Christmas Party

Tonight was the Coos Sand 'N Sea Quilters annual Christmas party!  It was a lot of fun - first we had a delicious pot-luck dinner with the guild providing turkey and ham.  I brought home-made rolls.  There were so many yummy dishes!  I love a pot-luck because you can have a taste of lots of different things.

After that we had a member lead us in singing some Christmas songs.  We sang Silent Night in Spanish and she told us a little about celebrating Christmas as a child in Chile.  Then we had our usual gift exchange.  We make a large circle, and as a funny story is read we pass our gifts around the circle.  With this story we passed the gift to the right or left each time the respective word is mentioned.  We are supposed to do two fat quarters, but some people add other goodies.  I received a whole yard of a lovely floral, right up my alley!  Plus a bag of hershey kisses and a small container of holiday coffee.  Yummy!

We always do show and tell at the end.  I showed the angel wall hanging I finished this weekend and a valentine table runner I made out of these fabrics.  I used my Charming Heart pattern - hope to get the finished runner in my Etsy shop as soon as I can get some good pictures of it.

I finished a few more of the blocks for my next shop sample.  I only have 5 more to do and I can start putting the top together!

I really like working with the Curvy Log Cabin tool.  Great ruler from Creative Grids, love the non slip areas on the back, they really keep the ruler from moving when you are trimming around it.  Wait till you see how these blocks go together - I know it's going to be great!  

Tomorrow is a busy day, probably no sewing, but I really want to get the rest of these blocks done.  We'll see.  For now it's off to bed and get some rest!

Running Around

Ha - in more ways than one today was a running day.  Thursday mornings my husband and I go out and get some exercise by doing about a half hour of running and walking at the high school track.  We run on the field because it's easier on our bodies.  I guess we're getting old enough to be worried about those sorts of things....but it's good exercise and we enjoy doing it together.

After that it was home for breakfast, a shower and I was running off to the quilt shop to help finish getting ready for a big sale that is starting tomorrow.  I got to help a customer choose fabric for the quilt she is making using the block of the month I am doing for the shop.  I was very pleased that she had made a block from the current months pattern and said she could follow my instructions to make her first paper pieced block!  Woohoo!  I was really stressing over whether a beginner could follow them well enough to actually understand how to do paper foundation piecing, so I was thrilled that she did it.

Home for lunch, relaxed and did some reading this afternoon.  Fixed dinner and then ran off again!  To a quilt guild meeting.  So fun!  We had four different demos going at once and we all rotated around to the different ones.  One was a cute appliqued pumpkin nametag.  Another was a microwavable bowl holder (which could also serve as an ice cream bowl cozy).  I made a cute little finger pincushion at a different one, and the last was for two color binding.  Since I got there late I ended up at a table by myself, but was joined by a new member.  The funny thing is we both have long hair and were wearing it in similar styles - we were asked several times if we were sisters :)  So I have a new quilting sister now!  I volunteered to make three blocks for our raffle quilt for 2014, so that will be fun.

This is the quilt I brought for Show and Tell -

I made this as one of my Project Quilting challenges this year.  The challenge was to make a quilt with a square in a square block.  I added to the challenge by making it all from stash.  Even the back - 

Oops - sorry it's sideways!  Anyway - I love the way the back came out!  If I had more time I would have made it even bigger and combined the back with the front, but I needed to finish it by the deadline.  I do think I will add more quilting to it, though.  

After all the RUNNING around today....I'm ready for bed!  Time for some rest so I can do some sewing tomorrow.

A Beautiful Day

After all my ramblings yesterday about lovely late summer days, we had one of the best ones ever today. A wonderful warm, windless day and a beautiful clear crisp night. One of those days that you just want to go on endlessly. So nice!

Tonight was my first guild meeting as DPP (Distinguished Past President) and it was fabulous! Not only did I arrive at the meeting without a ton of baggage, but I also snuck out early so I could relax at home with my family. I am glad I did my service to the guild, but I am so excited to be able to enjoy meetings again without any stress!

One of the highlights of my meeting was being presented with my special presidents quilt. Well, at least I got to see it, it's not quite finished, but that's quite all right, it's too hot for a quilt right now anyway. It's a pretty scrappy star quilt and has signatures in the border. I will be excited to have it finished and to be able to enjoy it as a lap quilt this winter. Isn't it funny that as a quilter we can make any quilt we want, but it's really special to get one that we don't have to make ourselves?

I did some hand quilting this afternoon on my little scrappy star miniature quilt. I've entered it in the quilt show in 2 weeks, so I need to get it finished! I got three of the 12 stars quilted, so I am off to a good start. I also have a queen size quilt to machine quilt, so I hope to get that basted this weekend. I'm glad I was sensible and didn't commit to finishing 12 quilts for the show this year. Anyway, I enjoyed the hand quilting - I forget how pleasant and almost meditative hand quilting is. Once I get myself settled I find it to be quite relaxing - I really need to continue with hand projects because they are so enjoyable, and it's good to keep up my skills.

Tomorrow is more work at the Quilt Shop, registering the girl for school, and possibly a foot-ball game. And hopefully another lovely September day!

Bon Soir!