Busy with my stitching

It's been a great spring here, but I haven 't been outside working too much yet. I haven't been quilting much either. After I realized I had a few shirts in my closet that were more than 12 years old, I cleaned out my clothes closet for summer, went shopping and made a new shirt and new shorts. Making a little dent in the stash of fabric for clothes felt good.

Pam's challenge has to wait till I find the fabric to go with the design I have planned. I intend to find it in my stash. I tend to jump around from project to project so I finally got back to the red and purple strip tease quilt that I started at retreat. I finished the purple units.





Now I need to decide on the background. I already decided I don't want boring beige, and I don't want to go scrappy. So I tried these out cause I really don't want to have to buy anymore. Can you tell I tend to like fairly plain fabric? Maybe a shopping trip is in my near future. And maybe you can tell, I have not totally decided on the setting yet either.

I had an uneven width log cabin class. It's always kinda fun watching the lightbulb go on in everyone's head. The idea is to use up all the little scraps that you don't want to toss, nor do you want to cut specific sizes or shapes from them. These go fastest if all the scraps are sorted lights from darks and then organized by length and of course chain piece. To see a few of these, click on log cabins in my list of posts at the left. Okay, my other left.

Also, I took in 15 more kits to church. Lucrecia had helped me with 10 of them and I did another 5. Nine attended last Tuesday, so many of the kits went home right away. And we had 1 new gal and I am expecting another new gal next month. Should be fun.

Spring challenges

What a beautiful spring we have had. I was really torn between going to the Crazy Quilter's
annual quilt show and staying home and working in the garden. I hate missing the show. I see so many old friends there. Of course I went to the show. I figured the garden wouldn't sprout too many weeds in one day.

I am always so inspired when I go to a quilt show - to buy more fabric. I was doing a pretty good job too of resisting until I ran into Pam. I haven't stopped by Pamella's Place for quite a while now. I told her how I enjoyed it a few years ago when I had her pick out fabric for me to make a couple of quilts for class samples.

These were the class samples for a 5 session class covering all the Thirtysomething units. We made sampler blocks in class, not these quilts. I really enjoyed the challenge of working with fabrics I wouldn't normally choose. I like to claim that I LIKE ALL fabrics, I just don't buy or use it all. I haven't the time! Ok, That is probably not the whole truth. So, at the show I suggested she pick out some more for me. And in less than a minute she picked out the two bundles of batiks shown below.

I am kind of stumped now with this new challenge. I have an idea or two. I don't have to use them all, and I can add up to 6 more fabrics. Should be interesting.

Are you up for a challenge? I could send you a bundle of fabric from our Church stash if you'd like. Let me know.
Here's hoping you get to enjoy spring in between some quilting stitches. I know - it's a challenge. Sew long.

Giveaway winners announced

As promised, I have two winners to announce.

Save the Scraps goes to Deanna at czereyna@yahoo
and Twin Peaks goes to NannaBonnie in Florida.

Ladies, you need to get me your address if you want to claim your prize.

Save the Scraps seemed the more popular of the two books, though many would have been happy with either. I'm kinda glad to hear that, because I have another scrap book due out late this fall. Thanks everyone for participating. It has been fun checking out your blogs.
Stay tuned for another giveaway this summer for my Birthday!

I haven't had a chance to quilt all week. But I did get my taxes done, visit with my sister from PA, and review the editors changes to my manuscript. With all that out of the way, I will be anxious to get in the garden in good weather. I will have to be sure not to overdue it so I am tooo tired for quilting. Wish me luck, and the same to you.

Master Textile Coordinator

There is still time to enter my Giveaway!

Textile Management Specialist or Master Textile Coordinator? Call me what you want, but Shelly did have a cute idea over at her blog post on Monday. What job title would you give your quilting occupation?

I liked Master Textile Coordinator for me. Just a half hour after I got back from retreat a few weeks ago, I got a call from one of my church basement quilting ladies. Lois said she had 7 trash bags full of fabric from Donna's house. Her family wanted it to go to charity after she died. Mind you we only got about a fourth of it. The photo here is from before Donna's contribution. If we get anymore soon, church will have more than I do!


As the official kit coordinator (or Master Textile Coordinator) for our group, Lois wanted to know where I wanted it. Before the contribution I would have said half our stash is here and half at church. Now I clearly have two thirds. I was thinking we could use a few more volunteers when Lucrecia called. She'd been back less than a week from her winter home in Panama (yes, the country) and offered to help me assemble kits. She was here Friday afternoon and we put together about 10 kits. I was pleased with what we got done. There is another 6 or 7 kits that I hope to finish coordinating before we meet on the 20th. It was kind of nice thinking I didn't have to do it all myself. Lucrecia is a fairly new quilter and did a fine job. I was glad for the help.

I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday weekend and enjoying their friends and family and has great weather. I don't expect I will be quilting much this week; I am having company from out of town AND spring is here. Sew long.