed up for:

- Doll Quilt Swap 6 (this is not due until the end of April, though)
- S.T.U.D. Anything Goes
- 6"-12" mini quilt swap
- a little fabric, a little chocolate swap
- Secret Easter Swap

Eep! I actually have everything planned for all these swaps- including the days I am going to work on them!

Here's the mini quilt swaps I was in in February:


Sent to Carol in Iowa for the S.T.U.D. paper-piecing swap... photo courtesy of Carol, since I was stupid and sent this to her without taking a picture first!

Recieved from Carol for the S.T.U.D. paper-piecing swap! Isn't it gorgeous? The picture doesn't do it justice- the orange is a really bright orange that just makes the whole quilt pop!


Sent to Susi in Germany for the S.T.U.D. anything goes swap... photo courtesy of Susi, since I was still stupid and sent hers off without taking a picture too!


Recieved from Susi for the S.T.U.D. anything goes swap! I love the birds! And the chocolate was really good- it's Elder/Pear flavored. Interesting! The teas all look so good, and Hubby and I had fun typing the names into Babelfish to find out what they were.

I am going to have fun with this in March, because April is the start of the garden, and then I'll be lucky if I can do one swap. We are going to have a BIG garden this year, enough to preserve for next winter so I don't have to buy vegetables at the store. And I am really looking forward to gardening, but I will admit that it is a lot of work!

March Preview!

Totally random- read this in the news and thought it was too funny... it's 3/3/09- Happy Square Root Day everyone! :) :) :)

OK- back to regularly scheduled programming...

March 13-14-15 I am retreating! Vicki hosts a retreat at a local Christian camp twice a year. I LOVE this retreat! We have so much fun, stay up till all hours, have fabulous food, and sip a little wine now and again... I am already lining up my projects:

Isn't this bag fabulous? I plan to make 2 of them. I think I may be committing a serious Amy Butler faux pas, though... I am not using Amy Butler fabric! But I really love my fabric:

They are all Michele D'Amore fabrics, except the brown with blue dots- that's a Michael Miller. But they go together so well! One will be my purse, and one will be my knitting bag. I found some great knitting needle rolls on Etsy- aren't they awesome? And they coordinate with my bag fabrics very nicely!

Another thing I will be making is a quilt for my cousin. I promised her a quilt when she graduated high school... 2 (or is it 3?) years ago! I just never found the right fabrics for her until now!! These are the "Posh" by Chez Moi for Moda. It's all cut out and sorted into blocks- I am using the "Meadow Lane" pattern from Heather Mulder Peterson. I have made this pattern before (here and here). I plan to get the top done at the retreat. I know I can do it- I made the "Amy's Piquash" top at the retreat in November- and that was queen-size. This one will be twin-size!

And finally (and randomly) I bought a bunch of ribbon at Michael's yesterday. I am in all these swaps, and you are supposed to send little gifts along with the mini-quilts and fabrics you send! I just didn't have any stuff like ribbons, buttons and stickers hanging around the house. So I've been stocking up when I see stuff on sale. I especially like the cupcake ribbons!

This is my 90th post since starting this blog... be on the lookout- I am planning a fabric giveaway for my 100th post!!

Eat, Drink, And Be Merry...

For tomorrow scientific researchers will come out with conflicting and scary reports telling me how my favorite foods and beverages are trying to kill me!

Seriously- in the last day I have learned that: while good for my heart, wine may increase my risk of cancer. Except esophageal cancer- wine apparently reduces the risk of that. I also learned that caffeine may be a natural skin cancer deterrent. But I thought it wasn't good for my heart?

Here's my thinking: I'm going to die eventually anyway. So I'm going to have my morning coffee and my evening sip of wine (New York Finger Lakes Region wine, please and thank you!) and not worry about the scientific world's latest attempt to reduce me to my molecular components!

While I'm at it, I'm going to eat real butter, and put cream in my coffee, too.

I'm living on the edge here, but it's kind of exciting :)

What Happened To "REDUCE" and "REUSE"?

I was a kid when the real "Re-use, Re-duce and Re-cycle" thing started to go mainstream. I have always tried to follow all three. But I have had a couple of experiences lately that make me think most people don't really care about "Re-use" and "Re-duce".

I have the fabulous shopping bags that Vicki designed and I use them everywhere. If I know I will be buying meat I take plastic bags I already have in the house with me to put the meat in. Thus I am both reducing the number of bags I use, and reusing bags I already have.

At the little grocery store in my town the other day, I could not get the checkout lady to understand that I wanted to use my own bags! She kept trying to put everything into plastic. She finally said "I don't understand why everyone has their own bags nowadays. You can just recycle the ones we give you, so why bother"? I gently but firmly explained the "3 R's" of recycle to her. She still thought it was a waste of time to bring your own bags.

A waste of time? It takes no time at all! I have some in my car all the time. And Vicki's bag folds up and fits in my purse! They are with me always! What is a waste of time is finding a place that will actually take the plastic bags for recycle! I don't know about other places, but you can't just put them out at the curb here.

The other instance is my bank. They started a rewards program with my debit card- you get points every time you use it as a credit card. They send you a "certificate" in the mail, and you put the number into a website. I got my first certificate the other day. I kid you not, the thing they sent me is an 11" x 17" piece of cardstock- to send me a code that's about a 10-point font! I was really mad, and I e-mailed them.

Why can't they e-mail me the code? "That's not secure". Funny- they think the internet is secure enough for me to do my banking on, but they can't send me a 27 digit code via e-mail? I asked if they could find an more environmentally friendly way to mail the code. The response? "Don't worry, the mailer is recycleable". (!?!?!?!?) That seems to be the thing now. If it's recycleable, it's OK.

Trader Joe's actually puts you into a drawing for a gift card- every single time you bring your own bags! I always bring my own coffee cup to Starbucks. If I have a small purchase at a store, I'll just stick it in my purse or carry it. NO BAGS, please!!

Let's put the REDUCE and REUSE back into the mix, folks! Even if it's something you don't want, I bet you can find someone who does. I recently gave a friend several old pairs of jeans that were Hubby's- they had holes and tears in them. I didn't want them, but they weren't good enough to give to charity. She cut the good parts up to make curtains for her son's bedroom!

How cool is that? And it was free for her, and I got rid of something I didn't want, and the good fabric in the jeans didn't get wasted, and it was great!

Sunday Stash

"Revive" by Patricia Bravo. I can't bear to cut these up!

Under The Wire For A Feb Finish!

I finished binding one of the quilts last night at 10pm!I got great pictures of it- I must say, the balcony they have at Tammy Tadd Designs makes an awesome place to get a quilt picture from! It's just one more way they are one of the best quilt shops on earth!!

So, here is The Fine China! It was quilted by the very talented Paige. She is an artist!

This is for my friend Brenda in New York. She is the most hospitable and generous person I have ever met- she really has the "Mi casa es su casa" attitude! The name of the quilt comes from the many cookouts and Super Bowl parties she has hosted over the years. She plans a cookout every time I come home to visit, too. She always refers to the paper plates and plastic silverware as "the fine china". Since I was making her a Dresden Plate, it seemed like a good name for the quilt, too!

I am trying to get a home made greeting card swap going over on Flickr! We will pick a theme each month, and then once you are paired up with a partner, you would make that person 6 cards related to the theme (all the same or different ones, it's up to you) and send them off! Easy, huh? There will also be a "Whatever You Wish" category for those who don't want to do the theme that month. If you'd like to come play with me, click over to http://www.flickr.com/groups/hmgcs/! My only "requirements" are that you be a good swapper and don't slack off, and that you use high-quality supplies. International swappers are welcome!

Bushfire Quilts And Other Stuff

Tia has been keeping us all updated about the blocks and quilts she has been recieving for the Bushfire Quilt Project... so far she's recieved 423 quilt blocks, 7 completed quilts, and 8 quilt tops!! And people have been sending her backings, thread, pins, and pre-made binding, too. It's been amazing to watch this project grow. The generosity is almost overwhelming- there are so many good people in the world!

Not much going on today. I am playing with my card stuff again, trying to fill out my card box with cards for all occasions. I am going to a UFO Night at Tammy Tadd Designs tonight- those are always so much fun! I have two quilts to hand-sew the binding on, so that's what I'm bringing to work on... I want to get them done and onto my completed project list for February! Talk about sneaking in under the wire... :)

I am looking forward to Monday- I'll get my partner information for 4 swaps then! I think I am turning into a swap-a-holic. It's just too much fun to make something for someone, and even more fun than that (if that's possible!) to get something in return!

10 Years

I am one of many who has been collecting the state quarters! I got a Hawaii quarter in my change today- it was the last one I needed!

As I was putting it in the book, I started thinking about all the things that have happened in the last 10 years!

I turned 21, moved from New York to Chicago, got engaged, was adopted by a cat, bought a house, got married, bought a car, and stopped working outside the home. I have learned to sew, quilt and make cards since I started collecting these. I lost my grandfather and my best friend Marie, both of whom are in heaven now, while working on this book. My nieces are both younger than this book!

Lots of life has happened since I started collecting these!

Cuppa Joe

Here's my latest finish- and it's on my 2009 Personal Challenge list- bonus!!


It's a Split Nine Patch made with charm squares from the "Bistro" collection by Deb Strain for Moda! It's so happy! The binding is actually from the "Marrakesh" line from Blank Quilting. I couldn't believe how well it matched! The backing is a flannel from the "Woolies" by Maywood studios. It's perfect for a day like today- cold, spitting snow, and very, very windy.

I have 2 more quilts that just need the hand sewing on the binding done, and they're done too! One is on the Grand Quilter, almost done being quilted, and I have another ready to go on, probably Monday. I have been rocking the UFO box this week- all 5 of these quilts are on my Personal Challenge list!

Please pray for a friend of mine- she has some serious health issues, and today she was involved in a hit and run accident- she was hit. She says she's "kind of ok...could be worse I guess- just emotionally drained and physically hurting".

Books

I love books. My favorites get a re-reading at least once a year, if not more! Which is why I have read the Lord Of The Rings books. Again. For the millionth time- it may be more than that! I might listen to them next time- I have them on audiobook, too. Unabridged. 52 hours of Frodo, Sam, and Sauron!

When I was a kid, my mom read the LOTR books aloud to us- twice. And to this day, I cannot read them without "hearing" the voices that she assigned to each character. I think Peter Jackson consulted my mom about Gollum in the movies- his voice is exactly the same as she did it!

I will read almost anything! My favorite authors are J.R.R. Tolkein, J.K. Rowling, Laura Ingalls Wilder, L.M. Montgomery, Jane Austen, P.G. Wodehouse, Eugenia Price, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Shelby Foote, Charles Dickens, Janette Oke, and the Bronte sisters. It's a bit eclectic!

I also love biographies. Two of my favs are "Titan" by Ron Chernow- it's about John D. Rockefeller, Sr., and "Andrew Carnegie" by David Nasaw. "The Reagan Diaries" is also very good. Ronald Reagan's love for his wife Nancy is so sweet!

I do not own, nor have I ever read, a Harlequin novel. I cannot get into authors like Danielle Steele (boring!), and I hate horror stuff like Stephen King.

Hubby loves to read, too- our living room looks like a library: we have comic books, "fluffy" books, huge tomes about the Civil War (me), lots and lots of books about trains and trolley buses and mass transit (Hubby). We have two rows of books on most of our bookcases and are considering how to re-arrange the furniture so we can fit more shelves in!

Strangely enough, though, neither of us have library cards! We both prefer to just buy the books we want. I think it's because we both like to re-read books.

Recently I have gotten into audiobooks. They are great because then you can "read" while you are doing other things, like quilting! Audible.com is my usual source for audiobooks. If you like audiobooks you should check it out!

Quiltology

One of the places Vicki, Hubby and I went on our trip to Chicago yesterday was Quiltology, which is, as far as I know, the only quilt shop within the Chicago city limits. I've wanted to go for some time, but it's not easy for a suburban girl to get to! It was a lot easier to get there since we were already in the city, though.

I loved it! They sell fabrics that you do not see in the 'burbs, which is really a shame! The quilt shops out here are nice, don't get me wrong, but they all seem to carry the same stuff (except Quilt In Joy. She carries some of the newer, more modern stuff!). This place was completely different from anything I've ever seen!

I had never seen or even heard of Patricia Bravo before yesterday. And I love her fabrics!

These are from her "Revive" collection.

These are a mix of Amy Butler and Patricia Bravo. I thought they were fun! I also picked up a Blue Underground pattern called "Modern Thinking". It's fabulous! And easy, which is a bonus...

:)

Quiltology also carries Joel Dewberry, Kaffe Fassett, and they have a great selection of batiks! They have lots of Minkie, and they carry solids from Benartex that feel so nice- they're not stiff like a lot of other solids are.

Today I am quilting! I am almost done quilting one quilt, and I plan to get the next one on the machine and quilted today as well. I need to get some of my UFO's done and off my mind- and off my list- so I can dive into these fun new fabrics!!

What Was Old...

Vicki, Hubby and I hopped a train and went into Chicago today! We went to the Art Institute and Quiltology (more about Quiltology tomorrow... a LOT more!). It was such a fun day!

We saw some really great paintings at the A.I. I just loved the colors on some of them! And we came across a painting with a very interesting little detail...

Look at that floor! This painting is from 1490! Long before Ohio... :) I didn't get a picture of the whole painting, but it's called "Virgin and Child Crowned by Angels" by Colyn de Coter.

There were many other lovely paintings! Here's one of my favorites:

It's called "Kitchen Still Life" and is attributed to Paolo Antonio Barbieri, from about 1640. I love the whole scene, but the detail on the mushrooms is just wonderful!

This one is called "Still Life With A Basket Of Fruit And A Bunch Of Asparagus" by Louise Moillon, 1630. Doesn't it look yummy? :)

The Art Institute has some architectural items too, taken from Chicago buildings that were (most unfortunately) torn down or remodeled.

This is an Adler and Sullivan elevator enclosure grill taken out of the Chicago Stock Exchange building that was demolished in 1972. I LOVE the detail on this, and am really thinking hard about how to make this into a bias-tape applique!

This is a Frank Lloyd Wright window from the Emil Bach house. I love it! I think it may become a quilt too...

I took almost 200 pictures at the museum- and that was with the textiles and quilt exhibit closed! It will re-open in May- the galleries have been undergoing extensive remodeling. I cannot wait until it opens- I have been told that some of the quilts they have are amazing!

Then- we went to Quiltology...... :) :) :)

Branching Out

I have been very inspired by some other blogs lately, mainly John (he has pics of some really beautiful Gee's Bend-type minis that were made as part of a swap), Sarah (who's green quilt is out-of-this-world gorgeous!) and Paige.

I have started to look more closely at improv quilts, and quilts that have not been my "style" up till now. The Gee's Bend quilts are a good example of what I mean. I have always thought they were beautiful, but never, ever, EVER thought I could make one. I am (was!) everything-must-be-square Jennie, after all!

I put together a lovely gathering of fabrics to help me get started on my improv journey:

I started small- I had used fat quarters to make blocks for a 4-patch swap I am in, so I took the leftovers from that to dip my toes in, so to speak... this was my first EVER "wonky" block! And, as Hubby pointed out, it IS square... just not all the seams are square to each other!

The pull of "the box" was pretty strong at the beginning, but I managed to resist, and came out victorious- and with this darling little top! It's called Ebudae. That's an Enya song that was playing on my i-Pod when I finished the top.

That's Hubby holding it for me. Funny story about the border: I could not decide which of the two outer border fabrics to use. Hubby was called in to give a consultation (I do this frequently, and have never been disappointed with the results!). His suggestion: since it's supposed to be wonky, why not use both fabrics for the border? As you can see, I liked this idea!

I am having a lot of fun with blogs and Flickr groups. It's very enlightening to see what people in different parts of the world are doing! The swaps are a lot of fun too. I wish I had time to participate in all of them! It's so much fun to get something from someone you don't even know, really. The ideas and fabric choices are all fresh and new- and I learn something from each one.

My mini quilt from Carol in Iowa is a good example: I would have never in a million years thought to use the bright orange fabric she used- especially not with teal, brown and black. But it makes the quilt fabulous, not just "pretty"! And I have learned that I should not automatically rule out a fabric or color that I don't think will work. It just might be the one fabric that's needed to make the quilt shine!

Pretty!

I don't know why it is, but I always seem to want to organize stuff when I'm sick. I am feeling a lot better today, BTW! Last night, though, all I wanted to do was make something look neater and be more user-friendly than it was!

So, I organized my cardstock! I have a LOT more cardstock than I thought I did! It's all from Stampin'Up! (I used to be a demonstrator, so most of my stuff is from them), so I organized it by the color families they have in their catalog. It's all in here, too, so I know I don't have packages of cardstock floating around the house, waiting for me to find it AFTER I order a new package (which is why I have 4 packages of hunter green cardstock...). I think it looks pretty all together like that!



Then today I pulled from ye old stash (and took a short trip to Quilt In Joy...) to put together this!!



I am going to try making a "wonky" or "improv" quilt... I think the time has come to break my "every seam must match or else it goes in the lit fireplace" attitude! I was also inspired by a post on quiltsalott's blog, and I think I am going to hand quilt it using a "big stitch" technique. Won't that be liberating? Taking all of my perfectionist tendencies and throwing them right out the door at once? I am looking forward to making this quilt!

We are supposed to get socked with snow again tonight and tomorrow- they said 6-10", with the bigger accumulations closer to the Wisconsin border... which usually means me, since my house is only about 15 miles from the border! Oh, well. I am glad it's hitting on a weekend this time- that means Hubby doesn't have to go out in it to get to work!

I am trying a new/old recipe tonight for dinner... it's lasagna, but it's cooked all day in a crockpot! I want to use my crockpot more. It's so nice to just throw stuff in and let it cook all day!

Mini Quilt Swap

Vicki introduced me to a group on Flickr that swaps mini quilts every month. It's so much fun! There's always a theme (February's was paper-piecing), and there's always an "Anything Goes" option too. Most people sign up for both... like me!

I got a package from my paper piecing partner today!! I ADORE the quilt she made for me, and all the goodies she sent!


Isn't the quilt gorgeous? It's 13 1/2" square. That pop of gold just makes it stand up and say "look at me"!! And I have been- I've had it for about an hour, and I can't stop looking at it!

She also sent me 4 batik fat quarters, a zipper pouch, a needle holder, and three hot cocoa packets!

This package really brightened my day, since Im still feeling icky. Hubby (wonderful, wonderful Hubby!) took pity on me last night and, with LOTS of directions from me, washed a load of laundry that will keep us going for a few days until I feel better! I had better feel good by Sunday- Vicki and I are going to the Art Institute in Chicago- the Impressionist paintings are back from a loan to a museum in Texas. They were gone when I was there in August with my sister, and I really want to see them! Plus it's free admission this month, thanks to the MetLife Foundation.

Off to make more cards- I had an idea for a cute little 3" x 3" note card, and it's actually turning out as cute as I thought it would!

Sharing Can Be Good... Or Bad...

Hubby and I share lots of stuff- books, tools, blankets, etc. One thing I could have lived without him sharing with me is his cold! He has been sick the last 3 days. I was really starting to hope I would escape it, but no such luck! Fortunately for me, I can stay home and drink tea and do next to nothing when I am sick. Unlike Hubby, who drags himself off to work every day, regardless of how he feels!

One thing I did today, after I had done the bare minimum work around the house, was sit and make some cards! Stampin'Up! has a new stamp set called "Quilt Quips". Well, how was I supposed to resist that? With all the swaps I am participating in now in Flickr-land and blogland, I wanted some cute cards to send along with the mini quilts and blocks and stuff that I am swapping with others.

This one was inspired by a four-patch quilt block exchange I am participating in through one of my Flickr groups!

And this one was inspired by the fact that I like blue and green together!

That's about the extent of my accomplishments today. I hope I will feel better tomorrow- it's laundry day and I really can't skive off on that!