Lucky Day

The final stitches for this Retreat have been sewn and Beach House is now a quilt top. Thank you all for checking in and keeping me sewing. Today was a challenge even though I only had 6 seams to sew...the phone kept ringing and I wondered if I could even get them done. But alas, I did and even got the photograph uploaded. Next week I will hope to get it quilted and stitch an extra wide lime green border on it.

Mr Luckypup has helped me with the draw for the give away and I'm happy to announce that Darlene from Quilting Daze is the winner of the pink sewing tin. I will send it off with some Valentine treats inside and good wishes for many daze of happy stitching. (Darlene, please email me your snail addy :-)

Today was also my lucky day as I received this lovely package from Marj at Eclectic Quilter who had sent this lovely blue fabric and bluebird pattern.

I enjoy reading your blog, Marj, and will have a good time with this fabric and pattern. Thank you!

back to stitching

Yesterday was taken up with doctors and errands and a hot fudge sundae for my injured DH. But is was a productive day and the sun was shining.
Today, I have my helpers ready to go here and we are sewing the rows together on Beach House. Instead of purchasing backing fabric, I actually found two choices right in my own stash. I am going with Mr Luckypup's choice of a blue check from an older line from Robyn Pandolph when she was with Moda.

I found an ironing board cover for me and some Valentine's candy to share.

More later...and the name of the give away winner :-)

It's a beautiful day!

Day Two with Beach House

We are off to a good start here. Elinor is checking out my work. The dog girls are keeping me company just outside the path to the ironing board.
I was able to make more blocks for a bigger quilt 52 x 65 or so. I even have enough fabric to make the extra wide binding so this is cool. The 'retreat' will be interrupted tomorrow while I take my mom to the doc's in the morning and Mr Luckypup to the orthopod doc in the afternoon. This will however facilitate me shopping for some backing for this quilt. I'm hoping someone has some Beach House fabric or something else beautiful that will work. I have a 30% off coupon at Beverly's so I'm hoping 'she' is the one :-)

The rain 'storm' didn't start till after midnight but has continued at a respectable pace till now. I think it is slowing enough to get out for dog walking.

We will dress appropriately...mainly just to entertain the neighbors.

Hope to keep stitching with you after our walk. Thank you all for joining in!

Beach House Progress

Bridget, here in the 'dog cave' by my sewing chair was my only help at the start. We cleaned and oiled the machine and got to sewing the charm squares I had cut. The pattern turned out to be even easier than I had remembered...that is if I ever looked at it. In not wanting to let a fabric group go by without me having a part of it, I seem to have gotten into the habit of buying quilt kits without too much concern for the pattern. I just know I want the fabric and don't have the wherewithal at the time to come up with my own idea of what to do with it. This one is working out well because I really don't have alot of time or brain power at the moment for something complex. I am just having fun. This fabric is lovely.
The pattern, I think, is a free one from the Moda site called Charm Thursday. (I'll include it in the give away box) It uses the charm squares without much cutting and no waste.

Bridget and I finally got some assistance after we got to sewing. Marianne showed up to make sure I knew what I was doing.
Mosley wanted to see if he was being left out. And Elinor thought she would just get some exercise in since we were all busy.
Apparently that wore Mosley out.
Then Sandy finally came in to check on the party.


It is too wild here :-) I have 63 blocks sewn which is the number I think I need although I have alot of charms left over so maybe it could be bigger. I'll lay it out tomorrow and see how it goes. I'll have more pressing to do when I see which way they are going together.

Quilting Retreat at the Beach and a Giveaway

The dogs have been walked, the groceries purchased, wood brought in for the fireplace and the storm is late arriving...I think it is time to sew!
I could work on UFO's but I think it is time to pull out something kind of new...as in I bought this kit last spring at the quilt show. Still feels new to me.
It is a fast and simple pattern with gorgeous Moda charm squares and some faded lime green for a wide binding.
To celebrate finally getting a good start here, I'm inviting anyone with free time to join me. I'll share some pics of how it's going as well as the chocolate and beverage of choice (mine is English Breakfast or Diet Coke, of course).
I was listening to Sarah Boyle and have moved on to Michael Smith. Let me know your suggestions for music. I love it all.
And for an early start to Valentine's, I have a cute pink sewing notions box for a give away. More surprises inside that of course will include some sweets for the sweet.
So please join in if you can and sew through the storm at the beach with me. This retreat will be stitching it's way on through Thursday and I'll announce the winner that evening. Extra entries will be for the quilters who have already added themselves as followers since my Humble beginning but all who leave a comment will be included in the draw. Mr Luckypup will help with the draw even though he only has the use of his left paw. Thank you all for the fun start in blog land.

what a week

Started out Sunday with the first of the California storms. Monday morning was my presentation for work...it was going OK...didn't think I was too nervous until my mouth was dry and it sounded like I was slurring my words. I think my body was betraying me! Came home and took the dogs for a walk during a brief lull in the rain and came back to find DH waiting patiently for me to take him to my place of employment...the ER. Poor guy tripped on a cord and was afraid he had broken his shoulder. He did :-(
So for several weeks, he is stuck with a sling and shoulder immobilizer till it heals. Fortunately, it is not likely to need a surgical fix. He is doing pretty well and knows from lots of experience how to treat his nurse, cook, chauffeur, and you name the skill...

Then sometime Tuesday, I think?, most of the town lost power and cable (read TV and internet!) Bummer...although, remember this? At least we had heat and lights and a refrigerator that kept food from spoiling. We were so glad that we finally got that job completed. The cable and town power wasn't restored till Thursday and then had a few more hitches Friday but we have been back online without further troubles so far.

Once I recover from this weekends shifts, I'll see if there is hope for any quilting but bigger priorities seem to be prevailing at the moment. Things could be much worse so I am just feeling grateful for the supports already in place...like a back up generator and NO trees falling on my mom's house or ours.
Take care y'all. I hope to have quilt progress pics to show again soon.

something fun I learned

I always crack up at what they call 'strikeouts' when I read them in others blogs. It is when you write a word then 'cross it out' in a fashion that still shows it for reading. Like I am enraged mildly irritated.
My DH helped me learn how to do it the other day when I asked. It was a treat to myself for learning PowerPoint :-) Now I just hope I can come up with another example to use.
He said it was my first use of HTML...hypertext markup language.
Like: I have my sewing room messily creatively arranged.

If anyone else is interested... I don't seem to be able to type the explanation...it keeps just crossing out the words! But I learned by googling the word strikeout and another person's blog came up with the explanation.

still waiting for the time to sew

The tiny baby quilt is being sent off today but not a single stitch or rotary cut has followed that finish. Instead I am learning PowerPoint and putting together a presentation on Strokes for next week's Base Station meeting...not all bad as there are handsome firemen and medics attending :-)

The funny thing though is that when I was in grad school, IBM Selectric was the big deal. PowerPoint and the Internet is quite a different playing field! Fortunately, I don't have to re-invent the wheel here and can use the wonderful information from the American Heart Association and some other stroke sites.

On a happier note...no strokes here...my mom celebrated her 88th birthday in style. And her sweet adorable dog, Ruby is still very photo worthy.

Next week however...I'm sewing!

some computer learning and blocks

New baby scheduled for a friend next month and I'm using up leftover blocks from the last baby quilt to make one for her. In trying to balance out the dark and the similar, I use my camera as a 'design wall'. In the camera software(on the computer) I finally figured out how to put the pictures side by side to compare and see which order I liked best. I think I'm going with the one on the left.

Next I want to learn how to attach the 'button' for Bunny Tales new block of the month. I've got the picture but want it to be a live button so readers can check out her site. Any hints?

And for work...I'm hoping to learn PowerPoint for a presentation I need to do soon. Busy year of learning already!

well, wahoo! I just figured out that 'button' thing. Check out Bunny Tales