i died and went to heaven

i died...i mean dyed and went to fabric heaven

long time ago, i tried my first fabric dying experiments and well, they were my first, so not exactly the prettiest. so i cut up all my rejects into 4 1/2" squares, sewed them into 9patches. i made a couple, then lost interest. since i'm trying to finish some of my UFOs, this one was in the pile.

i finished making the required 9patches and dyed some yardage for the borders and sashing. i cheated tho, i bought liquid RIT dye......in navy blue. guess someone at the factory is color blind. it came out purple....*shrug* oh well....

i realized during the piecing that i had a good tip to share. it's how i get my seams to line up across the sashing without having to use cornerstones.

sew a strip between your blocks as normal, then just like when attaching a border, measure your length for the long sash and pin mark the centers. sew and press towards the sashing. on the wrong side of the sashing, use a ruler to mark the seam of the sash between the blocks on the raw edge of the long sash piece..

Line the lines of the ruler to the seams to keep everything straight.

i use a chalk pencil to mark the lines.

line the chalk lines to the pieced seams of the rows of blocks with sashing strips. pin really good so the fabric won't shift.

ta-dah, the sashing lines up across the long sashing without having to piece in cornerstones and it's nice and square.

i'll be back later with some quilting to share!

January 2012 block swap

okay here's the link (link disabled) for the .pdf directions. i included all the answers to all the questions i got asked and included all the info for ones who have never participated in a block swap.... *i think* 

there is no 'sign-up list' just make the blocks and mail them to me...open to all who want to play.

DEADLINE- they must be at my house by March 31st, 2012. 
i hope to get them swapped and the squishies released back into the wild before tax day (april 15th)

any questions- let me know. email addie over --->

this will be one gorgeous quilt, and i think many will be sorry they didn't do it when they see the finished top, just saying....

happy stitching!

ETA:  just a real quick tip: when you sew the corner units to the "PLUS" units, the seam from the flip and sew white corner will not line up to the plus fabric and white seam on the raw edge of the pieces. they will match up however 1/4inch in from the raw edge. this is important to keep from losing points....i meant to add this to the instructions, but forgot.

how 'bout a block swap

i was thinking the other day that i'm ready, if yall are, to host another block swap.

i was thinking we haven't used 30s reproductions yet, so that will be this one's fabric theme along with Kona white.. i haven't sit down and done the math for yardage yet, just putting out some feelers to see the response.

here's the block....it finishes at 12 1/2 inches and i'm thinking 30 blocks for a 62 1/2 inch by 73 1/2 inch top without any borders.


so the block will be 6 fabrics: Kona white for the background, the dark gray '+' in the center, and four different fabrics in the corners. clear as mud?

here's the quilt mock up (i design in grey scale) as you can see, i think this design looks true to a vintage 30s quilt and will also require no additional setting- just sew the blocks together and border ifinyawanna.

i'll work on the yardage math tonight and get some instructions started...i'm thinking of have a mailing date about the first of march....

wanna play?

boo to you and BOM housekeeping

i sent my halloween quilt to Linda to be quilted and i can say that it is a finished quilt. here's pictures straight from the dryer.*crinkly quilt goodness*

there is nothing better in the chill of winter than to wrap up in a fresh-from-the-dryer quilt. it's the seond best type of hug.

i've decided to call it 'boo to you'

here's the great stripe i used for the binding, cut on the bias of course.

here's the back. i am in love with that lime green buzzard.

BOM housekeeping:
at the end of january i will be removing all the posts that pertain to 2011's BOM. i will also be removing all the block pdfs from my Etsy store. double check that you have saved or printed all the pdfs. once they are gone- they are gone *period*

i'm currently working on 2012's BOM and i think you'll like it too. it going to be scrap friendly, but i'll get into that later!

ear bud makeover

what do ear buds bloom into??? hehehe

so, i've joined the online social thing and recently reactivated my long time deleted facebook page.....then meg invited me to join pinterest, and who am i to say no? let me warn you- pinterest is a fun time suck thing. you start looking at others' boards and clicking links and the next thing you know, eight hours are gone. *opps* (but since the holidays have made it impossible to find anything i haven't already seen on TV, pinterest has been a fun distraction)

image source

 as i was clicking around on pinterest, i saw this pin and immediately thought i wanted to try it. i made a smack load of friendship bracelets in high school, so this was right up my alley. (the link under the pic will take to all the places i went to figure this out. i already knew how to make the knot that twists like that. they call it 'chinese stair steps', but i know it as 'french twist')

i have embrodiery floss, but way back before i started LAing, i hand quilted my quilts with perle cotton. i bought three skeins of this beautiful hand dyed thread and since it's just sitting in a drawer- mize well use it...

about 8 hours later, stretched out over the course of last week, this is what i have

*drool* pretty pretty

awesome, if you ask me....

here they are with my phone...a match made in heaven.

*perfect*

so then i decided that my new fancy earbuds needed a mode of transport. i remembered seeing Erin's circle earbud pouch tutorial around christmas. this was exactly what i had in mind.

so a couple hours this afternoon and wha-la, my fancy-smancy earbuds have a new home.

the really cool thing about this- the knot-wrap around the cords keeps them from getting all tangled up.

so, there it is- my first project of 2012...

fah lalalala la la la

i promised a christmas wrap up (pun intended) post....

i choose to add to the stress this holiday and i made all my presents (which i will do again, just get a eariler head start this year)

i made two faux feedack pillows for my dad using our family farm's name. It's a certified black angus farm. i got the idea from this tutorial. i don't have the fancy cutter she has, so i cut my stencil from freezer paper with an exacto knife. i kept the test pillow for myself *wink*

for my dad's girl friend, a clothesline fabric wrapped basket....i've not met her yet, so i hope she likes it.

i made a table topper for davis's mom. i used Atkinson Design's "Happy Holidays" table topper pattern and made the medium size. it took some convincing for her to actually put it on the table. she didn't want it to get dirty. she also got one of the wedding frames from this post.

i made lots of pillow cases.
davis's dad got this set which match the southwest theme he loves so much. they get to sit on this quilt i made him last year. he also got a wedding frame.

neice's pillow case set. she's not a matchy type, so her's are both different.

neice #2 set. her favorite color is blu, altho it photoed green

nephew's pillow case set. he was a bit difficult to make for. he's goth and loves black *sigh* solid black pillowcases can be bought. i put on my thinking cap and it hit me- i used moda's "grunge' black and found a nice grey homespun for the cuff. very proud of that one

i made three of my flanged pillows (my tutorial here)
one for davis's bother and his fiance. she loves black and purple and i knew immediately what fabric in my stash would work. i tried to make his 'manly'  i quilted them exactly the same....

i love the purple thread on the dark grey
so his had to have blue on the tan...

i also made one pillow for my FIL's girl who's-a-friend. she bought new couches and nothing she already had really 'matched'. now she does *grin*

i love making gifts for family and friends, but am a bit bothered that they won't use them cause they are scared of them getting dirty/worn/torn/etc. i found a good response to those concerns: "i want you to use them, that's why i made them. it's a compliment to me if you love it to death. and if you do love it to death i promise to make you another one in a different color" worked like a charm.....

i wasn't gonna mention anything, but Davis accepted a job as an electrical contractor and is in Afghanistan. he was scheduled for R&R in january, but surprised us all when he walked in during the family get-together. i love surprises! that was my favoritest gift- having my hubby home for our first married christmas....so i have one itty bitty favor, when you think of him; send a up good thought for his and the troops' safety over there. thanks...he will be 'bouncing' all over afghan. he jokes that his new service truck is a black hawk....

 so what did Santa bring me?

i was apparently a good little kwilter cause i got a SewEzi table for my featherweight. i even got the accessory tray...and i also have the clear insert that makes it a light table.

davis made me a para-cord bracelet. it's nice to be on the receiving end of a home made gift....

i bought myself a new ruler at Intown Quilters (on sale). i needed one. my old one is about 8 years old and the markings around the edge are worn and some are gone...my old ruler was 6.5 x 12.5 my new one is 8.5 x 12.5. i can't wait to use it.....

oh- for those that think i'm sitting at home alone and all vulnerable......i'm keeping myself busy. i knew that stash would come in handy.

...oh, and i have guns and know how to use them *giggle*

auld lang syne

i want to wish all my readers a very happy new year! thank you for giving me a reason to blog....i can't wait to see what 2012 holds for us all

May your best of 2011 be the worst of your 2012!

i just got use to writing 11....

hey you

these are too additive...



christmas post coming soon...promise

hey girl....

i've seen the ryan gosling 'hey girl' photos....but he doesn't really make my dress fly up....

 that's better!
*hehehehe*

merry christmas!

have a very merry christmas!!

i'm busy finishing up christmas presents. i was sick last week and slept for a couple days- that put me a little behind, but i'm feeling much better now, so it's back to a sweat shop in the studio.

i'll be back later to share some quilty goodness.

making new friends

this past weekend was spent south at the FIL's and i popped over to visit my livestock friends.

hanna was very affectionate and i learned that she is low donkey on the totem pole- everyone picks on her (but me)

the ram was in with the nannies and he was feeling a bit territorial and was posturing to everything...i wish i could of got a video of it- he makes this 'thhppbt' sound and rolls his tongue around outside his mouth.  not very scarey if you ask me....but i'm not a goat

i learned that her name is not hannah, but racheal *shrug* oh well....she comes when i call her hannah....as far as i'm concerned- her name is hannah. she sits her head on my stomach and i scratch behind those big ole ears...i want a donkey one day- they are cool!

wasn't hannah and racheal sisters in the old testament??

mack is getting fat....fat mack-a-doodle. he was happy to see me and keep snickering everytime i walked off to pet hanna

bubba was in a bit of a frisy mood- he wanted to play head butt games (i think the ram was helping that situation) and well, i'd be out weighted by, ohhhh, couple hundred pounds....so he got left alone.

i did make new friends- meet polly porkchop...i'm not kidding- that's her name

i do not recommend hand feeding a pig....they think anything put in their mouth is food and will gladly devour it. i almost lost my thumb. i'm so not kidding...

everything tastes better with bacon....

i don't do anything 'simply'

i dove into scrap booking for the first time. i've always wandered thru the scrap booking aisles at the stores wondering what all the beads and baubles were really used for...

for some special people at christmas i decided to share some wedding pictures, and well, the 'artist' in me tends to go a bit over board on these type of things....

*phbbbth* anyone can put a picture in a frame...i found some float frames at Garden Ridge (whatever you put in there is sandwiched between two pieces of glass, so you get to decorate the back too- double the sticker surfaces) i found all sorts of fun vegas and wedding stickers and such to play with! the background has multicolored  very sparkly glitter- very Vegas!

on the back i put our wedding info...my favorite embellishment? the color-them-yourself stickers

i think the frames are a bit 'plain' so i'm going to get a gold and a silver paint pen and some sticky back rhinestones in gold and silver and 'ritz' up the frames a bit....

i think they'll like them...i do....so much i made one for me too!

december in the south

today is december 5th and this makes the humidity in the summer worth it....

*phbbbbt* to those knee deep in snow....i have my windows open hehehe

of course we tend to get more stereotypical winter weather in January and early February.....for about 2 or 3 weeks then we start to see spring temps.....

the only drawback i can find- i can't do any snow dyeing...but there is a ice rinkup the road that dumps the zamboni outside.....

another UFO finish

for very long time readers, you might remember these blocks...

i've had the blocks for a while, sewed them into a setting in June and set them aside to wait on christmas fabric to go on sale. this past weekend was that time! (a couple of 60% off coupons helped sweeten the deal. thanks cindyt!)

i found the perfect outer border- that house stripe, then found a nice holly leaf on green to use as the inner. i also bought binding (a plaid that 'matches' the houses) and backing. i used the 60% off coupon for white batting- something i don't keep at the house...

i'm hoping to get it on the frame and have it finished in time for christmas!

(for those of you that are particularly observant- notice that the last block in the third row is that same block i used in the summer swap.....i'm so sneaky that way *grin*)

swap blocks

i just finished sewing the blocks from this summer's swap into a flimsy. i made an extra block or two for a total of 25 blocks. the only problem with that is that i now have a square quilt (it measures 72"square) so i'm stopping at this point to contemplate adding a pieced flying goose strip to two opposite ends to give me a rectangle.. WWUD? (what would you do?)

i also wanted to share a picture with you. it shows what happens when your sewing machine needle gets dull or has a burr (from hitting a pin. yes, i sew over my pins- call the quilt police *grin*) instead of the needle sliding through the fabric, it pushes a thread down with the stitch revealing the non-printed parts of the weave. this can happen during piecing as well as during machine quilting.

if you notice your fabric is doing this- it simply means your needle is dull and it's time to change to a new one. 'they' say to change to a new needle at the start of every project, but if you're like me, you are working on multiple things at the same time...here's what i do: i wind 8 to 10 bobbins and when i empty all of them, i stop, blow out the dust bunnies, and change my needle.