To quilt or not?

I'm working on my Starburst Christmas Tree Skirt today. I've got the skirt done, and the backing is pinned but now I'm trying to decide if I want it quilted or not. I like the look of it the way it is and could just quilt in the ditch for each "spike" of the skirt to secure it. It would also look good to quilt following the "chevron" of the fabric strips (if that makes any sense).

Got any suggestions?

Take care,

Started 2018 with UFO projects: 22
New YTD:2
Gave away YTD:0
Trashed/dismantled YTD:
Sold unfinished UFOs YTD:0
Finished YTD: -1
So far 2018: 23

It's Christmas!!

Just a quick post to wish you all a very Merry Christmas from our house to yours!

Take care,

Wishing you a very,

These were quick and easy gifts to make!

I used this tutorial to make these cute quilted needlecases for my Tuesday group of friends. I would have loved to make one for each of my Thursday group too, but I just ran out of time. When thinking about fabric choices, I tried to match each "style" to the person receiving it, which was fun, but a bit challenging too.

I wish I had thought about taking a photo of the inside of each one, but I already had them wrapped up and was out of time when I realized I didn't have a picture. I'll try to get photos after they've been gifted so I can show them to you.

If you need a cute, handmade gift for one of your quilty friends, you might consider making one of these. I think they are great and when I get a spare moment, I'm going to make one for myself!

Take care,

Sex in a pan!

This is such a wonderful time of year, isn't it? All the fun parties, good food, and great friends!

We are having are holiday pot luck at quilting today with a handmade gift exchange. It should be very exciting and different since we usually do a dollar store gift exchange and although that is lots of fun this will be better. I can almost guarantee it! As you know there is a lot of talent in our quilting group of 20-22 gals. I'll try to get photos of some of the gifts, but if I don't it's because I'm having too much fun!!

Anyway, I went through my usual process of trying to decide what to make/take. After several other options, I decided on this...

I used fusible fleece in this boxy pouch and it's nice and sturdy and keeps it shape quite well, even when empty. It's an Amy Butler fabric and I think it might appeal to more in our group than the two that I've made since, which helped in the decision making process. It will be fun to see who ends up with it at day's end.

We play that game where each gift may be stolen up to three times. I can't remember what it's called, but it is soooo much fun if you have a good group of people who are not too timid to steal.

I used Philip Jacobs fabrics for both of the more recent bags and even though they are a bit smaller than the first one, they are still a great size. I quilted the fabric using batting (rather than fusible fleece) before assembling and I like the way they turned out. They'll both be in the shop in a couple of days.

And, then there is all that wonderful food. We never assign categories so we all bring what we want and usually we have a very balanced selection of items. Everyone is a great cook so it's a real treat to try everything (and collect recipes)!!

For the pot luck, I'm taking Sex in a Pan. I've made it for years (since 1975) and always knew it as plain ole chocolate pie. Just recently, I've discovered that it's called Sex in a Pan. A much more interesting name for sure, but it doesn't change the fact that this is one of the BEST desserts out there. It's not fancy, it's just really, really good! The recipe was originally given to me by a good friend at the time, a very good Mormon girl, which explains, I think, why she referred to it as chocolate pie! :)

Take care,

Look!

We've been very productive at our Tuesday meetings and I haven't talked about our group for awhile. I think I've mentioned before how diversified we are. We have modern, traditional, quirky, arty, experimental and fun all in the same little group. I never know what to expect from these ladies, but it's always exciting and inspirational.

Here's a peek at what was happening week before last. Remember, we meet in a garage so last week when it was pouring down rain, we decided not to attempt carrying all of our gear up the driveway and into the garage. Wise choice in the end!

Pat made wedges and since then has made even more. I think she told me on Thursday that she needed 15 more! It's going to be a gorgeous quilt.

Karen does the most beautiful embroidery and these owls prove it! She's got all the blocks completed and now she's piecing the rest of the quilt. She's using black, yellow, and white if I remember correctly. It's going to be really stunning!

Katie has the most incredible stash/collection of neutral fabrics. I've never seen some of the beautiful taupe fabrics she's got and I would love to steal some of them from her! :) She was finishing up the binding on this quilt and truly, this photo does not do it justice.

 

Stacey was just getting ready to start making this collection of "softies." She's the only one in our group who does this kind of work so it's always fun to watch her little figures come to life.

 

Pat A was working on Christmas gifts so I didn't want this photo to reveal too much about her project. Suffice it to say that her gifts will be works of art and the word "perfection" will definitely apply.

Jane was also working on a Christmas gift and when I saw her on Thursday she had added four or five more borders to this. It's a raw-edge woven center with borders being added to get it to the size she's wanting/needing. I wish you could see it in person as it's truly lovely. Made with batiks, the colors are stunning.

I worked on making some more zipper pouches for the shop. I've got five or six I think and will aim for tomorrow for photographing them and getting them listed. Today I finished up some small Christmas gifts that I decided to make yesterday morning. I thought it would take me longer to make them, so it was a pleasant surprise when I finished up about 3:30pm today. Once they've been gifted I'll share them here on the blog.

Hope you're all enjoying this wonderful -busy- holiday month!

Take care,

Father Christmas Needlepoint kit...

Isn't this a gorgeous photo of a Father Christmas needlepoint? Imagine it finished either as a pillow or a picture. An elegant treasure to be displayed every year at Christmas time. It can be yours if you want it.

It's in the shop!

Take care,

Christmas Wreath Ideas

All of these wreaths are from Sunset Magazine and they are all wonderful!

I really like this wreath made of kumquats and some citrus leaves. It's simple, but colorful and different!

This one is very unique and unexpected too. Love the "shimmery" color effect.

Ok, this one is very definitely unique and very original. I'm not sure I love it, but I do love the colors.

If you're looking for a flower wreath that will last for a couple of weeks....this might be the one for you!

I haven't put a wreath on my door yet this season (I know, I'm a bit slow), but I love the idea of having one for Christmas. Now I just have to decide which one. :)

Just a reminder.....my holiday gift to you SALE!.....ends Christmas Day.

Happy Holidays,

Christmas Gift wrapping ideas...

I have my gifts all wrapped and will take them to UPS today to be shipped. Yippee!! I used some of the printable Christmas tags I found and wrapped each gift in sheet music wrapping paper that I found at Ikea. I got it in both white/black and kraft paper/black. It's really cute!

I spent some time scouting out some great wrapping ideas before I found my "sheet music" paper and thought you might like to see them.

This idea really appealed to me because I like the idea of using fresh greenery and kraft paper. It's so simple and yet it's quite stunning. She has some other wonderful ideas on her blog too....go check it out!

I always love black and white. It's so sophisticated and makes such an elegant statement.

Washi Tape, Baker's Twine and Kraft paper seem to be a recurring theme, which I really like. I like the "homemade" and simple look. Aren't these eye-catching?

Here she used Trader Joe's paper bags as wrapping paper. I love this, and especially because I have some of these bags!!

Here's another variation using kraft paper. How fun to use rubber stamps. I can see all kinds of possibilities here.

This idea from Martha Stewart (of course) is so cute for the kiddos. Wouldn't a child just love to get a gift that was wrapped like this?

White paper with colorful ribbons is always another easy, but beautiful way to wrap gifts. Especially, if there is a candy cane attached.

And this, I think, is the most clever idea of all.  A word search with everyone's names and then circle the name of the recipient. Use Puzzlemaker on Discovery Education to create it.

Hope you enjoyed all this wonderful inspiration. If you've already got your gifts wrapped and you did something special, I would love it if you would share it with me/us in the comments.

Just a reminder.....my holiday gift to you SALE!.....ends Christmas Day.

Happy Holidays,

Christmas Cards...

I'm going to remind you of my "Holiday Gift to You SALE" in every single post I write from now until Christmas Day. Scroll down to the bottom of each post for a link to the shop. I'm anxious to sell a lot of fabric before the end of the year.

I've already got my Christmas Cards in the mail - which is a real accomplishment for me. I usually don't get them mailed until it's almost Christmas Day, but that's because I'm just too, too busy. This year I have made it a priority to enjoy the season and, so far, I am.

I decided to decorate the card envelopes this year after seeing these photos on pinterest.

These (and many, many more) can be found here!

I committed myself to making do with the materials I already had on hand so mine look much different and they are certainly not masterpieces, but I'm pleased anyway and I had a lot of fun doing these. Each one is just a little bit different, but I can see that I need to start collecting some papers, stamps, and stickers. How fun!

I hope you are finding lots of ways this year to enjoy the festivities associated with the holiday season.

Just a reminder.....my holiday gift to you SALE!.....ends Christmas Day.

Happy Holidays,

Christmas Tag printables....

There are some great printable Christmas Tags out there in blogland this year so I thought I would show you just a few. I'm amazed at the generosity of these designers. This kind of stuff takes me forever to do and I know they must be a lot faster at it, but still....

I love to wrap gifts - especially Christmas gifts. But I like to get a bit creative in the process and these tags are the kind of thing that make a package different and personal. I admit that sometimes I'm rushed and don't take as much joy in it as I would like, but the finished package always makes me happy. If you're the same way, you might really love some (or all) of the tags.

Here's a wonderful example - these are very sophisticated with their colors of taupe, grey and maroon. Aren't they lovely? Once you visit the link you will see even more tag printables.
 

I love these fun plaid tags with the Reindeer on them. I used these last year on a few of my gifts.

Here's another cute Reindeer tag and this one is BIG! Cute, isn't it? And, it's that lovely shade of turquoise that everyone is loving this year.

These are really special as they come in either English or Swedish. How nice!

These are probably the most traditional of all, but they are wonderful!

Isn't this cute? What would you fill it with? Yes...it's a tag with room in it for goodies! (There are a lot of other clever Christmas diy projects at this link too.)

I really like these for their simplicity and "homemade" look.

I'll finish up with these last tags. I love the color on these. Love these!

And, just a reminder.....my holiday gift to you SALE!.....ends Christmas Day.

Happy Holidays,