I won!

I visit many quilt blogs on a daily basis. As a result, I enter many drawings but seldom win. Today I am a winner! I won a charm pack (40 - 5.5" squares) of the Central Park fabric line at the Quilt Taffy blog! (http://quilttaffy.blogspot.com)
I love to visit the Quilt Taffy blog; Corrie and Des feature a melting pot of fabrics and ideas, sprinkled with humor! (Check out their video: http://quilttaffy.blogspot.com/2010/12/i-feel-song-coming-oni-thought-we-were.html ...it made me laugh!) Thanks Corrie and Des!

Anyways, I am excited about this fabric line; it is way out of my comfort zone. I guess when it comes to fabrics, I lean towards more traditional colors and patterns. So I am looking forwards to the challenge of using a modern quilt fabric line.

Many things going at once

(Sorry about the crooked photo. I cannot get it to post the right way.)
I am cutting more 1.5" squares. My MIL has very eclectic taste in fabric, so it is fun to cut up stuff I would not have purchased! She cut some squares too large or rather wonky, so I am cutting them down into square squares!
Husband is terribly hard on clothing. I mended his Gortex overmitts in anticipation of cross country skiing. I used some stretch denim. By the end of the season, the second mitt may need the same treatment.

I gave up on keeping Daughter's present a surprise. As a homeschooler, she is home all the time, and I cannot sew in secret. Here I am, working on American Girl Doll clothes.

When they are all finished, I will post a picture of the girls modeling their new "uniforms"!

Cheaper than therapy

I spent the day cutting 1.5" squares, then sewing them together into mini nine patches. It looks like a huge mess, but it works for me to get the variety I want!
When I have had a difficult few days, piecing quilt squares is great therapy. I can understand why people turn to quilting during tough times. I sewed 28 squares today, for a grand total of 130 finished. Unfortunately, I need a lot more than that if I want a queen size quilt!

I'm also trying to make some progress on a table runner for my mom. I hoped to have it finished in time for her party, but it was a few days ago. Maybe I can finish it by January!

I will put machine applique snowflakes in the centers!

A Few Projects

My MIL gave me a large bag of fabric scraps recently. Among the treasures was this project that she started years ago but never completed. I was so excited to take this one on! She had some nine patch blocks completed and lots of squares cut out. I never knew how much fun it could be to sew 1.5" squares together! Here are 92 blocks, complete at 3.5"! I have many ideas regarding these blocks; stay tuned, for I will post more in 2011!
Have you ever seen this book? It has the most adorable projects, all made from socks!

Daughter had a nice pair of knee high socks that sprung a hole in the toe. What to do? Make a snake and a chipmunk! So cute, and they go together so easily! I highly recommend the book!

The house is all decorated for Christmas. I did something different this year. This is my china hutch; I emptied it of the teapots and instead have made a little display in honor of my two sisters. One collects nutcrackers; the other was passionate about snowmen. So I honor both of them by displaying my meager tributes to each one's collection.

I collect carolers. Here are a few on my piano. I need to find a tall lampost and maybe a tree or two to fill in the space! (Next year, maybe!)

The tree is up and decorated. To the left of the tree you can see my newest carolers!

Nothing is exempt from decoration....not even Rosey!

(We laughed so hard at this...Rosey does not dare to move when we dress her up!)

I've linked this up with Design Wall Monday. Check out more great projects at

www.patchworktimes.com/2010/12/13/design-wall-monday-12132010/