Wednesday, October 31, 2012

 
 
 
 
 
And, of course, I DO expect a lot from my cat.  Oliver is always a great sport though, letting me do practically anything to him, with him, or for him.  He's a trooper and as long as he's getting attention, he's up for just about anything.
 
 
 
 
Happy Halloween!
 
(Be sure to keep your pets safe tonight! Keep them away from the candy, things they might swallow, and from slipping out the open doors!)

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

As if it wasn't enough that all of the stores rush into Christmas well before the holiday, even my Christmas cactus has jumped on the bandwagon.  It's just full of beautiful blooms, blooms ready to burst, and buds on every leaf, waiting to show off their beauty.  Oh well, I guess it's a "Halloween" cactus this year, not a Christmas cactus.  And no matter what season it chooses to bloom in, it's gorgeous and I appreciate the show!
 
 
 

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

 
 
 
 
Attention Owl Lovers!  Do you want to make your own *free* owl calender?  Owls are definitely "in" right now.  Go HERE , to My Owl Barn blog, to make your own customized calendar.  There are 40 artists represented, each with their own creative owl picture.  You pick whatever picture you want for whatever month you want, then print it out.
 
Here are my selections.  I printed mine on card stock, but you could even use fabric.  I may cut mine apart to make a smaller, one page a month, calendar.  Have fun creating yours!
 
 
 


 
Whoooooo......me?

Monday, October 22, 2012

 
 


My sweet Oliver......doing what he does best (outside of napping and snuggling) ...... guarding and watching over his little kingdom,  making sure that everything is safe and protected in our world.


Sunday, October 21, 2012

 
First up, a new blog hop starts tomorrow......WICKED!!  Click on the haunted house to get the full schedule and links to the bloggers.  Although Halloween is my favorite holiday and I adore the fabrics and theme, I'm not participating because I'm just "overbooked" right now.  But be sure that I'll be visiting each and every blog during this hop.  It will be wonderful to see all of the Wicked creations!
 
 
 
Next is October's Fat Quarter Shop Mystery BOM.  I finished it up last night and love the pattern and the fabric, as usual.  I'll try and make my second block out of the extra fabric soon. 
 
 
 
 
 
And lastly, here's a great reason, in addition to all of the inspiration you will receive, to visit all of these blog hops.  Many offer very generous giveaways.  I won this wonderful fabric panel during the Fall Leafs Me Happy blog hop.  Linda from Buzzing & Bumbling sent this to me after I visited her blog and simply left a comment..... a random draw grabbed my name.  I just love this panel!  Thanks, Linda!
 
 
 
 
See you all tomorrow on the first day of the Wicked blog hop!

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

 
 


Crows have feelings too!

Saturday, October 13, 2012

I finished a little wall hanging today.  My friend, Sandy, had given me a cute linen tea towel this summer and I just didn't want to use it in the kitchen and glop it up with stains.  Instead, I cut it up and made a little wall hanging, 17" x 18".  The center, the white blocks in the corners, and the binding came from the tea towel.  I used most of the towel, with only a few strips of left over fabric.  I hope Sandy will like my use of her gift.  (You will be seeing more of the coffee print border in a November project.)
 
 


I wanted to give you a little tool recommendation too.  Have you used the Clover Wonder Clips yet?  At first, I thought they were just another gadget (I'm a gadget junkie) that would really not serve much of a purpose.  Instead, I've found several uses for them.  They are somewhat expensive (over $30 for 50 clips), but I bought them at JoAnn's with a 50% off coupon.  This made them worth trying without a huge expense.
 
 
 
 
Their main use is probably for attaching your binding (after machine sewing the front side) for hand sewing the backside.  I like them much better than the long, silver hair clips that many people use and they don't bend like regular pins.  These are short enough that they do not get in the way of sewing.  This picture shows the front side of my little hanging, all clipped and ready to sew.

 
 
Here's the backside of the hanging, folded over.  You can use these clips as a measuring tool too, making sure that your binding is folded over evenly, using the clips as your gauge.  The clear side of the clip actually has some manufacturing marks that can be used as a measuring gauge too, if you don't want to use the full clip length.  I love using them at the mitered corners.  When I reach the corner, I make sure my mitre is the way that I want it,  I clip it, and sew it down.  I can leave my clip in place as I sew, which means that my mitre doesn't slip and need re-adjusting.
 
 
 
 
I have also used these clips for sewing hems in jeans.  When you fold over that thick material, these clips hold the folded material very easily for sewing your hem.  Again, they don't bend like a pin does in heavy fabrics.  They stay put, although I still remove them as I sew.  One side is flat and is made to stay in place while sewing, but I still found it awkward to feed them though my machine.
 
They are great for holding paper pieced sections together for sewing.  Again.... I always bend my pins while trying to keep my paper pieced sections in the right position.  These clips hold tight while I sew the sections.  I thought they would slip since I was sandwiching paper to paper, but everything stayed in place quite well.
 
Lastly, I have used them when sewing clear vinyl.  In this case, you never want to use a pin because it leaves a permanent hole in the vinyl.  The clips are strong and sturdy and keep things together well. 
 
Bottom line is that they are a multi-use tool and I'm sure I'll find even more uses for them.
 
Have a great weekend!

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Leafs Me Happy Winner!

Due to the overwhelming amount of comments (over 130) and my tired, old laptop whose memory closely resembles my own, I had to handle the giveaway drawing the old fashioned way........ writing all the names on strips of paper and placing them in the bottom of a bowl.
 
 
 
 
And the winner is........Susan, who said "Your blocks are so lovely!  Thanks for sharing them.  I really like the pumpkins and the single pumpkin.  I look forward to seeing more of your creativity".  I'll be sending off an email to get your full name and address and will then get your goodies in the mail.  Thank you so much for visiting my blog and congratulations!
 



And to everyone that took the time to visit my blog during the Leafs Me Happy blog hop and leave such nice comments..... Thank you!  I enjoyed reading each and every comment.  I'm sorry that many of you, toward the end of my laptop's memory, did not hear from me.

I'll be participating in the UR Priceless blog hop in November and I hope you will all come back and check out my coin purses and all of the other participants, as well.  It's going to be a HUGE hop with lots of bloggers participating.  I'll post more about it soon with a link to the full schedule.  

Thanks again and Happy Fall!

Friday, October 5, 2012

Just a quick post to tell you that my comments section is going nuts.  I'm not able to see my replies on recent posts, but the comment counter is showing an increase after each reply.   I don't know if you are seeing my reply or not....sorry, but please know that I am receiving, reading, and replying to each and every comment.

Don't worry, though, I have everyone's contact info for the drawing.  So whether or not you hear from me, I have your information and you will be included in the giveaway.

I may go through and delete my own replies to see if that clears up the problem.  Geeze..... comment overload, I guess, on my poor little lap top.

Happy Leafs me Happy Hopping!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Leafs Me Happy Day 4

 
 
This is Day 4 of the Leafs Me Happy blog hop and my turn for some fall fabric blocks to show and tell.  I'd love to have had more to show, but it's been a rough month.  At least I have a few pictures to share.
 
For the full Leafs Me Happy blog hop schedule, please go HERE.  Our wonderful hostess, Cherry, has the full line up of bloggers scheduled from October 1 through October 10.... (no week ends).
 
My collection of blocks is titled "Falling Behind" because I never did catch up and finish all that I had planned.
 
First up is a paper pieced crow and pumpkin block.  I just love crows and I'm not sure if they are exactly fall subjects or not.  No matter, I think of them in the pumpkin patch, cawing away and causing a little ruckus. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Next, some fall apples.  I still need to put something in those blank corner sections.  These apples, the crow and the pumpkins above, came from patterns from the Quilt Pro System, Block of the Day.  These arrive by email every day and are free.  Go HERE to sign up.  You can search their archives for tons of patterns.
 

 
 
 
Another paper pieced pumpkin, this one from EQ5.  I really enjoy paper piecing, as long as the projects are small and not too time consuming.  I don't know that I'd ever make a full quilt with tiny, paper pieced blocks as I get impatient to move on to the next project.
 
 

 
 
And lastly, this fall owl, sitting high in his branches.  If he looks familiar, he was in the last blog hop, Dots on Dots, from Debby Kratovil.  She has a free pdf pattern of the owl on her blog.  Go HERE and scroll down to the September 14th post to get the owl pattern.  Thanks, Debby! 
 

 
 
 
I also have a small give-a-way for anyone that leaves a comment.  Please make sure that I can reply to you.  I just have a mix of goodies.... a great fabric marking pencil, a 45mm rotary cutter blade, a two pack of 28mm rotary cutter blades, a little package of quilting needles, a small scissor, and a fall fat quarter.  I'll draw the winner at the end of the hop, on October 11.  Good luck!
 
 
 
 
Now you are ready to move along on this hop and visit the other bloggers for Day 4.  Here they are, so get hoppin';
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Hope you have enjoyed the Leafs Me Happy blog hop today.  Be sure to check out all the blog hop days for lots of inspiration and an occasional give-a-way.  Thanks to Cherry for hosting and Madame Samm for being our blog cheerleader and catalyst for all of these wonderful hops.
 
Happy Hopping and thanks for visiting!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Monday, October 1, 2012



Today is the first day of the Leafs Me Happy blog hop.  Go HERE for the full schedule.  Cherry, our blog hop host, has all of the participants listed by each day of the hop.  Every day, from October 1 to October 10, several bloggers will be posting some great fall blocks (and maybe a few giveaways along the way!) to inspire you.  I'm on board for October 4th, so please stop back.  Oh, if you miss a day, be sure and go back to check them out anytime during the hop.  As I said, many have giveaways and you can still participate anytime during the hop.

Happy Fall Leafs Me Happy Hopping!

(And many thanks to Madame Samm, our blog hopper queen and cheerleader, who keeps us on track!)