Freckled Whimsy: Happy 1st Birthday!

Freckled Whimsy: Happy 1st Birthday!

Okay, Miss KarrieLyne over at Freckled Whimsy is one of the sweetest bloggers I've met online. She has designed some pretty cool recipes for Moda Bake Shop and her blog is a 'must read' ... If that doesn't encourage you to head over to her site to check her out, this will, she's celebrating her blog's first birthday with a giveaway of some Kate Spain goodies. Trust me, even without the giveaway, Karrie is worth a visit!

Enjoy and hugs to you!

Christmas Wrap Up & Jan/Feb Goals

So ...I figured before I could set goals for January and February I had to first complete the Christmas presents I wanted to make for some dear friends ... therefore here are some shots of those gifts to wrap up my Christmas items:

This & That's Whimsy Wallet pattern

Pink Penguin's Reversible Tissue Box Cover which I found on her wonderful blog here

 

Though these pictures don't do the fabric any justice, I got two mug rugs made with my Sweetwater Label Crew kits ...again, gave them as gifts ... luckily the kit came with enough to make four so there's still a chance I'll make one for me :)  You can find out more info about this kit here.

Oh ... and look what the mail man brought me yesterday ... 

Remember back in November when Quiltmaker's 100 Block Blog Tour was happening? Well, I was so fortunate to have won at The Quilt Nook but Ms. Cara was delayed in getting things mailed out.  Oh darn!  She added in a few things because she was sending this out so late ... big time bonus! 

Thank you Cara!!

And as for this block ... well I had to include it because ...

well, Why Knot? ... lol

I got a telephone call last week from a lady who had joined a quilt sew along of somekind at work ... then she fractured her wrist.  She called a LQS in town who did not return her calls or were too busy to call her back.  Then, she called my favorite LQS who referred her to me.  Of course I'd sew it for her I said!  She was so relieved!  I guess someone in her group had been after her to get it done ... don't know the circumstances, but needless to say ... I learned something new and I got to help a fellow quilter too.  Big time bonus for me!! This was totally out of my realm of patterns, material, what have you ... but by the time I got done, I thought ... huh ... not bad :)  Never know what waits for you around a corner, now do we?

Okay ... on to my quilting goals for January / February:

I'm not one to normally write down goals, but I thought maybe this would help me stay organized and give me some stick-to-it-iveness ...

(Yes I know, that's not a word, so throw the dictionary at me!!)

1.  Construct and quilt client's baby quilt

2.  Construct and quilt client's lone star quilt

3. Construct and quilt client's t-shirt quilt 

4. Construct and quilt Downy's Quilt for Kids quilt

5.  Construct and quilt baby alphabet quilt

6.  Construct and quilt second baby quilt before #5's brother/sister is born.

7. Keep up with postage stamp sew along quilt

8. Start and keep up with Block a Palooza Waiting for Spring quilt

9. Bind my Star BOM quilt

10. Bind my Sunday Squares wallhanging

11. Enjoy doing all of the above

12. Don't feel guilty if I don't complete said goals stated above.

ROFLMAO!!!!

These are obviously dream goals ... maybe that's why I never write them down, I can't keep a straight face when I get down to the end because I know I'll never finish them all ....

Goal for March--leave enough room to carry forward list of uncompleted projects from Jan./Feb.  lol

Thanks for your support friends!  I appreciate all of your wonderful comments and suggestions!!

~hugs~ Wendy

Word Up ...

Okay, Kelly's challenge theme for the Charming Girls Quilt Club this month is to choose a word for the year. We're to choose a word the identifies what we'd like to see more of in our lives in 2011 - what we want to cultivate in our lives!  I'll say this, I've given this a lot of thought and I think I've finally determined my word ...

Persevere

Uplifting? Reflective? Hopeful? I don't know if my word reflects these meanings at first glance, but for me, in my life, I think it's the right word for the coming year...

With ordinary talent and extraordinary perseverance,

all things are attainable.

~Thomas Foxwell Buxton

When the world says, "Give up," 

Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."

~Author Unknown

Despite who may come or go in your life, what others may or may not say, what obstacles are thrown in or out of your way,  persevere ... have faith in your God and yourself. 

 Tackle that stash, that quilt, that project, that ...

whatever .... just ... 

Who Knew ... Me A Covergirl/Centerfold!

LOL ... Got your attention didn't I?!?!?!!  LOL

No, really, I have fun saying that... not very often, but still... the reactions are hilarious !

Here's the lowdown ....  When I first began quilting, let's see, some seven years ago now, my very dear friend was teaching me (brave lady that she is!!) and I just had my second and youngest baby, Miss Abbie.  Not knowing very much about the rules of quilting, fabrics, color choices and how to actually go about the mystery of making a "baby quilt,"  but wanting to make a quilt for my darling baby, I grabbed whatever scraps I could find from my "stash" that caught my eye and designed and made the happy little flower quilt you see pictured on the front of Fons & Porter's Quilting Easy Quilts Summer 2008 magazine:

i.e.  Covergirl

This happened quite by accident. Fons & Porter had been running a baby quilt contest at the time I made this quilt.  My very dear friend suggested I enter my quilt.  Newbie to the quilting world that I was, I didn't know any better, so I entered. lol ... Needless to say, I didn't win the baby quilt contest, but I found out F&P deemed my humble quilt worthy of entry into their Easy Quilts baby quilts magazine issue!  Holy Cow!!  How cool is that!!  How could a person not feel they didn't win when this is the result of losing? lol

Then, to top it off, not only did I, a very new quilter, get published in this holy grail of quilting magazines, but I made the cover!  Way cool!!!  Oh, and the Centerfold part of my funny .... well, if you open the magazine to the very center, my quilt again is pictured with the directions to my Happy Flowers baby quilt immediately following.  Me. A girl from small town Montana in a nationally published magazine. 

Can you say ..... Holy Cow Poop!

I found myself saying that if I would have know this quilt would have ended up where it did, I would have made better color choices, or better quilting choices, or better ....  Obviously, someone thought it was "good enough" the first time and I didn't have to second guess myself.

Oh My Goodness?  How do I possibly follow this up?  LOL  ... Expectations, expectations for yourself!!  Well, I've since learned about quilting "rules," quality fabrics, proper tools and what it means to follow my instincts no matter what or how much advice others offer.  I love the process of piecing a quilt as much as I now enjoy quilting and completing a quilt.

To all the newbie quilters, sometimes its more fun to do it your way.  While its safer and more often easier to follow every rule, sometimes when you stray from the path of expectations, fun creativity happens... you might just find yourself a new passion, just as I did years ago listening to and absorbing all I could from those experienced and talented quilters that were willing to teach, but trusting my own instincts in my own creativity.

To all the experienced quilters, thank you for taking the time to introduce your talents and skills to us newer quilters.  What a joy it is to learn so many tips and tricks from such gifted teachers.  However, please be patient with us if we choose a different direction or slightly different technique.  We are still truly grateful and appreciative for the time and knowledge you so graciously share!

Take it from  Covergirl/Centerfold ... have fun with your quilting, do what you want and follow your own rules ... you never know where it might take you.

~hugs to you~

Wendy

I WON THE BLOGGERY!!!!

That's right folks! I won me the bloggery!  Who needs the lottery?!?!  Money can't buy love :) And I got me all kinds of bloggy-love goin' on!!!  Yes, yes, yes ... Snoopy happy dance happin' here!!

LOL

Would you kindly take a moment from my mild hysteria to glance around my beautiful new blog?!!!

OH

MY

GOODNESS!!!

Apparently, I kept someone awake... oh darn (NOT!!) lol

Apparently, someone likes me ... aw gee shucks! {sheepish grin, here}

When I began my blog last spring, it was at the encouragement of a very good friend and I have to say she really had to talk me into it.  I knew nothing of blogging nor of the blogging world.  I had heard the word bandied about, but never really investigated what a "blog" was.  Well low and behold, I was introduced to Amy's Creative Side and her marvelous Blogger's Quilt Festival, but, you needed a blog in order to participate. So ... I thought "why not do it?"  Then, holy cow, the name????  This took me several more days to ponder.  I'm not clever.  When I try to be funny, I fall flat.  So, then I thought, "Why Knot"?  Hey that works.  Now, look what I've become!!!

OH. MY. GOODNESS.

I can say this: 1) I have discovered some of the most terrific people through blogging and 2) if it weren't for my kids, I'd totally crawl into my computer and live here in bloggy-land you all are so wonderful!

Madame Samm, you have done more for me and helping start my New Year in a happier place than you can ever possibly know!  I truly hope you soon find a lulliby to help you sleep.  No one, and I mean No One, will be able to wipe this smile from my face for weeks!!!  Thank you a million times over!!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of you!!

~hugs~

What to say???

Well, for starters .....   Happy New Year!!!

I spent the funnest New Year's Eve participating in a Twitter Party hosted by Stitchin' Heaven. Imagine that! I'm a super newbie to Twitter, but with the whole family asleep by 9:30 p.m. on New Year's Eve, and seeing the invites to the NYE Twitter Party ... well, what the heck, I tried it.  Loved it!!  Met some really fun quilters, visited with friends from other blogs and even won a 5-pack of Aurifil thread. How cool is that?!?!  So ... I didn't get to sleep until 3 a.m., but it was fun!!  And this year, I had a story to share about what I did on New Year's Eve beyond watching the ball drop on the boob-tube.

I've been reading so many New Year's blog posts, and while I really wanted to add my Happies to everyone elses, I didn't feel I had much to add beyond the Happy part.  I've never been one for making resolutions, though this year I am resolving to save a bit more money until I produce more from quilting by using up more of my stash ... thank you Stash Manicure and all the Lovelies that blog there!

Here is a project I started New Years weekend:

Many of you may remember the wonderful Moda honey bun of Soiree I won ... well, I had used some strips here and there for other projects so the honey bun was unwound and sitting in a pile in my sewing room.  I decided something needed to be made with them.  This table runner is what I came up with.  I think this pretty will be very nice for a spring time touch to my dining table or my entry table ... well, once it's quilted ... who knows when that will happen :-) ... maybe that will be my next resolution, finish quilting my projects before starting the next? hahahaha

Then .... I figure this doesn't go against my new resolution of less spending because I did actually purchase it last year ... lol .... but this pile of lovely beauty happens to be a fat-eighth bundle of Sweetwater's Sunkissed plus some half yard cuts from Fat Quarter Shop for participating in the first-ever Bloggers' Block-a-palooza Waiting for Spring quilt along, for which you may have noticed the button on the right hand side of my blog.  Gorgeous!!  And, of course, who can live without a charm pack if they can have it?  Plans for it right now?  Nah ... but I'm sure a nice table topper or wall hanging would look beautiful in my home ;-).

And this nifty little Hexie-Caddy is actually a Christmas present I haven't been able to deliver yet.  I really and truly made this by hand.  Wow!  Oh wait, as I type this, I remember that the middle insert that you see in orange ... well, I did a teeny-tiny zigzag stitch on the sewing machine so I could get it finished quicker.  Okay, so I cheated myself.  But I'm okay with that!  lol  The pattern was from a free tutorial offered over at Pennys Hands' blog.  She has some wonderful projects and well worth the trip over if you have a moment.

Well, I've still got plenty of little stash piles around my sewing room to clear out, plent of Christmas presents I didn't get made (oh my goodness, and no, the world DID NOT come to an end) that I guess I best be getting back to the piles to see if I can create and share more another time.  Wish me luck and if you don't hear from me for a bit of time, please friends of mine ... come looking for me!  On never knows what lurks under those piles of good intentions! LOL

Best wishes to each of you dear people that give me such encouragement with your very kind comments, I truly appreciate you!

Quiltastic day to you and many warm hugs ~

Wendy