Fall Swap Arrived

A friend of mine was having a Birthday today so it was a good excuse to go out for a leisurely lunch. The 3 of us met up at a LQS for a fabric fix before lunch. The ladies at the shop showed us a really neat trick with 5" charm packs. I'll do up a couple and show you soon...I promise. We got to the restaurant and since we were celebrating a birthday we decided to start with martini's....mmmm so delicious for such a tiny drink. After I devoured my grilled chicken sandwich and pumpkin soup, we still didn't feel like ending the celebration, so what's next??? Dessert of course....oh I can't even describe our decadent desserts. I had a Sour Cherry Dark Chocolate Bread Pudding....yes it was over the top....but oh so delicious...I think I rolled all the way home LOL.

I found a nice surprise in my mail box when I got home. Well it wasn't completely a surprise. This is my Fall Swap quilt which I;ve been waiting for the mailman to bring. Isn't this so cute with the oak leaves quilted on the front. Sue from Quilting without Guilt has even quilted leaves on the back. Take a look she has posted a picture of the back. What a sweet little autumn quilt "Thank you Sue" for being my swap partner. Sue also sent a few little goodies with my quilt. See the postcard with the flower and the black cat...it's all quilted just like any quilt and on the back it's addressed to me with a little message from Sue. The Down Under calendar will be a wonderful addition to my sewing room.
The next swap will be sometime in Nov, check it out if you are thinking of joining the Winter Swap.

Lost Redwork

I was looking through some bins of fabric, not sure what I was looking for at the time. I came across this sweet red check fabric and instantly remembered I was saving that "special piece" for a redwork project I started long time ago. I'm embarrassed to say how long it's been since I started this stitchery. I knew just were the redwork blocks were hiding and quickly grabbed them to put with the red check. I had three and a half blocks completed when I stopped stitching and put it away. Oops...looks like I should have ironed the fabric before taking the picture. There are a total of 6 redwork blocks in this small quilt. I think it's time to finish this puppy...don't you think...lol. The pattern is from Blackbird Designs called "Samples from the Past" part 2. That might give you a hint of how old.

I've done a little prep-work on my Birds of a Feather. I might have 2 blocks to show after the weekend. Wish me luck.

Thanks for dropping by and reading my blog. I hope you'll visit again soon.

Acorns and Oak

This little stitchery pattern is from Country Stitches called Acorns and Oak. I did the stitching last year and then set it aside. Since I was in the mood for autumn I brought this one out to finish on the weekend. I added the border with a few half square triangles...randomly placed. These patterns don't come with instructions on finishing other than make a pillow or wall hanging, so I did my own thing. The finished size is 12"x12". The plant in the picture I found at Safeway on the weekend. The name on the tag was "Pincushion", how could I resist...teehee The plant has little tiny orange berries, and is native to Central America and New Zealand. It should keep it's berries for several months. Anyone else recognize this plant?

Do you ever wonder how our grown up children survive? My youngest daughter came home for a visit on Friday. She was working the summer on the Sunshine Coast of BC as a camp counselor for kids. It's a short ferry ride to the Sunshine Coast. When camp was over she decided this area was just the life style she loved, artsy and laid-back, so decided to get a job in the local town and stay there. So we had a short visit on Friday and since she didn't want to drive her car over (too expensive for her) she came by bus. Her sister was nice enough to offer her a ride back to the ferry (considering she didn't leave enough time for the bus ride anyway). The next morning I got THE call "Mom I forgot my car keys and cell phone at home, can you send them by courier?". You'd think these 2 very important items would be what you'd grab first when walking out the door. I don't know how they manage on their own.....kids.....I can only hope shes not always this forgetful and not to mention the lack of planning for the trip back.

Wearing My Badge with a BIG Smile

A few days ago Linda nominated me for the "You Make Me Smile Award". I am so tickled she would think of me. I can't tell you how much you have inspired me and make me smile as well. Thanks so much Linda.

From the author of the award:

The thing that I love most about blogging is that I learn so much about a person just by reading his/her blog. I have met MANY wonderful people with wonderful stories to tell and I am grateful every day for each person whom I have the pleasure of crossing paths in life with. I wanted to create something special for the top ten people who have inspired me through their blogging; the stories they tell, and the lives that they lead with grace and dignity. I visit their blogs for inspiration and encouragement. Although there are MANY people I want to give this award to at this very moment, I am going to choose ten bloggers:Please grab your badge and wear it(with a smile) proudly, and pass it on because you inspire and encourage me, thank you.

Apparently I can choose 10 bloggers to give this award to. Since there is too many of you to name I will leave it as anyone visiting my blog can consider them self a recipient of this award. You all make me smile.

Thanks for visiting me and I love reading all your comments.

Welcome Pumpkin Season!

It all started when My Yellow Farm House showed us her mini wool pumpkin quilt and those adorable block set and signs for the fall season. She got me in the mood for pumpkins. Here is a trio of pumpkins I just finished stitching with wool. And then Libby and a few others have been showing fall quilts and crafty things (she has the most adorable dolly sitting on a quilt). Well I started digging out all the fall things and below are some of my pumpkin treasures. When I think about fall, I think of all things pumpkins.
This is my kitchen with pumpkin quilt and table runner. This quilt rack has the most rotations of quilts in my house. Changes with the seasons.
The entrance hallway with more pumpkins and a black cat. The little ghost hanger is from my cross stitching days...many many years ago.
Little pumpkin head angel mini quilt.
Oh ya .....pumpkin patch....again from the cross stitching years. Many moons ago...lolThis is "My Calendar Tree" for all the months of the year. Sewing has it's own special branch near the top. As you can see I LOVE decorating with pumpkins.

It's getting cold here, I've had to get out the extra blanket for the bed....brrrr. Carole I know how you feel with getting the fireplace going.

Happy Fall!

Road Trip

Today four of us went on a trip to Bellingham, WA to see the Evergreen Quilt Guild Show. It's about 1 1/2 hours from my house and that includes crossing the border. Sadly the show was a big disappointment, not many quilts and only 3 vendors. I took some pictures of the quilts but they are not really very spectacular for posting.

I was looking at the information table with brochures of shows and shops in the area and came accross a newsletter for TwoThimbles quilt shop. It looked interesting and so I asked the ladies at the front desk where this shop was located. It turned out to be about 5 min drive away. So off we went.

The picture of the "loot" above is a combination of purchases made at three different shops. One of the vendors at the show called A Lady's Art, Two Thimbles and Folk Tales in Lynden.
This is the front of Folk Tales in Lynden, WA. It's a small shop but packed full of everything I LOVE. If you are in the area the address is 1885 Kok Road, Lynden.
Wash tub fill with flowers outside Folk Tales. Do you see the witches boots?
Here is a business card from Two Thimbles. I asked them if I could take a picture inside the store and well you can guess what the answer was. No pictures.....

So this was a all day trip and now I'm pooped! I think this would be a good time to feel my new fabrics.

Prairie Baskets

Well I'm almost finished my Four Seasons Quilt Swap quilt. It will be off to it's new owner very soon. Just need to get the label finalized and sewn on the back. I can say this swap was truly a lot of fun. I especially liked that the organizer went to the effort to match up partners with similar taste in fabric and style. This made the task of what to make easier for me. I picked a pattern which I would really like for myself....oh my gosh it's going to be hard to let go. So I'm hoping this was a good strategy and my swap partner will enjoy this "Little Quilt" as much as I have making it. Hmmmm...I wonder if she'll let me have visitation...or maybe invite me for tea.

This little quilt is from the book "Prairie Children and Their Quilts" from That Patchwork Place and the pattern is called Prairie Baskets.