An old dog CAN learn new tricks!

The classes with Annie at http://simplearts.com/blog/ is so good for me, although the blocks we've done so far, are ones I've done before, Annie is making me ***PIN EVERYTHING*** and ***SEW ACCURATE .25" SEAMS*** (AACCKKK) so this will be the most perfect quilt I've ever made, it's not all the way perfect, but it sure is a lot closer than anything I've ever made before!!! The class coming up today is hand applique, and I can't wait!! That is one thing I've never done, and I'm soooo anxious to learn. A couple of my blogging friends do such beautiful, stunning applique, and I've asked them for tips, but have never leaped over that log. Now is the time, I guess, and I'm ready! What a nice take-along project for the camper, or waiting rooms at Dr.'s offices, or road trips when I'm not driving. I like the machine applique just fine, but then again, you're tied to the machine, and although I LOVE Bessie, but she doesn't like traveling in the car, and it is nice to do a project on my own, I hope she understands....

And......whoa, Nelly!! Look what the mail lady brought me today! Aren't these little girls just the pretty kids on the block?

Kelly from http://kankerdoodle.blogspot.com/ sent these scraps because I was an "almost winner" again on one of her giveaways! she sure is a generous blogger, just look at all this loveliness!! I'm positive she looked into my heart and found some of my favorite fabrics to send!! Don't you think these beauties will play nicely in my scrapbox?

Hope all your scraps are finding new friends to play with!

lyn

Bloggers Quilt Festival

I'm so excited to be in on the Blogger's Quilt Festival again! The last one gave me hours and hours of eye candy!! If you didn't participate last spring, try it now, click on the box on my sidebar and get a pot of coffee or tea on, you're in for a great ride!

In my estimation, it is so hard to pick a quilt to enter, each one has such a unique feeling, and like babies, it is hard to pick the "best." So, I decided to pick the latest. This is my blue Country Crossroads. I saw the pattern in a book at the library, and kinda drew it out on the back of a grocery reciept. I wrote "Country Crossroads" on the reciept, so that must be the name of the quilt in the book, or it could have been the name of the book...???...with me, you never know.

I had tried freehand stitching with the machine in the past. It was not an enjoyable experience, to say the least. I got sooo frustrated. But when it came to quilting this little deary, I just could not justify straight stitching a grid on her, with all the squares, she had so many sharp corners already, I felt she needed some curves to soften her up. I decided to freehand with a little guide line. Got out my trusty tools, (if you use a yogurt cup with a technical look on your face, you can call it a "tool") and marked each of the larger squares...

now, mind you, I have never been a leap-er...I usually just don't go off on new tangents, I'm normally a one-trick-pony when it comes to freehanding, and leave it to the "better quilters" to fight the big lions...but this time, I leapt!
And lo and behold, I liked it. Really! I guess old dogs actually CAN learn new tricks. I think the difference was, I was more patient, and I had some sort of control by using guide lines. I accepted all the little crooked parts as "personality" and I think they honestly softened the strict lines of the pattern. I'm already thinking about what I could do with the scrappy "Jacks" that I'm doing next.

And, like a scrumptious dessert, Look what came in the mail from Maria at http://allmomasquilt.blogspot.com/ for the Friendship Bag Swap. The wonderful bag was expertly made, and is right now being used to hold our Gold Ribbons that are completed! It came with a couple sweet treats, oh, girls, DANISH CHOCOLATE!! need I say that was gone before any grandbabies could lay eyes on it? tee hee It was sooo delicious! Thank you, to my new friend, I will love using it! Hop over to Marie's to see all of her eye candy, she is so sweet, herself**

These are the fabrics I've pulled for the Quilting 101 classes I won. The bird fabric was left over from the new curtains in the camper, I bought TONS of it, waaayyy too much, so I thought this would be a good way to use more of it up. You'll find it in all of my scrappy quilts, cuz it goes with everything.

The first class was easy peasy, I have not gotten my book yet, from Amazon, but I really didn't need it for the first class. Annie, at http://simplearts.com/blogs/, is so patient and thorough, if you're interested in some on-line classes, you really should check her out.

Hope you all have fun in the Festival!

lyn