For Cathy (and all my lovely blogging friends)

I have been functioning on survival mode (for oh soooooo many reasons), but have started sorting through 1000's of unread blog postings and have been thinking about making a post or two myself; however, I just don't seem to have anything new to show.  Just a few ALMOST finished things. (Stay tuned for a my finished Wonky Log Cabin [aka Amy Butler Extravaganza] quilt.  It's back from the quilter's and just needs binding!). Then this morning I was reading Cathy's latest posts (Cabbage Quilts), and I just had to show her a few things.  You don't mind -- do you?

Cathy was my introduction to blogging.  I found her blog through pictures she had posted to the Kaffe Fassett Collective group on Facebook, and I wrote her an email asking how I could follow or subscribe to her blog.  She was still fairly new to blogging herself and wasn't sure how to help me, but I finally figured it out and Cabbage Quilts was my first blog subscription.  And it remains one of my favorites.  If you follow Cathy's blog, you know what I mean.

Anyway, Cathy and I share more in common than just quilting, so without any further ado, Christmas pictures for Cathy and everyone else:

I love all things blue and white.  Always have, and probably always will.  Cathy has recently shared some pictures of her blue and white pottery.  I have more china than pottery, but it's in just about every room of the house.  Right now most of looks like this (storage)...

...so that I have room to put out this...

I guess I also have a thing for Spode (Blue Italian, Blue Room, Christmas Tree, Trapnell, Billingsley Rose...) -- it's all good!

And, I also love nativity scenes.  Cathy and I have this same one by Willow Tree on our pianos.  Here are a few others from around the world:

Cathy also posted a picture of a wonderful old spool she found.  I have some old spools, too, and usually use them as candle holders.  But I love the colorful ribbon that she keeps on hers.

I have some spools that are more similar to Cathy's with the large, flat ends, but they are at the beach cottage right now.

And, of course, we both share a love of arguably one of the most beautiful fabrics ever designed (by Kaffe or anyone else):  August Rose.

Thanks, Cathy, for introducing me to blogging, making such gorgeous, inspiring quilts, and giving me something to post about today.  I'm back!

With wishes, true and kind for a wonderful holiday season with family and friends -- Joan

Calling all Flea Market Fancy Freaks!

Go here for a FMF giveaway extrordinaire!

Now!

With wishes, true and kind, and good luck to all -- Joan

Sneak peeks....

Working too hard + playing too hard = little time for sewing.  I did manage to quickly put together this stacked coins baby quilt top (Heather Bailey Fresh Cut fabrics) on my day off on Veteran's Day last Wednesday.

Unfortunately, I ran out of the white fabric to put one strip across the top and one across the bottom.  I made a special trip after work on Friday to get more, but managed to buy the wrong white, so it still sits and waits.  And I keep hiding it from the cats.

I need to make several small handmade gifts, so I started experimenting.  How cute is this little block?

Or this one?

Or, what about this one?  I never knew partial seams could be so fun!

And what could possibly be cute enough to go with them?  Maybe this?

Or something like this?

Add them all together + a few more and....

16" square mini quilt top!

Sis Boom Bell Bottoms!  A gift I don't want to give away!

Library Update:

I can't believe how interested everyone has been in my library books!  I finished The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, A Homemade Life, and The Help.  They were all good and VERY different.  I am now about halfway through The Time Traveler's Wife.  What else do I currently have checked out?:

I heart the Hillsboro Public Libary!

With wishes, true and kind -- Joan

Mosaic Columns

I

Kaffe Fassett's Mosaic Columns quilt.

It's finished, and it's ginormous!

The long arm quilting is by my friend, Karen Walker.

One of these days I'm going to get her to start a blog.

I usually wash them before photographing -- for that delightful crinkly look and feel, but

I'm not sure this monster will fit in my washing machine.

But it's done!

Huge sigh of relief!

Whoops --  I have at least 4 quilt backs to get ready for Karen, so off I go....

With wishes, true and kind -- Joan

Starts and finishes

The Block Party gals are starting a new virtual quilting bee with an accompanying Flickr group, and if you participate, YOUR quilt could end up in a book!  Intrigued?  All the information is here at the new blog site, so go over and check it out.  Oh -- and the whole thing is starting off with a giveaway!  Which prize would you choose?

And before I jump into the shower to get ready for work, this is what I hope to accomplish before the end of the week:  I need to sew over 400 inches of this

onto this UFO.  Recognize it?  Scroll up to the blog banner.  I'ts the quilt top on the right.

With wishes, true and kind -- Joan

In which my cup runneth over...

Okay, okay, I'm spoiled.  I have purchased some rather lovely fabrics in the past month or so, but all at good prices.  And, after a long dry spell, I've also finally managed to win not one but two blog giveaways!  I already posted about the first one which was a contest on Dee's blog, Dee's Doodles.  She was about to make this Sis Boom quilt and Dee asked her reader's to guess the name her husband came up with for it.  Now I think it is a gorgeous quilt, but (after living with a man with a sense of humor for almost 25 years) I decided to look at it like a man.  The group of three dark pink triangles sort of popped out at me and I guessed, "Radioactive" (you know, the hazard symbol), and I was right.  Here is my prize from Dee -- 5 scrumptious fat quarters from Jennifer Paganelli's Flower Power fabric line, Elizabeth Rose and Loopy Vintage Floral. I love them so much and thank Dee for her generosity with all my heart!

She also added three 5" charms, and it will be fun finding just the right project for them.  Thank you, Dee!

Not long after I won these beauties, I got an email from Lisa over at Sophia Aster, telling me I had won her giveaway, too.  She has a lovely blog subtitled, Modern Style. Vintage Charm.  If those words resonate with you like they do with me, go check out her blog.  You won't be disappointed.  Here is what Lisa sent me -- this pretty tin of charm squares.

It also came with instructions to make the mini quilt on the tin and a CD which includes a color swatch library of the line, directions for a larger quilt, recipes, and more.  The quilt is so cute, I think I'm going to have to make it.  Although this cute tote (tutorial at Sophia Aster) would be great, too. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Lisa!

The only problem with having all this great fabric is that I really should be sewing right now.  But look how many of the books I had on reserve at the library all became available at once!

It has been rather cold yesterday and today, so I may just put on something comfy and crawl into bed with a cup of hot tea and a book.  Oh, dear, after I do the dinner dishes, of course!

With wishes, true and kind -- Joan

Mosaic Madness

A Little Controlled Chaos
After much consideration and playing around with seemingly endless ways of arranging color, fabric, and design, I think I am going to go with this version of my original layout (referred to as Option 3 in my last post).  I'm still moving squares around here and there and will probably add another row at the top and bottom (to make it rectangular and not cut off the points of the design), but I'm starting to feel pretty good about this quilt top.  I think I will give it to my in-laws for Christmas.

Road Trip

Bolt Neighborhood Fabric Boutique celebrated their 4th Birthday, so I cheerfully braved Friday night rush hour traffic after work with 3 colleagues for huge savings on fabric. Yes, the quilting bug is growing at work, and it's mostly due to Tobey spreading the excitement.  Tobey is finishing up the handquilting on her Gee's Bend style wonky log cabins (I promise a picture soon) and is gathering fabrics for the Three-ring Circus quilt from Material Obsession.  But I digress.

Bolt is very tiny, but well worth the effort, because the fabrics are FABULOUS.  And they are so nice!  The place was packed, but they were very patient and attentive to each customer and maintained good humor even though the line was snaking around the shop and out the door.  The fabrics were ALL on sale -- some as low as $2 - $4 a yard.  I bought 8 yards of fabric for around $35.  We all bought plenty -- especially one colleague who bought several fabrics plus about 20 yards of flannel for pajamas for Christmas. Here's my haul:

Since returning to quilting last June, I discovered Jennifer Paganelli's Sis Boom fabrics and fell in love with the Mod Girls line, especially this beauty.  Unfortunately, I never had any -- until now.  I saw this right away and grabbed it.  No one even took a second look at it as I carried it around the shop in my arms, but as soon as it was spread out to be cut, I could hear everyone behind me in line expressing their admiration.

I can't even tell you how much I adore this fabric -- the colors, the design....  So beautiful!  And I couldn't help but notice what a nice quilt top border it makes (see Material Obsession Two, pg. 183).

I also bought some of this Lecien, just because it's so pretty...

...this striped fabric to match something already in my stash, and these bird cages that Tobey thought we both just had to have.  They really are cute.

Not too shabby!

Two Giveaways
Go to True Up for a chance to win this from Kiyohara and Co.:

Also, the lovely blog, Brown Paper Packages, is celebrating 100 posts by giving away LOTS of Urban Flannel scraps -- really cute!

With wishes, true and kind -- Joan