Visit Your LQS Day

So Cheryl and I did the visit your LQS Day today and I came away with this sweet pile from Riley Blake's Lori Holt (Bee in My Bonnet).

I have been seeing these all over the internet and it was literally the first thing I saw when we walked in so...I took some home :)  Thank goodness for Christmas Gift Certificates.

If you aren't familiar with her blog you may want to check out the link, she has a really fun looking Row-along going...she's on houses now...

And speaking of texty fabric, there's still time to get in on a fabric swap on Flickr here, the deadline for mailing fat quarters is Feb 15.

Caught Up With Grandmother's Choice

So I am caught up with the Grandmother's Choice QAL and just finished ROW 3.  There will be a total of 49 blocks and we have now finished 21...only 28 more to go!!  Above you will see my simplified Parasol which I designed in EQ6 and paper pieced...I thought that it fit better with the overall style of the blocks that I have been making than the pattern Barbara presented here.

Here is my quilt so far...

I also changed block #19, Old Maid's Ramble to a diamond which I thought kind of resembles the Jane Austen quilt....ok, not really but I'm working with an 8" square, people!!  Lol! Barbara mentions Jane in the history lesson on #19 so I just couldn't resist trying to get her in there.

My quilt will have a few substitutions since I have not always followed the directions, yes, this is a trait I often exhibit...but I am happy with it so far and am still calling it the Peanut Butter Jelly quilt because the fabrics just sing that to me.  

I really suggest even if you choose not to make this quilt it is worthwhile to visit Barbara's blog and read the history lessons on Women Fighting For the Right to Vote...lots of fascinating information.

Grandmother's Choice Block #20

So I am 3 blocks behind on the Grandmother's Choice QAL but am working to catch up.  Here is the most current weeks block, Memory Wreath from this last Saturday.  Now I need to finish the others :)

And for some housekeeping, Mr. Random chose Marjorie from Marjorie's Busy Corner for the fat quarter giveaway on this post.  Congrats and please email me with your contact info Marjorie.

DQS13....Almost there...

Here are my rainbow thread choices...

I think I almost like the back better than the front...hmmm...

DQS13 Progress

I joined DQS13 on Flickr, my partner seems to favor rainbow colors and seems to dig paper piecing...I found this free star pattern called Rays of Hope on Carol Doak's site and am pretty pleased with how it came out.  Here's to hoping she likes it, lol!

I love the looks of paper piecing but am still not all that proficient at it.  I think I might see if my small quilt group Piecemaker's wants to have a go at this one for a group quilt.  It lends itself well to scraps.

In Your Words Blog Hop - My Day

Today is my day to share in the In Your Words Blog Hop. 

Thanks to Mdm Samm and Linda for organizing this hop, and giving us all another opportunity to share in what has become such a fun community of show and tell camaraderie and support for us all!! 

As usual, I am a bit sketchy on following the directions but here is my project...

A Self Portrait in fabric for my sewing room wall with texty goodness by Sweetwater called Mama Said Sew.  I made a fabric block and then had my husband make me a custom frame from 1"x2" pine to stretch it over similar to Rachel's at Stitched in Color project here.

And...Yes, it totally looks just like me and captures my essence of spirit to live, breathe and Quilt!!  The skirt is covered with the word "Sew" and the definition of Patchwork fills my face...words like "quilt the patches" and "variety" as well as hand embroidered "hair" complete me :)

I was inspired by a project by Carrie Payne in this magazine. 

You can find Carrie and her work at believemagic.com which is full of lots of beautiful inspiration.

Of course, we must have a giveaway...so how about a fat quarter of  my absolute all-time favorite texty fabric which (not coincidentally,lol) is what I used to make my face and body parts!

To win, you must include your email address if you are a no-reply blogger so I have a way to contact you!  I will leave this giveaway open until the last day of the hop on January 16th.

Thanks for joining me today and enjoy the rest of the hop!!  The links below will take you to the other fine contributors today...

Tuesday, January 8

Piece Peace (Patricia G.) 

A Stitch in Time (Patty D.)

krislovesfabric (Kris T.) <---this is me!

Marjorie's Busy Corner (Marjorie)

Grandmamas Stories (Jane H.)

Mrs. Pickles Garden (Hayley)

Patchouli moon Studio (Daryl P.)

Till We Quilt Again (Helen E.)

The Slow Quilter (Felicia F.)
Quilting With Terry and the Cats (Terry S.)

Block 1 for Beejeebers Bee

So my first ever bee Sew.Bee.Create did not continue from last year into 2013, but  Melissa invited me and a few of the others who wanted to continue into vacant spots in her other Bee, Beejeebers.

Erica was kind enough to start us out with January and selected a block inspired by Amanda Jean's birch trees quilt.  She asked for backgrounds in different warm colors like reds and purples and I chose Kona Cardinal.  Hopefully Erica likes it.  I am looking forward to seeing her completed quilt...it should be bright and colorful!

Back to Bees - January Block for Mo Stash

It is good for me that I joined two bees this year as well as a mini quilt swap.  It has given me deadlines and forced me back into quilting and posting...it was actually very cathartic to make these two blocks for Melissa (aka Grohsie on Flickr) from the Mo Stash bee that I belong to.  Her month is January and she chose this tutorial for a Patchwork Wheel from the blog Don't Call Me Betsy.
As I have very little blue in my stash, it is a good thing I have participated in some recent swaps so that I could do her chosen palette justice.  She is planning a bit of an ocean theme so I threw in the starfish and water bubbles.  The tutorial is very straight-forward and the blocks together form a kind of hidden star, which is fun.  I look forward to seeing her completed quilt.

Hard times and Quilting as Therapy

Quite frankly, I don't have the words to express what I wish to convey today. 
 I wasn't sure when I'd be ready to write this post.  As a general rule, I try to keep this blog positive, mainly about my quilting projects and not interject much personal.  But somewhere along the way I became friends with several of my readers and the outpouring of support when some of them found out about my family's recent loss caused me to rethink that rule.
I feel very blessed to be married into a kind and generous, loving family and it has never been clearer the love that they and I share for each other than through the recent experience of the loss of my husband's much younger brother on Christmas Day.  He was only 24 but lived life fully and completely with so many wonderful accomplishments and such a profound effect on everyone around him.  I had known him since he was 2 years old and he was the brother I never had, such a beautiful little boy who matured into such a great man.  My son adored his uncle and learned so much from his example. We will miss him greatly but are assured of his place in heaven as he was a strong Christian in belief as well as deed.  Matt, you will be so greatly missed, yes, I wish I had the words...