Sound Wave block & other stuff

Happy Friday eve ;0)  Hope everyone has been having a sewing kind of week!

After finishing up mom's quilt the other day I sat down and tackled my first Skill Builder BOM Sound Wave...

I just had to make it using the Kona Ash :)  I still might make one with a black background,I know it would really make the batik's stand out,but the Kona Ash just calls out to me.  See that bit of yellow sticking out at the edges of the block?  It is a new tool toy,one of three that was purchased the last trip to Joann's.

This is what it looks like,without a quilt block on it.  This sweet toy is a Rotating Rotary cutting mat.

This is what it looks like when you rotate it slightly,and it rotates so easily too.  Where has this little gem been hiding?  Or what rock have I been under?  This is one of the "optional"tools listed for the BOM over at Pile O' Fabric

Another tool listed was a 12 1/2 x 12 1/2 inch square ruler.  Let me just say,I can not count the times this would have come in so handy,and I will be using it a Lot from now on.

With this ruler and the rotating cutting mat,squaring up my block was a piece of cake!

Usually I am not going to the city on weekends when there is an awesome sale going on at Joann's,but this time was the exception.  The sweetest part,all the Fiskars cutting tools/mats were on sale for 50% off :0)  So I still got to use my coupon for something else,gotta love it when that happens!  Since the mats were on sale I was also able to purchase the 6 1/2 inch size too!  Of course these three items totally blew my fabric allowance for the month,even on sale,but then $25 doesn't go that far.  Good thing I still had a little $ left from Christmas to use on the batting for mom's quilt,or I would have went over the amount I have allotted myself for fabric/sewing purchases per month this year!

I have decided that this year I will make more sewing tool purchases than fabric purchases.  One month in,so far so good :0)

The last couple evenings have been spent working on this Gift/Tote bag,because every quilt needs a bag just as sweet where it can patiently wait for the next time it is taken out and used :0)

It was finished up just in time for a couple quick photos before the sun went behind the mountains this evening!  I can hardly wait to give this to mom,I am so excited about it!  Good thing I can spill the beans about it here ;0)

Meet Star Granny (January's Lovely Finish)

I can not believe how quickly this month has just screamed by!  At the beginning of the month I decided that this month's project for A Lovely Year of Finishes would be a quilt for my mom!  The idea has been there since last year when I raided her stash while visiting asked her if she would give me some of her stash.

My first thought was to make a quilt using only granny square blocks,but when I actually started pulling the fabrics I decided to include another block for a little interest.  The second block is called Scrap Jar Star which by the way,I really liked and will be using again in the future.

Here she is..it was super windy and very cold after work when these photos were taken  (after just three quick photos my hands were like ice)  So the top row is not visible,because the only way to get a shot of the quilt was to hang some of it over the rail to help hold it in place.  There are five rows of four blocks each,the quilt finishes out at about 48x60.  Which will be a very manageable size for mom!  She has osteoporosis,and lost 9 inches this last year,so I wanted a quilt that she would be able to manage easily herself.

The back side is a antique white shade with an all over print of tiny leaves.  Mom loves flowers and roses are one of her favorites,the top strip is one of her fabrics,while the center one is something I had buried in my own stash,they both have roses all over.  So did you notice the problem with this side?

At first I thought that my iron was in dire need of being cleaned,that was not the problem though because after taking a minute to clean it,I realized that it was not dirty.  So the only thing I can figure is that  the iron was too hot for the fabric sheet that I used to print my label on.

At first I was so upset about the scorch mark (the large one at the bottom of the label) but after I took a minute to get a grip... and decided that since this was not fixable,I made a couple other smaller controlled scorch marks on purpose.  Why would I do that?  Well,while getting a grip my thoughts were what would mom say when I tell her how this happened?  She would probably say something like,that just makes it look like it is aged/antique...

My good friend Jamie suggested that a scrappy binding would look great on this quilt,I really liked the idea and decided to do just that.  Thanks Jamie,I really love it :0)  In spite of the little mis-hap on the back side,which by the way mom would say "adds character" I am very happy with how this one turned out!

Linking up over at the finishes party   My first of many (that is the plan anyway) finishes for 2013!!

Weekend Sewing

This past weekend I had a sew fest!  The better part of the weekend was spent working of getting mom's quilt done.  Even with all of that sewing it still was not finished when I went to bed last night.

However all that was lacking was to connect the binding and then sew it onto the front,which I did after dinner tonight!

This is a quick shot I snapped off after all of the blocks were sewn together,no backing or binding,just the blocks and batting.

Just out of the dryer :@)  I am hoping to get some photos tomorrow on my lunch break or after work,but we will see if the weather is in a cooperative mood,or not.  Hopefully so,because I only have a couple days left to link up my finish for this month over at A Lovely Year of Finishes - January Finishes Party  Have a great night!

A Ripping Good Time (Not)

  Good Morning peeps in blog land :0)  Did you have a busy week,or was it kind of laid back?  Mine was super busy,and productive too.  Well,that is after all the ripping of mini star blocks,and re-sewing them!  Yep,story of my sewing life.

Here are all 16 of them,all stacked up and ready to be sewn into a nice new row,row 9 to be exact.

That is until I took this photo and realized,that Huston,we have a problem!  The one on the left is what they are supposed to look like.  Unfortunately,it is was the only one of the 16 that I sewed correctly :0(  Why is it that I never see things like this until taking photos?

Dang that Murphy anyway!@&*!  Moving on....

Here they are next to my blocks for mom's quilt blocks,just to give you an idea of how small they are.

Twinkly Winter Stars all re-sewn together!  They are very cute,and very Done :0)

Last night I finished sewing the last block for mom's quilt,AKA,Star Granny quilt (the name I have decided on).  This morning is grey and cloudy,it is supposed to snow!  Thank goodness there is no wind yet,because the first thing I did was to grab all the blocks and run outside to spray baste them!

After breakfast,it was off to sew up my January bee block.  A stripy dresden plate in blue tone on tones with white.  Thank goodness this one went together without a hitch :0)

The rest of my day will be spent working on getting the Star Granny quilt blocks quilted!  Hope you all are having a wonderful weekend ;0)

Mid ~ month check in (a tad late) for A Lovely Year of Finishes

Well here it is Sunday night again,I am thinking 3 day weekends would work much better for me.  How about you?  Yes it is a bit past the middle of the month,but since the Linky party at Melissa's is open until tomorrow evening (Monday)  not too late!

If you remember I am making a quilt for my mom this month,due to be finished by January 31st.  The original plan was for the blocks to be Granny Squares,then I thought,it would be nice to have more than one block used in the quilt.  So the top block on the stack in the above photo is the second block I chose to use.  At the moment the name eludes me,but it is something like Patchwork Star.  It is one of the blocks pinned on one of my pinterest boards.

The Granny Squares blocks work up pretty quickly,especially since the squares are 3 inches,the extra little border is to make the block the same size as the Patchwork Star block,which on the other hand is taking quite a bit more time to make.  However,the end result is very worth it!

A closer look at the yellow Patchy Star block.  It kind of strikes me that although yellow is not normally one of my colors of choice,this and the granny square in yellow are two of my favorite blocks so far :0)

The twelve blocks that are finished!  This is turning out a lot better than what my mind had pictured,which is way cool!  The plan was to have 16 blocks done by the end of the weekend,however due to some sewing issues (that will be another post this week) that didn't happen.  Guess 12 is good enough for now,since there is still a couple weeks to go.

Enjoy your week!

BOM Fabric choices & Winner Reveal!

Hey gang,hope everyone had a great week :)  It was a busy hoppin week for me,what with all the blogs to read on the hop,and then all the emails to respond to!  There wasn't much time for sewing,but I did manage to squeeze in a few minutes here and there ;)

As promised I have a Giveaway & Winner to Reveal!!!  Mr. Random has spoken....

Judy B's was the seventh comment,so ConGratuLations to Judy who said...
What a wonderful idea to make flags with words!  Thank you for sharing and the giveaway.

I have already contacted Judy to let her know she is the winner :0)  Thank you to everyone who hopped by and left me a Sweet comment!  You peeps Rock ;0)  Thanks also to those of you who took the time to read my post,you also Rock!

Here is a bit of Eye Candy for you Judy,this will be heading your way sometime early next week ;0)  Six different fat quarters of text/wordy fabric a little pattern and some alphabet beads too.  Hope you like it,and can find some quilty/crafty projects to use it in.

Although I have yet to get my fabric choice for the BOM over at Pile O' Fabric  posted to the Flickr Group they have been chosen!  With the exception of the background fabric,because I want to use something from my stash,but am undecided about what color to use.  So,that being said,please leave me a comment with your opinion,I would greatly appreciate it :0)

These Over the Rainbow Batiks are what I will be using!  Pretty excited about that,as I really love batiks,and these are so bright and cheery :0)

Here they are with Kona Medium Gray on the left and Kona Ash on the right (in the background).  I am leaning toward the Kona Ash,or maybe black...  What would you choose,one of my colors,or something else perhaps??

Hope you all enjoy the Weekend!

In A Word Blog Hop (words 2 describe me)

Hey fellow hoppers,visitors,followers,lurkers,and stalkers...Welcome to my day to post some words about me :)

Firstly tho,a few words about Linda our Wonderful CheerLeader for this hop.  Without her organization and encouraging words,not to mention all of the inspiring tutorials she posted for us,I for one would have been a whole lot less Wordy ;)

Also a Big Shout Out to the One and Only Madame Samm who is always thinking on her feet,and coming up with the most wonderful ideas for these Blog Hops :)  Be sure to take a minute or 99... to hop on over and check out both of their blogs for oodles of Great Stuff!

Below is a list of links to all of the other lovely ladies who are also posting their own words today!  So Hop around to each blog for some Awesome Wordy Posts :)

Monday, January 14

Gracie Oliver Arts (Jeanie)

Clothes and Crafts (Maria K.)

Cherrys Prairie Primitives (Cherry E.)

Simple Sew (Shirley T.)

Woolie Mammoth (Anna B.)

RocknQuilts (Mary Ann)

Celynn's Sunflower Patch (Celynn) You are here ;)

A Quilting Sheep (Amy)

Sane and Crazy Quilting (Cathy L.)

Quiltsmiles (Jane E.)

                                                    Feathered Nest Studio(Jennet)

On to my words...

The rules/guidelines for this hop were to use a word or words on fabric to describe ourselves and so let people get to know us better.  My inspiration came from seeing prayer flags on pinterest,you can read about the project here 

The first flag I made is the one on the left,with the word Believe,on the right is the second with the words Marine Mom,Here,and the square reads,Home is where the Heart is.  These two go hand in hand,which anyone who has a loved one in the Military knows all to well.  Especially when your loved one is deployed!  

The third and fourth flags...  "Life has no Blessing like a Good Friend" although I have not had many,because I have always been a little shy (which you would probably not guess if you just read my blog and have not met me in person) the ones I have are a True Blessing :) I used a few scraps to make the pinwheel center piece and hand wrote words that have to do with sewing.

Five,is made with buttons on scrap banners,another piece of scrap fabric that was attached with heat-n-bond,and fabric pens provided the color for flowers.  Six is yet another scrap with an antique sewing machine on it and the word quilter written in painters pen.

Seven,says Remember September-911 ~ Eight is in Remembrance of Sandy Hook
                           (These two speak for themselves)

Nine,is my favorite saying,since I am a the glass is half full girl and always try to keep a positive attitude :)  So there you have my words,which may or may not tell you something(s) you did not already know about me! 

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of the Hop ;)

Everyone who comments will be entered to win a surprise giveaway!  I will reveal the winner and what they have won on Friday evening :)
                                                          

An Icy Weekend!

This weekend Mr. P and I ran away for a mini getaway :)  We went to Steamboat Springs Co.  Where it was Freezing Cold!  In spite of the near to below zero temps,we still had a wonderful time :)

Last year my sis had sent us a groupon for the Ice Castles at Silverthorn Co.  Before we had the chance to go they were shut down,because of high temps that melted the ice.  The nice thing is that the groupon was extended to Feb first of this year :)  So after work on Friday off we went!

The view from our balcony on Saturday morning,looking towards ski time square,where the Ice Castles are located.

Mr. P talking to one of the photographers at the entrance to the Ice Castles.

There are 25 people who design the "Ice Castles"  There are signs posted at different spots that give little bits of info about how they are made and maintained.

I think it is just great the way Mr. P is totally okay with clipping my pink camera bag to his belt loop,and walking around with it there :)

When we arrived around noon it was a balmy 3 degrees!  The saving grace,there was no wind,but even with the sun out,and the ice castles all open/not enclosed at the top,the temp was still below zero.

We probably spent about an hour or so wandering around oohing and ahhhing at all the ice formations.

A shot of me all bundled up!  Notice my hands in my coat pockets?  They were pretty cold from taking photos,even with gloves on.  After checking out all the cool Ice we headed off to downtown for some shopping and more sight seeing.

Then after dark we ended up back at the Ice Castles to see them with the lights on,and watch the fireworks show!

If we thought that it was cold during the day,it was so cold after dark that I could not feel my fingers on the hand holding the camera!  Not sure what the temp was,but it was definitely well into the negatives!

This morning when we headed home it was -11 degrees,sure glad I was inside a nice warm car :)  When we arrived home around 2 this afternoon it was a balmy 10 degrees!

Hope you all had a warmer weekend than we did!  Even tho it was super cold,we had a wonderful weekend,and have memories for down the road...  Thanks T,you are the best sis,love you ;@)