The Red Sox Win, Almost Twin Quilts and 200 Posts

Yup, sometime around midnight the Red Sox swept the Rockies and won the World Series! Did you hear me yelling from where you live? DS, DIL, DS and I watched the whole game. It was a great game. I think all of us stopped breathing as we watched Jacoby drift back to catch the ball for the second out in the ninth inning. And when Papelbon struck out Seth Smith swinging we screamed and yelled and had a huge group hug. Tomorrow is the victory parade in downtown Boston and we have to miss it. Oh well, that's what a DVR is for, right?

Now we can continue to focus on the Patriots. This weekend is the big game with the Indianapolis Colts. The only undefeated teams left standing in the NFL. The Pats are 8-0 and the Colts are 7-0. They should have a good game.

I did get a lot of sewing time in this weekend. On Saturday I worked on the mystery quilt I'm testing. Yesterday I worked on the mystery quilt and on my never ending Butterfly quilt. Some of you have asked where can they find the Mystery Quilt. Ann, the designer, presents the quilt over New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. If you'd like a list of the Yahoo groups on which she will present the quilt, send me an email and I will share the list with you.

In between all of that DIL and I each made a Wicked Easy quilt top. These are the kits I cut up last Sunday while working off nervous baseball energy. I used 10 FQs of fabric from the Lakehouse DayZ fabric line and two FQs from my stash. I don't have any good fabric for the inner borders, binding and backing so DIL and I will head to Marden's this coming Saturday to find some fabric for each of us. DIL's quilt is on the left with all the pink fabrics in the bottom row. Mine is the other quilt. I think I'm going to call mine "Sunglasses Needed".


It was fun working on the same quilt pattern with the same pool of fabrics with my DIL. I am more of a "just grab a piece and sew" quilter. My DIL chose her pieces very carefully to make sure they didn't match too much. I chain piece as much as possible and don't snip my pieces apart until after I iron them. My DIL sews one pair of squares together at a time and then irons it before moving on to the next block. I'm not sure if she is unsure of her sewing skills or if she like the instant gratification you get from seeing each piece come together rather than wait until you've finished sewing a whole stack of blocks. What do you think?

Well, this is my 200th post. If you've left a comment since last Thursday, you're already in the drawing. If you've haven't left one and want to be in the drawing, you have until Wednesday night when I will draw the name of the lucky winner.

That's all the news for now. With the baseball season over I can go to bed early and not have to worry about missing a baseball game. I didn't realize how tired I was until I got home from work tonight. I can't even begin to imagine how tired a baseball player must feel after the end of a season. As for me, I'm headed to bed to cuddle under my Wicked Girly quilt. Tonight the temp will get down to nearly freezing and the wind chill will make it feel like it is below freezing. Brrrrrr. I think I'll be able to wear my new winter coat to work tomorrow.

Three Down, 1 To Go

The Red Sox keep winning. Before last night's game all the sports reporters kept talking about the Rockies offense and how it would show up last night. They also talked about the Red Sox not being used to playing in the higher altitudes may affect their play. They also talked about not having a designated hitter would hurt the Red Sox.

Well, the Rockies offense did show up. But it still wasn't enough for the Red Sox who apparently weren't affected by the higher altitude. Even Dice-K, the pitcher, got a 2 run hit - the first Japanese pitcher to every do that. A 10-5 win for the Sox means they only have to win one more game to win the World Series.

That means this afternoon and evening will be a big sports time in our house. The Patriots play at 4:15, then about an hour after that game is over, the Red Sox/Rockies game will be on. What a great way to end the weekend.

I haven't spent my entire weekend watching sports. Friday night DH and I got to babysit our youngest nephew and niece. Our nephew is 3 years old and quite the talker. Anyone who comes over to his house has to spend the first 15 minutes being shown his Thomas the Train set up in his bedroom. Our niece is just a little over a year old and she is in the "I'm going to be wherever you are" stage. At the dinner table our nephew started playing a color game. "Let's talk about blue" he would say and then we would have to look around the dining room and kitchen to find blue objects. From blue we went to just about every other color he would see. It was a lot of fun.

Yesterday I spent the day working on the mystery quilt I'm testing. I can't show photos of it, but so far it is an easy and fun quilt to make. Today (before the sports bedlam start) I'm going to work on the mystery quilt some more until DIL comes over and we will work on the Wicked Easy quilts we cut out last week until the Patriots game.

I did have an interesting mail day yesterday. Last weekend I ordered Judy Laquidara's Nine-Patch Extravaganza book. I've done a cursory reading of it and like what I seen so far, especially her borders. I've been want to make borders that aren't simply strips and she has some great borders in her book. In July, Paula the Quilter , showed an adorable wall hanging she made - You've Stolen My Heart - from the book Applique 12 Easy Ways by Elly Sienkiewicz. Since then I've been checking Amazon.com for the book and last week a seller had it for $1.89 plus shipping. Needless I ordered it right away. Not a bad deal for about $5. The current issue of Fons and Porter's magazine also came yesterday.


But the biggest surprise in my mailbox was a jury summons. Yup, it's my turn for jury duty. I have report the three weeks after Thanksgiving. Every Monday morning I have to show up and see if I get picked for that week. I know I've been wanting time off from work, but somehow jury duty is not what I had in mind. I think I need some big thick quilt book to keep me occupied, or maybe I'll just bring my design pad and design away. Any other suggestions for jury duty?

This is my 199th post. I'm hoping my 200th post will be celebrating the Red Sox winning the World Series. Remember, if you leave a comment you'll be entered into a drawing for a goodie package. In the meantime - GO SOX and GO PATS!

One Down, Three to Go

The Red Sox crushed the Rockies last night in Game 1 of the World Series 13 - 1. One win down, three to go. Tonight Schilling is pitching and so far he looks good.

I cut the fabrics for my mystery quilt last night. No strip was wider than 5 1/2 inches and was no smaller than 1 3/4 inches. The only other size was three inches. There are quite a few 3 inch squares and the instructions say to draw a diagonal line on the back side of the blocks. I'm guessing that means snowball blocks. We'll see.

Ann has posted 5 clues of the mystery and I'm resisting looking at them until Saturday. I plan on making a pot roast in the crock pot and sewing the day away until Game 3 of the World Series that night. So tell me, do you have a favorite pot roast crock recipe? I'm always looking for a different recipe to try.

I found a package in my mail today from Kim at Kim's Quilting Adventures. She had emailed me recently and said she saw something that would be perfect for me. She was right. She sent me this Lace Tales Teapots pattern. As soon as I finish my current stitchery project I will definitely try one of those wonderful teapots. Thanks Kim!

I'm at 198 posts. I guess that means it's time for a drawing for my 200th post. So leave a comment between now and the time I write my 200th post and you'll be entered into the drawing for a goodie package.

It's chilly here in New England tonight - 42 degrees. I guess fall is truly here. Today the parking lot was full of leaves and I took a few extra steps through the piles of leaves and kicked them high into the air. Something I loved to do as child. Now I'm ready for bed in my warm woolies. The only thing I need right now is a pair of socks on. My feet are freezing. So, if you'll forgive me, I'm off to get on some socks and watch the rest of the ball game.

It's Time For A Mystery

Do you remember my Senior Year Class Project? I chose Kathy's suggestion to make a mystery quilt outside my normal color range. Well, the opportunity to accomplish that has come.

I'm testing a mystery quilt for a designer on one of my Yahoo groups. I recently purchased 3 cuts of Thimbleberries fabric just for this purpose. I am not a fan of Thimbleberries. I find the colors too muted for my personal tastes. Unfortunately, the pattern calls for 3 1/2 yards of a background fabric. I don't have any cuts of fabric that big so I had to go shopping. I chose the red and yellow Thimbleberries fabric and today I found a green print to use as the background for the quilt. What do you think of my choices?


The fabrics are washed and ready for ironing and then cutting. Stay tuned for my progress on this quilt.

Go Red Sox!

Finally Some Sewing Time

I finally got some play time in my studio today. I started off the morning working on the butterfly blocks for the baby quilt I'm working on for a co-worker.

Then while DH was taking a morning nap (he is still adjusting to our time zone) I cut the fabric for the tablecloth shown above. Then when he woke up I sewed it together. I had enough fabric so I could use the WOF of the fabric as a long center piece and then I was able to match the plaid with two side pieces. I still have to hem it, but I love the way it fits into the colors in my dining room.

This afternoon I did some planning on my mom's Shoo-Fly quilt. I was too tired and achy to do much of anything else. Plus I watched the Patriots beat up on the Dolphins.

Tonight I had a burst of nervous energy waiting for the Red Sox/Indians Game 7 to start so I decided to have a mini cutting party. I cut 100 nickel squares for the Shoo Fly quilt. Then I cut napkins from the leftover table cloth fabric. Next up was binding for one of DIL's quilt. And to finish up the evening I took a package of 10 FQs from the Lakehouse Collection and added 2 FQs and cut them all up to make 2 Wicked Easy baby quilts. DIL and I will sew these quilts up next Sunday before the Patriots game.

Do you hear the contented sigh coming through the computer? That's me feeling happy and content at having spent so much time playing with fabric today. Also the Red Sox are going to the World Series and the Patriots are still undefeated! Life is good in New England tonight.

I've Been Tagged and Did Some Shopping

Laila tagged me for the Meme and I'm finally getting around to doing it.

4 jobs I've had:
library aide
waitress, waitress and waitress
switchboard operator in a department store
Director of Sales & Marketing Administration

4 films I could watch over & over:
Gettysburg
Gods & Generals
Tora, Tora, Tora
Sound of Music
(yes, I generally like war movies)

4 TV shows I watch:
NCIS
The Unit
Criminal Minds
Patriots football and Red Sox baseball

4 places I have lived:
Blaine, Minnesota
Orlando, Florida
Norfolk, Virginia
Dover, New Hampshire

4 favorite foods:
Steak
Coffee (is that a food?)
Pasta
Did I say steak?

4 place I love to be right now:
Right here in Dover, NH
Australia (meeting my online quilt buddies)
Anywhere there is snow
In bed

4 names I love but would/could not name my children:
Amanda Michelle
Emma
Roxandra
Bruce

Since this Meme has been going around for a while, consider yourself tagged if you haven't done it yet.

On another note, DH and I went shopping today. We were going to shop in Boston, but the city was packed with people seeing the Head of the Regatta, along with 2 conventions, a hockey game, and if that wasn't enough, the Red Sox play tonight. Instead we went to the Outlet Shops in Kittery, ME. I usually have very little luck when it comes to clothes and shoe shopping. But today I was 3 for 3 in shopping. First DH took me into the Cole Haan store. Not a store I would have ever thought for buying clothes for me. As we walked into the store, the clerk told us that all the coats in the store were on sale for $99. OK, so I thought I'd check them out. I need a new winter coat. I took this coat off the rack and tried it on. I like it. The hood is very furry, but I couldn't resist it. I looked at the price tag and the original price was $695 and I got it for $99! How cool is that? Bring on the winter.


I've been whining about not being to find boots that don't look clunky and don't have spike heels that I can wear in the office in the winter. I've been looking for these boots for 3 years. I found this pair in the 2nd store we walked into. These boots were half price - $40.

The last store we went into was Van Heusen. I thought they only carried men's clothes. But I was wrong. I walked out of there with a pair of black trousers and a gray pinstripe suite for about $90 - again less than half price!

I was so psyched to have found all these deals. I don't what I did to deserve such luck, but I'm enjoying it.

DH is home from Europe and will be home for 3 weeks. He said the same thing I've been thinking - I can't wait for life to get back to normal. 9 - 5 work days and no work interruptions at all hours of the day. How sweet it is to have him home. (Especially since he paid for all my purchases today!)

Tomorrow I'll be able to get back into my sewing room. I have some HSTs to make for a baby quilt. We are going to look at a house tomorrow. Our never ending house/condo hunt continues.

Do You Have a Least Favorite Day of the Week?

Wednesday's are my least favorite day of the week. I suppose you're wondering why. If there is one day of the work week when the world seems to come crashing down on my desk. Everyone wants everything done and wants it done yesterday. It never fails. Today was no exception.

It started with my morning phone call with DH who is in Rome this week. Husband and wife conversation soon turned to work talk and my work day was running over 100 miles an hour and I was still damp from my morning shower. (Now that paints an interesting picture, doesn't it?). Once I got to the office I spent my morning directing others, putting out fires and keeping bosses in Rome happy. I didn't get to sit down and do some of my own work until nearly 1 pm. That left 4 hours to do 8 hours worth of work.

I'm not kidding when I say nearly every Wednesday is similar. I have a working theory about office work flow. On Mondays people are trying to get a handle on their work week. On Tuesday they are a little more focused on their work list. On Wednesday they are beginning to panic about uncompleted tasks and everything has to get done NOW! On Thursday they start thinking about the weekend. On Friday it's all about the weekend.

Saturdays and Sundays are the best. That's when I get to play in my studio and enjoy myself.

Do you have a least favorite day of the week?

Don't forget to check out Wildcraft Farm's Christmas special. Buy your Christmas gifts now and have them delivered for you.

Do Some Holiday Shopping for You or Someone Else

Would you like to find a truly surprise Christmas gift just for you under your tree? Or perhaps there's a special quilter or stitcher on your Christma? Or maybe you celebrate Hanukah? Check out Wildcraft Farm's Special Offer.

Wouldn't this be a great way to do some holiday shopping and help someone else out? If you do decide to order a gift from Wildcraft, be sure to let Janet know you came from my blog. Hey, everyone likes to save a little bit of money here and there.

Sleeping and Sleeping

I've been going to bed early every night since Tuesday night. I guess I'm still trying to recover from a busy weekend and DH and FIL 12 hours ahead of us. Last night I was sound asleep at 7:15 and slept until 9:45. DH was texting me and emailing me, but I was out like a light. The doctor has put me on pain meds for post Shingles pain and the first 2 days I've been on it, I can hardly stay awake. Today I'm a little more awake, but I think I'll be in bed early.

DH comes home tomorrow morning! Hooray! It's been a long 3 weeks. He's only home for the weekend and then he's off to Rome for the week. Next Friday night he'll be home and this hectic international travel will be over for a few months.

I haven't been in my studio or even picked up my stitcheries in nearly 2 weeks. I miss not working on anything. On Sunday I'll finally be able to sit and work on something. Not sure what, but it will probably some type of hand work project. After all football is on that day.

Well, the game is on so i must pay attention so I can tell DH about it. Have a great weekend. I'll be back later.

Aaaah . . . peace and quiet

Don't get me wrong. I love my mom and my children. But between having everyone here for the last 7 days, plus dealing with DH and FIL in Hong Kong and 12 hours ahead, I am exhausted. I feel like I've been on-call for 24 hours for the 7 days. This morning I drove my mom to the airport and DS #2 left for home. I worked for a few hours in the office and then came home to an quiet and empty house.

DH did send me a wonderful birthday surprise yesterday. These gorgeous orange and purple flowers being hugged by an adorable teddy bear were waiting for me at my door when we came home from shopping. I can't wait to give him a huge hug when I pick him up on Saturday morning.

Today I came home from work to find my birthday FQs from one of my on-line groups on my doorstep. Fifteen assorted FQs to add to my stash. I also received 10 porcelain buttons I ordered from Giggle Buttons in Australia. I'll take photos of those goodies later. I'm just too tired right now to focus a camera.

Well I've eaten my dinner, watched one episode of NCIS on my DVR and I'm ready for bed. I want to get in a nap before I have to speak with DH again to prep him for a meeting later today in Hong Kong. Yup, I'm still on call until Friday night.

I've Been Shopping and Shopping and Shopping

I said I would share my bargain buys from Marden's the other day. Here they are. The top 3 fabrics are Thimbleberries and cost about $3 per yard. These are for my Senior Quilt Challenge and as soon as my on-line group announces a mystery they will get used. The bottom row of fabrics is 5 one-yard cuts that were sold as a group for $14. It's a little tough to see what they are, but one print is swimsuits, one is hats and the last one is postcards.

These are cat fabrics I bought for my mom's Nickel quilt. The white fabric has different color paw prints on it and is the background fabric. The other cat print will be for the borders.

This smiley face batik was on sale for $1 a yard. I bought what was left on the bolt, about 9 1/2 yards. I'm going to use it to make tents for 3 of my nieces and nephews for Christmas.

This gorgeous purple and orange Homespun fabric was also $1 a yard. I bought 4 yards and will use it to make a table cloth and napkins for our dining room. The orange in the fabric is very close to the color of our dining room walls.

Now, I'll move on to my Shop Hop purchases from yesterday. There were 5 of us that went shop hopping. My mom, DIL, 2 quilting friends and me drove about 500 miles around the beautiful state of New Hampshire and visited 8 quilt shops. We started at 10 am and pulled into the train station at 7:50 pm - just in time for the train to pick up my friends. What a fun-filled day we had.

This teapot panel was too cute to pass up. The colors didn't photograph well, but the orange is again very close to our dining room color. I'll either make a wall hanging or some pot holders from it.

These 15 FQs only cost $1 each. The white dots are stars. I'll probably make a quilt out of them.
This is a collection of 25 fat-eighths all in fall colors. I'm going to design something using them. Another challenge to use up all of a collection.

These are my other assorted fabrics. There are 2 purple fabrics to add to the collection of purples and grays for my MIL's quilt. The Christmas stars were half-price so I couldn't resist it. The coffee fabric was a "just because I like it" purchase. The 2 cuts of linen will be used for a stitchery project and the cream fabric on the bottom is from the 26 Letters line and will make a good baby quilt backing piece.

I did have some non-fabric purchases. I bought a bottle of Mary Ellen's Best Press Lavender scented starch alternative, a package of 4 inch Thangles to finish the baby quilt I'm working on, 2 Quilter's Quarter Inch rulers to use for gifties, a redwork pattern from Lace Tales with a pattern for Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, a set of Lori Smith Fat Quarter Quilting: Throughout the Year patterns, a book called Make Spectacular Books, Fabulous Fabric, Skewer and Folded Books, and last, but not least, a Country Threads Stitchery magazine from 2004 (it was half-price). My mom also insisted on buying me a couple birthday gifts - a scissors fob and Alex Anderson's Shadow Redwork book. DH gave me money to pick up my Birthday Garden quilt from the quilter, so I have one more quilt to bind. I also found a present for my DH, but I can't show it until I give it to him.

I'm done shopping for now. I'm tired today and I'm watching football and baseball and just being lazy. Tomorrow is my birthday and I think DH has another surprise in store for me. My youngest son is here visiting too so I've had a wonderful few days with family, friends and shopping.

Shopping With Friends and Mom's Visit

My mom arrived last night for her long weekend visit. It is good to see her again.

This afternoon we went shopping at Marden's with two of my friends. Marden's is a surplus store where, among the many other household items for sale, they have quilt shop quality fabric for $4 or less. We found some great fabric deals and I will share photos of my goodies tomorrow. But the best deal they had was batiks and Homespuns for $1 a yard. That's right, a mere $1 a yard for batiks and Homespuns.

Here is a photo of my friends and I after dinner.


I'll be back tomorrow or maybe Saturday night after our shop hop. I'm sure the goodie pile will be much bigger by then.

Friday and Saturday Progress

Friday night was great. The evening went just as I had predicted to my assistant at 4 PM. I was going to have a steak dinner, watch the Red Sox win and the Yankees lose and work on the binding of my Wicked Girly Quilt. All of that happened and now the Red Sox have won the AL East Division. Hooray!

I spent a lot of time in my quilt studio yesterday. The first project of the day was to make 2 inch HSTs using Thangles. I've never used Thangles before and all I can say is I love them! I think I've used all the other methods of making HSTs. One of first entries in this blog included my thoughts on HSTs. If I knew then what I knew then about Thangles that entry would have been different. I find with Thangles there is minimal fabric waste, and you only need to trim one dog ear off and I was able to trim 8 dog ears at one. A very slick process. The only downfall of Thangles is that the LQS close to my house doesn't sell them. But, nearly all of the shops I am visiting next week on our shop hop carries them and I may just stock up on one package in every size. Here's some of the HSTs I made.

The rest of them became parts of 4-patches that will eventually become butterfly blocks for the baby quilt I'm making. I couldn't finish the baby quilt because I need to buy 4 inch Thangles next week.


Since I was in an HST mood I finished trimming 132 1 inch HSTs for my Ugly Fabric Challenge. Gee, I don't think the fabrics look so ugly in a pile like this. Do you think I could call the project done? Nope, I've got big plans for these tiny HSTs.

I started to look for the project bag for the Ugly Fabric Challenge and came across a bag of 32 2.5 inch strips I bought at Keepsake Quilting on my shop hop this past spring. Suddenly I decided I wanted to to try the Strip Cocktail pattern I had. The pattern itself is easy. I had the top put together in a couple hours, but I was disappointed in the package of strips. There were quite a number of the strips that were cut smaller than 2.5 inches. I noticed it when I started sewing and thought I had used all of the strips that were correct. However I missed one strip and didn't realize it until I put all the rows together. So now the top is a little wavy and I will have to trim the sides down to make it work. I decided to call this quilt Singapore Blues. Since I was missing DH yesterday while he was flying to Singapore.

Today will be a day spent doing stitchery projects. Football is on and I won't be caught in my sewing room during a football game. DS and DIL will be here so it will be fun afternoon. I may also start working on my shop hop list for next weekend. I did this the last time I went on a shop hop and it worked well.

Have a great Sunday!

Is it 5:30 Yet?

I can't wait for the end of the work day today. I have a delicious weekend of sewing, sewing, some baseball, some football, and sewing lined up. DH will be flying to Singapore all day tomorrow so I won't be able to talk with him until almost midnight and I'm home alone. DIL will be coming over tomorrow afternoon to sew as well.

Do you have the newest issue of Australian Country Threads Stitchery magazine?


Yesterday I got an email from a quilt shop I visit about once a year on our shop hop. Lo and behold, they announced they have the magazine. I didn't even know they carried Country Threads. I think it took me all of 30 seconds to place my order. I should have the magazine sometime next week. If you're interested you can order the magazine from the Quilted Crow in Boxboro, MA.

The Red Sox still haven't won the division. The Yankees won and the Red Sox lost. Well, it will be over one way or the other by Sunday night. Go Sox!

Time to get ready for work. My car is getting appraised by the auto body shop this morning so I'm off a little early. Have a great day and a wonderful weekend.

wooooooo . . .

Hear that sound of exhaling? That's me. DH left early yesterday morning. FIL left today. Gone for 3 weeks. Last night I was in the office until 7 doing last minute packing for FIL. I bought dinner on the way home, turned on The War Episode One. Watched one hour of the show and went to bed.

Today was quiet in the office. Two women were at a charity golf tournament and one salesperson was out sick. I was able to get quite a bit of work done for a change. Woohoo! More work tomorrow, but that's OK.

Thanks for the suggestions on how to handle the women in my department. By FIL made my job a lot easier yesterday by speaking with each of the women individually and explained his vision of the department and how I am the supervisor. I think it helped a lot.

This is what I saw when I took out the trash this morning.


We've lived in downtown and have parked on the street for 4 1/2 years and have never had any problems with our car. Until today. A huge dent in the hood of my car. So before I even left for the office I had called the insurance company and had filed a vandalism complaint with the police department. Tomorrow I go to the body shop for an estimate on repairs. Luckily there was no other damage to the car.

Is there anyone who participated in the Stitchery Swap and has not received their swap gift? Let me know. Many of you have expressed interest in another swap. I will be doing another after the New Year. I'd like to set it up as a themed swap. Any suggestions?

Well, I'm enjoying night home alone #2. I was actually able to leave work at 5:30 (the time I'm supposed to leave). I'm watching the rest of The War Episode One. At 8 Navy NCIS debuts, followed by The Unit and, if I'm still awake, Cane. The Red Sox are also on, but I'll probably watch the game on the internet. I'm taping The War so I'll be watching that later this week. I guess that's more info than you need to know about my TV habits, huh?

I Need Some Stitching Help

Work has truly become my life during the week. In the evenings I used to be able to come home and forget about the office. I could read and comment on blogs and generally enjoy my evenings. However, during the last few weeks, work issues have started to drain me and I've been coming home from work so tired that I'm in bed by 8:30. It's very frustrating for me.

Does anyone have advice for managing a department with three creative, marketing women, each with their own skill sets and four admin staff (two women and two men) without creating cat fights or hurt feelings? Let me know if there are any secrets or what I can do to ease work issues. Most of the stress is handling the marketing staff. The women all have strong personalities and are confident in their skills. Their skills are different, which is good, but it's the emotions I'm struggling with. I was raised with three brothers and had three sons. I guess my skills in handling females is lacking. Does that make sense? Give me a roomful of men and I have no problems managing them, but a roomful of women and I want to run for the hills. Any suggestions on what I should do or resources for developing management skills?


On the stitching front last weekend I used tracing paper and an iron-on pencil to start a new project. This is a stitchery block from an Australian Country Threads Stitchery magazine. I used WOW fabric instead of muslin and so far I like it. Here's my question: Do you see the little yellow flower on the upper left? I'm thinking it doesn't quite look a flower and is missing something. Perhaps a green french knot in the center? Or something else? What do you think?

I'm happy because the Red Sox have secured a playoff spot. They haven't won the division yet, but I think they should be able to do that. If they don't there will be a lot of unhappy Red Sox fans in Red Sox Nation. The Patriots won again today. They are 3-0. Undefeated. Life is good in football land too.

DH and FIL (my boss) leave at 3:30 tomorrow morning for 3 weeks. They will be in Phoenix, Singapore and Hong Kong. They will be home for 48 hours and then off to Rome for 1 week. With them traveling the work load will be a little lighter. Just enough for me to get my evenings back, I hope.

It's been a while since I've posted. I have finally gotten over Shingles. My energy has come back and the pain is gone. I've been busy doing some stitcheries and today I took one of those stitcheries and made it into a tote bag. DH came up with the saying after I told him I was going to make myself a tote bag to use when I go shop hopping and I was going to use the Jell-O fabric I bought on vacation. So, without further ado, here's the front of the bag. The stitchery is also a pocket.

Here's the back of the bag. I'm happy with how the bag turned out. This is the first project I've made that has a gusset and once I got over my fear of gussets the bag went together easily.

The bag also has a matching mini bag that can be clipped inside the bag. The mini bag was quickly put together, but I'm not thrilled with it as it isn't lined and is somewhat flimsy. I may make a sturdier mini bag another day.

And then, just because I still had Jell-O fabric and I recently got the Wonder Wallet pattern I made a Wonder Wallet too. The wallet only took about 30 minutes to make and is a great addition to my new tote bag.

So now I'm ready to go shopping. Anyone want to join me?

And My Senior Year Project Is . . .

I had the drawing tonight from the bloggers who sent in suggestions for my Senior Quilt project. I liked all of the suggestions and I'm going to put them into my WHIMM jar for someday projects.

Without further ado the winner is Kathy from Kathy's Quilts. Her suggestion is to sew a mystery quilt using colors outside of my usual range. This will be a good one for me. I'm not a fan of mystery quilts because I always tend to go stray from the directions. I belong to two Yahoo groups where they have mystery quilts so the next time one is offered I'll be sure to make it. As for the colors I will probably use Thimbleberries fabric. Thimbleberries are too blah for me and I would never use them unless I had to.

So Kathy send me the name and contact information for your favorite charity and I'll send them a donation.

PS - In case anyone is wondering, the shingles are nearly gone. Today was the first day in almost two weeks that I haven't had any pain. I'm not falling asleep at 8 PM. And life is good.

Senior Quilt Project

Hi there!

Just a little note to let you know I have to delay the drawing until Wednesday night. I'm working late tonight and don't have all the challenges with me to do the drawing.

Stay tuned!

My Senior Year Project

My quilting anniversary is September 4. This year I will be starting my 4th year of quilting - AKA my Senior Year. Last year I wrote about my plans for my Junior year of quilting.

We're at the Deutsche Bank Golf Championship again this year. Today, while watching Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and Phil Mickelson play together I formulated my plan for my Senior year of quilting. The good news is one of my readers gets to help me choose my Senior Year Project.

How's that you ask? Let me tell you. I want to be challenged on my project so here is my plan. I'm going to list six guidelines. I want you to choose no more than three of them and send them to me in an email. I will put all the entries into a drawing and on Tuesday, September 4th (my anniversary) I will draw one of them and that one will become my Senior Class project. I will have until June 30, 2008 to finish the project. In honor of choosing someone's name I will make a donation to her favorite charity.

So, without further ado, here are my six guidelines. Remember, you can choose up to three of them. I have listed some suggestion for the choices so you understand what I mean. By no means, I am limited to those choices.

1. Choose two or three blocks. These blocks can finish to any size.
2. Choose two or three colors.
3. Choose at least one type of embellishment; such as buttons, beads, redwork, stitcheries, applique
   
4. Theme - should it be for baby? for a girl? for a boy?
5. Fabric choices - Civil War prints? 30s? batiks?
6. Type of project - wall hanging? table runner? lap quilt? This is the only choice where I ask that the project not be any larger than a lap quilt.

There you have it. C'mon and make my senior year project a challenge. You have until Tuesday night to enter your suggestions. I can't wait to see what you challenges you come up with for me.