Tuesday, January 25, 2011

A little more from Retreat

Ann took a group picture and emailed me. Thanks, Ann.

Pictured are back row Jan, Bonnie, Kathleen, front row Gena, Priscilla, Dixie and me. Missing are Billie, Anna and of course Ann behind the camera. Billie slept late. Anna didn't spend the night and drove back and forth. The weather had turned really cold with a little precipitation she decided to stay home that day. The quilt we were holding was one from the LeRetreat House. A beautiful string quilt. The one on the design wall behind us belongs to Kathleen. She bought the kit when she and her husband took a cruise to Alaska. It is wildflowers of Alaska. It is gorgeous.

Blessings,
Marilyn

Monday, January 24, 2011

Just in time for Valentine's Day

I found this cute table runner on Sharon Yeager's blog Daisy Cottage Quilting.

 Here's Part 1 of the Tutorial  and then Part 2 . I had been looking for one for Valentine's Day!  And be sure and tell her Thanks!

Blessings,
Marilyn

Friday, January 21, 2011

Back from Retreat


The Time Travel quilt is finished! Totally finished! I made the binding and sewed it on at retreat. Major happy dance going on. My fellow retreaters reminded me how long I'd been working on this quilt--Gee, thanks, everybody!--since our first retreat back in 2008! Oh my gosh, really? Back at that first retreat I think I was begining to join the blocks together. It was my travel quilt. I only worked on it when I went to sew at Paradise Piecemakers once a month and on retreats. I kept it in one of those Rubbermaid containers so everything would be together and then I could load my machine and thread and go sew. The blocks in the quilt are Fly Foot and Soaring Past Time. The Soaring Past Time blocks have 24 fying geese units. I did count at one time how many flying geest were in the whole quilt and I don't remember. And I'm not going to count again. I'm done. Rest assured that there are around 900. You see those little half square triangle in that border? Those were made when the smaller flying geese were made. I still have a bunch left over! I don't throw anything away--only strips or pieces too small to be able to make a seam and have something left to show after the seam is made.

We had a lot of fun as usual. Good food as always. Recipes requested. There were ten of us. Marie and Sharon couldn't join us this time. Biliie was a new retreater. This particular retreat house is located a block away from a railroad track. There are ear plugs in little jars on the night stands beside the beds. For good reason! Snoring is another good reason. Closed doors help too! LOL I couldn't resist taking this picture. The jar is cracked. Do you think someone may have been groping the dark for an ear plug?


Too funny!


Blessings everyone and happy quilting,

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Friday, January 14, 2011

Will we ever see the sun?

We saw the sun for a very short time yesterday and a very very short time this morning. We have been under cloud cover for a long time. I need me some sun!Remind me come July or August what I wished for okay?

Until that happens I will keep myself entertained. And post some pictures.


These are some tea towels I have embellished. On the left redwork with fabric trim, the watermelon I did in crayola and set with an iron, and the top picture I used my heart yo-yo maker and embroidered the letters. Then there are two sets of napkins I made from fabric. You can enlarge the picture by clicking on it.

Blessings,

If you haven't checked it out--

You really will want to. It being Maria Peagler's blog. She's the author of Color Mastery--don't we all need a little help with color? The link is to her personal blog. She also has a website and a blog professionally. Check out the snow they got at her house.

I also listened to Pat Sloan's radio broadcast while I did some things around the house. It is so cool to me to hear how the quilt designers we hear about and purchase their books and patterns got started and about their personal lives.

I trimmed the Time Travel quilt for binding. I cut 2 1/2" strips for the binding to make ready for my part of the demo at our guild meeting Saturday. Several of us are demonstrating specialty rulers. I will demo the Binding Ruler. Patsy, I discovered another use for the ruler. I will take pictures and post a tutorial. You can use the ruler to cut the angles for your binding strips BEFORE you sew them together. This eliminates the need to mark a line, sew, then cut. I made another binding yesterday in record time. Not sure how long-I didn't time myself-but I've never timed myself. LOL But it was definitely faster.

Blessings,

Monday, January 10, 2011

Items required--waders--this is deep

What is it that makes us want to resolve to do things better; set goals; change habits? And the list could go on. What is it? Is it because for us in the northern hemisphere Jan.1 falls when there is dormancy and winter and we have a little more time for retrospect? Do people in the southern hemisphere have the same inclination? Is it out of tradition? Is it something in us that wishes for change? Maybe we either liked or didn't like what happened the previous year. Or a combination of both?

So tell me what you think but you have to get your own waders.

Blessings,

A Little Snow and Computers

First a little rain that started in the night and then mid-morning the snow started. Just a dusting. It sure was pretty.

We received a new lap-top from our kids. Yesterday DS#1 came and hooked up the fast transfer cable. Our old computer has been threatening to crash. Very slow. To make a long story short--the old computer was being very very slow. DS#1 needed to go home. I stopped the transfer software download. Removed some programs. Then tried again and it worked. Praise the Lord.

Then I tried to sign in to this blog on the new computer and it wouldn't let me. What in the world? It had been working on this new computer. It worked on DH's lap-top.  What gives? What has changed? I wracked my brain all day. Then tonight I searched on blogger help. Then it occured to me to try blogger in draft. It worked. Forevermore! I'm pretty sure I had been using blogger in draft on the old desktop and perhaps when I transferred everything over MAYBE that had something to do with it?! At least it works and right now that's all that matters.

When it's cold sometimes I get in the baking/cooking mood. Today was no exception. This morning I made sausage and buttermilk pancakes. Then after breakfast dishes were all cleaned up I made banana bread. It turned out really good. Then for lunch I made potato soup with broccoli cornbread. I didn't have cottage cheese for the cornbread but I had sourcream and a little buttermilk. It turned out really good.  We made venison chili tonight for DH to take to work. The guys always love it. Real spicy.


Blessings,

Friday, January 07, 2011

A Challenge

Quilters Dream Batting is sponsoring a challenge to benefit ALS (Louis Gehrig's Disease). Follow this link to read more about it  Hopes and Dreams Quilt Challenge .

Blessings,

Tuesday, January 04, 2011

Happy and Blessed New Year

I am wishing all who visit my blog a wonderful and blessed new year!