Final day of the "Shake Your Pom Poms" Blog Hop/checking in

First, let me thank all of you who stopped by my little spot in blogger land yesterday to see what I had crafted for the hop.  Many of you left such sweet comments that made me smile and in some cases, out right laugh!  I am surprised my husband did not come in just to see what I thought was so funny.  You see, he does not think I have much of a sense of humor but I think it is all in the delivery (read: his delivery, LOL).  When he catches me really laughing then he wants in on the joke!

You warmed my heart and I just want you to know that I appreciate it.  Won't you stop by and brighten up the last day grouping as well?   

April 30

I Like To Quilt Blog

Sew Incredibly Crazy

Thimblemouse & Spouse

Cate`s Linens

Around the Homestead

Buzzing and Bumbling

les passions de Cliodana

Bumbleberry Stitches

Sew We Quilt

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Skyler wants to think those of you who commented about what a good kitty helper he is.  He is tired and has to rest up now though.  At least the sun is out today and he can nap in the bedroom perch between cool off spells on the bed.

Around here I have been keeping busy but not necessarily with anything piecing, quilting, sewing, knitting.  I know my local pals would find that hard to believe since they think that is all I ever do or think I get "so much done".  Okay, I have my moments but mostly I do try to stay on track especially since I have deadlines with the blog hops to consider.

DJ's birthday was on Sunday but we had elected to go to eat for lunch on Saturday at one of his favorite restaurants.  I barely got the marketing done and it was time to chase off to Oxford.  I ended up clearing up the paperwork piles along with typing the guild minutes as well as preparing my hop post.  Mdm. Samm and her designated cheerleader want us to be sure to schedule these for 12 a.m. ET of our day---that means 11 pm central for me.

I also needed to bake his birthday cake on Saturday evening.  When I asked him what kind he had wanted, he quipped "what kind can you make?"  Well just about anything you want, or I can at least try, I said handing him my "Cake Mix Doctor" cookbook because I knew it had some great color plates in it.  He chose a two layer Caramel Cake.  Okay works for me other than having frosting fly about everywhere trying to frost the sides----the frosting hardens as it cools but in its hot state, it was puddling up.  Silly boy asked me if we could stick one big candle in it and get up at 0530, the hour of his birth, to have cake on Sunday.  He was kidding, of course, but for a minute or two he had me going!  I could have gotten two big fat 7's though just so he could blow something out but that just seems cruel to remind someone of their age.  Or I am projecting??  Maybe.  At some point some people become proud of that number because they made it that far.

Sunday I made him Brats and German Potato salad for his real birthday lunch.  He was still complimenting the meal when eating leftovers yesterday so I guess he was happy with it.   The budget wouldn't stretch this week for steaks and any other fancy dancy meal but he is a man of simple tastes anyway.  We had quite a bit of rain yesterday and wouldn't you know about the time I needed to toast the buns and flip the brats it started sprinkling? 

I have spent some time working on one of my entries for the "Say It with Flowers" blog hop--the handwork project the past few days but it is not completed yet.  I am debating whether to take this with me to the guild sew-in on Friday and Saturday.  The plan for today is to pull fabrics for the main entry and get started on some preliminary cutting.  We'll see how things look come time to pack things up for the guild event.  I do like to keep busy!

Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have a wonderful day--------

Day 4 "Shake Your Pom Poms" Blog Hop----my day!

Today is my day to participate in the "Shake Your Pom Poms" Blog Hop.  Thanks to Thearica, our head cheerleader for this keeping us on the straight and narrow, cheering us on.  Thanks to Mdm. Samm of Sew We Quilt  for coming up with another fun theme.  She does a lot of things behind the scenes to make these hops run so seamlessly and it keeps us coming back for more fun!  Thank you also to our sponsors this round Clover, Red Rooster and Aurifil.

I share my day with this group of quilters/ bloggers/ pom pom crafters so please hop on over to see what they have been up when your visit is over here------

April 29

Accio Fabric

Quiltsmiles

Scrapbook-chickadoodle

In The Sewing Basket

life, quilts and a cat too     !!!! THAT'S ME !!!!
Debby Kratovil Quilts

Just Let Me Quilt

Meadowbrook

So without further delay how about I share what I have been making since the pom pom theme was announced?  I started off first with a row of bunnies with pom pom tails since I needed to have this done in April for the quilt guild row of the month.

I opted to use an Appli-quilt bunny (Tonee White) rather than the one in the "Seasons in a Row" pattern this month.  The bunnies were made from warm and natural batting and stitched down with perle cotton---not the easiest thing to needle, in retrospect, but I like the textural look of them.

Around here however, white pom poms in particular are cat toys.  Skyler was doing his darnedest to get that pom pom off the bunny but alas, no front claws.  Biting at it didn't work either!

Then I moved on to my main entry----and I had the hot glue burns to show for it.  A few Christmases back I had to toss my old, bedraggled looking wreaths.  I had spent some time looking in Pinterest for ideas and came upon a tutorial at Crosbie Crew.   I needed a crafty looking wreath so here was my chance!!  Kill two birds with one stone, right??

12 inch styrofoam form covered front and back primarily because I could quit figure out where to stop hot gluing.  I think I went with through about 10 bags of pom poms to make this and even then had to rob Skyler's stash of white "puff balls" as we call them around here, LOL

White is hard to photograph I found as either it glares with the flash or looks slightly purple. ( Shown from a slightly different angle here).  The tutorial showed using traditionally colored Christmas sparkly pom poms but I love these little neon colored ones.  Actually it goes rather well with the print fabrics I am going to use for a tree skirt for my niece.  HMMMM think she gets this one or I make another??

You guessed it, Skyler still wanted to play with this too!  He likes the sparkly ones as it turns out and ran off with this one when I was still trying to glue them in place.  I think he thinks they are bugs or something as he has really gotten rambunctious with them, more than the boring white ones.

Here, he is attacking the wreath itself from another angle.

Moving on----
I also wanted to play with the pom pom makers.  These are just plain fun!  Mdm. Samm is right about them making a full, nicely packed pom pom.  Very little trimming required to shape them.  I made one in each size just to show the size that they span.  Really I don't see a lot of difference between the two smallest ones, only about 5 mm which is not much while the others jump in size more dramatically.  I wish I had had these when I had to make my husband a set of golf head covers as that dinner plate sized one would have been great!

I did knit up two hats so I could use them for their intended purpose.  Since the fall of 2012 I have been knitting a bit to help a long time friend who makes them for school kids in her area of Tennessee.  When the box is full, I mail them off.  I believe I have made about 25 or 30 or so at this point???  (Thanks to my pal Marilyn for letting me borrow her wig form!)  I may have to knit more hats just to use the pom poms I did up, LOL.

Lastly, when I was ordering all those bags of pom poms I saw these little cat key rings kits.  You know I love kitties so even if I really didn't need these, I made them anyway.  After all, the packaging said something like fun for kids from 7 to 100 or some such thing, LOL.  I fit in there somewhere!

There you have it----thanks for stopping by to see what I made for the hop.  Now give your pom poms a shake and stop by to brighten another bloggers day as you have mine!  Two more days remain in the hop and I know I have certainly enjoyed seeing with the others have done.

A finish

Two finishes for the week but only one I can share----

So, am I way late for Halloween or way early??  I think I'll pick the latter, LOL.

Pattern source:  Joined at the Hip  BU #19

 Closeup shot of the bats and spider, lettering----color is off though.

 I told Norma that the cat's eye buttons looked a bit Oriental as they would not stay oriented the way I wanted them to be.  It might have just been the angle I was looking at them..  The color is still a bit off but the other direction as in not quite THAT golden!!  The candy corn yellow fabrics are not that blend-y with the background in real life.  I should have taken it over to my neighbors and borrowed their fence as I did earlier today with one of my blog hop entries!!  She said "come over any time" but I didn't think she meant in the same day and once the sun had set, LOL.

Still hooray for a finish-------

Check in---- Day 3 Shake Your Pom Poms

Well, I am definitely going to STILL be binding today as I goofed around too long yesterday!  A needle was not touched to fabric on the first of two wall hangings till 4 p.m. and at our house, too close to time to start fixing supper.

Still, I had a good time looking at kanzashi flower videos and of course, looking on pinterest as well.  I found a good tutorial at Bitty Bits and Pieces.  Another good one was Fabric Flowers.  It is my understanding that starting off with different shapes greatly changes the appearance of the petals.  Oh and I lost a link I had marked for inspirational purposes from the mug rug hop too---tracked that down.

Why the interest in flowers?   One of the gals yesterday had used a kanzashi flower with a pom pom center to make a cute headband.  Bev, one of my Belle friends has a set of the Clover flower makers and she is known for her quilt embellishments.  Wait till you see the picture of her current project when it is photo ready and you'll see what I mean---what fun!   Also, the blog hop at the end of May is floral themed so it will be the next projects I undertake.  I know what I want to do for part of it at least.   (One project I got a good, good start this past weekend, a hand project.)

I was also looking at pin cushions as I have a sorta project in mind----not hop related but an idea I am toying with.

In the end I got the hanging tabs made for the Halloween button up made.  I could have sworn I at least had cut that strip out when I cut and seamed the binding several months back.   Since I could not locate it, that led to a treasure hunt for the fabric. It was located in the 3rd spot I looked. 

I guess some days are like this---research more than the actual execution??   Maybe that sounds better than I goofed off a big chunk of the day.

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Join me in looking at some more pom pom eye candy?  I promise to get at the binding in earnest!!  We take the weekend off and then I will be sharing my stuff with you on Monday!

April 26

Cherry Valley Designs

Life in the Scrapatch

Felt free på Åsly

Love it Sew it

Patchouli Moon Studio

Dreaming In Patchwork

In The Boon Docks

Jane's Quilting

Day 2 "Shake Your Pom Poms" blog hop

While I am busy working on binding and other hand work, I intend to check into Day 2 of the "Shake Your Pom Poms" hop.  I am still chuckling about the creative use of pom poms one the gals shared.  What a sense of humor! 

Let's see what today holds from this group-----

April 25

 

Mhairi

Just Sew Sue

I Piece 2 – Mary

Get More Done...Today

Scraps of Life

Dancing Thru-Threads

Needle d

Sowing Stitches

Day 1 "Shake Your Pom Poms" Blog Hop

Led by cheerleader Thearica and fearless leader Mdm. Samm it is time for tip off of the "Shake Your Pom Poms" blog hop.  All manner of pom poms.  I know what I made for the hop but it will be fun to see what the others made!

Here are today's participants----

April 24

Pig Tales and Quilts

in stitches and seams

CherrysPrairiePrimitives

Blooming Where I am Planted

Needled Mom

Sew Many Yarns

Moosestash Quilting

Nutz4Redwork


edited note:  You have got to see which one was chosen for today's "most creative" but it should come with a warning label. Put your liquids down!  Click on Mdm. Samm's name above to go to "sew we quilt"

Meanwhile I am going to be back to machine quilting while I am still set up to quilt--this time my Halloween Button Up.  On Monday I managed to get the "Its for the Birds" hop entry quilted as I planned to do.  I still need to deal with the binding but will take this slight detour before switching out machines for another task.  

Spring Sew-in

The Belles had a planned sew-in date today, really an extended meeting day.  We try to do pro bono sewing on this date and sometimes we all work on the same block to make some group quilts.  We are trying to work through a collection of scraps and cut strips so I didn't pick a pattern.

We are also trying to help one of our members get some tops and/or blocks together for a Mexico mission.  We don't have to quilt them, just provide the top so panels and whole cloth quilts will be fine as there will be some people who will help tie them.  This cross stitch apparently panel was one that Bev found on ebay I think she said.

Bev made this cute top with embroidered blocks alternating with the prints.

And she also made this cute pinwheel top.

She was also working on quilting a recently pinned top and had an applique project that is going to be adorable---birds and flowers, making it up as she goes.  Unfortunately I did not get pictures of those in progress.

Beverly was donating this sweet Snuggle Up---always a popular choice for a pro bono quilt.   Easy to quilt too---zoom lines!

This was top that Linda C sent via Lois along with some books and patterns for the group library and some other goodies.

This one is a Atkinson Designs Pattern called "Butterfly Flip" that Lois was donating

While this one is also an Atkinson Designs that Lois also made---Bridgecreek Blossom.  Good for a jelly roll which is what Lois was using to make another top today.  One will go to the Mexico project and the other to Wrap Them in Love.

I am showing you some commissioned pillows and a yo yo bed runner that Teresa has made in this shot.  Half the runner is not in the picture however but you will get the idea!  She has been a busy, busy girl.

Teresa also made these crazy quilt pillows for the same client and before that a large bed sized crazy quilt.

Okay, here is what I spent part of the day doing-----we had been given the sports themed fleece earlier this year by a gal that visited with us.  Not wanting this to go to waste, I had gotten a complimentary red piece for the back.  I printed off directions from Project Linus to make a no sew fleece throw.  It did not have directions for doing it two layer as I had done years and years ago for a throw for DJ but I thought I remembered cutting the other layer smaller.  Janet had not brought a project to sew so she was kind enough to help me knot it.  Should be quite cozy for a sports minded youngster.

My other sewing project was starting these EZ bowties.  I did not get too far with it but there is always the next meeting or the Friendship Quilters' sew in on May 3rd and 4th.  Rosa was working on sashing some blocks a family member had found at an antique store or flea market.  She got packed up before I got a picture of them though.

Teresa was working on some string blocks.  LOL that black tone on tone fabric was misplaced for a time but she is going to use them as the blocks center.  Very dramatic!

Jane was working on some string blocks as well.

Lois' blocks are all upside down but I already told you it was a Bridgecreek Blossom.  Meanwhile Beverly decided on  Pineapple Blossom blocks in blues on the little featherweight.

Aline had some cut squares and asked me about the pattern for this. She remembered doing this blocks when she had first joined us.  That was a year where we made a ton of Patience Corner blocks!!  It took a little digging through the notebooks but I finally the printouts we had used so she could keep the sectioning straight.  The directional print was making it a bit more challenging than usual.   I think it is going to be a striking quilt though!

We had an excellent lunch, good fellowship with like minded friends.  And sew it goes-----------

check-in/ Shake Your Pom Pom Blog Hop April 24-30

In the picture below, I was looking for a "needle in a hay stack" so to speak.   Some of these are old---I don't know if you can see it but one of these packets is priced 10 cents.  Another 40 some cents.   When DJ's step-mother passed away in the mid 80's, I had received her fold out sewing cabinet and its contents.  For a while I had one of those glass lamps that you could artfully arrange flowers and what not in the base.   You guessed it mine was filled with old wooden spools, needle folders, darning eggs and the like--some of this stuff.  But not a chenille needle in the lot!   Why a chenille needle?  Apparently the eye needs to be large enough to thread many strands of floss or perle cotton but its sharp point is preferable to a blunted tapestry version but so far a 22 tapestry needle is doing the job.  Nope, can't show you----yet which has been my constant refrain here lately, I know.

Today has been a hand work day for something with a floral theme for the "Say It With Flowers" blog hop in late me.   Friday I finished what will be the other entry.   Saturday I pinned it.  Monday I'll quilt it but today, hand work.  Tuesday is the Bama Belles Spring sew-in day, really just an extended meeting but we all try to bring our machines and get some sewing done instead of pinning or hand work.  There is no shortage of kits to pull out for a pro bono project.   In the meantime I keep plugging!

The "Shake Your Pom Pom Blog Hop" is coming up Weds. April 24 through Tuesday, April 30.  I am participating this round on Monday the 29th.   This is a bit shorter with just 5 days to hop. 

Here is the entire schedule though I will post the daily hop participants as we go along---should be fun!  I know I am interested in knowing just what others found to do pom poms!

April 24

Pig Tales and Quilts

in stitches and seams

CherrysPrairiePrimitives

Blooming Where I am Planted

Needled Mom

Sew Many Yarns

Moosestash Quilting

Nutz4Redwork

April 25

Mhairi

Just Sew Sue

I Piece 2 – Mary

Get More Done...Today

Scraps of Life

Dancing Thru-Threads

Needle d

Sowing Stitches

April 26

Cherry Valley Designs

Life in the Scrapatch

Felt free på Åsly

Love it Sew it

Patchouli Moon Studio

Dreaming In Patchwork

In The Boon Docks

Jane’s Quilting

April 29

Accio Fabric

Quiltsmiles

Scrapbook-chickadoodle

In The Sewing Basket

life, quilts and a cat too     !!!! THAT'S ME !!!!
Debby Kratovil Quilts

Just Let Me Quilt

Meadowbrook

April 30

I Like To Quilt Blog

Sew Incredibly Crazy

Thimblemouse & Spouse

Cate`s Linens

Around the Homestead

Buzzing and Bumbling

les passions de Cliodana

Bumbleberry Stitches

Sew We Quilt

Checking in/ April Showers Blog Hop Finale!

I am scheduling this to post as I am determined to get some sewing done today (Wednesday) and not goof around half the day thinking about sewing!  That was how my Monday went--wasting time!

All the pieced elements of my top secret project are completed but not joined into the wall hanging that it will be when finished.  There is some machine applique to do first and for once, I thought I would do it in smaller bites this time and then assemble.

I am also sewing in the morning which I seldom do.  Mornings are for the computer, afternoons and evenings for sewing.  However, Tuesday afternoon it hit the mid 80's outside and so did my sewing room!  UGH!  It was not helped by the fact some fusing and standing over an iron was still required.  I am so NOT ready for summer like heat and stickiness but when the overnight low was 62 and the desk thermometer read 80 at 5:30 in the morning you know that Wednesday is headed the same way.   We have not had blackberry winter yet, that I know of anyway, so surely there is a bit of a cooler snap coming!!  I told DJ as soon as I get the heavier quilt off the bed and my summer clothes pulled out for circulation it WILL cool off.   Think I should go make that a sure thing??

I had a rocky up and down night---maybe because it was so warm?-- so I may need a little lay down to make up for it.  Between the fan noise, Skyler tromping on the bed to get in the window and a particularly loud cricket, not a good night.   Of course, he will sleep the day away in DJ's recliner or one of his perches to make up for HIS restless night.

Another reason I could not get back to sleep is I had the "Say It with Flowers" Blog Hop that I have signed up for in mind. Did I have enough of a certain style of fabric on hand to make my plan happen?  Because I bailed out of bed early, I was digging in my stash looking coming up with 3 or 4 possible inclusions but then I looked for some bridger pieces online too.  While I was digging, I also found some fabrics that will work in my paint chip challenge for guild.  Of course that makes more fabric stacks piled up in the sewing room.  In the end I did need to order a few pieces for both projects--a few fats and half yards.  I needed the very lightest shade on the paint chip for one of the design elements, I thought and needed to run it down via Moda Marble fabric swatch card comparison.  Nope, can't tell you what in either case, LOL.  Well, I could on the guild challenge but won't till the order arrives.  It is doubtful that anyone will duplicate my idea!

SO since these blog hops are such a help in stimulating the creative juices, I hope you will visit the featured fiber artists today.

Thursday April 18

Merry Gay @ Merry Gay in Stitches

Mary @ Sew Maybe I Can

Joanne @ Everyone Deserves a Quilt

Linda @ Buzzing and Bumbling

Mary @ NeedledMom

Sherry @ Peanuts Patchwork

Fredrika @ Feltfree på Åsly

Shauna @ Welcome to Shauna's World

Sharon @ Dancing thru Threads

Madame Samm @ !Sew WE Quilt!

Day 8 April Showers

I keep forgetting to tell you that if you don't have time to go to each stop on the blog hop, you can visit the Pinterest page set up by Mdm. Samm for the overview.  You can always backtrack and see past hops or wait for the upcoming ones!  Try THIS LINK for the April Showers mug rugs.

BUT here is the list for today----the hop will conclude on Thursday when the last 10 or 12 share their entries.

Wednesday, April 17
Jen @ Quilter in the Closet
Marjorie @ Marjorie's Busy Corner
Elita @ A Pieceful Perspective
Green @ So Sew Green
Mara @ Greco Mara
Wendy @ Why Knot Kwilt?
Gmama Jane @ GrandMama's Stories
Debby @ Debby Kratovil Quilts
Britt-Inger @ Hill Valley Quilter
Connie @ Freemotion by the River
Beth @ Words and Stitches
Kathy @ iHeartSquishy

I'll be appliquing today, I hope, as I near completion of my current project! Catch you later.

Paint Chip Challenge/Day 7 April Showers Hop

When I was telling you about the Friendship Quilters guild meeting this past Saturday, I spoke about the Michael Miller Challenge that was revealed by those of us who participated  using salespeople samples that were belatedly sent for last fall's retreat.  What fun those were and I hope to borrow a few of Beth's pictures to post here so you can see them. 

What I forgot to tell you is that we will be doing another paint chip challenge.  I really enjoyed doing this last year.  (I had greens and was able to use the shades in a watermelon Button Up.)  Shelia had quite a stack of paint color strips arranged in her hands upside down and fan folded.  I pulled Valspar 234A grouping but I found these images from a site called My Perfect Color through a google search, a match to the funky names assigned by Valspar they say.  I can't say for sure once it hits the monitor but I will be going to Lowe's to get a few extra paint chips this color to have one with me at all times.  Mom already told me that her orange-y tones were lacking, LOL.

Orange Blossom 234A-1

Peach Frost  234A-2

Rich Honey 234A-3

Fresh Melon  234A-4

Desert Mirage  234A-5

Tiger Lily  234A-6

Kind of a Southwest or Fall vibe to me and I am reasonably sure what I will be making with the 2 of the 6 colors I am to include in my piece.  Shelia said it does not have to match exactly, you know how they are constantly tweaking color from year to year and that means fabric shades change too.  Try to come as close as you can, she said.  Should be fun!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay here is the list for Day 7 of the April Shower's Blog Hop---what a talented group of people this round has brought!  Today will be no different, I'm sure.  I was just looking at the possible pattern choice several days before Shelia threw down the gauntlet, so to speak so I sure it will work, if I can find the fabrics in my stash or through a later shop visit. 

TUESDAY, APRIL 16th

Cathi @ Quilt Obsession

Jane @ Jane's Fabrics and Quilts

Heidi @ Nutz4Redwork

Cherry @ Cherry'sPrairiePrimatives

Christine @ Quilt Monster in my Closet

Vickie @ More Stars in Comanche

Pauline @ Stekje

Jan @ Jan's Art Friendzy

Nissa @ Nissa Made Stuff

Robin @ As Sweet As Peaches

Lyndsey @ Sew Many Yarns

Eleni - Guest Post @ Sew at Home Mummy

I love spring!

I am not sure if today is supposed to be a repeat of yesterday's drippy damp day or not  It is already warmer than it was all day yesterday by about 5 degrees.  I shut the furnace off (DJ insisted) and opened a window or two.  I thought I would try to get some shots of the blooming things that can be seen out back since there is some cloud cover.   Watch where you are stepping though as the fire ants have been busy since it just rained! There are about 5 started mounds around the lilac bush in particular.


There are a few of these out---daffodils, I think???  Or some sort of lily.  We do/did have some stargazer lilies planted out in that area but I thought they had the orange centers.  Someone straighten me out!

We have three azaleas, this being one that was here when we moved in though in a large pot at that time.  The white one is an encore and has never done well and the other appears to be lagging behind.  I think I saw some spots of color but didn't linger to look, LOL.  I don't "do" outside much especially when the laundry timer was about to go off.  Behind this is a gardenia bush but it is way too early for that to be out---June maybe.

 Same bush, different angle 

The lilac bush from two different angles.  They are not indigenous to Alabama but DJ has been babying it along for years.  I know he is always thrilled when he sees the blooms come out and reward him.  You see that the Rose of Sharon bush right behind it is trying to leaf out.

We lost a bit of the bush in the center so it looks a bit leggy in spots but all in all, doing well.  

Okay, back to the laundry detail.  Skyler made himself right on home atop the whites so good luck folding undies!

Back to sewing, back to hopping

I have made a good start on the pieced elements of my current project and will continue to sew on it today.  Oh, there are few things that need tending around the house in between seams but we all have laundry and cooking to do, right?

I hope you will pop on over to today's featured bloggers to see how they interpreted the "April Shower" mug rug theme.  I know I will!

MONDAY, APRIL 15th

Cathy @ Cate's Linens

Nicola @ Sunshine Reflections

Martina @ Sunshinequilting

Judith @ Frimart

Anita @ Anita's quilts en handwerken

Linda @ Sew Nicely

Kris @ krislovesfabric

Laura Ann @ The Fuzzy Hat Quilter

Carol @ Just let me Quilt

Selina @ Selina Quilts

Mary @ Crooked Gulley Art Quilts

Marisa @ Passion et Couture

meeting day

Today was the Friendship Quilters guild meeting day AKA Girlfriend Day.   A lot going on around the room with a raffle table, log cabin blocks to pass on to our Quilt Show Chairperson,  Row of the Months and Show and Tell items to be hung on the quilt rack system around the room.  Today was also the reveal day for our Michael Miller fabric sample challenge.  The sew-in is coming up the first weekend in May.  Dixye our president keeps us moving so we could get to the program-----extended show and tell with the challenge pieces.  My favorite part!  I know the historian was busier than usual snapping pictures!

I know I showed you my 3 items back in a PRIOR POST though they were not quite done at that time.  A couple of the gals wanted to know how to make those thread catcher jars so I said I would email them the links.   Not that I am expert or anything.  I think some of the Belles might want to try it too.

I didn't win a door prize or anything from the raffle table but I feel like I "won" anyway!  The monies raised from there are used to purchase the food for the 3 day sew-in's so we always say "the more you spend, the better we eat!"  What I was referring to are these patterns below-------Susan Garman's Bunny Block Sampler----with the fabric included for the applique elements!!

My friend Shelia asked if I like to applique---and I do though years ago I was one who considered applique the "A" word.  I said I like to do fusible or freezer prep.  She handed the packet to me and said she had found them at a thrift store (or yard sale??) but January was missing.  Another gal who was talking to us said she had done this very quilt and she could let me use her January one to make the quilt.  THX Judy!  She is going to bring her quilt to the next meeting so I can see how it looks made up too.

Here is a look at the fabric included in the packets---themed and of course a good bit of it is folded up but you can still see that these are bright and fun!

I did a little googling and these are offered at Quakertown Quilts but the best picture I found was on a blog called Quilt Inspiration,  a bunny themed post  http://quiltinspiration.blogspot.com/2013/03/a-bevy-of-bunny-quilts-for-easter.html   The maker was going for a Paris vibe so the fabrics are not the same.

The quilt pictured is Bunnies on the Champs-Elysees by Jan Soules

This adorable quilt by Jan Soules, which was exhibited at the 2012 River City Quilters' Guild show, features a bunny dressed for every month of the year.  The pattern is the Bunny Block Sampler by Sue Garman at Quakertown Quilts. Jan Soules cleverly used a Paris map fabric as the background, hence: "Bunnies on the Champs-Elysees."  The machine quilting was done by Debbie Lopez.

Then she shows some of the monthly blocks done up----adorable!   Apparently the patterns are still available but I don't know if they just sell a single one.  If Shelia sees this she may want the stuff back, LOL!!
No, I don't really think so or she would not have given it to me.  THX Shelia!

Since I last posted, I have been doing a good bit of cutting---a wool project is ready to go hopefully as a entry in the "Say It With Flowers" blog hop late next month.  Yesterday I was prepping applique elements of an entry I would like to do for the "It's for the Birds" blog hop early next month.  That one has some pieced elements as well.  I feel like I have been hand cutting for two straight days, LOL.  I may drag out the Viking and work on the button hole finishing but I have a feeling it will wait till tomorrow instead.   Last weekend I had drawn up the pieced elements in EQ to foundation piece them so it is a toss up which I will do first, LOL.

I may just do a little embroidery and call it "good" for today.  OR type up the show and tell list so Beth can post the pictures for the guild albums with the labeling I provide as the secretary.

Either way---I hope you have had great day.  It was a lovely day here for a drive.  The trees are really leafing out the past two or three days so everything looks so green!    On the day of the expected storms fortunately we did not have any wind to speak of, I only heard of couple of trees down though an area in the western Alabama was not so fortunate.  We had about 2.5 inches of rain but no flooding or hail.

Time to think about supper---leftover turkey meal though I think DJ did full meal deal for lunch instead of just a turkey sandwich, LOL.  Jane, Aline and I stopped at Chick-Fil-A in Pell City before we came home and ran into about 8 of the gals from guild.  I can eat chicken and turkey in the same day, easy!

A start!---April Showers blog hop schedule

Well, here is the stack of fabric for my next "It's for the Birds" blog hop entree.  Shop the stash first, right?  Or use someone else's, LOL.  Actually I think that I have my mom and my dear departed friend Theramae to thank for a good bit of this.   The beiges, tone on tones were mine and have been used on quite a few projects over the years.  Other stuff, who remembers?  Some I recall, some I do not but I think it will all combine to produce the look I am going for.  I plan on cutting today and starting up the sewing machine.  I have guild on Saturday morning so I may not get back to it till Sunday afternoon.

So the hop has been, as usual, inspirational.  Such talented quilters out there.  The other day someone showed a flower made from two different hexagons, smaller one atop a larger one on the slant as the flower center and then a free form cut leaf.  My eyes perked up there! There is a piece I have wanted to do but am not so nuts about the flower shape on it so this idea may just work.  You never know what little gem might spark your interest!  Well here is the LINK---scroll down!  If I do manage to use this at some point, I am linking back to her again.

Here are today's featured bloggers---again, no hopping on the weekends but they will be back at it come Monday!

FRIDAY, APRIL 12th

Bobbie @ From This to That

Leslie @ Les Quilts

Kristen @ Meadowbrook

Lavonna @ ZellerWear

Lynn @ Thimblemouse & Spouse

Amy @ Sew Incredibly Crazy

Martha @ Living Life

Shawn @ Creative Inspiraciones

Rhonda @ Sunrise at Ravelly's!

Toye @ Quilting Adventures of a Ginger