Whirl Into Winter Giveaway!!

The holidays are over and it’s time to Whirl Into Winter with the Quilt Bloggers Giveaway organized by Debi. What a nice way to add excitement to January!!

Between January 1 and January 14 at noon CST, leave a comment on this post and tell me one thing you love about quilting or quilts. Only comments answering this question, left on or after January 1, 2009 will be counted. Please be sure I can get your email address on your blog profile or leave an email address so I can contact you.

Here is my wintry giveaway.


This is a quilt pattern called “Warm and Wintery” by Cotton Way which uses a pack of charm squares. You will get a charm pack “Miss Jump’s Scrapbag” from Moda and a yard of creamy background fabric to get you started on the quilt. To round out the wintry theme, I crocheted a cuddly scarf from Homespun yarn and will send some packets of tea and cider to keep you warm. There’s a little snowman sled just for fun!

Be sure and check out all the blogs participating in the giveaway, AND, leave your comment here on January 1st!!

One thing I love about quilting is that it ties me to generations of women whose creativity produced beauty from scraps. What an inspiration to take ordinary things in life, even the scraps, and make something unique that will bless and comfort ourselves and others.

Thanks for visiting my blog! Do come back again.

A huge thank you to all of you who left comments telling what you love about quilting or quilts. Most comments mentioned the creativity that quilting allows, the love of fabrics, the enjoyment of the process from choosing fabrics to the final quilting, and the joy that comes from giving quilts to those who will treasure them. There was also overwhelming appreciation of the fellowship and friendship that comes from meeting and sharing with other quilters even those who will never be met face to face but who become very dear across miles and even oceans because of a shared love of quilting. I feel so fortunate to visit blogs and share a few minutes with quilters whose tastes reflect my own and those who venture into new areas I can only appreciate!! I hope you will return again and visit with me and brighten my day with your comments.

The winner of my giveaway (randomly chosen by my sweetheart from a bowl full of names) is Barbara, who said that "being creative is my favorite thing about quilt-making." Barbara, I'll email you and will have your package in the mail quickly.

Thank you again to everyone who participated in the giveaway and thank you to Debi for organizing such fun!

Our Savior Is Born

Wishing everyone peace, joy and blessings during this special time as we celebrate the greatest gift of all...the birth of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

"JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD IS COME!"

The Best Laid Plans

No matter how well we make plans, life has a way of changing things. I thought November would be a quiet month of holiday preparation and lots of stitching. We had our wonderful trip early in the month and then started our tree planting and yard projects before winter weather. THEN...my sweetheart got very sick and went the hospital for the first time in his life. This is a man who is very healthy and has gone years without taking a sick day. He spent a week in the hospital but he recovered well and the doctors have no idea what caused the problem and think it probably won't happen again. We are watching his diet and I'm making sure he rests but that hasn't kept him from planting trees and putting up Christmas lights.

It was truly a Thanksgiving for us since my sweetheart was feeling better. We are thankful for the blessings of health and the love and concern of loved ones.

Since then I've been racing to finish Christmas gifts I planned. I did some sewing, crocheting, and other needlework. Projects are completed and wrapped with some ready for mailing. In the midst of all, our great niece was born...mother and baby doing fine. So, the baby quilt I'd planned needed to be finished. Here it is ready for quilting.

I have the squares quilted and I'm ready to quilt the border strips and add the binding. I'm pleased with the way the colors came together and the baby's grandmother assures me the colors will go perfectly in the new nursery.

Today there's Christmas fabric in the washer...I'm hoping to get a little Christmas stitching done for our home...and probably to share as well.

Is anyone else making quilting "to-do" lists for the new year? There are so many ideas in my head and projects in my shelves. I need a plan!! And I must plan time to blog regularly, read blogs and COMMENT...I'll admit I read much and comment little. I know how much comments mean to me and I'm sure others feel the same. One of my resolutions for the new quilting year is to let others know how their blogs touch, inspire and delight.

Have a wonderful day and come back soon!

Quilt Shop Visit

While in North Carolina, our daughter took us to visit a wonderful quilt shop in Granite Falls, in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The shop is in the old farmhouse that belonged to the grandparents of the shop owner, Martha. It's located on a winding country road and we knew we were there when we saw the quilts on the porch rail.

We were warmly greeted and I spent some "quality time" looking and buying. I especially loved the shelves of depression era reproductions since I'm hooked on paper piecing the Grandmother's Flower Garden hexagons. There were also quite a few bolts of Thimbleberries on a half-price sale.

After looking awhile, I made my choices. I thought of Linda when I saw this packet. She has inspired me to use some soft pastels and pretty pinks!

I got a Moda Portbello jelly roll and Merry and Bright charm packs, fat 8ths of reproductions for my hexagons, some pretty fat quarters, fall fat quarters and a Thimbleberries fabric that I fell in love with.

I know I will be visiting the shop online here
It's nice to help a small business grow...especially a quilter-owned quilt shop!!!!

Thanks for stopping by for a visit ... have a blessed day!

We're Back!!

We’ve just returned from a wonderful visit to North Carolina to see our daughter, Amy, son-in-law and “granddog”. The autumn colors were at their finest and the entire trip was lovely from beginning to end.

Our son-in-law is the Provost of Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory, North Carolina. We visited the campus which was blazing with fall colors and enjoyed seeing his office, shopping at the bookstore and attending a lecture by a visiting writer.


Their home is in a wooded community of small acreages on Lake Hickory. This is a view of the driveway. Their log home is nestled in the trees completely secluded from the street. We felt like we were the only ones in the “big house in the little woods!” It was beautiful!!









Amy and our granddog, Virginia, start each morning with a walk in the woods and by the lake. They took me with them and I thoroughly enjoyed the sights and the company.












Walking on those trails with the colorful trees and crisp air was a devotional in itself because I couldn’t help but rejoice that our precious Creator had provided such a beautiful world for our enjoyment. Everything around me was a testament to Him.

We took a trip to Virginia to visit our son-in-law's family in Patrick County. We drove part of the Blue Ridge Parkway and visited Mabry’s Mill.




Later in the week, Amy took us to visit the small mountain town of Blowing Rock, which is the inspiration for Jan Karon’s Mitford. It was such a pretty place nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains. We also visited the Blowing Rock but, since none of us are very comfortable with heights, we declined to take the small walkway out to the rock itself!!

We also visited a great quilt shop in Granite Falls which you can shop online. I'll save the quilt shop for my next post!

Oh, yes, and we took the ghost tour in Asheville!!! I have pictures from that as well!!

Have a lovely day. Thanks for visiting!

Happy Halloween!!!

Bessie is ready for Halloween and we both wish you a day filled with the best treats and very few tricks. Best stitching wishes from both of us!!!

Thunder in OKC

Last night was exciting as we were part of the sell-out crowd at the first regular season home game for the new Oklahoma City NBA basketball team….the OKC Thunder!!!

Our sweet daughter, Maggie, and her husband asked us to join them for this big event. We all look forward to many years of enjoying professional basketball close to home!!

On the quilting front, I finished the autumn table runner. I will be using the extra pieces to make two more. Here’s the finished project.



I must get busy on the baby quilt for our niece. I have a couple of quilts in the works but I’m anxious to get out my Christmas fabrics and make something from them.

I also found a neat item on Ebay. It’s called a “class in a kit” and it really is. It’s a tutorial you can touch. I started working on it and couldn’t stop…more addictive than popcorn. I love to have something to do by hand in the evenings so I’ll be working on this and plan to get more hexagon papers and start a long-term quilt project. The Grandmother's Flower Garden is one of my favorite patterns. I have quite a few blocks I did by hand years ago but didn't use the paper-piecing method. Those old blocks are pretty but not as precise. I love this method.

Speaking of hand work, I pulled out this little kit that I started years ago and laid it out to see how it will look. I just have the last two blocks to finish (where the big white areas are) and then the entire little quilt can be sewn together and hand quilted. The colors are rich deep turquoise, purple, lavendar and cream. There is something so satisfying and peaceful about hand work:)


We've had our first frost and the summer plants are gone. We'll need to do some flower bed cleaning and bulb digging. All that will have to wait while we take a little vacation break.

Happy quilting and blessings to you!!

Mail Call

It’s such fun when the mail brings packages!

I was so thrilled to be the winner of Jeanne’s giveaway as part of the Fall Into Fall Blogger’s Giveaway. Here’s all the nice things Jeanne sent…the cutest Halloween bag filled with Halloween fat quarters, this great fall pattern and quilt postcards and Halloween candy.





Thanks so much, Jeanne, for a great giveaway.

Danetta had three prizes in her Fall Into Fall Giveaway and my name was picked for this great book. As you can see from part of my stash (forgive the messy stack), I can certainly make use of these patterns.



Thanks, Danetta! The book is great!!

After being the fortunate recipient of these ladies’ generosity, I plan to participate in Debi's next giveaway and pass along the kindness.

Quilting bloggers are the nicest people!!!

Seasonal Sewing

Last week was a busy week of sewing gift goodies. I completed a spooky bookbag and a birthday apron. I forgot to take pictures of them before they were given.

One of my projects was a Halloween costume for our "granddog." Virginia is a beautiful Boston Terrier and she is so sweet to model her new costume! She is good girl, especially when cheese treats are involved!!!




The fall colors were calling me so I decided to use some of my autumn fabrics for a table runner as a gift. I am using this pattern from the Fat Quarter Shop. When I started piecing, I realized that I would be cutting off the triangles and not using them. So I started sewing them together. I got enough half squares and small hourglass blocks to make another table topper. I’m happy with the mixture of colors and patterns. I tend to be concerned that it is too busy…but looking at it makes me happy and it looks like the colors do in nature.
Here's the runner ready for the batting and backing.

There's a cold front on the way so I'm hoping for some rain and a real fall-feeling day tomorrow. Thanks for stopping by for a visit! Have a beautiful day.

Counting Down to Halloween

Another beautiful fall weekend with just a little wind and the promise of rain coming this week. I'm enjoying this fall so much as comfortable days and cool nights stretch on.

One of my projects reached its new owner so I can show it now. You've had peeks of the fabrics



Here is the finished little quilt. I used the pattern Spider Pumpkin from Fall 2008 Easy Quilts. I made the spider webs with Fun Fur yarn.



It's now in the mountains of North Carolina at the home of our older daughter, Amy. She has loved Halloween since she was little and we always had so much fun decorating and celebrating this historical holiday.

We are sad that the OU Sooners lost to Texas on Saturday. The Red River Rivalry is always a big fall event. Maggie and her husband (both OU grads) went to Texas for the game. Amy earned her Ph.D. at Vanderbilt so we are also cheering for the Commodores. Her husband has his Ph.D. from Tennessee so we also support the Vols who are struggling this year. Needless to say, football is one of our major fall interests. We're also big basketball fans as well. Watching games on tv is a great time to cut out quilt pieces or do some hand stitching :)

Today I'm finishing more of the little quilted Halloween baskets. I also have an apron to finish as a gift.

Have a great Monday. Thanks so much for stopping by for a visit.

Mellow Days

It's 70 degrees and the sun is shining. It's been several years since we've had such a beautiful fall in Oklahoma.

Last Friday, my daughter, Maggie, treated me to a visit to the Oklahoma City Museum of Art to see this exhibit.


It was amazing and we spent several hours looking, reading exhibit captions and admiring these beautiful works of art. We had lunch at the museum cafe and it was a wonderful day!!!

My sweetheart spent the weekend doing yard work and finished with washing the windows. Now I can see the sunshine and the trees through sparkling clean glass.
It's so nice to get everything done up just right!!

I finished one project and decided this morning to make one of the fabric baskets I'd been admiring on several blogs. Pink Penguin has a wonderful tutorial here. It is so easy to make with her excellent instructions. I will definitely make more.


I think this will be really cute to hold candy or other goodies.

I'm off to fix vegetable soup for supper. Hope your days are filled with sunshine and stitching.

Autumn Arrives!!!

There's a definite change in the air, nights are cool, and the warm days seem different! It's fall and it's my very favorite season!! I love the colors, the smells, the events and the feeling that the work of summer is over and it's time to gather in and ready our homes and hearts to snuggle in for the winter.

We've already celebrated our younger daughter's September birthday and will celebrate our older daughter's birthday in November. What perfect planning that God blessed us with both of our babies in the fall :)

My sweetheart and I went to the Oklahoma State Fair. We love walking around and looking especially at the exhibit halls with all the quilts and other needlework. Last weekend was our rural electric coop's annual meeting and dinner. We enjoy going and seeing family as well as listening to a gospel singing group. There's always a booth from a local church featuring handwork the church ladies sell to help their mission fund. I found a sweet set of kitchen towels decorated with cows...I collect cows for my kitchen. They were decorated with fabric paint but I had to feel to tell it wasn't stitchery. When I started to pay, the lady who made them showed me the blue ribbon she had won at her county fair for the beautiful job she did on these towels. She gave me the ribbon!!! I think these towels will have to be decorative and everytime I look at them I will think of that sweet lady.


Our home is beginning to look like fall as well.




My sewing room is stacked with Halloween and fall projects. Since these are surprises I'll have to show you through October once they have reached their new homes. I'm also working on more blazers. The ones I made earlier made "older daughter" very happy and that just makes my day :)

My next quilt project will be a baby quilt. Our niece and her husband are expecting their first child, a baby girl, in December. The mother-to-be has chosen yellow, green, light brown and maybe soft rose. I found this combination that I think would look good and match the color choices. I HAD to use the rose color since it fit a baby girl so well. I'm still considering the deep rose and darker print..I think they will be the "pop" but I don't want them to be too strong. What do you think?
The stripe will be the binding.






I plan to use this pattern called Flower Patch from Fall 2008 Easy Quilts magazine.



I'd appreciate any comments or suggestions on the fabric combination. Thanks for stopping by for a visit.

Celebrating 39 Years!!

My sweetheart and I celebrated our 39th anniversary on August 22. We celebrated by spending a few days in northwest Arkansas. We love to go to antique shops and flea markets and there are many in that area. We enjoy seeing things we remember from our childhood and occasionally we find something we must have. We always have to go to the AQ Chicken House for an excellent dinner. Here’s some of the “finds” that came home with me.

I love the gray-green of the plate. I collect pieces decorated with fruits and vegetables.

The yellow check and burgundy striped fabrics are vintage fabrics I found as well.

I really fell in love with these fabrics...they looked like fall to me.

History and historical sites are also a favorite of ours (I’m a retired history teacher) so we took time to visit Prairie Grove State Park…a Civil War battlefield. If any of you remember the mini-series, The Blue and the Gray, you have seen Prairie Grove since many of the scenes were filmed there. It was gray and rainy and set the mood perfectly for a site where there were so many casualties of war. From there we took the Trail of Tears route to Tahlequah, OK, the national capital of the Cherokee nation. Driving down the main street of Tahlequah, my sweetheart spotted this quilt shop. We went in and had a very nice visit.

Of course, I found some fat quarters to add to my collection.
What I love most about travel is coming home!!! I always say I’ll go anywhere as long as I can come home at night!!!

This week has been a time of catch-up and more sewing. We're looking forward to a relaxing Labor Day weekend. Hope all of you are enjoying the end of summer and happily stitching away!