happy day, sunny day, Tuesday

To start off, I'd just like to declare that
quilting friends are THE best!

A little surprise came in the mail today:

charm squares and 'candy'
which I think will fit right in with my plan
for the Farm Girl Vintage sew-along

Isn't that the greatest!
A combination get-well/hello Spring gift from Wendy.
It was a very thoughtful and appreciated gift!
Such a lovely surprise
from such a wonderful, quilting friend.
She lives miles and miles away, 
and somehow she knew I needed a smile today.

And on that note - of wonderful, quilty friends...

I've never met Wendy who sent me this gift,

yet I feel that I've known her forever.

We've only 'talked' through emails and blogs,

and seem to have so much in common,

quilting just being one of the commonalities.

Do you also feel the same about
quilting friends that you've never met in person?

Hope you are having a wonderful Tuesday,
my friends!
(and thank you again, Wendy)

my September LUCY Patchwork of the Crosses blocks

September LUCY blocks are looking more Autumn-like in colors, I think.

mylifeisastitch.blogspot.com
Lucy Boston - Patchwork of the Crosses - Sept blocks

I'm almost out of my pre-cut honeycomb papers!  (from PaperPieces.com)
I think I had 1,200 papers when I started,
and the stockpile is gettin' low!
Definitely time to start connecting my blocks together
so I can remove the outside honeycomb papers and re-use them.

I leave the outside papers in the blocks for stability
until I'm ready to connect them to the next block.
(The connecting pieces are one-inch squares
between each finished block.)  
After I have two blocks attached with
the four connecting squares, 
I can remove the honeycomb papers on either side.

That's a whole lot 'o squares coming up!
I just frightened myself :)

Happy Monday and Happy Stitching!!

my August LUCY Patchwork of the Crosses blocks

I'm still lovin' my Lucy!
Here are my four blocks for August:

mylifeisastitch.blogspot.com
Lucy Boston - Patchwork of the Crosses - August blocks

Still think it's time to start connecting my blocks...

I think I mentioned before that I wasn't finding fabric (for connecting squares) that I LOVED that went well with all the patterns and colors in the blocks for this quilt...
Part of the problem was that I had wanted to get quite a few of blocks done before I started connecting them as  I wanted to be able to spread out the blocks to balance the  blocks/colors across the quilt. 
Anyway,

I finally chose my fabric to make the connecting squares,

so now I can start making a quilt from all these blocks! 
It's a light blue/slate gray/linen-looking fabric. 
I had hoped to find something that was a little more patterned, but after laying blocks all over many bolts of fabric at the LQS, I went with the fabric that was my first choice.  Isn't that how it usually is? 
Choose a few bolts of fabric and put them on the cutting table, choose some more bolts and add to the stack on the cutting table, ask opinions, then go with your first instinct? :) 
Is it just me and my problem habit of playing with fabric

or do you do this also?

And, finally, I'm kind of proud of myself -

I'm still up to date on

my goal of

one block a week

on this, my Lucy project for this year!

That's 35 blocks so far!!!

What are you stitching on this week?

November! & my July LUCY Patchwork of the Crosses blocks

November already!!
And here I am, finally!, getting pictures posted here
of my July LUCY - POTC blocks:

mylifeisastitch.blogspot.com
July - Lucy Boston
Patchwork of the Crosses

Now that I see this picture,
I think I should have made five blocks for the month -
as aren't there five weeks of July,
not just four?
Yep, checked the calendar, and sure enough,
five weeks in July, not four.
Oh, well...
guess I'll be making another block later.
And here I thought I was up to date!

A side note - looking at my blocks,

the majority of my fabrics are Jo and Judie.

Jo as in Morton, and Judie as in Rothermel.

May have to add their names to my Lucy project...

Lucy J.J. or something :)

I love the rich colors of these reproduction fabrics.
Almost as rich as the fall leaf color around here last week...
it was peek leaf-peeping season,
and gorgeous.

Back to playing with more fabrics/colors.
Happy November & Happy Stitching!

I still have issues aka: vacation pt.2

After a very nice week plus of vacation
I found all of this in the back of my vehicle:

Yep, that's my haul from vacation.

Top to bottom, left to right:

Row 1:  a couple of out of print magazines, a Blue Hill/Sara Morgan fabric, some fruit/canning jar fabric, a chunk of fleece for a friend, and a fat quarter stack of the original French General
Row 2:  a Hoopla pattern/Monroe quilt, some older Rothermel fabrics, and a chunk for an eye spy.
Row 3:  Tidings of Great Joy and Peanuts Christmas, both by Quilting Treasures.

And there's more, but that's enough textile overload for today...

See? I have issues.

wonderful indulgence

Wonderful friends!
Wonderful International Quilt Festival!
Wonderful weekend!
Yep, just plain wonderful!

The wonderful friends:
pretty much explains it - I have wonderful friends!
Shared Thursday and Friday with some of them,
and it could not have been better.

The IQF was in Ohio this past weekend, and
I attended with some of the above said friends.
Put those two together, and THAT equals
the third part of the equation:
Wonderful Weekend!

Here are a few shots of some of the "stuff"
that I needed.
(yes needed:)

 We met Judie Rothermel and found this GREAT book of hers.  I loved the pack of fabrics, so I picked those up.  Then I fell in love with a quilt she had in her booth.  Ohio Star Medallion.  Using her Templates, I can make all of the little Ohio stars with center-on-point fussy-cut blocks - with these conversation prints as centers:

Then I found this great fabric:

and a half yard came home with me.

AND, I heard my name being called

by these three patterns:

wool on cottons...

Love wool on cotton.

 Then, another great civil war inspired quilt:

 And, finally, a cute little bound booklet, by Liberty Homestead:

This little booklet is only about 4 x 5 inches
which seems to me that it's
just calling out to be lost in the madness of the studio :) 
but the pattern is oh, so great, I couldn't resist!  (we'll see how long before I can't find it:).
And I love how they, Liberty Homestead, write their instructions- if you have used one of their patterns, you'll understand.  But that is how my brain works, so it's good with me.

I did get myself another little blue thimble.
And, it was buy one/get one on the Havel's scissors,
so two more pairs of scissors made the ride home with me.
Another thimble and more scissors- I may have issues:)!

Home, and a belated family Easter dinner,
so just a little indulgence there, too:
I made escalloped potatoes for fifty.

Also did sausage gravy and biscuits, cut-out iced sugar cookies, and a big bowl of fruit to share...

.

All in all, a wonderful weekend, wouldn't you say?
Just a little wonderful indulgence!

(I'll share a couple of quilt pics from the festival tomorrow, promise.)